ts of his Fortresses, Commandant of Spandau more
especially, refused to obey Friedrich Wilhelm, on his accession; "were
bound to obey the Kaiser in the first place." He had to proceed softly
as well as swiftly; with the most delicate hand to get him of Spandau by
the collar, and put him under lock-and-key, him as a warning to others.

For twenty years past, Brandenburg had been scoured by hostile armies,
which, especially the Kaiser's part of which, committed outrages new
in human history. In a year or two hence, Brandenburg became again the
theatre of business; Austrian Gallas advancing thither again (1644),
with intent "to shut up Torstenson and his Swedes in Jutland," where
they had been chastising old Christian IV., now meddlesome again, for
the last time, and never a good neighbor to Sweden. Gallas could by
no means do what he intended: on the contrary, he had to run from
Torstenson, what feet could do; was hunted, he and his MERODE-BRUDER
(beautiful inventors of the "Marauding" Art), "till they pretty much all
died (CREPERTIN)," says Kohler. [_Reichs-Historie,_ p. 556; Pauli, v.
24.] No great loss to society, the death of these Artists: but we can
fancy what their life, and especially what the process of their dying,
may have cost poor Brandenburg again!--

Friedrich Wilhelm's aim, in this as in other emergencies, was sun-clear
to himself, but for most part dim to everybody else. He had to walk very
warily, Sweden on one hand of him, suspicious Kaiser on the other; he
had to wear semblances, to be ready with evasive words; and advance
noiselessly by many circuits. More delicate operation could not be
imagined. But advance he did: advance and arrive. With extraordinary
talent, diligence and felicity the young man wound himself out of
this first fatal position: got those foreign Armies pushed out of his
Country, and kept them out. His first concern had been to find some
vestige of revenue, to put that upon a clear footing; and by loans or
otherwise to scrape a little ready money together. On the strength of
which a small body of soldiers could be collected about him, and drilled
into real ability to fight and obey. This as a basis: on this followed
all manner of things: freedom from Swedish-Austrian invasions, as the
first thing.

He was himself, as appeared by and by, a fighter of the first quality,
when it came to that: but never was willing to fight if he could help
it. Preferred rather to shift, manoeuvre and