f acquaintance flourishes his whip and cries out, ' 1 have
just been with His Excellency. He treated me very kindly, very kindly indeed.' And then he goes into detail, upon which his friends begin to be more respect- ful to him as a prottgt of His Excellency. The great man himself says, ' So-and-so is a good fellow, a very good fellow indeed;' upon which the bystanders of course declare that they think so too.
" Such is popularity with one's superiors in the pre- sent day. Do you think that I could be as one of these? No ! Beyond sending in a complimentary card at the summer and winter festivals, I do not go near the great from one year's end to another. Even when I pass their doors I stuff my ears and cover my eyes, and gallop quickly by, as if some one was after me. In conse- quence of this want of breadth, I am of course no favourite with the authorities ; but what care I ? There is a destiny that shapes our ends, and it has shaped mine towards the path of duty alone. For which, no doubt, you think me an ass."
WANG TAO-K'UN took his third degree in 1547. His instincts seemed to be all for a soldier's life, and he rose to be a successful commander. He found ample time, however, for books, and came to occupy an honourable place among contemporary writers. His works, which, according to one critic, are " polished in style and lofty in tone," have been published in a uniform edition, and are still read. The following is a cynical skit upon the corruption of his day :
" A retainer was complaining to Po Tzu that no one in the district knew how to get on.
" ' You gentlemen, 1 said he, ' are like square handles
�� �
