Page:History of England (Froude) Vol 9.djvu/372

 358 REIGN OF ELIZABETH. [CH. 55 La Mothe was obliged to tell her that Catherine Grey was beyond the reach of diplomatic schemings ; and meanwhile Elizabeth herself continued to allude to the subject of her own marriage. Her husband, she said, if ever she took a husband, should belong to one of the reigning families of Europe ; and at last she directly mentioned the Duke to La Mothe as a person on whom her mind had been resting. La Mothe was still unable to believe her serious ; he suspected, like the Queen-mother, that she was trying merely to separate France from the Queen of Scots or create jealousies between France and Spain. Two papers upon the subject however, written by Cecil in December and January, before the French Court had seriously en- tertained the proposal, survive to prove that he and probably his mistress had taken up the thought in earnest. That the Queen, unless she married some one, would lose her throne, was assumed by Cecil as, humanly speaking, certain. If she let the age pass unimproved within which she could hope for children, ' she would be in danger of such as by devilish means might be tempted to desire her end.' ' If God in His goodness preserved her from murder, yet she would be in danger to lose daily the loyal duty and the love which was borne her by her subjects/ ' She could not live for ever/ ' Those who had possessions and families must necessarily foresee for the preservation of themselves and their children after their death.' They would de- termine in their own minds who must succeed her, and