nd he ordered the destruction of all books having reference to the
past history of the empire, and many scholars were put to death for
failing in obedience to it. (See _infra Sec. Chinese Literature, Sec.Sec.
History._) The measure was unpopular and on his death (210 B.C.)
rebellion broke out. His son and successor Erh-shi, a weak and
debauched youth, was murdered after having offered a feeble resistance
to his enemies. His son Tsze-yung surrendered to Liu Pang, the prince
of Han, one of the two generals who were the leaders of the rebellion.
He afterwards fell into the hands of Hiang Yu, the other chieftain,
who put him and his family and associates to death. Hiang Yu aspiring
to imperial honours, war broke out between him and Liu Pang. After
five years' conflict Hiang Yu was killed in a decisive battle before
Wu-kiang. Liu Pang was then proclaimed emperor (206 B.C.) under the
title of Kao-ti, and the new line was styled the Han dynasty.

Han dynasty 206 B.C.

Kao-ti established his capital at Lo-yang in Ho-nan, and afterwards
removed it to Chang-an in Shen-si. Having founded his right to rebel on
the oppressive nature of the laws promulgated by Shi Hwang-ti, he
abolished the ordinances of Ts'in, except that referring to the
destruction of the books--for, like his great predecessor, he dreaded
the influence exercised by the _literati_--and he exchanged the worship
of the gods of the soil of Ts'in for that of those of Han, his native
state. His successor Hwei-ti (194-179 B.C.), however, gave every
encouragement to literature, and appointed a commission to restore as
far as possible the texts which had been destroyed by Shi Hwang-ti. In
this the commission was very successful. It was discovered that in many
cases the law had been evaded, while in numerous instances scholars were
found to write down from memory the text of books of which all copies
had been destroyed, though in some cases the purity of the text is
doubtful and in other cases there were undoubted forgeries. A period of
repose was now enjoyed by the empire. There was peace within its
borders, and its frontiers remained unchallenged, except by the
Hiung-nu, who suffered many severe defeats. Thwarted in their attacks on
China, these marauders attacked the kingdom of the Yueh-chi, which had
grown up in the western extremity of Kan-suh, and after much fighting
drove their victims along the T'ien-shan-nan-lu to the territory between