"I never saw anything so hideous in my life," I answered.
Juggins laughed, as his eyes followed mine.
"No, I meant not the negro. 'Twas Murray I spoke of. He sits
several seats farther on."
I looked as directed and picked out a man who lounged back
comfortably in a chair, talking with a group of merchants who seemed
to hang on his words. He was elegantly clad, yet very quietly,
rather in the fashion of a fine gentleman than a rich trader.
Though sitting, he showed himself to be a large man of massive frame.
His face was dead-white in complexion, with big features, strongly
marked. He wore an immense periwig in the prevailing mode, and there
was about him an air of pride and self-confidence. Though he must
have been middle-aged, he carried himself like a young man or a
soldier.
"He is no enemy to be slighted," I said.
"No, he thrives upon opposition; but----"
A secretary rapped for order.
"To the King's Most Excellent Majesty in Council," he recited from a
document he held, "the humble petition and representation of Samuel
Baker, Samuel Storke, Richard Janeway and others, merchants of
London, trading to New York, in behalf of themselves and the rest of
the persons concerned in the New York trade; which petition, having
been considered by his Majesty's Council, hath been referred, with
his gracious consent, to the Right Hon. the Lords Commissioners for
Trade and Plantations."
"You will note," whispered Master Juggins in my ear, "that the name
of Murray is not included in the list. That was the cleverest move
he made. He appears here, not as the principal, which he is, but at
the request of these merchants, who are his decoys, and ostensibly in
their interest."
The secretary read on for some minutes, and then came to a stop,
looking expectantly at their lordships, who promptly awoke from the
naps they had been taking.
"You have heard the petition and reference of the Council read,"
gabbled Pelham in whining voice. "We will now hear arguments by the
opposing sides. Who opens?"
There was some hesitation.
"If it pleases your lordships," spoke up a merchant in the group
surrounding Murray, "we would have the opponents of the petition
heard first."
"Be it so. Who appears against the petition?"
Master Juggins rose beside me. His arguments were substantially
those he had used with me, bulwarked additionally by a mass of facts
and statistics. He drew, too, upon several documents in the bag I
carried, letters and statements from Governor Burnet of New York and
other merchants of that province. When he sat down it seemed to me
that no Englishman who thought of his own country's interest could
resist the logic of his appeal.
There was a smattering of applause, and then the same merchant who
had spoken before introduced Murray, with the remark that he had
kindly consented to give his opinion, as he had recently come on a
visit to London from the province of New York, where he was in
residence.
"The gentleman who preceded me," began Murray, "and who, I am told,
once spent some time in our province many years ago, is unfortunately
laboring under a misapprehension of the situation. It is not, my
lords, as though we had the misfortune to be at war with France.
Through the grace of God, the two countries have now been for some
years at peace with one another, and their subjects in the New World
have striven not to be behind-hand in drawing closer the bonds of
trade which in themselves are the best preventative of war."
"Hear, hear," cried his supporters.
"There is no difficulty about this matter which we are discussing,"
he resumed. "We manufacture in this country more goods of a certain
kind than we can consume ourselves. These goods are in great demand
amongst the savage tribes which inhabit the interior of North America.
"Both the French and our own traders have use for these goods in the
fur-trade, which is growing to be of increasing worth to the London
merchants. The French, by reason of their location on the shores of
the Great Lakes, which stretch like inland seas across our
wilderness, have access to the trade of many tribes which we do not
reach.
"If we withhold from the French the goods they require for trading
with these tribes they will seek them from the manufacturers of the
Low Countries and Germany. Thus our merchants at home will be
deprived of a profitable trade, and we provincials will not be
bettered. Also, the supply of furs for the London market, much of
which comes from the French posts, will be reduced. It seems to me,
your lordships, that this prohibitory legislation will only have
crippling effects upon trade and hinder the good relations between
France and England and their colonies."
He said much more in the same vein, whilst Juggins twisted uneasily
in his seat and the attending merchants and even their sleepy
lordships hung upon his words. For he was a ready speaker. When he
sat down there was hearty applause and Pelham nodded his head as if
to say--
"Well done."
But our opponents were not through with us. The merchant who acted
as master of ceremonies caused a start of surprize, in which I
joined, by bringing forward a handsomely dressed gentleman, whose
laced coat and gold-hilted sword showed conspicuously in such drab
surroundings.
'Twas Raoul de Veulle; yes, Raoul de Veulle, whose mad exploits and
escapades, love-affairs and gambling-debts, had kept all Paris
gossiping these past three years and had just driven him into an
exile, the facts concerning which had been mysteriously secret. I
had known de Veulle well--as a dim star of restricted orbit may know
a bright planetary light whose radiance reaches beyond his immediate
universe. Once, in fact, we had come together, clashed over a
question of honor in which--But I will tell of that in its place.
Now de Veulle stood before us, his handsome face smiling, bowing low
before their interested lordships. In charming, broken English he
repeated his brief message. He had been requested by his Excellency
the French ambassador to appear in this matter in answer to a plea
offered by the petitioners to the ambassador for corroborative
testimony to the justice of their assertions from a responsible
French source.
He himself--he shrugged apologetically--as it happened was
Canadian-born; he was just starting upon his way to take up an
appointment in the Canadian Government. He ventured to say he knew
whereof he spoke. He agreed unhesitatingly with what Monsieur Murray
had stated. On behalf of the French Government and of the Canadian
authorities he begged to say that such legislation as New York wished
to have perpetuated would have most unhealthy effects upon the trade
and politics of their two countries. He thanked their lordships for
their forbearance, made a second courtly bow and withdrew.
Master Juggins sprang to his feet, his honest face aflush.
"Many of the assertions of Master Murray and----"
Pelham waved him to his seat.
"We have heard enough," pronounced the whining voice. "You have no
other first-hand witnesses from overseas!"
"No, your lordships," admitted Juggins reluctantly.
"Then further talk is fruitless," he went on, while his colleagues
nodded their sleepy assent. "We are agreed that there seems to be
some difference of opinion concerning this measure. Were it not for
the fact that his Majesty's Governor of New York appears to favor the
bill, we should consider the case made out against it unanswerable.
But in view of Governor Burnet's approval we are resolved that the
matter shall be referred back to him with a request for a full report
upon the issues raised, and pending the receipt of this report and a
decision being reached his Majesty's Government will not take action
in the premises.
"Good relations with the Government of his Most Catholic Majesty must
be preserved, and the utmost care should be maintained that no
injustice be done, however unwittingly, to any of the subjects of the
two countries.
"What is the next case for consideration?"
The petitioners, much gratified, flocked around Murray and his
ape-like servant, and I followed Master Juggins from the chamber and
out into Whitehall.
"The scoundrel!" he exclaimed. "But 'twas no more than I had
expected."
"And what will happen next?" I asked.
"If I know Governor Burnet as well as I think I do, Murray and his
French friends will draw slight comfort from their triumph today."
"Why? What can he do?"
"Nothing official, 'tis true; but remember he is three thousand miles
from London and therefore able to think for himself. With you to
help him----"
I felt something brush against my coat sleeve and looked around. I
had just time to see the back of a gaudy red coat and a woolly black
head, crowned by an ornate cocked hat, disappearing in the crowd.
"Do you see?" I said.
"Aye," responded Juggins grimly; "I might have known it. Well, 'tis
a lesson in time. We will not forget it."