Thus began the friendship of the bragging Seigneur of Rozel for the
three Huguenots, all because he had seen tears in a girl’s eyes and
misunderstood them, and because the same girl had kissed him. His pride
was flattered that they should receive protection from him, and the
flattery became almost a canonising when De Carteret of St. Ouen’s
brought him to task for harbouring and comforting the despised
Huguenots; for when De Carteret railed he was envious. So henceforth
Lempriere played Lord Protector with still more boisterous unction.
His pride knew no bounds when, three days after the rescue, Sir Hugh
Pawlett, the Governor, answering De la Foret’s letter requesting
permission to visit the Comtesse de Montgomery, sent him word to fetch
De la Foret to Mont Orgueil Castle. Clanking and blowing, he was shown
into the great hall with De la Foret, where waited Sir Hugh and the
widow of the renowned Camisard. Clanking and purring like an enormous
cat, he turned his head away to the window when De la Foret dropped on
his knees and kissed the hand of the Comtesse, whose eyes were full of
tears. Clanking and gurgling, he sat to a mighty meal of turbot, eels,
lobsters, ormers, capons, boar’s head, brawn, and mustard, swan, curlew,
and spiced meats. This he washed down with bastard, malmsey, and good
ale, topped with almonds, comfits, perfumed cherries with “ipocras,”
then sprinkled himself with rose-water and dabbled his face and hands
in it. Filled to the turret, he lurched to his feet, and drinking to Sir
Hugh’s toast,
“Her sacred Majesty!” he clanked and roared. “Elizabeth!” as though
upon the field of battle. He felt the star of De Carteret declining
and Rozel’s glory ascending like a comet. Once set in a course, nothing
could change him. Other men might err, but once right, the Seigneur of
Rozel was everlasting.
Of late he had made the cause of Michel de la Foret and Angele Aubert
his own. For this he had been raked upon the coals by De Carteret of St.
Ouen’s and his following, who taunted him with the saying: “Save a thief
from hanging and he’ll cut your throat.” Not that there was ill feeling
against De la Foret in person. He had won most hearts by a frank yet
still manner, and his story and love for Angele had touched the women
folk where their hearts were softest. But the island was not true to
itself or its history if it did not divide itself into factions, headed
by the Seigneurs, and there had been no ground for good division for
five years till De la Foret came.
Short of actual battle, this new strife was the keenest ever known,
for Sir Hugh Pawlett was ranged on the side of the Seigneur of Rozel.
Kinsman of the Comtesse de Montgomery, of Queen Elizabeth’s own
Protestant religion, and admiring De la Foret, he had given every
countenance to the Camisard refugee. He had even besought the Royal
Court of Jersey to grant a pardon to Buonespoir the pirate, on condition
that he should never commit a depredation upon an inhabitant of the
island--this he was to swear to by the little finger of St. Peter.
Should he break his word, he was to be banished the island for ten
years, under penalty of death if he returned. When the hour had come for
Buonespoir to take the oath, he failed to appear; and the next morning
the Seigneur of St. Ouen’s discovered that during the night his cellar
had been raided of two kegs of canary, many flagons of muscadella, pots
of anchovies and boxes of candied “eringo,” kept solely for the visit
which the Queen had promised the island. There was no doubt of the
misdemeanant, for Buonespoir returned to De Carteret from St. Brieuc
the gabardine of one of his retainers, in which he had carried off the
stolen delicacies.
This aggravated the feud between the partisans of St. Ouen’s and Rozel,
for Lempriere of Rozel had laughed loudly when he heard of the robbery,
and said “‘Tis like St. Ouen’s to hoard for a Queen and glut a pirate.
We feed as we get at Rozel, and will feed the Court well too when it
comes, or I’m no butler to Elizabeth.”
But trouble was at hand for Michel and for his protector. The spies
of Catherine de Medici, mother of the King of France, were everywhere.
These had sent word that De la Foret was now attached to the meagre
suite of the widow of the great Camisard Montgomery, near the Castle of
Mont Orgueil. The Medici, having treacherously slain the chief, became
mad with desire to slay the lieutenant. She was set to have the man,
either through diplomacy with England, or to end him by assassination
through her spies. Having determined upon his death, with relentless
soul she pursued the cause as closely as though this exiled soldier were
a powerful enemy at the head of an army in France.
Thus it was that she wrote to Queen Elizabeth, asking that “this arrant
foe of France, this churl, conspirator, and reviler of the Sacraments,
be rendered unto our hands for well-deserved punishment as warning to
all such evil-doers.” She told Elizabeth of De la Foret’s arrival in
Jersey, disguised as a priest of the Church of France, and set forth his
doings since landing with the Seigneur of Rozel. Further she went on to
say to “our sister of England” that “these dark figures of murder and
revolt be a peril to the soft peace of this good realm.”
To this, Elizabeth, who had no knowledge of Michel, who desired peace
with France at this time, who had favours to ask of Catherine, and who
in her own realm had fresh reason to fear conspiracy through the Queen
of the Scots and others, replied forthwith that “If this De la Foret
falleth into our hands, and if it were found he had in truth conspired
against France its throne, had he a million lives, not one should
remain.” Having despatched this letter, she straightway sent a messenger
to Sir Hugh Pawlett in Jersey, making quest of De la Foret, and
commanding that he should be sent to her in England at once.
When the Queen’s messenger arrived at Orgueil Castle, Lempriere chanced
to be with Sir Hugh Pawlett, and the contents of Elizabeth’s letter were
made known to him.
At the moment Monsieur of Rozel was munching macaroons and washing them
down with canary. The Governor’s announcement was such a shock that he
choked and coughed, the crumbs flying in all directions; and another
pint of canary must be taken to flush his throat. Thus cleared for
action, he struck out.
“‘Tis St. Ouen’s work,” he growled.
“‘Tis the work of the Medici,” said Sir Hugh. “Read,” he added, holding
out the paper.
Now Lempriere of Rozel had a poor eye for reading. He had wit enough to
wind about the difficulty.
“If I see not the Queen’s commands, I’ve no warrant but Sir Hugh
Pawlett’s words, and I’ll to London and ask ‘fore her Majesty’s face if
she wrote them, and why. I’ll tell my tale and speak my mind, I pledge
you, sir.”
“You’ll offend her Majesty. Her commands are here.” Pawlett tapped the
letter with his finger.
“I’m butler to the Queen, and she will list to me. I’ll not smirk and
caper like St. Ouen’s; I’ll bear me like a man not speaking for himself.
I’ll speak as Harry her father spoke--straight to the purpose.... No,
no, no, I’m not to be wheedled, even by a Pawlett, and you shall not
ask me. If you want Michel de la Foret, come and take him. He is in my
house. But ye must take him, for come he shall not!”
“You will not oppose the Queen’s officers?”
“De la Foret is under my roof. He must be taken. I will give him up to
no one; and I’ll tell my sovereign these things when I see her in her
palace.”
“I misdoubt you’ll play the bear,” said Pawlett, with a dry smile.
“The Queen’s tongue is none so tame. I’ll travel by my star, get sweet
or sour.”
“Well, well, ‘give a man luck, and throw him into the sea,’ is the old
proverb. I’m coming for your friend to-night.”
“I’ll be waiting with my fingers on the door, sir,” said Rozel, with a
grim vanity and an outrageous pride in himself.