Andreas Hofer | Page 5

Archduke John--the

archduke in whom all Austria hopes, and who is the last refuge and
comfort of all patriots!"
"Ah, how much all of you are to be pitied, my friend, if you hope in
me!" sighed John. "What am I, then? A poor atom which is allowed to
move in the glare of the imperial sun, but which would be annihilated
so soon as it should presume to be an independent luminary. Pray,
Nugent, do not speak of such hopes; for, if the emperor should hear of
it, not only would my liberty be endangered, but also yours and that of
all who are of your opinion. The emperor does not like to see the eyes
of his subjects fixed upon me; every kind word uttered about me sours
him and increases the ill-will with which he regards me."
"That is impossible, your highness," exclaimed the count. "How can
our excellent emperor help loving his brother, who is so gifted, so
high-minded and learned, and withal so modest and kind-hearted? How
can he help being happy to see that others love and appreciate him
too?"
"Does the emperor love my brother Charles, who is much more gifted
and high-minded than I am?" asked John, shrugging his shoulders. "Did
he not arrest his victorious career, and recall him from the army,
although, or rather BECAUSE, he knew that the army idolized him,
and that all Austria loved him and hoped in him? Ah, believe me, the
emperor is distrustful of all his brothers, and all our protestations of
love and devotedness do not touch him, but rebound powerlessly from
the armor of jealousy with which he has steeled his heart against us.
You see, I tell you all this with perfect composure, but I confess it cost
me once many tears and inward struggles, and it was long before my
heart became calm and resigned. My heart long yearned for love,
confidence, and friendship. I have got over these yearnings now, and
resigned myself to be lonely, and remain so all my life long. That is to
say," added the archduke, with a gentle smile, holding out his hand to
the count, "lonely, without a sister, without a brother--lonely in my
family. However, I have found a most delightful compensation for this
loneliness, for I call you and Hormayr friends; I have my books, which
always comfort, divert, and amuse me; and last, I have my great and
glorious hopes regarding the future of the fatherland. Ah, how could I
say that I was poor and lonely when I am so rich in hopes, and have
two noble and faithful friends? I am sure, Nugent, you will never desert

me, but stand by me to the end--to the great day of victory, or to the
end of our humiliation and disgrace?"
"Your imperial highness knows full well that my heart will never turn
from you; that I love and revere you; that you are to me the
embodiment of all that is noble, great, and beautiful; that I would be
joyfully ready at any hour to suffer death for you; and that neither
prosperity nor adversity could induce me to forsake you. You are the
hope of my heart, you are the hope of my country--nay, the hope of all
Germany. We all need your assistance, your heart, your arm; for we
expect that you will place yourself at the head of Germany, and lead us
to glorious victories!"
"God grant that the hour when we shall take the field may soon come!
Then, my friend, I shall prove that I am ready, like all of you, to shed
my heart's blood for the fatherland, and conquer or die for the liberty of
Austria, the liberty of Germany. For in the present state of affairs the
fate of Germany, too, depends on the success of our arms. If we
succumb and have to submit to the same humiliations as Prussia, the
whole of Germany will be but a French province, and the freedom and
independence of our fatherland will be destroyed for long years to
come. I am too weak to survive such a disgrace. If Austria falls, I shall
fall too; if German liberty dies, I shall die too." [Footnote: The
Archduke John's own words.--See "Forty-eight Letters from Archduke
John of Austria to Johannes von Muller," p. 90.]
"German liberty will not die!" exclaimed Count Nugent,
enthusiastically; "it will take the field one day against all the powerful
and petty tyrants of the fatherland. Then it will choose the Archduke
John its general-in-chief, and he will lead it to victory!"
"No, no, my friend," said John, mournfully; "Fate refuses to let me play
a decisive part in the history of the world. My role will always be but a
secondary one;