THE FISH STONE 35 



Thirty years ago there were nuns as well as 

 priests upon Mount Hwa. At that time a certain 

 dissolute taotai was appointed to overlook the 

 rebuilding of the temples. At the toot of the 

 mountain he took up his residence, and by his 

 mode of living and licentious acts aroused the wrath 

 of Heaven. The priestesses became his boon com- 

 panions, and the people dwelt in fear. The Dragon 

 God, born of a great snake and a crane, dwelt 

 within the mountains, and at length, roused to 

 fury, he burst from the rocks and swept down the 

 glen in a tempest of rain and wind. Temples were 

 destroyed, people were slain, the wicked taotai and 

 his companions were drowned, and at the spot 

 where it now stands was deposited the great 

 boulder. It is known as the " Fish Stone," for 

 in its terrifying descent the head and tail of a 

 fish were seen to protrude from the interior of 

 the rock. 



The flowers increase as one ascends, and mingle 

 with the sweetness of the hill grasses — hydrangea, 

 meadowsweet, vetches, forget-me-not, tiger lilies, 

 briars in masses, grasses witli a beautiful purplish 

 bloom, columbine, Canterbury bells, lilies of the 

 valley, and syringa. Nearer the summit, oaks, 

 Japanese maple, and juniper find foothold, and 

 the scent of the pines rises like incense to Heaven. 



The rocks upon the sky-line are curiously 

 fashioned. Here a tortoise with mouth agape 

 pursues a frog ; the inevitable puppy-dog lion 

 grins at a frowning precipice ; and down a ridge 

 in the evening light lumbers a bear. 



Half-way up is tlie Rock of the Fainthearted. 

 Should the devout pilgrim gain its eminence, all 



