“Man’s myriad schemes are not equal to a thought of God.” “God gives birth and death to every man, but honors only to the few who deserve them.” “The deeper your cave, the smaller is your heaven.” “Man’s blow hits everything but heaven.” “Do no wrong by light, and you’ll see no devil at night.” “Penitence is good, but it should be proved by pennies.” “Though the face is paler, the sin isn’t any whiter.” “When things go well, we are so hungry that we eat all the meal; when trouble comes, we are glad to give it all to the idol.” “Forget the priest on a fair day, but hug his idol on a foul.” “A maker of idols never goes to a temple.” “Fire for gold and trial for the soul.” “Sorrow for the saint, and chisel for the statue.” “Sorrow ends where sin begins.” “Speak of the devil and he drops in.” “Kind words outlive much frost.” “Heaven calls the good soon, but doesn’t want the bad till the last.” “The devil disguises himself less than his followers do.” “When you forgive your enemy, the wrong pains less.” “The silver whisper is loudest in the idol’s ear.” “The whole earth is a coffin; only for the living the lid is not yet hammered down.” “A lie is like burying the dead in the snow; the secrecy doesn’t last long.” “The brows of the saints prop the pillars of heaven.” Says a northern pessimist: “Oh! the hypocrisy of religion; sacrifice a bullock once a year, and steal bullocks all the rest of the year.” The supercilious man threw this sarcastic shaft at his accoster: “_I_ pick _my_ company.” The mission school man heaped coals of fire on his head with this bland reply: “And your company is proud to pick you.” The Chinese love to contrast life and death, as is shown in their paintings of pear trees in bloom and willows in bud, while snow lies on mountain peak and hillside.