Domestic Tamsel had to
allay itself as it best could; and the fair Wreech be-
came much a stranger to Friedrich, -- surprisingly so
to Friedrich the King, as perhaps we may see.
allay itself as it best could; and the fair Wreech be-
came much a stranger to Friedrich, -- surprisingly so
to Friedrich the King, as perhaps we may see.
Thomas Carlyle
[bOOKVTH.
4th Oct. 1731.
"seven and eight in the morning yesterday, and got to
"Ciistrin" (seventy miles or so) "before seven at night. But
"the Prince had gone, that day, to the Bailliage of Himmel-
"stadt" (up the Warta Country, eastward some five-and-
thirty miles, much preparatory digging and stubbing there);
and he "slept at Massin" (circuitous road back), "where he
"shot a few stags this morning. As I was told he might pro-
"bably dine at Kammin" (still nearer Ciistrin, twelve miles
from it; half that distance east of Zorndorf, -- mark that,
0 reader*) "with Madam Colonel Schoning, I drove thither.
"He had arrived there, a moment before me. " And who is
Madam Schoning, lady of Kammin here? -- Patience, reader.
"I found him much grown; an air of health and gaiety
"about him. He caressed me greatly (me gratieusa fort);
"afterwards questioned me about my way of life in Vienna;
"and asked, If I had diverted myself well there? I told him
"what business had been the occasion of my journey, and
"that this rather than amusements had occupied me; for the
"rest, that there had been great affluence of company, and
"no lack of diversions. He spoke a long time to Madam de
"Wreech" --
"Wrochem" Schulenburg calls her: young wife of Lieutenant-General von Wreech, a Marlborough Campaigner,
made a Knight of Malta the other day;** -- his charm-
ing young Wife, and Daughter of Madam Colonel
Schoning our hostess here; lives at Tamsel, in high
style, in these parts: mark the young Lady well, --'
"who did not appear indifferent to him. " No! -- "and in fact
"she was in all her beauty; a complexion of lily and rose. "
? Map at p. 185.
<<* ililitair-Lcxikon, iy. 269.
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? CHAP, v. ] DINES AT KAMMTN. 175
4th Oct. 1781.
Charming creature; concerning whom there are anec-
dotes still afloat, and at least verses of this Prince's
writing; not too well seen by Wreech, lately made a
Knight of Malta, who, though only turning forty, is
perhaps twice her age. The beautifullest, cleverest, --
fancy it; and whether the peaty Neumark produces
nothing in the floral kind!
"We went to dinner; he asked me to sit beside him. The
"conversation fell, among other topics, on the Elector Pa-
"latine's Mistress," -- crotchety old gentleman, never out of
quarrels, with Heidelberg Protestants, heirs of Jiilich and
Berg, and in general with an unreasonable world, whom we
saw at Mannheim last year; has a Mistress, -- "Elector Pala-
"tine's Mistress, called Taxis. Crown-Prince said: 'I should
"'like to know what that good old gentleman does with a rnis-
'"tress? ' I answered, That the fashion had come so much
"in vogue, Princes did not think they were Princes unless
"they had mistresses; and that I was amazed at the facility
"of women, how they could shut their eyes on the sad reverse
"of fortune nearly inevitable for them; -- and instanced the
"example of Madam Gravenitz" --
"Gravenitz;" example lately fallen out at Wiirtemberg, as we predicted. Prayers of the Country, "Deliver us
from evil," are now answered there: Gravenitz quite
over with it! Alas, yes; lately fallen from her high
estate in Wiirtemberg, and become the topic of dinner-
tables; seized by soldiers in the night-time; vain her
high refusals, assurances of being too unwell to dress,
"Shall go in your shift, then," -- is in prison, totally
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? 176 CROWN-PRINCE RETRIEVED. [book vnr.
4th Oct. 1731.
eclipsed. * Calming her fury, she will get out; and
wearisomely wander about in fashionable capitals, tou-
jour $ un lavement a ses trousses! --
"There were other subjects touched upon; and I always
"endeavoured to deduce something of moral instruction from
"them," being a military gentleman of the old school.
"Among other things, he said, He liked the great world,
"and was charmed to observe the ridiculous weak side of
"some people. 'That is excellent,' said I, 'if one profit by
"'itoneself: but if it is only for amusement, such a motive is
"'worth little; we should rather look out for our own ridicu-
"'lous weak side. ' On rising, Hofmarschall Wolden said to
"me," without much sincerity, '"You have done well to
"'preach a little morality to him. ' The Prince went to a
"window, and beckoned me thither.
"' You have learned nothing of what is to become of me? '
"said he. I answered: 'It is supposed your Royal Highness
"'will return to Berlin, when the Marriage' (Wilhelmina's)
"'takes place: but as to what will come next, I have heard
"' nothing. But as your Highness has friends, they will not
"' fail to do their endeavour; and M. de Grumkow has told me
"' he would try to persuade the King to give you a regiment,
"'in order that your Highness might have something to do. '
"It seemed as if that would give him pleasure. I then took
"the liberty of saying: 'Monseigneur, the most, at present,
"' depends on yourself. ' --' How so? ' asked he. I answered,
'"It is only by showing good conduct, and proofs of real
"'wisdom and worth, that the King's entire favour can be
"'gained. First of all, to fear God' And in fact I
launched now into a moral preachment, or discursive Dia-
* Michaelis, iii. 440; PBllnitz, i. 297.
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? CHAP. V. ] DINES AT KAMMIN. 177
4th Oct. 1731.
logue, of great length; much needing to have the skirts of it
tucked up, in a way of faithful abridgment, for behoof of
poor English readers. As follows:
"Schulenburg: If your Highness behave well, the King
"will accord what you want; but it is absolutely necessary to
"begin by that. -- Prince: I do nothing that can displease the
"King. -- Schulenburg: It would be a little soon yet! But I
"speak of the future. Your Highness, the grand thing I re-
"commend is to fear God! Everybody says, you have the
"sentiments of an honest man: excellent, that, for a begin-
ning; but without the fear of God, your Highness, thepas-
"sions stifle the finest sentiments. Must lead a life clear of
"reproach; and more particularly on the chapter of women!
"Need not imagine you can do the least thing without the
"King's knowing it: if your Highness take the bad road, he
"will wish to correct it; the end will be, he will bring you
"back to live beside him; which will not be very agreeable. --
"Prince: Hmph, No! -- Schulenburg: Of the ruin to health I
"do not speak; I -- Prince: Pooh, one is young, one is not
"master of that;" -- and, in fact, on this delicate chapter,
which runs to some length, Prince answers as wildish young
fellows will; quizzing my grave self, with glances even at his
Majesty, on alleged old peccadilloes of ours. Which allega-
tions or inferences I rebutted with emphasis. "But, I confess,
"though I employed all my rhetoric, his mind did not seem to
"alter; and it will be a miracle if he change on this head. "
Alas, General! Can't be helped, I fear!
"Hesaid he was not afraid of anything so much as of living
"constantly beside the King. -- Schulenburg: Arm yourself
"with patience, Monseigneur, if that happen. God has given
"you sense enough; persevere to use it faithfully on all occa-
sions, you will gain the good graces of the King. -- Prince:
"Impossible; beyond my power, indeed, said he; and made
Carlyle, Frederic the Great. IV. VJt
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? 178 CROWN-PRINCE RETRIEVED. [book vm
4th Oct. 1731.
"a thousand objections. -- Schulenburg: Your Highness is
"like one that will not learn a trade because you do not al-
"ready know it. Begin; you will certainly never know it
"otherwise! Before rising in the morning, form a plan for
"your day," -- in fact, be moral, 0 be moral!
His Highness now got upon the marriages talked
of for him; an important point for the young man. He
spoke, hopefully rather, of the marriage with the Prin-
cess of Mecklenburg, -- Niece of the late Czar Peter
the Great; Daughter of that unhappy Duke who is in
quarrel with his Ritters, and a trouble to all his neigh-
bours, and to us among the number. Readers recollect
that young Lady's Serene Mother, and a meeting she
once had with her Uncle Peter, -- at Magdeburg, a
dozen years ago, in a public drawing-room with alcove
near; -- anecdote, not lightly to be printed in human
types, nor repeated where not necessary. The Mother
is now dead; Father still up to the eyes in puddle and
trouble: but as for the young Lady herself, she is
Niece to the now Czarina Anne; by law of primogeni-
ture, Heiress of all the Russias: something of a match
truly!
"But there will be difficulties; your Highness to change
"your religion, for one thing? -- Prince: Won't by any
"means. -- Schulenburg: And give up the succession to Prus-
"sia? -- Prince: A right fool if I did! -- Schulenburg: Then
"this marriage comes to nothing. -- Thereupon next he said,
"If the Kaiser is so strong for us, let him give me his second
"Daughter;" lucky Franz of Lorraine is to get the first. --
"Schulenburg: Are you serious? -- Prince: Why not; with
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? CHAP, v. ] DINES AT KAMMTN. . 179
4th Oct. 1731.
"a Duchy or two it would do very well. --Schulenburg: No
"Duchies possible under the Pragmatic Sanction, your High-
"ness: besides your change of religion? -- Prince: Oh, as to
"that, never! -- Then this marriage also comes to nothing.
"Of the English, and their Double-Marriage, and their
"Hotham brabble, he spoke lightly, as of an extinct matter,
"-- in terms your Excellency will like.
"But, said I, since you speak so much of marriages, I sup-
pose you wish to be married? -- Prince: No; but if the King
"absolutely will have it, I will marry to obey him. After
"that, I will shove my wife into the corner (planterai la ma
"femme), and live after my own fancy. -- Schulenburg: Hor-
"rible to think of! For, in the first place, your Highness, is
"it not written in the Law of God, Adulterers shall not in-
"herit the Kingdom of Heaven? " And in the second place;
and in the third and the fourth place! -- To all which he an-
swered as wild young fellows do, -- especially if you force
marriage on them. "I can perceive, if he marries, it will
"only be to have more liberty than now. It is certain, if he
"had his elbows free, he would strike out (s'en donnerait a
"gauche). He said to me several times: 'I am young; I want
"'to profit by my youth. '" A questionable young fellow,
Herr General; especially if you force marriage on him.
"This conversation done," continues the General, "he set
"to talking with the Madam Wreech," andher complexion of
lily and rose; "but he did not stay long; drove off about
"five" (dinner at the stroke of twelve in those countries), "in-
citing me to see him again at Ciistrin, which I promised. "
And so the Prince is off in the Autumn sunset,
driving down the peaty hollow of the Warta, through
unpicturesque country, which produces Wreechs and
incomparable flowers nevertheless. Yes; and if he look
12*
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? 180 CROWN-PRINCE RETRIEVED. [book Vin.
4th Oct. 1731.
a six miles to the right, there is the smoke of the
evening kettles from Zorndorf, rising into the sky; and
across the River, a twenty miles to the left, is Kuners-
dorf: poor sleepy sandy hamlets; where nettles of the
Devil are to be plucked one day! --
"The beautiful Wreech drove off to Tamsel," her fine
house: I to this wretched tavern; where, a couple of hours
after that conversation, I began writing it all down, and have
nothing else to do for the night. Your Excellency's most
moral, stiffnecked, pipeclayed, and extremely obedient,
'' VoN S CHU1ENBUBG. " *
This young man may be orthodox on Predestina-
tion, and outwardly growing all that a Papa could
wish; but here are strange heterodoxies, here is plenty
of mutinous capricious fire in the interior of him, Herr
General! In fact, a young man unfortunately situated;
already become solitary in Creation; has not, except
himself, a friend in the world available just now.
Tempestuous Papa storms one way, tempestuous Mamma
Nature another; and between the outside and the inside
there are inconsistencies enough.
Concerning the fair Wreech of Tamsel, with her
complexion of lily and rose, there ensued by and by
much whispering, and rumouring underbreath; which
has survived in the apocryphal Anecdote-Books, not in
too distinct a form. Here, from first hand, are three
words, which we may take to be the essence of the
whole. Grumkow reporting, in a sordid, occasionally
* FBrster, Hi. 65-71.
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? CHAP, v. ] DINES AT LANDSBERG. 181
19th Oct. 1731.
smutty spy-manner, to Jiis Seckendorf, from Berlin,
eight or ten months hence, has this casual expression:
"He" (King Friedrich Wilhelm) "told me in confidence
"that Wreech, the Colonel's Wife, is -- to P. R.
"(Prince-Royal); and that Wreech vowed he would
"not own it for his. And his Majesty in secret is
"rather pleased," adds the smutty spy. * Elsewhere I
have read that the poor object, which actually came
as anticipated (male or female, I forget), did not live
long; -- nor had Friedrich, by any opportunity,
another child in this world.
Domestic Tamsel had to
allay itself as it best could; and the fair Wreech be-
came much a stranger to Friedrich, -- surprisingly so
to Friedrich the King, as perhaps we may see. --
Predestination, Gnadenwahl, Herr General: what is
orthodoxy on Predestination, with these accompani-
ments! ** We go now to the Second Letter and the
Third, -- from Landsberg about a fortnight later:
No. 2. To his Excellency (shovelful of titles) von Grumkow in
Berlin.
"Landsberg, 19th October 1781.
"The day before yesterday" (that is, Wednesday 17th
October) "I received an Order, To have only fifty Horse at
"that post, and" -- Order which shows us that there has
fallen out some recruiting squabble on the Polish Frontier
hereabouts; that the Polack gentlemen have seized certain
Corporals of ours, but are about restoring them; Order and
? Grumkow to Seckendorf, Berlin, 20th August 1732 (Fb'rster. iii 112).
? * For Wreech, see Benekendorf, v. 94. , for Schulenbarg, ib. 26; --
and Militair Lexikon, iii. 432 , 433, and Iv. 268 , 269. Vacant on the gos-
siping points; cautiously official, both these.
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? 182 CROWN-PRINCE RETRIEVED. [book vm.
19th Oct. 1731.
affair which we shall omit. "Corporals will be got back:
"but as these Polack gentlemen will see, by the course taken,
"that we have no great stomach for biting, I fancy they will
"grow more insolent; then, 'ware who tries to recruit there
"for the future!
"On the same day I was apprised, from Custrin, That the
"Prince-Royal had resolved on an excursion to Carzig, and
"thence to theBailliage of Himmelstadt" (digging and stub-
bing now on foot at Himmelstadt too), "which is but a couple
"of miles* from this; that there would be a little hunt be-
"tween the two Bailliages; and that if I chose to come,
"I might, and the Prince would dine with me. "-- Which I
did; and so, here again, Thursday 18th October 1731, in
those remote Warta-Oder Countries, is a glimpse of his
Royal Highness at first hand. Schulenburg continues; not
even taking a new paragraph, which indeed he never does:
"They had shut up a couple of Spiesser (young roes), and
"some stags, in the old wreck of a Saugarten" (Boar-park, be-
tween Carzig and Himmelstadt; fast ruinirten Saugarten, he
calls it, daintily throwing-in a touch of German here): "the
"Prince shot one or two of them, and his companions the
"like; but it does not seem as if this amusement were much
"to his taste. He went on to Himmelstadt; and at noon he
"arrived here," in my poor Domicile at Landsberg.
"At one o'clock we went to table, and sat till four. He
"spoke only of very indifferent things; except saying to me:
'"Do you know, the King has promised 400,000 crowns
"'(60,000/. ) towards disengaging those Bailliages of the Mar-
"' graf of Baireuth's,"' -- old Margraf, Bailliages pawned to
raise ready cash; readers remember what interminable Law-
pleading there was, till Friedrich Wilhelm put it into a liquid
state, 'Pay me back the moneys, then ! '** -- "' 400,000 tha-
? "Demi-mille" German. *? Supri, vol. ill. pp. 226-228.
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? CHAP, v. ] DINES AT LANDSBERG. 183
19th Oct. 1731.
"'lers to the old Margraf, in case his Prince (Wilhelmina's
"'now Bridegroom) have a son by my Sister. ' I answered, I
"had heard nothing of it. -- 'But,' said he, 'that is a great
"'deal of money! And some hundred-thousands more have
"'gone the like road, toAnspach, who never will be able to
"'repay. For all is much in disorder at Anspach. Give the
"'Margraf his Heron-hunt (chasse au Mron), he cares for no-
"'thing; and his people pluck him at no allowance. ' I said:
"That if these Princes would regulate their expenditure, they
"might, little by little, pay off their debts; that I had been
"told at Vienna the Baireuth Bailliages were mortgaged on
"very low terms, those who now held them making eight or
"ten per-cent of their money;" -- that the Margraf ought to
make an effort; and so on. "I saw very well that these Loans
"the King makes are not to his mind.
"Directly on rising from table, he went away; excusing
"himself to me, That he could not pass the night here; that
"the King would not like his sleeping in the Town; besides
"that he had still several things to complete in a Report he
"was sending off to his Majesty. He went to Massin, and
"slept there. For my own share, I did not press him to re-
"main; what I did was rather in the way of form. There
"were with him President Munchow," civil gentleman whom
we know, "an Engineer CaptainReger, and the three Gen-
"tlemen of his Court," Wolden, Kohwedel, Natzmer who once
twirled his finger in a certain mouth, the insipid fellow.
"He is no great eater; but I observed he likes the small
"dishes (petils plats) and the high tastes: he does not care for
"fish; though I had very fine trouts, he never touched them.
"He does not take brown soup (soupe au bouillon). It did not
"seem to me he cared for wine: he tastes at all the wines;
"but commonly stands by burgundy with water.
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? 184 CROWN-PRINCE RETRIEVED. [book VIII.
19th Oct. 1731.
"I introduced to him all the Officers of my Regiment who
"are here; he received them in the style of a king" (en roi, plenty of quiet pride in him, Herr General). "It is certain he
"feels what he is born to; and if ever he get to it, will stand
"on the top of it. As to me, I mean to keep myself retired;
"and shall see of him as little as I can. I perceive well he
"does not like advice," especially when administered in the
way of preachment, by stiff old military gentlemen of the all-
wise stamp;--"and does not take pleasure except with people
inferior to him in mind. His first aim is to find out the ridi-
culous side of every one, and he loves to banter and quiz. It
"is a fault in a Prince: he ought to know people's faults, and
"not to make them known to anybody whatever,"-- which,
we perceive, is not quite the method with private gentlemen,
of the allwise type! --
"I speak to your Excellency as a friend; and assure you "he is a Prince who has talent, but who will be the slave of
"his passions (sefera dominerpar sespassions," -- not a felici-
tous prophecy, Herr General); "and will like nobody but
"such as encourage him therein. For me, I think all
"Princes are cast in the same mould; there is only a more
"and a less.
"At parting, he embraced me twice; and said: 'I am
"'sorry I cannot stay longer; but another time I will profit
"' better. ' Wolden" (one of the Three) "told me he could not
"describe how well-intentioned for your Excellency the
"Prince-Royal is" (cunning dog! ), "who says often to Wol-
"den" (doubtless guessing it will be re-said), "'If I cannot
"' show him my gratitude, I will his posterity:'" -- profoundly
obliged to the Grumkow kindred first and last! -- "Iremain
"your Excellency's" most pipeclayed
"Von ScHulenburg. "*
? Fb'rster, HI. 71-73.
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? CHAP, v. ] schulenburg's second letter. 185
22d Oct. 17S1.
And so, after survey of the spademen at Carzig and
Himmelstadt (where Colonel Wreech, by the way, is
Amts-Hauptmann, official Head Man), after shooting a
Spiesser or two, and dining and talking in this sort,
his Royal-Highness goes to sleep at Massin; and ends
one day of his then life. We proceed to Letter No. 3.
A day or two after No. 2, it would appear, his
Majesty, who is commonly at Wusterhausen hunting in
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? 186 CROWN-PRINCE RETRIEVED. [book vm.
22d Oct. 1731.
this season, has been rapidly out to Crossen, in these
Landsberg regions (to south, within a day's drive of
Landsberg), rapidly looking after something; Grumkow
and another Official attending him: -- other Official,
"Truchsess," is Truchsess von Waldburg, a worthy
soldier and gentleman of those parts, whom we shall
again hear of. In No. 3 there is mention likewise of
the "Kurfiirst of Koln," -- Elector of Cologne; languid
lanky gentleman of Bavarian breed, whom we saw last
year at Bonn, richest Pluralist of the Church; whom
doubtless our poor readers have forgotten again.
Mention of him; and also considerable sulky humour,
of the Majesty's-Opposition kind, on Schulenburg's part;
for which reason, and generally as a poor direct reflex
of time and place, -- reflex by ruffled bog-water,
through sedges, and in twilight; dim but indubitable,
-- we give the Letter, though the Prince is little
spoken of in it:
No. 3. To the Excellency Grumkow (as above) in Berlin.
"Landsberg, 22d October (Monday) 1731.
"Monsieur, -- I trust your Excellency made your journey
"to Crossen with all the satisfaction imaginable. Had I been
"warned sooner, I would have come; not only to see the King,
"but for your Excellency's sake and Truchsess's: but I re-
ceived your Excellency's Letter only yesterday morning; so "I could not have arrived before yesternight, and that late;
"for it is fifty miles off, and one has to send relays beforehand;
"there being no posthorses on that road.
"We are, -- not to make comparisons, -- like Harlequin!
"No sooner out of one scrape, than we get into another; and
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? CHAP, v. ] schulenburg's third letter. 187
22d Oct. 1731.
"all for the sake of those Big Blockheads (Vamour de ces
"grands colosses). What the Kurfiirst of Koln has done, in
"his character of Bishop of Osnabriick," -- a deed not known
to this Editor, but clearly in the way of snubbing our re-
cruiting system, -- "is too droll: but if we avenge ourselves,
"there will be high play, and plenty of it, all round our
"borders! If such things would make any impression on the
"spirit of our Master: but they do not; they" -- in short, this
recruiting system is delirious, thinks the stiff Schulenburg;
and scruples not to say so, though not in his place in Parlia-
ment , or even Tobacco-Parliament. For there is a Majesty's
Opposition in all lands and times. "We ruin the Country,"
says the Honourable Member, "sending annually millions of
"money out of it, for a set of vagabond fellows {gens a sac et
"acorde), who will never do us the least service. One sees
"clearly it is the hand of God," darkening some people's
understanding; "otherwise it might be possible their eyes
"would open, one time or another! " -- A stiff pipeclayed
gentleman of great wisdom, with plenty of sulphur burning
in the heart of him. The rest of his Letter is all in the Oppo-
sition strain (almost as if from his place in Parliament, only
far briefer than is usual "within these walls"); and winds up
with a glance at Victor Amadeus's strange feat, or rather at
the Son's feat done upon Victor, over in Sardinia; preceded
by this interjectionary sentence on a Prince nearer home:
"As to the Prince-Koyal, depend on it he will do whatever
"is required of him" (marry anybody you like&c), "if you
"give him more elbow-room, for that is whither he aims. --
"Not a bad stroke that, of the King of Sardinia" -- Grand
news of the day, at that time; now somewhat forgotten, and
requiring a word from us:
Old King Victor Amadeus of Sardinia had solemnly
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? 188 CROWN-PRINCE RETRIEVED. [BOOKVm
23d Oct 173].
abdicated in favour of his Son; went, for a twelvemonth
or more, into private felicity with an elderly Lady-
love whom he had long esteemed the first of women;
-- tired of such felicity, after a twelvemonth; demanded
his crown back, and could not get it! Lady-love and
he are taken prisoners; lodged in separate castles:*
and the wrath of the proud old gentleman is Olympian
in character, -- split an oak table, smiting it while he
spoke (say the cicerones); -- and his silence, and the
fiery daggers he looks, are still more emphatic. But
the young fellow holds out; you cannot play handy-
dandy with a king's crown, your Majesty! say his new
Ministers. Is and will continue King. "Not a bad
stroke of him," thinks Schulenburg, --
-- "especially if his Father meant to play him the same trick,"
that is, clap him in prison. Not a bad stroke; -- which per-
haps there is another that could imitate, "if his Papa gave
"him the opportunity! But this Papa will take good care;
"and the Queen will not forget the Sardinian business,
"when he talks again of abdicating," as he does when in ill
humour. --
"But now had not we better have been friends with Eng-
land, should war rise upon that Sardinian business? General
"Schulenburg," -- the famed Venetian Fieldmarshal, bruiser
of the Turks in Candia,** my honoured Uncle, who sometimes -
* 2d September 1730, abdicated, went to Chamber? ; reclaims, is locked
in Blvoll, 8th October 1731 (news of it just come to Schulenburg); dies
there, 31st October 1732, his 67th year.
*? Same who was beaten by Charles XII. before; a worthy soldier
nevertheless, say the Authorities: Lift of him by Varnhagen von Ease
(Biographitche Denkmale, Berlin, 1845).
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? CHAP, v. ] schulenburg's third letter. 189
22(1 Oct. 1731.
used to visit his Sister the Maypole, now Emerita, in Lon-
don, and sip beer and take tobacco on an evening, with
George I. of famous memory, --he also "writes me this Victor-
"Amadeusnews, from Paris;" so that it is certain; Ex-King
locked in Kivoli near a fortnight ago: "he, General Schulen-
"burg, says farther, To judge by the outside, all appears
" very quiet; but many think, at the bottom of the bag it will
"not be the same. " --
"lam, with respect," your Excellency's much in buckram,
"Le Comte de Schoulenboubg. " *
So far Lieutenant-General Schulenburg; whom we
thank for these contemporary glimpses of a young man
that has become historical, and of the scene he lived
in. And with these three accidental utterances, as if
they (which are alone left) had been the sum of all he
said in the world, let the Lieutenant-General withdraw
now into silence: he will turn up twice again, after
half-a-score of years, once in a nobler than talking
attitude, the close-harnessed, stalwart, slightly atrabiliar
military gentleman of the old Prussian school.
These glimpses of the Crown-Prince, reflected on
us in this manner, are not very luculent to the reader, -- light being indifferent, and mirror none of the best: -- but some features do gleam forth, good and not so
good; which, with others coming, may gradually coalesce
into something conceivable. A Prince clearly of much
spirit, and not without petulance; abundant fire, much
of it shining and burning irregularly at present; being
sore held down from without, and anomalously situated.
* Fb'rster, Hi.
4th Oct. 1731.
"seven and eight in the morning yesterday, and got to
"Ciistrin" (seventy miles or so) "before seven at night. But
"the Prince had gone, that day, to the Bailliage of Himmel-
"stadt" (up the Warta Country, eastward some five-and-
thirty miles, much preparatory digging and stubbing there);
and he "slept at Massin" (circuitous road back), "where he
"shot a few stags this morning. As I was told he might pro-
"bably dine at Kammin" (still nearer Ciistrin, twelve miles
from it; half that distance east of Zorndorf, -- mark that,
0 reader*) "with Madam Colonel Schoning, I drove thither.
"He had arrived there, a moment before me. " And who is
Madam Schoning, lady of Kammin here? -- Patience, reader.
"I found him much grown; an air of health and gaiety
"about him. He caressed me greatly (me gratieusa fort);
"afterwards questioned me about my way of life in Vienna;
"and asked, If I had diverted myself well there? I told him
"what business had been the occasion of my journey, and
"that this rather than amusements had occupied me; for the
"rest, that there had been great affluence of company, and
"no lack of diversions. He spoke a long time to Madam de
"Wreech" --
"Wrochem" Schulenburg calls her: young wife of Lieutenant-General von Wreech, a Marlborough Campaigner,
made a Knight of Malta the other day;** -- his charm-
ing young Wife, and Daughter of Madam Colonel
Schoning our hostess here; lives at Tamsel, in high
style, in these parts: mark the young Lady well, --'
"who did not appear indifferent to him. " No! -- "and in fact
"she was in all her beauty; a complexion of lily and rose. "
? Map at p. 185.
<<* ililitair-Lcxikon, iy. 269.
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? CHAP, v. ] DINES AT KAMMTN. 175
4th Oct. 1781.
Charming creature; concerning whom there are anec-
dotes still afloat, and at least verses of this Prince's
writing; not too well seen by Wreech, lately made a
Knight of Malta, who, though only turning forty, is
perhaps twice her age. The beautifullest, cleverest, --
fancy it; and whether the peaty Neumark produces
nothing in the floral kind!
"We went to dinner; he asked me to sit beside him. The
"conversation fell, among other topics, on the Elector Pa-
"latine's Mistress," -- crotchety old gentleman, never out of
quarrels, with Heidelberg Protestants, heirs of Jiilich and
Berg, and in general with an unreasonable world, whom we
saw at Mannheim last year; has a Mistress, -- "Elector Pala-
"tine's Mistress, called Taxis. Crown-Prince said: 'I should
"'like to know what that good old gentleman does with a rnis-
'"tress? ' I answered, That the fashion had come so much
"in vogue, Princes did not think they were Princes unless
"they had mistresses; and that I was amazed at the facility
"of women, how they could shut their eyes on the sad reverse
"of fortune nearly inevitable for them; -- and instanced the
"example of Madam Gravenitz" --
"Gravenitz;" example lately fallen out at Wiirtemberg, as we predicted. Prayers of the Country, "Deliver us
from evil," are now answered there: Gravenitz quite
over with it! Alas, yes; lately fallen from her high
estate in Wiirtemberg, and become the topic of dinner-
tables; seized by soldiers in the night-time; vain her
high refusals, assurances of being too unwell to dress,
"Shall go in your shift, then," -- is in prison, totally
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? 176 CROWN-PRINCE RETRIEVED. [book vnr.
4th Oct. 1731.
eclipsed. * Calming her fury, she will get out; and
wearisomely wander about in fashionable capitals, tou-
jour $ un lavement a ses trousses! --
"There were other subjects touched upon; and I always
"endeavoured to deduce something of moral instruction from
"them," being a military gentleman of the old school.
"Among other things, he said, He liked the great world,
"and was charmed to observe the ridiculous weak side of
"some people. 'That is excellent,' said I, 'if one profit by
"'itoneself: but if it is only for amusement, such a motive is
"'worth little; we should rather look out for our own ridicu-
"'lous weak side. ' On rising, Hofmarschall Wolden said to
"me," without much sincerity, '"You have done well to
"'preach a little morality to him. ' The Prince went to a
"window, and beckoned me thither.
"' You have learned nothing of what is to become of me? '
"said he. I answered: 'It is supposed your Royal Highness
"'will return to Berlin, when the Marriage' (Wilhelmina's)
"'takes place: but as to what will come next, I have heard
"' nothing. But as your Highness has friends, they will not
"' fail to do their endeavour; and M. de Grumkow has told me
"' he would try to persuade the King to give you a regiment,
"'in order that your Highness might have something to do. '
"It seemed as if that would give him pleasure. I then took
"the liberty of saying: 'Monseigneur, the most, at present,
"' depends on yourself. ' --' How so? ' asked he. I answered,
'"It is only by showing good conduct, and proofs of real
"'wisdom and worth, that the King's entire favour can be
"'gained. First of all, to fear God' And in fact I
launched now into a moral preachment, or discursive Dia-
* Michaelis, iii. 440; PBllnitz, i. 297.
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? CHAP. V. ] DINES AT KAMMIN. 177
4th Oct. 1731.
logue, of great length; much needing to have the skirts of it
tucked up, in a way of faithful abridgment, for behoof of
poor English readers. As follows:
"Schulenburg: If your Highness behave well, the King
"will accord what you want; but it is absolutely necessary to
"begin by that. -- Prince: I do nothing that can displease the
"King. -- Schulenburg: It would be a little soon yet! But I
"speak of the future. Your Highness, the grand thing I re-
"commend is to fear God! Everybody says, you have the
"sentiments of an honest man: excellent, that, for a begin-
ning; but without the fear of God, your Highness, thepas-
"sions stifle the finest sentiments. Must lead a life clear of
"reproach; and more particularly on the chapter of women!
"Need not imagine you can do the least thing without the
"King's knowing it: if your Highness take the bad road, he
"will wish to correct it; the end will be, he will bring you
"back to live beside him; which will not be very agreeable. --
"Prince: Hmph, No! -- Schulenburg: Of the ruin to health I
"do not speak; I -- Prince: Pooh, one is young, one is not
"master of that;" -- and, in fact, on this delicate chapter,
which runs to some length, Prince answers as wildish young
fellows will; quizzing my grave self, with glances even at his
Majesty, on alleged old peccadilloes of ours. Which allega-
tions or inferences I rebutted with emphasis. "But, I confess,
"though I employed all my rhetoric, his mind did not seem to
"alter; and it will be a miracle if he change on this head. "
Alas, General! Can't be helped, I fear!
"Hesaid he was not afraid of anything so much as of living
"constantly beside the King. -- Schulenburg: Arm yourself
"with patience, Monseigneur, if that happen. God has given
"you sense enough; persevere to use it faithfully on all occa-
sions, you will gain the good graces of the King. -- Prince:
"Impossible; beyond my power, indeed, said he; and made
Carlyle, Frederic the Great. IV. VJt
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? 178 CROWN-PRINCE RETRIEVED. [book vm
4th Oct. 1731.
"a thousand objections. -- Schulenburg: Your Highness is
"like one that will not learn a trade because you do not al-
"ready know it. Begin; you will certainly never know it
"otherwise! Before rising in the morning, form a plan for
"your day," -- in fact, be moral, 0 be moral!
His Highness now got upon the marriages talked
of for him; an important point for the young man. He
spoke, hopefully rather, of the marriage with the Prin-
cess of Mecklenburg, -- Niece of the late Czar Peter
the Great; Daughter of that unhappy Duke who is in
quarrel with his Ritters, and a trouble to all his neigh-
bours, and to us among the number. Readers recollect
that young Lady's Serene Mother, and a meeting she
once had with her Uncle Peter, -- at Magdeburg, a
dozen years ago, in a public drawing-room with alcove
near; -- anecdote, not lightly to be printed in human
types, nor repeated where not necessary. The Mother
is now dead; Father still up to the eyes in puddle and
trouble: but as for the young Lady herself, she is
Niece to the now Czarina Anne; by law of primogeni-
ture, Heiress of all the Russias: something of a match
truly!
"But there will be difficulties; your Highness to change
"your religion, for one thing? -- Prince: Won't by any
"means. -- Schulenburg: And give up the succession to Prus-
"sia? -- Prince: A right fool if I did! -- Schulenburg: Then
"this marriage comes to nothing. -- Thereupon next he said,
"If the Kaiser is so strong for us, let him give me his second
"Daughter;" lucky Franz of Lorraine is to get the first. --
"Schulenburg: Are you serious? -- Prince: Why not; with
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? CHAP, v. ] DINES AT KAMMTN. . 179
4th Oct. 1731.
"a Duchy or two it would do very well. --Schulenburg: No
"Duchies possible under the Pragmatic Sanction, your High-
"ness: besides your change of religion? -- Prince: Oh, as to
"that, never! -- Then this marriage also comes to nothing.
"Of the English, and their Double-Marriage, and their
"Hotham brabble, he spoke lightly, as of an extinct matter,
"-- in terms your Excellency will like.
"But, said I, since you speak so much of marriages, I sup-
pose you wish to be married? -- Prince: No; but if the King
"absolutely will have it, I will marry to obey him. After
"that, I will shove my wife into the corner (planterai la ma
"femme), and live after my own fancy. -- Schulenburg: Hor-
"rible to think of! For, in the first place, your Highness, is
"it not written in the Law of God, Adulterers shall not in-
"herit the Kingdom of Heaven? " And in the second place;
and in the third and the fourth place! -- To all which he an-
swered as wild young fellows do, -- especially if you force
marriage on them. "I can perceive, if he marries, it will
"only be to have more liberty than now. It is certain, if he
"had his elbows free, he would strike out (s'en donnerait a
"gauche). He said to me several times: 'I am young; I want
"'to profit by my youth. '" A questionable young fellow,
Herr General; especially if you force marriage on him.
"This conversation done," continues the General, "he set
"to talking with the Madam Wreech," andher complexion of
lily and rose; "but he did not stay long; drove off about
"five" (dinner at the stroke of twelve in those countries), "in-
citing me to see him again at Ciistrin, which I promised. "
And so the Prince is off in the Autumn sunset,
driving down the peaty hollow of the Warta, through
unpicturesque country, which produces Wreechs and
incomparable flowers nevertheless. Yes; and if he look
12*
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? 180 CROWN-PRINCE RETRIEVED. [book Vin.
4th Oct. 1731.
a six miles to the right, there is the smoke of the
evening kettles from Zorndorf, rising into the sky; and
across the River, a twenty miles to the left, is Kuners-
dorf: poor sleepy sandy hamlets; where nettles of the
Devil are to be plucked one day! --
"The beautiful Wreech drove off to Tamsel," her fine
house: I to this wretched tavern; where, a couple of hours
after that conversation, I began writing it all down, and have
nothing else to do for the night. Your Excellency's most
moral, stiffnecked, pipeclayed, and extremely obedient,
'' VoN S CHU1ENBUBG. " *
This young man may be orthodox on Predestina-
tion, and outwardly growing all that a Papa could
wish; but here are strange heterodoxies, here is plenty
of mutinous capricious fire in the interior of him, Herr
General! In fact, a young man unfortunately situated;
already become solitary in Creation; has not, except
himself, a friend in the world available just now.
Tempestuous Papa storms one way, tempestuous Mamma
Nature another; and between the outside and the inside
there are inconsistencies enough.
Concerning the fair Wreech of Tamsel, with her
complexion of lily and rose, there ensued by and by
much whispering, and rumouring underbreath; which
has survived in the apocryphal Anecdote-Books, not in
too distinct a form. Here, from first hand, are three
words, which we may take to be the essence of the
whole. Grumkow reporting, in a sordid, occasionally
* FBrster, Hi. 65-71.
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? CHAP, v. ] DINES AT LANDSBERG. 181
19th Oct. 1731.
smutty spy-manner, to Jiis Seckendorf, from Berlin,
eight or ten months hence, has this casual expression:
"He" (King Friedrich Wilhelm) "told me in confidence
"that Wreech, the Colonel's Wife, is -- to P. R.
"(Prince-Royal); and that Wreech vowed he would
"not own it for his. And his Majesty in secret is
"rather pleased," adds the smutty spy. * Elsewhere I
have read that the poor object, which actually came
as anticipated (male or female, I forget), did not live
long; -- nor had Friedrich, by any opportunity,
another child in this world.
Domestic Tamsel had to
allay itself as it best could; and the fair Wreech be-
came much a stranger to Friedrich, -- surprisingly so
to Friedrich the King, as perhaps we may see. --
Predestination, Gnadenwahl, Herr General: what is
orthodoxy on Predestination, with these accompani-
ments! ** We go now to the Second Letter and the
Third, -- from Landsberg about a fortnight later:
No. 2. To his Excellency (shovelful of titles) von Grumkow in
Berlin.
"Landsberg, 19th October 1781.
"The day before yesterday" (that is, Wednesday 17th
October) "I received an Order, To have only fifty Horse at
"that post, and" -- Order which shows us that there has
fallen out some recruiting squabble on the Polish Frontier
hereabouts; that the Polack gentlemen have seized certain
Corporals of ours, but are about restoring them; Order and
? Grumkow to Seckendorf, Berlin, 20th August 1732 (Fb'rster. iii 112).
? * For Wreech, see Benekendorf, v. 94. , for Schulenbarg, ib. 26; --
and Militair Lexikon, iii. 432 , 433, and Iv. 268 , 269. Vacant on the gos-
siping points; cautiously official, both these.
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? 182 CROWN-PRINCE RETRIEVED. [book vm.
19th Oct. 1731.
affair which we shall omit. "Corporals will be got back:
"but as these Polack gentlemen will see, by the course taken,
"that we have no great stomach for biting, I fancy they will
"grow more insolent; then, 'ware who tries to recruit there
"for the future!
"On the same day I was apprised, from Custrin, That the
"Prince-Royal had resolved on an excursion to Carzig, and
"thence to theBailliage of Himmelstadt" (digging and stub-
bing now on foot at Himmelstadt too), "which is but a couple
"of miles* from this; that there would be a little hunt be-
"tween the two Bailliages; and that if I chose to come,
"I might, and the Prince would dine with me. "-- Which I
did; and so, here again, Thursday 18th October 1731, in
those remote Warta-Oder Countries, is a glimpse of his
Royal Highness at first hand. Schulenburg continues; not
even taking a new paragraph, which indeed he never does:
"They had shut up a couple of Spiesser (young roes), and
"some stags, in the old wreck of a Saugarten" (Boar-park, be-
tween Carzig and Himmelstadt; fast ruinirten Saugarten, he
calls it, daintily throwing-in a touch of German here): "the
"Prince shot one or two of them, and his companions the
"like; but it does not seem as if this amusement were much
"to his taste. He went on to Himmelstadt; and at noon he
"arrived here," in my poor Domicile at Landsberg.
"At one o'clock we went to table, and sat till four. He
"spoke only of very indifferent things; except saying to me:
'"Do you know, the King has promised 400,000 crowns
"'(60,000/. ) towards disengaging those Bailliages of the Mar-
"' graf of Baireuth's,"' -- old Margraf, Bailliages pawned to
raise ready cash; readers remember what interminable Law-
pleading there was, till Friedrich Wilhelm put it into a liquid
state, 'Pay me back the moneys, then ! '** -- "' 400,000 tha-
? "Demi-mille" German. *? Supri, vol. ill. pp. 226-228.
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? CHAP, v. ] DINES AT LANDSBERG. 183
19th Oct. 1731.
"'lers to the old Margraf, in case his Prince (Wilhelmina's
"'now Bridegroom) have a son by my Sister. ' I answered, I
"had heard nothing of it. -- 'But,' said he, 'that is a great
"'deal of money! And some hundred-thousands more have
"'gone the like road, toAnspach, who never will be able to
"'repay. For all is much in disorder at Anspach. Give the
"'Margraf his Heron-hunt (chasse au Mron), he cares for no-
"'thing; and his people pluck him at no allowance. ' I said:
"That if these Princes would regulate their expenditure, they
"might, little by little, pay off their debts; that I had been
"told at Vienna the Baireuth Bailliages were mortgaged on
"very low terms, those who now held them making eight or
"ten per-cent of their money;" -- that the Margraf ought to
make an effort; and so on. "I saw very well that these Loans
"the King makes are not to his mind.
"Directly on rising from table, he went away; excusing
"himself to me, That he could not pass the night here; that
"the King would not like his sleeping in the Town; besides
"that he had still several things to complete in a Report he
"was sending off to his Majesty. He went to Massin, and
"slept there. For my own share, I did not press him to re-
"main; what I did was rather in the way of form. There
"were with him President Munchow," civil gentleman whom
we know, "an Engineer CaptainReger, and the three Gen-
"tlemen of his Court," Wolden, Kohwedel, Natzmer who once
twirled his finger in a certain mouth, the insipid fellow.
"He is no great eater; but I observed he likes the small
"dishes (petils plats) and the high tastes: he does not care for
"fish; though I had very fine trouts, he never touched them.
"He does not take brown soup (soupe au bouillon). It did not
"seem to me he cared for wine: he tastes at all the wines;
"but commonly stands by burgundy with water.
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? 184 CROWN-PRINCE RETRIEVED. [book VIII.
19th Oct. 1731.
"I introduced to him all the Officers of my Regiment who
"are here; he received them in the style of a king" (en roi, plenty of quiet pride in him, Herr General). "It is certain he
"feels what he is born to; and if ever he get to it, will stand
"on the top of it. As to me, I mean to keep myself retired;
"and shall see of him as little as I can. I perceive well he
"does not like advice," especially when administered in the
way of preachment, by stiff old military gentlemen of the all-
wise stamp;--"and does not take pleasure except with people
inferior to him in mind. His first aim is to find out the ridi-
culous side of every one, and he loves to banter and quiz. It
"is a fault in a Prince: he ought to know people's faults, and
"not to make them known to anybody whatever,"-- which,
we perceive, is not quite the method with private gentlemen,
of the allwise type! --
"I speak to your Excellency as a friend; and assure you "he is a Prince who has talent, but who will be the slave of
"his passions (sefera dominerpar sespassions," -- not a felici-
tous prophecy, Herr General); "and will like nobody but
"such as encourage him therein. For me, I think all
"Princes are cast in the same mould; there is only a more
"and a less.
"At parting, he embraced me twice; and said: 'I am
"'sorry I cannot stay longer; but another time I will profit
"' better. ' Wolden" (one of the Three) "told me he could not
"describe how well-intentioned for your Excellency the
"Prince-Royal is" (cunning dog! ), "who says often to Wol-
"den" (doubtless guessing it will be re-said), "'If I cannot
"' show him my gratitude, I will his posterity:'" -- profoundly
obliged to the Grumkow kindred first and last! -- "Iremain
"your Excellency's" most pipeclayed
"Von ScHulenburg. "*
? Fb'rster, HI. 71-73.
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? CHAP, v. ] schulenburg's second letter. 185
22d Oct. 17S1.
And so, after survey of the spademen at Carzig and
Himmelstadt (where Colonel Wreech, by the way, is
Amts-Hauptmann, official Head Man), after shooting a
Spiesser or two, and dining and talking in this sort,
his Royal-Highness goes to sleep at Massin; and ends
one day of his then life. We proceed to Letter No. 3.
A day or two after No. 2, it would appear, his
Majesty, who is commonly at Wusterhausen hunting in
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? 186 CROWN-PRINCE RETRIEVED. [book vm.
22d Oct. 1731.
this season, has been rapidly out to Crossen, in these
Landsberg regions (to south, within a day's drive of
Landsberg), rapidly looking after something; Grumkow
and another Official attending him: -- other Official,
"Truchsess," is Truchsess von Waldburg, a worthy
soldier and gentleman of those parts, whom we shall
again hear of. In No. 3 there is mention likewise of
the "Kurfiirst of Koln," -- Elector of Cologne; languid
lanky gentleman of Bavarian breed, whom we saw last
year at Bonn, richest Pluralist of the Church; whom
doubtless our poor readers have forgotten again.
Mention of him; and also considerable sulky humour,
of the Majesty's-Opposition kind, on Schulenburg's part;
for which reason, and generally as a poor direct reflex
of time and place, -- reflex by ruffled bog-water,
through sedges, and in twilight; dim but indubitable,
-- we give the Letter, though the Prince is little
spoken of in it:
No. 3. To the Excellency Grumkow (as above) in Berlin.
"Landsberg, 22d October (Monday) 1731.
"Monsieur, -- I trust your Excellency made your journey
"to Crossen with all the satisfaction imaginable. Had I been
"warned sooner, I would have come; not only to see the King,
"but for your Excellency's sake and Truchsess's: but I re-
ceived your Excellency's Letter only yesterday morning; so "I could not have arrived before yesternight, and that late;
"for it is fifty miles off, and one has to send relays beforehand;
"there being no posthorses on that road.
"We are, -- not to make comparisons, -- like Harlequin!
"No sooner out of one scrape, than we get into another; and
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? CHAP, v. ] schulenburg's third letter. 187
22d Oct. 1731.
"all for the sake of those Big Blockheads (Vamour de ces
"grands colosses). What the Kurfiirst of Koln has done, in
"his character of Bishop of Osnabriick," -- a deed not known
to this Editor, but clearly in the way of snubbing our re-
cruiting system, -- "is too droll: but if we avenge ourselves,
"there will be high play, and plenty of it, all round our
"borders! If such things would make any impression on the
"spirit of our Master: but they do not; they" -- in short, this
recruiting system is delirious, thinks the stiff Schulenburg;
and scruples not to say so, though not in his place in Parlia-
ment , or even Tobacco-Parliament. For there is a Majesty's
Opposition in all lands and times. "We ruin the Country,"
says the Honourable Member, "sending annually millions of
"money out of it, for a set of vagabond fellows {gens a sac et
"acorde), who will never do us the least service. One sees
"clearly it is the hand of God," darkening some people's
understanding; "otherwise it might be possible their eyes
"would open, one time or another! " -- A stiff pipeclayed
gentleman of great wisdom, with plenty of sulphur burning
in the heart of him. The rest of his Letter is all in the Oppo-
sition strain (almost as if from his place in Parliament, only
far briefer than is usual "within these walls"); and winds up
with a glance at Victor Amadeus's strange feat, or rather at
the Son's feat done upon Victor, over in Sardinia; preceded
by this interjectionary sentence on a Prince nearer home:
"As to the Prince-Koyal, depend on it he will do whatever
"is required of him" (marry anybody you like&c), "if you
"give him more elbow-room, for that is whither he aims. --
"Not a bad stroke that, of the King of Sardinia" -- Grand
news of the day, at that time; now somewhat forgotten, and
requiring a word from us:
Old King Victor Amadeus of Sardinia had solemnly
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? 188 CROWN-PRINCE RETRIEVED. [BOOKVm
23d Oct 173].
abdicated in favour of his Son; went, for a twelvemonth
or more, into private felicity with an elderly Lady-
love whom he had long esteemed the first of women;
-- tired of such felicity, after a twelvemonth; demanded
his crown back, and could not get it! Lady-love and
he are taken prisoners; lodged in separate castles:*
and the wrath of the proud old gentleman is Olympian
in character, -- split an oak table, smiting it while he
spoke (say the cicerones); -- and his silence, and the
fiery daggers he looks, are still more emphatic. But
the young fellow holds out; you cannot play handy-
dandy with a king's crown, your Majesty! say his new
Ministers. Is and will continue King. "Not a bad
stroke of him," thinks Schulenburg, --
-- "especially if his Father meant to play him the same trick,"
that is, clap him in prison. Not a bad stroke; -- which per-
haps there is another that could imitate, "if his Papa gave
"him the opportunity! But this Papa will take good care;
"and the Queen will not forget the Sardinian business,
"when he talks again of abdicating," as he does when in ill
humour. --
"But now had not we better have been friends with Eng-
land, should war rise upon that Sardinian business? General
"Schulenburg," -- the famed Venetian Fieldmarshal, bruiser
of the Turks in Candia,** my honoured Uncle, who sometimes -
* 2d September 1730, abdicated, went to Chamber? ; reclaims, is locked
in Blvoll, 8th October 1731 (news of it just come to Schulenburg); dies
there, 31st October 1732, his 67th year.
*? Same who was beaten by Charles XII. before; a worthy soldier
nevertheless, say the Authorities: Lift of him by Varnhagen von Ease
(Biographitche Denkmale, Berlin, 1845).
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? CHAP, v. ] schulenburg's third letter. 189
22(1 Oct. 1731.
used to visit his Sister the Maypole, now Emerita, in Lon-
don, and sip beer and take tobacco on an evening, with
George I. of famous memory, --he also "writes me this Victor-
"Amadeusnews, from Paris;" so that it is certain; Ex-King
locked in Kivoli near a fortnight ago: "he, General Schulen-
"burg, says farther, To judge by the outside, all appears
" very quiet; but many think, at the bottom of the bag it will
"not be the same. " --
"lam, with respect," your Excellency's much in buckram,
"Le Comte de Schoulenboubg. " *
So far Lieutenant-General Schulenburg; whom we
thank for these contemporary glimpses of a young man
that has become historical, and of the scene he lived
in. And with these three accidental utterances, as if
they (which are alone left) had been the sum of all he
said in the world, let the Lieutenant-General withdraw
now into silence: he will turn up twice again, after
half-a-score of years, once in a nobler than talking
attitude, the close-harnessed, stalwart, slightly atrabiliar
military gentleman of the old Prussian school.
These glimpses of the Crown-Prince, reflected on
us in this manner, are not very luculent to the reader, -- light being indifferent, and mirror none of the best: -- but some features do gleam forth, good and not so
good; which, with others coming, may gradually coalesce
into something conceivable. A Prince clearly of much
spirit, and not without petulance; abundant fire, much
of it shining and burning irregularly at present; being
sore held down from without, and anomalously situated.
* Fb'rster, Hi.
