Page:Czecho-Slovak Student Life, Volume 18.djvu/292
BALD.: God bless you, my son, and the purpose of thy journey! The intercession of Blessed Mary be with thee, that safely thou mayest return with the happy news of peace. Be thou not the crow that returneth not, but the white dove returning with the olive branch of peace. (Kenneth kneels for blessing, then exit.)
PHIL.: Now, friends, let us each depart to his contigent to prepare against an unfavorable answer. (Exeunt all, except Baldwin and Leopold.)
BALD.: Why so sad and downcast, my Lord? Methinks that, thanks to God, we have much reason to rejoice, considering that Tyre, Tripole, and this fair city of Acre are in our possession. And Jerusalem itself, God willing, shall soon be in our hands. In truth I say, there is much reason for joy.
LEO.: Aye, my lord archbishop, I am not unmindful of this. But other thoughts mar the pleasing aspect of the picture you draw. You, Your Grace, are a prince of the Church, and your one thought, surpassing every other consideration, is the liberation of the Holy Land, and the prosperity of the Holy Church in the sacred places of Palestine. But with us temporal princes this crusader’s zeal is not so pure and impersonal, I know the generosity and single-mindedness of Your Grace’s heart; therefore I speak freely. The question of honor, of fame, of respect and rank lies too deep in the heart of a knight and prince to be so easily set aside. I am, I think, a true crusader. I have made my vow eagerly, and I shall not lightly forgo the pledge. But still, my lord, I am a man, a knight, and a prince. Think you, that I can bear meekly and silently the arrogant assumptions and the insolent pride of Richard? He is a knight, and so am I; he is a crusader, and so am I; he is a king, and so am I a prince. My ducal sway is as great as his insular power. Yet he treats me, as well as all the chiefs, as if we were, not his equals, but his very vassals. I have borne it with patience this many a week; but, my lord, I know not whether my patience will outlast his insolence.
BALD.: My dear prince, I do perceive that you have good and reasonable grounds for your grievances. Yet, I beseech you, by the cгoss upon your shoulder to refrain from any acts which might disrupt the newly established harmony of the league. Richard, I am regretful to admit, is proud, impetuous, and intolerant of counsel and superiority; yet withal, he is a brave and true knight, an honorable and zealous crusader. I speak thus, not as his subject, but as a member of our common alliance.
LEO.: My lord archbishop, your words have moved me. I shall remember them, and try to profit by them. Yet I fear that Richard’s usurping ambition may prove too much for the spirit of toleration of our leaders. I am not the only one to complain, you must recollect; there are others, especially Conrad of Montserrat and the Templar.
BALD.: Aye indeed, my lord; these, God pity us, are more the enemies of Richard than the friends of our cause. I know that Conrad only with the greatest reluctance has joined our cause; for he is greatly disappointed over the quarrel with Guy de Lusighan concerning the succession to the throne of Jerusalem. And the Templar, I say it with great sorrow, is as unscrupulous as he is ambitious.
LEO.: Therefore it the more behooveth the King of England to be a little more chary of his claims to first honors, and yield to his equals in rank somewhat more of what is their due.—But farewell, my lord; I have urgent business in our camp. God give you good day. (Exit.)
BALD.: There goes a true knight, but a proud prince. Lucifer, the prince of angels, fell because he stumbled on his pride. Leopold, thou art a princely man, but beware that thy pride be not thy stumbling stone. Thou wouldst not, I know, hesitate to strike thy way thru an army of infidels to rescue the Holy Cross from dishonor: yet thou wouldst, I greatly fear, as quickly strike at a Christian prince to avenge