The Elegant Combat, Letter 1 – Letter 2
A Letter of Mounſeiur Du Moulin to Mounſeiur De Balzac.
SIR,
I HaueHave receiued the booke which out of your fauour it hath pleaſed you to ſend vntounto mee, which you could not hauehave giuen to any Man that did more eſteeme it, or leſſe deſerve it, for although I finde my ſelfe one of the moſt vnworthy to come into your remembrance, yet I am one of the firſt that doe extoll your Vertue, by which you have attained to the height of the Art of Eloquence, and drawing the Bridge after you hauehave with admiration left Deſpaire vntounto Poſterity. In the deſcription of Eloquence which the Ancients thought to hauehave no being but in Fancy, you hauehave made an entire body, and hauehave demonſtrated that a man of theſe times may out goe them, the force and dexterity of your Spirit hauing exceeded their imagination, you delight the vnderſtanding and inſtruct it, and hauehave ioyned two things rarely ſociable, beauty with ſolidity. This is one of the belſſings of this Age to have bred a Man that in effect hath ſhewed how farre that Eloquence may goe. But of this I had rather ſpeake to others than your ſelfe, who without affecting praiſe are content to merit it, and which followeth you ſo much the cloſer, by how much the leſſe you ſearch it, ſo that hee muſt borrow your pen who worthily would praiſe it, and I aſſure you that for the exerciſing of it you hauehave made choice of a ſubiect proportionable to your wit. For as the things done by the King could not bee performed by any other then himſelfe, ſo could not they hauehave worthily been written by any other then by you, you inſult eſpecially on our miſeries, but in that you are not to bee blamed, becauſe you write according to your vnderſtanding, and that without this draught of your pencill the Kings picture could not bee perfected, whom though God hath imployed to humble vsus, yet hath not his maieſty forgotten our ancient ſeruices, nor is hee ignorant how that the late King his Father of glorious memory found no refuge in time of his affliction but among our Churches. Would you be offended Sir, if I ſhould ſay, that it ſeemes to me, that God hath preſented you another Subiect worthy of your excellent Wit, that is the proweſſe and the happy ſucceſſe of the King of Sweden for ſinee the King whom you hauehave drawne out in ſo rich colours cannot ſatisfy himſelfe to heare himſelfe but praiſed, you ſhall follow his inclinations in drawing the portraict of another King that emulates his Vertues, meane while your worke ſhall be to me not only a proofe of your ſufficiency, but alſo a pledge of your Bounty, and ſeeing it among my other bookes, I ſhall almoſt begin to think my ſelfe ſomebody, becauſe in ſending it to me, you teſtifie that you hauehave ſome good opinion of me, which ſhall obliege me to wiſh your proſperity and to remaine,
Your moſt humble and affectionate ſeruant. Du Moulin.
The Letter of Mounſeiur De Balzac to Mounſeiur Du Moulin.
SIR, There is no modeſty that can reſiſt the praiſes that come from you, and I ſhould diſſemble if I ſhould not acknowledge that I tooke pleaſure to ſuffer my ſelfe to be corrupted by the firſt lines of your letter, but I muſt know my ſelfe a great deale leſſe then I doe to remaine long in that errour; A Man after he hath had a pleaſant dream awaketh, and I ſee well that after you have ſpoken ſo advantageouſly of my labour, you have not vſed all the ſeuerity of your iudgement, fauour you hauehave done me rather then iuſtice, and have ſought to oblige me though with the hazard of offending truth, your ſelfe being theformoſt you encourage thoſe that are in the race with your hand and voyce, and to perſwade them to follow you, you make them beleeve they ſhall outgoe you. Lo here in good earneſt an admirable Artifice, and which I had not diſcouered at the firſt bluſh, But whatſoeuer it be, or from what principle ſoever this glorious approbation comes to me, I doe no leſſe eſteem it then an ambitious man would doe a crowne, and without penetrating into your deſigne I rejoyce in myfortune. It is no ſmal thing Sir, to be beloved of you whom I have alwayes perfectly eſteemed, and hauehave now a long time marked of the Huguenots party, as an excellent pilot who dares braue a whole fleet out of a Cockeboat, we hauehave the Right and the Authority, but you hauehave the Addreſſe and the Stratagems, and are no leſſe confident of your courage then wee are of our cauſe. Certaine it is that thereby you may giuegive to a Sedition the apparence of a juſt warre, and to a multitude of Mutineeres the face of a well diſciplin'd army, thereby you make pleaſing to many people an opinion that hath loſt the grace of novelty, and although it leaneth towards a downefall, wee muſt confeſſe it hath both lineaments and complexion in your writings, and that neuer any man did ſo cunningly couer weakeneſſe or hold vp ruines with finer force
Si Pergamadextrâ
Defendi poſsint etiam bâc defenſa fuiſſent:
The Towne of Troy from being made a Graue
This arme of thine if any Arme could ſaue.
I vſe alwaies this language when there is occaſion to ſpeake of you, nor doe I take any part at all with the paſſions of the vulgar, who conſerue not the liberty of their owne, iudgement, and know neither the faults of their owne nor the vertues of ſtrangers. Forme out of what cloude ſoeuer the Day comes forth, it ſeemeth beautifull, and I aſſure my ſelfe that at Rome the better part did praiſe Hanniball, and none but plebeians ſpoke opprobiouſly of him. For it is a kind of ſacrilege to bereaue whomſoeuer it be of the gifts of God, and if I did not confeſſe that you had receiued much, I ſhould thinke my ſelfe iniurious to him who had given you much, and in a different cauſe ſhould offend our common Benefactor. It is true that ſometimes I hauehave not flattered your party, and hauehave beene a little moued againſt the Authors of theſe late tumults, but hauing obſerued in your bookes that our opinions were agreeable, and that ſubiection due vntounto a Soueraigne did make vp a part of that religion which you teach, I thought I might ſpeake with your conſent that which I hauehave already ſaid, and that in this I was but your ſimple interpreter. Be the Tempeſt begotten by the North or by the South, it is equally odious to me, and I take not counſaile in what concernes my duty either of England or of Spaine. My humour is not to fight againſt the times, nor to oppoſe my ſelfe againſt things preſent, it is paine, to mee to conceiue onelyonly the Idaea of Cato or of Brutus, and being to liue vnderunder the power of another I finde no vettue more conuenient then obedience. If I were a Swiſſe I could be content to be the Kings compere, and would not be his ſubiect nor change my liberty for the beſt maſter in the world. But ſince God hath made me to be borne in chaines I beare them willingly, and ſeeing they are neither rude nor heauy I will not mar my teeth in trying how to break them. It ſeemes that Heauen approueth a gouernment which it hath maintained by the ſucceſſion of twelue hundred yeares, an Euil which had ſo long continued might in ſome ſort become lawfull, and if the Age of men bee venerable that of ſtates is holy. Thoſe great ſpirits which I hauehave deſigned in my worke, and which you hauehave had of your party ought to hauehave come in the beginning of the world, to hauehave giuen lawes to new people, and to hauehave trauaild in the eſtabliſhment of policy. But as it is neceſſary to inuent good things, ſocertainely it is moſt dangerous to goe about to change euen euill ones themſelves. I hauehave no cruell thoughts Sir but thoſe onelyonly that concerne the cheifes of your party. I treate in a manner as an enemy, and I care not for inſulting on your miſeries, as you ciuilly reproach me, I who hauehave written that the King ſhould be bleſſed of all the world if after hauing ſuppreſt the pride of Rebells he did not inſult on the misfortune of the afflicted. The perſecutors of thoſe who ſubmit themſelues are in like execration with me as the deſtroyers of tombes, neither hauehave I onelyonly pitty of affliction, in ſome ſort I hauehave it in reuerence. I know that heretofore men conſecrated places that were ſtricken with thunder, the finger of God was reſpected in the perſon of the miſerable, and great adverſities doe rather worke Religion then receiue reproaches. But ſo to ſtile the good ſucceſſe of the Kings armes were to ſpeake improperly, wee hauehave all gained in his Victory, all the paine that hath beene impoſed vponupon yours hath beene to make you as happy as our ſelues, and they are now poſſeſſors and enioyers of that ſecurity of which they were but amorous & iealous before their townes were taken. Our Prince will put no yoake on the conſciences of his ſubiects, hee will not hauehave that receiued by force which cannot be well receiued but by perſwaſion, nor vſe thoſe remedies againſt the French which were good againſt the Moores. If the King of Sweden doth ſo vſe his proſperity, and doth not defile ſo pure a Grace by puniſhments and proſcriptions, I promiſe you to doe that which you hauehave deſired of me, and to imploy all my Art and Vtenſils to erect him a ſtatue. This is iuſt to touch my inclination to pray me to praiſe that prince, when ſhould all the Crownes which are imbroidered on his Scarfe bee changed into ſo many kingdomes, they would not be ſufficient (me thinks) to recompence ſo rare a Vertue or to imploy ſo vaſt a Spirit. As I expect nothing but Greatneſſe from his valour, ſo I hope for nothing but Goodneſſe from his Vertue. And although ſome hauehave declared in Spaine that hee is the very AntiChriſt, yet I am neither ſo deuout to beleeue that newes, nor ſo fearefull to bee afraid thereof. OnelyOnly I ſay vntounto Scrupulous Men who aske mee thereabouts, that in the meane time our King hath there a Second that ſerues him well and that no Man could preſent vntounto the houſe of Auſtria a Demurre that could diuert him more from ſtudying on our affaires. Sir, I will paſſe noe farther, Better it is to ſtand at the portall of a holy place then to enter thereinto being vnprepared. Beſides that this diſcourſe is already long enough for the beginning of Acquaintance. Pardon (if you pleaſe) the Contentment which I hauehave in entertaining you, which is the cauſe that I hauehave forgotten both your buſineſſe and my Cuſtome which is not to preach with my friends, but you hauehave giuen mee the Text which I hauehave treated on and I beleeue that you hauing ſuddainly opened the bottome of my heart, and I not diſſembling with you my affections; you wil hereafter take Confidence in my freedome; with which I proteſt vntounto you moſt ſolemnely that I am,
Your moſt humble and affectionate ſeruant. De Balzac.