and filled up his leisare by composing many beautiful poems. He never meditated on these beforehand, but after having prepared a quantity of ink ready for use, he would drink himself tipsy and lie down with his face covered up. On waking he would seize his pen and write off verses, not a word in which needed to be chauged; whence he acquired the sobriquet of ^ ^ Belly-Draft, meaning that his drafts were all done in his head. And he received so many presents of valuable silks for writing odes etc., that it was said **he spun with his mind." Later on he got into trouble by killing a slave, and was condemned to death, but escaped through a general pardon. He was drowned when on his way to visit his father who had been banished to modern Cochin China upon the disgrace of his son. Three of his brothers, two of whom were possessed of exceptional abilities and were known with himself as the Tree of Three Pearls, were all put to death for political disaffection. Is ranked as one of the Four Heroes of the T'ang dynasty (see Yang Ch^iung).
Wang Po 3^:^ (T. ^ gji). Died A.D. 831. A native of 8213 Yang-chou in Kiangsu, who graduated as chin ahih in 785 and rose to be Minister of State. While still unknown to fame he went one day to the ^ ^ Mu-lan monastery at Yang-chou, and dined in the refectory with* the priests. The latter took a dislike to him, and as soon as they had swallowed the meal gave a signal on a * big bell, at which he was left alone. Taking a pen (see Wei Yeh)^ he wrote upon the wall,
The meal is o'er: each "long robe" seeks his cell,
Fleeing the shamefaced guest at sound of bell.
Thirty years afterwards, on revisiting the monastery, he found his verses carefully covered up, whereupon he wrote beneath.
Lines which for years through dust were scarcely seen
Are now protected hy a silken screen!
