THE GRAVE OF YANG-KUEI-FEI. FOUR hundred maidens stood around the grave of Yang kuei-fei ; For he had sworn no other man her jade-like form should see; A gloomy silence fell on all, unbroken by a word, Nought but the sharp unceasing click of pick and spade was heard. The work proceeded slowly, for pick and spade were plied By gentle hands unused to work-to toil like this untried; For none but maiden hands should dare Yang-fei's corse to displace, And none, save his, but maiden eyes should look upon her face. And still the work proceeded, and still the king stood by With folded arms-with twitching lips, with wild and rest less eye, Aloof from all the maidens, watching the work of those Who in a few more minutes would her livid corse disclose. One feeble light whose glimmering ray fell on the open tomb, Served but to throw on all around a deeper, denser gloom; The hour-the grave, the diggers,—it was a weird-like scene That shadowy group awaiting the body of the queen. Now, now, be careful, I would have her body disinterred Just as she fell, e'en as she lies, no limb be even stirred; Her clothing must not be displaced-redouble all your care, And raise her gently up.-Great Heaven! The body is no there!" The maidens shrieked with terror, the king grew deadly pale, The sighing breeze seemed changed into a plaintive human wail; "What means this horrid mystery? Dig deeper, deeper still! She must be there! Dig on, nor dare to disobey my will!" The maidens tremblingly obeyed, the king looked sternly on, Till even he became convinced the corse was really gone. Clothes, jewels, all had disappeared, no vestige could they see, Save a little broidered scent-bag' of the hapless Yang-kueifei. 1 It is a fact that the Emperor ordered four hundred women to be employed to exhume the body of the unfortunate Yang-kuei-fei, not willing that any men should see it; it is also equally true that the body had disappeared, in what manner no one appeared to be able to tell. It is popularly believed, however, that she became a fairy, leaving the scent-bag she wore at the time of her death and burial, as a relic for the emperor. In after years, an old woman who kept a wine-shop used to exhibit for a trifle one of the stockings worn by Yang-kuei-fei; whether worn by her at the time of her death or not we are not told. Numbers of people used to flock to the wine-shop to see it, for though detested while living, there must have been a sort of sympathy with her on account of her unhappy fate when dead. Morbid curiosity seems to have been prevalent with them then, as with us now. THE AZALEA. As I've come to your village to stay a short time, 1 The Azalea was selected as a fair specimen of an improvised song, and also as one showing the immense amount of historical information some of these improvisatores will glibly run off in rhyme. The reader will perceive, too, in one or two places, where the singer was comparatively at a loss for matter, how readily he has been able to introduce something in rhyme, foreign to the subject, but sufficient to give him breathing time, as it were to catch up the thread, and proceed without any palpable hindrance. As for the versification, it is simply in rhyme and no more, indeed it has been found difficult to put it into English verse at all, and still keep close to the Chinese text. Its novelty and the amount of information it contains must be its chief recommendation, for that it is novel there can be no doubt, as I do not remember ever having met even the word improvise in any Anglo-Chinese works except my own, much less a specimen in that style. This was sent a short time ago as a contribution to the "China Review." 2 Ballads, or mountain songs. These are generally improvised into verse from whatever comes uppermost in the singer's mind. Chinese If you ask me to sing,-you shall not ask me twice, Bid me yu-lo a boat,-that I'll do in a trice; Invite me to drink, and I'll empty the glass; If you want me to wed,-just produce the young lass. A ballad is hard to begin, you 're aware; Ripe cherries are nice, but the tree's hard to rear;2 If you'll sing a ballad, I'll give you a theme, "The water plays ball with the stones in the stream;" Should one subject fail when a ballad you sing,- are adepts in this art, and a hawker or pedlar will dilate on the quality of his wares in verse, a countryman on the beauty of his fields, the comforts of home, &c. In fact almost every Chinaman seems gifted. with versification in some way or other. In this case the azalea has been made the foundation of the ballad and its various colours suggested, what has appeared to the singer, appropriate themes. 1 To scull a boat. 2 Young cherry trees are extremely difficult to rear in China, probably not one in a hundred coming to perfection. When full grown they are as hardy as other fruit trees. |