The Daughter of an Empress

Was it, perhaps, only an illusive dream that bantered us, only a fata

morgana formed by the moonbeams? Or does the serpent of evil really

lurk about this paradise? Will destruction find its way into this

charmed garden? Ah, no solitude and no wall can afford protection

against misfortune! It creeps through the strongest lock, and over the

highest wall; and while we think ourselves safe, it is already there,

close to us, and nearly ready to swallow us up.