purpose. "Unbolt,
IHR HERREN; swift, or the petard will have to do it!" Borck publishes
his Proclamation, a mild-spoken rigorous Piece; signifies to the Maaseyk
Authorities, That he has to exact a Contribution of 20,000 thalers
(3,000 pounds) here, Contribution payable in three days; that he
furthermore, while he continues in these parts, will need such and such
rations, accommodations, allowances,--"fifty LOUIS (say guineas) daily
for his own private expenses," one item;--and, in mild rhadamanthine
language, waves aside all remonstrance, refusal or delay, as superfluous
considerations: Unless said Contribution and required supplies come in,
it will be his painful duty to bring them in. [_Helden-Geschichte,_ i.
427; ii. 113.]

The high-flying Bishop, much astonished, does now eagerly answer his
Prussian Majesty, "Was from home, was ill, thought he had answered; is
the most ill-used of Bishops;" and other things of a hysteric character.
[Ib. ii. 85, 86 (date, 16th September).] And there came forth, as
natural to the situation, multitudinous complainings, manifestoings,
applications to the Kaiser, to the French, to the Dutch, of a very
shrieky character on the Bishop of Liege's part; sparingly, if at all
noticed on Friedrich's: the whole of which we shall consider ourselves
free to leave undisturbed in the rubbish-abysses, as henceforth
conceivable to the reader. "SED SPEM STUPENDE FEFELLIT EVENTUS," shrieks
the poor old Bishop, making moan to the Kaiser: "ECCE ENIM, PRAEMISSA
DUNTAXAT UNA LITERA, one Letter," and little more, "the said King of
Borussia has, with about 2,000 horse and foot, and warlike engines,
in this month of September, entered the Territory of Liege;"
[_Helden-Geschichte,_ ii. 88.] which is an undeniable truth, but an
unavailing. Borck is there, and "2,000 good arguments with him,"
as Voltaire defines the phenomenon. Friedrich, except to explain
pertinently what my readers already know, does not write or speak
farther on the subject; and readers and he may consider the Herstal
Affair, thus set agoing under Borck's auspices, as in effect finished;
and that his Majesty has left it on a satisfactory footing, and may
safely turn his back on it, to wait the sure issue at Berlin before
long.

WHAT VOLTAIRE THOUGHT OF HERSTAL.

Voltaire told us he himself "did one Manifesto, good or bad," on this
Herstal business:--where is that Piece, then, what has become of it?
Dig well in the realms of Chaos, r