Bearn And The Pyrenees Part 30

"Rente, rente, Rey de France, Que si non, qu'en mourt ou pris,"

Quin seri lou Rey de France?

Que jamey you nou l'ey bist."

Queou lheban l'ale deou mantou Troban l'y la flou de lys.

Quou ne prenen et quou liguen Dens la prison que l'an mis.

Dehens ue tour escure, Jamey sour ni lue s'y a bist; Si nou per ue frinistote....

U poustillou bet beni.

"Poustillou que lettres portis Que si counte ta Paris?"

"La nouvelle que you porti Lou Rey qu'ere mort ou pris."

"Tourne t'en poustillou en poste, Tourne t'en enta Paris.

Arrecommandem a ma femme Tabe mous infants pet.i.ts.

"Que ha.s.sen batte la mounede, La qui sie dens Paris, Que men embien ue cargue Por rachetam au pays."

The chorus is usually at the end of each verse--"La lyron, la lyre," or "doundoun, doundone."]

The following is also a favourite ballad on the battle of Coutras and the death of Joyeuse, the magnificent favourite of Henry III., whose contemptuous remark on his effeminacy was the cause of his exposing himself in the _melee_. The episode of the fate of Joyeuse is an affecting one in the life of the valiant and generous Henry of Navarre.

The treasure was immense that was taken from the gorgeous army destined to overthrow the hara.s.sed Huguenots, but literally cut to pieces by the stern and bold, though ragged warriors. The gold, silver, and jewels that were brought to Henry's tent, after the victory, were heaped on the floor, and the dead body of the beautiful and admired Duke de Joyeuse was brought to him. Henry turned away, sick at heart, and commanded the corpse to be covered with a cloak, and removed carefully; and desired that all the spoil should be divided amongst the soldiers; holding it beneath him to accept any: nor could he restrain his tears at the sight of so much carnage of those whom he looked upon as his subjects.

THE DEATH OF JOYEUSE.

Between La Roche and Coutras Was heard our battle cry; And still we called--"To arms! to arms!"

Our voices rent the sky.

Our king was there with all his men, And all his guards beside, Within, the Duke de Joyeuse, And to the king he cried:

"Oh, yield, King Henry, yield to me!"-- "What simple squire art thou, To bid King Henry yield him, And to thy bidding bow?"

"I an no simple squire, But a knight of high degree; I am the Duke de Joyeuse, And thou must yield to me."

The king has placed his cannon In lines against the wall,-- The first fire Joyeuse trembled, The next saw Joyeuse fall.

Alas! his little children, How sad will be their fate!-- A nurse both young and pretty, Shall on them tend and wait: And they shall be brave warriors, When they come to man's estate.

The next ballad is in the same strain:

THE DEATH OF THE DUKE DE MAINE.

The n.o.ble Duke de Maine Is dead or wounded sore; Three damsels came to visit him, And his hard hap deplore.

"Oh! say, fair prince, where is your wound?"

"'Tis in my heart," he said, "'Twill not be many moments Ere you will see me dead."

"Oh! call my page, and bid my squire;-- They ink and paper bring;-- For I must write a letter To my cousin and my king."

And when the king the letter read, Tears from his eyelids fell; "Oh! who shall lead my armies now.

Who shall command so well!"

"Oh! who shall guide my valiant bands To conquest in the fight!-- The Duke de Vendome[33] must succeed,-- He is a gallant knight."

[Footnote 33: Antoine de Bourbon.]

It is seldom now that the tamborine or pipe, celebrated by Despourrins, is heard as an accompaniment to the dances of the peasants. A violin is the usual music; and the antique and pastoral character is at once destroyed.

Sometimes it is possible to see a real mountain-dance, which is certainly picturesque, if not graceful, and belongs peculiarly to the spot, and the objects which inspired it; as, for instance, _"The Dance of the Wild Goat," "The Dance of the Izard," "La Gibaudrie," "La Ronde du Grand Pic."_

The young men are very agile in these exercises; but, in general, the woman's part is very inferior: they, indeed, seldom dance together, and usually are only spectators. This seems to indicate an Eastern origin.

There is one exception to this rule in a _ronde_, executed by both s.e.xes, hand-in-hand; but in this the men leap and cut, while the women move their feet slowly and heavily: in fact, they look half asleep, while the young men seem much more occupied with their own feats of agility than with their partners.

As I have not seen any of these dances, nor the peasants in their holiday costumes, I have some difficulty in imagining that there is either beauty or grace amongst them. At the Eaux Bonnes, our female attendant wore her red-peaked _capeline_ in the house, which had a singular effect, but was by no means pretty: indeed, the only impression it gives me is, that it is precisely the costume which seems to suit _a daunce o' witches_; and cannot by possibility be softened into anything in the least pleasing to the eye. All the peasants I saw at different periods of the year had a remarkably slovenly, dirty, squalid appearance; and, except in the instance of one little girl of about thirteen, I saw none who had the slightest claim to beauty, or could excite interest for a moment. There is a humble, civil air about the people in the Vallee d'Ossau, which propitiates one: the _berret_ is always taken off as a stranger pa.s.ses, and a kind salutation uniformly given. But, beyond this, there is nothing worthy of remark as respects the common people, who appear to be a simple race, content to work hard and live poorly.

Our guide pointed out to us a village, from the valley, perched up on a height in the midst of snows, where, he said, the inhabitants, who were all shepherds, _were very learned_. "Not one of them," said he, "but can read and write; and, as they are always in the mountains with a book in their hands, and have nothing to interrupt their studies, they know a great deal, and are brave _gens_." Probably Gaston Saccaze the naturalist belongs to such a fraternity.

CHAPTER IX.

COARRAZE--ORTON--THE PONT LONG--LES BELLES CANTINIeRES--MORLAAS--THE CURe--RESISTANCE TO IMPROVEMENT--UZAIN--LESCAR--REFORMATION IN NAVARRE--TOMBS--FRANcOIS PHOEBUS--THE MOTHER.

"A tres legues de Pau, a cap a las mountagnes Apres abe seguit gayhaventes[34] campagnes, Sus u Pic oun lou Gabe en gourgouils ba mouri Lou Castel de Coarraze aus oueils qu'es bien ouffri."

WITHIN a pleasant drive of Pau is the Castle of Coarraze, where the youth of Henry IV. was pa.s.sed, under the guardianship of Suzanne de Bourbon-Busset, Barronne de Miossens. Of this castle nothing now remains but one tower, on which may still be traced the motto, "_Lo que ha de ser non puede faltar_," from whence is a magnificent view _into_ the mountains.

Of the Castle of Coarraze, it will be seen that more marvellous things are told than that Henri Quatre pa.s.sed much of his childhood there.

[Footnote 34: Smiling.]

Froissart has immortalized it as the scene of one of his romances of Orthez; and this is the tale he tells of its lord:

It seems, Count Gaston Phoebus had such early knowledge of every event, that his household could only account for the fact by supposing that he possessed some familiar spirit, who told him all that had happened in the country, far and near. This was considered by no means unusual; and when Sir John Froissart expressed his surprise on the subject, a squire belonging to the count related to him a circ.u.mstance of a similar nature.

"It may be about twenty years ago," said he, "that there reigned, in this country, a baron, who was called Raymond, and who was Lord of Coarraze. Now, Coarraze is a town and castle, about seven leagues from this town of Orthez. The Lord of Coarraze had, at the time of which I speak, a suit before the Pope, at Avignon, respecting the t.i.thes of the church, which were claimed by a certain clerk of Catalonia, who insisted on his right to a revenue from them of a hundred florins a-year.

Sentence was given by Pope Urban the Fifth, in a general consistory, against the knight, and in favour of the Churchman; in consequence of which, the latter hastened, with all speed, back to Bearn with his letters and the Pope's bull, by virtue of which he was to enter into possession of the t.i.thes.

"The Lord of Coarraze was much incensed at this; and, in great indignation, went to the clerk, and said, 'Master Peter,' or 'Master Martin,'--it matters not for his name--'do you suppose that I shall be content to lose my inheritance for the sake of those letters of yours? I do not believe you to be so bold as to lay your hands on a thing which belongs to me; for, if you do, it is as much as your life is worth. Go elsewhere, and get what you can; as for my inheritance, you shall have none of it, and I tell you so once for all.'

"The clerk stood much in awe of the knight at these words, for he knew him to be a determined man, and dared not persevere in his demand; he found it safe to retire to Avignon, or, at all events, out of the count's reach; but, before he departed, he said to him, 'Sire, by force, and not by right, you have taken and kept from me the dues of my church, which in conscience is a great wrong. I am not so strong in this country as you are; but I would have you know, and that soon, that I have a champion, whom you will have cause to fear more than you do me.' The Lord of Coarraze, who cared nothing for his menaces, replied: 'Go, in Heaven's name, and do your worst. I value you as little dead as living; and, for all your words, you shall not get my property.'

"Thus they parted: the clerk either to Avignon, or into Catalonia; but he did not forget what he had said to the knight, for soon after there came to his castle of Coarraze, and into the very chamber where he and his lady slept, invisible messengers, who began to riot and overturn everything they found in the castle; so that it seemed as if they would destroy all they came near; so loud were the strokes which they struck against the doors of the bed-rooms, that the lady shook as she lay, and was greatly terrified. The knight heard all; but he took no sort of notice, for he would not seem to be moved by this event, and was bold enough to wait for stranger adventures.

"The noise and uproar continued for a long s.p.a.ce in different chambers of the castle, and then ceased. The domestics and squires represented what had happened to their master; but he feigned to have heard nothing, and to believe that they had been dreaming: but his lady one day a.s.sured him that she had heard the noise but too clearly.