Le chien d'or. English

  CHAPTER XII. THE CASTLE OF ST. LOUIS.

  The Count de la Galissoniere, with a number of officers of rank in fulluniform, was slowly pacing up and down the long gallery that frontedthe Castle of St. Louis, waiting for the Council of War to open;for although the hour had struck, the Intendant, and many other highofficials of the Colony, had not yet arrived from Beaumanoir.

  The Castle of St. Louis, a massive structure of stone, with squareflanking towers, rose loftily from the brink of the precipice,overlooking the narrow, tortuous streets of the lower town. The steepleof the old Church of Notre Dame des Victoires, with its gilded vane, layfar beneath the feet of the observer as he leaned over the balustrade ofiron that guarded the gallery of the Chateau.

  A hum of voices and dense sounds rose up from the market of Notre Dameand from the quay where ships and bateaux were moored. The cries ofsailors, carters, and habitans in thick medley floated up the steepcliffs, pleasant sounds to the ear of the worthy Governor, who likedthe honest noises of industry and labor better than all the music of theAcademy.

  A few merchantmen which had run the blockade of the English cruisers layat anchor in the stream, where the broad river swept majestically roundthe lofty cape. In the midst of them a newly-arrived King's ship, theFleur-de-Lis, decorated with streamers, floated proudly, like a swanamong a flock of teal.

  Le Gardeur, as an officer of the garrison, went to report himself tothe military commandant, while La Corne St. Luc and Colonel Philibertproceeded to the gallery, where a crowd of officers were now assembled,waiting for the Council.

  The Governor at once called Philibert aside, and took his arm."Philibert," said he, "I trust you had no difficulty in finding theIntendant?"

  "No difficulty whatever, your Excellency. I discovered the Intendant andhis friends by ear long before I got sight of them." An equivocal smileaccompanied Philibert's words, which the Governor rightly interpreted.

  "Ah! I understand, Philibert; they were carousing at that hour ofdaylight? Were they all--? Faugh! I shame to speak the word. Was theIntendant in a condition to comprehend my summons?" The Governor lookedsad, rather than surprised or angry, for he had expected no less thanPhilibert had reported to him.

  "I found him less intoxicated, I think, than many of his guests. Hereceived your message with more politeness than I expected, and promisedto be here punctually at the hour for opening the Council."

  "Oh, Bigot never lacks politeness, drunk or sober: that strong intellectof his seems to defy the power of wine, as his heart is proof againstmoral feeling. You did not prolong your stay in Beaumanoir, I fancy?"remarked the Governor, dinting the point of his cane into the floor.

  "I hastened out of it as I would out of hell itself! After making prizeof my friend De Repentigny and bringing him off with me, as I mentionedto you, I got quickly out of the Chateau."

  "You did rightly, Philibert: the Intendant is ruining half the young menof birth in the Colony."

  "He shall not ruin Le Gardeur if I can save him," said Philibert,resolutely. "May I count upon your Excellency's cooeperation?" added he.

  "Assuredly, Philibert! Command me in anything you can devise to rescuethat noble young fellow from the fatal companionship of Bigot. But Iknow not how long I shall be permitted to remain in New France: powerfulintrigues are at work for my removal!" added the Governor. "I care notfor the removal, so that it be not accompanied with insult."

  "Ah! you have received news to-day by the frigate?" said Philibert,looking down at the King's ship at anchor in the stream.

  "News? Yes; and such news, Philibert!" replied the Governor in at one ofdespondency. "It needs the wisdom of Solon to legislate for this land,and a Hercules to cleanse its Augean stables of official corruption. Butmy influence at Court is nil--you know that, Philibert!"

  "But while you are Governor your advice ought to prevail with the King,"replied Philibert.

  "My advice prevail! Listen, Philibert: my letters to the King and theMinister of Marine and Colonies have been answered by whom, think you?"

  "Nay, I cannot conceive who, out of the legal channel, would dare toreply to them."

  "No! no man could guess that my official despatches have been answeredby the Marquise de Pompadour! She replies to my despatches to mysovereign!"

  "La Pompadour!" exclaimed Philibert in a burst of indignation. "She,the King's mistress, reply to your despatches! Has France come to begoverned by courtesans, like imperial Rome?"

  "Yes! and you know the meaning of that insult, Philibert! They desire toforce me to resign, and I shall resign as soon as I see my friends safe.I will serve the King in his fleet, but never more in a colony. Thispoor land is doomed to fall into the hands of its enemies unless we geta speedy peace. France will help us no more!"

  "Don't say that, your Excellency! France will surely never be untrueto her children in the New World! But our resources are not yet allexhausted: we are not driven to the wall yet, your Excellency!"

  "Almost, I assure you, Philibert! But we shall understand that betterafter the Council."

  "What say the despatches touching the negotiations going on for peace?"asked Philibert, who knew how true were the Governor's vaticinations.

  "They speak favorably of peace, and I think, correctly, Philibert;and you know the King's armies and the King's mistresses cannot all bemaintained at the same time--women or war, one or other must give way,and one need not doubt which it will be, when the women rule Court andcamp in France at the same time!"

  "To think that a woman picked out of the gutters of Paris should ruleFrance and answer your despatches!" said Philibert, angrily; "it isenough to drive honorable Frenchmen mad. But what says the Marquise dePompadour?"

  "She is especially severe upon my opposing the fiscal measures andcommercial policy, as she calls it, of her friend the Intendant! Sheapproves of his grant of a monopoly of trade to the Grand Company, anddisputes my right, as Governor, to interfere with the Intendant in thefinances of the Colony."

  Philibert felt deeply this wound to the honor and dignity of his chief.He pressed his hand in warmest sympathy.

  The Governor understood his feelings. "You are a true friend,Philibert," said he; "ten men like you might still save this Colony!But it is past the hour for the Council, and still Bigot delays! He musthave forgotten my summons."

  "I think not; but he might have to wait until Cadet, Varin, Deschenaux,and the rest of them were in a condition fit to travel," answeredPhilibert with an air of disgust.

  "O Philibert! the shame of it! the shame of it! for such thieves tohave the right to sit among loyal, honorable men," exclaimed, or rathergroaned, the Governor. "They have the real power in New France, and wethe empty title and the killing responsibility! Dine with me to-nightafter the Council, Philibert: I have much to say to you."

  "Not to-night, your Excellency! My father has killed the fatted calffor his returned prodigal, and I must dine with him to-night," answeredPhilibert.

  "Right! Be it to-morrow then! Come on Wednesday," replied the Governor."Your father is a gentleman who carries the principles of true nobilityinto the walks of trade; you are happy in such a father, Philibert, ashe is fortunate in such a son." The Governor bowed to his friend, andrejoined the groups of officers upon the terrace.

  A flash, and a column of smoke, white and sudden, rose from the greatbattery that flanked the Chateau. It was the second signal for theCouncil to commence. The Count de la Galissoniere, taking the arm ofLa Corne St. Luc, entered the Castle, and followed by the crowd ofofficers, proceeded to the great Hall of Council and Audience. TheGovernor, followed by his secretaries, walked forward to the vice-regalchair, which stood on a dais at the head of a long table covered withcrimson drapery. On each side of the table the members of the Counciltook the places assigned to them in the order of their rank andprecedence, but a long array of chairs remained unoccupied. These seats,belonging to the Royal Intendant and the other high officers of theColony who had not yet arrived to take their places in the Council,stood
empty.

  The great hall of the Castle of St. Louis was palatial in its dimensionsand adornments. Its lofty coved ceiling rested on a cornice of richfrieze of carved work, supported on polished pilasters of oak. Thepanels of wainscoting upon the walls were surrounded by delicatearabesques, and hung with paintings of historic interest--portraits ofthe kings, governors, intendants, and ministers of state who had beeninstrumental in the colonization of New France.

  Over the Governor's seat hung a gorgeous escutcheon of the royal arms,draped with a cluster of white flags sprinkled with golden lilies, theemblems of French sovereignty in the Colony.

  Among the portraits on the walls, besides those of the late and presentKing,--which hung on each side of the throne,--might be seen thefeatures of Richelieu, who first organized the rude settlements on theSt. Lawrence into a body politic--a reflex of feudal France; and ofColbert, who made available its natural wealth and resources by peoplingit with the best scions of the motherland, the noblesse and peasantryof Normandy, Brittany, and Aquitaine. There too might be seen the keen,bold features of Cartier, the first discoverer, and of Champlain, thefirst explorer of the new land and the founder of Quebec. The gallant,restless Louis Buade de Frontenac was pictured there side by side withhis fair countess, called by reason of her surpassing loveliness"the divine;" Vaudreuil too, who spent a long life of devotion to hiscountry, and Beauharnais, who nourished its young strength until it wasable to resist not only the powerful confederacy of the Five Nationsbut the still more powerful league of New England and the other EnglishColonies. There, also, were seen the sharp, intellectual face of Laval,its first bishop, who organized the Church and education in theColony; and of Talon, wisest of intendants, who devoted himself to theimprovement of agriculture, the increase of trade, and the well-beingof all the King's subjects in New France. And one more strikingportrait was there, worthy to rank among the statesmen and rulers ofNew France,--the pale, calm, intellectual features of Mere Marie del'Incarnation, the first superior of the Ursulines of Quebec, who, inobedience to heavenly visions, as she believed, left France to foundschools for the children of the new colonists, and who taught her ownwomanly graces to her own sex, who were destined to become the futuremothers of New France.

  In marked contrast with the military uniforms of the officerssurrounding the council-table were the black robes and tonsured headsof two or three ecclesiastics, who had been called in by the Governorto aid the council with their knowledge and advice. There were theAbbe Metavet, of the Algonquins of the North; Pere Oubal, the Jesuitmissionary of the Abenaquais of the East, and his confrere, LaRichardie, from the wild tribes of the Far West; but conspicuous amongthe able and influential missionaries who were the real rulers of theIndian nations allied with France was the famous Sulpicien, Abbe Piquet,"the King's missionary," as he was styled in royal ordinances, and theapostle to the Iroquois, whom he was laboring to convert and bring overto the side of France in the great dispute raised between France andEngland for supremacy in North America.

  Upon the wall behind the vice-regal chair hung a great map, drawn bythe bold hand of Abbe Piquet, representing the claims as well as actualpossessions of France in America. A broad, red line, beginning inAcadia, traversed the map westerly, taking in Lake Ontario and runningsoutherly along the crests and ridges of the Appalachian Mountains.It was traced with a firm hand down to far-off Louisiana, claiming forFrance the great valleys of the Ohio, the Mississippi, and the vastterritories watered by the Missouri and the Colorado--thus hemming theEnglish in between the walls of the Appalachian range on the west andthe seacoast on the east.

  The Abbe Piquet had lately, in a canoe, descended the Belle Riviere,as the voyageurs called the noble Ohio. From its source to its junctionwith the solitary Mississippi the Abbe had planted upon its conspicuousbluffs the ensigns of France, with tablets of lead bearing thefleur-de-lis and the proud inscription, "Manibus date liliaplenis,"--lilies destined, after a fierce struggle for empire, to betrampled into the earth by the feet of the victorious English.

  The Abbe, deeply impressed with the dangers that impended over theColony, labored zealously to unite the Indian nations in a generalalliance with France. He had already brought the powerful Algonquinsand Nipissings into his scheme, and planted them at Two Mountains asa bulwark to protect the city of Ville Marie. He had created a greatschism in the powerful confederacy of the Five Nations by adroitlyfanning into a flame their jealousy of English encroachments upon theirancient territory on Lake Ontario; and bands of Iroquois had, not longsince, held conference with the Governor of New France, denouncing theEnglish for disregarding their exclusive right to their own country."The lands we possess," said they at a great council in Ville Marie,"the lands we possess were given to us by the Master of Life, and weacknowledge to hold of no other!"

  The Abbe had now strong hopes of perfecting a scheme which he afterwardsaccomplished. A powerful body of the Iroquois left their villages andcastles on the Mohawk and Genesee rivers, and under the guidance of theAbbe settled round the new Fort of La Presentation on the St. Lawrence,and thus barred that way, for the future, against the destructiveinroads of their countrymen who remained faithful to the Englishalliance.

  Pending the arrival of the Royal Intendant the members of the Councilindulged freely in conversation bearing more or less upon the importantmatters to be discussed,--the state of the country, the movements ofthe enemy, and not seldom intermingled remarks of dissatisfaction andimpatience at the absence of the Intendant.

  The revel at Beaumanoir was well known to them; and eyes flashedand lips curled in open scorn at the well-understood reason of theIntendant's delay.

  "My private letters by the Fleur-de-Lis," remarked Beauharnais, "relate,among other Court gossip, that orders will be sent out to stop thedefensive works at Quebec, and pull down what is built! They thinkthe cost of walls round our city can be better bestowed on politicalfavorites and certain high personages at Court." Beauharnais turnedtowards the Governor. "Has your Excellency heard aught of this?" askedhe.

  "Yes! It is true enough, Beauharnais! I also have receivedcommunications to that effect!" replied the Governor, with an effort atcalmness which ill-concealed the shame and disgust that filled his soul.

  There was an indignant stir among the officers, and many lips seemedtrembling with speech. The impetuous Rigaud de Vaudreuil broke thefierce silence. He struck his fist heavily on the table.

  "Ordered us to stop the building of the walls of Quebec, and to pulldown what we have done by virtue of the King's corvee!--did I hear yourExcellency right?" repeated he in a tone of utmost incredulity. "TheKing is surely mad to think of such a thing!"

  "Yes, Rigaud! it is as I tell you; but we must respect the royalcommand, and treat His Majesty's name as becomes loyal servants."

  "Ventre saint bleu!--heard ever Canadian or Frenchman such moonshinemadness! I repeat it, your Excellency--dismantle Quebec? How in God'sname are the King's dominions and the King's subjects to be defended?"Rigaud got warmer. He was fearless, and would, as every one knew, haveout his say had the King been present in person. "Be assured, yourExcellency, it is not the King who orders that affront to his faithfulcolony; it is the King's ministers--the King's mistresses--thesnuff-box-tapping courtiers at Versailles, who can spend the publicmoney in more elegant ways than in raising up walls round our brave oldcity! Ancient honor and chivalry of France! what has become of you?"

  Rigaud sat down angrily; the emotion he displayed was too much in accordwith the feelings of the gallant officers present to excite otherthan marks of approbation, except among a few personal friends of theIntendant, who took their cue from the avowed wishes of the Court.

  "What reason does His Majesty give," asked La Corne St. Luc, "for thissingular communication?"

  "The only reason given is found in the concluding paragraph of thedespatch. I will allow the Secretary to read so much of it, and no more,before the Intendant arrives." The Governor looked up at the great clockin the hall with a grim glance of
impatience, as if mentally callingdown anything but a blessing upon the head of the loitering Intendant.

  "The Count de le Galissoniere ought to know," said the despatchsneeringly, "that works like those of Quebec are not to be undertakenby the governors of colonies, except under express orders from the King;and therefore it is His Majesty's desire that upon the reception of thisdespatch your Excellency will discontinue the works that have been begunupon Quebec. Extensive fortifications require strong garrisons fortheir defence, and the King's treasury is already exhausted by theextraordinary expenses of the war in Europe. It cannot at the same timecarry on the war in Europe and meet the heavy drafts made upon it fromNorth America."

  The Secretary folded the despatch, and sat down without altering a lineof his impassive face. Not so the majority of the officers round thetable: they were excited, and ready to spring up in their indignation.The King's name restrained them all but Rigaud de Vaudreuil, whoimpetuously burst out with an oath, exclaiming,--"They may as well sellNew France at once to the enemy, if we are not to defend Quebec! Thetreasury wants money for the war in Europe forsooth! No doubt it wantsmoney for the war when so much is lavished upon the pimps, panders, andharlots of the Court!"

  The Governor rose suddenly, striking the table with his scabbard to stopRigaud in his rash and dangerous speech.

  "Not a word more of comment, Chevalier Rigaud!" said he, with a sharpimperative tone that cut short debate; "not another word! His Majesty'sname and those of his ministers must be spoken here respectfully, or notat all! Sit down, Chevalier de Vaudreuil; you are inconsiderate."

  "I obey your Excellency--I am, I dare say, inconsiderate! but I amright!" Rigaud's passion was subsiding, but not spent. He obeyed theorder, however. He had had his say, and flung himself heavily upon hischair.

  "The King's despatch demands respectful and loyal consideration,remarked De Lery, a solid, grave officer of engineers, "and I doubtnot that upon a proper remonstrance from this council His Majesty willgraciously reconsider his order. The fall of Louisbourg is ominous ofthe fall of Quebec. It is imperative to fortify the city in time to meetthe threatened invasion. The loss of Quebec would be the loss of theColony; and the loss of the Colony, the disgrace of France and the ruinof our country."

  "I cordially agree with the Chevalier de Lery," said La Corne St. Luc;"he has spoken more sense than would be found in a shipload of suchdespatches as that just read! Nay, your Excellency," continued the oldofficer, smiling, "I shall not affront my sovereign by believing thatso ill-timed a missive came from him! Depend upon it, His Majesty hasneither seen nor sanctioned it. It is the work of the minister and hismistresses, not the King's."

  "La Corne! La Corne!" The Governor raised his finger with a warninglook. "We will not discuss the point further until we are favoredwith the presence and opinion of the Intendant; he will surely be hereshortly!" At this moment a distant noise of shouting was heard in somepart of the city.

  An officer of the day entered the hall in great haste, and whisperedsomething in the Governor's ear.

  "A riot in the streets!" exclaimed the Governor. "The mob attacking theIntendant! You do not say so! Captain Duval, turn out the whole guardat once, and let Colonel St. Remy take the command and clear the way forthe Intendant, and also clear the streets of all disturbers."

  A number of officers sprang to their feet. "Keep seated, gentlemen! Wemust not break up the Council," said the Governor. "We are sure tohave the Intendant here in a few minutes and to learn the cause of thisuproar. It is some trifling affair of noisy habitans, I have no doubt."

  Another loud shout, or rather yell, made itself distinctly heard in thecouncil-chamber. "It is the people cheering the Intendant on his waythrough the city!" remarked La Corne St. Luc, ironically. "Zounds! whata vacarme they make! See what it is to be popular with the citizens ofQuebec!"

  There was a smile all round the table at La Corne's sarcasm. It offendeda few friends of the Intendant, however.

  "The Chevalier La Corne speaks boldly in the absence of the Intendant,"said Colonel Leboeuf. "A gentleman would give a louis d'or any day tobuy a whip to lash the rabble sooner than a sou to win their applause! Iwould not give a red herring for the good opinion of all Quebec!"

  "They say in France, Colonel," replied La Corne de St. Luc, scornfully,"that 'King's chaff is better than other people's corn, and that fish inthe market is cheaper than fish in the sea!' I believe it, and can proveit to any gentleman who maintains the contrary!"

  There was a laugh at La Corne's allusion to the Marquise de Pompadour,whose original name of Jeanne Poisson, gave rise to infinite jests andsarcasms among the people of low and high degree.

  Colonel Leboeuf, choleric as he was, refrained from pressing the quarrelwith La Corne St. Luc. He sat sulkily smothering his wrath--longing toleave the hall and go to the relief of the Intendant, but kept againsthis will by the command of the Governor.

  The drums of the main guard beat the assembly. The clash of arms andthe tramp of many feet resounded from the court-yard of the Chateau. Themembers of the Council looked out of the windows as the troops formed incolumn, and headed by Colonel St. Remy, defiled out of the Castle gate,the thunder of their drums drowning every other sound and making thewindows shake as they marched through the narrow streets to the scene ofdisturbance.