Many instances have
already been given of such practices in the state of Ts'in. The
tomb of the King of Ts'u who died in 591--of that king whose death
Confucius condescended to record, decently and in ritual terms,
because of his many good qualities--which tomb appears to be still
in existence near King-chou Fu, is surrounded by ten other smaller
tombs, supposed so be those of the persons who "followed him to
the grave." At all events, when in the year 529 a later king of
Ts'u hanged himself, a faithful follower buried two of his own
daughters with the royal body. In A. D. 312 the tomb of the first
Protector, who died in 643 B.C., was opened under circumstances so
graphically described that there can scarcely be a doubt of the
substantial truth: the stench was so great that dogs had to be
sent in first to test the effects of the poisoned atmosphere; so
many bones were found lying about that there can be little doubt
many women and concubines were buried with him. It is often said
by modern writers that it was a general custom to do so all over
ancient China, and possibly the fact that in the second century
B.
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