The journey thither was made as quietly as possi-
ble so as not to attract attention in the district where
at that moment several princes were staying. The
Empress slept at Mannheim in order that her ar-
rival at Baden might happen at a convenient hour.
While she was at the Mannheim hotel, a telegram
was handed, during the repast, to Comte de Cosse
Brissac; who, so as not to betray the incognito,
thought better to refuse it. The sequel to this tele-

284



VISITS TO GEEMANY AND EGYPT

gram incident is found in the following paragraph.
The party left Mannheim for Baden in traveling
costume, when what was their surprise to find the
station of Carlsruhe filled with an enormous crowd
• — officers in uniform and military bands playing La
Reine Hortense, and other airs. The King of Prus-
sia himself advanced to the carriage door, and pre-
sented the Grand Duke of Baden to the Empress.
The King, his son-in-law and a few officers then
stepped into the train, which continued its route.
Much astonished at this unexpected reception, she
inquired how it was that she had not been informed
beforehand, so that she could have been in better
form to receive these honors. The King replied that
he had sent a telegram the day before to Comte de
Cosse Brissac. The whole thing was now clear, and
all had quite a laugh over '^our unnecessary unpre-
paredness,*' as the King wittily expressed it.
