northern, one in the eastern, one in the southern, and one in the western sea. The ministers and messengers of these four monarchs are the terrible dragons whose battles in the air and in the deep are the causes of the commotion of the elements. There is also a dragon without horns, and another that never ascends to the skies. The yellow dragon is reckoned the most honorable of his tribe. In common belief the dragon carries on his forehead a pear-shaped pearl, supposed to possess wondrous virtues of healing and power. Whoever possesses these jewels will be invincible, and the power of his descendants endure. From its divine origin and character the dragon is symbolical of all that pertains to the emperor of Great China. Hence it is made use of not only by him, but by his vassal, the king of Chō-sen, and by his rival the mikado of Japan. Hence the significance of the trio of these sacred jewels on ornaments and instruments belonging to the royal family, whether embroidered on the robes of state worn by the king, surmounting the large drum of his musicians, or glistening in golden embroidery on the banners of his body-guard. The “dragon robe” and “dragon’s bed,” “dragon standard,” refer to the mantle, throne, and flag of the king. In the popular speech, whatever is most excellent is compared to a dragon. A “dragon-child” is a paragon, a “dragon horse” is one of extraordinary speed. When “the fish has been metamorphosed into the dragon,” some happy change or promotion has taken place—the student-competitor has received his degree of doctorate, or the office-holder has been told by royal appointment to “come up higher.” The kirin (kilin or lin) is another of the four supernatural creatures of Chinese philosophy and mythology, believed in by the Coreans, and depicted in Corean art especially as a symbol of peace and joy, and on articles used on auspicious and happy occasions. This beast, which to the Corean is a “living creature,” has the body of a deer and the tail of an ox, usually highly curled and twisted in a manner to suggest the work of a hair-dresser. On its forehead is a single soft horn. It is said never to tread on or injure any living being. It is the emblem of perfect rectitude, and the incarnate essence of the five primordial elements of all things, viz.: water, fire, wood, metal, earth. It is considered the noblest form of the animal creation. Its appearance on the earth is ever regarded as a happy omen, as the harbinger of good government and the birth of good rulers. Hence the wealth of association to the Oriental mind in the kirin. The male beast is called ki and the female rin or lin. The two words combined form the general term kirin.