It would be a pleasant addition if I were at liberty to complete my description of these rooms with characteristic portraits of their occupants. They would be as statues and pictures in the house which I have built with words, and it is possible that a couple of original figures would be found among the number. There are, however, certain grounds for hesitation, of which I will only mention the following--that as a rule dignity will not suffer a jest; furthermore, that a member of the non-official world runs some risk of forming an incorrect or unfair opinion of an official; and that the latter--if he is of the right sort--wishes neither to be praised nor blamed by persons outside his own circle, nor indeed even mentioned oftener than is necessary. Such an one desires simply to do his duty, and contents himself with his own legitimate sense of personal worth, which in this instance is all the more praiseworthy, as those whose portraits I should here have to attempt are officials of rank and title. These considerations made me hesitate. Finally, however, others forced themselves upon me. The picture of the Chancellor’s life must be made as complete as possible; and the truth, which through machinations in the press has been in many instances seriously obscured and disfigured, must no longer suffer violence. I therefore adopt a middle course, and take from my diary, where they have been preserved till now for the purpose of private reference, certain of the above-mentioned statues and pictures, the originals of which have in the meantime either died or been placed in an entirely false light in the public mind. These I exhibit partly here and partly in the later chapters. History, to which these fellow-workers of the Chancellor now belong, must know how they appear to an impartial observer. To this necessity all other considerations must give way. Of the other gentlemen I only give the names, recall their titles, mention in general that they are more or less richly provided with the usual decorations, and indicate in a few words some of their principal features.