day all she is to have is a quarter of a wafer
and thirteen drops of raspberry juice.

"_Sage es aber niemanden! Verbrenne diesen Brief!_" ("But don't tell
anybody about it; burn this letter") was the exorcist's final
injunction.

To live up to his reputation for wonder-working, the mystic had an
AEolian harp in each of the windows of his house, so arranged that
Ariel-like voices would float through the summer breezes.

"It is magic," said the peasants, crossing themselves devoutly when
they heard the sound.

But the harp-obligato proved no more effective than the reduced
dieting and early attempt to popularise slimming. After a couple of
days, accordingly, the regime was varied by the substitution of asses'
milk for the raspberry juice. Much to his annoyance, however, the
specialist had to report to another correspondent, Sophie Schwab, that
his patient was not deriving any real benefit, and that the
troublesome "devil" had not been dislodged.

As was to be expected, Lola, having a healthy appetite and objecting
to short rations, gave the mesmerist the slip and hurried back to her
Ludwig. After a few words with him, she left for Stahrenberg.

Ludwig sat down and wrote another "poem." Appropriately enough, this
was entitled "Lamentation."

CHAPTER XI

A FALLEN STAR

I

Even with Lola Montez out of the way and the University doors
re-opened, it was not a case of all quiet on the Munich front. Far
from it. Berks, the new Minister of the Interior, who had always
supported her, still remained in office; and Lola herself continued
from a distance to pull strings. Some of them were effective.

But Lola Montez, or no Lola Montez, there was in the eyes of his
exasperated subjects more than enough to make them thoroughly
dissatisfied with the Wittelsbach regime, as carried out by Ludwig.
The Cabinet had become very nearly inarticulate; public funds had been
squandered on all sorts of grandiose and unnecessary schemes; and the
clerical element had long been allowed to ride roughshod over the
constitution. Altogether, the "Ministry of Dawn," brought into
existence with such a flourish of trumpets after the dismissal of von
Abel and his colleagues, had not proved the anticipated success.
Instead of getting better, things had got worse; and, although it had
not actually been suggested, the idea of substituting the monarchy by
a republic was being discussed in many quarters.

The editor of the _Annual Re