handsome about it to her Czarish Majesty; but as to RATIFYING it,
in its present form,--of course, never!"

What a clap of thunder to Excellency Hanbury; his masterpiece found
suddenly a superfluity, an incommodity! The Orthodox English course
now is, "No foreign soldiers at all to be allowed in Germany;"
and there are the 55,000 tramping on with such alacrity. "We cannot
ratify that Treaty, Excellency Hanbury," writes the Majesty's
Ministry, in a tone not of gratitude: "you must turn it some other
way!" A terrible blow to Hanbury, who had been expecting gratitude
without end. And now, try how he might, there was no turning it
another way; this, privately, and this only, being the Czarina's
own way. A Czarina obstinate to a degree; would not consent, even
when they made her the liberal offer, "Keep your 55,000 at home;
don't attack the King of Prussia with them; you shall have your
Subsidy all the same!" "No, I won't!" answered she,--to Hanbury's
amazement. Hanbury had not read the Weingarten-Menzel Documents;--
what double double of toil and trouble might Hanbury have saved
himself and others, could he have read them!

Hanbury could not, still less could the Majesty's Ministry, surmise
the Czarina's secret at all, now or for a good while coming. And in
fact, poor Hanbury, busy as a Diplomatic bee, never did more good
in Russia, or out of it. By direction of the Majesty's Ministry,
Hanbury still tried industriously, cash in both hands; tried
various things: "Assuage the Czarina's mind; reconcile her to King
Friedrich;"--all in vain. "Unite Austria, Russia and England, can't
you, then?--in a Treaty against the Designs of France:" how very
vain! Then, at a later stage, "Get us the Czarina to mediate
between Prussia and Austria" (so very possible to sleek them down