THE SHE KING; OR, THE BOOK OF ANCIENT POETRY

64 THE BOOK OP POETET. L^AET 1.
go out and gather the seeds of the plantain or rib-grass in cheerful con
cert ;—for what purposes we are not told.
1 We gather and gather the plantains ;
Come gather them anyhow.
Yes, gather and gather the plantains,
And here we have got them now.
2 We gather and gather the plantains ;
Now off the ears we must tear.
Yes, gather and gather the plantains,
And now the seeds are laid bare.
3 We gather and gather the plantains,
The seeds in our skirts are placed.
Yes, gather and gather the plantains.
Ho ! safe in the girdled waist!
IX.
The Han Itreang: allusive and metaphorical. THE VIRTUOUS MAK-
NEES OF THE YOUNG WOMEN ABOUT THE HAN AXD KEANG EIVEES.
Through the influence of Wan the dissolute manners of the people, and
especially of the women, in the regions south from Chow, had undergone
a great transformation. The praise of the ladies in the piece, therefore,
is to the praise of Wan.
1 High and compressed, the southern trees
No shelter from the sun afford.
The girls free ramble by the Han,
But will not hear enticing word.
Like the broad Han are they,
Through which one cannot dive ;
And like the Keang's long stream,
Wherewith no raft can strive.
2 Many the faggots bound and piled;
The thorns I'd hew still more to make.
As brides, those girls their new homes seek ;
Their colts to feed I'd undertake.
Like the broad Han are they.
Through which one cannot dive;
And like the Keang's long stream,
Wherewith no raft can strive.
BE I. XL] THE BOOK OP POETET. 65
3 Many the faggots bound and piled;
The southernwood I'd cut for more.
As brides, those girls their new homes seek;
Food for their colts I'd bring large store.
Like the broad Han are they,
Through which one cannot dive;
And like the Keang's long stream,
Wherewith no raft can strive.
The Joo fun ; mainly narrative. THE AFFECTION OF THE WIVES OK
THE JOO, AND THEIB SOLICITUDE ABOUT THEIB HUSBANDS' HONOUR.
The royal House, in the last stanza, like a blazing fire, is supposed to
", that of Shang. under the .tyranny of Show, its last monarch. The
uece therefore belongs to the closing time of that dynasty, when Wan was
consolidating his power and influence.
1 Along the raised banks of the Joo,
To hew slim stem and branch I wrought,
My lord away, my husband true,
Like hunger-pang my troubled thought!
2 Along the raised banks of the Joo,
Branch and fresh shoot confessed my art.
I've seen my lord, my husband true,
And still he folds me in his heart.
3 As the toiled bream makes red its tail,
Toil you, Sir, for the royal House,
Amidst its blazing fires, nor quail:—
Your parents see you pay your vows.
XI.
The Lln che die; allusive. CELEBRATING THE GOODNESS OF THE
OFFSPRING AND DESCENDANTS OF KING WAN.
The I'm is the female of the It'e, a fabulous animal, the symbol of all
goodness and benevolence ; having the body of a deer, the tail of an ox,
the hoofs of a horse, one horn, the scales of a fish, &c. Its feet do not
tread on any living thing, not even on live grass; it does not butt with
its forehead ; and the end of its Jiorn, is covered with flesh, to show that,
while able for war, it wills to have peace. The linwas supposed to appear,
inaugurating a golden age, but the poet finds a better auspice of that in
the character of Wau's family and kindred.
VOL. in. 5
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