"Ah! the cord has broken?" said Nicholas.
"Yes, sire."
"Then he was almost dead? What impression has such close contact with eternity produced on the mind of the rebel?"
"He is a brave man, sire."
The czar frowned.
"What did he say?" asked he severely.
"Sire, he said, 'They know not how even to twist a rope in Russia.'"
"Well," replied Nicholas, "let them prove to him the contrary." And he went out.
A wealthy Polish lord, the Prince Roman Sanguszko, had been condemned, as a conspirator, to serve the rest of his life as a simple soldier, and to immediately join a regiment fighting in Caucasia. On the margin of the sentence, the emperor wrote in his own hand, "On foot!"
Such severity was in him a system. He sincerely believed in it as a necessity, and a part of the sanctity of absolute power. In Russia, especially, his knowledge of the character of his people fortified him in his belief, and he let no opportunity escape to declare his despotism.