Emperor agreed.
"To-morrow you will be told our wishes in that direction," the Chancellor
went on.

"Yes," exclaimed the Emperor, "this military offensive must stop, and at
once, if we are successfully to invade England. As soon as Russia makes
peace our hands will be free to strike a staggering blow at John Bull.
Not till then."

"As soon as we bring Russia to her senses then we shall begin to twist
the tail of the British lion," said the Chancellor. "All our plans are
complete. As soon as there is quiet on the Russian front we can, within
forty-eight hours, if we wish, put six army corps into East Anglia
between the Tyne and the Blackwater," he added boastfully.

"Hindenburg will lead them into London one day, never fear," declared the
Emperor in the most earnest confidence.

I sat in silence, listening to this strange talk of what was to happen to
England when Russia was crushed.

"The charges against Soukhomlinoff ought never to have been made," the
Emperor went on, addressing the monk. "I understood from your report to
Steinhauer that you were arranging that the Tsar should hush up the
inquiry?"

"The Emperor gave orders to that effect, in consequence of the advice of
the Empress, but the charges were so very grave that Stuermer urged him to
cancel his orders lest the public should suspect him of any intention of
suppressing a scandal."

It was true that the charges against the Minister of War were astounding.
A high official in the Ministry, named Kartzoff, had betrayed his chief,
whereupon Colonel Tugen Baranovsky, late Chief of the Mobilisation
Department of the Russian General Staff, had declared that the
mobilisation plans drafted by the general were full of wilful errors,
while rifles, machine-guns, and field and heavy guns were all lacking.
Allegations had been made by General Petrovsky, later Chief of the
Fortifications Department, to the effect that the general had only twice
visited the artillery administration during the whole time he held his
portfolio as Minister, while Colonel Balvinkine, one of the heads of the
Artillery Administration, had asserted that Soukhomlinoff had insisted
upon important contracts for machine-guns being given to the Rickerts
factory at a cost of two thousand roubles each, while the Toula factory
could turn out excellent machine-guns at nine hundred roubles.

Such were the charges whispered loudly from end to end of Russia.

"It would be best for that fellow Kartzof