Armand’s First Letter. Amelia’s First Letter.
5 May 1019
Former’s Guild House, Mont-Havre
Dear Amelia,
It is now several days past the day that we had hoped to see the Amelie return from Yorke; I must presume that deliberations lasted longer than I had hoped and that Captain Grier, who flies her for me, judged it wise to remain until they were completed. And so I have no notion what response the Crown will make to Lord Winthrop’s blatant negligence and contempt.
I do wish the Crown had not withdrawn the majority of her troops from Armorica following the death of Le Maréchal. I feel certain that I should have gotten good advice from Captain Hampton, who commanded the garrison in Bois-de-Bois, and from his counterpart Captain Fleming of the Royal Navy.
As it is, there remains only a small garrison in Mont-Havre herself. It is commanded by one Colonel Graham; and Colonel Graham has made it plain to me that he will not move without orders from Lord Winthrop, failing actual fighting in the streets or invasion from abroad.
“I’m sorry, lad,” he told me. “Given the order, I should be only too happy to march into the Parliament building and read the members the riot act. But I can’t get involved in Armorican politics—not without orders, don’t you know. His Majesty wouldn’t thank me, and quite right, too.”
He’s right, I suppose.
In the meantime, we have been pressing forward with our plans for the new Armorican Council of Guilds. Which is to say, we are holding a banquet.
M. Cormier, M. Joyal, M. Ouellet, and I have spent the past three weeks speaking with a number of prominent men in the trades and crafts here in Mont-Havre, speaking of our vision for the Council of Guilds—speaking very carefully. We have not mentioned M. Sabot, or Le Grand Parlement, nor the government of the city of Mont-Havre, nor the details of our program—though all that will come with time—but only of our desire to come together in the interests of mutual prosperity, and to be a voice for the trade of the country.
Responses have been mixed, unsurprisingly; there is a Provençese proverb that four oxen will pull in five directions. But we have invited these men to a banquet, to be held at the Hotel d’Lune a week hence, and the majority have agreed to come.
I did receive an amusing call from M. Poincaré, the deputé for the district that contains Bois-de-Bas; he is a good man, and quite uninvolved with M. Sabot. I first met him some months ago as part of my inquiries, and we have chosen to keep up the acquaintance.
He came to drink coffee with me at the Guild Hall, where I have been spending most of my time in recent weeks, and after a decent interval he asked, “What is this I hear about a new Guild Council? You cannot be thinking of restoring the power of the Guilds over the colony, n’est-ce pas?”
“No, of course not,” I said. “But we have common interests, you know.”
He waited for me to go on, as if to say, “And those are?”
“Prosperity, of course, not only for our members but for all the folk of Armorica. If we meet together, we might find ways for all of us to do better.”
“And?”
“Well, and prosperity requires…stability.” I felt it safe to give that word a little more emphasis than I might have had.
“Hah!” he said, and sat back. “Vraiment. Stability is a thing much to be desired.” We went on to speak of other things; and then, finishing his coffee, he rose, saying, “Regarding the guilds, we must speak of this again; but for now you have my support.”
And so all of that is in train; and where it shall end, Our Lord only knows. In the meantime I await the return of the Amelie with the greatest of anticipation.
Your most impatient cousin,
Armand
____
Photo by Nathan Dumlao on Unsplash
Zymurgia House 