It behoves me to remark that I found particular pleasure in working with His Excellency von Stephan and in dealing with him. He was a man of the old school, who fitted in so well with me that he always grasped my ideas and suggestions and afterwards carried them out with energy and power, owing to his firm belief in them. A man of iron energy and unflagging capacity for work and joyousness; endowed, moreover, with refreshing humour, quick to perceive new possibilities, never at a loss for expedients, well versed in political and technical matters, he seemed to have been born especially for creative co-opera tion. I trusted him implicitly, and my trust in him was never betrayed. I learned much from my association with this stimulating The Post Office Department reached am unimagined degree of excellence and aroused the admiration of the whole world. The great invention of the telephone was utilized to the limit, was applied extensively to the public service, and was developed so as to facilitate it. Likewise, in the domain of building, Stephan. brought about a decided, improvement, which received my approval and support.
All great State building projects depended on the vote of the investigating Academy of Building," which, at that time, was a _slow-moving, cumbrous and backward body. I had already had experiences of my own with it. The "White Drawing Room," originally merely provisional, had been put up without much attention to style—it had been intended at first for an Indiaan masquerade, a "Lalla Rookh'' festival, in honour of the Grand Duchess Charlotte, daughter of Frederick William ILL, and her husband, later Tsar Nicholas I. An investigation instituted at my order showed the material to be spurious acd inferior; the structure was in the worst possible state of decay and in danger of collapse; a new one was needed.
With the ce-operation and _collaboration. of the Empress Frederick, projects and plans were made, and, finally, a big model was provided by Buildi Councillor Inne—the "modern. litter," as the Empress Frederick used to call him—which won unanimous approval. Only the Building Academy opposed ones, especially in the big cities, but, in view of the fearful slowness and devotion to red tape of the aforesaid official body, he used to receive no answers at all, or else refusals, when he brought these matters to its attention. The rule of thumb was supreme there. Herr vou Stephan was of the opinion that, in its buildings as well as in other directions, the youthful German Empire must give an impression of power, and that the Imperial Post Offices must be built accordingly; he believed that they should harmonize with the general style of the towns where they were located, or, at least, conform to the style of the oldest and most important buildings there. Nor could I do otherwise than agree with such a view.
ACADBMY'S SHACKLES BROKEN, At last there came a rupture with the aforementioned Academy. His Excellency von Stephan lost patience and informed me that he had freed his office, and the buildings erected by it, from the supervision of the Academy; that. he had even formed a committee from among his own architects and officigle for supervising purposes; and that all he asked of me was to subject the more important plans for buildings to a final inspection. I did so willingly. pee Stephan was an_ enthusiastic huntsman, so that I had additional opportunities, while on the court hunts, to enjoy association with this refreshing, wochanging, faithful official and counsellor.
Among the Ministers whom I particularly esteemed, his Excellency Miquel took first place. He it was who, as my Finance Minister, put through for Prussia the great reform which placed the land on a sound basis and helped it towards prosperity. Intercourse with this astute political expert gave me great pleasure, and a wealth of teaching and stimulus.
The degree to which Miquel was versed in all possible matters was astounding. In conversation he was brisk, humorous and keen in elucidating and arguing on a subject, in addition to which a strong historical bent ran, like a red thread, through his quotations. In history and ancient languages he was marvellously well equipped, so that, in his reports, he was lo often. to hark back to the times of the Romans and quote from his store of knowledge—not out of wearisome objections, stating that} Biichmann—pieces of Latin in sup-the "White Drawing Room" ought, port of his arguments. Even when to be preserved "'in its old historical he was instructing he was never beauty," and required no altera-tiresome on account of his brilliant tions. When the mew structure dialectics, but used to hold his was completed, however, it also hearers spellbound to the very end. met with the approval of the gentle-Tt was his Excellency Miquel men who had been formerly so likewise who incited me to favour the great canal projects and sup-Herr von Stephan also was at ported me when the Prussian Con-loggerheads with the Academy of servatives opposed the Central Building. He wanted to alter many [Rhine-Weser-Elbe} Canal, and post offices, or build entirely new! caused the failure of the plan to build it. He lent strength to the King and made the latter decide not to let up in this fight until victory was won. He knew, as I did, what blessings the canals in Holland and the splendid canal network of France had brought to those lands and what a relief they were to the ever more hard-pressed railways. In the World War we might have had a splendid East-to-West artery of transportation for ammunition, wounded, siege mat-enol, supplies and the like, which woud have made it possible by thus relieving the railways, for the latter to transport troops on an even greater scale. Moreover, this would have lessened the shortage of coal. In time of peace also, for which the cana] was destined, it would have been most beneficial.
Minister von Miquel was a most ardent enthusiast for the Imperial German idea and the German Empire of the Hohenzollerns. I lent an attentive ear to his spirited handling of this theme. He was a man who, clinging to the old tradition, thought in a great German, imperial way; he was fully adequate to the requirements and demands of the new era, rightly appreciating when, these were of value.
From the start I concerned myself with the completion of the railway system. From the reports relating to national defence and the complaints of the General Staff, as well as from personal observation, I knew of the absolutely incredible neglect suffered by East Prussia in the matter of railways. The state of affairs was absolutely dangerous, in view of the steady, gradual, reinforcing of the Russian troops facing our frontier, and the development of the Russian railway system.
During the last years of his reign Emperor William the Great had commanded Field Marshal Moltke to report on the situation, since the Russian armies, under the influence of France, were being posted ever more conspicuously on the eastern. frontier of Prussia, arousing apprehension as to the possibility of inruptions of great masses of Russian cavalry into Prussia, Posen and Gilesia. Quartermaster-General Count Waldersee and I were present at the reading of this report. From it came the resolve to shift Prussian troops eastward and to push toward completion of the neglected railway system.
The measures ordained by Emperor William I, and begun by him required time, particularly as the new railway bridges over the Vistula and Nogat had to be built by the military authorities in the teeth of strong official opposition (Maybach). Since the railways were considered a "national pocket book," there was a desire to build only "paying" lines, which caused prejudice against outlays for military lines designed for the defence of the Fatherland, since it diminish.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.