all the
sums of money which Austria owed her. Francis I., on hearing, at
Pizzighittone, these proposals read out, suddenly drew his sword as if to
stab himself, saying, "It were better for a king to end thus." His
custodian, Alancon, seized his arm, whilst recalling him to his senses.
Francis recovered calmness, but without changing his resolution; he would
rather, he said, bury himself in a prison forever than subscribe to
conditions destructive of his kingdom, and such as the States General of
France would never accept. When Francis I. was removed to Spain he had
made only secondary concessions as to these requirements of Charles V.,
and Charles V. had not abandoned any one of his original requirements.
Marshal de Montmorency, when sent by the king to the emperor on the 2d of
July, 1525, did not enter at all into the actual kernel of the
negotiation; after some conventional protestations of a pacific kind, he
confined himself to demanding "a safe conduct for Madame Marguerite of
France, the king's only sister, Duchess of Alencon and Berry, who would
bring with her such and so full powers of treating for peace, the
liberation of the king, and friendly alliance to secure the said peace,
that the emperor would clearly see that the king's intentions were pure
and genuine, and that he would be glad to conclude and decide in a month
what might otherwise drag on for a long while to the great detriment of
their subjects." The marshal was at the same time to propose the
conclusion of a truce during the course of the negotiations.

Amongst the letters at that time addressed to Francis I., a prisoner of
war, is the following, dated March, 1525, when he was still in Italy:--

"My lord, the joy we are still feeling at the kind letters which you
were pleased to write yesterday to me and to your mother, makes us
so happy with the assurance of your health, on which our life
depends, that it seems to me that we ought to think of nothing but
of praising God and desiring a continuance of your good news, which
is the best meat we can have to live on. And inasmuch as the
Creator bath given us grace that our trinity should be always
united, the other two do entreat you that this letter, presented to
you, who are the third, may be accepted with the same affection with
which it is cordially offered you by your most humble and most
obedient servants, your mother and sister--
LO