On the occasion of administering the oath to the naval recruits at Wilhelmshaven the Emperor delivered the following address: In the sight of God and of His servants you have sworn to me the oath of allegiance, and I expect from you that you will become good and sturdy sailors. Keep to what you have sworn, for "one man, one word." The soldiers of the army frequently have the occasion to show what they have learned and what they are capable of under the eyes of their superiors. This is not true in the navy, for many of you will be for years in foreign waters. But you must not think that on that account my eyes have been turned away from you. In relation to other navies our own navy is still small, is in the budding stage; but through our discipline we must become strong and by it compensate for all that we lack in material strength. What is discipline? Nothing but the unconditional subjection of our own will to a higher will. Even if every one intends to do good, he must none the less subordinate his intention to the good of the whole. Only by holding together can we create a firm body that will be able to accomplish something complete and great. A TOAST TO THE RUSSIAN EMPEROR AND EMPRESS ST. PETERSBURG, AUGUST 8, 1897 The visit which the Czar had paid Emperor William at Breslau the year before (September 5, 1896) had led to unfortunate consequences. The Czar, in his answer to the wishes of the Emperor that the two empires might draw more closely together, had announced, according to the official report, that he was animated by the same traditional sentiments as his Majesty, Emperor William II. Certain important papers printed a reading which made it appear that the Czar had said that he shared the same feelings which had moved his father (who was notoriously anti-German). The State Secretary, Von Marschall, was drawn into an ugly suit as a result. It was stated that the Foreign Office was involved. Although this was not true, it left a decidedly bad impression, and several officials resigned. On the occasion of the visit of the German Emperor and Empress to St. Petersburg they were greeted by a most friendly address of welcome from the Czar, and Emperor William II was made an admiral of the Russian fleet. On this occasion he offered the following toast to the Russian Emperor and Empress: