Page:Peking the Beautiful.pdf/154

 The Story of a Great Bell

UEEN of the night in the great north city, the graceful Bell Tower has for centuries ruled the dwellers within Peking's gray walls. All through the years when the mighty voice, proclaiming the curfew hour, tang out on the still night air, few there were among the million footed" who dared MELISED disobey her summons. Many and beautiful are the legends that surround this giant bell in the tower, which is one of "ten great bells" cast under Emperor Yung Lê, about A.D. 1411. To one of these in particular there clings a beautiful story of filial piety which has been thus charmingly retold by Juliet Bredon and Lafcadio Hearn: "According to the Imperial desire, it was to be of such size that, when struck, the sound should be heard for a hundred li, therefore the bell was strengthened with brass and deepened with gold, and sweetened with silver. But though the master nolder measured the materials for the alloy and treated them skillfully and prepared the fires and the monstrous melting pot for melting the metal, and though the casting was made twice, each time the result was worthless. Whereupon the emperor grev so angry that he sent word if the renowned bell smith failed again, his head would be severed from his neck Then the bell smith consulted a soothsayer who, after a long silence, made answer: 'Gold and brass will never meet in wedlock, silver and iron will never embrace until the blood of a virgin be mixed with the metals in their fusion.' "When the beautiful daughter of the bell smith heard this, she determined to save her father from the fate hanging over him. So, on the day of the third casting, she leaped into the white flood of metal crying: 'For thy sake, oh I my father.' The whirling fountain of many-colored fires absorbed her and no trace of her remained except one tiny shoe with embroidery of pearls and flowers, left in the hand of the serving womaa who had sought to grasp her by the foot as she jumped, but had only been able to clutch the pretty shoe. When the casting was finished, however, the bell was more perfect in form and more wonderful than any other bell And when it was sounded, its tones were deeper and finer and richer than the sound of any other bell so that its voice, like summer thunder, was heard at a distance of twice one hundred li. Yet, betueen each stroke, there was always a low moaning which ended in a sound of sobbing and complaining as though a weeping woman softly murmured: 'Hiail' And when that sharp, sweet shuddering came in the air, then all the Chinese mothers in the many-colored byways of Peking whispered to their little ones: 'Listen, that is the dutiful daughter calling for her shoe, "Hiail" That is she crying for her shoe."" This great bell is one of the wonders of the world. It is said to weigh fifty-three and a half tons, and is completely covered within and without with extracts from the Buddhist canon. For a description of the Bell and Drum Towers, see paqe 40,