Nothing was said, either by De Montigni or father Walter till they
reached the chamber of the former, where, closing the door, the young
nobleman placed a seat for his reverend companion, and asked him if
Monsieur de Liancourt had held any communication with him upon the
subject on which they were about to speak?
"A few words were all that passed," replied father Walter, in a mild,
though grave tone; "but they were sufficient to show me that the
matter on which you wish to consult me is one in regard to which your
uncle and myself have often conferred before."
"Nay," replied De Montigni; "the Count has not put the business on its
right footing: let us settle that first, my good father. I did not
desire to consult you, but he declared that you would easily remove
from my mind the strong objections which I entertain to pledging
myself for any consideration to enter the church without much
deliberation, and a considerable time for thought. I expressed myself
most willing to hear all you could say upon the subject, though I much
doubted, from a knowledge of my own character, that you would succeed
in removing my scruples, and, from a knowledge of yours, that you
would even make the attempt."
"You were perfectly right, my son," replied the priest, after a
moment's pause; "my arguments could but tend to show that the
profession which your uncle wishes you to embrace is the highest, as
it is the holiest, to which man can dedicate himself; but I fear much,
that very consideration would tend rather to induce you to pause long,
and to think well before you took upon yourself such high duties and
responsibilities, than to hurry you on, as is the case with so many,
into a rash, I might almost call it an impious, intrusion into a
sacred calling, which should be approached with reverence, and not
without the full concurrence of the heart."
De Montigni smiled, well pleased. Various circumstances, all
apparently small, but weighty in their sum, had induced him to imagine
that father Walter de la Tremblade was one of those who had consulted
together to frustrate his hopes, and disappoint his wishes; but the
calm and reasonable answer which he now made removed the suspicion.
Whether he deceived himself or not may be seen hereafter.
"I am happy to find, my dear father," he said, "that your good and
disinterested opinion confirms my own, as it will give me strength and
confidence in my determination."
"Of all the many wise maxims which have come down to us, confirmed by
the experience of ages," replied the priest, "one of the surest is,
'Do nothing rashly;' and if applicable to the common affairs of life,
it is still more so to points where the whole of our future existence,
here and hereafter, is affected. You are right, my son, to pause and
deliberate; but before I give any advice beyond the general opinion
which I have expressed, let me hear all the circumstances, the doubts,
and considerations that affect you; and you shall then have my best
counsel which may, perhaps, be valuable, as that of a man long
accustomed to consider and, with God's aid, to decide upon questions,
in which the consciences of those very dear to him, as members of his
flock, are concerned. Tell me what are your doubts--what are your
difficulties; and if I can I will resolve them."
"My doubts, good father," replied Louis de Montigni, "are simply
whether I am fitted, either by inclination or by character, for the
profession my uncle would put upon me. No mention was ever made of
such a plan till this very night; and now, fatigued in body and
somewhat agitated in mind, I am asked to decide at once, upon a
question of such vital importance to myself."
"That is wrong--that is all very wrong," answered the priest. "You
must have time--it is absolutely necessary. Yet," he continued, after
a moment's pause, "I cannot help thinking there must be some mistake.
I am sure Monsieur de Liancourt did not intend to urge such a speedy
decision upon that point. Perhaps it was your acquiescence alone in
the disposal of his property that he required. You are well aware that
the benefices may be held by one who is not in the church; and his
conferring them on you, while he is himself living will prevent any
cavil which might be raised in the distracted state of the country,
with regard to your obtaining them, if they were merely destined for
you at his death. I do not mean," he added in a grave tone, "to
pronounce any opinion upon the propriety of laymen holding such
property. That is not a question for me to decide."
"But it is one for me to consider in accepting them," said De
Montigni; "and I scruple not to acknowledge that I hold the corrupt
practice in horror and reprobation."
"I must not deny that I think you are right," replied father Walter;
"but yet your refusal to accept this portion of his property, would
greatly embarrass and grieve your uncle. All the arrangements being
concluded for Monsieur de Chazeul's marriage with Mademoiselle
d'Albret, your rejection of the share assigned to you, would prove a
serious inconvenience to all parties; and I am sure you would not wish
to throw any impediment in the way of her happiness, or your cousin's
either."
"And does her happiness so entirely depend upon this marriage?" asked
the young nobleman bitterly.
"Undoubtedly!" replied the priest, with an air of surprise at the very
question.
"Then my course will be easy!" exclaimed De Montigni. "I will never do
ought to give her one uneasy moment."
"That is noble, and generous, and like yourself!" said Walter de la
Tremblade, holding out his hand to him. "I was quite sure that you
would never hesitate at any personal sacrifice for the happiness of
those you love. What course, then, do you intend to pursue?"
De Montigni, however, remembered the promise he had made to his uncle,
and he replied, "Of that I must think; all I can say at present is,
that no wish of Rose d'Albret's shall ever be thwarted by me. First,
in order to form a judgment of my future conduct, I would fain know
all the circumstances of the case; and, my good father, as you have
thus far dealt frankly with me, I would fain ask you a few questions,
hoping for clear information."
"I will give you the best that I possess, my son," replied the priest.
"But you must recollect that I am not a man of the world, and meddle
little with things that are not brought absolutely under my notice."
"Well, then, to begin with matters that you do understand," said De
Montigni; "if I accept these benefices, and sign the papers my uncle
wishes me to sign, do I in any degree bind myself either to enter the
church, or to hold preferment which I think should be reserved for
ecclesiastics?"
"Not in the least, my son," answered father Walter, "nothing can bind
you to the church but vows made to the church; and as to the benefices
you can give them all away next day; at no greater risk than being
called by some, an enthusiastic fool."
"That is soon met," said the young nobleman; "but if this be so, what
is the need of my signing any papers at all?"
The priest paused for a moment in thought; but then answered, looking
suddenly up, "It is simply because, as your uncle's nearest relation
you have a claim to his property, either the entire estate or a
moiety, I know not well which. The benefices he can bestow where he
likes, and he gives them to you as an equivalent to the other,
thinking that, if the bishopric can be obtained for you, as doubtless
it might be if you so liked, the advantages would be at least equal."
"My uncle did not tell me this!" replied De Montigni, with an air of
mortification. "My uncle did not tell me this!"
"Perhaps he thought you knew it already," rejoined father Walter; "or,
perhaps, he did not remember how generous and self-denying you have
always shown yourself."
"He should have dealt openly with me," said the young man in a
mournful tone, "He should have dealt openly with me."
He then thought for a few minutes, while the priest watched the
varying expressions that came over his countenance with an inquiring
and interested eye, reading them as they rose. Perhaps he did not
altogether interpret them aright, though the true Roman Catholic
priest, who, following the rule of his order, strictly excludes from
his breast half the passions that affect other men, learns to trace
their workings in others with a skill which those who suffer them
cannot acquire. He stands as a spectator of the most critical part in
the busy game of life, and sees the cards in either hand, and judges
where they are played well or ill.
At length the young nobleman said aloud, "So then I have some real
power in this matter; and they would have concealed it from me. A
somewhat dangerous course!"
"Perhaps such was not the view, my son," answered father Walter, "the
matter could not be concealed from you long, as, if you read the
papers, you must have seen what they contained."
"I am not sure of that, good father," rejoined De Montigni; "they
might calculate upon my not reading them at all, or that their
contents veiling their meaning in the profuse words of the law, would
afford me no clue to my own rights. However, all this must be inquired
into. I will now know the truth, wholly and entirely."
"I trust," said the priest gravely, "that you will in no degree
forfeit that character of frank and generous disinterestedness which
you gained in youth. It is a jewel, my son, inestimable from its
rarity. Come, Louis, let me tell your uncle that you will sign the
papers."
The young man gazed in his face intently; but father Walter returned
the look with calm and unflinching firmness, and then added, "I am no
party to any deceit, if any have been committed."
"I believe you, father," replied De Montigni, "for it is you who have
unveiled the deceit; but as for the rest, I will make no rash promise.
I will know the whole clearly, before I act or promise to act; I will
know what are my own rights, and their full extent; I will know the
motives of others, their conduct, and its causes."
The priest smiled, and shook his head; "You lay out labour for many a
long day, my son," he said, "if you propose to penetrate into the
secrets of any human heart; and in the mean time you stop a union
desired by all, to wait upon your caprice. Look into your own bosom,
Louis, and inquire there, whether the motives of such a conduct may
not have a source in passions you will not like to own; disappointment
or some chimerical dreams, jealousy of another's happiness, or
revengeful feelings for imaginary injury."
"No, no, no!" replied De Montigni, "my conduct shall be influenced by
none of these; and whatever my motives are, they shall be made clear
in the eyes of all."
"Well before you act," continued the priest, "ask yourself, if what
your uncle proposes is at all unfair. In the division of his property
he assigns you more than the simple half, though perhaps not the
moiety you might like the best. There is no great injustice in this;
there is nothing to move anger or suspicion; and yet you are evidently
somewhat heated, and nourish doubts of those that love you, which you
have no just reason to entertain."
"Father, you are mistaken," answered De Montigni, "I am aught but
angry; my heart feels too cold and chilled for anything so warm.
Suspicion may be there--would it had never entered--but who can help
it? When once a concealment or deceit has been practised in matters
where all should be fair and open as the day, can confidence be ever
restored? no more than you can restore the white bloom to the grape or
to the plum which you have once pressed in your hand. I will think of
this, good father, I will think of it all well. No man can reproach me
for examining closely into that in which I have so great an interest;
no man shall have to reproach me for the manner in which I act when I
have examined. But let me put a picture before your eyes ere you go,
in order that you may see what necessarily presents itself to my eyes.
It is of an uncle and two nephews; the one the son of an elder sister,
the other of a younger; the first possessed of moderate estates, but a
claim, it seems, to his uncle's property; the other possessed of
larger estates already, but, if I judge rightly, without that claim.
The one is sent by his uncle and guardian to foreign country to study:
the other remains upon the spot. At the end of five years they meet
again, and the uncle proposes a plan which he declares to be
equitable. To the son of his eldest sister, who has been absent so
long, he offers certain benefices, and proposes that he shall enter
the church. To the son of the younger, who has remained upon the spot,
he gives the whole of his estates, the hand of his fair ward, and the
large property which she inherits. Do not suppose, father, I can shut
my eyes to such things; do not suppose that I can do aught but feel
them bitterly. Mark me, however, I say not that I will reject this
arrangement, even if I have power to do so; I say not that I will
throw the least impediment in the way of views and plans which were
formed without my concurrence and without my knowledge; but I do say,
that I will consider, and examine, and ponder, before I in any way
sanction a proceeding, by which I am destined to be, in every sense, a
loser."
"I thought," replied the priest, mildly, "that you had already
determined not to do anything which could impede the union of
Mademoiselle d'Albret with the man of her choice; that you would not
frustrate her wishes, or delay her happiness?"
"Nor will I," answered De Montigni; "but I must be well assured in the
first place of the conduct which she herself wishes to pursue."
Father Walter shook his head gravely, saying, "My son, my son, I fear
you are deceiving yourself. I am not aware whether your knowledge of
women be much or little, whether in studious seclusion you have passed
your time without mingling with the general world, or whether you have
frequented the gay society of Italy, and gained an insight into the
female heart as it there appears. But do not deceive yourself into a
belief, because Mademoiselle d'Albret sometimes speaks coldly to your
cousin, affects an occasional indifference, ay, or even adds a harsh
word towards him--do not believe, I say, that she does not love him. I
have always seen that women, circumstanced as she is, from the very
modesty of their nature, assume such disguises to conceal the warmer
feelings of their heart; and the men with whom they are most free,
familiar, ay, and perhaps, affectionate, have the least cause to
suppose that they entertain any serious attachment to them,--for where
such exists, it always brings diffidence and some reserve along with
it."
De Montigni mused. There was truth, he thought, in what the old man
said--it might be, indeed, that he was right. True, in her youth Rose
d'Albret was frank, open, and unreserved, her loves and her dislikes
were plainly shown. But yet she might be changed. Womanhood and
passion might have brought with them reserve, concealment, art. Who
could say what in the space of five years might have been effected,
and what the girl of fourteen might have become?
"Probably, you are right, good father," he replied; "I know but little
of woman or woman's arts; but still I am not deceiving myself. All I
propose is to pause and consider all things, this as well as any of
the rest, in fact, to use your own maxim, and 'do nothing rashly.' As
I conclude you will see my uncle tonight, and report to him the result
of our conference, pray tell him my resolution, such as it is, and
explain to him in terms that will give him no offence, but yet convey
my full meaning, that in my determination to consider before I act, I
am too firm to be shaken. I find that I have somewhat too long
suffered my conduct to be dictated by others, and I do so no more,
whatsoever be the result."
"Can you not enable me, Monsieur de Montigni," asked the priest, "to
fix some term for your consideration? As your uncle will have to shape
his conduct, as he may judge expedient to meet yours, it might be as
well to name a time for your decision."
"That I cannot do," replied De Montigni; "at least not tonight. At all
events it shall not be long before I do decide. Small time will
suffice me, if no means be taken to impede me in judging for myself;
if there be, those who employ them must be answerable for the delay. I
will now be satisfied on all point--I will see the whole case clearly
before I judge. Whenever I do so see it, my course will be determined
in an hour. And now, good father," he continued, perceiving that the
priest was about to reply, "I would fain discuss this subject with you
no more, at least, tonight, though most happy to hear you upon any
other, if you have aught else to say."
"Nothing, my son," replied father Walter, rising; "pray remember that
the discussion has not been of my seeking. I never thrust myself upon
the confidence of any one, happy to give advice or assistance where it
is required, but never obtruding it, except at the sacred call of
duty; and so, my son, good night and benedicite."
Thus saying, he slowly quitted the room, and walked deliberately down
the stairs across a low-roofed hall, where several servants sat, and
then mounting another staircase with a quicker step, found his way to
the apartments of the Count de Liancourt. That gentleman, half
undressed, was sitting in his dressing-gown conversing with Chazeul,
and both eagerly turned to the priest as he entered, demanding, "Well,
what does he say? how did you find him disposed?"
Walter de la Tremblade sat down in a vacant chair, and then looking
from the one to the other, he said, "I found him firmer, sterner than
could be expected from his character or his years. I fear, my son,"
addressing Monsieur de Liancourt, "that your policy has somewhat run
awry. If instead of calling him back you had written to him the plain
and straightforward state of the case, telling him that the marriage
of Mademoiselle d'Albret with Monsieur de Chazeul here, depended upon
the renunciation of his claim to your estates, and begging him to send
you his procuration instantly for the purpose of making that
renunciation, he would have done so at once."
"Pshaw," cried Chazeul, "you must think him a greater fool than even I
do, to suppose that if he were told those facts he would give up his
chance of beauty, grace, and the united estates of Liancourt and
Marennes."
"He is no fool," replied the priest, "but one of those with whom it is
better to tell the whole truth, and engage his generosity and
enthusiasm on your side, than suffer him to discover, not only the
facts you would conceal, but that you have endeavoured to conceal
them. Better to tell him the truth, Monsieur de Chazeul, than to let
him find it out; and allow me to say, he has found out one half
already, and will find out the rest ere long."
"_Ventre bleu!_ what has he discovered?" demanded Monsieur de
Liancourt. "This is an affair indeed."
"He is right well informed," answered the priest, "that the estates of
Liancourt are his at your death, in right of his mother."
Chazeul struck his hand vehemently upon the table, exclaiming, "Then
the game is up."
"Not exactly," replied the priest; "had he known it a month ago, it
would have been much better. Then at a distance, and without the means
of farther inquiry, he would, I am sure, have been easily induced to
make the renunciation, in consideration of the benefices, without
coming here at all."
"But he has been urging me for these two years," exclaimed Monsieur de
Liancourt, "to give my consent to his return. I had no power to refuse
him, and it was only by persuasions that I kept him there so long."
"Well, but the results, the results, Monsieur de la Tremblade,"
exclaimed Chazeul: "we will be guided by you. Tell us what conclusions
you have come to, and what course it will be best to follow."
"From my conference with him this night," replied the priest, "I see
exactly the state of his mind. In the first place I tell you he knows
much, and suspects more; he perceives that you have attempted to keep
him in the dark; and he is no weak studious boy, such as you believed.
He is as firm as a rock, and determined upon his course. You cannot,
and will not deceive him on any of the facts of the case; and at
present his reply is, that he is determined to take full time to
consider before he decides. There is one way, and only one way to act
upon his mind. If you can induce Mademoiselle d'Albret, to ask him to
make the renunciation for her sake, he will do it, without the
slightest hesitation. Get her but to say three words to that effect,
and he will sign the act to-morrow."
"Oh, then the whole matter is easy!" cried Chazeul. "I will induce her
to do that in a moment."
The priest looked at him with a somewhat cynical smile, and replied,
"You may not find so much facility as you expect, Monsieur. Ladies
have caprices; and perhaps you may not be able to make her to say the
exact words you wish."
"Oh, but I am sure I can!" replied Chazeul. "I know the pretty Rose
right well, with all her coquettish ways for goading on a lover's
passion, by airs of coldness and indifference; but she is not such a
fool as to be blind to the advantages of the most brilliant fortune
she can reach in France. With the united estates of Liancourt,
Marennes, and Chazeul, we take our seat amongst the highest of the
land. Did you not mark what she said to me today, about the splendours
of a court? Such hopes and expectations, once entering a woman's head,
never go out of it, good father."
The priest paused and mused with a slight smile curling his lip; but
at length he replied, "Doubtless you are more learned in women's
hearts than I am, Monsieur de Chazeul; you have had more to do with
them, though in the confessional we sometimes hear strange secrets.
However, if you will take my advice, you will not trust to your own
unassisted efforts, but send for your mother at once. She is within a
two hours' journey, and may easily be here, before noon to-morrow."
"Right, right, father," cried Monsieur de Liancourt, "we will not lose
a moment's time. Jacqueline's head is worth all ours put together. It
always was so; and poor Louise, when she was alive, was no match for
her at all. Let us not lose a moment, but send a messenger to her
to-night, so that she may set out the first thing to-morrow. See to
it, Chazeul, see to it; for I am tired, and going to bed. Choose some
stout fellow who will do the errand well. Let him avoid the wood, and
take the Chartres road; 'tis but half a league about."
"I will do it at once," said Chazeul, "for it is now near ten. But
still I am sure that I can persuade fair Rose to make the request,
before my mother comes; and so, goodnight, Sir."
Thus saying, he left the room, and father Walter only remained, to
shake his head with a doubtful air, and say, "He is too confident. God
send that he mars not all;" and he, too, left Monsieur de Liancourt to
seek repose.