The Life And Death Of Richard Yea And Nay Volume 91 by Maurice Hewlett (best books to read all time TXT) 📖
- Author: Maurice Hewlett
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Youth Still Kneeling, His Hands Still Between Philip's Hands, Looked
Fixedly Into His Sovereign's Face, And 'A Boon, Fair Sire!' He Said. 'A
Boon To Your New Man!'
'What Now, Saint-Pol?' Asked King Philip.
'Sire,' He Said, 'My Sister's Marriage Is In You. I Beg You To Give Her
To Messire Gilles De Gurdun, A Good Knight Of Normandy.'
'That Is A Poor Marriage For Her, Saint-Pol,' Said The King,
Considering, 'And A Poor Marriage For Me, By Saint Mary. Why Should I
Enrich The King Of England, With Whom I Am At War? You Must Give Me
Reason For That.'
'I Will Give You This Reason,' Said Young Saint-Pol; 'It Is Because That
Devil Who Slew My Brother Will Have Her Else.'
King Philip Said, 'Why, I Can Give Her To One Who Will Hold Her Fast.
Your Gurdun Is A Norman, You Say? Well, But Count Richard In A Little
Volume 91 Book 1 (The Book Of Yea) Chapter 7 (Of The Crackling Of Thorns Under Pots) Pg 42While Will Have Him Under His Hand; And How Are You Served Then?'
'I Doubt, Sire,' Replied Saint-Pol. 'Moreover, There Is This, If It
Please You To Hear It. When The Count Of Poictou Repudiated (As He Most
Villainously Did) My Sister, He Himself Gave Her To Gurdun. But I Fear
Him, Lest Seeing Her Any Other's He Should Take Her Again.'
'What Is This, Man?' Asked King Philip.
'Sire, He Writes Letters To My Sister That He Is A Free Man, And She
Keeps Them By Her And Often Reads Them In Secret. So She Was Caught But
Lately By My Lady Aunt, Reading One In Bed.'
The King's Brow Grew Very Black, For Though He Knew That Richard Would
Never Marry Madame, He Did Not Choose (But Resented) That Any Other
Should Know It. At This Moment Montferrat Came In, And Stood By His
Kinsman.
'Ah, Sire,' Said He, In Those Bloodhound Tones Of His, 'Give Us Leave To
Deal In This Business With Free Hands.'
'What Would You Do In It, Marquess?' Asked The King Fretfully.
'Kill Him, By God,' Said The Marquess; And Young Saint-Pol Added, 'Give
Us His Life, O Lord King.'
King Philip Thought. He Was Fresh From Making A Treaty With Richard; But
That Was In A War Of Requital Only, And Would Be Ended So Soon As The
Last Drop Had Been Drained From The Old King. What Would Follow The War?
He Was By This Time Cooler Towards Richard, Very Much Vexed At What He
Had Just Heard; He Could Not Help Remembering That Marriage With Alois
Would Have Been The Proper Reply To Scandalous Report. Should He Be
Able, When The War Was Done, To Squeeze Richard Into Marriage Or An
Equivalent In Lands? He Wondered, He Doubted Greatly. On The Other Hand,
If He And Richard Could Crush Old Henry, And Saint-Pol Afterwards Bruise
Richard--Why, What Was Philip But A Gainer?
Chewing The Fringe Of His Mantle As He Considered This And That,'If I
Give Madame Jehane In Marriage To Your Gurdun,' He Said Dubiously, 'What
Will Gurdun Do?'
Saint-Pol Named The Sum, A Fair One.
'But What Part Will He Take In The Quarrel?' Asked The King.
'He Will Take My Part, As He Is Bound, Sire.'
'Pest!' Cried Philip, 'Let Us Get At It. What Is This Part Of Yours?'
'The Part Of Him Who Has A Blood-Feud, My Lord,' Said Young Saint-Pol;
And The Marquess Said, 'That Is My Part Also.'
'Have It According To Your Desires, My Lords,' Then Said King Philip. 'I
Give You This Marriage. Make It As Speedily As May Be, But Let Not Count
Richard Have News Until It Is Done. There Is A Fire, I Tell You, Hidden
In That Tall Man. Remember This Too, Saint-Pol. You Shall Not Make War
On The Side Of England Against Richard, For That Will Be Against Me.
Your Feud Must Wait Its Turn. For This Present I Have An Account To
Settle In Which Poictou Is On My Side. Marquess, You Likewise Are In My
Debt. See To It That You Give My Enemies No Advantage.'
The Marquess And His Cousin Gave Their Words, Holding Up The Hilts Of
Their Swords Before Their Faces.
Volume 91 Book 1 (The Book Of Yea) Chapter 7 (Of The Crackling Of Thorns Under Pots) Pg 43Richard, In His City Of Poictiers, Was Calmly Forwarding His Plans. His
First Act, Since He Now Considered Himself Perfectly Free, Had Been To
Send Gaston Of Béarn With Letters To Saint-Pol-La-Marche; His Second,
Seeing No Reason Why He Should Wait For King Philip Or Any Possible
Ally, To Cross The Frontier Of Touraine In Force. He Took Castle After
Castle In That Rich Land, Clearing The Way For The Investiture Of Tours,
Which Was His First Great Objective.
I Leave Him At This Employment And Follow Gaston On His Way To The
North. It Was Early In March When That Young Man Started, Squally, Dusty
Weather; But Perfect Trobador As He Was, The Nature Of His Errand Warmed
Him; He Composed A Whole Nosegay Of Scented Songs In Honour Of Richard
And The Crocus-Haired Lady Of The March Who Wore The Broad Girdle.
Riding As He Did Through The Realm Of France, By Chateaudun, Chartres,
And Pontoise, He Narrowly Missed Eustace Of Saint-Pol, Who Was Galloping
The Opposite Way Upon An Errand Dead Opposed To His Own. Gaston Would
Have Fought Him, Of Course, But Would Have Been Killed To A Certainty;
For Saint-Pol Rode As Became His Lordship, With A Company, And The Other
Was Alone. He Was Spared Any Such Mischance, However, And Arrived In The
Highest Spirits, With An _Alba_ (Song Of The Dawn) For What He Supposed
To Be Jehane's Window. It Shows What An Eye He Had For A Lady's Chamber
That He Was Very Nearly Right. A Lady Did Put Her Head Out; Not Jehane,
But A Rock-Faced Matron Of Vast Proportions With Grey Hair Plastered To
Her Cheeks.
'Behold, Behold The Dawn, My Tender Heart!' Breathed Gaston.
'Out, You Cockerel,' Said The Old Lady, And Gaston Wooed Her In Vain. It
Appeared That She Was An Aunt, Sworn To The Service Of The Count, And
Had Jehane Safe In A Tower Under Lock And Key. Gaston Retired Into The
Woods To Meditate. There He Wrote Five Identic Notes To The Prisoner.
The First He Gave To A Boy Whom He Found Birds'-Nesting. 'Take A
Turtle's Nest, Sweet Boy,' Said Gaston, 'To My Lady Jehane; Say It Is
First-Fruits Of The Year, And Win A Silver Piece. Beware Of An Old Lady
With A Jaw Like A Flat-Iron.' The Second He Gave To A Woodman Tying
Billets For The Castle Ovens; The Third A Maid Put In Her Placket, And
He Taught Her The Fourth By Heart In A Manner Quite His Own And Very
Much To Her Taste. With The Fifth He Was Most Adroit. He Demanded An
Interview With The Duenna, Whose Name Was Dame Gudule. She Accorded.
Gaston Spilled His Very Soul Out Before Her; He Knelt To Her, He Kissed
Her Large Velvet Feet. The Lady Was Touched, I Mean Literally, For
Gaston As He Stooped Fitted His Fifth Note Into The Braid Of Her Ample
Skirt. The Only One To Arrive Was The Boy's In The Bird's Nest. The Boy
Wanted His Silver Piece, And Got It. So Jehane Had Another Note To
Cherish.
But She Had To Answer It First. It Said, '_Vera Copia_. Ma Mye, I Set On
To The Burden You Gave Me, But It Failed Of Breaking My Back. I Have
Punished Some Of The Wicked, And Have Some Still To Punish. When This Is
Done I Shall Come To You. Wait For Me. I Regret Your Brother's Death.
He Deserved It. The Fight Was Fair. Learn Of Me From Gaston.--Richard Of
Anjou.' Her Answer Was Leaping In Her Heart; She Led The Boy To The
Window.
'Look Down, Boy, And Tell Me What You Can See.'
'_Dame_!' Said The Boy, 'I See The Moat, And Ducks On It.'
'Look Again, Dear, And Tell Me What You See.'
'I See An Old Fish On His Back. He Is Dead.'
Volume 91 Book 1 (The Book Of Yea) Chapter 7 (Of The Crackling Of Thorns Under Pots) Pg 44
Jehane Laughed Quietly. 'He Has Been There Many Days. Tell The Knight
Who Sent You To Stand Thereabout, Looking Up. Tell Him Not To Be There
At Any Hour Save That Of Mass, Or Vespers. Will You Do This, Dear Boy?'
'Certain Sure,' Said The Boy. Jehane Gave Him Money And A Kiss, Then
Fastened Herself To The Window.
Gaston Excelled In Pantomime. Every Day For A Week He Saw Jehane At Her
Window, And Enacted Many Strange Plays. He Showed Her The Old King
Stormy In His Tent, The Meagre White Unrest Of Alois, The Outburst At
Autafort And Bertran De Born With His Tongue Out; The Meeting At Tours,
The Battle, The Death Of The Count Her Brother. He Was Admirable On
Richard's Love-Desires. There Could Be No Doubt At All About Them.
Pricked By His Feats In This Sort, Jehane Overcame Her Reserve And
Turned Her Members Into Marionettes. She Puffed Her Cheeks, Hung Her
Head, Scowled Upwards: There Was Gilles De Gurdun To The Life. She
Looped Finger And Thumb Of The Right Hand And Pierced Them With The Ring
Finger: Ohè! Her Fate. Gaston In Reply To This Drew His Sword And Ran A
Cypress-Tree Through The Body. Jehane Shook A Sorrowful Head, But He
Waved All Such Denials Away With A Hand So Expressive That Jehane Broke
The Window And Leaned Her Body Out. Gaston Uttered A Cheerful Cry.
Have No Fear, Lovely Prisoner. If That Is His Intention He Is Gone. I
Kill Him. It Is Arranged.'
'My Brother Eustace Is In Paris,' Says Jehane In A Low But Carrying
Voice, 'To Get My Marriage From The King.'
'Again I Say, Fear Nothing,' Gaston Cried; But Jehane Strained Out As
Far As She Could.
'You Must Go Away From Here. The Window Is Broken Now, And They Will
Find Me Out. Take A Message To My Lord. If He Is Free Indeed, He Knows
Me His In Life Or Death. I Seek To Do Him Service. Wed Or Unwed, What Is
That To Me? I Am Still Jehane.'
'Your Name Is Red Heart, And Golden Rose, And Loiale Amye! Farewell,
Star Of The North,' Said Gaston On His Knees. 'I Seek This Gurdun
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