Abigail's Cousin (28 page)

Guiscard looked shocked
, eyeing St John then Harley then back to
Ormonde uttering a single word, "Non!"

Ormonde sat up violently and pointed a
finger a
t the prisoner:
"No, your grace! Do you know who I am?"

St John answered for him: "Pardon me your
grace." Then to Guiscard:
"Mon ami, s'il vous plait! Repondez 'no, your grace'. Now
tell his grace, have you passed anything to Versailles?"

"No, your grace," said Guiscard flatly,
obviously distressed.

Ormonde accused him: "You were caught in
the ac
t, sir. What have
you to say?"

Clearly overcome forgetting St John's
plea, he said: "Rien! Rien de rien!" This reply sent Ormonde into
apoploxy. He exploded: "In English, sir, or by th
e saints, I'll have you
flogged!"

"B-by your leave, your grace." Harley
interrupted, then to Guiscard said:
"Know you Lord Portmore, monsieur?"

"No, sir. Who
is he?"

Harley held up
a letter and quickly turning it to show Ormonde then held it in
front of Guiscard saying: "Lord Portmore intercepted this letter,
sir. The messenger told him it was from you. What have you to
say?"

Guiscard drew
himself up as if affronted and slowly said: "A gentleman would not
touch the correspondence of his lady."

Ormonde as
baffled as everyone else asked Harley: "What has this to do with
treason charges, Mr Harley?"

Harley
replied: "I crave your indulgence your grace. You see it was his
lordship who b-brought the prisoner to my attention as a spy. This
gentleman has taken advantage of the kind offices of Lady
P-portmore to send treasonable correspondence to France."

The duke said:
"Is not the lady also guilty by these actions?"

"Technically,
your grace." replied Harley.

"Explain, sir!" said the duke
tetchily
.

"Shall I, Mr
Harley?" asked St John and Harley wearily nodded whereupon St John
addressed Ormonde: "This lady formerly enjoyed an amicable
attachment which James sudden departure from England curtailed,
your grace. She was visited on occasion by envoys of neutral
countries, who compromised their situation by transmitting her
correspondence."

Harley intervened at that point to add:
"All this was k
nown
about, your grace and, uh, tolerated. Need one say more your grace,
p-presently?"

Ormonde shook his head but whether from
vexation or incomprehension it was difficult to deduce. He
said lamely: "Highly irregular.
Hmmm."

Harley
continued, winking at St John: "My officers had the p-prisoner
watched your grace. He was seen to have taken several documents
from my office and having b-been followed to St James Park, he was
seen to remove them from his p-pocket and was about to read them
when the officers arrested him. A search of his p-person revealed a
p-pocket full of suspect addresses."

"Suspect
addresses. What addresses? Whose?" asked the duke.

"Of high
ranking officers your grace, at p-present in France." answered
Harley to which Ormonde replied: "Where would French officers
normally be?" Harley with an air of patience explained: "Of
B-british officers, your grace."

Ormonde said:
"British officers! Who are they, man?"

Harley nodding
in the direction of the clerks said: "I b-beg your grace's
indulgence. They are also confidential."

The duke was
clearly out of his depth. He quizzed Harley: "What do you make of
it?" Harley however with a sign known unto St John intimated he
should take over and St John who sat opposite Harley spoke: "It
seems, your grace, he was selling secrets to us as well as
Versailles."

Ormonde confused at having to switch
between the two men as well as the prisoner seemed also bemused at
the latest item of information. He said:
"Why are British officers buying...? What are they
buying?"

St John
replied: "We can explain that later, your grace."

A thought came
into Ormonde's head: "What were they paying you, sir?" This was
addressed to the prisoner who replied: "Enough. Just enough to make
up for what Mr Harley robbed me of."

Ormonde failed
to pick up Guiscard's omission of his rank. He said:

"What is he
talking about, Harley?"

Harley was silent so the duke turned to St
John who looked at Harley. There was a suggestion of a smile
playing across his lips. He said to Ormonde: "The prisoner's
pension was held up your grace." He hesitated and looking over at
Harley reverted to Ormonde: "Due to ci
rcumstances beyond our control, your
grace."

Ormonde had no
clue to the plight people faced without the means to support life.
He looked at the serjeant: "And this blackguard saw fit to betray
the country that gave him refuge." He turned to the prisoner: "Is
that your gratitude?"

Guiscard eyed
the duke with contempt: "What do you know of gratitude, monsieur? I
served England at risk of my life with the greatest duke in
Christendom at Blenheim, at Ramillies. Mr Harley did ill to me to
spite the duke. He hates the duke, do you not monsieur?"

"Your G
race!" Harley was suddenly humble as he added, "The fellow
is talking nonsense."

Ormonde looked
at Harley sternly for he knew the prisoner had spoken truth and
turned to look at St John whom he had taken a regard for, then at
the prisoner. He turned back to St John: "I think we have heard
enough for today gentlemen."

St John was
taken aback. He got up from his chair and turned to the serjeant,
then momentarily at Ormonde: "With your grace's leave. Serjeant,
remove the prisoner."

The serjeant
was leaning back against the door and seemed asleep, or in a doze
and did not react whereupon the prisoner stepped forward and lunged
at Harley who was just feet away. Guiscard shouted: "J'en veux donc
a toi." and lunged a second time then Harley cried out:

"He's stabbed
me!"

At the same instant St John leapt over the
table with drawn sword and pushed Guiscard back covering him with
his sword. "Serjeant! Guards! He's stabbed Mr
Harley. Mr Harley is bleeding”.

Ormonde leapt
from his seat and with drawn sword stabs at Guiscard who also
falls. He cries out: "Finish me your grace. Look how I bleed."

Ormonde sh
outs: "It's the hangman for you!"

St John shouts
to a guard: "Hurry, fetch a surgeon!"

Harley lies on
the floor clutching his chest and St John bends over him calling
out: "Give him room, please." He removes his coat and folding it
places it beneath his head. He whispered to Harley: "Quiet old
friend, a surgeon will soon be here."

When the
surgeon arrives, Guiscard cried out: "Attend him, monsieur. I have
stabbed him." Then his head sinks down unconscious as the surgeon
attends to Harley who also seems to have sunk into a stupor.

As a result of
the occasion when Charles I accompanied by an armed guard invaded
the chamber of the House of Commons, future monarchs were debarred
from entering that chamber ever again so that when Queen Anne made
her official opening of Parliament following the general election
of 1710, her majesty was conveyed to the entrance of the House of
Lords, at that time sitting in the so-called Painted Hall.
Subsequently a messenger then conveyed her summons to the members
in the other place and so in response they walked to join the
lords. In balmy times of the year, their walk might take them
through pleasant gardens though in any event past the Chamber of
Requests.

The opening ceremony over, the members
would troop back into the former St. Stephen's Chapel, secularised
in 1548 after the Reformation their seats being former choir stalls
to the left and right of a central aisle. Light poured into the
chamber through stained glass windows though only the four facing
south allowed uninterrupted light as the north side was boxed in by
adjacent b
uildings
erected subsequently. After the Act of Union with Scotland, Sir
Christopher Wren was commissioned to provide extra places for
Scottish MPs as well as provision for the public to observe the
proceedings.

The newly elected Speaker, Sir William
Bromley had to shout to make himself heard a
bove the hubbub of the Chamber:

"Order!
Order!" He waited for the noise to subside. "It
was reported last Wednesday by the Clerk of Proceedings that the
ballot for early day motions was headed by the member for Bristol,
Mr Henry St. John. I now call upon the honourable member to
announce his motion and to introduce the debate, Mr St.
John!”

The member
rose and spoke: "Mr Speaker, I have the honour to announce the
motion before the House. It is: That the previous Whig Ministry has
prolonged the war un-necessarily."

He sat down to
bedlam, the Speaker shouting vainly for order before the chamber
quietened sufficiently for him to call: "Who seconds the motion?"
Robert Harley arose from the front bench and called: "Mr Speaker, I
second the motion," sitting down promptly whereupon the Speaker
promptly called: "Who opposes the motion?"

The member who
got to his feet stood on the south side of the chamber facing the
members who had proposed the motion and who occupied the north
side. He said, simply: "Mr Speaker, I oppose the motion." and sat
down. In the newly erected Public Gallery, one person whispered to
his friend's enquiry that it was Lieutenant-General Stanhope that
had just sat down. Behind them a gentleman dressed in the smart
uniform of a parliamentary usher whispered 'hush' in a low voice
while the Speaker once more called order to the House and upon the
member for Bristol to open the debate.

Henry St. John rose and spoke: "Mr
Speaker. When in September, 1709, a year after the allied victory
at Oudenarde, Mr Walpole brought an offer of peace from no less a
personage than the king of France, Louis XIV, there arose
inevitably high hopes among both enemy and ally alike of the
imminent cessation of hostilities. Louis had undertaken to persuade
his grandson, Philip of Anjou, to surrender the Spanish throne to
Charles of Austria. The Duke of Marlborough indeed was so confident
of peace that he sent for, at great expense from his estate at
Blenheim, a chair of state in which to sign the peace preliminaries
in a style befitting England's plenipotentiary at The Hague. Mr
Speaker that chair was never used because by article 37 of the
Peace Treaty drawn up by the Allies, should Philip refuse to leave
Spain, Louis, his grandfather, must guarantee to take up arms and
drive him out. In other words, pro
mise to fight his own grandson.

"Mr Speaker.
This was an imposition so manifestly unjust that everything else
foundered upon it. You might be forgiven for the belief that the
will for peace on the part of the Whig ministry was singularly
lacking." A member had risen from his seat among the opposite
benches and stalls waving a piece of paper and appealing to speak
and St. John stopped his peroration saying: "I give way to the
honourable member."

It was the
member for Preston, Arthur Maynwaring who spoke: "Mr Speaker, the
member for Bristol has failed to explain what would happen had
Louis made his appeal and Philip not complied. I say unto him: What
then?" He sat down to cheers from his side and St. John was on his
feet again. He continued:

"I am given to understand, Mr Speaker,
that Philip had agreed to abdicate, but the Whig ministers were
reluctant to afford him the chance because they wanted to continue
making
vast profits from
the war."

A loud collection of shouts erupted on
this news, such as, 'hear, hear', 'shame', 'withdraw'; there was
stamping of feet; members waved papers in the air. The Speaker
called for order and eventually peace was restored and he invited
the Bristolian to resume. Colonel Masham in the public gallery
watching the proceedings, groaned inwardly. A good question had
been put to St. John who had avoided answering preferring to
indulge in name-calling. The colonel despaired that if the debate
continued in like vein, more heat than light would be generated.
Nonetheless he began to listen
again as St John was speaking:

"...So the yearned-for peace foundered
because Louis could not agree to this impossible condition. He
appealed to his people. Facing famine though they were and on their
knees, the French peasantry arose in indignation. With rekindled
patriotic fervour they answered the call of their king. The French
army quickly made up its numbers and marched to meet the allied
army in the bloodbath of Malplaquet, where the allied lost as many
dead and wounded as the French and yet..."

He stopped to
mounting noise from both sides of the House. There was much
un-parliamentary language printed later by Jonathon Swift, blandly
as hoots of derision, shouts of exultation, and as before stamping
of feet so that the voice of the Speaker was lost in the din. As it
subsided his shouts for order could be heard and as St John rose to
resume, the Speaker gestured for him to continue:

"Mr Speaker,
the culpability for the bloodbath of Malplaquet must be laid to
those Whig ministers who had the impudence to call it a victory. As
her majesty was heard to say, 'if that be a victory, pray God we
never suffer a defeat'..." He got no further. Uproar ensued. Shouts
of 'shame', 'withdraw', 'an outrage' littered the atmosphere and
yet again the Speaker could not make himself heard. As it subsided,
he issued a warning: