The cantos of ezra pound [from The Cantos of Ezra Pound (1972)]
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8982 HONG VOU voyant ses forces affoiblir 8983 dict: Que la vertu t'inspire, Tchu-ouen. 8984 Vous, mandarins fidèles, lettrés, gens d'armes 8985 Aidez mon petit-fils à soutenir 8986 La dignité de cest pouvoir 8987 le poids de son office 8988 Et comme au Prince OUEN TI 8989 jadis des HAN 8990 Faictes moi mes funérailles. [Page 311] LVII
8991 And when KIEN OUEN was throned 8992 his uncle set to unthrone him, saying: 8993 As Tcheou-kong looked after Tching-ouang his 8994 nephew ... 8995 protect him from the guiles of his ministers. 8996 And when the palace cd/ no more hold out 8997 they remembered a box left by HONG VOU 8998 wherein was written: 8999 Go out by the gate of Kouémen 9000 Under night dark, follow the aqueduct till you come to the 9001 temple of Chin Lo-koan 9002 And in the red chest was habit of hochang 9003 and diploma of hochang 9004 Nine men went with KIEN OUEN TI a.d. 1403 9005 and at Kouémen gate, messire Ouangchin, the taoist 9006 beat with his head on the ground, crying Ouan Soui 9007 may you live for 10,000 years 9008 HONG VOU came to me in a vision 9009 saying go to the gate at Kouémen 9010 and that I row you to Chin-lo-koan. 9011 Were nine mandarins, were Yang-long and Yé Hihien 9012 that went thus with KIEN TI, took monkhood, 9013 and he was wandering for 35 years until YNG-TSONG 9014 from one hiding place to another. 9015 YONG LO did 20 years heavy police work 9016 To whom came an envoi from Bengal a.d. 1409 9017 And Malacca came into our Empire, a.d. 1415 9018 And YANG LO commanded a 'summa' 9019 that is that the gist of the books be corrected. 9020 And Mahamou sent in tribute of horses. 9021 GIN TSONG was ten months on the throne 9022 Under tartars had all gone feudal. And in 1430 was peace [Page 312] 9023 Came YNG-TSONG a child of eight years, 9024 eunuchs as wet-rot in the palace 9025 HONG VOU restored Imperial order 9026 yet now came again eunuchs, taozers and hochang 9027 Armourers worked day and night 9028 YUKIEN burnt the forage round Pekin 9029 against tartar horses 9030 this was in days of KING TI 9031 Fan-kuang took burning arrows 9032 and lances of the sort that one throws 9033 Yésien, Péyen, Tiémour came up under the walls at Pekin 9034 Che-heng and Yukien were defenders 9035 'no longer amused by their promises' 9036 In '52 was Emperor's grain ration 9037 for famine in Honan, for famine in Shantung 9038 a million six hundred thousand measures of grain 9039 And for war they made 15 foot carrochs 9040 with a case slung below for provisions 9041 (vide Valturio) 9042 and a cannon to forrard, a turret bordered with lances 9043 we had a thousand such carrochs 9044 counting they wd/ fill a field of four li 9045 and these were never brought into action 9046 a.d. 1459 Died Yukien the restorer, that had so vile a reward 9047 by his own hand, in prison. 9048 Ché-heng turned to magicians 9049 a man full of himself. 9050 Now were the new maps published. There was a rebellion 9051 of eunuchs 9052 HIEN TSONG the idolater did posthumous honour to Yukien 9053 decreed Kungfutseu was an Emperor 9054 to be so held in all rites, 9055 Drove out the taozers and hochang 9056 yet for one eunuch, Hoai-ngan, one might forgive many 9057 eunuchs
9059 and held it all of four years 9060 till HIEN TSONG removed them. 9061 another Lord seeking elixir 9062 seeking the transmutation of metals 9063 seeking a word to make change 9064 [Image] 9065 HOAI of SUNG was nearly ruined by taozers 9066 HIEN of TANG died seeking elixir 9067 and in '97 they made a law code 9068 a bear walked into Pekin unnoticed 9069 though they strafed the watch for allowing it 9070 and there were 53 million folk in the Empire 9071 at tribute average of five measures 9072 of, say, 100 lbs each 9073 'OU TI of LÉANG, HOEÏ-TSONG of SUNG 9074 were more than all other Emperors 9075 Laoist and foéist, and came both to an evil end. 9076 To hell with the pyramid 9077 YAO and SHUN lived without any such monument 9078 TCHEOU KONG and Kungfutseu certainly wd/ not have 9079 ordered one 9080 nor will it lengthen YR MAJESTY'S days 9081 It will shorten the lives of YR subjects 9082 they will, many of 'em, die under new taxes.' 9083 Died HIAO TSONG aged 36, after peace and his 18 years a.d. 1505 9084 on the throne 9085 And 8 bloody eunuchs conspired with Lieu,
9087 From HONG VOU were an hundred and forty years 9088 till now OU TSONG, a minor, 9089 and 140 would be till the MANCHU, new mongol. 9090 And when Lieou-kin the castrat was arrested 9091 they found in his buildings: 9092 gold bars 240 thousand, of about 10 tael each 9093 15 millions in money 9094 5 million bars silver, of about 50 tael each 9095 2 measures of unset jewels 9096 thus shaking the Emperor's confidence 9097 In 1512 came 'bachelors men', that were horse thieves. 9098 Died OU TSONG the lazy 9099 And the Empress chose CHI-TSONG successor 9100 who was son (aîné) of the second son of the Emperor 9101 HIEN TSONG 9102 he was a writer of verses, 9103 in fact he said he wd/ like to resign 9104 and she (TCHANG CHI) told them to lay hold of Kiang-ping 9105 and they found in his cellarage 9106 70 caskets of gold 9107 2 thousand 200 caskets of silver 9108 500 caskets of mixed 9109 400 great plates, gold and silver 9110 not to count silk of the first grade, pearls, 9111 cut stones and jewels 9112 Came again Mansour the tartar 9113 and tartars said they wanted a market for horses 9114 Jap sailors drove chinks to embargo 9115 'no trade save with our regnicoles' 9116 And were five planets in the constellation of Yng-che 9117 a.d. 1536 CHI-TSONG did rites at the MING tombs 9118 on Mt Tien-cheou 9119 Japs burnt the salt works at Hai men [Page 315] 9120 Oua-chi led troops against them 9121 who called themselves 'wolves of our Lady' 9122 And Japs feared only this lady Oua-chi 9123 Pirates almost took Fou-kien. [Page 316] LVIII
9124 Sinbu put order in Sun land, Nippon, in the beginning 9125 of all things 9126 where were DAI till Shogun Joritomo 9127 These Dai were of heaven descended, so saying. 9128 Gods were their forebears. Till the Shogun 9129 or crown general put an end to internal wars 9130 And DAI were but reges sacrificioli after this time 9131 in Miaco, with formalities 9132 wearing gold-flowered robes. 9133 At each meal was a new clay dish for their service 9134 'Descended from Ten Seo DAISIN 9135 that had reigned for a million years.' 9136 All these lords say they are of heaven descended 9137 and they ran into debt to keep up appearance 9138 they were there busy with sciences, poetry, history 9139 dancing, in Miaco, and music, playing at jeu de paume and 9140 escrime 9141 with a garrison to keep watch on 'em 9142 and to keep 'em from interfering with business. 9143 So came a 'butler to a person of quality' 9144 Messire Undertree 9145 a slave, in Sa Mo a fish-vendor 9146 a stud-keeper, 9147 that made war on Corea 9148 and was called WAR GOD post mortem 9149 And because of the hauteur of 9150 Portagoose prelates, they drove the Xtians out of Japan 9151 till were none of that sect in the Island 9152 a.d. 1578 And in the 5th moon of the 20th year of OUAN LI 9153 with ships new conditioned 9154 Messire Undertree went against the Lord Lipan 9155 boozing king of Korea [Page 317] 9156 and four towns opened their gates to the Nippons 9157 and he, Undertree, came to Pinyang the chief city 9158 destroying the royal tombs 9159 and the Koreans ran yowling to China 9160 seeking help of the emperor OUAN LI 9161 At this time were 'the pirates incorporate' 9162 Ku ching the imperial tutor said: I was seduced 9163 by imposters 9164 CHIN SONG had come aged 10 to the throne 9165 And on t'other side was the question of horse fairs, and tartars 9166 of whom were Nutché or savage, 9167 these traded at Kaiyuen 9168 and the other great hordes, Pe and Nan-koan 9169 that were beyond the great wall fighting each other 9170 and the Nutché gave refuge to mongols 9171 when the mongrels were driven from China by MING lords 9172 and they were so poor they were driven to peddling 9173 ginseng, beaver pelts horse hair 9174 and fur of martes zibbeline 9175 seven such hordes united, and drave MING before them 9176 But Nutché of Nankoen, first fought the wild Nutché 9177 in the 4th year of Suen Te 9178 They stopped paying tribute 1430 or thereabouts 9179 and a diplomat said to the Tartars: 9180 You have lost yr/ market for ginseng 9181 you have lost horse fairs 9182 by fighting each other. 9183 And on t'other side, was Undertree making war in Korea 9184 and Père Ricci brought a clock to the Emperor 9185 that was set in a tower 9186 And Ku Tchang wasn't safe, even buried, 9187 Court ladies in cabal, gangsters set to defame him. 9188 till his son hanged himself from the worry.
9190 where the Rites answered: 9191 Europe has no bonds with our empire 9192 and never receives our law 9193 As to these images, pictures of god above and a virgin 9194 they have little intrinsic worth. Do gods rise boneless to heaven 9195 that we shd/ believe your bag of their bones? 9196 The Han Yu tribunal therefore considers it useless 9197 to bring such novelties into the PALACE, 9198 we consider it ill advised, and are contrary 9199 to receiving either these bones or père Mathieu. 9200 The emperor CHIN TSONG received him. 9201 ten thousand brave men, ten thousand 9202 desperate sieges 9203 like bells or a ghazel 9204 treacheries, and romances, 9205 and now the bull tanks didn't work 9206 from the beginning of China, great generals, faithful adherents, 9207 To echo, desperate sieges, sell outs 9208 bloody resistance, and now the bull tanks didn't work 9209 sieges from the beginning of time until now. 9210 sieges, court treasons and laziness. 9211 Against order, lao, bhud and lamas, 9212 night clubs, empresses' relatives, and hoang miao, 9213 poisoning life with mirages, ruining order; TO KALON 9214 And Ti Koen heard cries from the forest 9215 whence came the bull tanks 9216 came great cars built like ships fifteen feet high 9217 by a hundred, three deckers. 9218 carried on great wheels of stone 9219 drawn each by an hundred or more hundred oxen 9220 But Tchu-yé and his men 9221 made their sortie 9222 Cast petards that frightened the oxen, [Page 319] 9223 thereby war cars were turned over. 9224 and Tchu-yé's men slaughtered the siegers 9225 HOAI TSONG fell before tartars, 5 ly from Tsunhoa 9226 TAI TSONG of Manchu took them the law from China 9227 forbad manchus marry their sisters 9228 Yellow belt for the Emperor 9229 red belt for the princess of blood 9230 Told all to cut off their pig tails 9231 and south Ming had to fear more from rottenness inside 9232 than from the Manchu north and north east. 9233 Li koen viceroy had spent all this money, not paying the 9234 troops 9235 who turned bandit. 9236 And the Lord of MANCHU wrote to the MING lord saying: 9237 We took arms against oppression 9238 and from fear of oppression 9239 not that we wish to rule over you 9240 When in Suen fou I met with YR officers 9241 I sacrificed on this oath, a black bull to earth 9242 a white horse to the Spirit of Heaven 9243 although they were quite subordinate officers 9244 I did this from respect to YR PERSON 9245 as peace oath 9246 to show that we wanted peace 9247 Whereto all my actions have tended 9248 I offered to extradite criminals 9249 to give back droves stolen 9250 And to this offer I had no answer 9251 I don't mean no proper answer 9252 I had no answer whatever 9253 And Kong Yeou came to join TAI TSONG 9254 and Tai sent an hetman to greet this Kong, rebel, 9255 who came with boats arms munitions and furniture, 9256 an hundred thousand folk came with Kong Yeou [Page 320] 9257 And TAI TSONG said: No tartars favoured of heaven 9258 have stayed boxed within their own customs 9259 Moguls took letters from lamas 9260 I a free lord without overlord 9261 will adopt such law as I like, in my right to adopt it 9262 I take letters from China 9263 which is not to say that I take orders from any man 9264 I take laws, but not orders. 9265 Thereafter he graded his officers 9266 Aba tchan, Maen tchan, Tihali tchan 9267 on mandarin system 9268 and four more islands came to him 9269 and he TAI set exams in the Chinese manner 9270 for 16 bachelors, first class 9271 31 bachelors, seconds, and 181 thirds 9272 and he made a Berlitz, Manchu, chinese and mongul 9273 and gave prizes, and camped next year Kourbang tourha 9274 Here Mongrels came to him, and thence into China southward 9275 by gorges 9276 the gorges of Ho-che near Ton, 9277 and by Tai chen gorge west of Taitong 9278 naming Chensi as next place of muster 9279 (TAI TSONG, son of TAI TSOU, ruling from Mougden) 9280 1625/35 9281 Chose learning from Yao, Shun and Kungfutseu, 9282 from Yu leader of waters. 9283 And in the seventh moon this monarch of Tartary 9284 coming near unto Suen-hoa-fou wrote to the governor: 9285 Your sovran treats me as enemy 9286 without asking what forces my action 9287 you are, indeed, subjects of a great realm 9288 but the larger that empire, the more shd/ it strive toward peace 9289 If children are cut off from parents 9290 if wives can not see their husbands 9291 if yr houses are devast and your riches carried away
9293 Not I but yr/ emperor slaughters you 9294 and yr/ overlords who take no care of yr/ people 9295 and count soldiers as nothing. 9296 And toward the end of the 8th moon 9297 Tengyun sent in dispatches: I have beaten the tartars 9298 I have slaughtered great numbers. Which he had not. 9299 Whereup TAI TSONG wrote him: I will send a thousand 9300 to meet any ten thousand 9301 If you fear to risk that, send a thousand 9302 I will meet them with an hundred 9303 Hoping this will teach you not to lie to your Emperor. 9304 And after the next raid offered peace. 9305 And after vain waiting an answer 9306 His tartar folk again asked him to be Emperor 9307 and he said: If the King of Corea accepts me 9308 Whereon the Tartars wrote the King of Korea: 9309 Eight ROYAL PRINCES OF MANCHU 9310 18 great lords of our banners to the King of Corea 9311 As heaven appears to desire it 9312 we accept our King to be Emperor 9313 having begged him to take this mandate. 9314 The Mogul princes have joined us 9315 HONG VOU brought the land under one rule 9316 Before him the Kin were united 9317 and after them was YUEN, entirety 9318 And the Mongols wrote to Corea: 9319 49 PRINCES MOGUL; to the King of Corea 9320 200 years under MING 9321 and now turn against them 9322 because of the crimes of their mandarins 9323 we join Manchu to make end of oppression 9324 The weakness of the Ming troops, the faithlessness 9325 of their commanders [Page 322] 9326 show that their MANDATE is fallen 9327 we now recognize TAI TSONG of MANCHU 9328 Our blood in his service 9329 For two years we have besought him to take IMPERIAL title 9330 Four hundred thousand Mogul, their quivers and arrows 9331 are back of this. 9332 And Corea replied in the negative 9333 And next year TAI TSONG took throne 9334 third moon, 1635 anno domini 9335 Put the three races in office 9336 as moguls after Ghengis had not done 9337 and continued the raiding ... 9338 round Peking, into Shantung (gallice Chantong) 9339 and into Kiangnan, returning with plunder. 9340 Thus until Ousan invited them to put down the rebels. 9341 Rice was at one mark silver the measure 9342 in Kaï fong 9343 and human meat sold in market 9344 Litse's gangsters over all Honan 9345 Li Sao: weep, weep over Kaïfong; Kientsong the bloody 9346 and Litse called himself Emperor 9347 Ming troops were unpaid 9348 Eunuchs devoured the taxes; the Prime minister 9349 could not get hold of them 9350 And the castrats opened the gates of Pekin to rebels 9351 till HOEI died hung in his belt 9352 and there was blood in the palace. Li Sao; Li Sao, 9353 wrong never ending 9354 Likoue: faithful to death, and then after 9355 and in this day Ousan asked in the Manchu 9356 TAI TSONG was dead these two years; 9357 his brothers ruling as counsel. 9358 Atrox MING, atrox finis 9359 the nine gates were in flame. [Page 323] 9360 Manchu with Ousan put down many rebels 9361 Ousan offered to pay off these Manchu 9362 who replied then with courtesy: 9363 we came for Peace not for payment. 9364 came to bring peace to the Empire 9365 in Pekin they cried OUAN SOUI 9366 a thousand, ten thousand years, A NOI 9367 eijen, ouan soui; Ousan, Ousan 9368 peace maker Ousan, in the river, reeds, 9369 flutes murmured Ousan 9370 Brought peace into China; brought in the Manchu 9371 Litse thought to gain Ousan, 9372 roused Ousan and Ousan 9373 remembered his father 9374 dead by the hand of Litse. 9375
LIX
9377 wrote the young MANCHU, CHUN TCHI, 9378 less a work of the mind than of affects 9379 brought forth from the inner nature 9380 here sung in these odes. 9381 Urbanity in externals, virtu in internals 9382 some in a high style for the rites 9383 some in humble; 9384 for Emperors; for the people 9385 all things are here brought to precisions 9386 that we shd/ learn our integrity 9387 that we shd/ attain our integrity 9388 Ut animum nostrum purget, Confucius ait, dirigatque 9389 ad lumen rationis 9390 perpetuale effecto/ 9391 That this book keep us in due bounds of office 9392 the norm 9393 show what we shd/ take into action; 9394 what follow within and persistently 9395 CHI KING ostendit incitatque. Vir autem rectus 9396 et libidinis expers ita domine servat 9397 with faith, never tricky, obsequatur parentis 9398 nunquam deflectat 9399 all order comes into such norm 9400 igitur meis encomiis, therefor this preface 9401 CHUN TCHI anno undecesimo 9402 (a.d. 1655) 9403 periplum, not as land looks on a map 9404 but as sea bord seen by men sailing. 9405 Now tarters in the murk night 9406 sent great numbers of sojers with lanthorns 9407 which they held up very high
9409 causing great fear in Nanking. 9410 so the last mingsters fled out by the Tchinkiang road. 9411 And the ammiral put to sea thinking perhaps that 9412 a few minutes more resistance 9413 wd/ be of no mortal use. 9414 And on the tenth came an officer 9415 to say that the port was in tartar hands 9416 But MiLord the Prince and his eating companions 9417 were in no shape to take in the message 9418 They weren't sober till the following midnight 9419 whereon they skedaddled 9420 And the Nankings set up a new emperora.d. 1645 9421 And the order to off pigtails stiffened resistance 9422 put new guts into mingsters 9423 Kouei born to ill fortune 9424 no mingster cd/ trust any other; cd/ agree with any six others 9425 utilité publique, motif trop élevé 9426 for vile courtiers 9427 and when the young MANCHU was 14 they gave him to 9428 wife a mogul 9429 and took in Galileo's astronomy, 9430 chucked the mohametan 9431 And there came a hong-mao or red-headed Dutchman 9432 And the portagoose to Macao 9433 and they say that the Emperor CHUN TCHI 9434 died of sorrow, for the death of one of his queens 9435 an officer's wife who had risen. 9436 And the four regents put eunuchs out of high office 9437 a thousand purged out of palace 9438 and a half ton block of iron inscribed 9439 Let there be no Eunuch in office hereafter. 9440 And in '64 they putt out the Xtians 9441 Portageese were confined to Macao 9442 Thus KANG HI
9444 do not exaggerate/ he at least played on some such instrument 9445 and learned to pick out several tunes (european) 9446 and were demarked the borders of Russia 9447 with a portagoose and a frog priest to interpret 9448 to whom each a robe brocaded with dragons 9449 but not embroidered 9450 and short coats of martin, satin lining, gold buttons 9451 Pereira and Gerbillon 9452 made mandarins second order 9453 And that embassy went out via Mt Paucity 9454 and paid visit to the ho fo, the lama who dies not 9455 as he sat on a pair of great cushions 9456 one brocade and the other plain yellow Yüklə 2,9 Mb. Dostları ilə paylaş:
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