"Alas for my child on service abroad!
He never in sleep shuts an eye.
May he careful be, and come back to me!
In the wild may his body not lie!"

eye

3 Up the lofty ridge I, toiling, ascend,
And towards my brother I gaze,
Till with my mind's his form I espy,
And mind's ear hears how he says:-
my
"Alas! my young brother, serving abroad,
All day with his comrades must roam.
May he careful be, and come back to me,
And die not away from his home!"

V.

The Shih mom che këen; narrative.

OF WEI.

THE STRAITS OF THE PEASANTRY

In versifying this short piece, I have followed the view of Choo, who thinks that in the 3rd line of each verse a worthy officer, disgusted with the irregularities of the court, proposes to a companion to withdraw to a quiet life among the mulberry trees in the country.

1 Among their ten acres of mulberry trees,

The planters move idly about at their ease.

"Ho! back," says a courtier," and let us join these!"

2 Beyond their ten acres of mulberry trees, The planters move idly about at their ease. "Away," says a courtier, "and join us with these!"

VI.

The Fah t'an: allusive. AGAINST THE IDLE AND GREEDY MINISTERS OF THE STATE. CONTRAST BETWEEN THEM AND A STALWART WOODMAN.

1 K'an-k'an upon the sandal trees

The woodman's strokes resound.
Then on the bank he lays the trunks
His axe brings to the ground;
The while the stream goes rippling by,
Its waters cool and clear.

You work not so, O Wei's great men,
From me the truth now hear.

You sow no seed; no harvest tasks
Your soft hands take in charge;
And yet each boasts three hundred farms,
And stores the produce large.

You never join the hunt's halloo,
Nor dare to share its toils;
Yet lo! your wide courtyards are seen
Hung round with badgers' spoils.
I must conclude that woodman rude
A man of higher style.
To eat the bread of idleness

He feels would stamp him vile.

2 K'an-k'an upon the sandal wood

The woodman's strokes resound,
Then by the river's side he lays
What fit for spokes is found;
The while the river onward flows,
Its waters clear and smooth.
You work not so, O Wei's great men,
From me now hear the truth.-
You sow no seed; no harvest tasks
Your dainty fingers stain;

And yet each boasts three million sheaves;—
Whence gets he all that grain?

You never join the hunt's halloo,
Nor brave its ventures bold;
Yet lo! your wide courtyards display
Those boars of three years old.

I must conclude that woodman rude
A man of higher style.

To eat the bread of idleness

He feels would stamp him vile.

3 K'an-k'an resound the woodman's strokes Upon the sandal wood;

Then on the river's lip he lays

What for his wheels is good;

The while the river onward flows,

Soft rippled by the wind.

That you don't work, O Wei's great men,

Is thus brought to my mind.

You sow no seed; no harvest tasks
Your soft hands undertake;

Yet grain each boasts, three hundred binns ;--
Who his that grain did make?

You never join the hunt's halloo;
Your feeble courage fails;

Yet lo! your wide courtyards display
Large strings of slaughtered quails.
I must conclude that woodman rude
A man of higher style.

To eat the bread of idleness

He feels would stamp him vile.

VII.

The Shih shoo; metaphorical. AGAINST THE OPPRESSION AND EXTORTION OF THE GOVERNMENT OF WEI.

1 Large rats, large rats, let us entreat
That you our millet will not eat.

But the large rats we mean are you,

With whom three years we've had to do,
And all that time have never known
One look of kindness on us thrown.
We take our leave of Wei and you;
That happier land we long to view.
O happy land! O happy land!

There in our proper place we'll stand.

2 Large rats, large rats, let us entreat
You'll not devour our crops of wheat.
But the large rats we mean are you,
With whom three years we've had to do;
And all that time you never wrought
One kindly act to cheer our lot.
To you and Wei we bid farewell,
Soon in that happier State to dwell.
O happy State! O happy State !
There shall we learn to bless our fate.

3 Large rats, large rats, let us entreat
Our springing grain you will not eat.

But the large rats we mean are you,
With whom three years we've had to do.
From you
there came not all that while
One word of comfort 'mid our toil.
We take our leave of you and Wei;
And to those happier coasts we flee.
O happy coasts, to you we wend!
There shall our groans and sorrows end.

BOOK X.

THE ODES OF T'ANG.

THE odes of T'ang were the odes of Tsin,-the greatest, perhaps, of the fiefs of Chow, until the rise and growth of Ts'in. King Ching, in B.C. 1106, invested his youngest brother, called Shuh-yu, with the territory where Yaou was supposed to have ruled anciently as the marquis of T'ang;in the present department of T'ae-yuen, Shan-se, the fief retaining that ancient name. In the south of the territory was the river Tsin, and Shihfoo, the son of Shuh-yu, gave its name to the marquisate. The soil, it is said, was thin and the people poor; but they were diligent, thrifty, and plain in their ways, thinking deeply and forecasting. It is difficult to say why the name of the State, which had gone into disuse, should be given to the collection of its poems. The State of Tsin developed greatly, having the Ho as its boundary on the west, and extending nearly to it on the south and east.

I.

The Sih-tsuh; narrative. THE CHEERFULNESS AND DISCRETION OF THE PEOPLE OF TSIN, AND THEIR TEMPERED ENJOYMENT AT FITTING SEASONS.

1

2

The cricket appears in the hall,

And towards its close draws the year.
Then let us to-day to pleasure give way,
Ere the days and months disappear.
But duty should have our first thought;
Indulgence we strictly must bound.
Take heed lest the joy our reason destroy :-
The good man looks out and around.

The cricket appears in the hall,

And the year is fast passing on.

Then let us to-day to pleasure give way,
Ere the days and months shall be gone.
But some things our care still demand;
Against all excess we must guard.
Take heed lest the joy our reason destroy:-
The good man thinks no toil too hard.

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