THE LAST TEN YEARS. 411 



himself with gazing placidly round the room. On May 6, at 

 half-past two in the afternoon, he tranquilly expired. His last 

 days were watched by his niece, Frau von Biilow, and General 

 von Hedemann, with the same care and attention he had him- 

 self devoted to the last hours of his brother William. Upon 

 his writing-table were found three scraps of paper, upon which 

 were written words resembling the scripture text : ] ' Thus the 

 heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them.' 

 It is one of those chance epigrams brought by death into the 

 death-chamber of the great. ' Cosmos,' however, remained un- 

 finished ; gradual as had been the approach ,of twilight, night 

 fell suddenly at last upon ' the late evening of this eventful 

 life,' that real night in which no man can work. 



The lying-in-state took place in the library, which was decked 

 with flowers and evergreens. The Court came to show respect 

 to the dead, the people crowded to take a last farewell. Early 

 on the morning of May 10, the remains were conveyed in a 

 procession of state along the Friedrichs-strasse and the Linden 

 to the Cathedral. With the exception of the public funeral 

 for tne March insurrectionists, it was the most imposing 

 funeral of a non-military character that Berlin had ever wit- 

 nessed. State and military officials of all ranks appeared in the 

 costume of civilians. Of the clergy none were present save the 

 officiating clergyman, Hoffmann, and seven adherents of the 

 school of Schleiermacher, who were free-thinkers. With un- 

 covered head the Prince Regent received the procession at the 

 door of the Cathedral, amid the chanting of hymns and the 

 tolling of the bells. In the funeral oration Hoffmann dwelt, 

 from the words of Paul, upon the value of charity contrasted 

 with the imperfection of all human knowledge. At night the 

 body was removed to Tegel, where of a Sunday the deceased 

 had so frequently during the previous summers enjoyed the 

 hospitality of his niece. Decorous as had been the behaviour 

 of the people during the day, the mad caprice of the populace 

 burst forth at night, and the pious chants of those forming 

 the procession were drowned by the shouts and turbulence of 

 a disorderly crowd. An occurrence possible only in Berlin ; 



1 Genesis ii. 1. As reported verbally by Seifert, the words were, ' Here 

 the heavens and the earth were finished and all his house.' 



