y. Its
survival, with many other illustrious names, is one of the strongest
arguments in refutal of Professor Cortoran's theory; yet it opens no
new doors to the past, and, on the whole, rather adds to than
dissipates the mystery.

"And who is Buckingham," I asked, "and why should he wish to kill me?"

"He would think that you had stolen me," she replied, "and as he wishes
me for himself, he will kill any other whom he thinks desires me. He
killed Wettin a few days ago. My mother told me once that Wettin was
my father. He was king. Now Buckingham is king."

Here, evidently, were a people slightly superior to those of the Isle
of Wight. These must have at least the rudiments of civilized
government since they recognized one among them as ruler, with the
title, king. Also, they retained the word father. The girl's
pronunciation, while far from identical with ours, was much closer than
the tortured dialect of the Eastenders of the Isle of Wight. The
longer I talked with her the more hopeful I became of finding here,
among her people, some records, or traditions, which might assist in
clearing up the historic enigma of the past two centuries. I asked her
if we were far from the city of London, but she did not know what I
meant. When I tried to explain, describing mighty buildings of stone
and brick, broad avenues, parks, palaces, and countless people, she but
shook her head sadly.

"There is no such place near by," she said. "Only the Camp of the
Lions has places of stone where the beasts lair, but there are no
people in the Camp of the Lions. Who would dare go there!" And she
shuddered.

"The Camp of the Lions," I repeated. "And where is that, and what?"

"It is there," she said, pointing up the river toward the west. "I
have seen it from a great distance, but I have never been there. We
are much afraid of the lions, for this is their country, and they are
angry that man has come to live here.

"Far away there," and she pointed toward the south-west, "is the land
of tigers, which is even worse than this, the land of the lions, for
the tigers are more numerous than the lions and hungrier for human
flesh. There were tigers here long ago, but both the lions and the men
set upon them and drove them off."

"Where did these savage beasts come from?" I asked.

"Oh," she replied, "they have been here always. It is their country."

"Do they not kill and eat your people?" I asked.

"Often, when we me