Valperga (22 page)

The next morning before daylight Castruccio heard some one enter
his apartment. It was Pepi, who approached his bed, and said:
"My lord, I come to take my leave of you. After what passed
last night, you may well believe that the young countess would
rather not count me among her guests. I am about to return to
Cremona, but would first ask you, whether you would not prefer that
a staunch friend of yours should be lord of that town, than that it
should remain in the hands of the people, who have become Guelphs
and traitors, body and soul?"

Castruccio's thoughts instantly fixed on Galeazzo Visconti,
or Cane della Scala, as the promised lord of Cremona; and he
replied eagerly: "Messer Benedetto, you would do me an
inestimable benefit, if by any means, either in your power, or with
which you are acquainted, you could place the government of your
town in the hands of one of my friends."

"And are you prepared to assist in such an
undertaking?"

"Now I cannot; but I have promised to be in Lombardy at the
end of the month of July. In August I will visit you at Cremona;
and, if you will disclose to me the contrivers and instruments of
this change,--"

"Now I can tell you nothing. Come to me on the fifteenth of
August, alone, or with but one attendant; but come not with the
shew of a prince; on that day, at five o'clock in the evening,
you will meet a person on the bridge of the rivulet you cross about
half a mile from Cremona; say to him the word, Lucca, and he will
conduct you to my palace by an obscure way, and then I will
disclose every thing to you. As you may not be able to command your
time to a day, I will wait for you one month, until the fifteenth
of September; then if you do not appear, the enterprize must
proceed by other means. During this interval promise me inviolable
secrecy."

"What, may I not tell--?"

"No living soul must hear of this--If you impart that with
which I have intrusted you, my plan must instantly fail. I trust to
your discretion."

"It is well, Messer Benedetto," replied Castruccio,
recalling to mind the impressions of the preceding evening, and
gazing on his companion with distrust: "I do not clearly
understand your plans, and cannot promise to assist in them; but I
assure you of my secrecy, and that you shall see me before the
fifteenth of September."

"I am satisfied; farewell. The stars are disappearing, and
I would reach your town before sunrise."

Pepi departed with a brow of care; while every heart in the
castle of Valperga was light, and every countenance expressed
gaiety. This was the third day of the court, the day for which a
tournament had been proclaimed. But it would be tedious to dilate
on the remainder of these ceremonies, and from what has been
related a judgement may be formed of those which were yet to
come.

The summer months passed on, and the time approached when
Castruccio had promised Galeazzo Visconti to meet him at Rovigo.
Euthanasia desired during the autumn to revisit her native city,
from which she had been long absent. They agreed to journey thither
together; and on Castruccio's return from Lombardy their long
delayed marriage was to take place.

WHEN Castruccio and Euthanasia arrived at Florence, they found
the citizens celebrating a festival: the bells were ringing; the
country people were flocking into the town; and the youths of both
sexes, of the highest rank, and richly dressed, were parading the
streets, covered with wreaths of flowers, and singing the poems of
Dante, or his friend Guido, to the accompaniment of many
instruments. Castruccio said: "I must ask you, fair
Euthanasia, who are so learned in Florentine customs, to inform me
of the meaning of this gaiety."

"Indeed, I am entirely ignorant. I know that during peace
joyful meetings take place every May, among the young nobility; but
this seems a general festivity. Let us ask that grave gentleman in
the black capuchin, if he knows the reason of a merriment, which at
least has not communicated itself to his face."

The man, on being asked, replied: "You must be but lately
arrived, not to have heard of the cause of our rejoicings; the
Florentines, Madonna, are celebrating the occurrence of a most
favourable omen with which God and St. John have blessed our city.
Yesterday one of the lionesses kept at the expense of the republic,
brought forth five whelps."

"And is this the momentous occasion of so much serious
amusement?" asked Castruccio, laughing.

"My lord," said the man, "you are a stranger in
this town; or you would not find cause for laughter in this event.
The Florentines keep a number of lions, as the signs and symbols of
their strength; and God and St. John have plainly manifested on
many occasions, that the prosperity of Florence, and the welfare of
the lions are bound together. Three of the finest and largest died
on the eve of the fatal battle of Monte Catini."

"So these wise republicans, whom you, dear Euthanasia, so
much vaunt, believe in these childish omens. I would wager my best
charger, that their records are full of the influence of stars, and
the appearance of comets!"

"And I do not at all know that you would lose: indeed their
noblest citizens have a great faith in astrology and portents. If
you speak of a scarcity, they will tell of a meteor; if you say
that the king of France has lost a battle, they will assure you
that the whole kingdom has become, by the will of God and St. John,
weaker and more miserable, ever since Philippe le Bel seized upon
the Florentine usurers. We love to find a cause for every event,
believing that, if we can fit but one link to another, we are on
the high road for discovering the last secrets of nature. You smile
at the celebration of the birth of these lion's whelps; yet I
own that it pleases me; how innocent, yet how active, must the
imagination of that people be, who can find cause for universal joy
in such an event!

"It is this same imagination more usefully and capaciously
employed, that makes them decree the building of the most extensive
and beautiful building of modern times. The men who have conceived
the idea, and contributed their money towards the erection of the
Duomo, will never see its completion; but their posterity will,
and, if they be not degenerate, will glory in the noble spirit of
their ancestors. Many years ago, when the Florentines warred with
the Siennese, they took by storm a tower of great strength, which
commanded a most important pass. They destroyed the tower; and,
when half demolished, they filled it up with earth, and planted
there an olive tree, which still flourishes, an emblem of the peace
which would follow their conquests."

Castruccio stayed only a few days at Florence; and, recommending
himself to the constancy and love of Euthanasia, he took an
affectionate leave of her, and hastened on his journey to Rovigo,
where he had promised to join Galeazzo Visconti.

Galeazzo, having now succeeded to his father in the tyranny of
Milan, was the most powerful chief of Lombardy. He was about
thirty-five years of age: he had all the characteristics of an
Italian face, arched brows, black eyes, an aquiline nose, and a
figure where there was some strength and little grace. He had a
great portion of talent, quickness in the combination of plans, yet
not sufficient patience to watch their progress, or perseverance to
carry them through. He was crafty, ambitious, and vain; yet, where
his own interests were not concerned, he was good-natured, and on
all occasions exceeded even the Italians in the courtesy of his
demeanour. He had seen much of the world, and suffered many
misfortunes; this gave him a pliancy of disposition, as well as of
manner, which made him appear more kind- hearted than he really
was; for in truth he never for a moment lost sight of his own
interest; and, if he sometimes wandered from the path which led to
its attainment, want of judgement, and not of inclination, caused
the error.

He wished to attach Castruccio to his party and designs. He saw
in him the head of the Ghibeline faction in Tuscany, and the tamer
of his Florentine enemies. He felt that his own situation was
precarious; but, if he could gain Castruccio for his ally, he hoped
to awe his enemies. More than all, he desired the destruction of
the Guelph strong-hold, Florence; and Castruccio was to become its
destroyer. He heard of his peace with that city with dismay; he
trusted it could not last; but the very name of it blasted his
hopes. He wished to see the consul, and to win him to the plan
which he had conceived would conduct to the full ascendancy of the
Ghibelines; and, circumstances leading him to Rovigo, he had
intreated Castruccio to visit him there, making the intended
restoration of Ferrara to the marquess of Este the pretence of this
request.

The friends met with every demonstration of regard. Galeazzo
watched with care every word, by which Castruccio might reveal his
intentions, before he would venture to communicate his own wishes.
Their first topic of conversation was the immediate business before
them, the restoration of the marquess Obizzo to the sovereignty of
Ferrara. "This town," said Galeazzo, "which so long
obeyed the Este family, is now in the hands of the Guelphs, and the
vicar of the Pope, with a couple of hundred Gascon soldiers for a
garrison, keeps possession of it. The people, fleeced by the
excellent policy of the Roman court, whose first, second, and third
maxim is to fill its own coffers, eagerly desire the restoration of
their rightful prince. We have often thought of besieging the town;
but that would be a long and expensive business, and even its
success would be doubtful; for, if the Ghibelines raised their
war-cry, all the Guelph foxes would unearth themselves and have at
them, and you know that our lands are much overstocked by this
vermin. Stratagem is a surer and a far easier mode of warfare, and
not half so bloody as the regular way; we have so many friends
within the walls, that I doubt not we should succeed, if a proper
communication were established between us. The bishop, who, though
a churchman, is our sure friend, sent us a message some days ago,
which, although mystically worded, seemed to say that he would
betray the town into our hands, if we would commission one of our
chiefs to treat with him; for he refused to disclose his project to
an underling. Now, you, my good friend, must undertake this task;
we are all of us too well known to get admission into the city; but
a slight disguise will take you safely past their guards, and I
doubt neither of the bishop Marsilio's power or
inclination."

Castruccio acceded to his friend's request; and in the
evening he was introduced to the marquess of Este, who received him
with deference and distinction.

The next morning, when he and Galeazzo rode out together,
Galeazzo said: "I am sure, my dear Castruccio, I can never
shew myself sufficiently grateful for your kindness in quitting
Lucca at my request, and wandering away from your government, which
I ardently hope will not suffer from your absence. But I feel less
remorse, since the truce you have concluded with Florence must
afford you some leisure."

"Not a truce, but a better thing; I have concluded a
peace."

"Aye, a truce, or a peace; it is the same thing; either
will be sufficiently short-lived."

"Are you then so deep-read in the counsels of the enemy,
that you know how and when this peace will change to war?"

"I am deep-read in nothing, my friend, but the politics and
changes of Italy; and I have suffered by them enough, and mixed
with them sufficiently, to foresee their issue a long way off. Fire
and water will make as kindly coalition as Guelph and Ghibeline,
Bianchi and Neri. Their interests are at war, and therefore so must
they be. But why do I say this to you, who have every prospect of
being Imperial Vicar in Tuscany; and think you that peace is the
pilot to that haven?"

"My dear Galeazzo, let us understand one another; I am a
Ghibeline, faithful to my party and the emperor; and, if I thought
there were a fair chance of suppressing the Neri, by the Holy Face
of Lucca, I would make a crusade against them, such as has not been
seen in the world since the days of Saladin. Let the emperor come
to Italy, and something may be done; but why carry on a petty
warfare, which destroys the country, and starves the peasant, while
it hardly takes a florin from the coffers of the Florentine
merchants, or advances us one inch nearer the goal we desire to
reach?"

"And is this the end of the dreams of triumph and dominion
with which you entered Lucca three years ago? And now that you have
the government of that town of oranges and lemons, the mighty aim
of your life is accomplished, and you are ready to sleep upon your
acquisition, calling yourself a great man?"

"In truth there is little time or place to sleep at Lucca.
Do you think that I shall be idle, while a dozen rebel castles hold
out against me which must be subdued? Let me conquer them first;
let me see no enemy for many miles round; and then we will talk of
Florence."

"Nay, my friend, you must leave nothing to the decision of
circumstances; a wise man foresees and provides for all. Florence
must one day be yours; and you, prince of Tuscany, of Italy, if you
will, will give laws to us all. Do not start; among so many
prophecies as we have of Merlin and the rest, I venture to make one
more; and, like most others, let its announcement contribute to its
completion. My dear Castruccio, this is no child's play; for
men are both our die and our stake: put forth your hand, and you
must win. In Lombardy the Ghibelines flourish; but, except Pisa,
and your Lucca, the Guelphs domineer throughout Tuscany. But this
must not continue; the Popes are out of Italy, and Rome, become a
mere resort of robbers, is a blank in our account. Naples and
Florence are our only enemies; the emperor must conquer one, and
you the other. Let all your efforts tend to that; you talk of rebel
castles near Lucca,--aye, subdue those first, that without dread
you may hunt down the Florentines; let your will be as a wind to
drive all before it: at first, it will pause, collecting its force
in the horizon; and then it breaks forth sweeping every thing along
with it: Florence must fall before it--I swear it shall; but give
me your hand, your faith, Castruccio, and swear that you also will
have it so."