failed to realize that I was actually in
China. Having seen the Chinese at several points before reaching
Hong-Kong, that city with its English environment did not impress me
greatly. Canton seemed an unrelated place, a kind of a by-play. The
Shanghai I knew was modern.

As we approached Peking, we caught a glimpse of the Great Wall, a
massive gray bulk, with the immense corner tower, which produced a
feeling of awe, standing as though it were an entrance into a city of
mystery--a walled town of over twenty miles in circumference which was
virtually the product of four walled cities in one. We were housed in
the new and spacious Grand Hotel des Wagons-lits. Our stay was to cover
just a little over a week; hence vigorous sight-seeing was at once
inaugurated, and the first impression received was the great age of
everything that surrounded us.

[Illustration: _The Great Wall at Peking_]

Peking was made the capital of the whole Empire by Mongol Kublai Khan,
the Wise, a munificent ruler who laid the foundation plan of what we see
to-day; but the origin of the city dates back some centuries before the
Christian era. The Ming Dynasty extended over nearly three centuries;
then China, being threatened by an invasion of the Manchus from the
north, was aided in her resistance by the Manchus at home, and, through
a peculiar combination, they secured possession of the throne and have
held it ever since. The foreign rule is hated by the true Chinese.

The four sections of Peking are: (1) The Forbidden City, called the
Purple City by the Chinese because formerly only purple mortar was used.
It consists virtually of a palace and adjacent buildings, and embraces a
population of nearly six thousand. This portion of the city has for ages
been closed to foreigners, with the exception of a few months
immediately after the Boxer trouble in 1900, when excursions to the
Forbidden City were made, photographs secured, and also a small
guide-book prepared. (2) The Imperial City surrounds the Forbidden City,
and is now in great part closed. (3) The Tartar City surrounds the
Imperial City, and is called the "city within" because it lies within
the walls. (4) The Chinese or Southern City is south of the Tartar City,
and extends somewhat beyond it to the east and west.

Next to the Great Wall, the gateways should demand our interest. There
are several, and Hata-men is the one which we frequently passed through.
It was always thronged. The most