Despite being early morning, the Academic Director's office at the University of Gottingen was already bustling with noise.
Arthur gazed apologetically at Professor John Herbart, the angry Assistant Director before him, maintaining only a polite smile.
In Herbart's view, the new Academic Director presented himself exceedingly well upon assuming office. Not only did he relax campus academic restrictions and promote the local liberal atmosphere, but he also kept everything within reasonable limits.
However, with the recent arrival of Heinrich Heine, Herbart felt that the orderly, controlled atmosphere of gradual reform had been disrupted. Students were brazenly gathering in the square, tossing their hats high into the air, and cheering for various slogans strictly prohibited by the German Confederation Council.
Yet Sir Arthur Hastings, a police expert known in London as a conservative lackey, had no intention whatsoever of stepping up to cool down the situation.
