ance at the palace, and that the
guards have been ordered not to admit you, but you are made to remember
it when you arrive. They stop you. You cannot get past them. In vain
you tell them of the arrest of your sister, and that you must see the
emperor, but you only give them an added reason for keeping you out.
They order you away. You refuse to go. They attempt to force you, and
you strike one of them, knocking him down."

"Then all your pent up agony is loosed. You have the strength of a
dozen men. You scatter the guards around you like flies, and rush past
them, straight for the cabinet of the emperor, where you have always
been a welcome guest. You tell yourself that he loves you--that he
loves your sister; that as soon as he hears the truth, he will correct
the awful wrong that has been done; that the men who outraged the
sanctity of your sister's sleeping room, will be punished. Ah! You do
not know the czar--that man whom you call your friend; who is God's and
man's worst enemy!

"But you are soon to know him better. You are soon to discover what
manner of man it is to whom you have given your soul and body, your
allegiance and your worship, all the years of your life. You are soon
to know--and oh, how bitter is the awakening.

"You dash unannounced into his presence. In a wild torrent of words,
you pour forth the awful tale. You laugh, you cry; you implore, you
demand; he only frowns, or smiles derisively. You rave; he calls the
guard. You find that he _does_ know; that others have been there before
you, and that the letter supposed to have been found in the possession
of your sister, has already been read by him. With horror, you realize
that he believes--that there is no hope for the sister you love so
tenderly, who was placed in your arms by your dying mother; whom you
swore to guard, and protect.

"That terrible man, who commits thousands of murders by proxy every
year, frowns upon you, who have been almost like a son to him. He
sneers at your agony. He believes all that has been told to him against
your sister--he is even willing to believe that you are a party to her
supposed misdeeds.

"'Forget your sister. She is dead to you, and to me,' his majesty
commands you, coldly. 'I can forgive you for your present excitement.
Forget her.'

"FORGET HER!! God! Forget your sister? Forget the little girl who was
put into your arms when a child? Forget the glowing, gorgeous,
beautiful young woman she has becom