Hampden Coit DuBose
Encyclopedia
Hampden Coit DuBosehttp://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~heplerroberts/p161.htm#i27405 was a Presbyterian missionary
in China
with the American Presbyterian Mission (South)
and founder of the Anti-Opium League in China.
and a graduated from Columbia Theological Seminary
. He and his wife Pauline went to China as missionaries with the Southern Presbyterian Church
in 1872 and settled in Suzhou
along the Grand Canal of China.
As a witness of the destructive problems of opium
addiction in China, he was moved to join with other likeminded missionaries and Christian medical workers to form the Anti-Opium League in China. DuBose was its first president. In 1899 the League published a seminal book called Opinions of Over 100 Physicians on the Use of Opium in China. The book illustrated the purpose of the league and published facts about the opium
abuse crisis that ultimately influenced public opinion against the trade. DuBose eventually gained the support of U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt
, the U.S. Congress, and the International Opium Commission
. In 1906 the League achieved success when the British Parliament declared that the trade was "morally indefensible." DuBose circulated a petition signed by over a thousand missionaries in China and it was presented to the Guangxu Emperor
. In turn the Emperor issued an imperial edict, following verbatim the petition Dubose had drafted, which prohibited the trade and abuse of opium.
In a letter to U.S. Senator John McLaurin he called upon the U.S. to own its responsibility for the opium trade, in that, along with Great Britain it had profited at the expense of the Chinese. He asserted: .
DuBose was memorialized in Suzhou by a stone tablet and in the United States
by being elected moderator of the General Assembly of the Southern Presbyterian Church
in 1891. DuBose’s missionary career in Suzhou lasted 38 years until his death in 1910.
Mission (Christian)
Christian missionary activities often involve sending individuals and groups , to foreign countries and to places in their own homeland. This has frequently involved not only evangelization , but also humanitarian work, especially among the poor and disadvantaged...
in China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
with the American Presbyterian Mission (South)
American Southern Presbyterian Mission
American Southern Presbyterian Mission was an American Presbyterian missionary society of the Southern Presbyterian Church that was involved in sending workers to countries such as China during the late Qing Dynasty...
and founder of the Anti-Opium League in China.
Career
DuBose was born in South CarolinaSouth Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
and a graduated from Columbia Theological Seminary
Columbia Theological Seminary
Columbia Theological Seminary is one of the ten theological institutions affiliated with the Presbyterian Church . It is located in Decatur, Georgia. Dr. Stephen A. Hayner is the seminary's president.-Description:...
. He and his wife Pauline went to China as missionaries with the Southern Presbyterian Church
Presbyterian Church in the United States
The Presbyterian Church in the United States was a Protestant Christian denomination in the Southern and border states of the United States that existed from 1861 to 1983...
in 1872 and settled in Suzhou
Suzhou
Suzhou , previously transliterated as Su-chou, Suchow, and Soochow, is a major city located in the southeast of Jiangsu Province in Eastern China, located adjacent to Shanghai Municipality. The city is situated on the lower reaches of the Yangtze River and on the shores of Taihu Lake and is a part...
along the Grand Canal of China.
As a witness of the destructive problems of opium
Opium
Opium is the dried latex obtained from the opium poppy . Opium contains up to 12% morphine, an alkaloid, which is frequently processed chemically to produce heroin for the illegal drug trade. The latex also includes codeine and non-narcotic alkaloids such as papaverine, thebaine and noscapine...
addiction in China, he was moved to join with other likeminded missionaries and Christian medical workers to form the Anti-Opium League in China. DuBose was its first president. In 1899 the League published a seminal book called Opinions of Over 100 Physicians on the Use of Opium in China. The book illustrated the purpose of the league and published facts about the opium
Opium
Opium is the dried latex obtained from the opium poppy . Opium contains up to 12% morphine, an alkaloid, which is frequently processed chemically to produce heroin for the illegal drug trade. The latex also includes codeine and non-narcotic alkaloids such as papaverine, thebaine and noscapine...
abuse crisis that ultimately influenced public opinion against the trade. DuBose eventually gained the support of U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt was the 26th President of the United States . He is noted for his exuberant personality, range of interests and achievements, and his leadership of the Progressive Movement, as well as his "cowboy" persona and robust masculinity...
, the U.S. Congress, and the International Opium Commission
International Opium Commission
The International Opium Commission was a meeting convened in 1909 in Shanghai that represented one of the first steps toward international drug prohibition. Dr. Hamilton Wright and Episcopal Bishop Charles Henry Brent headed the U.S. delegation...
. In 1906 the League achieved success when the British Parliament declared that the trade was "morally indefensible." DuBose circulated a petition signed by over a thousand missionaries in China and it was presented to the Guangxu Emperor
Guangxu Emperor
The Guangxu Emperor , born Zaitian of the Aisin-Gioro clan, was the eleventh emperor of the Manchurian Qing Dynasty, and the ninth Qing emperor to rule over China. His reign lasted from 1875 to 1908, but in practice he ruled, under Empress Dowager Cixi's influence, only from 1889 to 1898...
. In turn the Emperor issued an imperial edict, following verbatim the petition Dubose had drafted, which prohibited the trade and abuse of opium.
DuBose was memorialized in Suzhou by a stone tablet and in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
by being elected moderator of the General Assembly of the Southern Presbyterian Church
Presbyterian Church in the United States
The Presbyterian Church in the United States was a Protestant Christian denomination in the Southern and border states of the United States that existed from 1861 to 1983...
in 1891. DuBose’s missionary career in Suzhou lasted 38 years until his death in 1910.
Works auhored
- Hampden Coit DuBose, Preaching in Sinim: The Gospel to the Gentiles, with Hints and Helps for Addressing a Heathen Audience (1873)
- Hampden Coit DuBose, The Image, the Dragon, and the Demon: Or the Three Religions of China Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism (1887)
- Hampden Coit DuBose, Memoirs of Dr. J. Leighton Wilson (1895)
- Hampden Coit DuBose, sermons (Chinese languageChinese languageThe Chinese language is a language or language family consisting of varieties which are mutually intelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the branches of Sino-Tibetan family of languages...
) - Hampden Coit DuBose, Bible study aids (Chinese language)
See also
- Benjamin BroomhallBenjamin BroomhallBenjamin Broomhall was a British advocate of foreign missions, administrator of the China Inland Mission, and author. Broomhall served as the General Secretary of the China Inland Mission ,...
Anti-opium activist in England