AFTER the lapse of three days, on a Thursday, there came to me two
favourite Chamberlains of his Holiness; one of them is alive now, and a
bishop; he was called Messer Pier Giovanni, and was an officer of the
wardrobe; the other could claim nobler birth, but his name has escaped
me. On arriving they spoke as follows: The Pope hath sent us. Benvenuto;
and since you have not chosen to comply with his request on easy terms,
his commands now are that either you should give us up his piece, or
that we should take you to prison.” Thereupon I looked them very
cheerfully in the face, replying: “My lords, if I were to give the work
to his Holiness, I should be giving what is mine and not his, and at
present I have no intention to make him this gift. I have brought it far
forward with great labour, and do not want it to go into the hands of
some ignorant beast who will destroy it with no trouble.” While I spoke
thus, the goldsmith Tobbia was standing by, who even presumptuously
asked me for the models also of my work. What I retorted, in words
worthy of such a rascal, need not here be repeated. Then, when those
gentlemen, the Chamberlains, kept urging me to do quickly what I meant
to do, I told them I was ready. So I took my cape up, and before I left
the shop, I turned to an image of Christ, with solemn reverence and cap
in hand, praying as thus: “O gracious and undying, just and holy our
Lord, all the things thou doest are according to thy justice, which hath
no peer on earth. Thou knowest that I have exactly reached the age of
thirty, and that up to this hour I was never threatened with a prison
for any of my actions. Now that it is thy will that I should go to
prison, with all my heart I thank thee for this dispensation.” Thereat I
turned round to the two Chamberlains, and addressed them with a certain
lowering look I have: “A man of my quality deserved no meaner catchpoles
than your lordships: place me between you, and take me as your prisoner
where you like.” Those two gentlemen, with the most perfect manners,
burst out laughing, and put me between them; and so we went off, talking
pleasantly, until they brought me to the Governor of Rome, who was
called Il Magalotto. [1] When I reached him (and the Procurator-Fiscal
was with him both waiting for me), the Pope’s Chamberlains, still
laughing, said to the Governor: “We give up to you this prisoner; now
see you take good care of him. We are very glad to have acted in the
place of your agents; for Benvenuto has told us that this being his
first arrest, he deserved no catchpoles of inferior station than we
are.” Immediately on leaving us, they sought the Pope; and when they had
minutely related the whole matter, he made at first as though he would
give way to passion, but afterwards he put control upon himself and
laughed, because there were then in the presence certain lords and
cardinals, my friends, who had warmly espoused my cause.
Meanwhile, the Governor and the Fiscal were at me, partly bullying,
partly expostulating, partly giving advice, and saying it was only
reason that a man who ordered work from another should be able to
withdraw it at his choice, and in any way which he thought best. To this
I replied that such proceedings were not warranted by justice, neither
could a Pope act thus; for that a Pope is not of the same kind as
certain petty tyrant princes, who treat their folk as badly as they can,
without regard to law or justice; and so a Vicar of Christ may not
commit any of these acts of violence. Thereat the Governor, assuming his
police-court style of threatening and bullying, began to say:
“Benvenuto, Benvenuto, you are going about to make me treat you as you
deserve.” “You will treat me with honour and courtesy, if you wish to
act as I deserve.” Taking me up again, he cried: “Send for the work at
once, and don’t wait for a second order.” I responded: “My lords, grant
me the favour of being allowed to say four more words in my defence.”
The Fiscal, who was a far more reasonable agent of police than the
Governor, turned to him and said: “Monsignor, suppose we let him say a
hundred words, if he likes: so long as he gives up the work, that is
enough for us.” I spoke: “If any man you like to name had ordered a
palace or a house to be built, he could with justice tell the
master-mason:’I do not want you to go on working at my house or palace;’
and after paying him his labour, he would have the right to dismiss him.
Likewise, if a nobleman gave commission for a jewel of a thousand
crowns’ value to be set, when he saw that the jeweller was not serving
him according to his desire, he could say:’Give me back my stone, for I
do not want your work.’ But in a case of this kind none of those
considerations apply; there is neither house nor jewel here; nobody can
command me further than that I should return the five hundred crowns
which I have had. Therefore, monsignori, do everything you can do; for
you will get nothing from me beyond the five hundred crowns. Go and say
this to the Pope. Your threats do not frighten me at all; for I am an
honest man, and stand in no fear of my sins.” The Governor and Fiscal
rose, and said they were going to the Pope, and should return with
orders which I should soon learn to my cost. So I remained there under
guard. I walked up and down a large hall, and they were about three
hours away before they came back from the Pope. In that while the flower
of our nation among the merchants came to visit me, imploring me not to
persist in contending with a Pope, for this might be the ruin of me. I
answered them that I had made my mind up quite well what I wished to do.
Note 1. Gregorio Magalotti was a Roman. The Procurator-Fiscal was then
Benedetto Valenti. Magalotti is said to have discharged his office with
extreme severity, and to have run great risks of his life in consequence.