BROWN : 



THE GREAT WALL OF CHINA. 



May one be pardoned for beginning with a well-known 

 ston*' ? It is a good one, and, perhaps, there are yet those to 

 whom it will be new. The place and the time are put in at 

 random. The spirit of the tale it is that counts ; and that is 

 the same of what country soever, or of whomsoever it be told. 



A prince of — Sparta, let us say— was visited b}^ a foreign 

 envoy. The envoy noted with surprise that all the towns were 

 open, and he asked the reason. " Come with me to-morrow," 

 said the prince, " and you shall see and hear." 



So at the proper time the two attended what in these days 

 would be called a parade. " But how," said the envoy, " has 

 this to do with what I asked last night ? " 



" These," said the prince, " are the walls of my dominions. 

 Twenty thousand chosen youths, and every one of them a brick. ' ' 



The Great Wall of China is one of the most stupendous 

 artificial curiosities in the world, and one which for abnormal 

 reasons is among the most interesting monuments which time 

 has spared to this generation. 



It was 214 years before the Christian era, somewhere about 

 the time when the great Archimedes lost his useful life at Syra- 

 cuse in Sicily that a young gentleman of thirteen summers, 

 one Che Wang Te, succeeded to the throne of somebody's 

 ancestors in Peking. He found trouble, sorrow, need, sick- 

 ness and many other adversities. A short time before, his 

 respected father had been beaten in a great battle with the 

 rebels. The usual 100,000 men had fallen. The usual fire 

 and massacre and famine had been inflicted upon whole regions 

 full of hapless creatures who had no idea what it was all 

 about ; and, worse than all, the terrible Tartar was stirring in 

 Mongolia and Manchuria. 



The child gave command — or was told to give command — 

 at all events command was given, that a wall should be con- 

 structed to guard the whole northern frontier of the Empire 

 from the incursions of the savage horsemen of that rcR-ion. 



