434

May, 1742.

CHAPTER XI.

NÜSSLER IN NEISSE, WITH THE OLD DESSAUER AND WALRAVE.

THE Old Dessauer with part of his 20,000, aided by Boy Dietrich (Knabe, "Knave Dietrich," as one might fondly call him) and the Moravian Meal-wagons, accomplished his TroppauJablunka Problem perfectly well, cleaning the Mountains, and keeping them clean, of that Pandour rabble, as he was the man to do. Nor would his Expedition require mentioning farther were it not for some slight passages of a purely Biographical character; first of all, for certain rubs which befell between his Majesty and him. For example, once, before that Interview at Chrudim, just on entering Bohemia thitherward, Old Leopold had seen good to alter his march-route, and—on better information, as he thought it, which proved to be worse—had taken a road not prescribed to him; hearing of which, Friedrich reins him up into the right course in this sharp manner:

"Chrudim, 21st April. I am greatly surprised that your Serenity, as an old Officer, does not more accurately follow my orders which I give you. If you were skillfuller than Cæsar, and did not with strict accuracy observe my orders, all else were of no help to me. Notice, once for all, will be enough, and that, in time coming, you will I hope this give no farther causes to complain."

ever.

Friedrich, on their meeting at Chrudim, was the same man as But the old Son of Gunpowder stood taciturn, rigorous, in military business attitude, in the King's presence; had not forgotten the passage; and, indeed, he kept it in mind for long months after; and during all this Ober-Schlesien time had the hidden grudge in his heart, doing his day's work with scrupulous punctuality—all the more scrupulous, they say. Friedrich tried, privately through Leopold Junior, some slight touches of assuagement, but without effect, and left the Senior to Time and to his own methods of cooling again.

Besides that of keeping down Hungarian enterprises in the 1 King to Fürst Leopold (Orlich, i., 219–221).

May, 1742.

Mountains, Old Leopold had, as would appear, to take some general superintendence in Ober-Schlesien, and especially looks after the new Fortification-work going on in those parts, which latter function brought him often to Neisse, and into contact with the ugly Walrave, Engineer-in-Chief there. A much older and much worthier acquaintance of ours, Herr Boundary-Commissioner Nüssler, happens also to be in Neisse, waiting for those Saxon Gentlemen, who are unpunctual to a degree, and never come (nor, in fact, ever will, if Nüssler knew it). Luckily, Nüssler kept a Note-book; and Büsching ultimately got it, condensed it, printed it, whereby (what is rare, in these Dryasdust labyrinths, inane spectralities and cinder-mountains) there is sudden eyesight vouchsafed, and we discern veritably, far off, brought face to face for an instant, this and that! I must translate some passages,

still farther condensed:

How Nüssler happened to be in Neisse, May, 1742.

Nüssler had been in this Country, off and on, almost since Christmas last, ready here, if the Saxons had been ready. As the Saxons were not ready, and always broke their appointment, Nüssler had gone into the Mountains to pass time usefully, and take preliminary view of the ground.

**“From Berlin, 20th December, 1741, by Breslau." where some pause and correspondence; "thence on, Neisse way, as far as Löwen" (so well known to Friedrich that Mollwitz night!). "From Berlin to Löwen, Nüssler had come in a carriage; but, as there was much snow falling, he here took a couple of sledges; in which, along with his attendants, he proceeded some fifty miles to Jauernik, a stage beyond Neisse to the southwest. Jauernik is a little Town lying at the foot of a Hill, on the top of which is the Schloss of Johannisberg. Here it began to rain, and the getting up the Hill on sledges was a difficult matter. The Drost" (Steward) "of this Castle was a Nobleman from BrunswickLüneburg, who, for the sake of a marriage and this Drostship for dowry, had changed from Protestant to Roman-Catholic"-poor soul! "His wife and he were very polite, and showed Nüssler a great deal of kindness. Nüssler remarked on the left side of this Johannisberg," western side a good few miles off, "the Pass which leads from Glatz to Upper and Lower Schlesien"-where the reader too has been, in that Baumgarten Skirmish, if he could remember it—"with a little Block-house in the bottom," and no doubt Prussian soldiers in it at the moment. Nüssler, intent always on the useful, did not institute picturesque re

May, 1742.

flections, but considered that his King would wish to have this Pass and Block-house, and determined privately, though it perhaps lay rather beyond the boundary-mark, that his Master must have it when the bargaining should come.

"On the homeward survey of these Borders, Nüssler arrived at Steinau" (little Village with Schloss, which we saw once on the march to Mollwitz, and how accident of fire devoured it that night), "and at sight of the burnt Schloss standing black there, he remembered with great emotion the Story of Gräfin von Callenberg" (dead since, with her pistols and brandy-bottle), "and of the Gräfin's Daughter, in which he "For had been concerned as a much-interested witness in old times.” the rest, the journey, amid ice and snow, was not only troublesome in the extreme, but he got a life-long gout by it" (and no profit to speak of), "having sunk once on thin ice, sledge and he, into a half-frozen stream, and got wetted to the loins, splashing about in such cold manner, happily not quite drowned." The indefatigable Nüssler, working still, like a very artist, wherever bidden, on wages miraculously low.

The Saxon Gentleman never came-privately, the Saxons were quite off from the Silesian bargain, and from Friedrich altogether-so that this border survey of Nüssler's came to nothing on the present occasion. But it served him and Friedrich well on a new boundary-settling, which did take effect, and which holds to this day. Nüssler, during these operations and vain waitings for the Saxons, had Neisse for head-quarters, and, going and returning, was much about Neisse; Walrave, Marwitz (Father of Wilhelmina's baggage Marwitz), Feldmarschall Schwerin (in earlier stages), and other high figures, being prominent in his circle there.

"The old Prince of Dessau came thither for some days. He was very gracious to Nüssler, who had been at his Court, and known him before this. The Old Dessauer made use of Walrave's Plate: usually had Walrave, Nüssler, and other principal figures to dinner. Walrave's Plate, every piece of it, was carefully marked with a Raven on the rim, that being his crest” (“Wall-raven" his name): “Old Dessauer, at sight of so many images of that bird, threw out the observation, loud enough, from the top of the table,' Hah! Walrave, I see you are making yourself acquainted with the ravens in time, that they may not be strange to you at last'"--when they come to eat you on the gibbet! (not a soft tongue, the Old Dessauer's). "Another day, seeing Walrave seated between two Jesuit Guests, the Prince said, 'Ah! there you are right, Walrave; there you sit safe; the Devil can't get you there!' As the

2 Büsching, Beyträge, i., 347 (beginning of May as we guess, but there is no date given).

13th-17th May, 1742.

Prince kept continually bantering him in this strain, Walrave determined not to come; sulkily absented himself one day; but the Prince sent the Ordinanz (Soldier in waiting) to fetch him: no refuge in sulks.

"They had Roman-Catholic victual for Walrave and others of that faith on the meagre-days, but Walrave ate right before him-evidently nothing but the name of Catholic. Indeed, he was a man hated by the Catholics for his special rapacity on them. He is of no religion at all,' said the Catholic Prelate of Neisse one day to Nüssler; 'greedy to plunder the Monasteries here; has wrung gold, silver, and jewels from them-nay, from the Pope himself-by threatening to turn Protestant, and use the Monasteries still worse. And the Pope, hearing of this, had to send him a valuable Gift, which you may see some day.' Nüssler did, one day, see this preciosity: a Crucifix, ebony bordered with gold, and the Body all of that metal, on the smallest of altars, in Walrave's bedroom. But it was the bedroom itself which Nüssler looked at with a shudder," Nüssler and we: "in the middle of it stood Walrave's own bed, on his right hand that of his Wife, and on his left that of his Mistress". —a brutish polygamous Walrave! "This Mistress was a certain Quarter-master's Wife"-Quarter-master willing, it is probable, to get rid of such an article gratis, much more on terms of profit. "Walrave had begged for him the Title of Hofrath from King Friedrich," which, though it was but a clipping of ribbon contemptible to Friedrich, and the brute of an Engineer had excellent talents in his business, I rather wish Friedrich had refused in this instance. But he did not; "he answered in jibing tone, 'I grant you the Hofrath Title for your Quartermaster, thinking it but fit that a General's'-What shall we call her? (Friedrich uses the direct word)-'should have some handle to her name.'"'3

It was this Mistress, one is happy to know, that ultimately betrayed the unbeautiful Walrave, and brought him to Magdeburg for the rest of his life. And now let us over the Mountains to Chrudim again, a hundred-and-fifty miles at one step.

CHAPTER XII.

PRINCE KARL DOES COME ON.

It was before the middle of May, not of June as Friedrich had expected, that serious news reached Chrudim. May 11th, from that place, there is a Letter to Jordan, which for once has no 3 Büsching, Beyträge, i., 343–348.

13th-17th May, 1742.

verse, no bantering in it: Prince Karl actually coming on; Hussar precursors, in quantity, stealing across to attack our Magazines beyond Elbe; and, in consequence, Orders are out this very day: "Cantonments, cease; immediate rendezvous, and Encampment at Chrudim here!" which takes effect two days hence, Monday, 13th May: one of the finest sights Stille ever saw. "His Majesty rode to a height; you never beheld such a scene: bright columns, foot and horse, streaming in from every point of the compass, their clear arms glittering in the sun; lost now in some hollow, then emerging, winding out with long-drawn glitter again, till at length their blue uniforms and actual faces come home to you. Near upon 30,000 of all arms; trim, exact, of stout and silently good-humored aspect; well rested by this time; likely fellows for their work, who will do it with a will. The King seemed to be affected by so glorious a spectacle; and, what I admired, his Majesty, though fatigued, would not rest satisfied with reports or distant view, but personally made the tour of the whole Camp, to see that every thing was right, and posted the pickets himself before retiring."

Prince Karl, since we last heard of him, had hung about in the Brünn and other Moravian regions, rallying his forces, pushing out Croat-parties upon Prince Dietrich's home-march and the like; very ill off for food, for draught cattle, in a wasted Country, so that he had soon quitted Mähren; made for Budweis and neighborhood-dangerous to Broglio's outposts there? To a "Castle of Frauenberg," across the Moldau from Budweis, which is Broglio's bulwark there, and has cost Broglio much revictualing, re-enforcing, and flurry for the last two months. Prince Karl did not meddle with Frauenberg or Broglio on this occasion; leaves Lobkowitz, with some Reserve-party, hovering about in those parts, and himself advances by Teutschbrod (well known to the poor retreating Saxons lately!) toward Chrudim, on his grand Problem, that of 25th February last-cautiously, not too willingly, old Königseck and he. But they were inflexibly urged to it by the Heads at Vienna, who, what with their Bavarian successes, what with their Moravian and other, had got into a high key, and scorned the notion of "Peace" when 1 Stille, p. 57 (or Letter X.).