will be that some one will arise to play the part of T'ien Ch'ang
[4], or of the six nobles of Tsin. Without the support of your own
family, where will you find the aid which you may require? That a
state of things not modelled from the lessons of antiquity can
long continue;-- that is what I have not heard. Ch'ing is now
showing himself to be a flatterer, who increases the errors of
Your Majesty, and not a loyal minister."
'The emperor requested the opinions of others on this
representation, and the premier, Li Sze [5], said, "The five
emperors were not one the double of the other, nor did the three
dynasties accept one another's ways. Each had a peculiar system
of government, not for the sake of the contrariety, but as being
required by the changed times. Now, Your Majesty has laid the
foundations of

1 ³Õ¤h¤C¤Q¤H«e¬°¹Ø. The ³Õ¤h were not only 'great scholars,' but had
an official rank. There was what we may call a college of them,
consisting of seventy members.
2 ¹²®g, ©P«C¦Ú.
3 ²E¤_¶V.
4 ¥Ð±`. -- ±` should probably be «í, as it is given in the T'ung
Chien. See Analects XIV. xxii. T'ien Hang was the same as Ch'an
Ch'ang of that chapter.
5 ¥à¬Û§õ´µ


imperial sway, so that it will last for 10,000 generations. This is
indeed beyond what a stupid scholar can understand. And,
moreover, Yueh only talks of things belonging to the Three
Dynasties, which are not fit to be models to you. At other times,