Thus, as I have shown you, not only the censor, but, in a lesser degree, every mandarin may tell the Emperor of his faults, provided it be in a manner agreeable to that veneration and profound respect which is due to his office. The manner, however, in which this is done, is somewhat roundabout. The mandarin who perceives any thing in the Emperor's conduct contrary to the maxims laid down in the sacred books, draws up a request, in which, after having set forth the respect which he bears toward his majesty, he most humbly prays that he will please to reflect upon the ancient laws and good examples of his great predecessors. This request lies upon a table among many other petitions, which are daily presented and which the Emperor is obliged to read; and if he does not change his conduct, the petition is repeated again and again till the end has been gained, or the mandarin himself punished for his presumption. The latter, however, never happens, except with bad and tyrannical Emperors. CHAPTER XXII. THE BOY PRINCE AND THE RIVAL GENERALS. Thus were the great princes and lords of China awaiting the coming of their imperial master, and with something like impatience, for often, of late, had his majesty kept them waiting for hours, and then granted no audience at all. Such, however, was not to be the case then, for soon the sounds of wind instruments were heard, pages and eunuchs entered from the door which led to the imperial apartment, followed by the favorite body attendants of the sovereign, then the Emperor himself;--and the mandarins in the body of the hall, and the lords upon the steps of the throne, bent their heads till their foreheads touched the floors, in which position they remained, awaiting the command of the monarch to arise. Wey-t-song, the last of the Ming Emperors, was of middle height and spare figure, at least for a Chinese, whose notion of manly beauty consists of large and bulky form; he was attired in a robe of yellow silk, embroidered with five-clawed dragons, a necklace of costly pearls, and a golden girdle fastened around his waist by a jeweled clasp; his high cap or crown of purple satin, sparkled with jewels, and was decorated with the peacock's feather, which fell upon his long black hair; his boots were of purple satin, and fitted tightly to the shape of the feet; as for his hands, they were hidden beneath the folds of his robe. When the Emperor had seated himself upon the throne, a graceful movement with his ample sleeves gave the sign for the kneeling courtiers to arise, and they stood with their arms straightened and eyes turned upon the ground, pretending that the sight of so much majesty was too dazzling for their vision.