Page:Eminent Chinese Of The Ch’ing Period - Hummel - 1943 - Vol. 1.pdf/147

Rh t'ung shih-lueh, 12 chüan, which is the original draft of the above-mentioned Hsin-chiang chih lüeh; 西陲要略 Hsi-ch'ui yao-lüeh, 4 chüan; 西域釋地 Hsi-yü shih-ti, 1 chüan; and 西陲竹枝詞 Hsi-ch'ui chu-chih tz'ǔ, a collection of 100 poems. The first of the above-mentioned works was printed about 1811 and was later reprinted by his son, Ch'i Chün-tsao, in 1839, together with the 100 poems. The second and the third were included in the Yüeh-ya-t'ang ts'ung-shu (see under ), though the second had been printed by Ch'i Chün-tsao in 1846. After Ch'i Yün-shih returned from his exile, he joined Sung-Yün's secretarial staff when the latter was governor-general of Kiangsu, Kiangsi and Anhwei (1810–11). He then taught for two years in the Lan-shan Academy (蘭山書院) at Lanchow, Kansu; and still later at Paoting, Chihli, where he died.

Ch'i Yün-shih had six sons, the best known being the fifth and sixth, namely, Ch'i Chün-tsao and Ch'i Su-tsao 祁宿藻. The latter, a chin-shih of 1838, died at his post of financial commissioner of Chiang-ning (Nanking) a few days before the fall of that city into the hands of the Taipings. He was canonized as Wên-chieh 文節.

[1/490/14b; 2/72/39b; 3/132/3a; Shou-yang hsien chih (1890) 8/15a; 5/57/18b (for Ch'i Su-tsao).]

2em

 CHIA-ch'ing, reign-title of.

 CHIANG Ch'ên-ying 姜宸英, 1628–1699, scholar and author, was a native of Tz'ŭ-ch'i, Chekiang, and a great-grandson of Chiang Ying-lin 姜應麟 (chin-shih of 1583, d. 1630), one of the first metropolitan censors to memorialize the throne in protest against alleged mistreatment of the heir-apparent,. Chiang Ch'ên-ying distinguished himself, even in youth, as a scholar and essayist and was frequently called upon to write prefaces to books by well-known contemporaries. Nevertheless, he failed repeatedly in the civil service examinations. Despite this handicap he attracted the attention of the emperor—along with and Yen Shêng-sun (see under )—a circumstance that caused the three, none of whom had taken a high degree, to be known as "the three cotton-clothed scholars" 三布衣, or commoners. In 1679 his two friends succeeded in passing the special examination known as po-hsüeh hung-ts'ŭ (see under ) but he himself was prevented from taking it because of the unpremeditated negligence of his sponsor,, in failing to transmit his name to the authorities. Chagrined at his oversight, Yeh nevertheless saw to it that Chiang was appointed one of the compilers of the Ming dynastic history (Ming-shih) along with other scholars who had passed the coveted examination.

Chiang Ch'ên-ying's contribution to the Ming-shih was the section on law, 刑法志 Hsing-fa chih, which, though considerably shortened in the final draft of 1739, nevertheless retained the substance of the material which he assembled and at the same time preserved something of his admirable style. It is a clear, carefully written document tracing the historical changes of the more important sections of the code throughout the dynasty. In describing the application of the law he was especially critical, denouncing the cruel practices which arose at the beginning of the Ming dynasty whereby officials were flogged in court for certain crimes. He pointed out that many offenders were executed without due processes of law by the "military officials and the despicable eunuchs" into whose hands "the fate of both the Court and the country had passed...." In addition to the monograph on law, he contributed 4 chüan of biographies to the section known as Lieh-chuan 列傳, and 2 chüan to the section on hereditary native chieftains, T'u-ssŭ chuan 土司傳.

In 1689 Chiang Ch'ên-ying assisted in the compilation of the Ta-Ch'ing i-t'ung chih, or "Comprehensive Geography of the Empire", contributing essays on the defenses of the coast and the Yangtze River. These essays may be seen in their original form in his first book of collected prose, 湛園未定稿 Chan-yüan wei-ting kao, which he brought together in 6 chüan about this time and which was re-edited by in 1746. This work contains, among other items, an interesting monograph on Japanese pirates known as Wo k'ou 倭寇 who harassed the China coast in the Ming period and when apprehended frequently gained release by posing as tribute bearers. He pointed out that if acceptance of such tribute had been stopped and if trade had been restricted to specified ports the trouble could have been avoided.

Finally, in 1693, Chiang Ch'êng-yingCh'ên-ying [sic] passed the examination for the chü-jên, and in 1697 at the advanced age of seventy (sui), became a chin-shih. When he took the palace examinations the emperor raised his rank from fourth of 135