“Will your Excellency allow me to escort you to your carriage?”
“On no account. My servant waits in the anteroom. Will you let him come in?”
“Will your Excellency permit me to be for the moment, as ever, your devoted servant?”
Giraldi was in the act of offering his arm to the half-blind man, when a fresh visitor was announced.
“Who is it?” asked his Excellency, with some anxiety; “you know I must not be seen here by everybody.”
“It is Councillor Schieler, your Excellency.”
“Oh! only him. However, do not trust the sneaking fellow more than you can help! He has got some very useful qualities, but must be handled with care. Above all, do not trust him in the matter in question; it would be quite useless. His great protector can do nothing in the matter.”
“And therefore it was that I took the liberty of applying to your Excellency.”
“Advice to you always comes too late. One thing more. For the little family war which you have to wage here with these North German barbarians you require three times as much of the needful as for the great war. Are you fully provided?”
“I have always considered that war should maintain itself. However, I can draw on Brussels to any extent if it should be necessary.”
“Perhaps it may be necessary. At any rate, keep the game in your own hands. In spite of your sanguine hopes for the future, in which I fully concur, there are a series of lean years impending; we shall have to live like marmots, and the prudence of the marmot is more than ever necessary to us. You will keep me au courant?”
“It will be for my own interest, your Excellency.”
The Councillor had entered. His Excellency held out his hand: “You come just as I am going—that is unfair. You know there is nobody I like better to talk with than you. How blows the wind today in the Wilhelmstrasse? Have they slept well? Did they get out of bed on the right side? Nerves down, or steady? Country air asked for, or no demand? For heaven’s sake do not let me die of unsatisfied curiosity.”
His Excellency did not wait for the answer of the smiling Councillor, but again pressed the hands of both gentlemen, and, leaning on the arm of the servant who had entered meanwhile, left the room.
“Is it not wonderful!” said the Councillor; “such incredible elasticity, such marvellous promptitude, such quickness of attack, such sureness in retreat! The Moltke of guerilla warfare! What an enviable treasure does your party possess in that man!”
“Our party, Councillor? Pardon me, I always have to remind myself that you do not belong to us. Will you not sit down?”
“Many thanks, but I have not a minute to spare. I can only hastily tell you what is most important. In the first place, they are furious at the Ministry of Commerce at a vote just passed by the General Staff on the harbour question, which, as I am told by a colleague—I have not yet seen it myself—is as good as a veto. The report is by a certain Captain von Schönau, but the actual author—did you ever hear of such a thing?—is himself a member of the War Office, and is of course no other than our friend the General. This throws us back I do not know how far or for how long. I am furious, and the more so that I can see no way of getting over this difficulty. To be sure, a man has influence, and could, if necessary, bring this influence to bear even against an old friend; but one would not like to do it except in the direst necessity. What do you advise?”
“That we should not tarnish the purity of our cause by mixing in it such odious personalities,” answered Giraldi. “If you think yourself bound to spare an old friend, you know that there exists between the General and me an enmity of long standing; and everything that I should do or allow to be done against him would appear justly in the eyes of all as an act of common revenge, which God forbid! If it is His will He will surely bring about an event which will make our opponent harmless, and that need not be an accident because men call it so.”
“You mean if he were to die?” asked the Councillor, with a hesitating glance.
“I mean nothing positive, and certainly not his death. As far as I am concerned, may he live long!”
“That is a noble and Christian-like wish,” answered the Councillor, rubbing his long nose, “and no doubt spoken from your heart; still his opposition is and remains a stumbling-block to us, and I wish that were our only hindrance. But now, Count Golm tells me—I have just come from him; he will have the honour almost immediately; I only hurried on before him because I have something to say about him presently—Count Golm tells me that his efforts—he went over there in his present semiofficial capacity as future chairman of the board—that his efforts with the President in Sundin have been quite useless. He had made up his mind and could not alter it, however willingly he would give way to the Count, for a thousand reasons of neighbourly feeling and personal goodwill, and so forth. Golm, who between ourselves is clever enough and certainly not bashful, naturally allowed the great sacrifice to be perceived that we have determined to make—all in vain. In fact Golm thinks that he has rather done harm than good in the matter.”
“As is the case with all half measures,” said Giraldi.
“With half measures, my dear sir. How do you mean?”
“What was he offered?”
“Fifty thousand thalers down and the first directorship of the new railway, with six thousand a year fixed salary, besides an official residence, travelling expenses, and so
