palace. In one wing were the apartments of the Empress, where she
lay sleeping; in the opposite wing slept one of her sons; the other
Princes were in Berlin. In an entirely different part of the royal
residence, guarded by three sentinels in a spacious antechamber,
sat the Emperor in his private study. He had been lately, greatly
engrossed in weighty matters of State, and for some time past it
had been his habit to work thus, far into the night. That same
evening the Chancellor, von Bethman-Hollweg, had had a private
audience of his Majesty, and had left the royal presence precisely
at 11-30, carrying an enormous _dossier_ under his arm. The Emperor
had accompanied him as far as the door, shaken hands with him, then
returned to his work at his writing-desk.

Midnight struck, and still the Emperor, without making the
slightest sound, sat on within the room. The guards without began
to grow slightly uneasy, for at midnight punctually--not a minute
before, not a minute after--it was the Emperor's unfailing custom,
when he was working late at night, to ring and order a light repast
to be brought to him. Sometimes it used to be a cup of thick
chocolate, with hot cakes; sometimes a few sandwiches of smoked ham
with a glass of Munich or Pilsen beer--but, as this particular
midnight hour struck the guards awaited the royal commands in vain.
The Emperor had apparently forgotten to order his midnight meal!

One o'clock in the morning came, and still the Emperor's bell had
not sounded. Within the study silence continued to reign--silence
as profound indeed as that of the grave. The uneasiness of the
three guards without increased; they glanced at each other with
anxious faces. Was their royal master taken ill? All during the day
he had seemed to be labouring under the influence of some strange,