Part 39 (1/2)
His sons William and James continued to stand before him, as was the dutiful habit of the time. Their father recovered his breath before beginning to speak.
”What's this--what's this I hear?” he exclaimed testily, ”is it true that ye are in flat rebellion against the lawful authority of the king? Laddies, laddies, ye maun come in wi' me to his excellence the Chancellor and make instanter your obedience. Ye are young and for my sake he will surely overlook this. I will speak with him.”
”Father,” said William Douglas, with a cold firmness in his voice, ”we are here to punish the murderers of our cousins. We shall indeed enter the guilty city, but it will be with fire and sword.”
”Aye,” cried rollicking, headstrong James, ”and we will roast the Crichton on a spit and hang that smug traitor, Tutor Livingston, over the walls of David's Tower, a bonny ferlie for his leman's wonder!”
There came a cunning look into the small pig's eyes of James the Gross.
”Na, na, foolish laddies, thae things will ye no do. Mind ye not the taunts and scorns that the Earl--the late Earl o' Douglas that is--put upon us a'? Think on his pride and vainglory, whilk Scripture says shall be brocht low. Think in especial how this righteous judgment that has fallen on him and on his brother has cleared our way to the Earldom.”
The choleric younger brother leaped forward with an oath on his lips, but his calmer senior kept him back with his hand.
”Silence, James!” he said; ”I will answer our father. Sir, we have heard what you say, but our minds are not changed. What cause to a.s.sociate yourself with traitors and mansworn you may have, we do not know and we do not care.”
At his son's first words James the Gross rose with a sudden surprising access of dignity remarkable in one of his figure.
”I bid you remember,” he said, speaking southland English, as he was wont to do in moments of excitement, ”I bid you remember, sirrah, that I am the Earl of Douglas and Avondale, Justicer of Scotland--and your father.”
William Douglas bowed, respectful but unmoved.
”My lord,” he said, ”I forget nothing. I do not judge you. You are in authority over our house. You shall do what you will with these forces without there, so be you can convince them of your right. Black murder, whether you knew and approved it or no, has made you Earl of Douglas. But, sir, if you take part with my cousins' murderers now, or screen them from our just vengeance and the vengeance of G.o.d, I tell you that from this day you are a man without children. For in this matter I speak not only for myself, but for all your sons!” He turned to his brother.
”James,” he said, ”call in the others.” James went to the tent door and called aloud.
”Archibald, Hugh, and John, come hither quickly.”
A moment after three young men of n.o.ble build, little more than lads indeed, but with the dark Douglas allure stamped plainly upon their countenances, entered, bowed to their father, and stood silent with their hands crossed upon the hilts of their swords.
William Douglas went on with the same determinate and relentless calm.
”My lord,” he said, very respectfully, ”here stand your five sons, all soldiers and Douglases, waiting to hear your will. Murder has been done upon the chief of our house by two men of cowardly heart and mean consideration, Crichton and Livingston, instigated by the false amba.s.sador of the King of France. We have come hither to punish these slayers of our kin, and we desire to know what you, our father, think concerning the matter.”
James the Gross was still standing, steadying himself with his hand on the arm of the oaken chair in which he had been sitting. He spoke with some difficulty, which might proceed either from emotion or from the plethoric habit of the man.
”Have I for this brought children into the world,” he said, ”that they should lift up their hands against the father that begat them? Ye know that I have ever warned you against the pride and arrogance of your cousins of Galloway.”
”You mean, of the late Earl of Douglas and the boy his brother,”
answered William; ”the pride of eighteen and fourteen is surely vastly dangerous.”
”I mean those who have been tried and executed in Edinburgh by royal authority for many well-grounded offences against the state,” cried the Earl, loudly.
”Will you deign to condescend upon some of them?” said his son, as quietly as before.
”Your cousins' pride and ostentation of riches and retinue, being far beyond those of the King, const.i.tuted in themselves an eminent danger to the state. Nay, the turbulence of their followers has more than once come before me in my judicial capacity as Justicer of the realm.
What more would you have?”
”Were you, my lord, of those who condemned them to death?”
”Not so, William; it had not been seemly in a near kinsman and the heir to their dignities--that is, save and except Galloway, which by ill chance goes in the female line, if we find not means to break that unfortunate reservation. Your cousins were condemned by my Lords Crichton and Livingston.”