Mercedes of Castile; Or, The Voyage to Cathay

by James Fenimore Cooper

  CHAPTER I.

  "There was knocking that shook the marble floor, And a voice at the gate, which said-- 'That the Cid Ruy Diez, the Campeador, Was there in his arms array'd.'"----

  Mrs. Hemans.

  Whether we take the pictures of the inimitable Cervantes, or of thatscarcely less meritorious author from whom Le Sage has borrowed hisimmortal tale, for our guides; whether we confide in the graver legendsof history, or put our trust in the accounts of modern travellers, thetime has scarcely ever existed when the inns of Spain were good, or theroads safe. These are two of the blessings of civilization which thepeople of the peninsula would really seem destined never to attain; for,in all ages, we hear, or have heard, of wrongs done the travellerequally by the robber and the host. If such are the facts to-day, suchalso were the facts in the middle of the fifteenth century, the periodto which we desire to carry back the reader in imagination.

  At the commencement of the month of October, in the year of our Lord1469, John of Trastamara reigned in Aragon, holding his court at a placecalled Zaragosa, a town lying on the Ebro, the name of which is supposedto be a corruption of Caesar Augustus, and a city that has becomecelebrated in our own times, under the more Anglicised term ofSaragossa, for its deeds in arms. John of Trastamara, or, as it was moreusual to style him, agreeably to the nomenclature of kings, John II.,was one of the most sagacious monarchs of his age; but he had becomeimpoverished by many conflicts with the turbulent, or, as it may be morecourtly to say, the liberty-loving Catalonians; had frequently enough todo to maintain his seat on the throne; possessed a party-colored empirethat included within its sway, besides his native Aragon with itsdependencies of Valencia and Catalonia, Sicily and the Balearic Islands,with some very questionable rights in Navarre. By the will of his elderbrother and predecessor, the crown of Naples had descended to anillegitimate son of the latter, else would that kingdom have been addedto the list. The King of Aragon had seen a long and troubled reign, and,at this very moment, his treasury was nearly exhausted by his efforts tosubdue the truculent Catalans, though he was nearer a triumph than hecould then foresee, his competitor, the Duke of Lorraine, dyingsuddenly, only two short months after the precise period chosen for thecommencement of our tale. But it is denied to man to look into thefuture, and on the 9th of the month just mentioned, the ingenuity of theroyal treasurer was most sorely taxed, there having arisen an unexpecteddemand for a considerable sum of money, at the very moment that the armywas about to disband itself for the want of pay, and the public cofferscontained only the very moderate sum of three hundred _Enriques_, orHenrys--a gold coin named after a previous monarch, and which had avalue not far from that of the modern ducat, or our own quarter eagle.The matter, however, was too pressing to be deferred, and even theobjects of the war were considered as secondary to those connected withthis suddenly-conceived, and more private enterprise. Councils wereheld, money-dealers were cajoled or frightened, and the confidants ofthe court were very manifestly in a state of great and earnestexcitement. At length, the time of preparation appeared to be passed andthe instant of action arrived. Curiosity was relieved, and the citizensof Saragossa were permitted to know that their sovereign was about tosend a solemn embassy, on matters of high moment, to his neighbor,kinsman, and ally, the monarch of Castile. In 1469, Henry, also ofTrastamara, sat upon the throne of the adjoining kingdom, under thetitle of Henry IV. He was the grandson, in the male line, of the brotherof John II.'s father, and, consequently, a first-cousin once removed, ofthe monarch of Aragon. Notwithstanding this affinity, and the strongfamily interests that might be supposed to unite them, it required manyfriendly embassies to preserve the peace between the two monarchs; andthe announcement of that which was about to depart, produced moresatisfaction than wonder in the streets of the town.

  Henry of Castile, though he reigned over broader and richer peninsularterritories than his relative of Aragon, had his cares and troubles,also. He had been twice married, having repudiated his first consort,Blanche of Aragon, to wed Joanna of Portugal, a princess of a levity ofcharacter so marked, as not only to bring great scandal on the courtgenerally, but to throw so much distrust on the birth of her only child,a daughter, as to push discontent to disaffection, and eventually todeprive the infant itself of the rights of royalty. Henry's father, likehimself, had been twice married, and the issue of the second union was ason and a daughter, Alfonso and Isabella; the latter becomingsubsequently illustrious, under the double titles of the Queen ofCastile, and of the Catholic. The luxurious impotency of Henry, as amonarch, had driven a portion of his subjects into open rebellion. Threeyears preceding that selected for our opening, his brother Alfonso hadbeen proclaimed king in his stead, and a civil war had raged throughouthis provinces. This war had been recently terminated by the death ofAlfonso, when the peace of the kingdom was temporarily restored by atreaty, in which Henry consented to the setting aside of his owndaughter--or rather of the daughter of Joanna of Portugal--and to therecognition of his half-sister Isabella, as the rightful heiress of thethrone. The last concession was the result of dire necessity, and, asmight have been expected, it led to many secret and violent measures,with a view to defeat its objects. Among the other expedients adopted bythe king--or, it might be better to say, by his favorites, the inactionand indolence of the self-indulgent but kind-hearted prince beingproverbial--with a view to counteract the probable consequences of theexpected accession of Isabella, were various schemes to control herwill, and guide her policy, by giving her hand, first to a subject, witha view to reduce her power, and subsequently to various foreign princes,who were thought to be more or less suited to the furtherance of suchschemes. Just at this moment, indeed, the marriage of the princess wasone of the greatest objects of Spanish prudence. The son of the King ofAragon was one of the suitors for the hand of Isabella, and most ofthose who heard of the intended departure of the embassy, naturallyenough believed that the mission had some connection with that greatstroke of Aragonese policy.

  Isabella had the reputation of learning, modesty, discretion, piety, andbeauty, besides being the acknowledged heiress of so enviable a crown;and there were many competitors for her hand. Among them were to beranked French, English, and Portuguese princes, besides him of Aragon towhom we have already alluded. Different favorites supported differentpretenders, struggling to effect their several purposes by the usualintrigues of courtiers and partisans; while the royal maiden, herself,who was the object of so much competition and rivalry, observed adiscreet and womanly decorum, even while firmly bent on indulging hermost womanly and dearest sentiments. Her brother, the king, was in thesouth, pursuing his pleasures, and, long accustomed to dwell incomparative solitude, the princess was earnestly occupied in arrangingher own affairs, in a way that she believed would most conduce to herown happiness. After several attempts to entrap her person, from whichshe had only escaped by the prompt succor of the forces of her friends,she had taken refuge in Leon, in the capital of which province, orkingdom as it was sometimes called, Valladolid, she temporarily took upher abode. As Henry, however, still remained in the vicinity of Granada,it is in that direction we must look for the route taken by the embassy.

  The cortege left Saragossa, by one of the southern gates, early in themorning of a glorious autumnal day. There was the usual escort oflances, for this the troubled state of the country demanded; beardednobles well mailed--for few, who offered an inducement to the plunderer,ventured on the highway without this precaution; a long train of sumptermules, and a host of those who, by their guise, were half menials andhalf soldiers. The gallant display drew crowds after the horses' heels,and, together with some prayers for success, a vast deal of crude andshallow conjecture, as is still the practice with the uninstructed andgossiping, was lavished on the probable objects and results of thejourney. But curiosity has its limits, and even the gossip occasionallygrows weary; and by the time the sun was setting, most of the multitudehad already forgotten to think and speak of the parade of the mo
rning.As the night drew on, however, the late pageant was still the subject ofdiscourse between two soldiers, who belonged to the guard of the westerngate, or that which opened on the road to the province of Burgos. Theseworthies were loitering away the hours, in the listless manner common tomen on watch, and the spirit of discussion and of critical censure hadsurvived the thoughts and bustle of the day.

  "If Don Alonso de Carbajal thinketh to ride far in that guise," observedthe elder of the two idlers, "he would do well to look sharp to hisfollowers, for the army of Aragon never sent forth a morescurvily-appointed guard than that he hath this day led through thesouthern gate, notwithstanding the glitter of housings, and the clangorof trumpets. We could have furnished lances from Valencia more befittinga king's embassy, I tell thee, Diego; ay, and worthier knights to leadthem, than these of Aragon. But if the king is content, it ill becomessoldiers, like thee and me, to be dissatisfied."

  "There are many who think, Roderique, that it had been better to sparethe money lavished in this courtly letter-writing, to pay the brave menwho so freely shed their blood in order to subdue the rebelliousBarcelans."

  "This is always the way, boy, between debtor and creditor. Don John owesyou a few maravedis, and you grudge him every Enrique he spends on hisnecessities. I am an older soldier, and have learned the art of payingmyself, when the treasury is too poor to save me the trouble."

  "That might do in a foreign war, when one is battling against the Moor,for instance; but, after all, these Catalans are as good Christians aswe are ourselves; some of them are as good subjects; and it is not aseasy to plunder a countryman as to plunder an Infidel."

  "Easier by twenty fold; for the one expects it, and, like all in thatunhappy condition, seldom has any thing worth taking, while the otheropens his stores to you as freely as he does his heart--but who arethese, setting forth on the highway, at this late hour?"

  "Fellows that pretend to wealth, by affecting to conceal it. I'llwarrant you, now, Roderique, that there is not money enough among allthose varlets to pay the laquais that shall serve them their boiledeggs, to-night."

  "By St. Iago, my blessed patron!" whispered one of the leaders of asmall cavalcade, who, with a single companion, rode a little in advanceof the others, as if not particularly anxious to be too familiar withthe rest, and laughing, lightly, as he spoke: "Yonder vagabond is nearerthe truth than is comfortable! We may have sufficient among us all topay for an olla-podrida and its service, but I much doubt whether therewill be a dobla left, when the journey shall be once ended."

  A low, but grave rebuke, checked this inconsiderate mirth; and theparty, which consisted of merchants, or traders, mounted on mules, aswas evident by their appearance, for in that age the different classeswere easily recognized by their attire, halted at the gate. Thepermission to quit the town was regular, and the drowsy and consequentlysurly gate-keeper slowly undid his bars, in order that the travellersmight pass.

  While these necessary movements were going on, the two soldiers stood alittle on one side, coolly scanning the group, though Spanish gravityprevented them from indulging openly in an expression of the scorn thatthey actually felt for two or three Jews who were among the traders. Themerchants, moreover, were of a better class, as was evident by afollower or two, who rode in their train, in the garbs of menials, andwho kept at a respectful distance while their masters paid the light feethat it was customary to give on passing the gates after nightfall. Oneof these menials, capitally mounted on a tall, spirited mule, happenedto place himself so near Diego, during this little ceremony, that thelatter, who was talkative by nature, could not refrain from having hissay.

  "Prithee, Pepe," commenced the soldier, "how many hundred doblas a yeardo they pay, in that service of thine, and how often do they renew thatfine leathern doublet?"

  The varlet, or follower of the merchant, who was still a youth, thoughhis vigorous frame and embrowned cheek denoted equally severe exerciseand rude exposure, started and reddened at this free inquiry, which wasenforced by a hand slapped familiarly on his knee, and such a squeeze ofthe leg as denoted the freedom of the camp. The laugh of Diego probablysuppressed a sudden outbreak of anger, for the soldier was one whosemanner indicated too much good-humor easily to excite resentment.

  "Thy gripe is friendly, but somewhat close, comrade," the young domesticmildly observed; "and if thou wilt take a friend's counsel, it will be,never to indulge in too great familiarity, lest some day it lead to abroken pate."

  "By holy San Pedro!--I should relish--"

  It was too late, however; for his master having proceeded, the youthpushed a powerful rowel into the flank of his mule, and the vigorousanimal dashed ahead, nearly upsetting Diego, who was pressing hard onthe pommel of the saddle, by the movement.

  "There is mettle in that boy," exclaimed the good-natured soldier, as herecovered his feet. "I thought, for one moment, he was about to favor mewith a visitation of his hand."

  "Thou art wrong--and too much accustomed to be heedless, Diego,"answered his comrade; "and it had been no wonder had that youth struckthee to the earth, for the indignity thou putt'st upon him."

  "Ha! a hireling follower of some cringing Hebrew! He dare to strike ablow at a soldier of the king!"

  "He may have been a soldier of the king himself, in his day. These aretimes when most of his frame and muscle are called on to go in harness.I think I have seen that face before; ay, and that, too, where none ofcraven hearts would be apt to go."

  "The fellow is a mere varlet, and a younker that has just escaped fromthe hands of the women."

  "I'll answer for it, that he hath faced both the Catalan and the Moor inhis time, young as he may seem. Thou knowest that the nobles are wont tocarry their sons, as children, early into the fight, that they may learnthe deeds of chivalry betimes."

  "The nobles!" repeated Diego, laughing. "In the name of all the devils,Roderique, of what art thou thinking, that thou likenest this knave to ayoung noble? Dost fancy him a Guzman, or a Mendoza, in disguise, thatthou speakest thus of chivalry?"

  "True--it doth, indeed, seem silly--and yet have I before met that frownin battle, and heard that sharp, quick voice, in a rally. By St. Iago deCompostello! I have it! Harkee, Diego!--a word in thy ear."

  The veteran now led his more youthful comrade aside, although there wasno one near to listen to what he said; and looking carefully round, tomake certain that his words would not be overheard, he whispered, for amoment, in Diego's ear.

  "Holy Mother of God!" exclaimed the latter, recoiling quite three paces,in surprise and awe. "Thou canst not be right, Roderique!"

  "I will place my soul's welfare on it," returned the other, positively."Have I not often seen him with his visor up, and followed him, time andagain, to the charge?"

  "And he setting forth as a trader's varlet! Nay, I know not, but as theservitor of a Jew!"

  "Our business, Diego, is to strike without looking into the quarrel; tolook without seeing, and to listen without hearing. Although his coffersare low, Don John is a good master, and our anointed king; and so wewill prove ourselves discreet soldiers."

  "But he will never forgive me that gripe of the knee, and my foolishtongue. I shall never dare meet him again."

  "Humph!--It is not probable thou ever wilt meet him at the table of theking, and, as for the field, as he is wont to go first, there will notbe much temptation for him to turn back in order to look at thee."

  "Thou thinkest, then, he will not be apt to know me again?"

  "If it should prove so, boy, thou need'st not take it in ill part; assuch as he have more demands on their memories than they can alwaysmeet."

  "The Blessed Maria make thee a true prophet!--else would I never dareagain to appear in the ranks. Were it a favor I conferred, I might hopeit would be forgotten; but an indignity sticks long in the memory."

  Here the two soldiers moved away, continuing the discourse from time totime, although the elder frequently admonished his loquacious companionof the virtue of discretion.r />
  In the mean time, the travellers pursued their way, with a diligencethat denoted great distrust of the roads, and as great a desire to geton. They journeyed throughout the night, nor did there occur anyrelaxation in their speed, until the return of the sun exposed themagain to the observations of the curious, among whom were thought to bemany emissaries of Henry of Castile, whose agents were known to beparticularly on the alert, along all the roads that communicated betweenthe capital of Aragon and Valladolid, the city in which his royal sisterhad then, quite recently, taken refuge. Nothing remarkable occurred,however, to distinguish this journey from any other of the period. Therewas nothing about the appearance of the travellers--who soon entered theterritory of Soria, a province of Old Castile, where armed parties ofthe monarch were active in watching the passes--to attract the attentionof Henry's soldiers; and as for the more vulgar robber, he wastemporarily driven from the highways by the presence of those who actedin the name of the prince. As respects the youth who had given rise tothe discourse between the two soldiers, he rode diligently in the rearof his master, so long as it pleased the latter to remain in the saddle;and during the few and brief pauses that occurred in the travelling, hebusied himself, like the other menials, in the duties of his propervocation. On the evening of the second day, however, about an hour afterthe party had left a hostelry, where it had solaced itself with anolla-podrida and some sour wine, the merry young man who has alreadybeen mentioned, and who still kept his place by the side of his graverand more aged companion in the van, suddenly burst into a fit of loudlaughter, and, reining in his mule he allowed the whole train to passhim, until he found himself by the side of the young menial already soparticularly named. The latter cast a severe and rebuking glance at hisreputed master, as he dropped in by his side, and said, with a sternnessthat ill comported with their apparent relations to each other--

  "How now, Master Nunez! what hath called thee from thy position in thevan, to this unseemly familiarity with the varlets in the rear?"

  "I crave ten thousand pardons, honest Juan," returned the master, stilllaughing, though he evidently struggled to repress his mirth, out ofrespect to the other; "but here is a calamity befallen us, that outdoesthose of the fables and legends of necromancy and knight-errantry. Theworthy Master Ferreras, yonder, who is so skilful in handling gold,having passed his whole life in buying and selling barley and oats, hathactually mislaid the purse, which it would seem he hath forgotten at theinn we have quitted, in payment of some very stale bread and rancid oil.I doubt if there are twenty reals left in the whole party!"

  "And is it a matter of jest, Master Nunez," returned the servant, thougha slight smile struggled about his mouth, as if ready to join in hiscompanion's merriment; "that we are penniless? Thank Heaven! the Burgoof Osma cannot be very distant; and we may have less occasion for gold.And now, master of mine, let me command thee to keep thy proper place inthis cavalcade, and not to forget thyself by such undue familiarity withthy inferiors. I have no farther need of thee, and therefore hasten backto Master Ferreras and acquaint him with my sympathy and grief."

  The young man smiled, though the eye of the pretended servant wasaverted, as if he cared to respect his own admonitions; while the otherevidently sought a look of recognition and favor. In another minute, theusual order of the journey was resumed.

  As the night advanced, and the hour arrived when man and beast usuallybetray fatigue, these travellers pushed their mules the hardest; andabout midnight, by dint of hard pricking, they came under the principalgate of a small walled town, called Osma, that stood not far from theboundary of the province of Burgos, though still in that of Soria. Nosooner was his mule near enough to the gate to allow of the freedom,than the young merchant in advance dealt sundry blows on it with hisstaff, effectually apprising those within of his presence. It requiredno strong pull of the reins to stop the mules of those behind; but thepretended varlet now pushed ahead, and was about to assume his placeamong the principal personages near the gate, when a heavy stone, hurledfrom the battlements, passed so close to his head, as vividly to remindhim how near he might be to making a hasty journey to another world. Acry arose in the whole party, at this narrow escape; nor were loudimprecations on the hand that had cast the missile spared. The youth,himself, seemed the least disturbed of them all; and though his voicewas sharp and authoritative, as he raised it in remonstrance, it wasneither angry nor alarmed.

  "How now!" he said; "is this the way you treat peaceful travellers;merchants, who come to ask hospitality and a night's repose at yourhands?"

  "Merchants and travellers!" growled a voice from above--"say, rather,spies and agents of King Henry. Who are ye? Speak promptly, or ye mayexpect something sharper than stones, at the next visit."

  "Tell me," answered the youth, as if disdaining to be questionedhimself--"who holds this borough? Is it not the noble Count of Trevino?"

  "The very same, Senor," answered he above, with a mollified tone: "butwhat can a set of travelling traders know of His Excellency? and who artthou, that speakest up as sharply and as proudly as if thou wert agrandee?"

  "I am Ferdinand of Trastamara--the Prince of Aragon--the King of Sicily.Go! bid thy master hasten to the gate."

  This sudden announcement, which was made in the lofty manner of oneaccustomed to implicit obedience, produced a marked change in the stateof affairs. The party at the gate so far altered their severalpositions, that the two superior nobles who had ridden in front, gaveplace to the youthful king; while the group of knights made sucharrangements as showed that disguise was dropped, and each man was nowexpected to appear in his proper character. It might have amused a closeand philosophical observer to note the promptitude with which the youngcavaliers, in particular, rose in their saddles, as if casting aside thelounging mien of grovelling traders, in order to appear what they reallywere, men accustomed to the tourney and the field. On the ramparts thechange was equally sudden and great. All appearance of drowsinessvanished; the soldiers spoke to each other in suppressed but hurriedvoices; and the distant tramp of feet announced that messengers weredispatched in various directions. Some ten minutes elapsed in thismanner, during which an inferior officer showed himself on the ramparts,and apologized for a delay that arose altogether from the force ofdiscipline, and on no account from any want of respect. At length abustle on the wall, with the light of many lanterns, betrayed theapproach of the governor of the town; and the impatience of the youngmen below, that had begun to manifest itself in half-utteredexecrations, was put under a more decent restraint for the occasion.

  "Are the joyful tidings that my people bring me true?" cried one fromthe battlements; while a lantern was lowered from the wall, as if tomake a closer inspection of the party at the gate: "Am I really sohonored, as to receive a summons from Don Ferdinand of Aragon, at thisunusual hour?"

  "Cause thy fellow to turn his lantern more closely on my countenance,"answered the king, "that thou may'st make thyself sure. I willcheerfully overlook the disrespect, Count of Trevino, for the advantageof a more speedy admission."

  "'Tis he!" exclaimed the noble: "I know those royal features, which bearthe lineaments of a long race of kings, and that voice have I heard,often, rallying the squadrons of Aragon, in their onsets against theMoor. Let the trumpets speak up, and proclaim this happy arrival; andopen wide our gates, without delay."

  This order was promptly obeyed, and the youthful king entered Osma, bysound of trumpet, encircled by a strong party of men-at-arms, and withhalf of the awakened and astonished population at his heels.

  "It is lucky, my Lord King," said Don Andres de Cabrera, the young noblealready mentioned, as he rode familiarly at the side of Don Ferdinand,"that we have found these good lodgings without cost; it being amelancholy truth, that Master Ferreras hath, negligently enough, mislaidthe only purse there was among us. In such a strait, it would not havebeen easy to keep up the character of thrifty traders much longer; for,while the knaves higgle at the price of every thing, they are fond oflettin
g their gold be seen."

  "Now that we are in thine own Castile, Don Andres," returned the king,smiling, "we shall throw ourselves gladly on thy hospitality, wellknowing that thou hast two most beautiful diamonds always at thycommand."

  "I, Sir King! Your Highness is pleased to be merry at my expense,although I believe it is, just now, the only gratification I can payfor. My attachment for the Princess Isabella hath driven me from mylands; and even the humblest cavalier in the Aragonese army is not, justnow, poorer than I. What diamonds, therefore, can I command?"

  "Report speaketh favorably of the two brilliants that are set in theface of the Dona Beatriz de Bobadilla; and I hear they are altogether atthy disposal, or as much so as a noble maiden's inclinations can leavethem with a loyal knight."

  "Ah! my Lord King! if indeed this adventure end as happily as itcommenceth, I may, indeed, look to your royal favor, for some aid inthat matter."

  The king smiled, in his own sedate manner; but the Count de Trevinopressing nearer to his side at that moment, the discourse was changed.That night Ferdinand of Aragon slept soundly; but with the dawn, he andhis followers were again in the saddle. The party quitted Osma, however,in a manner very different from that in which it had approached itsgate. Ferdinand now appeared as a knight, mounted on a noble Andalusiancharger; and all his followers had still more openly assumed theirproper characters. A strong body of lancers, led by the Count of Trevinoin person, composed the escort; and on the 9th of the month, the wholecavalcade reached Duenas, in Leon, a place quite near to Valladolid. Thedisaffected nobles crowded about the prince to pay their court, and hewas received as became his high rank and still higher destinies.

  Here the more luxurious Castilians had an opportunity of observing thesevere personal discipline by which Don Ferdinand, at the immature yearsof eighteen, for he was scarcely older, had succeeded in hardening hisbody and in stringing his nerves, so as to be equal to any deeds inarms. His delight was found in the rudest military exercises; and noknight of Aragon could better direct his steed in the tourney or in thefield. Like most of the royal races of that period, and indeed of this,in despite of the burning sun under which he dwelt, his nativecomplexion was brilliant, though it had already become embrowned byexposure in the chase, and in the martial occupations of his boyhood.Temperate as a Mussulman, his active and well-proportioned frame seemedto be early indurating, as if Providence held him in reserve for some ofits own dispensations, that called for great bodily vigor as well as fordeep forethought and a vigilant sagacity. During the four or five daysthat followed, the noble Castilians who listened to his discourse, knewnot of which most to approve, his fluent eloquence, or a wariness ofthought and expression, which, while they might have been deemedprematurely worldly and cold-blooded, were believed to be particularmerits in one destined to control the jarring passions, deep deceptions,and selfish devices of men.