"Little wonder is it," She Yüeh ventured, "if our old mistress has repeatedly enjoined that it isn't good to have too many mirrors about in young people's rooms, for as the spirit of young persons is not fully developed there is every fear, with mirrors casting their reflections all over the place, of their having wild dreams in their sleep. And is a bed now placed before that huge mirror there? When the covers of the mirrors are let down, no harm can befall; but as the season advances, and the weather gets hot, one feels so languid and tired, that is one likely to think of dropping them? Just as it happened a little time back; it slipped entirely from your memory. Of course, when he first got into bed, he must have played with his face towards the glass; but upon shortly closing his eyes, he must naturally have fallen into such confused dreams, that they thoroughly upset his rest. Otherwise, how is it possible that he should have started shouting his own name? Would it not be as well if the bed were moved inside to-morrow? That's the proper place for it."
Hardly had she, however, done, before they perceived a servant, sent by Madame Wang to call Pao-yü. But what she wanted to tell him is not yet known, so, reader, listen to the circumstances recorded in the subsequent chapter.
END OF BOOK II.
[transcriber's note: The second volume of this translation ends thus, and no more of it was ever published.]
ERRATA
[original book lists no errata; these were found during Project Gutenberg proofreading. The format is imitated from the list actually appearing at the end of volume I. If a word is split across a line or page then the line or page given is that on which the erroneous part of the word appears.
On several occasions the book uses nested double quotes. One person, speaking, quotes another person, speaking. "This example," the proofreader said, "is of when my friend told me, "Don't take any wooden nickels." So I have always been careful." When these were found, the inner quotes were changed to single quotes for increased clarity. Such changes are not noted in the errata. A few other corrections to punctuation are noted below, but most are not.
The following are not misspellings: "dumfoundered" "parricide" "nobble" "finicking". "shewing" was very moldy at the time this was written but still not deceased. The Oxford English Dictionary, Second Edition, was used as the authority for spellings. I don't know about "per mensem" Chapter XXXVI page 180, line 18. I don't know about "titify" Chapter XL page 258, line 21. ]
Chap. XXV Page 8 Line 29: doesn't not does'nt
XXVII " 37 " 10: peccadilloes not peccadiloes
XXVIII " 64 " 6: on not ou
XXVIII " 67 " 19: enumeration not enuneration
XXX " 95 " 29: them," not them."
XXX " 100 " 24: mustn't not musn't
XXXI " 109 " 32: needn't not need'nt
XXXII " 119 " 40: eh!" not eh!
XXXII " 120 " 30: "Who not Who
XXXII " 128 " 13: stitch not stich
XXXIII " 137 " 2: fidgetted not figetted
XXXIV " 147 " 28: promptly not promply
XXXIV " 155 " 32: questions?" not questions?
XXXIV " 157 " 7: contrariwise not contrarivise
XXXV " 163 " 4: eat," not eat"
XXXV " 163 " 13: successive not succcessive
XXXV " 163 " 35: forty not fourty
XXXV " 171 " 12: birthday not brithday
XXXVI " 180 " 2: tael. not tael."
XXXVI " 190 " 20: birthday not brithday
XXXVII " 194 " 18: comes not come's
XXXVII " 198 " 10: To-morrow not To-morow
XXXVII " 199 " 32: "Well," not "Well",
XXXVII " 199 " 33: done." not done?
XXXVII " 199 " 40: fairest not fairiest
XXXVII " 206 " 13: mustn't not musn't
XXXVII " 207 " 36: get not ged
XXXVII " 211 " 16: do?" not do?
XXXVIII " 219 " 6: stomachaches." not
stomachaches.
XXXVIII " 228 " 13: while not whily
XXXIX " 232 " 5: with?" not with?,'
XXXIX " 237 " 9: conscious not concious
XXXIX " 242 " 1: temple." not temple.
XL " 245 " 38: little not litte
XL " 248 " 11: silk." not silk?"
XL " 254 " 12: They're not The're
XL " 255 " 8: autograph not authograph
XL " 257 " 16: mustn't not musn't
XL " 258 " 13: fogies not foggies
XL " 258 " 20: predilection not predeliction
XL " 258 " 35: curtains." not curtains.
XL " 258 " 39: enough." not enough.
XL " 263 " 8: peony not peone
XLI " 278 " 11: haven't not have'nt
XLII " 282 " 4: haven't not have'nt
XLII " 282 " 19: haven't not have'nt
XLII " 283 " 14: ensconce not ensconse
XLII " 284 " 26: medicine not medecine
XLII " 284 " 39: medicines not medecines
XLII " 285 " 27: medicines not medecines
XLII " 288 " 5: aren't not are'nt
XLII " 290 " 27: locust not lucust
XLII " 290 " 27: feed.'" not feed.'
XLIII " 309 " 31: grandiloquent not grandeloquent
XLIV " 314 " 12: shouldn't not should'nt
XLIV " 316 " 4: mustn't not must'nt
XLIV " 317 " 6: employed the not employed on
the
XLIV " 322 " 3: differed not differred
XLIV " 322 " 31: swelled not swole
XLIV " 323 " 15: unhappiness not uuhappiness
XLV " 337 " 30: ginseng not ginsing
XLV " 338 " 22: medicines not medecines
XLV " 343 " 30: uselessly not uselesly
XLVI " 352 " 26: mightn't not mighn't
XLVII " 372 " 32: friendship not frienship
XLVII " 378 " 3: proffered not proferred
XLVIII " 380 " 21: worldly not wordly
XLVIII " 386 " 4: antithetical not antetithical
XLVIII " 386 " 23: Ling not Ling,
XLVIII " 386 " 23: smile not smiled
XLVIII " 386 " 35: stanzas not stanaas
XLVIII " 389 " 24: cockatoo not cuckatoo
XLVIII " 391 " 27: 'Tis not T'is
XLVIII " 391 " 31: 'Tis not T'is
XLIX " 393 " 34: would'st not woulds't
XLIX " 393 " 37: 'tis not t'is
XLIX " 401 " 1: simultaneously not
simultaneouly
L " 411 " 25: 'tis not t'is
L " 413 " 17: 'tis not t'is
L " 415 " 35: But by and bye not But and bye
L " 417 " 17: 'tis not t'is
L " 417 " 17: 'tis not 't'is
[yes twice in the same line]
L " 417 " 25: 'tis not t'is
L " 418 " 10: haven't not have'nt
L " 423 " 38: blossom not blosson
LI " 437 " 37: matter.'" not matter."
LII " 446 " 21: medicine not medecine
LII " 446 " 27: medicines not medecines
LII " 449 " 5: medicines not medecines
LII " 460 " 3: anniversary not anniversay
LIII " 462 " 13: perspiring not prespiring
LIII " 464 " 7: peonies not peones
LIII " 468 " 23: haven't not have'nt
LIII " 471 " 39: Apparent not Apparrent
LIII " 476 " 9: homage not hommage
LIII " 476 " 14: consonant not consonnant
LIV " 487 " 5: trod not trode
LIV " 487 " 12: "This not This
LIV " 488 " 36: Isn't not Is'nt
LIV " 490 " 15: me?" not me?
LIV " 490 " 19: say, not say,"
LIV " 491 " 23: comfortable not confortable
LIV " 495 " 12: exhilarated not exhilerated
LIV " 495 " 19: smilingly not similingly
LV " 503 " 10: and not aud
LV " 507 " 32: Mrs. not "Mrs.
LV " 507 " 33: making not make
LVI " 525 " 27: Aren't not Are'nt
LVI " 529 " 18: mustn't not musn't
LVI " 535 " 20: notwithstanding not
nothwithstanding
LVI " 536 " 36: aren't not are'nt