vorite little throne in the hall and started to play solitaire.
We came out on the veranda, and the Young Empress said to us: "You must
be tired, for I know you are not used to doing such hard work all day
long without stopping. You had better wear Manchu clothes, because they
are comfortable and easy to work in. Look at your long train; you have
to take it up in your hands while walking."

I told her that I would be only too pleased to change the clothes, but
that not having received an order from Her Majesty I could not make any
suggestions. The Young Empress said: "No, don't ask anything, and I am
sure Her Majesty will tell you to change by and by. Just now she wishes
to see your Paris gowns, because she wants to know how foreign ladies
dress on different occasions. She thought that some of the ladies came
to the Garden Party dressed in woolen clothes. We thought that foreign
ladies were not so extravagant as we are until we met Mdme. Plancon the
other day. Do you remember what Her Majesty said to you? 'That Mdme.
Plancon was so different from many ladies she had met, and also dressed
differently.'" It was a chiffon dress, with hand paintings, which Mdme.
Plancon wore, which pleased Her Majesty very much. While I was talking
with the Young Empress all the electric lights turned up, so I went to
Her Majesty to see if she needed anything. She said: "Let us play a game
of dice before I go to bed." We began to play the same thing as we had
done in the afternoon. Her Majesty won another game, this time it took
only an hour to finish the game. Her Majesty said to me: "Why can't you
win once?" I knew she wanted to tease, so I said that my luck was bad.
She laughed and said: "To-morrow you try to put your stocking on wrong
side out; that is a sure sign of winning." I told her that I would,
and I knew that pleased her. During the short time I was there I kept
studying her most of the while. I could see nothing would make her
happier than for me to obey her orders. Her Majesty said that she felt
tired, and that we must bring her milk. She said to me: "I want you to
burn incense sticks and bow to the ground every night to the Buddha in
the next room before I go to bed. I hope you are not a Christian, for if
you are I can never feel as if you are mine at all. Do tell me that you
are not." I did not expect that question at all, and I must say that it
was a very difficult question to answer. For my own protection I had
to say that