¶ He bartered his time in angry disputes with his fellow-man, for prisons, broken homes, murders, tears for 80,000 widows and orphans.
¶ He bartered his time for magnificent spectacles such as the coronation of William I in the Hall of Mirrors at Versailles, a palace outrivaling any creation of man since the days of Nebuchadnezzar.
¶ He bartered his time for grand balls for aristocrats in silk coats and ladies in diamonds and satin gowns.
¶ He bartered his time that a certain space in Europe be made over to his own liking. Other kings and emperors with equal logic wished to have this space made over in a way that seemed as good as the one Bismarck had in mind, but Bismarck regarding it as a calamity that other plans should come to pass, fought bitterly with sword and cannon to back his individual opinion against all who disputed with him.
¶ He bartered his time that a certain part of the map be marked with one name instead of thirty-nine names, as had been the case when he came to power as a young man in the politics of Prussia.
¶ And finally he bartered his immortal time in a thirty-years’ gladiatorial fight that in the end millions of Germans might feel the tingle of blood-brotherhood. How he faced the long, heart-breaking battle, therein we find the true measure of our great Bismarck! Thus his work, as an individual, is absorbed in the larger life of the German Empire. These National services make Bismarck one of the immortals; and his name will be remembered affectionately by Germans for thousands of years.
¶ The present review of German origins, through Bismarckian genius, is concerned largely with the form of government established.
The collective efficiency of the Bismarckian idea, as worked out in the German Constitution, promptly ascertains the will of the people, and carries out that will.
¶ The Kaiser, through the Chancellor, has the selection of all important public officials, and as King of Prussia appoints Prussian administrative officials; and in turn, the various kings choose the various public servants in their respective kingdoms. All hold office during good behavior, or for life; instantly responsive to the will of the Kaiser, or to the Bundesrath. The state officials are thus “the fingers of the Kaiser,” working the duties of the Empire, free from the petty molestations that assail even the most trustworthy and patriotic American office-holders.