"I do not, your majesty, except a woman, who is very active one Moggy Salisbury--her husband, not a month back, was the boatswain of the cutter, but by some interest or another, he has obtained his discharge." "My Lord of Portland, take a memorandum to inquire who it was applied for the discharge of that man. Mr Vanslyperken, you may retire--we will call you in by-and-bye--you will be secret as to what has passed." "I have one more duty to perform," replied Vanslyperken, taking some rouleaus of gold out of his pocket; "this is the money received from the traitors--it is not for a king's officer to have it in his possession." "You are right, Mr Vanslyperken, but the gold of traitors is forfeited to the crown, and it is now mine; you will accept it as a present from your king." Mr Vanslyperken took the gold from the table, made a bow, and retired from the royal presence. The reader will acknowledge that it was impossible to play his cards better than Mr Vanslyperken had done in this interview, and that he deserved great credit for his astute conduct. With such diplomatic talents, he would have made a great prime minister. "The council was ordered at twelve o'clock, my lords. These letters must [be] produced. That they are genuine appears to me beyond a doubt." "That they are faithful copies, I doubt not," replied Lord Albemarle, "but--" "But what, my Lord Albemarle?" "I very much suspect the fidelity of the copier--there is something more, that has not been told, depend upon it." "Why do you think so, my lord?" "Because, your majesty, allowing that a man would act the part that Mr Vanslyperken says that he has done to discover the conspiracy, still, would he not naturally, to avoid any risk to himself, have furnished Government with the first correspondence, and obtained their sanction for prosecuting his plans? This officer has been employed for the last two years or more in carrying the despatches to the Hague, and it must at once strike your majesty, that a person who can, with such dexterity, open the letters of others, can also open those of his own Government." "That is true, my lord," replied his majesty, musing. "Your majesty is well aware that suspicions were entertained of the fidelity of the syndic, suspicions which the evidence of this officer have verified. But why were these suspicions raised? Because he knew of the Government secrets, and it was supposed he obtained them from some one who is in our trust, but inimical to us and unworthy of the confidence reposed in him. "Your majesty's acuteness will at once perceive that the secrets may have been obtained by Mynheer Krause by the same means as have been resorted to, to obtain the secrets of the conspirators. I may be in error, and if I do this officer wrong by my suspicions, may God forgive me, but there is something in his looks which tells me--" "What, my lord?" "That he is a traitor to both parties, may it please your majesty."