A crown of straw

The intelligence of Maximilian’s mysterious departure had fallen like a bombshell upon the conference between the Princess Hermengarde and Von Sigismark.

Striving to command her secret thoughts, the Princess, with a nod, dismissed her henchman Karl, and turned an inquiring look upon the old Count.

Interpreting this as an invitation, the Count, who was unable to wholly hide his consternation, returned slowly to his chair. He sat down, and for some moments scrutinised the countenance of his royal ally. But it was in vain that he sought to read anything in that stern and composed face.

At length he was obliged to break silence.

“This is a new development, Madam. I confess I was not prepared for it. When I left the King an hour or two ago, he had accepted a proposal on the part of Herr Moritz and myself to hold an inquiry into the alleged grievances of the people, and he seemed content to wait for the result before taking any further steps.”

“Herr Moritz? Is he still in the Castle?”

“Yes, I believe so.”

The Chancellor replied with reluctance. He did not wish his subordinate introduced into the intrigue of which Hermengarde was the centre.

“That is well. We may have to avail ourselves of his services presently.”

“True. I did not think of that. You mean to ascertain where they have gone?”

“I mean, to have them followed. I know where they have gone.”

“You know!” The Count could not conceal his surprise.

“Is it so very difficult to tell? Surely you do not think this man has taken Maximilian away on some country excursion? There is only one place to which he would be likely to lead him. You said yourself that there had been talk of an inquiry into the condition of the people. Of course they have set out to make that inquiry. You will find them in Mannhausen.”

Von Sigismark started to his feet.

“Of course! Pardon me, Madam, but, with your permission, I will go at once and telegraph to have the trains met and examined.”

Hermengarde shook her head.

“I am not sure that will be the wisest course. This affair must not be allowed to get abroad. We cannot afford to run any risks. It will be far better for Herr Moritz to go himself to Mannhausen, and put detectives on the track of this man Mark. He is sure to be known to the police, and by watching his usual haunts, they are certain to find him sooner or later; and then it will be an easy task to find the King.”

“And when we have found him?”

“Really, that is a question which I have not considered. It is hardly for me to teach the King’s Ministers their duty to the King.”

The Chancellor felt disconcerted. He began to repent of his over-cautious tactics in their previous conversation. He saw that he was now in the position of one asking for assistance, and that the Princess realised, and was preparing to take advantage of, that fact.

“Perhaps,” he responded, “I am presuming on your goodness in discussing with me other proceedings of his Majesty during the last few days. I think I understood you to confide in me that you had entertained certain fears as to his—”

“Fears as to his marriage. Certainly,” put in the Princess quickly, as the old courtier hesitated.

“Pardon me, Madam, I think you even went a little further,” he retorted, determined not to be put off. “Unless I deceived myself, I understood that your Royal Highness felt some alarm as to his Majesty’s conduct generally—alarm which had reference to the unhappy calamity which has overtaken other members of the Royal House.”

This was plain speaking at last. Hermengarde carefully restrained herself from any display of eagerness.

“Perhaps I spoke more rashly than I should have done; but I felt that with such an old friend as yourself, and such a loyal servant of the King, I could unburden my mind quite freely. However, you did not share my anxiety on that score, and I trust you have dismissed my words from your mind.”

“Again pardon me; no. On the contrary, I have most carefully weighed and considered them, and particularly so in the light of this last singular freak on the King’s part.”

The Princess was a woman. She could not resist the temptation of a sneer.

“I see. It is the King’s conduct in abandoning your counsels for those of Herr Mark which has opened your eyes.”

The old man’s eyes gleamed dangerously for an instant. Then he pounced like a hawk on the opening she had given him.

“If you think, Madam, for one moment that I am capable of being actuated by any personal pique in a matter of such grave importance, I have only to apologise for having intruded on you so long, and to ask permission to retire.”

Hermengarde saw her mistake. She put out her hand with a soothing gesture.

“No, no, my dear Count; you have quite mistaken my meaning. I did not intend my words to be taken seriously. It is of the last importance that you and I should not misunderstand each other in so delicate a crisis. Let us throw off all reserve, and discuss the situation plainly. Are you prepared to do so, if I set the example?”

“I am.”

“Very good. I will put the facts as briefly as I can, and you interrupt me if I omit anything. First, let me see how we are interested. My son is at present the heir to the throne. It is, therefore, to my interest that the King should not marry. Merely to prevent a marriage with this girl or that would not be of much use, because, if he lived and retained his mental capacity, it would be easy for him to find a wife to whom I could raise no objection. Indeed, he is quite capable of going off and contracting a secret marriage; and it is partly to guard against such a step that I have brought this girl to the palace.”

The Count nodded emphatically.

“I, therefore, or rather my son, have everything to gain, and nothing to lose, if it should turn out that our fears are well founded, and the King has to be put under restraint. Now, what is your position? For ten years the King has entrusted you with supreme power; and, if I may be permitted to say so, you have used it with admirable discretion. The country has been quiet, and the Court has been contented. But now, what has happened? A stranger—worse, a criminal—has sprung out of the earth, and, like Jonah’s gourd, he has grown up and overshadowed you in a single night. He has converted the King to schemes which not only involve your political overthrow, but which may well lead to a revolution, and the spoliation of the whole class to which you belong. And he has an additional hold upon him, through his mad infatuation for his cousin. As things stand, therefore, your fall is merely a question of months, perhaps only of days.”

The Chancellor interposed a faint objection.

“Before dispensing with my services, his Majesty would at least have to find some man of responsibility who was able to take my place. And where would he get one, prepared to take office on such conditions?”

“Anywhere. Out of the ranks of your own colleagues, who are all ready to step into your shoes. Perhaps Herr Moritz is at this moment meditating a scheme for persuading the King that he will make a more pliable instrument than you.”

The Chancellor frowned, but attempted no reply.

“On the other hand, supposing the King to lose his power, who would replace him as Regent? My son would naturally take the office when he came of age, but until then, on whom would it devolve?”

“On one of two persons,” said Von Sigismark, seeing that she desired him to answer. “On yourself or on the Count von Eisenheim.”

“Von Eisenheim!” exclaimed the Princess in some surprise. “But he is too remote. Surely the Council would not pass over the mother of the King?—I mean of the King-expectant.”

There is an old saying, once familiar in the mouths of statesmen, that deposed monarchs seldom live long. Was it the recollection of this proverb that made the subtle courtier stare so strangely at the Princess when she made her unfortunate slip?

“No doubt you are right,” was all he remarked.

“At all events,” pursued the Princess, “that is a matter in which I shall count on your good offices, if I may.”

The Chancellor bowed low.

“In that case,” she went on, “I need not say that there would be no change in your position. Politics have always been distasteful to me, and I do not think Ernest is likely to take much interest in them for many years to come. You would remain as you were till the other day, the virtual ruler of Franconia, instead of holding office at the caprice of one whose state of mind is becoming only too apparent, and subject to the interference and dictation of an upstart who aims at nothing short of wholesale robbery and murder.”

“You have said enough, Madam. If the King is indeed going mad, we cannot too soon have the fact ascertained.”

Hermengarde leant back in her chair and fixed a long and searching gaze upon the Chancellor. This time it was she who failed to penetrate beneath the impassive mask of the courtier.

“And how are we to ascertain it?” she said at length, putting the question apparently with reluctance. “We can show the public that he is contemplating marriage with a peasant girl; that he has made an assassin his bosom friend; that he has urged his Ministers to start a revolution, and has gone off secretly to the slums of Mannhausen to fraternise with the enemies of society and of his throne.”

“All that is not enough. The public will expect medical evidence.”

“You mean—”

“Dr. Krauss must be consulted.”

“He is here.”

“Here?”

“Yes, in the Castle. I sent for him two days ago.”

Von Sigismark trembled. This woman’s terrible activity frightened him. He felt himself, as it were, swept off his feet. It was some time before he ventured to make a fresh remark.

“Have you considered, Madam, how we are to bring his Majesty and the Doctor together?”

One of those strange still smiles, which, in a woman like Hermengarde, were more menacing than a frown, came on her lips for an instant, and vanished again.

“Is that indispensable?” was all she said.

“Undoubtedly. We cannot expect Dr. Krauss to act on hearsay. He will require to examine the King personally, in order to arrive at an opinion.”

“Indeed. Then in that case I am afraid I do not see any immediate chance of success.”

Von Sigismark cogitated, while the Princess kept a cold watchful glance upon his face, out of the corners of her eyes. Soon an idea occurred to him; he resisted it for a time, but at length gave way to it, and expressed it in words.

“Herr Moritz is here. He is a man of considerable shrewdness. Why not consult him?”

“But that would involve taking him into our confidence.”

“True, Madam; but, after all, what have we to fear? Our action is perfectly loyal. Certain proceedings on the King’s part have led us to fear that his mind may be suffering from over-excitement, and we desire that he may have the advantage of a physician’s advice. What is there in that that we should hesitate to confide to a discreet man like Herr Moritz, a man, moreover, holding a high official post?”

“Putting it in that way, we certainly run no great risk. But is this colleague of yours to be trusted?”

“Absolutely. His devotion to me is unbounded, and I can answer for his discretion as much as for my own.”

“In that case, I consent.”

Hermengarde summoned the page, and despatched him to the Chancellor’s cabinet. While they waited, the two intriguers fell into attitudes like those of wrestlers reposing for a brief spell in the intervals of an exhausting struggle.

It was with no small surprise that the Minister of the Interior received the summons. But no trace of this feeling appeared in his countenance as he entered the room, and with perfect calmness saluted the Princess, and accepted the seat which she assigned to him with a silent gesture.

The Chancellor addressed him.

“We have sent for you, Herr Moritz, to invite your co-operation in an affair of an extremely delicate nature, in which the strictest secrecy is essential.”

The Minister bowed in a matter-of-fact way, evidently quite unconscious of what was coming.

“The fact is that the Princess Hermengarde and myself have lately become uneasy about the King.” Herr Moritz could not repress a slight start. “You had the advantage of seeing his Majesty to-day, and I believe you fully shared my sense of the danger to which his intimacy with this fanatical Socialist was likely to lead. Well, already we have had a warning of what is coming. The King and this man have left the Castle by stealth, and we suspect that they have gone secretly to Mannhausen.”

Herr Moritz’s face showed a grave apprehension.

“I see that you realise the seriousness of this. The first step we have to take is to ascertain their whereabouts, and this comes into your province. You will have to direct the police to watch for the appearance of Herr Mark, and as soon as he is found, to track the King through him.”

“I think that will not be difficult.”

“Very good. But that is not all. Of course, as soon as we know where the King is, we can bring pressure to bear on him to return; but there is a more important question behind. Both her Royal Highness and myself are inclined to see in this escapade the symptom of an excited state of mind in his Majesty which, in the interests of the dynasty, calls for the most careful attention. I do not wish to put it more strongly than that.”

“I quite understand, sir.”

“Very good. Then, as soon as his Majesty returns, we want to induce him, if possible, to see the physician, Dr. Krauss. The question is, how can we bring this about without provoking painful suspicions? I thought that your suggestions might be useful as to this.”

“Would it not be possible to get his Majesty to consult Dr. Krauss as to some other ailment?”

“Impossible. Krauss is known as a mind-specialist simply. The mere mention of his name would suggest the worst.”

“It was Dr. Krauss who was called in, in the case of my husband,” added the Princess, speaking for the first time. “And he attended King Leopold in his last hours. I have noticed that my nephew has always avoided admitting him into his presence. He once came on him accidentally in this very room, and I have never forgotten the look he gave him.”

Herr Moritz turned his eyes on the Princess while she was speaking.

“In that case, Madam,” he said, when she had finished, “I think I see the only way in which it can be managed.”

And drawing his seat nearer as he lowered his voice, he proceeded to develop his plan.

As he went on, the Princess and Von Sigismark exchanged quick glances. At the end Hermengarde rose to her feet.

“Allow me to thank you, sir, for your very valuable aid. Go, and do not lose a moment in carrying out what you propose.”

Herr Moritz bowed sedately and left the room. The old Chancellor followed, gnawing his lip.

Hermengarde, left to herself, remained motionless in her seat for a considerable time, plunged in profound thought. After a time she rose, crossed the floor quietly, opened the door into the adjoining saloon and looked through.

An hour before she had left her son Ernest there engaged in a game of chess with Gertrude von Sigismark, while Dorothea Gitten was employed on some embroidery work in a far corner. Now she beheld Gertrude sitting by herself, absently toying with the chessmen, while Ernest had placed himself on a stool beside the forester’s daughter, and was eagerly talking to her.

Giving a slight stamp of her foot to draw their attention, the Princess addressed her son—

“Ernest, do you not see that Lady Gertrude is ready for another game?”

The boy turned to her, frowning, but did not rise from his seat.

“It is my fault,” Gertrude hastened to explain. “I was compelled to go and see some one, and I have only this minute returned.”

Hermengarde gave her a quick glance of suspicion, then she remarked, without seeming to address any one in particular—

“It seems that the King has just left the Castle for a few days. No doubt he has gone on one of his usual excursions.”

Ernest did not pay much heed, but the two girls looked at her with surprise, and Gertrude ventured to ask—

“Is it known where his Majesty has gone to, Madam?”

“I believe not. I am told that he took Herr Mark with him.”

“Johann!” This time it was Dorothea who spoke. “Has he gone away without leaving any message?”

The Princess smiled pleasantly.

“You forget he did not know you were in the Castle,” she said.

Then, turning once more to Ernest, she added—

“Come, sir, Lady Gertrude is waiting. Dorothea, I want you in the other room.”

Dorothea arose and followed her mistress, while Ernest grudgingly took his place at the chessboard.

The next two days in the Castle passed without incident. Dorothea was still kept secluded to some extent from the Court, but as she grew more accustomed to her new sphere, she gradually enlarged the number of her friends. Enemies she had none, with perhaps a single exception, for her gentleness and simplicity won over all who approached her. Even the Count von Stahlen was conquered, and announced in confidence to his satellite that he himself stood in serious danger of becoming the Poacher’s Son-in-law.

The fondness for her society shown by the young Prince was not long in exciting remark, a fondness which his mother seemed doubtful whether to encourage or restrain. All the awkwardness and constraint which marked his intercourse with the ladies of the Court vanished when he found himself in the company of the peasant girl. He came to her on all occasions, took her into his confidence about everything, and would have asked her to ride out with him if the Princess had not interfered.

In the mean time, Hermengarde was anxiously awaiting intelligence from Mannhausen. From time to time she sent for the Chancellor and questioned him, but found he was still without news. At last, early on the Monday morning he came to her, bringing the following laconic message—