generous House of Austria, too long lording it over generous
Germany; and to set up some better House,--Bavaria, for example; Saxony,
for example? Of his plans in the rear of this he is silent; speaks only
by hints, by innuendoes, to the proper parties. But ripening or ripe,
plans do lie to rear; far-stretching, high-soaring; in part, dark even
at Versailles; darkly fermenting, not yet developed, in Belleisle's
own head; only the Future Kaiser a luminous fixed point, shooting beams
across the grandiose Creation-Process going on there.

By the end of August, 1741, Belleisle had become certain of his game;
24th January, 1742, he saw himself as if winner. Before August, 1741,
he had got his Electors manipulated, tickled to his purpose, by the
witchery of a Phoebus-Autolycus or Diplomatic Sun-god; majority secured
for a Bavarian Kaiser, and against an Austrian one. And in the course
of that month,--what was still more considerable!--he was getting, under
mild pretexts, about a hundred thousand armed Frenchmen gently wafted
over upon the soil of Germany. Two complete French Armies, 40,000 each
(PLUS their Reserves), one over the Upper Rhine, one over the Lower;
about which we shall hear a great deal in time coming! Under mild
pretexts: "Peaceable as lambs, don't you observe? Merely to protect
Freedom of Election, in this fine neighbor country; and as allies to our
Friend of Bavaria, should he chance to be new Kaiser, and to persist
in his modest claims otherwise." This was his crowning stroke. Which
finished straightway the remnants of Pragmatic Sanction and of every
obstacle; and in a shining manner swept the roads clear. And so, on
January 24th following, the Election, long held back by Belleisle's
manoeuvrings, actually takes effect,--in favor of Karl Albert, our
invaluable Bavarian Friend. Austria is left solitary in the Reich;
Pragmatic Sanction, Keystone of Nature, which Belleisle and France had
sworn to keep in, is openly torn out by Belleisle and by France and
the majority of mankind; and Belleisle sees himself, to all appearance,
winner.

This was the harvest reaped by Belleisle, within year and day; after
endless manoeuvring, such as only a Belleisle in the character of
Diplomatic Sun-god could do. Beyond question, the distracted ambitions
of several German Princes have been kindled by Belleisle; what we called
the rotten thatch of Germany is well on fire. This diligent sowing in
the Reich--to judge by the 100,000