The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Chinese Fairy Book, by Various

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Title: The Chinese Fairy Book

Author: Various

Editor: R. Wilhelm

Illustrator: George W. Hood

Translator: Frederick H. Martens

Release Date: September 8, 2009 [EBook #29939]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE CHINESE FAIRY BOOK ***

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THE
CHINESE FAIRY
BOOK

EDITED BY
DR. R. WILHELM

TRANSLATED AFTER ORIGINAL SOURCES BY
FREDERICK H. MARTENS

[Illustration]

WITH SIX ILLUSTRATIONS IN COLOR BY
GEORGE W. HOOD

NEW YORK
FREDERICK A. STOKES COMPANY
PUBLISHERS

_Copyright, 1921, by_
FREDERICK A. STOKES COMPANY

_All Rights Reserved_

BOOKS IN THE "FAIRY SERIES"

_The English Fairy Book_
_The Welsh Fairy Book_
_The Irish Fairy Book_
_The Scottish Fairy Book_
_The Italian Fairy Book_
_The Hungarian Fairy Book_
_The Indian Fairy Book_
_The Jewish Fairy Book_
_The Swedish Fairy Book_
_The Chinese Fairy Book_

[Illustration: "THE CROWS COME FLYING AND FORM A BRIDGE OVER WHICH
THE WEAVING MAIDEN CROSSES THE SILVER RIVER."
--_Page 40_]

PREFACE

The fairy tales and legends of olden China have in common with the
"Thousand and One Nights" an oriental glow and glitter of precious
stones and gold and multicolored silks, an oriental wealth of
fantastic and supernatural action. And yet they strike an exotic note
distinct in itself. The seventy-three stories here presented after
original sources, embracing "Nursery Fairy Tales," "Legends of the
Gods," "Tales of Saints and Magicians," "Nature and Animal Tales,"
"Ghost Stories," "Historic Fairy Tales," and "Literary Fairy Tales,"
proba