Page 263 - 《孟子》（一）中·英对照版

公
孙
丑
上

friend whom he did not esteem. He would not stand
in a bad prince’s court, nor speak with a bad man.
To stand in a bad prince’s court, or to speak with a
bad man, would have been to him the same as to sit
with his court robes and court cap amid mire and
ashes. Pursuing the examination of his dislike to
what was evil, we find that he thought it necessary,
if he happened to be standing with a villager whose
cap was not rightly adjusted, to leave him with a
high air, as if he were going to be defiled. Therefore,
although some of the princes made application to
him with very proper messages, he would not receive
their gifts. He would not receive their gifts, counting
it inconsistent with his purity to go to them. Hui of
Liu-xia was not ashamed to serve an impure prince,
nor did he think it low to be an inferior officer.
When advanced to employment, he did not conceal
his virtue, but made it a point to carry out his
principles. When neglected and left without office,

241