<P>This second volume of the ongoing annotated translation of Ssu-ma Ch¿ien¿s <I>Shih chi (The Grand Scribe¿s Records)</I>, widely acknowledged as the most important history of early China, contains the "basic annals" of five early Han-dynasty emperors. The annals trace the first century of Han rule (206¿ca. 100 BC) in a year-by-year account that focuses on imperial activities. When this translation is completed, it will make available in English all 130 chapters of the Shih chi. Volumes 1 and 7 were published by Indiana University Press in 1994.</P>