Carlyle's "History of Friedrich II of Prussia" BOOK VIII.
Page: 53

Ex-King locked in Rivoli near a fortnight ago: "he, General
Schulenburg, says farther, To judge by the outside, all appears
very quiet; but many think, at the bottom of the bag it will not
be the same."--


"I am, with respect," your Excellency's much in buckram,

"LE COMTE DE SCHOULENBOURG."

[Forster, iii. 73-75.]

So far Lieutenant-General Schulenburg; whom we thank for these
contemporary glimpses of a young man that has become historical,
and of the scene he lived in. And with these three accidental
utterances, as if they (which are alone left) had been the sum of
all he said in the world, let the Lieutenant-General withdraw now
into silence: he will turn up twice again, after half a score of
years, once in a nobler than talking attitude, the
close-harnessed, stalwart, slightly atrabiliar military gentleman
of the old Prussian school.

These glimpses of the Crown-Prince, reflected on us in this
manner, are not very luculent to the reader,--light being
indifferent, and mirror none of the best:--but some features do
gleam forth, good and not so good; which, with others coming, may
gradually coalesce into something conceivable. A Prince clearly of
much spirit, and not without petulance; abundant fire, much of it
shining and burning irregularly at present; being sore held down
from without, and anomalously situated. Pride enough, thinks
Schulenburg, capricious petulance enough,--likely to go into
"a reign of the passions," if we live. As will be seen!--

Wilhelmina was betrothed in June last: Wilhelmina, a Bride these
six months, continues to be much tormented by Mamma. But the
Bridegroom, Prince of Baireuth, is gradually recommending himself
to persons of judgment, to Wilhelmina among others. One day he
narrowly missed an unheard-of accident: a foolish servant, at some
boar-hunt, gave him a loaded piece on the half-cock; half-cock
slipped in the handling; bullet grazed his Majesty's very temple,
was felt twitching the hair there;--ye Heavens! Whereupon
impertinent remarks from some of the Dessau people (allies of
Schwedt and the Margravine in high colors); which were well
answered by the Prince, and noiselessly but severely checked by a