"Be pleased, dear sir, to open the book at 'Wilt thou have,'" said
I. "The lady is a Catholic; she has not the consent of her people;
but when she is my wife, made so by you, whose consent need we ask?
Can you not tie us fast enough, a man and woman of sense sufficient,
but you must pause here? Is the knot you tie safe against picking
and stealing?"
I had touched his vanity and his ecclesiasticism. "Married by me,"
he replied, "once chaplain to the Bishop of London, you have a
knot that no sword can cut. I am in full orders. My parish is in
Boston itself."
"You will hand a certificate to my wife to-morrow, and you will
uphold this marriage against all gossip?" asked I.
"Against all France and all England," he answered, roused now.
"Then come," I urged.
"But I must have a witness," he interposed, opening the book.
"You shall have one in due time," said I. "Go on. When the
marriage is performed, and at the point where you shall proclaim
us man and wife, I will have a witness."
I turned to Alixe, and found her pale and troubled. "Oh, Robert,
Robert!" she cried, "it can not be.
Pages:
382
383
384
385
386
387
388
389
390
391
392
393
394
395
396
397
398
399
400
401
402
403
404
405
406