CHINI '■r^ £*^* m^*i ^A I S JL* V/ , iW 1^4 ^ . <§p Qforncll Untuctoitg Slibrarg Jtljara, 3Jtni Jlorit CHARLES WILLIAM WASON COLLECTION CHINA AND THE CHINESE THE GIFT OF CHARLES WILLIAM WASON CLASS OF 1876 1918 Cornell University Library GR 335.M14 Chinese folk-lore / 3 1924 023 266 533 The original of this book is in the Cornell University Library. There are no known copyright restrictions in the United States on the use of the text. http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924023266533 [all rights reserved] Chinese Folk-Lore Chinese Folk-Lore BY THE REV. J. MACGOWAN AUTHOR OF "CHRIST OR CONFUCIUS: WHICH?", 'PICTURES OF SOUTHERN CHINA," "IMPERIAL HISTORY OF CHINA,' "ENGLISH AND CHINESE DICTIONARY OF THE AMOY DIALECT," "SIDELIGHTS ON CHINESE LIFE." "LIGHTS AND SHADOWS OF CHINESE LIFE," ETC. SHANGHAI North-China Di\ily | News, & Herald Ltd. i 910 CONTENTS PAGE I. — A Chapter on Fairies i II- — The Infamous Chow Sin and the Beautiful T'A Kl - 12 III. — The Fairy and the Pear Seller - 24 IV. — The Love Adventures of the Fox Fairy, Prince Hu : 29 V. — Yu Kong the Athlete - 41 VI. — Li, the Man with the Iron Staff 49 VII. — Wong Sing; or, How the Fortunes of a Royal Family were restored by a Fairy 63 VIII.— The Stirring Adventures of the Scholar Wang 77 IX. — The Mysterious Peach 89 X. — The Strange Adventures of the Scholar Siu 103 XI. — The Romantic Story of the Phojnix Fairy 113 XII. — Mr. Tang, the Filial Son - 127 XIII. — Soat-Lip and the Youthful Fairy 140 XIV. — The King of the Nine Mountains 152 XV. — The Fairy Scholar 166 XVI.— Phcenix, the Beautiful Fox Fairy 177 XVII. — The Scholar Hai, and the Fairy Songster, Lady Kwey 187 XVIII. — Mr. Wang and the Taoist Abbott 199 XIX. — The King of the Snakes - 212 XX. — How an Expectant Prime Minister was Cured of his Ambition by the Ingenious Device of a Fairy 225 Chinese Folk-Lore A CHAPTER ON FAIRIES. The Chinese have the most profound belief in the existence of fairies. In their imagination, the hills and the mountains that are supposed to be the favourite resorts of these mysterious beings are all peopled with them, and from there they descend into the plains, and mingling in the guise of men and women amongst the masses of this Empire carry out their benevolent purposes in aiding the distressed and the forlorn. The conceptions that people generally have about them are necessarily of a vague and indefinite character. They are fully convinced, however, that they are highly intelligent and with large and loving sympathies for everything human, and they also believe just as strongly that they have played an active part in connection with men during all the centuries •of the past, and that, in the great crises through which men have been called to pass, they have made it a point to be present to help men come through their trials and to survive the calamities that might otherwise have destroyed them. During the changes of dynasties, and in times of revolution and anarchy when men's lives are accounted of little value, these benign beings are supposed specially to manifest themselves to aid as far as possible in alleviating human misery and in suggesting modes of escape from impending disasters. Many names of benevolent fairies are mentioned who have thus appeared and who have distinguished themselves by the active part they have taken in times of great peril to 2 Fairies the men of the Middle Kingdom. Lau-tze is one of these. By ordinary historians he is looked upon simply as a great man who was born about the close of the sixth century B.C., and who became the founder of the Taoist system of philo- sophy. The romancists, however, and the students of fairy lore have a very different theory about him. They declare that he was originally a fairy, and that on several occasions he left the Western Heaven and became a man, in order that he might rescue men from the sorrows that the bad govern- ment of some vicious and unprincipled king was bringing on the country. They appeal to his very name as an evidence that he did not enter into life as ordinary mortals do. Lau-tze translated into English means the aged son; for that most veracious thing, tradition, positively affirms that eighty-one years elapsed before his mother could give him birth, and that when finally he was born the hair with which his head was covered was as white as snow, whilst three wrinkles furrowed his forehead and gave him a prematurely old appearance. That Lau-tze had various incarnations is very widely believed by the readers of fairy lore. It is positively asserted for example that he appeared during the latter days of the Sheng dynasty (B.C. 1766-1121), when the unprincipled conduct of its last king was causing rebellion among his nobles, and alienation of heart among his people generally. In the interests of the nation as a whole, Lau-tze had no hesitation whatever in espousing the popular side, and it is believed that he not only gave valuable advice to Prince Wu, the founder of the dynasty that succeeded the one just over- thrown, viz., the Chow (B.C. 1122-255), but also that the countless spirits that he summoned from the unseen world fought on the side of the rebellious nobles and finally secured them the victory. Prince Wu, the founder of the great Chow dynasty, is a famous man in the annals of China, and his name is always linked with those of the distinguished Kings Yao and Shun, who, in the estimation of the Chinese, are the beau- ideal rulers, whose reign brought untold blessings upon the Chinese Folk-Lore 3 Flowery Land. That this prince was so successful in the government of China was mainly due, it is believed, to the influence that this fairy counsellor exercised over him, and to the wise counsels that he was able to give him in all the emergencies in which he was placed. It is said that whilst Lau-tze was in the service of King Wu, he was sent on an embassy to the far-off Roman Empire on an errand of mercy. News had reached China that the prisoners in Rome were treated with exceptional cruelty, and that prison life was of such an exceedingly barbarous character that few were able to survive the hardships they 1 had to endure. Lau-tze's heart was deeply moved with the pathetic stories that he heard from the travellers who had journeyed far into the regions of the West, and he determined that he would go and see for himself whether men were so brutally treated as had been described to him. Human life in Rome was as dear to him as it was in the more favoured land of China, and he could not remain content until he had done his utmost to alleviate the ills that men were enduring in the terrible prisons of that famous capital. Approaching King Wu one morning he begged for leave of absence for a few months, as he had most important busi- ness which he wished to transact and which would ill brook any delay. Permission having been given, Lau-tze walked a little way out of the city, when a mighty eagle, that a moment ago had been but a speck on the blue sky, came swifter than the swiftest arrow that had ever been sped from bow straight to where he was standing, and allowing him to be seated on its back, flew with incredible swiftness away towards the setting sun. Before the day was gone, Lau-tze was standing within the seven-hilled city, habited in the guise of a stranger who had come to visit the wonders of this far- famed town. Making his way to one of the largest prisons in the place in order that he might see for himself whether the prisoners were really treated as badly as had been reported he found the condition of things a thousand times worse than any language could possibly describe. The atmosphere was fetid with the evil odours that everywhere prevailed, whilst 4 Fairies cruel tortures such as only could have been devised by minds from which the sentiment of pity had been for ever banished kept the unhappy prisoners in one long continued pain and misery. The heart of Lau-tze was so deeply distressed by what he saw, that he began incontinently to loose the bonds of the wretched beings whose sighs and tears filled his whole soul with agony. Whilst he was engaged in this gracious act, the gaoler came in and, thunderstruck at such an act, he had him seized and conveyed by force to the palace of the Roman ruler, in order that he might decide what adequate punishment should be meted out to him for such an act of rebellion against the laws of the state. As such a deed was unknown in the annals of Rome, it was deemed that only the king himself could decide what should be done with a man who dared commit so great a crime as this. The result, however, was very different from what these men whose souls- had been steeped in cruelty had expected. When Lau-tze was dragged into the presence of the sovereign there was something about him that seemed to quench the fiery passion that had flamed up within the king's breast when he had listened to the accusation that had been made. He had no idea, indeed, that the man who stood before him was a fairy that had come from the far-off Western Heaven, full of a purpose to ease the sorrows of men, wherever he found them in need of that divine sympathy which is such a sweetener of human life everywhere. Still there was something about this stranger that commanded his attention, such as ordinary men had never done before. Lau-tze defended himself against the misconception that he was conspiring against the State, and pleaded the cause of the unhappy prisoners with such eloquence that the stern ruler was moved to com- passion, and orders were given that in all the prisons in Rome a more merciful system of treatment should be at once adopted and carried out. It is confidently asserted that Lau-tze has since that early period appeared in every dynasty, sometimes once and sometimes more frequently in each, just as any great emer- gency in the life of the nation seemed to demand his presence Chinese Folk-Lore 5 and his help. He is not the only one, however, who is supposed to be watching over the interests of China. Count- less others, scattered throughout the eighteen provinces, have endeared themselves to the people of the different localities to whom they have made their manifestations, and the folk- lore is full of quaint and amusing stories as to how the noted fairies have appeared at some critical time in the history of men and women, and have been the means of delivering them from extreme peril or sorrow. The common theory about fairies is that originally they were all men and women, who were born of human parentage and passed through the common experiences that mankind have to encounter. They were not content, however, to submit to pain and sorrow and death, things that men usually deem inevitable; but their hearts were warmed with a nobler ambition, and they determind to work out a salvation from such and thus to emerge into a condition where life would be unending and where no sadness should ever cloud their spirits, and no tears ever dim their eyes. The first step to this condition of immortality must be an absolutely pure life. There must be no yielding to evil, neither in thought nor in action. Every wrong passion must be sternly repressed and only thoughts of good must be dwelt upon. The one essential thing about this goodness is that there must be a profound love for man. Any ill-will to man or any indifference to his well-being would at once arrest any progress that had been made towards a fairy life. In addition to these requisite qualifications there is also a very rigorous discipline that must be endured, if a man would hope to be delivered from the human conditions that bind him down to earth. He must gradually give up all the ordinary food of men, and live on certain herbs that are to be found on the mountains. He must search out for the elixirs of immortality that are hidden from the gaze of ■ordinary men, but are discoverable to those whose purpose it is to become fairies. After a certain course of this diet, the body loses its coarseness and becomes more ethereal, so that it mounts in the air and can travel long distances with- out any fatigue whatsoever. In all his travels, however, or 6 Fairies in his repression of the merely sensuous part of his nature, the man must never forget that he must continually keep before him some great benevolent purpose by which men are to be benefited. The love of money, too, must be absolutely banished from his mind and no selfish thought of enriching himself must ever be allowed to enter his heart. Many instances in fairy literature are given showing the methods by which men have been able to emancipate them- selves from the thraldom of life and to become members of the Western Heaven. One of these was named Tung Fung, who was a famous physician during the period known in history as the Kingdoms (A.D. 221-265). That his fame was no mere ephemeral one is manifest by the fact that his image is seen to-day in the druggists' shops, and that he is worshipped as a benefactor by those who earn their living by the sale of medicines. Some of his cures were very remarkable. One of these was effected on a man who was an official in the service of the government. He had been very seriously ill and had apparently died, for he lay for three days in a comatose condition and to all intents and purposes had departed this life. Tung Fung was called in to see if he had any medicines that would cure him, when, taking a small pill that he had brought with him, he inserted it between the lips of the man that lay insensible, and in a few minutes the eyes opened, the flush of health overspread the face, and the man sat up and before many days had elapsed had perfectly recovered. Another still more remarkable case was that of a leper, who was so affected by the original treatment that he used that, not only was the disease driven out of the blood, but the skin which had been blotched and ulcerated was completely renewed, so that no traces of the terrible and loathsome disease were left within his system. The fame of this distinguished doctor had spread into far distant districts and people with all kinds of diseases came to be treated by him. His pity for poor suffering humanity was so great that he gave up his life entirely to serve those that were sick, and he counted it his greatest joy to deny himself and to use his great knowledge of medicine for the Chinese Folk-Lore 7 benefit of those who were prostrated with sickness. In order to guard himself against the temptation of becoming rich and so becoming careless in his great benevolent work of easing the sorrows of men who were afflicted by disease, he made a stringent rule that he never violated, and that was, that he would never take a fee from a single patient. The only thing that he asked any one of them to do was to plant the seed of an almond tree, with which he supplied him, in the large grounds connected with his house. In time these grew up and formed a beautiful and fragrant grove consisting of as many as seventy thousand trees, which at the time when they were in blossom filled the air with their perfume and presented a picture so lovely and so charming that people came in crowds to see the wonderful sight. Considerable sums were realized by the sale of the flowers and fruit, and the money so obtained was used in assisting his poor patients and in relieving the needy that sought his aid from far and near. Tradition holds that Tung Fung continued to live for hundreds of years, healing the sick and relieving the wants of mankind, until, having been refined and purified by endless good deeds, he was at last deemed fit to enter the Western Heaven, where, on a larger and more extended scale, he could devote his energies to the assistance of men through- out the wide world. Another distinguished man who lived during the Han dynasty (B.C. 206 to A.D. 23) was also a man who had an intimate knowledge of diseases. His name was Tsu Tan and his image is also set up in the druggists' shops, and his treatise on medicine and his prescriptions for all manner of diseases are sedulously studied and carried out by the doctors of the present day. So famed was this man that his books were printed in Japan, and for many centuries the doctors there were guided by them; and it is only latterly, since the introduction of Western medical science, that these have begun to fall into disuse. Tsu Tan was a man greatly beloved by the fairies, for he was so constitutionally built that the transition stage between the human and the spiritual realms of being was 8 Fairies for him an exceedingly short one, and was accomplished in a comparatively brief period of time. He was noted for his devotion to his mother. His father had died when he was quite young and he seemed to throw the whole of his heart and all the affection that he was capable of into the one supreme purpose of making his mother happy. The spiritual beings that hover about watching human actions were greatly captivated by this display of filial piety, and they lavished their gifts upon him, so that he became a master in curing diseases that the ordinary doctors never attempted to heal. His well-known treatise was, it is popular- ly believed, no doubt inspired by the fairies. His zeal in saving men was so highly appreciated by them that they agreed that the years of probation through which mortals on ordinary occasions were to pass before they could be admitted within their ranks should be very greatly shortened. One day a flight of storks alighted near his home and to Tsu Tan's astonishment, when he came near to see the strange sight, they were all transformed into young men, who addressed him in courteous language and informed him that they had just arrived from the Western Heaven with orders from those in authority there to take him back with them to that far-off abode of bliss which he was henceforward to consider his home. Having got permission to go and tell his mother this wonderful news, he approached her with a heart full of the tenderest affection and with sorrowful fore- bodings as to how she would take this eternal separation from him. When he first told her, she was in despair, and with a voice broken with emotion she asked him how she was going to live without him. "You know," she said, " that I have no one to depend upon but you, and that with- out you I should die." Her son endeavoured to comfort her by telling her that he had made ample provision for her so that she need never fear that she would ever be in want, no matter how long her life might be. " I have laid in a stock of my most famous medicines," he said " that I have never found to fail even in the most severe cases. When any sick person applies to you for medicine give him some of them. I want to tell Chinese Folk-Lore 9 you," he continued, " that in the course of a few months plague will break out in this district, and people will apply to you for some of my well-known drugs. Never send any one away," he said, "and never make any charge. If any one wishes of his own free will to make you a present do not have any hesitation in accepting it. Be sure and receive all such gifts, and you will find that these will be so numerous that they will form a moderate estate for you and give you an income that with care will keep you from want as long as you live." With some more loving words of comfort Tsu Tan tore himself away from his weeping mother and, when she rushed to the door to catch another glimpse of the son that she loved with such passionate devotion, he had disappeared. All that she could see was a flight of herons winging their flight up towards the blue sky and in a few seconds they were lost in the immensity of space. As Tsu Tan had predicted, a plague of a very virulent character broke out in the county in which his mother lived, and great was the sorrow in many a home at the deaths that were caused by it. In time people got to know that Tsu Tan's medicine was most efficacious and that only one dose was needed to heal any one that had been attacked by this terrible disease. The result was that the mother's house was besieged for weeks with persons whose friends were in dan- ger, and presents kept pouring in upon her from those who were grateful that their loved had been rescued by her from a terrible death by the medicines she had so generously ■dispensed. The outcome was that with the money and the goods she received she was enabled to buy lands that produced sufficient harvests to fill her home with plenty. The fairies that have been described above have all risen from the ranks of men into the high and exalted position they now occupy and therefore they stand the highest in the estimation of men generally and are reverenced by all classes of society. There is another class, however, which are of a humbler origin, but which, through the exercise of the virtues of goodness and mercy, can gradually rise from their humble ancestry in the world of life until io Fairies they at last become fairies and are endowed with super- natural powers that enable them to work the strangest freaks and the most marvellous miracles in the new world into which they have been permitted to intrude. The class that I refer to are the lower animals, who, it is believed, are now forever condemned to remain in the low- scale in the economy of nature that they now occupy, but by character they can be so transferred that even they can attain to the high honour of becoming men and women. It is true that this privilege of ascending in the scale of life is restricted to certain animals only, and that beyond these the rest must for ever remain where heaven has placed them. Among the wild animals the tiger, the monkey, the deer, and, par excellence, the fox, are supposed to have the power of developing into higher forms of life, whilst they always retain the facility for returning at any moment they choose to the natures with which they started existence in the world. Among birds, the crane, the phcenix, the eagle, and the parrot are the favoured few that are believed to be able to attain to supernatural powers, whilst the dragon, the turtle, the snake, and the whale have been credited with possibilities in their lives that enable them in time to raise themselves not only to be the equals of men, but also to sur- pass the great mass of mankind in the working of wonders, and in the display of miracles. The method by which these mighty transformations are effected amongst the lower animals is precisely similiar to that by which men are changed into fairies and become members of the Western Heaven. It is by goodness, tenderness, and mercy, and also by a profound belief in the sanctity of life. A tiger, for example, naturally delights in killing not simply for the purpose of providing itself with food, but also to satisfy its savage thirst for blood. It will kill a sheep in order to satisfy its hunger, but at the same time it will mangle and tear in pieces a dozen more that it can never devour, and it will leave their carcases on the hill- side without any thought of returning to them when next needing a meal. Now the first step in the evolution of a tiger is the repression of this instinct for slaughter. It will be so Chinese Folk-Lore ii filled with pity for the helpless animal that comes within its power, that it will let it go without injuring it. The effect of this on the animal itself is immense. A new conception of the value of life grows within it and uplifts it. This gradually touches the very nature of the brute and in time its one great purpose is to preserve life and to assist those who are in danger of losing theirs. A divine pity for the weak and helpless impels it to become a kind of knight errant that causes it to wander over districts where the most savage animals roam, and to use its prodigious strength in defence of animals that would speedily fall a prey to it. The next process in the development of these lower animals is that they become gnomes who wander amongst the mountains, fly in the air, and revel in the storm; whose voices can be heard when the great typhoons rage and roar and their mighty blasts terrify men with the fear of sudden destruction. It is very often the case that, at this stage of their evolution, the process of redemption comes to a tragic end. They are not able to stand the temptation that their new powers give them. They were once roaming the forests in search of blood with savage and degraded instincts.. Now they are the monarchs of the air, with apparently unlimited possibilities before them, and the finer virtues that they had cultivated gradually disappear as the savage taint in their natures once more asserts itself. The result is that they perish, whilst those that show that they have inherent virtue within themselves gradually advance in perfection, until they are turned into fairies and are asso- ciated in the Western Heaven with the virtuous men and women who through long trial have gradually won their way from the trammels of earth to that eternal abode of bliss. II. THE INFAMOUS CHOW SIN AND THE BEAUTIFUL T'A KI. It is related by the early writers of the national affairs of China, that the infamous King Chow Sin, on one occasion, paid a visit to the temple of a famous female spirit named Lu O. This honoured goddess was held in the highest veneration by the Chinese in those far-off distant ages. She was the daughter of a spirit that lived in a very remote period still further back and was distinguished for the purity of her life and for the extraordinary powers she possessed. It is believed that she was present at the creation of all things, and when Panku made the great division between the firmament and the earth and the former was in danger of collapsing, she used her power to prop it up, so that it has remained in its place until the present day. Her fame rests mainly upon the high character she had acquired for a chaste and virtuous life, that even in those early days exercised such a charm over her worshippers. In this temple there was a beautiful statue of Lu O. Chow Sin was so charmed and entranced with her beauty that he immediately experienced a passionate longing that she should become one of the royal concubines. Unfor- tunately for himself he expressed this desire in the presence of some of his great ministers who accompanied him, and the virtuous Lu O was so indignant at the insult that the king had offered her, that she determined to avenge herself by the most condign punishment upon the exalted offender. She accordingly summoned to her presence one of the chiefs amongst the demons, and gave him instructions to set in motion all his forces and all the great army of gnomes under his control for the utter destruction of the king, as well as his dynasty and all the members of the Imperial family and clan. ''Do not spare this royal voluptuary," she said, "and Chinese Folk-Lore 13 stay not your hand until the wrong he had done me be avenged in the disgrace and ruin of all those that bear his name." When he returned to his palace, Chow Sin still raved about the marvellous beauty of Lu O, and expressed his sorrow that it was impossible for him to have her enrolled amongst the members of his harem, but, since it was im- possible for him to obtain her, he would wish inquiries to be made throughout his empire to see if there were not amongst the beauties of China some one more distinguished than the rest who could adequately fill the place of the goddess Lu O. The ministers of the crown advised that a royal edict should be promulgated throughout the country forbidding the betrothal of any more maidens until the emperor had been given the opportunity of selecting from amongst the most beautiful of them the ones that might be deemed suitable to be included in the number of his concubines. This is the first time that this custom is mentioned in Chinese history, though in later times it has become thoroughly domesticated in the empire. When the emperor takes to himself a royal spouse, it is by no means an infrequent thing for an edict to be issued interdicting all betrothals until the lady has been selected out of the numerous beauties that the viceroys throughout the country send up to the capital to undergo the inspection of those who have the management of this important matter. That this is a thoroughly Oriental custom and one that was prevalent in other countries beyond the confines of the Celestial Empire can easily be proved by a reference to the Book of Esther. There it will be found that that famous personage became queen of the Persian monarch, by just this same capricious method of selection that was suggested to Chow Sin by the high mandarins who assisted him in the government of the country. The emperor is so entirely supreme in China that no one would dream of questioning his right to such an exercise of arbitrary power in the disposal of the persons of his subjects. The possibility, moreover, of one of their daughters being selected to become the queen of China, reconciles the high families of the land to a custom that would be utterly abhorrent to the people of the West. i4 Chow Sin and the Beautiful T'a Ki As such a procedure had never been adopted in the past, there was considerable discussion as to whether such a thing could be carried out without danger to the stability of the throne. The conservative element in the Chinese char- acter even in those pristine ages of the world began to manifest itself, and the best thinkers of the day looked with great jealousy upon any extension of the royal prerogative that threatened to infringe upon the liberties of the people. The situation for the moment was saved by the inter- vention of the Prime Minister Iu Hui, who nourished a deep grudge against one of the viceroys, who was of a bold and independent character and who had grievously offended him by refusing to pay court to him when his duties called him to the capital. The last time he had been there this viceroy had treated him with scant courtesy and had absolutely refused to make him the ordinary presents by which the high officials propitiated him, so that he vowed to take vengeance whenever a good opportunity offered. The time had now come when Iu thought he could wound him in a way that would bring him the greatest possible distress. Approaching the emperor he said, " Your Majesty is desirous of finding a lady in China that would equal the famous goddess Lu O in the beauty of her person. Such a lady exists, and if common fame is to be believed, never in the annals of the past has any woman been possess- ed of such charms as she is credited with. No royal edict is required to demand the attendance of the beauties of China at your court, for this lovely girl is the daughter of one of your viceroys, and you have but to command her father to bring her to your palace, and you will never more desire to have Lu O as one of the members of your harem." By giving this advice to the emperor, Iu Hui believed that he was inflicting a deadly wound upon the viceroy in question, for he was firmly of the conviction that if his royal master acted upon his suggestion, the final result would be the disgrace and death of the bold and independent ruler of one of the provinces of the empire. Su Heu, for so he was named, possessed a large amount of sterling and original character. He was more like a typical Englishman than Chinese Folk-Lore 15 the suave, diplomatic Chinese official, for he was always prepared to speak out his mind boldly and fearlessly without any regard for consequences. He was deeply beloved by all the people, high and low and rich and poor, within the province over which he ruled, for he meted out justice to all alike, no matter what their position in life might be. He had one daughter of whom he was inordinately proud, and good reason he had to be so. She was an ex- ceedingly beautiful girl, the loveliest, perhaps, that had ever been born within the broad and extensive limits of the Flowery Kingdom. His very life seemed bound up in T'a Ki. There was nothing in the world so precious to him as this beloved daughter, and all his wealth and power combined seemed as nothing in his eyes when compared with this beautiful creature, who repaid his love with the most tender and devoted affection. Iu Hui knew that in bringing her to the Imperial notice he was going to injure Su Heu in a manner that would leave its deepest sting upon his heart, whilst at the same time the destruction of himself and his entire family would be certainly accomplished. No sooner had the glowing description of T'a Ki been given to the dissolute and depraved emperor, than he gave immediate orders to the prime minister to send out a dispatch, post haste, to Su Heu, requiring his attendance at once in the capital, together with that of his beautiful daugther T'a Ki, who, it was declared, was to have the honour of becoming one of his august Majesty's concubines. In Hui's schemes of vengeance were most admirably devised and produced the exact results that his cunning mind had foreseen, but he little dreamed of the dire and tragic consequences that were to come to himself and his royal master in the near future, and that he was but a pawn in the hand of fate in the game of life that was being played, when the wrongs that had been committed by Chow Sin would be terribly avenged by the wiping out of his dynasty and the destruction of all those who had helped him in the misgovernment of the country. The receipt of the Imperial rescript, filled Su Heu with the greatest consternation. To most men it would have 16 Chow Sin and the Beautiful T'a Ki been the source of satisfaction and delight. To have a daughter of such distinguished beauty in the royal harem, who might possibly one day become queen meant that honours and power and wealth would be lavished upon her family and that it would become one of the powerful ones of the state. Su Heu, however, was made of nobler materials than to be willing to have his fortunes built on the degradation of his beloved daughter. Without one moment's hesitation, he replied to the royal demand by absolutely refusing to comply with it. "Your Majesty," he said, "has done me the honour of asking for my daughter to become one of your concubines. I am not worthy of it. Besides, she is very dear to me, and I cannot endure the thought of losing her companionship, which I should assuredly do were she to become a member of your harem. In the whole of your kingdom there are many beautiful girls that would deem it an honour to be selected by your Majesty, and whose parents would only be too glad to be allied to you by the gift of their daughters. Send out a royal proclamation expressing your wish and you will assuredly have a noble collection of the beauties of the empire from which to make your selection. As for my daughter, I positively refuse to allow her to go to the capital." The king was enraged beyond measure at what he considered the rebellious language of his viceroy and he determined to give him such a lesson in obedience that he would never dare transgress again. He accordingly raised a large army and sent it under skilful generals against Su Heu, with the order to bring him and his daughter T'a Ki with all haste into his presence. The doughty viceroy was not, however, to be so easily conquered as he had imagined. The first symtoms of rebellion against this dissolute and unprincipled monarch had already begun to spread through- out the kingdom, and men's minds were concerned at the carnival of vice and misgovernment that was being carried on in the capital. Chinese Folk-Lore 17 Ere the royal forces had reached the territories of Su Heu, the whole of his province had risen in arms for his defence and in the battles that took place the king's troops were defeated with great slaughter and were compelled to retreat. Chow Sin, instead of being discouraged by the repulses that the royal army had suffered, became more determined in his purpose that the beautiful T'a Ki should be surrendered to him. He therefore collected another army, larger and better equipped than the one that he had sent before, with orders that, if necessary, the whole of the revolted province should be laid waste by fire and sword, its in- habitants utterly exterminated, and Su Heu brought in chains to the capital, there to expiate his offences by the most terrible death that the imagination of man could conceive. The royal army was led by the finest generals of the country and the bravest troops had been selected from the other provinces in order that success should this time be obtained over the rebellious viceroy, but the men were lacking in enthusiasm and their feeling was rather in favour of the enemy they were about to attack than for the sovereign whose orders they were obeying. Chow Sin was a tyrant who was despised and hated because of his vices and his crimes, whilst Su Heu was a hero, who was fighting for his home and for the honour and safety of his beloved daughter. Another great battle was fought and once more the soldiers of the king suffered a tremendous defeat. This process was repeated several times, when Wun Wang, the viceroy of Shansi, who was a friend of Su Heu and who dreaded the effect of his rebellion upon the rest of the empire, wrote him an urgent letter beseeching him to submit to the royal demand and give the king his daughter. " You cannot hope," he said, " with the power of your one province successfully to resist the forces of the whole king- dom. In the end you will have to submit and a vengeance will be wreaked upon ypu and your whole clan, as well as upon the whole of your people. The other viceroys of the kingdom have stood aloof as long as possible from this contest, but ere long they will be compelled by the orders of the king to marshal their forces against you, and you are 18 Chow Sin and the Beautiful T'a Ki wise enough to see that when that takes place you will inevitably be crushed before the overwhelmingly large num- ber of troops that can be brought against you." These wise and weighty words of Wun Wang, who ultimately became the leader in the great rebellion that after a time rent the kingdom in pieces, and who became the founder of the great Chow Dynasty, B.C. 1122-255, made a deep impression upon Su Heu. He accordingly sent in his submission to the king and informed him that upon a certain day he would proceed to the capital in order to obtain his forgiveness, and that his daughter T'a Ki wotfld accompany him, and that he would place her at the disposal of his Majesty to do with her whatever he thought best. Hostilities upon this at once ceased and preparations were made by the sorrowful viceroy for the surrender of his beloved daughter. Rebellion has from the earliest ages been looked upon with the utmost horror by all classes of the community in China. The sorrows it entails upon the innocent and the calamities it brings upon the regions where it is in active operation are so tremendous, that the severest punishments have always been meted out to those who have been the leaders of it. In the case of high offenders, the utter destruction of the man himself and the relatives of his father, mother, and wife for three generations is enacted. This law is mercilessly carried out, and every man, woman, and child is ruthlessly put to death, even though many of them had never been cognizant of the crime of their distinguished relative, or had been indeed active opposers to it. This is an ancient law of China that has the approbation of the whole of the people of China. An outline of the story is given in the Imperial History of China of the causes that led to the destruction of the Shang Dynasty. In it the historian describes how that T'a Ki, the daughter of Su Heu, was captured in war B.C. 1 146, and was presented to King Chow Sin. She was exceedingly beautiful, but utterly immoral and inhuman. Her beauty so fascinated the king that he came completely under her control. As the great vassals grievously complained Chinese Folk-Lore 19 of the scandalous and infamous goings on at the court, T'a Ki determined upon having her revenge upon them and so she invented several modes of punishment by which many of the leading men were put to death. The mis- government of Chow Sin at length became so intolerable that the nation rose in rebellion against him, and after a great battle in which the royal forces were defeated, T'a Ki was captured and put to death. It is very singular that the previous dynasty, called the Hia (B.C. 2205-1 81 8), suffered a collapse from causes very similar to those that caused the destruction of the Shang. A beautiful concubine of the name of Mo Hi, exercised such a baneful influence upon the reigning sovereign, that in a whirlwind of passion the dynasty was destroyed by the enraged people, and the Shang took its place, to be in time swept away because of precisely similar causes that had caused the disappearance of the Hia. The Chinese romancer has a very different and a much more exciting tale to tell. He declares that the causes of the revolution that ended in the overthrow of Chow Sin and his dynasty was the insult that had been offered to Lu O in her temple. He graphically describes how the demon she had summoned from the other world and to whom she had committed the task of carrying out her revenge had ever been on the look out for some propitious moment when he could intervene and most effectually fulfil the purpose of the goddess. He saw that the time had actually arrived when his fell schemes for the destruction of Chow Sin could be carried out without any danger of discovery. These were so skilfully laid that, as far as mortals were concerned, not the wisest of his ministers nor the most devoted of his followers would be able to give him a hint of the danger with which he was threatened. On a certain day, in accordance with a prescribed pro- gramme that he had drawn up for himself, Su Heu with con- siderable misgivings as to the future, set forth with T'a Ki on his journey to the capital. His heart was rent with agony about her. He had done his very utmost to deliver her from the fate that lay before her, but he had been worsted in the 20 Chow Sin and the Beautiful T'a Ki contest and to save her was absolutely beyond his power. Another source of anxiety was the character of Chow Sin. He was a man of absolutely no moral character and he might feel that, when once he had got possession of T'a Ki, he would revenge himself upon her father for his rebellion by putting him to an ignominious death. It may, therefore, be imagined with what sorrowful feelings both father and daughter left their home to go on a journey that caused the hearts of both x>f them to be .filled with so many doleful fore- bodings. Little did either of them dream that a great and tragic change was to take place before they reached the end of it, that would involve the most serious consequence both to T'a Ki and the very empire itself. The long and painful travelling had nearly come to an end, and they had reached the last resting-place that lay between them and the capital. On the morrow they would be there, and they then would both be within the grip of the infamous Chow Sin. It may easily be imagined what a sorrowful evening they spent with each other, and the hearts of both must have been almost on the point of breaking as they thought of the separation that would take place next day, when their lives would for ever be divided, the one from the other, and the old familiar ties with which they had been bound to each other in the past would be severed, never again to be reunited. T'a Ki had retired to her room only a few minutes when the demon who had been commissioned by the insulted god- dess to avenge her wrongs upon Chow Sin entered the apart- ment and put her to death. He then by his necromantic powers entered the body of the dead maiden, which, animated by this new spirit, had all the semblance of the beautiful girl that but a few minutes previously had been alive and full of health. To all outward appearance she was the same lovely and modest girl who had everywhere won golden opinions not simply for the beauty of her person, but also for the refined and tender spirit that had made her life so charming to all who had any acquaintance with her. On the morrow morning when Su Heu met his daugh- ter, and they had started on the final stage of their journey Chinese Folk-Lore 21 to the capital, he had not the remotest suspicion that he was not talking to T'a Ki, but to a malign demon who had murdered her, and who was filled with the maddest schemes that ever took possession even of so degraded a being's brain, for the destruction of a royal family. Su Heu had no idea that any change had taken place in his daughter. The one that had assumed her role acted her part so perfectly that there was nothing in her demeanour that could cause him for a moment to suspect that he was being imposed upon. Her person was the same, and the voice and manner and little ways of T'a Ki were so faithfully reproduced, that it never entered into the heart of anyone to question her identity. When the party reached the capital and were led into the presence of the king, he was so enamoured with the beauty of T'a Ki that he seemed to come at once under her spell. There was full reason for this, for not only was the woman before him the most beautiful one in the kingdom, but she had also the power by the black arts that were at her control to influence Chow Sin's mind in a way that no merely human being could ever hope to succeed in doing. He was so delighted indeed that he accorded a most gracious reception to Su Heu, and gave him complete forgiveness for his dis- obedience to him and for his daring to resist the forces he had sent against him when he refused to comply with his demands. A very short time had elapsed before Chow Sin came completely under the control of T'a Ki, whose influence over him was always for evil. This was entirely in accordance with the plan that had been designed for the destruction of himself and his whole family. Instead of restraining him, she invented new methods by which he should shock the kingdom through his disgraceful irregularities both in his government and in his own personal conduct. The court had always been a highly immoral one, but, since the arrival of the new favourite, it had gone beyond anything that had ever disgraced it in the past in its shameful profligacy and utter disregard for the opinion of the nation. Signs of uneasiness began to be manifested throughout the kingdom, so outraged became the public sentiment at 22 Chow Sin and the Beautiful T'a Ki the conduct of Chow Sin and T'a Ki, and a general feeling prevailed that unless there was a change there would be a revolution that would end in the destruction of the dynasty. Some of the more faithful of his councillors remonstrated with the king, but they were promptly put to death in a most cruel and savage way by the express orders of this infamous woman. Some of the leading vassals of the empire who had complained of the dissolute extravagance of the sovereign were put to death by new and ingenious methods that had been specially devised by T'a Ki. One of these was called the " roasting punishment." This consisted of a tube of copper covered with grease, which was placed above a pit that was filled with burning charcoal. The victims were compelled to walk along this slippery bridge, until they fell into the fiery furnace below. The condition of things at length became so intolerable that viceroys and nobles and dukes and earls, to the number of eight hundred, combined their forces and rebelled. Prince Wu became their commander-in-chief, because of his military ability and also because of the nobility of his character. After a good many skirmishes with the royal forces a great battle was fought when Prince Wu gained a decided victory. Chow Sin was captured and put to death. T'a Ki was also amongst the prisoners, but tradition has it that her beauty was so great that no one could be found to deal the final blow that was to deprive her of life. Several were appointed to execute her, but there seemed a power of enchantment about her that, no sooner did anyone come near her, than their arms dropped paralyzed, so potent were the powers that her charms exercised. At length an aged councillor of Prince Wu, covering his face with a thick cloth so that he might not see her face stepped forward and with one mighty thrust of his sword laid the enchantress low. With her death the Shang dynasty passed away and Prince Wu, the success- ful general in the battles of the revolution, became the founder of the famous Chow line of monarchs that is so distinguished in the annals of the Chinese empire. T'a Ki is credited with being the founder of the custom of footbinding that has been in existence in China, which by Chinese Folk-Lore 23 its peculiarity has distinguished this country from every other nation in the world. The writer of the fairy story endeavours to explain how this took place by telling that the evil spirit that entered the body of T'a Ki after he had murdered her, belonged to the fox tribe, and that when it assumed her form, its feet by some accident retained the shape that a fox's foot has. In order to disguise this it had to use ingenious wrappings to prevent people from suspect- ing it. After the supposed T'a Ki became queen, which she soon did by the murder of her predecessor, the ladies of her court in order to gain favour with her, crippled their feet into the very smallest size so as to resemble hers. That footbinding has always been believed to have been associated with T'a Ki is certain. The mythological explanation is, of course, absurd. The more rational one is that there was some natural deformity in T'a Ki's feet that she endeavoured to disguise, and that her maids of honour, in order to curry favour with her, did their best to deform their own and to make them as small as stringent binding would make them. The whole subject is an obscure one and authentic history throws no light upon the origin of this hideous and baneful custom. It is a pleasant thing to know that it is doomed, and in a few years will be unknown in China. III. THE FAIRY AND THE PEAR SELLER. ONE day an itinerant seller of pears had placed his wheelbarrow close by the edge of a road along which streams of people passed and repassed from early dawn until the evening shadows lay so thickly on the rough, uneven road that it became unsafe to travel along it. He had laid in a choice collection of this popular fruit* to tempt the taste of those whom business or pleasure had sent to journey along this famous thoroughfare. Some of them were large and voluptuous looking and were shaped more like the russet apples of other lands. Others were smaller and less presump- tuous in their looks, but none of them had the ideal shape that the pear with us loves to take. The colour too showed that they were all the product of the Far East, for the great sun had put the mark of his fiery breath upon them, and they were of a beautiful brown, though no other tint or shade would ever be allowed to cast their colouring. A few idlers stood lounging about, men with no cash in their pockets, but with eyes that cast longing glances upon the well-heaped barrow, where the pears had been so deftly arranged as to catch the eye of the thirsty travellers that came along the dusty road. By and by amidst the various figures that came in view, there appeared an old man with a diminutive hoe slung across his right shoulder. He had the look of a farmer, who had just come from his fields. His clothes, which were made of the popular blue cloth, were slouchy and untidy, and put on with the indifference of his * The pear in China is a far inferior fruit to that of Europe. The Chinese have never apparently taken the trouble to try to develop it. It has been left very much to nature, and no art has been employed by crossing or by scientific cultivation to produce a fruit that shall show the pleasing qualities that really exist in it, if men would but take the trouble to bring them out. It is of a brown colour, and so hard that it requires good teeth to bite through it, and it is want- ing in the juiciness and flavour of the home fruit. Chinese Folk-Lore 25 class for any regard to personal appearance. His head had not been shaved for more than a week, and the black bristly crop of hairs that stood out defiantly around the crown, from which the queue grew, gave him an untidy and neglected look. He was evidently a man in poor circum- stances, and yet there was something in the flash of his eye and in the air of intelligence that pervaded his countenance that gave one the impression that he was in some way different from the other men who travelled along the great highway. No sooner did he catch sight of the heap of pears that lay in such rich profusion on the barrow, than he stayed his steps, and appealing to the owner of them, begged him to give him just one, that he might quench his thirst with it. " Get away, you lazy beggar," the man cried out in reply, " my pears are for sale and not to be given away to every thriftless wretch that takes a fancy to them." " But I am an old man, and my money is all spent," replied the suppliant, " give me the smallest one on your barrow and you shall have my blessing in return." " I do not want every rogue's blessing that comes along and has a design upon my fruit without any intention of pay- ing for it. Be off, old man, and do not try any of your games on me, for you will most certainly not succeed." The little crowd that had collected during this discussion evidently took the side of the old man. He looked so worn and so poverty stricken, that they appealed to the pear seller to grant his request. " Give him one," they said, " the small- est you have for sale. It is worth but little to you and it will give him a moment's comfort, whilst you will have the satisfaction of having done a virtuous and benevolent action." . " No," he replied, " I give nothing away. I am not am- bitious of gaining a reputation for virtue. Why should not some of you put your hands into your pockets and buy one of my pears and give it to this old man for whom you profess so much sympathy ? " A man standing in the crowd at once drew forth a few cash from his pocket and buying a pear handed it with a few pleasant words to the old man. With a smile and a bow that 26 The Fairy and the Pear Seller showed he was a gentleman he at once proceeded to eat the fruit, expressing his gratitude to the donor and also to the crowd that had been so sympathetic to a poor forlorn old man. Having eaten all but the core, he carefully chose out one of the seeds in it, and, looking at it with the eye of a connois- seur, he declared to the crowd, that had been watching his proceedings with great interest, that he was so grateful to them for the interest they had shown in him that he was going to perform a little act that he thought would give them a moment's pleasure. Taking down the small hoe that rested on his shoulder, he began to dig a hole in the ground into which he carefully placed the seed he had chosen, and then he gently pressed the earth upon it. Having done this he asked some of the onlookers, whose homes were near by, to bring him some hot water. Entering into the spirit of the fun, three of the young fellows that stood by ran off and in a few minutes returned with kettles of boiling water. As he poured this gently over the newly dug ground, the crowd, that little dreamed that the weather-beaten looking man was a fairy in disguise, looked with a quiet sense of amusement at the strange action that was being performed before them. In a few moments a delicate green shoot was seen to issue from the earth, and grew so rapidly that in an incredibly short time the stem and branches and leaves of a full grown pear tree raised their shapely proportions before the astonished crowd. Whilst they were gazing with delight and amusement at the startling transformation, the tree put forth countless blossoms that covered it with the beauty of spring, and almost instantly these changed into fruit, which with a magic quick- ness ripened on the tree, and were ready for eating. The crowd by this time had grown in dimensions. The story of the magic tree had spread like wildfire and the people with a look of wonder upon their faces came hurrying up from every direction to witness the wonderful sight. The old gentleman invited the younger lads to climb the tree and hand down the fruit that grew so luxuriantly on its branches. This they did with infinite pleasure and amidst the fun and Chinese Folk-Lore 27- jokes of the people amongst whom the pears were distributed. The tree was soon stripped of the hundreds of tempting fruit that but a moment before made it look so beautiful and so attractive. When the last pear had been plucked, the old man took his hoe once more and cut and hacked into the trunk of the tree near the ground and lo ! in some mysterious way it seem to shrivel up and wither away just as rapidly as it had sprung up from the ground. In a few minutes nothing was left of the stately tree up which the lads had climbed with such glee, but only a single dry and withered stick, which the old man grasped in his hand and making a stately and formal bow to the wondering crowd he vanished down the road. The pear seller who had been a most eager spectator of the marvellous doings of the old man, so much so indeed that he entirely forgot all about his own pears, now turned to take his usual stand beside his barrow, when he found to his astonishment that it was completly empty, and that the rows and heaps of fruit that he had looked upon with such loving and tender regard had vanished and not a single vestige of them remained. He was now in absolute despair at the loss, for all his. capital had been invested in the pears His mind at once turned to the old man who had shown such wonderful magic powers and he concluded that he was having his revenge upon him for refusing him the pear that he had so earnestly begged for, and that the disappearance of his fruit was due to his wonder-working power. Full of this idea he ran swiftly down the road along which the conjuror had disappeared, but he could find no trace of him. All that he could discover was the stick that he had finally carried away with him, and which to his amazement he found to be the upright pole attached to his barrow on which on sunny or drizzly days he fastened his umbrella to protect his pears from the sun or the rain. As he walked back with downcast head and a shadow on his face, it suddenly seemed to dawn upon him that the old man whom he now knew to be a fairy had used his mysterious powers to shed a glamour over the eyes of the 28 The Fairy and the Pear Seller crowd and to prevent them from seeing that the pears he had so freely distributed amongst them were really his own and not a new creation as everybody had supposed. When men heard the story, they felt that the fairy that day had given a lesson in humanity that the pear seller and those who had been witnesses of his powers would never forget. He had taught men that there were powers at work that were ever ready to carry out the benevolent intentions of heaven, and that the man who hardened his heart against the cry for pity from his fellowmen would surely meet with his deserts in a way and place that he never dreamed of or ■expected. IV. THE LOVE ADVENTURES OF THE FOX FAIRY, PRINCE HU. ONCE upon a time in the early and romantic days of China's history, there lived in the province of Shensi a wealthy scholar who was noted throughout the district in which he lived for his great literary attainments. His abilities had been of such a high order that he had actually been able to take his third degree of " Advanced Scholar," and consequently his name was known far and wide as that of a rising and distinguished man. Mr. Lin, for so this scholar was named, was one of those men of genius that constitute the thinkers of China, and in due course of time its legislators as well. As he was a man of very considerable means he was in no hurry to accept the many high official posts that were offered him by the Government. His ambition, indeed, led him to desire to shine in the world of letters, and at the time that he appears upon the scene, he was engaged in the preparation of a great work on the classics, that, if it were only successful, would forever link his name with that of Coniucius and Mencius, and thus secure immortal honour to himself and his clan. It became necessary for him in the prosecution of his plans to engage a scholar to assist him in carrying out some of the details, for which he himself had no leisure. Such a man would be very difficult to obtain. Any ordinary hack would not serve his purpose. He must be a born student, who would be able to enter into the spirit of his great enter- prise, and he must also have been a great reader so that he would have at his finger ends any reference which might have to be made to any of the authorities that it might be desirable to quote. One day a servant informed Mr. Lin that a gentleman had called to see him and was now waiting for him in the 3o The Love Adventures of the Fox Fairy reception room. His card showed that his name was Hu, and the fact that he had one to send in indicated that he was a man that probably belonged to the scholar class. Mr. Lin, •at the first glance at the stranger, was very much prepossessed in his favour. He was a fine, handsome man of about thirty years of age. He had a most intelligent-looking countenance and a refined air about him that unmistakably showed that he was a gentleman. It did not take Mr. Lin long to discover that he was •exceedingly well read, for there was not a book mentioned that he had not mastered its contents so fully that he could describe with great accuracy the subjects that were treated in it. Whilst they were engaged in a most brilliant conversation, he experieneed an intense longing to be able to secure his services to assist him in the literary work on which he was engaged. After a time Mr. Hu himself broached the subject, and said that he had heard that Mr. Lin was in search of a person to assist him on some book that he was preparing for the press, and as he had been on the look-out for some employ- ment, he would be very pleased if he would consent to accept him as an assistant. This proposition was received with the greatest pleasure and after a short conversation in which the terms were discussed and settled, Mr. Hu became an inmate in the house of Mr. Lin. Further acquaintance with this remarkable stranger only added to Mr. Lin's delight that he had been able to obtain such a thoroughly good man to assist him in the great ■enterprise that he hoped would place him amongst the distinguished scholars of China. He was a man of unwearied perseverance. He never seemed to tire, no matter how long the day might be, or how arduous the toil needed to elucidate some knotty point that had arisen in the discussion of some important question in Mr. Lin's great work. He was a person also of the most profound erudition and scholarship. It soon became apparent, indeed, that he had at his finger ends all the best works that had appeared in any age in the history of the past, and could quote them with accuracy and effect whenever it was necessary to do so. He Chinese Folk-Lore 31 was, in point of fact, a perfect encyclopaedia in himself and endowed with a memory so perfect that he could utilize everything he had read without having continually to refer to the books themselves for the information he wished to use. The one only unsatisfactory thing about Mr. Lin was the mystery that surrounded him. No information could be got from him as to where he came from, or where his family resided, or in what part of China he was born. The Chinese are usually very anxious to talk about such subjects, and they find great pleasure in going into detail about the members of their home and the position they occupy in society. On these subjects Hu was as silent as the grave, and not a word was breathed about them to a single member of the new home in which he was living. He seemed, indeed, not to have a single relative in existence, for no letters ever reached him from anywhere, and no reference was ever made of any kindred that belonged to him in any other part of China. This state of things naturally produced suspicion in the minds of every one associated with him in the large patriar- chal-like family of Mr. Lin. As he was a very wealthy man and belonged to a very powerful clan it numbered fully a hundred people that lived together within the same com- pound and that acknowledged him as their head. Besides the large array of servants that were necessary to do the work of so great an establishment, there were dependants of various grades and kinds who were employed in the more honourable service of waiting on Mr. Lin and of thus adding to his dignity and his prestige amongst the great families in the region around. The position of Hu being one of great responsibility and honour, he naturally became the subject of observation to all the numerous members of this great household, and very frequently, in leisure moments, men would discuss amongst themselves this strange character who had so mysteriously and without any warning come as a resident amongst them. There was no disputing but that he was a very remarkable man. He was more handsome than any one they had ever seen. He was a genius of so high an 32 The Love Adventures of the Fox Fairy order that even their own master who had obtained with high honours the third degree of " The Advanced Man," confessed that he was far inferior to him in the matter of scholarship. But who was he ? That was a question they would like answered. They knew absolutely nothing about his antece- dents. Although so profoundly learned he had never gone up for any of the triennial examinations and had never got even " The Embroidered Ability," the first of the degrees that is given to the successful undergraduate in this flowery land of China. This was a most decidedly mysterious thing, for the aim and passion of every scholar's life is to have his name enrolled among the successful aspirants after literary fame and to be classed among the thinkers of the empire. As time went by and still the household was left to wonder and surmise about this gifted and handsome scholar, certain things began to happen that intensified the suspicions that people had entertained concerning him. It seemed to some of the more acute and observant that he was the possessor of supernatural powers, for they had seen on several occasions how completely he had control over matter. Stone walls that are a serious impediment to ordinary mortals suddenly dissolved into thin air when he came to pass through them, and just as speedily assumed their solid form the moment he had disappeared. It was his custom, contrary to what is usual amongst the Chinese, to go out every evening just as the shadows were gathering thickly over the earth and were blotting out the narrow pathways along which men had then to travel. The gate-keeper would occasionally warn him that the roads were bad and that it would be wiser for him to remain within doors. He would answer with a merry laugh that his eyes were good' and that he had no fear of falling, as he knew the country well, and besides he would add, " I must go out for a turn in the fresh air. I have been poring over those ancient books the livelong day, and I shall be getting as dry and as musty as they if I do not let some of the fresh breezes of heaven blow away the cobwebs that have been weaving themselves in my brain." The Love Adventures of the Fox Fairy 33 Sometimes by accident the door-keeper would be awake - in the early hours of the morning when Hu would come stealing through the darkness. He would then give a cheery response to the greeting of the old man, and pass on to his room through the little side door that was always, on the latch for late-comers. More often than not, however,, he would sleep through the night and, though the great gates were safely barred and locked, he would find when he peeped at the dawn of day into Hu's bedroom that he was lying fast asleep, as though he had not been out the whole night. On one occasion a great storm was raging, the blind- ing flashes of lightning were lighting up with lurid gleams- the darkness that lay upon the earth, and the rain was being driven in torrents by the storm, when the door-keeper, who had been standing just within the shelter of his doorway, caught sight of Hu, in one of the vivid flashes, as he came silently along towards the main entrance. His instinct had been to rush out and open the door for him, but whilst he- was hesitating he saw, to his amazement, that he had passed through the great gates as easily as though they had been flung wide open before him, and that, in a moment, he had vanished through the great stone wall of the mansion and had disappeared within the building. It may be as well to explain here that Hu was a fairy, and that he had transformed himself into a man in order that he might gain the daughter of Mr. Lin for his wife. He had on several occasions caught sight of her, and he had been so struck with her beauty that he had fallen deeply in love with her. The plan of turning himself into a scholar and of living in the same family had suggested itself to his mind as the best way of ingratiating himself with the father and of becoming, acquainted with the daughter. The scheme, however, had been but partially successful, for though he was a general favourite, and every one admired his noble presence and looked up to him with profound respect for the marvellous- abilities with which he was endowed, there was a feeling that he belonged to another race and that, therefore, there could be no common sympathies between him and ordinary 34 Chinese Folk-Lore mortals. Even Mr. Lin, who looked upon him as a perfect treasure, and who valued him for the part he played in the production of his great work, had an uneasy feeling that he -must be on his guard against him. The weird stories of his passing through walls, and of his careering over the country on the darkest nights, and of his coming like a flash unhurt through storm and tempest had left their impression on his, mind, and he was beginning to wonder whether it was quite safe to have a man with such supernatural powers dwelling with him under the same roof. One morning Hu was missing, and not a trace was left behind to say whither he had vanished. Some declared that ■he had disappeared in a flash of lightning. Others were .quite as certain that he had transformed himself into a ,heron, and that he had joined a flock of these graceful birds that had been seen the previous evening flying with swift .and speedy flight into the distant sky. About a week after the mysterious disappearance of Hu, a stranger, riding a magnificent mule, rode up to the mansion of Mr. Lin, and requested to have a private interview with him on a question that was quite private and that could be communicated only to the master of the house. He was a very striking looking man and at once engaged the attention of the servants and dependants, whose duty it was to receive -visitors and to see to their courteous reception until they were •ushered into the presence of Mr. Lin. He was tall and dignified and his bearing was that of one who had been accustomed to mingle in the very highest society. He was about fifty years of age, and his face indicated that he was a man of thought and of good breeding. After the compliments of the day had been passed, he informed Mr. Lin that he had come as an envoy from Mr. Hu