at was what he meant in picking this quarrel!' said
Teutschland mournfully. Fleury was very pacific, candid in aspect to the
Sea-Powers and others; and did not crow afflictively, did not say what
he had meant.

"5. One immense consolation for the Kaiser, if for no other, is: France
guarantees the Pragmatic Sanction,--though with very great difficulty;
spending a couple of years, chiefly on this latter point as was thought.
[Treaty on it not signed till 18th November, 1738 (Scholl, ii. 246).]
How it kept said guarantee, will be seen in the sequel."

And these were the damages the poor Kaiser had to pay for meddling in
Polish Elections;--for galloping thither in chase of his Shadows. No
such account of broken windows was ever presented to a man before. This
may be considered as the consummation of the Kaiser's Shadow-Hunt; or at
least its igniting and exploding point. His Duel with the Termagant has
at last ended; in total defeat to him on every point. Shadow-Hunt does
not end; though it is now mostly vanished; exploded in fire. Shadow-Hunt
is now gone all to Pragmatic Sanction, as it were: that now is the one
thing left in Nature for a Kaiser; and that he will love, and chase, as
the summary of all things. From this point he steadily goes down, and
at a rapid rate;--getting into disastrous Turk Wars, with as little
preparation for War or Fact as a life-long Hunt of SHADOWS presupposes;
Eugene gone from him, and nothing but Seckendorfs to manage for
him;--and sinks to a low pitch indeed. We will leave him here; shall
hope to see but little more of him.

In the Summer of 1736, in consequence of these arrangements,--which were
completed so far, though difficulties on Pragmatic Sanction and other
points retarded the final signature for many months longer,--the Titular
Majesty Stanislaus girt himself together for departure towards his new
Dominion or Life-rent; quitted Konigsberg; traversed Prussian Poland,
safe this time, "under escort of Lieutenant-General von Katte [our poor
Katte of Custrin's Father] and fifty cuirassiers;" reached Berlin in the
middle of May, under flowerier aspects than usual. He travelled under
the title of "Count" Something, and alighted at the French Ambassador's
in Berlin: but Friedrich Wilhelm treated him like a real Majesty, almost
like a real Brother; had him over to the Palace; rushed out to meet
him there, I forget how many steps beyond the proper limits; and was
hospitality itself and munifi