he felt obliged, he said, to defer that matter for the moment; and to
leave the decision upon it to the Duke. Farnese kept his sovereign
minutely informed of the negociations carried on through Champagny and De
Loo, and expressed his constant opinion that the Queen was influenced by
motives as hypocritical as his own. She was only seeking, he said, to
deceive, to defraud, to put him to sleep, by those feigned negotiations,
while, she was making her combinations with France and Germany, for the
ruin of Spain. There was no virtue to be expected from her, except she
was compelled thereto by pure necessity. The English, he said, were
hated and abhorred by the natives of Holland and Zeeland, and it behoved
Philip to seize so favourable an opportunity for urging on his great plan
with all the speed in the world. It might be that the Queen, seeing
these mighty preparations, even although not suspecting that she herself
was to be invaded, would tremble for her safety, if the Netherlands
should be crushed. But if she succeeded in deceiving Spain, and putting
Philip and Parma to sleep, she might well boast of having made fools of
them all. The negotiations for peace and the preparations for the
invasion should go simultaneously forward therefore, and the money would,
in consequence, come more sparingly to the Provinces from the English
coffers, and the disputes between England and the States would be
multiplied. The Duke also begged to be informed whether any terms could
be laid down, upon which the King really would conclude peace; in order
that he might make no mistake for want of instructions or requisite
powers. The condition of France was becoming more alarming every day, he
said. In other words, there was an ever-growing chance of peace for that
distracted country. The Queen of England was cementing a strong league
between herself, the French King, and the Huguenots; and matters were
looking very serious. The impending peace in France would never do, and
Philip should prevent it in time, by giving Mucio his money. Unless the
French are entangled and at war among themselves, it is quite clear, said