of immense advantage to England. The queen acknowledged that the Dutch
Navy had averted the storm which threatened to descend upon her kingdom
out of Spain, the Spanish ships destined for the coast of Ireland having
been dispersed and drawn to the other aide of the world by these
demonstrations of her ally. For this she vowed that she would be
eternally grateful, and she said as much in "letters full of sugar and
honey"--according to the French envoy--which she sent to the States by
Sir Francis Vere. She protested, in short, that she had been better and
more promptly served in her necessities by the Netherlands than by her
own subjects.

All this sugar and honey however did not make the mission of Envoy
Edmonds less bitter to the States. They heard that he was going about
through half the cities of the obedient Netherlands in a sort of
triumphal procession, and it was the general opinion of the politicians
and financiers of the continent that peace between Spain and England was
as good as made. Naturally therefore, notwithstanding the exuberant
expressions of gratitude on the part of Elizabeth, the republican
Government were anxious to know what all this parleying meant. They
could not believe that people would make a raree-show of the English
envoy except for sufficient reason. Caron accordingly presented himself
before the queen, with respectful inquiries on the subject. He found her
in appearance very angry, not with him, but with Edmonds, from whom she
had received no advices. "I don't know what they are doing with him,"
said her Majesty, "I hear from others that they are ringing the church
bells wherever he goes, and that they have carried him through a great
many more places than was necessary. I suppose that they think him a
monster, and they are carrying him about to exhibit him. All this is
done," she continued, "to throw dust in the eyes of the poor people, and
to put it into their heads that the Queen of England is suing for peace,