The Vancouver independent. (Vancouver, W.T. [Wash.]) 1875-1910, 1880-05-06
Chinese Tales.

Some or the stories nave now anu
then European touch about them, but
thew are so mixed up with a peculiar
kind of witchcraft and with competitive
examinations, that the differences are
far greater than the resemblances.
These two things, at first sight so incon-
sistent, are frequently combined in a
curious way. We find ghosts and spir-
it's aiding a dull fellow to take his de.
gree. In the first story in the book the
post Of guardian angel or tutelary deity
to certain town is given after COM
petive examination. In many OF the
tales, however, it is love and withcraft
that are combined. Thus in the story
of "The Laughing Girl" we have the
hero Wang picking up a sprlg OF plum
blossom which the heroine had dropped
at the feast of lanterns He treasures
it up and wastes away for love of her
lust as if he were modern hero. The
priests are called in by his mother just
to see whether the youth is bewitched.
He sets off for the hill country in hope
of meeting with the girl again, and
takes with him the dried up sprig OF
plum blossom. He discovers, almost
buried under the luxuriant growth OF
trees and flowers, small hamlet in
valley. At the doors Of one OF the
houses were some graceful willow trees,
and inside the wall were peach and april
cot trees, with tufts of bamboo between
them and BIRDS chipping on the branches.
He heard a sweet toned voice and by
him passed girl with a bunch of april
cot flowers in her hands and occupied
in putting hair pins into her downcast
head. 1t was the beauteous Ying-ning,
of whom he was in search, and who
turned out to be relation of his.
Wang shows her the dead flower which
he had treasured up "Its dead said
she "why do you keep itq' on
dropped it at the feast of lan.en ;, re-
piled Wang, "and so kept it. He
explained to her that it was a proof of
his love.
"You needn't make such fuss about
trihe," she replied. "I'll give orders
to supply you with whole basketful of
flowers when you leave" Wang told
her that she did not understand He
said 81 didn't care for the flower it,
self it was the person who picked the
flower" "Of course" answered she,
everybody cares for their relations.
You needn't have told me that" 81
wasn't talking about ordinary relations"
said Wang, "but about husbands and
wives" What's the difference, asked
Ying-ning. "Why," replied Wang,
"husband and wife are always to-
gether." "Just what shouldn't like"
cried she, "to be always with anybody"
Wang marries her but is troubled by
his wlfe's immoderate laughter. He
learns that her mother has been kind
of witch. In many OF these stories we
read Of foxes who had the power of
changing themselves into the shape of
human beings. From such fox Ting
ming was said to be sprung She owns
to him that she was the daughter of
fox, and that for the ten years before
her marriage she had been brought up
under the charge of the disembodied
spirit of an cid woman. Her foster
mothers body was living unburied and
she begs her husband to appease the
disconnected shade. They find her
bones amidst thicket of brambles and
bury them in the family vault. That
night the old woman's spirit came to
thank her foster daughter.
"The Magic Path is as curious a
story as it is true. 4 scholar named
Kuo one night loses his way among the
, hills. He hears the sound OF laughter,
and going in the direction of the sound
, he finds some ten or dozen persons
sitting on the ground drinking. He
, asks them to show him his way, but
they press him to join them, He losses
: off the bumpers so fast that he was al
: once voted to be jolly good fellow
He was very clever in initiating tn,
notes of the birds and did it so wei
that for time he deceived his compan
ions. After a while he initiated 6
parrot and cried, "Mr. Kuo is very
4 drunk you had better sec him home.
: They said that they would first show
4 him few acrobatic feats.
!, They all arose, and one Of them plant
ing his feet firmly, second jumped W
IS on his shoulders, a third on TO thu
= seconds shoulders, and a fourth on Il
g his, until it was too high for the rest Il
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