The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, April 10, 1904, Page 4

—as was true of all monasteries of primal rank in the kingdom. Wheat masterly artifice, thought I, had been displayed in safely guarding the body of the Queen! Here, on this mountain island, a picked body of men under the cloak of religion lay guard- ing their King’s precious secret more safely than it could have been watched in the citadel of any fortress defended by an army. “The cowl is mightier than the sword,” they sey In Quel- parte. But cowl and sword were here. Our horses were climbing away vig- orously, and soon we neared the sum- of the hill* where a picturesque r eyes. A great can- mmit of Lynx Island, and from one rocky side to the other a green vale extended, perhaps two hundred yards wide. A number of old trees stood upon the grasy plat, and in the distance appeared the temple roof, its gable ornamented with clay mon- keys of life size, which, the Quelpar- tiens belleve, will preserve any bulld- ing from evil epirits. As I saw their grotesque little figures silhouetted against the distant sea I wished for once to believe with old Dejneff in their power. As we pushed on more rapidly, a second buflding came into view, dis- tant & hundred yards from the temple. This, Colonel Ii had forgotten to ex- plain, was an auxillary dormitory for the twenty-five additional prnests brought to the monastery when it was made of first rank. It was merely & long, straw-thatched native hut. As we drew near, what I had taken to be the wall of the temple appeared to be an outside wall surrounding the temple itself—an unusual but not unheard of method for the protection of temples from vandals I shall never forget my first ride into this canyon of Lynx Isldind. My eyes everything, and my ears caught d. Eagles were circling over the cliffs above us. White caps danced the far-off sea, visible through the of the canyon. A gong was ling somewhere, and thin metal suspended on the tongues of lit- hanging on the temple, in the wind, = to keep off evil scene greeted © the von split aw every so on vista fishes esperately ed window the gate- ng, and took Colo- n. Soon a priest us. 1t was plain ted—but I did not L il afterward—yet erything sugested it, from the clean- the spotless attire A gong sounded, e out from the tem- t quadrangle ants some passing out of the auxiliary building, the re- ng huts which were built of the wall. Colo- that the ceremony the last but he Queen’s remains, for at this hour, the performed ac- the just re- e high Li, i within the tempile of inner side nformed me d was one lowir ) ice was to be orders Colonel King's priests, the candles on the visible, and incense veen heavy curtains the image at the om, within the in- none but the high ght step; and to this spot my quickly and remained, for perhaps beneath those very can- balmed body of the went the er Queen! As 1 peered forward, the three men at each other swiftly Frequently I heard name mentioned, but all the rest meaningless, since ‘they spoke the native language. I need not more than refer again to the lurking fears which beset me whenever suspicions became uppermost in my mind. I remember thinking, as T stood there blinking into the darkness toward the dimly lighted that if Colopel Oranoff was be- trayed, no man had ever been duped by more cunning tricksters; and the highly comforting speculation followed tha f he had been betrayed my life was not worth the vapor that rose from yonder burning candle. Soon one of ‘the men, who had been introduced to me as General Ling, fa- miliarly put his hand on my arm and led me toward the inner court. Turn- ing from the image upon which I was gazing with equal curiosity and ex- pectancy, the man pulled away a thick mat from the floor and lifted a trap- door, and, unceremoniously grasping one of the sacred candles from the al- tar, he sat down on the edge of the black, square hole; then getting a foot- hold on a ladder, he crawled awkwardly down. I followed. If I had known I was going to my grave, I could not have retreated. The ladder was some six feet in length and stood in a narrow hallway cut into the limestone rocks. Numerous dark passages went off in either direction into inky blackness. At the end of a long walk General Ling stopped and stamped upon the floor, then, leaning over, he scraped away loose dirt, and with much labor lifted another heavy slab trap-door. Again he went down, and again I fol- lowed him, on wide stone stairs, into a still lower apartment. The room was heavy with foul air, but another odor was unmistakably present—a perfume faintly floating in the air! General my back spoke to shrine, THE N FRANCISCO SUNDAY CALL. Ling paused on the lower step, and, turning to me, grasped my hand and loocked me in the face while he raised the torch above his head. I peered into the scented room. A moving object first appeared. In a mo- ment, as I looked, I beheld a face, and started, gasping. Then I saw it was a soldier, standing silently “at atten- tion” and looking at General Ling. We see some things first by averted vision. Ty such means there came slowly into my sight a long, glittering object, by the soldier's side. For a mo- ment, while it grew larger and more distinct, my eyes were fixed upon the soldier's stolid face. When at last I could'look, I saw, resting on two great beams thrown across the little room, the golden sar- cophagus of the Queen of Quelparte. CHAPTER VIL A LAST SERVICE. As we ascended to the temple Gener- al Ling explained the plan which had, been formulated by the high priests, subject to the approval of Colonel Li. The final service in the temple had been set for two o'clock on the next day, as I have said, and in the meantime every preparation for the removal of the sar- cophagus wags to be made—floors opened, doors widened, trusses built. After the service, and not until then, were the priests to be made aware of the presehce of the sarcophagus, and on their shoulders it was to be brought up into the temple. Although Colenel Oranoff had informed me that a new sarcophagus would await the body at the Russian Legation in Keinning, lest the one at at Lynx Island be injured during the transfer, General Ling had already made a great wooden case in which to place it preparatory to its re- moval. The total burden would be eight hundred pounds, which, he af- firmed, could be borne down the face of the hill by the fifty priests, with the aid of blocks and tackling,~without danger to the sarcophagus, even if the outer case should be marred. In this, as in all else, General Ling seemed to be a most sensible and faith- ful servant of the King. We had reached the foot of the ladder which would take us again to the temple shrine, when the man suddenly sank to the floor and he grasped my hand as I put one foot on the ladder. I turned, and, from being the cool, far-seeing, resolute man I had thought him, he seemed to become a child as he fairly sobbed to me r, you cannot guess what terrible vears these have been. Here, with only fifty men, I have been placed to watch” —and he nodded toward the room from which we had come—“that which is more precious to the King than life it- self. You may or may not know why. The first year 1 could scarcely sleep, for when I did, a sound as of distant thunder came to my ears, and for days thereafter I could close my eyes no more,” Tears were running down the poor man’s pallid cheeks as he spoke. “But finally I learned to sleep, sir, with both eyes open, sitting upright at my table, on which I balanced myself with my elbows. But why do I tell you this? —that you may mention my faithful- ness to the King. Of it he knows little more than my success. I would that he knew the fears 1 have undergone for his sake and the eternal vigilance with which his secret has been guarded. I have become an old man in these forty months and haye little longer to live. I have a son—Kin Ling, in the Quelparte army. Tell the King he will serve him faithfully as I have, and even uptil death.” There was something bedides the pathos of the man's plea that touched me, the sense of the justice of the great reward which he seemed to feel was due his laboricus service. And he asked it not for himself, but for an only son. I promised then and there to “speak to the King,” though I used the words merely in the conventional sense. He was pleased, and we ascended into the lighter dimness of the temple, but no one being in sight, as we entered the inner court, I paused, for I too had something to say: “But during these years, General Ling, have there not been many whom you have suspected of treachery?” “Yes, sir,” he answered as quickly and as frankly. “I have suspected all— but myself.” “Colonel Li?” 1 suggested. “Xes, Colonel Li,” he responded; then he added after a pause and a shrewd turn of his head: “But not so much as you.” “You may trust me,” I said, holding cut my hand. He clasped it tightly, for on my honor and faithfulness hung the success or failure of all these long nights and days of watching, and he swered almost pitifully: “There is nothing eise to do.’ As we entered the area without the temple Colonel Li appeared with the horses, but I had other plans which I communicated to him, and he rode off alone. Calling General Ling, I asked him to pllot me down the mountain path. . Passing outside the monastery walls, I was taken to i footpath which went down the rocky side of the canyon, doubling back on itself frequently to accomplish the feat. Once on the crest of the rocks the view was entrancing, for the sun was just setting in the mountains beyond Wun Chow. The bay below. so perfect in outline and lovely in color, seemed a great opal in the quiet, dying light. From a certain craft just leaving the little pier at Wun Chow, a weird sound came. A stately figure in white was standing in the prow beating a flabby drum, behind which a dozen men pulled at their oars, driving the barge slowly across the bay. General Ling informed me that this ceremony was performed at the be- ginning of each native month to keep the devils of the sea from entering the My eyes moved slowly from the white figures in the barge to the trim little craft riding at anchor near by, ard 1 thought of its mission to Lynx Island. Neither the monotonous throbs of the flabby drum nor the rocky sentinels of Lynx Island had kept it out. While looking for devils, a bear came 1n un- noticed! I was surely becoming a phil- osopher of old Dejneff’'s schoo!! We pushed on downward, for the light was waning, General Ling slowly pickin3 way. At first I thought he was chocsing it as he went, but before lung I saw stakes had been driven in the ground by some one who had fully an- ticipated all that I had béen dreading. Through rocky defiles, down steps as high as those of the great pyramid, along little grassy ways at the very verge of a precipice, the stakes led us. In actually making the descent, one did not fiud it such a difficult task. As we neared the bottém my guide signi- fled the necessity of his returning’ be- fore it became too dark, and we parted, after arranging that I should be at the monastery at 2 o'clock tHe following afternoon. I found my way easily to a sampan, where, I need hardly say, my letters made me a welcomed addi- tion to a jovial party of men. Spirits here ran high, for the mission of the Dulcette had been consummated and the boat now only waited its cargo to be off for Tsi. Lulled to sleep ‘by the gentle rocking of the waves, I made up for two sleep- less nights and barely came from my bath as tiffin was served. I had little more than time to climb the steep path of the stakes when fhe last service over the body of the late Queen of Quélparte was begun. 1 should observe here that the Dul- cette was brought fifty feet nearer the shore on this morning, and four sam- pans were Jlashed together and boarded over to convey our burden to the yacht. According to the King's orders, General Ling had been com- manded to fire the monastery immedi- ately upon the removal of the sarcopha- gus; secrets of which I have only the merest suspicion undoubtedly con- nected with_ the anticipated Russian possession of the island, rendering this waste of properly necessary. Accord- ingly, 1T had ordered my Cgesacks to station themselves on the road-to Kein- ning behind the village at sundown, ready to start for the capital the mo- ment the light of the flames appeared on the summit_of Lynx Island. By them I sent 8 message to Oranoff, stat- ing the success of my mission and that of the Dulcette. As I entered the temple a hundred tapers sprang to light. The candles on the altar were at the same time in- creased, showing up the hideous figure of the image unpleasantly. Some one was reading in a‘nasal tone from a Tibetan book, and during the reading the three score priests entered the building, bearing swinging torches. Upon entering they knelt; then, with noiseless feet, they formed a procession and marghed slowly before the image of Gautama. If it should beimy lot to witness many august ceremonies, 1 doubt if I could remember another as I do the one of that memorable night on Lynx Island. There was something in it of the heathenism of ancestor worship- ing peoples—something which suggested the religious fervor of India, though blended with and discolored by the duller dross of Chinese Whatever it may have been—I canrot describe it—that march of those monks and their monotones will never be for- gotten while life shall last. And when- ever I listen to chanting, my ears seem to hear, above the song of the singers, the chant I heard that night: He knows be lies who dares to say That Karma eannot be: For the body of Dharma, pure and white, Ever lives in the liquid lzht, Though his form we may not see. In_a thousand rivers there water is, In a thousand rivers a moon, In a thoi-and leagues no cloud is Where the heavens lie like an endles: To 1emple cur wind-swept tomb. n dream On Griddore Peak where vultures fly Ard lustrous flowers are found, Full many an occult thing may be— It the wood comes not can the tortoise see Till a thousand years roll round? When half the procession had passed the altar the priests faced it, and, prostrating themselves, chanted: O Honorable?One by the Altar, O source of the pure, endless springs, Favor onr frall lips that falter, Grant us the three blessed things: The Buddha, The Dharma, The Shanga,— The thrice-blest, the three Precious Things. Rising, they marched on, then, turn- ing, retraced thelr steps before the im- age, chanting wondrously: The three worlds swing in an endless are, Rebirth. decay and death An hundred thousand kalpas fly Like grains of dust across the sky, While Buddha breathes a breath. O clear, pure wind of unmeasured love, Oh, blow now straight, afar! Had not your heart been proven sweet, Who would have dared its message keep, Pyel Ho of Kasyapa? Let the chant go forth to the Honorable One Who sits by the Altar on High, And strives to break the dark clouds of night That worlds may reflect his glorious light, And Karma be banished for aye. I sat, I know not how long, as one bewitched. The swinging torches, the monotonous chanting, the perfumed in- cense, all combined to make me what I had never been before—somewhat of an idolater myself. z At last some one touched me and spoke. It was General Ling, and when he asked if I was ready, I looked out through a crack in a paper window and saw it was growing dark. Already my Cossacks were awaiting my signal of flames. Already the Dulcette had lifted anchor and was in full heat to be off. I tightened my belt, felt of my pis- tols, and answered him: “Yes.” CHAPTER VIII THE CUE OF A QUEUE. The darkness was not altogethet due superstition. . ) to coming night, for a storm was blow- ing in from the murky Yellow Sea, al- though the long service had lasted to near the day’'s end, when General Ling came to me. For some reason I had felt in no hurry to begin the night's werk, for a strange quiet had come over me, in- ténsified fourfold by - the service to which I had altogether given myself up. After three days of intense mental and physical activity, T was enjoying a reaction and recuperation. Not that my fears were dead, or my anxieties forgotten, but from the moment I met General 'Ling. I felt 2 new ecnfidence in myself and in those about me. He had suffered suspicions for four mortal vears—suspiclons of every one, includ- ing myself. Beside him, and he a hea- then and an idolater, I was a coward. Hi$ pitiful words respecting his trus®’ in me—"There is nothing else to ao"— rang in my ears. How pearly they co- incided with my own reluctancy in trusting Colonel Li* And T have cver remembered this valuable lesson—to trust those whom 1 must trust as 1 trust myself. Upon this motto+l had acted since I awoke that morning on the Dulcette. Ling and Li had done everything. The sarcophagus was as good as on the Dul- cette, My Cossacks were no longer needed, and were spoiling to return to Keinning. Consequently I had written to Colonel Oranoff, and stationed them to await my flaming signal to be off. I was particularly glad to be able to dis- pense with their presence as the secret of Lynx Island was confined to so many less tongues—and soldiers’ tongues are lose at both ends, as all the world knows. At the conclusion of the final cere- mony the priests had been taken to an inner room, where Colonel Li im- parted to them the nature of the King’s orders touching the immediate remov- al of the sacred treasure of the temple and the utter destruction of the temple itself. The astonishment of the priests can be imagined, but not the scene which followed. Old men, whose lives had been spent at Ching-ling, came out weeping and moaning, and here and there they leaned against the walls as if to embrace them for a last time, Some crowded about the image on their knees and prayed with quaking voices; others, most of them younger, begah runnihg about like frightened deer, while gome fell into groups in the corners, whis- pering to each other in their haste. Evidently fearing that all control over his men might be lost, Colonel Li hastened to read yet another decree from the King, which detailed each priest to service in other temples, and gave to each a sum of money from the royal treasury. This had the desired effect over the younger and more rest- less of the men, who otherwise were quite beside themselves with disap- pointment, but many of the older men failed to be reconciled by pécuniary re- ward. Young men came to older ones, who, sobbing by the wall or praying by the image, seemed to heed only the grst decree. i “Have cheer, father,” said a son to an old man by the wall near me; “you and 1 are to go to Wun Lung, where King Chan-ning is buried. Have cheer.” “Be silent, son,”” sharply cried the el- der, turning his wet face upon the hopeful youth. “You remember the grave of Chan-ning, and forget that of your mother on Lynx Island. What if that is plundered and we become in- sane? It would be a just reward.” The old man's face went back again into his sleeve, and by the shaking of his shoulders I could see he was weep- ing anew. Scme there were among the soldier- priests whom the second announcement did not quiet, the reason being, I sv-- posed, that the destruction of Chinx- ling meant they were to go lgick into the dreary barracks. Orders were given for the priests to collect their perscnal effects immediate- ly, and to be ready in an hour to asist in the work of removing the sacred treasure. This necessitated great tu- mult and confusion, particularly in the mud huts; and, though it seemed to me hasty business to ask men to prepare within an hour to leave homes in which they had lived a lifetime, yet the need of having the destruction of the tem- ple seem to be a religious "observance (and thus less likely to be attributed to the passing of the island into Russian possession) rendered such a course ne- cessary, however rummary it might seem. It was more than an’hour before all was in readiness; and save for the ex- treme foresight of General Ling, all would not have been ready then. The storm had swept furiously upon us, and torrents of rain fell, to counteract which General Ling had oil in readiness to smear the temple and the straw- thatched roofs, and other combustible material was piled against the temple. Within the audience room had been stripped of all decorations save the heavy curtain which hid the inner court from view, from which the image of Gautama was brought into the cer- ter of the temple. “A hot Nirvana for him,” thought I, as I paced restlessly by amid the con- fusion, thinking of the end that was approaching it. After a long wait the priests from the farther building came in a body, and a more frightened crowd of men I hope I may never see. Those in the front rank were bold, even surly, but behind them were those who cringed and shrank. Their officers, who now oronly asserted their authority, much to my rellef, brandished sabers, and urged on the timid with sharp words of command and not a few savage thrusts. All being ready, General Ling drew back the curtain which hung before the inner court, and exposed a great fect-' angular hole in the floor made by rais- ing the stone flagging above the hall- way. A torch was given to each of the foremost men, and, taking.a torch him- self, Geneéral Ling leaped down. The men followed in dead silence, curiosity overwhelming their fears and sorsows, and crowded down the narrow hallway .with many muttered exclamations of astonishment. Upon reaching the end of the dark passageway another great opening met their wondering eves. A large space had been opened directly above the stone stairway. Down the stairs we passed, and the room below and its secret was in plain view. I looked about me at the peering faces, as the men stepped forward to see the contents of the apartment. With his usual foresight, General Ling had had the sarcophagus placed within the wooden case, so that a plain box, five feet high and seven feet long, was all that was exposed to view. I did not know how many, if any, of those men dreamed what the box contained, but I thought by the action of some that they suspected that the “sacred treasure” of Cling-ling was a corpse. But, my im- agiration being a capricious quantity, I put aside idle speculation and went to work with the others. It was plain that the most difficult task before us—at least within the temple—was to move the box the first step, or up the hallway above the room in which it rested. The stairway was cut in the solid rock and could not be removed. Moreover, it was composed of wide steps and only five of them in number. Ropes were let down and de- flected into the room and placed around the box, and repeated trials were made before there was any gain. When at last the box was lifted, the ropes could not be raised sufficiently and the weight swung to the steps, striking them with a terrific crash, which showed, for one thing at least, that it was solid and able to stand all that could be reasonably expected of it. Li.did not care to have that experi- ment repeated, and he inquired imme- diately if there was not a room directly above that in which the box stood. General Ling answered affirmatively, and Li advised that the floor of that room be taken up. His suggestion seemed a practicable one; the work was instantly commenced. A number of men went above and the work of rais- ing the floor and removing the loose dirt was begun, and with Colonel Li, I guarded the sarcophagus, those about us clearing away the debris which fell through the growing aperture. Sud- denly and without slab, loosened from its bed of sur- rounding dirt, came crashing down up- on us. I barely escaped having my leg caught upder it; and a priest at my side, who had been especially valuable because of his authority over others and his notable activity and watchful- ness, received a terrific blow on the head and sank with a groan between Colonel Li and myself. Colonel Li jumped quickly to the poor man's rescue, and with my as- sistance drew him from the debris and dust into an adjoining apartment, which I had not seen before, where the soldiers who had guarded the sarcopha- gus slept. The blow had b received fairly on the head, crushing in the wire net in which Quelpartiens put up their hair, and had inflicted a serious if not fatal wound. Men were at once sent for water, and I, remembering my flask in the pocket of my great coat, went to the temple, where I had cast it aside. As 1 hurried through the temple of Ching-ling for my whisky flask, I felt a something in the air which gave me a sudden, terrible warning. I thought at first the accident had played a little trick on my nerves, and, as I retraced my steps, I drew away at my flask my- self. But no—it was not that. Every- thing tock on a new appearance, and T warning a great dogged at my own shadow on the walls. Men were hastening by me, running through the halls and the temple, stumbling on the ladders and disap- pearing through numerous doors; the accident is being reported, thought }. and the simple-minded and supersti- tious are disturbed by it. Thus I argued the case within me as I ran down the steps into the room where the sarcophagus stood. The room was quite empty. Above me the work of removing the floor continued, the workers having started up a sing- song chant such as Quelpartiens in- dulge in while working. But below a strange silence reigned. Seeing the torchlight in the further room, I hur= ried thither, flask in hand. I shall not describe the sight which met my eyes in all its frightfulness of detail. Colonel Li and General Ling | were standing near the center of the { room, each looking at the other in speechless horror. In Li's hand was his sword, the blade hidden béhind his robe. On, the floor before them lay a head- less corpse. Both men attempted to look at me, but they could not take their eyes from § each other. Together they turned like automatons; still staring one another in the face, speechless. “A sharp stone,” I gasped drawing my revolver. Then, slowly, Colonel Li's other hand came up from his side, drawing after it what seemed to me a black cord. And he raised aloft the head of the corpse at his feet, holding it by the end of its finely braided queue. “The Chinese!” We three spoke the words simultaneously. Then old Ling dropped his face into his hands, but Li lifted his streaming sword and, § with an awful oath, struck again the headless body at his feet. Such was the dramatic announce- ment of our betrayal in the Temple of Ching-ling. Prince Tuen, in order to secure the Queen’s body, had corrupted the priests of the temple. The man accidentally injured was a Chinaman who had joined the priests withoyt de- tection.” He was perhaps the leader of the awful plot. Thus, in a few swift words, we analyzed the situation. ¢ Feeling my revolver in one hand and my flask in the other, I replaced the weapon and drank from the flask. Then I passed it to my companions, and the liquor restored us. Instinctive- ly drawing our swords, we dashed up- stairs. The building seemed quite de- serted. Here ‘and there, however, we found our men talking in frightened groups, or, unconscious of the disturb- ance, working away at their various tasks. Crowding them together, Colo- nel Li, the genius dmong us, looked them over quickly. “We are betrayed,” he said firmly. “There are no priests here who live in the outer building.” To prove his ter- rible suspicions, he called a witless fellow from- his task and sent him to summon the priests from the outer building back to their work; but as the messenger - went out, the gates were closed securely. A deep silence settled over the temple as we walted. But our suspense was not lasting. A rifle-crack broke the deathly stillness, and its echo rattled long in the rocky canyon of Lynx Island. Cclonel Li was right; we were sur- rounded by armed servants of the Chi- nese Prince commanded by Chinamen in disguise. With us was the sarcoph- agus of the Queen, the preservation of which determined the destiny of the reigning dynasty. And the temple was drenched with oil! at last, (Continued Next Sunday.) JOE ROSENBERG'S. 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