in the service, and pronounced on him and on his line their benediction,
being assisted in this point by a mediating priest, as we may call him
for want of a more exact term. On the next day, after a summary
repetition of the ceremonies of the sacrifice, those personators of the
dead were specially feasted, and, as it is expressed in the second
decade of Part III, ode 4, 'their happiness and dignity were made
complete.' We have an allusion to this strange custom in Mencius (VI, i,
ch. 5), showing how a junior member of a family, when chosen to
represent one of his ancestors, was for the time exalted above his
elders, and received the demonstrations of reverence due to the ancestor.

When the sacrifice to ancestors was finished, the king feasted his
uncles and younger brothers or cousins, that is, all the princes and
nobles of the same surname with himself, in another apartment. The
musicians who had discoursed with instrument and voice during the
worship and entertainment of the ancestors, followed the convivial party
'to give their soothing aid at the second blessing.' The viands that had
been provided, we have seen, in great abundance, were brought in from
the temple, and set forth anew. The guests ate to the full and drank to
the full, and at the conclusion they all did obeisance, while one of
them declared the satisfaction of the Spirits, and assured the king of
their favour to him and his posterity, so long as they did not neglect
those observances. During the feast the king showed particular respect
to those among his relatives who were aged filled their cups again and
again, and desired 'that their old age might be blessed, and their
bright happiness ever increased.'

The above sketch of the seasonal sacrifices to ancestors shows that they
were intimately related to the duty of filial piety, and were designed
mainly to maintain the unity of the family connexion. There was implied