The Prime Minister Part 20

"Those are qualities in which plebeians most excel," added another; "but in loyalty and devotion to a generous sovereign, who can equal the n.o.ble fidalgos of the land? It is the one sentiment in which all combine."

"Perhaps he has first to pay his devotions at the shrine of his lady love," observed the Queen, with a sneer; "yet we women might excuse him if his gallantry surpa.s.sed his loyalty."

The King, never very ready with answers in conversation, found no words to defend his Minister, to whose powerful mind his own had already learned to yield, though he, as yet, neither loved him, nor put implicit trust in him: his power, therefore, was held but by a frail tenure, which the breath of malice might easily have destroyed. A few idle or bitter words frequently weaken that influence which it has been the toil of years in a statesman's life to gain; and such an opportunity as this, the numerous enemies of the rising Minister who surrounded the throne, were certain not to lose.

The courtiers now began to a.s.semble, but the Minister came not.

Having taken a glance at the interior of the palace, we must return again to the streets in the neighbourhood, now thronged with carriages pressing forward to the one centre of attraction.

Our friend, Antonio, the cobbler, had given himself a holiday: not that he was going to Court, though, as he observed, many a less honest man, with a finer coat, might be there; but he was anxious to learn the opinions of people on affairs in general, and he knew that he should be able to pick up a good deal of information in the crowd, among whom he walked, dressed in his gala suit, unrecognised by any as Antonio O Remendao.

He was proceeding along a narrow street, at a short distance from the palace, when he saw approaching, the proud Duke of Aveiro, in his coach, which monopolised the greater part of the way, and slowly proceeded, at a state pace, in accordance with his dignity. A carriage, driven rapidly along, was endeavouring to pa.s.s the duke's conveyance; but his coachman, by swerving first on one side and then on the other, prevented it so doing.

"Make way there! make way for his Excellency Senhor Sebastiao Joze de Carvalho," shouted the driver of the hindermost carriage; but the other heeded not his words. "Make way there! make way; my master is late to present himself at Court, where his duty calls him, in which he will be impeded by no one," again cried the Minister's coachman.

"Heed not the base-born churl," exclaimed the Duke, from his carriage window. "Does he dare to insult me by presuming to pa.s.s my coach?"

The duke's anger increased as the Minister's coachman persisted in the attempt. "Keep in your proper station, wretch," he cried, forgetful of his own dignity, "or by Heavens I will slay you on the spot."

At that moment the carriages had reached a wider s.p.a.ce in the street, where Antonio stood, so that the Minister's carriage was enabled to pa.s.s the duke's: as it did so, Carvalho looked from the window. "I wish not to insult you, my lord duke," he said; "but the driver of my carriage has my orders to hasten towards the palace, nor will I be disobeyed; regardless of the rank of those I may pa.s.s, my duty to my sovereign is above all other considerations." The last words were scarce heard as he drove by, while the the Duke shook his hand with fury.

The Cobbler laughed quietly to himself, as he beheld the scene. "What fools men are!" he muttered. "Now, that n.o.ble duke is enraged because a man who is in a hurry pa.s.ses him while he is not; but he had better take care, and not enrage the Minister in return, or he will be like the man who put his head into the lion's mouth, and forgot to take it out again."

"Ah! does this bold plebeian dare to insult me to my very face?"

exclaimed the Duke, as he watched the Minister's carriage; "but, ere long, I will be revenged, and nought but his blood shall wipe out the remembrance of his audacity. He dreams not of the punishment that awaits him. Ah! he shall be the first victim when I attain to power."

"Did your Excellency mark the look of proud derision he cast as he succeeded in pa.s.sing your coach?" observed the sycophantish Captain Policarpio, who sat opposite to his master, and was ever ready to inflame his anger against those by whose downfall alone he had any hopes of succeeding in his ambitious projects.

"I marked it well, and shall not forget it till he mounts the scaffold,"

returned the Duke, grinding his teeth with fury. "Boastful as he now is, he will then be humble enough."

By the side of the Duke was his young nephew, to whom he had not ventured to breathe any of his aspiring hopes, well knowing, that neither by habits nor temper was he formed to aid in their accomplishment. The youth now looked up with an expression somewhat of surprise and pain on his countenance, and endeavoured to counteract the influence of Captain Policarpio's observations. "Senhor Carvalho had doubtless good reason for hurrying on to present himself before his Majesty," he said. "Methinks, too, Senhor Policarpio must be mistaken when he supposed that the Minister could have intentionally insulted my uncle."

"There was no mistaking his proud glance, boy," returned the Duke. "You know not the daring impudence of the man; his sole delight is to show his contempt of that rank to which he can never by right belong."

"Yet the King, whom we are all bound to reverence, places confidence in him; and he has already shown good example of his abilities," observed the young Viscount.

"The King is easily deceived by those who choose to flatter him,"

answered the Duke; "but his flattery shall avail him but little. Ah! we are at the palace, and that daring plebeian has arrived before us. We shall see with what a sneering and bold glance he will front us in the presence chamber, if he escapes his weak master's anger at his dilatory appearance. Let him gaze as he will, every glance shall be repaid by a drop of his life's blood."

While the Duke was thus venting his rage, the Minister, regardless of the anger he excited, drove rapidly on past all the other carriages, and descending at the gate of the palace, hastened to the audience chamber, to kiss the hand of the sovereign, to whose welfare he was devoted.

As he approached, the King's ear was yet ringing with the tones of the insidious voices of those who had been striving to blast his reputation; but the eyes of his slanderers, as if conscious that he knew their vile intent, sank abashed before his steady and confident gaze.

"Senhor Carvalho is late in paying his respects to us," began the King, as the Minister bent his knee before him.

"I trust that your Majesty will pardon me, your most faithful servant, when you learn that I was more deeply engaged in your Majesty's affairs, and the welfare of the state, than those who would poison your gracious ears with lying tales against my credit;" and drawing up his commanding figure, which towered above the crowd of courtiers, his eagle glance ranged over the frowning countenances of those who stood around. "But I know that your Majesty is too wise and generous to believe them, while I can prove my devotion to your service. I have detected, and for the present counteracted, a conspiracy to deprive your Majesty of your sovereign rights, and to bring your mind under subjection of your most subtle foes, the Jesuits. While many, who would endeavour to injure me in your estimation are pa.s.sing their nights in sleep or dissipation, I have been consuming the midnight oil in your service, s.n.a.t.c.hing, at intervals, a few hours of hurried rest. The details of my researches I will lay before your Majesty at some future period, and, till then, I trust in your goodness not to condemn me."

"We fully trust to your zeal, my friend, and know you to be a most loving and faithful servant," answered the King, banishing, in a moment, all the dark suspicions which had arisen in his mind. "Say no more on the subject at present; but, when this ceremony is over, we will consult in private on the affair. See, numbers are pressing forward to pay their duty to us."

"But not one whose heart beats with fonder devotion for your Majesty,"

answered the Minister, again bending his knee, and kissing the hand of the King, held out to him, when he retired to his allotted station. The Queen and Dom Pedro looked angrily at him, but dared not utter their feelings; the courtiers glanced at each other, when they were not observed, and shrugged their shoulders, seeing that for the present it was in vain to attempt to injure him with the King; but vowing not to lose another opportunity of renewing their attacks against one whom they had just reason to fear. Carvalho spoke a few words, in whispers, to his colleagues, whose eyes sunk on the ground as he proceeded; and, indeed, no one of that a.s.sembly of the proudest and most n.o.ble in the land seemed as much at their ease as before he entered, except the King himself, who, on the contrary, uttered his expressions of courtesy to those who came to pay their respects, with greater ease and fluency.

One of the first was the Marquis of Marialva, one of the most justly-esteemed n.o.bles of the Court, who ever retained the affection of the King, though he did not escape the jealousy of the Minister, who was, however, never able to injure him. "Do what you will with the others," the King used to say; "but let alone my marquis." He now entered, with a free and graceful manner, for which he was remarkable, and affectionately kissed the hand of his royal friend.

"Ah, my good marquis, we missed you much from our hunting party yesterday," said the King. "We much required your active arm to slay the beast, who gored one of our best dogs before he was slain."

"I had sprained my left arm, and could not guide my horse, or I should not have missed the honour of accompanying your Majesty," returned Marialva.

"We know; we heard of your accident, and are glad to find that you are so far recovered; and, as we have a favour to ask, let us know when you are perfectly strong. We wish to show the English Minister that we have some n.o.bles of our Court--and of no mean rank either--who are fully equal to the feats of agility and strength of which his countrymen boast. Our father--to whose soul G.o.d be merciful!--sent to the English Court an amba.s.sador, who was, we heard, the tallest among all the corps diplomatique, and not the least able, we suspect; so that we may vie with those islanders both in strength and size."

The Marquis smiled, as he answered, "I will gladly obey your Majesty in anything you may command, and hope in a few days sufficiently to recover my strength to do so."

A few persons of less note followed, when a disturbance, most unusual at Court, occurred, and a voice, as if in angry discussion, was heard, when the Duke of Aveiro was seen advancing in a hurried and disordered manner. A fierce fire burnt in his eye, and a frown deeply furrowed his brow, while his hand wandered unconsciously to the hilt of his sword; but, as he came close to the King, the presence of majesty restored him slightly to order; yet his carriage was far from having that respectful manner which he was bound to preserve: his step was irregular, and he yet snorted with rage, as, in a careless and indifferent way, he stooped to kiss the hand of his sovereign.

"What has caused my lord duke to be so angry this morning?" said the King. "He seems to forget that he is in the royal palace."

"I forget not where I am, for I have too much to remind me of it,"

answered the Duke, haughtily. "I have been insulted grossly--insulted by one of the ministers in whom your Majesty pleases to confide, in a way to which no n.o.ble can submit."

"Who is the culprit, my lord duke? It seems you have taken a lesson from him," said the King.

"He stands behind your Majesty, even now, I doubt not, plotting mischief in his fertile brain against your throne and the Church--Senhor Carvalho is the man!" answered the Duke.

The Minister cast a withering glance at him.

"The punishment due to my crime is not to be found mentioned in the laws of the realm," he said. "I therefore submit myself to your Majesty's clemency. The offence was in pa.s.sing my lord duke, in my eagerness to show my respect to my sovereign."

"Is that the whole of the offence, Senhor Duke?" said the King, half smiling. "It is at once pardoned, and we must request your Excellency to move out of the way in future, when any of our officers wish to pa.s.s you, in discharge of their duty;" and the King turned aside his head.

"The whole of the offence!" muttered the Duke of Aveiro, as he moved on one side. "For half such an one many a man has, ere now, died."

The highest fidalgos, their ladies and daughters, now followed in rapid succession; among them came the Marquis and Marchioness of Tavora, who had lately been acting the part of viceroys in India, and were, perhaps, but little pleased at being obliged to take a secondary place on the present occasion. They presented their eldest son, shortly to be united to the lovely daughter of the Marquis d'Alorna. Both the sovereigns looked coldly on them as they pa.s.sed, uttering merely the most common-place observations.

"We have not seen you at Court for some time, my lord marquis," said the King; "but we hope, in future, your own private affairs will not keep you from us. We will not now detain you."

It was observed, that when the young marquis bent to kiss the King's hand, Joseph turned aside his head, with a frown, nor dared to meet the eye of the young man, who, after paying the same compliment to the Queen, moved on one side. His betrothed bride, to whom he was to be united in a few days, followed directly after, led forward by her father, till she reached the presence chamber, when, with a slight agitation in her manner, visible only to the eye of a keen observer, she advanced towards the King, and, as she knelt to kiss his hand, he whispered in her ear--"Fear not, dearest, this must be so; but our love alters not." The unhappy girl blushed, and, as she rose, her eye caught that of the King, bent on her in admiration, when hers fell to the ground, nor did she dare to encounter the angry and fierce glances the Queen cast on her. Her father was received with marked attention, which, unsuspicious of harm, he took as due to his extraordinary merits.

Next came the Count of Atouquia, a young n.o.ble of unprepossessing appearance, and his countess, a lady much admired by the King.

Trembling with alarm at a scene so strange and dazzling, the fair Donna Clara was now led forward by the aged Marchioness de Corcunda, who had repaired to Court expressly to introduce her. As the beautiful and delicate young being knelt before him, the King smiled with surprise and pleasure, and raising her, bade her take courage, inquiring her name of the old marchioness. "She is, indeed, a bright jewel to adorn our Court, where we hope constantly to see her; and we doubt not many of our gallant fidalgos will enter the lists to win her smiles."

"Her hand is already sought by one of the first fidalgos, your Majesty; but the young lady has a strong desire to become the bride of our holy Church," answered the Marchioness.

The King looked annoyed, and an expression in no way respectful to the Church was on his lips; but he checked his anger, contenting himself merely with saying--

"The Church shows great discernment in choosing so fair a bride; but it is putting too great a temptation in the way of sinners to commit sacrilege, by making them seek to rob it of its prize."

Donna Clara heard these words of compliment, to which her ear was so unaccustomed, that it increased her blushes, adding to the l.u.s.tre of her beauty, nor knew she which way to turn her eyes, till the marchioness having paid her respects to the Queen, took her arm, and led her through the admiring crowd. The Queen frowned on the lovely girl, and coldly returned her salutation; for she feared, in each new beauty, another rival in her lord's affections. Goncalo Christovao followed directly after.

"We have much pleasure in seeing you at Lisbon, senhor," said the King; "but we shall find fault with you, if you allow your daughter to quit the world. We hope you will cause her to alter her intention."