Page:A Chinese Biographical Dictionary.djvu/451

432 *ii8 laige enough for a Director of Sacrificial Worship.*' Canonised

Li HSng ^fii* ^-^* 795-824. Son of Li Shnn, whom he succeeded in 820 as iwdfth Emperor of the T'ang dynasty. He proTed a feeUe niler, fend of amusement and trusting to eunuchs. The riTalrr of Li T^jfk and Li Trang-min allowed the provincial QoTemors again to shake off the Luperial yoke, while the great peace that pre?ailed at his accession induced his Ministers to reduce the army annually by eight per cent. The disbanded soldiers took to brigandage, and were ready to join in risings with which the reduce^l army could not cope. The Emperor died of drinking Tarious concoction* among which he fondly hoped to find the elixir of life. Canonise'l as $ ^ j^ 1^.

Li HO ^ >&P (T. ^ 1^ ). Died A.D. 126. A native of ^ ^ Nan-ch6ng in Shensi. A good scholar and especially learned in astrology t be was a mere clerk in Sstich^nan when the Emperor Ho Ti sent spies all over the empire to gather information as to the popular feeling. He astonished two of these goaitj by exposing their mission, explaining that he bad learnt their movements from the sudden appearance of two new stars in the sky. One of these two spies, subsequently rising to high oflSce, engaged the services of Li Ho. He was thus enabled to graduate, and ultimately became a Minister of State. On another occasion, when Ton Hsien was about to take a wife and all the oflBcials were sending him presents, he advised his chief not to send any, declaring that Tou Hsien*s career was at an end. No attention was paid to his advice; but as he was the messenger employed to carry the presents, he purposely lingered on the road. And before he reached his destination, Tou Hsien had already fallen; the result being that all those officials who had sent presents were cashiered.

Li Ho ^ ^ (T. -g ^ ). 9th cent. A.D. A poet of the T*ang