Page 65 - 《孟子》（二）中·英对照版

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forests and vegetation on the mountains and in the
marshes, so that the birds and beasts fled away to
hide themselves. Yu separated the nine streams,
cleared the courses of the Ji and Ta, and led them
all to the sea. He opened a vent also for the Ru and
Han, and regulated the course of the Huai and Si,
so that they all flowed into the Jiang. When this
was done, it became possible for the people of the
Middle Kingdom to cultivate the ground and get
food for themselves. During that time, Yu was eight
years away from his home, and though he thrice
passed the door of it, he did not enter. Although he
had wished to cultivate the ground, could he have
done so? The Minister of Agriculture taught the
people to sow and reap, cultivating the five kinds of
grain. When the five kinds of grain were brought to
maturity, the people all obtained a subsistence. But
men possess a moral nature; and if they are well fed,
warmly clad, and comfortably lodged, without being

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