At a meeting of the burgomasters of the neighborhood, held on New
Year's day, it was determined to call a general meeting of electors, to
assemble in the chief town of the district, and to receive a report in
regard to the last session of the Parliament.
On New Year's Day Ernst left us, as the Prince and his ministers
intended to hunt during the next few days in the district which was in
charge of his chief.
When he was about to leave, Martella said to him, "You have good reason
to feel happy. The walls have heard you with joy, and every being in
there thinks well of you and me."
"And you?" asked he.
"I need not be thinking of you. For you are my other self."
It was a clear, mild, winter day when, accompanied by Joseph and
Richard, I drove to the neighboring town in which the meeting was to be
held. It was Richard's intention to return to the University at the
close of the meeting.
Rothfuss had fully recovered. Displaying his new stockings, and wearing
his forester's coat, he sat up on the driver's box, while he managed
the bays. Although he entertained a deep contempt for mankind in
general, and for that portion of it that lived in our neighborhood in
particular, he was always willing to take part in anything that was
done in my honor.
He often remarked that the people did not deserve that one should walk
three steps for their sake. He would never forget the way in which they
had treated the chieftains of 1848; or that a man like Ludwig, to whom
he always accorded most generous praise, was obliged to leave his home,
while no one had a thought for him, or for the one who had suffered
himself to be imprisoned for his sake.
The road led through the valley, and was cheerful with the sound of the
sleigh-bells. Rothfuss cracked his whip, and soon distanced all the
other drivers.
Here and there, sleighs might be seen coming down the hillside. At the
village taverns, teams were resting, and from every window, as well as
from passers on the highway, came respectful greetings, and at times
even enthusiastic cheers.
In token of his thanks, Rothfuss cracked his whip still more loudly.
He would look around from time to time, as if noting how much pleasure
these tokens of respect afforded me. But once he said to Richard, "It
is all very well, Mr. Professor; but if the weather were to change, all
these cheers would freeze in the mouths that are now uttering them. We
have known something of that kind already."
I must admit, however, that these attentions did my heart good. There
is nothing in the associations of home that is more grateful than to be
able to say to one's self, "I live in the midst of my voters. I do my
duty without fear or favor, and without my asking for office, my
fellow-citizens select me as their representative in the councils of
the nation."
Like the breath of the woods such homage has a fragrance peculiarly
its own. I cannot believe in the sincerity of one who, from so-called
modesty, or affected indifference to the opinions of his
fellow-citizens, would refuse office when thus offered to him. I
frankly admit that it is not so unpleasant to me to find that others
think at least as well, or even better of me, than I do.
This of course brings to mind Rautenkron the forester, who would
stoutly combat my opinion in this matter, for he thinks that a love of
such honors is the worst sort of dependence.
When I arrived at the meeting, I made my report in a quiet
matter-of-fact manner. It is time for our people to learn that the
affairs of the state should have a higher use than merely to serve as
the occasion for fine speeches. Funk was sitting on the front bench,
with a follower of his on either side of him. One of them was known as
Schweitzer-Schmalz. He was a fat, puffed up farmer, who, to use his own
words, took great delight in "trumping" the students and public
officials.
But a few words as to Schmalz. A man of his dimensions requires more
space than I have just given him. He was one of those men who, when
prosperous, continually eat and drink of the best. A red vest decked
with silver buttons covered his fat paunch, and was generally
unbuttoned.
His name was Schmalz, but he had been dubbed Schweitzer-Schmalz,
because of his having once said, "I do not see why we should not be as
good as our neighbors the Swiss."
He hated the Prussians; first and foremost, for the reason that one
ought to hate them. This is the first article of faith in the catechism
of the popular journals. And although questions as to the religious
catechism might be tolerated, this article must be received without a
murmur. Besides, they were impertinent enough to speak high German; and
he knew, moreover, that abuse of the Prussians was relished in certain
high quarters.
He attempted by his boasting to provoke every one, and was himself at
last provoked to find that the whole world laughed at him. He had a
habit of rattling the silver coins in his pocket while uttering his
unwelcome remarks.
Funk aided and encouraged him in his swaggering ways. Funk's other
follower was a lawyer of extremely radical views. Funk always acted as
if he were their servant, although, as he himself said, he was the
bear-leader.
In his confidential moments, he would often say: "The people is really
a stupid bear; fasten a ring in its nose, and you can lead it about as
you would a sheep, and the best nose-ring for your purpose is the
church."
The question of extending a branch of the valley road into the
neighboring state, gave rise to a lively debate. I declared that no
private association would undertake the enterprise, unless interest on
the investment were guaranteed, and that I would oppose it, because its
promised advantages were not sufficient to justify us in voting the
money of the state for the purpose, instead of spending our own.
The effect of this was a very perceptible diminution of the favor with
which I had been regarded. And when, afterward, a vote of thanks to me
was proposed, it was coldly received.
I was just about to descend from the tribune, when I heard Funk say to
Schmalz, who was sitting by his side, "Speak out! It is your own
affair." Schmalz now asked me why I had voted for the abolition of the
freedom of the woods, or, in other words, the privilege of gathering up
the moss, and the small sticks of wood with which to cover the floor of
the stables. To him personally it was a matter of little concern, but
humbler and poorer people could not so well afford to do without it.
This gave rise to much loud talk. All seemed to be speaking at once,
and saying, "Such things should not be tolerated."
When I at last obtained an opportunity to make myself heard, I told
them that the community had an interest in the preservation of the
forests, and suggested that it was necessary to seek other means of
gaining the object to be attained, in order that the forests need not
suffer.
And when I went on to tell them that we would be unable to take proper
care of our forests until we had a general law on the subject applying
to the whole empire, and that the lines separating our different states
ran through the midst of our woods, I heard some one call out, "Of
course! He owns forests on both sides of the line." And Schmalz laughed
out at the top of his voice, holding his fat paunch the while. "What a
fuss the man is making about a few little sticks!" he said.
I descended from the tribune, feeling that I had not convinced my
constituents.
At the banquet all was life again. Herr Von Rontheim was among the
guests. He had courage enough to confess to being one of the
opposition, of which he had become a member against his will. He was an
impoverished member of the old nobility. In figure and in education he
seemed intended for a courtier. But now he was filling an office that
entailed much labor upon him. He attended to his duties punctually and
carefully, but in a perfunctory manner. He had given in his adhesion to
the late liberal ministry. In view of his position at Court, this was
an ill-considered step; for, when the ministers were removed, he was at
once ordered to the capital, and assigned to official duties that he
found it hard to do justice to, for his education had better fitted him
for the life of a courtier than for that of a painstaking government
deputy.
Rontheim sat beside me, and assured me that the fall of the one man who
had been appointed minister to the federation would soon draw that of
the rest after him.
He spoke as if he knew all about the matter, and merely wanted to find
out how much I knew on the subject. The artifice was too apparent,
however; he knew just as little as I did. In the course of
conversation, he asserted that the existence of the lesser German
States does not find its justification in greater privileges than are
accorded by the general government, but because they can thus secure a
more perfect administration of the minor details of government--a view
on which I had touched in my report.
I was not a little astonished when he told me, in the strictest
confidence, that I had been mentioned at Court with special approval.
He assured me that he knew this, for he had lots of relatives there. He
had indeed once been called upon to furnish information in regard to
myself and my family; and he felt assured that his report had reached
the ears of the Prince. He felt convinced that, with the next decided
turn in affairs, it would not be my son Richard, but myself, to whom an
exalted position would be offered. He said that he intended to report
my behavior of that very day, in a quarter where the courage which can
face popular disfavor would be appreciated. He treated me more
cordially than ever, and plainly signified that he felt assured of my
good-will.
I had never given him an occasion to joke with me, and when I replied
that what he had told me was so great a surprise that I did not know
how to answer him, he said that he fully appreciated my feelings. He
furnished me with another bit of information, which was a much greater
surprise. He told me that my son Ernst had, but a short time before
that, applied at the office of the kreis-director[3] for permission to
emigrate to America, and had requested them to furnish him with the
requisite documents, at the earliest possible moment.
Ernst still owed two years of military service, and his release could
only be effected as an act of grace on the part of the government.
This, the director added, presented no difficulty, if I chose to exert
my influence. The whole affair seemed a riddle to me.
Ernst had, in all likelihood, committed this hasty action during a
sudden fit of impatience, and I determined to reprove him at the first
opportunity. It seemed very strange that he should be so careful to
prevent me from knowing of an undertaking which he would be unable to
accomplish without my assistance.
I must have looked very serious, for several old friends of mine
approached me and assured me that in spite of the popular opposition
they still were true and faithful to me.
I feel tempted to give the names of a large number of wealthy
farmers and magistrates, who are of much more consequence than
Schweitzer-Schmalz, and who represent the very backbone of our country
life. But when I have said that they are conscientious in public
affairs and just and honorable in private ones, I have told all that is
necessary.
Among the guests there was the so-called "peace captain," a tall and
well-dressed wealthy young dealer in timber. While still an officer, he
had fallen in love with a daughter of the richest saw-mill owner in the
valley. The father refused his consent to the marriage unless the
lieutenant would give him a written promise to resign from the army as
soon as a war should break out. The lieutenant did not care to do this
and preferred resigning at once, which he did with the rank of captain.
He had become quite conversant with his business, although there was
something in his manner that made it seem as if he had just laid off
his uniform.
He still retained one trait of his military life, and that was an utter
indifference to politics. It was merely to honor me that he attended
the banquet; and besides, was I not the father-in-law of an officer in
active service? The captain, whose name was Rimminger, seated himself
at my side.