3. 4. When one asks about the years of the son
of Heaven, the reply should be—"I have heard
that he has begun to wear a robe so many
feet long[1]." To a similar question about the ruler
of a state, the reply should be—"He is able
to attend to the services in the ancestral
temple, and at the altars of the spirits of
the land and grain," if he be grown up; and,
if he be still young, "He is not yet able to
attend to the services in the ancestral temple,
and at the altars of the spirits of the land
and grain." To a question about the son of a
Great officer, the reply, if he be grown up, should
be—"He is able to drive;" and, if he be still
young, "He is not yet able to drive." To a
question about the son of an (ordinary) officer, the
reply, if he be grown up, should be—"He can
manage the conveying of a salutation or a
message;" and, if he be still young, "He cannot yet
manage such a thing." To a question about the
son of a common man, the reply, if he be grown up,
should be—"He is able to carry (a bundle of)
firewood;" and, if he be still young, "He is not
yet able to carry (such a bundle)." 5. When
one asks about the wealth of the ruler of a state, the
reply should be given by telling the extent of his
territory, and the productions of its hills and lakes.
To a similar question about a Great officer, it should
be said, *He has the lands allotted to him,
and is supported by the labour (of his people).
He needs not to borrow the vessels or
dresses for his sacrificial occasions." To the
- ↑ This would seem to imply that the king was still young.
I 2
