"The vote will now be taken," cried Brunowski, amid a scene of indescribable excitement.
"I move that it be taken by secret ballot," exclaimed Zabern.
"I oppose it," said the Duke of Bora.
The President put the question to the assembly, and the proposal for secret ballot was carried by acclamation.
Zabern smiled grimly as he observed the secret glances of rage interchanged between Bora and Lipski. By this manœuvre on his part they were prevented from learning whether those Poles who had secretly taken the gold of Orloff would vote according to promise.
In the Diet of Slavowitz, when voting by ballot, each deputy took from his desk one of a set of discs. These discs were of two colors, white for affirmation, black for negation.
Concealing the disc between the fingers and the palm—carrying it openly was forbidden on pain of forfeiture of the vote—each deputy walked past the presidential table, and placing his hand within the mouth of a large bronze urn, dropped the disc.
As a precaution against the artifice of giving more than one vote, the names of the deputies were marked on the roll as each person passed by, and the number of counters checked by this arrangement.
In prescribed order the deputies quitted their seats, and filed past the table, and for a few moments nothing was heard but the clink of the metallic discs as they fell within the urn. Brunowski took no part in the division, but had the right of a casting-vote.
"One hundred and nineteen members have voted," said the chief clerk, looking up from the register, after the last suffrage had been given.