An anonymous reader has sent New Mandala a fascinating manuscript:
This manuscript was found in records concerning US foreign correspondents in Europe in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The manuscript may be a memoir, as there was a case alluded to within the same set of records, the news of which the Imperial German government was quick to suppress. This leads some credence to the view that this article presents a true account of a single trial or perhaps a composite of a number of cases from the same period. The manuscript, apparently for a German audience, can be dated to about1900, given its reference to Herzberg Hospital. The authorship is clearly attributable to Edward Breck, a liberal German-American who wrote for The New York Tribune in the 1890s [see Gillmeister, Heiner, Edward Breck: “Anglo-Saxon Scholar, Golf Champion, and Master Spy”, in, Sawada, Mayumi, L. Walker, and Shizuya T., Language and Beyond: Festschrift for Hiroshi Yonekura on the Occasion of His 65th Birthday (Tokyo: Eichosha, 2007), pp. 33-56], and also used “F.F. van de Water” as a pseudonym (the name of the narrator in this case). Breck was an accomplished writer, both in English and German, both of fiction and nonfiction. This long manuscript was apparently originally in German and sequestered in the archives of the conservative Tribune. It was translated into English by an unknown translator, identified only with the initials “A. H. R” and who appears to have preferred leaving certain parts un-translated, perhaps to lend a feel of authenticity. This translation came with a number of footnotes; the translator seems to have added a few notes where clarification seemed appropriate. The original title has been retained. This manuscript was received from an unnamed source who found it in the Tribune archives, and thought it should be published as it had obvious relevance to the Thai situation.
The manuscript is available here. And here are the first three paragraphs:
Otto von Schelling, the Senior State Attorney, cut an impressive figure. His civil service uniform was immaculate. Before when I had seen him, he looked to be of average build. But seeing him before us, wearing his red imperial sash, his chest now seemed immense, seemingly swollen with pride for the recognition conferred him by the Kaiser. His whiskers were immense, and had they been on a less dignified mien, might have appeared startling, but for von Schelling they made him appear almost majestic. Removing his pince-nez, he looked out at those present and smiled.
“Gentlemen, I want to thank you for coming to the Reichsjustizamt this afternoon. We realize there has been some concern among you, our honoured foreign correspondents, about the use of the lese majeste law, and I want to clearly explain the government’s position on this matter.”
“As you may know, German law recognises the importance of honour and reputation. Everyone—from the Kaiser to the most humble citizen—is protected from libel and slander. Of course one whose reputation is besmirched may resort to seeking civil damages, but here the integrity of each person’s reputation is what ensures peace and order in society, and so the German state makes such violations criminal.”
“There has been concern in the local and foreign press that there is a perceived lack of discretion in the use of the lese majeste law. I say ‘perceived’ because I believe that there is a misunderstanding about the lese majeste law, particularly amongst our foreign guests. You may prize freedom of expression above all else. And we might say that we cherish protections of our good names. You should realise that the lese majeste provision is a deep expression of Teutonic, of German culture. I might even hazard saying that it is part of what makes us German, just as our love of monarchy is a central impulse of all true Germans. I might even go so far as to say that it is impossible to have a true German who entertains republic thoughts.”
7 responses so far ↓
1 Mark Teufel // Nov 3, 2009 at 7:05 pm
Is there any possibility to find the original German text?
2 Frank G Anderson // Nov 3, 2009 at 11:02 pm
A very nice piece of writing! A few parallels to the LOS. And amazing in a sense because of work that David Streckfuss has also done that cite the German example.
3 Susie Wong // Nov 4, 2009 at 11:28 am
Mark Teufel, that’s sharp!
4 hrk // Nov 4, 2009 at 5:54 pm
The manuscript of the story should be available at the “Deutsche Staatsbibliothek” or at the “Bayerische Staatsbibliothek”. However, not under the name of “Der beschmutzte Hund” but with the title “Der bunte Hund”. It can only be looked at in person at one of these libraries by specialy authorized person having a special permission. Not because its context is regarded as potentially harmful for a less educated public with regards to their attitude towards Emperor Willi II, (since a few years Germany is a republic and Willi II is not kept in best esteem), but because the paper is in a bad condition due to age and might be damaged.
5 Doug Bloch // Nov 5, 2009 at 11:15 am
I also see parallels to Thailand, where lese majeste laws are invoked as protecting the very bedrock of Thai culture, which (according to those who prosecute) is the deep love and reverence of all Thai people towards their monarchy. As mentioned, David Streckfuss’ work shines a light on this subject quite nicely.
6 Herr Pickle // Nov 6, 2009 at 5:41 am
Ach! The very construct (much less legal prohibition) of lese majeste is an insult to the Empire. Since all true Germans are absolute in their devotion to the monarchy– and of course, there are no ‘false Germans’ due to the irestiable charisma of the emperor (who would suggest otherwise?)– the very imposition of a law punishing miscreants suggests that such miscreants exist–in other words, mien gott in himmel!!, making it illegal to insult the emperor is itself the grandest of insults to the emperor, for it relies upon the unforgivable notion that there may be true Germans who are NOT utterly devoted to the emperor! This would mean that our emperor (how ridiculous!) is without the innate characteristics to inspire awe and devotion in each and every German’s busom. What a pickle!!
7 David Streckfuss // Nov 7, 2009 at 12:15 am
Frank A. is right. I have done some work on the lese majesty business under King Wilhelm II, but I had not been aware of an “Edward Breck” as the author of the many NYT articles on the issue until seeing this story, which I have seen no reference to.
I did take the liberty of contacting Dr. Heiner Gillmeister, who wrote back to me the following:
“Many thanks for your message re Dr Edward Breck and the intriguing instances of Majestaetsbeleidigung he apparently communicated from Berlin to the New York Press. It seems to be a fortunate coincidence that in his essay he referred to himself as Mijnheer van de Water, a pseudonym he also used in one of the poems I quoted in my article. There are quite a few books by a certain Frederic Franklin van de Water and to judge from their titles they may well have been written by Edward Breck. Before writing my article I acquired some antiquarian books written by him under his real name, but I did not at the time go as far as looking after these. Perhaps this could be done later.”
“Lèse majesté …must have occurred quite frequently in Imperial Germany under William II, who. of course, lent himself to ridicule and caricature in journals such as Simplicissimus and Kladderadatsch (which van de Water quoted). The Spotted Dog, in German, would not be Der beschmutzte Hund, but rather Der Gefleckte (or, perhaps, Gescheckte) Hund. A periodical of this name, however, does not seem to have ever existed.”
It’s possible then that Breck invented the name of the periodical?
Whatever the case, the rough similarity is rather frightening. And look what happend to Germany…
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