He was a careless man, the baron. Or perhaps he had been reading Poe, and believed that the most obvious place of concealment was the safest. At any rate, there in a drawer of his desk, protected only by the most defenseless of locks, were the papers—a neat statement of the terms upon which Russia would discuss this Persian matter with England. I returned home with my prize, to find my tutor awaiting me. He said no word of commendation when I gave him the papers, but I knew by his expression that he was well pleased with my work. And I went to bed, delighted with myself, and dreaming of the great things that were to come. The next day we left Petersburg. A German resident of the city had telephoned my relatives, warning them that a few cases of cholera had appeared. Would it not, he suggested (Oh, it was mere kind thoughtfulness on his part) be best to let the young prince return to Germany until the danger was over? His parents would be worried. Indeed, it would be best, my “relatives” agreed. So with regret they bade leave of me; and in the most natural manner in the world I returned to Berlin. Wilhelmstrasse 76 again! The round-faced man again, but this time less military, less unbending, in his manner. I had done well, he told me. My exploit had attracted the favorable attention of a very exalted personage. If I could hold my tongue—who knows what might be in store for me? * * * * * That was the end of the matter, so far as I was concerned. But in the history of European politics it was only the beginning of the chapter. It might be well, at this point, to recall the political situation in Europe, as it affected England, Russia and Germany at this time. Even two years before—in 1905—it had become evident to all students of international affairs that the next great conflict, whenever it should come, would be between England and Germany; and England realizing this, had already begun to seek alliances which would stand between her and German ambitions of world dominance. The Entente with France had been the first step in the formation of protective friendships; and although this friendship had suffered a strain during the Russo-Japanese War, because of the opposing sympathies of the two countries, the end of the war healed all differences. The defeat of Russia removed all immediate danger of a Slavic menace against India. To England, then, the weakened condition of Russia offered an excellent opportunity for an alliance that would draw still more closely the “iron ring around Germany.” Immediately she took the first steps leading toward this alliance.