"This is sweet," said Guste who was reading the miscellaneous column. "We must grasp the trident," declared Diederich resolutely, while Guste read out some adventure of the Empress which filled her with deep satisfaction. At Hubertusstock the exalted lady liked to dress in simple, almost middleclass style. A postman to whom she revealed her identity on the country road did not believe who she was and laughed in her face. Afterwards he was overwhelmed and fell upon his knees, only to be rewarded with a mark. This also delighted Diederich, just as his heart was touched when the Emperor went out into the street on Christmas Eve, with fifty-seven marks in newly-minted money, to give the poor of Berlin a happy Christmas; as when an ominous thrill ran through him on learning that the Emperor had become an Honorary Bailiff of the Knights of Saint John. The "Lokal-Anzeiger" opened up new worlds, and then, again, it brought the highest rulers comfortably close to one. There in the alcove the three-quarter life-size figures in bronze of their Majesties seemed to move smilingly closer, and the Trumpeter of Sackingen, who accompanied them, could be heard blowing a cordial blast. "It must be heavenly on washing-day at the Emperor's," said Guste, "when there are a lot of clothes. They have a hundred people for washing!" Diederich, on the other hand, was filled with profound pleasure because the Emperor's dachshunds were not obliged to respect the trains of the court ladies. He conceived the plan of giving full liberty to his own Manne in this respect at their next evening party. But a telegram in the next column made him uneasy, because it was still uncertain whether the Emperor and the Tsar would meet. "If it doesn't happen soon," said Diederich importantly, "we shall have to be prepared for the worst. One cannot trifle with world history." He liked to linger over imminent catastrophes, for "the German spirit is serious, almost tragic," he would declare.
On the whole, Diederich's relations with Jadassohn turned
