band of half- civilized robbers, rushing like the Danube, luxuriant in their summer foliage, wolves from the steppes of northern Asia, should were decorated with unsurpassing loveliness. have subjected to their sway the most cultivated For many days the turbaned and bannered host, and intellectual nations of the globe; and, bid- beneath sunny skies and through flowery fields. ding defiance to all the powers of Europe, should sauntered along, encountering no foe. Wa have been able to capture the finest countries of seemed but the pastime of a gala day. Silker the Old World, to intrench themselves upon the banners embroidered with gold floated on the classic soil of Greece, and, with insult and scorn, breeze. Arabian chargers, gorgeously capari to trample the cross of Christ and the institu- soned, proudly pranced beneath their rider tions of Christianity beneath their feet. cased in glittering steel. Music from multi tudinous bands enlivened the march. A fled of barges, decorated in the highest style of Or ental art, covered the stream, impelled by sai when the wind favored, and urged by rowe when the wind was adverse.

About the middle of the sixth century a tribe of Scythian Tartars, from the banks of the Irtish, commenced their depredations. Rapidly they subjugated and absorbed other tribes. In the course of a few ages they overran all of Egypt and all of Asia Minor, and established the most energetic and bloody military despotism earth has ever known. Early in the fourteenth century these semi-barbarians could rally beneath their banners a far more powerful army than any nation in Christendom could raise.

The Turks now resolved to bring all Europe under their sway, and all Europe was appalled by the menace. They took possession of the Hellespont and the Bosphorus, crossed the Straits, and with blood-dripping cimeters overran Greece. Mercilessly the Christians were massacred-the boys and the girls only being reserved as slaves, to be trained in the Moslem faith and to serve in the harems and the armies.

In April, 1453, Mohammed II., with a land army of 300,000 men and a fleet of 600 vessels, laid siege to Constantinople. For fifty-three days the storm of war beat, without cessation, upon the doomed city; and then the Turks, rushing through the breaches, sword in hand, in a few hours cut down 60,000 of the helpless inhabitants. In this terrific drama scenes were enacted too harrowing for recital, and which could not have been exceeded by an army of fiends newly arrived from Pandemonium.

Each night the tents were spread upon t river's banks, and a city for more than a hu dred thousand inhabitants rose as by magic, wi its grassy streets, and squares, and throngi population brilliant with all the regalia of wa As a fairy vision the city rose in the rays of t declining sun. As a phantasy of night it disa peared in the earliest dawn of the morning, a the dazzling host pressed on.

But the demon of war, though with mu and acclaim, always leads his legions to the bl day of storm and woe. The Turks had asce ed the Danube about 150 miles, when they ca to Zigeth, a small island which occupied centre of the stream and effectually comman both banks. Here the Austrians had erected almost impregnable fortress; and now the so of the march were doomed to sink away into wail of death. The Turks could not advan mile until this fortress was battered down. the heroic commander, Zrini, and his whole rison had taken an oath upon the cross that would surrender the fortress only with their l

Thus fell the Greek empire. The crescent was unfurled proudly from the domes of Constantinople, Athens, and Corinth; and throughout the whole of the Peloponnesus the head of the Christian was crushed by the heel of the Turk. The conqueror, Mohammed II., boasting that he would feed his horse from the altar of St. Peter's, in Rome, crossed the Adriatic to the shores of Italy, took Otranto, and intrenching his army there, prepared, by the energies of fire and sword, to bring the whole of the Italian peninsula into subjection to his sway. The sudden death of this stern conqueror rescued Italy from the menace, and gave a brief respite to the remainder of Christendom.

Week after week, by day and by night tempest of war thundered and surged ar these ramparts. The besieged having gu battery to sweep all approaches, mowed their assailants with awful carnage. But ually bastion after bastion was crumbled tremendous cannonade; and the fortress, ly demolished, presented but the aspect craggy pile of rocks. The Turks, reckless rushed over the smouldering ruins, cov them like a swarm of bees. They had a ently cut down every survivor of the gar and were just raising the shout of victory, there was an earthquake roar, and an exp almost as appalling as the archangel's tru

Soon again the war was renewed. For two centuries wave after wave of Moslem invasion rolled up the Danube; and the plains of Transylvania and Hungary were but a constant battle-field, where Christian and Turk met in deadly strife. About the year 1560 the Turks, then in possession of a large part of Hungary, collected an immense army at Belgrade, and commenced their march for the assault of Vienna. It was green and leafy June, and the banks of

Zrini, true to his oath, torch in hand descended to the subterranean vaults and the magazine, where tons of powder were s The whole citadel-men, horses, artiller rocks-were thrown into the air, and fell mingled mass of ruin, fire, and blood. the hour of victory became to the Tur hour of utter and hopeless defeat. Havi their leader and a large portion of their a the strife and the terrific final explosion commenced a precipitate retreat, with bleeding battalions, to recruit their resour another campaign.