Poor Galiano
Still Proved Himself My Unshaken Friend, But Candidly Informed Me
That There Was No Hope Of My Succeeding In The Above Quarter.
"The
duke," said he, "says that your request cannot be granted; and the
other day, when I myself mentioned
It in the council, began to talk
of the decision of Trent, and spoke of yourself as a plaguy
pestilent fellow; whereupon I answered him with some acrimony, and
there ensued a bit of a function between us, at which Isturitz
laughed heartily. By the by," continued he, "what need have you of
a regular permission, which it does not appear that any one has
authority to grant. The best thing that you can do under all
circumstances is to commit the work to the press, with an
understanding that you shall not be interfered with when you
attempt to distribute it. I strongly advise you to see Isturitz
himself upon the matter. I will prepare him for the interview, and
will answer that he receives you civilly."
In fact, a few days afterwards, I had an interview with Isturitz at
the palace, and for the sake of brevity I shall content myself with
saying that I found him perfectly well disposed to favour my views.
"I have lived long in England," said he; "the Bible is free there,
and I see no reason why it should not be free in Spain also. I am
not prepared to say that England is indebted for her prosperity to
the knowledge which all her children, more or less, possess of the
sacred writings; but of one thing I am sure, namely, that the Bible
has done no harm in that country, nor do I believe that it will
effect any in Spain; print it, therefore, by all means, and
circulate it as extensively as possible." I retired, highly
satisfied with my interview, having obtained, if not a written
permission to print the sacred volume, what, under all
circumstances, I considered as almost equivalent, an understanding
that my biblical pursuits would be tolerated in Spain; and I had
fervent hope that whatever was the fate of the present ministry, no
future one, particularly a liberal one, would venture to interfere
with me, more especially as the English ambassador was my friend,
and was privy to all the steps I had taken throughout the whole
affair.
Two or three things connected with the above interview with
Isturitz struck me as being highly remarkable. First of all, the
extreme facility with which I obtained admission to the presence of
the prime minister of Spain. I had not to wait, or indeed to send
in my name, but was introduced at once by the door-keeper.
Secondly, the air of loneliness which pervaded the place, so unlike
the bustle, noise, and activity which I observed when I waited on
Mendizabal. In this instance, there were no eager candidates for
an interview with the great man; indeed, I did not behold a single
individual, with the exception of Isturitz and the official.
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