w solitary, how joyless life is! how rich I was once in friends, how
poor I am now! and who knows how much poorer I may be to-morrow at this
hour--who knows if I shall have a place to lay my head?--I may be
a fugitive, without home or country. Verily, I have the destiny of
Mithridates--I want only two sons and a Monima. Well," continued he,
with a soft smile, "it is still something to stand alone--misfortunes
only strike home. But do I stand alone? have I not an entire people
looking to me and expecting me to do my duty? Have I not brave soldiers,
who call me father, looking death courageously in the face and hazarding
their lives for me? No, I am not alone--and if Mithridates had two sons,
I have thirty-three thousand. I will go and bid them good-evening. I
think it will refresh my sad heart to hear their cheerful greetings."

The king threw on his mantle and left his quarters, to make, as he was
often accustomed to do, a tour through the camp. Only the officer on
guard followed him, at a short distance.

It was now dark, and fires, which were lighted everywhere, gave a little
protection against the biting cold. It was a beautiful sight--the wide
plain, with its numberless, blazing, flickering fires, surrounded by
groups of cheerful soldiers, their fresh faces glowing with the light of
the flames. In the distance the moon rose grand and full, illuminating
the scene with its silver rays, and blending its pale shimmer with the
ruddy flames.

The king walked briskly through the camp, and, when recognized, the
soldiers greeted him with shouts and loving words. As he approached a
large fire, over which hung a big kettle, the contents of which filled
the air with savory odors, he heard a brisk voice say:

"Now, comrades, come and eat, the noodles are done!"

"Hurrah! here we are," cried the boys, who were standing not far off,
chatting merrily. They sprang forward joyfully, to eat the longed--for
noodles.

The king, recognizing the soldiers who had uncovered his roof, drew near
to the fire.

"Shall I also come and eat with you?" he said, good-humoredly.

The soldiers looked up from the tin plates, in which the noodles were
swimming.

"Yes, sire," said Fritz Kober, jumping up and approaching the king;
"yes, you shall eat with us; here is my spoon and knife, and if you
reject it, and are only mocking us, I shall be very angry indeed."

The king laughed, and turning to the officer who had followed him, said
as if to