Ancient China. The Shoo king, or the historical classic - University of ...

JTHE TRIBUTE OF YU. 953^ The great if ^ plain was made ^ a Re-The eastern J^ plain ]^ was low ^ and level.f^ i The soil (of the province) ^ was red jj^ andservoir (of water.)*clayey "^ hut fertile ; while ^ the grass -^ and trees^ Its^jf hecame gradually ^ thick and bushy.^ cultivated fields '[^ were Jt ^ the middlingkind of the superior class, while ]^ its j.J^ revenuewas fp rfl the middling kind of the mediumclass. ^§Their ^ tribute j^ consisted of jb earth5E of five different ^ colours : ||>]^ ^t M% ^^^district of Hfi] ll| Keu-san, (Lat. 31. 32. N. Long. 2. 56. E*of Peking.)* This was the name of a marsh situated to the north of thedistiict of ^ Bf Keu-y^v, (Lat. 35. 27. N. Long. 0. 10. W.of Peking.) When water collects anywhere, and afterwards flows on,it is called a reservoir. As soon as the Tse river arrives at thedistrict of^^ ^^ Shins^-she, it is divided into two, the sonthernmostof which is called ^pj Ho, and the northernmost ^^ Tse.One of these streams flows south-east, and the other north-east,until it enters the marsh of j^ .^J* Keu-y^y ; thus the greatplain absorbing the stream of the Tse, the collection of water isvery great.f The Eastern plain forms the department of Jpji Ji\ Yun-chow.It is the same with the district of J^ '^ Tung-ping, (Lat. 36. 7. N.Long. 0. 3. East of Peking,) and has frequently been troubledwith inundations, so that the inhabitants have several times removedtheir city. The expression *' low and level," intimates that althoughthe inundation had passed away, it was still very low in thelevel country. Subsequent generations, on account of the evennessof the land, have called it the 3C ^ Tung-.ping, or eastern fl at.t When the soil is adhesive, it is called clayey ; adhesive clayis also slippery like grease. The nature of the soil being adhesiveand slippery, fine and close, it was beaten and moulded, and workedup into vessels.§ This means that the land was of the second, and the revenue derivedfrom it of the fifth ^rade.IIThough the soil of the Tsen province was generally red, yetearths of the five colours were occasionally to be met with, on whichaccount they were made up fur tribute. The record of the Chow dy-