e; but Morier felt
himself to be in a backwater, far from the main stream of European
politics, and society there was dull. So he welcomed in 1871 his
transference first to Stuttgart, and a few months later to Munich, the
capital of the second state in the new Empire and a great centre of
literary culture. Here lived Dr. Doellinger, historian and divine, a man
suspected at Rome for his liberal Catholicism even before his definite
severance from the Roman Church, but honoured everywhere else for the
width and depth of his knowledge. With him Morier enjoyed many
conversations on Church councils and other subjects which interested
them both; and in 1874, lured by the prospect of such society, Gladstone
paid him a visit of ten days. Morier did not admire Gladstone's conduct
of foreign policy, but he was open-minded enough to recognize his great
gifts and to enjoy his company, and he writes home with enthusiasm about
his conversational powers. A still more welcome visitor in 1873 was
Jowett, his old Oxford friend, who never lost his place in Morier's
affections.

Among these delights he retained his vigilance in political matters, and
there was often need for it, since the German Government was now
developing that habit of 'rattling its sword', and threatening its
neighbours with war, which disquieted Europe for another forty years.
The worst crisis came in 1875, when Morier heard on good authority that
the military clique at Berlin were gaining ground, and seemed likely to
persuade the Emperor William to force on a second war, expressly to
prevent France recovering its strength. In general the credit for
checking this sinister move is given to the Tsar; but English influences
played a large part in the matter. Morier managed to catch the Crown
Prince on his way south to Italy and had a long talk with him in the
railway train. The Crown Prince was known to be a true lover of peace,
but capable of being hoodwinked by Bismarck; once convinced that the
danger was real (and he trusted Morier as he trusted no German in his
entourage), he returned to Berlin and threw all his weight into the
scale of peace. Queen Victoria also wrote from London; and, in face of a
possible coalition against them, the Germans decided that it was wisest
to abstain from all aggression.

A new period opened in his life when he left German courts, never to
return officially, and became the responsible head of Her Majesty's
Legation at the Portuguese Co