virtue sufficiently high upon his prince.

'Sirs,' he said, 'daily have I seen this King in ten years, and I do
tell ye no man knoweth how the King loves kingcraft as I know.' He
nodded again to Lascelles, whose small stature seemed to gain bulk,
whose thin voice seemed to gain volume from this approval and from his
'Speak on. About Cleves.'

'Sirs,' Lascelles spoke again, 'whiles there remains the shade of a
chance that Cleves' Duke shall lead the princes of Germany against the
Emperor and France, assuredly the King shall stay his longing for the
Lady Katharine. He shall stay firm in his marriage with the Queen.'
Again Cromwell nodded. 'Till then it booteth little to move towards a
divorce; but if that day should come, then our Lord Privy Seal must
bethink himself. That is in our lord's mind.'

'By Bacchus!' Cromwell said, 'your Grace of Canterbury hath a jewel in
your crony and helper. And again I say, we must wait upon Cleves.' He
seemed to pursue the sunbeams along the gallery, then returned to say:

'I know ye know I love little to speak my mind. What I think or how I
will act I keep to myself. But this I will tell you:' Cleves might
have two minds in sending to France an envoy. On the one hand, he
might be minded to abandon Henry and make submission to the Emperor
and to Rome. For, in the end, was not the Duke of Cleves a vassal of
the Emperor? It might be that. Or it might be that he was sending
merely to ask the King of France to intercede betwixt him and his
offended lord. The Emperor was preparing to wage war upon Cleves. That
was known. And doubtless Cleves, desiring to retain his friendship
with Henry, might have it in mind to keep friends with both. There
the matter hinged, Cromwell repeated. For, if Cleves remained loyal to
the King of England, Henry would hear nothing of divorcing Cleves'
sister, and would master his desire for Katharine.

'Believe me when I speak,' Cromwell added earnestly. 'Ye do wrong to
think of this King as a lecher after the common report. He is a man
very continent for a king. His kingcraft cometh before all women. If
the Duke of Cleves be firm friend to him, firm friend he will be to
the Duke's sister. The Lady Howard will be his friend, but the Lady
Howard will be neither his leman nor his guide to Rome. He will please
her if he may. But his kingcraft. Never!' He broke off and laughed
noiselessly at the Archbishop's face of dismay. 'Your Grace would make
a pact with Rome?' h