put his horse to the gallop to join the
duke, escorted on either side by d'Enna and Michelotto. Caesar, on
seeing him, called him, took him by the hand, and continued his march to
the palace that had been prepared for him, his four victims following
after.

Arrived on the threshold, Caesar dismounted, and signing to the leader of
the men-at-arms to, await his orders, he went in first, followed by
Oliverotto, Gravina, Vitellozzo Vitelli, and Orsino, each accompanied by
his two satellites; but scarcely had they gone upstairs and into the
first room when the door was shut behind them, and Caesar turned round,
saying, "The hour has come!" This was the signal agreed upon. Instantly
the former confederates were seized, thrown down, and forced to surrender
with a dagger at their throat. Then, while they were being carried to a
dungeon, Caesar opened the window, went out on the balcony and cried out
to the leader of his men-at-arms, "Go forward!" The man was in the
secret, he rushed on with his band towards the barracks where
Oliverotto's soldiers had just been consigned, and they, suddenly
surprised and off their guard, were at once made prisoners; then the
duke's troops began to pillage the town, and he summoned Macchiavelli.

Caesar and the Florentine envoy were nearly two hours shut up together,
and since Macchiavelli himself recounts the history of this interview, we
will give his own words.

"He summoned me," says the Florentine ambassador, "and in the calmest
manner showed me his joy at the success of this enterprise, which he
assured me he had spoken of to me the evening before; I remember that he
did, but I did not at that time understand what he meant; next he
explained, in terms of much feeling and lively affection for our city,
the different motives which had made him desire your alliance, a desire
to which he hopes you will respond. He ended with charging me to lay
three proposals before your lordships: first, that you rejoice with him
in the destruction at a single blow of the mortal enemies of the king,
himself, and you, and the consequent disappearance of all seeds of
trouble and dissension likely to waste Italy: this service of his,
together with his refusal to allow the prisoners to march against you,
ought, he thinks, to excite your gratitude towards him; secondly, he begs
that you will at this juncture give him a striking proof of your
friendliness, by urging your cavalry's advance towards Borgo, and