The Emperor of Austria, the Emperor of Germany, Mr. Abbott, and
Fessenden Abbott sat in secret and informal conclave in a small
audience-chamber in the Hofburg. The host sat behind a table between
two high and heavy golden candlesticks. The Emperors, erect in their
uniforms, were imposing figures. They had the free supple upright
carriage of men whose lives have been more than half passed in the
saddle, and their eyes sparkled with the evidence of exercise and fresh
air, regular habits, and systematic care. Mr. Abbott, in a frock-coat,
was huddled in a perpendicular chair of crimson velvet and gilded oak,
in a vain endeavor to make himself comfortable, and surreptitiously
consuming tabloids; suffering in the stomach he had failed to treat as
a brother the tortures of the damned. He looked with envy at the older
Emperor who had been born some twenty years before himself, had endured
enough public cares and private castigations to kill half a dozen
Americans, and looked more vigorous than many in their youth. It was
even possible that he might outlive the young man who aspired to be his
son-in-law; toward whom his eyes, in spite of his will, wandered in the
fascination of a shock from which he found himself unable to recover.
It was now a fortnight since he had been made aware that nothing less
was asked of him than that he should give his daughter in marriage to
a scion of a country not only devoid of every tradition of royalty,
but of an hereditary aristocracy; and while he was still stunned and
dully alarmed for what he conceived to be his failing wits, this
demand had been backed up by an offer which had awakened him, it is
true, but, he having outlived the age of romance and enthusiasm, had
by no means met with favor, nor even credulity. To avoid war in any
form was the final ambition of his life, and he was proud of his
position as keeper of the peace of central and eastern Europe. On the
other hand, he admitted that were he forty years younger he would
doubtless have grasped any reasonable opportunity to rid Europe of the
governments of Russia and Turkey, civilize and give happiness to those
two countries, estimable enough in themselves, and mount to a place
in history high above the mistakes and disasters of his unfortunate
reign. But he was old, and with the selfishness of the old had long
since resolved that he would close his reign in peace could it be
done without dishonor. As for the inventions, they seemed to him as
chimerical as the prospective telegraph did to his forefathers, as the
telephone would seem to an Esquimaux. Moreover, that the restless and
uncertain quantity who claimed him as his “fatherly friend” was the
one from whom the astounding proposition came, was enough to fill his
bosom to repletion with distrust; the more especially as the invention
was the property of an American notoriously the German’s friend. The
Emperor took little interest in American history or affairs, but it
happened that he knew a good deal about Fessenden Abbott; not only
through the intimacy of Alexandra with his daughter, nor yet through
an acquaintance of long standing with Mr. Abbott--for whom he had a
very considerable respect--but because of the young man’s menacing
exploit in South America, his establishment of certain and apparently
impregnable industries in Europe, and his reputation as a manipulator
of men. No doubt he was the only man in his raw country who would have
dared so far as to love a princess of royal blood, much less have had
the incomprehensible audacity to bargain for her hand; but of all men
in any objectionable republic whatsoever, the Emperor-King knew of no
one to whom under severest stress he would longer hesitate to give any
sort of recognition. He was aware of young Abbott’s principles and
theories; they had been hammered into his smarting ears by the only
one of his children who had been dowered to the full with the haughty
and intolerant spirit of her race; and he looked upon him as a menace
to the best that was left in the world. The wealth of these two men
appalled him, albeit he was the richest monarch in Europe; and as he
listened once more to the description of the incredible inventions and
their certainties, he found himself staring at the little old man in
the chair and the vigorous restless young man standing by the window
much as a half-dazed man watches the approach of a land cyclone,
whirling houses, people, and trees in its funnel.
He had been astounded that one of his generals, whom he had sent
to Berlin to witness the experiments, had returned convinced, and
advocating war; and he had been still more astonished and upset
when, in the formal consultation which at the insistence of the
German Emperor he had held with his cabinets, he found that to a man
they were for accepting the offer of the American. During the past
week his ears had rung to no tune but the glorious finish of his
reign, the inestimable service he had it in his power to bestow upon
Christianity and Europe, the sure future of his Dual Monarchy--which
the intoxicating knowledge of its greatness would solidify. The only
thing they had stumbled over was the condition; for the Emperor was
no more conservative than his aristocracy, and the idea of allying
the most exclusive monarchy in the world with the most blatant and
dangerous of republics, that moreover which had recently whipped one
of the ancient states of Europe, was a huge pill for them to swallow.
Had it not been that they all felt that Europe would be well rid of
this particular princess--even Königsegg, with this alternative--it is
doubtful if, no matter what their reason for approving this projected
war, they would have opened their batteries upon the Emperor But as it
was, the old sovereign, who had permitted these many years his advisers
to do so much of his thinking had an irritated subconsciousness of
being trapped, and hardly realized yet that he had actually gone so far
as to grant this private audience and to permit the royal countenance
to shine upon a manifest impossibility.
It was notable that the Emperor of Germany, in spite of his warm
friendship for Fessenden, had drawn his chair close to his host’s,
and for the moment was in fuller sympathy with him; an unconscious
manifestation of that _esprit de corps_ which exists among great
rulers, no matter what their differences. Fessenden felt this but did
not resent it; but he also felt that it left him practically alone,
his father’s faculties being necessarily bent to introspection; but
the isolation merely put him on his mettle, and he had fought too many
battles single-handed to feel any faintness of spirit. Even he did not
compare favorably in freshness with the two Emperors, for he had known
too many anxious hours in the past three weeks, too many sleepless
nights; but his temper was now cast in iron.
“Your general, as well as the Prussian generals who have witnessed
the experiments, are satisfied that failure is impossible,” he said,
having finished the description of the inventions, which, like all
great inventions, were simple enough. “It will be the first time in the
history of the world that a war will have commenced with no uncertainty
whatever as to the issue.”
The Austrian Emperor answered with a German proverb, the equivalent of
“There’s many a slip ’twixt cup and lip.”
“We include no bunglers in our calculations, sir,” said Fessenden
dryly. “Although every precaution will be taken against their
admittance in the first place.”
The Emperor turned to his brother of Germany, who answered promptly:
“I will confess that I entertained the identical doubts of your
Majesty, at first, but I have since been fully convinced. And I am
also convinced that it is our great and only chance. Sooner or later,
doubtless before half a dozen years have passed, Russia will be at
war with Japan. That war may involve the rest of Europe, including
ourselves; and fighting for our lives perhaps instead of shaping
history as we think best. Sooner still there is bound to be trouble
again in Turkey, which may involve one or more of the Balkans, and if
we delay we shall once more be in the periodically mortifying position
of daring to do nothing for the peace of Europe, for humanity, in our
fear of Russia. At present we are in the not imposing position of
merely holding on to our inheritances by what my American friend would
call main strength. I conceive that a sovereign has a higher duty. This
great power is not given to him in the interest of his inheritance
alone, although no doubt its welfare is his first duty, but as a
stepping-stone to a greater power which shall benefit the human race.
It is often the case, as your Majesty well knows, that a ruler may be
so confined by circumstances that he can make no such attempt without
causing disaster instead of benefit, but the great men of history have
been alive to the great moment. I believe that ours has come, your
Majesty.”
The old Emperor darted a glance at his rival and friend, as though to
note if his tongue were in his cheek. He answered with the same accent
of respect, however.
“I cannot fail to respond to words so stirring, your Majesty, and I
need not add that my conception of the lofty duties of a ruler is
precisely the same as your own. But war in any case is a stupendous
calamity, if only for the loss of life it incurs. And in any conditions
the added responsibilities of conquered territory are among the
weightiest considerations which must always affect a ruler no longer
young. In this case, with the half of Russia and Turkey and the Balkans
to add to my present heavy load, I confess the prospect does not allure
me! Reflect, your Majesty, that I have already a perpetual nightmare
in Hungary. If I were a generation younger I might contemplate with
equanimity the additional problem of sixty or seventy million more
subjects clamoring for constitutions, but not now!”
William did not reply that he would gladly relieve his august friend of
all but his countenance; he answered quickly.
“It will be our part to civilize these people, to give them the benefit
of the reforms they have long been promised and never granted. That
will keep them quiet for a while. When they reach the stage where
enough has begotten a desire for more, then we can deal with them by
another method for which we will have the inspiration at the right
moment. And in this war, your Majesty, there need be no loss of life on
our side; there will of course on the other for a short time, but less
by many thousands than both Turkey and Russia will cause before Europe
is many years older, less than die of famine and filth every year.”
He stood up, his eyes flashing, his cheeks glowing. Europeans, unlike
Anglo-Saxons, are not afraid of expressing lofty sentiments, and
William was the last man to consider whether people approved or not
of any sentiments he chose to entertain. “I believe that it is our
destiny, your Majesty,” he cried. “And that it is the greatest destiny
that ever has befallen any sovereign. For, I swear to you all, I have
no desire to be a second Napoleon, crushing and ravaging, but to rule
men for their good, to have a vast empire in which human life shall
be as protected, as safe, as it is in my own empire to-day, where all
may have a chance to prosper and be happy, to worship God in their
own way, where such tyranny of the mind and body as still exists in
these benighted parts of Europe--to our shame, your Majesty, to our
shame!--will be abolished so completely that the children of those
who suffer so bitterly to-day shall listen to tales of the past with
incredulous amazement. I have burned for this since the day I ascended
the throne, but I had no right to plunge my country into a war in
which the chances were all against me. Now I believe that the day has
come!--the day has come! And I beg, I implore your Majesty not to
throw away this opportunity to make our names and our empires the most
invincible on earth, our opportunity for good such as no sovereign
before has ever dared to dream of. If we let it pass we deserve the
worst that can befall us. But it is impossible for me to believe that
your Majesty will let it pass. I have seen it all before me! I have
already lived in that future--ruled by the sword, by kings divinely
appointed, sternly, inflexibly, but with wisdom, with kindness, with
justice. I have been cramped, thwarted, balked at every turn; there
have been times when my interest, even my courage, has almost failed
me; but with a power so vast as this conquest would give me, I should
be invincible, the enemies in my present empire would crumble. Far from
fearing such increase of power, of responsibility, I court it, I am
eager for it, for with no lesser weapons can I accomplish the destiny
to which I was born.”
Even Mr. Abbott had forgotten his pangs, and a faint glow of excitement
had entered his gray cheeks. Fessenden, thrilling, forgot his own
desires for the moment: he knew that however the Emperor might feel
to-morrow that was the way he felt to-day. Indeed there had been little
exaggeration in his mood. William thoroughly believed in himself and
in his gifts and mission as a ruler; and no matter what the causes
of discontent which had bred the German socialist of to-day--causes
insignificant enough when compared with those of even Italy and Spain,
leaving out Russia and other barbarous states--no one questioned the
clock-work system of rule in his country, the security of life and
freedom of conscience, and the solid industrial basis on which he had
set it.
The Emperor of Austria knew him well enough to believe in him when he
was excited, at least, and he too felt a spark fly up from the ashes in
his breast. He answered temperately, however.
“I should be the last to forbid the fulfilment of such worthy
ambitions, your Majesty, had this opportunity come to us in the regular
and legitimate channels. But not only does it savor too much to my
mind, grown old in practicality, of Aladdin’s lamp, but it would place
us under an obligation to a republic on another continent which, it
seems to me, is full of portent.”
“The obligation is a personal one, your Majesty; and when we are in
possession of Europe I think we will be in a position to force our own
tariff conditions on the United States. More I cannot say.”
The older Emperor leaned across the table and fixed him with his eye.
“Your Majesty,” he said solemnly, “are there any conceivable conditions
in which you would marry your daughter to an American?”
William had expected this question, and had trusted to inspiration
to answer it without betraying the fact that no such circumstances
existed in the womb of Time. “Your Majesty,” he replied quickly, “may
I not answer your question with another? Is not the Archduchess Ranata
Theresia a menace in her own remarkable self to the peace of your
empire, and doubly so since she has given in Hungary the evidence of
her talents, and achieved a popularity that no sovereign in Europe
enjoys? I heartily wish she had been born a man, but as it is I must
frankly insist that the future peace of Europe depends as much upon her
removal as upon any other cause.”
“What you say is true enough,” replied the ruler of the Dual Monarchy
gloomily, “but she can be removed otherwise. You are informed of the
alliance I have in mind?”
“I am, your Majesty, and with all my humble deference for your judgment
I am forced to say that I do not believe such a marriage would effect
the result we desire. In the first place, it would be a contest of
two strong wills, and your daughter is a woman of Hapsburg gifts,
quite aside from her force of character; in the second place, she is
a woman of uncommon fascination. No doubt she would bind the Archduke
Aloys Franz hand and foot, and gratify her ambitions through him; it
must be remembered that she could not be asked to take the oath of
renunciation, your Majesty.”
The Emperor of Austria stirred uneasily. His daughter’s charm as a
woman had never seriously occurred to him, but he saw the danger in a
flash. Would it not indeed be better to get her out of Europe? But he
looked at the American leaning against the casement, encountered the
cold blue eyes before which millions seemed ever passing in review,
and stiffened. The temptation fled. The idea was preposterous enough,
without a son-in-law who would make him feel as if Europe were on a
library-shelf in an antique binding.
“She can be shut up,” he said briefly. “There is no necessity to
marry her at all. Such things have been done, and they can be done
again--with all kindness, of course, but as securely as if in an
underground dungeon.”
Fessenden strode forward and stood in front of the table.
“Is that your answer?” he asked.
“That is my answer.”
“That you would shut up a woman like that as if she were a lunatic
or an idiot, without liberty, without friends, until she went mad or
killed herself?”
“What would be done would be for the good of the state, and she herself
would see it in time.” The last words were not emphatic, but it was
evident that the gorge of the Emperor was rising.
“Well, sir, you will do nothing of the sort,” said Fessenden.
“What?” The Emperor was on his feet. Angry as he was, he stood erect
and majestic against the red wall, an imposing figure; but the old man
and the young man, the old world and the new, glared at each other
between the tall candelabra.
The other men had also risen. The Emperor of Germany, who had had an
instant of deep depression, felt his spirits rise, and at the same time
resented the light treatment of majesty.
“You will do nothing of the sort,” repeated Fessenden. “And before
the month is out you will give me your daughter in marriage here in
the Hofburg. I have had no desire to threaten you, to make you feel
your impotence; I hoped that, like the Emperor of Germany, you would
be sufficiently enlightened to take advantage of the offer I made--an
offer in which you would have had no share, by the way, but for the
daughter you propose to treat as if she were a wooden doll, or you
some long-forgotten Hapsburg. Now I will tell you, your Majesty, why
you will neither incarcerate her nor forbid her marriage to me. If you
withhold your consent for twenty-four hours, I shall take the train
to-morrow for St. Petersburg and make the same offer to the Russian
government. You may imagine how long they would hesitate. With such
assurance of success they would strike to-day instead of waiting a
half-dozen years for greater preparedness. Then, sir, when Austria was
a province of Russia, your daughter would be the first prisoner set
free.”
The Emperor had fallen heavily into his chair. As Fessenden finished
speaking, William, with a gasp, walked to the window. There was a
moment of intense and painful silence, and then the German Emperor
spoke.
“He will keep his word, your Majesty.”
The Emperor rose. His face was almost purple. His heavy Hapsburg mouth
was trembling.
“I shall give you your answer before to-night,” he said to Fessenden,
although he did not look at him. “And now I beg that you will excuse
me. I am unable to stand any more.”
He passed out. William turned to Fessenden. His eyes sparkled with
excitement, but he frowned.
“The battle is won,” he said. “But what a _coup d’etat_! I am thankful
I knew nothing of it.”
“I should have been a poor sort of friend to have taken you as deeply
as that into my confidence.”
“Ah! Well, I wish the Emperor could have consented more gracefully. I
hated seeing him driven to the wall like that.”
“So did I. But it was success or failure. The odds were even. He is
the ruler of a great empire, skilled in power and diplomacy. If I had
hesitated to use the only available means of success, I should not be
worth my salt. For that matter, he merely followed a law of Nature.”
“Well, you have won, and I wish you joy. No doubt you will see her
before many days have passed.”
As they were leaving the room, Fessenden laid his hand on the other’s
arm. “Always remember,” he said, “that I am no trafficker in human
beings. I throw this great power into your hands because I believe you
will govern so wisely that your people will be fitted for the great
European republic before you die.”
“_Ach was!_” said the Emperor of Germany.