two women, condemned for
murdering such and such a person, had been executed in the
strangely medieval manner--their heads cut off on the scaffold by
a public executioner.

The German newspapers in reporting police court and other
judicial proceedings often omit names and it is possible in
Berlin for a man to prosecute a blackmailer without having his
own name in print.

When a German victory was announced flags were displayed, but as
the war progressed so many victories announced turned out to be
nothing wonderful or decisive that little attention was paid to
the vain-glorious flaunting of German triumphs. Following an old
custom ten or fifteen trumpeters climbed the tower of Rathhaus or
City Hall and there quite characteristically blew to the four
quarters of Heaven; but again as these official and brazen
blowings were not always followed by the confirmation in fact,
trumpetings were gradually discontinued.

The Germans cleverly kept back the announcement of certain
successes in order to offset reverses. For instance, on a day
when it was necessary to tell the people of a German retreat the
newspapers would have great headlines across the front of the
first page announcing the sinking of a British cruiser (sunk,
perhaps, a month before) and then hidden in a corner would be a
minimised announcement of a German defeat.

To us in Germany there was at the time no battle of the Marne. So
gradually was the news of the retreat of the German forces broken
to the people that to-day the masses do not realise that the fate
of the world was settled at the Marne!

CHAPTER X

THE LITTLE KAISERS

As the king idea seems inseparably connected with war there is no
country in the world where kings and princes have been held in
such great account as in the Central Empires.

I believe there are only two Christian kings in the world--the
kings of Italy and of Montenegro--who are not by blood related to
some German or Austrian royalty.

For remember that while we think of Germany as ruled by the
Kaiser and while it is his will that is certainly imposed upon
the whole of that territory which does not exist politically or
even geographically but which we call Germany, there are houses
of royalty in it almost as numerous as our big corporations.
There are the three kings of Bavaria, Wuertemburg and Saxony,
grand dukes and dukes, and princes, all of them taking themselves
very seriously and all of them residing in their