Page:The invasion of the Crimea Vol. 8.djvu/344

 312 THE DEFECTION OF PRUSSIA. chap. Protocol of the 9th, and the Treaty of the 20th XII . — of April. But when he saw France and England engaging their strength in the East far away from Berlin, those tremulous scales that he used for weighing fears against fears began to show a great change ; for the separated armies of France were of course for the moment less terrible to him as enemies than when held together, and besides, as be- frienders, less able to help him against the con- tingency of his being attacked by Kussia ; so that, visibly, his dread of the French now became on the whole less oppressive than his awe of the Czar ; whilst also his fear that Germany would turn against him for acquiescing in a Russian occupation of the principalities came soon to an end ; because their approaching deliverance from the grasp of Nicholas was then already in process of being secured by the valour of the Turks, and by the energy of Austria, co-operating with the two Western Powers. No dread of the evils that come with the lowering of a Nation's repute appeared to find any place in the Eoyal collection of fears ; and, if the king for a moment felt qualms at the idea of deserting those more warlike States which had virtually wrought the deliverance, he very soon stifled his conscience. Before the last week of July, Frederick William began to hang back, and then by fast degrees lapsed away into un- dissembled neutrality.* His defection of course
 * See ante, vol. ii. p. 90, and the footnotes in the same