and the staging have changed since the days of Shakespeare, but the mimic world is still the mimic world; and the deeper the scholar is grounded in the stage of to-day, the better he is qualified to study the stage of yesterday.” And, allow me to add, the knowledge of a living stage at a similar period of culture will likewise add to his qualifications to study the theater of the past. [Illustration] CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE B.C. 2705-2595 Huang Ti, mythological emperor. 2357-2206 Legendary sages to whose teachings Confucius harked back. 551 Birth of Confucius. 255-206 Ch’in Shih Huang Ti, the emperor who burned the books and built the Great Wall. 206 B.C. to 221 A.D. Han Dynasty—Recovery of literature—Introduction of Buddhism. A.D. 221-265 The “Three Kingdoms”—Age of romantic chivalry. 618-906 The T’ang Dynasty—Emperor Ming Huang, traditional founder of the theater, and his consort Yang Kuei-fei, China’s most famous beauty. China was at this time the most civilized country in the world. Li Po and other great lyric poets. 960-1127 The Sung Dynasty—Development of landscape painting. 1280-1368 The Yuan or Mongol Dynasty—Classical age of Chinese drama. Genghis Khan and Kublai Khan. Marco Polo. 1368-1644 The Ming Dynasty—Restoration of Chinese rulers—Drama in the hands of scholars. 1644-1911 The Ch’ing or Manchu Dynasty—Emperors K’ang Hsi and Ch’ien Lung encourage arts and letters, including the theater. 1912- The Republic. [Illustration] BIBLIOGRAPHY History of the Drama under the Sung and Yuan Dynasties. Wang Kuo-wei. Commercial Press. Shanghai, 1915. Not translated into any European language. Théâtre Chinois, ou Choix de Pièces de Théâtre Composées sous les Empereurs Mongols. Bazin Ainé. Paris, 1838. Four Yuan Dynasty plays translated by a French sinologue who was for years Professor of Chinese at the École des Langues Orientales. Chine Moderne, ou Description Historique, Géographique, et Littéraire de ce vaste Empire, d’après des Documents Chinois. Paris, 1853. In the second part of this volume M. Bazin gives numerous discussions of Chinese plays with summaries of their plots. Very valuable work. Le Pi-Pa-Ki, ou L’Histoire du Luth. Traduit sur le texte original par M. Bazin Ainé. Paris, 1841. Contains also a very good introduction to this important Ming drama. L’Orphelin de la Chine. Drame en prose et en vers, accompagné des pièces historiques qui en ont fourni le sujet, de nouvelles et de poésies chinoises traduit de chinois par Stanislas Julien. Paris, 1834.