His Majesty had no intention of refusing to give up the sovereignty of the provinces.  On the contrary, they were instructed to concede that sovereignty freely and frankly to my lords the States-General—­a pearl and a precious jewel, the like of which no prince had ever given away before.  Yet the king desired neither gold nor silver, neither cities nor anything else of value in exchange.  He asked only for that which was indispensable to the tranquillity of his conscience before God, to wit, the re-establishment in those countries of the Catholic Apostolic Roman religion.  This there could surely be no reasons for refusing.  They owed it as a return for the generosity of the king, they owed it to their own relatives, they owed it to the memory of their ancestors, not to show greater animosity to the ancient religion than to the new and pernicious sect of Anabaptists, born into the world for the express purpose of destroying empires; they owed it to their many fellow-citizens, who would otherwise be driven into exile, because deprived of that which is dearest to humanity.

In regard to the East India navigation, inasmuch as the provinces had no right whatever to it, and as no other prince but the sovereign of Spain had any pretensions to it, his Majesty expected that the States would at once desist from it.

This was the magnificent result of twenty months of diplomacy.  As the king’s father had long ago flung away the pearl and precious jewel which the son now made a merit of selling to its proprietors at the price of their life’s blood—­the world’s commerce—­it is difficult to imagine that Richardot, while communicating thin preposterous ultimatum, could have kept his countenance.  But there were case-hardened politicians on both sides.  The proposition was made and received with becoming seriousness, and it was decided by the States’ commissioners to make no answer at all on that occasion.  They simply promised to render their report to the States-General, who doubtless would make short work with the matter.

They made their report and it occasioned a tumult.  Every member present joined in a general chorus of wrathful denunciation.  The Spanish commissioners were infamous swindlers, it was loudly asserted.  There should be no more dealings with them at all.  Spain was a power only to be treated with on the battle-field.  In the tempest of general rage no one would listen to argument, no one asked which would be the weaker, which the stronger party, what resources for the renewed warfare could be founds or who would be the allies of the republic.  Hatred, warlike fury and scorn at the duplicity with which they had been treated, washed every more politic sentiment away, and metamorphosed that body of burghers as in an instant.  The negotiations should be broken off, not on one point, but on all points, and nothing was left but to prepare instantly for war.  Three days later, after the French and English ambassadors, as well as Prince Maurice and