ROBINSON. ... "'Two hundred thousand pounds sterling, if your Majesty will be pleased to retire out of Silesia, and renounce this enterprise!'
KING. "'Retire out of Silesia? And for money? Do you take me for a beggar! Retire out of Silesia, which has cost me so much treasure and blood in the conquest of it? No, Monsieur, no; that is not to be thought of! If you have no better proposals to make, it is not worth while talking.' These words were accompnnied with threatening gestures and marks of great anger;" considerably staggering to the Two Diplomatic British gentlemen, and of evil omen to Robinson's phantasm of a compliance. Robinson apologetically hums and hahs, flounders through the bad bit of road as he can; flounderingly indicates that he has more to offer.
KING. "'Let us see then (VOYONS), what is there more?'
ROBINSON (with preliminary flourishings and flounderings, yet confidently, as now tabling his best card). ... "'Permitted to offer your Majesty the whole of Austrian Guelderland; lies contiguous to your Majesty's Possessions in the Rhine Country;important completion of these: I am permitted to say, the whole of Austrian Guelderland!' Important indeed: a dirty stripe of moorland (if you look in Busching), about equivalent to half a dozen parishes in Connemara.
KING. "'What do you mean? [turning to Podewils]--QU'EST-CE QUE NOUSMANQUE DE TOUTE LA GUELDRE (How much of Guelderland is theirs, and not ours already)?'
PODEWILS. "'Almost nothing (PRESQUE RIEN).
KING (to Robinson). "'VOICI ENCORE DE GUEUSERIES (more rags and rubbish yet)! QUOI, such a paltry scraping (BICOQUE) as that, for all my just claims in Silesia? Monsieur--!' His Majesty's indignation increased here, all the more as I kept a profound silence during his hot expressions, and did not speak at all except to beg his Majesty's reflection upon what I had said.--'Reflection?'" asks the King, with eyes dangerous to behold;--"My Lord," continues Robinson, heavily narrative, "his contempt of what I had said was so great," kicking his boot through Guelderland and the guilders as the most contemptible of objects, "and was expressed in such violent terms, that now, if ever (as your Lordship perceives), it was time to make the last effort;" play our trump-card down at once; "a moment longer was not to be lost, to hinder the King from dismissing us;" which sad destiny is still too probable, after the trump-card. Trump-card is this:
ROBINSON. ... "'The whole Duchy of Limburg, your Majesty! It is a Duchy which--' I extolled the Duchy to the utmost, described it in the most favorable terms; and added, that 'the Elector Palatine [old Kur-Pfalz, on one occasion] had been willing to give the whole Duchy of Berg for it.'
PODEWILS. "'Pardon, Monsieur: that is not so; the contrary of so;Kur-Pfalz was not ready to give Berg for it!'--[We are not deep in German History, we British Diplomatic gentlemen, who are squandering, now and of old, so much money on it! The Aulic Council, "falls into our arms like dead men;" but it is certain the Elector Palatine was not ready to give Berg in that kind of exchange.]
KING. "'It is inconceivable to me how Austria should dare to think of such a thing. Limburg? Are there not solemn Engagements upon Austria, sanctioned and again sanctioned by all the world, which render every inch of ground in the Netherlands inalienable?'
ROBINSON. "'Engagements good as against the French, your Majesty.
Otherwise the Barrier Treaty, confirmed at Utrecht, was for our behoof and Holland's.'
KING. "'That is your present interpretation, But the French pretend it was an arrangement more in their favor than against them.'
ROBINSON. "'Your Majesty, by a little Engineer Art, could render Limburg impregnable to the French or others.'
KING. "'Have not the least desire to aggrandize myself in those parts, or spend money fortifying there. Useless to me. Am not Ifortifying Brieg and Glogau? These are enough: for one who intends to live well with his neighbors. Neither the Dutch nor the French have offended me; nor will I them by acquisitions in the Netherlands. Besides, who would guarantee them?'
ROBINSON. "'The Proposal is to give guarantees at once.'
KING. "'Guarantees! Who minds or keeps guarantees in this age?
Has not France guaranteed the Pragmatic Sanction; has not England?
Why don't you all fly to the Queen's succor?'"--Robinson, inclined to pout, if he durst, intimates that perhaps there will be succorers one day yet.
KING. "'And pray, Monsieur, who are they?'
ROBINSON. "'Hm, hm, your Majesty. ... Russia, for example, which Power with reference to Turkey--'
KING. "'Good, Sir, good (BEAU, MONSIEUR, BEAU), the Russians! It is not proper to explain myself; but I have means for the Russians'
[a Swedish War just coming upon Russia, to keep its hand in use;so diligent have the French been in that quarter!].
ROBINSON (with some emphasis, as a Britannic gentleman). "'Russia is not the only Power that has engagements with Austria, and that must keep them too! So that, however averse to a breach--'
KING ("laying his finger on his nose," mark him;--aloud, and with such eyes). "'No threats, Sir, if you please! No threats' ["in a loud voice," finger to nose, and with such eyes looking in upon me].
HYNDFORD (heavily coming to the rescue). "'Am sure his Excellency is far from such meaning, Sire. His Excellency will advance nothing so very contrary to his Instructions.'--Podewils too put in something proper" in the appeasing way.
ROBINSON. "'Sire, I am not talking of what this Power or that means to do; but of what will come of itself. To prophesy is not to threaten, Sire! It is my zeal for the Public that brought me hither; and--'