[33] The great poet Tu Fu (A.D. 712–770) dreamt that his greater predecessor, Li T‘ai-po (A.D. 699–762) appeared to him, “coming when the maple-grove was in darkness, and returning while the frontier-pass was still obscured;”—that is, at night, when no one could see him; the meaning being that he never came at all, and that those “who know me (P‘u Sung-ling)” are equally non-existent.
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[34] “Thus, since countless things exist that the senses can take account of, it is evident that nothing exists that the senses can not take account of.”—The “Professor” in W. H. Mallock’s New Paul and Virginia.
This passage recalls another curious classification by the great Chinese philosopher Han Wên-kung. “There are some things which possess form but are devoid of sound, as for instance jade and stones; others have sound but are without form, such as wind and thunder; others again have both form and sound, such as men and animals; and lastly, there is a class devoid of both, namely, devils and spirits.”
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[35] I have never seen any of these works, but I believe they treat, as implied by their titles, chiefly of the supernatural world.
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[36] The tutelar deity of every Chinese city.
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[37] That is, he had taken the first or bachelor’s degree. I shall not hesitate to use strictly English equivalents for all kinds of Chinese terms. The three degrees are literally, (1) Cultivated Talent, (2) Raised Man, and (3) Promoted Scholar.
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[38] The official residence of a mandarin above a certain rank.
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[39] The Chinese Mars. A celebrated warrior, named Kuan Yü, who lived about the beginning of the third century of our era. He was raised after death to the rank of a God, and now plays a leading part in the Chinese Pantheon.
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[40] Catalepsy, which is the explanation of many a story in this collection, would appear to be of very common occurrence amongst the Chinese. Such, however, is not the case; in which statement I am borne out by my friend, Dr. Manson, of Amoy, who, after many years’ practice among the natives of that port, and also of Formosa, informs me that he has never even heard of a single instance of this strange complaint.
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[41] One of the twenty-four solar terms. It falls on or about the 5th of April, and is the special time for worshipping at the family tombs.
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