III

WHAT HAPPENED AT BERLIN

For certain persuasive reasons it is deemed prudent to omit that
part of the diary which details the writer's experiences in England,
Belgium and Holland. Those who recognize the incidents hereafter given
will appreciate this act of censorship. The discerning reader will
gain all the information necessary by following the "Invisible
Diplomat" and author from Berlin to the end of the diary.

The first entry reads:

"Today I called on Count R---- at Thiergartenstrasse 23 and handed
him the yellow packet. Then I went with him to the race track at
Hoppegarten.... On the way out R. inquired about the incident
at Buckingham and asked me if I were willing to continue the
adventure.... I assured him that nothing would please me better,
providing the _lady_ was good-looking.... He said that there were more
than ONE lady as well as a couple of men involved in the affair....
I replied that if there were enough to go around and the men
didn't become too meddlesome, their presence wouldn't spoil the
'adventure.'... He assured me that the men were 'fine fellows,' the
ladies the loveliest on earth, but the 'adventure' was one that might
mean decapitation for me if I failed in the undertaking.... I told
him that just suited me.... 'I expect to meet Colonel Z---- S---- von
T---- at the track. If he takes a liking to you he'll invite you to
Koenigergratzerstrasse for a quiet little talk,' Count R---- replied
after I had climbed up on the box with him.... We had just reached
the old saddle paddock when a man saluted us in a very _knowing_
manner.... It was Colonel Z---- S----, who put some pointed
questions to me about my recent travels and my knowledge of Oriental
languages.... Before returning to the hotel tonight the Colonel asked
me to call on him tomorrow.... I feel that his request amounts to a
positive command.... I shall call early in the morning...."

4. On the same page the following entry was made:

"There were guards everywhere when I called at K-70. Even the
doorkeeper was a non-com, who took my name, entered it in a book with
the precise time I called, took down his telephone, merely mentioned
my name, hung up the receiver, called an orderly who conducted me
through a corridor and three anterooms full of civilian clerks and
finally landed me in the private office of Colonel Z---- S----. He
wore the undress uniform of the Imperial Army, greeted me pleasantly,
offered me a cigar and ta