without a book in his hand. He was the author of a work on military dress, and was considered to be an eminent authority on all matters of ceremonial etiquette.
779
Hsü Kuang-ch'i (T. ). A.D. 1562-1634. The
famous statesman of the Ming dynasty, generally regarded as the
only influential member of the mandarinate who has ever become
a convert to Christianity. After graduating as first chujen in 1597
and taking his chin shih degpree in 1604 , he enrolled himself as a
pupil of Matteo Bicci and studied under his guidance to such purpose
that he was able to produce works on the new system of astronomy
as introduced by the Jesuit Fathers, besides various treatises on
mathematical science. He was also author of the ^^ j^ ^ ^ ,
an encyclopaedia of agriculture of considerable value. With the aid
of his foreign teachers he devoted considerable attention to the art
of casting cannon, and never ceased to impress upon the last two
Emperors of the Ming dynasty the necessity of employing artillery
against the rebels. After a somewhat chequered career he rose in
1628 to be President of the Board of Bites and was ordered to
reform the calendar, but by the time he had obtained any real
power he was already too old for active service. The Jesuit
establishment of ^ ^ GS (^^ ^ ) Sicawei, near Shanghai which
was his birthplace, is named after him. Canonised as ^^•
780 Hsü Ling (T. ^^). A.D. 507-583. A native of modern Ejangsu, whose mother, just previous to his birth, dreamt that a rainbow-coloured cloud changed into a phoenix and settled upon her left shoulder. As a youth he was precocious, being able to compose essays at eight years old. At thirteen, he had mastered the philosophy of Lao Tzti and Ghuang Tzti. A Buddhist priest, named Pao Chih, stroked his head and said, **You have here a unicorn!** Eventually he rose, under the Emperor Wu Ti of the
Liang dynasty, to be a Minister of State. He had a son named ^
