CHAPTER XI.

THE CHINESE PHŒNIX.

From the date of the earliest examination of the literature of China, it

has been customary among Sinologues to trace a fancied resemblance between

a somewhat remarkable bird, which occupies an important position in the

early traditions of that Empire, and the phœnix of Western authors. Some

mythologists have even subsequently concluded that the Fung Hwang of the

Chinese, the phœnix of the Greeks, the Roc of the Arabs, and the Garuda of

the Hindoos, are merely national modifications of the same myth. I do not

hold this opinion, and, in opposing it, purpose, in the future, to discuss

each of these birds in detail, although in the present volume I treat only

of the Fung Hwang.

[Illustration: FIG. 90.--TEMPLE MEDALS FROM CHINA: DRAGON AND PHŒNIX.]

The earliest notice of it is contained in the _'Rh Ya_, which, with its

usual brevity, simply informs us that the male is called Fung and the

female Hwang; the commentator, Kwoh P‘oh, adding that the Shui Ying bird

(felicitous and perfect--a synonym for it) has a cock's head, a snake's

neck, a swallow's beak, a tortoise's back, is of five different colours,

and more than six feet high. The _'Rh Ya Chen I_, a later and

supplementary edition of the former work, quotes the _Shwoh Wan_ to the

effect that the united name of the male and female bird is Fung Hwang, and

that Tso's commentary on the 17th year of the Chao, says one appeared in

the time of the Emperor Che (dynastic title, Shaou Haou). The original

passage in the _Tso Chuen_ is so interesting that I quote _in extenso_ Dr.

Legge's translation of it:--

"When my ancestor, Shaou-Haou Che, succeeded to the kingdom, there

appeared at that time a phœnix, and therefore he arranged his government

under the nomenclature of birds, making bird officers, and naming them

after birds. There were so and so Phœnix bird, minister of the calendar;

so and so Dark bird [the swallow], master of the equinoxes; so and so Pih

Chaou [the shrike], master of the solstices; so and so Green bird [a kind

of sparrow], master of the beginning (of spring and autumn); and so and so

Carnation bird [the golden pheasant], master of the close (of spring and

autumn).... The five Che [Pheasants] presided over the five classes of

mechanics.

"So in previous reigns there had been cloud officers, fire officers, water

officers, and dragon officers, according to omens."

I think there is some connection between this old usage and the present or

late system of tribe totems among the North American Indians. Thus we have

Snake, Tortoise, Hare Indians, &c., and I hope some day to explain some of

the obscure and apparently impossible passages of the _Shan Hai King_, in

reference to strange tribes, upon what I may call the totem theory.

The _Kin King_, a small work devoted to ornithology, and professing to

date back to the Tsin dynasty [A.D. 265 to 317], opens its pages with a

description of the Fung Hwang, because, as it states, the Fung is the

principal of the three hundred and sixty different species of birds.

According to it, the Fung is like a swan in front and like a Lin behind;

it enumerates its resemblances pretty much as the commentator in the _'Rh

Ya_ gives them; but we now find a commencement of extraordinary

attributes. Thus the head is supposed to have impressed on it the Chinese

character expressing virtue, the poll that for uprightness, the back that

for humanity; the heart is supposed to contain that of sincerity, and the

wings to enfold in their clasp that of integrity; its foot imprints

integrity; its low notes are like a bell, its high notes are like a drum.

It is said that it will not peck living grass, and that it contains all

the five colours.[312]

When it flies crowds of birds follow. When it appears, the monarch is an

equitable ruler, and the kingdom has moral principles. It has a synonym,

"the felicitous _yen_." According to the _King Shun_ commentary upon the

_'Rh Ya_, it is about six feet in height. The young are called Yoh Shoh,

and it is said that the markings of the five colours only appear when it

is three years of age.[313]

There appears to have been another bird closely related to it, which is

called the Lwan Shui. This, when first hatched, resembles the young Fung,

but when of mature age it changes the five colours.

The _Shăng Li Teu Wei I_ says of this, that when the world is peaceful its

notes will be heard like the tolling of a bell, Pien Lwan [answering to

our "ding-dong"]. During the Chao dynasty it was customary to hang a bell

on the tops of vehicles, with a sound like that of the Lwan.[314] From

another passage we learn that it was supposed to have different names

according to a difference in colour. Thus, when the head and wings were

red it was called the red Fung; when blue, the Yu Siang; when white, the

Hwa Yih; when black, the Yin Chu; when yellow, the To Fu. Another

quotation is to the effect that, when the Fung soars and the Lwan flies

upwards, one hundred birds follow them. It is also stated that when either

the Lwan or the Fung dies, one hundred birds peck up the earth and bury

them.

Another author amplifies the fancied resemblances of the Fung, for in the

_Lun Yü Tseh Shwai Shing_ we find it stated that it has six resemblances

and nine qualities. The former are: 1st, the head is like heaven; 2nd, the

eye like the sun; 3rd, the back is like the moon; 4th, the wings like the

wind; 5th, the foot is like the ground; 6th, the tail is like the woof.

The latter are: 1st, the mouth contains commands; 2nd, the heart is

conformable to regulations; 3rd, the ear is thoroughly acute in hearing;

4th, the tongue utters sincerity; 5th, the colour is luminous; 6th, the

comb resembles uprightness; 7th, the spur is sharp and curved; 8th, the

voice is sonorous; 9th, the belly is the treasure of literature.

When it crows, in walking, it utters "Quai she" [returning joyously]; when

it stops crowing, "T‘i fee" [I carry assistance?]; when it crows at night

it exclaims "Sin" [goodness]; when in the morning, "Ho si" [I congratulate

the world]; when during its flight, "Long Tu che wo" [Long Tu knows me]

and "Hwang che chu sz si" [truly Hwang has come with the Bamboos].[315]

Hence it was that Confucius wished to live among the nine I [barbarian

frontier countries] following the Fung's pleasure.

The Fung appears to have been fond of music, for, according to the _Shu

King_, when you play the flute, in nine cases out of ten the Fung Wang

comes to bear you company; while, according to the _Odes_, or Classic of

Poetry, the Fung, in flying, makes the sound _hwui hwui_, and its wings

carry it up to the heavens; and when it sings on the lofty mountain called

Kwang, the Wu Tung tree flourishes,[316] and its fame spreads over the

world.

The presence of the Fung was always an auspicious augury, and it was

supposed that when heaven showed its displeasure at the conduct of the

people during times of drought, of destruction of crops by insects

(locusts), of disastrous famines, and of pestilence, the Fung Wang retired

from the civilised country into the desert and forest regions.

It was classed with the dragon, the tortoise, and the unicorn as a

spiritual creature, and its appearance in the gardens and groves denoted

that the princes and monarch were equitable, and the people submissive and

obedient.

Its indigenous home is variously indicated. Thus, in the _Shan Hai King_,

it is stated to dwell in the Ta Hueh mountains, a range included in the

third list of the southern mountains; it is also, in the third portion of

the same work (treating of the Great Desert), placed in the south and in

the west of the Great Desert, and more specifically as west of Kwan Lun.

There is also a tradition that it came from Corea; and the celebrated

Chinese general, Sieh Jan Kwéi, who invaded and conquered that country in

A.D. 668, is said to have ascended the Fung Hwang mountain there and seen

the phœnix.

According to the Annals of the Bamboo Books phœnixes, male and female,

arrived in the autumn, in the seventh month, in the fiftieth year of the

reign of Hwang Ti (B.C. 2647), and the commentary states that some of them

abode in the Emperor's eastern garden; some built their nests about the

corniced galleries (of the palaces), and some sung in the courtyard, the

females gambolling to the notes of the males.

The commentary of the same work adds that (among a variety of prodigies)

the phœnix appeared in the seventieth year of the reign of Yaou (B.C.

2286), and again in the first year of Shun (B.C. 2255).

Kwoh P‘oh states that, during the times of the Han dynasty (commencing

B.C. 206 and lasting until A.D. 23), the phœnixes appeared constantly.

In these later passages I have adopted the word phœnix, after Legge and

other Sinologues, as a conventional admission; but, as will be seen from

all the extracts given, there are but few grounds for identifying it,

whether fabulous or not, with the phœnix of Greek mythology. It reappears

in Japanese tradition under the name of the Ho and O (male and female),

and, according to Kempfer, who calls it the Foo, "it is a chimerical but

beautiful large bird of paradise, of near akin to the phœnix of the

ancients. It dwells in the high regions of the air, and it hath this in

common with the Ki-Rin (the equivalent of the Chinese Ki-Lin), that it

never comes down from thence but upon the birth of a _sesin_ (a man of

incomparable understanding, penetration, and benevolence) or that of a

great emperor, or upon some such other extraordinary occasion."

It is a common ornamentation in the Japanese temples; and I select, as an

example, figures from some very beautiful panels in the Nichi-hong-wanji

temple in Kioto. They depart widely from the original (Chinese) tradition,

every individual presenting a different combination of gorgeous colours;

they only agree in having two long central tail feathers projecting from a

plumose, bird-of-paradise-like arrangement.

These can only be accepted as the evolution of an artist's fancy; nor can

any opinion be arrived at from the figure of it illustrating the _'Rh Ya_,

of which I reproduce a _fac-simile_. I have already stated that Kwoh

P‘oh's illustrations have been lost.

[Illustration: FIG. 91.--THE FUNG HWANG. (_From the 'Rh Ya._)]

The frontispiece to this volume is reduced from a large and very beautiful

painting on silk, which I was fortunate enough to procure in Shanghai, by

an artist named Fang Heng, otherwise styled Sien Tang; it professes to be

made according to the designs of ancient books. The original is, I

believe, of some antiquity.

In this case the delineation of the bird shows a combination of the

characters of the peacock, the pheasant, and the bird of paradise; the

comb is like that of a pheasant. The tail is adorned with gorgeous eyes,

like a peacock's, but fashioned more like that of an argus pheasant, the

two middle tail feathers projecting beyond the others, while stiffened

plumes, as I interpret the intention of the drawing, are made to project

from the sides of the back, and above the wings, recalling those of the

_Semioptera Wallacii_. The bird perches, in accordance with tradition, on

the Wu-Tung tree. Without pretending to assert that this is an exact

representation of the Tung, I fancy that it comes nearer to it than the

ordinary Chinese and Japanese representations.

Looking to the history of the appearance of the Fung, the general

description of its characteristics, and disregarding the supernatural

qualities with which, probably, Taouist priests have invested it, I can

only regard it as another example of an interesting and beautiful species

of bird which has become extinct, as the dodo and so many others have,

within historic times.

Its rare appearance and gorgeousness of plumage would cause its advent on

any occasion to be chronicled, and a servile court would only too readily

seize upon this pretext to flatter the reigning monarch and ascribe to his

virtues a phenomenon which, after all, was purely natural.

APPENDICES.

APPENDIX I.

THE DELUGE TRADITION ACCORDING TO BEROSUS.[317]

"Obartés Elbaratutu being dead, his son Xisuthros (Khasisatra) reigned

eighteen sares (64,800 years). It was under him that the great Deluge took

place, the history of which is told in the sacred documents as follows:

Cronos (Ea) appeared to him in his sleep, and announced that on the

fifteenth of the month of Daisios--the Assyrian month Sivan--a little

before the summer (solstice) all men should perish by a flood. He

therefore commanded him to take the beginning, the middle, and the end of

whatever was consigned to writing, and to bury it in the city of the Sun,

at Sippara; then to build a vessel and to enter it with his family and

dearest friends; to place in this vessel provisions to eat and drink, and

to cause animals, birds, and quadrupeds to enter it; lastly, to prepare

everything for navigation. And when Xisuthros inquired in what direction

he should steer his bark, he was answered 'Toward the gods,' and enjoined

to pray that good might come of it for men.

"Xisuthros obeyed, and constructed a vessel five stadia long and five

broad; he collected all that had been prescribed to him, and embarked his

wife, his children, and his intimate friends.

"The Deluge having come, and soon going down, Xisuthros loosed some of the

birds. These, finding no food nor place to alight on, returned to the

ship. A few days later Xisuthros again let them free, but they returned

again to the vessel, their feet full of mud. Finally, loosed the third

time, the birds came no more back.

"Then Xisuthros understood that the earth was bare. He made an opening in

the roof of the ship, and saw that it had grounded on the top of a

mountain. He then descended with his wife, his daughter, and his pilot,

who worshipped the earth, raised an altar, and there sacrificed to the

gods; at the same moment he vanished with those who accompanied him.

"Meanwhile those who had remained in the vessel, not seeing Xisuthros

return, descended too, and began to seek him, calling him by his name.

They saw Xisuthros no more; but a voice from heaven was heard commanding

them piety towards the gods; that he, indeed, was receiving the reward of

his piety in being carried away to dwell thenceforth in the midst of the

gods, and that his wife, his daughter, and the pilot of the ship shared

the same honour. The voice further said that they were to return to

Babylon, and, conformably to the decrees of fate, disinter the writings

buried at Sippara, in order to transmit them to men. It added that the

country in which they found themselves was Armenia. These, then, having

heard the voice, sacrificed to the gods and returned on foot to Babylon.

Of the vessel of Xisuthros, which had finally landed in Armenia, a portion

is still to be found in the Gordyan mountains in Armenia, and pilgrims

bring thence asphalte that they have scraped from its fragments. It is

used to keep off the influence of witchcraft. As to the companions of

Xisuthros, they came to Babylon, disinterred the writings left at Sippara,

founded numerous cities, built temples, and restored Babylon."

* * * * *

The large amount of work done by the few followers of Xisuthros, seems

very surprising, but easily accounted for if we take the version of the

Deluge given by Nicolaus Damascenus (a philosopher and historian of the

age of Augustus, and a friend of Herod the Great).

"He mentions that there is a large mountain in Armenia, which stands above

the country of the Minyæ, called Baris. To this it was said that many

people betook themselves in the time of the Deluge, and were saved. And

there is a tradition of one person in particular floating in an ark, and

arriving at the summit of the mountain."[318]

APPENDIX II.

THE DRAGON.

ÆLIANUS DE NATURÂ ANIMALIUM.

BOOK II. ch. 26.

The dragon [which is perfectly fearless of beasts], when it hears the

noise of the wings of an eagle, immediately conceals itself in

hiding-places.

BOOK II. ch. 21.

Æthiopia generates dragons reaching thirty paces long; they have no proper

name, but they merely call them slayers of elephants, and they attain a

great age. So far do the Æthiopian accounts narrate. The Phrygian history

also states that dragons are born which reach ten paces in length; which

daily in midsummer, at the hour when the forum is full of men in assembly,

are wont to proceed from their caverns, and [near the river Rhyndacus],

with part of the body on the ground, and the rest erect, with the neck

gently stretched out, and gaping mouth, attract birds, either by their

inspiration, or by some fascination, and that those which are drawn down

by the inhalation of their breath glide down into their stomach--[and that

they continue this until sunset,] but that after that, concealing

themselves, they lay in ambush for the herds returning from the pasture to

the stable, and inflict much injury, often killing the herdsmen and

gorging themselves with food.

BOOK VI. ch. 4.

When dragons are about to eat fruit they suck the juice of the wild

chicory, because this affords them a sovereign remedy against inflation.

When they purpose lying in wait for a man or a beast, they eat deadly

roots and herbs; a thing not unknown to Homer, for he makes mention of the

dragon, who, lingering and twisting himself in front of his den, devoured

noxious herbs.

BOOK VI. ch. 21.

In India, as I am told, there is great enmity between the dragon and

elephant. Wherefore the dragons, aware that elephants are accustomed to

pluck off boughs from trees for food, coil themselves beforehand in these

trees, folding the tail half of their body round the limbs, and leaving

the front half hanging like a rope. When an elephant approaches for the

purpose of browsing on the young branches, the dragon leaping on him,

tears out his eyes, and then squeezing his neck with his front part and

lashing him with his tail, strangles him in this strange kind of noose.

BOOK VI. ch. 22.

The elephant has a great horror of the dragon.

BOOK VI. ch. 17.

In Idumea, or Judæa, during Herod's power, according to the statement of

the natives of the country, a very beautiful, and just adolescent, woman,

was beloved by a dragon of exceptional magnitude; who visited her betimes

and slept with her as a lover. She, indeed, although her lover crept

towards her as gently and quietly as lay in his power, yet utterly

alarmed, withdrew herself from him; and to the end that a forgetfulness of

his passion might result from the absence of his mistress, absented

herself for the space of a month.

But the desire of the absent one was increased in him, and his amatory

disposition was daily so far aggravated that he frequently came both by

day and night to that spot, where he had been wont to be with the maiden,

and when unable to meet with his inamorata, was afflicted with a terrible

grief. After the girl returned, angry at being, as it were spurned, he

coiled himself round her body, and softly and gently chastised her on the

legs.

BOOK VI. ch. 63.

A dragon whelp, born in Arcadia, was brought up with an Arcadian child;

and in process of time, when both were older, they entertained a mutual

affection for one another. The friends of the boy, seeing how the dragon

had increased in magnitude in so short a time, carried him, while sleeping

with the boy in the same bed, to a remote spot, and, leaving him there,

brought the boy back. The dragon thereon remained in the wood [feeding on

growing plants and poisons], preferring a solitary life to one in towns

and [human] habitations. Time having rolled on, and the boy having

attained youth, and the dragon maturity, the former, while travelling upon

one occasion through the wilds in the neighbourhood of his friend, fell

among robbers, who attacked him with drawn swords, and being struck,

either from pain, or in the hopes of assistance, cried out. The dragon

being a beast of acute hearing and sharp vision, as soon as he heard the

lad with whom he had been brought up, gave a hiss in expression of his

anger, and so struck them with fear, that the trembling robbers dispersed

in different directions, whom having caught, he destroyed by a terrible

death. Afterwards, having cared for the wounds of his ancient friend, and

escorted him through the places infested with serpents, he returned to the

spot where he himself had been exposed--not showing any anger towards him

on account of his having been expelled into solitude, nor because

ill-feeling men had abandoned an old friend in danger.

BOOK VIII. ch. 11.

Hegemon, in his Dardanic verses, among other things mentions, concerning

the Thessalian Alevus, that a dragon conceived an affection for him.

Alevus possessed, as Hegemon states, golden hair, which I should call

yellow, and pastured cattle upon Ossa near the Thessalian spring called

Hæmonium [as Anchises formerly did on Ida]. A dragon of great size fell

violently in love with him, and used to crawl up gently to him, kiss his

hair, cleanse his face by licking it with his tongue, and bring him

various spoils from the chase.

BOOK X. ch. 25.

Beyond the Oasis of Egypt there is a great desert which extends for seven

days' journey, succeeded by a region inhabited by the Cynoprosopi, on the

way to Æthiopia. These live by the chase of goats and antelopes. They are

black, with the head and teeth of a dog, of which animal, in this

connection, the mention is not to be looked upon as absurd, for they lack

the power of speech, and utter a shrill hissing sound, and have a beard

above and below the mouth like a dragon; their hands are armed with strong

and sharp nails, and the body is equally hairy with that of dogs.

BOOK X. ch. 48.

Lycaonus, King of Emathia, had a son named Macedon, from whom eventually

the country was called, the old name becoming obsolete. Now, one of

Macedon's sons, named Pindus, was indued both with strength of mind and

innate probity, as well as a handsome person, whereas his other children

were constituted with mean minds and less vigorous bodies.

When, therefore, these latter perceived Pindus's virtue and other gifts,

they not only oppressed him, but in the end ruined themselves in

punishment for so great a crime.

Pindus, perceiving that plots were laid for him by his brothers,

abandoning the kingdom which he had received from his father, and being

robust and taking pleasure in hunting, not only took to it himself, but

led the others to follow his example.

Upon one occasion he was pursuing some young mules, and, spurring his

horse to the top of its powers, drew away a long distance from those who

were hunting with him. The mules passing into a deep cavern, escaped the

sight of their pursuer, and preserved themselves from danger. He leaped

down from the horse, which he tied to the nearest tree, and whilst he was

seeking with his utmost ability to discover the mules, and probing the

dens with his hands, heard a voice warning him not to touch the mules.

Wherefore, when he had long and carefully looked about, and could see no

one, he feared that the voice was the result of some greater cause, and,

mounting his horse, left the place. On the next day he returned to the

spot, but, deterred by the remembrance of the voice he had heard, he did

not enter the place where they had concealed themselves.

When, therefore, he was cogitating as to who had warned him from following

his prey, and, as it appeared, was looking out for mountain shepherds, or

hunters, or some cottage--a dragon of unusual magnitude appeared to him,

creeping softly with a great part of its body, but raising up its neck and

head a little way, as if stretching himself--but his neck and head were of

such height as to equal that of the tallest man.

Although Pindus was alarmed at the sight, he did not take to flight, but,

rallying himself from his great terror, wisely endeavoured to appease the

beast by giving him to eat the birds he had caught, as the price of his

redemption.

He, cajoled by the gifts and baits, or, as I may say, touched, left the

spot. This was so pleasing to Pindus, that, as an honourable man, and

grateful for his escape, he carried to the dragon, as a thank-offering,

whatever he could procure from his mountain chases, or by fowling.

Nor were these gifts from his booty without return, for fortune became

immediately more favourable to him, and he achieved success in all his

hunting, whether he pursued ground or winged game.

Wherefore he achieved a great reputation, both for finding and quickly

catching game.

Now, he was so tall that he caused terror from his bulk, while from his

excellent constitution and beautiful countenance he inflamed women with so

violent an affection for him, that the unmarried, as if they were furious

and bacchantes, joined his hunting expeditions; and married women, under

the guardianship of husbands, preferred passing their time with him, to

being reported among the number of goddesses. And, for the most part, men

also esteemed him highly, as his virtue and appearance attracted universal

admiration. His brothers only held a hostile and inimical feeling towards

him. Wherefore upon a certain occasion they attacked him from an ambush,

when he was hunting alone, and having driven him into the defiles of a

river close by, when he was removed from all help, attacked him with drawn

swords and slew him.

When the dragon heard its friend's outcries (for it is an animal with as

sharp a sense of hearing as it has quickness of vision), it issued from

its lair, and at once, casting its coils round the impious wretches,

suffocated them.

It did not desist from watching over its slain [friend] with the utmost

care, until those nearest related to the deceased came to him, as he was

lying on the ground; but nevertheless, although clad in proper mourning,

they were prevented through fear of the custodian from approaching and

interring the dead with proper rites, until it, understanding from its

profound and wonderful nature, that it was keeping them at a distance,

quietly departed from its guard and station near the body, in order that

it might receive the last tokens of esteem from the bystanders without any

interruption.

Splendid obsequies were performed, and the river where the murder was

effected received its name from the dead man.

It is therefore a peculiarity of these beasts to be grateful to those from

whom they may have received favours.

BOOK XI. ch. 2.--_Dragon Sacred to Apollo._

The Epirotes, both at home and abroad, sacrifice to Apollo, and solemnise

with extreme magnificence a feast yearly in his honour, There is a grove

among them sacred to the god, and inclosed with a wall, within which are

dragons, pleasing to the god. Hither a sacred virgin comes alone, naked,

and presents food to the dragons. The Epirotes say that these are

descended from the Delphic python. If they regarded the virgin ministering

to them with favour, and took the food promptly, they were believed to

portend a fertile and healthful year; if they were rude towards her, and

would not accept the proffered food, some predicted, or at least expected,

the contrary for the coming year.

BOOK II. ch. 16.--_Dragon in Lavinium._

There is a peculiar divination of the dragon, for in Lavinium, a town of

the Latins but in Lavinium, there is a large and dense sacred grove, and

near it the shrine of the Argolic Juno. Within the grove is a cave and

deep den, the lair of a dragon.

Sacred virgins enter this grove on stated days, who carry a barley cake in

their hands, with bandaged eyes. A certain divine afflatus leads them

accurately to the den, and gently, and step by step, they proceed without

hindrance, and as if their eyes were uncovered. If they are virgins, the

dragon admits the food as pure and fit for a deity. If otherwise, it does

not touch it, perceiving and divining them to be impure.

Ants, for the sake of cleansing the place, carry from the grove the cake

left by the vitiated virgin, broken into little pieces, so that they may

easily carry it. When this happens, it is perceived by the inhabitants,

and those who have entered are pointed out and examined, and whoever

proves to have forfeited her virginity is punished with the penalties

appointed by the laws.

"The masculine sex also seems to be privileged by nature among brutes,

inasmuch as the male dragon is distinguished by a crest and hairs, with a

beard."

BOOK XVI. ch. 39.

Onesicritus Astypalæus writes that there were two dragons in India

[nurtured by an Indian dancer], one of forty-six and the other of eighty

cubits, and that Alexander (Philip's son) earnestly endeavoured to see

them. It is affirmed in Egyptian books that, during the reign of

Philadelphus, two dragons were brought from Æthiopia into Philadelphia

alive, one forty, the other thirty cubits in magnitude.

Three were also brought in the time of King Evergetis, one nine and

another seven cubits. The Egyptians say that the third was preserved with

great care in the temple of Æsculapius.

It is also said that there are asps of four cubits in length. Those who

write the history of the affairs of Chios say that a dragon of extreme

magnitude was produced in a valley, densely crowded and gloomy with tall

trees, of the Mount Pelienæus in that island, whose hissing struck the

Chians with horror.

As none either of the husbandmen or shepherds dare, by approaching near,

estimate its magnitude, but from its hissing judged it to be a large and

formidable beast, at length its size became known by a remarkable

accident. For the trees of the valley being struck by a very strong wind,

and the branches ignited by the friction, a great fire thence arising,

embraced the whole spot, and surrounded the beast, which, being unable to

escape, was consumed by the ardour of the flame. By these means all things

were rendered visible in the denuded place, and the Chians freed, from

their alarms, came to investigate, and lighted on bones of unusual

magnitude, and an immense head, from which they were enabled to conjecture

its dimensions when living.

BOOK XI. ch. 17.

Homer was not rash in his line,

Terrible are the gods when they manifest themselves.

For the dragon, while sacred and to be worshipped, has within himself

something still more of the divine nature of which it is better to remain

in ignorance.

Indeed, a dragon received divine honours in a certain tower in Melita in

Egypt. He had his priests and ministers, his table and bowl. Every day

they filled the bowl with flour kneaded with honey, and went away;

returning on the following day, they found the bowl empty.

Upon one occasion, a man of illustrious birth, who entertained an intense

desire of seeing the dragon, having entered alone, and placed the food,

went out; and when the dragon commenced to feed at the table, he opened

suddenly and noisily the doors, which according to custom he had closed.

The dragon indignantly left; but he who had desired to see him, to his own

destruction, being seized with an affliction of the mind, and having

confessed his crime, presently lost his speech, and shortly after died.

BOOK XII. ch. 39.

When Halia, the daughter of Sybasis, had entered the grove of Diana in

Phrygia, a certain sacred dragon of large size appeared and copulated with

her; whence the Ophiogenæ deduce the origin of their race.

BOOK XV. ch. 21.--_Concerning the Indian Dragon._

Alexander (while he attacked or devastated some portions of India, and

also seized others), lighted on, among other numerous animals, a dragon,

which the Indians, because they considered it to be sacred, and worshipped

it with great reverence, in a certain cave, besought him with many

entreaties to let alone, which he agreed to. However, when the dragon

heard the noise made by the passing army (for it is an animal endowed with

a very acute sense of hearing as well as of vision), it frightened and

alarmed them all with a great hissing and blowing. It was said to be

seventy cubits long.

It did not, however, show the whole of itself, but only exposed its head

from the cave. Its eyes were said to have been of the size (and rotundity)

of a Macedonian shield.

APPENDIX III.

ORIGINAL PREFACE TO "WONDERS BY LAND AND SEA" ("SHAN HAI KING").

The Classic containing "Wonders by Land and Sea" has been praised by all

who have read it, for its depth, greatness, far sightedness and

completeness; since the narratives therein contained are all wonderful and

different from ordinary things. Moreover, the truth or veracity of the

book is a matter of doubt to nearly all men, and I therefore think it fit

that I should give my opinion on the subject. It has been said by the

philosopher Chuang that "the things that men do know can in no way be

compared, numerically speaking, to the things that are unknown," thus in

reading "Wonders by Land and Sea," the force of his remark becomes

apparent to me.

Now, since heaven and earth are vast, it follows that the beings which

inhabit them must reasonably be numerous. The positive and negative

elements being heated by vernal warmth, produce myriads of living beings

of classes innumerable. When the essence of ether combines, motion becomes

apparent and generates into wondrous and roving spirits, which, floating

about and coming into contact with anything, enter into it and thus create

wonderful beings, whether they be inhabitants of mountain or sea, or wood

or stone; yea, so numerous are they, that it is an impossible task for me

to give them in detail.

The evolution of the essence of the elements generates sound, which by

development produces a certain image. When we call a thing wonderful, it

is because we do not know the reasons attending its origin, and what we do

not call wonderful, we still are unaware why it is not so. And why? A

thing is, _per se_, not wonderful, it is because we wish to consider it

so; the wonder is in ourselves and not in the thing. For instance, when a

savage looks at the cotton cloth we wear, he calls it hemp; and when an

inhabitant of Yüch (Soochow and vicinity) sees a rug, he calls it fur or

hair. The reason may be found in this: we believe only those things to

which we have been educated, and anything which might not be perfectly

understood by us we deem wonderful. Hence the shortsightedness of human

nature. I will now give a passing remark of what is known amongst us. A

place called Ping Shui (?) produces fire, while the Yen mountain produces

rats. Now all men know these facts, and yet when we read and speak of the

classic treating of the "Wonders by Land and Sea," we call it wonderful!

When a thing is really wonderful, we do not consider it so; and what is

not wonderful, we persist in considering it to be so. Such being the case,

if, what should be wondered at, we do not call it so, then there cannot be

a single wonder in the whole Universe; and if we call a thing wonderful

which in truth is not so, then up to the present time there can be nothing

wonderful. Moreover, if what is unknowable appears clear to our minds, it

follows that all things on earth should be understood by us.

According to the Bamboo Annals of Chi Chuen, and the records of King Müh,

it is said that when that King went to visit the Fairy Queen of the West,

he took with him as gifts to her, beautiful jade stones, and the best of

raw and embroidered silks; while, on the other hand, the Fairy Queen gave

a banquet in honour of the King, on the banks of the lake formed by white

jade stones. During the banquet they composed and spoke their thoughts in

verse, and the sentiments embodied therein were beautiful. Then the royal

pair repaired to the hillock adjoining the Küen Lun mountain, and roamed

over the palaces of King Hsüen Yüan, which were situated there, and thence

to the artificial terraces of the Chung hill, and gazed on the precious

and wonderful things collected by that king. Returning to the residence of

the Fairy Queen, King Müh had a stone tablet engraved recording the event,

and erected it in the Queen's magic garden. On King Müh's return home, he

brought with him to the Middle Kingdom beautiful wood and magnificent

flowers, precious stones and elegant jades, golden oils and silver

candles. In his travels, King Müh rode in a chariot drawn by eight

splendid horses; the right-hand horses were of a dark colour, while those

on the left hand were greenish. Tsao Fu was the charioteer, and Pen Yung,

who stood on the King's right, was the body-guard. Myriads of _lis_ could

thus be traversed. They went over barren wastes and over celebrated

mountains and large rivers, yet none of them barred their onward course.

To the east they came across the Halls of the Giants; to the west they

arrived at the mansions of the Fairy Queen; to the south they crossed over

a bridge composed of immense tortoises; and to the north they drove over

streets made of layers of feathers. Traversing these, then, King Müh

commenced his journey homeward full of joy. History informs us that "King

Müh, riding in a chariot drawn by eight magnificent horses, with Tsao Fu

as charioteer, made a journey to the west, in search of adventures in

hunting, and, coming to the Fairy Queen of the West, was so happy, that

he almost forgot to return home." These words are similar to those

recorded in the "Bamboo Annals" of Chi Chuen. The classic called "Spring

and Autumn," says that "King Müh was a man of vast ambition, and desired

that the whole world should bear the tracks of his cart-wheels, and

receive the imprints of his horse's hoof," and the "Bamboo Annals"

illustrate this ambition.

The disciples of Ts'ian Chow were all eminent scholars of famous

attainments, but they were all sceptical as to the veracity of the

adventures of King Müh, and say that in looking over history they are

convinced of their fallacy. Sz Ma Tseen also, in writing the preface to

the "Records of Ta Wan," says that when Chang Ch'ien went on his mission

to Ta Hsia, he traversed the whole length of the Huang Ho up to its very

source, but never came across the Küen Lun mountain. Moreover, Sz Ma Tsëen

in his own history also says, in referring to the "Book of Wonders by Land

and Sea," that, "As to the wonders described in that work, I, for my part,

dare not vouch for their truth." In the face, therefore, of all these

authorities, is it not a hard task for me to prove the contrary? If the

"Bamboo Annals" of a thousand years ago be not taken at the present day as

a truthful record of the past, then, indeed, most of the narratives

contained in the "Book of Wonders by Land and Sea" must be false. Now,

Tung Fang Shun knew of Pe Fang; Lin Tsz Chen proved satisfactorily the

existence of Tao Chea by a corpse from that kingdom. Wang Ch'i had an

interview with men having two distinct faces on their heads, and a man

from the sea coast picked up a dress having two very long sleeves. In

carefully studying, therefore, these books, I am convinced that their

stories mainly coincide with the tales in the "Book of Wonders by Land and

Sea." Behold these evidences then, ye who doubt, and place some credence

in the narrations contained in this book.

The Sage King made exhaustive researches into these wondrous beings, and

then drew their images. It is indeed impossible to hide the existence of

these wonders! The "Book of Wonders by Land and Sea" was compiled seven

dynasties ago (up to the Tsin dynasty), a space of 3,000 years. During the

Han dynasty this book received the closest attention, and was elucidated

for the benefit of its readers; but shortly after it again fell into

neglect. Moreover, since then, the names of some mountains and rivers have

undergone changes. At the present day, teachers and expounders are unable

to explain these wonders, and hence through disuse their reasons given at

an earlier age have almost sunk into oblivion. Alas, for the loss of

Reason! Fearing, therefore, that it will be entirely lost, I have written

the accompanying work, making lucid the points that are obscure, and

erasing those that are useless; pointing out what would not be noticeable,

and explaining the parts that are deep. I shall endeavour to reclaim what

has almost become obsolete, that it may stand for thousand of ages, and

the wonders herein recorded shall not, from the present day, be lost. Thus

the works of the Emperor Yü of the Hsia dynasty will not be lost in the

future, and the records of the Barren Wastes beyond the boundaries of this

Empire will be transmitted to posterity. Will not this be a laudable

object?

Insects that spring from grassy ground cannot soar as high as the birds of

the air, nor can the living beings that inhabit the sea rise up

heavenwards like the dragon. A man of medium abilities in music can never

be a member of the Orchestra in the Halls of Chuen Tien, nor can the

water-buffalo traverse the watery deeps to which even ships dare not

venture. Hence, unless a person be of the highest understanding, it would

be a hard task to converse with him intelligently of the "Wonders by Land

and Sea." And I sigh because it is only the learned and intelligent man

that can read understandingly the tales in this work.

KWOH P'OH,

Assistant Secretary and an Official of the 6th Rank,

of the Tsin Dynasty.

APPENDIX IV.

A MEMORIAL PRESENTED BY LIU HSIU, BY ORDER OF HIS IMPERIAL MAJESTY THE

EMPEROR, ON THE "BOOK OF WONDERS BY LAND AND SEA."

The Memorialist, an officer of the Fourth Rank and Charioteer to His

Majesty the Emperor, having received commands to comment upon and make

right wonderful books, now reports that an officer named Wang, a

subordinate in the Board of Civil Office, had already made comments and

set right thirty-two chapters of the "Book of Wonders by Land and Sea,"

but which the memorialist has reduced to eighteen chapters. This book was

compiled during the time of the three Emperors (Yao, Shun, and Yü). At

that time there was a great flood, insomuch that the people had no places

to live, but only in caves and holes in the rocks, and upon the tops of

trees.

The father of Yü, by name K'un, being ordered by the Emperor to assuage

the floods, was unable to do so; the Emperor Yao therefore ordered Yü, the

son, to do so. Yü used four things in his journey around to make the

floods flow away. He first cut away the trees on high mountains to obtain

a view of the surrounding country; and having settled as to which was the

highest mountain, and which the largest river, Yih and Peh Ye undertook to

drive away the wild beasts and birds abounding in the country, and named

the mountains and rivers, and classified the fauna of the country, and

pointed out which was water and which was land. The feudal lords assisted

Yü in his work, and thus he traversed the four quarters of the Empire,

where footprint of man seldom could be found, and where boats and carts

scarcely reached. He named the five mountain divisions of the Empire and

eight seas that bound it. He noted where each kind of precious stone could

be found, and the wonderful things he had seen. The abode of animals of

land and sea, flora of the country, birds of the air, and beasts of the

field, worms, the unicorn, and the phœnix, all these he fixed, and also

made known their hiding-places; also the furthest removed kingdom of the

earth, and men who were different from human beings. Yü divided the

Empire into nine divisions, and determined upon the tribute to be given by

each division, and Yih and his comrade noted which was hurtful and which

was harmless for the "Book of Wonders by Land and Sea."

All the deeds handed down to us of the sages are clearly noted in the

Maxims of the Ancients. The work therein expressed is a matter that can be

believed in. During the reign of Shiao Wu there was commonly seen a rare

bird, which would eat nothing. Tung Fang Suh saw this bird, and gave its

name; he also told what it would eat. His words being attended to, the

bird ate what was given it. Someone asked Suh how he knew of it; he said

he had read of the bird in the "Book of Wonders by Land and Sea." During

the reign of Shiao Hsüen, a large stone was broken in Shang Chuen, which

then sank into the ground and displayed a house of stone; in the house was

a man of Tao Chia, with his arms tied. At that time the memorialist's

father, named Hsiang, was a Censor, and he said that this Tao Chia man was

a traitor to his king. Being questioned by the Emperor how he could know

it, he said that he had read of it in the "Book of Wonders by Land and

Sea," which says, "A traitor having killed his king in Tao Yü, he was

chained and confined in a mountain, his right leg was cut off, and both

his arms tied behind his back." The Emperor was much surprised at this.

All scholars acknowledge that this book is perfectly wonderful, and all

intelligent men should read it, and be able to speak upon these wonderful

beings and things, and learn the customs of far-off kingdoms and their

inhabitants. Hence the Yi King says, "In speaking of the products of the

empire, care should be taken to avoid confusion," and learned men,

therefore, may not be doubtful.

A memorial presented to the Throne by

LIU HSIU.

APPENDIX V.

AFTER PREFACE TO THE "BOOK OF WONDERS BY LAND AND SEA."

In the sayings of the philosopher Tso, the following remarks may be found:

"Virtue existed during the times of the Hsia dynasty; drawings of all

animals far and wide were made, and the metal from which the urn was made,

for the purpose of engraving thereon the images of these animals, was

presented as tribute by the feudal lords of the Nine Kingdoms. This urn

contained the images of all manner and kinds of animals. This was for the

purpose of letting the people know about their existence, so that they

might avoid them in entering the mountains and forests, and the genii of

the mountains and rivers. Hence the object of the classic treating on the

'Wonders by Land and Sea.'" When Yü assuaged the floods, the Emperor

presented him with a red-coloured wand made of jadestones, and then

abdicated his throne in his favour; on this account he ordered a tribute

of metals from the feudal lords of the Nine Kingdoms, wherewith to cast

the urn, on which were engraved all kinds of animals from far and wide,

such as the wonderful animals and beings of mountains, rivers, grass, and

wood, as well as the wonders to be found among walking animals and

inhabitants of the air. Yü, when Emperor, caused the forms of these

wonders to be described, how produced, and their natures; he also had them

classified. When he had described those wonders, whether seen or heard of,

or common or uncommon, or rarely heard of, all these he had described

minutely, whereby, when the people heard of them, an exceeding fear fell

on them. All animals and beings that were common in those days were

described in the Annals of Yü, but such as were wonderful and rare were

engraved on the nine urns. These urns when completed were placed in those

parts of the empire where these wonders originally came from, in order

that the people of that age might learn and see daily the things that were

either heard of or seen by others.

The things brought by tribute-bearers from afar were also added unto the

nine urns. Indeed, this made wonders an ordinary matter. That the people

might learn these things was the idea of the sage King Yü. Hence, even

though at that time all things were described honestly, still the works of

that period are far deeper than those of the Chow dynasty. At the time of

the last Emperor of the Hsia dynasty, the historiographer Chung Ku,

fearing that that Emperor might destroy the books treating of the ancient

and present time, carried them in flight to Yin. History also says that

K‘ung Kiah compiled into a book all the things that were engraved on the

vases and dishes from the time of Hwang Ti and his ministers, Yao and Sz.

And the Annals treating on the animals described on the nine urns were due

to such men as Chung Ku and K‘ung Kiah. These Annals are now known as the

classic treating on "Wonders by Land and Sea." The nine urns were extinct

at the time of Tsing, but the pictures and classic still existed. During

the Tsin dynasty, T'ao Chang and his school of poets gazed upon the

pictures of the "Wonders of Land and Sea." In the "Seven Commentaries" of

the Yuen family, there is observed a case of Chang Sun Yao's pictures of

these wonders. These cases may be cited as proofs of the authenticity of

the wonders. At the present time, the classic treating on these wonders

still exists, but the pictures have become extinct. This classic has been

treated upon and commented on and made intelligent by the people that have

come after it, insomuch that the names of different districts of the Tsing

and Han dynasties have been made to correspond with some of the names

mentioned in the "Book of Wonders by Land and Sea." Hence the readers of

this book are divided into the believing and the doubting. The believers

base their belief upon the fact that it was the Emperor Yü who compiled it

and explained its origin. The doubtful base their doubt on the probable

fact of the book having been written by people who existed after Yü, and

therefore unreasonable. This is indeed a base calumny. Liu Hsiu of the Han

dynasty makes mention of the book in his seven chapters treating on it.

And his style of composition might be said to be very ancient. Kwoh P'oh

of the Tsin dynasty in his preface and notes on this book, states these

wonders. The honour of transmitting this book to posterity is due to Liu

Hsiu and Kwoh P'oh; but, to prevent learners from considering that the

notes made by the two scholars are of no importance, I have therefore

written this preface.

YANG SUN,

Of the Ming Dynasty.

APPENDIX VI.

EXTRACTS FROM "SOCIAL LIFE OF THE CHINESE,"

BY JUSTUS DOOLITTLE.

Ch. II., p. 264.

"The dragon holds a remarkable position in the history and government of

China. It also enjoys an ominous eminence in the affections of the Chinese

people. It is frequently represented as the great benefactor of mankind.

It is the dragon which causes the clouds to form and the rain to fall. The

Chinese delight in praising its wonderful properties and powers. It is the

venerated symbol of good.

"The Emperor appropriates to himself the use of the _true_ dragon, the one

which has five claws on each of its four feet. On his dress of state is

embroidered a likeness of the dragon. His throne is styled 'the dragon's

seat.' His bedstead is the 'dragon's bedstead.' His countenance is 'the

dragon's face.' His eyes are 'the dragon's eyes.' His beard is 'the

dragon's beard.'

"The true dragon, it is affirmed, never renders itself visible to mortal

vision wholly at once. If its head is seen, its tail is obscured or

hidden. If it exposes its tail to the eyes of man, it is careful to keep

its head out of sight. It is always accompanied by or enshrouded in,

clouds, when it becomes visible in any of its parts. Water-spouts are

believed by some Chinese to be occasioned by the ascent and descent of the

dragon. Fishermen and residents on the border of the ocean are reported to

catch occasional glimpses of the dragon ascending from the water and

descending to it.

"It is represented as having scales, and without ears; from its forehead

two horns project upwards. Its organ of hearing seems to be located in

these horns, for it is asserted that it hears through them. It is regarded

as the king of fishes.

Proclamations emanating directly from the Emperor, and published on yellow

paper, sometimes have the likenesses of two dragons facing each other, and

grasping or playing with a pearl, of which the dragon is believed to be

very fond.

Ch. II. p. 338.

"The sagacious geomancer is also careful to observe the mountain or hill

on the right and left sides of the spot for a lucky grave. The left-hand

side is called the black dragon; the right-hand side is called the white

tiger. The lucky prospects, in a Chinese sense, on the hills situated to

the left, should clearly surpass the prospects of the hills on the right.

And the reason for this is manifest, for the _black dragon_ is naturally

weaker than the _white tiger_.

Ch. I. p. 275.

"The common belief is that the dragon and the tiger always fight when they

meet; and that when the dragon moves, the clouds will ascend and rain will

soon fall.

"Hence, in a time of drought, if the bones of a tiger should be let down

into this well called the 'dragon's well,' and kept there for three days

at the most, there will, it is sagely affirmed, most likely be rain soon.

"The tiger's bones are used to stir up or excite the dragon."

APPENDIX VII.

EXTRACTS FROM THE "PAN TSAOU KANG MU."

THE KIAO-LUNG. (The four-footed coiled Dragon. The Iguanodon.--_Eitel._)

This animal, according to Shi Chan, belongs to the dragon family. Its

eye-brows are crossed, hence its name signifies "the crossed reptile." The

scaled variety is called the _Kiao-Lung_, the winged the _Ying-Lung_. The

horned kind are called _K‘iu_, the hornless kind _Li_. In Indian books it

is called _Kwan-P'i-Lo_.

Shi Chan, quoting from the _Kwan Cheu Ki_, says: "The Iguanodon (?) is

more than twelve feet long; it resembles a snake, it has four feet, and is

broad like a shield. It has a small head and a slender neck, the latter

being covered with numerous protuberances. The front of its breast is of a

red colour, its back is variegated with green, and its sides as if

embroidered. Its tail is composed of fleshy rings; the larger ones are

several. Its eggs are also large. It can induce fish to fly, but if a

turtle is present they will not do so.

"The Emperor Chao, of the Han, when fishing in the river Wéi, caught a

white Iguanodon. It resembled a snake, but was without scales. Its head

was composed of soft flesh, and tusks issued from the mouth. The Emperor

ordered his ministers to get it preserved. Its flesh is delicious; bones

green, flesh red."

From the above it may be seen the Iguanodon is edible.

THE CROCODILE.

"The _T'o_ Fish, we call it the Earth Dragon, and have correctly written

the character. It resembles the dragon, its voice is terrible, and its

length is a _ch'ang_ (a hundred and forty-one English inches). When it

breathes it forms clouds, which condense into rain. Being a dragon, the

term 'fish' should be done away with."

Shi Chan says the _T'o_ character in appearance resembles the head, the

belly, and the tail. One author says that an animal, which is identified

with the crocodile, is found in the lagoons and marshes of the Southern

Sea, at no fixed time. Its skin is made into drums. It is very tenacious

of life. Before it can be flayed quantities of boiling water have to be

poured down its throat. Another author states that the crocodile is of a

sleepy disposition, with the eyes (nearly) always shut. It is of immense

strength. It frequently dashes itself against the river bank. Men dig them

out of their caves. If a hundred men dig them out, a hundred men will be

required to pull them out; but if one man dig, one man may pull them out;

but the event in either case is very uncertain. Another author states that

recently there were found in the lakes and estuaries many animals

resembling lizards and pangolins in appearance, which utter dreadful cries

during the night, to the great terror of sailors. Shi Chan says

crocodiles' dens are very deep, and that bamboo ropes are baited in order

to catch him; after he has swallowed the bait he is gradually pulled out.

He flies zigzag, but cannot fly upwards. His roar is like a drum's, and he

responds to the striking of the watches of the night, which is called the

crocodile drum, or the crocodile watch. The common people, when they hear

it, predict rain. The nape of the neck is bright and glistening, more

brilliant than those of fish. It lays a large number of eggs, as many as a

hundred, which it sometimes eats. The people of the South appreciate the

flesh, and use it at marriage festivities. One author states that the

crocodile has twelve different varieties of delicious flesh; but the tail,

like serpent's flesh, is very poisonous. The crocodile's flesh cures quite

a host of diseases.

THE JĂN SHÉ, or SOUTHERN SNAKE. (_Mai-Teu-Shé_ = closed up (concealed)

head snake.)

Shi Chan says: "This snake is a reptile (having a wriggling motion). Its

body is immense, and its motion is wrig-wriggling (_jăn-jăn_)[319] and

slow; hence its name, _Jăn-Shé_. Another author says its scales have hair

like moustaches (_jăn_). It lives in Kwangtung and Kwangsi (literally,

South of the Hills). Those that do not lift their head are the true kind;

in this way they were called the 'Concealed Head Snake.'"

Sung quotes T'ao Hung King to the effect that its habitat is in Tsin-ngan

(Fukien), and also Su Kung, who says that it is found in Kwéicheu and

Kwangcheu, towards the south, at Kaocheu and Hoün. At several places in

the south of the Hills they are still found. Hung King says the large ones

(in their coils?) are several fathoms in circumference. Those that walk

without raising their heads are the genuine ones. Those that conceal their

heads are not genuine. Its fat and gall can be mixed together. The large

ones are more than a foot in diameter and more than twelve feet long. It

is a snake, but it is short and bulky. Su Kung remarks that its form

resembles a mullet's and its head a crocodile's. Its tail is round and

without scales. It is very tenacious of life. The natives cut up its flesh

into slices, and esteem it as a great delicacy. Another says: When steeped

in vinegar the slices curl round the chop-sticks, and cannot be released;

but when the chop-sticks are made of grass stems (_mong'tso_), then it is

practicable.

Another says: "This snake is a hundred and forty-four feet long; it often

swallows a deer. When the deer is completely digested, then it coils round

a tree, when the bones of the deer in the stomach protrude through the

interstices of the scales.... If a woman's dress is thrown towards it, it

will coil round and will not stir."

Shi Chan, quoting "The Wonderful Records," says: "The boa is sixty to

seventy feet long, and four to five feet in circumference; the smaller

ones from thirty-six to forty-eight feet long. Their bodies are striped

like a piece of embroidery. In spring and summer it frequents the recesses

of forests, waiting for the deer, to devour them. When the deer is

digested the boa becomes fat. Someone says that it will eat a deer every

year."

Another author says: "The boa, when it devours a deer or wild boar, begins

with the hind legs. The poisonous breath of the boa comes in contact with

the horns; these fall off. The galls, the smaller they are the better they

are." Another says: "Boas abound in Wang Cheu (Kwangsi). The large ones

are more than a hundred and forty feet long. They devour deer, reducing

the horns and bones to a pulp. The natives use the dolishos and rattans to

fill up the entrance to its den. The snake, when it smells them, becomes

torpid. They then dig him out. Its flesh is a great delicacy. Its skin may

be made into a drum, and for ornamenting swords, and for making musical

instruments."

The _Yu Hăng Chi_ says: "Rustic soldiers in Kwangsi, when capturing boas,

stick flowers in their heads, which when the snake observes, it cannot

move. They then come up to it and cut off its head. They then wait till it

exhausts itself by its jumping about and dies. They then take it home and

feast on it." Compare Ælian [_De Naturâ Animalium_, lib. vi. chap., xxi.]:

"They hung before the mouth of the Dragon's den a piece of stuff flowered

with gold, which attracted the eyes of the beast, till by the sound of

soft music they lulled him to sleep, and then cut off his head."

The _Shan Hai King_ says: "The _Pa_ snake can eat an elephant, the bones

of which, after three years, are got rid of. Gentlemen that eat of this

snake will be proof against consumption." Kwoh P'oh, in his commentary,

says the boa of to-day is identical with the _Pa_ snake.

APPENDIX VIII.

EXTRACT FROM THE "YUEN KEEN LEI HAN."

THE DRAGON.--CHAP. I.

The _Shwoh Wăn_ says: "The dragon is the chief of scaly reptiles: in the

spring he mounts the heavens, in the autumn he frequents the streams. This

is favourable." Again, "When the dragon walks he is called _sah_, when he

flies he is a _yao_."

The _Kwang Ya_ says: "When he has scales he is a _Kiao_,[320] when he has

wings a _Ying-Lung_,[321] when horns a _Kiu-Lung_,[322] without horns a

_Chih-Lung_."

The _Ming Wuh Kiai_ of the _Odes_ says the dragon has horns at five

hundred years, at one thousand years he is a _Ying-Lung_.

The _P‘i Ya Kwang Yao_ says: "The dragon has eighty-one scales. This is

nine times nine, nine is the _yang_ (male principle). The dragon is

produced from an egg, in which he is enfolded." Again, it says that the

_Néi Tien_ says: "Dragon-fire comes in contact with moisture and there is

smoke, with water and it is consumed (_i.e._ a man may extinguish it with

water)."

The _Fang Yen_ says: "Before the dragon has ascended to heaven he is a

_P‘an[323] Lung_." The Yih King says: "When his clouds move the rain

falls, and the various things put forth their forms at the time he rides

upon the six dragons and ascends the heavens." "The first nine: The hidden

dragon is inactive. The diagram indicates that the subtile ether is below.

The second nine: When the dragon is seen in the fields it is profitable

to meet the great man. The diagram indicates that virtue is extended.

Fifth nine: The flying dragon appears in the heavens: The diagram

indicates the great man creates." Again, "The dragons contend in the

wilds, their blood is azure and yellow." Again, "Thunder is a dragon."

The Yuen-Ming-Pao section of the _Ch‘un ts‘iu_ says: "The dragons begin to

speak, _yin_ and _yang_[324] are commingled"; thence, it is said, the

dragon ascends and clouds are multiplied. The _Yih King_, in all the

diagrams, clearly says: "The summer winds arise and the dragon mounts the

skies."

In the _Yuen-Shăn-K‘i_ of the _Hiao King_ it is said: "Virtue approaches

the fountains and the yellow dragon appears. It is the Prince's image."

In the "_Tso-K‘i_" of the _Hiao King_ it is said: "The Emperor is filial,

the heavenly dragon bears the plans and the earthly tortoise issues a

book." The _Ho-t‘u_ says: "Yellow gold after one thousand years produces a

yellow dragon, azure gold after one thousand years, the azure dragon; red

and white dragon is also thus. Black gold after one thousand years

produces the black dragon."

The _Twan-ying-t‘u_ says: "The yellow dragon is the chief of the four

dragons, the true beauty of the four regions. He can be large or small,

obscure or manifest, short or long, alive or dead; the king cannot drain

the pool and catch him. His intelligence and virtue are unfathomable;

moreover he ensures the peaceful air, and sports in the pools." Again, it

says: "The yellow dragon does not go in company, and does not live in

herds. He certainly waits for the wind and rain, and disports himself in

the azure air. He wanders in the wilds beyond the heavens. He goes and

comes, fulfilling the decree; at the proper seasons if there is perfection

he comes forth, if not he remains (unseen)."

The _Shi Ki_ says: "The bright moon pearl is concealed in the oyster, the

dragon is there."

Books of the after Wei dynasty say, "Persia has three pools." They narrate

that a dragon lives in the largest, his wife in the second, and his child

in the third. If travellers sacrifice, they can pass; if they do not

sacrifice they encounter many storms of wind and rain.

Lü-lan asserts that Confucius said, "The dragon feeds in the pure (water)

and disports in the clear (water)."

Sun-k‘ing-tsz says: "The accumulated waters form the streams, the

_Kiao-Lung_ is brought forth." Han-Féi-shwoh-nan says: "Now as the dragon

is a reptile he can be brought under control and ridden.[325] But below

his throat are tremendous scales, projecting a foot. If a man should come

in contact with them he would be killed."

Kwan-tsz says: "The dragon's skin has five colours, and he moves like a

spirit; he wishes to be small and he becomes like a silkworm; great, and

he fills all below heaven; he desires to rise, and he reaches the ether;

he desires to sink, and he enters the deep fountains. The times of his

changing are not fixed, his rising and descending are undetermined; he is

called a god (or spirit)."

Hwai-nan-tsz says: "The dragon ascends and the brilliant clouds follow."

Again, he says: "This _Kiao-Lung_ is hidden in the streams, and his eggs

are opened at the mound. The male cries above and the female cries below,

and he changes; his form and essence are of the most exalted (kind). Man

cannot see the dragon when he flies aloft. He ascends, and wind and rain

escort him."

The _Tihing P‘ien_ says: "Wings beautiful grow for the flying dragon; hair

soft like that of a calf on the _ying_ dragon; scales only for the

_Kiao-Lung_. Only in pools is found the _Sien-Lung_." Chang-hang said:

"How the _Ts‘ang-Lung_ meets the summer and aspires to the clouds, and

shakes his scales, accomplishing the season. He passes the winter in the

muddy water, and, concealed, he escapes harm." Pan-ku, answering Pin-hi,

said: "The _Ying-Lung_ hides in the lakes and pools. Fish and turtle

contemn him, and he does not observe it. He can exert his skill and

intelligence, and suddenly the clear sky appears. For this reason the

_Ying-Lung_, now crouching in the mud, now flying in the heavens, appears

to be divine."

Lun-hang says, "When the dragon is small, all the fish are small; this is

divine."

Pao-pòh-tz says: "There are self-existent dragons and there are worms

which are changed into dragons." Again, he says: "Among the hills the

_Ch‘ăn day_, called the rain master, is a dragon." Hwai-nan-tsz said: "The

_Chuh-Lung_ is north of the goose gate concealed in the Wei-Ü mountain."

The _Shan-hai-king_ says the god of the Chung-shan is called _Chuh-Lung_.

When he opens his eyes it is day, when he shuts his eyes it is night. His

body is three thousand _li_ long.

The _Shui-hing-chu_ says: "The _Yulung_ considers the autumn days as

night. But the dragon descends in the autumn and hibernates in the deep

pools; how then can he say that autumn is night?" It also says: "There is

a divine dragon in the vermilion pools at Kiao-chew. Whenever there was a

drought, the village people obstructed the upper tributaries of the pool,

and many fish died; the dragon became enraged at such times, and caused

much rain."

The _Kwah-ti-t‘u_ says: "At the dragon pool there is a hill with four

lofty sides, and within them is a pool seven hundred _li_ square; a herd

of dragons live there, and feed upon the many different kinds of trees.

It is beyond Hwui-ki forty-five thousand _li_." Again, it says: "If you do

not ride on a dragon you cannot reach the weak waters[327] of the Kwan-lun

hill."

The _Poh-Wuh-Chi_ says: "If you soak the dragon's flesh in an acid (and

eat it), you can write essays." Again, it says: "The Tiao-sheh is in form

like a dragon, but smaller. It likes danger; hence it is appointed to

guard decayed timber." Again, it says: "The dragon lays three eggs. The

first is _Ki-tiao_. He goes ashore and cohabits with the deer or deposits

his semen at the water's edge, where it becomes attached to passing boats

or floating wood and branches. It appears like a walnut, it is called

_Tsz-chao_ flower, and constitutes what is mentioned in the _Tao-ch‘u_ as

dragon-salt." Again, it says: "Below the dragon-gate every year in the

third month of spring, yellow carps, two[328] fish, come from the sea, and

all the streams, with speed to the contest. But seventy-one can ascend the

dragon-gate in a year; when the first one ascends the dragon-gate there is

wind and rain. It is followed by fire which burns his tail, and then he is

a dragon."

The _Shih-I-Ki_ says: "East of the hills of Fang-chang there is a dragon

plain where there are dragon skins and bones like a mountain: spread out

they would cover one thousand five hundred acres. To meet him when he

sloughs his bones is like the birth of a dragon. Or it is said the dragons

constantly wrangle at this place. It is enriched with blood like flowing

water."

The _Shuh-I-Ki_ says: "In the P‘uning district there are the isles where

the dragons are buried. Fu-loo says the dragons shed their bones at these

isles, the water now contains many dragon-bones, in these mountains,

hills, peaks, and gorges. The dragons make the wind and rain. There are

dragons' bones everywhere, whether in the deep or shallow places; there

are many in the ground. Teeth, horns, vertebral columns, feet, it seems as

though they are everywhere. The largest measure one hundred feet or exceed

one hundred feet. The smallest are two feet or three or four inches. The

bones are everywhere. Constantly when looking for anything they are seen."

Again, it says: "It is told of the Kuh mountains in Ki-cheu that when the

dragon is a thousand years old, he enters the mountains and casts his

bones. Now there is a dragon hill, from the midst of the hill issues the

dragon's brains."

The _K‘ié-Lan Records at Loh-yang_[329] say: "You cannot trust the hills

in the west. They are too cold. There is snow both winter and summer. In

the hills there is a pool where a bad dragon lives; long ago some

merchants rested near the pool, until the dragon became enraged, abused,

and killed them. A priest,[330] Pan-T‘o, heard of it, and, leaving his

seat to the pupils, went to the kingdom of Wuchang to learn the Po-lo-man

incantations; he mastered them in four years, and returned to his seat. He

went to the pool and invoked the dragon. The dragon was transformed into a

man, repented, and followed the king. The king then removed." Again, it

says: "To the west of the kingdom of Wuchang there is a pool in which the

dragon prince dwells. There is a monastery on the banks of the pool, in

which there are more than fifty priests. Whenever the dragon prince does

anything marvellous, the king comes and beseeches him, using gold,

precious stones, pearls, and valuables, throwing them into the pool.

Afterwards they are cast up and the priests gather them. This monastery

relies upon the dragon for food and clothing and the means to assist

people. Its name is 'Dragon Prince Monastery.'"

The _Ts‘i-ti_ records say there is a well in the city of Ch‘áng-ping at

the brambles; when the water is disturbed a spiritual dragon comes and

goes. So the city is called the dragon city.

The _Shi-San-Tsin_ records say Ho-li has also the name Dragon Gate. Great

fish collect below it, in number one thousand. They cannot ascend. If one

ascends it is a dragon. Those which do not ascend are fish. Hence it is

called the "Pao-sai-lung-man." (Great carp ascend the dragon gate and

become dragons; those which do not ascend prick the forehead and strike

the cheek.) Again, it says: "The Lung-sheu mountains are sixty _li_ long;

the head enters the Wei waters, the tail extends to the Fan streams. This

head is two hundred feet high; his tail descends gradually to a height of

fifty or sixty feet. It is said that long ago a strange dragon came out

from south of the mountains to drink the Wei waters. The road he travelled

became mountain. Hence the name."

The _Kiao-Cheu-Kí_ says: "In Kiao-chi at Fung-ki-hien there is a dyke with

a dragon gate; the water is one hundred fathoms deep. Great fish ascend

this gate and become dragons. Those which cannot pass, strike the cheek

and puncture the forehead, until the blood flows. This water is

continually like the Vermilion pool."

The annals of Hwa-yang say: "Only at Wu-ch‘ing district does the earth

meet the gate of heaven; the dragon which mounts to heaven and does not

reach it, falls dead to this place, hence when excavating you find

dragon-bones."

The _I-Tung-Chi_ says: "Twenty _li_ west of Lin-fung-hien is a stone

dragon, among the cliffs is a rock like a dragon. In a year of drought

wash it, and it rains." Again, it says: "At Yen-T‘ang there is a pond

called Smoky Pond; it is north-east of the city ten _li_. Its depth has

never been ascertained. It is reported that long ago a man caught a white

eel, and was about to cook it, when an old man said, 'This is the dragon

of the river Siang; I fear calamity will follow.' The man was angry, and,

regarding the words as vain, proceeded. The next day the whole village was

submerged."

The _Kwoh-Shi-Pu_ says: "At the time of the spring rains the carp springs

through the dragon gate and becomes transformed. At the present time, in

Fan-cheu of Shansi, there is a cave in the mountains; in it are many cast

bones and horns of dragons. They are collected for medicine, and are of

five colours. It is recorded in the _Chw‘en_ that north of the Wu-t'ai

hills, below the terrace, is Azure Dragon Pool, about one-third of an acre

in extent. The Buddhist books say five hundred evil dragons are confined

(here). Whenever it is mid-day a thick mist gradually arises. A pure

priest and candidates for the priesthood may see it. If a nun or females

approach then there is great thunder, lightning, and tempest. If they come

near the pool, he certainly will belch forth poisonous breath and they

will die at once. Foreigners say that in Piolosz there is a spiritual

dragon which goes and comes among the granaries. When a servant comes for

rice the dragon vanishes. If the servant comes constantly for rice the

dragon does not suffer it. If there is no rice in the granaries, the

servant worships the dragon, and the granaries are filled."

_Yuin-Chu-Tsih_ records: "If one sees a dragon's egg in the lake or river

there will certainly be a flood."

The _Nan-Pu-Sin-Shu_ says: "The dragon's disposition is ferocious, and he

fears bees'-wax, loves jade, and the King-ts‘ing delight to eat the flesh

of cooked sparrows. For this reason men who eat sparrows do not cross the

sea."

The _Pah-mung-so-yen_ says: "The perverse dragon, when rain is wanted,

sneaks away into old trees or into the beams of houses. The thunder god

pulls him out."

_Wu-ch‘ăn-tsah-ch‘ao_ says: "There is a great dragon which sloughed his

skin on the brink of the Great Lake. Insects come out from his scaly

armour. Instantly they are transformed into dragon-flies of a red colour.

If men gather them they get fever and ague. If men now-a-days see these

red dragon-flies they call them dragon-armour, also dragons' grandsons,

and are unwilling to hurt them."

_Pi-shu-suh-hwa_ says: "In Suh-chan and Hang-cheu the twentieth day of the

fifth month is called the day of the separation of the dragons. Therefore,

in the fifth and sixth months, whenever there is thunder, and the clouds

crowd together, if they see a tail bent down, and stretching to earth from

among the clouds, moving like a serpent, they say, 'The dragon is

suspended.'"

Tsu-tz say: "The spiritual dragon leaves the water and dwells in the dry

place, and the mole, crickets, and ants annoy him."

Kung Sun Hung replied to Tung Fang Shoh, saying: "Before the dragon has

ascended he is of a sort with fish and turtles; after he has ascended the

heavens his scales cannot be seen."

Siu Tsung Yuen answered an inquirer, saying: "The _Kiao-Lung_ ascends to

the heavenly fountain. He pervades the six regions (North, South, East,

West, Above, Below). He moistens all things. Shrimps and the leech cannot

depart one foot from the water."

The _Shwoh-Wan_ says: "The _Kiao_ belongs to the dragon species. When a

fish attains three thousand six hundred [years ?] it becomes a _Kiao_; on

attaining this much the dragon flies away." Again, it says: "[Dragons]

without horns are _Kiao_."

The _P'i-Ya_ says: "The _Kiao's_ bones are green, and they can bring their

heads and tails together and constrict anything; hence they are called

_Kiao_. A popular name for them is 'the horse's lasso.'" Another author

says the _Kiao's_ tail has fleshy rings; they are able to compress any

creature, and then tear it with the head.

The _Shuh-I-Ki_ says the eye-brows of a _Kiao_ unite, and their uniting is

a proof that it is a _Kiao_.

The _Siang-Shu_ (Book of Physiognomy) says that when the eye-brows unite

the epithet _Kiao_ is applied, because the _Kiao Shăn_ has crossed

eye-brows.

The _Yueh-kiu_ (Divisions of Seasons) says that the season of autumn is

unfavourable to the _Kiao_.

The _Kia-Yü_ (Family Discourses) says that if a stream contains fish, then

no _Kiao_ will stay in it.

Hwai-nan-tsze says that no two _Kiao_ will dwell in one pool.

The _Shan-Hai-King_ says the _Kiao_ is like a dragon and snake, with a

small head and fine neck. The neck has white ornamentations on it. The

girth (?) is five cubits; the eggs of the capacity of three catties; and

it can swallow a man.

APPENDIX IX.

APPENDIX TO THE CHAPTER ON THE SEA-SERPENT.

THE SHAN.[331]

"The _Shăn_ belongs to the snake species."

"The _Tsah Ping Shu_ (Work on Military Science) says: 'In drilling an

army,[332] when you arrange it like the _Shăn_ expelling its breath, its

appearance is like that of a snake, but the waist is large; below there

are scales, running backwards.'

"One says that its form is like that of the Ch‘i-lung, which has ears and

horns and a mane of a red colour. When it exhales its breath, it forms a

cloud just like a palace or tower, looking as if its walls are moving in a

cloud of mist, or like a weary bird flying above. This makes everyone feel

very happy until the exhalation or snorting of the breath is finished.

"There is a popular saying about building a _Shăn_ tower. When the sky

appears to rain you can see a resemblance of it.

"The _Shi-Ki_ (Book of Odes or Classical Poetry) uses the expression, 'The

_Shăn's_ breath forms a tower'; it is in allusion to this.

"At the present day it is said that the _Chi_ (a pheasant or

francolin[333]) and the snake copulate and produce the _Shăn_.

"The oily substance of _Shăn_ combined with wax makes the Chinese wax

candles, the fragrance of which, when burning, can be recognized for one

hundred feet in all directions; and the smoke emitted from the flame forms

the appearance of a tower."

"The _Pih T‘an_ (Familiar Stories) says that at Tang-cheu (in Shantung),

in the midst of the sea, there are often clouds arise and appear like the

imperial palace, or towers of the city walls, and there is also an

appearance of people, carriages, and horses busily engaged [mirage?].

They call this phenomenon 'the market of the sea,' while others say it is

but the breath of the _Shăn Kiao_.

"The _Wu Léi Siang Kan Chi_ says the _Shăn_ is but another sort of dragon,

and can be found in some of the ponds and wells. They throw out the air,

forming rain as in the locality of Wu San Yin.

"The _P‘i Ya Kwang Yao_ says, when a snake transforms it becomes a _shăn_,

in the likeness of the _Kiao_, but without paws."

SECTION II.

"The twelfth chapter of _Ching Kiün Chw'en_ says that Hü Ching Kiün,

author of the above book, met a youth, quite handsome in his apparel. The

youth pretended to be very modest, Hu Kiün knowing all the time that he

was a _Kiao_ in another form. So he told his followers, 'I regret to think

that the province of Kiang-si will often meet with the misfortune of

inundation if we do not exterminate that _Kiao Shăn_, and are not careful

to prevent its escape.' But the _Shăn_ knew what Hu Kiün was saying, and

gradually slipped away to a place called Sung-sha-cheu, where he

transformed himself into a yellow ox. But at the same time Ching Kiün also

transformed himself into a black ox, tying a handkerchief over his neck to

distinguish him from the other ox, and ordered his disciple, Shi Tai Yu,

to use his sword, and thrust at the left thigh, because he had entered

within the city wall, in the western part of which there is a well. By

jumping this well he found a road to Tau-cheu, and once more transformed

himself into a handsome youth, and by so doing got married to the daughter

of a magistrate called Ku Yu, with plenty of jewels and gold. Then Ching

came to see Ku Yu and said, 'I hear that you have a very noble son-in-law.

May I see him?' Ku answered 'Yes,' and told him to come out. But he

excused himself upon account of sickness, and hid himself. Then Ching

Kiün, saying, 'The dangerous things of the rivers and the lake are old

devils, and they dare to transform themselves into human beings,' ordered

the son-in-law to transform himself into his original form, and hid

himself beneath the table. Then the magistrate said, 'Kill this,' and they

did so. Then Kiun sprinkled water on the two sons, and they were

immediately transformed into _Shăn_. [There must be children born from the

marriage.--_Translator._] He advised Ku Yu that he must put them away

immediately, or the whole house would be in danger of breaking."

"The _Tai Ping Kwang Ki_ says that the lake of Wan Tun, at Fì Chi,

contains a _Shăn_ which often fought with the _Shăn_ of Lake Su. Near this

lake is a place called Yao, where there lived a man called Ch‘ang Sing

Shan, of great bravery, and an expert archer. He once dreamed that a

_Shăn_ snake was transformed into a Taouist, and then it said to him: 'I

am endangered by the _Shăn_ of the lake of Lu. Can your honour assist me?

if so I will reward you heavily. The tight white chain is me.' Next day

Sing Shan went with a youth of Yao to the shore of the lake and dreamed.

He waited until the waves rose and the surf struck the shore, making a

noise like thunder. He saw two oxen coming, one with a white belly and

legs; then Sing Shan discharged an arrow at it, and it turned out to be a

_Shăn_. The water immediately turned into blood, and the _Shăn_, after

receiving the wound, tried to return to the lake of Lu, but died before it

reached there."

_Kang Hi Dictionary._

"The _Shăn Kiao_ belongs to the _Kiao_ species, and also has the

appearance of a snake. It has horns like a dragon; the mane is red below

the waist; all the scales are projecting. It eats swallows, and can emit

an air which appears like a tower.

"Again, any turtle when old enough may be called a _Shăn_."

LONDON:

PRINTED BY W. H. ALLEN AND CO., 13 WATERLOO PLACE. S.W.

FOOTNOTES:

[1] This tributary offering is a common feature in dragon legends. A good

example is that given by El Edrisi in his history of the dragon destroyed

by Alexander the Great in the island of Mostachin (one of the Canaries?).

[2] The latest writer on this point summarizes his views, in his opening

remarks, as follows:--"The science of heraldry has faithfully preserved to

modern times various phases of some of those remarkable legends which,

based upon a study of natural phenomena, exhibit the process whereby the

greater part of mythology has come into existence. Thus we find the solar

gryphon, the solar phœnix, a demi-eagle displayed issuing from flames of

fire; the solar lion and the lunar unicorn, which two latter noble

creatures now harmoniously support the royal arms. I propose in the

following pages to examine the myth of the unicorn, the wild, white,

fierce, chaste, moon, whose two horns, unlike those of mortal creatures,

are indissolubly twisted into one; the creature that endlessly fights with

the lion to gain the crown or summit of heaven, which neither may retain,

and whose brilliant horn drives away the darkness and evil of the night

even as we find in the myth, that Venym is defended by the horn of the

unicorn."--_The Unicorn; a Mythological Investigation._ Robert Brown,

jun., F.S.A. London, 1881.

[3] "The midgard or world-serpent we have already become tolerably well

acquainted with, and recognise in him the wild tumultuous sea. Thor

contended with him; he got him on his hook, but did not succeed in killing

him. We also remember how Thor tried to lift him in the form of a cat. The

North abounds in stories about the sea-serpent, which are nothing but

variations of the original myths of the Eddas. Odin cast him into the sea,

where he shall remain until he is conquered by Thor in Ragnarok."--_Norse

Mythology_, p. 387. R. B. Anderson, Chicago, 1879.

[4] _Vide_ Anderson.

[5] Just as even the greatest masters of fiction adapt but do not

originate. Harold Skimpole and Wilkins Micawber sat unconsciously for

their portraits in real life, and the most charming characters and fertile

plots produced by that most prolific of all writers, A. Dumas, are mere

elaborations of people and incidents with which historical memoirs

provided him.

[6] _Atlantis; the Antediluvian World._ J. Donelly, New York, 1882. The

author has amassed, with untiring labour, a large amount of evidence to

prove that the island of Atlantis, in place of being a myth or fable of

Plato, really once existed; was the source of all modern arts and

civilization; and was destroyed in a catastrophe which he identifies with

the Biblical Deluge.

[7] So also, Father Stanislaus Arlet, of the Society of Jesus, writing to

the General of the Society in 1698 respecting a new Mission in Peru, and

speaking of a Peruvian tribe calling themselves Canisian, says: "Having

never before seen horses, or men resembling us in colour and dress, the

astonishment they showed at our first appearance among them was a very

pleasing spectacle to us, the sight of us terrifying them to such a degree

that the bows and arrows fell from their hand; imagining, as they

afterwards owned, that the man, his hat, his clothes, and the horse he

rode upon, composed but one animal."

[8] _The Voyages and Adventures of Ferdinand Mendez Pinto_, done into

English by H. C. Gent, London, 1653, p. 109. The vindication of Pinto's

reputation for veracity will doubtless one day be, to a great extent,

effected, for although his interesting narrative is undoubtedly

embroidered with a rich tissue of falsity, due apparently to an

exaggerated credulity upon his part, and systematic deception upon that of

his Chinese informants, he certainly is undeserving of the wholesale

condemnation of which Congreve was the reflex when he made Foresight,

addressing Sir Sampson Legend, say: "Thou modern Mandeville, Ferdinand

Mendez Pinto was but a type of thee, thou liar of the first

magnitude."--_Love for Love_, Act. 2, Scene 1. There are many points in

his narrative which are corroborated by history and the accounts of other

voyages; and it must be remembered that, although the major part of the

names of places and persons which he gives are now unrecognisable, yet

this may be due to alterations from the lapse of time, and from the

difficulty of recognising the true original Chinese or Japanese word under

those produced by the foreign mode of transliteration in vogue in those

days. Thus the Port Liampoo of Pinto is now and has been for many years

past only known as Ningpo, the first name being a term of convenience,

used by the early Portuguese voyagers, and long since abandoned. Just as

the wonderful Quinsay of Marco Polo (still known by that name in Pinto's

time) has been only successfully identified (with Hangchow-fu) through the

antiquarian research of Colonel Yule. So also the titles of Chaems,

Tutons, Chumbins, Aytons, Anchacy's, which Pinto refers to (p. 108), are

only with difficulty recognisable in those respectively of Tsi‘ang (a

Manchu governor), Tu-tung (Lieutenant-General), Tsung-ping

(Brigadier-General), Tao-tai [??] (Intendant of Circuit) and Ngan-ch‘a

She-sze (Provincial Judge), as rendered by the modern sinologue Mayers in

his Essay on the Chinese Government, Shanghai, 1878. The incidental

references to the country, people, habits, and products, contained in the

chapter describing his passage in captivity from Nanquin to Pequin are

true to nature, and the apparently obviously untruthful statement which he

makes of the employment by the King of Tartary of thousands of rhinoceri

both as beasts of burthen and articles of food (p. 158) is explicable, I

think, on the supposition that some confusion has arisen, either in

translation or transcription, between rhinoceros and camel. Anyone who has

seen the long strings of camels wending their way to Pekin from the

various northern roads through the passes into Mongolia, would readily

believe that a large transport corps of them could easily be amassed by a

despotic monarch; while the vast numbers of troops to which Pinto makes

reference are confirmed by more or less authentic histories.

[9] "I was myself an eye-witness of two such discoveries and helped to

gather the articles together. The slanderers have long since been

silenced, who were not ashamed to charge the discoverer with an

imposture."--Prof. Virchow, in Appendix I. to Schliemann's _Ilios_.

Murray, 1880.