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brained a court dignitary, whose horse had trampled her child to death. Shrieks,

curses, commands, supplications filled the air. It was a frightful scene--one that

will be burned upon my memory forever.

I had saddled and bridled the single horse which had evidently been overlooked

by the royal household in its flight, and, standing a little back in the shadow of

the stable's interior, Victory and I watched the surging throng without.

To have entered it would have been to have courted greater danger than we were

already in. We decided to wait until the stress of blacks thinned, and for more

than an hour we stood there while the sounds of battle raged upon the eastern

side of the city and the population flew toward the west. More and more

numerous became the uniformed soldiers among the fleeing throng, until, toward

the last, the street was packed with them. It was no orderly retreat, but a rout,

complete and terrible.

The fighting was steadily approaching us now, until the crack of rifles sounded in

the very street upon which we were looking. And then came a handful of brave

men--a little rear guard backing slowly toward the west, working their smoking

rifles in feverish haste as they fired volley after volley at the foe we could not see.

But these were pressed back and back until the first line of the enemy came

opposite our shelter. They were men of medium height, with olive complexions

and almond eyes. In them I recognized the descendants of the ancient Chinese

race.

They were well uniformed and superbly armed, and they fought bravely and

under perfect discipline. So rapt was I in the exciting events transpiring in the

street that I did not hear the approach of a body of men from behind. It was a

party of the conquerors who had entered the palace and were searching it.

They came upon us so unexpectedly that we were prisoners before we realized

what had happened. That night we were held under a strong guard just outside

the eastern wall of the city, and the next morning were started upon a long march

toward the east.

Our captors were not unkind to us, and treated the women prisoners with

respect. We marched for many days--so many that I lost count of them--and at

last we came to another city--a Chinese city this time--which stands upon the site

of ancient Moscow.

It is only a small frontier city, but it is well built and well kept. Here a large

military force is maintained, and here also, is a terminus of the railroad that

crosses modern China to the Pacific.

The Lost Continent