Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1914-12-25

deed, England had more than ten I'm
gers in this pie that was baking.
| knew that the air was full of
Morocco and war talk. ! knew that
there was a certain faction in Ger
many that was trying to push the
kaiser into war. This clique, COM
posed of army and navy men, the
Junker-the lingo party and the
big-gun interests-backed by public
opinion, were trying their utmost to
urge war with France. What was the
latest at the Wilhelmstrasse?
On the stroke of 1920 l was there.
| handed my number to the commits
saire. This number is important. All
German secret agents are known by
numbers, all carry little cards.
Presently the commissaire returned
and showed me into the chambers of
Graf Won Wedell, privy councillor to
the German emperor. Together with
another man. who had also just ar
rived, I was told to wait in an ante
chamber. We bowed, and although
we took pretty good stock of each
other, neither spoke. It is an unwrit-
ten law in the Imperial Secret Service
not to hold unnecessary conversation.
After about half an hours wait, we
we're shown into the counts private
room. This rather astonished me, for
the usual rule at the Wilhelmstrasse
Is to interview only n man at a
time. Clearly something out of the
ordinary was in the air.
After the count greeted us, he in
quired If we were known to each
other. Receiving a negative, he intro
duced US. My companion wal a Herr
Won Sender, ex-oficer Of the Second
Dragon Guards.
"You will both be taken at half past
eleven to d certain ROOM" said the
count. you will advance to the mid
die, wheel to your right, face the por-
there, and stand at attention, You
will answer all questions. but make no
comments or queries yourself. I need
not enjoin you to the most absolute
silence. You understand?'
4 Face the Kaiser.
We bowed. Just then a gong BOOM
ed somewhere below us. And with a
last word from the count-"Be
readyi"-he left us. R~eappearing al
most Immediately. he beckoned us to
follow him. We noticed that he
seemed even more grave than usual.
Down a fight of stairs along a great
CORRIDOR we made u way, no one
speaking a word. At the end Of the
corridor we saw two sentries; then a
big solid oak door. guarded by an at
tendant in the livery of the royal
household. At a sign from the count
we halted; he nodded. The door was
opened by an officer of the First Body
guard, and, remembering our instruc-
tions, we entered and came to atten-
ton in the middle of a large room,
facing an adjoining chamber, the por-
there's of which were divided.
The room in which we stood was
brilliantly lighted, but the other was
dark, save for a green glow that came
from a shaded reading lamp on a big
writing desk. Sender looked at the
desk and gave a sort Of gasp. I quite
understood his emotion. For seated
behind that heavy, old-fashioned desk
was Wilhelm II, emperor of Germany.
We stood at rigid attention, abso-
lutely silent for full five minutes. The
dimly lit, solitary figure at the desk
made no sign, but went on writing.
l am not a timid or a nervous man;
the sort of work l was doing seasons
one pretty thoroughly. But this be-
gan to get on my nerves-drawn up in
front of the emperor and waiting.
The more | looked at that silent,
lonely figure, War. Lord of Europe,
the more l began to feel a great long
ing for the African veldt. a thousand
miles north of Port Natal preferably.
Suddenly the emperor made a move,
and there came a sharp, rather high
pitched voice. saying, "Wedell, I will
see the DOCTOR"
At once Herr Sender was shown
from the room: obviously. the mission,
whatever it was, was not for him.
/ was hidden to step to within three
PAGES of the emperor; the officer who
escorted Herr Won Sender from the
AOOAI dLtChlptCu " ACbuAns Uut was
waved out. There were just the three
Of US. Count Wedell. standing at the
corner of the desk on the right, the
kaiser, and myself.
/ had seen the emperor on many
occasions before. but never so close.
He appeared to be lost in some docu-
ment. He looked we'll, but older than
any of his portraits. Tanned almost
dark, his rather lean face bore a
striking likeness to Frederick the
Great, more SO than ever now that he
is getting gray. I realized that none
Of his portraits do his eyes justice.
OF a blush steel gray. they~have an
icy, impersonal look in them that is
impressive. It is hard to define. but it
struck me in that momen that Lord
Kitchener, Tewfk Pasha, Cecil
Rhodes, and Ii Hung Chang had K
actly those same eyes-the eyes Of