The Last of the Barons — Complete

by Baron Edward Bulwer Lytton Lytton

  CHAPTER VI. HOW, ON LEAVING KING LOG, FOOLISH WISDOM RUNS A-MUCK ON KINGSTORK.

  At the outer door of the Tower by which he had entered, the philosopherwas accosted by Catesby,--a man who, in imitation of his young patron,exhibited the soft and oily manner which concealed intense ambition andinnate ferocity.

  "Worshipful my master," said he, bowing low, but with a half sneer onhis lips, "the king and his Highness the Duke of Gloucester haveheard much of your strange skill, and command me to lead you to theirpresence. Follow, sir, and you, my men, convey this quaint contrivanceto the king's apartments."

  With this, not waiting for any reply, Catesby strode on. Hugh's facefell; he turned very pale, and, imagining himself unobserved, turnedround to slink away. But Catesby, who seemed to have eyes at the back ofhis head, called out, in a mild tone,--

  "Good fellow, help to bear the mechanical--you, too, may be needed."

  "Cog's wounds!" muttered Hugh, "an' I had but known what it was to setmy foot in a king's palace! Such walking may do for the silken shoon,but the hobnail always gets into a hobble." With that, affecting acheerful mien, he helped to replace the model on the mule.

  Meanwhile, Adam, elated, poor man! at the flattery of the royal mandate,persuaded that his fame had reached Edward's ears, and chafed at thelittle heed paid by the pious Henry to his great work, stalked on, hishead in the air. "Verily," mused the student, "King Edward may havebeen a cruel youth, and over hasty; it is horrible to think of RobertHilyard's calamities! But men do say he hath an acute and masterlycomprehension. Doubtless, he will perceive at a glance how much Ican advantage his kingdom." With this, we grieve to say, selfishreflection--which, if the thought of his model could have slept awhile, Adam would have blushed to recall, as an affront to Hilyard'swrongs--the philosopher followed Catesby across the spacious yard, alonga narrow passage, and up a winding turret-stair, to a room in the thirdstory, which opened at one door into the king's closet, at the otherinto the spacious gallery, which was already a feature in the plan ofthe more princely houses. In another minute Adam and his model were inthe presence of the king. The part of the room in which Edward sat wasdistinguished from the rest by a small eastern carpet on the floor (aluxury more in use in the palaces of that day than it appears to havebeen a century later); [see the Narrative of the Lord Grauthuse, beforereferred to] a table was set before him, on which the model was placed.At his right hand sat Jacquetta, Duchess of Bedford, the queen's mother;at his left, Prince Richard. The duchess, though not without the remainsof beauty, had a stern, haughty, scornful expression in her sharpaquiline features, compressed lips, and imperious eye. The paleness ofher complexion, and the careworn, anxious lines of her countenance, wereascribed by the vulgar to studies of no holy cast. Her reputation forsorcery and witchcraft was daily increasing, and served well the purposeof the discontented barons, whom the rise of her children mortified andenraged.

  "Approach, Master--What say you his name is, Richard?"

  "Adam Warner," replied the sweet voice of the Duke of Gloucester; "ofexcellent skill in the mathematics."

  "Approach, sir, and show us the nature of this notable invention."

  "I desire nothing better, my lord king," said Adam, boldly; "but firstlet me crave a small modicum of fuel. Fire, which is the life ofthe world, as the wise of old held it, is also the soul of this, mymechanical."

  "Peradventure," whispered the duchess, "the wizard desireth to consumeus."

  "More likely," replied Richard, in the same undertone, "to consumewhatever of treasonable nature may lurk concealed in his engine."

  "True," said Edward, and then, speaking aloud, "Master Warner," headded, "put thy puppet to its purpose without fire,--we will it."

  "It is impossible, my lord," said Adam, with a lofty smile. "Science andnature are more powerful than a king's word."

  "Do not say that in public, my friend," said Edward, dryly, "or we musthang thee! I would not my subjects were told anything so treasonable.Howbeit, to give thee no excuse in failure, thou shalt have what thouneedest."

  "But surely not in our presence," exclaimed the duchess. "This may be adevice of the Lancastrians for our perdition."

  "As you please, belle mere," said Edward, and he motioned to agentleman, who stood a few paces behind his chair, and who, from theentrance of the mechanician, had seemed to observe him with intenseinterest. "Master Nevile, attend this wise man; supply his wants, andhark, in thy ear, watch well that he abstract nothing from the womb ofhis engine; observe what he doeth; be all eyes." Marmaduke bowed low toconceal his change of countenance, and, stepping forward, made a sign toAdam to follow him.

  "Go also, Catesby," said Richard to his follower, who had taken his postnear him, "and clear the chamber."

  As soon as the three members of the royal family were left alone, theking, stretching himself, with a slight yawn, observed, "This man looksnot like a conspirator, brother Richard, though his sententiary as tonature and science lacked loyalty and respect."

  "Sire and brother," answered Richard, "great leaders often dupe theirown tools; at least, meseemeth that they would reason well so todo. Remember, I have told thee that there is strong cause to supposeMargaret to be in London. In the suburbs of the city has also appeared,within the last few weeks, that strange and dangerous person, whose veryobjects are a mystery, save that he is our foe,--Robin of Redesdale. Themen of the North have exhibited a spirit of insurrection; a man of thatcountry attends this reputed wizard, and he himself was favoured in pasttimes by Henry of Windsor. These are ominous signs when the conjunctionsbe considered!"

  "It is well said; but a fair day for breathing our palfrey ishalf-spent!" returned the indolent prince. "By'r Lady! I like thefashion of thy super-tunic well, Richard; but thou hast it too muchpuffed over the shoulders."

  Richard's dark eye shot fire, and he gnawed his lip as he answered, "Godhath not given to me the fair shape of my kinsmen."

  "Thy pardon, dear boy," said Edward, kindly; "yet little needest thouour broad backs and strong sinews, for thou hast a tongue to charm womenand a wit to command men."

  Richard bowed his face, little less beautiful than his brother's,though wholly different from it in feature, for Edward had the long ovalcountenance, the fair hair, the rich colouring, and the large outlineof his mother, the Rose of Raby. Richard, on the contrary, had the shortface, the dark brown locks, and the pale olive complexion of his father,whom he alone of the royal brothers strikingly resembled. [Pol. Virg.544.]

  The cheeks, too, were somewhat sunken, and already, though scarcely pastchildhood, about his lips were seen the lines of thoughtful manhood. Butthen those small features, delicately aquiline, were so regular; thatdark eye was so deep, so fathomless in its bright, musing intelligence;that quivering lip was at once so beautifully formed and so expressiveof intellectual subtlety and haughty will; and that pale forehead was somassive, high, and majestic,--that when, at a later period, the Scottishprelate [Archibald Quhitlaw.--"Faciem tuam summo imperio principatudignam inspicit, quam moralis et heroica, virtus illustrat," etc.--Weneed scarcely observe that even a Scotchman would not have risked apublic compliment to Richard's face, if so inappropriate as to seem asarcasm, especially as the orator immediately proceeds to notice theshortness of Richard's stature,--a comment not likely to have beenpeculiarly acceptable in the Rous Roll, the portrait of Richardrepresents him as undersized, but compactly and strongly built, andwithout any sign of deformity, unless the inelegant defect of a shortneck can be so called.] commended Richard's "princely countenance," thecompliment was not one to be disputed, much less contemned. But now ashe rose, obedient to a whisper from the duchess, and followed her to thewindow, while Edward appeared engaged in admiring the shape of hisown long, upturned shoes, those defects in his shape which the popularhatred and the rise of the House of Tudor exaggerated into the absolutedeformity that the unexamining ignorance of modern days and Shakspeare'sfiery tragedy have fixed into established caricature, were sufficientlyapparent. Deformed or
hunchbacked we need scarcely say he was not, forno man so disfigured could have possessed that great personal strengthwhich he invariably exhibited in battle, despite the comparativeslightness of his frame. He was considerably below the ordinary height,which the great stature of his brother rendered yet more disadvantageousby contrast; but his lower limbs were strong-jointed and muscular.Though the back was not curved, yet one shoulder was slightly higherthan the other, which was the more observable from the evident painsthat he took to disguise it, and the gorgeous splendour, savouring ofpersonal coxcombry--from which no Plantagenet was ever free,--thathe exhibited in his dress. And as, in a warlike age, the physicalconformation of men is always critically regarded, so this defect andthat of his low stature were not so much redeemed as they would be inour day by the beauty and intelligence of his face. Added to this, hisneck was short, and a habit of bending his head on his bosom (arisingeither from thought, or the affectation of humility, which was a part ofhis character) made it seem shorter still. But this peculiarity, whiletaking from the grace, added to the strength of his frame, which, spare,sinewy, and compact, showed to an observer that power of endurance,that combination of solid stubbornness and active energy, which, atthe battle of Barnet, made him no less formidable to encounter than theruthless sword of the mighty Edward.

  "So, prince," said the duchess, "this new gentleman of the king's is,it seems, a Nevile. When will Edward's high spirit cast off that hatefulyoke?"

  Richard sighed and shook his head. The duchess, encouraged by thesesigns of sympathy, continued,--

  "Your brother Clarence, Prince Richard, despises us, to cringe to theproud earl. But you--"

  "I am not suitor to the Lady Isabel; Clarence is overlavish, and Isabelhas a fair face and a queenly dowry."

  "May I perish," said the duchess, "ere Warwick's daughter wears thebaudekin of royalty, and sits in as high a state as the queen's mother!Prince, I would fain confer with thee; we have a project to abase andbanish this hateful lord. If you but join us, success is sure; the Countof Charolois--"

  "Dear lady," interrupted Richard, with an air of profound humility,"tell me nothing of plot or project; my years are too few for such highand subtle policy; and the Lord Warwick hath been a leal friend to ourHouse of York."

  The duchess bit her lip--"Yet I have heard you tell Edward that asubject can be too powerful?"

  "Never, lady! you have never heard me."

  "Then Edward has told Elizabeth that you so spoke."

  "Ah," said Richard, turning away with a smile, "I see that the king'sconscience hath a discreet keeper. Pardon me, Edward, now that he hathsufficiently surveyed his shoon, must marvel at this prolonged colloquy.And see, the door opens."

  With this, the duke slowly moved to the table, and resumed his seat.

  Marmaduke, full of fear for his ancient host, had in vain sought anopportunity to address a few words of exhortation to him to forbear allnecromancy, and to abstain from all perilous distinctions between thepower of Edward IV. and that of his damnable Nature and Science; butCatesby watched him with so feline a vigilance, that he was unable toslip in more than--"Ah, Master Warner, for our blessed Lord's sake,recollect that rack and cord are more than mere words here!" To thewhich pleasant remark, Adam, then busy in filling his miniature boiler,only replied by a wistful stare, not in the least recognizing the Nevilein his fine attire, and the new-fashioned mode of dressing his longhair.

  But Catesby watched in vain for the abstraction of any treasonablecontents in the engine, which the Duke of Gloucester had so shrewdlysuspected. The truth must be told. Adam had entirely forgotten that inthe intricacies of his mechanical lurked the papers that might overthrowa throne! Magnificent Incarnation was he (in that oblivion) of Scienceitself, which cares not a jot for men and nations, in their ephemeralexistences; which only remembers THINGS,--things that endure forages; and in its stupendous calculations loses sight of the unit of ageneration! No, he had thoroughly forgotten Henry, Edward, his own limbsand life,--not only York and Lancaster, but Adam Warner and therack. Grand in his forgetfulness, he stood before the tiger and thetiger-cat,--Edward and--Richard,--A Pure Thought, a Man's Soul; Sciencefearless in the presence of Cruelty, Tyranny, Craft, and Power.

  In truth, now that Adam was thoroughly in his own sphere, was in thedomain of which he was king, and those beings in velvet and ermine werebut as ignorant savages admitted to the frontier of his realm, his formseemed to dilate into a majesty the beholders had not before recognized;and even the lazy Edward muttered involuntarily, "By my halidame, theman has a noble presence!"

  "I am prepared now, sire," said Adam, loftily, "to show to my king andto this court, that, unnoticed and obscure, in study and retreat, oftenlive those men whom kings may be proud to call their subjects. Will itplease you, my lords, this way!" and he motioned so commandingly to theroom in which he had left the Eureka, that his audience rose by a commonimpulse, and in another minute stood grouped round the model in theadjoining chamber. This really wonderful invention--so wonderful,indeed, that it will surpass the faith of those who do not pause toconsider what vast forestallments of modern science have been made andlost in the darkness of ages not fitted to receive them--was, doubtless,in many important details not yet adapted for the practical usesto which Adam designed its application. But as a mere model, as amarvellous essay, for the suggestion of gigantic results, it was,perhaps, to the full as effective as the ingenuity of a mechanic of ourown day could construct. It is true that it was crowded with unnecessarycylinders, slides, cocks, and wheals--hideous and clumsy to the eye--butthrough this intricacy the great simple design accomplished its mainobject. It contrived to show what force and skill man can obtain fromthe alliance of nature; the more clearly, inasmuch as the mechanismaffixed to it, still more ingenious than itself, was well calculated toillustrate practically one of the many uses to which the principle wasdestined to be applied.

  Adam had not yet fathomed the secret by which to supply the miniaturecylinder with sufficient steam for any prolonged effect,--the greattruth of latent heat was unknown to him; but he had contrived toregulate the supply of water so as to make the engine dischargeits duties sufficiently for the satisfaction of curiosity and theexplanation of its objects. And now this strange thing of iron was infull life. From its serpent chimney issued the thick rapid smoke, andthe groan of its travail was heard within.

  "And what propose you to yourself and to the kingdom in all this, MasterAdam?" asked Edward, curiously bending his tall person over the torturediron.

  "I propose to make Nature the labourer of man," answered Warner. "When Iwas a child of some eight years old, I observed that water swelleth intovapour when fire is applied to it. Twelve years afterwards, at the ageof twenty, I observed that while undergoing this change it exerts amighty mechanical force. At twenty-five, constantly musing, I said, 'Whyshould not that force become subject to man's art?' I then began thefirst rude model, of which this is the descendant. I noticed that thevapour so produced is elastic,--that is, that as it expands, it pressesagainst what opposes it; it has a force applicable everywhere force isneeded by man's labour. Behold a second agency of gigantic resources!And then, still studying this, I perceived that the vapour thusproduced can be reconverted into water, shrinking necessarily, whileso retransformed, from the space it filled as vapour, and leaving thatspace a vacuum. But Nature abhors a vacuum; produce a vacuum, andthe bodies that surround rush into it. Thus, the vapour again, whilechanging back into water, becomes also a force,--our agent. And all thewhile these truths were shaping themselves to my mind, I was devisingand improving also the material form by which I might render them usefulto man; so at last, out of these truths, arose this invention!"

  "Pardie," said Edward, with the haste natural to royalty, "what incommon there can be between thy jargon of smoke and water and this hugeugliness of iron passeth all understanding. But spare us thy speeches,and on to thy puppet-show."

  Adam stared a moment at the king in the surprise that one full of
hissubject feels when he sees it impossible to make another understand it,sighed, shook his head, and prepared to begin.

  "Observe," he said, "that there is no juggling, no deceit. I will placein this deposit this small lump of brass--would the size of this toywould admit of larger experiment! I will then pray ye to note, as Iopen door after door, how the metal passes through various changes,all operated by this one agency of vapour. Heed and attend. And if thecrowning work please thee, think, great king, what such an agency uponthe large scale would be to thee; think how it would multiply all artsand lessen all labour; think that thou hast, in this, achieved for awhole people the true philosopher's stone. Now note!"

  He placed the rough ore in its receptacle, and suddenly it seemed seizedby a vice within, and vanished. He proceeded then, while dexterouslyattending to the complex movements, to open door after door, to showthe astonished spectators the rapid transitions the metal underwent,and suddenly, in the midst of his pride, he stopped short, for, likea lightning-flash, came across his mind the remembrance of the fatalpapers. Within the next door he was to open, they lay concealed. Hischange of countenance did not escape Richard, and he noted the doorwhich Adam forbore to open, as the student hurriedly, and with somepresence of mind, passed to the next, in which the metal was shortly toappear.

  "Open this door," said the prince, pointing to the handle. "No! forbear!There is danger! forbear!" exclaimed the mechanician.

  "Danger to thine own neck, varlet and impostor!" exclaimed the duke;and he was about himself to open the door, when suddenly a loud roar, aterrific explosion was heard. Alas! Adam Warner had not yet discoveredfor his engine what we now call the safety-valve. The steam containedin the miniature boiler had acquired an undue pressure; Adam's attentionhad been too much engrossed to notice the signs of the growing increase,and the rest may be easily conceived. Nothing could equal the stupor andthe horror of the spectators at this explosion, save only the boy-duke,who remained immovable, and still frowning. All rushed to the door,huddling one on the other, scarcely knowing what next was to befallthem, but certain that the wizard was bent upon their destruction.Edward was the first to recover himself; and seeing that no lives werelost, his first impulse was that of ungovernable rage.

  "Foul traitor!" he exclaimed, "was it for this that thou hast pretendedto beguile us with thy damnable sorceries? Seize him! Away to the TowerHill! and let the priest patter an ave while the doomsman knots therope."

  Not a hand stirred; even Catesby would as lief have touched the king'slion before meals, as that poor mechanician, standing aghast, andunheeding all, beside his mutilated engine.

  "Master Nevile," said the king, sternly, "dost thou hear us?

  "Verily," muttered the Nevile, approaching very slowly, "I knew whatwould happen; but to lay hands on my host, an' he were fifty times awizard--No! My liege," he said in a firm tone, but falling on hisknee, and his gallant countenance pale with generous terror, "my liege,forgive me. This man succoured me when struck down and wounded bya Lancastrian ruffian; this man gave me shelter, food, and healing.Command me not, O gracious my lord, to aid in taking the life of one towhom I owe my own."

  "His life!" exclaimed the Duchess of Bedford,--"the life of this mostillustrious person! Sire, you do not dream it!"

  "Heh! by the saints, what now?" cried the king, whose choler, thoughfierce and ruthless, was as short-lived as the passions of the indolentusually are, and whom the earnest interposition of his mother-in-lawmuch surprised and diverted. "If, fair belle-mere, thou thinkest it soillustrious a deed to frighten us out of our mortal senses, and narrowlyto 'scape sending us across the river like a bevy of balls from abombard, there is no disputing of tastes. Rise up, Master Nevile,we esteem thee not less for thy boldness; ever be the host and thebenefactor revered by English gentlemen and Christian youth. MasterWarner may go free."

  Here Warner uttered so deep and hollow a groan, that it startled allpresent.

  "Twenty-five years of labour, and not to have seen this!" he ejaculated."Twenty and five years, and all wasted! How repair this disaster? Ofatal day!"

  "What says he? What means he?" said Jacquetta.

  "Come home!--home!" said Marmaduke, approaching the philosopher, ingreat alarm lest he should once more jeopardize his life. But Adam,shaking him off, began eagerly, and with tremulous hands, to examine themachine, and not perceiving any mode by which to guard in future againsta danger that he saw at once would, if not removed, render his inventionuseless, tottered to a chair and covered his face with his hands.

  "He seemeth mightily grieved that our bones are still whole!" mutteredEdward. "And why, belle-mere mine, wouldst thou protect this pleasanttregetour?"

  "What!" said the duchess, "see you not that a man capable of suchdevices must be of doughty service against our foes?"

  "Not I. How?"

  "Why, if merely to signify his displeasure at our young Richard'sover-curious meddling, he can cause this strange engine to shake thewalls,--nay, to destroy itself,--think what he might do were his powerand malice at our disposing. I know something of these nigromancers."

  "And would you knew less! for already the commons murmur at your favourto them. But be it as you will. And now--ho, there! let our steeds becaparisoned."

  "You forget, sire," said Richard, who had hitherto silently watchedthe various parties, "the object for which we summoned this worthy man.Please you now, sir, to open that door."

  "No, no!" exclaimed the king, hastily, "I will have no more provokingthe foul fiend; conspirator or not, I have had enough of Master Warner.Pah! My poor placard is turned lampblack. Sweet mother-in-law, take himunder thy protection; and Richard, come with me."

  So saying, the king linked his arm in that of the reluctant Gloucester,and quitted the room. The duchess then ordered the rest also to depart,and was left alone with the crest-fallen philosopher.