Appendix C: The Frivolous Rich

The Frivolous Rich

With their arrogant manner, they fill up the road;
The horses they ride glisten in the dust.
"May I inquire, who might that be?"
People say that's a palace eunuch.
Those with red sashes are all high ministers;
The purple tassels might signify generals.
Haughtily they go to dine with the troops,
Their prancing horses passing like clouds.
Goblets and tankards will overflow with every wine;
Water and land have yielded every delicacy.
Fresh-picked fruits, and Tung-t'ing oranges;
T'ien-ch'ih fish, all scaled and sliced.
After gorging themselves, their minds will be at ease;
Drunk on wine, their spirits will soar.
This year drought devastated the South,
And in Ch'u-chou people cannibalized each other.

Po Chu-I (772-846)

from China's Imperial Past: An Introduction to Chinese History and Culture
by Charles O. Hucker

Kentucky Horse Park
International Museum of the Horse

The Millennium's First Great
International Exhibition