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四九 全後漢文卷三八
應劭《風俗通義》潁川娣姒争兒,訟三年不決,丞相黄霸令卒抱兒,叱婦往取,“長婦抱兒甚急,兒大啼叫,弟婦恐相害之,因乃放與,而心甚自悽愴,長婦甚喜,霸曰:‘此弟婦子也!’責問大婦乃伏。”按同卷載臨淮兩人争鬬,“各云:‘我縑!’”,詣府訴訟,丞相薛宣“呼騎吏中斷縑,各與半,使追聽之”,一人曰:“受恩!”,一人稱冤,因詰責前人,具服。二事用意相同。《魏書·李崇傳》苟泰與趙奉伯争兒,“各言己子”,郡縣不能斷,崇“令二父與兒各在别處禁,經數旬,然後遣人告之曰:‘君兒遇患,向已暴死!’”,苟悲不自勝,趟咨嗟而已,崇斷以兒還苟。《新五代史·安重榮傳》:“有夫婦訟其子不孝者,重榮拔劍授其父,使自殺之,其父泣曰:‘不忍也!’其母從傍詬駡,奪其劍而逐之。問之,乃繼母也。重榮叱其母出,從後射殺之。”與黄、薛判案如出一轍。小説院本亦每渲染此情節。元曲李行道《灰闌記》尤著稱,第四折包拯斷大小婦争兒,命張千 “取石灰來,在階下畫個闌兒,著這孩兒在闌内,著他兩個婦人拽這孩兒出灰闌外”;其不忍“用力硬奪”者,真兒母也。正師黄霸之餘智。《聊齋志異》卷十二《太原獄》姑媳訟姦,孫柳下命各以刀石擊殺姦夫,媳毒打而姑不忍,乃知與此夫通者,姑也。黄霸、安重榮、包拯聽訟,斷兩造中心手狠者爲曲;《聊齋》此則翻舊生新,使曲在心手軟者,所謂反其道以仿其意(Kon-traste sind inverse Ähnlichkeit;Le contraire naît du contraire),詳見《太平廣記》卷論卷二五六《平曾》。異域舊聞有酷肖者。《賢愚經·檀膩䩭品》第四六:“二母人共諍一兒,詣王相言。時王明黠,……語二母言:‘今唯一兒,……聽汝二人,各挽一手,誰能得者,即是其兒。’非其母者,於兒無慈,盡力頓牽,不恐傷損;所生母者,於兒慈深,隨從愛護,不忍拽挽。王鑒真僞”;《舊約全書·列王紀》上記二妓争兒,所羅門王命左右取劍,曰:“剖兒爲兩,各得半體”(Fetch me a sword. Divide the livingchild in two,and give half to the one,and half to the other);一妓乞勿殺兒,己願捨讓,一妓言殺之爲尚,無復争端;王遂判是非。人類學家言大洋洲初民風俗,兩男争娶一女,則左右各執女臂拽向己身,力大者得婦,致女往往節離臼脱(Diefenbachrelates concerning the Polynesians that if a girl was courted by two suitors,each of them grasped one arm of the beloved and pulled her toward him;the stronger one got her,but in some ca- ses not before her limbs had been pulled out of joint)。此則因傾心而忍心,由愛生狠,不恤“用力硬奪”、“扭折肐膊”,又閻羅包老所不能計及矣。
I. Kings,3. 16-18.
H. T. Finck,Romantic Love and Personal Beauty,I,92.