1862 (54 page)

“Excellent.”

“I would suggest a prisoner exchange,” Monck said wryly, “but you have the advantage of us in that regard.”

Scott suppressed a smile. “As a show of good faith, we will return all prisoners who wish to be returned in exchange for a similar gesture on your part.”

“All who wish to return?”

This time Scott did smile. “Yes, it appears that a number of them have indicated that they wish to stay in the United States.”

Monck shook his head. “Damned Irishmen.”

Scott chuckled politely. He did not tell Monck that most of those who wished to stay were native English and not Irishmen serving the queen. He would find it out later.

“Then we are in agreement?” Scott asked. Monck nodded. “Good. We shall notify our governments, presuming, of course, that our respective telegraph lines are working.” Field lines had been run from Montreal, Canada, and Burlington, Vermont, to the lodge. It would take but minutes to notify Washington, and an hour or two to notify London.

“Lastly.” Scott said, “we would like Lord Russell to use his diplomatic skills to convince France to depart Mexico. If Napoleon III is not already convinced of his folly in trying to take Mexico, please inform him that, upon cessation of hostilities, the Union armies will move into Mexico and forcibly oust his forces. Please convince him of our resolve in that matter.”

“We will do that,” Monck said. The infusion of Union arms to Mexico’s rebels had turned an already brutal war into a bloodbath. France was confronting catastrophe in the New World, and the very thought of Union armies aiding the cause of an independent Mexico would make Napoleon III wilt totally.

“Is that all?” Monck asked. “It is.”

Monck understood. Nothing had been said about Ireland. England would continue to have problems with that miserable island, but the United States would place no official demands on England for resolution of the conflict. However, neither would the United States disavow unofficial support for Irish freedom by organizations such as the Fenians. They would continue to supply money, guns, and recruits to fight against England. Cleburne was dead, but others would arise to take his place. The fighting in Ireland had died down as a result of mutual exhaustion, but it could, and would, begin anew at anytime. England had bought time. How best to use it was the question.

Both men were satisfied. Monck had feared greater territorial demands by the Americans, while Scott had feared that Monck would have called his bluff about Quebec and Halifax. Neither Lincoln nor Grant wanted any part of an invasion of Nova Scotia or of any dealings with the mad Frenchmen in Quebec.

Scott only wondered if he had made a mistake regarding Hawaii. He dismissed it. Hawaii wasn’t American territory: thus, giving it to England was an act of no consequence. Scott walked ponderously from the room. He felt both his age and the cold, even though the fires kept it at bay. “Nathan, John, was it a good day’s work?” Both men grinned. “It was,” Nathan said.

“I thought so, too. We will dine tonight with Governor Monck in a new spirit of cooperation that, someday, might evolve into friendship. Meanwhile, let’s have a drink.”

Judah Benjamin, secretary of state for the Confederate States of America, approached the meeting with dread. Lord Richard Lyons, representative of Great Britain and ambassador without portfolio, had requested it, and the reason for it would not be a pleasant one.

All was not as it should be between the Confederacy and England. Rumors of a dramatic change between the two countries had been running rampant and they had been exacerbated by General Napier’s move of the remains of his army towards Norfolk. Even a dullard could see that England was no longer interested in a land war with the steadily approaching Union forces.

Lord Lyons was announced and he took a seat across from Benjamin in Benjamin’s office. After a few pleasantries were exchanged, Lord Lyons got down to business. “Mr. Benjamin, it is with a degree of regret that I inform you of my government’s intentions regarding war with the United States of America.”

“Based on the move of General Napier’s army to the coast, it has already gone beyond the intention state.” Benjamin had not missed the formal reference to the United States of America, instead of just the Union. This was indeed bad.

Lyons cleared his throat and continued. “As a result of information that has been forthcoming to Her Majesty’s government, it has become necessary not just to depart the war, but to change totally England’s relationship with the seceded states.”

Seceded states? Benjamin’s dismay grew. Lyons had not even referred to the Confederacy by name. The term
seceded states
made the South sound like outlaws. “I presume you are referring to the unfortunate documents that are alleged to be from Jefferson Davis to General Hampton. There are those who have doubts as to their authenticity.”

Lyons smiled slightly. “We harbor no such doubts. Nor, apparently, does General Hampton. He has acknowledged it in a conversation with an agent of ours.”

Benjamin shook his head. What a fool, he thought. Why couldn’t he have just denied them? Damn men with honor. Even Jefferson Davis had wanted to tell the truth, but had managed to avoid doing so by not letting anyone ask him about the letter.

“The whole situation is a misunderstanding,” Benjamin said nervously. “Surely it can be resolved by reasonable men acting in concert.”

“Great Britain’s position on slavery is known. Had we been aware of such a, uh, misunderstanding, we would not have been able to provide direct support to your cause. There is, of course, more.”

What else could there be? Benjamin wondered.

“We have affidavits from a Southern sympathizer named Stephen Canty. He is a resident of Havana and he was paid by the Confederate government to provide information regarding the
Trent’s
sailing schedule to the
San Jacinto.
In short, the Confederacy precipitated the
Trent
Incident in order to get us into the war.”

“I believe I have a thorough knowledge of my nation’s efforts in the area of espionage,” said Benjamin, “and I know of no such endeavor or of anyone named Canty. I would like the opportunity to speak with that man.”

“Not possible,” Lyons said with a slight smile. “He fears for his life and has disappeared.”

Benjamin suddenly understood. The Hampton letter was real but the Canty affidavit was not. It was a fraud intended to corroborate the Hampton letter and to provide one more reason for England to sever ties with the Confederacy. By accusing the South of duplicity, England had been duplicitous herself.

“You have no shame, do you?” Benjamin said resignedly. “What terms have been extracted from you by the North?”

Lord Lyons gave Benjamin a summary of the negotiations between General Scott and Governor Monck that left the Confederate secretary of state aghast. He had expected the British to depart the war, but not that they would become a new enemy.

“In your position, sir,” said Lyons, “I would negotiate for peace.”

“We must fight on,” Benjamin said softly. “Our honor demands it.”

“You must face reality.” Lyons rebuked him gently. “As a result of Britain’s ill-fated intervention, enlistments in the Union army have soared to where our sources say they have more than seven hundred thousand men under arms, and that number continues to grow. That’s several times larger than the Confederacy’s and, even if you could put more men into the field, you couldn’t arm them or supply them. You haven’t the numbers and you have no industry to support what you do have.”

“You had been helping to supply us,” Benjamin said with a trace of petulance.

“But no more. Look at what is happening. Grant is approaching Richmond, while Sherman is moving down the Shenandoah. It may look like his army is digressing, but he will debauch from the valley to the south and west of Richmond and, with no Confederate army of substance to halt it, will head north towards Richmond. You will be caught in a giant vise and without your best general.

Do you really think Beauregard can stand up to Grant, Thomas and Sherman? The Confederacy has some excellent leaders, but so, too, does the Union. The days when the Confederacy held the advantage in generalship are over. The Union generals are at least as good as yours, perhaps better. Even if they were merely equal, their army is overwhelmingly larger. You do not have armies enough to halt them.”

Lord Lyons declined to inform the Confederate statesman that Union troops under McPherson had begun to land at Norfolk. He would find that out soon enough. “You have betrayed us,” Benjamin said.

“We have protected our interests and we sincerely trust that you will do likewise with yours. Proclaim our perfidy to the skies if you like. It won’t matter. The truth about Canty won’t come out for generations, if at all. By that time, this will all be behind us. We accepted the fact that we have been defeated and have decided to cut our losses. I urge you to do the same. I have it on good authority that Mr. Lincoln is inclined to be both merciful and just. Negotiate to rejoin the Union.”

“Impossible.”

“Distasteful, yes, but not impossible. The late Palmerston was infatuated with the Roman Empire. It may be that the North is the new Rome, and you are Carthage. Please recall what happened to Carthage. After a series of savage wars, Carthage was utterly destroyed and, if I recall my history, the ground sowed with salt. Do you wish that for the South? Grant is moving slowly in a final attempt to give you time to come to your senses, but his advance is inexorable. If you persist in the agonies of a prolonged siege and continued war. you risk not just defeat but total destruction. Is that what you wish for your people?”

“No.” Benjamin said softly.

“You will have to forfeit slavery, but you will be compensated. Slavery is doomed, but you can save your homes, your livelihood, and your blood. Slavery is dependent on cotton, and now many lands are producing cotton. Soon. King Cotton will exist only as a memory, and what is now the Confederacy will have to compete in a global marketplace with nations where cotton is produced efficiently by free labor and not by inefficient slaves.

“Mr. Benjamin, will you doom your young men to die in a cause that is already lost? Damn it sir, make peace while you can and save what remains.”

Benjamin stood and Lyons rose also. There was deep sadness etched on the face of the Confederate diplomat. “I will convey your statements and your thoughts to Mr. Davis.”

   Major John Knollys was admitted to the drawing room, where Rosemarie DeLisle awaited him. She wore a long, silk robe and looked breathtakingly lovely as she sat like a cat on a lounge. He sat on the chair facing her.

“I will be leaving tomorrow.”

“Must you?” she said. To his surprise, she seemed just a little amused. “I don’t wish you to.”

“Nor do I, but I must return to England and a new posting.”

“Take me with you.”

Her request stunned him. “It would be a miserable existence. I have made major, but I will never achieve greater rank. I will die a major and be made to suffer through inferior postings to miserable places. I am one of many associated with a terrible setback for British arms and that will be forever held against me.”

“Does that hold true for Napier and Wolsey?”

“Napier will retire, and Wolsey has both influence and wears the mantle of a hero. His taking of Fort Stephens is being heralded as a titanic effort that was made all the more dramatic because of his wounding. Thank God he was not blinded as we all first feared. No. he is the noble hero of a doomed enterprise.”

“But you were in the attack as well. Have their lordships forgotten that?”

“No. That and Wolsey’s recommendations are all that keep them from reverting me to my previous rank of captain.”

“Then resign your commission and come with me. Wouldn’t their lordships accept it?”

He laughed harshly. “In an instant. But go with you? Where? Are you leaving the South?”

Rosemarie gifted him with a wide and knowing smile. “I am.”

“But your properties?”

“I have no properties here, except for this house: which I rent, and some furniture that is disposable. All else is portable. I am, was: a supporter of the Confederacy. but I was never a fool. You knew that I sold the estates shortly after inheriting them.”

“Indeed, but I thought it was only the larger ones and because of the difficulties a woman would have managing them.”

“That was part of it, John. But another fact was the coming war. While my heart wanted the South to win, my mind said it might not happen. I vowed that I would never be poor again. Thus, I sold all and invested in other assets using banks in New York and Switzerland as conduits. I am now ready to take over some of those assets; however, as before, it would be difficult for a woman. I need a man to be my strong right arm. A knight. A paladin.”

John Knollys was utterly intrigued. “Tell me more. What and where are these assets?”

“Land.” she said. “This time in California, just south of San Francisco. It is an area that is growing and will prosper. There will, however, be those out there who will try to halt me, perhaps even harm me. I need a man to help me, and he will need a dozen or so strong, disciplined men to help him. Would you be that man, that paladin?”

Knollys laughed. “I am your knight in cotton armor. And I indeed know a number of soon-to-be-former British soldiers who would be delighted to join me, and whom I’ve already trusted with my life.”

Rosemarie smiled in relief. She had been terrified that he would decline her and return to England.

Knollys stood. “I will return to General Napier and tender my resignation immediately.”

Rosemarie stood and approached him, undoing her robe. “Not immediately, John. Make love to me first.”

Rebecca Hunter looked down at the plain gold band on her left hand. She did that a lot lately. It was as if she couldn’t quite believe she was married to Nathan. It was good that they were married, as she thought their latest joyous rompings might have made her pregnant. She hadn’t yet shared that possibility with Nathan. She would wait until she was certain.