Of Master Richard's second speaking with his Grace: and of hisdetention
_Abscondes eos in abscondito faciei tuae: a conturbatione hominum._
Thou shalt hide them in the secret of Thy face: from the disturbance ofmen.--_Ps. xxx. 21._
VII
I scarcely have the heart to write down all that befell Master Richard;and yet what it pleased God's Majesty that he should suffer, cannotdisplease Him to write down nor to think upon.... [There follows acuriously modern discussion on what I may call the gospel of Pleasure,which is a very different thing from the gospel of Joy. The former, asSir John points out, disregards and avoids pain, the latter deals withit. He points out acutely that this difference is the characteristicdifference between Greek and Christian philosophy.]
Master Richard was taken back again by two of the men-at-arms into theparlour where he had lately seen the King, and was allowed to stand bythe window, looking out upon the river, while one fellow kept one door,and one the other.
He strove to keep quiet interiorly, keeping his eyes fixed upon thebroad river in the sunshine and the trees on the other side, and hisheart established on God's Will. He did not know then what kind of a fitit was into which the King had fallen, nor why it was that himselfshould be blamed for it; and when he spoke to the men they gave himnothing but black looks, and one blessed himself repeatedly, with hislips moving.
There came the sound of talking from the inner room, and once or twicethe sound of glass on glass. Without it was a fair day, very hot andwith no clouds.
Master Richard told me that he had no fear, neither now nor afterwards;it seemed to him as if all had been done before; he said it was as if hewere one in a play, whose part and words are all assigned beforehand,as well as the parts and words of the others, by the will of thewriter; so that when violence is done, or injustice, or hard wordsspoken, or death suffered, it is all part of the agreed plan and mustnot be resisted nor questioned, else all will be spoiled. It appeared tohim too as if the ankret in the cell were privy to it all, and werestanding, observing and approving; for Master Richard remembered whatthe holy man had said as to the five wounds marked upon the linen, andhow he would not need to wear them much longer.
* * * * *
After about half-an-hour, as he supposed, the voices waxed louder in theother room; and presently one came out from it in the black dress of aphysician. He was a pale man, shaven clean, a little bald, and verythin. It was that physician that died last year.
He said nothing, though his face worked, and he beckoned sharply toMaster Richard.
Master Richard went immediately across the floor and through into thefurther room.
There were a dozen persons gathered there, all staring upon the King,who sat in a great chair by the table. Two or three of these wereservants, and the rest of them, with my lord cardinal, the nobles thathad been in the palace at the time of the King's seizure. My lordcardinal was standing by the chair, very stern and anxious-looking; andall turned their faces, and there was an angry whisper from theirmouths, as the young man came forward and halted; and the physician shutto the door.
But Master Richard did not observe them closely at that time; for he waslooking upon the King.
The King sat very upright in his chair; his hands rested on the carvedarms; and his face and eyes were as if made of Caen stone, chalky andhard. He was looking out from the room, Master Richard said; and MasterRichard knew at once what it was that he was seeing. It was that ofwhich the holy youth had spoken; and was nothing else than the passionand death that came upon him afterwards. The words that the King hadheard had opened the eyes of his soul, and he was now seeing forhimself.
Before that any could speak or hinder, Master Richard was on his kneesby the King, and had laid his lips to the white right-hand, seeing as hedid so the red ring on the first finger. My lord cardinal sprang forwardto tear him off, but the King turned his stony eyes; and my lord fellback.
Then Master Richard knew that he had not given the whole message; andthat our Lord had not intended it at first. The message of the passionand death was to be first; and the second, second--first the wound, andthen the balm.
So he began to speak; and these were the words as he told them to me.
"My lord King," he said, "Our Lord does not leave us comfortless when Hesends us sorrow. This is a great honour, greater than the crown thatyou bear, to bear the crown of thorns. That bitter passion of Christthat He bore for our salvation is wrought out in the Body which is HisChurch, and especially in those members, which, like His sacred handsand feet, receive the nails into themselves. Happy are those membersthat receive the nails; they are the more honourable; it was on His feetthat He went about to do good; and with His hands that He healed andblessed and gave His precious body; and with His burning heart that Heloves us.
"My lord King; men will name you fool and madman and crowned calf; it isto their shame that they do so, and to your honour. For so they namedour Saviour. All who set not their minds on this world are accountedfools; but who will be the merrier in the world that is to come?
"And, last, our Lord has bestowed on your highness an honour that Hebestows upon few, but which Himself suffered; and that, the knowledge ofwhat is to be. In this manner the passion is borne a thousand times aday, by foreknowledge; and for every such pain there is a joy awarded.It is for this reason that you may bear yourself rightly, and that Hemay crown you more richly that our Lord has sent me to you, and biddenme tell you this."
* * * * *
All this while Master Richard was looking upon the King's face, butthere was no alteration in his aspect. It was as the colour of ashes,and his eyes like stone; and yet Master Richard knew very well that hisgrace heard what was said, but could not answer it. (It was so with himoften afterwards: he would sit thus without speaking or answering whatwas said to him: he would go thus to mass and dinner and to bed, as paleas a spirit: he would even ride thus among his army, with his crown onhis head, and his sword in his hand, dumb but not deaf; and looking uponwhat others could not see: and all, as those about him knew very well,began from the hearing of the message that Master Richard Raynalbrought to him from God's Majesty).
While Master Richard was speaking the rest kept silence: for I thinkthat somewhat held them for pity of those two young men--for the onethat sat in such stiff agony, and for the other near as pale, and redwith his own blood, that spoke so eloquently. But when he had done andhad kissed the white hand again, my lord cardinal came forward, pushedhim aside, and himself began to speak in a voice that was at oncepitiful and angry, crying upon the King to answer, telling him that hewas bewitched and under the power of Satan through the machinations ofMaster Richard, and blessing him again and again.
Master Richard stood aside watching, and wondering that my lord couldspeak so, and not understand the truth; and he looked round at theothers to see if any there understood. But they were all dumb, exceptfor muttering, and gave him black looks, and blessed themselves as theireyes met his; so he committed himself to prayer. [Sir John preaches alittle sermon here on internal recollection, and the advantages of thepractice.]
It was of no avail; the King could not speak; and presently thephysician, Master Blytchett, [this is an extraordinary name, and isobviously a corruption of some English name, but I do not know what itcan be, nor why it was retained, when all others were erased.] cameand whispered in my lord's ear as he knelt at the King's knees. Mylord turned his head and nodded, and Master Richard was seized frombehind and pulled through the door. The man who had pulled him was oneof the servants. I saw him afterwards and spoke with him, when he wassorry for what he had done; but now he spat on Master Richard fiercely,for the door was shut; and blessed himself mightily meanwhile.
Then he spoke to the man that kept the door; and said that MasterRichard was to be taken down and kept close, until there was need of himagain; for that the King was no better.
So Master Richard
was brought downstairs, and through the guard-roominto one of the little cells: and as he went he was thinking on thewords of our Saviour.
_Si male locutus sum, testimonium perhibe de malo: si autem bene, quidme caedis?_ ["If I have spoken ill, give testimony of the evil, but ifwell, why strikest thou me?" (John xviii. 23.)]
The History of Richard Raynal, Solitary Page 8