CHAPTER I. 1. When duke Wan of T'ang was heir-son, being on a journey to Ts'oo he passed by [the capital of] Sung, and had an interview with Mencius.

2. Mencius discoursed to him how the nature of man is good, and, in speaking, made laudatory appeal to Yaou and Shun.

3. When the heir-son was returning from Ts'oo, he again saw Mencius, when the latter said to him, "Prince, do you doubt my words? The path is one, and only one.

The TITLE OF THE BOOK is taken from duke Wån of Tăng, who is prominent in the first three chapters of it. Wăn of course is the honorary or sacrificial title which he received after his death. We have already met with him in confidential intercourse with Mencius, in chapters xiii. to xv. of Book I. Part II., the date of which must be subsequent to that of the chapters in this Book. Chaou K'e compares the title of this Book with

that of the 15th Book of the Analects.

CH. I. THAT ALL MEN BY DEVELOPING THEIR NATURAL GOODNESS MAY BECOME EQUAL TO THE ANCIENT SAGES. ADDRESSED BY MENCIUS TO THE HEIR-SON OF T'ANG.

Par. 1. "Heir-son," and "eldest son" were applied indifferently to the eldest sons, or the declared successors, of the kings and feudal princes during the Chow dynasty. Since the Han dynasty, "heir-son" has been discontinued as a denomination of the eldest son of the emperor, the crown prince. Mencius at this time was in the State of Sung, and some have tried to fix the date of the chapter to B.C. 317. Ts'oo had so far extended its territories to the north, that it was there conterminous with Tăng; but as the Jrince would be going to its capital it would not take him much out of his way to go through Sung. Possibly that route was the most convenient for bira to take, though the language of the text would seem to be intended to give us the idea that he took it in order that he might see Mencius.

Par. 2. For the full exposition of Mencius' doctrine of the goodness of human nature, see Book VI.

Par. 3. We must suppose that Mencius had been told that the prince doubted the correctness of what he had said at their former interview; or it may be, the remark here preserved occurred in the course of a conversation, of the previous part of which we have no record. "The way is one and only one" probably means the way of human duty, the course to which Mencius felt that he ought to call all who wished to learn of him.

4. "Ch'ing Kan said to duke King of Ts'e, 'They were men, [and] I am a man ;—why should I stand in awe of them?' Yeu Yuen said, 'What kind of man was Shun? What kind of man am I? He who exerts himself will also become such as he was.' Kung-ming E said, 'King Wăn is my teacher and model;-how should the duke of Chow deceive me [by these words] ?'

5. "Now Tăng, taking its length with its breadth, will amount to about fifty square le. [Though small,] it may still be made a good kingdom. It is said in the Book of History, 'If medicine do not distress the patient, it will not cure his sickness.'"

II. 1. When duke Ting of Tăng died, the heir-son said to Jen Yew, "Formerly, Mencius spoke with me in Sung, and I have never forgotten his words. Now, alas! this great affair [of the death of my father] has happened, and I wish to send you, Sir, to ask Mencius, and then to proceed to the services [connected with it]."

2. Jen Yew [accordingly] proceeded to Tsow, and consulted Mencius. Mencius said, "Is not this good? The mourning rites for parents are what men feel constrained to do their utmost in. The philosopher Tsăng said, 'When parents are alive, they should be served according to [the

Par. 4. Mencius here fortifies himself with the opinions of other worthies. Of Ch'ing Kan we know nothing but what we read here. Whom he intended by "they we cannot well say. Yen Yuen was the favourite disciple of Confucius. Kung-ming E was a great officer of Loo, a disciple, first, of Tsze-chang, and afterwards of Tsång-tsze. The remark about king Wan's being his model and teacher would seem to have been made by the duke of Chow.

Par. 5. "A good kingdom" is such an one as is described in ch. iii. For the quotation from the Book of History, see the Shoo, IV. viii. Pt I. 8. Mencius would seem to say that his lesson was all the more likely to be beneficial, because it had perplexed and disturbed the prince.

CH. II. HOW MENCIUS ADVISED THE PRINCE OF TĂNG TO CONDUCT THE MOURNING FOR HIS FATHER WITH EVERY DEMONSTRATION OF GRIEF.

Par. 1. Duke Ting was the father of duke Wan, the heir-son of last chapter. Ting was his honorary epithet. Jen Yew had been the prince's tutor.

Par. 2. On children's feeling constrained to do their utmost in the mourning rites for their parents, -see Ana. XIX. xvii.

The remarks here attributed to Tsång-tsze were at first addressed by Confucius to another disciple. Tsang may have appropriated them, so that

and

rules of] propriety; when dead, they should be buried, they should be sacrificed to, according to the same :—this may be called filial piety.' I have not learned [for myself] the ceremonies to be observed by the feudal princes, but nevertheless I have heard these points :-Three years' mourning, with the wearing the garment of coarse cloth with its lower edge even, and the eating of thin congee, have been equally prescribed by the three dynasties, and are binding on all, from the son of Heaven to the common people."

3. Jen Yew reported the execution of his commission, and [the prince] determined that the three years' mourning should be observed. His uncles and elder cousins, and the body of the officers, did not wish it, and said, "The former rulers of Loo, the State which we honour, have, none of them, observed this mourning, nor have any of our own former rulers observed it. For you to change their practice is improper; and moreover, the History says, 'In mourning and sacrifice ancestors are to be followed,' meaning that we have received those things from a [proper] source.'

4. [The prince again] said to Jen Yew," Hitherto I have not given myself to the pursuit of learning, but have found my pleasure in driving my horses and in sword-exercise. Now my uncles and elder cousins and the body of officers

they came to be regarded as his own; or Mencius here makes a slip of memory. I suppose that Mencius means to say that he could not speak of the mourning rites of the princes from personal observation; but he could speak of the observances which were common to prince and peasant. “The three years' mourning,"- -see Ana. XVII. xxi. "The garment of coarse cloth with the lower edge even " was that appropriate to the mourning for a mother, and less intense than that used in mourning for a father, when the lower edge was all frayed, as if chopped with a hatchet. It would appear, however, that either of the phrases might be used to denote mourning of the deepest kind ;-see Ana. IX. ix.

Par. 3. The lords of Tång were descended from Shuh-sëw, one of the sons of king Wăn, but by an inferior wife, while the duke of Chow, the ancestor of Loo, was in the true royal line; and hence all the other States ruled by descendants of king Wan were supposed to look up to Loo. But we are not to suppose that the early princes of Loo and of Tăng had not observed the mourning for three years. The remonstrants were wrong in attributing to them the neglect of later rulers. What "History "Record" they refer to we cannot tell. The last clause of the paragraph is not by any means clear. Chaou K'e mentions a view of it, which I have felt strongly inclined to adopt : [The prince] said, 'I have received my view

from a [proper] source.'

or

Par. 4. In the quotations from Confucius, Mencius has blended different

are not satisfied with me. I am afraid I may not be able to carry out [this] great business; do you, Sir, [again go and ask Mencius for me." Jen Yew went again to Tsow, and consulted Mencius, who said, "Yes, but this is not a. matter in which he has to look to any one but himself. Confucius said, 'When a ruler died, his successor entrusted the administration to the prime minister. He sipped the congee, and his face looked very dark. He went to the [proper] place, and wept. Of all the officers and inferior employés there was not one who did not dare not to be sad, when [the prince thus] set them the example. What the superior loves, his inferiors will be found to love still more. The relation between superiors and inferiors is like that between the wind and the grass. The grass must bend when the wind blows upon it.' The [whole thing] depends on the heir-son."

5. Jen Yew returned with this answer to his commission, and the prince said, "Yes; it does indeed depend on me.” For five months he dwelt in the shed, and did not issue an order or a caution. The body of officers and his relatives

places in the Analects together, or enlarged them to suit his own purpose ;see Ana. XIV. xliii. ; XII. xix.

Par. 5. "The shed" was built of boards and straw, outside the centre door of the palace, against the surrounding wall, and this the mourning prince tenanted till the interment,-see the Le Ke, XXII. ii. 16. Choo He, at the close of his notes on this chapter, introduces the following remarks from the commentator Lin Che-k'e :-"In the time of Mencius, although the rites to the dead had fallen into neglect, yet the three years' mourning, with the sorrowing heart and afflictive grief, being the expression of what really belongs to man's mind, had not quite perished. Only, sunk in the slough of manners becoming more and more corrupt, men were losing all their moral nature without being conscious of it. When duke Wăn saw Mencius, and heard him speak of the goodness of man's nature, and of Yaou and Shun, that was the occasion of moving and bringing forth his better heart; and, on this occasion of the death of his father, he felt sincerely all the stirrings of sorrow and grief. Then, moreover, when his older relatives and his officers wished not to act as he desired, he turned inwards to reprove himself, and lamented his former conduct which made him not be believed in his present course, not presuming to blame his officers and relatives—although we must concede an extraordinary natural excellence and ability to him, yet his energy in learning must not be impeached. Finally, when we consider with what decision he acted at last, and how all, near and far, who saw and heard him, were delighted to acknowledge and admire his conduct, we have an instance of how, when that which belongs to all men's minds is in the first place exhibited by one, others are brought, without any previous purpose, to the pleased acknowledgment and approval

[said], "He may be pronounced acquainted [with all the ceremonies]." When the time of interment arrived, they came from all quarters to see it, with the deep dejection of his countenance, and the mournfulness of his wailing and weeping. Those who [had come from other States to] condole with him were greatly pleased.

III. 1. Duke Wăn of Tăng asked [Mencius] about [the proper way of] governing a State.

2. Mencius said, "The business of the people must not be remissly attended to. It is said in the Book of Poetry,

'In the daytime collect the grass,

And at night twist it into ropes.

Then get up quickly on our roofs :—

We shall have to recommence our sowing.'

3. "The way of the people is this:-Those who have a certain livelihood have a fixed heart, and those who have not a certain livelihood have not a fixed heart. If they have not a fixed heart, there is nothing which they will not do in the way of self-abandonment, of moral deflection, of depravity, and of wild license. When they have thus been involved in crime, to follow them up and punish them is to entrap the people. How can such a thing as entrapping the people be done under the rule of a benevolent man?

of it is not this a proof that it is indeed true that [the nature of man] is good? ?"

CH. III. MENCIUS' LESSONS TO DUKE WAN OF TĂNG FOR THE GOVERNMENT OF HIS STATE. AGRICULTURE AND EDUCATION ARE THE CHIEF POINTS TO BE ATTENDED TO. THE FORMER INDEED IS FUNDAMENTAL TO PROSPERITY, AND A STATE PROSPEROUS BY ITS AGRICULTURE IS THE PROPER FIELD FOR THE APPLIANCES OF EDUCATION.

Par. 1. We must suppose that the three years of mourning have passed, and that the heir-son has fully taken his position as marquis of Tăng, one of his first measures having been to get Mencius to come to his State.

Par. 2. By "the business of the people" we must understand agriculture. The promotion of this required the attention of the government before all other things. That promotion would involve the establishment of the agricultural system of the State on the best principles.

For the lines of poetry, see the She, I. xv. I. 7. They are not much to the point; but the whole ode to which they belong is understood as showing how attention to agriculture was the chief thing required in the kings of Chow.

Par. 3. See I. Pt I. vii. 20. This paragraph shows how essential it was