When she, poor little gray dove, lies trembling in the royal falcon's
talons a head rises up and peeps over the fence, for the royal star
has been seen through a crack between the boards, its knowing, sly
grin passing into the lusty shout:
"Heil dem koenig, hoch, hoch!"
An excited crowd rushes from all directions, cheering: "Ein, zwei,
drei, hurrah!" while a constable places the damsel under arrest,
charging her with lese majeste. When, however, his majesty intercedes
most graciously the your lady is promptly released, and restored to
freedom.
But the constable's fee that she must pay--in earthly power, not even
a king can save her from it, for that is a "trinkgeld" and she pays
it from the royal purse.
On the evening of the king's arrival I accompanied my father to the
castle where the reception royal took place. There were no ladies
present on this occasion. The king was, as has been said, totally
blind, but indulged in the curious habit of feigning to have an
unimpaired eye sight and pretended to admire scenic objects which had
been pointed out to him beforehand as though he really saw them,
carrying out this illusion to the extent of ridiculousness. It is
said that at a hunt-meet a courtier incurred his royal displeasure
through these incautious words: "Sire, you shot this hare from a next
to impossible distance, condescend to feel how fat it is!"
As the poor man failed to say "See how fat," he fell promptly into
disfavor, which is equivalent to being blacklisted in our country.
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