For the first time in life--and it was very early to begin--Edward
Langdale felt that loneliness of heart which parting for an indefinite
time from one we dearly love produces in all but the very light or the
very hard. He had never loved before; he had never even thought of love;
but now he loved truly and well. He might not indeed have loved even
now, for he and Lucette were both so young that the idea might not have
come into the mind of either; but their love had been a growth rather
than a passion; and, as the reader skilled in such mysteries must have
seen, it had been watered and trained and nourished by all those
accidents which raise affection from a small germ to a beautiful flower.
First, she had nursed him so tenderly that he could not but feel
grateful to her; then she had been cast upon his care in dangers and
difficulties of many kinds, so that deep interest in her had sprung up.
Then, again, she was so beautiful, in her first fresh youth, that he
could not but admire what he protected and cherished. Then she was so
innocent, so gentle, so ductile, and yet so good in every thought, that
he could not but esteem and reverence what he admired. Then had come his
turn of nursing, and the interest became warmer, more tender; and at
length, when the mere thought of stating, in order to account for their
companionship, that they sought to be married first entered the mind of
each, it let a world of light into their hearts, and the whole was
pointed, directed, confirmed, by the sudden ceremony which bound them
together. They had promised at the altar to love each other forever,
and they felt that they could keep their word.
But Edward, as he rolled along by the side of Madame de Lagny, could not
help asking himself painful questions: "I shall love her ever," he said
to himself; "but she is so young, so very young,--a mere child! Will her
love last through a long separation? will not her feelings change with
changing years? does she even love me now as I love her?"
Luckily he asked himself the last question, for it went some way to
answer the others to his satisfaction. There had been something in her
embrace, in her kiss, in her eyes, in her clinging tenderness, which
told him that she did love as he did; and he, feeling, or at least
believing, that he would love still, however long they might be
separated, learned to credit the sweet tale of Hope and believe that she
would love constantly too.
Nevertheless, he felt very sad; and yet he exerted himself eagerly and
successfully to make the journey pass as pleasantly as he could to poor
Madame de Lagny, who, though she had not undertaken her disagreeable
task out of any affection to either Edward or Lucette, but merely in
obedience to the wishes of Richelieu, had learned to love both her young
companions, and had taken their part sincerely in the discussion with
the Duc de Rohan. She was both a keen-sighted and a clear-minded old
lady; and she saw well the gloomy sadness of Edward Langdale, and
understood its cause; but she saw likewise that he was making every
effort to show her courteous attention; and no old women are ever
ungrateful for the attention of young men.
For three days the weary journey back to Nantes continued; and in that
time the good marquise contrived to store the young Englishman's mind
with many of her own peculiar apothegms, some good and some indifferent,
but all the fruit of much worldly experience grafted upon a keen and
sensible mind.
"Never despair, my son," she said. "Many a man is lighted on his way by
a candle; nobody by a stone. Of a misfortune you can remove, think as
much as you like; of a situation you cannot change, think as little as
possible. If you have a marsh to go through, gallop as fast as you can;
and, if you have a heavy hour, fill it with action. A wasp will not
sting you if you do not touch it; and we do not feel sorrow when we do
not think of it."
Such were a few of the old lady's maxims, and one of them struck Edward
Langdale's fancy very much. "If you have a marsh to go through," he
repeated to himself, "gallop as fast as you can; and, if you have a
heavy hour, fill it with action." He thought that the next two years
would indeed be a marsh to him, and he resolved to gallop through them
as fast as he could. But there was one sad reflection which he could not
banish, one point in his situation which gave him anxiety rather than
pain. He knew not how to hold any communication with his young bride. He
was well aware that every effort would be made to prevent it. Lucette
had been once sent to England to keep her out of the hands of the
Duchesse de Chevreuse: where might she not be sent now? Her two cousins
Soubise and Rohan were constantly roving from place to place, and there
was as little chance of any letter from him finding her as of any news
of where she was reaching him.
The old fable of Midas telling his misfortune to the reeds is founded
upon a deep knowledge of human nature. Man must have some one to share
the burden of heavy thoughts, and Edward told his to Madame de Lagny.
The old lady was better than the reeds, for she whispered consolation.
"I can help you but little, my son," she said; "but, if you could attach
yourself to the cardinal, he could help you a great deal. However, I
will do the best I can for you and the dear child your little wife. If
you want to write to her, send your letter to me at the court, wherever
it is, and the letter shall reach her sooner or later. I will find means
to let her know that she must send hers to me likewise, and they shall
reach you; if you will keep me always informed of where you are."
Edward not only pressed her hand, but kissed it; and not five minutes
after, when they were within ten miles of the city of Nantes, a man came
riding at full speed after the carriage, drew up his horse at the great
leathern excrescence called the portière, and asked, in a brusque tone,
if Monsieur Langdale was in the coach.
"Yes; I am he," answered Edward. "What want you with me?"
"A letter," replied the man. And, handing in a sealed packet, he turned
his horse's head and rode away.
It was still early in the day, and the youth, breaking open the letter,
read the contents. They ran thus:--
"MY LORD AND BROTHER:--
"On the wing for England, I have received your letter. Tell the
insolent varlet that he shall never see her face again, the
devil and the pope and the cardinal to boot, or my name is not
"SOUBISE."
Edward's brow became fearfully contracted, and he muttered, "At the end
of the earth."
"Show it to me! show it to me!" exclaimed Madame de Lagny, who was not
without her share of woman's curiosity. "What is it makes you look so
angry, my son?"
Edward handed her the letter, and she read it with attention, but not
with the indignation he expected to see. On the contrary, she seemed
pleased and amused. "Let me keep this," she said. "Methinks that
Monsieur de Soubise may find the triple alliance of the devil, the pope,
and the cardinal to boot somewhat too much for him. The cardinal alone
might be enough, without two such powerful auxiliaries. But let me keep
it. It can be of no value to you."
"Oh, none!" answered Edward. "Keep it if you will, madame. But the
Prince de Soubise shall find that, if he have a strong will, I have a
strong will also; and, if he have some advantages, we have youth and
activity and resolution."
"And the Cardinal de Richelieu," said Madame de Lagny, emphatically: "he
is not the man to leave any work incomplete, nor to be bearded by any
one. However, we must be near Nantes by this time. Now let us consider
what your course is to be when we arrive."
The good marquise then proceeded to indoctrinate her young companion
with all the forms of a court, which, though not so rigid as they
afterward became,--for Louis XIV. was the father of etiquette,--were
sufficiently numerous and arbitrary to puzzle a young man like Edward.
He found that, although he had once by the force of circumstances won
easy access to the cardinal prime minister, he had now various
ceremonies to go through before he could hope for an audience. To call,
to put down his name and address in a book, to see principal and
secondary officers, and to give as it were an abstract of his business,
were all proceedings absolutely necessary, Madame de Lagny thought,
before he could see the cardinal; and Edward, with a faint smile, asked
her if she did not think it would be better for him to commit a little
treason as the shortest way to the minister's presence.
"Heaven forbid!" cried the old lady. "But in the mean time you must go
to an auberge near the chateau, where his Eminence can find you at any
moment." And she proceeded to recommend the house of an excellent man,
who had been cook to poor Monsieur de Lagny, and now, she assured
Edward, kept the very best auberge in Nantes.
At length the city was reached, and the coach drove straight to the
castle, where Madame de Lagny took a really affectionate leave of Edward
and retired to her own apartments. The young Englishman then proceeded
to inquire for Richelieu, found he was absent at a small distance from
the town, and, having written his name in a book, betook himself to the
inn which his travelling-companion had mentioned. In the court of the
castle he had seen no one but a guard or two and some servants at the
door of the hall. In the great place there was hardly a human being to
be seen,--no gay cavaliers on horseback or on foot, no heavy carrosse
with its crowd of laquais. At the other side of the square, indeed, near
the end of the little street which led toward the dwelling of Monsieur
de Tronson, was a group of workmen; and another larger group just
appeared beyond some buildings close by the river-side. But, altogether,
the whole town had a melancholy and deserted look. A sort of ominous
silence reigned around, too, which Edward felt to be very depressing to
the spirits, especially in a country celebrated even then for the light
hilarity of its population.
The inn, however, was fresh-looking and clean, and the landlord, who
soon appeared, although he was not at the entrance as usual when the
coach stopped, was the perfection of a French aubergist,--as polished as
a prince, and full of smiles. While Pierrot la Grange and Jacques
Beaupré stayed by the carriage, at their master's desire, to take out
the little sum of his baggage and to bestow a small gratuity upon the
coachman, the host led his guest up to a large, somewhat gloomy chamber
floored with polished tiles, recommended his fish--the best in the
world--and his poultry, which he asseverated strongly were the genuine
production of Maine, and took the young gentleman's pleasure as to his
dinner.
He had hardly gone when the two servants appeared, bringing various
articles; but their principal load was evidently in the mind. The face
of Pierrot, which temperate habits had not yet improved in fatness,
though it had become somewhat blanched in hue, was at least three inches
longer since they entered Nantes; and Jacques Beaupré, always solemn
even in the midst of his fun, was now not only solemn, but gloomy.
"I wish we were safe out of this place, sir," said Pierrot, shutting the
door after him. "It is a horrible place!"
"What is the matter?" asked Edward: "the whole town looks sad, and you
both seem to have caught the infection."
"Did not the landlord tell you, sir?" said Jacques Beaupré. "I thought
landlords always told all they knew, and a little more. But I suppose he
has lived long enough near a court to keep his tongue in his mouth, for
fear somebody should cut it out."
"The matter, sir, is this," said Pierrot: "the poor young Count de
Chalais, who was confined in the dungeons close under the room where
they put you, has been condemned to die this morning,--they say, for a
few light words."
"Indeed!" said Edward, with a somewhat sickening memory of the dangers
he himself had seen: "that is very sad. But probably the king will
pardon him."
"Oh, not he," answered Pierrot: "they say the poor countess, his mother,
has moved heaven and earth to save him, without the least effect. His
head is probably off by this time."
"No, no; that cannot be," rejoined Jacques: "did not the boy tell us
that the two executioners had both been spirited away?"
"Yes, but he said that a soldier--a prisoner--had been found to
undertake the job," answered Pierrot. "Oh, it is a bad business, Master
Ned! They say the queen herself has been brought before the council, and
the Duke of Anjou threatened with death, and half the court exiled, and
the cardinal in such a humor that----"
"That every one as he walks along is feeling his ears, to be sure that
there is any head upon his shoulders," added Jacques Beaupré. "Would it
not be better for you, sir, to go to that good Monsieur de Tronson, and
be civil to him, and make as many friends as possible?"
Edward paused in thought for a moment, and then replied, "That is well
bethought, Beaupré; for though I think I have nothing to fear, yet in
common courtesy I owe my second visit to one who has been so kind to me.
I will go directly. Let the landlord know that I may be a little later
than I mentioned at dinner."
Edward put on his hat and went out into the place, taking care to mark
particularly the position of the auberge, that he might not be forced to
inquire his way in a town where so many dangers lurked on every side.
The road to Monsieur de Tronson's house was easy; and, crossing the
square, the young gentleman directed his course toward the end of the
street where, when passing in the coach, he had seen a crowd of workmen,
who were still gathered round a spot about a hundred and fifty or two
hundred yards in advance. On approaching nearer, Edward caught sight of
a platform of wood raised some eight or ten steps from the ground. He
could only discern a part, for the people had gathered thickly round;
but, though he had never before seen the preparations for a public
execution, it flashed through his mind at once that this was the
scaffold on which the unhappy Chalais was to suffer. To avoid the
terrible scene, he turned toward the left; but, just as he was
approaching the end of the street, a shout came up from the water-side
and a dull rushing sound from the southeast. A large crowd poured into
the square from both sides; and before Edward could escape he was caught
by the two currents and forced along to within thirty yards of the
scaffold. He tried to free himself and force his way out, but a warning
voice sounded in his ear.
"Be quiet, young gentleman," said an elderly man close by, speaking in a
low tone. "This young count has to die, and, if he be your best friend,
take no notice. Suspicion is as good as proof here just now. Look where
he comes!"
Edward turned his eyes in the direction to which the old man was
looking, and beheld a sight which was but a mere prologue to the horrors
that were to follow, but which could never be banished from his memory.
Surrounded by a body of guards came a tall, handsome young man, without
his cloak, as if he had been torn from his dungeon unprepared, but still
showing, in such habiliments as he did wear, all the extravagant
splendor of the times. By his side, with her hand passed through his
arm, as if to support him, and pouring a torrent of words into his ear,
was an elderly lady in a widow's dress. Her face and carriage were noble
and dignified, though lines of past grief and present anguish were
strongly marked upon her countenance; but when she lifted her eyes
toward the scaffold, and beheld there a stout, bad-looking man leaning
on a large, heavy sword, a sort of spasm passed over her features.
"That is his mother," whispered the same voice which Edward had heard
before.
Behind the mother and the son came the confessor, a dull-faced, heavy
monk; and then a good number of guards, and one or two men in black
robes,--probably exempts, or other inferior officers of the court. But
the eyes of Edward Langdale were fixed upon the mother and her son; and
the thought of his own dear mother gave him the power--I might almost
call it the faculty--of sympathizing with the noble-minded woman, to a
degree that made the whole scene one of actual agony.
"I wish I could get out," he said, speaking to the old man, who was
jammed up against him: "this is horrible. Can you not make way?"
"Try to force your way through the castle-wall," replied the other,
cynically: "you have but to see a man die, young gentleman."
"Ay, but how?" said Edward.
"By the sword," said the old man: "it is an interesting sight,--much
better than by the cord. I have seen every execution that has taken
place in the city for twenty years. Perhaps I may see yours some day.
They are fine sights,--the only sights that interest me now; but this is
likely to be a bungled business, for the old countess there bribed both
the executioners to get out of the way, and this fellow does not
understand the trade. He is paler than the criminal. See how he shakes!"
Edward raised his eyes for an instant and saw the unhappy mother
supporting her luckless son up the very steps of the scaffold,--not that
he wanted aid, for his step was firm and his look bold and frowning.
There was a fearful sort of fascination in the sight; and the lad gazed
on till he saw the last embrace taken and the young count make a sign
and speak a word to the executioner. Then he withdrew his eyes, till, a
moment after, there was a shrill cry of anguish and a murmur amongst the
crowd; and he looked up again only to see the wretched young man, all
bleeding, leaning his wounded head upon his mother's bosom.
The executioner had missed his stroke. Again and again he missed it. He
complained of the sword: a heavier one was handed up to him; but still
his shaking arm refused to perform its hideous office, till, after more
than thirty blows,[4] the head of the unhappy young man was literally
hacked off, almost at his mother's feet.
The noble woman raised her hands and her eyes to heaven, exclaiming, "I
thank thee, O God, that my son has died a martyr and not a criminal!"
The last acts of the terrible drama Edward did not see. He felt as if
his heart would burst with the mingled feelings of indignation and
horror which all he had beheld awakened; and after the second or third
blow he kept his eyes resolutely bent down, till the pressure of the
crowd relaxed as the spectators of the bloody scene began to disperse.
Then, sick at heart, and with a strange feeling of hatred for the world,
he turned his steps back to the inn. He was in no mood for conversation
with any one.
[Footnote 4: Some say seven-and-twenty.]