rose actual talk of a "Congress;" and wagging of
Diplomatic wigs as to where it shall be. "In Breda," said some; "Breda
a place used to Congresses." "Why not in Nanci here?" said poor old
Ex-Polish Stanislaus, alive to the calls of benevolence, poor old
Titular soul. Others said "Leipzig;" others "Augsburg;"--and indeed
in Augsburg, according to the Gazetteers, at one time, there were
"upholsterers busy getting ready the apartments." So that, with such
rumor in the Diplomatic circles, the Gazetteer and outer world was full
of speculation upon Peace; and Friedrich had lively hopes of it, and had
been hoping three months before, as we transiently saw, though again it
came to nothing. All to nothing; and is not, in itself, worth the least
attention from us here,--a poor extinct fact, loud in those months and
filling the whole world, now silent and extinct to everybody,--except,
indeed, that it offers physiognomic traits here and there of a certain
King, and of those about him. For which reason we will dwell on it a few
minutes longer.

Nobody, in that Winter 1759-1760, could guess where, or from whom, this
big world-interesting Peace-Negotiation had its birth; as everybody now
can, when nobody now is curious on the question! At Sagan, in September
last, we all saw the small private source of it, its first outspurt into
daylight; and read Friedrich's ANSWERS to Voltaire and the noble
Duchess on it:--for the sake of which Two private Correspondents, and
of Friedrich's relation to them, possibly a few more Excerpts may still
have a kind of interest, now when the thing corresponded on has ceased
to have any. To the Duchess, a noble-minded Lady, beautifully zealous to
help if she could, by whose hand these multifarious Peace-Papers have to
pass, this is always Friedrich's fine style in transmitting them. Out of
many specimens, following that of Sagan which we gave, here are the Next
Three:--

FRIEDRICH TO THE DUCHESS OF SACHSEN-GOTHA (Three other Letters on the
"Peace").

1. "WILSDRUF, 21st November, 1759 [day after Maxen, SURRENDER was THIS
morning--of which he has not heard].

"MADAM,--Nothing but your generosities and your indulgence could justify
my incongruity [INCONGRUITE, in troubling you with the Enclosed]. You
will have it, Madam, that I shall still farther abuse those bounties,
which are so precious to me: at least remember that it is by your order,
if I forward through your hand this Letter, which does not meri