"And now let us hear, openly and without reserve, how, according to your
observation, the German nation regards the possibility of a war."

The Baron raised his fine, characteristic head. Looking openly and
naturally into the Emperor's eyes, he replied--

"Your Majesty, no one is in doubt that it would, on the one hand, be a
fatal step to declare war. By it many thousands will be sent to an early
grave, lands devastated, and commerce perhaps ruined for many long years
to come; and countless tears are the inevitable concomitants of war. But
there is a supreme law, to which all others must yield--the commandment
to preserve honour unsullied. A nation has its honour, like the
individual. Where this honour is at stake, it must not shrink from war.
For the conservation of all other of this world's goods is dependent
upon the conservation of the national honour; where peace has to be
preserved at any price, even at the price of national honour, all the
benefits and blessings of peace will by degrees be lost, and the nation
falls a prey to its neighbours. Iron is more precious than gold, for it
is to iron we owe all our possessions. What use would be our army
and navy? They are the outward sign of the political truth, that only
courage and power are guarantees for the continuance and prosperity of
a nation. Russia and France have joined hands to fight England. And the
German nation feels it is time to take its share in these struggles. But
nowhere is there any uncertainty as to which side Germany ought to
join. Our nation has for a long time past been exasperated by English
intrigues and encroachments. The human heart knows no other feeling so
profound and powerful as the sense of justice, and the sense of justice
has constantly been wounded by England's policy. Only one word from the
Emperor is needed to strike the deepest chords in the German soul,