I was reinforced in this opinion by what seemed to me the far
more dignified form in which the really big papers answered all
these attacks, or, what seemed to me even more praiseworthy,
failed to mention them; in other words, simply killed them with
silence.
I zealously read the so-called world press (Neue Freie Presse,
Wiener Tageblait, etc.) and was amazed at the scope of what they
offered their readers and the objectivity of individual articles. 1
respected the exalted tone, though the flamboyance of the style
sometimes caused me inner dissatisfaction, or even struck me
unpleasantly. Yet this may have been due to the rhythm of life
in the whole metropolis.
Since in those days I saw Vienna in that light, I thought my-
self justified in accepting this explanation of mine as a valid ex-
cuse.
But what sometimes repelled me was the undignified fashion in
which this press curried favor with the Court. There was scarcely
an event in the Hofburg which was not imparted to the readers
either with raptures of enthusiasm or plaintive emotion, and all
this to-do, particularly when it dealt with the 'wisest monarch'
of all time, almost reminded me of the mating cry of a mountain
cock.
To me the whole thing seemed artificial.
In my eyes it was a blemish upon liberal democracy.
To curry favor with this Court and in such indecent forms was
to sacrifice the dignity of the nation.
This was the first shadow to darken my intellectual relationship
with the 'big' Viennese press.
As I had always done before, I continued in Vienna to follow
events in Germany with ardent zeal, quite regardless whether
they were political or cultural. With pride and admiration, I
compared the rise of the Reich with the wasting away of the
Austrian state. If events in the field of foreign politics filled me,
by and large, with undivided joy, the less gratifying aspects of
internal life often aroused anxiety and gloom.