e made this very hour. Here is the bill of sale; only the name of the
present possessor is wanting, the signature of the purchaser, and the
payment of seven thousand five hundred thalers."

"The names can be quickly written; but, your excellency," cried the
prince, "where will the money come from?"

"I have just given your royal highness the key to the little box: have
the goodness to press hard upon the rosette."

The prince touched the spring, the cover flew back--it contained only
a strip of paper! Upon it was written, in the king's own handwriting,
"Bill of exchange upon my treasurer. Pay to the order of the Prince of
Prussia twenty thousand thalers." [Footnote: "Memoirs of the Countess
Lichtenau," vol.1] The prince's face lighted up with joy. "Oh! the
king has indeed given me a miraculous elixir, that compensates for all
misfortunes, heals all infirmities, and is a balsam for all possible
griefs. I will bring it into use immediately, and sign the bill of
sale." He signed the paper, and filled with haste the deficiency in
the contract. "It is done!" he cried, joyfully, "the proprietress,
Wilhelmine Enke; purchaser, Frederick William of Prussia. Nothing
remains to be done but to draw upon the king's treasury, and pay Count
Schmettau."

"Your royal highness is spared even that trouble. Here are twenty rolls,
and each roll contains one hundred double Fredericks d'or, and, when
your highness commands it, I will reserve seven rolls and pay Count
Schmettau; then there remain thirteen for yourself. Here is the
contract, which you will give in person to the possessor."

"First, I must go to the king," said the prince; "my heart urges me
to express my gratitude to him, and my deep sense of his goodness and
tenderness. I feel ashamed without being humbled, like a repentant son,
who has doubted the generosity and goodness of his father, because he
has sometimes severely reprimanded his faults. I must go at once to the
king."

"He will not receive your royal highness," answered Herzberg, smiling.
"You know our sovereign, who so fully deserves our admiration and love.
His favor and goodness beam upon us all, and he desires neither thanks
nor acknowledgment. He performs his noble, glorious deeds in a harsh
manner, that he may relieve the recipients of his bounty from the burden
of gratitude; and often when he is the most morose and harsh, is he at
heart the most gracious and affectionate. You and yours have experienced
it