whatever might betide. Never could there be so fortunate a conjunction
of circumstances again. France was in a state of revolution, the German
levies were weak, the Turk was fully occupied in Persia, an enormous mass
of money, over and above the Pope's million, had been got together, and
although the season was somewhat advanced, it was certain that the Duke
would conquer all impediments, and be the instrument by which his royal
master might render to God that service which he was so anxious to
perform. Enthusiastic, though gouty, Philip grasped the pen in order to
scrawl a few words with his own royal hand. "This business is of such
importance," he said, "and it is so necessary that it should not be
delayed, that I cannot refrain from urging it upon you as much as I can.
I should do it even more amply; if this hand would allow me, which has
been crippled with gout these several days, and my feet as well, and
although it is unattended with pain, yet it is an impediment to writing."

Struggling thus against his own difficulties, and triumphantly,
accomplishing a whole paragraph with disabled hand, it was natural that
the King should expect Alexander, then deep in the siege of Sluy's, to
vanquish all his obstacles as successfully; and to effect the conquest of
England so soon as the harvests of that kingdom should be garnered.

Sluy's was surrendered at last, and the great enterprise seemed opening
from hour to hour. During the months of autumn; upon the very days when
those loving messages, mixed with gentle reproaches, were sent by
Alexander to Elizabeth, and almost at the self-same hours in which honest
Andrew de Loo was getting such head-aches by drinking the Queen's health
with Cosimo, and Champagny, the Duke and Philip were interchanging
detailed information as to the progress of the invasion. The King
calculated that by the middle of September Alexander would have 30,000
men in the Netherlands ready for embarcation.--Marquis Santa Cruz was