The Cantos Project - LVIII

LVIII

Sinbu put order in Sun land, Nippon, in the beginning of all things
where were DAI till Shogun Joritomo
These Dai were of heaven descended, so saying.
Gods were their forebears. Till the Shogun
or crown general put an end to internal wars
And DAI were but reges sacrificioli after this time
in Miaco, with formalities
wearing gold-flowered robes.
At each meal was a new clay dish for their service
‘Descended from Ten Seo DAISIN
that had reigned for a million years.’
All these lords say they are of heaven descended
and they ran into debt to keep up appearance
they were there busy with sciences, poetry, history
dancing, in Miaco, and music, playing at jeu de paume and escrime
with a garrison to keep watch on ’em
and to keep ’em from interfering with business.
So came a ‘butler to a person of quality’
Messire Undertree
a slave, in Sa Mo a fish-vendor
a stud-keeper,
that made war on Corea
and was called WAR GOD post mortem
And because of the hauteur of
Portagoose prelates, they drove the Xtians out of Japan
till were none of that sect in the Island
And in the 5th moon of the 20th year of OUAN LI
with ships new conditioned
Messire Undertree went against the Lord Lipan
boozing king of Korea
and four towns opened their gates to the Nippons
and he, Undertree, came to Pinyang the chief city
destroying the royal tombs
and the Koreans ran yowling to China
seeking help of the emperor OUAN LI
At this time were ‘the pirates incorporate’
Ku ching the imperial tutor said: I was seduced by imposters
CHIN SONG had come aged 10 to the throne
And on t’other side was the question of horse fairs, and tartars
of whom were Nutché or savage,
these traded at Kaiyuen
and the other great hordes, Pe and Nan-koan
that were beyond the great wall fighting each other
and the Nutché gave refuge to mongols
when the mongrels were driven from China by MING lords
and they were so poor they were driven to peddling
ginseng, beaver pelts horse hair
and fur of martes zibbeline
seven such hordes united, and drave MING before them
But Nutché of Nankoen, first fought the wild Nutché
in the 4th year of Suen Te
They stopped paying tribute 1430 or thereabouts
and a diplomat said to the Tartars:
You have lost yr/ market for ginseng
you have lost horse fairs
by fighting each other.
And on t’other side, was Undertree making war in Korea
and Père Ricci brought a clock to the Emperor
that was set in a tower
And Ku Tchang wasn’t safe, even buried,
Court ladies in cabal, gangsters set to defame him.
till his son hanged himself from the worry.
And the eunuchs of Tientsin brought Père Mathieu to court
where the Rites answered:
Europe has no bonds with our empire
and never receives our law
As to these images, pictures of god above and a virgin
they have little intrinsic worth. Do gods rise boneless to heaven
that we shd/ believe your bag of their bones?
The Han Yu tribunal therefore considers it useless
to bring such novelties into the PALACE,
we consider it ill advised, and are contrary
to receiving either these bones or père Mathieu.
The emperor CHIN TSONG received him.
ten thousand brave men, ten thousand
desperate sieges
like bells or a ghazel
treacheries, and romances,
and now the bull tanks didn’t work
from the beginning of China, great generals, faithful adherents,
To echo, desperate sieges, sell outs
bloody resistance, and now the bull tanks didn’t work
sieges from the beginning of time until now.
sieges, court treasons and laziness.
Against order, lao, bhud and lamas,
night clubs, empresses’ relatives, and hoang miao,
poisoning life with mirages, ruining order; TO KALON
And Ti Koen heard cries from the forest
whence came the bull tanks
came great cars built like ships fifteen feet high
by a hundred, three deckers.
carried on great wheels of stone
drawn each by an hundred or more hundred oxen
But Tchu-yé and his men
made their sortie
Cast petards that frightened the oxen,
thereby war cars were turned over.
and Tchu-yé’s men slaughtered the siegers
HOAI TSONG fell before tartars, 5 ly from Tsunhoa
TAI TSONG of Manchu took them the law from China
forbade manchus marry their sisters
Yellow belt for the Emperor
red belt for the princess of blood
Told all to cut off their pig tails
and south Ming had to fear more from rottenness inside
than from the Manchu north and north east.
Li koen viceroy had spent all this money, not paying the troops
who turned bandit.
And the Lord of MANCHU wrote to the MING lord saying:
We took arms against oppression
and from fear of oppression
not that we wish to rule over you
When in Suen fou I met with YR officers
I sacrificed on this oath, a black bull to earth
a white horse to the Spirit of Heaven
although they were quite subordinate officers
I did this from respect to YR PERSON
as peace oath
to show that we wanted peace
Whereto all my actions have tended
I offered to extradite criminals
to give back droves stolen
And to this offer I had no answer
I don’t mean no proper answer
I had no answer whatever
And Kong Yeou came to join TAI TSONG
and Tai sent an hetman to greet this Kong, rebel,
who came with boats arms munitions and furniture,
an hundred thousand folk came with Kong Yeou
And TAI TSONG said: No tartars favoured of heaven
have stayed boxed within their own customs
Moguls took letters from lamas
I a free lord without overlord
will adopt such law as I like, in my right to adopt it
I take letters from China
which is not to say that I take orders from any man
I take laws, but not orders.
Thereafter he graded his officers
Aba tchan, Maen tchan, Tihali tchan
on mandarin system
and four more islands came to him
and he TAI set exams in the Chinese manner
for 16 bachelors, first class
31 bachelors, seconds, and 181 thirds
and he made a Berlitz, Manchu, chinese and mongul
and gave prizes, and camped next year Kourbang tourha
Here Mongrels came to him, and thence into China southward
by gorges
the gorges of Ho-che near Ton,
and by Tai chen gorge west of Taitong
naming Chensi as next place of muster
(TAI TSONG, son of TAI TSOU, ruling from Mougden)
1625/35
Chose learning from Yao, Shun and Kungfutseu,
from Yu leader of waters.
And in the seventh moon this monarch of Tartary
coming near unto Suen-hoa-fou wrote to the governor:
Your sovran treats me as enemy
without asking what forces my action
you are, indeed, subjects of a great realm
but the larger that empire, the more shd/ it strive toward peace
If children are cut off from parents
if wives can not see their husbands
if yr houses are devast and your riches carried away
this is not of me but of mandarins
Not I but yr/ emperor slaughters you
and yr/ overlords who take no care of yr/ people
and count soldiers as nothing.
And toward the end of the 8th moon
Tengyun sent in dispatches: I have beaten the tartars
I have slaughtered great numbers. Which he had not.
Whereup TAI TSONG wrote him: I will send a thousand
to meet any ten thousand
If you fear to risk that, send a thousand
I will meet them with an hundred
Hoping this will teach you not to lie to your Emperor.
And after the next raid offered peace.
And after vain waiting an answer
His tartar folk again asked him to be Emperor
and he said: If the King of Corea accepts me
Whereon the Tartars wrote the King of Korea:
Eight ROYAL PRINCES OF MANCHU
18 great lords of our banners to the King of Corea
As heaven appears to desire it
we accept our King to be Emperor
having begged him to take this mandate.
The Mogul princes have joined us
HONG VOU brought the land under one rule
Before him the Kin were united
and after them was YUEN, entirety
And the Mongols wrote to Corea:
49 PRINCES MOGUL; to the King of Corea
200 years under MING
and now turn against them
because of the crimes of their mandarins
we join Manchu to make end of oppression
The weakness of the Ming troops, the faithlessness of their commanders
show that their MANDATE is fallen
we now recognize TAI TSONG of MANCHU
Our blood in his service
For two years we have besought him to take IMPERIAL title
Four hundred thousand Mogul, their quivers and arrows
are back of this.
And Corea replied in the negative
And next year TAI TSONG took throne
third moon, 1635 anno domini
Put the three races in office
as moguls after Ghengis had not done
and continued the raiding ...
round Peking, into Shantung (gallice Chantong)
and into Kiangnan, returning with plunder.
Thus until Ousan invited them to put down the rebels.
Rice was at one mark silver the measure
in Kaï fong
and human meat sold in market
Litse’s gangsters over all Honan
Li Sao: weep, weep over Kaïfong; Kientsong the bloody
and Litse called himself Emperor
Ming troops were unpaid
Eunuchs devoured the taxes; the Prime minister
could not get hold of them
And the castrats opened the gates of Pekin to rebels
till HOEI died hung in his belt
and there was blood in the palace. Li Sao; Li Sao,
wrong never ending
Likoue: faithful to death, and then after
and in this day Ousan asked in the Manchu
TAI TSONG was dead these two years;
his brothers ruling as counsel.
Atrox MING, atrox finis
the nine gates were in flame.
Manchu with Ousan put down many rebels
Ousan offered to pay off these Manchu
who replied then with courtesy:
we came for Peace not for payment.
came to bring peace to the Empire
in Pekin they cried OUAN SOUI
a thousand, ten thousand years, A NOI
eijen, ouan soui; Ousan, Ousan
peace maker Ousan, in the river, reeds,
flutes murmured Ousan
Brought peace into China; brought in the Manchu
Litse thought to gain Ousan,
roused Ousan and Ousan
remembered his father
dead by the hand of Litse.
τάδ᾽ὦδ᾽ἔχει

a.d. 1578

Useful Links