THE SHE KING; OR, THE BOOK OF ANCIENT POETRY

196 THE BOOK OF POETRY. [PART II.
I beat the drums, and in the dance
Lead joyously the train.
Oh ! good it is, when falls the chance,
The sparkling cup to drain.
VI.
The T'een paou; narrative. AN ODE RESPONSIVE TO ANT or THE
FIVE PEECEDING. HIS OFFICERS AND GUESTS, FEASTED BY THE KING,
CELEBRATE HIS PBAISES, AND DESIRE FOR HIM THE BLESSING OF
HEAVEN AND OF HIS ANCESTORS.
1 Heaven shields and sets thee fast.
It round thee fair has cast
Thy virtue pure.
Thus richest joy is thine ;—
Increase of corn and wine,
And every gift divine,
Abundant, sure.
2 Heaven shields and sets thee fast.
From it thou goodness hast ;
Bight are thy ways.
Its choicest gifts 'twill pour,
That last for evermore,
ISIor time exhaust the store
Through endless days.
3 Heaven shields and sets thee fast,
Makes thine endeavour last,
And prosper well.
Like hills and mountains high,
Whose masses touch the sky;
Like stream aye surging by;
Thine increase swell!
4 With rite and auspice fair,
Thino offerings thou dost bear,
And son-like give,
The seasons round from spring,
To olden duke and king,
"Whose words to thee we bring:—
" For ever live."
BE I. VII.] THE BOOK OF POETRY.
5 The Spirits of thy dead
Pour blessings on thy head,
Unnumbered, sweet.
Thy subjects, simple, good,
Enjoy their drink and food.
Our tribes of every blood
Follow thy feet.
6 Like moons that wax in light ;
Or suns that scale the height ;
Or ageless hill;
Nor change, nor autumn know ;
As pine and cypress grow ;
The sons that from thee flow
Be lasting still !
VIL
197
The Ts'ae me; allusive and narrative. AN ODE ON THE DESPATCH
OF TROOPS TO GUARD THE FRONTIERS ON THE NORTH AGAINST THE
WILD TRIBES OF THE HEEN-YUN.
This and the next two pieces form a triad, having reference to the same
expedition ; this being appropriate to its commencement, those to its
conclusion. Haou says the expedition was undertaken in the time of
king Wan, when he was still only duke of Chow, in charge of all the
regions of the west, and discharging his duty to the king of Shang. Choo
denies that the pieces are of so early an origin, and says that " the son of
Heaven" in the 8th ode must be one of the kings of Chow. I agree
with him in this, but the date of the composition cannot be determined
more particularly.
Though intended to encourage the departing troops, this piece is writ
ten as if it were their own composition, giving their feelings on setting
out, and in the progress of the expedition, down to its close. So far, the
structure may be compared with that of the second ode of this Book.
It is difficult to say who the Heen-yun, against whom the expedition
was directed, really were. Choo simply says that they were " wild tribes
Of the north." Ch'ing K'ang-shing (about the end of our second cen
tury) says that they were the same tribe that in his days went by the name
of Heung-noo. I suppose that both the names are imperfect phonetic
expressions Of the same sound, which we also have adopted in Huns.
Wang Taou, who assisted me in the preparation of my larger Work, holds
that the Heen-yun of Yin and Chow, the Heung-noo of Ts'in and Han,
and the Tnh-keueh of Suy and T'ung, all refer to the same tribes. Sze-
ma Ts'een, in his Record of the House of Chow, and of the Heung-noo, says
that in the time of king E (B.C. 933— 909), those northern tribes became
very troublesome, and refers to this ode as a composition of that time.