"MY EARLY LIFE" By the EX-GERMAN EMPEROR (Full Copyright reserved

by the Spectator.) [Next week we shall publish the eighth supplement to the SPECTATOR concluding this autobiography of the ex-German Emperor. The series, containing the most interesting and important portions of " My Early Life," is appearing in Great Britain only in the SPECTATOR. Later in the year the book will be published in full by Messrs. Methuen.] [Last week's instalment contained the conclusion of Chapter XI X, describing the author's visit to Russia in 1886, and giving a very full account of a bear-hunt on the estate of Prince Anton Radzizoill, at which the author shot his first bear. The primitive conditions of peasant life, under which only the fittest survived, were also illustrated. In Chapter XX the author dealt at length with " the Battenburg Affair and its Sequel," and related Prince Alexander's antecedents and career, explaining why his projected marriage with Princess Victoria of Prussia was abandoned and why the author joined Prince Bismarck and the old Emperor in opposing the Wishes of his mother and Queen Victoria, who strongly favoured the alliance. Chapter XX also ;narrated the meeting of the German and Austrian Emperors at Gastein in 1886 and the author's mission to Russia to promote a rapprochement; his meeting and conversation with Tsar Alexander III at Brest-Litovik ; and his reconciliation on his return with his father, who now resented being passed over by the Emperor and Bismarck.] CHAPTER XX (continued).

THE BATTENBERG AFFAIR AND ITS SEQUEL

IN spite of all Bismarck's efforts, the relations of Russia with Germany became decidedly worse. It had been of no avail that in the Bulgarian crisis Germany had exercised the most powerful self-restraint, had greatly disillusioned Austria- Hungary, and had even offered to give the Tsar a free hand in the Balkans and the Straits. The seed sown at the Berlin Congress was springing up, and Russian dissatisfaction was turning with time more and more against the " honest broker."

eft of themselves.

And this situation had arisen in spite of the -fact that Bismarck, after the definite collapse of the three Emperors' Alliance concluded in .1881, had in June,. 1887, concluded with the Tsar the Re-insuranceTreaty Whichlater on became so famous ! There was never the slightest chance that the existence of this treaty would in itself have prevented a war between Russia and Germany, or that, if at that, moment a war had broken out with France, it wouldhave guaranteed to us the neutrality of Russia. I have, myself, no doubt but that the value of thiS treaty has been in many respects greatly INCREASED- TENSION WITH. RUSSIA. • Only a few months after my visit to Brest-Litovsk, which had undoubtedly relaxed the tension between Russia and Germany, there came fresh complaints from Russia that she did not receive enough support for her Balkan policy from Germany, which had regard only for Austria-Hungary. In Russia the idea of a war against Austria-Hungary and Germany became more and more acceptable. In the year 1887 the Pan- Slav agitation had reached its highwater-mark. Deroulede, the French apostle of revanche, was feted in St. Petersburg with immense applause, and given a strikingly cordial reception at Nizhni-Novgorod. On the other h-and, Russian generals and Grand Dukes made speeches in Paris attacking Germany ; the Grand Duke Nieholag, for instance, in replying to a toast on a French steamer, alluded openly to a forthcoming Franco- Russian war against Germany. Not in the letter, but in fact, the Franca-Russian alliance had already been concluded. In conicquence of what was happening in Bidgaria, Russia con- centrated great masses of troops on the Austro-Hungarian and Prussian frontiers. Furthermore, the Tsar issued a ukase directed against Germany, by which all foreigners, i.e., Germans, were forbidden to acquire real property in Russia. Prince Bismarck replied by forbidding the Reichs- bank to lend money on .Russian securities, a measure which had undoubtedly the most fate) consequences, since he thereby closed the Germany money, market to Russia and so drove her into the arms of France: The atmosphere was so charged with tension that at any moment the rifles might haVe gone

over-estimated, and that it had no significance save as a device of the great Chancellor to assist him in his complicated game of juggling with the five balls.

The Tsar was also at that time personally much annoyed and very angry with Germany, by whom he believed himself to have been tricked. This was due to the so-called Bulgarian forgeries. After the definite abdication of Prince Alexander of Battenberg in September, 1886, the Bulgarians had elected as their Prince, in July, 1887, Prince Ferdinand of Coburg, in spite of the opposition of Russia, which wished to establish a Russian general as regent in Sofia. Once more, in the effort not to give offence to Russia, Germany did not recognize the Prince. But forged letters had been placed into the hands of the Tsar, from which it appeared that Bismarck had secretly promoted the Coburg candidature, and had assured the Prince of German support in the future.

THE TSAR'S VISIT TO BERLIN, AND TEMPORARY

DITENTE.

Such was the highly tense situation when, in November, the Tsar, on his homeward journey from Denmark, arrived in Berlin with his consort and the heir to the throne.

I travelled as far as Wittenberg to meet the Emperor and Empress, while the official reception in Berlin was held at the Lehrte Railway Station. The feeling between their Russian Majesties and my relations was not very cordial, for the general political tension between the two countries had trans- ferred itself to personal relations also. It is significant, too, that the Tsar refused to take up his quarters in the Palace, but stayed as usual at the Russian Embassy.

Here, in the afternoon, Bismarck had a long conversation with the Emperor Alexander, and had no difficulty in explaining to him the nature of the Bulgarian forgeries. The Tsar also expressed himself later as much pleased that the misunderstanding had been removed, but this friendly mood did not last long.

In connexion with this visit of the Tsar there is still to be mentioned an incident which occurred at table. In arranging the seats at table, Prince Bismarck was not placed opposite the Tsar, his usual position as Imperial Chancellor, but, in accordance with his princely rank, on the so-called " blood- side " among the royalties, where the Tsar could not see him, Bismarck was much excited by this arrangement, and, indeed, it is impossible to know whether it would not have been a good thing if Bismarck had had the possibility of talking to the Tsar during dinner.

The enlightenment of the Tsar by Prince Bismarck and the relaxation of the tension between Russia and Germany had, as I have already remarked, no lasting effect. The Pan-Slav flood rose higher and higher. the cry for revanche grew ever louder, and the rumours that a Franco-Russian Alliance had already been concluded became more and more consistent. There was, in addition, evidence of the movement of largo masses of Russian troops on th.-- Polish-Prussian frontier.

MOLTKE'S REPORT AND la AMARCK'S WARNING.

In the middle of December my grandfather commanded Field-Marshal Moltke to draw up a report on the war on two fronts, a war which to all appearance was imminent. In addition to Count Waldersee, who was then Quartermaster- General, General von. Albedyll, and the Minizter of War, Bronsart von Schellendorff, I, too, had to be present when the report was presented. My grandfather began by saying a good deal about the traditional relations between Russia and Germany, his views being dominated by the memories of his youth and by the good terms on which he had been with his 'nephew, the murdered Tsar Alexander II. After Moltke had delivered a masterly report, the Emperor sanctioned the resolution to transfer troops to the east and, above all, to press on the building of the eastern network of railways, which had been neglected. The latter measures demanded much time and large expenditure, especially as the projects for the great railway bridges over the Vistula and the Nogat had to be put through against the strong opposition of the Ministry. of Public Works. Since the railway authorities • judged matters from a purely economic and financial point of view, they had little liking for any other' expenditure; and least of all for that founded on the wishes of the military: The measures ordered by the Emperor William were only fully carried out during the reign of his grandson ; only tinder him did the eastern provinces obtain the railways so pressingly necessary for their opening-up. In this respect it is instructive to compare the East Prussian Railways of 1888 with the railway maps of 1913. There can be no doubt but that, with the old network, a great part of the eastern provinces would have been lost in 1914.

• As the threats on the part of the Russians continued un- diminished, Prince Bismarck decided to pay them back in kind ; on February 3rd; 1888, as a loud warning-signal, the Treaty of Alliance of 1879 between Germany and Austria- Hungary was published in the German Reichsanzeiger and the Wiener Abertdpost. Three days later the Prince delivered in the Reichstag that mighty speech, in which he gave an historical exposition of the relations between Germany and Russia, and ended with the imperishable words : " We Germans fear God, but nothing else in the world ! "

The impression made by this speech, to which with my wife I listened from the gallery, was immense. In the House itself the enthusiasm was general. • The speech was also understood on the other side of the black-white-and-red frontier posts.

It shows, however, very clearly in what direction the relations between Russia and Germany had developed at the end of my grandfather's reign.- CHAPTER XXI THE TRAGEDY OF THE CROWN PRINCE The tragic events of the year 1888 already cast their shadow on the preceding year. The incurable illness of the Crown Prince began.

In January, 1887, a lasting hoarseness became disquietingly noticeable in my father, which he at first ascribed to his frequent colds ; it was only when it would not leave him that he began to have doubts. At the beginning of March, Pro- fessor Gerhardt, of Berlin, undertook the treatment of the disease, which he diagnosed as a polypous thickening of the edge of the vocal cords. Thereupon there began for my poor father daily tortures, as Professor Gerhardt' attempted to remove the swelling by means of red-hot wire and tweezers. On the occasion of my grandfather's ninetieth birthday, which imposed on my father many duties as his representative, these operations were intermitted for eight days, but were then resumed for ten days more. On April 13th my father went to Ems, in order to try the cure there. When he returned, on May 13th, Gerhardt had to report that this had been useless, and that the swelling had considerably increased.

SPECIALISTS CALLED IN.

Professor Gerhardt and Dr. Wegner, my father's body- physician, now advised the calling in of a surgeon, and the choice fell on Councillor von Bergmann, of Berlin._ A con- sultation now took place, at which von Bergmann and Ger- hardt already expressed their suspicion of cancer, and the former proposed external laryngotomy. All three doctors, however, advised that a laryngologist of reputation should be called into consultation, in order to obtain_a confirmation . of the diagnosis. Of the three foreign specialists whose names were mentioned it was unanimously decided ' to- choose, the • English laryngologist, Dr. Morell .Mackenzie, who had been proposed by- Dr. Wegner. A few. days later there was another consultation, at which, inaddition to the doctors mentioned

• and -Dr. von- Lauer. and Dr. Schrader, the . Berlin Professor Tobold Was present by. _emninand-cif My grandfather. - As . TobOld 'also pronounced the disease to be.cancer, the doctors decided on air tIperatiod • for the remoVal,- not :of the whole larynx, but of the diseased portion of the vocal cords. Accord. trig to the doctors,•the Only- injurious effect of the operation -would be roughness-and hoarseness of the voice, which in view of the severe suffering otherwise involved would have to be pUt up with.. My father gave his consent, and my mother

• also agreed, and I -lay-stress upon the fact that it was with her active support that preparations were made for performing the operation on the morning of May 21st in the New Palace.

Cancer is well known to be a treachermis disease, which often wastes the patient away for a long time before its presence is recognized, and when it is recognized it. is generally too late. It is otherwise with affections of the breast or throat, which arc often recognized in time and operated on with good effect. My father's case was therefore in no wise to be regarded as hopeless. Gerhardt declared, in the official report which was later drawn up, " No statistics can reproduce the , whole probability, which existed in this case, of a permanent im- provement. For in no case has the disease been recognized so ,early, I might say, in the germ. The constitution of the exalted patient was as strong as can be imagined. All means of assistance were at command," , Bergmann gave the follow- ing judgment : " The operation which we proposed was not more dangerous than an ordinary tracheotomy (incision of the larynx) which, according to our diagnosis, the Crown Prince . would in any ease have had to undergo sooner or later. We therefore proposed nothing but what for WM was now inevi- table.".

THE DECISIVE INTERVENTION OF SIR MORELL MACKENZIE.

The decisive interference of the Englishman, Mackenzie, on the evening before the day fixed for the operation had the

most disastrous consequences. As the result of an examination, which took place immediately Upon his arrival, he declared that it was not a question of cancer, but of a polypous or fibromatous swelling which could be removed, without any operation, in from six to eight weeks by a cure which he would prescribe ; only the Prince, " like any other mortal," must come to his clinic for treatment. The recovery of my father's voice, " so that he would be able to command an Army Corps at a review," he represented as absolutely certain. He strongly opposed the operation planned by the

German doctors. . . .

Can my sick father and my mother, who trembled for the life of her husband, be blamed if, in view of such decided expressions of opinion on the part of a distinguished specialist, they believed and trusted hirri and decided for the safe method? Thi's was. to do even more than the operation; which would involve lasting hoarseness ! It is another question whether the Englishman really pronounced his diagnosis in good faith. I am convinced that this was not the case. It is. not only that he was a laryngological authority to whom a diagnosis so mistaken can hardly be credited, but the haste with which, without waiting for the result of his treatment, he was out not only after money, but also after the English aristocracy, tells against him, too. But the decisive proof is that, on the journey back to England after the death of my' father, he admitted that his only reason for not diagnosing the disease as cancer was that the poor Crown Prince should not be declared incapable of assuming the government ! .

MY VEHEMENT OPPOSITION.

When one considers that, if the English doctor had not . intervened, my father would in all human probability have been saved, one will understand how it was that I took every Opportunity of opposing the most violent resistance to this ostrich policy. That my mother could not free herself from the Englishman's authority; even when the facts had 'become• fully clear to everyone else, had the worst possible effect upon, my relations with her. There is no object in trying to draw - the :Veil of oblivion over these things, which were dragged eagerly into the light and have for the most part been distorted. :. to serve particular ends.

It was Mackenzie's fault that the second decisive mistake was made: The Englishman recommended my father to g°

- to the Isle of Wight, the mild climate of which was considered, to_ he _favourable to the cure of affections of the larynx, while the 'German_ physicians opposed this on the ground that chin& has.no influence on swellings of the larynx, whether Malignant, • or not. • So mi-poOr father set out on the long journeys, froob

which he was to return only as a dying Emperor, and the disease was allowed to run its fateful course undisturbed. The-medical treatment by-Mackenzie and his representatives during this time did nothing to alter this. As. I have already mentioned, in June, 1887, my father took- part in the Jubilee celebrations in London, arousing a storm of enthusiasm among the public there.; they. did not suspect that he was now able to speak only in a scarcely audible whisper.- • FAILURE OF MACKENZIE'S TREATMENT.

. Of course, neither the " cure" in the Isle of Wight nor that in the Scottish Highlands. where my father went in AugUst, could stop the disease. When this-failed, the growths increased, and the patient's general condition grew worse, Mackenzie Could think of nothing better than to chase him from country to country and from place to place. In the Highlands the autumn air was too cold, so at the beginning of September my father had to go Toblach in the Pustertal. Owing to its high altitude, this place proved unsuitable, and so at the end of September there was a migration to Venice. Since ,the city of the lagoons also brought no improvement, the journey was continued at the beginning of October to Baveno on the Lago Maggiore, until finally the last stage was reached at San Remo at the beginning of November. The voice now .failed completely. Mackenzie meanwhile, during the whole time since his first appearance in Berlin, had known how to secure the support, not only of the English, but of certain sections of the Berlin Press. It was continuously trumpeted . abroad in the world that he had saved the life-of the Crown :prince by preserving him from an operation " dangerous to ilife " ; . whereas the German doctors understood nothing: With his help, it seemed, the Crown Prince was on the way to a complete cure.

In Baveno, on 18th October, we celebrated my father's last birthday ; all the children except my sister Charlotte bad driven over for this day and delighted their father by :playing the piano, singing, and performing little plays and ,charades. The villa in which my parents had taken up their residence lay in a beautiful large park full of southern vegeta- tion, with a most enchanting view of the lake.

I found my father looking comparatively hale and cheerful. I could not, however, share the fateful optimism of my parents as, to his condition, but my representations to my mother only resulted in my incurring her severe displeasure. In her touching devotion to my father she wanted to keep away from herself and him, convinced as they were by Mackenzie's promises, all doubts as to the treatment when once it had been accepted as right. Truly those were heavy times, and not least so for me.

ALARMING NEWS FROM SAN REMO. MACKIENZIE'S ADMISSIONS.

My father had scarce reached San Remo when an alarming telegram from Mackenzie was received in Berlin : suspicious -symptoms had suddenly made their appearance, and he con- sidered it necessary to call other doctors into consultation. If Mackenzie thus expressed himself, the matter must be very serious:

My resolution was at once taken. I begged my grandfather for permission to go to San Remo, in order at last to clear the matter up, and both the Emperor and Prince Bismarck approved my project. My grandfather commanded me to bring back an official report of the physicians, and for this purpose to take with me the well-known laryngologist Dr, Moritz Schmidt., of Frankfurt on the Main. I was to comnaisSion him to draw up a report to him, the Emperor, on the consultation of the doctors to be held. In addition to Dr. Sehmidt.the distinguished throat specialist Professor Selirotter,of Vienna,. and Dr. Krause, of Berlin,: were, at Mackenzie's. request, also .sent.

When on the evening of 9th Novemher, I entered the Villa Zirio, wonderfully situated on the Mediterranean amid a grove of olives, my arrival gave little pleasure to my:mother. She was .doubtleas.afraicl that the house of cards on which she had set her foes hope would now come, tumbling down. Standing at the foot of the stair's, t had to .allow the flood of her re- .proaclets to pass_ over me, and to_ hear, her decided refusal to allow me to ae_e_ my toiler ; ifwasat. once to travel on to Burls. For, strange enough, it had come to be belieN'ed that I had been sent to Rome in order to mirk- the Order of the Black Eagle to the King. My father's condition, in my mother's opinion, gave no cause whatever for alarm, but the stony expression of her face, utterly different from what it had been at Baveno—proof enough of the hard struggle between her iron will and her growing anxiety—gave the lie to what her lips uttered, and fell like a crushing weight upon my heart. Then I heard a rustling at the top of the stairs, looked up, and saw my father smiling a welcome to me. I rushed up the stairs, and with infinite emotion -we held each other embraced, while in low whispers he expressed his joy at my Visit. During the heavy days that followed we came in spirit very close to one another.

The Villa Zirio stood on the slope of the mountain above the great Riviera road, only imperfectly concealed by a wall and by olive trees and palms ; in comparison with the park of Baveno the garden was but small. • I was assigned two rooms in the Hotel Victoria, which stood immediately on the high-road, obliquely opposite the. villa ; terrace and garden looked over the sea. The hotel was pretty full, and a large number of reporters of all nationalities made their presence felt in a most disagreeable fashion by their pushful curiosity and their spying. The majority of them consisted of Mackenzie's creatures !

Tax FATAL VERDICT.

• I had now to concern myself with carrying out the Emperor's

command. After the doctors had undertaken a first examina- tion, I summoned them to a preliminary and then to a final consultation. I called their attention to the fact that their opinions would have an official significance and would there- fore have to be placed on record ; I then called upon them, in order of seniority, to give the verdict. The first to speak was Mackenzie, and not a little to my astonishment he pronounced definitely that my father was suffering from cancer of the larynx and would be dead in eighteen months' time. The other physicians agreed with this plain opinion, and declared that the effect of even the complete removal of the larynx would now be doubtful, so that the decision must be left to the Crown Prince ; Dr. Krause alone guarded his verdict to any important extent. Hereupon, I put the question, how long the evil must have been present in order to have reached its actual high degree of development, and received the answer at least six months. I thought that Mackenzie would die of shame, but his face, which I was watching narrowly, showed no trace of emotion.

After the opinion of the doctors had been placed on reenbd,

Professor Schrotter was commissioned by his colleagues to report. the result of the consultations to my father. We children were not present at this terrible revelation, it would have taxed our strength too high ; only my mother stood beside her beloved husband at this heavy hour. My father took his sentence of death--for such it was--like a hero, standing upright and looking the doctors firmly in the face. Then, completely unperturbed, he thanked them for all the trouble they had taken on his behalf. In view of the doubts expressed as to the success of the proposed operation, he refused in a written statement to have it performed. Our dear Chief Staff Physician Schrader, who had been with us at Cannes in 1860 as body physician, overcome by so much tragedy and greatness of soul, broke out into convulsive sobbing. When, after the departure of the doctors, we children, shaken to the depths of our being. came to our father, we were no longer masters of ourselves, and dissolved in tears. It was he who, with the calm cheerfulness of his soul, sought to comfort and set us up. But on the evening of- this fateful day he entered in his. diary : " And so I suppose I must set

' • my holm in order."

. My poor mother showed a Wonderful-. nelf-contrOl. Only : when walking with her once along the dusty Riviera road, followed and spied upon by the Curious,. did I experience a andden collapse of the control which she had maintained with all the energy of her nature. Holding tightly to my arm, it was only after a considerable thine-that she 'again became

. .

. mistress of herself. . _ .

. . • : T?,Rel4ng,14:00, was. the care with which: the .valets Schulze attended their siCkrmaster. Roth entered my

service after his dm& and it Wa.4 residence

. .

MY APPOINTMENT AS THE EMPEROR'S REPRESENTATIVE.

When, on my homeward journey, I reached Basel," Rog.. genbach, who was in great anxiety about my father, suddenly .zntered my section of the train. From the outset it had been Roggenbach in particular who had displayed a very clear vision as to my father's condition and had not allowed himself to be deceived by the English charlatan. And so it was of no avail when I gave a guarded answer to his inquiries as to the state of my father's illness by quoting the formula agreed upon at San Remo ; weeping, he replied that he knew well how matters lay. He then spoke for a long time with me about the difficult case into which our Fatherland was falling : the Emperor ninety years old and at that time very infirm, the heir to the throne hopelessly face to face with death. As things stood, I must face them firmly, and hold myself ready to shoulder the burden of government within a measurable time. We spoke then more particularly of the relations of the Emperor with the Princes of the Confederation, which might easily lead to difficulties were the crown to pass to a comparatively young heir. He urged rue, therefore, at once to prepare a proclamation to the Princes, to be issued in the event of my taking over the government, in which I should define my own and their positions and the relations of both to each other ; if the emergency were to arise suddenly, it would be too late. As is well known, the fact that I acted on this suggestion drew down upon me the displeasure of Bismarck, to whom I had in all loyalty submitted my draft.

Now that the official verdict had made the condition of my poor father perfectly clear, Bismarck thought it necessary, in view of the patently increasing frailty of the venerable Emperor, shown by repeated attacks of weakness, to charge me with the duty of acting as his representative. The Military Cabinet, especially, urged that the Emperor should be relieved of the numerous signatures necessary, in order that business might not he delayed. My grandfather signed the order on November 17th. It ran as follows :—

In view of the vicissitudes of my health, which compel me temporarily to abstain from all business, and in view of the illness of my son, the Crown Prince, I authorize your Royal Highness, in all cases in which I shall believe myself to need a representative in the current business of government and particularly in the signing of orders, to act as such representative, without there being any need in particular cases for any special order applicable to each separate case. William. v. Bismarck. To Prince William, Royal Highness.

MY FATHER'S RESEN"I'MENT AGAINST BISMARCK.

It is thus clear that this representation was only of subor- dinate importance, and that, so far as all weighty affairs were concerned, it would only become effective in such cases as the Emperor hiMself might be linable to deal with ; for the rest, it was confined to the signing of the orders of the civil and military Cabinets, that is to say, of officers' commissions, appointments to official posts and formalities generally, always with the superscription " By command of the Alf- Highest." It did not mean that any power had been given me to influence affairs of State. Moreover, the death of the Emperor would at once have put an end to my functions as his representative, as the whole governing power would then pass automatically to the CroWn Prince: This order, therefore, was. not preliminary to any alteration of the succession ; nor, in fact, was any such alteration ever mooted.

On the following day the order .making me the Emperor's representative was communicated to me, and it was at the same time notified to all the Gerinan Courts.; thotigh, it was not published till March 8th, 1888. I learned, however, that neither the Ministry of State nor my father had been informed beforehand -of step about to be taken. I therefore it

once went to the Chancellor and begged that my father should be immediately informed. In my presence he thereupon gave

the order for an official intimation to be sent, and also pro- mised me to write a personal letter. From home I also wrote to my father, and specially expressed the wish that the order might never have to be pot, into .effect. I entrusted my letter to my brother Henry, who was about to go to San Remo.

This order, however, once more imperilled the cordial in Holland that I lost these faithful men through death. They are not forgotten.

relations so recently established with my father. For he had scarce begun to read my letter when he became violently excited and burst out into bitter-complaints against the Chancellor and me, as not even an official intimation had been sent to him. When my brother represented to him that he surely must have received Prince Bismarck's letter, it turned out that this had been kept back from him with the idea of sparing his feelings. The affair was now cleared up, it is true ; but it left my father, whose illness naturally made him irritable, in a mood of ill-htunour out of all proportion to the importance of its cause. Owing to such misunderstand- ings I had often enough to put up with a good deal of tin. pleasantness in my parental house.

THE " WiLDERSEE ASSEMBLY."

In the very same month, which had already provided me with so many soul-shattering experiences, a new affliction was prepared for me by a well-meant action which was con- ceived as a work of purest charity. As I have already said, the deeply religious Countess Waldersee was on very intimate terms with my wife.. In pursuit of her manifold charitable efforts she took occasion to persuade my wife also to interest herself in the bodily and spiritual needs of the people of the Berlin suburbs, and to support the very active Berlin " City Mission."

In order to awaken in society, for the most part ignorant of the condition of the poor, a living interest in the efforts of the City Mission, a meeting was arranged, at the end of November, 1887, in the house of Count Waldersee, in the presence of a circle of invited guests, including people belonging to all the political parties. On this occasion the well-known Court- Chaplain Stocker gave, as the result of his experiences in Connexion with the City Mission, a harrowing account of the misery in the suburbs of Berlin, while I myself said a few words in favour of the cultivation of the Christian-social spirit. Out of this meeting the Press hostile to me manu- factured the so-called " Waldersee Assembly," and over- whelmed the Count, and especially my wife and me, with unmeasured insinuations, slanders and attaeks. It was painful to me that in this case, which had nothing to do with politics, Prince Bismarck took the side of my opponents. The letters which on this occasion I exchanged with the Chancellor have already become known. Immediately after his return to Berlin, too, a reconciliation took place ; neither this affair nor the proceedings connected with the projected proclamation to the Princes left any " resentment," as Prince Bismarck seemed to assume.

In spite of all opposition and all intrigues, the money for the City Mission was raised, so that it became possible to give generous assistance to the poor of Berlin. The support given to the City Mission led to the foundation of the Evangelical Church Aid Association, which, under the direction of the admirable Steward of the Household, Baron von Mirbaeh, did imperishable service in the domain of church and chapel building. Not only the outward success of our good cause, but also, above all, the numerous touching letters of thanks received from working-class circles were a fair 'reward for the annoyances we had suffered.

(To be concluded.) [The next and last instalment describes, in the continuation of Chapter XX, the author's second visit to San Remo in March, 18891 after the operation of tracheotomy had- been performed on Mit father ; the rapid and distressing progress of the disease ; • and the death of the old Emperor a few dayi after the author's return to Berlin. In Chapter XX II, " The ninety-nine days," - he relates the brief and tragic reign of the Emperor Frederick III, after his removal from San RemO to Charlottenburg, empha- sizing the contrast between his mental vigour and physical weak- ness. The narrative dwells on the, journalisitc intrigues against the German doctors and the difficulty which the author found obtaining access to his father ; the visit of Queen Victoria ; the marriage of his brother Prince Henry ; his father's devotion to duty and his naval and military reforms ; his last and only review of his troops as Emperor ; and his last journey by water from Charlottenburg to PO tsdam. The closing pages give a snoring account of the scenes at his deathbed and his release front his long and heroically borne suffering on June 15th, 1889.1