The daily morning journal and courier., 1905-03-29

lieve me, and now he is no more! He has left the earth, my heroic lord, the son of the prince of warriors" H. Then, suddenly the empress grew quiet and she commanded the general to rise. .s&
 "All is then lost?" she said. "vic- 1 tory has escaped up?" Nothing is lost, most honorable sovereign" replied Take-outsi, still kneeling. :. "The victory is supended only. re- ceived the body of the mikado in my ! unworthy arms, laid him in his tent, saying that he was merely wounded, ithat he wouldssoon recover. Then, in trusting the b6dy to guards whose si- i lence is the price of their lives, have come hastily, my pathway strewn with dead horses, to your feet" [ The noble warrior lifted his eyes to those of the charming empress. In his gaze she read heroisn1, genius and de- votion. 's s.ss .,.s.sre 1 A strange and wholly new emotion | awoke within her. It was as if the soul of her husband had come to istrengthen her own, She felt herself lready to brave all dangers, she, the fearless, smiling bride who trembled at the slightest warning. ~ Thanks, illustrious chief, she said to Take-outsi, you have done we'll The mikado still lives; he is only wounded. To-marrow we will set forth on our journey to join him in the samp. | It is who will take his place. We will march to victory. And to you, Take-outsi, I give the title of Nai-dai Tsin."
 | For many days the illustrious em- press Zin-Gou had been on her way. l Take-Outs accompanied her and new regiment, which she had raised to re- inforce the army, followed her. The lancers marched first, armed and wearing visored helmets, from which | f1oated tiny flag behind the left ear Then came the archers, their brows bound with a band of white cotton, the ends flying in the breeze, and their backs bristling with long arrows, while in their hands they carried the long, ilacquered bows. A second body of archers followed these, bearing a sling Of courious shape with which they threw stones to great distance. | broidered. ! The empress, mounted on a beautiful horse, whose curly mane formed a noble crest, rode at the head of her I army; and thus they came to the banks of a river called Matsoura-Gawa.
 Then the beautiful Zin-Gou ordered halt. She was a woman before every thing, and singular idea had come to her; she wished to fish in the river
 Standing upon little knoll, she threw her line into the water, crying aloud: If I am to succeed in my enterprise a fish will nible at my bait; if not. il will remain untouched"
 A solemn silence reigned, and every eye was fixed upon the line in the hand of the empress. Suddenly it twitched and jerked from side to side. With g quick motion Zin-Gou lifted her line high in the air. At the end dangled 2 smelth flashing like dagger in the Isun.
 A joyful shout rang out from ths ! N1LCIllllE tiIthSs
 "Forward!" cried the empress. "Tht fleet awaits us and victory Is certain
 They arrived at the harbor of Kasifi, No-Oura. The fleet appeared magnifi' cent and formidable. The big junk: looked like monsters, with the broad sails for wings.
 The empress dismounted, and ad. vancing to the edge of the water, threw aside her heavy headdress of gold ant unwound her long hair. Then, to driv. away all the sweet odors of her per fumes, she bathed her hair in the sal waves and wringing it dry, bound i
 in a single knot, such as men wear.
 This done, she seized a battle axt and boarded the most beautiful of the junks.
 Seated upon her royal seat, the war
 rior empress appeared as if upon z pedestal. She was arrayed in suit, oi
 arnor of black horn, whose overlappins
 scales were joined by knots of purpl,
 silk, and which came below her knees
 partially covering the wide trousers O
 richest white brocade, beautifully enn
 Her long sleeves were of black vel vet. which fell majesticaily, like 8