d apart
from business terms that the opportunity was one of exceptional
attractiveness, he placed the facts before them. After displaying a
number of diagrams bearing upon the mater, he proposed that they should
form an enterprise to be called "The Ling (After Death) Without Much
Risk Assembly." The manner of conducting this undertaking he explained
to be as follows: The body of Ling, whenever the spirit left it, should
become as theirs to be used for profit. For this benefit they would pay
Ling fifty thousand taels when the understanding was definitely arrived
at, five thousand taels each year until the matter ended, and when that
period arrived another fifty thousand taels to persons depending upon
him during his life. Having stated the figure business, Chang-ch'un
put down his written papers, and causing his face to assume the look of
irrepressible but dignified satisfaction which it was his custom to wear
on most occasions, and especially when he had what appeared at first
sight to be evil news to communicate to public assemblages of those
who had entrusted money to his ventures, he proceeded to disclose the
advantages of such a system. At the extreme, he said, the amount which
they would be required to pay would be two hundred and fifty
thousand taels; but this was in reality a very misleading view of the
circumstance, as he would endeavour to show them. For one detail, he had
allotted to Ling thirty years of existence, which was the extreme amount
according to the calculations of those skilled in such prophecies; but,
as they were all undoubtedly aware, persons of very expert intellects
were known to enjoy a much shorter period of life than the gross and
ordinary, and as Ling was clearly one of the former, by the fact of his
contriving so ingenious a method of enriching himself, they might with
reasonable foresight rely upon his departing when half the period had
been attained; in that way seventy-five thousand taels would be restored
to them, for every year represented a saving of five thousand. Another
agreeable contemplation was that of the last sum, for by such a time
they would have arrived at the most pleasurable part of the enterprise:
a million taels' worth of pure gold would be displayed before them, and
the question of the final fifty thousand could be disposed of by cutting
off an arm or half a leg. Whether they adopted that course, or decided
to increase their fortunes by exposing so exceptional and symm