, so lost to true
refinement that he did not even relax his dignity at a remark handed
down as gravity-removing from times immemorial, "has already been
charged and made his plea. It only remains, therefore, to call the
witnesses and to condemn him."

"The usual band appears to be more retiring than their custom is,"
observed Shan Tien, looking around. "Their lack of punctual respect
does not enlarge our sympathy towards their cause."

"They are all hard-striving persons of studious or commercial habits,"
replied Ming-shu, "and have doubtless become immersed in their various
traffics."

"Should the immersion referred to prove to be so deep--"

"A speedy messenger has already gone, but his returning footsteps
tarry," urged Ming-shu anxiously. "In this extremity, Excellence, I
will myself--"

"High Excellence," appealed Kai Lung, as soon as Ming-shu's departing
sandals were obscured to view, "out of the magnanimous condescension
of your unworldly heart hear an added plea. Taught by the inoffensive
example of that Lao Ting whose success in the literary competitions
was brought about by a conjunction of miraculous omens--"

"Arrest the stream of your acknowledged oratory for a single
breathing-space," commanded the Mandarin dispassionately, yet at the
same time unostentatiously studying a list that lay within his sleeve.
"What was the auspicious name of the one of whom you spoke?"

"Lao Ting, exalted; to whom at various periods were subjoined those
of Li, Tzu, Sun, Chu, Wang and Chin."

"Assuredly. Your prayer for a fuller hearing will reach our lenient
ears. In the meanwhile, in order to prove that the example upon which
you base your claim is a worthy one, proceed to narrate so much of the
story of Lao Ting as bears upon the means of his success."

The Story of Lao Ting and the Luminous Insect

It is of Lao Ting that the saying has arisen, "He who can grasp
Opportunity as she slips by does not need a lucky dream."

So far, however, Lao Ting may be judged to have had neither
opportunities nor lucky dreams. He was one of studious nature and from
an early age had devoted himself to a veneration of the Classics. Yet
with that absence of foresight on the part of the providing deities
(for this, of course, took place during an earlier, and probably
usurping, dynasty), which then frequently resulted in the unworthy and
illiterate prospering, his sleeve was so empty that at times it seemed
almost impos