Million Book Collection - The Fishers of Men Ministries

RICHARD I. '209
regard to some rich canons of Lincoln. The plan
was to secure the services of twelve in order to get
possession of their money. It was indignantly repudiated
by Hugh, and again he was sentenced to a
confiscation which was never carried out.
In 1198, or early in 1199, the royal demand for
subsidies was again under consideration. The
reason of these perpetual money difficulties is not
hard to find. The royal revenue was in course of
formation. As yet the King of England was a large
landed proprietor, whose rents were uncertain.
Feudal dues, likewise represented by land, were of
the same nature. Hugh went to London to consult
with the Archbishop of Canterbury, the only result
of the conference being that the king required a
large sum of money from the clergy, and that the
Archbishop was prepared to let him have it.
" Did you not know," said Hubert to Hugh, " that
my lord the king thirsts for money as the dropsical
man for water " To this Hugh replied :
" He may be a dropsical man, but I am not prepared
to supply him or other dropsical patients with
water "-1
Hugh never saw Richard again. He was at Fon-
tevrault, on the accession of John, in March, 1199,
and seems to have taken a very accurate measure of
the new king. John made a show of piety, probably
in order to gain Hugh, a conquest he evidently
considered worth having. On Easter Day at Mass
1 J7/,/, p. 274.
14