REINHOLD SOLGER PROF. A. E. ZUCKER Reinhold Ernst Friedrich Karl Solger So doch in Namen reich an "Witz" und was born July 17, 1817, in Stettin, Pom- "Blitz," erania, Prussia, the son of Regierungs- Die alle jährlich frische Fähndrich's bringen, Umkränzend ihres Königs Herrschersitz rat (later Oberregierungsrat) Friedrich Wie—um mich hier homerisch auszu- Ludwig Wilhelm Solger and his wife drücken— Auguste Amalie, née Jungnickel. Rein- Die Borste ziert des Erimanthiers Rücken. hold was the first of five children in his Hanns hatte mit der Muttermilch daher father's second marriage. At his bap- Schon eingesogen krieg'rische Talente: Er zählte bald euch an den Fingern her tism his godfather was a Hofrat Jung- Den Kommandör von jedem Regimente. nickel from Schwedt a/O., the native "Mit Leib und Seele wird er Militär, town of both of his parents. "Der Junge! Sternkreuzhagelsappermente, "Verfluchter Schockschwernothmillionen- A long tradition of civil service and hund!" of culture prevailed in the family. Sol- Rief oft sein Vater zärtlich schmunzelnd, und ger's father was a member of the Prus- Hob ihn empor, und küsst' ihn, tief gerührt. sian Diet and afterward his two Zwar, Mutter wünschte mehr, er möcht' brothers, Carl and Allernitz, likewise studiren: represented in this body their respective "Was, so ein Federfuchser? He! Marschirt "Mich mit das Zeug!—Das sollt' mich districts of Danzig and Posen. The konveniren!" member of the family who has made the Schrie dann der biedre Mann. "Dekorrampirt name most widely known was Rein- "Mich nicht den Hanns; er soll mich Kommandiren; hold's uncle, the Berlin professor, Karl "Hanns, willst was lernen?" '"Näh!'" Wilhelm Ferdinand Solger (1768-1819), "Na, sieh en Mal, writer on metaphysics and aesthetics, "Frau: sagt' ich's nicht? Da steckt ein and a close personal friend of Ludwig General!" Tieck. Als Hanns demnach das zwölfte Jahr erreicht, Erschien der Tag, den er ersehnt so lange; When Solger was but nine years old Die Mutter, hang, von Thränen ganz erweicht, his father died, leaving Solger's mother Mehr als ihr Stand erlaubt, küsst' ihm die in straitened circumstances and depend- Wange: ent on her relatives. Perhaps it was Doch unserm Hannsen war's im Herzen due to this fact that Reinhold was sent leicht, Ihn rief mit ahnungsvollem Zauberklange to the military academy of Züllichau, a Das mächtige Gefühl, das uns von Haus small town east of Berlin. In a Byronic Ins ungewisse Weite treibt hinaus. epic which Reinhold Solger wrote many Du armer Hanns! von einem Käfig 'raus years afterward called Hanns von Katz- Flogst du in ein Gefängnisz ein mit Mauern; enfingen und seine Tante, geb. F. v. K., Du armer Hanns! in ein Kadettenhaus: Decorum est pro patria—versauern. he tells how the hero at the age of twelve Die Arme streckt der bunte Moloch aus was sent to a military school, referring Und macht das Land um seine Kinder trauern, to the institution as a "jail." While this Tränirt, noch eh' sie von sich selber wissen, work is by no means entirely autobio- Ein Götzenbild für's Vaterland zu küssen. graphical there are enough references in Indessen, Hanns war Philosoph genug, Nicht Krieg mit der Nothwendigkeit zu it to experiences similar to Solger's so führen, that we may justifiably consider it as a Und, wenn sein Muth ihn 'mal ins Weite trug, source for the flavor, at least, of his S'giebt Mittel, solch ein Bürschchen zu life as a boy. In addition to this it kuriren Von allem Geist, und hätt' er dess genug, presents Solger's wit and satire, char- Um selbst—'nen Deutschen hinter's Licht zu acteristic traits of the man, to such a führen, degree that I shall quote a number of Was, wie man weiss, so äusserst Schwierig stanzas. ist, Dass es sogar—Sr. Maiestät dem Hochseligen Es sind bekanntlich die von Katzenfingen, König, der doch aufrichtig gestanden, das Gutkernaltpreussisch seit dem alten Fritz, Pulver nicht erfunden hatte. Wenn nicht besonders licht in andern Dingen, [8] The last line, comical especially be- Doch anders dachte Hannsens liebe Tante, cause its length breaks the meter, was G'heimräthin Ruf (Neid hiess sie: Selberlieb), the tribute of a Forty-Eighter laid at the Die völlig überlebt den Adel nannte, door of Frederic William IV who in Doch stets "geborne F. v. K." sich schrieb. 1849 had declined the crown of the Ihr Herz, das ganz allein für Jesum brannte German Empire, and who in 1857 was Und dieses Brennen con amore trieb, War zu beschäftigt mit der Menschheit declared insane. Solger's droll choice Sünden, of rhymes can be illustrated by the fol- Um seine kleinen Makel aufzufinden. lowing stanza, at the end of which the In ihrer Jugend las sie viel von Göthe, implied rhyme is omitted with humorous Und nach der Zeit noch immer manch' Journal: restraint. Ihr Bruder blies als Kind die Pickelflöte, Virtus negata tentat her via— Ihr Urgroszvater war ein General; "Ein braver Kerl geht auf verbot'nen Und ihres Mannes Vetter schrieb Pamphlete Wegen" Im Fach der philosophischen Moral: Und giebt zuweilen Poesie, wie die da, Sie war mit zweien Dichtern selbst bekannt Frei, wie die Preuss'sche Presse! und (Den einz'gen ihrer Zeit, wie sie gestand). verwegen Traktirend, wie das Bayrische Genie da, Unfortunately only two cantos of this Wenn nicht Priscian, doch Adelung mit work, originally planned on the model Schlägen; of Byron's Don Juan, were finished. Its Brav ist der Kerl, ich sag's, aus diesem purpose was to picture the development Grund, of a young officer who had grown up Wenn auch im Uebrigen-- -- -- under the influence of blasé pseudo-cul- The innocent young recruit falls in ture, military training, and Pietism into love with an equally innocent young an independent personality, true to it- Ladenmädchen and shyly makes a con- self, taking his part in the advancement fidant of one of the older cadets. The of humanity toward freedom. Friedrich comments of this more experienced fu- Kapp, in his essay on Solger, quotes the ture officer are deliciously expressed— latter as saying that a jovial lieutenant just before the bell calls them to chapel with whom he had during his stay in exercises. Even Schnitzler's Leutnant Potsdam watched daily from the window Gustl is not worthy of unloosing the of their room the parade of the first latchet of the shoes of this man of the regiment of the royal guard served as world: the model for the hero. When this poem "Sie ist nicht übel—nein—sie macht sich so—: appeared anonymously in 1845 and 1846 "Die Augen und die Haare—sind brilliant; in Deutsches Taschenbuch aus der "Ihr Busen—wird gewiss 'mal nicht von Schweiz it aroused considerable discus- Stroh—; sion, and was attributed by some to Rob- "Die Füsschen und die Waden—ganz scharmant— ert Prutz; the latter replied that he "Figüre—mannifik! Süperb—Popo! would be only too proud if he could "Ensemble—tout parfait!—S'ist anerkannt. have written it. "Zwar wird sie stark pussirt: doch allgemein "Behauptet man, sie soll noch Jungfer sein. By quoting from Solger's later works "Auf diesen letzten Punkt—du weisst, I have anticipated a bit. In the fall of Kamrad, "Geb'ich aus Grundsatz niemals die Parole. 1837, at the age of twenty he matricu- "Wenn du der Erste wärst—: s'wär delikat! lated at the University of Halle. In the "Es wäre gross! dass mich der Deibel hole! epic quoted above the hero comes under "Parblö! Hanns, reüssirst du in der That—: "Auf Ehre, Hanns, ponir' ich eine Bowle!" the influence of his pietistic aunt—per- —Hier kommandirte sie der Glocke klingen, haps this is a biographical touch that Dem Herrn ein Herz voll Rührung accounts for the fact that during his first darzubringen. semester Solger enrolled as a student of As a final quotation I cannot resist theology. But already in his second the description of the hero's aunt, a semester Solger turned to the study of vignette done so maliciously that one is the two branches that remained his chief tempted to suspect the author of settling interests during the rest of his life, a score with one of his own female rel- atives: namely, history and philosophy. He joined the circle of Arnold Ruge who [9] was editing the Hallischen Jahrbücher, wrote likewise another poem, the prod- a politically radical publication that uct of the conditions of his life and the advocated political freedom and a pessimistic spirit of the times, called Der united Germany. Ruge, later also an Untergang. He might have called it with exile after the revolution, published in Spengler Der Untergang des Abend- 1840 some lyrics by Solger in his Mu- landes, for the gist of the whole is con- senalmanach. While Solger took part in tained in the last lines: political agitation and also in the gay, Hier gehst du unter, Licht, auf steigst du da: carefree social life of the German stu- Europa stirbt—Heil dir, Amerika. dents, yet his chief interest centered in his studies by means of which he laid Aside from the "europamüde" mood the foundation for his thorough, almost of the whole, engendered by the political encyclopaedic education. In 1840 he reaction of the period of Metternich, this transferred to the University of Greifs- poem also contains a number of pas- wald where he took his doctorate in 1842 sages that are biographical. From the with a dissertation on the Sicambri, an following lines one can readily recon- ancient German division of the Teutons struct the life in his widowed mother's mentioned by Tacitus.