been hidden by clouds, burst forth and shone brilliantly; golden beams
fell upon the easy-chair of Frederick the Great, and surrounded it, as
it were, with a halo.

"This, then, is the death-bed of the great king," said Napoleon,
musingly. "The gods did not permit him to fall on the battle-field.
Disease and age vanquished the hero of the Seven Years' War, and he died
not amid the triumphs of his soldiers, but solitary and alone! May
Providence, in His mercy, preserve us from such a fate!" And turning
quickly to the castellan, he asked, "Were you present when the king
died?"

"Yes, sire, I was; for I was his _valet de chambre_."

"Tell me the last words he uttered."

"Sire, he spoke repeatedly, but so inaudibly and rapidly that we did not
apprehend him. The last words which we were able to understand were:
'Give me back my soldiers of the Seven Years' War! I am tired of ruling
over slaves!'"

"Strange, strange," murmured Napoleon; "he was tired of ruling over
slaves! as though it were possible to rule over free men! Ah, I should
like to have known this king, who was such an autocrat, and yet despised
slaves! who wielded the sword as skilfully as the pen! to whom the
booming of the cannon sounded as melodious as the notes of his
flute--who made verses with Voltaire, and won battles with Schwerin and
Ziethen! He was able to do every thing, and we have not seen his
equal!"

"Oh, sire," murmured the marshals, "your majesty forgets--"

"Silence, gentlemen!" he exclaimed, in an angry voice, pointing with his
outstretched arm to the easy-chair, "do not flatter me in _this_ room. I
wish I had known Frederick the Great, for I believe we should have
understood each other."

"Sire," said the castellan, "it is true, his majesty did not know you;
nevertheless, he dreamed of you."

Napoleon hastily turned toward him and asked: "What? He dreamed of me?
Tell me all about it. Approach!"

The castellan, obeying the sign made to him, advanced a few steps slowly
and hesitatingly.

"Sire," he said, "it was a few years after the Seven Years' War. I had
just entered the king's service, and was on duty during that night; that
is to say, I slept in the anteroom, and had received strict orders to
awaken the king at a fixed hour in the morning, and to enter his bedroom
during the night as soon as he called me, or if I should hear any noise.
Suddenly I heard the cry, 'Fire, fire!' I rushed immediately into the
bedroom, but no fire