ty coming upon her enemy. Mueller was sincere
enough in his abhorrence of the woman who had resisted and then insulted
him. The fanatical practices of the Pietists had inflamed his mind, and
he really believed God had chosen him to humble the wanton. Old Frau von
Graevenitz had talked freely of the favours and honours showered upon her
daughter at Stuttgart, and Mueller's mad physical jealousy was aroused,
for he at once realised that Wilhelmine had become Eberhard Ludwig's
mistress. This, together with his fierce fanatical Pietism, had sufficed
to turn the man's brain. Thus mixed and contending motives, as is so
often the case, formed a fixed and single purpose, and Mueller had
preached his way to Stuttgart, where he meant to accomplish his object of
vengeance upon Wilhelmine or die in the attempt. He knew that to gain an
extensive hearing from the crowd in Stuttgart he must earn a reputation
as preacher in the neighbourhood, so he began his campaign by lecturing
in the open air at many towns and villages of Wirtemberg. Pietism was
rife all over the country, and the preacher was received with enthusiasm,
and his fame, as we have seen, spread rapidly, even reaching at length
the Duchess. Mueller had never dreamed of gaining so great a personage as
her Highness, and he was astounded when he received her command to preach
at the castle; but this gave him renewed confidence in himself, and it
seemed to his half-crazy mind to be a confirmation of his divine mission
of revenge on the sinful. At present he had formed no definite plan as to
how his vengeance was to be accomplished; he merely meant, if possible,
to inflame public opinion against Wilhelmine to such an extent as to
cause her to be driven from Wirtemberg. With unfailing energy Mueller
preached sometimes four or five sermons daily, whenever and wherever he
managed to attract a crowd. At first he contented himself with
pronouncing violent diatribes against sin: the term conveyed to him only
one species of human weakness, and all his sermons were on the subject of
bodily lust. He had named Wilhelmine 'a sinner, an instigator of
wickedness,' at Tuebingen, and he had quickly noted the approval on his
hearers' faces. Now in Stuttgart he went further, and actually accused
her of witchcraft as well. His zeal grew, each day increased by his own
words, till he preached openly a religious crusade against her. Osiander,
informed of these sayings, caused him to be warned that the