THE REMINISCENCES OF CARL SCHURZ
ger in the jaws of the lion. Finally, would older, more experienced, and more careful men be willing to do and dare all that might be required for the purpose of the task? Perhaps not. In short, this was, all things considered, a piece of work for a young man, and my youth appeared to me at last rather in the light of an advantage than of a hindrance.
My second doubt touched my parents. Could I with regard to them take the responsibility, after having just escaped from a terrible catastrophe, to put my life and freedom again in such jeopardy? Would they approve? One thing was clear: I must not in this case ask my parents for their permission, for I would then have to correspond with them about my project, and such a correspondence, subject to all possible chances of detection, might thwart the whole plan. No; in order to succeed, the undertaking must remain a profound secret, of which only those engaged in it were to have knowledge, and even then, if possible, only in part. To my family I could not confide it, for a conversation among them, accidentally overheard by others, might betray it. Therefore the question as to the approval of my parents I must answer myself, and I answered it quickly. They were among Kinkel's warmest admirers and devoted to him in loyal friendship. They were also good patriots. My mother, I thought, who the year before had given my sword to me with her own hands, would say: “Go and save our friend.” And thus all my doubts were overcome.
On the same day I wrote to Frau Kinkel that in my opinion she would probably only aggravate the lot of her husband if she permitted an attempt to liberate him in Cologne on the occasion of the Siegburg trial, because then the authorities would doubtless take the most comprehensive precautions. She should hold her pecuniary means together without thinking of
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