A CHAPTER OF FOLKLORE 91 



yuan. Unfortunately he was a fright to look at, and his 

 face was hideous. (Compare the story of Ku'ei Hsing ( U M) 

 Recherches, Volume II, page 45). The Emperor dismissed 

 him without a position. The deathblow to his hopes caused 

 him to commit suicide. His ghost saw a malaria devil going 

 about his wicked way. The ghost swallowed the devil. 

 The story breaks off abruptly, and continues with the 

 irrelevent facts that Chung Ku'ei had an unmarried sister, 

 and his soul returned to arrange a marriage for her which 

 was successfully accomplished. In the procession were four 

 men dressed in old-fashioned robes with their faces painted 

 green and black with blotches and sores, they wore beards 

 and were the embodiments of ugliness, amongst whom 

 Chung Ku'ei was marked by long pheasant's feathers, the 

 others being his friends. They rode donkeys in front of a 

 bridal chair in which sat a beggar man dressed as a bride. 

 Two men dressed as women attendants followed in open 

 chairs. 



It is said that the personator of the bride receives from 

 five to ten dollars a day for his services, and that the reason 

 for this large payment is that he will die in the course of a 

 year. It seems possible that the part of the story relating 

 to the woman may refer to some custom now forgotten 

 whereby a girl was given in marriage to a malaria spirit, and 

 she was killed after the ceremony, whatever its nature, was 

 completed. 



Another side show consisted of a living water buffalo, 

 and structure covered with a buffalo hide to represent 

 another. They were conducted by a man wielding a branch 

 of weeping willow. I am told that it was a rain charm of 

 some kind, as was the side show consisting of figures of three 

 Chinese lions, a male, a female, and a little one. The latter 

 was contributed by the Lighter Guild. 



Two figures of dragons generally appear in the pro- 

 cession, but were dispensed with on this occasion. 



A curious feature was the carrying about of valuable 

 jade and other curiosities. The ornaments tied to their 

 stands were arranged in three tiers over a basket. The 

 baskets were carried at both ends of a carrying pole by one 

 man. The carrying poles were richly carved. The carrier 

 was surrounded by a number of very respectable Chinese 

 gentlemen who waved triangular white flags with a red 

 border, and so passed along through the crowed of on-lookers. 

 There were several such groups passing to and fro throughout 

 the day. There is no doubt about the genuineness and value- 

 of the ornaments thus displayed. I was told that they were 

 supplied by the curio-dealers at Yangchow. 



