"Have you heard what I said or not, Baroness?" She tried to save her face by asserting, "I am acting by command of His Majesty." "I will ask His Majesty whether you spoke the truth," I said quick as a flash; "meanwhile you are suspended and will return to Dresden until recalled. Ring the bell and I will give orders to the Master of Horse to send you away." Of course Tisch couldn't afford such an inquiry to be made, which would have exposed her clumsy hand and, as remarked, royalty doesn't care to be found out. Defeat staring her in the face, Tisch wavered: "Of course, if your Imperial Highness chooses to take the responsibility, I will be most happy to submit the papers as they arrive." "In their wrappers," I commanded, as I dismissed her. By distributing a hundred marks in silver, I found out that the Tisch examines my body-servants daily and that, night after night, she sits up hours writing long-winded reports. She is the King's tool, but she let the cat out of the bag when cornered. That gives me the whip hand for the time being. CHAPTER XXV THE TWO BLACK SHEEP OF THE FAMILY UNITED Leopold upon my troubles and his own--Imperial Hapsburgs that, though Catholics, got divorces or married divorced women--Books that are full of guilty knowledge, according to royalty--A mud-hole lodging for one Imperial Highness--Leopold's girl--What I think of army officers' wives--Their anonymous letters--Leopold's money troubles--We will fool our enemies by feigning obedience. LOSCHWITZ, _September 15, 1894_. Leopold is with me, the brother two years older than I. They just made him a Major--a twelve-month later than his patent calls for. Like myself, he is almost permanently in disgrace with the head of the family, even as I am with the King and Prince George. We had no sooner embraced and kissed, than I asked him for the latest gossip concerning the Crown Princess of Saxony. "You are a tough one," he said, shaking his finger with amused mockery. According to Vienna court gossip, "I threw Prince George out of doors," when he "raised his hand against me," Frederick Augustus and myself haven't been on speaking terms for six months; and the Saxe family was actually considering the advisability of divorce. Of course I told Leopold how things really are. "Then there will be no divorce?" he asked. "If the King and Prince George leave me alone,--no." "Too bad," he said with a laugh, "that knocks me out of the pleasure of maintaining my _thesis_ that the founder of the Christian religion didn't believe in indissoluble marriage, but, on the contrary, in divorce if such couldn't be avoided." "Who told you that?" "Professor Wahrmund is preparing a paper on the subject," said Leopold, who, as remarked, is a very well-read chap and a student. He named five or six emperors and kings, Catholics, some of them members of the Austrian Imperial family, who obtained divorces, or married divorced women. I jotted down the list.