profitable their course is to them."

Master," said Mencius, "your aim is great, but your argument is not good,

5. "If you, starting from the point of profit, offer your persuasive counsels to the kings of Tsin and Ts'oo, and if those kings are pleased with the consideration of profit so as to stop the movements of their armies, then all belonging to those armies will rejoice in the cessation of war, and find their pleasure in the pursuit of profit. Ministers will serve their sovereign for the profit of which they cherish the thought; sons will serve their fathers, and younger brothers will serve their elder brothers, from the same consideration :—and the issue will be, that, abandoning benevolence and righteousness, sovereign and minister, father and son, younger brother and elder, will carry on all their intercourse with this thought of profit cherished in their breasts. But never has there been such a state of society, without ruin being the result of it.

6. "If you, starting from the ground of benevolence and righteousness, offer your counsels to the kings of Ts'in and Ts'oo, and if those kings are pleased with the consideration of benevolence and righteousness so as to stop the operations of their armies, then all belonging to those armies will rejoice in the stopping from war, and find their pleasure in benevolence and righteousness. Ministers will serve their sovereign, cherishing the principles of benevolence and righteousness; sons will serve their fathers, and younger brothers will serve their elder brothers, in the same way:-and so, sovereign and minister, father and son, elder brother and younger, abandoning the thought of profit, will cherish the principles of benevolence and righteousness, and carry on all their intercourse upon them. But never has there been such a state of society, with out the State where it prevailed rising to imperial sway. Why must you use that word 'profit.'"

V. 1. When Mencius was residing in Tsow, the younger brother of the chief of Jin, who was guardian of Jin at the time, paid his respects to him by a present of silks, which Mencius received, not going to acknowledge it. When he was sojourning in Ping-luh, Ch'oo, who was prime minister of the State, sent him a similar present, which he received in the same way.

2. Subsequently, going from Tsow to Jin, he visited the guardian, but when he went from Ping-luh to the capital of Ts'e, he did not visit the minister Ch'oo. The disciple Uh-loo was glad, and said, “I have got an opportunity to obtain some instruction."

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3. He asked accordingly, " Master, when you went to Jin, you visited the chief's brother, and when you went to Ts'e, you did not visit Ch'oo. Was it not because he is only the minister?"

4. Mencius replied, "No. It is said in the Book of History, 'In presenting an offering to a superior, most depends on the demonstrations of respect. If those demonstrations are not equal to the things offered, we say there is no offering, that is, there is no act of the will in presenting the offering.'

5. "This is because the things so offered do not constitute an offering to a superior."

6. Uh-loo was pleased, and when some one asked him what Mencius meant, he said, "The younger of Jin could not go to Tsow, but the minister of Ch'oo might have gone to Ping-luh.

VI. 1. Shun-yu K'wan said, "He who makes fame and meritorious services his first objects, acts with a regard to others. He who makes them only secondary objects, acts with a regard to himself. You, master, were ranked among the three chief ministers of the State, but before your fame and services had reached either to the prince or the people, you have left your place. Is this indeed the way of the benevolent?"

2. Mencius replied, "There was Pih-e;-he abode in an inferior situation, and would not, with his virtue, serve a degenerate prince, There was E Yin ;-he five times went to T'ang, and five times went to Kee. There was Hwuy of Lew-hea;-he did not disdain to serve a vile prince, nor did he decline a small office. The courses pursued by those three worthies were different but their aim was one. And what was their one aim? We must answer-To be perfectly virtuous.' And so it is simply after this that superior men strive. Why must they all pursue the same course?”

3. Kwan pursued, "In the time of the duke Muh of Loo, the government was in the hands of Kung-e, while Tsze-lew and Tsze-sze were ministers. And yet, the dismemberment of Loo then increased exceedingly. Such was the case, a specimen how your men of virtue are of no advantage to a kingdom!"

4. Mencius said," The prince of Yu did not use Pihle He, and thereby lost his State. The duke Muh of Ts'in used him, and became chief of all the princes. Ruin is the consequence of not employing men of virtue and talents;-how can it rest with dismemberment merely ?"

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5. Kwan urged again, "Formerly, when Wang P'aou dwelt on the K'e, the people on the west of the Yellow River all became skilful at singing in his abrupt manWhen Meen K'eu lived in Kaou-tang, the people in the parts of Ts'e on the west became skilful at singing in his prolonged manner. The wives of Hwa Chow and Ke Leang bewailed their husbands so skilfully, that they changed the manners of the State. When there is the gift within, it manifests itself without. I have never seen the man who could do the deeds of a worthy, and did not realize the work of one. Therefore there are now no men of talents and virtue. If there were, I should know them."

6. Mencius answered, "When Confucius was chief minister of Justice in Loo, the prince came not to fol low his counsels. Soon after was the solsticial sacrifice, and when a part of the flesh presented in sacrifice was not sent to him, he went away even without taking off his cap of ceremony. Those who did not know him supposed it was on account of the flesh. Those who knew him supposed that it was on account of the neglect of the usual ceremony. The fact was, that Confucius wanted to go away on occasion of some small offence, not wishing to do so without some apparent cause. All men may not be expected to understand the conduct of a superior man."

VII. 1. Mencius said, "The five chiefs of the princes were sinners against the three kings. The princes of the present day are sinners against the five chiefs. The great officers of the present day are sinners against the princes.

2. "The emperor visited the princes, which was called 'A tour of inspection.' The princes attended at the court of the emperor, which was called Giving a report of office.' It was a custom in the spring to examine the ploughing, and supply any deficiency of seed, and in autumn to examine the reaping, and assist where there was a deficiency of the crop. When the emperor entered the boundaries of a State, if the new ground was being reclaimed, and the old fields well cultivated; if the old were nourished and the worthy honoured; and if men of distingushed talents were placed in office: then the prince was rewarded,-rewarded with an addition to his territory. On the other hand, if, or entering a State, the ground was found left wild or overrun with weeds; if the old were neglected and the worthy unhonoured; and if the offices were filled with hard tax-gatherers: then the prince was reprimanded. If a prince once omitted his attendance at court, he

was punished by degradation of rank; if he did so a second time, he was deprived of a portion of his territory; if he did so a third time, the imperial forces were set in motion, and he was removed from his government. Thus the emperor commanded the punishment, but did not himself inflict it, while the princes inflicted the punisl:ment, but did not command it. The five chiefs, however, dragged the princes to punish other princes, and hence I say that they were sinners against the three kings.

3. "Of the five chiefs the most powerful was the duke Hwan. At the assembly of the princes in K‘weik'ew, he bound the victim and placed the writing upon it, but did not slay it to smear their mouths with the blood. The first injunction in their agreement was,'Slay the unfilial; change not the son who has been appointed heir; exalt not a concubine to the rank of wife.' The second was,-Honour the worthy, and maintain the talented, to give distinction to the vir tuous,' The third was,-'Respect the old, and be kind to the young. Be not forgetful of strangers and travellers.' The fourth was,- Let not offices be hereditary, nor let officers be pluralists. In the selection of officers let the object be to get the proper men. Let not a ruler take it on himself to put to death a great officer.' The fifth was,- Follow no crooked policy in making embankments. Impose no restrictions on the sale of grain. Let there be no promotions without first announcing them to the emperor.' It was then said, 'All we who have united in this agreement shall hereafter maintain amicable relations.' The princes of the present day all violate these five prohibitions, and therefore I say that the princes of the present day are sinners against the five chiefs.

4. "The crime of him who connives at, and aids, the wickedness of his prince is small, but the crime of him