THE SHE KING; OR, THE BOOK OF ANCIENT POETRY

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JOHN CHILDS AND BON, FBINTEKS.
PKEFACE.
IN the third chapter of the Prolegomena the author has endeavoured to
state clearly the principles on which the metrical version of the Book of
China's ancient poetiy, published in the present volume, has been made,
and will only repeat here that his readers will find in it, in an English
dress, the Chinese poems themselves, and not others composed by para
phrase from them. It remains for him to relate how he came to undertake
the work, and the assistance that he has received in completing it.
While preparing his larger and critical work on the She, published at
Hong-Kong in 1871, though, as he has stated in the chapter referred to, he
did not think that the collection as a whole was worth the trouble of
versifying, it often occurred to him that not a few of the pieces were well
worth that trouble ; and if he had had the time to spare, he would then
have undertaken it. Occupied with other Chinese classics, the subject of
versifying any portion of the She passed from his mind until he received
in the spring of 1874, from his nephew, the Eev. John Legge, M.A., of
Brighton in Victoria, Australia, a suggestion that he should bring out a
metrical version of the whole Book. To encourage him to do so, his
nephew promised his own assistance, and that of his brother, the Eev.
James Legge, M.A., of Hanley, Staffordshire, while another helper might
be found in the Eev. Alexander Cran, M.A.. of Fairfield, near Manchester.
A plan for the versification of all the pieces was drawn out in harmony
with this suggestion, and the principles on which the versions should be
made were laid down. Various causes, however, operated to prevent each
of his helpers from doing all the portion that had been assigned to him,
and many of the versions which were sent had to be altogether set aside.
Fully three-fourths of the volume are the author's own, while he had much
to do in revising the other fourth. To all his three associates he tenders his
most cordial thanks. Many of the pieces have a beauty which they
would not have possessed but. for them ; and several of them of those
especially from Australia as they came to him, glowed with more of the
fire of poetry than they now show.