he Grand-Duke,
after such demolition of Pragmatic, and such disasters and
contradictions as had been, saw his case to be desperate; though he
still stuck to it, Austrian-like,--or rather, Austria for him stuck
to it, the Grand-Duke being careless of such things;--and indeed,
privately, never did give in, even AFTER the Election, as we shall have
to note.

The Reich itself being mainly a Phantasm or Enchanted Wiggery, its
"Kaiser-Choosing" (KAISERWAHL),--now getting under way at Frankfurt,
with preliminary outskirts at Regensburg, and in the Chancery of
Mainz--is very phantasmal, not to say ghastly; and forbidding, not
inviting, to the human eye. Nine Kurfursts, Choosers of Teutschland's
real Captain, in none of whom is there much thought for Teutschland or
its interests,--and indeed in hardly more than One of whom (Prussian
Friedrich, if readers will know it) is there the least thought that way;
but, in general, much indifference to things divine or diabolic, and
thought for one's own paltry profits and losses only! So it has long
been; and so it now is, more than usual.--Consider again, are Enchanted
Wiggeries a beautiful thing, in this extremely earnest World?--

The Kaiserwahl is an affair depending much on processions,
proclamations, on delusions optical, acoustic; on palaverings,
manoeuvrings, holdings back, then hasty pushings forward; and indeed
is mainly, in more senses than one, under guidance of the Prince of the
Power of the Air. Unbeautiful, like a World-Parliament of Nightmares
(if the reader could conceive such a thing); huge formless, tongueless
monsters of that species, doing their "three readings,"--under
Presidency or chief-pipership as above! Belleisle, for his part, is
consummately skilful, and manages as only himself could. Keeps his game
well hidden, not a hint or whisper of it except in studied proportions;
spreads out his lines, his birdlime; tickles, entices, astonishes; goes
his rounds, like a subtle Fowler, taking captive the minds of men;
a Phoebus-Apollo, god of melody and of the sun, filling his net with
birds.

I believe, old Kur-Pfalz, for the sake of French neighborhood, and
Berg-and-Julich, were there nothing more, was very helpful to him;--in
March past, when the Election was to have been, when it would have
gone at once in favor of the Grand-Duke, Kur-Pfalz got the Election
"postponed a little." Postponing, procrastinating; then again pushing
violently on, when things are ripe: Be