falsely pretending to be Don Sebastian, king of Portugal." He bore the
ordeal firmly; and each time that the proclamation was made, added, in
clear and sonorous tones, "And so I am!"

He was afterwards sent on board the galleys, and for a short time had
to do the work of a galley slave; but as soon as the vessels were at
sea he was released, his uniform was removed, and he was courteously
treated. What ultimately became of him was never clearly ascertained,
but it is certain that on more than one occasion he succeeded in
confounding his opponents, and by his startling revelations of the
past led many who would fain have disputed his identity to express
their doubts as to the justice of his punishment. The probability is
that he was a rogue, but he was a clever one. Rumour says he died in a
Spanish fortress in 1606.




JEMELJAN PUGATSCHEFF--THE FICTITIOUS PETER III.


The reign of Catherine II. fills one of the darkest pages of Russian
history. This lustful and ambitious empress waded to the throne
through her husband's blood--bloodshed was necessary to establish her
rule; infamous cruelties characterised her whole reign, and no
princess ever succeeded in making herself more heartily detested by
her subjects than the vicious daughter of Anhalt Zerbst. Plot after
plot was concocted to oust her from her high estate; and impostor
after impostor appeared claiming the imperial purple; but the empress
held her own easily, and suppressed each successive rebellion without