mperor to death, and cause himself to be
proclaimed in his stead.

In order to prepare the way for the execution of this scheme, he
forbore to act vigorously against Genghis Khan and the Monguls, but
allowed them to advance farther and farther into the country. This, of
course, increased the general discontent and excitement, and prepared
the way for the revolt which Hujaku was plotting.

At length the time for action arrived. Hujaku suddenly appeared at the
head of a large force at the gates of the capital, and gave the alarm
that the Monguls were coming. He pressed forward into the city to the
palace, and gave the alarm there. At the same time, files of soldiers,
whom he had ordered to this service, went to all parts of the city,
arresting and putting to death all the leaders of the party opposed to
him, under pretense that he had discovered a plot or conspiracy in
which they were engaged to betray the city to the enemy. The
excitement and confusion which was produced by this charge, and by the
alarm occasioned by the supposed coming of the Monguls, so paralyzed
the authorities of the town that nobody resisted Hujaku, or attempted
to save the persons whom he arrested. Some of them he caused to be
killed on the spot. Others he shut up in prison. Finding himself thus
undisputed master of the city, he next took possession of the palace,
seized the emperor, deposed him from his office, and shut him up in a
dungeon. Soon afterward he put him to death.

This was the end of Yong-tsi; but Hujaku did not succeed, after all,
in his design of causing himself to be proclaimed emperor in his
stead. He found that there would be very great opposition to this, and
so he gave up this part of his plan, and finally raised a certain
prince of the royal family to the throne, while he retained his
office of commander-in-chief of the forces. Having thus, as he
thought, effectually destroyed the influence and power of his enemies
at the capital, he put himself once more at the head of his troops,
and went forth to meet Genghis Khan.

Some accident happened to him about this time by which his foot was
hurt, so that he was, in some degree, disabled, but still he went on.
At length he met the vanguard of Genghis Khan's army at a place where
they were attempting to cross a river by a bridge. Hujaku determined
immediately to attack them. The state of his foot was such that he
could not walk nor even mount a horse, but he caused himself to be