seized with illness, he watched her for a whole year without leaving her bedside or even taking off his clothes; and at her death he mourned so bitterly that he himself fell ill and nearly lost his life. For this he has been placed among the twenty-four examples of filial piety. In consequence of his fearless tongue his official career was somewhat chequered; but he was greatly distinguished as a poet and calligraphist, and was ranked as one of the Four Great Scholars of the empire (see Chang Lei). He used to say that if a man was commonplace there was no hope for him. Those who were not commonplace behaved under ordinary circumstances like ordinary people; but when some crisis came, their real value would be made evident. He was fond of Buddhist speculations, and gave himself the sobriquet of 山谷道人. Canonised 文節.
874 Huang Tsung-hsi (T. isi/^). A.D. 1609-1695. A native of Chehkiang, who fought on the side of the last remaining adherents of the Ming dynasty. In 1649 he went on a mission to Japan with a view to obtain assistance, but was obliged to return home without having accomplished the object of his journey. He then adopted an assumed name, declining several offers of employment under the Emperor E'ang Hsi, though he allowed a copy of his notes on the close of the Ming dynasty to be taken for use in compiling the history of that period. He was the author of many works, historical, philosophical, and mathematical. In 1886 it was proposed that he should be included in the Confucian Temple; but the high officials differed on the point, and the suggestion was ultimately abandoned.
875 Huang Yüan (T. ^fj^)- A.D. 141-192. Grandson of the statesman ^ ^ Huang Ch'iung, under whose care he was brought up, his father having died. When he was only seven years old his grandfather took him to Court, summoned by the
Empress to report on an almost total eclipse of the sun which
