322 BEST SITUATIONS FOR TOMBS. [Cunar. XVII. 
of earth upon it, which the old man examined with 
great care, and then fixed on the one in which he 
wished to be buried. 
A situation on the hill side is also considered of 
great importance, especially if it commands a view 
of a beautiful bay or lake. But I believe that of 
all places the one most coveted is where a winding 
stream, in its course, passes and then returns again 
to the foot of the hill where the grave is to be 
made. The director of the ceremonies, with a 
compass in his hand, settles the direction in which 
the body is to lie, which is another point of great 
importance. An intelligent Chinese, with whom I 
was acquainted, informed me that this fortune-tel- 
ler of the dead is often very eloquent in his de- 
scriptions of the future happiness of those who 
obey his directions ; he informs them that they or 
their children, or some one in whom they are much 
interested, shall enjoy riches and honours in after 
life, as a reward for the attention and respect they 
have paid to the remains of their fathers; that as 
the stream which they then behold when standing 
around their father’s grave flows and returns again 
in its windings, so shall their path through life be 
smooth and pleasant until they sink into the tomb 
hoary with years, respected, beloved, and mourned 
by their children. 
These men are generally great rogues, a play 
upon the prejudices of the people. It frequently 
happens, that after a corpse has been interred for 
