While Wilhelmine’s servant gave himself up to his hopes, slowly down
the broad avenue, an elegant four-in-hand carriage rolled past him, and
stopped at the house where lived Colonel Bischofswerder, long before he
had reached the Brandenburg Gate. A gentleman sprang out, hastening
past the footman into the house, where a servant evidently awaited
his arrival, and preceded him with devout mien, throwing open the wide
folding-doors and announcing, in a solemn voice--“His excellency, Count
Cagliostro.” He then respectfully withdrew, bowing profoundly as the
count passed, and closed quickly and noiselessly the doors behind him.
The two gentlemen within hastened to meet the count, who nodded
smilingly, and extended to them with a gracious condescension his white
hand sparkling with diamonds. “My dear brothers,” said he, “you have
unfortunately announced me the truth--Wilhelmine Enke is faithless--is
an apostate.”
“A courtesan, ensnared by the devil of unchastity,” murmured the elder
of the two--a man of long, lank figure, pale, pock-marked face, the
broad high forehead shaded with but little hair, the watery blue eyes
turned upward, as if in pious ecstasy, and the large, bony hands either
folded as if in prayer, or as if in quiet contemplation, twirling his
thumbs around each other. “I have always said so,” said he, with a
long-drawn sigh; “she is a temptress, whom Satan, in bodily repetition
of himself, has placed by the prince’s side, and his salvation cannot be
counted upon until this person is removed.”
“And you, my beloved brother, think otherwise--do you not?” asked
Cagliostro, gently.
“Yes,” answered Bischofswerder, “you know well, sublime master and
ruler, how much I esteem and love the worthy and honorable Wollner,
and how much weight his opinion has with me. In all my reports to the
Invisible Fathers I have always particularly mentioned him, and it was
upon my wish and proposal that they appointed him director of one of the
three Berlin circles. He is occupied near me in the confederacy, and
is also in the service of the crown prince, for it was by my especial,
earnest recommendation that his highness called him to Berlin from the
exchequer of Prince Henry at Rheinsberg, that he might give him lectures
in politics and other branches of administration, I do not say it to
boast, although I have always regarded it as an honor to have opened the
way to a distinguished man, to have his great talents properly valued.
I only say it to prove my high appreciation of dear brother Wollner, and
to defend myself, master, in your eyes, that I differ in opinion from
him, and do not advise a violent removal of this person, to whom the
prince is more attached than he himself knows of.”
“It is not necessary to excuse yourself to me, my son,” said Cagliostro,
pompously. “The eyes which the Invisibles have lighted up with a beam of
revelation, see into the depths of things, and reveal the most hidden.
I have glanced into your hearts, and I will tell you that which I have
therein read. You, Hans Rudolph von Bischofswerder, belong to the world;
its joys and sorrows agitate you. You have a longing for science and the
knowledge of the Invisibles, and you would also enjoy the Visibles, and
take part in the pleasures of life. What you would allow yourself, that
you would also grant to your royal master, whose friend and leader you
are, and who, one day, will be the future king and ruler of the visible
world, and a faithful son and servant of the Invisibles. Is it not
thus?”
“It is so,” answered Bischofswerder, who, with wondering astonishment,
drank in every word that fell from Cagliostro’s lips as a revelation.
“You have read the inmost thoughts of my heart, and what I scarcely
suspected myself, you are knowing of, lord and master.”
“Toil and strive, my son, and you shall rise to the highest grade, in
which presentiment and recognition, thinking and knowing, are one.”
He extended to Bischofswerder his hand, who fervently pressed it to his
lips; then turned to Wollner, who, with upturned gaze and folded hands,
might have been praying, for his thumbs were not turning around, but
rested, quietly crossed.
“You, my son and brother,” continued Cagliostro, with his lofty, haughty
reserve, “your thoughts are diverted from earth, and the joys of this
world have no charm for you!” “I have laid the oath of virtue and
chastity upon the altar of the Invisibles,” replied Wollner, with
a severe tone of voice. “I have given myself to a pious life of
abstinence, and sworn to employ every means to lead those that I can
attain to upon the narrow path which leads to the paradise of science,
of knowledge, and heavenly joys. How could I forget my oath, which is to
win the prince, who is to become a light and shield in the holy order,
from the broad course of vice, to the pathway of the blest? How can I
bear to see him lost in sin who is elected to virtue, and who longs for
the light of knowledge?”
“But, in order to bear the light in its brightness, he must have passed
through the darkness and gloom of sin,” said Cagliostro. “After the days
of error follow those of knowledge. This is what causes the mildness
of our brother Theophilus, whom the earthly world calls Bischofswerder,
whilst you, brother Chrysophorus, demand from the prince the severest
virtue, which is the first great vow of the brothers advancing in the
holy order of the Rosicrucians. You are both wrong and both right. It is
well to be lenient as brother Theophilus, but that must have its limit,
and the night wanderer who stands upon the brink of a precipice must
be awakened, but not with violent words, or calling loudly his name,
because a sudden awakening would only hasten his fall. Slowly and
carefully must he be roused; as one would by degrees accustom the
invalid eyes to the mid-day, so must the light of virtue and knowledge
dawn upon the eyes, ill from vice, with prudent foresight. Hear my
proposal. Summon the three circles of the brothers of the highest degree
to a sitting to-night. You have told me that the prince desires to
belong to the seeing ones, and be in communion with the spiritual world.
This night his wish shall be fulfilled, to see the spirits, and a new
future shall rise before him. My time is limited; let us arrange every
thing, for the voices of the Invisibles already call me home.”
At this instant a modest knocking was heard at the door, which was
repeated at different intervals.
“It is my servant,” said Bischofswerder, “and he has undoubtedly an
important communication for me.”
He opened the door, speaking with the person outside in a low tone, and
returned with a sealed note.
Cagliostro, apparently, was lest in deep thought and indifferent to the
conversation without, directing quietly and calmly, in the mean time,
a few questions to Wollner, and, as it seemed, listening only to his
answers. Yet as Bischofswerder approached him, saying, “it is, indeed,
important news; I have proof in hand that--” he interrupted him with a
commanding motion, and finished the broken sentence: “--that Wilhelmine
Enke is a powerful adversary, having connection with the court, as this
letter from her is directed to Minister Herzberg. Is it not this that
you would say, Theophilus?”
Astonished, he replied in the affirmative, begging his master to read
it.
“It is unnecessary,” replied Cagliostro, waving back the letter; “to the
seeing eyes every thing is revealed. This person announces to Minister
von Herzberg that the deceiver and necromancer, Cagliostro, in his
flight from Mittau, has visited her to menace her. She begs protection
for herself and an arrest for me; that I am known as Count Julien, at
the hotel King of Portugal, at Berlin, and that haste is necessary.”
Both gentlemen glanced astonished and enraptured, first at the sealed
epistle and then at the great Magus.
“Open the letter and convince yourselves of the contents!” commanded
Cagliostro.
“It is unnecessary,” cried Bischofswerder, with enthusiasm. “We
recognize in you truth and knowledge; you have revealed to us the
contents.”
“Nay, there is a lingering doubt in the mind of brother Chrysophorus!”
said Cagliostro, regarding Woellner fixedly, who stood with downcast
eyes before him.
“My ruler and master,” stammered Woellner, in confusion, “I dare not
doubt, only--”
“You would only be convinced, open then the letter,” interrupted
Cagliostro, sarcastically.
With a sharp knife, Bischofswerder cut the end of the envelope, and
handed the letter to him.
“Give it to Chrysophorus,” commanded the count. “He shall read it, and
may the incredulous become a believer!”
Woellner perused the epistle with a slightly tremulous voice, stopping
now and then, at an illegible word, which his master quickly supplied
to him, finishing the sentence as correctly as if he held the writing in
his hand.
The contents were exactly as Cagliostro had given them, and the
farther Wollner read, the more his voice quivered and Bischofswerder’s
enthusiasm increased.
As the reading was finished, the former sank, with uplifted hands,
before his master, as if imploring mercy from a mighty, crushing power.
“I have been unbelieving as Tobias, doubting as Paul; have mercy on
me, O master! for in this hour the divine light of belief and knowledge
banishes doubt from my sinful heart. I acknowledge thy supernatural
power and heavenly wisdom! My whole being bows in humility before you
and your sublimity, and henceforth I will only be your humble scholar
and servant, the tool of your will. Forgive me, all-knowing one, if
my heart doubted. Breathe upon me the breath of knowledge, and lay
thy august right hand upon my head, and penetrate me with thy heavenly
power.”
“Have mercy upon me also,” cried Bischofswerder, as he kneeled beside
Woellner, and, like him, raised his hands imploringly to Cagliostro.
“Breathe upon me the breath of thy grace, and regard me, the repentant
and unworthy, with thy heavenly glance!”
Cagliostro looked to heaven, and from his lips there fell disconnected
words of exhortation; suddenly he drew forth his hands, which he had
pushed into his gown and crossed upon his breast, stretching them out
with wide-spread fingers.
“Come to me, ye spirits!” he cried, in a loud, thundering voice. “Ye
spirits of fire and air, come to me! Ye shall flame and burn upon the
heads of these two persons and announce to them that the Invisibles are
with us. Come to me, ye spirits of fire!”
He clinched his fingers, extending them again, and upon the points
there danced and flickered a blue light. A heavenly smile shone upon the
beautiful face of the Magus, his hands slowly sank upon the heads of
the kneeling ones, the flames gliding upon their heads, resting there a
moment, and then dying away.
“The Invisibles have proclaimed themselves to you through the sign of
fire,” cried Cagliostro. “The sacred flame has glowed upon your heads,
and I now press upon your brow the solemn kiss of consecration and
knowledge!”
He bowed down to the kneeling ones. It seemed as if a cloud of perfume
had passed over their glowing faces, or as if an odorous lily had been
pressed upon their foreheads, and their hearts quivered with delight.
He passed his hand lightly over their faces, and a feeling of rapture
spread through their whole being. Then as he commanded them to rise,
they obeyed, without realizing that they had limbs or body, but regarded
the miracle-worker, entranced with his smile.
Cagliostro, with hasty decision and earnest, commanding air, made a few
opposite strokes in the air, and immediately the faces of the magnetized
looked as if they had awakened from a dream of splendor and delight to
insipid, flat reality.
“I have permitted you to behold, for an instant, the mysteries and
miracles which are serviceable to the knowing ones,” said Cagliostro,
with calm earnestness. “Your souls were in communion with the
Invisibles, and from the source of knowledge a spark of illumination
fell upon your heads. Guard it as a heavenly secret that no one should
know of, and now let us continue our conversation.”
“Permit me once more to lay my head at your feet, and receive power from
the touch thereof,” implored Bischofswerder.
“Let me embrace your knees, and entreat pardon and grace,” begged
Woellner, as he sank down to clasp them, and the former threw himself at
the feet of his master, passionately kissing them.
Smilingly he received their homage, and assisted them to rise.
“Now let us speak in a human, reasonable manner, my friends. Brother
Theophilus, you, first of all, return the letter to the envelope and
seal it.”
Bischofswerder obeyed; taking from the table a little bottle and a small
brush, he carefully applied an adhesive substance to the edges, pressing
them firmly together.
“Master, no one could discover that it had been opened. Command what
shall be done with it.”
“Give it to your servant, that he may return it to him who brought it,
and the latter can now deliver it at its address.”
“To the Minister Herzberg!” they both cried, amazed. “It is impossible;
he is a sworn enemy of the holy order and your own heavenly person. He
could take the most violent measures, and cause your excellency to be
arrested.”
“I believe it,” smiled Cagliostro. “The great Frederick would announce
triumphantly that he had had the great Semiramis of the North taken,
which the Russian police had failed to accomplish. It would be a welcome
triumph for unbelievers and fools, and they would trumpet it joyfully
through the world! It must not be; although my spirit in its power and
might would soon release my body, yet I will not grant this momentary
triumph to my enemies. My time is limited; I must forth to Egypt, where
the Brothers of the Millennium will assemble in the course of a week in
the pyramids, to announce to me their will for the coming century. I
am the Spirit of God, which the Invisibles have willed to enter a human
form, therefore it must be regarded as sacred and protected.”
“Allow me to guard, with my life, your sublime person!” cried
Bischofswerder.
“And I also implore you to grant me the happiness to watch over the
security of your heavenly self, and defend it to the last drop of my
blood!” cried Woellner; “only tell us what we have to do.”
“Above all things obey my command concerning the letter,” replied the
count, smiling.
Bischofswerder submissively went out with the epistle, returning in a
few moments. “It is as you have ordered: in a quarter of an hour it will
be in the hands of Minister Herzberg.”
“No,” replied the count, fixing his eyes upon empty space, “it will
not be there, for Herzberg is not at home. I now see him driving in a
carriage with four black steeds to the country. At this instant he
is crossing a bridge, now he enters a town, turning down one of the
streets, where the noise of the wheels is lost. Again I hear him,
leaving by the gate, ascending a broad avenue.”
“It is the route to Sans-Souci,” murmured Bischofswerder, in a low voice,
but the count must have understood him, as he repeated aloud:
“Yes, that is the route to Sans-Souci, and the lonely, fretful old king
will keep his minister the entire day, and will not receive the missive
from his secret female accomplice until his return in the evening, and
then he will dispatch his bailiffs in all haste to the hotel to arrest
Count St. Julien, and forward an order to every gate to forbid his
departure. It will be too late, however--he will have already departed.”
“Departed!” cried the two gentlemen, frightened. “Will you, then,
forsake us?”
“Hush, my brothers, be quiet!” answered Cagliostro. “I shall have
departed for the profane, but I will remain here for the consecrated
until to-morrow morning. It oft happens that the lofty even must come
down, and the brilliant obscure themselves. To-day I must descend from
my spiritual height, and humble myself in the dust of lowliness. When
the unholy and unconsecrated essay to behold that which they should not
with their earthly eyes; they must be blinded with earthly dust, and for
those which are not worthy of miracles, we must sometimes condescend to
jugglers’ tricks. By the latter I will mislead my enemies to-day. How
many gates are there to the city of Berlin?”
“There are nine, master.”
“Send immediately messengers around in your circles to order eight
travelling-carriages and sixteen large black trunks. Further, send
me eight confidential discreet men of my height and size, with eight
perukes, exactly the cut of mine. Command four post-horses, with two
postilions for eight different addresses. This is all that is necessary
for the moment.”
“All shall be faithfully and quickly accomplished,” said Bischofswerder,
humbly. “We will divide the execution of your orders, and there only
remains to appoint the time and place when and where to direct the
postilions.”
“All this will follow; forget not, in trifling, earthly things, the
great heavenly circumstances. Summon the consecrated of the highest
degree of your circle to go to-night to the palace of Prince Frederick
William at Potsdam, and under the very eyes of the old freethinking king
we will open to the crown prince the doors of the spiritual world, and
consecrate him to the highest degree. But first the Invisibles shall
speak with him, and announce the heavenly region of the unapproachable.
Finish the preparations, my brothers--fulfil exactly and punctually my
orders, and then come to the hotel to receive my last commands.”