"At 1 o'clock I drove to the Grand-Chancellor's, where I found the Raths Friedel and Graun already arrived. The Chancellor," old Furst, "instructed us as to what we had to do when we came before the King. And then, towards 2 o'clock, he took us in his carriage to the Palace. We entered the room immediately at the end of the Great Hall. Here we found a heyduc [tall porter], by whom the Chancellor announced to the King that we were here. Heyduc soon came back to inquire, Whether the CABINETS-RATH Stellter," a Secretary or Short-hand writer of his Majesty's, "had arrived yet;and whether we [WE, what a doubt!] were Privy Councillors. We were then shortly after shown in to the King. We passed through three rooms, the second of which was that in which stands the CONFIDENZTAFEL [Table that goes by pulleys through the floor, and comes up refurnished, when you wish to be specially private with your friends]. In the fourth, a small room with one window, was the King. The Chancellor walked first; I followed him close; behind me came the Rath Friedel, and then Graun. Some way within, opposite the door, stood a screen; with our backs to this," the Kingward side of this, "we ranged ourselves,"--in respectful row of Four, Furst at the inward end of us (right or left is no matter).
"The King sat in the middle of the room, so that he could look point-blank at us; he sat with his back to the chimney, in which there was a fire burning. He had on a worn hat, of the clerical shape [old-military in fact, not a shovel at all]; CASSAQUIN,"short dressing-gown, "of red-brown (MORDORE) velvet;black breeches, and boots which came quite up over the knee.
His hair was not dressed. Three little benchlets or stools, covered with green cloth, stood before him, on which he had his feet lying [terribly ill of gout]. In his lap he had a sort of muff, with one of his hands in it, which seemed to be giving him great pain.
In the other hand he held our Sentence on the Arnold Case. He lay reclining (LAG) in an easy-chair; at his left stood a table, with various papers on it,--and two gold snuffboxes, richly set with brilliants, from which he kept taking snuff now and then.
"Besides us, there was present in the room the Cabinets-Rath Stellter [of the short-hand], who stood at a desk, and was getting ready for writing. The King looked at us, saying, 'Come nearer!'
Whereupon we advanced another step, and were now within less than two steps of him. He addressed himself to us three Raths, taking no notice at all of the Grand-Chancellor:--KING. "'Is it you who drew up the judgment in the Arnold case?'
WE (especially I, with a bow). "'Yea.'
"The King then turned to the Rath Friedel [to Friedel, as the central figure of the Three, perhaps as the portliest, though poor Friedel, except signing, had little cognizance of the thing, in which not he but Rannsleben was to have been spokesman], and addressed to Friedel those questions, of which, with their answers, there is Protocol published, under Royal authority, in the Berlin newspapers of December 14th, 1779;" [VON SEINER KONIGLICHENMAJESTAT HOCHSTSELBAT ANGEHALTENES PROTOCOLL: "Protocol [Minute of Proceedings] held by Royal Majesty's Highest-self, on the 11th December, 1779, concerning the three Kammergerichts-Raths, Friedel, Graun and Rannsleben:" in PREUSS, iii. 495.] Shorthand Stellter taking down what was said,--quite accurately, testifies Rannsleben.
From Stellter (that is to say from the "Protocol" just mentioned), or from Stellter and Rannsleben together, we continue the Dialogue:--KING to Friedel [in the tone of a Rhadamanthus suffering from gout]. "'To give sentence against a Peasant from whom you have taken wagon, plough and everything that enables him to get his living, and to pay his rent and taxes: is that a thing that can be done?'
FRIEDEL (and the two Mutes, bowing). "'No.'
KING. "'May a Miller who has no water, and consequently cannot grind, and, therefore, not earn anything, have his mill taken from him, on account of his not having paid his rent: is that just?'
FRIEDEL (and Mutes as aforesaid). "'No.'
KING. "'But here now is a Nobleman, wishing to make a Fish-pond:
to get more water for his Pond, he has a ditch dug, to draw into it the water from a small stream which drives a water-mill.
Thereby the Miller loses his water, and cannot grind; or, at most, can only grind in the spring for the space of a fortnight, and late in the autumn, perhaps another fortnight. Yet, in spite of all this, it is pretended that the Miller shall pay his rent quite the same as at the time when he had full water for his mill. Of course, he cannot pay his rent; his incomings are gone! And what does the Custrin Court of Justice do? It orders the mill to be sold, that the Nobleman may have his rent. And the Berlin Tribunal'"--Chancellor Furst, standing painfully mute, unspoken to, unnoticed hitherto, more like a broomstick than a Chancellor, ventures to strike in with a syllable of emendation, a small correction, of these words "Berlin Tribunal"--FURST (suggestively). "'Kammergericht [mildly suggestive, and perhaps with something in his tone which means, "I am not a broomstick!"]: Kammergericht!'
KING (to short-hand Stellter). "'Kammergerichts-Tribunal:--[then to Furst] Go you, Sir, about your business, on the instant!
Your Successor is appointed; with you I have nothing more to do.
Disappear!'"--"Ordered," says Official Rannsleben, "ordered the Grand-Chancellor, in very severe terms, To be gone! telling him that his Successor was already appointed. Which order Herr von Furst, without saying a word, hastily obeyed, passing in front of us three, with the utmost speed." In front,--screen, I suppose, not having room behind it,--and altogether vanishes from Friedrich's History; all but some GHOST of him (so we may term it), which reappears for an instant once, as will be noticed.
