aving to give an oath that he would not continue his journey to Wei.
But in spite of his oath, and in spite of the public slight which had
previously been put upon him by the duke of Wei, an irresistible
attraction drew him toward that state, and he had no sooner escaped from
the clutches of his captors than he continued his journey.

This deliberate forfeiture of his word in one who had commanded them to
"hold faithfulness and sincerity as first principles," surprised his
disciples; and Tsze-kung, who was generally the spokesman on such
occasions, asked him whether it was right to violate the oath he had
taken. But Confucius, who had learned expediency in adversity, replied,
"It was an oath extracted by force. The spirits do not hear such."

But to return to Confucius flying from his enemies in Sung. Finding his
way barred by the action of Hwan T'uy, he proceeded westward and arrived
at Ch'ing, the capital of the state of the same name. Thither it would
appear his disciples had preceded him, and he arrived unattended at the
eastern gate of the city. But his appearance was so striking that his
followers were soon made aware of his presence. "There is a man," said a
townsman to Tsze-kung, "standing at the east gate with a forehead like
Yaou, a neck like Kaou Yaou, his shoulders on a level with those of
Tsze-ch'an, but wanting below the waist three inches of the height of
Yu, and altogether having the forsaken appearance of a stray dog."
Recognizing his master in this description, Tsze-kung hastened to meet
him, and repeated to him the words of his informant. Confucius was much
amused, and said: "The personal appearance is a small matter; but to say
I was like a stray dog--capital! capital!"

The ruling powers in Ch'ing, however, showed no disposition to employ
even a man possessing such marked characteristics, and before long he
removed to Ch'in, where he remained a year. From Ch'in he once more
turned his face toward Wei, and it was while he was on this journey that
he was detained at Poo, as mentioned above. Between Confucius and the
duke of Wei there evidently existed a personal liking, if not
friendship. The duke was always glad to see him and ready to converse
with him; but Confucius's unbounded admiration for those whose bones, as
Laou-tsze said, were mouldered to dust, and especially for the founders
of the Chow dynasty, made it impossible for the duke to place him in any
position of importance. At the same time