k 28 of the "Li-Ki"; and
(4) "Meng-tse," Latinised "Mencius," that is, the
conversations and opinions of Mencius. The first, the "Lun
Yu," or "Analects," is the most important of these, the next
in importance being the teaching of Mencius. The book to which
we are most indebted in the preparation of the following
epitomes is "The Chinese Classics," edited by Dr. J. Legge.
Other books are "The Sayings of Confucius," translated by S.A.
Lyall; "Chinese Literature," by H.A. Giles; and "The Wisdom of
Confucius," by G. Dimsdale Stacker.

_INTRODUCTORY_

The original of the Chinese title of the "Lun Yu" is literally
"Discourses and Dialogues." By Legge and most British Chinese scholars
this work is called "The Confucian Analects," the word "analect"
denoting things chosen, in the present case from the utterances of the
master.

The "Lun Yu" is arranged in twenty chapters or books, and gives,
ostensibly in his own words, the teaching of Confucius and that of his
leading disciples. It is here that we learn nearly all that we know
about Confucius. Since the work was composed, as we have it, within a
century of the master's death, there seems good reason for believing
that we have here a _bona-fide_ record of what he thought and said. We
may compare with the "Lun Yu" the Christian Gospels which profess to
give the doctrines and sayings of Jesus, and also the traditional
utterances of Mohammed edited by Al-Bokhari, who died in 870 A.D. The
utterances which follow are by the master (Confucius) himself, unless it
is otherwise stated. Other speakers are generally disciples of
Confucius.

_GENERAL MAXIMS_

I care little who makes a nation's laws if I have the making of its
ballads.

The young child ought to be obedient at home, modest from home,
attentive, faithful, full of benevolence, spending spare time mostly
upon poetry, music, and deportment.

A son ought to study his father's wishes as long as the father lives;
and after the father is dead he should study his life, and respect his
memory.

A man who is fond of learning is not a glutton, nor is he indolent; he
is earnest and sincere in what he says and does, seeks the company of
the good, and profits by it.

At fifteen my whole mind was on study. At thirty I was able to stand
alone. At forty my speculative doubts came to an end. At fifty I
understood Heaven's laws. At sixty my passions responded to higher
instinc