Hieroglyphic Tales Read online

  TALE V.

  Mi Li. _A Chinese Fairy Tale_.

  Mi Li, prince of China, was brought up by his godmother the fairy Hih,who was famous for telling fortunes with a tea-cup. From that unerringoracle she assured him, that he would be the most unhappy man aliveunless he married a princess whose name was the same with her father'sdominions. As in all probability there could not be above one person inthe world to whom that accident had happened, the prince thought therewould be nothing so easy as to learn who his destined bride was. He hadbeen too well educated to put the question to his godmother, for he knewwhen she uttered an oracle, that it was with intention to perplex, notto inform; which has made people so fond of consulting all those who donot give an explicit answer, such as prophets, lawyers, and any body youmeet on the road, who, if you ask the way, reply by desiring to knowwhence you came. Mi Li was no sooner returned to his palace than he sentfor his governor, who was deaf and dumb, qualities for which the fairyhad selected him, that he might not instil any bad principles into hispupil; however, in recompence, he could talk upon his fingers like anangel. Mi Li asked him directly who the princess was whose name was thesame with her father's kingdom? This was a little exaggeration in theprince, but nobody ever repeats any thing just as they heard it:besides, it was excusable in the heir of a great monarchy, who of allthings had not been taught to speak truth, and perhaps had never heardwhat it was. Still it was not the mistake of _kingdom_ for _dominions_that puzzled the governor. It never helped him to understand any thingthe better for its being rightly stated. However, as he had greatpresence of mind, which consisted in never giving a direct answer, andin looking as if he could, he replied, it was a question of too greatimportance to be resolved on a sudden. How came you to know that? Saidthe prince--This youthful impetuosity told the governor that there wassomething more in the question than he had apprehended; and though hecould be very solemn about nothing, he was ten times more so when therewas something he did not comprehend. Yet that unknown somethingoccasioning a conflict between his cunning and his ignorance, and thelatter being the greater, always betrayed itself, for nothing looks sosilly as a fool acting wisdom. The prince repeated his question; thegovernor demanded why he asked--the prince had not patience to spell thequestion over again on his fingers, but bawled it as loud as he could tono purpose. The courtiers ran in, and catching up the prince's words,and repeating them imperfectly, it soon flew all over Pekin, and thenceinto the provinces, and thence into Tartary, and thence to Muscovy, andso on, that the prince wanted to know who the princess was, whose namewas the same as her father's. As the Chinese have not the blessing (foraught I know) of having family surnames as we have, and as what would betheir christian-names, if they were so happy as to be christians, arequite different for men and women, the Chinese, who think that must be arule all over the world because it is theirs, decided that there couldnot exist upon the square face of the earth a woman whose name was thesame as her father's. They repeated this so often, and with so muchdeference and so much obstinacy, that the prince, totally forgetting theoriginal oracle, believed that he wanted to know who the woman was whohad the same name as her father. However, remembring there was somethingin the question that he had taken for royal, he always said _the kingher father_. The prime minister consulted the red book or court-calendar,which was _his_ oracle, and could find no such princess. All theministers at foreign courts were instructed to inform themselves ifthere was any such lady; but as it took up a great deal of time to putthese instructions into cypher, the prince's impatience could not waitfor the couriers setting out, but he determined to go himself in searchof the princess. The old king, who, _as is usual_, had left the wholemanagement of affairs to his son the moment he was fourteen, was charmedwith the prince's resolution of seeing the world, which he thought couldbe done in a few days, the facility of which makes so many monarchsnever stir out of their own palaces till it is too late; and his majestydeclared, that he should approve of his son's choice, be the lady whoshe would, provided she answered to the divine designation of having thesame name as her father.

  The prince rode post to Canton, intending to embark there on board anEnglish man of war. With what infinite transport did he hear the eveningbefore he was to embark, that a sailor knew the identic lady inquestion. The prince scalded his mouth with the tea he was drinking,broke the old china cup it was in, and which the queen his mother hadgiven him at his departure from Pekin, and which had been given to hergreat great great great grandmother queen Fi by Confucius himself, andran down to the vessel and asked for the man who knew his bride. It washonest Tom O'Bull, an Irish sailor, who by his interpreter Mr. JamesHall, the supercargo, informed his highness that Mr. Bob Oliver of Sligohad a daughter christened of both his names, the fair miss Bob Oliver.[1]The prince by the plenitude of his power declared Tom a mandarin of thefirst class, and at Tom's desire promised to speak to his brother theking of Great Ireland, France and Britain, to have him made a peer inhis own country, Tom saying he should be ashamed to appear there withoutbeing a lord as well as all his acquaintance.

  The prince's passion, which was greatly inflamed by Tom's description ofher highness Bob's charms, would not let him stay for a proper set ofladies from Pekin to carry to wait on his bride, so he took a dozen ofthe wives of the first merchants in Canton, and two dozen virgins asmaids of honour, who however were disqualified for their employmentsbefore his highness got to St. Helena. Tom himself married one of them,but was so great a favourite with the prince, that she still wasappointed maid of honour, and with Tom's consent was afterwards marriedto an English duke.

  Nothing can paint the agonies of our royal lover, when on his landing atDublin he was informed that princess Bob had quitted Ireland, and wasmarried to nobody knew whom. It was well for Tom that he was on Irishground. He would have been chopped as small as rice, for it is death inChina to mislead the heir of the crown through ignorance. To do itknowingly is no crime, any more than in other countries.

  As a prince of China cannot marry a woman that has been married before,it was necessary for Mi Li to search the world for another lady equallyqualified with miss Bob, whom he forgot the moment he was told he mustmarry somebody else, and fell equally in love with somebody else, thoughbe knew not with whom. In this suspence he dreamt, "_that he would findhis destined spouse, whose father had lost the dominions which never hadbeen his dominions, in a place where there was a bridge over no water, atomb where nobody ever was buried nor ever would be buried, ruins thatwere more than they had ever been, a subterraneous passage in whichthere were dogs with eyes of rubies and emeralds, and a more beautifulmenagerie of Chinese pheasants than any in his father's extensivegardens_." This oracle seemed so impossible to be accomplished, that hebelieved it more than he had done the first, which shewed his greatpiety. He determined to begin his second search, and being told by thelord lieutenant that there was in England a Mr. Banks,[2] who was goingall over the world in search of he did not know what, his highnessthought he could not have a better conductor, and sailed for England.There he learnt that the sage Banks was at Oxford, hunting in theBodleian library for a MS. voyage of a man who had been in the moon,which Mr. Banks thought must have been in the western ocean, where themoon sets, and which planet if he could discover once more, he wouldtake possession of in his majesty's name, upon condition that it shouldnever be taxed, and so be lost again to this country like the rest ofhis majesty's dominions in that part of the world.

  Mi Li took a hired post-chaise for Oxford, but as it was a little rottenit broke on the new road down to Henley. A beggar advised him to walkinto general Conway's, who was the most courteous person alive, andwould certainly lend him his own chaise. The prince travelled incog. Hetook the beggar's advice, but going up to the house was told the familywere in the grounds, but he should be conducted to them. He was ledthrough a venerable wood of beeches, to a menagerie[3] commanding a moreglorious prospect than any in his father's dominions, and full ofChinese pheasants. The prince cried out in ext
asy, Oh! potent Hih! mydream begins to be accomplished. The gardiner, who knew no Chinese butthe names of a few plants, was struck with the similitude of the sounds,but discreetly said not a word. Not finding his lady there, as heexpected, he turned back, and plunging suddenly into the thickest gloomof the wood, he descended into a cavern totally dark, the intrepidprince following him boldly. After advancing a great way into thissubterraneous vault, at last they perceived light, when on a sudden theywere pursued by several small spaniels, and turning to look at them, theprince perceived their eyes[4] shone like emeralds and rubies. Insteadof being amazed, as Fo-Hi, the founder of his race, would have been, theprince renewed his exclamations, and cried, I advance! I advance! Ishall find my bride! great Hih! thou art infallible! Emerging intolight, the imperturbed[5] gardiner conducted his highness to a heap ofartificial[6] ruins, beneath which they found a spacious gallery orarcade, where his highness was asked if he would not repose himself; butinstead of answering he capered like one frantic, crying out, I advance!I advance! great Hih! I advance!--The gardiner was amazed, and doubtedwhether he was not conducting a madman to his master and lady, andhesitated whether he should proceed--but as he understood nothing theprince said, and perceiving he must be a foreigner, he concluded he wasa Frenchman by his dancing. As the stranger too was so nimble and not atall tired with his walk, the sage gardiner proceeded down a slopingvalley, between two mountains cloathed to their summits with cedars,firs, and pines, which he took care to tell the prince were all of hishonour the general's own planting: but though the prince had learnt moreEnglish in three days in Ireland, than all the French in the world everlearnt in three years, he took no notice of the information, to thegreat offence of the gardiner, but kept running on, and increased hisgambols and exclamations when he perceived the vale was terminated by astupendous bridge, that seemed composed of the rocks which the giantsthrew at Jupiter's head, and had not a drop of water beneath[7]it--Where is my bride, my bride? cried Mi Li--I must be near her. Theprince's shouts and cries drew a matron from a cottage that stood on aprecipice near the bridge, and hung over the river--My lady is down atFord-house, cried the good[8] woman, who was a little deaf, concludingthey had called to her to know. The gardiner knew it was in vain toexplain his distress to her, and thought that if the poor gentleman wasreally mad, his master the general would be the properest person to knowhow to manage him. Accordingly turning to the left, he led the princealong the banks of the river, which glittered through the openingfallows, while on the other hand a wilderness of shrubs climbed up thependent cliffs of chalk, and contrasted with the verdant meads andfields of corn beyond the stream. The prince, insensible to suchenchanting scenes, galloped wildly along, keeping the poor gardiner on around trot, till they were stopped by a lonely[9] tomb, surrounded bycypress, yews, and willows, that seemed the monument of some adventurousyouth who had been lost in tempting the current, and might have suitedthe gallant and daring Leander. Here Mi Li first had presence of mind torecollect the little English he knew, and eagerly asked the gardinerwhose tomb he beheld before him. It is nobody's--before he couldproceed, the prince interrupted him, And will it never be anybody's?--Oh! thought the gardiner, now there is no longer any doubt ofhis phrenzy--and perceiving his master and the family approachingtowards them, he endeavoured to get the start, but the prince, muchyounger, and borne too on the wings of love, set out full speed themoment he saw the company, and particularly a young damsel with them.Running almost breathless up to lady Ailesbury, and seizing missCampbell's hand--he cried, _Who she? who she_? Lady Ailesbury screamed,the young maiden squalled, the general, cool but offended, rushedbetween them, and if a prince could be collared, would have collaredhim--Mi Li kept fast hold with one arm, but pointing to his prize withthe other, and with the most eager and supplicating looks intreating foran answer, continued to exclaim, _Who she? who she_? The generalperceiving by his accent and manner that he was a foreigner, and rathertempted to laugh than be angry, replied with civil scorn, Why _she_ ismiss Caroline Campbell, daughter of lord William Campbell, his majesty'slate governor of Carolina--Oh, Hih! I now recollect thy words! cried MiLi--And so she became princess of China.