was enthusiastic; and, contrary to all expectations, the
citizens of Moempelgard itself received their new ruler with expressions
of ecstatic loyalty, and even the Landhofmeisterin was loudly cheered.
Here again the cannon roared a welcome, children and maidens strewed
roses, choirs of youths chanted paeans of homage and rejoicing, and the
Moempelgard regiments, which but a few months before had been employed by
the bastards to oppose the rightful heir, now greeted their Duke with
respect. Banners waved from every house, arches of fresh flowers adorned
the streets, the windows were spread with silken hangings, and the church
bells rang peal upon peal. It was a scene of rejoicing, of enthusiasm, of
pomp and magnificence, and it was the culminating point of the triumph of
Wilhelmine von Graevenitz, but her heart was heavy with foreboding.

Serenissimus also, though he played his part in the fine pageant with
seeming pleasure, was filled with profound sadness. The Erbprincessin had
been brought to bed of a daughter only since the loss of her first child.
The Erbprinz was more ailing than ever; true, he fought gallantly against
his weakness, seeking to fortify himself and please his father by outdoor
exercises; but, though he rode magnificently, with skill and intrepidity,
he had fallen fainting from his horse several times of late. The doctors
shook their heads, and the cognizance forced itself upon Eberhard Ludwig
that he himself would be the last Duke of the direct line.

After spending three weeks of feasting at Moempelgard, his Highness set
out for Stuttgart. The Moempelgarders bade him adieu with many expressions
of loyal devotion. They found their new Duke and his handsome, decorous
mistress, who played so finely the role of legal Duchess, an agreeable
change after Leopold Eberhard's 'Persian Court' and its absurdities, and
they would fain have induced Serenissimus to tarry in Moempelgard; but the
King of Prussia had intimated his intention of visiting Ludwigsburg in
September, and Eberhard Ludwig hurried back to receive his royal guest.
But on arriving in Ludwigsburg his Highness fell ill, and Friedrich
Wilhelm's visit was postponed till the following spring.

The winter passed with little incident at Ludwigsburg. His Highness
recovered rapidly from his actual illness, yet he did not regain his
accustomed health and spirits, and thus the court festivities were both
fewer and less brilliant than heretofore. The Land