The Black Tulip · Chapter
VIII: An Invasion explained
Isaac Boxtel, driven by envy and greed, writes an anonymous letter informing on Cornelius van Baerle for high treason, leading to van Baerle's arrest.
What happens
Isaac Boxtel, driven by envy and greed, writes an anonymous letter informing on Cornelius van Baerle for high treason, leading to van Baerle's arrest. Boxtel then invades van Baerle's garden and dry-room, searching for the black tulip bulbs, but fails to find them and realizes van Baerle must have taken them to the Hague.
Themes in this chapter
Jealousy and Revenge
Boxtel's envy of van Baerle's success with the black tulip drives him to inform on him and attempt to steal the bulbs.
Obsession and Ambition
Boxtel's obsession with the black tulip and his ambition to win the prize lead him to commit a crime.
Injustice and Persecution
Van Baerle is unjustly arrested based on a false anonymous letter, while the De Witt brothers are murdered by a mob.
Characters to notice
- Isaac Boxtel
Writes an anonymous letter to have van Baerle arrested, then invades his garden and dry-room searching for the black tulip bulbs.
- Cornelius van Baerle
Arrested for high treason based on Boxtel's information; has taken the black tulip bulbs with him to the Hague.
- Cornelius de Witt
Mentioned as having been arrested for high treason and later murdered by the Orange party.
- John de Witt
Mentioned as having been arrested for high treason and later murdered by the Orange party.
- Master van Spennen
Executes the order to arrest van Baerle.
Key passages
“The incident just related was, as the reader has guessed before this, the diabolical work of Mynheer Isaac Boxtel.”
The previous events were caused by Isaac Boxtel's evil actions.
Reveals Boxtel as the instigator of van Baerle's arrest.
“He wrote an anonymous information, the minute exactness of which made up for its want of authenticity, and posted his letter.”
Boxtel sent a detailed but false anonymous letter to the authorities.
Boxtel's method of framing van Baerle.
“He had murdered his man with a double object; the first was attained, the second was still to be attained.”
Boxtel's crime had two goals: getting van Baerle arrested and stealing the black tulip bulbs.
Boxtel's motives are both revenge and greed.
“He found nothing, and thought he was mistaken.”
Boxtel dug in the garden but found no bulbs.
Boxtel's failure to find the bulbs in the garden.
“Oh these bulbs, these bulbs! ... where could he have concealed them?”
Boxtel frantically searches for the bulbs in the dry-room.
Boxtel's desperation as he fails to find the bulbs.