f worthless Karl Theodor, kindled
by Joseph and his Kaunitz, kicking against the pricks. Haggles on
Saxony's part: "I claimed 7,000,000 pounds sterling, and you allow me
600,000 pounds." "Better that than nothing," answered Friedrich. Haggles
with Mecklenburg: "Instead of my Leuchtenberg, I get an improvement in
my Law-Courts, right of Judging without Appeal; what is that!"
Haggles with the once grateful Duke of Zweibruck: "Can't part with my
Burghausen." "Suppose you had had to part with your Bavaria altogether?"
In short, Friedrich, who had gained nothing for himself, but such
infinity of outlay in all kinds, never saw such a coil of human follies
and cupidities before; and had to exhaust his utmost patience, submit
to new losses of his own, and try all his dexterities in pig-driving:
overjoyed, at last, to get out of it on any terms. Outlay of Friedrich
is about Two Millions sterling, and above 10,000 men's lives (his own
narrowly not included), with censures, criticisms, provocations and
botherations without end. In return for which, he has, truly, put a
spoke in Austria's proud wheel for this time, and managed to see fair
play in the Reich; which had seemed to him, and seems, a considerable
thing. By way of codicil, Austria agrees not to chicane him in regard to
Anspach-Baireuth,--how generous of Austria, after this experience!--

In reality, the War was an Imaginary War; deserving on its own score
little record anywhere; to readers here requiring almost less than it
has got. Schmettau, Schoning and others have been abundantly minute
upon it; but even to soldiers there is little either of interest or
instruction; to us, all it yields is certain Anecdotes of Friedrich's
temper and ways in that difficult predicament; which, as coming at
first-hand, gathered for us by punctual authentic Schmettau, who was
constantly about him, with eyes open and note-book ready, have a kind of
worth in the Biographic point of view.

The Prussian Soldiery, of whom we see a type in Schmettau, were
disgusted with this War, and called it, in allusion to the foraging, A
scramble for potatoes, "DER KARTOFFEL-KRIEG, The Potato War;" which
is its common designation to this day. The Austrians, in a like humor,
called it "ZWETSCHKEN-RUMMEL" (say "THREE-BUTTON Loo"); a game not worth
playing; especially not at such cost. Combined cost counted to have been
in sum-total 4,350,000 pounds and 20,000 men. [Preuss, iv. 115.]
"The Prussian Army was fu