the Elector! We shall see which of us two has built upon the sand!"




III.--THE HOME-COMING.


"May I be so bold as to come in, most noble sir?" asked Count
Schwarzenberg, as he opened the door leading into the Electoral cabinet
and thrust in his head, encircled by a hundred beautifully arranged curls.

"Behold, there is Adam Schwarzenberg!" cried Elector George William,
wheeling his chair from the writing table. "Why do you ask, count, since
you know that you are always privileged to enter unannounced? Come closer,
and be heartily welcome!"

And the Elector leaned both his arms upon the wooden aims of his chair,
making an effort to rise. But the count was at his side in a moment,
gently forcing him back into his seat, while at the same time he half bent
one knee and imprinted a kiss upon the Elector's right hand.

"If your grace treats me with such formality, and rises on my account,
then I must believe that you love me no longer," he said, with soft,
insinuating voice. "But you well know, beloved master, that I could not
live without your love, and that existence itself would seem gloomy and
dark to me if the star of your favor and love should cease to shine upon
it."

"Live, my Adam, live merrily, then, and joyously, for you well know that I