Page:History of England (Froude) Vol 11.djvu/395

 1583.] EXPULSION OF MENDOZA 379 naturally restless. The ships from Spain were long in coming, and to employ the time he sent Charles Pa get privately across the Channel to arrange with his friends the exact spot where Mayenne should land, and to re- move at the same time any lingering alarm which they might feel of danger to English liberty, by assuring them that he and his brother were coming over merely and simply to re-establish the faith of Christ, and make Mary Stuart Queen ; l that when these objects were ob- tained both French and Spaniards were to withdraw from the country, and that if the Spaniards hesitated he was prepared to compel them. The murder scheme had failed. The unknown per- son whom Guise had employed had gone to England for the purpose, but had made no progress, and at last gave up the business, returned ineffectually to the Con- tinent, and with a rare conscience for an assassin re- stored his reward. 2 Mendoza concluded with a siffh 1 ' Y para poner la Reyna de Es- cocia pacifica de la corona dc Ingla- terra, la cual de derecho le per- tenesce.' Instructions of the Duke of Guise to Charles Paget, August 18 28: TEULET, vol. v. These in- structions were not intended for Philip's eye. De Tassis however copied, translated, and sent them to him. He underlined the words re- ferring to the Queen of Scots, writing on the margin an ' Ojo,' to draw special attention to them. He was not at all sure after all that he wished Mary Stuart to be Queen. He was quite certain that he did not mean Jaines to be King. He knew that Guise aspired on the failure of the House of Valois to the French crown. Guise, if a Catholic, was a Frenchman, and it was of as much importance to Philip to divide Eng- land from France as it was to Eliza- beth to keep France apart from Spain. 2 ' A la persona que escrivi a V. S. en mis antecedentes se le ha or- denado por un caso accidental no vaya adonde esta la otra, por lo cual el ha vuelto a dar lo que se le habia entregado, diciendo que no quiere enganar a nadie, pues falta ocnsion,