In the dining room Lotte unwrapped the little package and, from a leather case, drew out a ring set with a magnificent pearl the size of a hazelnut. “A Christmas present from M. Henry Dufresne,” said Lotte, blushing furiously; and as she drew the ring on her finger her young heart was filled with infinite happiness. The Hofrat, however, was quite taken aback, and declared categorically: “But now, Lotte, this M. Dufresne must present himself at last, and ask for your hand. For if such a ring is given to a girl it’s nothing less than an engagement ring.” Lotte laughed as she kissed her father. “Only a little more patience! Leo--Henry says he’ll come to see you very soon.” But the mother shook her head again and thought: “Queer times, queer children! She loves a man, forgets him, and then confuses his name with that of his successor!” In January a number of large consumers’ organizations united to hold a mass meeting in the public auditorium of the City Hall with the slogan: “We cannot go on!” Tens of thousands of people attended the meeting, and in spite of the extraordinary cold, there stood before the building enormous crowds for whom there was no room within. The assembly presented a remarkable appearance. Leo Strakosch, who had also come there, observed an unprecedented number of men with full beards, and of cries of “Hail!” With a slightly different background he could have supposed himself at an assembly of Tyrolese peasants in the days of Andreas Hofer. The gentle sex was also very well represented, but not by the most beautiful of its members in Vienna. Amid general cheering the druggist, Dr. Njedestjenski, opened the meeting with the declaration that things could go on thus no longer. He carefully avoided any connection of the widespread poverty and high cost of living with the expulsion of the Jews, but spoke in the most approved Pan-German manner, averring that the cause of the pitiable ruin of Vienna lay solely in the fact that Austria could not be annexed to Germany. Whereupon a working-man interrupted, amid great hilarity: “We can’t annex ourselves any more! Or do you think the Germans are as silly as we, and will throw out their Jews?”