quietly eminent and valiant manner. Sagacious,
skilful, imperturbable, without fear and without noise; a man quietly
ever ready. He had quelled, once, walking direct into the heart of it, a
ferocious Russian mutiny, or uproar from below, which would have ruined
everything in few minutes more. (Mannstein, p. 130 (no date, April-May,
1742.) He suffered, with excellent silence, now and afterwards, much
ill-usage from above withal;--till Friedrich himself, in the third
year hence, was lucky enough to get him as General. Friedrich's Sister
Ulrique, the marriage of Princess Ulrique,--that also, as it chanced,
had something to do with this Peace of Abo. But we anticipate too far.

Chapter IX. -- FRIEDRICH RETURNS TO SILESIA.

Friedrich stayed only three weeks at home; moving about, from Berlin to
Potsdam, to Reinsberg and back: all the gay world is in Berlin, at this
Carnival time; but Friedrich has more to do with business, of a manifold
and over-earnest nature, than with Carnival gayeties. French Valori
is here, "my fat Valori," who is beginning to be rather a favorite
of Friedrich's: with Excellency Valori, and with the other Foreign
Excellencies, there was diplomatic passaging in these weeks; and we
gather from Valori, in the inverse way (Valori fallen sulky), that it
was not ill done on Friedrich's part. He had some private consultation
with the Old Dessauer, too; "probably on military points," thinks
Valori. At least there was noticed more of the drill-sergeant than
before, in his handling of the Army, when he returned to Silesia,
continues the sulky one. "Troops and generals did not know him
again,"--so excessively strict was he grown, on the sudden. And truly
"he got into details which were beneath, not only a Prince who has
great views, but even a simple Captain of Infantry,"--according to my
(Valori's) military notions and experiences! [Valori, i. 99.]--

The truth is, Friedrich begins to see, more clearly than he did with
GLOIRE dazzling him, that his position is an exceedingly grave one, full
of risk, in the then mood and condition of the world; that he, in the
whole world, has no sure friend but his Army; and that in regard to IT
he cannot be too vigilant! The world is ominous to this youngest of the
Kings more than to another. Sounds as of general Political Earthquake
grumble audibly to him from the deeps: all Europe likely, in any event,
to get to loggerheads on this Austrian Pragmatic matter; the Nation