"Kockeritz." he said, after a pause, standing in front of the old
general, who was his most intimate friend, and looking him full in
the face, "you are really in earnest, then? You believe in the
prophecies of the clairvoyante?"
"I confess, your majesty, that I cannot but believe them," said
Kockeritz, sighing. "Her words, her whole manner, all her gestures,
bear the stamp of truthfulness to such an extent, that I would deem
it a crime against nature to believe her to be an impostor; she has,
moreover, already predicted to me the most wonderful things, and in
her trance read my thoughts. She has looked, as it were, into the
depth of my soul, so that I cannot doubt longer that she really is a
prophetess."
"And you, field-marshal--do you, too, believe in her?" asked the
king.
"I do, reluctantly, and in spite of myself, but I cannot help it,"
said the old field-marshal, shrugging his shoulders. "This girl
speaks so forcibly, with such eloquence and such fervor of
expression, that one is obliged to believe in her. Your majesty
knows that I have always sided with those who have deemed the
alliance of Prussia with France to be indispensable for the welfare
and salvation of the country, and that I entertain the highest
admiration for the genius, the character, and military talents of
the Emperor Napoleon; I have never concealed my conviction that
Prussia is lost if your majesty renounce Napoleon, and accept the
proffered hand of Russia.
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