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i
Fire over Luoyang
© Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, 2017 | doi 10.1163/9789004325203_001

ii
Sinica Leidensia
Edited by
Barend J. ter Haar

Maghiel van Crevel
In co-operation with
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VOLUME 134
The titles published in this series are listed at brill.com/sinl

iii
Fire over Luoyang

A History of the Later Han Dynasty 23–220 AD
By
Rafe de Crespigny
LEIDEN | BOSTON
iv
Cover illustration: Galloping Horse Treading on a Flying Swallow. bronze, h 34,5 cm. Wuwei, Gansu.
China. By own work – L’art chinois. Danielle Elisseeff. 2007, Public Domain, <https://commons.wiki
media.org/w/index.php?curid=14604671>.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: De Crespigny, Rafe, author.

Title: Fire over Luoyang : a history of the later Han dynasty, 23-220 AD / by
Rafe de Crespigny.
Description: Leiden ; Boston : Brill, [2016] | Series: Sinica Leidensia, ISSN
0169-9563 ; volume 134 | Includes bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2016020975 (print) | LCCN 2016028598 (ebook) | ISBN
9789004324916 (hardback : acid-free paper) | ISBN 9789004325203 (e-book) |
ISBN 9789004325203 (E-book)
Subjects: LCSH: China--History--Han dynasty, 202 B.C.-220 A.D. | China--Kings
and rulers--History. | China--Politics and government--221 B.C.-220 A.D.
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v
For
Charlotte and Sophia
⸪
vi Contents
Contents
Contents vii
Contents
List of Illustrations, Maps and Tables x
Introduction 1
The Emperors of Han 6
Chronology of the Later Han Dynasty 8
1 Imperial Capital 17
Luoyang and its Surroundings 17
Emperor Guangwu and his New Capital 28
Formalities and Government 34
City, Suburbs and People 52
Parks, Pleasure-Grounds and Tombs 61
2 Emperor Ming and Emperor Zhang (57–88) 71

Chronology 71
Imperial Succession 72
The Government of Emperor Ming 82
The Government of Emperor Zhang 99
Empress Dou and the Boy from the Harem 108
3 The Reign of Emperor He (88–106) 117

Chronology 117
Triumph in the Steppe 118
The Fall of the Dou Family 127
The Peoples of the West 136
The Government of Emperor He 141
The Military Structure of Later Han 148
Peace and Settlement? 164
4 The Dowager Deng and Emperor An (106–125) 169

Chronology 169
The Child Emperors and the Regency 170
The Rebellion of the Qiang 177
Problems of Finance 190
The Government of the Dowager 199
The Favourites of Emperor An 207
viii Contents
5 The Reign of Emperor Shun (125–144) 220

Chronology 220
The Destruction of the Yan Clan 221
Emperor Shun and the Reformers 225
The Rise of the Liang Family 238
Barbarians, Migrants and Rebels 244
People and Land 257
6 The Hegemony of Liang Ji (144–159) 269

Chronology 269
Liang Ji and the Puppets 270
Rebel Emperors and Great Peace 274
The Government of Liang Ji 278
Great Families in the Provinces 294
The Fall of the House of Liang 303
7 Emperor Huan and the Eunuchs (159–168) 310

Chronology 310
Imperial Favourites 311
Problems of Finance 321
Gentlemen and Eunuchs 324
Imperial Consorts and the Worship of Huang-Lao 335
The First Faction Incident 351
Invitation to Genocide 357
8 Emperor Ling: Disordered Government (169–184) 361

Chronology 361
The Dou Family and the Eunuchs 362
Duan Jiong and the Barbarians 369
The Second Faction Incident, the Great Proscription and the Decline
of the University 375
The Government of Emperor Ling 388
Tanshihuai and the Misfortunes of the Frontier 397
Yellow Turbans 402
9 End of an Empire (185–189) 418

Chronology 418
The Loss of Liang Province 420
Imperial Extravagance 428
Imperial Succession 436
Contents ix
Slaughter in the Palace 442

A Note on the Dates of the Crisis 448
Dong Zhuo 449
Ruin of a Capital 456
The End of Han 465
10 Epilogues and Conclusions 474

Part I: Elegy for a Lost Capital 474
Chronology 474
The Afterlife of Luoyang 475
Part II: What Went Wrong? Reflections on a Ruin 480
A Failure of Virtue? 480
The Division of China 497
The Difficulty of Reunification 504
Bibliography 513
Index and List of Characters 543
x List of Illustrations and Tables
List Of Illustrations And Tables
List of Illustrations, Maps and Tables
Illustrations
1 The Gate of the Vermilion Bird [frontispiece] xii

2 A Courier of the Imperial Post 24
3 A Market-Place 48
4 An Official in his Carriage 58
5 The Hall of the Circular Moat 85
6 A Beacon Tower on the Great Wall of Han in present-day Gansu 154
7 Hunting on Horseback with a Compound Bow: a Parthian shot 157
8 Cavalrymen 158
9 Horse-herding 158
10 Ox-drawn Cart 161
11 A Fortified Mansion 299
12 Archers in a Watchtower 299
13 Entertainers at a Banquet 300
14 Horse and Carriage 301
15 Ploughing with Oxen 301
16 Rubbing of a fragment of the Stone Classics 383
17 Hunting and Gathering 392
18 Remnants of the city wall of ancient Luoyang 480
Maps
1 The City of Luoyang in the time of Later Han 16

2 Approaches to Luoyang 25
3 The Western Regions 97
4 The Northern Steppe in 90 AD 123
5 The Qiang Rebellion 107–118 183
6 Chinese Withdrawals 140–141 248
7 The Campaigns of Duan Jiong 168–169 370
8 Rebellion in Liang Province 184–189 423
9 The Capital Region under Dong Zhuo 189–192 462
10 Warlords 189–220 468
11 The Later Han Empire about 140 AD 510
List of Illustrations, Maps and Tables xi
Tables
1 Population figures in Bing province from Former Han to Later Han 250
2 Population figures in the eastern part of Liang province from Former Han to
Later Han 251
xii List Of Illustrations And Tables
illustration 1 The Gate of the Vermilion Bird. Rubbing of a Han period engraving from a
tomb at Chengdu, Sichuan. Source: Sichuan Handai huaxiang xuanji 80.
The bird between the two towers is probably a phoenix, one of the symbols
of the south – also identified with the colour red and the Power of Fire.
The engraving may show the southern entrance to any city, including
Chengdu, but given the impressive scale of the towers it is a pleasant
conceit to believe that it was intended to represent the celebrated gate
which guarded the Northern Palace at Luoyang.
Introduction
Introduction 1
Introduction
During the first and second centuries AD, two great empires matched one
another at either end of the Eurasian continent. In the west, imperial Rome
extended from the islands of Britain and the Germanic plain south to the
Sahara desert and east to Mesopotamia. In the east, the territory of Han
reached from the northern steppes of Mongolia to the tropics of central
Vietnam, including all but the further southeast of China, and held influence
over a great part of central Asia. The area of the Roman empire was rather
more than 4.5 million square kilometres – 1.75 million square miles; that of
Han was some 3.75 million square kilometres – 1.5 million square miles.1
The two distant polities exchanged some goods – silk from the east and glass
from the west – through trade by land and sea, but there was no close contact
and neither knew a great deal about the other. Their physical geography was
very different: the Roman world centred upon the Mediterranean, surrounded
by a network of roads; China was bounded by the eastern sea, and communica-
tion was based upon rivers, canals and roads across the open plain north of the
Yangzi and through valleys to the south, while the challenge of great mountain
chains was met by impressive feats of engineering.
Political unity in China was first established by the conquests of the state
and dynasty of Qin in the late third century BC, but there was already a com-
mon tradition of religious and philosophical belief, teaching and custom. Han,
successor to Qin, likewise owed ultimate authority to military power, but its
subjects shared culture and a form of writing which did much to overcome any
variance in spoken language. Whereas the city of Rome had expanded its
dominion over many different peoples, the core of imperial Han was the self-
possessed civilisation of China.
At the very beginning of his great work on the decline and fall of the Roman
empire, Edward Gibbon described how
1 It is difficult to assess the extent of the Han empire, and any figures must be broad approxima-
tions. My calculations are based on the area of China Proper – the core provinces – which is
some 1.5 million square miles: the imperial government held no real sway over present-day
Fujian and Guizhou, and much of Guangdong, Guangxi, Yunnan and other regions of the
south were beyond its effective control; but in compensation there was territory held in the
northern part of Vietnam, and some authority for a time in central Asia.

2 Introduction
In the second century of the Christian era, the empire of Rome compre-
hended the fairest part of the earth, and the most civilised portion of
mankind.2
Writing in the eighteenth century, when little was yet known in Europe about
the full achievements of the Chinese past, he cannot be criticised for his judge-
ment. In the same period that he describes, however, during the first and
second centuries AD the empire of Later Han reached its apogee of success and
prosperity; and its decline and fall – far swifter than its Western counterpart –
is worthy of attention.3
The present work offers a history of China from the early first century AD to
the sudden and brutal collapse of the Han dynasty at the end of the second
century. It is primarily a chronological account. Thanks to translations by
Édouard Chavannes, Homer H Dubs, Burton Watson and William H Nienhauser
Jr, as well as the important work of Michael Loewe, there is a quantity of mate-
rial available for the study of Former Han, while many scholars have presented
discussions on aspects of the history, economics, culture and society of the
period. At present, however, there is no single account in a Western language
of the events and developments which marked the fortunes of Later Han. I
believe that a description in date order will provide a clearer context for broad
and detailed analysis in future.
The first years of Later Han, and particularly the reign of the founding
Emperor Guangwu, have been most comprehensively considered by Hans
Bielenstein in his volumes on The Restoration of the Han Dynasty.4 There are
naturally points for debate, but it is unnecessary to deal in detail with a period
whose history has been so well told.
2 Edward Gibbon, The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, first published
1776–1788.
3 Based upon the fact that the capital during this period was at the city of Luoyang, which lay
east of the Former Han capital Chang’an, many refer to the dynasty and the period as “Eastern
Han” 東漢. I prefer, however, the rendering “Later Han.”
One reason is that the standard history Hou Han shu 後漢書 and other major texts of the
time reflect that usage. Another is that among the early dynasties of China the Eastern Zhou
dynasty of pre-Qin times was substantially weaker than its predecessor the Western Zhou;
and in the early fourth century AD, when the power of the Jin dynasty was destroyed in the
north, the refugee state which fled to the south was known as Eastern Jin. In both these cases
the eastern successor was a lesser version of the western; Later Han, however, was fully com-
parable to its predecessor.
4 The Restoration of the Han Dynasty, in Bulletin of the Museum of Far Eastern Antiquities
[BMFEA], Stockholm, volumes 26 (1954), 31 (1959), 48 (1976) and 51 (1979).
Introduction 3
I begin therefore with an account of the imperial city of Luoyang, estab-

lished as the capital of the revived Han dynasty by Emperor Guangwu in 25,
and embellished during his long reign and those of his successors. Here too,
Bielenstein’s Lo-yang has covered much of the ground,5 but I am concerned
with the capital as political and spiritual heart of the state, considering the
court and the officials, the rituals of government and worship, the extent of the
city and the number of its people, its surroundings and its links to the further
regions of the empire. Forty years after Bielenstein’s admirable publication,
and encouraged by Michael Nylan and her colleagues’ work on Chang’an dur-
ing Former Han,6 I believe there is room for another approach.
Furthermore, while there were important social, demographic and military
developments across the empire, the fate of the dynasty itself depended upon
events at the palaces when flames appeared in the sky. So the title of this work
has a double significance: Fire was the Power by which Later Han claimed
authority; and fire above Luoyang was both the symbol and the cause of its fall.
Rome and China: A Note
Though the empire of Rome in the first two centuries AD was contemporary
with the Later Han dynasty in China, and comparison can be made of one with
the other, I believe there is a limit to how far such a process can be taken, for
there were very great differences in geography, demography, culture and politi-
cal organisation. As summary examples, I note that:
• The Roman empire comprised many different peoples and cultures, from
the tribes of Gaul and Britain to the sophistication of Greece and Egypt
– and educated Romans were expected to know Greek as well as their
native Latin. The Han empire unified the civilised world of China, with the
same written language, speech divided only by dialect, and a common
cultural background.
• Rulers of the early Roman empire exercised their powers through the
formulae of a political structure which had some semblance to representa-
tive democracy, and citizenship was an important right. Apart from vague
references to the will of the people, Chinese tradition had no experience of
democracy; the sovereign held his position through divine authority – the
5 Lo-yang in Later Han Times, in BMFEA 48 (1976).

6 Chang’an 26 BCE: an Augustan age in China, edited by Michael Nylan and Griet Vankeerberghen,
Seattle 2015.
4 Introduction
“Mandate of Heaven” ( 天命 tianming) – and all people were his subjects.7

Moreover, whereas most senior officials in traditional Rome went through
a form of election, in China they were chosen by recommendation to the
throne, sometimes followed by a period of probation, with no specific
appeal to popular support.
• The regular Roman army was large, numbering as many as a quarter of a
million professional troops and auxiliaries. Following the abolition of
conscription for many areas of China, Later Han relied upon a small
professional force, aided by a limited number of trained militia in frontier
territories, and boosted for major campaigns by non-Chinese allies.8
• The empire of Han dominated a broad landmass, with communication
based upon roads, rivers and canals. The Roman empire was centred on
the Mediterranean, and though there was a great network of roads much
transport depended on the sea. Even allowing for storms, shipwreck and
piracy, the costs of long-distance transport by sea – as grain from Egypt to
Rome – were less than that of labour-intensive haulage by road or canal.9
So Rome required a navy which could operate in open water, while
Chinese fleets were primarily riverine.
• Both empires were based upon subsistence agriculture, but whereas
Chinese farms were maintained by peasant small-holders or tenants on
great estates, a great deal of field work and other labour in the Roman
world was carried out by slaves, and freedmen were an identifiable social
class.
• Merchants in China were generally regarded as being of inferior social
status and their conduct was frequently restricted by law. In Rome, wealthy
men – including tax-farmers [publicani] – were readily accepted among
the equites, next only to the senatorial class in political and social rank.
• Whereas Roman men took just one wife at a time, China was a polygamous
society and the imperial harem – with its eunuch guardians – was a source
of political influence and conflict.
Bearing these contrasts in mind, I suggest that though comparison may help to
illuminate technical and physical problems and solutions – such as the storage
of grain, the movement and supply of goods, the collection of taxation and
even the functions of the Great Wall and the Roman limes – larger-scale gener-
7 See Chapter 10 at 494.

8 See Chapter 3 at 148–149.
9 Nylan, “Introduction,” 18, citing Vitelli, “Grain Storage and Urban Growth,” 56, also Horden and
Purcell, The Corrupting Sea.
Introduction 5
alisations on politics and society are of limited value. My chief concern is to

consider the history of Later Han on its own terms.10
Technical Matters
All dates are given as AD unless otherwise specified. While recognising that the
Chinese year ends in late January or early February of the West, unless precise
dating is required I follow the convention which expresses the Chinese year by
its major Western equivalent. Specific days are related to their equivalent in
the Julian calendar, as calculated by the Sino-Western Calendar of Xue
Zhongsan and Ouyang Yi.11
Renderings of offices and titles follow those used in my Biographical Diction
ary of Later Han to the Three Kingdoms.12 The system is largely based on that
devised by Professor Dubs and developed by Professor Bielenstein.
The Dictionary also provides a summary biography of most individuals
mentioned in the text.
Acknowledgements
I am most grateful for the advice and support I have received from many differ-
ent scholars, notably Michael Loewe of Cambridge University and my teachers
the late Hans Bielenstein, Fang Chao-ying and Liu Ts’un-yan of the Australian
National University. I also thank Amanda Brown, William G Crowell, Jean-
Pierre Diény, Howard L Goodman, John Makeham, Michael Nylan and Greg
Young. Other colleagues whom I have consulted with great profit, either
directly or through their published works, include Burchard Mansvelt Beck,
Ch’en Ch’i-yün, Robert Joe Cutter, Igor de Rachewiltz, Nicola di Cosmo, Patricia
Ebrey, Christoph Harbsmeier, Hsing I-tien, Mark Edward Lewis, John Minford
and Hans van Ess. I thank also Patricia Radder, Ellen Girmscheid, Judy Pereira
and their colleagues at Brill in Leiden and Boston for their advice, their assis-
tance and their patience.
Rafe de Crespigny
Canberra, March 2016
10 In this, I endorse the comments of Professor Nylan in Chang’an 26 BCE at 17, and I ques-
tion the benefits of comparison argued by Professor Scheidel in his Introduction to Rome
and China.
11 A Sino-Western Calendar for Two Thousand Years 1–2000 ad 兩千年中西曆對照表, com-
piled by Xue Zhongsan 薛仲三 and Ouyang Yi 歐陽頣, Changsha 1940.
12 A Biographical Dictionary of Later Han to the Three Kingdoms (23–220 AD), Leiden 2006.
6 Introduction
The Emperors of Han
Part I: Former Han1
Dynastic name Personal name Acceded Died

Gao 高2 Ji 季 /Bang 邦3 202 195
Hui 愚4 Ying 盁 195 188
[Empress-Dowager Lü 呂 of Emperor Gao]5 188 180
Wen 文 Heng 恆 180 157
Jing 景 Qi 啓 157 141
Wu 武 Che 徹 141 87
Zhao 昭 Fuling 弗陵 87 74
Xuan 宣 Bingyi 病已 74 49
Yuan 元 Shi 奭 49 33
Cheng 成 Ao 驁 33 7
Ai 哀 Xin 欣 7 1
Ping 平 Jizi 箕子; later Kan 衎 1 BC AD 6
[Wang Mang 王莽] AD 6/96 AD 23
1 All dates in Part I are BC unless otherwise specified.

2 The first emperor of Han is commonly referred to as Gaozu 高祖, a combination of his
dynastic title Gao “High” and his temple-name Taizu 太祖 “Grand Founder:” e.g. Dubs,
HFHD I, 145.
3 The personal name/agnomen of Emperor Gao was Ji, a generic name for a younger son. To
avoid problems of taboo for his subjects, who were required to avoid the personal name
of their ruler, he used his style/praenomen Bang “Nation/State” after he had taken the
throne. See Nienhauser, GSR II, 1–2 note 3.
4 The posthumous dynastic names of all emperors of Han except the two founders Gaozu
and Guangwu had the prefix Xiao 孝 “Filial.” It is customary to ignore this common factor.
5 Formally speaking, the Dowager Lü of Emperor Gao exercised her power on behalf of two
puppet emperors, Shaodi “Little Emperor” Gong 少帝弘 and Shaodi Hong 恭, putative
sons of Emperor Hui by concubines.
6 Wang Mang initially took title as “Acting” 假 or “Regent” 攝 Emperor on behalf of the
infant Liu Ying 劉嬰 (AD 5–25), who was declared Heir in AD 6, but never reigned. In 9
Wang Mang demoted Liu Ying and proclaimed his own Xin 新 dynasty.

The Emperors of Han 7
Part II: Later Han7
Dynastic name Personal name Born Acceded Died

The Gengshi 更始 Emperor Xuan 玄 [?] 11 Mar 23 Dec 25
Guangwu 光武 Xiu 秀 5 BC 5 Aug 25 29 Mar 57
Ming 明 Zhuang 莊8 28 29 Mar 57 5 Sep 75
Zhang 章 Da 炟 57 5 Sep 75 9 Apr 88
He 和 Zhao 肇 79 9 Apr 88 13 Feb 106
Shang 殤 “Young Emperor”9 Long 隆 105 13 Feb 106 21 Sep 106
An 安 You 祐 94 23 Sep 106 30 Apr 125
Shao 少 ”Little Emperor”10 Yi 懿 [?] 18 May 125 10 Dec 125
Shun 順 Bao 保 115 16 Dec 125 20 Sep 144
Chong 沖 Bing 炳 143 20 Sep 144 15 Feb 145
Zhi 質 Zuan 纘 138 6 Mar 145 26 Jul 146
Huan 桓 Zhi 志 132 1 Aug 146 25 Jan 168
Ling 靈 Hong 宏 156 17 Feb 168 13 May 189
Shao 少 “Little Emperor”11 Bian 辯 176 15 May 189 26 Mar 190
Xian 獻12 Xie 協 181 28 Sep 189 21 April 234
7 All dates in Part II are AD unless otherwise specified.

8 Emperor Ming initially had the personal name Yang 陽, but it was changed after he
became Heir in 43.
9 Liu Long reigned for less than a year. The term Shang “Young” describes such a minor
ruler; it was not strictly a dynastic title.
10 Liu Yi and Liu Bian, below, each reigned for less than a year. The term Shao “Little”
describes such a minor ruler; it was not strictly a dynastic title.
11 On 28 September 189 Dong Zhuo deposed Liu Bian in favour of his half-brother Liu Xie.
12 On 25 November 200 Liu Xie abdicated the throne in favour of Cao Pi of Wei. He was
thereafter known as the Duke of Shanyang 山陽公, but received the posthumous title
Xian after his death: see note 2 to Chapter 10.
8 Chronology of the Later Han Dynasty
Chronology Of The Later Han Dynasty
Chronology of the Later Han Dynasty
23 ad rebels led by Liu Xiu, member of the imperial clan of Former Han,
defeat a major army of Wang Mang at Kunyang 昆陽 in Nanyang; Liu
Xiu’s cousin Liu Xuan the Gengshi Emperor is proclaimed at Wan
city in Nanyang; Wang Mang is killed as Chang’an is captured by the
rebel forces of Han
25 Liu Xiu, Emperor Guangwu, takes the imperial title and makes
Luoyang his capital
Red Eyebrows rebels imprison the Gengshi Emperor at Chang’an
and later kill him
26–29 Guangwu’s forces compel the Red Eyebrows to surrender, and
Guangwu conquers the warlord states of the North China plain and
the middle Yangzi basin
Dou Rong in the west agrees an alliance with Guangwu
29 construction of the Imperial University at Luoyang
30 abolition of compulsory military service for the inner commander-
ies of the empire
30–34 operations in the west destroy the warlord state of Wei Ao
29–37 operations in the north against the pretender Lu Fang, supported by
the Xiongnu Shanyu Yu
35–36 operations in present-day Sichuan destroy the rival emperor
Gongsun Shu; Guangwu is undisputed sovereign of a restored Han
empire
37–45 defeat of Lu Fang in the north; Xiongnu attacks continue along the
northern frontier, with Han forces on the defensive
40–43 rebellion led by the Zheng/Tr’ung sisters in Jiaozhi, present-day north-
ern Vietnam, put down by Ma Yuan
46 death of the Xiongnu Shanyu Yu
50 the renegade Xiongnu prince Bi submits to Han and is appointed
Southern Shanyu; resettlement of the northern frontier
56 Emperor Guangwu performs the Feng and Shan sacrifices at Mount
Tai
57 death of Liu Xiu, Emperor Guangwu, succeeded by his son Emperor
Ming
57–59 First War with the Shaodang Qiang
59 inauguration of the Three Enclosures and the Suburban Altars at
Luoyang
60 appointment of the Empress Ma and of the Heir Liu Da

61 disgrace of Dou Mu and members of his family

65 first appointment of a General Who Crosses the Liao, north of the
Ordos, to supervise the separation of the Southern and Northern
Xiongnu
Emperor Ming praises his brother Liu Ying, King of Chu, for his
knowledge of Huang-Lao and his practice of Buddhism
66 establishment of the Palace School for Noble Families
67 forced suicide of Liu Jing the King of Zhongshan
69 submission of the Ailao people in the southwest
70 Liu Ying deposed for Impiety; a great purge of his alleged associates
71 Emperor Ming promulgates his Detailed Commentary Wu[xing]jia
yaoshuo zhangju
73 expedition against the Northern Xiongnu
74 Dou Gu takes Jushi in the Turfan region; establishment of a Protectorate-
General for the Western Regions; Ban Chao on the Southern Route of
the Silk Road
75 destruction of the Protectorate-General by the Northern Xiongnu; Ban
Chao maintains himself at Shule
75 death of Emperor Ming, succeeded by his son Emperor Zhang
77–101 Second Shaodang Wars
78 appointment of the Empress Dou
79–80 conference at the White Tiger Hall
82 disgrace and deaths of the Honoured Ladies Song and dismissal of
the Heir Liu Qing; appointment of Liu Zhao, son of the Honoured
Lady Liang, as Heir
83 disgrace of the Liang family; the Heir Liu Zhao is adopted by the
Empress Dou
defeat of an imperial army by the Qiang chieftain Miyu
87 defeat and death of the Northern Shanyu at the hands of the Xianbi
murder of the Qiang leader Miyu; his son Mitang launches attacks in
revenge
88 death of Emperor Zhang, succeeded by his son Emperor He under
the regency of the Dowager Dou
89–91 Dou Xian leads an expedition into the steppe and destroys the
Northern Shanyu
91 Ban Chao named Protector-General of the Western Regions
92 imperial coup against the Dou clan; Dou Xian is killed and the
Dowager removed from power
10 Chronology Of The Later Han Dynasty
93 death of the Southern Shanyu Tuntuhe, succeeded by Shizi; revolt of

surrendered Northerners; the prince Fenghou establishes a separatist
state
94 Ban Chao conquers Yanqi and completes his control of the Tarim basin
97 Ban Chao sends Gan Ying on a mission to Daqin/Rome, he reaches the
Persian Gulf
100 death of the Shaodang chieftain Miyu; some of his people are settled
within Liang province
102 the Lady Deng Sui replaces the Empress Yin as imperial consort
Ban Chao retires as Protector-General of the Western Regions; suc-
ceeded by Ren Shang
105 death of Emperor He, succeeded by his son Liu Long; the Empress-
Dowager Deng takes the regency
105 the eunuch Cai Lun announces a new process for making paper
106 death of the Young Emperor Liu Long; the Dowager brings Liu You,
Emperor An, to the throne
106 rebellion in the Western Regions; withdrawal in the northeast under
pressure from Gaogouli
106–111 frequent flooding in north China, with occasional severe drought
107 attempted coup against the Dowager and Liu You
orders are given to abandon the Western Regions; rebellion of the Xian
lian Qiang in Liang province; Deng Zhi is sent to attack them
108 the imperial offensive is driven back; the Qiang leader Dianlian pro-
claims himself emperor at Lingzhou in Beidi; Liang Qin forces the
Qiang back from Youfufeng; Deng Zhi is named General-in-Chief but
without executive authority
109 Emperor An takes the Cap of Manhood, but the Dowager Deng con-
tinues to control the government
Qiang occupy much of Longxi and Jincheng commanderies; Qiang
held from Chang’an; Qiang raids reach the North China plain
sale of minor offices and noble ranks
short-lived rebellion of the Shanyu of the Southern Xiongnu
110 permanent garrisons established to defend Chang’an and Youfufeng;
imperial levies refuse to take the offensive; proposals to abandon Liang
province
the Deng brothers resign all their official positions
preparation of a new edition of the Five Classics
111 scorched earth policy as commandery capitals withdrawn from the
northwest; Ren Shang defeats Qiang raiders north of Luoyang; rebel
Chinese defeated in Hanyang
112 death of Dianlian

113 imperial counter-offensive in Jincheng commandery
transfer of grain from the Yangzi region to relieve northern China
114 recapture of Jincheng; imperial raids into Anding; Qiang defeated in
Henei, Hanyang and Hanzhong, but victorious in Longxi
115 heavy defeat of an imperial offensive against Lingzhou; Ren Shang
takes command and raises light cavalry to raid the enemy
appointment of Yan Ji as empress; birth of the emperor’s son Liu Bao
to the Lady Li; Yan Ji has the Lady Li poisoned
establishment of the Dependent State of Liaodong for defence against
the Xianbi in the northeast
116 successful raid on Lingzhou, recapture of territory east of the Yellow
River
117 defections and assassinations of rebel leaders; imperial victory at
Fuping in Beidi
118 conclusion of the First Great Qiang Rebellion; disgrace and execution
of the victorious general Ren Shang
the renegade Xiongnu prince Fenghou comes to surrender
119 re-establishment of a military colony at Yiwu
120 Northern Xiongnu occupy Jushi and overrun Yiwu
121 death of the Dowager Deng, Emperor An accedes to power; disgrace
of the late Dowager’s family
first raids by the Xianbi war-leader Qizhijian
123 Ban Chao’s son Ban Yong sent as Chief Clerk to the Western Regions, he
gradually restores a limited hegemony
124 dismissal of Liu Bao as Heir
125 death of Emperor An; his Dowager Yan takes power and names the
infant Liu Yi as emperor
125 following the death of Liu Yi, a coup by Sun Cheng and other eunuchs
brings the former Heir Liu Bao, Emperor Shun, to the throne
126 redeployment in the north to deal with continuing Xianbi raiding
127 from their offices in the Secretariat, Yu Xu, Zuo Xiong and Huang
Qiong begin a program of Confucianist reform
recall of Ban Yong from the Western Regions, decline of Chinese
influence
129–139 resettlement program in Liang province
132 the Lady Liang Na is appointed empress
restoration of the Imperial University
133 following the death of Sun Cheng, an edict approves the inheritance
of a eunuch’s fief by his kinsmen
the seismograph of Zhang Heng records its first earthquake

death of Xianbi war-leader Qizhijian; easing of raids on the north
135 the emperor appoints Liang Shang, father of his empress, as
General-in-Chief
140 rebellion among the Xiongnu; death of the Shanyu Xiuli
renewed Qiang rebellion
defeat of the pretender Che’niu leaves the Southern Xiongnu without a
ruler
[about this time, the Taiping jing “Classic of Great Peace” is pre-
sented to the throne]
141 defeat and death of Ma Xian at the hands of the rebel Qiang; wide-
spread insurgency and withdrawal of commandery administrations
from the northwest; raiding reaches Chang’an
death of Liang Shang, succeeded as General-in-Chief by his son
Liang Ji
142 appointment of the Commission of Eight to report on government
143 reductions in official salaries and forced loans extracted from fiefs
144 final settlements of the Qiang and Xiongnu rebellions, though much of
Liang and Bing provinces are left without effective government
144 death of Emperor Shun, succeeded by his infant son Liu Bing; the
Dowager Liang holds regency power
short-lived rebellion of the Yellow Emperor Ma Mian and others in
Jiujiang
145 death of Liu Bing, Emperor Chong; the Dowager and her brother
Liang Ji bring Liu Zuan to the throne
short-lived rebellion of the Black Emperor Hua Meng and others in
Jiujiang; similar religious-inspired risings in following years
146 death of Liu Zuan, Emperor Zhi; the Dowager and Liang Ji bring Liu
Zhi, Emperor Huan, to the throne
147 Liang Nüying is appointed as empress
abortive attempt to place Liu Suan the king of Qinghe on the impe-
rial throne; deaths of Li Gu and Du Qiao
148 Emperor Huan takes the Cap of Manhood
150 death of the Dowager Liang; Liang Ji continues to dominate the gov-
ernment; continuing expansion of the imperial harem
153–155 locusts and floods on the North China plain; levy on private grain
stores
154–160 major banditry in Taishan and surrounding territory in the east
mid-150s Zhang Huan deals with trouble in the north
late 150s disturbances south of the middle Yangzi
159 aided by palace eunuchs, Emperor Huan destroys Liang Ji and takes
over the government; Deng Mengnü is appointed empress; five
eunuchs are enfeoffed
Grand Commandant Huang Qiong invites worthy men to office, but
many refuse
159–166 Zhang Huan and Huangfu Gui maintain a measure of security in the
north
160 execution of Li Yun and Du Zhong; death of the leading eunuch
Shan Chao
161 reduction of salaries and stipends, sale of some fiefs and offices
163 the Excellencies Yang Bing and Zhou Jing report on excesses by
eunuch associates in the provinces, some are punished
164 death of the eunuch favourites Xu Huang and Tang Heng
165 special levy on farmland
Yang Bing impeaches Hou Can, brother of the eunuch Hou Lan, for
extortion; Hou Can kills himself and Hou Lan is dismissed;
disgrace of the eunuchs Zuo Guan and Ju Yuan, last of Emperor
Huan’s former allies against Liang Ji
166 arrest and execution of the anti-eunuch officials Liu Zhi and Cheng
Jin, dismissal of their supporter the Excellency Chen Fan
167 Duan Jiong commences his campaign against the Qiang of Liang
province
death of Emperor Huan; the Dowager Dou takes regency power
168 the Dowager Dou and her father Dou Wu bring Liu Hong, Emperor
Ling, to the imperial throne
Duan Jiong drives the Qiang south from the Ordos
eunuch forces led by Cao Jie overthrow the Dou group and thereaf-
ter control the government
suzerainty of the Xianbi chieftain Tanshihuai across the northern
steppe; frequent raiding by the Xianbi against the northern frontier
169 Duan Jiong’s final campaign against the Qiang: massacre at Shoot-
Tiger Valley
Second Faction Incident and the beginning of the Great Proscription
170 Duan Jiong received in triumph at Luoyang
171 Emperor Ling takes the Cap of Manhood; appointment of his
Empress Song
first appearance of widespread sickness, with repeated attacks in
subsequent years; growing numbers of religious sects based upon
faith-healing
172 purge of the University
173? birth of Liu Bian, son of Emperor Ling by his concubine the Lady He
172–174 rebellion of Xu Chang in Kuaiji

175 commissioning of the Stone Classics project
176 extension of the proscription of men of Faction
177 failed expedition against the Xianbi
178 dismissal and death of the Empress Song
endorsement of the School at the Gate of the Vast Capital as a route
for entry to the imperial service
Emperor Ling introduces a program for the sale of offices
179 some reduction in the extent of the proscription of men of Faction
the Chinese Emissary Zhang Xiu kills the Xiongnu Shanyu Huzheng
and sets Qiangqu in his place
180 the Lady He is appointed empress
181 birth of Liu Xie, future Emperor Xian; murder of his mother the Lady
Wang by the Empress He
c. 182 death of Tanshihuai, followed by the break-up of the Xianbi confederacy
184 Yellow Turban rebels commanded by the religious leader Zhang Jue
ravage the North China plain and Nanyang commandery;
ending of the proscription of men of Faction
short-lived rising by the religious leader Zhang Xiu in the west
final victories of imperial forces over the Yellow Turbans
mutiny and rebellion in Liang province in the northwest
185 fires in the imperial palaces, and tax levies to rebuild them; Emperor
Ling establishes the Hall of Ten Thousand Gold Pieces in the Western
Garden; further development of the sale of offices
the Liang province rebels approach Chang’an but are driven back
Black Mountain bandit groups in the Taihang range
187 unsuccessful attack into Liang province by Geng Bi
Wuhuan mutiny and rebellion in the northeast
sale of secondary marquisates
188 Bobo “White Wave” rebels in Xihe commandery
Governors are appointed to certain provinces in place of the lower-
ranking Inspectors
rebels depose and kill the Southern Shanyu Qiangqu; collapse of the
Xiongnu state
establishment of the Western Gardens corps under eight colonels
Liang province rebels advance into Youfufeng
189 Huangfu Song drives back the Liang province rebels; the rebellion
splinters but the northwest is lost
Liu Yu settles the Wuhuan rebellion in the northeast
death of Emperor Ling; the Little Emperor Liu Bian is placed upon
the throne under the regency of his mother the Dowager He and her
brother He Jin; He Jin is assassinated by eunuchs; his troops attack

the imperial palaces; eunuchs flee the city with Liu Bian and Liu Xie;
they are chased and killed and the boys are brought back
seizing control of the government, Dong Zhuo deposes the Little
Emperor Liu Bian and places Liu Xie, Emperor Xian, upon the
throne
190 Yuan Shao and a loyalist alliance raise troops in the east to oppose
Dong Zhuo
as Luoyang is looted and abandoned, Emperor Xian and the court
are moved to Chang’an
191 Sun Jian captures Luoyang from Dong Zhuo and Lü Bu, then
withdraws
192 assassination of Dong Zhuo at Chang’an by Lü Bu and Wang Yun;
Dong Zhuo’s former followers Li Jue and Guo Si seize Chang’an
195 Emperor Xian escapes from Chang’an
196 the emperor returns briefly to Luoyang, but then follows the warlord
Cao Cao into effective captivity at Xu city in Yingchuan
200 Cao Cao defeats Yuan Shao at the battle of Guandu
205 Cao Cao controls the North China plain
207 Cao Cao destroys a Wuhuan confederation in the north at the battle
of White Wolf Mountain
208 Cao Cao takes title as Imperial Chancellor
Cao Cao occupies Jing province but is defeated by Sun Quan and Liu
Bei at the Red Cliffs on the Yangzi
211 Cao Cao defeats the warlords of the northwest at Huayin
213 Cao Cao becomes Duke of Wei
214 Liu Bei takes Yi province from Liu Zhang
215 a daughter of Cao Cao becomes the empress of Emperor Xian
Cao Cao forces the surrender of Zhang Lu in Hanzhong
217 Cao Cao becomes King of Wei
219 Cao Cao’s general Xiahou Yuan is defeated by Liu Bei at the battle of
Dingjun Mountain; Cao Cao loses Hanzhong
Liu Bei’s general Guan Yu attacks in Jing province but is driven back
and is then destroyed by Sun Quan’s general Lü Meng; Sun Quan
takes Jing province
220 Cao Cao dies at Luoyang
11 December: Cao Cao’s son Cao Pi compels Emperor Xian of Han to
abdicate, and proclaims himself emperor of Wei
234 death of Liu Xie the Duke of Shanyang, last sovereign of Later Han;
he is granted posthumous title as Emperor Xian
Map 1 The City of Luoyang in the time of Later Han

Imperial Capital 17
Chapter 1
Imperial Capital*
Luoyang and its Surroundings

Emperor Guangwu and his New Capital
Formalities and Government
City, Suburbs and People
Parks, Pleasure-Grounds and Tombs
Luoyang and its Surroundings
A few kilometres east of present-day Luoyang in Henan, the main road leading
to the provincial capital Zhengzhou follows a causeway above open fields and
scattered groups of trees. The Longhai railway passes a short distance to the
north, and both road and rail cut through ridges of raised soil. This is ancient
Luoyang, and the ridges are remnants of the city walls. Imperial Rome, its con-
temporary in the west, still displays monuments in brick and marble, but the
capital of Later Han, which rivalled Rome in population, wealth and splen-
dour, has little to show: built for the most part of wood, tiles and rammed earth,
its great buildings have withstood time and weather far less well.
On open ground north of the Luo River by its junction with the Yi,1 the
region of Luoyang has been inhabited since earliest times, and the Classic
* For discussion of the capital region of Later Han, I naturally rely heavily upon Bielenstein,
Lo-yang, and the valuable notes of Knechtges, Wen xuan I, who has translated the rhapsodies
composed by Ban Gu and Zhang Heng.
1 As Bielenstein remarks at Lo-yang, 8, river courses in this comparatively open region have
changed considerably since the Han period. Most notably:
• the Luo River 雒水 was formerly two kilometres south of the Han city. Now known as 洛
河, it has since changed its course, washing away all but a fraction of the ancient southern
wall.
[Bielenstein, Lo-yang, 103 note 12, discusses the character luo as used in this region, and agrees
with Chavannes, MH II, note 1 at 287–288, that from earliest times the name of the river – and
hence that of the cities – was written as 雒. The form 洛, which is now in common use, was
adopted only in 220 AD by the new empire of Wei; many subsequent editions of Han and pre-
Han texts use it anachronistically.]
• The Yi River 伊水, which formerly joined the Luo in this area, now makes its junction
some thirty kilometres further downstream near present-day Yanshi.

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The Project Gutenberg eBook of Dora
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Title: Dora
Author: Johanna Spyri
Illustrator: Maria Louise Kirk
Translator: Elisabeth P. Stork
Release date: November 13, 2023 [eBook #72112]
Language: English
Original publication: Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1924
*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK DORA ***

Transcriber's note: Unusual and inconsistent spelling is as printed.
BEFORE CLOSING HER LITTLE WINDOW,

SHE ALWAYS GAZED OUT AT THE SKY.
DORA
BY
JOHANNA SPYRI
AUTHOR OF "HEIDI," "MÄZLI," ETC.

TRANSLATED BY
ELISABETH P. STORK
ILLUSTRATIONS IN COLOR BY
MARIA L. KIRK
PHILADELPHIA & LONDON
J. B. LIPPINCOTT COMPANY
COPYRIGHT, 1924, BY J. B. LIPPINCOTT COMPANY
PRINTED BY J. B. LIPPINCOTT COMPANY

AT THE WASHINGTON SQUARE PRESS
PHILADELPHIA, U. S. A.
CONTENTS
CHAPTER
I. UNDER THE LINDEN TREES
II. LONG, LONG DAYS
III. THE OTHER SIDE OF THE HEDGE
IV. ALL SIX
V. BEFORE AND AFTER THE DELUGE
VI. A TERRIBLE DEED
VII. IN THE GARDEN AT LAST
VIII. STILL MORE RIDDLES AND THEIR SOLUTIONS

IX. FOUND AT LAST
ILLUSTRATIONS
Before closing her little window, she always gazed out at the sky. Frontispiece
She had been lost in everything she had partly seen and heard.
Before Jul could prevent it, he was pulled off his chair.
"Come, I'll say it and you must learn it by heart."
"Do you think it was a little rabbit that made the noise?" asked Willi, frightened.
Dora marched behind with a wax taper and some cigars.
"I suppose it is patrimony, my son," said Mr. Titus, patting Rolf's shoulder.
Dora and Paula returned to the garden arm in arm singing gaily.
DORA
CHAPTER I
UNDER THE LINDEN TREES
IN A beautiful park in Karlsruhe, a gentleman was seen walking under the shady linden
trees every sunny afternoon. The passers-by could not help being touched when they saw
him leaning upon a little girl, his daily companion. He was apparently very ill, for they
walked slowly and he carried in his right hand a cane, while he often took his left from the
child's shoulder, inquiring affectionately, "Tell me, child, if I press on you too heavily."
But the little girl always drew back his hand and reassured him gladly, "I can hardly feel it,
papa. Just lean on me as heavily as you want."
After walking up and down for a while the pair always settled beneath the lovely trees.
The sick man, a certain Major Falk, lived with his daughter Dora and an elderly
housekeeper who attended to his wants. They had only recently come to Karlsruhe. Dora
had never known her mother, who had died soon after the child's birth, and she therefore
clung to her father with double affection, and he, with great tenderness, did his best to
make up to Dora for her early loss.
A year before he had been obliged to leave his child and fight in a war against the enemy.
When he returned he was very ill and miserable, having received a dangerous wound in
the chest, which physicians pronounced as hopeless. Major Falk, who had no relatives or
connections in Hamburg, had lived a very retired life there, and the only relative he had in
the world was an elderly step-sister who was married to a scholar in Karlsruhe by the
name of Titus Ehrenreich. When Major Falk realized the hopelessness of his condition, he
decided to move to Karlsruhe, where his step-sister could come to his and his eleven-year-
old daughter's assistance, if his illness became acute. The resolution was soon carried out
and he found pleasant lodgings near his sister.
He enjoyed these beautiful spring days with his lovely daughter as daily companion on his
walks, and when the two sat hand in hand on the bench, the father told about his past
experiences and Dora never grew tired of listening. She was quite sure nobody in the
world was as wonderful and splendid and interesting as her father. Most of all, she loved to
hear about her mother, who had been so merry, bringing sunshine wherever she went.
Everyone had loved her and no one who had loved her could forget her. When the father
was lost in such recollections, he often forgot completely where he was till it grew late and
the damp evening air made him shiver and reminded him that it was time to go home. The
pair walked slowly till they came to a narrow street with high houses on both sides.
Here the father usually stopped, saying: "We must go to see Uncle Titus and Aunt
Ninette." And climbing up the stairs, he daily reminded his little daughter: "Be very quiet,
Dora! You know Uncle Titus writes very learned books and must not be disturbed, and Aunt
Ninette is not used to noise, either."
Dora climbed upstairs on tiptoe, and the bell was rung most discreetly.
Usually Aunt Ninette opened the door herself and said, "Come in, dear brother, but please
be very quiet. Your brother-in-law is much lost in his work as usual."
With scarcely a sound, the three went along the corridor to the living room which was next
to Uncle Titus's study. Here, too, one had to be very quiet, which Major Falk never forgot,
though Aunt Ninette herself often broke out into sad complaints about many things that
troubled her.
June had come and the two could stay out quite long under the linden trees. But they
found themselves obliged to return sooner than was their wish, because otherwise Aunt
Ninette worried dreadfully. On one such warm summer evening, when the sky gleamed all
golden, and rosy and fluffy clouds were sailing along the sky, Major Falk stayed seated on
the bench until quite late. Holding his child's hand in his, he quietly watched the radiant
sunset with Dora, who gazed up with wonder at her father.
Quite overwhelmed by her impression, she cried out, "Oh, father, you should just see
yourself; you look all golden the way the angels in heaven must look."
Smilingly, her father answered, "I think I shall not live much longer, and I feel as if your
mother were looking down upon us from that sky." But before long her father had grown
pale again and all the glow in the sky had faded. When he rose, Dora had to follow, quite
depressed that the beautiful glow had paled so soon. But her father spoke these words of
comfort, "It will glow again some day and much more splendidly than today, when your
mother, you and I will be all together again. It won't ever fade then."
When the pair came up the stairs to greet Dora's uncle and aunt, the latter stood upstairs
at the open door showing visible signs of agitation, and as her visitors entered her living
room, she gave free vent to her excitement.
"How can you frighten me so, dear brother!" she wailed. "Oh, I imagined such terrible
things! What can have kept you so long? How can you be so forgetful, and not remember
that you must not be out after sunset. Just think what dreadful things might happen if you
caught cold."
"Calm yourself, dear Ninette," said the Major as soon as he had a chance to speak. "The
air is so mild and warm today that it could do me no harm and the evening was simply
glorious. Please let me enjoy the few lovely evenings that are still left to me on earth. They
neither hasten nor hinder what is sure to happen very soon."
These words spoken so quietly brought forth new outbursts of despair.
"How can you speak that way? How can you frighten me so? Why do you say such awful
things?" cried the excited woman. "It cannot happen and it must not happen! What is to be
done then with—yes, tell me—you know whom I mean." Here the aunt threw an
expressive glance at Dora. "No, Charles, a terrible misfortune like that must not break in
upon us—no, it would be too much. I would not even know what to do. What is to happen
then, for we shall never get along."
"But, my dear Ninette," the brother retorted, "don't forget these words:"
"'Though sad afflictions prove us

And none his fate can tell,
Yet God keeps watch above us
And doeth all things well.'"
"Oh, yes, I know, and I know it is true," agreed the sister. "But where one sees no help
anywhere, one feels like dying from fright, while you talk of such dreadful things as if they
were quite natural."
"We'll have to say good-night now, and please try not to complain any more, dear
Ninette," said the Major, stretching out his hand. "We must remember the lines:"
"'Yet God keeps watch above us

"Yes, yes, I know it is true, I know it is true," assented the aunt once more, "but don't
catch cold on the street, and do go downstairs without making any noise. Do you hear,
Dora? Also, shut the downstairs door quietly, and when you go across the street, try not to
be in the draft too long."
During these last injunctions, the father had already gone downstairs with Dora and home
across the narrow street.
The following day, when they sat on the bench again under the lindens, Dora asked, "Papa,
didn't Aunt Ninette know that:"
"Of course she knows it," replied the father, "but at times when she gets anxious, she
forgets it a little. She regains her balance when she thinks of it."
After musing a while Dora asked again, "But, papa, what shall one do to keep from being
frightened and dying from fear as Aunt Ninette says?"
"Dear child," the father answered, "I will tell you what to do. Whatever happens, we must
always think that it comes from God. If it is a joy, we must be grateful, and if it is a
sorrow, we must not be too sad, because we know God our Father sends everything for
our good. In that way we need never suffer from fear. Even if a misfortune comes and we
see no help at hand, God is sure to find some succor for us. He alone can let good come
out of evil, even one that seems to crush us. Can you understand me, Dora, and will you
think of that if you should ever be unhappy? You see hard days come to everybody and to
you, too, dear child."
"Yes, yes, I understand and I'll think of it, papa," Dora assured him. "I'll try not to be
frightened."
"There is another thing which we must not forget," continued the father. "We must not only
think of God when something special happens to us. We must ask Him at every action if He
is satisfied with us. When a misfortune comes, we are near to Him already if we do that
and we experience a certainty at once of receiving help. If we forget Him, on the contrary,
and a sorrow comes, we do not find the way to Him so easily and we are apt to remain in
darkness."
"I'll try never to lose the way, papa," said Dora eagerly, "and ask God every day: 'Am I
doing right?'"
Tenderly stroking his child's head, the father remained silent, but in his eyes lay such a
light that she felt herself surrounded by a loving care.
The sun sank behind the trees and father and child happily walked home.
CHAPTER II
LONG, LONG DAYS
A few days after this lovely evening, Dora sat at her father's bedside, her head prostrate
beside his. She was sobbing bitterly, for he lay quite still with a smile on his white face.
Dora could not fully comprehend what had happened yet, and all she knew was that he
had joined her mother in heaven.
That morning when her father had not come as usual to her bedside to wake her, she had
gone to his room instead. She found him lying motionless on his bed, and, thinking him
asleep, she had kept very quiet.
When the housekeeper, who came in with breakfast, had cast a glance in his direction,
Dora heard her exclaim, "Oh God, he is dead! I must quickly fetch your aunt." With this
she had run away.
This word had fallen on Dora like a thunderbolt, and she had laid her head on the pillow
beside her father, where she stayed a long while, sobbing bitterly. Then Dora heard the
door open and her aunt came in. Lifting her head, she used all her strength to control her
sorrow, for she knew that a wild outburst of grief was coming. She was dreadfully afraid of
this and most anxious not to contribute to it further. She wept quietly, pressing her head
into her arms in order not to let her sobs escape. The aunt loudly moaned and cried,
wailing that this dreadful misfortune should just have happened and saying she saw no
help for any of them.
What should be seen to first, she wondered. In the open drawer of the table beside her
brother's bed several papers lay about, which the aunt folded up in order to lock away.
Among them was a letter addressed to her. Opening it she read:
"DEAREST SISTER NINETTE:"
"I feel that I shall leave you soon, but I don't want to speak of it, in
order not to cause you dark hours before I have to. I have a last request
to make to you. Please take care of my child as long as she needs you.
As I am unable to leave her any fortune to speak of, I beg you to use
the small sum she owns to let her learn some useful work by which
Dora, with God's help, will be able to support herself when she is old
enough. Be not too much overcome with sorrow and believe as I do that
God does His share for all His children whom we recommend to His care,
and for whom we ourselves cannot do very much. Accept my warm
thanks for all your kindness to me and Dora. May God repay you!"
The letter must have soothed the aunt a little, for instead of wailing loudly she turned to
Dora, who, with her head pressed into her arms, was still quietly weeping.
"Come with me, Dora," said the aunt; "from now on you shall live with us. If we didn't
know that your father is happy now, we should have to despair."
Dora obediently got up and followed, but she felt as if everything was over and she could
not live any longer. When she entered the quiet dwelling, the aunt for the first time did not
have to remind her to be quiet, feeling sure this was unnecessary. As the child came to her
new home, it seemed as if no joyful sounds could ever again escape her.
The aunt had a store-room in the garret which she wanted to fit up for Dora. This change
could not take place without some wailing, but it was at last accomplished and a bed
placed in it for her niece. The maid went at once to fetch the child's belongings, and the
little wardrobe in the corner was also set in order.
Dora silently obeyed her aunt's directions and, as bidden, came down afterwards to the
quiet supper. Uncle Titus said nothing, being occupied with his own thoughts. Later on,
Dora went up to her little chamber where she cried into her pillow till she fell asleep.
On the following day, Dora begged to be allowed to go over to her father, and the aunt
accompanied her with expressions of renewed sorrow. Dora quietly said goodbye to her
beloved father, sobbing softly all the while. Only later on, in her own little room, did she
break out into violent sobs, for she knew that soon he would be carried away and she
would never see him any more on earth.
From then on, Dora's days were planned quite differently. For the short time she had been
in Karlsruhe, her father had not sent her to any school, only reviewing with her the studies
she had taken in Hamburg. Apparently, he had been anxious to leave such decisions to his
sister when the time came. Aunt Ninette had an acquaintance who was the head of a girls'
private school and Dora was to go there in the mornings. For the afternoon a seamstress
was engaged to teach Dora to make shirts, cut them out and sew them. Aunt Ninette
considered this a very useful occupation, and by it, Dora was to make her livelihood. All
clothing began with the shirt, so the knowledge of dressmaking also began with that. If
Dora later on might get as far as dressmaking, even her aunt would be immensely
pleased.
Dora sat every morning on the school-bench, studying hard, and in the afternoons on a
little stool beside the seamstress. Sewing a big heavy shirt made her feel very hot and
tired. In the mornings, she was quite happy with the other children, for Dora was eager to
learn and the time went by pleasantly without too many sad thoughts about her father.
But the afternoons were different. Sitting in a little room opposite her teacher, she had a
hard time handling the shirts and she would get very weary. The long hot summer
afternoons had come and with her best exertions, she could hardly move the needle. The
flannel felt so damp and heavy and the needle grew dull from heat. If Dora would look up
to the large clock, whose regular ticking went on, time seemed to have stood still and it
never seemed to be more than half past three. How long and hot these afternoons were!
Once in a while, the sounds of a distant piano reached her—probably some lucky child was
playing her exercises and learning lovely melodies and pieces.
This seemed, in these hard times, the greatest possible bliss to Dora. She actually
hungered and thirsted for these sounds, which were the only thing to cheer her, as few
carriages passed in the narrow street below and the voices of the passers-by did not reach
them. The scales and exercises she heard were a real diversion, and if Dora heard even a
little piece of music she was quite overjoyed and lost not a note. What a lucky child! she
thought to herself, to be able to sit at the piano and learn such pretty pieces.
In the long, dreary afternoons, Dora was visited by melancholy thoughts and she
remembered the time when she had strolled with her father under the linden trees. This
time would never come again, she would never see and hear him any more. Then the
consolation her father himself had given her came into her mind. Some day, of course, she
would be with both her parents in the golden glow, but that was probably a long way off,
unless something unusual happened and she were taken ill and should die from sewing
shirts. But her final consolation was always the words her father had taught her:

She tried to believe this firmly and, feeling happier in her heart, made her needle travel
more easily and more lightly, as if driven by a joyful confidence. Just the same, the days
were long and dreary, and when Dora came home in the evening to Aunt Ninette and Uncle
Titus, everything about her was so still. At supper, Uncle Titus read and ate behind a big
newspaper and the aunt talked very little in order not to disturb her husband. Dora said
nothing, either, for she had become adapted to their quiet ways. In the few hours she
spent at home between her lessons, Dora never had to be told to be quiet; all her
movements had become subdued and she had no real heart in anything.
By nature, Dora was really very lively and her interests had been keen. Her father had
often exclaimed with satisfaction: "The child is her mother's image!—The same merriment
and inexhaustible joy in life." All that was now entirely gone and the child very seldom
gave her aunt occasion to complain. Dora avoided this because she feared such outbreaks.
Every time, after such a demonstration, she repressed for a long time every natural
utterance and her joy of life would be completely gone. One evening, Dora returned from
her work full of enthusiasm, for the young pianist across the street had played the well-
known song Dora loved and could even sing:
"Rejoice, rejoice in life

While yet the lamp is glowing
And pluck the fragrant rose
In Maytime zephyrs blowing!"
"Oh, Aunt Ninette!" she cried upon entering the room, "It must be the greatest pleasure in
the world to play the piano. Do you think I could ever learn it?"
"For heaven's sake, child, how do you get such ideas?" wailed Aunt Ninette. "How can you
frighten me so? How could such a thing be possible? Only think what noise a piano would
make in the house. How could we do it? And where, besides, should we get the time and
money? How do you get such unfortunate ideas, Dora? The troubles we have are enough
without adding new ones."
Dora promised to make no more suggestions. She never breathed another word about the
subject, though her soul pined for music.
Late in the evening, when Dora had finished her work for school, while the aunt either
knitted, mended or sometimes dropped asleep, Dora climbed up to her garret room.
Before closing her little window, she always gazed out at the sky, especially when the stars
gleamed brightly. Five stars stood close together right above her head, and by and by,
Dora got to know them well. They seemed like old friends come especially to beckon to her
and comfort her. Dora even felt in some mysterious way as if they were sent to her little
window by her father and mother to bring her greetings and keep her company. They were
a real consolation, for her little chamber was only dimly lighted by a tiny candle. After
saying her evening prayer while looking at the starry heavens, she regained a feeling of
confidence that God was looking down at her and that she was not quite forsaken. Her
father had told her that she had nothing to fear, if she prayed to God for protection, for
then His loving care would enfold her.
In this fashion, a dreary hot summer went by, followed by the autumn and then a long,
long winter. Those days were dark and chilly and made Dora long for warmth and
sunshine, for she could not even open her little window and gaze at her bright stars. It was
bitter chill in her little garret room so near the roof, and often she could not fall asleep, she
was so cold. But spring and summer came at last again and still things went their
accustomed rounds in the quiet household. Dora was working harder than ever at her large
shirts because she could now sew quite well, and was expected really to help the
seamstress.
When the hot days had come, something unusual happened. Uncle Titus had a fainting
spell and the doctor had to be fetched. Of course, Aunt Ninette was dreadfully upset.
"I suppose you have not gone away from Karlsruhe for thirty years, and you only leave
your desk to eat and sleep?" asked the physician after a searching glance at Uncle Titus
and a short examination.
The question had to be answered in the affirmative. It was the truth.
"Good!" continued the doctor. "You must go away at once and the sooner the better. Try to
go tomorrow. I advise Swiss mountain air, but not too high up. You need no medicine at all
except the journey, and I advise you to stay away at least six weeks. Have you any
preferences? No? We can both think it over and tomorrow I'll come again. I want to find
you ready to leave, remember."
The doctor was out of the door before Aunt Ninette could stop him. Eager to ask a
thousand questions, she followed. This sudden resolution had paralyzed her and she could
not at first find her tongue. She had to consult the doctor about so many important points,
though, and he soon found that his abruptness availed him nothing. He was held up
outside the door three times as long as he had been in the house. Returning after some
time the aunt found her husband at his desk, absorbed as usual, in his studies.
"My dear Titus!" she cried out amazed, "Is it possible you have not heard what is to
happen? Do you know we have to start at once and leave everything and without even
knowing where to go? To stay away six weeks and not to know where, with whom and in
what neighborhood! It frightens me to death, and here you sit and write as if nothing
particular had happened!"
"My dear, I am making use of my time just for the very reason that we have to leave,"
replied Mr. Titus, eagerly writing.
"My dear Titus, I can't help admiring how quickly you can adapt yourself to unexpected
situations. This matter, though, must be discussed, otherwise it might have serious
consequences," insisted Aunt Ninette. "Just think, we might go to a dreadful place!"
"It doesn't matter where we go so long as it is quiet, and the country is always quiet,"
replied Mr. Titus, still working.
"That is the very point I am worried about," continued his wife. "How can we guard
ourselves, for instance, against an overcrowded house. Just think if we should come into a
noisy neighborhood with a school or mill or even a waterfall, which are so plentiful in
Switzerland. How can we know that some frightful factory is not near us, or a place where
they have conventions to which people from all cantons come together. Oh, what a tumult
this would make and it must be prevented at all costs. I have an idea, though, dearest
Titus. I'll write to Hamburg, where an old uncle of my sister-in-law lives. At one time his
family lived in Switzerland and I can make inquiries there."
"That seems decidedly far-fetched to me," replied Uncle Titus, "and as far as I know, the
family had some disagreeable experiences in Switzerland. They probably have severed all
connections with it."
"Just let me look after it. I'll see to everything, dear Titus," concluded Aunt Ninette.
After writing a letter to Hamburg, she went to Dora's sewing-teacher, a very decent
woman, and asked her to take care of Dora while they were away in Switzerland. After
some suggestions from both women, it was decided that Dora should spend her free time
at the seamstress's house, and at night, the woman would come home with the child in
order to have someone in the house. When Dora was told about these plans that evening,
she said nothing and went up to her lonely garret. Here she sat down on the bed, and sad
memories crowded upon her mind of the times when she and her father had been so
happy. They had spent every evening together and when he had been tired and had gone
to bed early, she had come to his bedside. She was conscious how forsaken she would be
when her uncle and aunt had left, more lonely even than she was now. Nobody would be
here to love her and nobody she could love, either.
Gradually, poor Dora grew so sad that she drooped her head and began to cry bitterly, and
the more she wept the more forlorn she felt. If her uncle and aunt should die, not a soul
would be left on earth belonging to her and her whole life would be spent in sewing horrid
heavy shirts. She knew that this was the only way by which she could earn her livelihood
and the prospect was very dreary. She would not have minded if only she had someone to
be fond of, for working alone all day, year in and year out, seemed very dreadful.
She sat there a long time crying, till the striking of the nearby church clock startled her.
When at last she raised her head it was completely dark. Her little candle was burnt out
and no more street lamps threw their light up from the street. But through the little
window her five stars gaily gleamed, making Dora feel as if her father were looking down
affectionately upon her, reminding her confidently as on that memorable evening:

The sparkling starlight sank deep into her heart and made it bright again, for what her
father had said to her must be the truth. She must have confidence and needn't be
frightened at what was coming. Dora could now lie down quietly, and until her eyes closed
of themselves, she looked at her bright stars which had grown to be such faithful
comforters.
The evening of the following day, the doctor appeared again as promised with many
suggestions to Mr. Ehrenreich about where to go. But Aunt Ninette lost no time in stepping
up and declaring that she was already on the search for a suitable place. Many conditions
had to be fulfilled if the unusual event was to have no fearful consequences for her
husband, every detail had to be looked into, and when everything was settled, she would
ask for his approval.
"Don't wait too long, go as soon as possible; don't wait," urged the doctor in an apparent
hurry to leave, but nearly falling over Dora who had entered noiselessly just a moment
before.
"Oh, I hope I didn't hurt you?" he asked, stroking the frightened child's shoulder. "The trip
will do that pale girl good. Be sure to give her lots and lots of milk there. There is nothing
like milk for such a frail little girl."
"We have decided to leave Dora at home, doctor," remarked Aunt Ninette.
"That is your affair, of course, Mrs. Ehrenreich! Only look out or her health will give you
more worry than your husband's. May I leave now?"
The next moment he was gone.

"Oh, doctor, doctor! What do you mean? How did you mean that?" Aunt Ninette cried
loudly, following him down the stairs.
"I mean," called the doctor back, "that the little thing is dreadfully anaemic and she can't
live long, if she doesn't get new blood."
"Oh, my heavens! Must every misfortune break in upon us?" exclaimed Aunt Ninette,
desperately wringing her hands. Then she returned to her husband. "Please, dear Titus,
put your pen away for just a second. You didn't hear the dreadful thing the doctor
prophesied, if Dora doesn't get more color in her cheeks."
"Take her along, she makes no noise," decided Uncle Titus, writing all the while.
"But, dear Titus, how can you make such decisions in half a second. Yes, I know she
doesn't make any noise, and that is the most important thing. But so many matters have
to be weighed and decided—and—and—" but Aunt Ninette became conscious that further
words were fruitless. Her husband was once more absorbed in his work. In her room, she
carefully thought everything over, and after weighing every point at least three times, she
came to the conclusion to follow the doctor's advice and take Dora with her.
A few days later, the old uncle's brief answer arrived from Hamburg. He knew of no
connections his brother had kept up with people in Switzerland, for it was at least thirty
years since he had lived there. The name of the small village where he had stayed was
Tannenberg, and he was certain it was a quiet, out of the way place, as he remembered
his brother complaining of the lack of company there. That was all.
Aunt Ninette resolved to turn to the pastorate of Tannenberg at once in order to inquire for
a suitable place to live. The sparse information from the letter pleased her and her
husband well enough: quiet and solitude were just the things they looked for. The answer
was not slow in coming and proved very satisfactory. The pastor wrote that Tannenberg
was a small village consisting of scattered cottages and houses and suitable rooms could
be had at the home of a school teacher's widow. She could rent two good rooms and a tiny
chamber, and for further questions, the pastor enclosed the widow's address.
This proved an urgent need to Aunt Ninette's anxious mind and she wrote to the widow at
once, asking for a detailed description of the neighborhood. Beginning with expressions of
joy at the knowledge that Tannenberg was a scattered village, she yet questioned the
widow if by any chance her house was in the neighborhood possibly of a blacksmith's or
locksmith's shop, or stonemason's, or a butcher's, also if any school, mill, or still worse, a
waterfall were near—all objects especially to be avoided by the patient.
The widow wrote a most pleasant letter, answering all these questions in the most
satisfactory way. No workshops were near, the school and mill were far away and there
were no waterfalls in the whole neighborhood. The widow informed her correspondent
further that she lived in a most pleasant location with no near dwellings except Mr.
Birkenfeld's large house, which was surrounded by a splendid garden, fine fields and
meadows. His was the most distinguished family in the whole county; Mr. Birkenfeld was in
every council, and he and his wife were the benefactors of the whole neighborhood. She
herself owed this family much, as her little house was Mr. Birkenfeld's property, which he
had offered to her after her husband's death. He was a landlord such as few others were.
Everything sounded most propitious, and a day was set for the departure. Dora was
joyfully surprised when she heard that she was to go along, and she happily packed the
heavy linen for the six large shirts she was to sew there. The prospect of working in such
new surroundings delighted her so much that even the thought of sewing those long
seams was quite pleasant. After several wearisome days, all the chests and trunks stood
ready in the hall and the maid was sent to get a carriage. Dora, all prepared, stood on the
top of the staircase. Her heart beat in anticipation of the journey and all the new things
she would see during the next six weeks. It seemed like immeasurable bliss to her after
the long, long hours in the seamstress's tiny room.
Finally Aunt Ninette and Uncle Titus came out of their rooms, laden with numerous boxes
and umbrellas. Their walk down stairs and into the waiting carriage proved rather difficult,
but at last each object had found a place. A little exhausted uncle and aunt leaned back in
the seat and expectantly drove off to their destination in the country.
CHAPTER III
THE OTHER SIDE OF THE HEDGE
LOOKING far out over the wooded valleys and the glimmering lake stood a green height
covered by meadows, in which during the spring, summer and fall, red, blue and yellow
flowers gleamed in the sunshine. On top of the height was Mr. Birkenfeld's large house,
and beside it, a barn and a stable where four lively horses stamped the ground and glossy
cows stood at their cribs quietly chewing the fragrant grass, with which Battist, the
factotum of long years' standing, supplied them from time to time.
When Hans, the young stable boy, and the other men employed on the place were busy,
Battist always made the round of the stable to see if everything had been attended to. He
knew all the work connected with animals, and had entered Mr. Birkenfeld's father's service
as a young lad. He was the head man on the place now and kept a vigilant eye on all the
work done by the other men. In the hay-lofts lay high heaps of freshly gathered hay in
splendid rows, and in the store rooms in the barn all the partitions were stacked up to the
ceiling with oats, corn and groats. All these were raised on Mr. Birkenfeld's property, which
stretched down the incline into the valley on all sides.
On the other side of the house stood a roomy laundry, and not far from there, but divided
off by a high, thick hedge from the large house and garden, was a cottage also belonging
to the property. Several years ago, Mr. Birkenfeld had turned this over to Mrs. Kurd after
her husband's death.
The warm sunshine spread a glow over the height, and the red and white daisies gazed up
merrily from the meadow at the sky above. On a free space before the house lay a shaggy
dog, who blinked from time to time in order to see if anything was going on. But
everything remained still, and he shut his eyes again to slumber on in the warm sunlight.
Once in a while a young gray cat would appear in the doorway, looking at the sleeper with
an enterprising air. But as he did not stir, she again retired with a disdainful glance. A great
peace reigned in the front part of the house, while towards the garden in the back much
chattering seemed to be going on and a great running to and fro. These sounds penetrated
through the hallway to the front of the house.
Approaching wheels could now be heard, and a carriage drove up in front of the widow's
cottage. For a moment, the dog opened his eyes and raised his ears, but not finding it
worth while to growl, slept on. The arrival of the guests went off most quietly indeed. Mrs.
Kurd, the schoolmaster's widow, after politely receiving her new arrivals, led them into the
house and at once took them up to their new quarters. Soon after, Aunt Ninette stood in
the large room unpacking the big trunk, while Dora busied herself in her little chamber
unpacking her small one. Uncle Titus sat in his room at a square table, carefully sorting
out his writing things.
From time to time, Dora ran to the window, for it was lovelier here than in any place she
had ever been. Green meadows spread out in front with red and yellow flowers, below
were woods and further off a blue lake, above which the snow-white mountains gleamed.
Just now, a golden sunset glow was spread over the near hills, and Dora could hardly keep
away from the window. She did not know the world could be so beautiful. Then her aunt
called over to her, as some of her things had been packed in the large trunk and she had
to take them to her room.
"Oh, Aunt Ninette, isn't it wonderful here?" exclaimed Dora upon entering. She spoke
much louder than she had ever done since she had come to her uncle's house to live. The
excitement of the arrival had awakened her true, happy nature again.
"Sh-sh! How can you be so noisy?" the aunt immediately subdued her. "Don't you know
that your uncle is already working in the next room?"
Dora received her things, and going by the window, asked in a low voice, "May I take a
peep out of this window, aunt?"
"You can look out a minute, but nobody is there," replied the aunt. "We look out over a
beautiful quiet garden, and from the window at the other side we can see a big yard before
the house. Nothing is to be seen there except a sleeping dog, and I hope it will stay that
way. You can look out from over there, too."
As soon as Dora opened the window, a wonderful fragrance of jessamine and mignonette
rose to her from the flower beds in the garden. The garden was so large that the hedge
surrounding green lawns, blooming flower beds and luxurious arbors seemed endless. How
beautiful it must be over there! Nobody was visible but there were traces of recent human
activity from a curious triumphal arch made out of two bean poles tightly bound together
at the top by fir twigs. A large pasteboard sign hanging down from the structure swayed to
and fro in the wind, bearing a long inscription written in huge letters.
Suddenly, a noise from the yard before the house made Dora rush to the other window.
Looking out, she saw a roomy coach standing in the middle of the yard with two
impatiently stamping brown horses, and from the house rushed one—two—three—four—
yes, still more—five—six boys and girls. "Oh, I want to go on top," they all cried out at
once, louder and ever louder. In the middle of the group, the dog jumped up first on one
child, then on another, barking with delight. Aunt Ninette had not heard such noise for
years and years.
"For heaven's sake, what is going on?" she cried out, perplexed. "Where on earth have we
gotten to?"
"O come, aunt, look, look, they are all getting into the coach," Dora cried with visible
delight, for she had never in her life seen anything so jolly.
One boy leaped up over the wheel into the seat beside the driver, then stooping far down,
stretched out his arm towards the barking, jumping dog.
"Come, Schnurri, come Schnurri!" cried the boy, trying in vain to catch hold of the shaggy
dog's paw or ears.
At last, Hans, the coachman, almost flung the pet up to the boy. Meanwhile, the oldest boy
lifted up a dangling little girl and, swinging her up, set her in the coach.
"Me, too, Jul, me, too! Lift me still higher, lift me still higher!" cried out two little boys, one
as round as a ball, the other a little taller. They jumped up, begging their elder brother,
crowing with anticipation at what was coming.
Then came twice more the swinging motion and their delight was accompanied by
considerable noise. The big boy, followed by the eldest girl, who had waited until the little
ones were seated, stepped in and the door was shut with a terrific bang by Jul's powerful
arm. When the horses started, quite a different noise began.
"If Schnurri can go, Philomele can go too! Trine, Trine!" cried the little girl loudly. "Give me
Philomele."
The energetic young kitchen-maid, at once comprehending the situation, appeared at the
door. Giving a hearty laugh, she took hold of the gray cat that sat squatting on the stone
steps, and looking up mistrustfully at Schnurri on top, and threw her right into the middle
of the carriage. With a sharp crack of the whip the company departed.
Full of fright, Aunt Ninette had hastened to her husband's room to see what impression
this incident had made upon him. He sat unmoved at his table with his window tightly
shut.
"My dear Titus, who could have guessed such a thing? What shall we do?" moaned the
aunt.
"The house over there seems rather blessed with children. Well, we can't help it, and must
keep our windows shut," he replied, unmoved.
"But my dear Titus, do you forget that you came here chiefly for the fresh mountain air? If
you don't go out, you have to let the strengthening air into your room. What shall we do?
If it begins that way, what shall we do if they keep it up?" wailed the aunt.
"Then we must move," replied the husband, while at work.
This thought calmed his wife a little, and she returned to her room.
Meanwhile, Dora had busily set her things in order. A burning wish had risen in her heart,
and she knew this could not be granted unless everything was neatly put in its right place.
The crowd of merry children, their fun and laughter had so thrilled Dora that she longed to
witness their return. She wondered what would happen when they all got out again. Would
they, perhaps, come to the garden where the triumphal arch was raised? She wanted to
see them from below, as the garden was only separated from Mrs. Kurd's little plot of
ground by a hedge. There must be a little hole somewhere in this hedge through which she
could look and watch the children.
Dora was so filled with this thought, that it never occurred to her that her aunt might not
let her go out so late. But her desire was greater than the fear of being denied. She went
at once to her aunt's door, where she met Mrs. Kurd, who was just announcing supper.
Dora quickly begged to be allowed to go down to the garden, but the aunt immediately
answered that they were going to supper now, after which it would be nearly night.
Mrs. Kurd assured her aunt that anybody could stay out here as long as they wished, as
nobody ever came by, and that it was quite safe for Dora to go about alone. Finally, Aunt
Ninette gave Dora permission to run in the garden a little after supper. Dora, hardly able to
eat from joy and anticipation, kept listening for the carriage to return with the children.
But no sound was heard.
"You can go now, but don't leave the little garden," said the aunt at last. Dora gave this
promise gladly, and running out eagerly, began to look for some opening in the hedge. It
was a hawthorne hedge and so high and thick that Dora could look neither through it nor
over the top. Only at the bottom, far down, one could peep through a hole here and there.
It meant stooping low, but that was no obstacle for Dora. Her heart simply longed to see
and hear the children again. Never in her life had she known such a large family with such
happy looking boys and girls. She had never seen such a crowd of children driving out
alone in a coach. What fun this must be!
Dora, squatting close to the ground, gazed expectantly through the opening, but not a
sound could be heard. Twilight lay over the garden, and the flowers sent out such a
delicious fragrance that Dora could not get enough of it. How glorious it must be to be able
to walk to and fro between those flower beds, and how delightful to sit under that tree
laden with apples, under which stood a half hidden table! It looked white with various
indistinct objects upon it. Dora was completely lost in contemplation of the charming sight
before her, when suddenly the merry voices could be heard, gaily chattering, and Dora was
sure the children had returned. For awhile, everything was still, as they had gone into the
house. Now it grew noisy again, and they all came out into the garden.
Mr. Birkenfeld had just returned from a long journey and his children had driven down to
meet him at the steamboat-landing on the lake. The mother had made the last
preparations for his reception during that time and arranged the festive banquet under the
apple tree in the garden. As the father had been away several weeks, his return was a
joyous occasion, to be duly celebrated.
As soon as the carriage arrived, the mother came out to greet him. Then one child after
another jumped out, followed by Philomele and Schnurri, who accompanied the
performance with joyous barks. All climbed up the steps and went into the large living
room. Here the greetings grew so stormy that their father was left quite helpless in the
midst of the many hands and voices that were crowding in upon him.
"Take turns, children! Wait! One after another, or I can't really greet you," he called into
the hubbub. "First comes the youngest, and then up according to age. Come here, little
Hun! What have you to say to me?"
Herewith, the father drew his youngest forward, a little boy about five years old, originally
called Huldreich. As a baby, when asked his name, the little one had always called himself
Hun and the name had stuck to him, remaining a great favorite with his brothers and
sisters and all the other inmates of the house. Even father and mother called him Hun
now. Jul,* the eldest son, had even made the statement that the small Hun's flat little
nose most curiously reminded one of his Asiatic brothers. But the mother would never
admit this.
This small boy had so much to tell his father, that the latter had to turn from him long
before he was done with his news.
"You can tell us more later on, small Hun. I must greet Willi and Lili now. Always merry?
And have you been very obedient while I was away?"

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Textbook Fire Over Luoyang A History of The Later Han Dynasty 23 220 Ad Rafe de Crespigny Ebook All Chapter PDF

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Fire over Luoyang A History of the

Later Han Dynasty 23 220 AD Rafe De

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Fire over Luoyang

© Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, 2017 | doi 10.1163/9789004325203_001

Barend J. ter Haar

P.K. Bol, D.R. Knechtges, E.S. Rawski,

The titles published in this series are listed at brill.com/sinl

Fire over Luoyang

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: De Crespigny, Rafe, author.

Copyright 2017 by Koninklijke Brill nv, Leiden, The Netherlands.

This book is printed on acid-free paper and produced in a sustainable manner.

List of Illustrations, Maps and Tables x

2 Emperor Ming and Emperor Zhang (57–88) 71

3 The Reign of Emperor He (88–106) 117

4 The Dowager Deng and Emperor An (106–125) 169

5 The Reign of Emperor Shun (125–144) 220

6 The Hegemony of Liang Ji (144–159) 269

7 Emperor Huan and the Eunuchs (159–168) 310

8 Emperor Ling: Disordered Government (169–184) 361

9 End of an Empire (185–189) 418

Slaughter in the Palace 442

10 Epilogues and Conclusions 474

List of Illustrations, Maps and Tables

1 The Gate of the Vermilion Bird [frontispiece] xii

1 The City of Luoyang in the time of Later Han 16

© Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, 2017 | doi 10.1163/9789004325203_002

I begin therefore with an account of the imperial city of Luoyang, estab-

Rome and China: A Note

5 Lo-yang in Later Han Times, in BMFEA 48 (1976).

“Mandate of Heaven” ( 天命 tianming) – and all people were his subjects.7

7 See Chapter 10 at 494.

alisations on politics and society are of limited value. My chief concern is to

The Emperors of Han

Part I: Former Han1

Dynastic name Personal name Acceded Died

1 All dates in Part I are BC unless otherwise specified.

© Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, 2017 | doi 10.1163/9789004325203_003

Part II: Later Han7

Dynastic name Personal name Born Acceded Died

7 All dates in Part II are AD unless otherwise specified.

Chronology of the Later Han Dynasty

© Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, 2017 | doi 10.1163/9789004325203_004

61 disgrace of Dou Mu and members of his family

93 death of the Southern Shanyu Tuntuhe, succeeded by Shizi; revolt of

112 death of Dianlian

the seismograph of Zhang Heng records its first earthquake

172–174 rebellion of Xu Chang in Kuaiji

brother He Jin; He Jin is assassinated by eunuchs; his troops attack

Map 1 The City of Luoyang in the time of Later Han

Luoyang and its Surroundings

Luoyang and its Surroundings

© Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, 2017 | doi 10.1163/9789004325203_005

Author: Johanna Spyri

Illustrator: Maria Louise Kirk

* START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK DORA *