faithful friend the poor abandoned prince has left, I have
offered him to come hither to find the man upon whom now
depends the fate of royalty and of England; and I have come,
and placed myself under the eye of this man, and have placed
myself naked and unarmed in his hands, saying: — `My lord,
here are the last resources of a prince whom God made your
master, whom his birth made your king; upon you, and you
alone, depend his life and his future. Will you employ this
money in consoling England for the evils it must have
suffered from anarchy; that is to say, will you aid, and if
not aid, will you allow King Charles II. to act? You are
master, you are king, all-powerful master and king, for
chance sometimes defeats the work of time and God. I am here
alone with you, my lord: if divided success alarms you, if
my complicity annoys you, you are armed, my lord, and here
is a grave ready dug; if, on the contrary, the enthusiasm of
your cause carries you away, if you are what you appear to
be, if your hand in what it undertakes obeys your mind, .and
your mind your heart, here are the means of ruining forever
the cause of your enemy, Charles Stuart. Kill, then, the man
you have before you, for that man will never return to him
who has sent him without bearing with him the deposit which
Charles I., his father, confided to him, and keep the gold
which may assist in carrying on the civil war. Alas! my
lord, it is the fate of this unfortunate prince. He must
either corrupt or kill, for everything resists him,
everything repulses him, everything is hostile to him; and
yet he is marked with the divine seal, and he must, not to
belie his blood, reascend the throne, or die upon the sacred
soil of his country.’
“My lord, you have heard me. To any other but the
illustrious man who listens to me, I would have said: `My
lord, you are poor; my lord, the king offers you this
million as an earnest of an immense bargain; take it, and
serve Charles II. as I served Charles I., and I feel assured
that God, who listens to us, who sees us, who alone reads in
your heart, shut from all human eyes, — I am assured God
will give you a happy eternal life after a happy death.’ But
to General Monk, to the illustrious man of whose standard I
believe I have taken measure, I say: `My lord, there is for
you in the history of peoples and kings a brilliant place,
an immortal, imperishable glory, if alone, without any other
interest but the good of your country and the interests of
justice, you become the supporter of your king. Many others
have been conquerors and glorious usurpers; you, my lord,
you will be content with being the most virtuous, the most
honest, and the most incorruptible of men: you will have
held a crown in your hand, and instead of placing it upon
your own brow, you will have deposited it upon the head of
him for whom it was made. Oh, my lord, act thus, and you
will leave to posterity the most enviable of names, in which
no human creature can rival you.'”
Athos stopped. During the whole time that the noble
gentleman was speaking, Monk had not given one sign of
either approbation or disapprobation; scarcely even, during
this vehement appeal, had his eyes been animated with that
Page 162
Dumas, Alexandre – Ten Years Later
fire which bespeaks intelligence. The Comte de la Fere
looked at him sorrowfully, and on seeing that melancholy
countenance, felt discouragement penetrate to his very
heart. At length Monk appeared to recover, and broke the
silence.
“Monsieur,” said he, in a mild, calm tone, “in reply to you,
I will make use of your own words. To any other but yourself
I would reply by expulsion, imprisonment, or still worse,
for, in fact, you tempt me and you force me at the same
time. But you are one of those men, monsieur, to whom it is