"Salisbury occasionally writes to me, Sire," said Peter, with an embarrassed manner.
"Well, what has he written about us?"
"I received his letter a few days since," replied the prelate, drawing a parchment from his bosom; "it contains a dissertation upon the present condition of the Church, and particularly upon your designs. But it tells me no more than your Majesty himself has just stated, still I was unwilling to believe it."
"Speak!"
"You will it so; make up your mind then to listen to some bitter truths.--
"Led astray by the principles of the Justinian Code, Frederic dreams of the renewal of the brilliant Roman empire in its complete and most deceitful form. Either he does not understand the great Christian Empire, or it is insufficient to gratify his pride. He has less desire to be the protector of the Church than to be her master. The Pope must steer St. Peter's boat according to the Emperor's will; the bishops must be nothing but abbots of the Empire, and religion must be subordinate to the ends which the Government proposes. As he has destroyed the free life of the Church, so does he subvert the liberties of the people. Instead of preserving the ancient manners and customs of his people as is his duty, his plan contemplates the reorganizing of everything. If this Emperor ever succeeds in his designs, it will be by the abolition of all independence. Still, what prince could be compared with Frederic before he became a tyrant, and from a Catholic Emperor degenerated into a schismatic?'"
Frederic heard this discourse with marked astonishment, and more than once was on the point of interrupting; at last, at the word schismatic, he colored with anger, and exclaimed,--
"Enough! the letter of this learned personage is full of exaggerations! The name of schismatic cast in our teeth seems to be looked upon as an excuse for everything.--Because Victor's humility seemed to us more worthy of the Holy See than Roland's pride, we are called the destroyer of Church liberty!"
"Pardon me, Sire, it is my duty to say a few words in reply," remarked Peter. "You speak of Victor's humility, but Victor is, after all, your creature; a plaything which your breath sends whither it will; a puppet which you have chosen to obey all your caprices:--And should Victor be the supreme Head of Christendom?"
Barbarossa was confused by such language. The old man's frankness, his calmness and dignity, obliged him to listen. There was no animation in his manner, but his clear voice sorrowfully expressed his feeling of duty.