by John Galt
CHAPTER III
It was the afternoon when my grandfather and Sir David Hamilton came insight of St Andrews, and the day being loun and bright, the sky clear,and the sea calm, he told me that when he saw the many lofty spires andtowers and glittering pinnacles of the town rising before him, he verilythought he was approaching the city of Jerusalem, so grand and gloriouswas the apparition which they made in the sunshine, and he approachedthe barricaded gate with a strange movement of awe and wonder rushingthrough the depths of his spirit.
They, however, entered not into the city at that time, but, passingalong the wall leftward, came to a road which led to the gate of thecastle where the Archbishop then dwelt; and as they were approachingtowards it, Sir David pointed out the window where Cardinal Beaton satin the pomp of his scarlet and fine linen to witness the hereticWishart, as the knight called that holy man, burnt for his sins andabominations.
My grandfather, on hearing this, drew his bridle in, and falling behindSir David, raised his cap in reverence and in sorrow at the thought ofpassing over the ground that had been so hallowed by martyrdom, but hesaid nothing, for he knew that his thoughts were full of offence tothose who were wrapt in the errors and delusions of popery like SirDavid Hamilton; and, moreover, he had thanked the Lord thrice in thecourse of their journey for the favour which it had pleased Him heshould find in the sight of the kinsman of so great an adversary to thetruth as was the Archbishop of St Andrews, whose treasons andtreacheries against the Church of Christ he was then travelling todiscover and waylay.
On reaching the castle-yett they alighted; my grandfather, springinglightly from the saddle, took hold of Sir David's mare by thebridle-rings, while the knight went forward, and whispered somethingconcerning his Grace to a stalwart, hard-favoured, grey-hairedman-at-arms, that stood warder of the port, leaning on his sword, theblade of whilk could not be shorter than an ell. What answer he got wasbrief, the ancient warrior pointing at the same time with his right handtowards a certain part of the city, and giving a Belial smile ofsignificance; whereupon Sir David turned round without going into thecourt of the castle, and bidding my grandfather give the man the beastsand follow, which he did, they walked together under the town walltowards the east till they came to a narrow sallyport in the rampart,wherewith the priory and cathedral had of old been fenced about withturrets and bastions of great strength against the lawless kerns of theHighlands, and especially the ships of the English, who have in all agesbeen of a nature gleg and glad to mulct and molest the sea-harbour townsof Scotland.
On coming to the sallyport, Sir David chapped with his whip twice, andfrom within a wicket was opened in the doors, ribbed with ironstainchers on the outside, and a man with the sound of corpulency in hisvoice looked through and inquired what they wanted. Seeing, however, whoit was that had knocked, he forthwith drew the bar and allowed them toenter, which was into a pleasant policy adorned with jonquils andjelly-flowers, and all manner of blooming and odoriferous plants, mostvoluptuous to the smell and ravishing to behold, the scents andfragrancies whereof smote my grandfather for a time, as he said, withthe very anguish of delight. But, on looking behind to see who had giventhem admittance, he was astounded when, instead of an armed and mailedsoldier, as he had thought the drumly-voiced sentinel there placed was,he saw a large, elderly monk, sitting on a bench with a broken pastysmoking on a platter beside him, and a Rotterdam greybeard jug standingby, no doubt plenished with cordial drink.
Sir David held no parlance with the feeding friar, but going straight upthe walk to the door of a lodging, to the which this was the parterreand garden, he laid his hand on the sneck, and opening it, bade mygrandfather come in.
They then went along the trance towards an open room, and on entering itthey met a fair damsel in the garb of a handmaid, to whom the knightspoke in familiarity, and kittling her under the chin, made her gigglein a wanton manner. By her he was informed that the Archbishop was inthe inner chamber at dinner with her mistress, upon which he desired mygrandfather to sit down, while he went ben to his Grace.
The room where my grandfather took his seat was parted from the innerchamber, in which the Archbishop and his lemane were at theirfestivities, by an arras partition, so that he could hear all thatpassed within, and the first words his Grace said on his kinsman goingben was,--
"Aweel, Davie, and what says that auld doddard Argyle, will he send methe apostate to mak a benfire?"
"He has sent your Grace a letter," replied Sir David, "wherein he toldme he had expounded the reasons and causes of his protecting Douglas,hoping your Grace will approve the same."
"Approve heresy and reprobacy!" exclaimed the Archbishop; "but gi'e methe letter, and sit ye down, Davie. Mistress Kilspinnie, my dauty, fillhim a cup of wine, the malvesie, to put smeddam in his marrow; he'll nobe the waur o't, after his gallanting at Enbro. Stay! what's this? theauld man's been at school since him and me hae swappit paper. My word,Argyle, thou's got a tongue in thy pen neb! but this was ne'er inditedby him; the cloven foot of the heretical Carmelite is manifest in everyline. Honour and conscience truly!--braw words for a Hielant schore,that bigs his bield wi' other folks' gear!"
"Be composed, your sweet Grace, and dinna be so fashed," cried asilver-tongued madam, the which my grandfather afterwards found, as Ishall have to rehearse, was his concubine, the Mrs Kilspinnie. "Whatdoes he say?"
"Say? Why, that Douglas preaches against idolatry, and he remits to myconscience forsooth, gif that be heresy--and he preaches againstadulteries and fornications too--was ever sic varlet terms written inony nobleman's letter afore this apostate's time--and he refers that tomy conscience likewise."
"A faggot to his tail would be ower gude for him," cried Mrs Kilspinnie.
"He preaches against hypocrisy," said his Grace, "the which he alsorefers to my conscience--conscience again! Hae, Davie, tak thirclishmaclavers to Andrew Oliphant. It'll be spunk to his zeal. We maunstrike our adversaries wi' terror, and if we canna wile them back to thefold, we'll e'en set the dogs on them. Kind Mistress Kilspinnie, help mefrae the stoup o' sherries, for I canna but say that this scalded heartI hae gotten frae that auld shavling-gabbit Hielander has raised mycorruption, and I stand in need, my lambie, o' a' your winsomecomforting."
At which words Sir David came forth the chamber with the letter in hishand; but seeing my grandfather, whom it would seem he had forgotten, hewent suddenly back and said to his Grace,--
"Please you, my Lord, I hae brought with me a young man of a goodcapacity and a ripe understanding that I would commend to your Grace'sservice. He is here in the outer room waiting your Grace's pleasure."
"Davie Hamilton," replied the Archbishop, "ye sometimes lack discretion.What for did ye bring a stranger into this house--knowing, as ye oughtto do, that I ne'er come hither but when I'm o' a sickly frame, in needo' solace and repose? Howsever, since the lad's there, bid him comeben."
Upon this, Sir David came out and beckoned my grandfather to go in; andwhen he went forward, he saw none in that inner chamber but his Graceand the Mrs Kilspinnie, with whom he was sitting on a bedside before awell-garnished table, whereon was divers silver flagons, canisters ofcomfits, and goblets of the crystal of Venetia.
He looked sharp at my grandfather, perusing him from head to foot, whoput on for the occasion a face of modesty and reverence, but he was nonedaunted, for all his eyes were awake, and he took such a cognition ofhis Grace as he never afterwards forgot. Indeed, I have often heard himsay that he saw more of the man in the brief space of that interviewthan of others in many intromissions, and he used to depict him to me asa hale, black-avised carl, of an o'ersea look, with a long dark beardinclining to grey; his abundant hair, flowing down from his cowl, wasalso clouded and streaked with the kithings of the cranreuch of age.There was, however, a youthy and luscious twinkling in his eyes, thatshowed how little the passage of three-and-fifty winters had cooled therampant sensuality of his nature. His right leg, which was naked, thoughon the foot was a slipper of Spanish leathe
r, he laid o'er MistressKilspinnie's knees as he threw himself back against the pillar of thebed, the better to observe and converse with my grandfather; and she,like another Delilah, began to prattle it with her fingers, casting atthe same time glances, unseen by her papistical paramour, towards mygrandfather, who, as I have said, was a comely and well-favoured youngman.
After some few questions as to his name and parentage, the prelate saidhe would give him his livery, being then anxious, on account of thesigns of the times, to fortify his household with stout and valiantyoungsters; and bidding him draw near and to kneel down, he laid hishand on his head and mumbled a benedicite; the which, my grandfathersaid, was as the smell of rottenness to his spirit, the lascivioushirkos, then wantoning so openly with his adulterous concubine, for nobetter was Mistress Kilspinnie, her husband, a creditable man, beingthen living, and one of the bailies of Crail. Nor is it to be debatedthat the scene was such as ought not to have been seen in a Christianland; but in those days the blasphemous progeny of the Roman harlot werebold with the audacious sinfulness of their parent, and set little storeby the fear of God or the contempt of man. It was a sore trial and astruggle in the bosom of my grandfather that day to think of making ashow of homage and service towards the mitred Belial and high priest ofthe abominations wherewith the realm was polluted, and when he rose fromunder his paw he shuddered, and felt as if he had received the foul erlsof perdition from the Evil One. Many a bitter tear he long after shed insecret for the hypocrisy of that hour, the guilt of which was neversweetened to his conscience, even by the thought that he maybe therebyhelped to further the great redemption of his native land in the blessedcleansing of the Reformation.