And every four weeks, at the time of full moon, when the ministers met again in the evening and dined together at the great and richly laid table, deliberating the situation of the realm in general, those evenings became less and less enjoyable.

Everyone was snowed under with work - let aside all the many responsibilities of their huge ministries and the many obligations, offices and honorary posts in boards of directors and associations of all kinds - and not to speak of the increasingly discontent people.