CHAPTER VI

THE door giving upon the great corridor opened. One said, "The King, Madam!" King Ferdinand entered quietly, in the sober fashion of a sober and able man. He was cool and balanced, true always to his own conception of his own dues. The Queen rose and stepped to meet him. They spoke¹, standing² together, after which he handed her to her chair and took beside her the other great chair which the pages had swiftly placed. After greeting his daughter and the Archbishop he looked across to the painter. "Master Manuel Rodriguez, good day!"

There fell a moment of sun-drenched quiet in which they all sat for their picture. Then said the King, "Madam, we are together, and here are those who have been our chief advisers³ in this affair of discoveries. Master Christopherus is below. We noted⁴ him in the court. Let us have him here and see this too-long-dragging matter finished! Once for all abate⁵ his demands, or once for all let him go!"

They sent a page. Again there was sunny silence, then in at the door came the tall, muscular, gray-eyed, silver-haired man whom I had met the day King Boabdil surrendered Granada.

He made reverence⁶ to the Queen and the King and to the Archbishop. It was the Queen who spoke to him and that gently.

"Master Christopherus, we have had a thousand businesses, and so our matter here has waited and waited. Today comes unaware⁷ this quiet hour and we will give it to you. Here with us are the Archbishop and others who have been our counsellors, and here is Don Alonzo de Quintantella who hath always stood your friend. In all the hurly-burly we yet took time, two days ago, to sit in council and come to conclusion. And now we give you our determination. In all reason it should give you joy!" She smiled upon him. "How many years since first you laid your plan before us?"

He answered her in a deep voice, thrilling and crowded with feeling. "Seven years, Madam your Highness! Like an infant laid at your feet. And winter has blown upon it, and sunshine carrying hope has walked around it, and then again the cold wind rises—"

The King spoke. "Master Christopherus, in war much else has to cease! In much we have had to find patience, and you have to find it."

"My lord King, yes!" replied the tall man. "It is eighteen years since in Lisbon, looking upon the sea one day, I said to myself, 'Is there a question that is not to be answered? This ocean is to be crossed. Then why do not I cross it? There is Cipango, Cathay and India! Gold and spices are there, and here lie ships, and between, when all is said, is only sea! God made the sea to be sailed! Yonder they worship idols⁸, here we worship Christ. There are idols, here is Christ. Once a Christopherus carried Christ across water!' Eighteen years ago. I said, 'I can do it!' I say it to-day, my lord and my lady. I can do it!"

Of the seated great ones only the Queen's spirit appeared to answer his. He seemed to enchant⁹ her, to take her with him. But the King's cool face regarded him with something like dislike. He spoke in an edged voice. "Saint Christopher asked no great wage. That is the point, Master Christopherus, so let us to it! At last the Queen and I say 'We agree' to this enterprise, which may bring forth¹⁰ fruit or may not, or may mean mere¹¹ empty loss of ships and men and of our monies! Yet we say 'yea.' But we do not say 'yea ', Master Christopherus, to the too great ferry fee which you ask! I say 'ask', but verily the tone is of command!"

The man whom they called Master Christopherus made a slow, wide gesture of deprecation. The Archbishop took the word. "Too much! You ask a hundred times too much! I must say to you that it is unchristianly arrogance¹². You talk like a soldan!" An assenting¹³ murmur¹⁴ came from the other ecclesiastics¹⁵.

The Queen spoke. "Master Christopherus, if it be a great thing to do, is not the doing it and thereby¹⁶ blessing¹⁷ yourself no less than others—is not that reward? Not that Castile shall deny you reward, no! Trust me that if you bring us the key of India you shall not find us niggardly¹⁸! But we and they who advise us stumble at your prescribing wealth, honors and gifts that they say truly are better fitting a great prince! Trust us for enrichment and for honor do you come back with the great thing done! Leave it all now to Time that brings to pass. So you will be clearer to go forth to the blessed carrying of Christ!"

She spoke earnestly, a Queen, but with much about her of womanly, motherly sweetness. I saw that she greatly liked the man and somewhere met his spirit. But the King was gathering¹⁹ hardness. He spoke to a secretary standing behind him. "Have you it there written down, the Italian's demand?"

The man produced a paper. "Read!" But before it could be unfolded, Master Christopherus spoke.

"'Italian!' Seven years in Spain and ten in Portugal, and a good while in Porto Santo that belongs to Portugal, a little in England and in Ultima Thule or Iceland, and long, long years upon ships decked and undecked in all the seas that are known—fourteen years, childhood and boyhood, in Genoa and at Pavia where I went to school, and all my years of hope in Christ's Kingdom, and in the uplands of great doers-and your Highness says to me for a slighting word, 'Italian!' I was born in Italy, but to-day, for this turn, King Ferdinand, you should call me 'Spaniard'! As, if King John sends me forth be will call me Portuguese²⁰! Or King Henry will say, 'Christopher the Englishman' or King Charles, to whom verily I see that I may go, shall say, 'Frenchman, to whom all owe the marriage of East and West, but France owes Empire!"'

The King said, "It may be so, or it may not be so, Master Christopherus.—Read!"

The secretary read: The Genoese, Cristoforo Colombo, called in Spain Cristobal Colon²¹, and in the Latin Christopherus Columbus, states and demands in substance as follows: Sailing westward²² he will discover for the King and Queen of the Spains the Indies and Cathay and Cipango, to the great glory and enrichment of these Sovereigns and the passing thereby of Spain ahead of Portugal, and likewise and above all to the great glory of Christ and of Holy Church. He will do this, having seen it clear for many years that it is to be done, and he the instrument. And for the finding by going westward of the said India and all the gain of the world and the Kingdom of God and of our Sovereigns the King Don Ferdinand and the Queen Dona Isabella, he bargaineth thus:

"He shall be named Admiral of the Ocean-Sea, whereby he means the whole water west of the line drawn²³ by the Holy Father for the King of Portugal. He shall be made Viceroy and Governor of all continents and islands that he may discover, claim and occupy for the Sovereigns. And the said Christopherus Columbus's eldest²⁴ son shall hold these offices after him, and the heir of his son, and his heir, down time. He shall be granted one tenth of all gold, pearls, precious stones, spices, or other merchandise found or bought or exchanged within his admiralty and viceroyship, and this tithe²⁵ is likewise to be taken by his heirs from generation to generation. He or one that he shall name shall be judge in all disputes that arise in these continents and islands, so be it that the honor of the Sovereigns of Spain is not touched. He shall have the salary that hath the High Admiral of Castile. He and his family shall be ennobled and henceforth be called Don and Dona. And for the immediate²⁶ sailing of ships he may, if he so desire, be at an eighth of the expense of outfitting²⁷, for which he shall be returned an eighth of all the profit of this the first voyage."

The secretary did not make the terms less sounding by his reading. Wind in leaves, went a stir through the room. I heard a page near me whispering, "O Sancta Maria! The hanger-on, the needy²⁸ one! Since the beginning of time I've seen him at doors, sunny and cloudy days, the big, droning bee!" Manuel Rodriguez painted on. I felt his thought. "I should like to paint you, Admiral of the Ocean-Sea!"

The room recomposed itself. Out of silence came the King's voice, chill and dry. "We abate so vast a claim for so vast reward! But we would be naught²⁹ else but just, and in our ability lavish³⁰. Read now what we will do!"

The secretary read. It had a certain largeness and goodliness, as go rewards for adventure, even for great adventure, what the sovereigns would do. The room thought it should answer. The King spoke, "We can promise no more nor other than this. It contents you, Master Christopherus?"

The long-faced, high-nosed, gray-eyed man answered, "No, my lord King."

"Your own terms or none?"

"Mine or none, your Highness."

The King's voice grew a cutting wind. "To that the Queen and I answer, 'Ours or none!'" Pushing back his chair, he glanced at sun out of window. "It is over. I incline to think that it was at best but an empty vision. You are dismissed, Master Christopherus!"

The Genoese, bowing, stepped backward from the table. In his face and carriage was nothing broken. He kept color. The Queen's glance went after him, "What will you do now, Master Christopherus?"

He answered, "My lady, your Highness, I shall take horse to-morrow for France."

The King said, "France?—King Charles buys ever low, not high!"

The Sovereigns and the great churchmen and the less great went away together. After them flowed the high attendance. All went, Don Enrique among the last. Following him, I turned head, for I wished to observe again two persons, the painter Manuel Rodriguez and the Admiral of the Ocean-Sea. The former painted on. The latter walked forth quite alone, coming behind the grinning pages.

In the court below I saw him again. The archway to street sent toward us a deep wedge of shadow. He had a cloak which he wrapped around him and a large round hat which he drew low over his gray-blue eyes. With a firm step he crossed to the archway where the purple shadow took him.

Juan Lepe must turn to his own part which now must be decided³¹. I walked behind Don Enrique de Cerda through Santa Fe. With him kept Don Miguel de Silva, who loved Don Enrique's sister and would still talk of devoir and of plans, now that the war was ended. When the house was reached he would enter with us and still adhere to Don Enrique. But at the stair foot the latter spoke to the squire³². "Find me in an hour, Juan Lepe. I have something to say to thee!" His tone carried, "Do you think the place there makes any difference? No, by the god of friends!"

I let him go thinking that I would come to him presently. But I, too, had to act under the god of friends. In Diego Lopez's room I found quill³³ and ink and paper, and there I wrote a letter to Don Enrique, and finding Diego gave it to him to be given in two hours into Don Enrique's hand. Then Juan Lepe the squire changed in his own room, narrow and bare as a cell, to the clothing of Juan Lepe the sailor.

1 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

2 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

3 advisers   

顾问，劝告者( adviser的名词复数 )； （指导大学新生学科问题等的）指导教授

参考例句：

• a member of the President's favoured circle of advisers 总统宠爱的顾问班子中的一员
• She withdrew to confer with her advisers before announcing a decision. 她先去请教顾问然后再宣布决定。

4 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

5 abate   

vi.(风势，疼痛等)减弱，减轻，减退

参考例句：

• We must abate the noise pollution in our city.我们必须消除我们城里的噪音污染。
• The doctor gave him some medicine to abate the powerful pain.医生给了他一些药，以减弱那剧烈的疼痛。

6 reverence   

n.敬畏，尊敬，尊严；Reverence:对某些基督教神职人员的尊称；v.尊敬，敬畏，崇敬

参考例句：

• He was a bishop who was held in reverence by all.他是一位被大家都尊敬的主教。
• We reverence tradition but will not be fettered by it.我们尊重传统，但不被传统所束缚。

7 unaware   

a.不知道的，未意识到的

参考例句：

• They were unaware that war was near. 他们不知道战争即将爆发。
• I was unaware of the man's presence. 我没有察觉到那人在场。

8 idols   

偶像( idol的名词复数 )； 受崇拜的人或物； 受到热爱和崇拜的人或物； 神像

参考例句：

• The genii will give evidence against those who have worshipped idols. 魔怪将提供证据来反对那些崇拜偶像的人。 来自英汉非文学 - 文明史
• Teenagers are very sequacious and they often emulate the behavior of their idols. 青少年非常盲从，经常模仿他们的偶像的行为。

9 enchant   

vt.使陶醉，使入迷；使着魔，用妖术迷惑

参考例句：

• The spectacle of the aurora may appear to dazzle and enchant the observer's eyes.极光的壮丽景色的出现,会使观察者为之眩目和迷惑。
• Her paintings possess the power to enchant one if one is fortunate enough to see her work and hear her music.如果你有幸能欣赏她的作品，“聆听”她的音乐，她的作品将深深地迷住你。

10 forth   

adv.向前；向外，往外

参考例句：

• The wind moved the trees gently back and forth.风吹得树轻轻地来回摇晃。
• He gave forth a series of works in rapid succession.他很快连续发表了一系列的作品。

11 mere   

adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过

参考例句：

• That is a mere repetition of what you said before.那不过是重复了你以前讲的话。
• It's a mere waste of time waiting any longer.再等下去纯粹是浪费时间。

12 arrogance   

n.傲慢，自大

参考例句：

• His arrogance comes out in every speech he makes.他每次讲话都表现得骄傲自大。
• Arrogance arrested his progress.骄傲阻碍了他的进步。

13 assenting   

同意，赞成( assent的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• In an assembly, every thing must be done by speaking and assenting. 在一个群集中，任何事情都必须通过发言和同意来进行。
• Assenting to this demands. 对这个要求让步。

14 murmur   

n.低语，低声的怨言；v.低语，低声而言

参考例句：

• They paid the extra taxes without a murmur.他们毫无怨言地交了附加税。
• There was a low murmur of conversation in the hall.大厅里有窃窃私语声。

15 ecclesiastics   

n.神职者，教会，牧师( ecclesiastic的名词复数 )

参考例句：

16 thereby   

adv.因此，从而

参考例句：

• I have never been to that city,,ereby I don't know much about it.我从未去过那座城市，因此对它不怎么熟悉。
• He became a British citizen,thereby gaining the right to vote.他成了英国公民，因而得到了投票权。

17 blessing   

n.祈神赐福；祷告；祝福，祝愿

参考例句：

• The blessing was said in Hebrew.祷告用了希伯来语。
• A double blessing has descended upon the house.双喜临门。

18 niggardly   

adj.吝啬的，很少的

参考例句：

• Forced by hunger,he worked for the most niggardly pay.为饥饿所迫，他为极少的工资而工作。
• He is niggardly with his money.他对钱很吝啬。

19 gathering   

n.集会，聚会，聚集

参考例句：

• He called on Mr. White to speak at the gathering.他请怀特先生在集会上讲话。
• He is on the wing gathering material for his novels.他正忙于为他的小说收集资料。

20 Portuguese   

n.葡萄牙人；葡萄牙语

参考例句：

• They styled their house in the Portuguese manner.他们仿照葡萄牙的风格设计自己的房子。
• Her family is Portuguese in origin.她的家族是葡萄牙血统。

21 colon   

n.冒号，结肠，直肠

参考例句：

• Here,too,the colon must be followed by a dash.这里也是一样，应当在冒号后加破折号。
• The colon is the locus of a large concentration of bacteria.结肠是大浓度的细菌所在地。

22 westward   

n.西方，西部；adj.西方的，向西的；adv.向西

参考例句：

• We live on the westward slope of the hill.我们住在这座山的西山坡。
• Explore westward or wherever.向西或到什么别的地方去勘探。

23 drawn   

v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的

参考例句：

• All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
• Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。

24 eldest   

adj.最年长的，最年老的

参考例句：

• The King's eldest son is the heir to the throne.国王的长子是王位的继承人。
• The castle and the land are entailed on the eldest son.城堡和土地限定由长子继承。

25 tithe   

n.十分之一税；v.课什一税，缴什一税

参考例句：

• It's not Christ plus your tithe.这不是基督再加上你的什一税。
• The bible tells us that the tithe is the lords.圣经说十分之一是献给主的。

26 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

27 outfitting   

v.装备，配置设备，供给服装( outfit的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The outfitting installation activities carried out on the building berth or dock. 舾装在船台上或船钨内完成。 来自互联网
• There is so much outfitting work. Do you subcontract some of them? 有这么多的舾装工作要做，你们将工程分包出去吗？ 来自互联网

28 needy   

adj.贫穷的，贫困的，生活艰苦的

参考例句：

• Although he was poor,he was quite generous to his needy friends.他虽穷，但对贫苦的朋友很慷慨。
• They awarded scholarships to needy students.他们给贫苦学生颁发奖学金。

29 naught   

n.无，零 [=nought]

参考例句：

• He sets at naught every convention of society.他轻视所有的社会习俗。
• I hope that all your efforts won't go for naught.我希望你的努力不会毫无结果。

30 lavish   

adj.无节制的；浪费的；vt.慷慨地给予，挥霍

参考例句：

• He despised people who were lavish with their praises.他看不起那些阿谀奉承的人。
• The sets and costumes are lavish.布景和服装极尽奢华。

31 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

32 squire   

n.护卫, 侍从, 乡绅

参考例句：

• I told him the squire was the most liberal of men.我告诉他乡绅是世界上最宽宏大量的人。
• The squire was hard at work at Bristol.乡绅在布里斯托尔热衷于他的工作。

33 quill   

n.羽毛管；v.给（织物或衣服）作皱褶

参考例句：

• He wrote with a quill.他用羽毛笔写字。
• She dipped a quill in ink,and then began to write.她将羽毛笔在墨水里蘸了一下，随后开始书写。