The rest of the towns of Brabant are supposed to be on the eve of returning to their allegiance to the King of Spain, in company with Flanders; the men of Antwerp do not object, as they wish to be relieved of the obligation. Bergen, which the Hollanders have taken under their protection, is the only exception. Alençon indeed has something else to think of just now besides the affairs of the Netherlands, aye, and something that touches him more closely, for there is a report that he is in a decline, which has reached the consumptive stage. If this be true—and it is generally believed—he cannot be long for this world, and then, however little the House of Valois may like it, the Bourbons will be the heirs presumptive to the Crown—first the Cardinal, and then Navarre. The Queen Mother is staying in the country at some distance from Paris, and the report is that she is ill from grief. The King, it seems, has laid aside the idea of a campaign against Damville,[200] of which every one was talking, and has issued a proclamation to the effect that there is nothing he loves so much as peace, no one is to rise in arms, all are to do their best to prevent an outbreak. This Edict is construed by the opposite faction to mean exactly the reverse, and to be proof positive that war is intended; they say this is his usual trick when he means to attack them. Whether they are right or wrong time will show. April 10, 1584. LETTER XXXV. Alençon’s[201] life is despaired of. Indeed a day or two ago he was reported as dead, and not only was the date of his decease given, viz., the 25th of this month, but also the hour, viz., 10 P.M. For several hours, it seems, he had lain motionless, so that he was thought to be dead; afterwards he became conscious, and is still alive, if a man can be called alive, whose case is hopeless and whose death is hourly expected. The King’s chief physician has visited him; on his return he made the Queen Mother quite hopeful by his report, but privately he told his friends that he did not expect him to last a month. Well, the matter is in God’s hands, and that He will preserve your Majesty, is the prayer of your humble servant. April 29, 1584. LETTER XXXVI. That Ghent, Bruges, and Ostend have come to terms with Parma is considered certain; they say indeed that service in the cathedral of Ghent is already celebrated after the Roman rite; and this is also the case in three churches in Bruges. In that district Sluys alone stands out, and holds by its treaty with Flushing. The terms of the arrangement will, people think, shortly be made public. May 3, 1584. LETTER XXXVII. Alençon is still confined to his chamber, or, to speak more correctly, to his bed; no one is allowed to see him save one or two of his adherents, who encourage him to hope that he will recover, but impartial people consider his case desperate; while some think he is already dead, but that his death is kept secret.