more brilliant. Ladies from the Palace appeared. Cakes and wine were produced, and the Emperor and Crown Prince resumed their robes of state, discarding the sacrificial garments. The Lady Om came to congratulate the Emperor, attended by a retinue of gaily-dressed Palace women and slaves, their hair piled high, their shimmering silken skirts trailing in graceful folds about them. The Court musicians played; the Court singers sang, and the prettiest women swayed in a joyous dance. Within the private apartments of the sovereign there was feasting and merriment. His Majesty was himself again. The world, which he had shown us, and in which we had been so interested, changed quickly. Looking at the disorderly scramble of the return, the scene that had passed before us seemed like a dream. Yet, for a few hours, we had been living in the shadow of the middle ages.
