It was at first imagined in St. Petersburg that the
Batten- berg marriage would be acceptable to the Czar, as Prince Alexander, when so close to the Prussian dynasty, would be debarred from returning to Bulgaria by the Treaty of Berlin. This is a mistake, as the Prince would be no nearer to the Hohenzollerns than the Grand Duke Lenchtenberg is to the Roinanoffs ; indeed, not so near, as the latter can succeed to the Russian Throne. The Treaty, moreover, would not bar Prince Alexander's election should Bulgaria become in- dependent, and the Journal of St. Petersburg has, therefore, been instructed to say that the " elevated position proposed for the Prince of Battenberg might resuscitate among the leaders of the Bulgarian Revolution hopes of his restoration to power." The Bulgarian crisis would be aggravated, and " the possible consequences could not be reconciled with the pro- gramme traced by Prince Bismarck for Germany," or with the views and promises with which the Emperor Frederick com- menced his reign. " We are sure that those who preside over German policy will know bow to take into consideration and weigh all these consequences, and to prevent the possible dangers which they imply for the good relations between the two countries, and the preservation of general peace." Diplo- matists rarely use stronger language, and it is affirmed in Berlin that the Czar, while refraining from direct allusion to the betrothal, has protested openly against the elevation of so notorious an enemy to high military command within the German Army.
