shouldars, and sometimes previly wald steal a "kiss of his necke," gave birth at least to the most presumptuous hopes; and Darnley's jealousy was first excited by Rizio's familiar access to her chamber, for which an early apologist makes this excuse: "que ceste Royne ayent "este nourrie en France, se ressentoit des libertes "honnestes de ceste royaume, ou les soupsons "ont esloignes des privautes, esquelles l'infamie "et salete ne scauroient avoir entree quelcoun"que." The manners however of the French court, were as free and licentious then, as at a later period; and among the honnêtes libertés that scarcely culd ony of 52 In the MS. copies of Knox's History, "Wise men judge such fashions," (the queen's dancing of the purpose, with Chattelet) "mair like to the borthel than to the comeliness of honest women. All this winter Chattelet was so familiar in the queen's cabinet, air and lait, the nobility have access unto hir. Chattelet's shoulder, and sometyme previly wald steal a kiss of his necke: and all this was honest ynough, for it was the gentil entreatment of a stranger. Bot the familiarity was so grit, that upon a night he privily did convey himself under the queen's bed.—At the place of execution, he concluded looking into the heavens, with these words, O cruel dame! what that complaint imported lovers may divine." Knox concludes, "deliver us, O Lord, from the rage of sick inordinate rewlars." Those passages in italicks were softened or omitted by David Buchanan, in the first editions, out of tenderness to Mary. 53 L'Innocence de la Royne d'Escosse, 1527. Apud Jebb, i. 457. CHAP. VII. CHAP. of the French dames, Brantome informs us; "Elles choisissent, au moins aucuns, leur valets VII. desquelles aucuns sont beaux et autres non; "comme j'en ay connu qu'ils ont fait, et si n'en "faut prier longuement leurs dits valets, car les "levant, couchant, deshabillant, chaussant, des"chaussunt, et leur baillent leurs chemises, com"me j'ay veu beaucoup de filles a la cour et "ailleurs qui n'en faisoient aucune difficulte n'y "scruple." Without meaning to insinuate that Mary indulged in such indecent liberties, it is sufficient for me to observe, that according to the uniform custom of French dames, she admitted male visitants to her chamber, without scruple, when she was in bed herself. Le Croc the French ambassador writes to Beton, "Hier elle 66 66 m'envoya querir, et la trouvay, en la ruelle de "son lit, qui pleurroit bien fort. Elle ma dit que son cote lui faisoit grand mal, et dailleurs "le jour qu'elle partit de Lislebourgh pour venir 'icy, elle tomba dessu la haquenie, et se fit mal 66 a un teton, elle me dit qu'il cuidoit enfler55 " Randolph the English resident, writes to Cecil, of a conference which he had with her majesty while she was abed, and how she excused herself to him. "I told her that I thought she had something in her belly that kept her waking: "Brantome, vol. viii. 55 Keith, pref. 7. The original French is from Goodall's MSS. "she smiled and said, indeed I may now speak CHAP. "with more assurance" (of being with child of James) "than before I could, and think my"self more out of doubt that it should be as ye "think than before I did." When foreign ambassadors were admitted to such gross conversation at her bed-side, there is no reason to suppose that her male attendants were excluded on other occasions: and the access which Paris, her chamberlain, had to her chamber, is not more surprising than the admission of Bothwell, as attested by Melvil, the morning after the murder, when the queen was in bed". or absurd. The remaining objections are frivolous in the frivolous extreme. According to both declarations Bothwell, on his return to the abbey before the murder, having changed his clothes, took the taylor and Paris to the Kirk of Field. As Powrie was the porter, the supposed error is ascribed to an intermediate Latin version in which janitor, the porter of the Scottish original, was, I know not how, mistaken for sartor by the French translator. But the Scotch copy retains the taylor of the French original; the persons present with Bothwell when the explosion took place, were Paris, Wilson, Hay, and Hepburn, Powrie and Dalgleish; and "Bothwell sent the said Taylor, "next morning, for Paris to come to a lower 6 Goodall, i. 276. "Goodall, i. 146. 57 Supra, ch. ii. Melvil, 78. Whitaker, iii. 215. CHAP. VII. “chamber, where were the two Ormistons, Hep"burn, Dalgleish, Powrie and Paris himself." Powrie therefore was not the taylor designed by Paris, but Wilson who was also present at the murder, and was attainted with Bothwell, but was never apprehended. In the second deposition Paris declares that on Monday morning between nine and ten he entered the queen's chamber, "laquelle estoit bien close et son lict ia "tendu du noyr en signe de deuil, et de la chan"delle allumer dedans ycelle la ou Madam "Briant luy donnoit a dejeuner ung œuf frais, "la ou aussi Monsieur de Bodvel arrive et parle à "elle secretement soubz la courtin." The interpretation of this passage is obvious and indisputable; that according to the fashion of the times, the chamber was closely shut, and the bed hung with black, with a candle ready to light therein, (dedans la ruelle, in Anderson, the narrow passage between the bed and the wall), where Madam Briant was giving her (lui, the queen) a fresh egg for breakfast, and where Bothwell also came and spoke to her secretly under the curtain. Forgetful, however, of the double signification of lui, him or her in the oblique case, Whitaker imagines that the egg was given to Paris himself for breakfast, (lui to him, according to another MS. dedant la ruelle, at the queen's bed-side), and much idle declamation is ridiculously employed on the indelicacy of converting the queen's bed VII. room into a buttery hatch for the palace, when CHAP. the queen was in bed59. objection But the chief objection, that no mention is Principal made before whom the Examination was taken, is removed. removed by the attestation of the clerk of council, that "this is the treu copy of the declaration "and deposition of Nicholas Howbert, quhairoff "the principal is markit every leif with his awin hand, and the same being red again in his pre66 sence, he avowed the same, and all parts and "clauses thereoff, to be undoubtedly trew." The Depositions of Powrie, Dalgleish, and the rest were taken at Edinburgh, in presence of the privy council, of which there was no quorum at St. Andrew's; and Hay the clerk, who attended the regent officially on his circuit, was undoubtedly employed to interrogate Paris on the circumstances concealed in his first Declaration. To deduce from thence a presumption of forgery, is to suppose that Murray durst not authenticate the Declaration which he had forged, by the names of those persons (himself or his associates) before whom it was supposed to be taken. But the first voluntary Declaration threatened to implicate, not only Huntley, Argyle, and Lethington, but Morton, Ruthven, Lindsay, and Murray himself in a presentiment of the design; and there was the strongest reason for an examination more secret " Whitaker, iii. 269. |
