“February 1, 1918.—­Sitting of the Territorial Committee, I myself presiding, with the Petersburg Russians.  My plan is to play the Petersburgers and the Ukrainians one against the other, and manage at least to make peace with one of the two parties.  I have still some slight hope that a peace with one may so affect the other that possibly peace with both may be attained.

“As was to be expected, Trotski replied to my question, whether he admitted that the Ukrainians should treat with us alone on questions dealing with their frontiers, with an emphatic denial.  I then, after some exchange of words, proposed that the sitting be adjourned, and a plenary sitting convened, in order that the matter might be dealt with by the Kieff and Petersburg parties together.

“February 2, 1918.—­I have tried to get the Ukrainians to talk over things openly with the Russians, and succeeded almost too well.  The insults hurled by the Ukrainians to-day against the Russians were simply grotesque, and showed what a gulf is fixed between these two Governments, and that it is not our fault that we have not been able to bring them together under one hat on the question of peace.  Trotski was so upset it was painful to see.  Perfectly pale, he stared fixedly before him, drawing nervously on his blotting paper.  Heavy drops of sweat trickled down his forehead.  Evidently he felt deeply the disgrace of being abused by his fellow-citizens in the presence of the enemy.

“The two brothers Richthofen were here a little while ago.  The elder has shot down some sixty, the younger ‘only’ some thirty enemy airmen.  The elder’s face is like that of a young and pretty girl.  He told me ‘how the thing is done.’  It is very simple.  Only get as near to the enemy as possible, from behind, and then keep on shooting, when the other man would fall.  The one thing needful was to ’get over your own fright,’ and not be shy of getting quite close to your opponent.—­Modern heroes.

“Two charming stories were told about these two brothers.  The English had put a price on the head of the elder Richthofen.  When he learned of this, he sent down broadsheets informing them that to make matters easier for them, he would from the following day have his machine painted bright red.  Next morning, going to the shed, he found all the machines there painted bright red.  One for all and all for one.

“The other story is this:  Richthofen and an English airman were circling round each other and firing furiously.  They came closer and closer, and soon they could distinctly see each other’s faces.  Suddenly something went wrong with Richthofen’s machine-gun, and he could not shoot.  The Englishman looked across in surprise, and seeing what was wrong, waved his hand, turned and flew off.  Fair play!  I should like to meet that Englishman, only to tell him that he is greater, to my mind, than the heroes of old.

“February 3, 1918.—­Started for Berlin.  Kuehlmann, Hoffmann, Colloredo.