ABSTRACT
At length, so that he should not exhort by words only, but by example too, his eyes filling with tears, he threw himself at the Father’s feet to kiss them, believing that he profited greatly by kissing feet which were to walk such long and rough roads for the love of God. The Father hastened to pre vent him and raise him up, greatly moved and edified to see the profound humility of such a great prince. The Viceroy then begged the Father most earnestly that when our Lord God took him to Rome he would kiss the feet of His Holiness in his name and bring him a little thread from his clothing, which he would always keep as a very great relic and con sider as a treasure of inestimable value. The Viceroy then called the Ambassador and addressed a similar exhortation to him. He parted from him and from the Father with affec tionate embraces, showing not merely regret but great envy, for if the distance had allowed, he would have had no greater
pleasure in life than to go and visit in person the holy places of Rome, kiss the feet of the Vicar of Christ on earth and see the courts of the King of Portugal and of the other kings, princes and potentates of Europe.
