I have given at the beginning of the "Story of Ming-Y," is therefore more than four thousand years old. The same chant contains another remarkable fancy, evidencing Chinese faith in musical magic:—
"When I smite my [musical] stone,—
Be it gently, be it strongly,—
Then do the fiercest beasts of prey leap high for joy.
And the chiefs among the public officials do agree among themselves."
Kwang-chau-fu. — Literally, "The Broad City," — the name of Canton. It is also called "The City of Genii."
Lí. — A measure of distance. The length of the lí has varied considerably in ancient and in modern times. The present is given by Williams as ten lí to a league.
Li-Sao. — "The Dissipation of Grief," one of the most celebrated Chinese poems of the classic period. It is said to have been written about 314 B.C., by Kiu-ping-youen, minister to the King of Tsou. Finding himself the victim of a base court-intrigue, Kiu-ping wrote the Li-Sao as a vindication of his character, and as a rebuke to the malice of his enemies, after which he committed suicide by drowning.... A fine French translation of the Li-Sao has been made by the Marquis Hervey de Saint-Denys (Paris, 1870).
