For many weeks no rain fell and the country began to suffer from drought. The soil grew dry and crumbly, the trees lost their freshness and autumn crops looked stunted and unpromising. The shop-Keepers grumbled, the money-changers growled and the people generally were discontented, knowing well that when the agricultural stomach of the country starves the commercial limbs cannot continue in health and activity. Officialdom, too, was perturbed. 'The chief cook laid in a three days' supply. of pork for the table of His Honour and the secretaries, and an edict was issued prohibiting the slaughter of animals for that period. The edict was renewed again and clips between the proclamations, of which ain, always allowing a brief interval to
cooks and butchers could take advantage.
Morning after morning as soon as the sun was up-His Honour walked unattended to, the temple at the other end of the town to offer incense and: pray for rain, returning a couple.of hours later in his sedan surrounded by his retinue of ill-clad wretches over whose rags -had been thrown. cloaks once gorgeous but dingy now, and whose unshaven heads and uncombed hair were surrounded by conical hats, with here and there amongst them, a shabby peacock's feather. Still the deity whose pity was thus earnestly besought continued obdurate; even humility such as this failed to touch his heart.
Amongst the people the weather was the [one topic. How long was it since it had rained! and at this time of the year too! What would the agriculturists do—and the boatmen?—for the river had fallen so low that the grain boats already unloaded could not get down and those on their way from the #u could come no higher than the border town fifty miles away. Bread, which, during the summer sold at twenty-four cash a catty, had risen to thirty and threatened togohigher still. Vegetables were getting dear; turnips usually bought at five cash catty could not. be purchased for less -than eighter nine. Butcher's meat, on the other hand, was ata discount, for straw, beans and peas stood at such Ggures that it was ruinous to feed cattle. Beef, usually worth forty cash n catty, sold for a little over thirty, whilst mutton brought about twice these figures. The rice supply ran short and many who were wont to indulge in a meal thereon twice or thrice a month had to forego that luxury. Only the richer folk and those in goveroment employ,—who messed at the public expense—could afford to eat white rice every day in such times as these.
It wanted yet a good two hours of midday when Chiang Cheng-teh, making his
the New Ferry Mouth, was accosted by an way leisurely Ed the River Street toward acquaintance, Li Lao-san, a man many years his junior.
Grandfather Chiang - Have you eaten Lhave caten,—has Lao-san breakfasted?"
'Thave eaten, grandfather, I have eaten—oceupying an inferior seat.' You aregoing to the north of the river I sec."
Yes, I have a little business there.'
"Good luck May you grow rich What weather this is to be sure! Heaven is quite dried up—for more than a month we have not seen rain."
"Alas, no,' returned the old man, with a grave shake of the hexd whatever will the farmers do; we shall all be in difficulties shortly, the millet and the beans are as dry as anything. The wind is still in the east so no rain can come; could we have it cloudy long enough no doubt there would be a fall at last.'
'True, true. Still, grandfather, lots of folk are' going to the temples to pray for rain, and the priests are busy reading prayers, beating the drum and sounding the gong, night and day.
nice Lord of Heaven, this, indeed how can it rain when the evening vapours area bright red? One can't expect rain on the first or Gfteenth of the moon, but then two sixteenths and a second, on which it can rain have come, and still tone hasn't seen " drop. A good Heaven that, Tsay True, true. His Honour is troubled also I see at the prospect of the people suffering, so the old gentleman has prohibited slaughter. Ihave just seen the proclamation at the gate of the Town Hall, and the banks and silk warehouses have put up tablets praying the Water Dragon to send rain. Amida Buddha! that it may come soon 'And what good will all that do, I-ask you?' exclaimed the old man, the people of this place are wicked and Heaven is punishing them for their. crimes. Why, there are two or three beef butchers in the town! Can there be a worse crime than eating the flesh. of poor beasts that have spent their lives ploughing our Gelds dragging: our carts? For my part, Tao-san, my. merit is not ~small—not only have I never eaten beef in my life, but no kind of flosh meat has entered: m: mouth for five-and-twenty -years. Loo at-pork now! Is it any wonder men are unhealthy, feverish and short-lived who eat such coarse, filthy stuff? Look at that pig feeding! i yah! To say nothing of aang te a sufficient to call down any punishment from Heaven. When one de-Sires a large measure of happiness one can only obtain it by cultivating the heart. In truth my merit is great."
"True, grandfather Chiang, true, you must have accumulated much secret merit by being a vegetarian, and where merit is great there is great reward. Is it not so?
jut how is trade—you are getting rich I hear—it must be difficult to dispose of your fowls and eggs this dry weather, eh?'
"Thanks to your favour Thanks to your favour! Getting rich—what sort of talk is that—manage to get along, nothing more.'
*So you say—so you say—your fate is good one, Old Sir!" No trade can be good in such dry weathor—they must bring. the Lord of Heaven out some day and see how likes the drought. You, grandfather, get on in years and increase in intelligence you doubtless cin read the weather signs, since the proverb says when one has Paltis it not so ed thirty he may understand about
*You are too complimentary. Iam sixty but have spent my years to no purpose and am quite unfit to manage business, Your hoy has smallpox, I hear, how old is he What a lot of money goes when one takes ill—you must have spent a lot, eh?"
"True, grandfather, true, Hundred Years wasn't likely to recover, he had such 'a severe attack. We called in seven or eight doctors but there were no signs of improvement—just so much money wasted, and besides each of them wrote prescrip. tion that cost a lot to fill. We invited Huang Yii-t'no—he is only nineteen but his father had a great reputation. Now he wouldn't come under a thousand cash. So the dogs had him.'* ©Ai yuh—not a little money that and tone neod not be very well-read to be a famous doctor, either!
have not yet congratulated you, grandfather, I hear your Lao-erh hid another grandson recently—certainly your fortune is good.'
*You do me too much honour, children are an anxiety—ond an expense too—though only a foot long" it requires three feet of cloth to cover it. It took convulsions when only three days.old, so they didn't keep it. There wasn't much hope for it and even if it hnd got better it would have been difficult to rear until it was twelve, so they just let it go. Alns, for a good bit of stuff, but there was no help for it. I'll see you another day—just now I wave a little business across the river. Step along leisurely."
"Go carefully, grandfather, go carefully."
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.