One upon a time during the present dynasty there lived one Wong Hun whose life was one of comparative poverty, in the village of Young. He was a student, and as the day for the great civil service examinations approached, he went forth to consult a diviner who lived in the market hard by. For some time ne had been accustomed to preach against the custom of infanticide. His eloquence was not always successful. For the most part he was altogether disregarded and his protests despised. He would concentrate his strength and appeal again. At times he would give money to parents who were poor. If after all that he could say and do he could gain no hearing, he would gently take the infant from them, fold it in his arms, bear it home, and rent it himself. OF course he found this expensive but he never hesitated. He once owned a large farm, but he had sold the fields one after another, in order to raise tunds to support his little ones. In the reign of Ch'ien Lung (A.D. 1736-1796) he took his seat. within the "Thorny Hedge"—that is the examination hal). At night he lodged in a Buddhist monastery hard by. One night he dreamt a peculiar dream. Tt came to pass in his dream that he saw Man Cheung—the god of literature, des-conding from his.throne in the Great Bear and approaching the sleeper's side. The god first congratulated the sleeper on the merit he had amassed by his noble attempts to turn the people from the cruel custom of infanticide. At the same time, ho whispered in the ear of Mr. Wong his profound regret that his personal appearance was not so handsome as it ought to be, inasmuch as his beard was very "scraggy." By the side of the deity stood the god of fate, his personal attendant, who urged nis master to confer on the sleeper a beard of luxuriant growth and surpassing beauty. The god at once seized Mr. Wong's "scraggy beard" and wrenched it off, whereupon the sleeper suddenly awakened.
Wong was dread- Po fully frightened. When the abbot of the monastery on the following morning saw Mr. Wong he did not recognise him. His beard had now become long, bushy, and luxuriant. Whence came this change? Mr. Wong seized a mirror, and, unconscious Of the great improvement—for he thought that he nad only dreamed—looked at himself. Immediately ho saw his face he laughed outright. "He then told the abbot of his experience which he thought had been nothing more than a dream. When the examination lists were published, he saw to his great surprise and delight that his name stood at the head of the many thousand competitors. The god had not only given him a new beard but also made him to be the senior wrangler.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.