Sailing, Scientists, and Scimitars | Rupert's | Tuesday AM

[Francis Kirke]

(OOC - since we already talked about Rupert being available, I've assumed Tuesday morning would work in response to Francis' missive requesting a time to speed things along  )

 

Quote

Private Chambers of Prince Rupert

The Governor's Suite comprises a large part of the Round Tower, and as Prince Rupert is the current governor of Windsor Castle, this is his primary residence.

 

The Hall

The Hall, on the ground level, is adorned with military memorabilia, some of which has been incorporated into the that Rupert has gathered. Offices are situated from himself and the Constable, leading off the Hall. The Hall still functions from time to time as a court room.

 

Withdrawing Room

Off of the Dining Room, the Withdrawing or Drawing Room offers comfort and elegance. Here, the hand of a lady can be seen in the upholstered furnishings and a notably diminished stock of weaponry.

 

Francis arrived shortly before the appointed time in the morning, having had a short bout of sparring with Tom and then cleaned himself up to a degree Buckingham would have appreciated. He wore a justacorps of deep bronze with richly embroidered cuffs, and a navy blue waistcoat that matched his breeches. In the afternoon he was attending Caroline and Chichester's wedding, so his hair was tamed and groomed to perfect ringlets.

[Prince Rupert]

Francis was admitted into the suite and would find the Prince, dressed comfortably, studying a map laid out on a large table.  A servant's cleared throat caused the Prince to look up and notice Francis.

"Ah Kingston, do come in."  They had spoken recently about Dorothea and the yacht race.  Kingston had further information to share and the Prince put a premium on all sorts of information.

Signaling a servant to open the blood orange brandy for the event, Rupert waved Francis to join him in front of the map.  It was a map of Rupert Land; land explored by the Hudson Bay Company, with markings for settlements.

[Francis Kirke]

"Good morning, Your Highness," Francis replied, with a pretty bow.

 

He noticed the map spread out and approached. His eyes cast down onto it, trying to decipher what was mapped and where. It was large enough that he guessed it must be the lands of Rupert's Hudson's Bay Company. It was far North of where Francis had land across the sea.

 

"Is this the land of your charter, Sir?" he asked. "It is a grand span, indeed." 

 

Truth be told, it looked as if the entirety of England would fit inside many times.

[Prince Rupert]

"Indeed it is," Cumberland confirmed as he looked away to greet Kingston.  "I should need several lifetimes to visit the whole of it," he added with a hint of sadness.  He did not expect he had many years left  and there was so much he might like to see before then.

There were three settlements marked on the map.  "A new one is planned for early next year.  It shall be named Ontario," he revealed.

"Enough of that, tell me of the latest news you have heard."  A servant brought a glass of the brandy for each.

[Francis Kirke]

Francis nodded. While he had not Cumberland's years or influence or position, nor his grand tales and achievements, but he had his own nostalgia and an understanding of not being able to go back to lives previously lived. Previously lived adventuring. 

 

"Many men will spend successive lifetimes exploring such a span of unaltered land," Francis added, with his own wistful tone. "If it were possible for a man to live two lives at once, I would return to the sea in a heartbeat with one of them. It is feeling alive in a way few who live a life of court could ever understand." His life was now on a different course, and there were not likely to be long sea journeys on it as one of His Majesty's gentlemen; it was a sacrifice he was happy to make and lucky to have, but a piece of him would always long for an unknown horizon.

 

He accepted the drink and gave a salute to his host with it before taking a sip.

 

"Are you acquainted with the new Lord Grey, Sir?" Francis asked. "He came to the title recently but had an appointment at Cambridge before that. He studies the sky and is trying to solve the rainbow effect in telescopes. There would be a utility for such an advancement for our spyglasses at sea that I thought would be of interest. He is working with developing lenses to achieve this feat and would gladly put it to use beyond telescopes."

 

[Prince Rupert]

Rupert had spent years at sea striking against Commonwealth shipping  Those years had been a grand adventure, but Rupert was enjoying the life ashore, with its greater amenities.

"I have heard of the man, but have yet to meet him," the Prince replied.  "Does he have a solution, or is close to one?"  To say that someone was attempting a breakthrough was much different than achieving one.  He took a sip of the brandy.

"If you vouch for the gentleman, I should like to meet him."  Some valued art, but it was science that drove the Prince in his final years.   It was a patriotic way to leave a legacy.

[Francis Kirke]

"He has the theory of the solution, yes. It is crafting the lens which can accomplish the feat in order to prove it and solve the problem which is ongoing. My understanding is that it is a difficult process to craft the lenses in such a way." He took a sip of his drink before he added, "I do not think he is one of those who is all talk with a head in the clouds, even if his eyes are to the stars."

 

Did he vouch for Grey? Well, he did not know the man well, but he was not particularly vouching for his character, more for his scientific acumen. 

 

"I have not known him long, Your Highness, but it is no easy feat to gain a position at Cambridge, so one could deduce he is no charlatan as he'd dedicated most of his life to science and shares discourse and friendship with Newton. Sir Isaac has no time, trust, or patience for most people. I can set up a meeting if you wish it," he offered. "He gained permission from your man, Beverley, to set up a few telescopes on the ramparts. Perhaps up there in the fresh air, or he may have interest in your Foundry."

[Prince Rupert]

"I daresay that you speak from personal knowledge at Cambridge."  He knew of the younger man's position.  "An advance in something so small as a spyglass can give the navy an advantage to be sure.  Do introduce him when timing is suitable," the Prince agreed.

Paying no more attention to the map, since it was impolite to do so, Rupert paused a moment before asking "is your visit today  solely to advance my interest in Lord Grey?"  He assumed not.  Kingston would likely get to the heart of the matter.

 

[Francis Kirke]

Kingston blushed quickly at the thought of speaking from personal knowledge; in reality he had not been thinking of his position as Chancellor at all, for that was not the same sort of appointment as an academic appointment. 

 

"Only personal knowledge of the rigor of academic appointments, Sir. I do not have sufficient mental rigor or adequate knowledge for the type of appointment Grey had at the University," he said. "I did not even complete my degree, back when, but ran off to war instead. I can hardly place myself the same." He had a mind for design of ships, sure, but that was simply using experience and existing maths. It was not of the same ilk. 

 

He nodded at the permission to introduce the man. 

 

There was a moment where Kingston wondered if the prince was more wishing of spending his attention on the map. He surely did not wish to intrude. Then he reminded himself that the German way was oft more blunt than the English. "Not solely, no, but knowing of the importance of such interests to you it seemed an appropriate place to start. There is also the matter of the yacht races..." Surely Cumberland recalled that the King had him take out Dorothea's brother to acclimate him to the Thames before the race. But there was also the logistics of the race itself and a lingering concern he had over it as well.

[Prince Rupert]

Kingston spoke with humility. That was a good trait in a courtier, at least to the Prince's way of thinking.  "A young lord's place is in battle.  It will teach him things that no lifetime of books could hope to accomplish.  It is for your mature years, girded with the knowledge of war in all its glory and horror, that a lord should turn his attention to the sciences, for the betterment of future generations."  He had thought Francis was apologizing for not completing his degree at Cambridge and thought to lift that guilt from his shoulders.

"Ja, the yacht race."  Perhaps there had been a development.  "Do continue."

[Francis Kirke]

The prince's response was a good indicator for why Buckingham and his own father had chosen to leave university and run off to a far younger Rupert to join the war and take part in a seige!

 

Francis was not one to apologize, per se, for his choice of war over furthering his study as he had always thought his future was in military service. That had been his grandfather's way, and he had not - to his knowledge then - had any other position to aspire to in life. He had been raised on those stories, and he had thought it the honorable place to focus his talents. He still saw the importance of it after serving in two wars. He simply did not wish to take more credit for his appointment as chancellor than was his due.

 

"I have aspired to such things now that His Majesty seeks to keep me ashore, Sir." Which was something Cumberland surely knew. He had after all spoken of that importance at Lords at the drop of a dime, after he had given his ship designs, when Cumberland wished him to speak. "You cast an impeccably large shadow for any wishing to follow such a course," he added, with a wry smile. 

 

The yacht race, though, was something else altogether, "After speaking to Basildon and putting out for some other lords to join, I was unable to find others with a yacht to join the races." He paused. "It is not that we do not have the numbers to make several heats and a grand day of it, but..." he rubbed his lips together and said, "It is august company and a very public display. His Majesty asked me to source a yacht crew for the race for the Margrave, and I could not leave him less prepared due to the crew, so I have given him mine to sail for him and pulled some of my other experienced sailors from London to crew for me. I wonder, though..." 

 

His thoughts were a bit difficult to frame though he was not one to usually beat around the bush to Cumberland. "I wonder that I might not be fit company to join a race with a duke, three princes, and a king even if His Majesty enjoys the whole idea." He had a strong notion that it would displease a good portion of those racing if he demurred now, but he still worried over adding more fuel to the broadsheets calling him an upstart, even if he had been told to ignore it.

[Prince Rupert]

The Prince listened with interest.  Kingston seemed to have a level-head and an understanding of duty to one's King.

The disclosures about the race were more interesting..  "It was an excellent idea to offer the Margrave your crew," he complimented.  "You have earned favor with him, which could prove valuable in the future."  It was not lost on the Prince that Dorothea was at the center of things.  The wall that separated the couple was tall and formidable, but the actions of Kingston might make the wall a bit less formidable.  

"Do you consider yourself fit Kingston?" he asked, expecting an affirmative answer.  "Does not Buckingham, the King, and  ... daresay ... the Margrave agree?  I think you fit.  So then, assuming you are fit, what would be your wish?  On whose yacht would you sale?  That may be the more difficult question."

[Francis Kirke]

"Yes, I suppose that is true, Sir. I simply try to execute His Majesty's wishes the best that I can, but if it also gains the Margrave's regard then I am happy for it for many reasons, not just ones that benefit myself." He did not wish Dorothea to be separated from the Queen if neither wished it. 

 

As to his fitness to join the race with his yacht as was originally intended, despite the loftiness of the other entrants, he said, "I appreciate your nod of approval. Even with giving up my usual crew to the Margrave to sail His Majesty's second yacht, I do think myself fit to compete with my own craft and my second crew, even hastily cast together, and I know that none involved wish a race of rank alone but a real competition, but that does not mean that the audience of courtiers would not think it brazen." His rank by comparison to the other company racing was considerably lower. "I usually would not concern over that, for I care little of their opinion, but in the present circumstances their opinion impacts more than me, others whose opinion I do care about." It impacted His Majesty, who kept his good opinion despite the whispers and probably even Cumberland himself. 

 

Upon reflection, he did not think it likely Cumberland would give a whit about that, for he was never one to care what courtiers gossiped about, but it would be good to hear it from the blunt German. 

[Prince Rupert]

"It is a good captain that can mobilize two crews so rapidly."  He had thought originally that Kingston was going to withdraw his own yacht from the competition as a result of seconding his crew to the Margrave.

It was then that the young man began another turn of whether he was worthy of being in exalted company because of the slanders of pamphleteers.  The Prince huffed with impatience.  "They are like yapping dogs," he replied, meaning the slanderers.  "Would you yield the race because, ashore, dogs chased your vessel yapping their displeasure?" he asked.  "Of course not," he was quick to answer.  "Instead, laugh at their impotence to impede your progress."

[Francis Kirke]

When the best living mariner called you a good captain, you blushed even if you were not a blusher. Which was to say that Francis blushed profusely. He was not skilled at taking compliments, for her didn't fan out his feathers like a peacock and laud himself for it.

 

"I keep my own craft crewed because I use it frequently, and even when I don't have a merchant ship in port as I do now, I have crew who work and guard my warehouse by the docks. It was not a skilled endeavor to piece together some to travel up with the King's yacht to make another group of five or six to take the place of the others. They are not as synced or used to yachting the river, but it will do. We have made it through worse feats."

 

Francis chuckled at the Prince's description. 

 

"I only allow one dog in matters of my ships, Sir, my poodle Scotty, and he neither yaps nor gets in the way." Giorgio had been a visitor too, but that was mostly so that Buckingham didn't lose his mind with the King's gift pissing on his floor at every turn. 

 

"Speaking of laughing at pamphleteers...I was hoping to make a small request that might aide in that very activity you advise...would you happen to have a scimitar amongst your collection of militaria that I could borrow for an evening? I wish to be a Janissary for the masked ball His Majesty is going to hold." He could not hold in his boyish grin at leaning in to the dashing and sordid story put forth in the most ineffective of the slanders.

[Prince Rupert]

"I see," came the response.  Kingston had a trading company and, as such, he could crew more than one vessel at a time.  "Still, your better crew sails with the Margrave, ja?  It would be in your interest to do so."  In fact, it might be viewed as a slight otherwise.

As for Scotty, Rupert smiled.  "They are intelligent hunters."  He had owned one himself.

As for the scimitar, the Prince paused to recall if one of his two scimitars were in his Windsor armory.  "I believe I left them in London, but I shall send for them.  Do you want one or two?"  A roundtrip to London could be accomplished in a long day, if the need were enough.  "When is this masque?" he inquired.  He knew that Peg would wish to attend.  He would need to speak with Beverley about it. 

[Francis Kirke]

Francis nodded, "Yes, of course. As I said, I gave the Margrave my crew that I already had here with my yacht, the ones who have traveled the Thames and that raced here in Windsor after His Majesty's wedding. They are assuredly the more experienced and skilled for the task. I would not think to do less than that."

 

He added, "I am even sending my ward with the Margrave; he runs that crew all the time. I told the crew if they did well there would be some coin in it for them, especially if they beat me. I don't want mixed allegiances. I would be sailing with the piecemeal crew, the lesser."

 

As to the scimitars, he said, "Just one will do, Your Highness. I appreciate it immensely and will take great care over it."

 

"Saturday, Sir."

[Prince Rupert]

"Good man."  Kingston had made clear that he had done the honorable thing.  He would have been surprised if it had been the other way.  The Prince nodded approvingly.

As for the scimitar, "it shall be here by Thursday morning," he replied.  "I shall have it delivered to your rooms.  It was a gift to me from a Turkish merchant.  It may be more difficult for you to assemble the appropriate garb, but I have little doubt that you shall present a fine specimen ... despite your hair coloring."  The last part was intended as a jest about his voluminous blond locks.

[Francis Kirke]

Francis dipped his head appreciatively of the compliment. It had, as a phrase, a sort of nostalgia to it. His grandfather had also favored saying such a thing to him. 

 

With a laugh about his hair, Francis said, "I would have been the blondest and lightest skinned Janissary to ever have served!" He grinned and added, "The garb I think I can manage having traded there before. One would not wish to spend much time there in clothes such as these unless death by sun was the ambition. It will not be the proper uniform, of course, but it shall get the point across with your generosity as the appropriate sword is rather essential."

 

Glancing at the map, he asked, "May I ask of your highness' plans for Ontario and your lands there in general? Have you yet thought to established a lodge there?" They had spoken of masonic dealings previously, so Francis felt comfortable asking a more personal question.

[Prince Rupert]

"It is a masquerade, so perhaps you wear a dark wig?" the Prince offered as the topic of conversation centered on hair color.  "Otherwise, your identity will be no mystery." Left unsaid was that he would need to be on his best behavior if his identity was known.  Gentlemen sometimes, when thinking their identity masked, engaged in scandalous conduct.  "Or push it up into a turban," he offered.  "A bit of cosmetics could hide your fair skin as well. Then all the ladies would wonder whether you had just arrived from Constantinople."  He gave a small smile.

With attention back to his map, Rupert lost his amused grin and displayed a mercantile grin.  "A lodge certainly," he admitted quickly.  "The land is bountiful with fur and timber.  We can use the timber to build a network of stockades along the waterways.  The natives cannot be trusted and we may need to go to war as we expand our commerce throughout their hunting areas.  It will be quite an adventure Kingston, and quite profitable."  The Prince was also a founding member of the Royal African a, which was profitable, but he was more intrigued with the huge swath of land that had been granted him in Upper Canada.  It wasa shame that he had no son to carry on.

[Francis Kirke]

Francis gave a momentary shift of discomfort, and said with a measure of seriousness, "I think it might be a bit...inconsiderate...to opt for a dark periwig, Your Highness. It might be too much of a resemblance for the comfort and feelings of some." Which was to say that Francis greatly resembled his father, but his father had not been blond like Buckingham. Instead, he had dark hair. "I do not think masques are a good place for ghosts, Sir. They do not make good revelry." 

 

He then added, "I may have a fashion a turban or their bronze hats with the ridiculous feathers sticking straight up, but I might rather own the costume without caring that everyone can tell that it is me. That is the hilarity of owning the story and not giving those who malign me the satisfaction of thinking I would hide from it."

 

There was something grand about thinking about establishing Masonic lodges in new lands. There was one in Tangiers, so why not Rupert's territories in the colonies? It would ensure their reach and influence, as well as provide a place of refuge and secrecy if need be. Sometimes things were best squirreled away in remote places for their safety. It made him think of his own Masonic mission from over recess. More information had yet to make its way south, but it was not far from his mind.

 

"Yes...natives are a challenge no matter where the lands in the colonies. Such things are always both an adventure and a gamble but this is on the grandest scale. The natives are a different sort of warrior. They cover arrows in horse shit so that they need not make a mortal wound with the shot but it is sure to kill anyway if anything more than a nick. An inventive way to kill enemies without superior science and forging, to be sure, and not a way any man would wish to die." He then pondered aloud to the superior military historian, "In our era of arrows, did we ever stoop to such things, Sir? I cannot imagine no man wishing to kill has never thought of it before, but it seems to lack honor in a way."

[Prince Rupert]

Perhaps it was just as well that Francis would not seem like a real Turk.  It could strike fear in the hearts of the ladies to see someone dressed as a Turk.  It was best not to start the masque with a lady fainting.  There was plenty of time for that later. The Prince nodded.

So too did he nod at the idea of a lodge established in the wild, surrounded by savages.  It was almost comical.  "There are two men already in the Company and we are looking to find someone particularly adventurous to be the third founding member," he mentioned while eyeing the map rather than his guest.  His lands were vast and there were many challenges to planning anything to accomplish in his lifetime.

The subject of poisoned arrows caused Cumberland to turn towards the younger man.  "The Scythians did it," he revealed, "but no proper European army has adopted it.  It is not a tactic to win a battle.  It is a way to punish a hated enemy.  It has no place in the combat of civilized men.  The savages in the north have long-standing hatreds against other tribes.  They are worse than the Scots."  He offered a civilized snort as a signal that it was just an attempt at humor.  "The tribes are small, so killing a few extra warriors a month could be meaningful over time," he attempted to explain. 

[Francis Kirke]

Francis could not help but arch a blond brow when the prince said that they were looking for an adventurous third member. There was an itch for such a thing, but he also was not an exceedingly rich man. His wealth, what there was of it, was tied up in ships and land and goods. Even with Buckingham covering his expenses, it had freed up his income, but it had not drastically changed his personal finances.

 

"That would be quite an opportunity for the right man," he commented. "Who is in this adventure with you, if I may ask?" 

 

He snickered at the comparison to Scots. "The accent is torture enough," he added, with a grin.

 

At the explanation of the Scythians, Francis replied, "Hatred can make a man stoop to levels he would be better to keep above, and also has collateral damage to the innocent." It made him think of his own situation. Hatred certainly played a role in the attacks against him, but it was not Francis who was the target or who had done something to earn the enmity. He was the collateral damage. Because of jealousy and hatred. "I've always found a rational mind best to deal with one's disputes...and enemies. At the very least honorably." 

[Prince Rupert]

"The two men are members of the Lodge," the Prince replied, obviously meaning some one from the London Masonic Lodge.  "Mercantile," he added, to make clear that no aristocrat had yet to volunteer.  "Hillman is in the timber trade and the trees in Rupertland will make fine masts.  Then there is Thomas Pressley.  He is to leave his young wife behind and pursue the fur trade."  Francis could tell that the Prince had no respect for the man by his tone.

It might be that Francis knew him.  Thomas had married Hester, daughter of John Lawrence, a former Mayor of London and currently a senior member of the East India Company.  Lawrence was well-respected and a member of the Royal African Company and Hudson Bay Company.  He had wanted his son-in-law to find a calling, and it was clear that the man had failed at most every business venture.  Perhaps he had convinced Thomas to leave the country out of embarrassment.

"I am hoping for a man of better breeding."  There had been one that Cumberland had approached.  Under different circumstances, Kingston would have been an ideal candidate.

"Hatred drives poor judgment, whether on the battlefield, or elsewhere."  They both agreed that the emotion was one to be avoided.

[Francis Kirke]

"I know the first," Francis replied. He used his land in the colonies for timber for ships as well, so other masons who dealt in the same commodities were familiar to him. "I do not know that Pressley is familiar, though. A daring man if he seeks out the fur trade."

 

It was something which put a man somewhat in the path of the natives, and those tribes up toward the North had caused trouble with fighting not many seasons back. 

 

"I am curious about why you accepted this second fellow, Sir, mason or not, for you do not seem to hold him in high esteem?" Francis could tell by the tone that the prince did not think well of him which made Francis think it was as a favor. 

 

"Our business ventures do not oft have us so far to the North, as we would not wish to interfere with your business ventures in the Hudson Bay Company, but my other uncle who owns the minority half of my company might have interest if there were a way for it to work to everyone's satisfaction." He spoke, of course, of Will, who was Colonel Legge's second son, as Sir George was clearly a court creature and had too many positions to leave. 

[Prince Rupert]

"Pressley is an odd choice I grant you,"  the Prince began.  "His father-in-law is a good man and he swears that Thomas needs a change in circumstances to succeed.  He is no match for the guilds and commerce in London.  It is shark-infested waters here," he added with the briefest of smirks.  "The talents required to battle savages, climate, and logistics is a different beast altogether."  Rupert paused briefly to allow Francis to imagine the stark contrast.

"Everyone wants to be in the cavalry, where one must compete with the finest horsemen and blood in the realm.  Perhaps this is a man better suited to the artillery. or quartermaster duties," he offered as an example.  "He needs to find pelts and ship them to London.  Even a man of modest ingenuity may well succeed."

When Kingston made reference to his uncle, the Prince paaused to recollect.  "This would be Colonel Legge's brother?  I do not recall his name.  That you recommend him means much.  To what trade is he best suited?" he asked,  "I am certain that something could be accommodated if he were interested.  We need to tame these lands and they will be prosperous."

[Francis Kirke]

"Far be it for me to criticize a man for trying to give his family opportunity. I only hope he rises to the occasion and proves worthy of it. I think I prefer our shark-infested waters, or those of most any port, over those of the natives." Considering Francis was not simply a man of negotiating business but also a considerably fierce fighter, that said much about what he felt about the difficulties dealing with natives.

 

"I think it has been shown that some of the finest blood of the realm has also found itself in the Navy. There have been some illustrious examples to follow after," he added with a nod and a boyish grin, as Cumberland was first among them. "But, yes, some men are clearly more suited for foot duties."

 

"His second son. Sir George's brother, Will." He was named for Francis' grandfather and also a baronet, like George and as Francis had been before being granted his titles.

 

With a chuckle, Francis added, "As I said, he is my partner, so he experienced in all matters of ways to generate profit. We trade in novelty from wherever our ships go, as we find such things generally command the highest price. Therein is the conflict as were he to be interested in such a venture, he would want to be doing so with his ship, as it would make little sense for us to pay for the service with ships of our own. We do not wish issues with your holdings and business ventures. It is not that he needs new trade opportunities, but you wished for someone adventurous and if it would be of any help to your plans, we have always taken our loyalties to Your Highness as seriously as the Colonel did."

[Prince Rupert]

"Natives are ... less complicated," Cumberland offered as a way of prospective.  "Treat them firmly and fairly, and things tend to go well enough."  He paused to consider the contrast with the sharks at port.  "I suppose it would be wise to trust neither native or merchant at port."  There was a brief smile in recognition of his new found analysis.

"Will," he repeated the name, pausing to consider using the formal version.  "If he is your partner, then it would not be good form to discuss opportunities with him that did not align with your own."  He paused again to see if Kingston would correct or offer context.  "The northern waters are free of pirates typically; too cold for those that prefer to anchor in the West Indies.  There is no gold for the taking, like with the Spanish.  Mostly furs and timber for the taking, which are hardly exotic booty.  Luckily they discount the value of furs, perhaps because they have fewer ready markets for them."

Francis seemed to hint interest by Will, if he could use his own ship.  That was no problem.  The Company had too few ships as it was.  "If either of you have interest, you should speak to its Royal Governor."  It was intended as a jest because everyone knew that Rupert was the Governor.

[Francis Kirke]

"It aligns with my own if there is profit to be made for all, and if you do not find it an issue to have another's company in your domain. It is I who would not wish to introduce troubles for you, though the land seems large enough to provide opportunity aplenty for whomever would have it. Timber is always of interest to one who builds ships." He used his own lands further south in the colonies to such an end and for the tobacco.

 

"I confess I do not know if he would wish to stay on land long term. If you think the Royal Governor would be well disposed toward us and the idea, I would ask him and set up a meeting," he said, playing along with the jest.

[Prince Rupert]

"The preference," Rupert began, "is for Company employees only."  It helped maintain secrecy and preserved the lion's share of the profits for the company.  "If another Company were to operate there, it would need close coordination, narrow access, and, of course, traditionally royalties paid on cargo removed.  I would imagine that another company would need to work a place that would not be in direct competition with Company forts and personnel." The Prince was thinking to himself of possible places in the wilderness that Kingston's company could operate.

"Think on it Kingston.  We can discuss later if you have interest in the opportunities."  Had Francis been a commoner, or a noble of ill-repute, Cumberland would not have wished to do business at all.  As Kingston was also a fellow Mason, there was all the reason to aid him in such ventures.