ARNIM, COUNT YON. 



43 



Lisbon, and in 1864 to Munich. In the same 

 year he was sent to Rome as envoy extraor- 

 dinary for Prussia, and in 1866 for the North- 

 German Confederation. In 1870 he was created 

 a count, and in 1871 was appointed a commis- 

 sioner to attend the peace convention in Brus- 

 sels, and afterward to that of Frankfort-on- 

 the-Main. On these occasions he showed him- 

 self to be both an experienced and able diplo- 

 matist, so that on August 23, 1871, he was ap- 

 pointed German embassador to the French 

 Republic on an extraordinary missionj and was 

 accredited as embassador of the German Em- 

 pire on January 9, 1872. In the mean while, 

 the difference of opinion between Amira 

 and Bismarck about the policy to be pursued 

 toward France, particularly with regard to 

 the definite form of the constitution and the 

 government of the country, and also with re- 

 gard to the German church policy, had become 

 so marked as to make it impossible for the Chan- 

 cellor of the Empire to leave Arnim any longer 

 at his post. He was, therefore, recalled on March 

 2, 1874, and on March 19, 1874, was appointed 

 embassador to Turkey, but did not enter upon 

 this office, as he was retired on May 15, 1874. 

 Prince Hohenlohe, Arnim's successor as em- 

 bassador in Paris, reported as early as June 8, 

 1874, that a number of official documents were 

 missing in the office of the German embassy. 

 A closer revision of the archives of the em- 

 bassy revealed the fact that the number of 

 diplomatic documents which had been taken 

 away was much larger than had been at first 

 reported. The repeated requests made on Ar- 

 nim to deliver the missing documents were not 

 complied with by him, as he claimed that they 

 were his own property and not that of the 

 embassy. Upon the pressing demand of the 

 Government, however, he delivered to the For- 

 eign Office fourteen of the less important docu- 

 ments, but persistently refused to give up the 

 others. He was consequently arrested by order 

 of the ministry, but, upon the recommendation 

 of a physician, was released on giving bail to 

 the amount of 100,000 thalers. He was soon 

 after accused of malfeasance in office by hav- 

 ing removed documents, and appropriated to 

 himself objects, which he had received in an 

 official position. The trial began on December 

 9th, before the City Court of Berlin. The de- 

 fense questioned the competency of this tribu- 

 nal. But this objection was overruled by the 

 court, and it sentenced the count to three 

 months' imprisonment. In its decision the 

 court stated that it was questionable whether 

 the missing documents had been removed at 

 all by the prisoner, and even if they had 

 been removed by him, whether it had been 

 done intentionally. For this reason it did not 

 find him guilty of removing the documents, 

 but simply of an offense against public order. 

 From this decision both the count and the 

 Government appealed to the " Kammerge- 

 richt." The Kammergericht gave judgment 

 on the appeals on June 24, 1874. It decided 



that the count did willfully make away with 

 state papers, which had been officially in- 

 trusted to him, and for this offense sentenced 

 him to nine months' imprisonment, with de- 

 duction of one month, the period of his impri- 

 sonment during the preliminary examination. 

 From this decision Count Arnim again ap- 

 pealed to the Supreme Court, and on October 

 20, 1875, the appeal was heard. The appellant 

 produced no new features of interest, while 

 the prosecution upheld the competency of the 

 civil court, as Count Arnim was subject to ex- 

 territorial jurisdiction in his capacity as an 

 embassador. In accordance with this view 

 the offense must be regarded as having been 

 committed in Berlin. The prosecution also 

 contended that the thirteen ecclesiastical doc- 

 uments in question possessed the character of 

 official state papers, and therefore urged the 

 court to reject the appeal. The judges decided 

 against the appellant, and ordered that he must 

 bear the costs of the trial. It was thought that 

 this would end the matter, and that neither 

 party would take any further steps. But early 

 in November a profound sensation was created 

 by the publication of a pamphlet, entitled " Pro 

 Nihilo," which was supposed to have been 

 written by the. count himself, or to have been 

 inspired by him. The preface opens with an 

 attempt to rebut, by anticipation, the charge 

 of indiscretion or want of patriotism in giving 

 to the world details which had hitherto been 

 kept in the background, but the understand- 

 ing of which is, in the opinion of the writer, 

 necessary to the formation of a clear and un- 

 biased judgment upon the merits of the case. 

 The publication had, indeed, we are assured, 

 been postponed for some time, in deference 

 to the injudicious recommendations of certain 

 friends, who thought that the step might not 

 only be attended with disagreeable conse- 

 quences to the count himself, but be prejudi- 

 cial to the public weal. The case, it was urged, 

 was not yet over, and any act of imprudence 

 on the part of Arnim himself or his friends 

 might influence the decision of the Supreme 

 Court of Justice, whose judgment was still 

 pending. On the other hand, it was urged 

 that, in view of what may be termed the pres- 

 ent split, or what is very near to a split, be- 

 tween Prince Bismarck and his new friends of 

 the National Liberal party, together with un- 

 doubted signs of a leaning on the part of the 

 former to his old friends the Conservatives, 

 the appearance of this book might be singu- 

 larly ill-timed, and, in fact, nip this conversion 

 in the bud. With regard to Prince Bismarck's 

 supposed change of policy and return to the 

 Conservative camp, the waiter of " Pro Nihilo " 

 says such an event is fal? from being improb- 

 able. Many quite recenfi facts have been ad- 

 duced in its favor. Ai&ong other things it is 

 stated that, in conversation with certain lead- 

 ing Conservatives, the prince expressed himself 

 in very significant terms, the reverse of com- 

 plimentary, with regard to the Liberal deputy 



