art of war-第39章
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other eight。 It was here also; so Tu Mu tells us; that their
cottages were built and a well sunk; to be used by all in common。
'See II。 ss。 12; note。' In time of war; one of the families had
to serve in the army; while the other seven contributed to its
support。 Thus; by a levy of 100;000 men (reckoning one able…
bodied soldier to each family) the husbandry of 700;000 families
would be affected。'
2。 Hostile armies may face each other for years; striving
for the victory which is decided in a single day。 This being so;
to remain in ignorance of the enemy's condition simply because
one grudges the outlay of a hundred ounces of silver in honors
and emoluments;
'〃For spies〃 is of course the meaning; though it would spoil
the effect of this curiously elaborate exordium if spies were
actually mentioned at this point。'
is the height of inhumanity。
'Sun Tzu's agreement is certainly ingenious。 He begins by
adverting to the frightful misery and vast expenditure of blood
and treasure which war always brings in its train。 Now; unless
you are kept informed of the enemy's condition; and are ready to
strike at the right moment; a war may drag on for years。 The
only way to get this information is to employ spies; and it is
impossible to obtain trustworthy spies unless they are properly
paid for their services。 But it is surely false economy to
grudge a comparatively trifling amount for this purpose; when
every day that the war lasts eats up an incalculably greater sum。
This grievous burden falls on the shoulders of the poor; and
hence Sun Tzu concludes that to neglect the use of spies is
nothing less than a crime against humanity。'
3。 One who acts thus is no leader of men; no present help
to his sovereign; no master of victory。
'This idea; that the true object of war is peace; has its
root in the national temperament of the Chinese。 Even so far
back as 597 B。C。; these memorable words were uttered by Prince
Chuang of the Ch‘u State: 〃The 'Chinese' character for 'prowess'
is made up of 'the characters for' 'to stay' and 'a spear'
(cessation of hostilities)。 Military prowess is seen in the
repression of cruelty; the calling in of weapons; the
preservation of the appointment of Heaven; the firm establishment
of merit; the bestowal of happiness on the people; putting
harmony between the princes; the diffusion of wealth。〃'
4。 Thus; what enables the wise sovereign and the good
general to strike and conquer; and achieve things beyond the
reach of ordinary men; is FOREKNOWLEDGE。
'That is; knowledge of the enemy's dispositions; and what he
means to do。'
5。 Now this foreknowledge cannot be elicited from spirits;
it cannot be obtained inductively from experience;
'Tu Mu's note is: 〃'knowledge of the enemy' cannot be
gained by reasoning from other analogous cases。〃'
nor by any deductive calculation。
'Li Ch‘uan says: 〃Quantities like length; breadth;
distance and magnitude; are susceptible of exact mathematical
determination; human actions cannot be so calculated。〃'
6。 Knowledge of the enemy's dispositions can only be
obtained from other men。
'Mei Yao…ch‘en has rather an interesting note: 〃Knowledge
of the spirit…world is to be obtained by divination; information
in natural science may be sought by inductive reasoning; the laws
of the universe can be verified by mathematical calculation: but
the dispositions of an enemy are ascertainable through spies and
spies alone。〃'
7。 Hence the use of spies; of whom there are five classes:
(1) Local spies; (2) inward spies; (3) converted spies; (4)
doomed spies; (5) surviving spies。
8。 When these five kinds of spy are all at work; none can
discover the secret system。 This is called 〃divine manipulation
of the threads。〃 It is the sovereign's most precious faculty。
'Cromwell; one of the greatest and most practical of all
cavalry leaders; had officers styled 'scout masters;' whose
business it was to collect all possible information regarding the
enemy; through scouts and spies; etc。; and much of his success in
war was traceable to the previous knowledge of the enemy's moves
thus gained。〃 '1' '
9。 Having LOCAL SPIES means employing the services of the
inhabitants of a district。
'Tu Mu says: 〃In the enemy's country; win people over by
kind treatment; and use them as spies。〃'
10。 Having INWARD SPIES; making use of officials of the
enemy。
'Tu Mu enumerates the following classes as likely to do good
service in this respect: 〃Worthy men who have been degraded from
office; criminals who have undergone punishment; also; favorite
concubines who are greedy for gold; men who are aggrieved at
being in subordinate positions; or who have been passed over in
the distribution of posts; others who are anxious that their side
should be defeated in order that they may have a chance of
displaying their ability and talents; fickle turncoats who always
want to have a foot in each boat。 Officials of these several
kinds;〃 he continues; 〃should be secretly approached and bound to
one's interests by means of rich presents。 In this way you will
be able to find out the state of affairs in the enemy's country;
ascertain the plans that are being formed against you; and
moreover disturb the harmony and create a breach between the
sovereign and his ministers。〃 The necessity for extreme caution;
however; in dealing with 〃inward spies;〃 appears from an
historical incident related by Ho Shih: 〃Lo Shang; Governor of
I…Chou; sent his general Wei Po to attack the rebel Li Hsiung of
Shu in his stronghold at P‘i。 After each side had experienced a
number of victories and defeats; Li Hsiung had recourse to the
services of a certain P‘o…t‘ai; a native of Wu…tu。 He began to
have him whipped until the blood came; and then sent him off to
Lo Shang; whom he was to delude by offering to cooperate with him
from inside the city; and to give a fire signal at the right
moment for making a general assault。 Lo Shang; confiding in
these promises; march out all his best troops; and placed Wei Po
and others at their head with orders to attack at P‘o…t‘ai's
bidding。 Meanwhile; Li Hsiung's general; Li Hsiang; had prepared
an ambuscade on their line of march; and P‘o…t‘ai; having reared
long scaling…ladders against the city walls; now lighted the
beacon…fire。 Wei Po's men raced up on seeing the signal and
began climbing the ladders as fast as they could; while others
were drawn up by ropes lowered from above。 More than a hundred
of Lo Shang's soldiers entered the city in this way; every one of
whom was forthwith beheaded。 Li Hsiung then charged with all his
forces; both inside and outside the city; and routed the enemy
completely。〃 'This happened in 303 A。D。 I do not know where Ho
Shih got the story from。 It is not given in the biography of Li
Hsiung or that of his father Li T‘e; CHIN SHU; ch。 120; 121。'
11。 Having CONVERTED SPIES; getting hold of the enemy's
spies and using them for our own purposes。
'By means of heavy bribes and liberal promises detaching
them from the enemy's service; and inducing them to carry back
false information as well as to spy in turn on their own
countrymen。 On the other hand; Hsiao Shih…hsien says that we
pretend not to have detected him; but contrive to let him carry
away a false impression of what is going on。 Several of the
commentators accept this as an alternative definition; but that
it is not what Sun Tzu meant is conclusively proved by his
subsequent remarks about treating the converted spy generously
(ss。 21 sqq。)。 Ho Shih notes three occasions on which converted
spies w