628 LOOT OF THE IMPERIAL SUMMER PALACE AT PEKlN. 



for her life, the humps of the other luattresse.s beoan to increiise in 

 size. Heads of women began to appear, and little ])y little theii" 

 bodies, and a small crowd surrounded me, beating- the matting with 

 their pretty foreheads. There were twent}' -seven women. 



I had lit upon the harem, or at least a portion of the harem, of His 

 Majesty. Oriental people are accustomed to construct the apartments 

 of the women on islands; and here 1 was with twenty-scACMi women 

 on nn" hands, and so beside themselves that when one emitted a sigh 

 or a groan all the rest fell to the ground, supposing that another bar- 

 barian had arrived, and wishing to show him the same marks of 

 respect, of fear, and of submission. 



I had a great deal of trouble to soothe them, and to prevent them 

 from surtocating themselves. They had had, 1 may venture to sa}', 

 the good luck to fall into the hands of a gentleman, but it was not to 

 be supjx>sed that during the night and the day following they could 

 escape the investigiitions of our soldiers who were still occupied in 

 the interior of the palace, but who would not fail to emerge and rob 

 in e\ery directiou us soon as the })rinci})al buildings had been sacked. 

 The island wouJd hm'fi been a mouse trap for th(Mn. I decided to ask 

 them if they would hnive .and seek safety in flight, no matter Avhere. 



"Yes, yes. yes," they uU cried. 



And then down they went again, forchc^uls on the ground, as if 

 they wished to salute the matting. 



T took nine of them and made them sit down in the imperial gon- 

 (fttiik). which would carry no more, for the water trickled over its sides. 

 1 ilAt^gcnl them to k(M>p still, and 1 puslied my l)oat into the lake, not 

 in the direction of the landing place, ))ut straight for the stable con- 

 taining the carriages already described, the roof of which hid us from 

 the summer palace, and consequently prevented those who tilled it, and 

 were otherwise nmch occupied, from trou))ling themselves about us. 



I led the women into the stable, and I piled them on the dusty cush- 

 ions of King George's carriages, which for the first time were rendei'- 

 ing some service to the Emperor of China. 1 cautioned them to keep 

 istill, and returned for a second load of nine women, and afterwards 

 for a third. On this last trip, while steadily sculling. I commenced to 

 :ask myself what I should do with them all, and if I should not have 

 better left them to their chances rather than to bring them out per- 

 haps into imminent danger, for I did not know how far the French, the 

 lEnglish, the Hindus, and the Arabs could be trusted. 



Just as I landed and drove the last convoy into the stable, I saw 

 'quietly installed in one of the immense carriages, filled with the women, 

 a trooper, a sergeant of the line, before whom all their terrors had 

 returned. 



" What are you doing there, comrade?" said I. 



*' What are 3'^ou doing yourself? " 



