initial commit of ebook 27432HEADmain

199 files changed, 22742 insertions, 0 deletions

diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..6833f05
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.gitattributes
@@ -0,0 +1,3 @@
+* text=auto
+*.txt text
+*.md text
diff --git a/27432-8.txt b/27432-8.txt
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..04c9f9d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-8.txt
@@ -0,0 +1,7550 @@
+The Project Gutenberg eBook, The Fifth Queen Crowned, by Ford Madox Ford
+
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+
+
+
+Title: The Fifth Queen Crowned
+
+
+Author: Ford Madox Ford
+
+
+
+Release Date: December 7, 2008  [eBook #27432]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
+
+
+***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE FIFTH QUEEN CROWNED***
+
+
+E-text prepared by Verity White, Suzanne Shell, and the Project Gutenberg
+Online Distributed Proofreading Team (http://www.pgdp.net)
+
+
+
+   +-----------------------------------------------------------+
+   | Transcriber's note:                                       |
+   |                                                           |
+   | This edition of _The Fifth Queen Crowned_ was extracted   |
+   | from an omnibus edition of the trilogy. The two previous  |
+   | books of the trilogy are _The Fifth Queen_ and _Privy     |
+   | Seal: His Last Venture_.                                  |
+   |                                                           |
+   | Inconsistent hyphenation in the original document has     |
+   | been preserved.                                           |
+   +-----------------------------------------------------------+
+
+
+
+
+
+THE FIFTH QUEEN CROWNED
+
+A Romance
+
+_"Da habt Ihr schon das End vom Lied"_
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+To
+Arthur Marwood
+
+
+
+
+CONTENTS
+
+   PART ONE
+   The Major Cord
+
+   PART TWO
+   The Threatened Rift
+
+   PART THREE
+   The Dwindling Melody
+
+   PART FOUR
+   The End of the Song
+
+
+
+
+PART ONE
+
+THE MAJOR CHORD
+
+
+I
+
+'The Bishop of Rome----'
+
+Thomas Cranmer began a hesitating speech. In the pause after the words
+the King himself hesitated, as if he poised between a heavy rage and a
+sardonic humour. He deemed, however, that the humour could the more
+terrify the Archbishop--and, indeed, he was so much upon the joyous side
+in those summer days that he had forgotten how to browbeat.
+
+'Our holy father,' he corrected the Archbishop. 'Or I will say my holy
+father, since thou art a heretic----'
+
+Cranmer's eyes had always the expression of a man's who looked at
+approaching calamity, but at the King's words his whole face, his closed
+lips, his brows, the lines from his round nose, all drooped suddenly
+downwards.
+
+'Your Grace will have me write a letter to the--to his--to him----'
+
+The downward lines fixed themselves, and from amongst them the
+panic-stricken eyes made a dumb appeal to the griffins and crowns of his
+dark green hangings, for they were afraid to turn to the King. Henry
+retained his heavy look of jocularity: he jumped at a weighty gibe--
+
+'My Grace will have thy Grace write a letter to his Holiness.'
+
+He dropped into a heavy impassivity, rolled his eyes, fluttered his
+swollen fingers on the red and gilded table, and then said clearly, 'My.
+Thy. His.'
+
+When he was in that mood he spoke with a singular distinctness that came
+up from his husky and ordinary joviality like something dire and
+terrible--like that something that upon a clear smooth day will suggest
+to you suddenly the cruelty that lies always hidden in the limpid sea.
+
+'To Cæsar--egomet, I mineself--that which is Cæsar's: to him--that is to
+say to his Holiness, our lord of Rome--the things which are of God! But
+to thee, Archbishop, I know not what belongs.'
+
+He paused and then struck his hand upon the table: 'Cold porridge is thy
+portion! Cold porridge!' he laughed; 'for they say: Cold porridge to the
+devil! And, since thou art neither God's nor the King's, what may I call
+thee but the devil's self's man?'
+
+A heavy and minatory silence seemed to descend upon him; the
+Archbishop's thin hands opened suddenly as if he were letting something
+fall to the ground. The King scowled heavily, but rather as if he were
+remembering past heavinesses than for any present griefs.
+
+'Why,' he said, 'I am growing an old man. It is time I redded up my
+house.'
+
+It was as if he thought he could take his time, for his heavily pursed
+eyes looked down at the square tips of his fingers where they drummed on
+the table. He was such a weighty man that the old chair in which he sat
+creaked at the movement of his limbs. It was his affectation of courtesy
+that he would not sit in the Archbishop's own new gilded and great chair
+that had been brought from Lambeth on a mule's back along with the
+hangings. But the other furnishings of that Castle of Pontefract were as
+old as the days of Edward IV--even the scarlet wood of the table had
+upon it the arms of Edward IV's Queen Elizabeth, side by side with that
+King's. Henry noted it and said--
+
+'It is time these arms were changed. See that you have here fairly
+painted the arms of my Queen and me--Howard and Tudor--in token that we
+have passed this way and sojourned in this Castle of Pontefract.'
+
+He was dallying with time as if it were a luxury to dally: he looked
+curiously round the room.
+
+'Why, they have not housed you very well,' he said, and, as the
+Archbishop shivered suddenly, he added, 'there should be glass in the
+windows. This is a foul old kennel.'
+
+'I have made a complaint to the Earl Marshal,' Cranmer said dismally,
+'but 'a said there was overmuch room needed above ground.'
+
+This room was indeed below ground and very old, strong, and damp. The
+Archbishop's own hangings covered the walls, but the windows shot
+upwards through the stones to the light; there was upon the ground of
+stone not a carpet but only rushes; being early in the year, no
+provision was made for firing, and the soot of the chimney back was
+damp, and sparkled with the track of a snail that had lived there
+undisturbed for many years, and neither increasing, because it had no
+mate, nor dying, because it was well fed by the ferns that, behind the
+present hangings, grew in the joints of the stones. In that low-ceiled
+and dark place the Archbishop was aware that above his head were fair
+and sunlit rooms, newly painted and hung, with the bosses on the
+ceilings fresh silvered or gilt, all these fair places having been given
+over to kinsmen of the yellow Earl Marshal from the Norfolk Queen
+downwards. And the temporal and material neglect angered him and filled
+him with a querulous bitterness that gnawed up even through his dread of
+a future--still shadowy--fall and ruin.
+
+The King looked sardonically at the line of the ceiling. He had known
+that Norfolk, who was the Earl Marshal, had the mean mind to make him
+set these indignities upon the Archbishop, and loftily he considered
+this result as if the Archbishop were a cat mauled by his own dog whose
+nature it was to maul cats.
+
+The Archbishop had been standing with one hand on the arm of his heavy
+chair, about to haul it back from the table to sit himself down. He had
+been standing thus when the King had entered with the brusque words--
+
+'Make you ready to write a letter to Rome.'
+
+And he still stood there, the cold feet among the damp rushes, the cold
+hand still upon the arm of the chair, the cap pulled forward over his
+eyes, the long black gown hanging motionless to the boot tops that were
+furred around the ankles.
+
+'I have made a plaint to the Earl Marshal,' he said; 'it is not fitting
+that a lord of the Church should be so housed.'
+
+Henry eyed him sardonically.
+
+'Sir,' he said, 'I am being brought round to think that ye are only a
+false lord of the Church. And I am minded to think that ye are being
+brought round to trow even the like to mine own self.'
+
+His eyes rested, little and twinkling like a pig's, upon the opening of
+the Archbishop's cloak above his breastbone, and the Archbishop's right
+hand nervously sought that spot.
+
+'I was always of the thought,' he said, 'that the prohibition of the
+wearing of crucifixes was against your Highness' will and the teachings
+of the Church.'
+
+A great crucifix of silver, the Man of Sorrows depending dolorously from
+its arms and backed up by a plaque of silver so that it resembled a
+porter's badge, depended over the black buttons of his undercoat. He had
+put it on upon the day when secretly he had married Henry to the papist
+Lady Katharine Howard. On the same day he had put on a hair shirt, and
+he had never since removed either the one or the other. He had known
+very well that this news would reach the Queen's ears, as also that he
+had fasted thrice weekly and had taken a Benedictine sub-prior out of
+chains in the tower to be his second chaplain.
+
+'Holy Church! Holy Church!' the King muttered amusedly into the stiff
+hair of his chin and lips. The Archbishop was driven into one of his
+fits of panic-stricken boldness.
+
+'Your Grace,' he said, 'if ye write a letter to Rome you will--for I see
+not how ye may avoid it--reverse all your acts of this last twenty
+years.'
+
+'Your Grace,' the King mocked him, 'by your setting on of chains,
+crucifixes, phylacteries, and by your aping of monkish ways, ye have
+reversed--well ye know it--all my and thy acts of a long time gone.'
+
+He cast himself back from the table into the leathern shoulder-straps of
+the chair.
+
+'And if,' he continued with sardonic good-humour, 'my fellow and servant
+may reverse my acts--videlicet, the King's--wherefore shall not
+I--videlicet, the King--reverse what acts I will? It is to set me below
+my servants!'
+
+'I am minded to redd up my house!' he repeated after a moment.
+
+'Please it, your Grace----' the Archbishop muttered. His eyes were upon
+the door.
+
+The King said, 'Anan?' He could not turn his bulky head, he would not
+move his bulky body.
+
+'My gentleman!' the Archbishop whispered.
+
+The King looked at the opposite wall and cried out--
+
+'Come in, Lascelles. I am about cleaning out some stables of mine.'
+
+The door moved noiselessly and heavily back, taking the hangings with
+it; as if with the furtive eyes and feathery grace of a blonde fox
+Cranmer's spy came round the great boards.
+
+'Ay! I am doing some cleansing,' the King said again. 'Come hither and
+mend thy pen to write.'
+
+Against the King's huge bulk--Henry was wearing purple and black upon
+that day--and against the Archbishop's black and pillar-like form,
+Lascelles, in his scarlet, with his blonde and tender beard had an air
+of being quill-like. The bones of his knees through his tight and thin
+silken stockings showed almost as those of a skeleton; where the King
+had great chains of gilt and green jewels round his neck, and where the
+Archbishop had a heavy chain of silver, he had a thin chain of fine gold
+and a tiny badge of silver-gilt. He dragged one of his legs a little
+when he walked. That was the fashion of that day, because the King
+himself dragged his right leg, though the ulcer in it had been cured.
+
+Sitting askew in his chair at the table, the King did not look at this
+gentleman, but moved the fingers of his outstretched hand in token that
+his crook of the leg was kneeling enough for him.
+
+'Take your tablets and write,' Henry said; 'nay, take a great sheet of
+parchment and write----'
+
+'Your Grace,' he added to the Archbishop, 'ye are the greatest penner of
+solemn sentences that I have in my realm. What I shall say roughly to
+Lascelles you shall ponder upon and set down nobly, at first in the
+vulgar tongue and then in fine Latin.' He paused and added--
+
+'Nay; ye shall write it in the vulgar tongue, and the Magister Udal
+shall set it into Latin. He is the best Latinist we have--better than
+myself, for I have no time----'
+
+Lascelles was going between a great cabinet with iron hinges and the
+table. He fetched an inkhorn set into a tripod, a sandarach, and a roll
+of clean parchment that was tied around with a green ribbon.
+
+Upon the gold and red of the table he stretched out the parchment as if
+it had been a map. He mended his pen with a little knife and kneeled
+down upon the rushes beside the table, his chin level with the edge. His
+whole mind appeared to be upon keeping the yellowish sheet straight and
+true upon the red and gold, and he raised his eyes neither to the
+Archbishop's white face nor yet to the King's red one.
+
+Henry stroked the short hairs of his neck below the square grey beard.
+He was reflecting that very soon all the people in that castle, and very
+soon after, most of the people in that land would know what he was about
+to say.
+
+'Write now,' he said. '"Henry--by the grace of God--Defender of the
+Faith--King, Lord Paramount."' He stirred in his chair.
+
+'Set down all my styles and titles: "Duke
+Palatine--Earl--Baron--Knight"--leave out nothing, for I will show how
+mighty I am.' He hummed, considered, set his head on one side and then
+began to speak swiftly--
+
+'Set it down thus: "We, Henry, and the rest, being a very mighty King,
+such as few have been, are become a very humble man. A man broken by
+years, having suffered much. A man humbled to the dust, crawling to kiss
+the wounds of his Redeemer. A Lord of many miles both of sea and land."
+Why, say--
+
+'"Guide and Leader of many legions, yet comes he to thee for guidance."
+Say, too, "He who was proud cometh to thee to regain his pride. He who
+was proud in things temporal cometh to thee that he may once more have
+the pride of a champion in Christendom----"'
+
+He had been speaking as if with a malicious glee, for his words seemed
+to strike, each one, into the face of the pallid figure, darkly standing
+before him. And he was aware that each word increased the stiff and
+watchful constraint of the figure that knelt beside the table to write.
+But suddenly his glee left him; he scowled at the Archbishop as if
+Cranmer had caused him to sin. He pulled at the collar around his
+throat.
+
+'No,' he cried out, 'write down in simple words that I am a very sinful
+man. Set it down that I grow old! That I am filled with fears for my
+poor soul! That I have sinned much! That I recall all that I have done!
+An old man, I come to my Saviour's Regent upon earth. A man aware of
+error, I will make restitution tenfold! Say I am broken and aged and
+afraid! I kneel down on the ground----'
+
+He cast his inert mass suddenly a little forward as if indeed he were
+about to come on to his knees in the rushes.
+
+'Say----' he muttered--'say----'
+
+But his face and his eyes became suffused with blood.
+
+'It is a very difficult thing,' he uttered huskily, 'to meddle in these
+sacred matters.'
+
+He fell heavily back into his chair-straps once more.
+
+'I do not know what I will have you to say,' he said.
+
+He looked broodingly at the floor.
+
+'I do not know,' he muttered.
+
+He rolled his eyes, first to the face of the Archbishop, then to
+Lascelles--
+
+'Body of God--what carved turnips!' he said, for in the one face there
+was only panic, and in the other nothing at all. He rolled on to his
+feet, catching at the table to steady himself.
+
+'Write what you will,' he called, 'to these intents and purposes. Or
+stay to write--I will send you a letter much more good from the upper
+rooms.'
+
+Cranmer suddenly stretched out, with a timid pitifulness, his white
+hands. But, rolling his huge shoulders, like a hastening bear, the King
+went over the rushes. He pulled the heavy door to with such a vast force
+that the latch came again out of the hasp, and the door, falling slowly
+back and quivering as if with passion, showed them his huge legs
+mounting the little staircase.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+A long silence fell in that dim room. The Archbishop's lips moved
+silently, the spy's glance went, level, along his parchment. Suddenly he
+grinned mirthlessly and as if at a shameless thought.
+
+'The Queen will write the letter his Grace shall send us,' he said.
+
+Then their eyes met. The one glance, panic-stricken, seeing no issue,
+hopeless and without resource, met the other--crafty, alert, fox-like,
+with a dance in it. The glances transfused and mingled. Lascelles
+remained upon his knees as if, stretching out his right knee behind him,
+he were taking a long rest.
+
+
+II
+
+It was almost within earshot of these two men in their dim cell that the
+Queen walked from the sunlight into shadow and out again. This great
+terrace looked to the north and west, and, from the little hillock,
+dominating miles of gently rising ground, she had a great view over
+rolling and very green country. The original builders of the Castle of
+Pontefract had meant this terrace to be flagged with stone: but the
+work had never been carried so far forward. There was only a path of
+stone along the bowshot and a half of stone balustrade; the rest had
+once been gravel, but the grass had grown over it; that had been
+scythed, and nearly the whole space was covered with many carpets of
+blue and red and other very bright colours. In the left corner when you
+faced inwards there was a great pavilion of black cloth, embroidered
+very closely with gold and held up by ropes of red and white. Though
+forty people could sit in it round the table, it appeared very small,
+the walls of the castle towered up so high. They towered up so high, so
+square, and so straight that from the terrace below you could hardly
+hear the flutter of the huge banner of St George, all red and white
+against the blue sky, though sometimes in a gust it cracked like a huge
+whip, and its shadow, where it fell upon the terrace, was sufficient to
+cover four men.
+
+To take away from the grimness of the flat walls many little banners had
+been suspended from loopholes and beneath windows. Swallow-tailed, long,
+or square, they hung motionless in the shelter, or, since the dying away
+of the great gale three days before, had looped themselves over their
+staffs. These were all painted green, because that was the Queen's
+favourite colour, being the emblem of Hope.
+
+A little pavilion, all of green silk, at the very edge of the platform,
+had all its green curtains looped up, so that only the green roof
+showed; and, within, two chairs, a great leathern one for the King, a
+little one of red and white wood for the Queen, stood side by side as if
+they conversed with each other. At the top of it was a golden image of a
+lion, and above the peak of the entrance another, golden too, of the
+Goddess Flora, carrying a cornucopia of flowers, to symbolise that this
+tent was a summer abode for pleasantness.
+
+Here the King and Queen, for the four days that they had been in the
+castle, had delighted much to sit, resting after their long ride up from
+the south country. For it pleased Henry to let his eyes rest upon a
+great view of this realm that was his, and to think nothing; and it
+pleased Katharine Howard to think that now she swayed this land, and
+that soon she would alter its face.
+
+They looked out, over the tops of the elm trees that grew right up
+against the terrace wall; but the land itself was too green, the fields
+too empty of dwellings. There was no one but sheep between all the
+hedgerows: there was, in all the wide view, but one church tower, and
+where, in place and place, there stood clusters of trees as if to
+shelter homesteads--nearly always the homesteads had fallen to ruin
+beneath the boughs. Upon one ridge one could see the long walls of an
+unroofed abbey. But, to the keenest eye no men were visible, save now
+and then a shepherd leaning on his crook. There was no ploughland at
+all. Now and then companies of men in helmets and armour rode up to or
+away from the castle. Once she had seen the courtyard within the keep
+filled with cattle that lowed uneasily. But these, she had learned, had
+been taken from cattle thieves by the men of the Council of the Northern
+Borders. They were destined for the provisioning of that castle during
+her stay there, they being forfeit, whether Scotch or English.
+
+'Ah,' she said, 'whilst his Grace rides north to meet the King's Scots I
+will ride east and west and south each day.'
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+At that moment, whilst the King had left Cranmer and his spy and, to
+regain his composure, was walking up and down in her chamber, she was
+standing beside the Duke of Norfolk about midway between the end of the
+terrace and the little green pavilion.
+
+She was all in a dark purple dress, to please the King whose mood that
+colour suited; and the Duke's yellow face looked out above a suit all of
+black. He wore that to please the King too, for the King was of opinion
+that no gathering looked gay in its colours that had not many men in
+black amongst the number.
+
+He said--
+
+'You do not ride north with his Grace?'
+
+He leaned upon his two staves, one long and of silver, the other shorter
+and gilt; his gown fell down to his ankles, his dark and half-closed
+eyes looked out at a tree that, struck lately by lightning, stretched up
+half its boughs all naked from a little hillock beside a pond a mile
+away.
+
+'So it is settled between his Grace and me,' she said. She did not much
+like her uncle, for she had little cause. But, the King being away, she
+walked with him rather than with another man.
+
+'I ask, perforce,' he said, 'for I have much work in the ordering of
+your progresses.'
+
+'We meant that you should have that news this day,' she said.
+
+He shot one glance at her face, then turned his eyes again upon the
+stricken tree. Her face was absolutely calm and without expression, as
+it had been always when she had directed him what she would have done.
+He could trace no dejection in it: on the other hand, he gave her credit
+for a great command over her features. That he had himself. And, in the
+niece's eyes, as they moved from the backs of a flock of sheep to the
+dismantled abbey on the ridge, there was something of the enigmatic
+self-containment that was in the uncle's steady glance. He could observe
+no dejection, and at that he humbled himself a little more.
+
+'Ay,' he said, 'the ordering of your progresses is a heavy burden. I
+would have you commend what I have done here.'
+
+She looked at him, at that, as if with a swift jealousy. His eyes were
+roving upon the gay carpets, the pavilions, and the flags against the
+grim walls, depending in motionless streaks of colour.
+
+'The King's Grace's self,' she said, 'did tell me that all these things
+he ordered and thought out for my pleasuring.'
+
+Norfolk dropped his eyes to the ground.
+
+'Aye,' he said, 'his Grace ordered them and their placing. There is no
+man to equal his Grace for such things; but I had the work of setting
+them where they are. I would have your favour for that.'
+
+She appeared appeased and gave him her hand to kiss. There was a little
+dark mole upon the third finger.
+
+'The last niece that I had for Queen,' he said, 'would not suffer me to
+kiss her hand.'
+
+She looked at him a little absently, for, because since she had been
+Queen--and before--she had been a lonely woman, she was given to
+thinking her own thoughts whilst others talked.
+
+She was troubled by the condition of her chief maid Margot Poins. Margot
+Poins was usually tranquil, modest, submissive in a cheerful manner and
+ready to converse. But of late she had been moody, and sunk in a dull
+silence. And that morning she had suddenly burst out into a smouldering,
+heavy passion, and had torn Katharine's hair whilst she dressed it.
+
+'Ay,' Margot had said, 'you are Queen: you can do what you will. It is
+well to be Queen. But we who are dirt underfoot, we cannot do one single
+thing.'
+
+And, because she was lonely, with only Lady Rochford, who was foolish,
+and this girl to talk to, it had grieved the Queen to find this girl
+growing so lumpish and dull. At that time, whilst her hair was being
+dressed, she had answered only--
+
+'Yea; it is good to be a Queen. But you will find it in Seneca----' and
+she had translated for Margot the passage which says that eagles are as
+much tied by weighty ropes as are finches caught in tiny fillets.
+
+'Oh, your Latin,' Margot had said. 'I would I had never heard the sound
+of it, but had stuck to clean English.'
+
+Katharine imagined then that it was some new flame of the Magister
+Udal's that was troubling the girl, and this troubled her too, for she
+did not like that her maids should be played with by men, and she loved
+Margot for her past loyalties, readiness, and companionship.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+She came out of her thoughts to say to her uncle, remembering his speech
+about her hands--
+
+'Aye; I have heard that Anne Boleyn had six fingers upon her right
+hand.'
+
+'She had six upon each, but she concealed it,' he answered. 'It was her
+greatest grief.'
+
+Katharine realised that his sardonic tone, his bitter yellow face, the
+croak in his voice, and his stiff gait--all these things were signs of
+his hostility to her. And his mention of Anne Boleyn, who had been
+Queen, much as she was, and of her bitter fate, this mention, if it
+could not be a threat, was, at least, a reminder meant to give her fears
+and misgiving. When she had been a child--and afterwards, until the very
+day when she had been shown for Queen--her uncle had always treated her
+with a black disdain, as he treated all the rest of the world. When he
+had--and it was rarely enough--come to visit her grandmother, the old
+Duchess of Norfolk, he had always been like that. Through the old
+woman's huge, lonely, and ugly halls he had always stridden, halting a
+little over the rushes, and all creatures must keep out of his way. Once
+he had kicked her little dog, once he had pushed her aside; but
+probably, then, when she had been no more than a child, he had not known
+who she was, for she had lived with the servants and played with the
+servants' children, much like one of them, and her grandmother had known
+little of the household or its ways.
+
+She answered him sharply--
+
+'I have heard that you were no good friend to your niece, Anne Boleyn,
+when she was in her troubles.'
+
+He swallowed in his throat and gazed impassively at the distant oak
+tree, nevertheless his knee trembled with fury. And Katharine knew very
+well that if, more than another, he took pleasure in giving pain with
+his words, he bore the pain of other's words less well than most men.
+
+'The Queen Anne,' he said, 'was a heretic. No better was she than a
+Protestant. She battened upon the goods of our Church. Why should I
+defend her?'
+
+'Uncle,' she said, 'where got you the jewel in your bonnet?'
+
+He started a little back at that, and the small veins in his yellow
+eye-whites grew inflamed with blood.
+
+'Queen----' he brought out between rage and astonishment that she
+should dare the taunt.
+
+'I think it came from the great chalice of the Abbey of Rising,' she
+said. 'We are valiant defenders of the Church, who wear its spoils upon
+our very brows.'
+
+It was as if she had thrown down a glove to him and to a great many that
+were behind him.
+
+She knew very well where she stood, and she knew very well what her
+uncle and his friends awaited for her, for Margot, her maid, brought her
+alike the gossip of the Court and the loudly voiced threats and
+aspirations of the city. For the Protestants--she knew them and cared
+little for them. She did not believe there were very many in the King's
+and her realm, and mostly they were foreign merchants and poor men who
+cared little as long as their stomachs were filled. If these had their
+farms again they would surely return to the old faith, and she was
+minded to do away with the sheep. For it was the sheep that had brought
+discontent to England. To make way for these fleeces the ploughmen had
+been dispossessed.
+
+It was natural that Protestants should hate her; but with Norfolk and
+his like it was different. She knew very well that Norfolk came there
+that day and waited every day, watching anxiously for the first sign
+that the King's love for her should cool. She knew very well that they
+said in the Court that with the King it was only possession and then
+satiety. And she knew very well that when Norfolk's eyes searched her
+face it was for signs of dismay and of discouragement. And when Norfolk
+had said that he himself had placed the banners, the tents, the
+pavilions and carpets that made gay all that grim terrace of the air, he
+was essaying to make her think that the King was abandoning the task of
+doing her honour. This had made her angry, for it was such folly. Her
+uncle should have known that the King had discussed all these things
+with her, asking her what she liked, and that all these bright colours
+and these plaisaunces were what her man had gallantly thought out for
+her. She carried her challenge still further.
+
+'It ill becomes us Howards and all like us,' she said, 'to talk of how
+we will defend the Church of God----'
+
+'I am a swordsman only,' he said. 'Give me that----'
+
+She was not minded to listen to him.
+
+'It becomes us ill,' she said; 'and I take shame in it. For, a very few
+years agone we Howards were very poor. Now we are very rich--though it
+is true that my father is still a very poor man, and your stepmother, my
+grandmother, has known hard shifts. But we Howards, through you who are
+our head, became amongst the richest in the land. And how?'
+
+'I have done services----' the Duke began.
+
+'Why, there has been no new wealth made in this realm,' she said; 'it
+came from the Church. Consider what you have had of this Abbey of
+Risings that I speak of, because I knew it well as a child, and saw many
+times then, sparkling in that which held the blood of my Saviour, the
+jewel that is now in your cap.'
+
+The Abbey of Risings, after the visitors had been to it and the monks
+had been driven out, had fallen to the Duke of Norfolk. And his men had
+stripped the lead from the roofs, the glass from the windows, the very
+tiles from the floor. And this little abbey was only one of many, large
+and small, that had fallen to the Duke, so that it was true enough that,
+through him, the Howards had become a very rich family.
+
+Norfolk burst into a sudden speech--
+
+'I hold these things only as a trust,' he said. 'I am ready to restore.'
+
+'Why, that is very well,' Katharine said; 'and I have hopes that soon
+you will be called to make that restoration to your God.'
+
+Norfolk looked at the square toes of his shoes for a long time.
+
+'Will you have _all_ things to be given back?' he said at last after he
+had thought much.
+
+'The King will have all things be as they were before the Queen
+Katharine, my namesake of Aragon, was undone,' Katharine answered. 'And
+me he will have to take her place so that all things shall be as before
+they were.'
+
+The Duke, leaning on his silver and gold staves, shrugged his shoulders
+very slowly.
+
+'This will make a very great confusion,' he said.
+
+'Ay,' Katharine answered, 'there will a very many be confounded, and a
+great number of hundreds be much annoyed.'
+
+She broke in again upon his slow meditations--
+
+'Sir,' she said, 'this is a very pitiful thing! Privy Seal that is dead
+and done with worked with a very great cunning. Well he knew that for
+most men the heart resideth in the pocket. Therefore, though ye said all
+that he rode this land with a bridle of iron, he was very careful to
+stop all your mouths alike with pieces of gold. It was not only to his
+friends that he gave what had been taken from God, but he was very
+careful that much also should fall into the greedy mouths of those that
+cried out. If he had not done this, do you think that he would have
+remained so long above the earth that he made weary? No. But since he
+made all rich alike with this plunder, so there was no man, either
+Catholic or Lutheran, very anxious to have him away. And, now that he is
+dead he worketh still. For who among you lords that do call yourselves
+sons of the Church, but holdeth of the Church's goods? Oh, bethink you!
+bethink you! The moment is at hand when ye may work restoration. See
+that ye do it willingly and with good hearts, smoothing and making plain
+the way by which the bruised feet of our Saviour shall come across this,
+His land.'
+
+Norfolk kept his eyes upon the ground.
+
+'Why, for me,' he said, 'I am very willing. This day I will send to set
+clerks at work discovering that which is mine and that which came from
+the Church; but I think you will find some that will not do it so
+eagerly.'
+
+She believed him very little; and she said--
+
+'Why, if you will do this thing I think there will not many be
+behindhand.'
+
+He did what he could to conceal his wincing, and her voice changed its
+tone.
+
+'Sir,' she said, and she was eager and pleading, 'you have many men that
+take counsel with you, for I trow that you and my Lord of Winchester do
+lead such lords as be Catholic in this realm. I know very well that you
+and my Lord Bishop of Winchester and such Catholic lords would have me
+to be your puppet and so work as you would have me, giving back to the
+Church such things as have fallen to Protestants or to men that ye
+mislike. But that may not be, for, since I owe mine advancement not to
+you, nor to mine own efforts, but to God alone, so to God alone do I owe
+fealty.'
+
+She stretched out towards him the hand that he had kissed. The tail of
+her coif fell almost to her feet; her body in the fresh sunlight was all
+cased in purple velvet, only the lawn of her undershirt showed, white
+and tremulous at her wrists and her neck; and, fair and contrasted with
+the gold of her hair, her face came out of its abstraction, to take on a
+pitiful and mournful earnestness.
+
+'Sir,' she said, 'if you shall speak for God in the councils that you
+will hold, believe that your rewards shall be very great. I think that
+you have been a man of a very troubled mind, for you have thought only
+or mostly of the affairs of this world. But do now this one good stroke
+for God His piteous sake, and such a peace shall descend upon you as you
+have never yet known. You shall have no more griefs; you shall have no
+more fears. And that is better than the jewels of chalices, and than
+much lead from the roofs of abbeys. Speak you thus in these councils
+that you shall hold, give you such advice to them that come to you
+seeking it, and this I promise you--for it is too little a thing to
+promise you the love of a Queen and a King's favour, though that too ye
+shall not lack--but this I promise you, that there shall descend upon
+your heart that most blessed miracle and precious wealth, the peace of
+God.'
+
+
+III
+
+When Henry was calmed by his pacing in her chamber he came out to her in
+the sunlight, rolling and bear-like, and so huge that the terrace seemed
+to grow smaller.
+
+'Chuck,' he said to her, 'I ha' done a thing to pleasure thee.' He moved
+two fingers upwards to save the Duke of Norfolk from falling to his
+knees, caught Katharine by the elbow, and, turning upon himself as on a
+huge pivot, swung her round him so that they faced the pavilion. 'Sha't
+not talk with a citron-faced uncle,' he said; 'sha't save sweet words
+for me. I will tell thee what I ha' done to pleasure thee.'
+
+'Save it a while and do another ere ye tell me,' she said.
+
+'Now, what is your reasoning about that, wise one?' he asked.
+
+She laughed at him, for she took pleasure in his society and, except
+when she was earnest to beg things of him, she was mostly gay at his
+side.
+
+'It takes a woman to teach kings,' she said.
+
+He answered that it took a Queen to teach him.
+
+'Why,' she said, 'listen! I know that each day ye do things to pleasure
+me, things prodigal or such little things as giving me pouncet boxes.
+But you will find--and a woman, quean or queen, knows it well--that to
+take the full pleasure of her lover's surprises well, she must have an
+easy mind. And to have an easy mind she must have granted her the
+little, little boons she asketh.'
+
+He reflected ponderously upon this point and at last, with a sort of
+peasant's gravity, nodded his head.
+
+'For,' she said, 'if a woman is to take pleasure she must guess at what
+you men have done for her. And if she be to guess pleasurably, she must
+have a clear mind. And if I am to have a clear mind I must have a maiden
+consoled with a husband.'
+
+Henry seated himself carefully in the great chair of the small pavilion.
+He spread out his knees, blinked at the view and when, having cast a
+look round to see that Norfolk was gone--for it did not suit her that he
+should see on what terms she was with the King--she seated herself on a
+little foot-pillow at his feet, he set a great hand upon her head. She
+leaned her arms across over his knees, and looked up at him appealingly.
+
+'I do take it,' he said, 'that I must make some man rich to wed some
+poor maid.'
+
+'Oh, Solomon!' she said.
+
+'And I do take it,' he continued with gravity, 'that this maid is thy
+maid Margot.'
+
+'How know you that?' she said.
+
+'I have observed her,' he maintained gravely.
+
+'Why, you could not well miss her,' she answered. 'She is as big as a
+plough-ox.'
+
+'I have observed,' he said--and he blinked his little eyes as if,
+pleasurably, she were, with her words, whispering around his head. 'I
+have observed that ye affected her.'
+
+'Why, she likes me well. She is a good wench--and to-day she tore my
+hair.'
+
+'Then that is along of a man?' he asked. 'Didst not stick thy needle in
+her arm? Or wilto be quit of her?'
+
+She rubbed her chin.
+
+'Why, if she wed, I mun be quit of her,' she said, as if she had never
+thought of that thing.
+
+He answered--
+
+'Assuredly; for ye may not part man and lawful wife were you seven times
+Queen.'
+
+'Why,' she said, 'I have little pleasure in Margot as she is.'
+
+'Then let her go,' he answered.
+
+'But I am a very lonely Queen,' she said, 'for you are much absent.'
+
+He reflected pleasurably.
+
+'Thee wouldst have about thee a little company of well-wishers?'
+
+'So that they be those thou lovest well,' she said.
+
+'Why, thy maid contents me,' he answered. He reflected slowly. 'We must
+give her man a post about thee,' he uttered triumphantly.
+
+'Why, trust thee to pleasure me,' she said. 'You will find out a way
+always.'
+
+He scrubbed her nose gently with his heavy finger.
+
+'Who is the man?' he said. 'What ruffler?'
+
+'I think it is the Magister Udal,' she answered.
+
+Henry said--
+
+'Oh ho! oh ho!' And after a moment he slapped his thigh and laughed like
+a child. She laughed with him, silverly upon a little sound between 'ah'
+and 'e.' He stopped his laugh to listen to hers, and then he said
+gravely--
+
+'I think your laugh is the prettiest sound I ever heard. I would give
+thy maid Margot a score of husbands to make thee laugh.'
+
+'One is enough to make her weep,' she said; 'and I may laugh at thee.'
+
+He said--
+
+'Let us finish this business within the hour. Sit you upon your chair
+that I may call one to send this ruffler here.'
+
+She rose, with one sinuous motion that pleased him well, half to her
+feet and, feeling behind her with one hand for the chair, aided herself
+with the other upon his shoulder because she knew that it gave him joy
+to be her prop.
+
+'Call the maid, too,' she said, 'for I would come to the secret soon.'
+
+That pleased him too, and, having shouted for a knave he once more shook
+with laughter.
+
+'Oh ho,' he said, 'you will net this old fox, will you?'
+
+And, having sent his messenger off to summon the Magister from the Lady
+Mary's room, and the maid from the Queen's, he continued for a while to
+soliloquise as to Udal's predicament. For he had heard the Magister rail
+against matrimony in Latin hexameters and doggerel Greek. He knew that
+the Magister was an incorrigible fumbler after petticoats. And now, he
+said, this old fox was to be bagged and tied up.
+
+He said--
+
+'Well, well, well; well, well!'
+
+For, if a Queen commanded a marriage, a marriage there must be; there
+was no more hope for the Magister than for any slave of Cato's. He was
+cabined, ginned, trapped, shut in from the herd of bachelors. It pleased
+the King very well.
+
+The King grasped the gilded arms of his great chair, Katharine sat
+beside him, her hands laid one within another upon her lap. She did not
+say one single word during the King's interview with Magister Udal.
+
+The Magister fell upon his knees before them and, seeing the laughing
+wrinkles round the King's little eyes, made sure that he was sent
+for--as had often been the case--to turn into Latin some jest the King
+had made. His gown fell about his kneeling shins, his cap was at his
+side, his lean, brown, and sly face, with the long nose and crafty eyes,
+was like a woodpecker's.
+
+'Goodman Magister,' Henry said. 'Stand up. We have sent for thee to
+advance thee.' Without moving his head he rolled his eyes to one side.
+He loved his dramatic effects and wished to await the coming of the
+Queen's maid, Margot, before he gave the weight of his message.
+
+Udal picked up his cap and came up to his feet before them; he had
+beneath his gown a little book, and one long finger between its leaves
+to keep his place where he had been reading. For he had forgotten a
+saying of Thales, and was reading through Cæsar's Commentaries to find
+it.
+
+'As Seneca said,' he uttered in his throat, 'advancement is doubly sweet
+to them that deserve it not.'
+
+'Why,' the King said, 'we advance thee on the deserts of one that finds
+thee sweet, and is sweet to one doubly sweet to us, Henry of Windsor
+that speak sweet words to thee.'
+
+The lines on Udal's face drooped all a little downwards.
+
+'Y'are reader in Latin to the Lady Mary,' the King said.
+
+'I have little deserved in that office,' Udal answered; 'the lady reads
+Latin better than even I.'
+
+'Why, you lie in that,' Henry said, ''a readeth well for she's my
+daughter; but not so well as thee.'
+
+Udal ducked his head; he was not minded to carry modesty further than in
+reason.
+
+'The Lady Mary--the Lady Mary of England----' the King said
+weightily--and these last two words of his had a weight all their own,
+so that he added, 'of England' again, and then, 'will have little longer
+need of thee. She shall wed with a puissant Prince.'
+
+'I hail, I felicitate, I bless the day I hear those words,' the Magister
+said.
+
+'Therefore,' the King said--and his ears had caught the rustle of
+Margot's grey gown--'we will let thee no more be reader to that my
+daughter.'
+
+Margot came round the green silk curtains that were looped on the corner
+posts of the pavilion. When she saw the Magister her great, fair face
+became slowly of a fiery red; slowly and silently she fell, with motions
+as if bovine, to her knees at the Queen's side. Her gown was all grey,
+but it had roses of red and white silk round the upper edges of the
+square neck-place, and white lawn showed beneath her grey cap.
+
+'We advance thee,' Henry said, 'to be Chancellier de la Royne, with an
+hundred pounds by the year from my purse. Do homage for thine office.'
+
+Udal fell upon one knee before Katharine, and dropping both cap and
+book, took her hand to raise to his lips. But Margot caught her hand
+when he had done with it and set upon it a huge pressure.
+
+'But, Sir Chancellor,' the King said, 'it is evident that so grave an
+office must have a grave fulfiller. And, to ballast thee the better, the
+Queen of her graciousness hath found thee a weighty helpmeet. So that,
+before you shall touch the duties and emoluments of this charge you
+shall, and that even to-night, wed this Madam Margot that here kneels.'
+
+Udal's face had been of a coppery green pallor ever since he had heard
+the title of Chancellor.
+
+'Eheu!' he said, 'this is the torture of Tantalus that might never
+drink.'
+
+In its turn the face of Margot Poins grew pale, pushed forward towards
+him; but her eyes appeared to blaze, for all they were a mild blue, and
+the Queen felt the pressure upon her hand grow so hard that it pained
+her.
+
+The King uttered the one word, 'Magister!'
+
+Udal's fingers picked at the fur of his moth-eaten gown.
+
+'God be favourable to me,' he said. 'If it were anything but
+Chancellor!'
+
+The King grew more rigid.
+
+'Body of God,' he said, 'will you wed with this maid?'
+
+'Ahí!' the Magister wailed; and his perturbation had in it something
+comic and scarecrowlike, as if a wind shook him from within. 'If you
+will make me anything but a Chancellor, I will. But a Chancellor, I dare
+not.'
+
+The King cast himself back in his chair. The suggested gibe rose
+furiously to his lips; the Magister quailed and bent before him,
+throwing out his hands.
+
+'Sire,' he said, 'if--which God forbid--this were a Protestant realm I
+might do it. But oh, pardon and give ear. Pardon and give ear----'
+
+He waved one hand furiously at the silken canopy above them.
+
+'It is agreed with one of mine in Paris that she shall come hither--God
+forgive me, I must make avowal, though God knows I would not--she shall
+come hither to me if she do hear that I have risen to be a Chancellor.'
+
+The King said, 'Body of God!' as if it were an earthquake.
+
+'If it were anything else but Chancellor she might not come, and I would
+wed Margot Poins more willingly than any other. But--God knows I do not
+willingly make this avowal, but am in a corner, _sicut vulpis in
+lucubris_, like a fox in the coils--this Paris woman is my wife.'
+
+Henry gave a great shout of laughter, but slowly Margot Poins fell
+across the Queen's knees. She uttered no sound, but lay there
+motionless. The sight affected Udal to an epileptic fury.
+
+'Jove be propitious to me!' he stuttered out. 'I know not what I can
+do.' He began to tear the fur of his cloak and toss it over the
+battlements. 'The woman is my wife--wed by a friar. If this were a
+Protestant realm now--or if I pleaded pre-contract--and God knows I ha'
+promised marriage to twenty women before I, in an evil day, married
+one--eheu!--to this one----'
+
+He began to sob and to wring his thin hands.
+
+'_Quod faciam? Me miser! Utinam. Utinam----_'
+
+He recovered a little coherence.
+
+'If this were a Protestant land ye might say this wedding was no
+wedding, for that a friar did it; but I know ye will not suffer that----'
+His eyes appealed piteously to the Queen.
+
+'Why, then,' he said, 'it is not upon my head that I do not wed this
+wench. You be my witness that I would wed; it gores my heart to see her
+look so pale. It tears my vitals to see any woman look pale. As
+Lucretius says, "Better the sunshine of smiles----"'
+
+A little outputting of impatient breath from Katharine made him stop.
+
+'It is you, your Grace,' he said, 'that make me thus tied. If you would
+let us be Protestant, or, again, if I could plead pre-contract to void
+this Paris marriage it would let me wed with this wench--eheu--eheu. Her
+brother will break my bones----'
+
+He began to cry out so lamentably, invoking Pluto to bear him to the
+underworld, that the King roared out upon him--
+
+'Why, get you gone, fool.'
+
+The Magister threw himself suddenly upon his knees, his hands clasped,
+his gown drooping over them down to his wrists. He turned his face to
+the Queen.
+
+'Before God,' he said, 'before high and omnipotent Jove, I swear that
+when I made this marriage I thought it was no marriage!' He reflected
+for a breath and added, at the recollection of the cook's spits that had
+been turned against him when he had by woman's guile been forced into
+marriage with the widow in Paris, 'I was driven into it by force, with
+sharp points at my throat. Is that not enow to void a marriage? Is that
+not enow? Is that not enow?'
+
+Katharine looked out over the great levels of the view. Her face was
+rigid, and she swallowed in her throat, her eye being glazed and hard.
+The King took his cue from a glance at her face.
+
+'Get you gone, Goodman Rogue Magister,' he said, and he adopted a
+canonical tone that went heavily with his rustic pose. 'A marriage made
+and consummated and properly blessed by holy friar there is no undoing.
+You are learned enough to know that. Rogue that you be, I am very glad
+that you are trapped by this marriage. Well I know that you have dangled
+too much with petticoats, to the great scandal of this my Court. Now you
+have lost your preferment, and I am glad of it. Another and a better
+than thou shall be the Queen's Chancellor, for another and a better than
+thou shall wed this wench. We will get her such a goodly husband----'
+
+A low, melancholy wail from Margot Poins' agonised face--a sound such as
+might have been made by an ox in pain--brought him to a stop. It wrung
+the Magister, who could not bear to see a woman pained, up to a pitch of
+ecstatic courage.
+
+'_Quid fecit Cæsar_,' he stuttered; 'what Cæsar hath done, Cæsar can do
+again. It was not till very lately since this canon of wedding and
+consummating and blessing by a holy friar hath been derided and
+contemned in this realm. And so it might be again----'
+
+Katharine Howard cried out, 'Ah!' Her features grew rigid and as ashen
+as cold steel. And, at her cry, the King--who could less bear than Udal
+to hear a woman in pain--the King sprang up from his chair. It was as
+amazing to all them as to hunters it is to see a great wild bull charge
+with a monstrous velocity. Udal was rigid with fear, and the King had
+him by the throat. He shook him backwards and forwards so that his book
+fell upon the Queen's feet, bursting out of his ragged gown, and his
+cap, flying from his opened hand, fell down over the battlement into an
+elm top. The King guttered out unintelligible sounds of fury from his
+vast chest and, planted on his huge feet, he swung the Magister round
+him till, backwards and staggering, the eyes growing fixed in his brown
+and rigid face, he was pushed, jerking at each step of the King, out of
+sight behind the green silk curtains.
+
+The Queen sat motionless in her purple velvet. She twisted one hand into
+the chain of the medallion about her throat, and one hand lay open and
+pale by her side. Margot Poins knelt at her side, her face hidden in the
+Queen's lap, her two arms stretched out beyond her grey coifed head. For
+a minute she was silent. Then great sobs shook her so that Katharine
+swayed upon her seat. From her hidden face there came muffled and
+indistinguishable words, and at last Katharine said dully--
+
+'What, child? What, child?'
+
+Margot moved her face sideways so that her mouth was towards Katharine.
+
+'You can unmake it! You can unmake the marriage,' she brought out in
+huge sobs.
+
+Katharine said--
+
+'No! No!'
+
+'You unmade a King's marriage,' Margot wailed.
+
+Katharine said--
+
+'No! No!' She started and uttered the words loudly; she added pitifully,
+'You do not understand! You do not understand!'
+
+It was the more pitiful in that Margot understood very well. She hid her
+face again and only sobbed heavily and at long intervals, and then with
+many sobs at once. The Queen laid her white hand upon the girl's head.
+Her other still played with the chain.
+
+'Christ be piteous to me,' she said. 'I think it had been better if I
+had never married the King.'
+
+Margot uttered an indistinguishable sound.
+
+'I think it had been better,' the Queen said; 'though I had jeoparded my
+immortal part.'
+
+Margot moved her head up to cry out in her turn--
+
+'No! No! You may not say it!'
+
+Then she dropped her face again. When she heard the King coming back and
+breathing heavily, she stood up, and with huge tears on her red and
+crumpled face she looked out upon the fields as if she had never seen
+them before. An immense sob shook her. The King stamped his foot with
+rage, and then, because he was soft-hearted to them that he saw in
+sorrow, he put his hand upon her shoulder.
+
+'Sha't have a better mate,' he uttered. 'Sha't be a knight's dame!
+There! there!' and he fondled her great back with his hand. Her eyes
+screwed tightly up, she opened her mouth wide, but no words came out,
+and suddenly she shook her head as if she had been an enraged child. Her
+loud cries, shaken out of her with her tears, died away as she went
+across the terrace, a loud one and then a little echo, a loud one and
+then two more.
+
+'Before God!' the King said, 'that knave shall eat ten years of prison
+bread.'
+
+His wife looked still over the wooded enclosures, the little stone
+walls, and the copses. A small cloud had come before the sun, and its
+shadow was moving leisurely across the ridge where stood the roofless
+abbey.
+
+'The maid shall have the best man I can give her,' the King said.
+
+'Why, no good man would wed her!' Katharine answered dully.
+
+Henry said--
+
+'Anan?' Then he fingered the dagger on the chain before his chest.
+
+'Why,' he added slowly, 'then the Magister shall die by the rope. It is
+an offence that can be quitted with death. It is time such a thing were
+done.'
+
+Katharine's dull silence spurred him; he shrugged his shoulders and
+heaved a deep breath out.
+
+'Why,' he said, 'a man can be found to wed the wench.'
+
+She moved one hand and uttered--
+
+'I would not wed her to such a man!' as if it were a matter that was not
+much in her thoughts.
+
+'Then she may go into a nunnery,' the King said; 'for before three
+months are out we will have many nunneries in this realm.'
+
+She looked upon him a little absently, but she smiled at him to give him
+pleasure. She was thinking that she wished she had not wedded him; but
+she smiled because, things being as they were, she thought that she had
+all the authorities of the noble Greeks and Romans to bid her do what a
+good wife should.
+
+He laughed at her griefs, thinking that they were all about Margot
+Poins. He uttered jolly grossnesses; he said that she little knew the
+way of courts if she thought that a man, and a very good man, might not
+be found to wed the wench.
+
+She was troubled that he could not better read what was upon her mind,
+for she was thinking that her having consented to his making null his
+marriage with the Princess of Cleves that he might wed her would render
+her work always the more difficult. It would render her more the target
+for evil tongues, it would set a sterner and a more stubborn opposition
+against her task of restoring the Kingdom of God within that realm.
+
+Henry said--
+
+'Ye hannot guessed what my secret was? What have I done for thee this
+day?'
+
+She still looked away over the lands. She made her face smile--
+
+'Nay, I know not. Ha' ye brought me the musk I love well?'
+
+He shook his head.
+
+'It is more than that!' he said.
+
+She still smiled--
+
+'Ha' ye--ha' ye--made make for me a new crown?'
+
+She feared a little that that was what he had done. For he had been
+urgent with her, many months, to be crowned. It was his way to love
+these things. And her heart was a little gladder when he shook his head
+once again and uttered--
+
+'It is more than that!'
+
+She dreaded his having made ready in secret a great pageant in her
+honour, for she was afraid of all aggrandisements, and thought still it
+had been better that she had remained his sweet friend ever and not the
+Queen. For in that way she would have had as much empire over him, and
+there would have been much less clamour against her--much less clamour
+against the Church of her Saviour.
+
+She forced her mind to run upon all the things that she could wish for.
+When she said it must be that he had ordered for her enough French
+taffetas to make twelve gowns, he laughed and said that he had said that
+it was more than a crown. When she guessed that he had made ready such a
+huge cavalcade that she might with great comfort and safety ride with
+him into Scotland, he laughed, contented that she should think of going
+with him upon that long journey. He stood looking at her, his little
+eyes blinking, his face full of pride and joy, and suddenly he uttered--
+
+'The Church of God is come back again.' He touched his cap at the sacred
+name. 'I ha' made submission to the Pope.'
+
+He looked her full in the face to get all the delight he might from her
+looks and her movements.
+
+Her blue eyes grew large; she leaned forward in her chair; her mouth
+opened a little; her sleeves fell down to the ground. 'Now am I indeed
+crowned!' she said, and closed her eyes. '_Benedicta sit mater dei!_'
+she uttered, and her hand went over her heart place; '_deo clamavi nocte
+atque dië._'
+
+She was silent again, and she leaned more forward.
+
+'_Sit benedicta dies haec; sit benedicta hora haec benedictaque,
+saeculum saeculûm, castra haec._'
+
+She looked out upon the great view: she aspired the air.
+
+'_Ad colles_,' she breathed, '_levavi oculos meos; unde venit salvatio
+nostra!_'
+
+'Body of God,' Henry said, 'all things grow plain. All things grow
+plain. This is the best day that ever I knew.'
+
+
+IV
+
+The Lady Mary of England sat alone in a fair room with little arched
+windows that gave high up on to the terrace. It was the best room that
+ever she had had since her mother, the Queen Katharine of Aragon, had
+been divorced.
+
+Dressed in black she sat writing at a large table before one window. Her
+paper was fitted on to a wooden pulpit that rose before her; one book
+stood open upon it, three others lay open too upon the red and blue and
+green pattern of the Saracen rug that covered her table. At her right
+hand was a three-tiered inkstand of pewter, set about with the white
+feathers of pens; and the snakelike pattern of the table-rug serpentined
+in and out beneath seals of parcel gilt, a platter of bread, a sandarach
+of pewter, books bound in wooden covers and locked with chains, books in
+red velvet covers, sewn with silver wire and tied with ribbons. It ran
+beneath a huge globe of the world, blue and pink, that had a golden pin
+in it to mark the city of Rome. There were little wooden racks stuck
+full with written papers and parchments along the wainscoting between
+the arched windows, but all the hangings of the other walls were of
+tinted and dyed silks, not any with dark colours, because Katharine
+Howard had deemed that that room with its deep windows in the thick
+walls would be otherwise dark. The room was ten paces deep by twenty
+long, and the wood of the floor was polished. Against the wall, behind
+the Lady Mary's back, there stood a high chair upon a platform. Upon the
+platform a carpet began that ran up the wall and, overhead, depended
+from the gilded rafters of the ceiling so that it formed a dais and a
+canopy.
+
+The Lady Mary sat grimly amongst all these things as if none of them
+belonged to her. She looked in her book, she made a note upon her
+paper, she stretched out her hand and took a piece of bread, putting it
+in her mouth, swallowing it quickly, writing again, and then once more
+eating, for the great and ceaseless hunger that afflicted her gnawed
+always at her vitals.
+
+A little boy with a fair poll was reaching on tiptoe to smell at a pink
+that depended from a vase of very thin glass standing in the deep
+window. The shield of the coloured pane cast a little patch of red and
+purple on to his callow head. He was dressed all in purple, very square,
+and with little chains and medallions, and a little dagger with a golden
+sheath was about his neck. In one hand he had a piece of paper, in the
+other a pencil. The Lady Mary wrote; the child moved on tiptoe, with a
+sedulous expression of silence about his lips, near to her elbow. He
+watched her writing for a long time with attentive eyes.
+
+Once he said, 'Sister, I----' but she paid him no heed.
+
+After a time she looked coldly at his face and then he moved along the
+table, fingered the globe very gently, touched the books and returned to
+her side. He stood with his little legs wide apart. Then he sighed, then
+he said--
+
+'Sister, the Queen did bid me ask you a question.'
+
+She looked round upon him.
+
+'This was the Queen's question,' he said bravely:
+'"_Cur_--why--_nunquam_--never--_rides_--dost thou
+smile--_cum_--when--_ego, frater tuus_--I, thy little
+brother--_ludo_--play--_in camerâ tuâ_--in thy chamber?"'
+
+'Little Prince,' she said, 'art not afeared of me?'
+
+'Aye, am I,' he answered.
+
+'Say then to the Queen,' she said, '"_Domina Maria_--the Lady
+Mary--_ridet nunquam_--smileth never--_quod_--because--_timoris
+ratio_--the reason of my fear--_bona et satis_--is good and
+sufficient."'
+
+He held his little head upon one side.
+
+'The Queen did bid me say,' he uttered with his brave little voice,
+'"Holy Writ hath it: _Ecce quam bonum et dignum est fratres--fratres----_"'
+He faltered without embarrassment and added, 'I ha' forgot the words.'
+
+'Aye!' she said, 'they ha' been long forgotten in these places; I deem
+it is overlate to call them to mind.'
+
+She looked upon him coldly for a long time. Then she stretched out her
+hand for his paper.
+
+'Your Highness, I will set you a copy.'
+
+She took his paper and wrote--
+
+'_Malo malo malâ._'
+
+He held it in his chubby fist, his head on one side.
+
+'I cannot conster it,' he said.
+
+'Why, think upon it,' she answered. 'When I was thy age I knew it
+already two years. But I was better beaten than thou.'
+
+He rubbed his little arm.
+
+'I am beaten enow,' he said.
+
+'Knowest not what a swingeing is,' she answered.
+
+'Then thou hadst a bitter childhood,' he brought out.
+
+'I had a good mother,' she cut him short.
+
+She turned her face to her writing again; it was bitter and set. The
+little prince climbed slowly into the chair on the dais. He moved
+sturdily and curled himself up on the cushion, studying the words on the
+paper all the while with a little frown upon his brows. Then, shrugging
+his shoulders, he set the paper upon his knee and began to write.
+
+At that date the Lady Mary was still called a bastard, though most men
+thought that that hardship would soon be reversed. It was said that
+great honours had been shown her, and that was apparent in the
+furnishing of her rooms, the fineness of her gear, the increase in the
+number of the women that waited on her, and the store of sweet things
+that was provided for her to eat. A great many men noted the chair with
+a dais that was set up always where she might be, in her principal room,
+and though her ladies said that she never sat in it, most men believed
+that she had made a pact with the King to do him honour and so to be
+reinstated in the estate in which she held her own. It was considered,
+too, that she no longer plotted with the King's enemies inside or out of
+the realm; it was at least certain that she no longer had men set to
+spy upon her, though it was noted that the Archbishop's gentleman,
+Lascelles, nosed about her quarters and her maids. But he was always
+spying somewhere and, as the Archbishop's days were thought to be
+numbered, he was accounted of little weight. Indeed, since the fall of
+Thomas Cromwell there seemed to be few spies about the Court, or almost
+none at all. It was known that gentlemen wrote accounts of what passed
+to Gardiner, the Bishop of Winchester. But Gardiner was gone back into
+his see and appeared to have little favour, though it was claimed for
+him that he had done much to advance the new Queen. So that, upon the
+whole, men breathed much more freely--and women too--than in the days
+before the fall of Privy Seal. The Queen had made little change, and
+seemed to have it in mind to make little more. Her relatives had, nearly
+none of them, been advanced. There were few Protestants oppressed,
+though many Catholics had been loosed from the gaols, most notably him
+whom the Archbishop Cranmer had taken to be his chaplain and confessor,
+and others that other lords had taken out of prison to be about them.
+
+All in all the months that had passed since Cromwell's fall had gone
+quietly. The King and Queen had gone very often to mass since Katharine
+had been shown for Queen in the gardens at Hampton Court, and saints'
+days and the feasts of the life of our Lady had been very carefully
+observed, along with fasts such as had used to be observed. The King,
+however, was mightily fond with his new Queen, and those that knew her
+well, or knew her servants well, expected great changes. Some were much
+encouraged, some feared very much, but nearly all were heartily glad of
+that summer of breathing space; and the weather was mostly good, so that
+the corn ripened well and there was little plague or ague abroad.
+
+Thus most men had been heartily glad to see the new Queen upon her
+journey there to the north parts. She had ridden upon a white horse with
+the King at her side; she had asked the names of several that had come
+to see her; she had been fair to look at; and the King had pardoned
+many felons, so that men's wives and mothers had been made glad; and
+most old men said that the good times were come again, with the price of
+malt fallen and twenty-six to the score of herrings. It was reported,
+too, that a cider press in Herefordshire had let down a dozen firkins of
+cider without any apples being set in it, and this was accounted an omen
+of great plenty, whilst many sheep had died, so that men who had set
+their fields down in grass talked of giving them to the plough again,
+and upon St Swithin's Day no rain had fallen. All these things gave a
+great contentment, and many that in the hard days had thought to become
+Lutheran in search of betterment, now looked in byres and hidden valleys
+to find priests of the old faith. For if a man could plough he might
+eat, and if he might eat he could praise God after his father's manner
+as well as in a new way.
+
+Thus, around the Lady Mary, whilst she wrote, the people of the land
+breathed more peace. And even she could not but be conscious of a new
+softness, if it was only in the warmth that came from having her
+window-leads properly mended. She had hardly ever before known what it
+was to have warm hands when she wrote, and in most days of the year she
+had worn fur next her skin, indoors as well as out. But now the sun beat
+on her new windows, and in that warmth she could wear fine lawn, so
+that, in spite of herself, she took pleasure and was softened, though,
+since she spoke to no man save the Magister Udal, and to him only about
+the works of Plautus or the game of cards that they played together, few
+knew of any change in her.
+
+Nevertheless, on that day she had one of her more ill moods and,
+presently, having written a little more, she rang a small silver bell
+that was shaped like a Dutch woman with wide skirts.
+
+'The Prince annoys me,' she said to her woman; 'send for his lady
+governess.'
+
+The woman, dressed all in black, like her mistress, and with a little
+frill of white cambric over her temples as if she were a nun, stood in
+the open doorway that was just level with the Lady Mary's chair, so that
+the stone wall of the passage caught the light from the window. She
+folded her hands before her.
+
+'Alack, Madam,' she said, 'your Madamship knows that at this hour his
+Highness' lady governess taketh ever the air.'
+
+The little boy in the chair looked over his paper at his sister.
+
+'Send for his physician then,' Mary said.
+
+'Alack, sister,' the little Prince said before the woman could move, 'my
+physician is ill. _Jacet_--He lieth--_in cubiculo_--in his bed.'
+
+The Lady Mary would not look round on him.
+
+'Get thee, then,' she uttered coldly, 'to thine own apartments, Prince.'
+
+'Alack, sister,' he answered,'thou knowest that I may not walk along the
+corridors alone for fear some slay me. Nor yet may I be anywhere save
+with the Queen, or thee, or with my uncles, or my lady governess, or my
+physicians, for fear some poison me.'
+
+He spoke with a clear and shrill voice, and the woman cast down her
+eyes, trembling a little, partly to hear such a small, weary child speak
+such a long speech as if by wizardry--for it was reported among the
+serving maids that he had been overlooked--and partly for fear of the
+black humour that she perceived to be upon her mistress.
+
+'Send me then my Magister to lay out cards with me,' the Lady Mary said.
+'I cannot make my studies with this Prince in my rooms.'
+
+'Alack, Madam,' the girl said. She was high coloured and with dark eyes,
+but when she faltered then the colour died from her cheeks. The Lady
+Mary surveyed her coldly, for she was in the mood to give pain. She
+uttered no words.
+
+'Alack, alack----' the maid whimpered. She was full of fear lest the
+Lady Mary should order her to receive short rations or many stripes; she
+was filled with consternation and grief since her sweetheart, a server,
+had told her that he must leave her. For it was rumoured that the
+Magister had been cast into gaol for sweethearting, and that the King
+had said that all sweethearts should be gaoled from thenceforth. 'The
+Magister is gaoled,' she said.
+
+'Wherefore?' the Lady uttered the one expressionless word.
+
+'I do not know,' the maid wailed; 'I do not know.'
+
+The form of the Archbishop's gentleman glided noiselessly behind her
+back. His eyes shot one sharp, sideways glance in at the door, and, like
+a russet fox, he was gone. He was so like a fox that the Lady Mary, when
+she spoke, used the words--
+
+'Catch me that gentleman.'
+
+He was brought to the doorsill by the panting maid, for he had walked
+away very fast. He stood there, blinking his eyes and stroking his
+fox-coloured beard. When the Lady Mary beckoned him into the room he
+pulled off his cap and fell to his thin knees. He expected her to bid
+him rise, but she left him there.
+
+'Wherefore is my secretary gaoled?' she asked cruelly.
+
+He ran his finger round the rim of his cap where it lay on the floor
+beside him.
+
+'That he is gaoled, I know,' he said; 'but the wherefore of it, not.'
+
+He looked down at the floor and she down at his drooped eyelids.
+
+'God help you,' she uttered scornfully. 'You are a spy and yet know no
+more than a Queen's daughter.'
+
+'God help me,' he repeated gravely and touched his eyelid with one
+finger. 'What passed, passed between the King and him. I know no more
+than common report.'
+
+'Common report?' she said. 'I warrant thee thou wast slinking around the
+terrace. I warrant thee thou heardst words of the King's mouth. I
+warrant thee thou followedst here to hear at my doorhole how I might
+take this adventure.'
+
+One of his eyelids moved delicately, but he said no word. The Lady Mary
+turned her back on him and he expected her order to be gone. But she
+turned again--
+
+'Common report?' she uttered once more. 'I do bid you give me the common
+report upon this, that the Queen sends to me every day this little
+Prince to be alone with me two hours.'
+
+He winced with his eyebrows again.
+
+'Out with the common report,' she said.
+
+'Madam,' he uttered, 'it is usually commended that the Queen should seek
+to bring sister and Prince-brother together.'
+
+She shrugged her stiff shoulders up to her ears.
+
+'What a poor liar for a spy,' she said. 'It is more usually
+reported'--and she turned upon the little Prince--'that the Queen sends
+thee here that I may work thee a mischief so that thou die and her child
+reign after the King thy father.'
+
+The little Prince looked at her with pensive eyes. At that moment
+Katharine Howard came to the room door and looked in.
+
+'Body of God,' the Lady Mary said; 'here you spy out a spy committing
+treason. For it is still treason to kneel to me. I am of illegal birth
+and not of the blood royal.'
+
+Katharine essayed her smile upon the black-avised girl.
+
+'Give me leave,' she said.
+
+'Your Grace's poor room,' Mary said, 'is open ever to your Grace's
+entry. _Ubi venis ibi tibi._'
+
+The Queen bade her waiting women go. She entered the room and looked at
+Lascelles.
+
+'I think I know thy face,' she said.
+
+'I am the Archbishop's poor gentleman,' he answered. 'I think you have
+seen me.'
+
+'No. It is not that,' she said. 'It was long ago.'
+
+She crossed the room to smell at the pinks in the window.
+
+'How late the flowers grow,' she said. 'It is August, yet here are still
+vernal perfumes.'
+
+She was unwilling to bid the gentleman rise and go, because this was the
+Lady Mary's room.
+
+'Where your Grace is, there the spring abideth,' Mary said sardonically.
+'_Ecce miraculum sicut erat, Joshuâ rege._'
+
+The little Prince came timidly down to beg a flower from the Queen and
+they all had their backs upon the spy. He ran his hands down his beard
+and considered the Queen's words. Then swiftly he was on his feet and
+through the door. He was more ready to brave the Lady Mary's after-wrath
+than let the Queen see him upon his knees. For actually it was a treason
+to kneel to the Lady Mary. It had been proclaimed so in the old days
+when the King's daughter was always subject to new debasements. And who
+knew whether now the penalty of treason might not still be enacted? It
+was certain that the Queen had no liking for the Archbishop. Then, what
+use might she not make of the fact that the Archbishop's man knelt,
+seeming to curry favour, though in these days all men knelt to her, even
+when the King was by? He cursed himself as he hastened away.
+
+The Queen looked over her shoulder and caught the glint of his red heel
+as it went past the doorpost.
+
+'In our north parts,' she said, and she was glad that Lascelles had
+fled, 'the seasons come ever tardily.'
+
+'Well, your Grace has not delayed to blossom,' Mary said.
+
+It was part of her humour when she was in a taunting mood to call the
+Queen always 'your Grace' or 'your Majesty' at every turn of the phrase.
+
+Katharine looked at the pink intently. Her face had no expression, she
+was determined at once to have a cheerful patience and not to show it in
+her face.
+
+The little Prince stole his hand into hers.
+
+'Wherefore did my father--_rex pater meus_--pummel the man in the long
+cloak?' he asked.
+
+'You knew it then?' Katharine asked of her stepdaughter.
+
+'I knew it not,' the Lady Mary answered.
+
+'I saw it from this window, but my sister would not look,' the Prince
+said.
+
+The Queen was going to shut, with her own hand, the door, the little boy
+trotting behind her, but, purple-clothed and huge, the King was there.
+
+'Well, I will not be shut out in mine own castle,' he said pleasantly.
+
+In those, the quiet days of his realm when most things were going well,
+his face beneath his beard had taken a rounder and a smoother outline.
+He moved with motions less hasty than those he had had two years before,
+and when he had cast a task off it was done with and went out of his
+mind, so that he appeared a very busy man with, between whiles, the
+leisure to saunter.
+
+'In a half hour,' he said, 'I go north to meet the King o' Scots. I
+would I had not the long journey to make but could stay with ye. It is
+pleasant here; the air is livening.' He caught his little son by the
+armpits and hoisted him on to his purple shoulders. 'Hey, princekin,' he
+said, 'what news ha' you o' the day?'
+
+The little Edward pulled his father's bonnet off that he might the
+better see the huge brows and the little eyes.
+
+'I told my sister that you did pummel a man in a long gown. What is even
+"long gown" in the learned tongue?' He played daintily and languidly
+with the hair of the King's temples, and when the King had said that he
+might call it '_doctorum toga_,' he added, 'But my sister would not come
+to look.'
+
+'Well, thy sister is a monstrous learned wench,' the King said with a
+heavy benignity. 'She could not leave her book.'
+
+The Lady Mary stood rigid, with a mock humility. She had her hands
+clasped before her, the folds of her black skirt fell stiffly just to
+the ground. She pursed her lips and strove with herself to speak, for
+she was minded to exhibit disdain, but her black mood was too strong for
+her.
+
+'I did not read in my book, because I could not,' she said numbly. 'Your
+son disturbed my reading. But I did not come to look, because I would
+not.'
+
+With one arm round the boy's little waist as he sat on high, and one
+hand on the little feet, the King looked at his daughter in a sudden hot
+rage; for to speak contemptuously of his son was a thing that filled him
+with anger and surprise. He opened his mouth to shout. Katharine Howard
+was gently turning a brass sphere with the constellations upon it that
+stood upon the table. She moved her fair face round towards the King and
+set her finger upon her lips. He shrugged his shoulders, prince and all
+moving up together, and his face took on the expression, half abashed
+and half resigned, of a man who is reminded by his womankind that he is
+near to a passionate folly.
+
+Katharine by that time had schooled him how to act when Mary was in that
+humour, and he let out no word.
+
+'I do not like that this Prince should play in my room,' the Lady Mary
+pursued him relentlessly, and he was so well lessoned that he answered
+only--
+
+'Ye must fight that cock with Kat. It is Kat that sends him, not I.'
+
+Nevertheless he was too masterful a man to keep his silence altogether;
+he was, besides, so content upon the whole that he was sure he could
+hold his temper in check, and the better to take breath for a long
+speech, he took the little boy from his shoulder and planted his feet
+abroad on the carpet.
+
+'See now, Moll,' he said, 'make friends!' and he stretched out a large
+hand. She shrugged her shoulders half invisibly.
+
+'I will kneel down to the King of this country and to the Supreme Head
+of the Church as it is here set up by law. What more would you have of
+me?'
+
+'See now, Moll!' he said.
+
+He fingered the medal upon his chest and cast about for words.
+
+'Let us have peace in this realm,' he said. 'We are very near it.'
+
+She raised her eyelids with a tiny contempt.
+
+'It hangs much around you,' he went on. 'Listen! I will tell ye the
+whole matter.'
+
+Slowly and sagaciously he disentangled all his coil of policies. His
+letter to the Holy Father was all drafted and ready to be put into fine
+words. But, before he sent it, he must be sure of peace abroad. It was
+like this--
+
+'Ye know,' he said, 'though great wrangles have been in the past betwixt
+him and thee and mine own self, how my heart has ever been well inclined
+to my nephew, thy cousin the Emperor. There are in Christendom now only
+he and France that are anyways strong to stand against me or to invade
+me. But France I ha' never loved, and him much.'
+
+'Ye are grown gentle then,' Mary said, 'and forgiving in your old age,
+for ye know I ha' plotted against you with my cousin and my cousin with
+me.'
+
+'It is a very ancient tale,' the King said. 'Forget it, as do I and he.'
+
+'Why, you live in the sun where the dial face moves. I in the shadow
+where Time stays still. To me it is every day a new tale,' the Lady Mary
+answered.
+
+His face took on an expression of patience and resignation that angered
+her, for she knew that when her father looked so it was always very
+difficult to move him.
+
+'Why, all the world forgets,' he said.
+
+'Save only I,' she answered. 'I had only one parent--a mother. She is
+dead: she was done to death.'
+
+'I have pardoned your cousin that he plotted against me,' he stuck to
+his tale, 'and he me what I did against your mother.'
+
+'Well, he was ever a popinjay,' the Lady Mary said.
+
+'Lately,' Henry continued, 'as ye wiz he had grown very thick with
+Francis of France. He went across the French country into the
+Netherlands, so strict was their alliance. It is more than I would do to
+trust myself to France's word. All Holland marvelled.'
+
+'What is this to me?' the Lady Mary said. 'Will you send me across
+France to the Netherlands?'
+
+He left her gibe alone.
+
+'But in these latter months,' he said, 'Kat and I ha' weakened with true
+messages and loyal conceits this unholy alliance.'
+
+'Why, I ha' heard,' Mary said, 'ye did send the Duke of Norfolk to tell
+the King o' France that my cousin had said in private that he was the
+greater King of the twain. These be princely princes!'
+
+'An unholy alliance it was,' Henry went on his way, 'for the Emperor is
+a very good Christian and a loyal son of the Church. But Francis
+worships the devil--I have heard it said and I believe it--or, at least,
+he believes not in God and our Saviour; and he pays allegiance to the
+Church only when it serves his turn, now holding on, now letting go. I
+am glad this alliance is dissolving.'
+
+'Why, I am glad to hear you speak like this,' Mary said bitterly. 'You
+are a goodly son to Mother Church.'
+
+The King took her scorn with a shrug of the shoulders.
+
+'I am glad this alliance is dissolved or dissolving,' he said, 'for when
+it is fully dissolved I will make my peace with Rome. And I long for
+that day, for I am weary of errors.'
+
+'Well, this is a very goodly tale,' Mary said. 'I am glad you are minded
+to escape hell-flame. What is it all to me?'
+
+'The burden of it rests with thee,' he answered, 'for thou alone canst
+make thy cousin believe in my true mind.'
+
+'God help me,' Mary said.
+
+'See you, Moll,' the King broke in on her eagerly, 'if you will marry
+the Infant of Spain----'
+
+'God's sakes,' she said lightly, 'my cousin's son will wed no bastard as
+I be.'
+
+He brushed her jest aside with one hand.
+
+'See you,' he said, 'now I ride to the north to meet the King o' Scots.
+That nephew of mine has always been too thick with Francis. But I will
+be so friendly with him. And see you, with the Scots cut away and the
+Emperor unloyal, the teeth of Francis are drawn. I might not send my
+letter to the Pope with all Christendom arrayed together against me. But
+when they are set by the ears I am strong enow.'
+
+'Oh, good!' the Lady Mary said. 'Strong enow to be humble!'
+
+Her eyes sparkled so much and her bosom so heaved, that Katharine moved
+solicitously and swiftly to come between them.
+
+'See you, Moll,' the King said, 'forgive the ill I wrought thee, and so
+shall golden days come again. Once more there shall be a deep peace with
+contented husbandmen and the spreading of the vines abroad upon the
+stakes. And once more _venite creator spiritus_ shall be sung in this
+land. And once more you shall be much honoured; nay, you shall be as one
+that saved this realm----'
+
+She screamed out--
+
+'Stay your tongue!' with such a shrill voice that the King's words were
+drowned. Katharine Howard ran in between them, but she pushed her aside,
+speaking over her shoulder.
+
+'Before God,' she said, 'you gar me forget that you are the King that
+begot me illegally.'
+
+Katharine turned upon the King and sought to move him from the room. But
+he was still of opinion that he could convince his daughter and stood
+his ground, looking over her shoulder as Mary had done.
+
+'Body of God!' Mary said. 'Body of God! That a man could deem me so
+base!' She looked, convulsed, into Henry's eyes. 'Can you bring my
+mother alive by the truckling and cajoling and setting lying prince
+against lying prince? You slew my mother by lies, or your man slew her
+by poison. It is all one. And will you come to me that you have decreed
+misbegotten, to help you save your soul!'
+
+There was such a violent hatred in her tone that the King could bring no
+word out, and she swept on--
+
+'Could even a man be such a dull villain? To creep into heaven by
+bribing his daughter! To creep into heaven by strengthening himself with
+lies about one prince to another till he be strong enow to be humble!
+This is a king! This is even a man! I would be ashamed of such manhood!'
+
+She took a deep breath.
+
+'What can you bribe me with? A marriage with my cousin's son? Why, he
+has deserted my mother's cause. I had rather wed a falconer than that
+prince. You will have me no longer called bastard? Why, I had rather be
+called bastard than the acknowledged child of such a royal King. You
+will cover me with brocades and set me on high? By God, the sun in the
+heaven has looked upon such basenesses that I seek only a patch of
+shade. God help me; you will recall the decree that said my mother was
+not a Queen! God help us! God help us all! You will ennoble my mother's
+memory. With a decree! Can all the decrees you can make render my mother
+more sacred? When you decreed her not a Queen, did a soul believe it? If
+now you decree that a Queen she was, who will believe you? I think I had
+rather you left it alone, it is such a foul thing to have been thy
+wife!'
+
+The saying of these things had pleased her so much that she gained
+control of her tongue.
+
+'You cannot bribe me,' she said calmly. 'You have naught to give that I
+have need of.'
+
+But the King was so used to his daughter's speeches that, though he had
+seldom seen her so mutinous, he could still ignore them.
+
+'Well,' he said, 'I think you are angered with me for having set the
+Magister in gaol----'
+
+'And in addition,' the Lady Mary pursued her own speech, for she deemed
+that she had thought of a thing to pain both him and the Queen, 'how
+might I with a good conscience tell my cousin that you have a true
+inclination to him? I do believe you have; it is this lady that has
+given it you. But how much longer will this lady sway you? No doubt the
+King o' Scots hath a new lady for you--and she will be on the French
+side, for the King o' Scots is the French King's man.'
+
+The King opened his mouth convulsively, but Katharine Howard laid her
+hand right across it.
+
+'You must be riding soon,' she said. 'I have had a collation set in my
+chamber.' She was so used by now to the violent humours of these
+Tudors. 'You have still to direct me,' she added, 'what is to be done
+with these rived cattle.'
+
+As they went through the door, the little Prince holding his father's
+hand and she moving him gently by the shoulder, the child said--
+
+'I thought ye wad ha' little profit speaking to my sister in her then
+mood.'
+
+The King, in the gallery, looked with a gentle apprehension at his wife.
+
+'I trow ye think I ha' done wrong,' he said.
+
+She answered--
+
+'Oh nay; she must come to know one day what your Grace had to tell her.
+Now it is over. But I would not have had you heated. For it is ill to
+start riding in a sweat. You shall not go for an hour yet.'
+
+That pleased him, for it made him think she was unwilling he should go.
+
+In her own room the Lady Mary sat back in her chair and smiled grimly at
+the ceiling.
+
+'Body of God,' she said, 'I wish he had married this wench or ever he
+saw my mother.' Nevertheless, upon reflection, she got pleasure from the
+thought that her mother, with her Aragonia pride, had given the King
+some ill hours before he had put her away to her death. Katharine of
+Aragon had been no Katharine Howard to study her lord's ways and twist
+him about her finger; and Mary took her rosary from a nail beside her
+and told her beads for a quarter hour to calm herself.
+
+
+V
+
+There fell upon the castle a deep peace when the King and most of the
+men were gone. The Queen had the ordering of all things in the castle
+and of most in the realm. Beneath her she had the Archbishop and some
+few of the lords of the council who met most days round a long table in
+the largest hall, and afterwards brought her many papers to sign or to
+approve. But they were mostly papers of accounts for the castles that
+were then building, and some few letters from the King's envoys in
+foreign courts. Upon the whole, there was little stirring, though the
+Emperor Charles V was then about harrying the Protestant Princes of
+Almain and Germany. That was good enough news, and though the great
+castle had well-nigh seven hundred souls, for the most part women, in
+it, yet it appeared to be empty. High up upon the upper battlements the
+guards kept a lazy watch. Sometimes the Queen rode a-hawking with her
+ladies and several lords; when it rained she held readings from the
+learned writers amongst her ladies, to teach them Latin better. For she
+had set a fashion of good learning among women that did not for many
+years die out of the land. In that pursuit she missed the Magister Udal,
+for the ladies listened to him more willingly than to another. They were
+reading the _True History of Lucian_, which had been translated into
+Latin from the Greek about that time.
+
+What occupied her most was the writing of the King's letter to the Pope.
+Down in their cellar the Archbishop and Lascelles wrought many days at
+this very long piece of writing. But they made it too humble to suit
+her, for she would not have her lord to crawl, as if in the dust upon
+his belly, so she told the Archbishop. Henry was to show contrition and
+repentance, desire for pardon and the promise of amendment. But he was a
+very great King and had wrought greatly. And, having got the draft of it
+in the vulgar tongue, she set about herself to turn it into Latin, for
+she esteemed herself the best Latinist that they had there.
+
+But in that again she missed the Magister at last, and in the end she
+sent for him up from his prison to her ante-chamber where it pleased her
+to sit. It was a tall, narrow room, with much such a chair and dais as
+were in the room of the Lady Mary. It gave on to her bedchamber that was
+larger, and it had little, bright, deep windows in the thick walls. From
+them there could be seen nothing but the blue sky, it was so high up.
+Here she sat, most often with the Lady Rochford, upon a little stool
+writing, with the parchments upon her knee or setting a maid to sew. The
+King had lately made her a gift of twenty-four satin quilts. Most of her
+maids sat in her painted gallery, carding and spinning wool, but usually
+she did not sit with them, since she was of opinion that they spoke more
+freely and took more pleasure when she was not there. She had brought
+many maids with her into Yorkshire for this spinning, for she believed
+that this northern wool was the best that could be had. Margot Poins sat
+always with these maids to keep them to their tasks, and her brother had
+been advanced to keep the Queen's door when she was in her private
+rooms, being always without the chamber in which she sat.
+
+When the Magister came to her, she had with her in the little room the
+Lady Rochford and the Lady Cicely Rochford that had married the old
+knight when she was Cicely Elliott. Udal had light chains on his wrists
+and on his ankles, and the Queen sent her guards to await him at her
+outer door. The Lady Cicely set back her head and laughed at the
+ceiling.
+
+'Why, here are the bonds of holy matrimony!' she said to his chains. 'I
+ha' never seen them so plain before.'
+
+The Magister had straws on his cloak, and he limped a little, being
+stiff with the damp of his cell.
+
+'_Ave, Regina!_' he said. '_Moriturus te saluto!_' He sought to kneel,
+but he could not bend his joints; he smiled with a humorous and rueful
+countenance at his own plight.
+
+The Queen said she had brought him there to read the Latin of her
+letter. He ducked his brown, lean head.
+
+'_Ha_,' he said, '_sine cane pastor_--without his dog, as Lucretius
+hath it, the shepherd watches in vain. Wolves--videlicet, errors--shall
+creep into your marshalled words.'
+
+Katharine kept to him a cold face and, a little abashed, he muttered
+under his breath--
+
+'I ha' played with many maids, but this is the worst pickle that ever I
+was in.'
+
+He took her parchment and read, but, because she was the Queen, he
+would not say aloud that he found solecisms in her words.
+
+'Give me,' he said, 'your best pen, and let me sit upon a stool!'
+
+He sat down upon the stool, set the writing on his knee, and groaned
+with his stiffness. He took up his task, but when those ladies began to
+talk--the Lady Cicely principally about a hawk that her old knight had
+training for the Queen, a white sea hawk from Norway--he winced and
+hissed a little because they disturbed him.
+
+'Misery!' he said; 'I remember the days when no mouse dared creak if I
+sat to my task in the learned tongues.'
+
+The Queen then remembered very well how she had been a little girl with
+the Magister for tutor in her father's great and bare house. It was
+after Udal had been turned out of his mastership at Eton. He had been in
+vile humour in most of those days, and had beaten her very often and
+fiercely with his bundle of twigs. It was only afterwards that he had
+called her his best pupil.
+
+Remembering these things, she dropped her voice and sat still, thinking.
+Cicely Elliott, who could not keep still, blew a feather into the air
+and caught it again and again. The old Lady Rochford, her joints swollen
+with rheumatism, played with her beads in her lap. From time to time she
+sighed heavily and, whilst the Magister wrote, he sighed after her.
+Katharine would not send her ladies away, because she would not be alone
+with him to have him plague her with entreaties. She would not go
+herself, because it would have been to show him too much honour then,
+though a few days before she would have gone willingly because his
+vocation and his knowledge of the learned tongues made him a man that it
+was right to respect.
+
+But when she read what he had written for her, his lean, brown face
+turning eagerly and with a ferreting motion from place to place on the
+parchment, she was filled with pity and with admiration for the man's
+talent. It was as if Seneca were writing to his master, or Pliny to the
+Emperor Trajan. And, being a very tender woman at bottom--
+
+'Magister,' she said, 'though you have wrought me the greatest grief I
+think ye could, by so injuring one I like well, yet this is to me so
+great a service that I will entreat the King to remit some of your
+pains.'
+
+He stumbled up from his stool and this time managed to kneel.
+
+'Oh, Queen,' he said, '_Doctissima fuisti_; you were the best pupil that
+ever I had----' She tried to silence him with a motion of her hand. But
+he twined his lean hands together with the little chains hanging from
+them. 'I call this to your pitiful mind,' he brought out, 'not because I
+would have you grateful, but to make you mindful of what I suffer--_non
+quia grata sed ut clemens sis_. For, for advancement I have no stomach,
+since by advancing me you will advance my wife from Paris, and for
+liberty I have no use since you may never make me free of her. Leave me
+to rot in my cell, but, if it be but the tractate of Diodorus Siculus, a
+very dull piece, let me be given some book in a learned tongue. I faint,
+I starve, I die for lack of good letters. I that no day in my life have
+passed--_nulla die sine_--no day without reading five hours in goodly
+books since I was six and breeched. Bethink you, you that love
+learning----'
+
+'Now tell me,' Cicely Elliott cried out, 'which would you rather in your
+cell--the Letters of Cicero or a kitchen wench?'
+
+The Queen bade her hold her peace, and to the Magister she uttered--
+
+'Books I will have sent you, for I think it well that you should be so
+well employed. And, for your future, I will have you set down in a
+monastery where there shall be for you much learning and none of my sex.
+You have done harm enow! Now, get you gone!'
+
+He sighed that she had grown so stern, and she was glad to be rid of
+him. But he had not been gone a minute into the other room when there
+arose such a clamour of harsh voices and shrieks and laughter that she
+threw her door open, coming to it herself before the other ladies could
+close their mouths, which had opened in amazement.
+
+The young Poins was beating the Magister, so that the fur gown made a
+greyish whirl about his scarlet suit in the midst of a tangle of spun
+wool; spinning wheels were overset, Margot Poins crashed around upon
+them, wailing; the girls with their distaffs were crouching against the
+window-places and in corners, crying out each one of them.
+
+The Queen had a single little gesture of the hand with which she
+dismissed all her waiting-women. She stood alone in the inner doorway
+with the Lady Cicely and the Lady Rochford behind her. The Lady Rochford
+wrung her gouty hands; the Lady Cicely set back her head and laughed.
+
+The Queen spoke no word, but in the new silence it was as if the
+Magister fell out of the boy's hands. He staggered amidst the trails of
+wool, nearly fell, and then made stiff zigzags towards the open outer
+door, where his prison guards awaited him, since they had no warrant to
+enter the antechamber. He dragged after him a little trail of fragments
+of spinning wheels and spindles.
+
+'Well, there's a fine roister-doister!' the Lady Cicely laughed behind
+the Queen's back. The Queen stood very still and frowned. To her the
+disturbance was monstrous and distasteful, for she was minded to have
+things very orderly and quiet. The boy, in his scarlet, pulled off his
+bonnet and panted, but he was not still more than a second, and suddenly
+he called out to the Queen--
+
+'Make that pynot to marry my sister!'
+
+Margot Poins hung round him and cried out--
+
+'Oh no! Oh no!'
+
+He shook her roughly loose.
+
+'An' you do not wed with him how shall I get advancement?' he said. ''A
+promised me that when 'a should come to be Chancellor 'a would advance
+me.'
+
+He pushed her from him again with his elbow when she came near.
+
+'Y've grown over familiar,' the Queen said, 'with being too much near
+me. Y'are grown over familiar. For seven days you shall no longer keep
+my door.'
+
+Margot Poins raised her arms over her head, then she leant against a
+window-pane and sobbed into the crook of her elbow. The boy's slender
+face was convulsed with rage; his blue eyes started from his head; his
+callow hair was crushed up.
+
+'Shall a man----' he began to protest.
+
+'I say nothing against that you did beat this Magister,' the Queen said.
+'Such passions cannot be controlled, and I pass it by.'
+
+'But will ye not make this man to wed with my sister?' the boy said
+harshly.
+
+'I cannot. He hath a wedded wife!'
+
+He dropped his hands to his side.
+
+'Alack; then my father's house is down,' he cried out.
+
+'Gentleman Guard,' Katharine said, 'get you for seven days away from my
+door. I will have another sentry whilst you bethink you of a worthier
+way to advancement.'
+
+He gazed at her stupidly.
+
+'You will not make this wedding?' he asked.
+
+'Gentleman Guard,' Katharine said, 'you have your answer. Get you gone.'
+
+A sudden rage came into his eyes; he swallowed in his throat and made a
+gesture of despair with his hand. The Queen turned back into her room
+and busied herself with her task, which was the writing into a little
+vellum book of seven prayers to the Virgin that the Lady Elizabeth,
+Queen Anne Boleyn's daughter, a child then in London, was to turn each
+one into seven languages, written fair in the volume as a gift, against
+Christmas, for the King.
+
+'I would not have that boy to guard my door,' the Lady Cicely said to
+the Queen.
+
+'Why, 'tis a good boy,' Katharine answered; 'and his sister loves me
+very well.'
+
+'Get your Highness another,' the Lady Cicely persisted. 'I do not like
+his looks.'
+
+The Queen gazed up from her writing to where the dark girl, her figure
+raked very much back in her stiff bodice, played daintily with the
+tassels of the curtain next the window.
+
+'My Lady,' Katharine said, 'my Highness must get me a new maid in place
+of Margot Poins, that shall away into a nunnery. Is not that grief
+enough for poor Margot? Shall she think in truth that she has undone her
+father's house?'
+
+'Then advance the springald to some post away from you,' the Lady Cicely
+said.
+
+'Nay,' the Queen answered; 'he hath done nothing to merit advancement.'
+
+She continued, with her head bent down over the writing on her knee, her
+lips moving a little as, sedulously, she drew large and plain letters
+with her pen.
+
+'By Heaven,' the Lady Cicely said, 'you have too tickle a conscience to
+be a Queen of this world and day. In the time of Cæsar you might have
+lived more easily.'
+
+The Queen looked up at her from her writing; her clear eyes were
+untroubled.
+
+'Aye,' she said. '_Lucio Domitio, Appio Claudio consulibus_----'
+
+Cicely Rochford set back her head and laughed at the ceiling.
+
+'Aye, your Highness is a Roman,' she tittered like a magpie.
+
+'In the day of Cæsar it was simple to do well,' the Queen said.
+
+'Why, I do not believe it,' Cicely answered her.
+
+'Cousin! Cousin!' The old Lady Rochford warned her that this was the
+Queen, not her old playmate.
+
+'But now,' the Queen said, 'with such a coming together and a concourse
+of peoples about us; with such holes and corners in a great Court----'
+She paused and sighed.
+
+'Well, if I may not speak my mind,' Cicely Rochford said to the old
+lady, 'what good am I?'
+
+'I did even what I might to keep this lamb Margot from the teeth of that
+wolf Magister,' the Queen said. 'I take shame to myself that I did no
+more. I will do a penance for it. But still I think that these be
+degenerate days.'
+
+'Oh, Queen of dreams and fancies,' Cicely Rochford said. 'I am very
+certain that in the days of your noble Romans it was as it is now. Tell
+me, if you can, that in all your readings of hic and hoc you lit not
+upon such basenesses? You will not lay your hand upon your heart and say
+that never a man of Rome bartered his sister for the hope of
+advancement, or that never a learned doctor was a corrupter of youth? I
+have seen the like in the plays of Plautus that here have been played at
+Court.'
+
+'Why,' the Queen said, 'the days of Plautus were days degenerated and
+fallen already from the ancient nobleness.'
+
+'You should have Queened it before Goodman Adam fell,' Cicely Rochford
+mocked her. 'If you go back before Plautus, go back all the way.'
+
+She shrugged her shoulders up to her ears and uttered a little sound
+like '_Pfui!_' Then she said quickly--
+
+'Give me leave to be gone, your Highness, that I may not grow over
+familiar like the boy with the pikestaff, for if it do not gall you it
+shall wring the withers of this my old husband's cousin!'
+
+The old Lady Rochford, who was always thinking of what had been said two
+speeches ago, because she was so slow-witted, raised her gouty hands in
+the air and opened her mouth. But the Queen smiled faintly at Cicely.
+
+'When I ask you to mince matters in my little room you shall do it. It
+was Lucius the Praetor that went always accompanied by a carping Stoic
+to keep him from being puffed up, and it was a good custom.'
+
+'Before Heaven,' Cicely Rochford said in the midst of her curtsey at the
+door, 'shall I have the office of such a one as Diogenes who derided
+Alexander the Emperor? Then must my old husband live with me in a tub!'
+
+'Pray you,' the Queen said after her through the door, 'look you around
+and spy me out a maid to be my tiring-woman and ward my spinsters. For
+nowadays I see few maids to choose from.'
+
+When she was gone the old Lady Rochford timorously berated the Queen.
+She would have her be more distant with knights' wives and the like. For
+it was fitting for a Queen to be feared and deemed awful.
+
+'I had rather be loved and deemed pitiful,' Katharine answered. 'For I
+was once such a one--no more--than she or thou, or very little more.
+Before the people I bear myself proudly for my lord his high honour. But
+I do lead a very cloistered life, and have leisure to reflect upon for
+what a little space authority endureth, and how that friendship and true
+love between friends are things that bear the weather better.' She did
+not say her Latin text, for the old lady had no Latin.
+
+
+VI
+
+In the underground cell, above the red and gold table that afternoon,
+Lascelles wrought at a fair copy of the King's letter to the Pope,
+amended as it had been by Udal's hand. The Archbishop had come into the
+room reading a book as he came from his prayers, and sate him down in
+his chair at the tablehead without glancing at his gentleman.
+
+'Prithee, your Grace,' Lascelles said, 'suffer me to carry this letter
+mine own self to the Queen.'
+
+The Archbishop looked up at him; his mournful eyes started wide; he
+leaned forward.
+
+'Art thou Lascelles?' he asked.
+
+'Aye, Lascelles I am,' the gentleman answered; 'but I have cut off my
+beard.'
+
+The Archbishop was very weak and startled; he fell into an anger.
+
+'Is this a time for vanities?' he said. 'Will you be after the wenches?
+You look a foolish boy! I do not like this prank.'
+
+Lascelles put up his hand to stroke his vanished beard. His risible lips
+writhed in a foxy smile; his chin was fuller than you would have
+expected, round and sensuous with a dimple in the peak of it.
+
+'Please it, your Grace,' he said, 'this is no vanity, but a scheme that
+I will try.'
+
+'What scheme? What scheme?' the Archbishop said. 'Here have been too
+many schemes.' He was very shaken and afraid, because this world was
+beyond his control.
+
+'Please it, your Grace,' Lascelles answered, 'ask me not what this
+scheme is.'
+
+The Archbishop shook his head and pursed his lips feebly.
+
+'Please it, your Grace,' Lascelles urged, 'if this scheme miscarry, your
+Grace shall hear no more of it. If this scheme succeed I trow it shall
+help some things forward that your Grace would much have forwarded.
+Please it, your Grace, to ask me no more, and to send me with this
+letter to the Queen's Highness.'
+
+The Archbishop opened his nerveless hands before him; they were pale and
+wrinkled as if they had been much soddened in water. Since the King had
+bidden him compose that letter to the Pope of Rome, his hands had grown
+so. Lascelles wrote on at the new draft of the letter, his lips
+following the motions of his pen. Still writing, and with his eyes down,
+he said--
+
+'The Queen's Highness will put from her her tirewoman in a week from
+now.'
+
+The Archbishop moved his fingers as who should say--
+
+'What is that to me!' His eyes gazed into the space above his book that
+lay before him on the table.
+
+'This Margot Poins is a niece of the master-printer Badge, a Lutheran,
+of the Austin Friars.' Lascelles pursued his writing for a line further.
+Then he added--
+
+'This putting away and the occasion of it shall make a great noise in
+the town of London. It will be said amongst the Lutherans that the Queen
+is answerable therefor. It will be said that the Queen hath a very lewd
+Court and companionship.'
+
+The Archbishop muttered wearily--
+
+'It hath been said already.'
+
+'But not,' Lascelles said, 'since she came to be Queen.'
+
+The Archbishop directed upon him his hang-dog eyes, and his voice was
+the voice of a man that would not be disturbed from woeful musings.
+
+'What use?' he said bitterly; and then again, 'What use?'
+
+Lascelles wrote on sedulously. He used his sandarach to the end of the
+page, blew off the sand, eyed the sheet sideways, laid it down, and set
+another on his writing-board.
+
+'Why,' he brought out quietly, 'it may be brought to the King's
+Highness' ears.'
+
+'What way?' the Archbishop said heavily, as if the thing were
+impossible. His gentleman answered--
+
+'This way and that!' The King's Highness had a trick of wandering about
+among his faithful lieges unbeknown; foreign ambassadors wrote abroad
+such rumours which might be re-reported from the foreign by the King's
+servants.
+
+'Such a report,' Lascelles said, 'hath gone up already to London town by
+a swift carrier.'
+
+The Archbishop brought out wearily and distastefully--
+
+'How know you? Was it you that wrote it?'
+
+'Please it, your Grace,' his gentleman answered him, 'it was in this
+wise. As I was passing by the Queen's chamber wall I heard a great
+outcry----'
+
+He laid down his pen beside his writing-board the more leisurely to
+speak.
+
+He had seen Udal, beaten and shaking, stagger out from the Queen's door
+to where his guards waited to set him back in prison. From Udal he had
+learned of this new draft of the letter; of Udal's trouble he knew
+before. Udal gone, he had waited a little, hearing the Queen's voice and
+what she said very plainly, for the castle was very great and quiet.
+Then out had come the young Poins, breathing like a volcano through his
+nostrils, and like to be stricken with palsy, boy though he was. Him
+Lascelles had followed at a convenient distance, where he staggered and
+snorted. And, coming upon the boy in an empty guard-room near the great
+gate, he had found him aflame with passion against the Queen's
+Highness.
+
+'I,' the boy had cried out, 'I that by my carrying of letters set this
+Howard where she sits! I!--and this is my advancement. My sister cast
+down, and I cast out, and another maid to take my sister's place.'
+
+And Lascelles, in the guard-chamber, had shown him sympathy and reminded
+him that there was gospel for saying that princes had short memories.
+
+'But I did not calm him!' Lascelles said.
+
+On the contrary, upon Lascelles' suggestion that the boy had but to hold
+his tongue and pocket his wrongs, the young Poins had burst out that he
+would shout it all abroad at every street corner. And suddenly it had
+come into his head to write such a letter to his Uncle Badge the printer
+as, printed in a broadside, would make the Queen's name to stink, until
+the last generation was of men, in men's nostrils.
+
+Lascelles rubbed his hands gently and sinuously together. He cast one
+sly glance at the Archbishop.
+
+'Well, the letter was written,' he said. 'Be sure the broadside shall be
+printed.'
+
+Cranmer's head was sunk over his book.
+
+'This lad,' Lascelles said softly, 'who in seven days' time again shall
+keep the Queen's door (for it is not true that the Queen's Highness is
+an ingrate, well sure am I), this lad shall be a very useful confidant;
+a very serviceable guide to help us to a knowledge of who goes in to the
+Queen and who cometh out.'
+
+The Archbishop did not appear to be listening to his gentleman's soft
+voice and, resuming his pen, Lascelles finished his tale with--
+
+'For I have made this lad my friend. It shall cost me some money, but I
+do not doubt that your Grace shall repay.'
+
+The Archbishop raised his head.
+
+'No, before God in heaven on His throne!' he said. His voice was shrill
+and high; he agitated his hands in their fine, tied sleeves. 'I will
+have no part in these Cromwell tricks. All is lost; let it be lost. I
+must say my prayers.'
+
+'Has it been by saying of your Grace's prayers that your Grace has lived
+through these months?' Lascelles asked softly.
+
+'Aye,' the Archbishop wrung his hands; 'you girded me and moved me when
+Cromwell lay at death, to write a letter to the King's Highness. To
+write such a letter as should appear brave and faithful and true to
+Privy Seal's cause.'
+
+'Such a letter your Grace wrote,' Lascelles said; 'and it was the best
+writing that ever your Grace made.'
+
+The Archbishop gazed at the table.
+
+'How do I know that?' he said in a whisper. 'You say so, who bade me
+write it.'
+
+'For that your Grace lives yet,' Lascelles said softly; 'though in those
+days a warrant was written for your capture. For, sure it is, and your
+Grace has heard it from the King's lips, that your letter sounded so
+faithful and piteous and true to him your late leader, that the King
+could not but believe that you, so loyal in such a time to a man
+disgraced and cast down beyond hope, could not but be faithful and loyal
+in the future to him, the King, with so many bounties to bestow.'
+
+'Aye,' the Archbishop said, 'but how do I know what of a truth was in
+the King's mind who casteth down to-day one, to-morrow another, till
+none are left?'
+
+And again Cranmer dropped his anguished eyes to the table.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+In those days still--and he slept still worse since the King had bidden
+him write this letter to Rome--the Archbishop could not sleep on any
+night without startings and sweats and cryings out in his sleep. And he
+gave orders that, when he so cried out, the page at his bedside should
+wake him.
+
+For then he was seeing the dreadful face of his great master, Privy
+Seal, when the day of his ruin had come. Cromwell had been standing in a
+window of the council chamber at Westminster looking out upon a
+courtyard. In behind him had come the other lords of the council,
+Norfolk with his yellow face, the High Admiral, and many others; and
+each, seating himself at the table, had kept his bonnet on his head. So
+Cromwell, turning, had seen them and had asked with his hard insolence
+and embittered eyes of hatred, how they dared be covered before he who
+was their president sat down. Then, up against him in the window-place
+there had sprung Norfolk at the chain of the George round his neck, and
+Suffolk at the Garter on his knee; and Norfolk had cried out that Thomas
+Cromwell was no longer Privy Seal of that kingdom, nor president of that
+council, but a traitor that must die. Then such rage and despair had
+come into Thomas Cromwell's terrible face that Cranmer's senses had
+reeled. He had seen Norfolk and the Admiral fall back before this
+passion; he had seen Thomas Cromwell tear off his cap and cast it on the
+floor; he had heard him bark and snarl out certain words into the face
+of the yellow dog of Norfolk.
+
+'_Upon your life you dare not call me traitor!_' and Norfolk had fallen
+back abashed.
+
+Then the chamber had seemed to fill with an awful gloom and darkness;
+men showed only like shadows against the window lights; the constable of
+the Tower had come in with the warrants, and in that gloom the earth had
+appeared to tremble and quake beneath the Archbishop's feet.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+He crossed himself at the recollection, and, coming out of his stupor,
+saw that Lascelles was finishing his writings. And he was glad that he
+was here now and not there then.
+
+'Prithee, your Grace,' the gentleman's soft voice said, 'let me bear,
+myself, this letter to the Queen.'
+
+The Archbishop shivered frostily in his robes.
+
+'I will have no more Cromwell tricks,' he said. 'I have said it'; and he
+affected an obdurate tone.
+
+'Then, indeed, all is lost,' Lascelles answered; 'for this Queen is very
+resolved.'
+
+The Archbishop cast his eyes up to the cold stone ceiling above him. He
+crossed himself.
+
+'You are a very devil,' he said, and panic came into his eyes, so that
+he turned them all round him as if he sought an issue at which to run
+out.
+
+'The Papist lords in this castle met on Saturday night,' Lascelles said;
+'their meeting was very secret, and Norfolk was their head. But I have
+heard it said that not one of them was for the Queen.'
+
+The Archbishop shrank within himself.
+
+'I am not minded to hear this,' he said.
+
+'Not one of them was for the Queen altogether; for she will render all
+lands and goods back to the Church, and there is no one of them but is
+rich with the lands and goods of the Church. That they that followed
+Cromwell are not for the Queen well your Grace knoweth,' his gentleman
+continued.
+
+'I will not hear this; this is treason,' the Archbishop muttered.
+
+'So that who standeth for the Queen?' Lascelles whispered. 'Only a few
+of the baser sort that have no lands to lose.'
+
+'The King,' the Archbishop cried out in a terrible voice; 'the King
+standeth for her!'
+
+He sprang up in his chair and then sank down again, covering his mouth
+with his hands, as if he would have intercepted the uttered words. For
+who knew who listened at what doors in these days. He whispered
+horribly--
+
+'What a folly is this. Who shall move the King? Will reports of his
+ambassadors that Cleves, or Charles, or Francis miscall the Queen? You
+know they will not, for the King is aware of how these princes batten on
+carrion. Will broad sheets of the Lutheran? You know they will not, for
+the King is aware of how those coggers come by their tales. Will the
+King go abroad among the people any more to hear what they say? You know
+he will not. For he is grown too old, and his fireside is made too
+sweet----'
+
+He wavered, and he could not work himself up with a longer show of
+anger.
+
+'Prithee,' Lascelles said, 'let me bear this letter myself to the
+Queen.' His voice was patient and calm.
+
+The Archbishop lay back, impotent, in his chair. His arms were along the
+arms of it: he had dropped his book upon the table. His long gown was
+draped all over him down to his feet; his head remained motionless; his
+eyes did not wink, and gazed at despair; his hands drooped, open and
+impotent.
+
+Suddenly he moved one of them a very little.
+
+
+VII
+
+It was the Queen's habit to go every night, when the business of the day
+was done, to pray, along with the Lady Mary, in the small chapel that
+was in the roof of the castle. To vespers she went with all the Court to
+the big chapel in the courtyard that the King had builded especially for
+her. But to this little chapel, that was of Edward IV's time, small and
+round-arched, all stone and dark and bare, she went with the Lady Mary
+alone. Her ladies and her doorguards they left at the stair foot, on a
+level with the sleeping rooms of the poorer sort, but up the little
+stairway they climbed by themselves, in darkness, to pray privately for
+the conversion of England. For this little place was so small and so
+forgotten that it had never been desecrated by Privy Seal's men. It had
+had no vessels worth the taking, and only very old vestments and a few
+ill-painted pictures on the stone walls that were half hidden in the
+dust.
+
+Katharine had found this little place when, on her first day at
+Pontefract, she had gone a-wandering over the castle with the King. For
+she was curious to know how men had lived in the old times; to see their
+rooms and to mark what old things were there still in use. And she had
+climbed thus high because she was minded to gaze upon the huge expanse
+of country and of moors that from the upper leads of the castle was to
+be seen. But this little chapel had seemed to her to be all the more
+sacred because it had been undesecrated and forgotten. She thought that
+you could not find such another in the King's realm at that time; she
+was very assured that not one was to be found in any house of the King's
+and hers.
+
+And, making inquiries, she had found that there was also an old priest
+there served the chapel, doing it rather secretly for the well-disposed
+of the castle's own guards. This old man had fled, at the approach of
+the King's many, into the hidden valleys of that countryside, where
+still the faith lingered and lingers now. For, so barbarous and remote
+those north parts were, that a great many people had never heard that
+the King was married again, and fewer still, or none, knew that he and
+his wife were well inclined again towards Rome.
+
+This old priest she had had brought to her. And he was so well loved
+that along with him came a cluster of weather-battered moorsmen, right
+with him into her presence. They kneeled down, being clothed with skins,
+and several of them having bows of a great size, to beg her not to harm
+this old man, for he was reputed a saint. The Queen could not understand
+their jargon but, when their suit was interpreted to her by the Lord
+Dacre of the North, and when she had had a little converse with the old
+priest, she answered that, so touched was her heart by his simplicity
+and gentleness, that she would pray the good King, her lord and master,
+to let this priest be made her confessor whilst there they stayed. And
+afterwards, if it were convenient, in reward for his faithfulness, he
+should be made a prior or a bishop in those parts. So the moorsmen,
+blessing her uncouthly for her fairness and kind words, went back with
+their furs and bows into their fastnesses. One of them was a great lord
+of that countryside, and each day he sent into the castle bucks and moor
+fowl, and once or twice a wolf. His name was Sir John Peel, and Sir John
+Peel, too, the priest was called.
+
+So the priest served that little altar, and of a night, when the Queen
+was minded next day to partake of the host, he heard her confession. On
+other nights he left them there alone to say their prayers. It was
+always very dark with the little red light burning before the altar and
+two tapers that they lit beneath a statue of the Virgin, old and black
+and ill-carved by antique hands centuries before. And, in that
+blackness, they knelt, invisible almost, and still in the black gowns
+that they put on for prayers, beside a low pillar that gloomed out at
+their sides and vanished up into the darkness of the roof.
+
+Having done their prayers, sometimes they stayed to converse and to
+meditate, for there they could be very private. On the night when the
+letter to Rome was redrafted, the Queen prayed much longer than the Lady
+Mary, who sat back upon a stool, silently, to await her finishing--for
+it seemed that the Queen was more zealous for the converting of those
+realms again to the old faith than was ever the Lady Mary. The tapers
+burned with a steady, invisible glow in the little side chapel behind
+the pillar; the altar gleamed duskily before them, and it was so still
+that through the unglassed windows they could hear, from far below in
+the black countryside, a tenuous bleating of late-dropped lambs.
+Katharine Howard's beads clicked and her dress rustled as she came up
+from her knees.
+
+'It rests more with thee than with any other in this land,' her voice
+reverberated amongst the distant shadows. A bat that had been drawn in
+by the light flittered invisibly near them.
+
+'Even what?' the Lady Mary asked.
+
+'Well you know,' the Queen answered; 'and may the God to whom you have
+prayed, that softened the heart of Paul, soften thine in this hour!'
+
+The Lady Mary maintained a long silence. The bat flittered, with a
+leathern rustle, invisible, between their very faces. At last Mary
+uttered, and her voice was taunting and malicious--
+
+'If you will soften my heart much you must beseech me.'
+
+'Why, I will kneel to you,' the Queen said.
+
+'Aye, you shall,' Mary answered. 'Tell me what you would have of me.'
+
+'Well you know!' Katharine said again.
+
+In the darkness the lady's voice maintained its bitter mirth, as it were
+the broken laughter of a soul in anguish.
+
+'I will have you tell me, for it is a shameful tale that will shame you
+in the telling.'
+
+The Queen paused to consider of her words.
+
+'First, you shall be reconciled with, and speak pleasantly with, the
+King your father and my lord.'
+
+'And is it not a shameful thing you bid me do, to bid me speak pleasant
+words to him that slew my mother and called me bastard?'
+
+The Queen answered that she asked it in the name of Christ, His pitiful
+sake, and for the good of this suffering land.
+
+'None the less, Queen, thou askest it in the darkness that thy face may
+not be seen. And what more askest thou?'
+
+'That when the Duke of Orleans his ambassadors come asking your hand in
+marriage, you do show them a pleasant and acquiescent countenance.'
+
+The sacredness of that dark place kept Mary from laughing aloud.
+
+'That, too, you dare not ask in the light of day, Queen,' she said. 'Ask
+on!'
+
+'That when the Emperor's ambassadors shall ask for your hand you shall
+profess yourself glad indeed.'
+
+'Well, here is more shame, that I should be prayed to feign this
+gladness. I think the angels do laugh that hear you. Ask even more.'
+
+Katharine said patiently--
+
+'That, having in reward of these favours, been set again on high, having
+honours shown you and a Court appointed round you, you shall gladly play
+the part of a princess royal to these realms, never gibing, nor sneering
+upon this King your father, nor calling upon the memory of the wronged
+Queen your mother.'
+
+'Queen,' the Lady Mary said, 'I had thought that even in the darkness
+you had not dared to ask me this.'
+
+'I will ask it you again,' the Queen said, 'in your room where the light
+of the candles shines upon my face.'
+
+'Why, you shall,' the Lady Mary said. 'Let us presently go there.'
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+They went down the dark and winding stair. At the foot the procession of
+the _coucher de la royne_ awaited them, first being two trumpeters in
+black and gold, then four pikemen with lanthorns, then the marshal of
+the Queen's household and five or seven lords, then the Queen's ladies,
+the Lady Rochford that slept with her, the Lady Cicely Rochford; the
+Queen's tiring-women, leaving a space between them for the Queen and the
+Lady Mary to walk in, then four young pages in scarlet and with the
+Queen's favours in their caps, and then the guard of the Queen's door,
+and four pikemen with torches whose light, falling from behind,
+illumined the path for the Queen's steps. The trumpeters blew four
+shrill blasts and then four with their fists in the trumpet mouths to
+muffle them. The brazen cries wound down the dark corridors, fathoms and
+fathoms down, to let men know that the Queen had done her prayers and
+was going to her bed. This great state was especially devised by the
+King to do honour to the new Queen that he loved better than any he had
+had. The purpose of it was to let all men know what she did that she
+might be the more imitated.
+
+But the Queen bade them guide her to the Lady Mary's door, and in the
+doorway she dismissed them all, save only her women and her door guard
+and pikemen who awaited her without, some on stools and some against the
+wall, ladies and men alike.
+
+The Lady Mary looked into the Queen's face very close and laughed at her
+when they were in the fair room and the light of the candles.
+
+'Now you shall say your litany over again,' she sneered; 'I will sit me
+down and listen.' And in her chair at the table, with her face averted,
+she dug with little stabs into the covering rug the stiletto with which
+she was wont to mend her pens.
+
+Standing by her, her face fully lit by the many candles that were upon
+the mantel, the Queen, dressed all in black and with the tail of her
+hood falling down behind to her feet, went patiently through the list of
+her prayers--that the Lady Mary should be reconciled with her father,
+that she should show at first favour to the ambassadors that sued for
+her hand for the Duke of Orleans, and afterwards give a glad consent to
+her marriage with the Prince Philip, the Emperor's son; and then, having
+been reinstated as a princess of the royal house of England, she should
+bear herself as such, and no more cry out upon the memory of Katharine
+of Aragon that had been put away from the King's side.
+
+The Queen spoke these words with a serious patience and a level voice;
+but when she came to the end of them she stretched out her hand and her
+voice grew full.
+
+'And oh,' she said, her face being set and earnest in entreaty towards
+the girl's back, 'if you have any love for the green and fertile land
+that gave birth both to you and to me----'
+
+'But to me a bastard,' the Lady Mary said.
+
+'If you would have the dishoused saints to return home to their loved
+pastures; if you would have the Mother of God and of us all to rejoice
+again in her dowry; if you would see a great multitude of souls, gentle
+and simple reconducted again towards Heaven----'
+
+'Well, well!' the Lady Mary said; 'grovel! grovel! I had thought you
+would have been shamed thus to crawl upon your belly before me.'
+
+'I would crawl in the dust,' Katharine said. 'I would kiss the mire from
+the shoon of the vilest man there is if in that way I might win for the
+Church of God----'
+
+'Well, well!' the Lady Mary said.
+
+'You will not let me finish my speech about our Saviour and His mother,'
+the Queen said. 'You are afraid I should move you.'
+
+The Lady Mary turned suddenly round upon her in her chair. Her face was
+pallid, the skin upon her hollowed temples trembled--
+
+'Queen,' she called out, 'ye blaspheme when ye say that a few paltry
+speeches of yours about God and souls will make me fail my mother's
+memory and the remembrances of the shames I have had.'
+
+She closed her eyes; she swallowed in her throat and then, starting up,
+she overset her chair.
+
+'To save souls!' she said. 'To save a few craven English souls! What are
+they to me? Let them burn in the eternal fires! Who among them raised a
+hand or struck a blow for my mother or me? Let them go shivering to
+hell.'
+
+'Lady,' the Queen said, 'ye know well how many have gone to the stake
+over conspiracies for you in this realm.'
+
+'Then they are dead and wear the martyr's crown,' the Lady Mary said.
+'Let the rest that never aided me, nor struck blow for my mother, go rot
+in their heresies.'
+
+'But the Church of God!' the Queen said. 'The King's Highness has
+promised me that upon the hour when you shall swear to do these things
+he will send the letter that ye wot of to our Father in Rome.'
+
+The Lady Mary laughed aloud--
+
+'Here is a fine woman,' she said. 'This is ever the woman's part to
+gloss over crimes of their men folk. What say you to the death of Lady
+Salisbury that died by the block a little since?'
+
+She bent her body and poked her head forward into the Queen's very face.
+Katharine stood still before her.
+
+'God knows,' she said. 'I might not stay it. There was much false
+witness--or some of it true--against her. I pray that the King my Lord
+may atone for it in the peace that shall come.'
+
+'The peace that shall come!' the Lady Mary laughed. 'Oh, God, what
+things we women are when a man rules us. The peace that shall come? By
+what means shall it have been brought on?'
+
+'I will tell you,' she pursued after a moment. 'All this is cogging and
+lying and feigning and chicaning. And you who are so upright will crawl
+before me to bring it about. Listen!'
+
+And she closed her eyes the better to calm herself and to collect her
+thoughts, for she hated to appear moved.
+
+'I am to feign a friendship to my father. That is a lie that you ask me
+to do, for I hate him as he were the devil. And why must I do this? To
+feign a smooth face to the world that his pride may not be humbled. I am
+to feign to receive the ambassadors of the Duke of Orleans. That is
+cogging that you ask of me. For it is not intended that ever I shall wed
+with a prince of the French house. But I must lead them on and on till
+the Emperor be affrighted lest your King make alliance with the French.
+What a foul tale! And you lend it your countenance!'
+
+'I would well----' Katharine began.
+
+'Oh, I know, I know,' Mary snickered. 'Ye would well be chaste but that
+it must needs be other with you. It was the thief's wife said that.
+
+'Listen again,' she pursued, 'anon there shall come the Emperor's men,
+and there shall be more cogging and chicaning, and honours shall be
+given me that I may be bought dear, and petitioning that I should be set
+in the succession to make them eager. And then, perhaps, it shall all be
+cried off and a Schmalkaldner prince shall send ambassadors----'
+
+'No, before God,' Katharine said.
+
+'Oh, I know my father,' Mary laughed at her. 'You will keep him tied to
+Rome if you can. But you could not save the venerable Lady of Salisbury,
+nor you shall not save him from trafficking with Schmalkaldners and
+Lutherans if it shall serve his monstrous passions and his vanities. And
+if he do not this yet he will do other villainies. And you will cosset
+him in them--to save his hoggish dignity and buttress up his heavy
+pride. All this you stand there and ask.'
+
+'In the name of God I ask it,' Katharine said. 'There is no other way.'
+
+'Well then,' the Lady Mary said, 'you shall ask it many times. I will
+have you shamed.'
+
+'Day and night I will ask it,' Katharine said.
+
+The Lady Mary sniffed.
+
+'It is very well,' she said. 'You are a proud and virtuous piece. I will
+humble you. It were nothing to my father to crawl on his belly and
+humble himself and slaver. He would do it with joy, weeping with a
+feigned penitence, making huge promises, foaming at the mouth with oaths
+that he repented, calling me his ever loved child----'
+
+She stayed and then added--
+
+'That would cost him nothing. But that you that are his pride, that you
+should do it who are in yourself proud--that is somewhat to pay oneself
+with for shamed nights and days despised. If you will have this thing
+you shall do some praying for it.'
+
+'Even as Jacob served so will I,' Katharine said.
+
+'Seven years!' the Lady Mary mocked at her. 'God forbid that I should
+suffer you for so long. I will get me gone with an Orleans, a Kaiserlik,
+or a Schmalkaldner leaguer before that. So much comfort I will give
+you.' She stopped, lifted her head and said, 'One knocks!'
+
+They said from the door that a gentleman was come from the Archbishop
+with a letter to the Queen's Grace.
+
+
+VIII
+
+There came in the shaven Lascelles and fell upon his knees, holding up
+the sheets of the letter he had copied.
+
+The Queen took them from him and laid them upon the great table, being
+minded later to read them to the Lady Mary, in proof that the King very
+truly would make his submission to Rome, supposing only that his
+daughter would make submission to her.
+
+When she turned, Lascelles was still kneeling before the doorway, his
+eyes upon the ground.
+
+'Why, I thank you,' she said. 'Gentleman, you may get you gone back to
+the Archbishop.'
+
+She was thinking of returning to her duel of patience with the Lady
+Mary. But looking upon his blond and agreeable features she stayed for a
+minute.
+
+'I know your face,' she said. 'Where have I seen you?'
+
+He looked up at her; his eyes were blue and noticeable, because at times
+of emotion he was so wide-lidded that the whites showed round the pupils
+of them.
+
+'Certainly I have seen you,' the Queen said.
+
+'It is a royal gift,' he said, 'the memory of faces. I am the
+Archbishop's poor gentleman, Lascelles.'
+
+The Queen said--
+
+'Lascelles? Lascelles?' and searched her memory.
+
+'I have a sister, the spit and twin of me,' he answered; 'and her name
+is Mary.'
+
+The Queen said--
+
+'Ah! ah!' and then, 'Your sister was my bed-fellow in the maid's room at
+my grandmother's.'
+
+He answered gravely--
+
+'Even so!'
+
+And she--
+
+'Stand up and tell me how your sister fares. I had some kindnesses of
+her when I was a child. I remember when I had cold feet she would heat a
+brick in the fire to lay to them, and such tricks. How fares she? Will
+you not stand up?'
+
+'Because she fares very ill I will not stand upon my feet,' he answered.
+
+'Well, you will beg a boon of me,' she said. 'If it is for your sister I
+will do what I may with a good conscience.'
+
+He answered, remaining kneeling, that he would fain see his sister. But
+she was very poor, having married an esquire called Hall of these parts,
+and he was dead, leaving her but one little farm where, too, his old
+father and mother dwelt.
+
+'I will pay for her visit here,' she said; 'and she shall have lodging.'
+
+'Safe-conduct she must have too,' he answered; 'for none cometh within
+seven miles of this court without your permit and approval.'
+
+'Well, I will send horses of my own, and men to safeguard her,' the
+Queen said. 'For, sure, I am beholden to her in many little things. I
+think she sewed the first round gown that ever I had.'
+
+He remained kneeling, his eyes still upon the floor.
+
+'We are your very good servants, my sister and I,' he said. 'For she did
+marry one--that Esquire Hall--that was done to death upon the gallows
+for the old faith's sake. And it was I that wrote the English of most of
+this letter to his Holiness, the Archbishop being ill and keeping his
+bed.'
+
+'Well, you have served me very well, it is true,' the Queen answered.
+'What would you have of me?'
+
+'Your Highness,' he answered, 'I do well love my sister and she me. I
+would have her given a place here at the Court. I do not ask a great
+one; not one so high as about your person. For I am sure that you are
+well attended, and places few there are to spare about you.'
+
+And then, even as he willed it, she bethought her that Margot Poins was
+to go to a nunnery. That afternoon she had decided that Mary Trelyon,
+who was her second maid, should become her first, and others be moved up
+in a rote.
+
+'Why,' she said, 'it may be that I shall find her an occupation. I will
+not have it said--nor yet do it--that I have ever recompensed them that
+did me favours in the old times, for there are a many that have served
+well in the Court that then I was outside of, and those it is fitting
+first to reward. Yet, since, as you say you have writ the English of
+this letter, that is a very great service to the Republic, and if by
+rewarding her I may recompense thee, I will think how I may come to do
+it.'
+
+He stood up upon his feet.
+
+'It may be,' he said, 'that my sister is rustic and unsuited. I have not
+seen her in many years. Therefore, I will not pray too high a place for
+her, but only that she and I may be near, the one to the other, upon
+occasions, and that she be housed and fed and clothed.'
+
+'Why, that is very well said,' the Queen answered him. 'I will bid my
+men to make inquiries into her demeanour and behaviour in the place
+where she bides, and if she is well fitted and modest, she shall have a
+place about me. If she be too rustic she shall have another place. Get
+you gone, gentleman, and a good-night to ye.'
+
+He bent himself half double, in the then newest courtly way, and still
+bent, pivoted through the door. The Queen stayed a little while musing.
+
+'Why,' she said, 'when I was a little child I fared very ill, if now I
+think of it; but then it seemed a little thing.'
+
+'Y'had best forget it,' the Lady Mary answered.
+
+'Nay,' the Queen said. 'I have known too well what it was to go
+supperless to my bed to forget it. A great shadowy place--all shadows,
+where the night airs crept in under the rafters.'
+
+She was thinking of the maids' dormitory at her grandmother's, the old
+Duchess.
+
+'I am climbed very high,' she said; 'but to think----'
+
+She was such a poor man's child and held of only the littlest account,
+herding with the maids and the servingmen's children. At eight by the
+clock her grandmother locked her and all the maids--at times there were
+but ten, at times as many as a score--into that great dormitory that
+was, in fact, nothing but one long attic or grange beneath the bare
+roof. And sometimes the maids told tales or slept soon, and sometimes
+their gallants, grooms and others, came climbing through the windows
+with rope ladders. They would bring pasties and wines and lights, and
+coarsely they would revel.
+
+'Why,' she said, 'I had a gallant myself. He was a musician, but I have
+forgot his name. Aye, and then there was another, Dearham, I think; but
+I have heard he is since dead. He may have been my cousin; we were so
+many in family, I have a little forgot.'
+
+She stood still, searching her memory, with her eyes distant. The Lady
+Mary surveyed her face with a curious irony.
+
+'Why, what a simple Queen you are!' she said. 'This is something
+rustic.'
+
+The Queen joined her hands together before her, as if she caught at a
+clue.
+
+'I do remember me,' she said. 'It was a make of a comedy. This Dearham,
+calling himself my cousin, beat this music musician for calling himself
+my gallant. Then goes the musicker to my grandam, bidding the old
+Duchess rise up again one hour after she had sought her bed. So comes my
+grandam and turns the key in the padlock and looketh in over all the
+gallimaufrey of lights and pasties and revels.
+
+'Why,' she continued. 'I think I was beaten upon that occasion, but I
+could not well tell why. And I was put to sleep in another room. And
+later came my father home from some war. And he was angry that I had
+consorted so with false minions, and had me away to his own poor house.
+And there I had Udal for my Magister and evil fare and many beatings.
+But this Mary Lascelles was my bed-fellow.'
+
+'Why, forget it,' the Lady Mary said again.
+
+'Other teachers would bid me remember it that I might remain humble,'
+Katharine answered.
+
+'Y'are humble enow and to spare,' the Lady Mary said. 'And these are not
+good memories for such a place as this. Y'had best keep this Mary
+Lascelles at a great distance.'
+
+Katharine said--
+
+'No; for I have passed my word.'
+
+'Then reward her very fully,' the Lady Mary commended, and the Queen
+answered--
+
+'No, for that is against my conscience. What have I to fear now that I
+be Queen?'
+
+Mary shrugged her squared shoulders.
+
+'Where is your Latin,' she said, 'with its _nulla dies felix_--call no
+day fortunate till it be ended.'
+
+'I will set another text against that,' she said, 'and that from holy
+sayings--that _justus ab aestimatione non timebit_.'
+
+'Well,' Mary answered, 'you will make your bed how you will. But I think
+you would better have learned of these maids how to steer a course than
+of your Magister and the Signor Plutarchus.'
+
+The Queen did not answer her, save by begging her to read the King's
+letter to his Holiness.
+
+'And surely,' she said, 'if I had never read in the noble Romans I had
+never had the trick of tongue to gar the King do so much of what I
+will.'
+
+'Why, God help you,' her step-daughter said. 'Pray you may never come to
+repent it.'
+
+
+
+
+PART TWO
+
+THE THREATENED RIFT
+
+
+I
+
+In these summer days there was much faring abroad in the broad lands to
+north and to south of the Pontefract Castle. The sunlight lay across
+moors and uplands. The King was come with all his many to Newcastle; but
+no Scots King was there to meet him. So he went farther to northwards.
+His butchers drove before him herds of cattle that they slew some of
+each night: their hooves made a broad and beaten way before the King's
+horses. Behind came an army of tent men: cooks, servers, and sutlers.
+For, since they went where new castles were few, at times they must
+sleep on moorsides, and they had tents all of gold cloth and black, with
+gilded tent-poles and cords of silk and silver wire. The lords and
+principal men of those parts came out to meet him with green boughs, and
+music, and slain deer, and fair wooden kegs filled with milk. But when
+he was come near to Berwick there was still no Scots King to meet him,
+and it became manifest that the King's nephew would fail that tryst.
+Henry, riding among his people, swore a mighty oath that he would take
+way even into Edinburgh town and there act as he listed, for he had with
+him nigh on seven thousand men of all arms and some cannon which he had
+been minded to display for the instruction of his nephew. But he had, in
+real truth, little stomach for this feat. For, if he would go into
+Scotland armed, he must wait till he got together all the men that the
+Council of the North had under arms. These were scattered over the whole
+of the Border country, and it must be many days before he had them all
+there together. And already the summer was well advanced, and if he
+delayed much longer his return, the after progress from Pontefract to
+London must draw them to late in the winter. And he was little minded
+that either Katharine or his son should bear the winter travel. Indeed,
+he sent a messenger back to Pontefract with orders that the Prince
+should be sent forthwith with a great guard to Hampton Court, so that he
+should reach that place before the nights grew cold.
+
+And, having stayed in camp four days near the Scots border--for he loved
+well to live in a tent, since it re-awoke in him the ardour of his youth
+and made him think himself not so old a man--he delivered over to the
+Earl Marshal forty Scots borderers and cattle thieves that had been
+taken that summer. These men he had meant to have handed, pardoned, to
+the Scots King when he met him. But the Earl Marshal set up, along the
+road into Scotland, from where the stone marks the border, a row of
+forty gallows, all high, but some higher than others; for some of the
+prisoners were men of condition. And, within sight of a waiting crowd of
+Scots that had come down to the boundaries of their land to view the
+King of England, Norfolk hanged on these trees the forty men.
+
+And, laughing over their shoulders at this fine harvest of fruit,
+gibbering and dangling against the heavens on high, the King and his
+host rode back into the Border country. It was pleasant to ride in the
+summer weather, and they hunted and rendered justice by the way, and
+heard tales of battle that there had been before in the north country.
+
+But there was one man, Thomas Culpepper, in the town of Edinburgh to
+whom this return was grievous. He had been in these outlandish parts now
+for more than nineteen months. The Scots were odious to him, the town
+was odious; he had no stomach for his food, and such clothes as he had
+were ragged, for he would wear nothing that had there been woven. He was
+even a sort of prisoner. For he had been appointed to wait on the King's
+Ambassador to the King of Scots, and the last thing that Throckmorton,
+the notable spy, had done before he had left the Court had been to write
+to Edinburgh that T. Culpepper, the Queen's cousin, who was a dangerous
+man, was to be kept very close and given no leave of absence.
+
+And one thing very much had aided this: for, upon receiving news, or the
+rumour of news, that his cousin Katharine Howard--he was her mother's
+brother's son--had wedded the King, or had been shown for Queen at
+Hampton Court, he had suddenly become seized with such a rage that,
+incontinently, he had run his sword through an old fishwife in the
+fishmarket where he was who had given him the news, newly come by sea,
+thinking that because he was an Englishman this marriage of his King
+might gladden him. The fishwife died among her fish, and Culpepper with
+his sword fell upon all that were near him in the market, till, his heel
+slipping upon a haddock, he fell, and was fallen upon by a great many
+men.
+
+He must stay in jail for this till he had compounded with the old
+woman's heirs and had paid for a great many cuts and bruises. And Sir
+Nicholas Hoby, happening to be in Edinburgh at that time, understood
+well what ailed Thomas Culpepper, and that he was mad for love of the
+Queen his cousin--for was it not this Culpepper that had brought her to
+the court, and, as it was said, had aforetime sold farms to buy her food
+and gowns when, her father being a poor man, she was well-nigh starving?
+Therefore Sir Nicholas begged alike the Ambassador and the King of Scots
+that they would keep this madman clapped up till they were very certain
+that the fit was off him. And, what with the charges of blood ransom and
+jailing for nine months, Culpepper had no money at all when at last he
+was enlarged, but must eat his meals at the Ambassador's table, so that
+he could not in any way come away into England till he had written for
+more money and had earned a further salary. And that again was a matter
+of many months, and later he spent more in drinking and with Scots women
+till he persuaded himself that he had forgotten his cousin that was now
+a Queen. Moreover, it was made clear to him by those about him that it
+was death to leave his post unpermitted.
+
+But, with the coming of the Court up into the north parts, his
+impatience grew again, so that he could no longer eat but only drink and
+fight. It was rumoured that the Queen was riding with the King, and he
+swore a mighty oath that he would beg of her or of the King leave at
+last to be gone from that hateful city; and the nearer came the King the
+more his ardour grew. So that, when the news came that the King was
+turned back, Culpepper could no longer compound it with himself. He had
+then a plenty of money, having kept his room for seven days, and the
+night before that he had won half a barony at dice from a Scots archer.
+But he had no passport into England; therefore, because he was afraid to
+ask for one, being certain of a refusal, he blacked his face and hands
+with coal and then took refuge on a coble, leaving the port of Leith for
+Durham. He had well bribed the master of this ship to take him as one of
+his crew. In Durham he stayed neither to wash nor to eat, but, having
+bought himself a horse, he rode after the King's progress that was then
+two days' journey to the south, and came up with them. He had no wits
+left more than to ask of the sutlers at the tail of the host where the
+Queen was. They laughed at this apparition upon a haggard horse, and one
+of them that was a notable cutpurse took all the gold that he had, only
+giving him in exchange the news that the Queen was at Pontefract, from
+which place she had never stirred. With a little silver that he had in
+another bag he bought himself a provision of food, a store of drink, and
+a poor Kern to guide him, running at his saddle-bow.
+
+He saw neither hills nor valleys, neither heather nor ling: he had no
+thoughts but only that of finding the Queen his cousin. At times the
+tears ran down his begrimed face, at times he waved his sword in the air
+and, spurring his horse, he swore great oaths. How he fared, where he
+rested, by what roads he went over the hills, that he never knew.
+Without a doubt the Kern guided him faithfully.
+
+For the Queen, having news that the King was nearly come within a day's
+journey, rode out towards the north to meet him. And as she went along
+the road, she saw, upon a hillside not very far away, a man that sat
+upon a dead horse, beating it and tugging at its bridle. Beside him
+stood a countryman, in a garment of furs and pelts, with rawhide boots.
+She had a great many men and ladies riding behind her, and she had come
+as far as she was minded to go. So she reined in her horse and sent two
+prickers to ask who these men were.
+
+And when she heard that this was a traveller, robbed of all his money
+and insensate, and his poor guide who knew nothing of who he might be,
+she turned her cavalcade back and commanded that the traveller should be
+borne to the castle on a litter of boughs and there attended to and
+comforted until again he could take the road. And she made occasion upon
+this to comment how ill it was for travellers that the old monasteries
+were done away with. For in the old time there were seven monasteries
+between there and Durham, wherein poor travellers might lodge. Then, if
+a merchant were robbed upon the highways, he could be housed at
+convenient stages on his road home, and might afterwards send recompense
+to the good fathers or not as he pleased or was able. Now, there was no
+harbourage left on all that long road, and, but for the grace of God,
+that pitiful traveller might have lain there till the ravens picked out
+his eyes.
+
+And some commended the Queen's words and actions, and some few, behind
+their hands, laughed at her for her soft heart. And the more Lutheran
+sort said that it was God's mercy that the old monasteries were gone;
+for they had, they said, been the nests for lowsels, idle wayfarers,
+palmers, pilgrims, and the like. And, praise God, since that clearance
+fourteen thousand of these had been hanged by the waysides for sturdy
+rogues, to the great purging of the land.
+
+
+II
+
+In the part of Lincolnshire that is a little to the northeastward of
+Stamford was a tract of country that had been granted to the monks of St
+Radigund's at Dover by William the Conqueror. These monks had drained
+this land many centuries before, leaving the superintendence of the work
+at first to priors by them appointed, and afterwards, when the dykes,
+ditches, and flood walls were all made, to knights and poor gentlemen,
+their tenants, who farmed the land and kept up the defences against
+inundations, paying scot and lot to a bailiff and water-wardens and
+jurats, just as was done on the Romney marshes by the bailiff and jurats
+of that level.
+
+And one of these tenants, holding two hundred acres in a simple fee from
+St Radigund's for a hundred and fifty years back, had been always a man
+of the name of Hall. It was an Edward Hall that Mary Lascelles had
+married when she was a maid at the Duchess of Norfolk's. This Edward
+Hall was then a squire, a little above the condition of a groom, in the
+Duchess's service. His parents dwelled still on the farm which was
+called Neot's End, because it was in the angle of the great dyke called
+St Neot's and the little sewer where St Radigund's land had its boundary
+stone.
+
+But in the troublesome days of the late Privy Seal, Edward Hall had
+informed Throckmorton the spy of a conspiracy and rising that was
+hatching amongst the Radigund's men a little before the Pilgrimage of
+Grace, when all the north parts rose. For the Radigund's men cried out
+and murmured amongst themselves that if the Priory was done away with
+there would be an end of their easy and comfortable tenancy. Their rents
+had been estimated and appointed a great number of years before, when
+all goods and the produce of the earth were very low priced. And the
+tenants said that if now the King took their lands to himself or gave
+them to some great lord, very heavy burdens would be laid upon them and
+exacted; whereas in some years under easy priors the monks forgot their
+distant territory, and in bad seasons they took no rents at all. And
+even under hard and exacting priors the monks could take no more than
+their rentals, which were so small. They said, too, that the King and
+Thomas Cromwell would make them into heathen Greeks and turn their
+children to be Saracens. So these Radigund's men meditated a rising and
+conspiracy.
+
+But, because Edward Hall informed Throckmorton of what was agate, a
+posse was sent into that country, and most of the men were hanged and
+their lands all taken from them. Those that survived from the jailing
+betook themselves to the road, and became sturdy beggars, so that many
+of them too came to the gallows tree.
+
+Most of the land was granted to the Sieur Throckmorton with the abbey's
+buildings and tithe barns. But the Halls' farm and another of near three
+hundred acres were granted to Edward Hall. Then it was that Edward Hall
+could marry and take his wife, Mary Lascelles, down into Lincolnshire to
+Neot's End. But when the Pilgrimage of Grace came, and the great risings
+all over Lincolnshire, very early the rioters came to Neot's End, and
+they burned the farm and the byres, they killed all the beasts or drove
+them off, they trampled down the corn and laid waste the flax fields.
+And, between two willow trees along the great dyke, they set a pole, and
+from it they hanged Edward Hall over the waters, so that he dried and
+was cured like a ham in the smoke from his own stacks.
+
+Then Mary Lascelles' case was a very miserable one; for she had to fend
+for the aged father and bedridden mother of Edward Hall, and there were
+no beasts left but only a few geese and ducks that the rebels could not
+lay their hands on. And the only home that they had was the farmhouse
+that was upon Edward Hall's other farm, and that they had let fall
+nearly into ruin. And for a long time no men would work for her.
+
+But at last, after the rebellion was pitifully ended, a few hinds came
+to her, and she made a shift. And it was better still after Privy Seal
+fell, for then came Throckmorton the spy into his lands, and he brought
+with him carpenters and masons and joiners to make his house fair, and
+some of these men he lent to Mary Hall. But it had been prophesied by a
+wise woman in those parts that no land that had been taken from the
+monks would prosper. And, because all the jurats, bailiffs, and
+water-wardens had been hanged either on the one part or the other and no
+more had been appointed, at about that time the sewers began to clog up,
+the lands to swamp, murrain and fluke to strike the beasts and the
+sheep, and night mists to blight the grain and the fruit blossoms. So
+that even Throckmorton had little good of his wealth and lands.
+
+Thus one morning to Mary Hall, who stood before her door feeding her
+geese and ducks, there came a little boy running to say that men-at-arms
+stood on the other side of the dyke that was very swollen and grey and
+broad. And they shouted that they came from the Queen's Highness, and
+would have a boat sent to ferry them over.
+
+The colour came into Mary Hall's pale face, for even there she had heard
+that her former bedfellow was come to be Queen. And at times even she
+had thought to write to the Queen to help her in her misery. But always
+she had been afraid, because she thought that the Queen might remember
+her only as one that had wronged her childish innocence. For she
+remembered that the maids' dormitory at the old Duchess's had been no
+cloister of pure nuns. So that, at best, she was afraid, and she sent
+her yard-worker and a shepherd a great way round to fetch the larger
+boat of two to ferry over the Queen's men. Then she went indoors to redd
+up the houseplace and to attire herself.
+
+To the old farmstead, that was made of wood hung over here and there
+with tilework with a base of bricks, she had added a houseplace for the
+old folk to sit all day. It was built of wattles that had had clay cast
+over them, and was whitened on the outside and thatched nearly down to
+the ground like any squatter's hut; it had cupboards of wood nearly all
+round it, and beneath the cupboards were lockers worn smooth with men
+sitting upon them, after the Dutch fashion--for there in Lincolnshire
+they had much traffic with the Dutch. There was a great table made of
+one slab of a huge oak from near Boston. Here they all ate. And above
+the ingle was another slab of oak from the same tree. Her little old
+step-mother sat in a stuff chair covered with a sheep-skin; she sat
+there night and day, shivering with the shaking palsy. At times she let
+out of her an eldritch shriek, very like the call of a hedgehog; but she
+never spoke, and she was fed with a spoon by a little misbegotten son of
+Edward Hall's. The old step-father sat always opposite her; he had no
+use of his legs, and his head was always stiffly screwed round towards
+the door as if he were peering, but that was the rheumatism. To atone
+for his wife's dumbness, he chattered incessantly whenever anyone was on
+that floor; but because he spoke always in Lincolnshire, Mary Hall could
+scarce understand him, and indeed she had long ceased to listen. He
+spoke of forgotten floods and ploughings, ancient fairs, the boundaries
+of fields long since flooded over, of a visit to Boston that King Edward
+IV had made, and of how he, for his fair speech and old lineage, had
+been chosen of all the Radigund's men to present into the King's hands
+three silver horseshoes. Behind his back was a great dresser with railed
+shelves, having upon them a little pewter ware and many wooden bowls for
+the hinds' feeding. A door on the right side, painted black, went down
+into the cellar beneath the old house. Another door, of bars of iron
+with huge locks from the old monastery, went into the old house where
+slept the maids and the hinds. This was always open by day but locked in
+the dark hours. For the hinds were accounted brutish lumps that went
+savage at night, like wild beasts, so that, if they spared the master's
+throat, which was unlikely, it was certain that they would little spare
+the salted meat, the dried fish, the mead, metheglin, and cyder that
+their poor cellar afforded. The floor was of stamped clay, wet and
+sweating but covered with rushes, so that the place had a mouldering
+smell. Behind the heavy door there were huge bolts and crossbars against
+robbers: the raftered ceiling was so low that it touched her hair when
+she walked across the floor. The windows had no glass but were filled
+with a thin reddish sheep-skin like parchment. Before the stairway was a
+wicket gate to keep the dogs--of whom there were many, large and fierce,
+to protect them alike from robbers and the hinds--to keep the dogs from
+going into the upper room.
+
+Each time that Mary Hall came into this home of hers her heart sank
+lower; for each day the corner posts gave sideways a little more, the
+cupboard bulged, the doors were loth to close or open. And more and more
+the fields outside were inundated, the lands grew sour, the sheep would
+not eat or died of the fluke.
+
+'And surely,' she would cry out at times, 'God created me for other
+guesswork than this!'
+
+At nights she was afraid, and shivered at the thought of the fens and
+the black and trackless worlds all round her; and the ravens croaked,
+night-hawks screamed, the dog-foxes cried out, and the flames danced
+over the swampy grounds. Her mirror was broken on the night that they
+hanged her husband: she had never had another but the water in her
+buckets, so that she could not tell whether she had much aged or whether
+she were still brown-haired and pink-cheeked, and she had forgotten how
+to laugh, and was sure that there were crow's-feet about her eyelids.
+
+Her best gown was all damp and mouldy in the attic that was her bower.
+She made it meet as best she could, and indeed she had had so little fat
+living, sitting at the head of her table with a whip for unruly hinds
+and louts before her--so little fat living that she could well get into
+her wedding-gown of yellow cramosyn. She smoothed her hair back into her
+cord hood that for so long had not come out of its press. She washed her
+face in a bucket of water: that and the press and her bed with grey
+woollen curtains were all the furnishing her room had. The straw of the
+roof caught in her hood when she moved, and she heard her old
+father-in-law cackling to the serving-maids through the cracks of the
+floor.
+
+When she came down there were approaching, across the field before the
+door, six men in scarlet and one in black, having all the six halberds
+and swords, and one a little banner, but the man in black had a sword
+only. Their horses were tethered in a clump on the farther side of the
+dyke. Within the room the serving-maids were throwing knives and pewter
+dishes with a great din on to the table slab. They dropped
+drinking-horns and the salt-cellar itself all of a heap into the rushes.
+The grandfather was cackling from his chair; a hen and its chickens ran
+screaming between the maids' feet. Then Lascelles came in at the
+doorway.
+
+
+III
+
+The Sieur Lascelles looked round him in that dim cave.
+
+'Ho!' he said, 'this place stinks,' and he pulled from his pocket a
+dried and shrivelled orange-peel purse stuffed with cloves and ginger.
+'Ho!' he said to the cornet that was come behind him with the Queen's
+horsemen. 'Come not in here. This will breed a plague amongst your men!'
+and he added--
+
+'Did I not tell you my sister was ill-housed?'
+
+'Well, I was not prepared against this,' the cornet said. He was a man
+with a grizzling beard that had little patience away from the Court,
+where he had a bottle that he loved and a crony or two that he played
+all day at chequers with, except when the Queen rode out; then he was of
+her train. He did not come over the sill, but spoke sharply to his men.
+
+'Ungird not here,' he said. 'We will go farther.' For some of them were
+for setting their pikes against the mud wall and casting their swords
+and heavy bottle-belts on to the table before the door. The old man in
+the armchair began suddenly to prattle to them all--of a horse-thief
+that had been dismembered and then hanged in pieces thirty years
+before. The cornet looked at him for a moment and said--
+
+'Sir, you are this woman's father-in-law, I do think. Have you aught to
+report against her?' He bent in at the door, holding his nose. The old
+man babbled of one Pease-Cod Noll that had no history to speak of but a
+swivel eye.
+
+'Well,' the grizzled cornet said, 'I shall get little sense here.' He
+turned upon Mary Hall.
+
+'Mistress,' he said, 'I have a letter here from the Queen's High Grace,'
+and, whilst he fumbled in his belt to find a little wallet that held the
+letter, he spoke on: 'But I misdoubt you cannot read. Therefore I shall
+tell you the Queen's High Grace commandeth you to come into her
+service--or not, as the report of your character shall be. But at any
+rate you shall come to the castle.'
+
+Mary Hall could find no words for men of condition, so long she had been
+out of the places where such are found. She swallowed in her throat and
+held her breast over her heart.
+
+'Where is the village here?' the cornet said, 'or what justice is there
+that can write you a character under his seal?'
+
+She made out to say that there was no village, all the neighbourhood
+having been hanged. A half-mile from there there was the house of Sir
+Nicholas Throckmorton, a justice. From the house-end he might see it, or
+he might have a hind to guide him. But he would have no guide; he would
+have no man nor maid nor child to go from there to the justice's house.
+He set one soldier to guard the back door and one the front, that none
+came out nor went beyond the dyke-end.
+
+'Neither shall you go, Sir Lascelles,' he said.
+
+'Well, give me leave with my sister to walk this knoll,' Lascelles said
+good-humouredly. 'We shall not corrupt the grass blades to bear false
+witness of my sister's chastity.'
+
+'Ay, you may walk upon this mound,' the cornet answered. Having got out
+the packet of the Queen's letter, he girded up his belt again.
+
+'You will get you ready to ride with me,' he said to Mary Hall. 'For I
+will not be in these marshes after nightfall, but will sleep at
+Shrimpton Inn.'
+
+He looked around him and added--
+
+'I will have three of your geese to take with us,' he said. 'Kill me
+them presently.'
+
+Lascelles looked after him as he strode away round the house with the
+long paces of a stiff horseman.
+
+'Before God,' he laughed, 'that is one way to have information about a
+quean. Now are we prisoners whilst he inquires after your character.'
+
+'Oh, alack!' Mary Hall said, and she cast up her hands.
+
+'Well, we are prisoners till he come again,' her brother said
+good-humouredly. 'But this is a foul hole. Come out into the sunlight.'
+
+She said--
+
+'If you are with them, they cannot come to take me prisoner.'
+
+He looked her full in the eyes with his own that twinkled inscrutably.
+He said very slowly--
+
+'Were your mar-locks and prinking-prankings so very evil at the old
+Duchess's?'
+
+She grew white: she shrank away as if he had threatened her with his
+fist.
+
+'The Queen's Highness was such a child,' she said. 'She cannot remember.
+I have lived very godly since.'
+
+'I will do what I can to save you,' he said. 'Let me hear about it, as,
+being prisoners, we may never come off.'
+
+'You!' she cried out. 'You who stole my wedding portion!'
+
+He laughed deviously.
+
+'Why, I have laid it up so well for you that you may wed a knight now if
+you do my bidding. I was ever against your wedding Hall.'
+
+'You lie!' she said. 'You gar'd me do it.'
+
+The maids were peeping out of the cellar, whither they had fled.
+
+'Come upon the grass,' he said. 'I will not be heard to say more than
+this: that you and I stand and fall together like good sister and goodly
+brother.'
+
+Their faces differed only in that hers was afraid and his smiling as he
+thought of new lies to tell her. Her face in her hood, pale beneath its
+weathering, approached the colour of his that shewed the pink and white
+of indoors. She came very slowly near him, for she was dazed. But when
+she was almost at the sill he caught her hand and drew it beneath his
+elbow.
+
+'Tell me truly,' she said, 'shall I see the Court or a prison?... But
+you cannot speak truth, nor ever could when we were tiny twins. God help
+me: last Sunday I had the mind to wed my yard-man. I would become such a
+liar as thou to come away from here.'
+
+'Sister,' he said, 'this I tell you most truly: that this shall fall out
+according as you obey me and inform me'; and, because he was a little
+the taller, he leaned over her as they walked away together.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+On the fourth day from then they were come to the great wood that is to
+south and east of the castle of Pontefract. Here Lascelles, who had
+ridden much with his sister, forsook her and went ahead of the slow and
+heavy horses of that troop of men. The road was broadened out to forty
+yards of green turf between the trees, for this was a precaution against
+ambushes of robbers. Across the road, after he had ridden alone for an
+hour and a half, there was a guard of four men placed. And here, whilst
+he searched for his pass to come within the limits of the Court, he
+asked what news, and where the King was.
+
+It was told him that the King lay still at the Fivefold Vents, two days'
+progress from the castle, and as it chanced that a verderer's pricker
+came out of the wood where he had been to mark where the deer lay for
+to-morrow's killing, Lascelles bade this man come along with him for a
+guide.
+
+'Sir, ye cannot miss the way,' the pricker said surlily. 'I have my deer
+to watch.'
+
+'I will have you to guide me,' Lascelles said, 'for I little know these
+parts.'
+
+'Well,' the pricker answered him, 'it is true that I have not often seen
+you ride a-hawking.'
+
+Whilst they went along the straight road, Lascelles, who unloosened the
+woodman's tongue with a great drink of sherry-sack, learned that it was
+said that only very unwillingly did the King lie so long at the Fivefold
+Vents. For on the morrow there was to be driven by, up there, a great
+herd of moor stags and maybe a wolf or two. The King would be home with
+his wife, it was reported, but the younger lords had been so importunate
+with him to stay and abide this gallant chase and great slaughter that,
+they having ridden loyally with him, he had yielded to their prayers and
+stayed there--twenty-four hours, it was said.
+
+'Why, you know a great deal,' Lascelles answered.
+
+'We who stand and wait had needs have knowledge,' the woodman said, 'for
+we have little else.'
+
+'Aye, 'tis a hard service,' Lascelles said. 'Did you see the Queen's
+Highness o' Thursday week borrow a handkerchief of Sir Roger Pelham to
+lure her falcon back?'
+
+'That did not I,' the woodman answered, 'for o' Thursday week it was a
+frost and the Queen rode not out.'
+
+'Well, it was o' Saturday,' Lascelles said.
+
+'Nor was it yet o' Saturday,' the woodman cried; 'I will swear it. For
+o' Saturday the Queen's Highness shot with the bow, and Sir Roger
+Pelham, as all men know, fell with his horse on Friday, and lies up
+still.'
+
+'Then it was Sir Nicholas Rochford,' Lascelles persisted.
+
+'Sir,' the woodman said, 'you have a very wrong tale, and patent it is
+that little you ride a-hunting.'
+
+'Well, I mind my book,' Lascelles said. 'But wherefore?'
+
+'Sir,' the woodman answered, 'it is thus: The Queen when she rides
+a-hawking has always behind her her page Toussaint, a little boy. And
+this little boy holdeth ever the separate lures for each hawk that the
+Queen setteth up. And the falcon or hawk or genette or tiercel having
+stooped, the Queen will call upon that eyass for the lure appropriated
+to each bird as it chances. And very carefully the Queen's Highness
+observeth the laws of the chase, of venery and hawking. For the which I
+honour her.'
+
+Lascelles said, 'Well, well!'
+
+'As for the borrowing of a handkerchief,' the woodman pursued, 'that is
+a very idle tale. For, let me tell you, a lady might borrow a jewelled
+feather or a scarlet pouch or what not that is bright and shall take a
+bird's eye--a little mirror upon a cord were a good thing. But a
+handkerchief! Why, Sir Bookman, that a lady can only do if she will
+signify to all the world: "This knight is my servant and I his
+mistress." Those very words it signifieth--and that the better for it
+showeth that that lady is minded to let her hawk go, luring the
+gentleman to her with that favour of his.'
+
+'Well, well,' Lascelles said, 'I am not so ignorant that I did not know
+that. Therefore I asked you, for it seemed a very strange thing.'
+
+'It is a very foolish tale and very evil,' the man answered. 'For this I
+will swear: that the Queen's Highness--and I and her honour for
+it--observeth very jealously the laws of wood and moorland and chase.'
+
+'So I have heard,' Lascelles said. 'But I see the castle. I will not
+take you farther, but will let you go back to the goodly deer.'
+
+'Pray God they be not wandered fore,' the woodman said. 'You could have
+found this way without me.'
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+There was but one road into the castle, and that from the south, up a
+steep green bank. Up the roadway Lascelles must ride his horse past four
+men that bore a litter made of two pikes wattled with green boughs and
+covered with a horse-cloth. As Lascelles passed by the very head of it,
+the man that lay there sprang off it to his feet, and cried out--
+
+'I be the Queen's cousin and servant. I brought her to the Court.'
+Lascelles' horse sprang sideways, a great bound up the bank. He galloped
+ten paces ahead before the rider could stay him and turn round. The man,
+all rags and with a black face, had fallen into the dust of the road,
+and still cried out outrageously. The bearers set down the litter, wiped
+their brows, and then, falling all four upon Culpepper, made to carry
+him by his legs and arms, for they were weary of laying him upon the
+litter from which incessantly he sprang.
+
+But before them upon his horse was Lascelles and impeded their way.
+Culpepper drew in and pushed out his legs and arms, so that they all
+four staggered, and--
+
+'For God's sake, master,' one of them grunted out, 'stand aside that we
+may pass. We have toil enow in bearing him.'
+
+'Why, set the poor gentleman down upon the litter,' Lascelles said, 'and
+let us talk a little.'
+
+The men set Culpepper on the horse-cloth, and one of them knelt down to
+hold him there.
+
+'If you will lend us your horse to lay him across, we may come more
+easily up,' one said. In these days the position and trade of a spy was
+so little esteemed--it had been far other with the great informers of
+Privy Seal's day--that these men, being of the Queen's guard, would talk
+roughly to Lascelles, who was a mere poor gentleman of the Archbishop's
+if his other vocation could be neglected. Lascelles sat, his hand upon
+his chin.
+
+'You use him very roughly if this be the Queen's cousin,' he said.
+
+The bearer set back his beard and laughed at the sky.
+
+'This is a coif--a poor rag of a merchant,' he cried out. 'If this were
+the Queen's cousin should we bear him thus on a clout?'
+
+'I am the Queen's cousin, T. Culpepper,' Culpepper shouted at the sky.
+'Who be you that stay me from her?'
+
+'Why, you may hear plainly,' the bearer said. 'He is mazed, doited,
+starved, thirsted, and a seer of visions.'
+
+Lascelles pondered, his elbow upon his saddle-peak, his chin caught in
+his hand.
+
+'How came ye by him?' he asked.
+
+One with another they told him the tale, how, the Queen being ridden
+towards the north parts, at the extreme end of her ride had seen the
+man, at a distance, among the heather, flogging a dead horse with a
+moorland kern beside him. He was a robbed, parched, fevered, and amazed
+traveller. The Queen's Highness, compassionating, had bidden bear him to
+the castle and comfort and cure him, not having looked upon his face or
+heard his tongue. For, for sure then, she had let him die where he was;
+since, no sooner were these four, his new bearers, nearly come up among
+the knee-deep heather, than this man had started up, his eyes upon the
+Queen's cavalcade and many at a distance. And, with his sword drawn and
+screaming, he had cried out that, if that was the Queen, he was the
+Queen's cousin. They had tripped up his heels in a bed of ling and
+quieted him with a clout on the poll from an axe end.
+
+'But now we have him here,' the eldest said; 'where we shall bestow him
+we know not.'
+
+Lascelles had his eyes upon the sick man's face as if it fascinated him,
+and, slowly, he got down from his horse. Culpepper then lay very still
+with his eyes closed, but his breast heaved as though against tight and
+strong ropes that bound him.
+
+'I think I do know this gentleman for one John Robb,' he said. 'Are you
+very certain the Queen's Highness did not know his face?'
+
+'Why, she came not ever within a quarter mile of him,' the bearer said.
+
+'Then it is a great charity of the Queen to show mercy to a man she hath
+never seen,' Lascelles answered absently. He was closely casting his
+eyes over Culpepper. Culpepper lay very still, his begrimed face to the
+sky, his hands abroad above his head. But when Lascelles bent over him
+it was as if he shuddered, and then he wept.
+
+Lascelles bent down, his hands upon his knees. He was afraid--he was
+very afraid. Thomas Culpepper, the Queen's cousin, he had never seen in
+his life. But he had heard it reported that he had red hair and beard,
+and went always dressed in green with stockings of red. And this man's
+hair was red, and his beard, beneath coal grime, was a curly red, and
+his coat, beneath a crust of black filth, was Lincoln green and of a
+good cloth. And, beneath the black, his stockings were of red silk. He
+reflected slowly, whilst the bearers laughed amongst themselves at this
+Queen's kinsman in rags and filth.
+
+Lascelles gave them his bottle of sack to drink empty among them, that
+he might have the longer time to think.
+
+If this were indeed the Queen's cousin, come unknown to the Queen and
+mazed and muddled in himself to Pontefract, what might not Lascelles
+make of him? For all the world knew that he loved her with a mad
+love--he had sold farms to buy her gowns. It was he that had brought her
+to Court, upon an ass, at Greenwich, when her mule--as all men knew--had
+stumbled upon the threshold. Once before, it was said, Culpepper had
+burst in with his sword drawn upon the King and Kate Howard when they
+sat together. And Lascelles trembled with eagerness at the thought of
+what use he might not make of this mad and insolent lover of the
+Queen's!
+
+But did he dare?
+
+Culpepper had been sent into Scotland to secure him up, away at the
+farthest limits of the realm. Then, if he was come back? This grime was
+the grime of a sea-coal ship! He knew that men without passports,
+outlaws and the like, escaped from Scotland on the Durham ships that
+went to Leith with coal. And this man came on the Durham road. Then....
+
+If it were Culpepper he had come unpermitted. He was an outlaw. Dare
+Lascelles have trade with--dare he harbour--an outlaw? It would be
+unbeknown to the Queen's Highness! He kicked his heels with impatience
+to come to a resolution.
+
+He reflected swiftly:
+
+What hitherto he had were: some tales spread abroad about the Queen's
+lewd Court--tales in London Town. He had, too, the keeper of the Queen's
+door bribed and talked into his service and interest. And he had his
+sister....
+
+His sister would, with threatening, tell tales of the Queen before
+marriage. And she would find him other maids and grooms, some no doubt
+more willing still than Mary Hall. But the keeper of the Queen's door!
+And, in addition, the Queen's cousin mad of love for her! What might he
+not do with these two?
+
+The prickly sweat came to his forehead. Four horsemen were issuing from
+the gate of the castle above. He must come to a decision. His fingers
+trembled as if they were a pickpocket's near a purse of gold.
+
+He straightened his back and stood erect.
+
+'Yes,' he said very calmly, 'this is my friend John Robb.'
+
+He added that this man had been in Edinburgh where the Queen's cousin
+was. He had had letters from him that told how they were sib and rib.
+Thus this fancy had doubtless come into his brain at sight of the Queen
+in his madness.
+
+He breathed calmly, having got out these words, for now the doubt was
+ended. He would have both the Queen's door-keeper and the Queen's mad
+lover.
+
+He bade the bearers set Culpepper upon his horse and, supporting him,
+lead him to a room that he would hire of the Archbishop's chamberlain,
+near his own in the dark entrails of the castle. And there John Robb
+should live at his expenses.
+
+And when the men protested that, though this was very Christian of
+Lascelles, yet they would have recompense of the Queen for their toils,
+he said that he himself would give them a crown apiece, and they might
+get in addition what recompense from the Queen's steward that they
+could. He asked them each their names and wrote them down, pretending
+that it was that he might send each man his crown piece.
+
+So, when the four horsemen were ridden past, the men hoisted Culpepper
+into Lascelles' horse and went all together up into the castle.
+
+But, that night, when Culpepper lay in a stupor, Lascelles went to the
+Archbishop's chamberlain and begged that four men, whose names he had
+written down, might be chosen to go in the Archbishop's paritor's guard
+that went next dawn to Ireland over the sea to bring back tithes from
+Dublin. And, next day, he had Culpepper moved to another room; and, in
+three days' time, he set it about in the castle that the Queen's cousin
+was come from Scotland. By that time most of the liquor had come down
+out of Culpepper's brain, but he was still muddled and raved at times.
+
+
+IV
+
+On that third night the Queen was with the Lady Mary, once more in her
+chamber, having come down as before, from the chapel in the roof, to
+pray her submit to her father's will. Mary had withstood her with a more
+good-humoured irony; and, whilst she was in the midst of her pleadings,
+a letter marked most pressing was brought to her. The Queen opened it,
+and raised her eyebrows; she looked down at the subscription and
+frowned. Then she cast it upon the table.
+
+'Shall there never be an end of old things?' she said.
+
+'Even what old things?' the Lady Mary asked.
+
+The Queen shrugged her shoulders.
+
+'It was not they I came to talk of,' she said. 'I would sleep early, for
+the King comes to-morrow and I have much to plead with you.'
+
+'I am weary of your pleadings,' the Lady Mary said. 'You have pleaded
+enow. If you would be fresh for the King, be first fresh for me. Start a
+new hare.'
+
+The Queen would have gainsaid her.
+
+'I have said you have pleaded enow,' the Lady Mary said. 'And you have
+pleaded enow. This no more amuses me. I will wager I guess from whom
+your letter was.'
+
+Reluctantly the Queen held her peace; that day she had read in many
+ancient books, as well profane as of the Fathers of the Church, and she
+had many things to say, and they were near her lips and warm in her
+heart. She was much minded to have good news to give the King against
+his coming on the morrow; the great good news that should set up in that
+realm once more abbeys and chapters and the love of God. But she could
+not press these sayings upon the girl, though she pleaded still with her
+blue eyes.
+
+'Your letter is from Sir Nicholas Throckmorton,' the Lady Mary said.
+'Even let me read it.'
+
+'You did know that that knight was come to Court again?' the Queen said.
+
+'Aye; and that you would not see him, but like a fool did bid him depart
+again.'
+
+'You will ever be calling me a fool,' Katharine retorted, 'for giving
+ear to my conscience and hating spies and the suborners of false
+evidence.'
+
+'Why,' the Lady Mary answered, 'I do call it a folly to refuse to give
+ear to the tale of a man who has ridden far and fast, and at the risk of
+a penalty to tell it you.'
+
+'Why,' Katharine said, 'if I did forbid his coming to the Court under a
+penalty, it was because I would not have him here.'
+
+'Yet he much loved you, and did you some service.'
+
+'He did me a service of lies,' the Queen said, and she was angry. 'I
+would not have had him serve me. By his false witness Cromwell was cast
+down to make way for me. But I had rather have cast down Cromwell by the
+truth which is from God. Or I had rather he had never been cast down.
+And that I swear.'
+
+'Well, you are a fool,' the Lady Mary said. 'Let me look upon this
+knight's letter.'
+
+'I have not read it,' Katharine said.
+
+'Then will I,' the Lady Mary answered. She made across the room to where
+the paper lay upon the table beside the great globe of the earth. She
+came back; she turned her round to the Queen; she made her a deep
+reverence, so that her black gown spread out stiffly around her, and,
+keeping her eyes ironically on Katharine's face, she mounted backward up
+to the chair that was beneath the dais.
+
+Katharine put her hand over her heart.
+
+'What mean you?' she said. 'You have never sat there before.'
+
+'That is not true,' the Lady Mary said harshly. 'For this last three
+days I have practised how, thus backward, I might climb to this chair
+and, thus seemly, sit in it.'
+
+'Even then?' Katharine asked.
+
+'Even then I will be asked no more questions,' her step-daughter
+answered. 'This signifieth that I ha' heard enow o' thy voice, Queen.'
+
+Katharine did not dare to speak, for she knew well this girl's tyrannous
+and capricious nature. But she was nearly faint with emotion and reached
+sideways for the chair at the table; there she sat and gazed at the girl
+beneath the dais, her lips parted, her body leaning forward.
+
+Mary spread out the great sheet of Throckmorton's parchment letter upon
+her black knees. She bent forward so that the light from the mantel at
+the room-end might fall upon the writing.
+
+'It seemeth,' she said ironically,'that one descrieth better at the
+humble end of the room than here on high'--and she read whilst the Queen
+panted.
+
+At last she raised her eyes and bent them darkly upon the Queen's face.
+
+'Will you do what this knight asks?' she uttered. 'For what he asks
+seemeth prudent.'
+
+'A' God's name,' Katharine said, 'let me not now hear of this man.'
+
+'Why,' the Lady Mary answered coolly, 'if I am to be of the Queen's
+alliance I must be of the Queen's council and my voice have a weight.'
+
+'But will you? Will you?' Katharine brought out.
+
+'Will you listen to my voice?' Mary said. 'I will not listen to yours.
+Hear now what this goodly knight saith. For, if I am to be your
+well-wisher, I must call him goodly that so well wishes to you.'
+
+Katharine wrung her hands.
+
+'Ye torture me,' she said.
+
+'Well, I have been tortured,' Mary answered, 'and I have come through it
+and live.'
+
+She swallowed in her throat, and thus, with her eyes upon the writing,
+brought out the words--
+
+'This knight bids you beware of one Mary Lascelles or Hall, and her
+brother, Edward Lascelles, that is of the Archbishop's service.'
+
+'I will not hear what Throckmorton says,' Katharine answered.
+
+'Ay, but you shall,' Mary said, 'or I come down from this chair. I am
+not minded to be allied to a Queen that shall be undone. That is not
+prudence.'
+
+'God help me!' the Queen said.
+
+'God helps most willingly them that take counsel with themselves and
+prudence,' her step-daughter answered; 'and these are the words of the
+knight.' She held up the parchment and read out:
+
+'"Therefore I--and you know how much your well-wisher I be--upon my
+bended knees do pray you do one of two things: either to put out both
+these twain from your courts and presence, or if that you cannot or will
+not do, so richly to reward them as that you shall win them to your
+service. For a little rotten fruit will spread a great stink; a small
+ferment shall pollute a whole well. And these twain, I am advised,
+assured, convinced, and have convicted them, will spread such a rotten
+fog and mist about your reputation and so turn even your good and
+gracious actions to evil seeming that--I swear and vow, O most high
+Sovereign, for whom I have risked, as you wot, life, limb and the fell
+rack----"'
+
+The Lady Mary looked up at the Queen's face.
+
+'Will you not listen to the pleadings of this man?' she said.
+
+'I will so reward Lascelles and his sister as they have merited.' the
+Queen said. 'So much and no more. And not all the pleadings of this
+knight shall move me to listen to any witness that he brings against any
+man nor maid. So help me, God; for I do know how he served his master
+Cromwell.'
+
+'For love of thee!' the Lady Mary said.
+
+The Queen wrung her hands as if she would wash a stain from them.
+
+'God help me!' she said. 'I prayed the King for the life of Privy Seal
+that was!'
+
+'He would not hear thee,' the Lady Mary said. She looked long upon the
+Queen's face with unmoved and searching eyes.
+
+'It is a new thing to me,' she said,'to hear that you prayed for Privy
+Seal's life.'
+
+'Well, I prayed,' Katharine said, 'for I did not think he worked treason
+against the King.'
+
+The Lady Mary straightened her back where she sat.
+
+'I think I will not show myself less queenly than you,' she said. 'For I
+be of a royal race. But hear this knight.'
+
+And again she read:
+
+'"I have it from the lips of the cornet that came with this Lascelles to
+fetch this Mary Lascelles or Hall: I, Throckmorton, a knight, swear that
+I heard with mine own ears, how for ever as they rode, this Lascelles
+plied this cornet with questions about your high self. As thus: 'Did you
+favour any gentleman when you rode out, the cornet being of your guard?'
+or, 'Had he heard a tale of one Pelham, a knight, of whom you should
+have taken a kerchief?'--and this, that and the other, for ever, till
+the cornet spewed at the hearing of him. Now, gracious and most high
+Sovereign Consort, what is it that this man seeketh?"'
+
+Again the Lady Mary paused to look at the Queen.
+
+'Why,' Katharine said, 'so mine enemies will talk of me. I had been the
+fool you styled me if I had not awaited it. But----' and she drew up
+her body highly. 'My life is such and such shall be that none such arrow
+shall pierce my corslet.'
+
+'God help you,' the Lady Mary said. 'What has your life to do with it,
+if you will not cut out the tongues of slanderers?'
+
+She laughed mirthlessly, and added--
+
+'Now this knight concludes--and it is as if he writhed his hands and
+knelt and whined and kissed your feet--he concludeth with a prayer that
+you will let him come again to the Court. "For," says he, "I will clean
+your vessels, serve you at table, scrape the sweat off your horse, or do
+all that is vilest. But suffer me to come that I may know and report to
+you what there is whispered in these jail places."'
+
+Katharine Howard said--
+
+'I had rather borrow Pelham's kerchief.'
+
+The Lady Mary dropped the parchment on to the floor at her side.
+
+'I rede you do as this knight wills,' she said; 'for, amidst the little
+sticklers of spies that are here, this knight, this emperor of spies,
+moves as a pillow of shadow. He stalks amongst them as, in the night,
+the dread and awful lion of Numidia. He shall be to you more a corslet
+of proof than all the virtue that your life may borrow from the precepts
+of Diana. We, that are royal and sit in high places, have our feet in
+such mire.'
+
+'Now before God on His throne,' Katharine Howard said, 'if you be of
+royal blood, I will teach you a lesson. For hear me----'
+
+'No, I will hear thee no more,' the Lady Mary answered; 'I will teach
+thee. For thou art not the only one in this land to be proud. I will
+show thee such a pride as shall make thee blush.'
+
+She stood up and came slowly down the steps of the dais. She squared
+back her shoulders and folded her hands before her; she erected her
+head, and her eyes were dark. When she was come to where the Queen sat,
+she kneeled down.
+
+'I acknowledge thee to be my mother,' she said, 'that have married the
+King, my father. I pray you that you do take me by the hand and set me
+in that seat that you did raise for me. I pray you that you do style me
+a princess, royal again in this land. And I pray you to lesson me and
+teach me that which you would have me do as well as that which it befits
+me to do. Take me by the hand.'
+
+'Nay, it is my lord that should do this,' the Queen whispered. Before
+that she had started to her feet; her face had a flush of joy; her eyes
+shone with her transparent faith. She brushed back a strand of hair from
+her brow; she folded her hands on her breasts and raised her glance
+upwards to seek the dwelling-place of Almighty God and the saints in
+their glorious array.
+
+'It is my lord should do this!' she said again.
+
+'Speak no more words,' the Lady Mary said. 'I have heard enow of thy
+pleadings. You have heard me say that.'
+
+She continued upon her knees.
+
+'It is thou or none!' she said. 'It is thou or none shall witness this
+my humiliation and my pride. Take me by the hand. My patience will not
+last for ever.'
+
+The Queen set her hand between the girl's. She raised her to her feet.
+
+When the Lady Mary stood high and shadowy, in black, with her white face
+beneath that dais, she looked down upon the Queen.
+
+'Now, hear me!' she said. 'In this I have been humble to you; but I have
+been most proud. For I have in my veins a greater blood than thine or
+the King's, my father's. For, inasmuch as Tudor blood is above Howard's,
+so my mother's, that was royal of Spain, is above Tudor's. And this it
+is to be royal----
+
+'I have had you, a Queen, kneel before me. It is royal to receive
+petitions--more royal still it is to grant them. And in this, further, I
+am more proud. For, hearing you say that you had prayed the King for
+Cromwell's life, I thought, this is a virtue-mad Queen. She shall most
+likely fall!--Prudence biddeth me not to be of her party. But shall I,
+who am royal, be prudent? Shall I, who am of the house of Aragon, be
+more afraid than thou, a Howard?
+
+'I tell you--No! If you will be undone for the sake of virtue, blindly,
+and like a fool, unknowing the consequences, I, Mary of Aragon and
+England, will make alliance with thee, knowing that the alliance is
+dangerous. And, since it is more valiant to go to a doom knowingly than
+blindfold, so I do show myself more valiant than thou. For well I
+know--since I saw my mother die--that virtue is a thing profitless, and
+impracticable in this world. But you--you think it shall set up temporal
+monarchies and rule peoples. Therefore, what you do you do for profit. I
+do it for none.'
+
+'Now, by the Mother of God,' Katharine Howard said, 'this is the
+gladdest day of my life.'
+
+'Pray you,' Mary said, 'get you gone from my sight and hearing, for I
+endure ill the appearance and sound of joy. And, Queen, again I bid you
+beware of calling any day fortunate till its close. For, before midnight
+you may be ruined utterly. I have known more Queens than thou. Thou art
+the fifth I have known.'
+
+She added--
+
+'For the rest, what you will I will do: submission to the King and such
+cozening as he will ask of me. God keep you, for you stand in need of
+it.'
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+At supper that night there sat all such knights and lordlings as ate at
+the King's expense in the great hall that was in the midmost of the
+castle, looking on to the courtyard. There were not such a many of them,
+maybe forty; from the keeper of the Queen's records, the Lord d'Espahn,
+who sat at the table head, down to the lowest of all, the young Poins,
+who sat far below the salt-cellar. The greater lords of the Queen's
+household, like the Lord Dacre of the North, did not eat at this common
+table, or only when the Queen herself there ate, which she did at midday
+when there was a feast.
+
+Nevertheless, this eating was conducted with gravity, the Lord d'Espahn
+keeping a vigilant eye down the table, which was laid with a fair white
+cloth. It cost a man a fine to be drunk before the white meats were
+eaten--unless, indeed, a man came drunk to the board--and the
+salt-cellar of state stood a-midmost of the cloth. It was of silver from
+Holland, and represented a globe of the earth, opened at the top, and
+supported by knights' bannerets.
+
+The hall was all of stone, with creamy walls, only marked above the iron
+torch-holds with brandons of soot. A scutcheon of the King's arms was
+above one end-door, with the Queen's above the other. Over each window
+were notable deers' antlers, and over each side-door, that let in the
+servers from the courtyard, was a scutcheon with the arms of a king
+deceased that had visited the castle. The roof was all gilded and
+coloured, and showed knaves' faces leering and winking, so that when a
+man was in drink, and looked upwards with his head on his chair back,
+these appeared to have life. The hall was called the Dacre Hall, because
+the Lords Dacre of the North had built it to be an offering to various
+kings that died whilst it was a-building.
+
+Such knights as had pages had them behind their chairs, holding napkins
+and ready to fill the horns with wine or beer. From kitchens or from
+buttery-hatches the servers ran continually across the courtyard and
+across the tiled floor, for the table was set back against the farther
+wall, all the knights being on the wall side, since there were not so
+many, and thus it was easier to come to them. There was a great clatter
+with the knives going and the feet on the tiles, but little conversing,
+for in that keen air eating was the principal thing, and in five minutes
+a boar or a sheep's head would be stripped till the skull alone was
+shown.
+
+It was in this manner that Thomas Culpepper came into the hall when they
+were all well set to, without having many eyes upon him. But the Lord
+d'Espahn was aware, suddenly, of one that stood beside him.
+
+'Gentleman, will you have a seat?' he said. 'Tell me your name and
+estate, that I may appoint you one.' He was a grave lord, with a pointed
+nose, dented at the end, a grey, square beard, and fresh colours on his
+face. He wore his bonnet because he was the highest there, and because
+there were currents of air at the openings of the doors.
+
+Thomas Culpepper's face was of a chalky white. Somewhere Lascelles had
+found for him a suit of green and red stockings. His red beard framed
+his face, but his lips were pursed.
+
+'Your seat I will have,' he said, 'for I am the Queen's cousin, T.
+Culpepper.'
+
+The Lord d'Espahn looked down upon his platter.
+
+'You may not have my seat,' he said. 'But you shall have this seat at my
+right hand that is empty. It is a very honourable seat, but mine you may
+not have for it is the Queen's own that I hold, being her vicar here.'
+
+'Your seat I will have,' Culpepper said.
+
+The Lord d'Espahn was set upon keeping order and quiet in that place
+more than on any other thing. He looked again down upon his platter, and
+then he was aware of a voice that whispered in his ear--
+
+'A' God's name, humour him, for he is very mad,' and, turning his eyes a
+little, he saw that it was Lascelles above his chair head.
+
+'Your seat I will have,' Culpepper said again. 'And this fellow, that
+tells me he is the most potent lord there is here, shall serve behind my
+chair.'
+
+The Lord d'Espahn took up his knife and fork in one hand and his manchet
+of bread in the other. He made as if to bow to Culpepper, who pushed him
+by the shoulder away. Some lordlings saw this and wondered, but in the
+noise none heard their words. At the foot of the table the squires said
+that the Lord d'Espahn must have been found out in a treason. Only the
+young Poins said that that was the Queen's cousin, come from Scotland,
+withouten leave, for love of the Queen through whom he was sick in the
+wits. This news ran through the castle by means of servers, cooks,
+undercooks, scullions, maids, tiring-maids, and maids of honour, more
+swiftly than it progressed up the table where men had the meats to keep
+their minds upon.
+
+Culpepper sat, flung back in his chair, his eyes, lacklustre and open,
+upon the cloth where his hands sprawled out. He said few words--only
+when the Lord d'Espahn's server carved boar's head for him, he took one
+piece in his mouth and then threw the plate full into the server's face.
+This caused great offence amongst the serving-men, for this server was a
+portly fellow that had served the Lord d'Espahn many years, and had a
+face like a ram's, so grave it was. Having drunk a little of his wine,
+Culpepper turned out the rest upon the cloth; his salt he brushed off
+his plate with his sleeve. That was remembered for long afterwards by
+many men and women. And it was as if he could not swallow, for he put
+down neither meat nor drink, but sat, deadly and pale, so that some said
+that he was rabid. Once he turned his head to ask the Lord d'Espahn--
+
+'If a quean prove forsworn, and turn to a Queen, what should her true
+love do?'
+
+The Lord d'Espahn never made any answer, but wagged his beard from side
+to side, and Culpepper repeated his question three separate times.
+Finally, the platters were raised, and the Lord d'Espahn went away to
+the sound of trumpets. Many of the lords there came peering round
+Culpepper to see what sport he might yield. Lascelles went away,
+following the scarlet figure of the young Poins, working his hand into
+the boy's arm and whispering to him. The servers and disservers went to
+their work of clearing the board.
+
+But Culpepper sat there without word or motion, so that none of those
+lords had any sport out of him. Some of them went away to roast pippins
+at the Widow Amnot's, some to speak with the alchemist that, on the
+roof, watched the stars. So one and the other left the room; the torches
+burned out, most of them, and, save for two lords of the Archbishop's
+following, who said boldly that they would watch and care for this man,
+because he was the Queen's cousin, and there might be advancement in it,
+Culpepper was left alone.
+
+His sword he had not with him, but he had his dagger, and, just as he
+drew it, appearing about to stab himself in the heart, there ran across
+the hall the black figure of Lascelles, so that he appeared to have been
+watching through a window, and the two lords threw themselves upon
+Culpepper's arm. And all three began to tell him that there was better
+work for him to do than that of stabbing himself; and Lascelles brought
+with him a flagon of _aqua vitæ_ from Holland, and poured out a little
+for Culpepper to drink. And one of the lords said that his room was up
+in the gallery near the Queen's, and, if Culpepper would go with him
+there, they might make good cheer. Only he must be silent in the going
+thither; afterwards it would not so much matter, for they would be past
+the guards. So, linking their arms in his, they wound up and across the
+courtyard, where the torchmen that waited on their company of diners to
+light them, blessed God that the sitting was over, and beat their
+torches out against the ground.
+
+In the shadow of the high walls, and some in the moonlight, the
+serving-men held their parliament. They discoursed of these things, and
+some said that it was a great pity that T. Culpepper was come to Court.
+For he was an idle braggart, and where he was disorder grew, and that
+was a pity, since the Queen had made the Court orderly, and servants
+were little beaten. But some said that like sire was like child, and
+that great disorders there were in the Court, but quiet ones, and the
+Queen the centre. But these were mostly the cleaners of dishes and the
+women that swept rooms and spread new rushes. Upon the whole, the cooks
+blessed the Queen, along with all them that had to do with feeding and
+the kitchens. They thanked God for her because she had brought back the
+old fasts. For, as they argued, your fast brings honours to cooks,
+since, after a meagre day, your lord cometh to his trencher with a
+better appetite, and then is your cook commended. The Archbishop's cooks
+were the hottest in this contention, for they had the most reason to
+know. The stablemen, palfreniers, and falconers' mates were, most part
+of them, politicians more than the others, and these wondered to have
+seen, through their peep-holes and door-cracks, the Queen's cousin go
+away with these lords that were of the contrary party. Some said that T.
+Culpepper was her emissary to win them over to her interests, and some,
+that always cousins, uncles, and kin were the bitterest foes a Queen
+had, as witness the case of Queen Anne Boleyn and the Yellow Dog of
+Norfolk who had worked to ruin her. And some said it was marvellous that
+there they could sit or stand and talk of such things--for a year or so
+ago all the Court was spies, so that the haymen mistrusted them that
+forked down the straw, and meat-servers them with the wine. But now each
+man could talk as he would, and it made greatly for fellowship when a
+man could sit against a wall, unbutton in the warm nights, and say what
+he listed.
+
+The light of the great fires grew dull in the line of kitchen windows;
+sweethearting couples came in through the great gateway from the
+grass-slopes beneath the castle walls. There was a little bustle when
+four horsemen rode in to say that the King's Highness was but nine miles
+from the castle, and torchmen must be there to light him in towards
+midnight. But the Queen should not be told for her greater pleasure and
+surprise. Then all these servingmen stood up and shook themselves, and
+said--'To bed.' For, on the morrow, with the King back, there would
+surely be great doings and hard work. And to mews and kennels and huts,
+in the straw and beds of rushes, these men betook themselves. The young
+lords came back laughing from Widow Amnot's at the castle foot; there
+was not any light to be seen save one in all that courtyard full of
+windows. The King's torchmen slumbered in the guard-room where they
+awaited his approach. Darkness, silence, and deep shadow lay everywhere,
+though overhead the sky was pale with moonlight, and, from high in the
+air, the thin and silvery tones of the watchman's horn on the roof
+filtered down at the quarter hours. A drowsy bell marked the hours, and
+the cries and drillings of the night birds vibrated from very high.
+
+
+V
+
+Coming very late to her bedroom the Queen found awaiting her her
+tiring-maid, Mary Trelyon, whom she had advanced into the post that
+Margot Poins had held, and the old Lady Rochford.
+
+'Why,' she said to her maid, 'when you have unlaced me you may go, or
+you will not love my service that keeps you so late.'
+
+Mary Trelyon cast her eyes on the ground, and said that it was such
+pleasure to attend her mistress, that not willingly would she give up
+that discoiffing, undoing of hair, and all the rest, for long she had
+desired to have the handling of these precious things and costly
+garments.
+
+'No, you shall get you gone,' the Queen said, 'for I will not have you,
+sweetheart, be red-lidded in the morning with this long watching, for
+to-morrow the King comes, and I will have him see my women comely and
+fair, though in your love you will not care for yourselves.'
+
+Standing before her mirror, where there burned in silver dishes four
+tall candles with perfumed wicks, Katharine offered her back to the
+loosening fingers of this girl.
+
+'I would not have you to think,' she said, 'that I am always thus late
+and a gadabout. But this day'--the Queen's eyes sparkled, and her cheeks
+were red with exaltation--'this day and this night are one that shall be
+marked with red stones in the calendar of England, and late have I
+travailed so to make them be.'
+
+The girl was very black-avised, and her face beneath her grey hood--for
+the Queen's maids were all in grey, with crowned roses, the device that
+the King had given her at their wedding, worked in red silk on each
+shoulder--her face beneath her grey hood was the clear shape of the thin
+end of an egg. She worked at the unlacing of the Queen's gown, so that
+she at last must kneel down to it.
+
+Having finished, she remained upon her knees, but she twisted her
+fingers in her skirt as if she were bashful, yet her face was perturbed
+with red flushes on the dark cheeks.
+
+The Queen, feeling that she knelt there upon her loosened gown and did
+not get her gone, said--
+
+'Anan?'
+
+'Please you let me stay,' the girl said; but Katharine answered--
+
+'I would commune with my own thoughts.'
+
+'Please you hear me,' the girl said, and she was very earnest; but the
+Queen answered--
+
+'Why, no! If you have any boon to ask of me, you know very well that
+to-morrow at eleven is the hour for asking. Now, I will sit still with
+the silence. Bring me my chair to the table. The Lady Rochford shall put
+out my lights when I be abed.'
+
+The girl stood up and rolled, with a trick of appeal, her eyes to the
+old Lady Rochford. This lady, all in grey too, but with a great white
+hood because she was a widow, sat back upon the foot of the great bed.
+Her face was perturbed, but it had been always perturbed since her
+cousin, the Queen Anne Boleyn, had fallen by the axe. She put a gouty
+and swollen finger to her lips, and the girl shrugged her shoulders with
+a passion of despair, for she was very hot-tempered, and it was as if
+mutinously that she fetched the Queen her chair and set it behind her
+where she stood before the mirror taking off her breast jewel from its
+chain. And again the girl shrugged her shoulders. Then she went to the
+little wall-door that corkscrewed down into the courtyard through the
+thick of the wall. Immediately after she was gone they heard the
+lockguard that awaited her without set on the great padlock without the
+door. Then his feet clanked down the stairway, he being heavily loaded
+with weighty keys. It was the doors along the corridor that the young
+Poins guarded, and these were never opened once the Queen was in her
+room, save by the King. The Lady Rochford slept in the anteroom upon a
+truckle-bed, and the great withdrawing-room was empty.
+
+It was very still in the Queen's room and most shadowy, except before
+the mirror where the candle flames streamed upwards. The pillars of the
+great bed were twisted out of dark wood; the hangings of bed and walls
+were all of a dark blue arras, and the bedspread was of a dark red
+velvet worked in gold with pomegranates and pomegranate leaves. Only the
+pillows and the turnover of the sheets were of white linen-lawn, and the
+bed curtains nearly hid them with shadows. Where the Queen sat there was
+light like that of an altar in a dim chapel, for the room was so huge.
+
+She sat before her glass, silently taking off her golden things. She
+took the jewel off the chain round her neck and laid it in a casket of
+gold and ivory. She took the rings off her fingers and hung them on the
+lance of a little knight in silver. She took off her waist where it hung
+to a brooch of feridets, her pomander of enamel and gold; she opened it
+and marked the time by the watch studded with sable diamonds that it
+held.
+
+'Past eleven,' she said, 'if my watch goes right.'
+
+'Indeed it is past eleven,' the Lady Rochford sighed behind her.
+
+The Queen sat forward in her chair, looking deep into the shadows of her
+mirror. A great relaxation was in all her limbs, for she was very tired,
+so that though she was minded to let down her hair she did not begin to
+undo her coif, and though she desired to think, she had no thoughts.
+From far away there came a muffled sound as if a door had been roughly
+closed, and the Lady Rochford shot out a little sound between a scream
+and a sigh.
+
+'Why, you are very affrighted,' the Queen said. 'One would think you
+feared robbers; but my guards are too good.'
+
+She began to unloosen from her hood her jewel, which was a rose
+fashioned out of pink shell work set with huge dewdrops of diamonds and
+crowned with a little crown of gold.
+
+'God knows,' she said, 'I ha' trinkets enow for robbers. It takes me too
+long to undo them. I would the King did not so load me.'
+
+'Your Highness is too humble for a Queen,' the old Lady Rochford
+grumbled. 'Let me aid you, since the maid is gone. I would not have you
+speak your maids so humbly. My Cousin Anne that was the Queen----'
+
+She came stiffly and heavily forward from the bed with her hands out to
+discoif her lady; but the Queen turned her head, caught at her fat hand,
+put it against her cheek and fondled it.
+
+'I would have your Highness feared by all,' the old lady said.
+
+'I would have myself by all beloved,' Katharine answered. 'What, am I to
+play the Queen and Highness to such serving-maids as I was once the
+fellow and companion to?'
+
+'Your Highness should not have sent the wench away,' the old woman said.
+
+'Well, you have taken on a very sour voice,' the Queen said. 'I will
+study to pleasure you more. Get you now back and rest you, for I know
+you stand uneasily, and you shall not uncoif me.'
+
+She began to unpin her coif, laying the golden pins in the silver
+candle-dishes. When her hair was thus set free of a covering, though it
+was smoothly braided and parted over her forehead, yet it was lightly
+rebellious, so that little mists of it caught the light, golden and
+rejoiceful. Her face was serious, her nose a little peaked, her lips
+rested lightly together, and her blue eyes steadily challenged their
+counterparts in the mirror with an assured and gentle glance.
+
+'Why,' she said, 'I believe you have the right of it--but for a queen I
+must be the same make of queen that I am as a woman. A queen gracious
+rather than a queen regnant; a queen to grant petitions rather than one
+to brush aside the petitioners.'
+
+She stopped and mused.
+
+'Yet,' she said, 'you will do me the justice to say that in the open and
+in the light of day, when men are by or the King's presence demands it,
+I do ape as well as I may the painted queens of galleries and the
+stately ladies that are to be seen in pictured books.'
+
+'I would not have had you send away the maid,' the old Lady Rochford
+said.
+
+'God help me,' the Queen answered. 'I stayed her petition till the
+morrow. Is that not queening it enough?'
+
+The Lady Rochford suddenly wrung her hands.
+
+'I had rather,' she said, 'you had heard her and let her stay. Here
+there are not people enough to guard you. You should have many scores of
+people. This is a dreary place.'
+
+'Heaven help me,' the Queen said. 'If I were such a queen as to be
+affrighted, you would affright me. Tell me of your cousin that was a
+sinful queen.'
+
+The Lady Rochford raised her hands lamentably and bleated out--
+
+'Ah God, not to-night!'
+
+'You have been ready enough on other nights,' the Queen said. And,
+indeed, it was so much the practice of this lady to talk always of her
+cousin, whose death had affrighted her, that often the Queen had begged
+her to cease. But to-night she was willing to hear, for she felt afraid
+of no omens, and, being joyful, was full of pity for the dead
+unfortunate. She began with slow, long motions to withdraw the great
+pins from her hair. The deep silence settled down again, and she hummed
+the melancholy and stately tune that goes with the words--
+
+  _'When all the little hills are hid in snow,_
+  _And all the small brown birds by frost are slain,_
+  _And sad and slow_
+  _The silly sheep do go,_
+  _All seeking shelter to and fro--_
+  _Come once again_
+  _To these familiar, silent, misty lands----'_
+
+And--
+
+'Aye,' she said; 'to these ancient and familiar lands of the dear
+saints, please God, when the winter snows are upon them, once again
+shall come the feet of God's messenger, for this is the joyfullest day
+this land hath known since my namesake was cast down and died.'
+
+Suddenly there were muffled cries from beyond the thick door in the
+corridor, and on the door itself resounding blows. The Lady Rochford
+gave out great shrieks, more than her feeble body could have been deemed
+to hold.
+
+'Body of God!' the Queen said, 'what is this?'
+
+'Your cousin!' the Lady Rochford cried out. She came running to the
+Queen, who, in standing up, had overset her heavy chair, and, falling to
+her knees, she babbled out--'Your cousin! Oh, let it not all come again.
+Call your guard. Let it not all come again'; and she clawed into the
+Queen's skirt, uttering incomprehensible clamours.
+
+'What? What? What?' Katharine said.
+
+'He was with the Archbishop. Your cousin with the Archbishop. I heard
+it. I sent to stay him if it were so'; and the old woman's teeth
+crackled within her jaws. 'O God, it is come again!' she cried.
+
+The door flung open heavily, but slowly, because it was so heavy. And,
+in the archway, whilst a great scream from the old woman wailed out down
+the corridors, Katharine was aware of a man in scarlet, locked in a
+struggle with a raging swirl of green manhood. The man in scarlet fell
+back, and then, crying out, ran away. The man in green, his bonnet off,
+his red hair sticking all up, his face pallid, and his eyes staring like
+those of a sleep-walker, entered the room. In his right hand he had a
+dagger. He walked very slowly.
+
+The Queen thought fast: the old Lady Rochford had her mouth open; her
+eyes were upon the dagger in Culpepper's hand.
+
+'I seek the Queen,' he said, but his eyes were lacklustre; they fell
+upon Katharine's face as if they had no recognition, or could not see.
+She turned her body round to the old Lady Rochford, bending from the
+hips so as not to move her feet. She set her fingers upon her lips.
+
+'I seek--I seek----' he said, and always he came closer to her. His
+eyes were upon her face, and the lids moved.
+
+'I seek the Queen,' he said, and beneath his husky voice there were bass
+notes of quivering anger, as if, just as he had been by chance calmed by
+throwing down the guard, so by chance his anger might arise again.
+
+The Queen never moved, but stood up full and fair; one strand of her
+hair, loosened, fell low over her left ear. When he was so close to her
+that his protruded hips touched her skirt, she stole her hand slowly
+round him till it closed upon his wrist above the dagger. His mouth
+opened, his eyes distended.
+
+'I seek----' he said, and then--'Kat!' as if the touch of her cool and
+firm fingers rather than the sight of her had told to his bruised senses
+who she was.
+
+'Get you gone!' she said. 'Give me your dagger.' She uttered each word
+roundly and fully as if she were pondering the next move over a
+chequer-board.
+
+'Well, I will kill the Queen,' he said. 'How may I do it without my
+knife?'
+
+'Get you gone!' she said again. 'I will direct you to the Queen.'
+
+He passed the back of his left hand wearily over his brow.
+
+'Well, I have found thee, Kat!' he said.
+
+She answered: 'Aye!' and her fingers twined round his on the hilt of the
+dagger, so that his were loosening.
+
+Then the old Lady Rochford screamed out--
+
+'Ha! God's mercy! Guards, swords, come!' The furious blood came into
+Culpepper's face at the sound. His hand he tore from Katharine's, and
+with the dagger raised on high he ran back from her and then forward
+towards the Lady Rochford. With an old trick of fence, that she had
+learned when she was a child, Katharine Howard set out her foot before
+him, and, with the speed of his momentum, he pitched over forward. He
+fell upon his face so that his forehead was upon the Lady Rochford's
+right foot. His dagger he still grasped, but he lay prone with the drink
+and the fever.
+
+'Now, by God in His mercy,' Katharine said to her, 'as I am the Queen I
+charge you----'
+
+'Take his knife and stab him to the heart!' the Lady Rochford cried out.
+'This will slay us two.'
+
+'I charge you that you listen to me,' the Queen said, 'or, by God, I
+will have you in chains!'
+
+'I will call your many,' the Lady Rochford cried out, for terror had
+stopped up the way from her ears to her brain, and she made towards the
+door. But Katharine set her hand to the old woman's shoulder.
+
+'Call no man,' she commanded. 'This is a device of mine enemies to have
+men see this of me.'
+
+'I will not stay here to be slain,' the old woman said.
+
+'Then mine own self will slay you,' the Queen answered. Culpepper moved
+in his stupor. 'Before Heaven,' the Queen said, 'stay you there, and he
+shall not again stand up.'
+
+'I will go call----' the old woman besought her, and again Culpepper
+moved. The Queen stood right up against her; her breast heaved, her face
+was rigid. Suddenly she turned and ran to the door. That key she
+wrenched round and out, and then to the other door beside it, and that
+key too she wrenched round and out.
+
+'I will not stay alone with my cousin,' she said, 'for that is what mine
+enemies would have. And this I vow, that if again you squeak I will have
+you tried as being an abettor of this treason.' She went and knelt down
+at her cousin's head; she moved his face round till it was upon her lap.
+
+'Poor Tom,' she said; he opened his eyes and muttered stupid words.
+
+She looked again at Lady Rochford.
+
+'All this is nothing,' she said, 'if you will hide in the shadow of the
+bed and keep still. I have seen my cousin a hundred times thus muddied
+with drink, and do not fear him. He shall not stand up till he is ready
+to go through the door; but I will not be alone with him and tend him.'
+
+The Lady Rochford waddled and quaked like a jelly to the shadow of the
+bed curtains. She pulled back the curtain over the window, and, as if
+the contact with the world without would help her, threw back the
+casement. Below, in the black night, a row of torches shook and
+trembled, like little planets, in the distance.
+
+Katharine Howard held her cousin's head upon her knees. She had seen him
+thus a hundred times and had no fear of him. For thus in his cups, and
+fevered as he was with ague that he had had since a child, he was always
+amenable to her voice though all else in the world enraged him. So that,
+if she could keep the Lady Rochford still, she might well win him out
+through the door at which he came in.
+
+And, first, when he moved to come to his knees, she whispered--
+
+'Lie down, lie down,' and he set one elbow on to the carpet and lay over
+on his side, then on his back. She took his head again on to her lap,
+and with soft motions reached to take the dagger from his hand. He
+yielded it up and gazed upwards into her face.
+
+'Kat!' he said, and she answered--
+
+'Aye!'
+
+There came from very far the sound of a horn.
+
+'When you can stand,' she said, 'you must get you gone.'
+
+'I have sold farms to get you gowns,' he answered.
+
+'And then we came to Court,' she said, 'to grow great.'
+
+He passed his left hand once more over his eyes with a gesture of
+ineffable weariness, but his other arm that was extended, she knelt
+upon.
+
+'Now we are great,' she said.
+
+He muttered, 'I wooed thee in an apple orchard. Let us go back to
+Lincolnshire.'
+
+'Why, we will talk of it in the morning,' she said. 'It is very late.'
+
+Her brain throbbed with the pulsing blood. She was set to get him gone
+before the young Poins could call men to her door. It was maddeningly
+strange to think that none hitherto had come. Maybe Culpepper had struck
+him dead with his knife, or he lay without fainting. This black enigma,
+calling for haste that she dare not show, filled all the shadows of that
+shadowy room.
+
+'It is very late,' she said, 'you must get you gone. It was compacted
+between us that ever you would get you gone early.'
+
+'Aye, I would not have thee shamed,' he said. He spoke upwards, slowly
+and luxuriously, his head so softly pillowed, his eyes gazing at the
+ceiling. He had never been so easy in two years past. 'I remember that
+was the occasion of our pact. I did wooe thee in an apple orchard to the
+grunting of hogs.'
+
+'Get you gone,' she said; 'buy me a favour against the morning.'
+
+'Why,' he said, 'I am a very rich lord. I have lands in Kent now. I will
+buy thee such a gown ... such a gown.... The hogs grunted.... There is a
+song about it.... Let me go to buy thy gown. Aye, now, presently. I
+remember a great many things. As thus ... there is a song of a lady
+loved a swine. Honey, said she, and hunc, said he.'
+
+Whilst she listened a great many thoughts came into her mind--of their
+youth at home, where indeed, to the grunting of hogs, he had wooed her
+when she came out from conning her Plautus with the Magister. And at the
+same time it troubled her to consider where the young Poins had bestowed
+himself. Maybe he was dead; maybe he lay in a faint.
+
+'It was in our pact,' she said to Culpepper, 'that you should get you
+gone ever when I would have it.'
+
+'Aye, sure, it was in our pact,' he said.
+
+He closed his eyes as if he would fall asleep, being very weary and come
+to his desired haven. Above his closed eyes Katharine threw the key of
+her antechamber on to the bed. She pointed with her hand to that door
+that the Lady Rochford should undo. If she could get her cousin through
+that door--and now he was in the mood--if she could but get him through
+there and out at the door beyond the Big Room into the corridor, before
+her guard came back....
+
+But the Lady Rochford was leaning far out beyond the window-sill and did
+not see her gesture.
+
+Culpepper muttered--
+
+'Ah; well; aye; even so----' And from the window came a scream that
+tore the air--
+
+'The King! the King!'
+
+And immediately it was as if the life of a demon had possessed Culpepper
+in all his limbs.
+
+'Merciful God!' the Queen cried out. 'I am patient.'
+
+Culpepper had writhed from her till he sat up, but she hollowed her hand
+around his throat. His head she forced back till she held it upon the
+floor, and whilst he writhed with his legs she knelt upon his chest with
+one knee. He screamed out words like: 'Bawd,' and 'Ilcock,' and
+'Hecate,' and the Lady Rochford screamed--
+
+'The King comes! the King comes!'
+
+Then Katharine said within herself--
+
+'Is it this to be a Queen?'
+
+She set both her hands upon his neck and pressed down the whole weight
+of her frame, till the voice died in his throat. His body stirred
+beneath her knee, convulsively, so that it was as if she rode a horse.
+His eyes, as slowly he strangled, glared hideously at the ceiling, from
+which the carven face of a Queen looked down into them. At last he lay
+still, and Katharine Howard rose up.
+
+She ran at the old woman--
+
+'God forgive me if I have killed my cousin,' she said. 'I am certain
+that now He will forgive me if I slay thee.' And she had Culpepper's
+dagger in her hand.
+
+'For,' she said, 'I stand for Christ His cause: I will not be undone by
+meddlers. Hold thy peace!'
+
+The Lady Rochford opened her mouth to speak.
+
+'Hold thy peace!' the Queen said again, and she lifted up the dagger.
+'Speak not. Do as I bid thee. Answer me when I ask. For this I swear as
+I am the Queen that, since I have the power to slay whom I will and none
+question it, I will slay thee if thou do not my bidding.'
+
+The old woman trembled lamentably.
+
+'Where is the King come to?' the Queen said.
+
+'Even to the great gate; he is out of sight,' was her answer.
+
+'Come now,' the Queen commanded. 'Let us drag my cousin behind my
+table.'
+
+'Shall he be hidden there?' the Lady Rochford cried out. 'Let us cast
+him from the window.'
+
+'Hold your peace,' the Queen cried out. 'Speak you never one word more.
+But come!'
+
+She took her cousin by the arm, the Lady Rochford took him by the other
+and they dragged him, inert and senseless, into the shadow of the
+Queen's mirror table.
+
+'Pray God the King comes soon,' the Queen said. She stood above her
+cousin and looked down upon him. A great pitifulness came into her face.
+
+'Loosen his shirt,' she said. 'Feel if his heart beats!'
+
+The Lady Rochford had a face full of fear and repulsion.
+
+'Loosen his shirt. Feel if his heart beats,' the Queen said. 'And oh!'
+she added, 'woe shall fall upon thee if he be dead.'
+
+She reflected a moment to think upon how long it should be ere the King
+came to her door. Then she raised her chair, and sat down at her mirror.
+For one minute she set her face into her hands; then she began to
+straighten herself, and with her hands behind her to tighten the laces
+of her dress.
+
+'For,' she continued to Lady Rochford, 'I do hold thee more guilty of
+his death than himself. He is but a drunkard in his cups, thou a
+palterer in sobriety.'
+
+She set her cap upon her head and smoothed the hair beneath it. In all
+her movements there was a great swiftness and decision. She set the
+jewel in her cap, the pomander at her side, the chain around her neck,
+the jewel at her breast.
+
+'His heart beats,' the Lady Rochford said, from her knees at Culpepper's
+side.
+
+'Then thank the saints,' Katharine answered, 'and do up again his
+shirt.'
+
+She hurried in her attiring, and uttered engrossed commands.
+
+'Kneel thou there by his side. If he stir or mutter before the King be
+in and the door closed, put thy hand across his mouth.'
+
+'But the King----' the Lady Rochford said. 'And----'
+
+'Merciful God!' Katharine cried out again. 'I am the Queen. Kneel
+there.'
+
+The Lady Rochford trembled down upon her knees; she was in fear for her
+life by the axe if the King came in.
+
+'I thank God that the King is come,' the Queen said. 'If he had not,
+this man must have gone from hence in the sight of other men. So I will
+pardon thee for having cried out if now thou hold him silent till the
+King be in.'
+
+There came from very near a blare of trumpets. Katharine rose up, and
+went again to gaze upon her cousin. The dagger she laid upon her table.
+
+'He may hold still yet,' she said. 'But I charge you that you muzzle him
+if he move or squeak.'
+
+There came great blows upon the door, and through the heavy wood, the
+Ha-ha of many voices. Slowly the Queen moved to the bed, and from it
+took the key where she had thrown it. There came again the heavy
+knocking, and she unlocked the door, slowly still.
+
+In the corridor there were many torches, and beneath them the figure of
+the King in scarlet. Behind him was Norfolk all in black and with his
+yellow face, and Cranmer in black and with his anxious eyes, and behind
+them many other lords. The King came in, and, slow and stately, the
+Queen went down on her knees to greet him. The torch-light shone upon
+her jewels and her garments; her fair face was immobile, and her eyes
+upon the ground. The King raised her up, bent his knee to her, and
+kissed her on the hands, and so, turning to the men without, he uttered,
+roundly and fully, and his cheeks were ruddy with joy, and his eyes
+smiled--
+
+'My lords, I am beholden to the King o' Scots. For had he met me I had
+not yet been here. Get you to your beds; I could wish ye had such
+wives----'
+
+'The King! the King!' a voice muttered.
+
+Henry said--
+
+'Ha, who spoke?'
+
+There was a faint squeak, a dull rustle.
+
+'My cousin Kat----' the voice said.
+
+The King said--
+
+'Ha!' again, and incredulous and haughty he raised his brows.
+
+Above the mirror, in the great light of the candles, there showed the
+pale face, the fishy, wide-open and bewildered eyes of Culpepper. His
+hair was dishevelled in points; his mouth was open in amazement. He
+uttered--
+
+'The King!' as if that were the most astonishing thing, and, standing
+behind the table, staggered and clutched the arras to sustain himself.
+
+Henry said--
+
+'Ha! Treason!'
+
+But Katharine whispered at his ear--
+
+'No; this my cousin is distraught. Speak on to the lords.'
+
+In the King's long pause several lords said aloud--
+
+'The King cried "Treason!" Draw your swords!'
+
+Then the King cast his cap upon the ground.
+
+'By God!' he said. 'What marlocking is this? Is it general joy that
+emboldens ye to this license? God help me!' he said, and he stamped his
+foot upon the ground--'Body of God!' And many other oaths he uttered.
+Then, with a sudden clutching at his throat, he called out--
+
+'Well! well! I pardon ye. For no doubt to some that be young--and to
+some that be old too--it is an occasion for mummeries and japes when a
+good man cometh home to his dame.'
+
+He looked round upon Culpepper. The Queen's cousin stood, his jaw still
+hanging wide, and his body crumpled back against the arras. He was
+hidden from them all by wall and door, but Henry could not judge how
+long he would there remain. Riding through the night he had conned a
+speech that he would have said at the Queen's door, and at the times of
+joy and graciousness he loved to deliver great speeches. But there he
+said only--
+
+'Why, God keep you. I thank such of you as were with me upon the
+campaign and journey. Now this campaign and journey is ended--I dissolve
+you each to his housing and bed. Farewell. Be as content as I be!'
+
+And, with his great hand he swung to the heavy door.
+
+
+
+
+PART THREE
+
+THE DWINDLING MELODY
+
+
+I
+
+The Lady Rochford lay back upon the floor in a great faint.
+
+'Heaven help me!' the Queen said. 'I had rather she had played the
+villain than been such a palterer.' She glided to the table and picked
+up the dagger that shone there beneath Culpepper's nose. 'Take even
+this,' she said to the King. 'It is an ill thing to bestow. Sword he
+hath none.'
+
+Having had such an estimation of his good wife's wit that, since he
+would not have her think him a dullard, he passed over the first
+question that he would have asked, such as, 'I think this be thy cousin
+and how came he here?'
+
+'Would he have slain me?' he asked instead, as if it were a little
+thing.
+
+'I do not think so,' Katharine said. 'Maybe it was me he would have
+slain.'
+
+'Body of God!' the King said sardonically. 'He cometh for no cheap
+goods.'
+
+He had so often questioned his wife of this cousin of hers that he had
+his measure indifferent well.
+
+'Why,' the Queen said, 'I do not know that he would have slain me. Maybe
+it was to save me from dragons that he came with his knife. He was, I
+think, with the Archbishop's men and came here very drunk. I would pray
+your Highness' Grace to punish him not over much for he is my mother's
+nephew and the only friend I had when I was very poor and a young
+child.'
+
+The King hung his head on his chest, and his rustic eyes surveyed the
+ground.
+
+'I would have you to think,' she said, 'that he has been among evil men
+that advised and prompted him thus to assault my door. They would ruin
+and undo him and me.'
+
+'Well I know it,' Henry said. He rubbed his hand up his left side,
+opened it and dropped it again--a trick he had when he thought deeply.
+
+'The Archbishop,' he said, 'babbled somewhat--I know not what--of a
+cousin of thine that was come from the Scots, he thought, without leave
+or license.'
+
+'But how to get him hence, that my foes triumph not?' the Queen said,
+'for I would not have them triumph.'
+
+'I do think upon it,' the King said.
+
+'You are better at it than I,' she answered.
+
+Culpepper stood there at gaze, as if he were a corpse about which they
+talked. But the speaking of the Queen to another man excited him to
+gurgle and snarl in his throat like an ape. Then another mood coming
+into the channels of his brain--
+
+'It was the King my cousin Kate did marry. This then is the Queen; I had
+pacted with myself to forget this Queen.' He spoke straight out before
+him with the echo of thoughts that he had had during his exile.
+
+'Ho!' the King said and smote his thigh. 'It is plain what to do,' and
+in spite of his scarlet and his bulk he had the air of a heavy but very
+cunning peasant. He reflected for a little more.
+
+'It fits very well,' he brought out. 'This man must be richly rewarded.'
+
+'Why,' Katharine said; 'I had nigh strangled him. It makes me tremble to
+think how nigh I had strangled him. I would well he were rewarded.'
+
+The King considered his wife's cousin.
+
+'Sirrah,' he said, 'we believe that thou canst not kneel, or kneeling,
+couldst not well again arise.'
+
+Culpepper regarded him with wide, blue, and uncomprehending eyes.
+
+'So, thou standing as thou makest shift to do, we do make thee the
+keeper of this our Queen's ante-room.'
+
+He spoke with a pleasant and ironical glee, since it joyed him thus to
+gibe at one that had loved his wife. He--with his own prowess--had
+carried her off.
+
+'Master Culpepper,' he said--'or Sir Thomas--for I remember to have
+knighted you--if you can walk, now walk.'
+
+Culpepper muttered--
+
+'The King! Why the King did wed my cousin Kat!'
+
+And again--
+
+'I must be circumspect. Oh aye, I must be circumspect or all is lost.'
+For that was one of the things which in Scotland he had again and again
+impressed upon himself. 'But in Lincoln, in bygone times, of a summer's
+night----'
+
+'Poor Tom!' the Queen said; 'once this fellow did wooe me.'
+
+Great tears gathered in Culpepper's eyes. They overflowed and rolled
+down his cheeks.
+
+'In the apple-orchard,' he said, 'to the grunting of hogs ... for the
+hogs were below the orchard wall....'
+
+The King was pleased to think that it had been in his power to raise
+this lady an infinite distance above the wooing of this poor lout. It
+gave him an interlude of comedy. But though he set his hands on his hips
+and chuckled, he was a man too ready for action to leave much time for
+enjoyment.
+
+'Why weep?' he said to Culpepper. 'We have advanced thee to the Queen's
+ante-chamber. Come up thither.'
+
+He approached to Culpepper behind the mirror table and caught him by the
+arm. The poor drunkard, his face pallid, shrank away from this great
+bulk of shining scarlet. His eyes moved lamentably round the chamber and
+rested first upon Katharine, then upon the King.
+
+'Which of us was it you would ha' killed?' the King said, to show the
+Queen how brave he was in thus handling a madman. And, being very
+strong, he dragged the swaying drunkard, who held back and whose head
+wagged on his shoulders, towards the door.
+
+'Guard ho!' he called out, and before the door there stood three of his
+own men in scarlet and with pikes.
+
+'Ho, where is the Queen's door-ward?' he called with a great voice.
+Before him, from the door side, there came the young Poins; his face was
+like chalk; he had a bruise above his eyes; his knees trembled beneath
+him.
+
+'Ho thou!' the King said, 'who art thou that would hinder my messenger
+from coming to the Queen?'
+
+He stood back upon his feet; he clutched the drunkard in his great fist;
+his eyes started dreadfully.
+
+The young Poins' lips moved, but no sound came out.
+
+'This was my messenger,' the King said, 'and you hindered him. Body of
+God! Body of God!' and he made his voice to tremble as if with rage,
+whilst he told this lie to save his wife's fair fame. 'Where have you
+been? Where have you tarried? What treason is this? For either you knew
+this was my messenger--as well I would have you know that he is--and it
+was treason and death to stay him. Or, if because he was drunk and
+speechless--as well he might be having travelled far and with
+expedition--ye did not know he was my messenger; then wherefore did ye
+not run to raise all the castle for succour?'
+
+The young Poins pointed to the wound above his eye and then to the
+ground of the corridor. He would signify that Culpepper had struck him,
+and that there, on the ground, he had lain senseless.
+
+'Ho!' the King said, for he was willing to know how many men in that
+castle had wind of this mischance. 'You lay not there all this while.
+When I came here along, you stood here by the door in your place.'
+
+The young Poins fell upon his knees. He shook more violently than a
+naked man on a frosty day. For here indeed was the centre of his
+treason, since Lascelles had bidden him stay there, once Culpepper was
+in the Queen's room, and to say later that there the Queen had bidden
+him stay whilst she had her lover. And now, before the King's tremendous
+presence, he had the fear at his heart that the King knew this.
+
+'Wherefore! wherefore!' the King thundered, 'wherefore didst not cry
+out--cry out--"Treason, Raise the watch!"? Hail out aloud?'
+
+He waited, silent for a long time. The three pikemen leaned upon their
+pikes; and now Culpepper had fallen against the door-post, where the
+King held him up. And behind his back the Queen marvelled at the King's
+ready wit. This was the best stroke that ever she had known him do. And
+the Lady Rochford lay where she had feigned to faint, straining her
+ears.
+
+With all these ears listening for his words the young Poins knelt, his
+teeth chattering like burning wood that crackles.
+
+'Wherefore? wherefore?' the King cried again.
+
+Half inaudibly, his eyes upon the ground, the boy mumbled, 'It was to
+save the Queen from scandal!'
+
+The King let his jaw fall, in a fine aping of amazement. Then, with the
+huge swiftness of a bull, he threw Culpepper towards one of the guards,
+and, leaning over, had the kneeling boy by the throat.
+
+'Scandal!' he said. 'Body of God! Scandal!' And the boy screamed out,
+and raised his hands to hide the King's intolerable great face that
+blazed down over his eyes.
+
+The huge man cast him from him, so that he fell over backwards, and lay
+upon his side.
+
+'Scandal!' the King cried out to his guards. 'Here is a pretty scandal!
+That a King may not send a messenger to his wife withouten scandal! God
+help me....'
+
+He stood suddenly again over the boy as if he would trample him to a
+shapeless pulp. But, trembling there, he stepped back.
+
+'Up, bastard!' he called out. 'Run as ye never ran. Fetch hither the
+Lord d'Espahn and His Grace of Canterbury, that should have ordered
+these matters.'
+
+The boy stumbled to his knees, and then, a flash of scarlet, ran, his
+head down, as if eagles were tearing at his hair.
+
+The King turned upon his guard.
+
+'Ho!' he said, 'you, Jenkins, stay here with this my knight cousin.
+You, Cale and Richards, run to fetch a launderer that shall set a
+mattress in the ante-chamber for this my cousin to lie on. For this my
+cousin is the Queen's chamber-ward, and shall there lie when I am here,
+if so be I have occasion for a messenger at night.'
+
+The two guards ran off, striking upon the ground before them as they ran
+the heavy staves of their pikes. This noise was intended to warn all to
+make way for his Highness' errand-bearers.
+
+'Why,' the King said pleasantly to Jenkins, a guard with a blond and
+shaven face whom he liked well, 'let us set this gentleman against the
+wall in the ante-room till his bed be come. He hath earned gentle usage,
+since he hasted much, bringing my message from Scotland to the Queen,
+and is very ill.'
+
+So, helping his guard gently to conduct the drunkard into his wife's
+dark ante-room, the King came out again to his wife.
+
+'Is it well done?' he asked.
+
+'Marvellous well done,' she answered.
+
+'I am the man for these difficult times!' he answered, and was glad.
+
+The Queen sighed a little. For if she admired and wondered at her lord's
+power skilfully to have his way, it made her sad to think--as she must
+think--that so devious was man's work.
+
+'I would,' she said, 'that it was not to such an occasion that I spurred
+thee.'
+
+Her eyes, being cast downwards, fell upon the Lady Rochford, by the
+table.
+
+'Ho, get up,' she cried. 'You have feigned fainting long enough. But for
+you all this had been more easy. I would have you relieve mine eyes of
+the sight of your face.' She moved to aid the old woman to rise, but
+before she was upon her knees there stood without the door both the Lord
+d'Espahn and the Archbishop. They had waited just beyond the
+corridor-end with a great many of the other lords, all afraid of
+mysteries they knew not what, and thus it was that they came so soon
+upon the young Poins' summoning.
+
+
+II
+
+The King thought fit to change his mood, so that it was with uplifted
+brows and a quizzing smile at the corners of his mouth that for a minute
+he greeted these frightened lords in the doorway. They stood there
+silent, the Archbishop very dejected, the Lord d'Espahn, with his grey
+beard, very erect and ruddy featured.
+
+'Why, God help me,' the King said, 'what make of Court is this of mine
+where a King may not send a messenger to his wife?'
+
+The Archbishop swallowed in his throat; the Lord d'Espahn did not speak
+but gazed before him.
+
+'You shall tell me what befell, for I am ignorant,' the King said; 'but
+first I will tell you what I do know.
+
+'Why, come out with me into the corridor, wife,' he cried over his
+shoulder. 'For it is not fitting that these lords come into thy
+apartment. I will walk with them and talk.'
+
+He took the Archbishop by the elbow and the Lord d'Espahn by the upper
+arm, and, leaning upon them, propelled them gently before him.
+
+'Thus it was,' he said; 'this cousin of my wife's was in the King o'
+Scots' good town of Edinboro'. And, being there, he was much upon my
+conscience--for I would not have a cousin of my wife's be there in
+exile, he being one that formerly much fended for her....'
+
+He spoke out his words and repeated these things for his own purposes,
+the Queen following behind. When they were come to the corridor-end,
+there he found, as he had thought, a knot of lords and gentlemen,
+babbling with their ears pricked up.
+
+'Nay, stay,' he said, 'this is a matter that all may hear.'
+
+There were there the Duke of Norfolk and his son, young Surrey with the
+vacant mouth, Sir Henry Wriothesley with the great yellow beard, the
+Lord Dacre of the North, the old knight Sir N. Rochford, Sir Henry Peel
+of these parts, with a many of their servants, amongst them Lascelles.
+Most of them were in scarlet or purple, but many were in black. The Earl
+of Surrey had the Queen's favour of a crowned rose in his bonnet, for he
+was of her party. The gallery opened out there till it was as big as a
+large room, broad and low-ceiled, and lit with torches in irons at the
+angles of it. On rainy days the Queen's maids were here accustomed to
+play at stool-ball.
+
+'This is a matter that all may hear,' the King said, 'and some shall
+render account.' He let the Lord d'Espahn and the Archbishop go, so that
+they faced him. The Queen looked over his shoulder.
+
+'As thus ...' he said.
+
+And he repeated how it had lain upon his conscience and near his heart
+that the Queen's good cousin languished in the town of Edinburgh.
+
+'And how near we came to Edinboro' those of ye that were with me can
+make account.'
+
+And, lying there, he had taken occasion to send a messenger with others
+that went to the King o' Scots--to send a messenger with letters unto
+this T. Culpepper. One letter was to bid him hasten home unto the Queen,
+and one was a letter that he should bear.
+
+'For,' said the King, 'we thought thus--as ye wist--that the King o'
+Scots would come obedient to our summoning and that there we should lie
+some days awaiting and entertaining him. Thus did I wish to send my
+Queen swift message of our faring, and I was willing that this, her
+cousin and mine, should be my postman and messenger. For he should--I
+bade him--set sail in a swift ship for these coasts and so come quicker
+than ever a man might by land.'
+
+He paused to observe the effect of his words, but no lord spoke though
+some whispered amongst themselves.
+
+'Now,' he said, 'what stood within my letter to the Queen was this,
+after salutations, that she should reward this her cousin that in the
+aforetime had much fended for her when she was a child. For I was aware
+how, out of a great delicacy and fear of nepotism, such as was shown by
+certain of the Popes now dead, she raised up none of her relations and
+blood, nor none that before had aided her when she was a child and poor.
+But I was willing that this should be otherwise, and they be much helped
+that before had helped her since now she helpeth me and assuageth my
+many and fell labours.'
+
+He paused and went a step back that he might stand beside the Queen, and
+there, before them all, Katharine was most glad that she had again set
+on all her jewels and was queen-like. She had composed her features, and
+gazed before her over their heads, her hands being folded in the lap of
+her gown.
+
+'Now,' the King said, 'this letter of mine was a little thing--but great
+maybe, since it bore my will. Yet'--and he made his voice minatory--'in
+these evil and tickle times well it might have been that that letter
+held delicate news. Then all my plots had gone to ruin. How came it that
+some of ye--I know not whom!--thus letted and hindered my messenger?'
+
+He had raised his voice very high. He stayed it suddenly, and some there
+shivered.
+
+He uttered balefully, 'Anan!'
+
+'As Christ is my Saviour,' the Lord d'Espahn said, 'I, since I am the
+Queen's Marshal, am answerable in this, as well I know. Yet never saw I
+this man till to-night at supper. He would have my seat then, and I gave
+it him. Ne let ne hindrance had he of me, but went his way where and
+when he would.'
+
+'You did very well,' the King said. 'Who else speaks?'
+
+The Archbishop looked over his shoulder, and with a dry mouth uttered,
+'Lascelles!'
+
+Lascelles, deft and blond and gay, shouldered his way through that
+unwilling crowd, and fell upon his knees.
+
+'Of this I know something,' he said; 'and if any have offended,
+doubtless it is I, though with good will.'
+
+'Well, speak!' the King said.
+
+Lascelles recounted how the Queen, riding out, had seen afar this
+gentleman lying amid the heather.
+
+'And if she should not know him who was her cousin, how should we who
+are servants?' he said. But, having heard that the Queen would have this
+poor, robbed wayfarer tended and comforted, he, Lascelles, out of the
+love and loyalty he owed her Grace, had so tended and so comforted him
+that he had given up to him his own bed and board. But it was not till
+that day that, Culpepper being washed and apparelled--not till that day
+a little before supper, had he known him for Culpepper, the Queen's
+cousin. So he had gone with him that night to the banquet-hall, and
+there had served him, and, after, had attended him with some lords and
+gentles. But, at the last, Culpepper had shaken them off and bidden them
+leave him.
+
+'And who were we, what warrants had we, to restrain the Queen's noble
+cousin?' he finished. 'And, as for letters, I never saw one, though all
+his apparel, in rags, was in my hands. I think he must have lost this
+letter amongst the robbers he fell in with. But what I could do, I did
+for love of the Queen's Grace, who much hath favoured me.'
+
+The King studied his words. He looked at the Queen's face and then at
+those of the lords before him.
+
+'Why, this tale hath a better shewing,' he said. 'Herein appeareth that
+none, save the Queen's door-ward, came ever against this good knight and
+cousin of mine. And, since this knight was in liquor, and not overwise
+sensible--as well he might be after supping in moors and deserts--maybe
+that door-ward had his reasonable reasonings.'
+
+He paused again, and looking upon the Queen's face for a sign:
+
+'If it be thus, it is well,' he said, 'I will pardon and assoil you all,
+if later it shall appear that this is the true truth.'
+
+Lascelles whispered in the Archbishop's ear, and Cranmer uttered--
+
+'The witnesses be here to prove it, if your Highness will.'
+
+'Why,' the King said, 'it is late enough,' and he leered at Cranmer,
+for whom he had an affection. He looked again upon the Queen to see how
+fair she was and how bravely she bore herself, upright and without
+emotion. 'This wife of mine,' he said, 'is ever of the pardoning side.
+If ye had so injured me I had been among ye with fines and amercements.
+But she, I perceive, will not have it so, and I am too glad to be smiled
+upon now to cross her will. So, get you gone and sleep well. But, before
+you go, I will have you listen to some words....'
+
+He cleared his throat, and in his left hand took the Queen's.
+
+'Know ye,' he said, 'that I am as proud of this my Queen as was ever
+mother of her first-born child. For lo, even as the Latin poet saith,
+that, upon bearing a child, many evil women are led to repentance and
+right paths, so have I, your King, been led towards righteousness by
+wedding of this lady. For I tell you that, but for certain small
+hindrances--and mostly this treacherous disloyalty of the King o' Scots
+that thus with his craven marrow hath featorously dallied to look upon
+my face--but for that and other small things there had gone forth this
+night through the dark to the Bishop of Rome certain tidings that,
+please God, had made you and me and all this land the gladdest that be
+in Christendom. And this I tell you, too, that though by this
+misadventure and fear of the King o' Scots, these tidings have been
+delayed, yet is it only for a little space and, full surely, that day
+cometh. And for this you shall give thanks first to God and then to this
+royal lady here. For she, before all things, having the love of God in
+her heart, hath brought about this desired consummation. And this I say,
+to her greater praise, here in the midmost of you all, that it be noised
+unto the utmost corners of the world how good a Queen the King hath
+taken to wife.'
+
+The Queen had stood very motionless in the bright illuminations and
+dancings of the torches. But at the news of delay, through the King of
+Scots, a spasm of pain and concern came into her face. So that, if her
+features did not again move they had in them a savour of anguish, her
+eyebrows drooping, and the corners of her mouth.
+
+'And now, good-night!' the King pursued with raised tones. 'If ever ye
+slept well since these troublous times began, now ye may sleep well in
+the drowsy night. For now, in this my reign, are come the shortening
+years like autumn days. Now I will have such peace in land as cometh to
+the husbandman. He hath ingarnered his grain; he hath barned his fodder
+and straw; his sheep are in the byres and in the stalls his oxen. So,
+sitteth he by his fireside with wife and child, and hath no fear of
+winter. Such a man am I, your King, who in the years to come shall rest
+in peace.'
+
+The lords and gentlemen made their reverences, bows and knees; they
+swept round in their coloured assembly, and the Queen stood very tall
+and straight, watching their departure with saddened eyes.
+
+The King was very gay and caught her by the waist.
+
+'God help me, it is very late,' he said. 'Hearken!'
+
+From above the corridor there came the drowsy sound of the clock.
+
+'Thy daughter hath made her submission,' the Queen said. 'I had thought
+this was the gladdest day in my life.'
+
+'Why, so it is,' he said, 'as now day passeth to day.' The clock ceased.
+'Every day shall be glad,' he said, 'and gladder than the rest.'
+
+At her chamber door he made a bustle. He would have the Queen's women
+come to untire her, a leech to see to Culpepper's recovery. He was
+willing to drink mulled wine before he slept. He was afraid to talk with
+his wife of delaying his letter to Rome. That was why he had told the
+news before her to his lords.
+
+He fell upon the Lady Rochford that stood, not daring to go, within the
+Queen's room. He bade her sit all night by the bedside of T. Culpepper;
+he reviled her for a craven coward that had discountenanced the Queen.
+She should pay for it by watching all night, and woe betide her if any
+had speech with T. Culpepper before the King rose.
+
+
+III
+
+Down in the lower castle, the Archbishop was accustomed, when he
+undressed, to have with him neither priest nor page, but only, when he
+desired to converse of public matters--as now he did--his gentleman,
+Lascelles. He knelt above his kneeling-stool of black wood; he was
+telling his beads before a great crucifix with an ivory Son of God upon
+it. His chamber had bare white walls, his bed no curtains, and all the
+other furnishing of the room was a great black lectern whereto there was
+chained a huge Book of the Holy Writ that had his Preface. The tears
+were in his eyes as he muttered his prayers; he glanced upwards at the
+face of his Saviour, who looked down with a pallid, uncoloured face of
+ivory, the features shewing a great agony so that the mouth was opened.
+It was said that this image, that came from Italy, had had a face
+serene, before the Queen Katharine of Aragon had been put away. Then it
+had cried out once, and so remained ever lachrymose and in agony.
+
+'God help me, I cannot well pray,' the Archbishop said. 'The peril that
+we have been in stays with me still.'
+
+'Why, thank God that we are come out of it very well,' Lascelles said.
+'You may pray and then sleep more calm than ever you have done this
+sennight.'
+
+He leant back against the reading-pulpit, and had his arm across the
+Bible as if it had been the shoulder of a friend.
+
+'Why,' the Archbishop said, 'this is the worst day ever I have been
+through since Cromwell fell.'
+
+'Please it your Grace,' his confidant said, 'it shall yet turn out the
+best.'
+
+The Archbishop faced round upon his knees; he had taken off the jewel
+from before his breast, and, with his chain of Chaplain of the George,
+it dangled across the corner of the fald-stool. His coat was unbuttoned
+at the neck, his robe open, and it was manifest that his sleeves of
+lawn were but sleeves, for in the opening was visible, harsh and grey,
+the shirt of hair that night and day he wore.
+
+'I am weary of this talk of the world,' he said. 'Pray you begone and
+leave me to my prayers.'
+
+'Please it your Grace to let me stay and hearten you,' Lascelles said,
+and he was aware that the Archbishop was afraid to be alone with the
+white Christ. 'All your other gentry are in bed. I shall watch your
+sleep, to wake you if you cry out.'
+
+And in his fear of Cromwell's ghost that came to him in his dreams, the
+Archbishop sighed--
+
+'Why stay, but speak not. Y'are over bold.'
+
+He turned again to the wall; his beads clicked; he sighed and remained
+still for a long time, a black shadow, huddled together in a black gown,
+sighing before the white and lamenting image that hung above him.
+
+'God help me,' he said at last. 'Tell me why you say this is _dies
+felix_?'
+
+Lascelles, who smiled for ever and without mirth, said--
+
+'For two things: firstly, because this letter and its sending are put
+off. And secondly, because the Queen is--patently and to all
+people--proved lewd.'
+
+The Archbishop swung his head round upon his shoulders.
+
+'You dare not say it!' he said.
+
+'Why, the late Queen Katharine from Aragon was accounted a model of
+piety, yet all men know she was over fond with her confessor,' Lascelles
+smiled.
+
+'It is an approved lie and slander,' the Archbishop said.
+
+'It served mightily well in pulling down that Katharine,' his confidant
+answered.
+
+'One day'--the Archbishop shivered within his robes--'the account and
+retribution for these lies shall be to be paid. For well we know, you,
+I, and all of us, that these be falsities and cozenings.'
+
+'Marry,' Lascelles said, 'of this Queen it is now sufficiently proved
+true.'
+
+The Archbishop made as if he washed his hands.
+
+'Why,' Lascelles said, 'what man shall believe it was by chance and
+accident that she met her cousin on these moors? She is not a compass
+that pointeth, of miraculous power, true North.'
+
+'No good man shall believe what you do say,' the Archbishop cried out.
+
+'But a multitude of indifferent will,' Lascelles answered.
+
+'God help me,' the Archbishop said, 'what a devil you are that thus hold
+out and hold out for ever hopes.'
+
+'Why,' Lascelles said, 'I think you were well helped that day that I
+came into your service. It was the Great Privy Seal that bade me serve
+you and commended me.'
+
+The Archbishop shivered at that name.
+
+'What an end had Thomas Cromwell!' he said.
+
+'Why, such an end shall not be yours whilst this King lives, so well he
+loves you,' Lascelles answered.
+
+The Archbishop stood upon his feet; he raised his hands above his head.
+
+'Begone! Begone!' he cried. 'I will not be of your evil schemes.'
+
+'Your Grace shall not,' Lascelles said very softly, 'if they miscarry.
+But when it is proven to the hilt that this Queen is a very lewd
+woman--and proven it shall be--your Grace may carry an accusation to the
+King----'
+
+Cranmer said--
+
+'Never! never! Shall I come between the lion and his food?'
+
+'It were better if your Grace would carry the accusation,' Lascelles
+uttered nonchalantly, 'for the King will better hearken to you than to
+any other. But another man will do it too.'
+
+'I will not be of this plotting,' the Archbishop cried out. 'It is a
+very wicked thing!' He looked round at the white Christ that, upon the
+dark cross, bent anguished brows upon him. 'Give me strength,' he said.
+
+'Why, your Grace shall not be of it,' Lascelles answered, 'until it is
+proven in the eyes of your Grace--ay, and in the eyes of some of the
+Papist Lords--as, for instance, her very uncle--that this Queen was
+evil in her life before the King took her, and that she hath acted very
+suspicious in the aftertime.'
+
+'You shall not prove it to the Papist Lords,' Cranmer said. 'It is a
+folly.'
+
+He added vehemently--
+
+'It is a wicked plot. It is a folly too. I will not be of it.'
+
+'This is a very fortunate day,' Lascelles said. 'I think it is proven to
+all discerning men that that letter to him of Rome shall never be sent.'
+
+'Why, it is as plain as the truths of the Six Articles,' Cranmer
+remonstrated, 'that it shall be sent to-morrow or the next day. Get you
+gone! This King hath but the will of the Queen to guide him, and all her
+will turns upon that letter. Get you gone!'
+
+'Please it your Grace,' the spy said, 'it is very manifest that with the
+Queen so it is. But with the King it is otherwise. He will pleasure the
+Queen if he may. But--mark me well--for this is a subtle matter----'
+
+'I will not mark you,' the Archbishop said. 'Get you gone and find
+another master. I will not hear you. This is the very end.'
+
+Lascelles moved his arm from the Bible. He bent his form to a bow--he
+moved till his hand was on the latch of the door.
+
+'Why, continue,' the Archbishop said. 'If you have awakened my fears,
+you shall slake them if you can--for this night I shall not sleep.'
+
+And so, very lengthily, Lascelles unfolded his view of the King's
+nature. For, said he, if this alliance with the Pope should come, it
+must be an alliance with the Pope and the Emperor Charles. For the King
+of France was an atheist, as all men knew. And an alliance with the Pope
+and the Emperor must be an alliance against France. But the King o'
+Scots was the closest ally that Francis had, and never should the King
+dare to wage war upon Francis till the King o' Scots was placated or
+wooed by treachery to be a prisoner, as the King would have made him if
+James had come into England to the meeting. Well would the King, to
+save his soul, placate and cosset his wife. But that he never dare do
+whilst James was potent at his back.
+
+And again, Lascelles said, well knew the Archbishop that the Duke of
+Norfolk and his following were the ancient friends of France. If the
+Queen should force the King to this Imperial League, it must turn
+Norfolk and the Bishop of Winchester for ever to her bitter foes in that
+land. And along with them all the Protestant nobles and all the Papists
+too that had lands of the Church.
+
+The Archbishop had been marking his words very eagerly. But suddenly he
+cried out--
+
+'But the King! The King! What shall it boot if all these be against her
+so the King be but for her?'
+
+'Why,' Lascelles said, 'this King is not a very stable man. Still, man
+he is, a man very jealous and afraid of fleers and flouts. If we can
+show him--I do accede to it that after what he hath done to-night it
+shall not be easy, but we may accomplish it--if before this letter is
+sent we may show him that all his land cries out at him and mocks him
+with a great laughter because of his wife's evil ways--why then, though
+in his heart he may believe her as innocent as you or I do now, it shall
+not be long before he shall put her away from him. Maybe he shall send
+her to the block.'
+
+'God help me,' Cranmer said. 'What a hellish scheme is this.'
+
+He pondered for a while, standing upright and frailly thrusting his hand
+into his bosom.
+
+'You shall never get the King so to believe,' he said; 'this is an idle
+invention. I will none of it.'
+
+'Why, it may be done, I do believe,' Lascelles said, 'and greatly it
+shall help us.'
+
+'No, I will none of it,' the Archbishop said. 'It is a foul scheme.
+Besides, you must have many witnesses.'
+
+'I have some already,' Lascelles said, 'and when we come to London Town
+I shall have many more. It was not for nothing that the Great Privy Seal
+commended me.'
+
+'But to make the King,' Cranmer uttered, as if he were aghast and
+amazed, 'to make the King--this King who knoweth that his wife hath done
+no wrong--who knoweth it so well as to-night he hath proven--to make
+_him_, him, to put her away ... why, the tiger is not so fell, nor the
+Egyptian worm preyeth not on its kind. This is an imagination so
+horrible----'
+
+'Please it your Grace,' Lascelles said softly, 'what beast or brute hath
+your Grace ever seen to betray its kind as man will betray brother, son,
+father, or consort?'
+
+The Archbishop raised his hands above his head.
+
+'What lesser bull of the herd, or lesser ram, ever so played traitor to
+his leader as Brutus played to Cæsar Julius? And these be times less
+noble.'
+
+
+
+
+PART FOUR
+
+THE END OF THE SONG
+
+
+I
+
+The Queen was at Hampton, and it was the late autumn. She had been sad
+since they came from Pontefract, for it had seemed more than ever
+apparent that the King's letter to Rome must be ever delayed in the
+sending. Daily, at night, the King swore with great oaths that the
+letter must be sent and his soul saved. He trembled to think that if
+then he died in his bed he must be eternally damned, and she added her
+persuasions, such as that each soul that died in his realms before that
+letter was sent went before the Throne of Mercy unshriven and
+unhouselled, so that their burden of souls grew very great. And in the
+midnights, the King would start up and cry that all was lost and himself
+accursed.
+
+And it appeared that he and his house were accursed in these days, for
+when they were come back to Hampton, they found the small Prince Edward
+was very ill. He was swollen all over his little body, so that the
+doctors said it was a dropsy. But how, the King cried, could it be a
+dropsy in so young a child and one so grave and so nurtured and tended?
+Assuredly it must be some marvel wrought by the saints to punish him, or
+by the Fiend to tempt him. And so he would rave, and cast tremulous
+hands above his head. And he would say that God, to punish him, would
+have of him his dearest and best.
+
+And when the Queen urged him, therefore, to make his peace with God, he
+would cry out that it was too late. God would make no peace with him.
+For if God were minded to have him at peace, wherefore would He not
+smoothe the way to this reconciliation with His vicegerent that sat at
+Rome in Peter's chair? There was no smoothing of that way--for every day
+there arose new difficulties and torments.
+
+The King o' Scots would come into no alliance with him; the King of
+France would make no bid for the hand of his daughter Mary; it went ill
+with the Emperor in his fighting with the Princes of Almain and the
+Schmalkaldners, so that the Emperor would be of the less use as an ally
+against France and the Scots.
+
+'Why!' he would cry to the Queen, 'if God in His Heaven would have me
+make a peace with Rome, wherefore will He not give victory over a parcel
+of Lutheran knaves and swine? Wherefore will He not deliver into my
+hands these beggarly Scots and these atheists of France?'
+
+At night the Queen would bring him round to vowing that first he would
+make peace with God and trust in His great mercy for a prosperous issue.
+But each morning he would be afraid for his sovereignty; a new letter
+would come from Norfolk, who had gone on an embassy to his French
+friends, believing fully that the King was minded to marry to one of
+them his daughter. But the French King was not ready to believe this.
+And the King's eyes grew red and enraged; he looked no man in the face,
+not even the Queen, but glanced aside into corners, uttered blasphemies,
+and said that he--he!--was the head of the Church and would have no
+overlord.
+
+The Bishop Gardiner came up from his See in Winchester. But though he
+was the head of the Papist party in the realm, the Queen had little
+comfort in him. For he was a dark and masterful prelate, and never
+ceased to urge her to cast out Cranmer from his archbishopric and to
+give it to him. And with him the Lady Mary sided, for she would have
+Cranmer's head before all things, since Cranmer it was that most had
+injured her mother. Moreover, he was so incessant in his urging the King
+to make an alliance with the Catholic Emperor that at last, about the
+time that Norfolk came back from France, the King was mightily enraged,
+so that he struck the Bishop of Winchester in the face, and swore that
+his friend the Kaiser was a rotten plank, since he could not rid himself
+of a few small knaves of Lutheran princes.
+
+Thus for long the Queen was sad; the little Prince very sick; and the
+King ate no food, but sat gazing at the victuals, though the Queen
+cooked some messes for him with her own hand.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+One Sunday after evensong, at which Cranmer himself had read prayers,
+the King came nearly merrily to his supper.
+
+'Ho, chuck,' he said, 'you have your enemies. Here hath been Cranmer
+weeping to me with a parcel of tales writ on paper.'
+
+He offered it to her to read, but she would not; for, she said, she knew
+well that she had many enemies, only, very safely she could trust her
+fame in her Lord's hands.
+
+'Why, you may,' he said, and sat him down at the table to eat, with the
+paper stuck in his belt. 'Body o' God!' he said. 'If it had been any but
+Cranmer he had eaten bread in Hell this night. 'A wept and trembled!
+Body o' God! Body o' God!'
+
+And that night he was more merry before the fire than he had been for
+many weeks. He had in the music to play a song of his own writing, and
+afterwards he swore that next day he would ride to London, and then at
+his council send that which she would have sent to Rome.
+
+'For, for sure,' he said, 'there is no peace in this world for me save
+when I hear you pray. And how shall you pray well for me save in the old
+form and fashion?'
+
+He lolled back in his chair and gazed at her.
+
+'Why,' he said, 'it is a proof of the great mercy of the Saviour that He
+sent you on earth in so fair a guise. For if you had not been so fair,
+assuredly I had not noticed you. Then would my soul have gone
+straightway to Hell.'
+
+And he called that the letter to Rome might be brought to him, and read
+it over in the firelight. He set it in his belt alongside the other
+paper, that next day when he came to London he might lay it in the hands
+of Sir Thomas Carter, that should carry it to Rome.
+
+The Queen said: 'Praise God!'
+
+For though she was not set to believe that next day that letter would be
+sent, or for many days more, yet it seemed to her that by little and
+little she was winning him to her will.
+
+
+II
+
+Gardiner, Bishop of Winchester, had builded him a new tennis court in
+where his stables had been before poverty had caused him to sell the
+major part of his horseflesh. He called to him the Duke of Norfolk, who
+was of the Papist cause, and Sir Henry Wriothesley who was always
+betwixt and between, according as the cat jumped, to see this new
+building of his that was made of a roofed-in quadrangle where the stable
+doors were bricked up or barred to make the grille.
+
+But though Norfolk and Wriothesley came very early in the afternoon,
+while it was yet light, to his house, they wasted most of the daylight
+hours in talking of things indifferent before they went to their
+inspection of this court. They stood talking in a long gallery beneath
+very high windows, and there were several chaplains and young priests
+and young gentlemen with them, and most of the talk was of a
+bear-baiting that there should be in Smithfield come Saturday. Sir Henry
+Wriothesley matched seven of his dogs against the seven best of the
+Duke's, that they should the longer hold to the bear once they were on
+him, and most of the young gentlemen wagered for Sir Henry's dogs that
+he had bred from a mastiff out of Portugal.
+
+But when this talk had mostly died down, and when already twilight had
+long fallen, the Bishop said--
+
+'Come, let us visit this new tennis place of mine. I think I shall show
+you somewhat that you have not before seen.'
+
+He bade, however, his gentlemen and priests to stay where they were,
+for they had all many times seen the court or building. When he led the
+way, prelatical and black, for the Duke and Wriothesley, into the lower
+corridors of his house, the priests and young gentlemen bowed behind his
+back, one at the other.
+
+In the courtyard there were four hounds of a heavy and stocky breed that
+came bounding and baying all round them, so that it was only by
+vigilance that Gardiner could save Wriothesley's shins, for he was a man
+that all dogs and children hated.
+
+'Sirs,' the Bishop said, 'these dogs that ye see and hear will let no
+man but me--not even my grooms or stablemen--pass this yard. I have bred
+them to that so I may be secret when I will.'
+
+He set the key in the door that was in the bottom wall of the court.
+
+'There is no other door here save that which goes into the stable where
+the grille is. There I have a door to enter and fetch out the balls that
+pass there.'
+
+In the court itself it was absolute blackness.
+
+'I trow we may talk very well without lights,' he said. 'Come into this
+far corner.'
+
+Yet, though there was no fear of being overheard, each of these three
+stole almost on tiptoe and held his breath, and in the dark and shadowy
+place they made a more dark and more shadowy patch with their heads all
+close together.
+
+Suddenly it was as if the Bishop dropped the veil that covered his
+passions.
+
+'I may well build tennis courts,' he said, and his voice had a ring of
+wild and malignant passion. 'I may well build courts for tennis play.
+Nothing else is left for me to do.'
+
+In the blackness no word came from his listeners.
+
+'You too may do the like,' the Bishop said. 'But I would you do it
+quickly, for soon neither the one nor the other of you but will be
+stripped so bare that you shall not have enough to buy balls with.'
+
+The Duke made an impatient sound like a drawing in of his breath, but
+still he spoke no word.
+
+'I tell you, both of you,' the Bishop's voice came, 'that all of us have
+been fooled. Who was it that helped to set on high this one that now
+presses us down? I did! I!...
+
+'It was I that called the masque at my house where first the King did
+see her. It was I that advised her how to bear herself. And what
+gratitude has been shown me? I have been sent to sequester myself in my
+see; I have been set to gnaw my fingers as they had been old bones
+thrown to a dog. Truly, no juicy meats have been my share. Yet it was I
+set this woman where she sits....'
+
+'I too have my griefs,' the Duke of Norfolk's voice came.
+
+'And I, God wot,' came Wriothesley's.
+
+'Why, you have been fooled,' Gardiner's voice; 'and well you know it.
+For who was it that sent you both, one after the other, into France
+thinking that you might make a match between the Lady Royal and the Duke
+of Orleans?--Who but the Queen?--For well she knew that ye loved the
+French and their King as they had been your brothers. And well we know
+now that never in the mind of her, nor in that of the King whom she
+bewitches and enslaves, was there any thought save that the Lady Royal
+should be wedded to Spain. So ye are fooled.'
+
+He let his voice sink low; then he raised it again--
+
+'Fooled! Fooled! Fooled! You two and I. For who of your friends the
+French shall ever believe again word that you utter. And all your goods
+and lands this Queen will have for the Church, so that she may have
+utter power with a parcel of new shavelings, that will not withstand
+her. So all the land will come in to her leash.... We are fooled and
+ruined, ye and I alike.'
+
+'Well, we know this,' the Duke's voice said distastefully. 'You have no
+need to rehearse griefs that too well we feel. There is no lord, either
+of our part or of the other, that would not have her down.'
+
+'But what will ye do?' Gardiner said.
+
+'Nothing may we do!' the voice of Wriothesley with its dismal terror
+came to their ears. 'The King is too firmly her Highness's man.'
+
+'Her "Highness,"' the Bishop mocked him with a bitter scorn. 'I believe
+you would yet curry favour with this Queen of straw.'
+
+'It is a man's province to be favourable in the eyes of his Prince,' the
+buried voice came again. 'If I could win her favour I would. But well ye
+know there is no way.'
+
+'Ye ha' mingled too much with Lutheran swine,' the Bishop said. 'Now it
+is too late for you.'
+
+'So it is,' Wriothesley said. 'I think you, Bishop, would have done it
+too had you been able to make your account of it.'
+
+The Bishop snarled invisibly.
+
+But the voice of Norfolk came malignantly upon them.
+
+'This is all of a piece with your silly schemings. Did I come here to
+hear ye wrangle? It is peril enow to come here. What will ye do?'
+
+'I will make a pact with him of the other side?' the Bishop said.
+
+'Misery!' the Duke said; 'did I come here to hear this madness? You and
+Cranmer have sought each other's heads this ten years. Will you seek his
+aid now? What may he do? He is as rotten a reed as thou or Wriothesley.'
+
+The Bishop cried suddenly with a loud voice--
+
+'Ho, there! Come you out!'
+
+Norfolk set his hand to his sword and so did Wriothesley. It was in both
+their minds, as it were one thought, that if this was a treason of the
+Bishop's he should there die.
+
+From the blackness of the wall sides where the grille was there came the
+sound of a terroring lock and a creaking door.
+
+'God!' Norfolk said; 'who is this?'
+
+There came the sound of breathing of one man who walked with noiseless
+shoes.
+
+'Have you heard enow to make you believe that these lords' hearts are
+true to the endeavour of casting the Queen down?'
+
+'I have heard enow,' a smooth voice said. 'I never thought it had been
+otherwise.'
+
+'Who is this?' Wriothesley said. 'I will know who this is that has heard
+us.'
+
+'You fool,' Gardiner said; 'this man is of the other side.'
+
+'They have come to you!' Norfolk said.
+
+'To whom else should we come,' the voice answered.
+
+A subtler silence of agitation and thought was between these two men. At
+last Gardiner said--
+
+'Tell these lords what you would have of us?'
+
+'We would have these promises,' the voice said; 'first, of you, my Lord
+Duke, that if by our endeavours your brother's child be brought to a
+trial for unchastity you will in no wise aid her at that trial with your
+voice or your encouragement.'
+
+'A trial!' and 'Unchastity!' the Duke said. 'This is a winter madness.
+Ye know that my niece--St Kevin curse her for it--is as chaste as the
+snow.'
+
+'So was your other niece, Anne Boleyn, for all you knew, yet you dogged
+her to death,' Gardiner said. 'Then you plotted with Papists; now it is
+the turn of the Lutherans. It is all one, so we are rid of this pest.'
+
+'Well, I will promise it,' the Duke said. 'Ye knew I would. It was not
+worth while to ask me.'
+
+'Secondly,' the voice said, 'of you, my Lord Duke, we would have this
+service: that you should swear your niece is a much older woman than she
+looks. Say, for instance, that she was in truth not the eleventh but the
+second child of your brother Edmund. Say that, out of vanity, to make
+herself seem more forward with the learned tongues when she was a child,
+she would call herself her younger sister that died in childbed.'
+
+'But wherefore?' the Duke said.
+
+'Why,' Gardiner answered, 'this is a very subtle scheme of this
+gentleman's devising. He will prove against her certain lewdnesses when
+she was a child in your mother's house. If then she was a child of ten
+or so, knowing not evil from good, this might not undo her. But if you
+can make her seem then eighteen or twenty it will be enough to hang
+her.'
+
+Norfolk reflected.
+
+'Well, I will say I heard that of her age,' he said; 'but ye had best
+get nurses and women to swear to these things.'
+
+'We have them now,' the voice said. 'And it will suffice if your Grace
+will say that you heard these things of old of your brother. For your
+Grace will judge this woman.'
+
+'Very willingly I will,' Norfolk said; 'for if I do not soon, she will
+utterly undo both me and all my friends.'
+
+He reflected again.
+
+'Those things will I do and more yet, if you will.'
+
+'Why, that will suffice,' the voice said. It took a new tone in the
+darkness.
+
+'Now for you, Sir Henry Wriothesley,' it said. 'These simple things you
+shall promise. Firstly, since you have the ear of the Mayor of London
+you shall advise him in no way to hinder certain meetings of Lutherans
+that I shall tell you of later. And, though it is your province so to
+do, you shall in no wise hinder a certain master printer from printing
+what broadsides and libels he will against the Queen. For it is
+essential, if this project is to grow and flourish, that it shall be
+spread abroad that the Queen did bewitch the King to her will on that
+night at Pontefract that you remember, when she had her cousin in her
+bedroom. So broadsides shall be made alleging that by sorcery she
+induced the King to countenance his own shame. And we have witnesses to
+swear that it was by appointment, not by chance, that she met with
+Culpepper upon the moorside. But all that we will have of you is that
+you will promise these two things--that the Lutherans may hold certain
+meetings and the broadsides be printed.'
+
+'Those I will promise,' came in Wriothesley's buried voice.
+
+'Then I will no more of you,' the other's words came. They heard his
+hands feeling along the wall till he came to the door by which he had
+entered. The Bishop followed him, to let him out by a little door he had
+had opened for that one night, into the street.
+
+When he came back to the other two and unfolded to them what was the
+scheme of the Archbishop's man, they agreed that it was a very good
+plan. Then they fell to considering whether it should not serve their
+turn to betray this plan at once to the Queen. But they agreed that, if
+they preserved the Queen, they would be utterly ruined, as they were
+like to be now, whereas, if it succeeded, they would be much the better
+off. And, even if it failed, they lost nothing, for it would not readily
+be believed that they had aided Lutherans, and there were no letters or
+writings.
+
+So they agreed to abide honourably by their promises--and very certain
+they were that if clamour enough could be raised against the Queen, the
+King would be bound into putting her away, though it were against his
+will.
+
+
+III
+
+In the Master Printer Badge's house--and he was the uncle of Margot and
+of the young Poins--there was a great and solemn dissertation towards.
+For word had been brought that certain strangers come on an embassy from
+the Duke of Cleves were minded to hear how the citizens of London--or at
+any rate those of them that held German doctrines--bore themselves
+towards Schmalkaldnerism and the doctrines of Luther.
+
+It was understood that these strangers were of very high degree--of a
+degree so high that they might scarce be spoken to by the meaner sort.
+And for many days messengers had been going between the house of the
+Archbishop at Lambeth and that of the Master Printer, to school him how
+this meeting must be conducted.
+
+His old father was by that time dead--having died shortly after his
+granddaughter Margot had been put away from the Queen's Court--so that
+the house-place was clear. And of all the old furnishings none remained.
+There were presses all round the wall, and lockers for men to sit upon.
+The table had been cleared away into the printer's chapel; a lectern
+stood a-midmost of the room, and before the hearth-place, in the very
+ingle, there was set the great chair in which aforetimes the old man had
+sat so long.
+
+Early that evening, though already it was dusk, the body of citizens
+were assembled. Most of them had haggard faces, for the times were evil
+for men of their persuasion, and nearly all of them were draped in black
+after the German fashion among Lutherans of that day. They ranged
+themselves on the lockers along the wall, and with set faces, in a
+funereal row, they awaited the coming of this great stranger. There were
+no Germans amongst them, for so, it was given out, he would have
+it--either because he would not be known by name or for some other
+reason.
+
+The Master Printer, in the pride of his craft, wore his apron. He stood
+in the centre of the room facing the hearth-place; his huge arms were
+bare--for bare-armed he always worked--his black beard was knotted into
+little curls, his face was so broad that you hardly remarked that his
+nose was hooked like an owl's beak. And about the man there was an air
+of sombreness and mystery. He had certain papers on his lectern, and
+several sheets of the great Bible that he was then printing by the
+Archbishop's license and command. They sang all together and with loud
+voices the canticle called 'A Refuge fast is God the Lord.'
+
+Then, with huge gestures of his hands, he uttered the words--
+
+'This is the very word of God,' and began to read from the pages of his
+Bible. He read first the story of David and Saul, his great voice
+trembling with ecstasy.
+
+'This David is our King,' he said. 'This Saul that he slew is the Beast
+of Rome. The Solomon that cometh after shall be the gracious princeling
+that ye wot of, for already he is wise beyond his years and beyond most
+grown men.'
+
+The citizens around the walls cried 'Amen.' And because the strangers
+tarried to come, he called to his journeymen that stood in the inner
+doorway to bring him the sheets of the Bible whereon he had printed the
+story of Ehud and Eglon.
+
+'This king that ye shall hear of as being slain,' he cried out, 'is that
+foul bird the Kaiser Carl, that harries the faithful in Almain. This
+good man that shall slay him is some German lord. Who he shall be we
+know not yet; maybe it shall be this very stranger that to-night shall
+sit to hear us.'
+
+His brethren muttered a low, deep, and uniform prayer that soon, soon
+the Lord should send them this boon.
+
+But he had not got beyond the eleventh verse of this history before
+there came from without a sound of trumpets, and through the windows the
+light of torches and the scarlet of the guard that, it was said, the
+King had sent to do honour to this stranger.
+
+'Come in, be ye who ye may!' the printer cried to the knockers at his
+door.
+
+There entered the hugest masked man that they ever had seen. All in
+black he was, and horrifying and portentous he strode in. His sleeves
+and shoulders were ballooned after the German fashion, his sword clanked
+on the tiles. He was a vision of black, for his mask that appeared as
+big as another man's garment covered all his face, though they could see
+he had a grey beard when sitting down. He gazed at the fire askance.
+
+He said--his voice was heavy and husky--
+
+'_Gruesset Gott_,' and those of the citizens that had painfully attained
+to so much of that tongue answered him with--
+
+'_Lobet den Herr im Himmels Reich!_'
+
+He had with him one older man that wore a half-mask, and was trembling
+and clean-shaven, and one younger, that was English, to act as
+interpreter when it was needed. He was clean-shaven, too, and in the
+English habit he appeared thin and tenuous. They said he was a gentleman
+of the Archbishop's, and that his name was Lascelles.
+
+He opened the meeting with saying that these great strangers were come
+from beyond the seas, and would hear answers to certain questions. He
+took a paper from his pouch and said that, in order that he might stick
+to the points that these strangers would know of, he had written down
+those questions on that paper.
+
+'How say ye, masters?' he finished. 'Will ye give answers to these
+questions truly, and of your knowledge?'
+
+'Aye will we,' the printer said, 'for to that end we are gathered here.
+Is it not so, my masters?'
+
+And the assembly answered--
+
+'Aye, so it is.'
+
+Lascelles read from his paper:
+
+'How is it with this realm of England?'
+
+The printer glanced at the paper that was upon his lectern. He made
+answer--
+
+'Well! But not over well!'
+
+And at these words Lascelles feigned surprise, lifting his well-shapen
+and white hand in the air.
+
+'How is this that ye say?' he uttered. 'Are ye all of this tale?'
+
+A deep 'Aye!' came from all these chests. There was one old man that
+could never keep still. He had huge limbs, a great ruffled poll of
+grizzling hair, and his legs that were in jerkins of red leather kicked
+continuously in little convulsions. He peered every minute at some new
+thing, very closely, holding first his tablets so near that he could see
+only with one eye, then the whistle that hung round his neck, then a
+little piece of paper that he took from his poke. He cried out in a deep
+voice--'Aye! aye! Not over well. Witchcraft and foul weather and rocks,
+my mates and masters all!' so that he appeared to be a seaman--and
+indeed he traded to the port of Antwerp, in the Low Countries, where he
+had learned of some of the Faith.
+
+'Why,' Lascelles said, 'be ye not contented with our goodly King?'
+
+'Never was a better since Solomon ruled in Jewry,' the shipman cried
+out.
+
+'Is it, then, the Lords of the King's Council that ye are discontented
+with?'
+
+'Nay, they are goodly men, for they are of the King's choosing,' one
+answered--a little man with a black pill-hat.
+
+'Why, speak through your leader,' the stranger said heavily from the
+hearth-place. 'Here is too much skimble-skamble.' The old man beside him
+leaned over his chair-back and whispered in his ear. But the stranger
+shook his head heavily. He sat and gazed at the brands. His great hands
+were upon his knees, pressed down, but now and again they moved as if he
+were in some agony.
+
+'It is well that ye do as the Lord commandeth,' Lascelles said; 'for in
+Almain, whence he cometh, there is wont to be a great order and
+observance.' He held his paper up again to the light. 'Master Printer,
+answer now to this question: Find ye aught amiss with the judges and
+justices of this realm?'
+
+'Nay; they do judge indifferent well betwixt cause and cause,' the
+printer answered from his paper.
+
+'Or with the serjeants, the apparitors, the collectors of taxes, or the
+Parliament men?'
+
+'These, too, perform indifferent well their appointed tasks,' the
+printer said gloomily.
+
+'Or is it with the Church of this realm that ye find fault?'
+
+'Body of God!' the stranger said heavily.
+
+'Nay!' the printer answered, 'for the supreme head of that Church is the
+King, a man learned before all others in the law of God; such a King as
+speaketh as though he were that mouthpiece of the Most High that the
+Antichrist at Rome claimeth to be.'
+
+'Is it, then, with the worshipful the little Prince of Wales that ye are
+discontented?' Lascelles read, and the printer answered that there was
+not such another Prince of his years for promise and for performance,
+too, in all Christendom.
+
+The stranger said from the hearth-place--
+
+'Well! we are commended,' and his voice was bitter and ironical.
+
+'How is it, then,' Lascelles read on, 'that ye say all is not over well
+in the land?'
+
+The printer's gloomy and black features glared with a sudden rage.
+
+'How should all be well with a land,' he cried, 'where in high places
+reigns harlotry?' He raised his clenched fist on high and glared round
+upon his audience. 'Corruption that reacheth round and about and down
+till it hath found a seedbed even in this poor house of my father's? Or
+if it is well with this land now, how shall it continue well when
+witchcraft rules near the King himself, and the Devil of Rome hath there
+his emissaries.'
+
+A chitter of sound came from his audience, so that it appeared that they
+were all of a strain. They moved in their seats; the shipman cried out--
+
+'Ay! witchcraft! witchcraft!'
+
+The huge bulk of the stranger, black and like a bull's, half rose from
+its chair.
+
+'Body of God!' he cried out. 'This I will not bear.'
+
+Again the older man leaned solicitously above him and whispered,
+pleading with his hands, and Lascelles said hastily--
+
+'Speak of your own knowledge. How should you know of what passes in high
+places?'
+
+'Why!' the printer cried out, 'is it not the common report? Do not all
+men know it? Do not the butchers sing of it in the shambles, and the
+bot-flies buzz of it one to the other? I tell you it is spread from here
+into Almain, where the very horse-sellers are a-buzz with it.'
+
+In his chair the stranger cried out--
+
+'Ah! ah!' as if he were in great pain. He struggled with his feet and
+then sat still.
+
+'I have heard witnesses that will testify to these things,' the printer
+said. 'I will bring them here into this room before ye.' He turned upon
+the stranger. 'Master,' he said, 'if ye know not of this, you are the
+only man in England that is ignorant!'
+
+The stranger said with a bitter despair--
+
+'Well, I am come to hear what ye do say!'
+
+So he heard tales from all the sewers of London, and it was plain to him
+that all the commonalty cried shame upon their King. He screamed and
+twisted there in his chair at the last, and when he was come out into
+the darkness he fell upon his companion, and beat him so that he
+screamed out.
+
+He might have died--for, though the King's guard with their torches and
+halberds were within a bowshot of them, they stirred no limb. And it was
+a party of fellows bat-fowling along the hedges of that field that came
+through the dark, attracted by the glare of the torches, the blaze of
+the scarlet clothes, and the outcry.
+
+And when they came, asking why that great man belaboured this thin and
+fragile one, black shadows both against the light, the big man answered,
+howling--
+
+'This man hath made me bounden to slay my wife.'
+
+They said that that was a thing some of them would have been glad of.
+
+But the great figure cast itself on the ground at the foot of a tree
+that stretched up like nerves and tentacles into the black sky. He tore
+the wet earth with his fingers, and the men stood round him till the
+Duke of Norfolk, coming with his sword drawn, hunted them afar off, and
+they fell again to beating the hedges to drive small birds into their
+nets.
+
+For, they said, these were evidently of the quality whose griefs were
+none of theirs.
+
+
+IV
+
+The Queen was walking in the long gallery of Hampton Court. The
+afternoon was still new, but rain was falling very fast, so that through
+the windows all trees were blurred with mist, and all alleys ran with
+water, and it was very grey in the gallery. The Lady Mary was with her,
+and sat in a window-seat reading in a book. The Queen, as she walked,
+was netting a silken purse of a purple colour; her gown was very richly
+embroidered of gold thread worked into black velvet, and the heavy day
+pressed heavily on her senses, so that she sought that silence more
+willingly. For three days she had had no news of her lord, but that
+morning he was come back to Hampton, though she had not yet seen him,
+for it was ever his custom to put off all work of the day before he came
+to the Queen. Thus, if she were sad, she was tranquil; and, considering
+only that her work of bringing him to God must begin again that night,
+she let her thoughts rest upon the netting of her purse. The King, she
+had heard, was with his council. Her uncle was come to Court, and
+Gardiner of Winchester, and Cranmer of Canterbury, along with Sir A.
+Wriothesley, and many other lords, so that she augured it would be a
+very full council, and that night there would be a great banquet if she
+was not mistaken.
+
+She remembered that it was now many months since she had been shown for
+Queen from that very gallery in the window that opened upon the
+Cardinal's garden. The King had led her by the hand. There had been a
+great crying out of many people of the lower sort that crowded the
+terrace before the garden. Now the rain fell, and all was desolation. A
+yeoman in brown fustian ran bending his head before the tempestuous
+rain. A rook, blown impotently backwards, essayed slowly to cross
+towards the western trees. Her eyes followed him until a great gust blew
+him in a wider curve, backwards and up, and when again he steadied
+himself he was no more than a blot on the wet greyness of the heavens.
+
+There was an outcry at the door, and a woman ran in. She was crying out
+still: she was all in grey, with the white coif of the Queen's service.
+She fell down upon her knees, her hands held out.
+
+'Pardon!' she cried. 'Pardon! Let not my brother come in. He prowls at
+the door.'
+
+It was Mary Hall, she that had been Mary Lascelles. The Queen came over
+to raise her up, and to ask what it was she sought. But the woman wept
+so loud, and so continually cried out that her brother was the fiend
+incarnate, that the Queen could ask no questions. The Lady Mary looked
+up over her book without stirring her body. Her eyes were awakened and
+sardonic.
+
+The waiting-maid looked affrightedly over her shoulders at the door.
+
+'Well, your brother shall not come in here,' the Queen said. 'What would
+he have done to you?'
+
+'Pardon!' the woman cried out. 'Pardon!'
+
+'Why, tell me of your fault,' the Queen said.
+
+'I have given false witness!' Mary Hall blubbered out. 'I would not do
+it. But you do not know how they confuse a body. And they threaten with
+cords and thumbscrews.' She shuddered with her whole body. 'Pardon!' she
+cried out. 'Pardon!'
+
+And then suddenly she poured forth a babble of lamentations, wringing
+her hands, and rubbing her lips together. She was a woman passed of
+thirty, but thin still and fair like her brother in the face, for she
+was his twin.
+
+'Ah,' she cried, 'he threated that if I would not give evidence I must
+go back to Lincolnshire. You do not know what it is to go back to
+Lincolnshire. Ah, God! the old father, the old house, the wet. My
+clothes were all mouldered. I was willing to give true evidence to save
+myself, but they twisted it to false. It was the Duke of Norfolk ...'
+
+The Lady Mary came slowly over the floor.
+
+'Against whom did you give your evidence?' she said, and her voice was
+cold, hard, and commanding.
+
+Mary Hall covered her face with her hands, and wailed desolately in a
+high note, like a wolf's howl, that reverberated in that dim gallery.
+
+The Lady Mary struck her a hard blow with the cover of her book upon the
+hands and the side of her head.
+
+'Against whom did you give your evidence?' she said again.
+
+The woman fell over upon one hand, the other she raised to shield
+herself. Her eyes were flooded with great teardrops; her mouth was open
+in an agony. The Lady Mary raised her book to strike again: its covers
+were of wood, and its angles bound with silver work. The woman screamed
+out, and then uttered--
+
+'Against Dearham and one Mopock first. And then against Sir T.
+Culpepper.'
+
+The Queen stood up to her height; her hand went over her heart; the
+netted purse dropped to the floor soundlessly.
+
+'God help me!' Mary Hall cried out. 'Dearham and Culpepper are both
+dead!'
+
+The Queen sprang back three paces.
+
+'How dead!' she cried. 'They were not even ill.'
+
+'Upon the block,' the maid said. 'Last night, in the dark, in their
+gaols.'
+
+The Queen let her hands fall slowly to her sides.
+
+'Who did this?' she said, and Mary Hall answered--
+
+'It was the King!'
+
+The Lady Mary set her book under her arm.
+
+'Ye might have known it was the King,' she said harshly. The Queen was
+as still as a pillar of ebony and ivory, so black her dress was, and so
+white her face and pendant hands.
+
+'I repent me! I repent me!' the maid cried out. 'When I heard that they
+were dead I repented me and came here. The old Duchess of Norfolk is in
+gaol: she burned the letters of Dearham! The Lady Rochford is in gaol,
+and old Sir Nicholas, and the Lady Cicely that was ever with the Queen;
+the Lord Edmund Howard shall to gaol and his lady.'
+
+'Why,' the Lady Mary said to the Queen, 'if you had not had such a fear
+of nepotism, your father and mother and grandmother and cousin had been
+here about you, and not so easily taken.'
+
+The Queen stood still whilst all her hopes fell down.
+
+'They have taken Lady Cicely that was ever with me,' she said.
+
+'It was the Duke of Norfolk that pressed me most,' Mary Lascelles cried
+out.
+
+'Aye, he would,' the Lady Mary answered.
+
+The Queen tottered upon her feet.
+
+'Ask her more,' she said. 'I will not speak with her.'
+
+'The King in his council ...' the girl began.
+
+'Is the King in his council upon these matters?' the Lady Mary asked.
+
+'Aye, he sitteth there,' Mary Hall said. 'And he hath heard evidence of
+Mary Trelyon the Queen's maid, how that the Queen's Highness did bid her
+begone on the night that Sir T. Culpepper came to her room, before he
+came. And how that the Queen was very insistent that she should go, upon
+the score of fatigue and the lateness of the hour. And she hath deponed
+that on other nights, too, this has happened, that the Queen's Highness,
+when she hath come late to bed, hath equally done the same thing. And
+other her maids have deponed how the Queen hath sent them from her
+presence and relieved them of tasks----'
+
+'Well, well,' the Lady Mary said, 'often I have urged the Queen that she
+should be less gracious. Better it had been if she had beat ye all as I
+have done; then had ye feared to betray her.'
+
+'Aye,' Mary Hall said, 'it is a true thing that your Grace saith there.'
+
+'Call me not your Grace,' the Lady Mary said. 'I will be no Grace in
+this court of wolves and hogs.'
+
+That was the sole thing that she said to show she was of the Queen's
+party. But ever she questioned the kneeling woman to know what evidence
+had been given, and of the attitude of the lords.
+
+The young Poins had sworn roundly that the Queen had bidden him to
+summon no guards when her cousin had broken in upon her. Only Udal had
+said that he knew nothing of how Katharine had agreed with her cousin
+whilst they were in Lincolnshire. It had been after his time there that
+Culpepper came. It had been after his time, too, and whilst he lay in
+chains at Pontefract that Culpepper had come to her door. He stuck to
+that tale, though the Duke of Norfolk had beat and threatened him never
+so.
+
+'Why, what wolves Howards be,' the Lady Mary said, 'for it is only
+wolves, of all beasts, that will prey upon the sick of their kind.'
+
+The Queen stood there, swaying back as if she were very sick, her eyes
+fast closed, and the lids over them very blue.
+
+It was only when the Lady Mary drew from the woman an account of the
+King's demeanour that she showed a sign of hearing.
+
+'His Highness,' the woman said, 'sate always mute.'
+
+'His Highness would,' the Lady Mary said. 'He is in that at least
+royal--that he letteth jackals do his hunting.'
+
+It was only when the Archbishop of Canterbury, reading from the
+indictment of Culpepper, had uttered the words: 'did by the obtaining of
+the Lady Rochford meet with the Queen's Highness by night in a secret
+and vile place,' that the King had called out--
+
+'Body of God! mine own bedchamber!' as if he were hatefully mocking the
+Archbishop.
+
+The Queen leant suddenly forward--
+
+'Said he no more than that?' she cried eagerly.
+
+'No more, oh your dear Grace,' the maid said. And the Queen shuddered
+and whispered--
+
+'No more!--And I have spoken to this woman to obtain no more than "no
+more."'
+
+Again she closed her eyes, and she did not again speak, but hung her
+head forward as if she were thinking.
+
+'Heaven help me!' the maid said.
+
+'Why, think no more of Heaven,' the Lady Mary said, 'there is but the
+fire of hell for such beasts as you.'
+
+'Had you such a brother as mine----' Mary Hall began. But the Lady Mary
+cried out--
+
+'Cease, dog! I have a worse father, but you have not found him force me
+to work vileness.'
+
+'All the other Papists have done worse than I,' Mary Hall said, 'for
+they it was that forced us by threats to speak.'
+
+'Not one was of the Queen's side?' the Lady Mary said.
+
+'Not one,' Mary Hall answered. 'Gardiner was more fierce against her
+than he of Canterbury, the Duke of Norfolk than either.'
+
+The Lady Mary said--
+
+'Well! well!'
+
+'Myself I did hear the Duke of Norfolk say, when I was drawn to give
+evidence, that he begged the King to let him tear my secrets from my
+heart. For so did he abhor the abominable deeds done by his two nieces,
+Anne Boleyn and Katharine Howard, that he could no longer desire to
+live. And he said neither could he live longer without some comfortable
+assurance of His Highness's royal favour. And so he fell upon me----'
+
+The woman fell to silence. Without, the rain had ceased, and, like heavy
+curtains trailing near the ground, the clouds began to part and sweep
+away. A horn sounded, and there went a party of men with pikes across
+the terrace.
+
+'Well, and what said you?' the Lady Mary said.
+
+'Ask me not,' Mary Lascelles said woefully. She averted her eyes to the
+floor at her side.
+
+'By God, but I will know,' the Lady Mary snarled. 'You shall tell me.'
+She had that of royal bearing from her sire that the woman was amazed at
+her words, and, awakening like one in a dream, she rehearsed the
+evidence that had been threated from her.
+
+She had told of the lascivious revels and partings, in the maid's garret
+at the old Duchess's, when Katharine had been a child there. She had
+told how Marnock the musicker had called her his mistress, and how
+Dearham, Katharine's cousin, had beaten him. And how Dearham had given
+Katharine a half of a silver coin.
+
+'Well, that is all true,' the Lady Mary said. 'How did you perjure
+yourself?'
+
+'In the matter of the Queen's age,' the woman faltered.
+
+'How that?' the Lady Mary asked.
+
+'The Duke would have me say that she was more than a young child.'
+
+The Lady Mary said, 'Ah! ah! there is the yellow dog!' She thought for a
+moment.
+
+'And you said?' she asked at last.
+
+'The Duke threated me and threated me. And say I, "Your Grace must know
+how young she was." And says he, "I would swear that at that date she
+was no child, but that I do not know how many of these nauseous Howard
+brats there be. Nor yet the order in which they came. But this I will
+swear that I think there has been some change of the Queen with a whelp
+that died in the litter, that she might seem more young. And of a surety
+she was always learned beyond her assumed years, so that it was not to
+be believed."'
+
+Mary Lascelles closed her eyes and appeared about to faint.
+
+'Speak on, dog,' Mary said.
+
+The woman roused herself to say with a solemn piteousness--
+
+'This I swear that before this trial, when my brother pressed me and
+threated me thus to perjure myself, I abhorred it and spat in his face.
+There was none more firm--nor one half so firm as I--against him. But
+oh, the Duke and the terror--and to be in a ring of so many villainous
+men....'
+
+'So that you swore that the Queen's Highness, to your knowledge, was
+older than a child,' the Lady Mary pressed her.
+
+'Ay; they would have me say that it was she that commanded to have these
+revels....'
+
+She leaned forward with both her hands on the floor, in the attitude of
+a beast that goes four-footed. She cried out--
+
+'Ask me no more! ask me no more!'
+
+'Tell! tell! Beast!' the Lady Mary said.
+
+'They threated me with torture,' the woman panted. 'I could do no less.
+I heard Margot Poins scream.'
+
+'They have tortured her?' the Lady Mary said.
+
+'Ay, and she was in her pains elsewise,' the woman said.
+
+'Did she say aught?' the Lady Mary said.
+
+'No! no!' the woman panted. Her hair had fallen loose in her coif, it
+depended on to her shoulder.
+
+'Tell on! tell on!' the Lady Mary said.
+
+'They tortured her, and she did not say one word more, but ever in her
+agony cried out, "Virtuous! virtuous!" till her senses went.'
+
+Mary Hall again raised herself to her knees.
+
+'Let me go, let me go,' she moaned. 'I will not speak before the Queen.
+I had been as loyal as Margot Poins.... But I will not speak before the
+Queen. I love her as well as Margot Poins. But ... I will not----'
+
+She cried out as the Lady Mary struck her, and her face was lamentable
+with its opened mouth. She scrambled to one knee; she got on both, and
+ran to the door. But there she cried out--
+
+'My brother!' and fell against the wall. Her eyes were fixed upon the
+Lady Mary with a baleful despair, she gasped and panted for breath.
+
+'It is upon you if I speak,' she said. 'Merciful God, do not bid me
+speak before the Queen!'
+
+She held out her hands as if she had been praying.
+
+'Have I not proved that I loved this Queen?' she said. 'Have I not fled
+here to warn her? Is it not my life that I risk? Merciful God! Merciful
+God! Bid me not to speak.'
+
+'Speak!' the Lady Mary said.
+
+The woman appealed to the Queen with her eyes streaming, but Katharine
+stood silent and like a statue with sightless eyes. Her lips smiled, for
+she thought of her Redeemer; for this woman she had neither ears nor
+eyes.
+
+'Speak!' the Lady Mary said.
+
+'God help you, be it on your head,' the woman cried out, 'that I speak
+before the Queen. It was the King that bade me say she was so old. I
+would not say it before the Queen, but you have made me!'
+
+The Lady Mary's hands fell powerless to her sides, the book from her
+opened fingers jarred on the hard floor.
+
+'Merciful God!' she said. 'Have I such a father?'
+
+'It was the King!' the woman said. 'His Highness came to life when he
+heard these words of the Duke's, that the Queen was older than she
+reported. He would have me say that the Queen's Highness was of a
+marriageable age and contracted to her cousin Dearham.'
+
+'Merciful God!' the Lady Mary said again. 'Dear God, show me some way to
+tear from myself the sin of my begetting. I had rather my mother's
+confessor had been my father than the King! Merciful God!'
+
+'Never was woman pressed as I was to say this thing. And well ye
+wot--better than I did before--what this King is. I tell you--and I
+swear it----'
+
+She stopped and trembled, her eyes, from which the colour had gone, wide
+open and lustreless, her face pallid and ashen, her mouth hanging open.
+The Queen was moving towards her.
+
+She came very slowly, her hands waving as if she sought support from the
+air, but her head was erect.
+
+'What will you do?' the Lady Mary said. 'Let us take counsel!'
+
+Katharine Howard said no word. It was as if she walked in her sleep.
+
+
+V
+
+The King sat on the raised throne of his council chamber. All the Lords
+of his Council were there and all in black. There was Norfolk with his
+yellow face who feigned to laugh and scoff, now that he had proved
+himself no lover of the Queen's. There was Gardiner of Winchester,
+sitting forward with his cruel and eager eyes upon the table. Next him
+was the Lord Mayor, Michael Dormer, and the Lord Chancellor. And so
+round the horse-shoe table against the wall sat all the other lords and
+commissioners that had been appointed to make inquiry. Sir Anthony
+Browne was there, and Wriothesley with his great beard, and the Duke of
+Suffolk with his hanging jaw. A silence had fallen upon them all, and
+the witnesses were all done with.
+
+On high on his throne the King sat, monstrous and leaning over to one
+side, his face dabbled with tears. He gazed upon Cranmer who stood on
+high beside him, the King gazing upwards into his face as if for comfort
+and counsel.
+
+'Why, you shall save her for me?' he said.
+
+Cranmer's face was haggard, and upon it too there were tears.
+
+'It were the gladdest thing that ever I did,' he said, 'for I do believe
+this Queen is not so guilty.'
+
+'God of His mercy bless thee, Cranmer,' he said, and wearily he touched
+his black bonnet at the sacred name. 'I have done all that I might when
+I spoke with Mary Hall. It shall save me her life.'
+
+Cranmer looked round upon the lords below them; they were all silent but
+only the Duke of Norfolk who laughed to the Lord Mayor. The Lord Mayor,
+a burly man, was more pallid and haggard than any. All the others had
+fear for themselves written upon their faces. But the citizen was not
+used to these trials, of which the others had seen so many.
+
+The Archbishop fell on his knees on the step before the King's throne.
+
+'Gracious and dread Lord,' he said, and his low voice trembled like that
+of a schoolboy, 'Saviour, Lord, and Fount of Justice of this realm!
+Hitherto these trials have been of traitor-felons and villains outside
+the circle of your house. Now that they be judged and dead, we, your
+lords, pray you that you put off from you this most heavy task of judge.
+For inasmuch as we live by your life and have health by your health, in
+this realm afflicted with many sores that you alone can heal and dangers
+that you alone can ward off, so we have it assured and certain that many
+too great labours and matters laid upon you imperil us all. In that, as
+well for our selfish fears as for the great love, self-forgetting, that
+we have of your person, we pray you that--coming now to the trial of
+this your wife--you do rest, though well assured we are that greatly and
+courageously you would adventure it, upon the love of us your lords.
+Appoint, therefore, such a Commission as you shall well approve to make
+this most heavy essay and trial.'
+
+So low was his voice that, to hear him, many lords rose from their seats
+and came over against the throne. Thus all that company were in the
+upper part of the hall, and through the great window at the further end
+the sun shone down upon them, having parted the watery clouds. To their
+mass of black it gave blots and gouts of purple and blue and scarlet,
+coming through the dight panes.
+
+'Lay off this burden of trial and examination upon us that so willingly,
+though with sighs and groans, would bear it.'
+
+Suddenly the King stood up and pointed, his jaw fallen open. Katharine
+Howard was coming up the floor of the hall. Her hands were folded before
+her; her face was rigid and calm; she looked neither to right nor to
+left, but only upon the King's face. At the edge of the sunlight she
+halted, so that she stood, a black figure in the bluish and stony gloom
+of the hall with the high roof a great way above her head. All the lords
+began to pull off their bonnets, only Norfolk said that he would not
+uncover before a harlot.
+
+The Queen, looking upon Henry's face, said with icy and cold tones--
+
+'I would have you to cease this torturing of witnesses. I will make
+confession.'
+
+No man then had a word to say. Norfolk had no word either.
+
+'If you will have me confess to heresy, I will confess to heresy; if to
+treason, to treason. If you will have me confess to adultery, God help
+me and all of you, I will confess to adultery and all such sins.'
+
+The King cried out--
+
+'No! no!' like a beast that is stabbed to the heart; but with cold eyes
+the Queen looked back at him.
+
+'If you will have it adultery before marriage, it shall be so. If it be
+to be falseness to my Lord's bed, it shall be so; if it be both, in the
+name of God, be it both, and where you will and how. If you will have
+it spoken, here I speak it. If you will have it written, I will write
+out such words as you shall bid me write. I pray you leave my poor women
+be, especially them that be sick, for there are none that do not love
+me, and I do think that my death is all that you need.'
+
+She paused; there was no sound in the hall but the strenuous panting of
+the King.
+
+'But whether,' she said, 'you shall believe this confession of mine, I
+leave to you that very well do know my conversation and my manner of
+life.'
+
+Again she paused and said--
+
+'I have spoken. To it I will add that heartily I do thank my sovereign
+lord that raised me up. And, in public, I do say it, that he hath dealt
+justly by me. I pray you pardon me for having delayed thus long your
+labours. I will get me gone.'
+
+Then she dropped her eyes to the ground.
+
+Again the King cried out--
+
+'No! no!' and, stumbling to his feet he rushed down upon his courtiers
+and round the table. He came upon her before she was at the distant
+door.
+
+'You shall not go!' he said. 'Unsay! unsay!'
+
+She said, 'Ah!' and recoiled before him with an obdurate and calm
+repulsion.
+
+'Get ye gone, all you minions and hounds,' he cried. And running in upon
+them he assailed them with huge blows and curses, sobbing lamentably, so
+that they fled up the steps and out on to the rooms behind the throne.
+He came sobbing, swift and maddened, panting and crying out, back to
+where she awaited him.
+
+'Unsay! unsay!' he cried out.
+
+She stood calmly.
+
+'Never will I unsay,' she said. 'For it is right that such a King as
+thou should be punished, and I do believe this: that there can no agony
+come upon you such as shall come if you do believe me false to you.'
+
+The coloured sunlight fell upon his face just down to the chin; his
+eyes glared horribly. She confronted him, being in the shadow. High up
+above them, painted and moulded angels soared on the roof with golden
+wings. He clutched at his throat.
+
+'I do not believe it,' he cried out.
+
+'Then,' she said, 'I believe that it shall be only a second greater
+agony to you: for you shall have done me to death believing me
+guiltless.'
+
+A great motion of despair went over his whole body.
+
+'Kat!' he said; 'Body of God, Kat! I would not have you done to death. I
+have saved your life from your enemies.'
+
+She made him no answer, and he protested desperately--
+
+'All this afternoon I have wrestled with a woman to make her say that
+you are older than your age, and precontracted to a cousin of yours. I
+have made her say it at last, so your life is saved.'
+
+She turned half to go from him, but he ran round in front of her.
+
+'Your life is saved!' he said desperately, 'for if you were
+precontracted to Dearham your marriage with me is void. And if your
+marriage with me is void, though it be proved against you that you were
+false to me, yet it is not treason, for you are not my wife.'
+
+Again she moved to circumvent him, and again he came before her.
+
+'Speak!' he said, 'speak!' But she folded her lips close. He cast his
+arms abroad in a passion of despair. 'You shall be put away into a
+castle where you shall have such state as never empress had yet. All
+your will I will do. Always I will live near you in secret fashion.'
+
+'I will not be your leman,' she said.
+
+'But once you offered it!' he answered.
+
+'Then you appeared in the guise of a king!' she said.
+
+He withered beneath her tone.
+
+'All you would have you shall have,' he said. 'I will call in a
+messenger and here and now send the letter that you wot of to Rome.'
+
+'Your Highness,' she said, 'I would not have the Church brought back to
+this land by one deemed an adult'ress. Assuredly, it should not
+prosper.'
+
+Again he sought to stay her going, holding out his arms to enfold her.
+She stepped back.
+
+'Your Highness,' she said, 'I will speak some last words. And, as you
+know me well, you know that these irrevocably shall be my last to you!'
+
+He cried--'Delay till you hear----'
+
+'There shall be no delay,' she said; 'I will not hear.' She smoothed a
+strand of hair that had fallen over her forehead in a gesture that she
+always had when she was deep in thoughts.
+
+'This is what I would say,' she uttered. And she began to speak
+levelly--
+
+'Very truly you say when you say that once I made offer to be your
+leman. But it was when I was a young girl, mazed with reading of books
+in the learned tongue, and seeing all men as if they were men of those
+days. So you appeared to me such a man as was Pompey the Great, or as
+was Marius, or as was Sylla. For each of these great men erred; yet they
+erred greatly as rulers that would rule. Or rather I did see you such a
+one as was Cæsar Julius, who, as you well wot, crossed a Rubicon and set
+out upon a high endeavour. But you--never will you cross any Rubicon;
+always you blow hot in the evening and cold at dawn. Neither do you, as
+I had dreamed you did, rule in this your realm. For, even as a crow that
+just now I watched, you are blown hither and thither by every gust that
+blows. Now the wind of gossips blows so that you must have my life. And,
+before God, I am glad of it.'
+
+'Before God!' he cried out, 'I would save you!'
+
+'Aye,' she answered sadly, 'to-day you would save me; to-morrow a foul
+speech of one mine enemy shall gird you again to slay me. On the morrow
+you will repent, and on the morrow of that again you will repent of
+that. So you will balance and trim. If to-day you send a messenger to
+Rome, to-morrow you will send another, hastening by a shorter route, to
+stay him. And this I tell you, that I am not one to let my name be
+bandied for many days in the mouths of men. I had rather be called a
+sinner, adjudged and dead and forgotten. So I am glad that I am cast to
+die.'
+
+'You shall not die!' the King cried. 'Body of God, you shall not die! I
+cannot live lacking thee. Kat---- Kat----'
+
+'Aye,' she said, 'I must die, for you are not such a one as can stay in
+the wind. Thus I tell you it will fall about that for many days you will
+waver, but one day you will cry out--Let her die this day! On the morrow
+of that day you will repent you, but, being dead, I shall be no more to
+be recalled to life. Why, man, with this confession of mine, heard by
+grooms and mayors of cities and the like, how shall you dare to save me?
+You know you shall not.
+
+'And so, now I am cast for death, and I am very glad of it. For, if I
+had not so ensured and made it fated, I might later have wavered. For I
+am a weak woman, and strong men have taken dishonourable means to escape
+death when it came near. Now I am assured of death, and know that no
+means of yours can save me, nor no prayers nor yielding of mine. I came
+to you for that you might give this realm again to God. Now I see you
+will not--for not ever will you do it if it must abate you a jot of your
+sovereignty, and you never will do it without that abatement. So it is
+in vain that I have sinned.
+
+'For I trow that I sinned in taking the crown from the woman that was
+late your wife. I would not have it, but you would, and I yielded. Yet
+it was a sin. Then I did a sin that good might ensue, and again I do it,
+and I hope that this sin that brings me down shall counterbalance that
+other that set me up. For well I know that to make this confession is a
+sin; but whether the one shall balance the other only the angels that
+are at the gates of Paradise shall assure me.
+
+'In some sort I have done it for your Highness' sake--or, at least, that
+your Highness may profit in your fame thereby. For, though all that do
+know me will scarcely believe in it, the most part of men shall needs
+judge me by the reports that are set about. In the commonalty, and the
+princes of foreign courts, one may believe you justified of my blood,
+and, for this event, even to posterity your name shall be spared. I
+shall become such a little dust as will not fill a cup. Yet, at least, I
+shall not sully, in the eyes of men to come, your record.
+
+'And that I am glad of; for this world is no place for me who am mazed
+by too much reading in old books. At first I would not believe it,
+though many have told me it was so. I was of the opinion that in the end
+right must win through. I think now that it never shall--or not for many
+ages--till our Saviour again come upon this earth with a great glory.
+But all this is a mystery of the great goodness of God and the
+temptations that do beset us poor mortality.
+
+'So now I go! I think that you will not any more seek to hinder me, for
+you have heard how set I am on this course. I think, if I have done
+little good, I have done little harm, for I have sought to injure no
+man--though through me you have wracked some of my poor servants and
+slain my poor simple cousin. But that is between you and God. If I must
+weep for them yet, though I was the occasion of their deaths and
+tortures, I cannot much lay it to my account.
+
+'If, by being reputed your leman, as you would have it, I could again
+set up the Church of God, willingly I would do it. But I see that there
+is not one man--save maybe some poor simple souls--that would have this
+done. Each man is set to save his skin and his goods--and you are such a
+weathercock that I should never blow you to a firm quarter. For what am
+I set against all this nation?
+
+'If you should say that our wedding was no wedding because of the
+pre-contract to my cousin Dearham that you have feigned was made--why, I
+might live as your reputed leman in a secret place. But it is not very
+certain that even at that I should live very long. For, if I lived, I
+must work upon you to do the right. And, if that I did, not very long
+should I live before mine enemies again did come about me and to you.
+And so I must die. And now I see that you are not such a man as I would
+live with willingly to preserve my life.
+
+'I speak not to reprove you what I have spoken, but to make you see that
+as I am so I am. You are as God made you, setting you for His own
+purposes a weak man in very evil and turbulent times. As a man is born
+so a man lives; as is his strength so the strain breaks him or he
+resists the strain. If I have wounded you with these my words, I do ask
+your pardon. Much of this long speech I have thought upon when I was
+despondent this long time past. But much of it has come to my lips
+whilst I spake, and, maybe, it is harsh and rash in the wording. That I
+would not have, but I may not help myself. I would have you wounded by
+the things as they are, and by what of conscience you have, in your
+passions and your prides. And this, I will add, that I die a Queen, but
+I would rather have died the wife of my cousin Culpepper or of any other
+simple lout that loved me as he did, without regard, without thought,
+and without falter. He sold farms to buy me bread. You would not imperil
+a little alliance with a little King o' Scots to save my life. And this
+I tell you, that I will spend the last hours of the days that I have to
+live in considering of this simple man and of his love, and in praying
+for his soul, for I hear you have slain him! And for the rest, I commend
+you to your friends!'
+
+The King had staggered back against the long table; his jaw fell open;
+his head leaned down upon his chest. In all that long speech--the
+longest she had ever made save when she was shown for Queen--she had not
+once raised or lowered her voice, nor once dropped her eyes. But she had
+remembered the lessons of speaking that had been given her by her master
+Udal, in the aforetime, away in Lincolnshire, where there was an orchard
+with green boughs, and below it a pig-pound where the hogs grunted.
+
+She went slowly down over the great stone flags of the great hall. It
+was very gloomy now, and her figure in black velvet was like a small
+shadow, dark and liquid, amongst shadows that fell softly and like
+draperies from the roof. Up there it was all dark already, for the
+light came downwards from the windows. She went slowly, walking as she
+had been schooled to walk.
+
+'God!' Henry cried out; 'you have not played false with Culpepper?' His
+voice echoed all round the hall.
+
+The Queen's white face and her folded hands showed as she turned--
+
+'Aye, there the shoe pinches!' she said. 'Think upon it. Most times you
+shall not believe it, for you know me. But I have made confession of it
+before your Council. So it may be true. For I hope some truth cometh to
+the fore even in Councils.'
+
+Near the doorway it was all shadow, and soundlessly she faded away among
+them. The hinge of the door creaked; through it there came the sound of
+the pikestaves of her guard upon the stone of the steps. The sound
+whispered round amidst the statues of old knights and kings that stood
+upon corbels between the windows. It whispered amongst the invisible
+carvings of the roof. Then it died away.
+
+The King made no sound. Suddenly he cast his hat upon the paving.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+KATHARINE HOWARD was executed on
+Tower Hill, the 13th of February, in the 33rd year
+of the reign of KING HENRY VIII.
+
+MDXLI-II
+
+
+
+***END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE FIFTH QUEEN CROWNED***
+
+
+******* This file should be named 27432-8.txt or 27432-8.zip *******
+
+
+This and all associated files of various formats will be found in:
+http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/2/7/4/3/27432
+
+
+
+Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions
+will be renamed.
+
+Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no
+one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation
+(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without
+permission and without paying copyright royalties.  Special rules,
+set forth in the General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to
+copying and distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works to
+protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm concept and trademark.  Project
+Gutenberg is a registered trademark, and may not be used if you
+charge for the eBooks, unless you receive specific permission.  If you
+do not charge anything for copies of this eBook, complying with the
+rules is very easy.  You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose
+such as creation of derivative works, reports, performances and
+research.  They may be modified and printed and given away--you may do
+practically ANYTHING with public domain eBooks.  Redistribution is
+subject to the trademark license, especially commercial
+redistribution.
+
+
+
+*** START: FULL LICENSE ***
+
+THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE
+PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK
+
+To protect the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting the free
+distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work
+(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase "Project
+Gutenberg"), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full Project
+Gutenberg-tm License (available with this file or online at
+http://www.gutenberg.org/license).
+
+
+Section 1.  General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic works
+
+1.A.  By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to
+and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property
+(trademark/copyright) agreement.  If you do not agree to abide by all
+the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or destroy
+all copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in your possession.
+If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic work and you do not agree to be bound by the
+terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the person or
+entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph 1.E.8.
+
+1.B.  "Project Gutenberg" is a registered trademark.  It may only be
+used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who
+agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement.  There are a few
+things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works
+even without complying with the full terms of this agreement.  See
+paragraph 1.C below.  There are a lot of things you can do with Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this agreement
+and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
+works.  See paragraph 1.E below.
+
+1.C.  The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation ("the Foundation"
+or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection of Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic works.  Nearly all the individual works in the
+collection are in the public domain in the United States.  If an
+individual work is in the public domain in the United States and you are
+located in the United States, we do not claim a right to prevent you from
+copying, distributing, performing, displaying or creating derivative
+works based on the work as long as all references to Project Gutenberg
+are removed.  Of course, we hope that you will support the Project
+Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting free access to electronic works by
+freely sharing Project Gutenberg-tm works in compliance with the terms of
+this agreement for keeping the Project Gutenberg-tm name associated with
+the work.  You can easily comply with the terms of this agreement by
+keeping this work in the same format with its attached full Project
+Gutenberg-tm License when you share it without charge with others.
+
+1.D.  The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern
+what you can do with this work.  Copyright laws in most countries are in
+a constant state of change.  If you are outside the United States, check
+the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this agreement
+before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, distributing or
+creating derivative works based on this work or any other Project
+Gutenberg-tm work.  The Foundation makes no representations concerning
+the copyright status of any work in any country outside the United
+States.
+
+1.E.  Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg:
+
+1.E.1.  The following sentence, with active links to, or other immediate
+access to, the full Project Gutenberg-tm License must appear prominently
+whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg-tm work (any work on which the
+phrase "Project Gutenberg" appears, or with which the phrase "Project
+Gutenberg" is associated) is accessed, displayed, performed, viewed,
+copied or distributed:
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+1.E.2.  If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is derived
+from the public domain (does not contain a notice indicating that it is
+posted with permission of the copyright holder), the work can be copied
+and distributed to anyone in the United States without paying any fees
+or charges.  If you are redistributing or providing access to a work
+with the phrase "Project Gutenberg" associated with or appearing on the
+work, you must comply either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1
+through 1.E.7 or obtain permission for the use of the work and the
+Project Gutenberg-tm trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or
+1.E.9.
+
+1.E.3.  If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is posted
+with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution
+must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any additional
+terms imposed by the copyright holder.  Additional terms will be linked
+to the Project Gutenberg-tm License for all works posted with the
+permission of the copyright holder found at the beginning of this work.
+
+1.E.4.  Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg-tm
+License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this
+work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg-tm.
+
+1.E.5.  Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this
+electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without
+prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with
+active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project
+Gutenberg-tm License.
+
+1.E.6.  You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary,
+compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including any
+word processing or hypertext form.  However, if you provide access to or
+distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg-tm work in a format other than
+"Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official version
+posted on the official Project Gutenberg-tm web site (www.gutenberg.org),
+you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense to the user, provide a
+copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means of obtaining a copy upon
+request, of the work in its original "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other
+form.  Any alternate format must include the full Project Gutenberg-tm
+License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1.
+
+1.E.7.  Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying,
+performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg-tm works
+unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9.
+
+1.E.8.  You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing
+access to or distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works provided
+that
+
+- You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from
+     the use of Project Gutenberg-tm works calculated using the method
+     you already use to calculate your applicable taxes.  The fee is
+     owed to the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, but he
+     has agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the
+     Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation.  Royalty payments
+     must be paid within 60 days following each date on which you
+     prepare (or are legally required to prepare) your periodic tax
+     returns.  Royalty payments should be clearly marked as such and
+     sent to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the
+     address specified in Section 4, "Information about donations to
+     the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation."
+
+- You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies
+     you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he
+     does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg-tm
+     License.  You must require such a user to return or
+     destroy all copies of the works possessed in a physical medium
+     and discontinue all use of and all access to other copies of
+     Project Gutenberg-tm works.
+
+- You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of any
+     money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the
+     electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days
+     of receipt of the work.
+
+- You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free
+     distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm works.
+
+1.E.9.  If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic work or group of works on different terms than are set
+forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing from
+both the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and Michael
+Hart, the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark.  Contact the
+Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below.
+
+1.F.
+
+1.F.1.  Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable
+effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread
+public domain works in creating the Project Gutenberg-tm
+collection.  Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
+works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may contain
+"Defects," such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate or
+corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other intellectual
+property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or other medium, a
+computer virus, or computer codes that damage or cannot be read by
+your equipment.
+
+1.F.2.  LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the "Right
+of Replacement or Refund" described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project
+Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project
+Gutenberg-tm trademark, and any other party distributing a Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all
+liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal
+fees.  YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT
+LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE
+PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH F3.  YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE
+TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE
+LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR
+INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH
+DAMAGE.
+
+1.F.3.  LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a
+defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can
+receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a
+written explanation to the person you received the work from.  If you
+received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium with
+your written explanation.  The person or entity that provided you with
+the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in lieu of a
+refund.  If you received the work electronically, the person or entity
+providing it to you may choose to give you a second opportunity to
+receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund.  If the second copy
+is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing without further
+opportunities to fix the problem.
+
+1.F.4.  Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth
+in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you 'AS-IS', WITH NO OTHER
+WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO
+WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTIBILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE.
+
+1.F.5.  Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied
+warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of damages.
+If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement violates the
+law of the state applicable to this agreement, the agreement shall be
+interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or limitation permitted by
+the applicable state law.  The invalidity or unenforceability of any
+provision of this agreement shall not void the remaining provisions.
+
+1.F.6.  INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the
+trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone
+providing copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in accordance
+with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the production,
+promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works,
+harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, including legal fees,
+that arise directly or indirectly from any of the following which you do
+or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this or any Project Gutenberg-tm
+work, (b) alteration, modification, or additions or deletions to any
+Project Gutenberg-tm work, and (c) any Defect you cause.
+
+
+Section  2.  Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg-tm
+
+Project Gutenberg-tm is synonymous with the free distribution of
+electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of computers
+including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers.  It exists
+because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations from
+people in all walks of life.
+
+Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the
+assistance they need, is critical to reaching Project Gutenberg-tm's
+goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg-tm collection will
+remain freely available for generations to come.  In 2001, the Project
+Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure
+and permanent future for Project Gutenberg-tm and future generations.
+To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation
+and how your efforts and donations can help, see Sections 3 and 4
+and the Foundation web page at http://www.gutenberg.org/fundraising/pglaf.
+
+
+Section 3.  Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive
+Foundation
+
+The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non profit
+501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the
+state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal
+Revenue Service.  The Foundation's EIN or federal tax identification
+number is 64-6221541.  Contributions to the Project Gutenberg
+Literary Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent
+permitted by U.S. federal laws and your state's laws.
+
+The Foundation's principal office is located at 4557 Melan Dr. S.
+Fairbanks, AK, 99712., but its volunteers and employees are scattered
+throughout numerous locations.  Its business office is located at
+809 North 1500 West, Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887, email
+business@pglaf.org.  Email contact links and up to date contact
+information can be found at the Foundation's web site and official
+page at http://www.gutenberg.org/about/contact
+
+For additional contact information:
+     Dr. Gregory B. Newby
+     Chief Executive and Director
+     gbnewby@pglaf.org
+
+Section 4.  Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg
+Literary Archive Foundation
+
+Project Gutenberg-tm depends upon and cannot survive without wide
+spread public support and donations to carry out its mission of
+increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be
+freely distributed in machine readable form accessible by the widest
+array of equipment including outdated equipment.  Many small donations
+($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt
+status with the IRS.
+
+The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating
+charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United
+States.  Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a
+considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up
+with these requirements.  We do not solicit donations in locations
+where we have not received written confirmation of compliance.  To
+SEND DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any
+particular state visit http://www.gutenberg.org/fundraising/donate
+
+While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we
+have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition
+against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who
+approach us with offers to donate.
+
+International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make
+any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from
+outside the United States.  U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff.
+
+Please check the Project Gutenberg Web pages for current donation
+methods and addresses.  Donations are accepted in a number of other
+ways including checks, online payments and credit card donations.
+To donate, please visit:
+http://www.gutenberg.org/fundraising/donate
+
+
+Section 5.  General Information About Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
+works.
+
+Professor Michael S. Hart is the originator of the Project Gutenberg-tm
+concept of a library of electronic works that could be freely shared
+with anyone.  For thirty years, he produced and distributed Project
+Gutenberg-tm eBooks with only a loose network of volunteer support.
+
+Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks are often created from several printed
+editions, all of which are confirmed as Public Domain in the U.S.
+unless a copyright notice is included.  Thus, we do not necessarily
+keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper edition.
+
+Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search facility:
+
+     http://www.gutenberg.org
+
+This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm,
+including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary
+Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to
+subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks.
+
diff --git a/27432-8.zip b/27432-8.zip
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..ad46e11
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-8.zip
diff --git a/27432-h.zip b/27432-h.zip
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..6e13d92
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-h.zip
diff --git a/27432-h/27432-h.htm b/27432-h/27432-h.htm
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..0bd56d5
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-h/27432-h.htm
@@ -0,0 +1,7626 @@
+<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Strict//EN"
+    "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-strict.dtd">
+<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">
+<head>
+<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=ISO-8859-1" />
+<title>The Project Gutenberg eBook of The Fifth Queen Crowned, by Ford Madox Ford</title>
+    <style type="text/css">
+/*<![CDATA[  XML blockout */
+<!--
+body {
+    margin-left: 10%;
+    margin-right: 10%;
+}
+
+    h1,h2,h3,h4,h5,h6 {
+    text-align: center; /* all headings centered */
+    clear: both;
+}
+
+p {
+    margin-top: .75em;
+    text-align: justify;
+    margin-bottom: .75em;
+}
+
+hr {
+    width: 33%;
+    margin-top: 2em;
+    margin-bottom: 2em;
+    margin-left: auto;
+    margin-right: auto;
+    clear: both;
+}
+
+table {
+    margin-left: auto;
+    margin-right: auto;
+}
+
+.pagenum  { /* uncomment the next line for invisible page numbers */
+          /*  visibility: hidden;  */
+              position: absolute;
+              left: 1%;
+              font-size: smaller;
+              text-align: right;
+              color: #A9A9A9
+            } /* page numbers */
+
+.center   {text-align: center;}
+
+ a:link {text-decoration: none}
+ a:visited {text-decoration: none}
+ a:active {text-decoration: none}
+ a:hover {text-decoration: underline}
+
+    hr.full { width: 100%;
+              margin-top: 3em;
+              margin-bottom: 0em;
+              margin-left: auto;
+              margin-right: auto;
+              height: 4px;
+              border-width: 4px 0 0 0; /* remove all borders except the top one */
+              border-style: solid;
+              border-color: #000000;
+              clear: both; }
+    pre      {font-size: 85%;}
+// -->
+/* XML end  ]]>*/
+    </style>
+</head>
+<body>
+<h1>The Project Gutenberg eBook, The Fifth Queen Crowned, by Ford Madox Ford</h1>
+<pre>
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at <a href = "http://www.gutenberg.org">www.gutenberg.org</a></pre>
+<p>Title: The Fifth Queen Crowned</p>
+<p>Author: Ford Madox Ford</p>
+<p>Release Date: December 7, 2008  [eBook #27432]</p>
+<p>Language: English</p>
+<p>Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1</p>
+<p>***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE FIFTH QUEEN CROWNED***</p>
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+<h3>E-text prepared by Verity White, Suzanne Shell,<br />
+    and the Project Gutenberg Online Distributed Proofreading Team<br />
+    (http://www.pgdp.net)</h3>
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+<table cellpadding="5" border="2" style="border-style: solid; border-collapse: collapse; background-color: #DCDCDC" summary="note">
+<tr>
+<td><p class="center"><b>Transcriber's Note</b></p>
+This edition of <i>The Fifth Queen Crowned</i> was extracted from
+an omnibus edition of the trilogy, and the page numbers
+and table of contents reflect that. The two previous books of the
+trilogy are <i>The Fifth Queen</i> and <i>Privy Seal: His Last
+Venture</i>.<br />
+<br />
+Inconsistent hyphenation in the original document has been preserved.</td>
+</tr>
+</table>
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+<hr class="full" />
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+
+
+<p><br /><br /></p>
+
+<h1>THE<br />
+FIFTH QUEEN<br />
+CROWNED</h1>
+
+<h3><i>A Romance</i></h3>
+
+<p><br /></p>
+
+<p class="center"><i>"Da habt Ihr schon das End vom Lied"</i></p>
+
+<p><br /><br /></p>
+
+<p class="center">To<br />Arthur Marwood</p>
+
+<hr style="width: 65%" />
+
+<h2>CONTENTS</h2>
+
+<p class="center"><span style="font-size: smaller">PART ONE</span><br />
+The Major Cord, <a href="#page419">419</a></p>
+
+<p class="center"><span style="font-size: smaller">PART TWO</span><br />
+The Threatened Rift, <a href="#page493">493</a></p>
+
+<p class="center"><span style="font-size: smaller">PART THREE</span><br />
+The Dwindling Melody, <a href="#page541">541</a></p>
+
+<p class="center"><span style="font-size: smaller">PART FOUR</span><br />
+The End of the Song, <a href="#page559">559</a></p>
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="page419" id="page419">419</a></span></p>
+
+<h2>PART ONE</h2>
+
+<h3>THE MAJOR CHORD</h3>
+
+<h3>I</h3>
+
+<p>'The Bishop of Rome&mdash;&mdash;'</p>
+
+<p>Thomas Cranmer began a hesitating speech. In the pause after the words
+the King himself hesitated, as if he poised between a heavy rage and a
+sardonic humour. He deemed, however, that the humour could the more
+terrify the Archbishop&mdash;and, indeed, he was so much upon the joyous side
+in those summer days that he had forgotten how to browbeat.</p>
+
+<p>'Our holy father,' he corrected the Archbishop. 'Or I will say my holy
+father, since thou art a heretic&mdash;&mdash;'</p>
+
+<p>Cranmer's eyes had always the expression of a man's who looked at
+approaching calamity, but at the King's words his whole face, his closed
+lips, his brows, the lines from his round nose, all drooped suddenly
+downwards.</p>
+
+<p>'Your Grace will have me write a letter to the&mdash;to his&mdash;to him&mdash;&mdash;'</p>
+
+<p>The downward lines fixed themselves, and from amongst them the
+panic-stricken eyes made a dumb appeal to the griffins and crowns of his
+dark green hangings, for they were afraid to turn to the King. Henry
+retained his heavy look of jocularity: he jumped at a weighty gibe&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'My Grace will have thy Grace write a letter to his Holiness.'</p>
+
+<p>He dropped into a heavy impassivity, rolled his eyes, fluttered his
+swollen fingers on the red and gilded table, and then said clearly, 'My.
+Thy. His.'</p>
+
+<p>When he was in that mood he spoke with a singular distinctness that came
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="page420" id="page420">420</a></span>up from his husky and ordinary joviality like something dire and
+terrible&mdash;like that something that upon a clear smooth day will suggest
+to you suddenly the cruelty that lies always hidden in the limpid sea.</p>
+
+<p>'To C&aelig;sar&mdash;egomet, I mineself&mdash;that which is C&aelig;sar's: to him&mdash;that is to
+say to his Holiness, our lord of Rome&mdash;the things which are of God! But
+to thee, Archbishop, I know not what belongs.'</p>
+
+<p>He paused and then struck his hand upon the table: 'Cold porridge is thy
+portion! Cold porridge!' he laughed; 'for they say: Cold porridge to the
+devil! And, since thou art neither God's nor the King's, what may I call
+thee but the devil's self's man?'</p>
+
+<p>A heavy and minatory silence seemed to descend upon him; the
+Archbishop's thin hands opened suddenly as if he were letting something
+fall to the ground. The King scowled heavily, but rather as if he were
+remembering past heavinesses than for any present griefs.</p>
+
+<p>'Why,' he said, 'I am growing an old man. It is time I redded up my
+house.'</p>
+
+<p>It was as if he thought he could take his time, for his heavily pursed
+eyes looked down at the square tips of his fingers where they drummed on
+the table. He was such a weighty man that the old chair in which he sat
+creaked at the movement of his limbs. It was his affectation of courtesy
+that he would not sit in the Archbishop's own new gilded and great chair
+that had been brought from Lambeth on a mule's back along with the
+hangings. But the other furnishings of that Castle of Pontefract were as
+old as the days of Edward IV&mdash;even the scarlet wood of the table had
+upon it the arms of Edward IV's Queen Elizabeth, side by side with that
+King's. Henry noted it and said&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'It is time these arms were changed. See that you have here fairly
+painted the arms of my Queen and me&mdash;Howard and Tudor&mdash;in token that we
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="page421" id="page421">421</a></span>have passed this way and sojourned in this Castle of Pontefract.'</p>
+
+<p>He was dallying with time as if it were a luxury to dally: he looked
+curiously round the room.</p>
+
+<p>'Why, they have not housed you very well,' he said, and, as the
+Archbishop shivered suddenly, he added, 'there should be glass in the
+windows. This is a foul old kennel.'</p>
+
+<p>'I have made a complaint to the Earl Marshal,' Cranmer said dismally,
+'but 'a said there was overmuch room needed above ground.'</p>
+
+<p>This room was indeed below ground and very old, strong, and damp. The
+Archbishop's own hangings covered the walls, but the windows shot
+upwards through the stones to the light; there was upon the ground of
+stone not a carpet but only rushes; being early in the year, no
+provision was made for firing, and the soot of the chimney back was
+damp, and sparkled with the track of a snail that had lived there
+undisturbed for many years, and neither increasing, because it had no
+mate, nor dying, because it was well fed by the ferns that, behind the
+present hangings, grew in the joints of the stones. In that low-ceiled
+and dark place the Archbishop was aware that above his head were fair
+and sunlit rooms, newly painted and hung, with the bosses on the
+ceilings fresh silvered or gilt, all these fair places having been given
+over to kinsmen of the yellow Earl Marshal from the Norfolk Queen
+downwards. And the temporal and material neglect angered him and filled
+him with a querulous bitterness that gnawed up even through his dread of
+a future&mdash;still shadowy&mdash;fall and ruin.</p>
+
+<p>The King looked sardonically at the line of the ceiling. He had known
+that Norfolk, who was the Earl Marshal, had the mean mind to make him
+set these indignities upon the Archbishop, and loftily he considered
+this result as if the Archbishop were a cat mauled by his own dog whose
+nature it was to maul cats.</p>
+
+<p>The Archbishop had been standing with one hand on the arm of his heavy
+chair, about to haul it back from the table to sit himself down. He had
+been standing thus when the King had entered with the brusque words&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Make you ready to write a letter to Rome.'<span class='pagenum'><a name="page422" id="page422">422</a></span></p>
+
+<p>And he still stood there, the cold feet among the damp rushes, the cold
+hand still upon the arm of the chair, the cap pulled forward over his
+eyes, the long black gown hanging motionless to the boot tops that were
+furred around the ankles.</p>
+
+<p>'I have made a plaint to the Earl Marshal,' he said; 'it is not fitting
+that a lord of the Church should be so housed.'</p>
+
+<p>Henry eyed him sardonically.</p>
+
+<p>'Sir,' he said, 'I am being brought round to think that ye are only a
+false lord of the Church. And I am minded to think that ye are being
+brought round to trow even the like to mine own self.'</p>
+
+<p>His eyes rested, little and twinkling like a pig's, upon the opening of
+the Archbishop's cloak above his breastbone, and the Archbishop's right
+hand nervously sought that spot.</p>
+
+<p>'I was always of the thought,' he said, 'that the prohibition of the
+wearing of crucifixes was against your Highness' will and the teachings
+of the Church.'</p>
+
+<p>A great crucifix of silver, the Man of Sorrows depending dolorously from
+its arms and backed up by a plaque of silver so that it resembled a
+porter's badge, depended over the black buttons of his undercoat. He had
+put it on upon the day when secretly he had married Henry to the papist
+Lady Katharine Howard. On the same day he had put on a hair shirt, and
+he had never since removed either the one or the other. He had known
+very well that this news would reach the Queen's ears, as also that he
+had fasted thrice weekly and had taken a Benedictine sub-prior out of
+chains in the tower to be his second chaplain.</p>
+
+<p>'Holy Church! Holy Church!' the King muttered amusedly into the stiff
+hair of his chin and lips. The Archbishop was driven into one of his
+fits of panic-stricken boldness.</p>
+
+<p>'Your Grace,' he said, 'if ye write a letter to Rome you will&mdash;for I see
+not how ye may avoid it&mdash;reverse all your acts of this last twenty
+years.'</p>
+
+<p>'Your Grace,' the King mocked him, 'by your setting on<span class='pagenum'><a name="page423" id="page423">423</a></span> of chains,
+crucifixes, phylacteries, and by your aping of monkish ways, ye have
+reversed&mdash;well ye know it&mdash;all my and thy acts of a long time gone.'</p>
+
+<p>He cast himself back from the table into the leathern shoulder-straps of
+the chair.</p>
+
+<p>'And if,' he continued with sardonic good-humour, 'my fellow and servant
+may reverse my acts&mdash;videlicet, the King's&mdash;wherefore shall not
+I&mdash;videlicet, the King&mdash;reverse what acts I will? It is to set me below
+my servants!'</p>
+
+<p>'I am minded to redd up my house!' he repeated after a moment.</p>
+
+<p>'Please it, your Grace&mdash;&mdash;' the Archbishop muttered. His eyes were upon
+the door.</p>
+
+<p>The King said, 'Anan?' He could not turn his bulky head, he would not
+move his bulky body.</p>
+
+<p>'My gentleman!' the Archbishop whispered.</p>
+
+<p>The King looked at the opposite wall and cried out&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Come in, Lascelles. I am about cleaning out some stables of mine.'</p>
+
+<p>The door moved noiselessly and heavily back, taking the hangings with
+it; as if with the furtive eyes and feathery grace of a blonde fox
+Cranmer's spy came round the great boards.</p>
+
+<p>'Ay! I am doing some cleansing,' the King said again. 'Come hither and
+mend thy pen to write.'</p>
+
+<p>Against the King's huge bulk&mdash;Henry was wearing purple and black upon
+that day&mdash;and against the Archbishop's black and pillar-like form,
+Lascelles, in his scarlet, with his blonde and tender beard had an air
+of being quill-like. The bones of his knees through his tight and thin
+silken stockings showed almost as those of a skeleton; where the King
+had great chains of gilt and green jewels round his neck, and where the
+Archbishop had a heavy chain of silver, he had a thin chain of fine gold
+and a tiny badge of silver-gilt. He dragged one of his legs a little
+when he walked. That was the fashion of that day, because the King
+himself dragged his right leg, though the ulcer in it had been cured.<span class='pagenum'><a name="page424" id="page424">424</a></span></p>
+
+<p>Sitting askew in his chair at the table, the King did not look at this
+gentleman, but moved the fingers of his outstretched hand in token that
+his crook of the leg was kneeling enough for him.</p>
+
+<p>'Take your tablets and write,' Henry said; 'nay, take a great sheet of
+parchment and write&mdash;&mdash;'</p>
+
+<p>'Your Grace,' he added to the Archbishop, 'ye are the greatest penner of
+solemn sentences that I have in my realm. What I shall say roughly to
+Lascelles you shall ponder upon and set down nobly, at first in the
+vulgar tongue and then in fine Latin.' He paused and added&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Nay; ye shall write it in the vulgar tongue, and the Magister Udal
+shall set it into Latin. He is the best Latinist we have&mdash;better than
+myself, for I have no time&mdash;&mdash;'</p>
+
+<p>Lascelles was going between a great cabinet with iron hinges and the
+table. He fetched an inkhorn set into a tripod, a sandarach, and a roll
+of clean parchment that was tied around with a green ribbon.</p>
+
+<p>Upon the gold and red of the table he stretched out the parchment as if
+it had been a map. He mended his pen with a little knife and kneeled
+down upon the rushes beside the table, his chin level with the edge. His
+whole mind appeared to be upon keeping the yellowish sheet straight and
+true upon the red and gold, and he raised his eyes neither to the
+Archbishop's white face nor yet to the King's red one.</p>
+
+<p>Henry stroked the short hairs of his neck below the square grey beard.
+He was reflecting that very soon all the people in that castle, and very
+soon after, most of the people in that land would know what he was about
+to say.</p>
+
+<p>'Write now,' he said. '"Henry&mdash;by the grace of God&mdash;Defender of the
+Faith&mdash;King, Lord Paramount."' He stirred in his chair.</p>
+
+<p>'Set down all my styles and titles: "Duke
+Palatine&mdash;Earl&mdash;Baron&mdash;Knight"&mdash;leave out nothing, for I will show how
+mighty I am.' He hummed, considered, set his head on one side and then
+began to speak swiftly<span class='pagenum'><a name="page425" id="page425">425</a></span>&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Set it down thus: "We, Henry, and the rest, being a very mighty King,
+such as few have been, are become a very humble man. A man broken by
+years, having suffered much. A man humbled to the dust, crawling to kiss
+the wounds of his Redeemer. A Lord of many miles both of sea and land."
+Why, say&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'"Guide and Leader of many legions, yet comes he to thee for guidance."
+Say, too, "He who was proud cometh to thee to regain his pride. He who
+was proud in things temporal cometh to thee that he may once more have
+the pride of a champion in Christendom&mdash;&mdash;"'</p>
+
+<p>He had been speaking as if with a malicious glee, for his words seemed
+to strike, each one, into the face of the pallid figure, darkly standing
+before him. And he was aware that each word increased the stiff and
+watchful constraint of the figure that knelt beside the table to write.
+But suddenly his glee left him; he scowled at the Archbishop as if
+Cranmer had caused him to sin. He pulled at the collar around his
+throat.</p>
+
+<p>'No,' he cried out, 'write down in simple words that I am a very sinful
+man. Set it down that I grow old! That I am filled with fears for my
+poor soul! That I have sinned much! That I recall all that I have done!
+An old man, I come to my Saviour's Regent upon earth. A man aware of
+error, I will make restitution tenfold! Say I am broken and aged and
+afraid! I kneel down on the ground&mdash;&mdash;'</p>
+
+<p>He cast his inert mass suddenly a little forward as if indeed he were
+about to come on to his knees in the rushes.</p>
+
+<p>'Say&mdash;&mdash;' he muttered&mdash;'say&mdash;&mdash;'</p>
+
+<p>But his face and his eyes became suffused with blood.</p>
+
+<p>'It is a very difficult thing,' he uttered huskily, 'to meddle in these
+sacred matters.'</p>
+
+<p>He fell heavily back into his chair-straps once more.</p>
+
+<p>'I do not know what I will have you to say,' he said.</p>
+
+<p>He looked broodingly at the floor.</p>
+
+<p>'I do not know,' he muttered.</p>
+
+<p>He rolled his eyes, first to the face of the Archbishop, then to
+Lascelles<span class='pagenum'><a name="page426" id="page426">426</a></span>&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Body of God&mdash;what carved turnips!' he said, for in the one face there
+was only panic, and in the other nothing at all. He rolled on to his
+feet, catching at the table to steady himself.</p>
+
+<p>'Write what you will,' he called, 'to these intents and purposes. Or
+stay to write&mdash;I will send you a letter much more good from the upper
+rooms.'</p>
+
+<p>Cranmer suddenly stretched out, with a timid pitifulness, his white
+hands. But, rolling his huge shoulders, like a hastening bear, the King
+went over the rushes. He pulled the heavy door to with such a vast force
+that the latch came again out of the hasp, and the door, falling slowly
+back and quivering as if with passion, showed them his huge legs
+mounting the little staircase.</p>
+
+<hr style="width: 45%;" />
+
+<p>A long silence fell in that dim room. The Archbishop's lips moved
+silently, the spy's glance went, level, along his parchment. Suddenly he
+grinned mirthlessly and as if at a shameless thought.</p>
+
+<p>'The Queen will write the letter his Grace shall send us,' he said.</p>
+
+<p>Then their eyes met. The one glance, panic-stricken, seeing no issue,
+hopeless and without resource, met the other&mdash;crafty, alert, fox-like,
+with a dance in it. The glances transfused and mingled. Lascelles
+remained upon his knees as if, stretching out his right knee behind him,
+he were taking a long rest.</p>
+
+<h3>II</h3>
+
+<p>It was almost within earshot of these two men in their dim cell that the
+Queen walked from the sunlight into shadow and out again. This great
+terrace looked to the north and west, and, from the little hillock,
+dominating miles of gently rising ground, she had a great view over
+rolling and very green country. The original builders of the Castle of
+Pontefract had meant this terrace to be flagged with stone:<span class='pagenum'><a name="page427" id="page427">427</a></span> but the
+work had never been carried so far forward. There was only a path of
+stone along the bowshot and a half of stone balustrade; the rest had
+once been gravel, but the grass had grown over it; that had been
+scythed, and nearly the whole space was covered with many carpets of
+blue and red and other very bright colours. In the left corner when you
+faced inwards there was a great pavilion of black cloth, embroidered
+very closely with gold and held up by ropes of red and white. Though
+forty people could sit in it round the table, it appeared very small,
+the walls of the castle towered up so high. They towered up so high, so
+square, and so straight that from the terrace below you could hardly
+hear the flutter of the huge banner of St George, all red and white
+against the blue sky, though sometimes in a gust it cracked like a huge
+whip, and its shadow, where it fell upon the terrace, was sufficient to
+cover four men.</p>
+
+<p>To take away from the grimness of the flat walls many little banners had
+been suspended from loopholes and beneath windows. Swallow-tailed, long,
+or square, they hung motionless in the shelter, or, since the dying away
+of the great gale three days before, had looped themselves over their
+staffs. These were all painted green, because that was the Queen's
+favourite colour, being the emblem of Hope.</p>
+
+<p>A little pavilion, all of green silk, at the very edge of the platform,
+had all its green curtains looped up, so that only the green roof
+showed; and, within, two chairs, a great leathern one for the King, a
+little one of red and white wood for the Queen, stood side by side as if
+they conversed with each other. At the top of it was a golden image of a
+lion, and above the peak of the entrance another, golden too, of the
+Goddess Flora, carrying a cornucopia of flowers, to symbolise that this
+tent was a summer abode for pleasantness.</p>
+
+<p>Here the King and Queen, for the four days that they had been in the
+castle, had delighted much to sit, resting after their long ride up from
+the south country. For it pleased Henry to let his eyes rest upon a
+great view of this realm that was his, and to think nothing; and it
+pleased<span class='pagenum'><a name="page428" id="page428">428</a></span> Katharine Howard to think that now she swayed this land, and
+that soon she would alter its face.</p>
+
+<p>They looked out, over the tops of the elm trees that grew right up
+against the terrace wall; but the land itself was too green, the fields
+too empty of dwellings. There was no one but sheep between all the
+hedgerows: there was, in all the wide view, but one church tower, and
+where, in place and place, there stood clusters of trees as if to
+shelter homesteads&mdash;nearly always the homesteads had fallen to ruin
+beneath the boughs. Upon one ridge one could see the long walls of an
+unroofed abbey. But, to the keenest eye no men were visible, save now
+and then a shepherd leaning on his crook. There was no ploughland at
+all. Now and then companies of men in helmets and armour rode up to or
+away from the castle. Once she had seen the courtyard within the keep
+filled with cattle that lowed uneasily. But these, she had learned, had
+been taken from cattle thieves by the men of the Council of the Northern
+Borders. They were destined for the provisioning of that castle during
+her stay there, they being forfeit, whether Scotch or English.</p>
+
+<p>'Ah,' she said, 'whilst his Grace rides north to meet the King's Scots I
+will ride east and west and south each day.'</p>
+
+<hr style="width: 45%;" />
+
+<p>At that moment, whilst the King had left Cranmer and his spy and, to
+regain his composure, was walking up and down in her chamber, she was
+standing beside the Duke of Norfolk about midway between the end of the
+terrace and the little green pavilion.</p>
+
+<p>She was all in a dark purple dress, to please the King whose mood that
+colour suited; and the Duke's yellow face looked out above a suit all of
+black. He wore that to please the King too, for the King was of opinion
+that no gathering looked gay in its colours that had not many men in
+black amongst the number.</p>
+
+<p>He said&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'You do not ride north with his Grace?'</p>
+
+<p>He leaned upon his two staves, one long and of silver, the other shorter
+and gilt; his gown fell down to his ankles,<span class='pagenum'><a name="page429" id="page429">429</a></span> his dark and half-closed
+eyes looked out at a tree that, struck lately by lightning, stretched up
+half its boughs all naked from a little hillock beside a pond a mile
+away.</p>
+
+<p>'So it is settled between his Grace and me,' she said. She did not much
+like her uncle, for she had little cause. But, the King being away, she
+walked with him rather than with another man.</p>
+
+<p>'I ask, perforce,' he said, 'for I have much work in the ordering of
+your progresses.'</p>
+
+<p>'We meant that you should have that news this day,' she said.</p>
+
+<p>He shot one glance at her face, then turned his eyes again upon the
+stricken tree. Her face was absolutely calm and without expression, as
+it had been always when she had directed him what she would have done.
+He could trace no dejection in it: on the other hand, he gave her credit
+for a great command over her features. That he had himself. And, in the
+niece's eyes, as they moved from the backs of a flock of sheep to the
+dismantled abbey on the ridge, there was something of the enigmatic
+self-containment that was in the uncle's steady glance. He could observe
+no dejection, and at that he humbled himself a little more.</p>
+
+<p>'Ay,' he said, 'the ordering of your progresses is a heavy burden. I
+would have you commend what I have done here.'</p>
+
+<p>She looked at him, at that, as if with a swift jealousy. His eyes were
+roving upon the gay carpets, the pavilions, and the flags against the
+grim walls, depending in motionless streaks of colour.</p>
+
+<p>'The King's Grace's self,' she said, 'did tell me that all these things
+he ordered and thought out for my pleasuring.'</p>
+
+<p>Norfolk dropped his eyes to the ground.</p>
+
+<p>'Aye,' he said, 'his Grace ordered them and their placing. There is no
+man to equal his Grace for such things; but I had the work of setting
+them where they are. I would have your favour for that.'<span class='pagenum'><a name="page430" id="page430">430</a></span></p>
+
+<p>She appeared appeased and gave him her hand to kiss. There was a little
+dark mole upon the third finger.</p>
+
+<p>'The last niece that I had for Queen,' he said, 'would not suffer me to
+kiss her hand.'</p>
+
+<p>She looked at him a little absently, for, because since she had been
+Queen&mdash;and before&mdash;she had been a lonely woman, she was given to
+thinking her own thoughts whilst others talked.</p>
+
+<p>She was troubled by the condition of her chief maid Margot Poins. Margot
+Poins was usually tranquil, modest, submissive in a cheerful manner and
+ready to converse. But of late she had been moody, and sunk in a dull
+silence. And that morning she had suddenly burst out into a smouldering,
+heavy passion, and had torn Katharine's hair whilst she dressed it.</p>
+
+<p>'Ay,' Margot had said, 'you are Queen: you can do what you will. It is
+well to be Queen. But we who are dirt underfoot, we cannot do one single
+thing.'</p>
+
+<p>And, because she was lonely, with only Lady Rochford, who was foolish,
+and this girl to talk to, it had grieved the Queen to find this girl
+growing so lumpish and dull. At that time, whilst her hair was being
+dressed, she had answered only&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Yea; it is good to be a Queen. But you will find it in Seneca&mdash;&mdash;' and
+she had translated for Margot the passage which says that eagles are as
+much tied by weighty ropes as are finches caught in tiny fillets.</p>
+
+<p>'Oh, your Latin,' Margot had said. 'I would I had never heard the sound
+of it, but had stuck to clean English.'</p>
+
+<p>Katharine imagined then that it was some new flame of the Magister
+Udal's that was troubling the girl, and this troubled her too, for she
+did not like that her maids should be played with by men, and she loved
+Margot for her past loyalties, readiness, and companionship.</p>
+
+<hr style="width: 45%;" />
+
+<p>She came out of her thoughts to say to her uncle, remembering his speech
+about her hands<span class='pagenum'><a name="page431" id="page431">431</a></span>&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Aye; I have heard that Anne Boleyn had six fingers upon her right
+hand.'</p>
+
+<p>'She had six upon each, but she concealed it,' he answered. 'It was her
+greatest grief.'</p>
+
+<p>Katharine realised that his sardonic tone, his bitter yellow face, the
+croak in his voice, and his stiff gait&mdash;all these things were signs of
+his hostility to her. And his mention of Anne Boleyn, who had been
+Queen, much as she was, and of her bitter fate, this mention, if it
+could not be a threat, was, at least, a reminder meant to give her fears
+and misgiving. When she had been a child&mdash;and afterwards, until the very
+day when she had been shown for Queen&mdash;her uncle had always treated her
+with a black disdain, as he treated all the rest of the world. When he
+had&mdash;and it was rarely enough&mdash;come to visit her grandmother, the old
+Duchess of Norfolk, he had always been like that. Through the old
+woman's huge, lonely, and ugly halls he had always stridden, halting a
+little over the rushes, and all creatures must keep out of his way. Once
+he had kicked her little dog, once he had pushed her aside; but
+probably, then, when she had been no more than a child, he had not known
+who she was, for she had lived with the servants and played with the
+servants' children, much like one of them, and her grandmother had known
+little of the household or its ways.</p>
+
+<p>She answered him sharply&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'I have heard that you were no good friend to your niece, Anne Boleyn,
+when she was in her troubles.'</p>
+
+<p>He swallowed in his throat and gazed impassively at the distant oak
+tree, nevertheless his knee trembled with fury. And Katharine knew very
+well that if, more than another, he took pleasure in giving pain with
+his words, he bore the pain of other's words less well than most men.</p>
+
+<p>'The Queen Anne,' he said, 'was a heretic. No better was she than a
+Protestant. She battened upon the goods of our Church. Why should I
+defend her?'</p>
+
+<p>'Uncle,' she said, 'where got you the jewel in your bonnet?'<span class='pagenum'><a name="page432" id="page432">432</a></span></p>
+
+<p>He started a little back at that, and the small veins in his yellow
+eye-whites grew inflamed with blood.</p>
+
+<p>'Queen&mdash;&mdash;' he brought out between rage and astonishment that she
+should dare the taunt.</p>
+
+<p>'I think it came from the great chalice of the Abbey of Rising,' she
+said. 'We are valiant defenders of the Church, who wear its spoils upon
+our very brows.'</p>
+
+<p>It was as if she had thrown down a glove to him and to a great many that
+were behind him.</p>
+
+<p>She knew very well where she stood, and she knew very well what her
+uncle and his friends awaited for her, for Margot, her maid, brought her
+alike the gossip of the Court and the loudly voiced threats and
+aspirations of the city. For the Protestants&mdash;she knew them and cared
+little for them. She did not believe there were very many in the King's
+and her realm, and mostly they were foreign merchants and poor men who
+cared little as long as their stomachs were filled. If these had their
+farms again they would surely return to the old faith, and she was
+minded to do away with the sheep. For it was the sheep that had brought
+discontent to England. To make way for these fleeces the ploughmen had
+been dispossessed.</p>
+
+<p>It was natural that Protestants should hate her; but with Norfolk and
+his like it was different. She knew very well that Norfolk came there
+that day and waited every day, watching anxiously for the first sign
+that the King's love for her should cool. She knew very well that they
+said in the Court that with the King it was only possession and then
+satiety. And she knew very well that when Norfolk's eyes searched her
+face it was for signs of dismay and of discouragement. And when Norfolk
+had said that he himself had placed the banners, the tents, the
+pavilions and carpets that made gay all that grim terrace of the air, he
+was essaying to make her think that the King was abandoning the task of
+doing her honour. This had made her angry, for it was such folly. Her
+uncle should have known that the King had discussed all these things
+with her, asking her what she liked, and that all these bright colours
+and these<span class='pagenum'><a name="page433" id="page433">433</a></span> plaisaunces were what her man had gallantly thought out for
+her. She carried her challenge still further.</p>
+
+<p>'It ill becomes us Howards and all like us,' she said, 'to talk of how
+we will defend the Church of God&mdash;&mdash;'</p>
+
+<p>'I am a swordsman only,' he said. 'Give me that&mdash;&mdash;'</p>
+
+<p>She was not minded to listen to him.</p>
+
+<p>'It becomes us ill,' she said; 'and I take shame in it. For, a very few
+years agone we Howards were very poor. Now we are very rich&mdash;though it
+is true that my father is still a very poor man, and your stepmother, my
+grandmother, has known hard shifts. But we Howards, through you who are
+our head, became amongst the richest in the land. And how?'</p>
+
+<p>'I have done services&mdash;&mdash;' the Duke began.</p>
+
+<p>'Why, there has been no new wealth made in this realm,' she said; 'it
+came from the Church. Consider what you have had of this Abbey of
+Risings that I speak of, because I knew it well as a child, and saw many
+times then, sparkling in that which held the blood of my Saviour, the
+jewel that is now in your cap.'</p>
+
+<p>The Abbey of Risings, after the visitors had been to it and the monks
+had been driven out, had fallen to the Duke of Norfolk. And his men had
+stripped the lead from the roofs, the glass from the windows, the very
+tiles from the floor. And this little abbey was only one of many, large
+and small, that had fallen to the Duke, so that it was true enough that,
+through him, the Howards had become a very rich family.</p>
+
+<p>Norfolk burst into a sudden speech&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'I hold these things only as a trust,' he said. 'I am ready to restore.'</p>
+
+<p>'Why, that is very well,' Katharine said; 'and I have hopes that soon
+you will be called to make that restoration to your God.'</p>
+
+<p>Norfolk looked at the square toes of his shoes for a long time.</p>
+
+<p>'Will you have <i>all</i> things to be given back?' he said at last after he
+had thought much.<span class='pagenum'><a name="page434" id="page434">434</a></span></p>
+
+<p>'The King will have all things be as they were before the Queen
+Katharine, my namesake of Aragon, was undone,' Katharine answered. 'And
+me he will have to take her place so that all things shall be as before
+they were.'</p>
+
+<p>The Duke, leaning on his silver and gold staves, shrugged his shoulders
+very slowly.</p>
+
+<p>'This will make a very great confusion,' he said.</p>
+
+<p>'Ay,' Katharine answered, 'there will a very many be confounded, and a
+great number of hundreds be much annoyed.'</p>
+
+<p>She broke in again upon his slow meditations&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Sir,' she said, 'this is a very pitiful thing! Privy Seal that is dead
+and done with worked with a very great cunning. Well he knew that for
+most men the heart resideth in the pocket. Therefore, though ye said all
+that he rode this land with a bridle of iron, he was very careful to
+stop all your mouths alike with pieces of gold. It was not only to his
+friends that he gave what had been taken from God, but he was very
+careful that much also should fall into the greedy mouths of those that
+cried out. If he had not done this, do you think that he would have
+remained so long above the earth that he made weary? No. But since he
+made all rich alike with this plunder, so there was no man, either
+Catholic or Lutheran, very anxious to have him away. And, now that he is
+dead he worketh still. For who among you lords that do call yourselves
+sons of the Church, but holdeth of the Church's goods? Oh, bethink you!
+bethink you! The moment is at hand when ye may work restoration. See
+that ye do it willingly and with good hearts, smoothing and making plain
+the way by which the bruised feet of our Saviour shall come across this,
+His land.'</p>
+
+<p>Norfolk kept his eyes upon the ground.</p>
+
+<p>'Why, for me,' he said, 'I am very willing. This day I will send to set
+clerks at work discovering that which is mine and that which came from
+the Church; but I think you will find some that will not do it so
+eagerly.'</p>
+
+<p>She believed him very little; and she said<span class='pagenum'><a name="page435" id="page435">435</a></span>&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Why, if you will do this thing I think there will not many be
+behindhand.'</p>
+
+<p>He did what he could to conceal his wincing, and her voice changed its
+tone.</p>
+
+<p>'Sir,' she said, and she was eager and pleading, 'you have many men that
+take counsel with you, for I trow that you and my Lord of Winchester do
+lead such lords as be Catholic in this realm. I know very well that you
+and my Lord Bishop of Winchester and such Catholic lords would have me
+to be your puppet and so work as you would have me, giving back to the
+Church such things as have fallen to Protestants or to men that ye
+mislike. But that may not be, for, since I owe mine advancement not to
+you, nor to mine own efforts, but to God alone, so to God alone do I owe
+fealty.'</p>
+
+<p>She stretched out towards him the hand that he had kissed. The tail of
+her coif fell almost to her feet; her body in the fresh sunlight was all
+cased in purple velvet, only the lawn of her undershirt showed, white
+and tremulous at her wrists and her neck; and, fair and contrasted with
+the gold of her hair, her face came out of its abstraction, to take on a
+pitiful and mournful earnestness.</p>
+
+<p>'Sir,' she said, 'if you shall speak for God in the councils that you
+will hold, believe that your rewards shall be very great. I think that
+you have been a man of a very troubled mind, for you have thought only
+or mostly of the affairs of this world. But do now this one good stroke
+for God His piteous sake, and such a peace shall descend upon you as you
+have never yet known. You shall have no more griefs; you shall have no
+more fears. And that is better than the jewels of chalices, and than
+much lead from the roofs of abbeys. Speak you thus in these councils
+that you shall hold, give you such advice to them that come to you
+seeking it, and this I promise you&mdash;for it is too little a thing to
+promise you the love of a Queen and a King's favour, though that too ye
+shall not lack&mdash;but this I promise you, that there shall descend upon
+your heart that most blessed miracle and precious wealth, the peace of
+God.'<span class='pagenum'><a name="page436" id="page436">436</a></span></p>
+
+<h3>III</h3>
+
+<p>When Henry was calmed by his pacing in her chamber he came out to her in
+the sunlight, rolling and bear-like, and so huge that the terrace seemed
+to grow smaller.</p>
+
+<p>'Chuck,' he said to her, 'I ha' done a thing to pleasure thee.' He moved
+two fingers upwards to save the Duke of Norfolk from falling to his
+knees, caught Katharine by the elbow, and, turning upon himself as on a
+huge pivot, swung her round him so that they faced the pavilion. 'Sha't
+not talk with a citron-faced uncle,' he said; 'sha't save sweet words
+for me. I will tell thee what I ha' done to pleasure thee.'</p>
+
+<p>'Save it a while and do another ere ye tell me,' she said.</p>
+
+<p>'Now, what is your reasoning about that, wise one?' he asked.</p>
+
+<p>She laughed at him, for she took pleasure in his society and, except
+when she was earnest to beg things of him, she was mostly gay at his
+side.</p>
+
+<p>'It takes a woman to teach kings,' she said.</p>
+
+<p>He answered that it took a Queen to teach him.</p>
+
+<p>'Why,' she said, 'listen! I know that each day ye do things to pleasure
+me, things prodigal or such little things as giving me pouncet boxes.
+But you will find&mdash;and a woman, quean or queen, knows it well&mdash;that to
+take the full pleasure of her lover's surprises well, she must have an
+easy mind. And to have an easy mind she must have granted her the
+little, little boons she asketh.'</p>
+
+<p>He reflected ponderously upon this point and at last, with a sort of
+peasant's gravity, nodded his head.</p>
+
+<p>'For,' she said, 'if a woman is to take pleasure she must guess at what
+you men have done for her. And if she be to guess pleasurably, she must
+have a clear mind. And if I am to have a clear mind I must have a maiden
+consoled with a husband.'</p>
+
+<p>Henry seated himself carefully in the great chair of the small pavilion.
+He spread out his knees, blinked at the view<span class='pagenum'><a name="page437" id="page437">437</a></span> and when, having cast a
+look round to see that Norfolk was gone&mdash;for it did not suit her that he
+should see on what terms she was with the King&mdash;she seated herself on a
+little foot-pillow at his feet, he set a great hand upon her head. She
+leaned her arms across over his knees, and looked up at him appealingly.</p>
+
+<p>'I do take it,' he said, 'that I must make some man rich to wed some
+poor maid.'</p>
+
+<p>'Oh, Solomon!' she said.</p>
+
+<p>'And I do take it,' he continued with gravity, 'that this maid is thy
+maid Margot.'</p>
+
+<p>'How know you that?' she said.</p>
+
+<p>'I have observed her,' he maintained gravely.</p>
+
+<p>'Why, you could not well miss her,' she answered. 'She is as big as a
+plough-ox.'</p>
+
+<p>'I have observed,' he said&mdash;and he blinked his little eyes as if,
+pleasurably, she were, with her words, whispering around his head. 'I
+have observed that ye affected her.'</p>
+
+<p>'Why, she likes me well. She is a good wench&mdash;and to-day she tore my
+hair.'</p>
+
+<p>'Then that is along of a man?' he asked. 'Didst not stick thy needle in
+her arm? Or wilto be quit of her?'</p>
+
+<p>She rubbed her chin.</p>
+
+<p>'Why, if she wed, I mun be quit of her,' she said, as if she had never
+thought of that thing.</p>
+
+<p>He answered&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Assuredly; for ye may not part man and lawful wife were you seven times
+Queen.'</p>
+
+<p>'Why,' she said, 'I have little pleasure in Margot as she is.'</p>
+
+<p>'Then let her go,' he answered.</p>
+
+<p>'But I am a very lonely Queen,' she said, 'for you are much absent.'</p>
+
+<p>He reflected pleasurably.</p>
+
+<p>'Thee wouldst have about thee a little company of well-wishers?'</p>
+
+<p>'So that they be those thou lovest well,' she said.</p>
+
+<p>'Why, thy maid contents me,' he answered. He reflected<span class='pagenum'><a name="page438" id="page438">438</a></span> slowly. 'We must
+give her man a post about thee,' he uttered triumphantly.</p>
+
+<p>'Why, trust thee to pleasure me,' she said. 'You will find out a way
+always.'</p>
+
+<p>He scrubbed her nose gently with his heavy finger.</p>
+
+<p>'Who is the man?' he said. 'What ruffler?'</p>
+
+<p>'I think it is the Magister Udal,' she answered.</p>
+
+<p>Henry said&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Oh ho! oh ho!' And after a moment he slapped his thigh and laughed like
+a child. She laughed with him, silverly upon a little sound between 'ah'
+and 'e.' He stopped his laugh to listen to hers, and then he said
+gravely&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'I think your laugh is the prettiest sound I ever heard. I would give
+thy maid Margot a score of husbands to make thee laugh.'</p>
+
+<p>'One is enough to make her weep,' she said; 'and I may laugh at thee.'</p>
+
+<p>He said&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Let us finish this business within the hour. Sit you upon your chair
+that I may call one to send this ruffler here.'</p>
+
+<p>She rose, with one sinuous motion that pleased him well, half to her
+feet and, feeling behind her with one hand for the chair, aided herself
+with the other upon his shoulder because she knew that it gave him joy
+to be her prop.</p>
+
+<p>'Call the maid, too,' she said, 'for I would come to the secret soon.'</p>
+
+<p>That pleased him too, and, having shouted for a knave he once more shook
+with laughter.</p>
+
+<p>'Oh ho,' he said, 'you will net this old fox, will you?'</p>
+
+<p>And, having sent his messenger off to summon the Magister from the Lady
+Mary's room, and the maid from the Queen's, he continued for a while to
+soliloquise as to Udal's predicament. For he had heard the Magister rail
+against matrimony in Latin hexameters and doggerel Greek. He knew that
+the Magister was an incorrigible fumbler after petticoats. And now, he
+said, this old fox was to be bagged and tied up.</p>
+
+<p>He said<span class='pagenum'><a name="page439" id="page439">439</a></span>&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Well, well, well; well, well!'</p>
+
+<p>For, if a Queen commanded a marriage, a marriage there must be; there
+was no more hope for the Magister than for any slave of Cato's. He was
+cabined, ginned, trapped, shut in from the herd of bachelors. It pleased
+the King very well.</p>
+
+<p>The King grasped the gilded arms of his great chair, Katharine sat
+beside him, her hands laid one within another upon her lap. She did not
+say one single word during the King's interview with Magister Udal.</p>
+
+<p>The Magister fell upon his knees before them and, seeing the laughing
+wrinkles round the King's little eyes, made sure that he was sent
+for&mdash;as had often been the case&mdash;to turn into Latin some jest the King
+had made. His gown fell about his kneeling shins, his cap was at his
+side, his lean, brown, and sly face, with the long nose and crafty eyes,
+was like a woodpecker's.</p>
+
+<p>'Goodman Magister,' Henry said. 'Stand up. We have sent for thee to
+advance thee.' Without moving his head he rolled his eyes to one side.
+He loved his dramatic effects and wished to await the coming of the
+Queen's maid, Margot, before he gave the weight of his message.</p>
+
+<p>Udal picked up his cap and came up to his feet before them; he had
+beneath his gown a little book, and one long finger between its leaves
+to keep his place where he had been reading. For he had forgotten a
+saying of Thales, and was reading through C&aelig;sar's Commentaries to find
+it.</p>
+
+<p>'As Seneca said,' he uttered in his throat, 'advancement is doubly sweet
+to them that deserve it not.'</p>
+
+<p>'Why,' the King said, 'we advance thee on the deserts of one that finds
+thee sweet, and is sweet to one doubly sweet to us, Henry of Windsor
+that speak sweet words to thee.'</p>
+
+<p>The lines on Udal's face drooped all a little downwards.</p>
+
+<p>'Y'are reader in Latin to the Lady Mary,' the King said.</p>
+
+<p>'I have little deserved in that office,' Udal answered; 'the lady reads
+Latin better than even I.'</p>
+
+<p>'Why, you lie in that,' Henry said, ''a readeth well for she's my
+daughter; but not so well as thee.'<span class='pagenum'><a name="page440" id="page440">440</a></span></p>
+
+<p>Udal ducked his head; he was not minded to carry modesty further than in
+reason.</p>
+
+<p>'The Lady Mary&mdash;the Lady Mary of England&mdash;&mdash;' the King said
+weightily&mdash;and these last two words of his had a weight all their own,
+so that he added, 'of England' again, and then, 'will have little longer
+need of thee. She shall wed with a puissant Prince.'</p>
+
+<p>'I hail, I felicitate, I bless the day I hear those words,' the Magister
+said.</p>
+
+<p>'Therefore,' the King said&mdash;and his ears had caught the rustle of
+Margot's grey gown&mdash;'we will let thee no more be reader to that my
+daughter.'</p>
+
+<p>Margot came round the green silk curtains that were looped on the corner
+posts of the pavilion. When she saw the Magister her great, fair face
+became slowly of a fiery red; slowly and silently she fell, with motions
+as if bovine, to her knees at the Queen's side. Her gown was all grey,
+but it had roses of red and white silk round the upper edges of the
+square neck-place, and white lawn showed beneath her grey cap.</p>
+
+<p>'We advance thee,' Henry said, 'to be Chancellier de la Royne, with an
+hundred pounds by the year from my purse. Do homage for thine office.'</p>
+
+<p>Udal fell upon one knee before Katharine, and dropping both cap and
+book, took her hand to raise to his lips. But Margot caught her hand
+when he had done with it and set upon it a huge pressure.</p>
+
+<p>'But, Sir Chancellor,' the King said, 'it is evident that so grave an
+office must have a grave fulfiller. And, to ballast thee the better, the
+Queen of her graciousness hath found thee a weighty helpmeet. So that,
+before you shall touch the duties and emoluments of this charge you
+shall, and that even to-night, wed this Madam Margot that here kneels.'</p>
+
+<p>Udal's face had been of a coppery green pallor ever since he had heard
+the title of Chancellor.</p>
+
+<p>'Eheu!' he said, 'this is the torture of Tantalus that might never
+drink.'<span class='pagenum'><a name="page441" id="page441">441</a></span></p>
+
+<p>In its turn the face of Margot Poins grew pale, pushed forward towards
+him; but her eyes appeared to blaze, for all they were a mild blue, and
+the Queen felt the pressure upon her hand grow so hard that it pained
+her.</p>
+
+<p>The King uttered the one word, 'Magister!'</p>
+
+<p>Udal's fingers picked at the fur of his moth-eaten gown.</p>
+
+<p>'God be favourable to me,' he said. 'If it were anything but
+Chancellor!'</p>
+
+<p>The King grew more rigid.</p>
+
+<p>'Body of God,' he said, 'will you wed with this maid?'</p>
+
+<p>'Ah&iacute;!' the Magister wailed; and his perturbation had in it something
+comic and scarecrowlike, as if a wind shook him from within. 'If you
+will make me anything but a Chancellor, I will. But a Chancellor, I dare
+not.'</p>
+
+<p>The King cast himself back in his chair. The suggested gibe rose
+furiously to his lips; the Magister quailed and bent before him,
+throwing out his hands.</p>
+
+<p>'Sire,' he said, 'if&mdash;which God forbid&mdash;this were a Protestant realm I
+might do it. But oh, pardon and give ear. Pardon and give ear&mdash;&mdash;'</p>
+
+<p>He waved one hand furiously at the silken canopy above them.</p>
+
+<p>'It is agreed with one of mine in Paris that she shall come hither&mdash;God
+forgive me, I must make avowal, though God knows I would not&mdash;she shall
+come hither to me if she do hear that I have risen to be a Chancellor.'</p>
+
+<p>The King said, 'Body of God!' as if it were an earthquake.</p>
+
+<p>'If it were anything else but Chancellor she might not come, and I would
+wed Margot Poins more willingly than any other. But&mdash;God knows I do not
+willingly make this avowal, but am in a corner, <i>sicut vulpis in
+lucubris</i>, like a fox in the coils&mdash;this Paris woman is my wife.'</p>
+
+<p>Henry gave a great shout of laughter, but slowly Margot Poins fell
+across the Queen's knees. She uttered no sound, but lay there
+motionless. The sight affected Udal to an epileptic fury.</p>
+
+<p>'Jove be propitious to me!' he stuttered out. 'I know not<span class='pagenum'><a name="page442" id="page442">442</a></span> what I can
+do.' He began to tear the fur of his cloak and toss it over the
+battlements. 'The woman is my wife&mdash;wed by a friar. If this were a
+Protestant realm now&mdash;or if I pleaded pre-contract&mdash;and God knows I ha'
+promised marriage to twenty women before I, in an evil day, married
+one&mdash;eheu!&mdash;to this one&mdash;&mdash;'</p>
+
+<p>He began to sob and to wring his thin hands.</p>
+
+<p>'<i>Quod faciam? Me miser! Utinam. Utinam&mdash;&mdash;</i>'</p>
+
+<p>He recovered a little coherence.</p>
+
+<p>'If this were a Protestant land ye might say this wedding was no
+wedding, for that a friar did it; but I know ye will not suffer that&mdash;&mdash;'
+His eyes appealed piteously to the Queen.</p>
+
+<p>'Why, then,' he said, 'it is not upon my head that I do not wed this
+wench. You be my witness that I would wed; it gores my heart to see her
+look so pale. It tears my vitals to see any woman look pale. As
+Lucretius says, "Better the sunshine of smiles&mdash;&mdash;"'</p>
+
+<p>A little outputting of impatient breath from Katharine made him stop.</p>
+
+<p>'It is you, your Grace,' he said, 'that make me thus tied. If you would
+let us be Protestant, or, again, if I could plead pre-contract to void
+this Paris marriage it would let me wed with this wench&mdash;eheu&mdash;eheu. Her
+brother will break my bones&mdash;&mdash;'</p>
+
+<p>He began to cry out so lamentably, invoking Pluto to bear him to the
+underworld, that the King roared out upon him&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Why, get you gone, fool.'</p>
+
+<p>The Magister threw himself suddenly upon his knees, his hands clasped,
+his gown drooping over them down to his wrists. He turned his face to
+the Queen.</p>
+
+<p>'Before God,' he said, 'before high and omnipotent Jove, I swear that
+when I made this marriage I thought it was no marriage!' He reflected
+for a breath and added, at the recollection of the cook's spits that had
+been turned against him when he had by woman's guile been forced into
+marriage with the widow in Paris, 'I was driven into it by<span class='pagenum'><a name="page443" id="page443">443</a></span> force, with
+sharp points at my throat. Is that not enow to void a marriage? Is that
+not enow? Is that not enow?'</p>
+
+<p>Katharine looked out over the great levels of the view. Her face was
+rigid, and she swallowed in her throat, her eye being glazed and hard.
+The King took his cue from a glance at her face.</p>
+
+<p>'Get you gone, Goodman Rogue Magister,' he said, and he adopted a
+canonical tone that went heavily with his rustic pose. 'A marriage made
+and consummated and properly blessed by holy friar there is no undoing.
+You are learned enough to know that. Rogue that you be, I am very glad
+that you are trapped by this marriage. Well I know that you have dangled
+too much with petticoats, to the great scandal of this my Court. Now you
+have lost your preferment, and I am glad of it. Another and a better
+than thou shall be the Queen's Chancellor, for another and a better than
+thou shall wed this wench. We will get her such a goodly husband&mdash;&mdash;'</p>
+
+<p>A low, melancholy wail from Margot Poins' agonised face&mdash;a sound such as
+might have been made by an ox in pain&mdash;brought him to a stop. It wrung
+the Magister, who could not bear to see a woman pained, up to a pitch of
+ecstatic courage.</p>
+
+<p>'<i>Quid fecit C&aelig;sar</i>,' he stuttered; 'what C&aelig;sar hath done, C&aelig;sar can do
+again. It was not till very lately since this canon of wedding and
+consummating and blessing by a holy friar hath been derided and
+contemned in this realm. And so it might be again&mdash;&mdash;'</p>
+
+<p>Katharine Howard cried out, 'Ah!' Her features grew rigid and as ashen
+as cold steel. And, at her cry, the King&mdash;who could less bear than Udal
+to hear a woman in pain&mdash;the King sprang up from his chair. It was as
+amazing to all them as to hunters it is to see a great wild bull charge
+with a monstrous velocity. Udal was rigid with fear, and the King had
+him by the throat. He shook him backwards and forwards so that his book
+fell upon the Queen's feet, bursting out of his ragged gown, and his
+cap, flying from his opened hand, fell down over the battlement into an
+elm<span class='pagenum'><a name="page444" id="page444">444</a></span> top. The King guttered out unintelligible sounds of fury from his
+vast chest and, planted on his huge feet, he swung the Magister round
+him till, backwards and staggering, the eyes growing fixed in his brown
+and rigid face, he was pushed, jerking at each step of the King, out of
+sight behind the green silk curtains.</p>
+
+<p>The Queen sat motionless in her purple velvet. She twisted one hand into
+the chain of the medallion about her throat, and one hand lay open and
+pale by her side. Margot Poins knelt at her side, her face hidden in the
+Queen's lap, her two arms stretched out beyond her grey coifed head. For
+a minute she was silent. Then great sobs shook her so that Katharine
+swayed upon her seat. From her hidden face there came muffled and
+indistinguishable words, and at last Katharine said dully&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'What, child? What, child?'</p>
+
+<p>Margot moved her face sideways so that her mouth was towards Katharine.</p>
+
+<p>'You can unmake it! You can unmake the marriage,' she brought out in
+huge sobs.</p>
+
+<p>Katharine said&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'No! No!'</p>
+
+<p>'You unmade a King's marriage,' Margot wailed.</p>
+
+<p>Katharine said&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'No! No!' She started and uttered the words loudly; she added pitifully,
+'You do not understand! You do not understand!'</p>
+
+<p>It was the more pitiful in that Margot understood very well. She hid her
+face again and only sobbed heavily and at long intervals, and then with
+many sobs at once. The Queen laid her white hand upon the girl's head.
+Her other still played with the chain.</p>
+
+<p>'Christ be piteous to me,' she said. 'I think it had been better if I
+had never married the King.'</p>
+
+<p>Margot uttered an indistinguishable sound.</p>
+
+<p>'I think it had been better,' the Queen said; 'though I had jeoparded my
+immortal part.'</p>
+
+<p>Margot moved her head up to cry out in her turn<span class='pagenum'><a name="page445" id="page445">445</a></span>&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'No! No! You may not say it!'</p>
+
+<p>Then she dropped her face again. When she heard the King coming back and
+breathing heavily, she stood up, and with huge tears on her red and
+crumpled face she looked out upon the fields as if she had never seen
+them before. An immense sob shook her. The King stamped his foot with
+rage, and then, because he was soft-hearted to them that he saw in
+sorrow, he put his hand upon her shoulder.</p>
+
+<p>'Sha't have a better mate,' he uttered. 'Sha't be a knight's dame!
+There! there!' and he fondled her great back with his hand. Her eyes
+screwed tightly up, she opened her mouth wide, but no words came out,
+and suddenly she shook her head as if she had been an enraged child. Her
+loud cries, shaken out of her with her tears, died away as she went
+across the terrace, a loud one and then a little echo, a loud one and
+then two more.</p>
+
+<p>'Before God!' the King said, 'that knave shall eat ten years of prison
+bread.'</p>
+
+<p>His wife looked still over the wooded enclosures, the little stone
+walls, and the copses. A small cloud had come before the sun, and its
+shadow was moving leisurely across the ridge where stood the roofless
+abbey.</p>
+
+<p>'The maid shall have the best man I can give her,' the King said.</p>
+
+<p>'Why, no good man would wed her!' Katharine answered dully.</p>
+
+<p>Henry said&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Anan?' Then he fingered the dagger on the chain before his chest.</p>
+
+<p>'Why,' he added slowly, 'then the Magister shall die by the rope. It is
+an offence that can be quitted with death. It is time such a thing were
+done.'</p>
+
+<p>Katharine's dull silence spurred him; he shrugged his shoulders and
+heaved a deep breath out.</p>
+
+<p>'Why,' he said, 'a man can be found to wed the wench.'</p>
+
+<p>She moved one hand and uttered<span class='pagenum'><a name="page446" id="page446">446</a></span>&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'I would not wed her to such a man!' as if it were a matter that was not
+much in her thoughts.</p>
+
+<p>'Then she may go into a nunnery,' the King said; 'for before three
+months are out we will have many nunneries in this realm.'</p>
+
+<p>She looked upon him a little absently, but she smiled at him to give him
+pleasure. She was thinking that she wished she had not wedded him; but
+she smiled because, things being as they were, she thought that she had
+all the authorities of the noble Greeks and Romans to bid her do what a
+good wife should.</p>
+
+<p>He laughed at her griefs, thinking that they were all about Margot
+Poins. He uttered jolly grossnesses; he said that she little knew the
+way of courts if she thought that a man, and a very good man, might not
+be found to wed the wench.</p>
+
+<p>She was troubled that he could not better read what was upon her mind,
+for she was thinking that her having consented to his making null his
+marriage with the Princess of Cleves that he might wed her would render
+her work always the more difficult. It would render her more the target
+for evil tongues, it would set a sterner and a more stubborn opposition
+against her task of restoring the Kingdom of God within that realm.</p>
+
+<p>Henry said&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Ye hannot guessed what my secret was? What have I done for thee this
+day?'</p>
+
+<p>She still looked away over the lands. She made her face smile&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Nay, I know not. Ha' ye brought me the musk I love well?'</p>
+
+<p>He shook his head.</p>
+
+<p>'It is more than that!' he said.</p>
+
+<p>She still smiled&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Ha' ye&mdash;ha' ye&mdash;made make for me a new crown?'</p>
+
+<p>She feared a little that that was what he had done. For he had been
+urgent with her, many months, to be crowned. It was his way to love
+these things. And her heart was a<span class='pagenum'><a name="page447" id="page447">447</a></span> little gladder when he shook his head
+once again and uttered&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'It is more than that!'</p>
+
+<p>She dreaded his having made ready in secret a great pageant in her
+honour, for she was afraid of all aggrandisements, and thought still it
+had been better that she had remained his sweet friend ever and not the
+Queen. For in that way she would have had as much empire over him, and
+there would have been much less clamour against her&mdash;much less clamour
+against the Church of her Saviour.</p>
+
+<p>She forced her mind to run upon all the things that she could wish for.
+When she said it must be that he had ordered for her enough French
+taffetas to make twelve gowns, he laughed and said that he had said that
+it was more than a crown. When she guessed that he had made ready such a
+huge cavalcade that she might with great comfort and safety ride with
+him into Scotland, he laughed, contented that she should think of going
+with him upon that long journey. He stood looking at her, his little
+eyes blinking, his face full of pride and joy, and suddenly he uttered&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'The Church of God is come back again.' He touched his cap at the sacred
+name. 'I ha' made submission to the Pope.'</p>
+
+<p>He looked her full in the face to get all the delight he might from her
+looks and her movements.</p>
+
+<p>Her blue eyes grew large; she leaned forward in her chair; her mouth
+opened a little; her sleeves fell down to the ground. 'Now am I indeed
+crowned!' she said, and closed her eyes. '<i>Benedicta sit mater dei!</i>'
+she uttered, and her hand went over her heart place; '<i>deo clamavi nocte
+atque di&euml;.</i>'</p>
+
+<p>She was silent again, and she leaned more forward.</p>
+
+<p>'<i>Sit benedicta dies haec; sit benedicta hora haec benedictaque,
+saeculum saecul&ucirc;m, castra haec.</i>'</p>
+
+<p>She looked out upon the great view: she aspired the air.</p>
+
+<p>'<i>Ad colles</i>,' she breathed, '<i>levavi oculos meos; unde venit salvatio
+nostra!</i>'<span class='pagenum'><a name="page448" id="page448">448</a></span></p>
+
+<p>'Body of God,' Henry said, 'all things grow plain. All things grow
+plain. This is the best day that ever I knew.'</p>
+
+<h3>IV</h3>
+
+<p>The Lady Mary of England sat alone in a fair room with little arched
+windows that gave high up on to the terrace. It was the best room that
+ever she had had since her mother, the Queen Katharine of Aragon, had
+been divorced.</p>
+
+<p>Dressed in black she sat writing at a large table before one window. Her
+paper was fitted on to a wooden pulpit that rose before her; one book
+stood open upon it, three others lay open too upon the red and blue and
+green pattern of the Saracen rug that covered her table. At her right
+hand was a three-tiered inkstand of pewter, set about with the white
+feathers of pens; and the snakelike pattern of the table-rug serpentined
+in and out beneath seals of parcel gilt, a platter of bread, a sandarach
+of pewter, books bound in wooden covers and locked with chains, books in
+red velvet covers, sewn with silver wire and tied with ribbons. It ran
+beneath a huge globe of the world, blue and pink, that had a golden pin
+in it to mark the city of Rome. There were little wooden racks stuck
+full with written papers and parchments along the wainscoting between
+the arched windows, but all the hangings of the other walls were of
+tinted and dyed silks, not any with dark colours, because Katharine
+Howard had deemed that that room with its deep windows in the thick
+walls would be otherwise dark. The room was ten paces deep by twenty
+long, and the wood of the floor was polished. Against the wall, behind
+the Lady Mary's back, there stood a high chair upon a platform. Upon the
+platform a carpet began that ran up the wall and, overhead, depended
+from the gilded rafters of the ceiling so that it formed a dais and a
+canopy.</p>
+
+<p>The Lady Mary sat grimly amongst all these things as if none of them
+belonged to her. She looked in her book, she<span class='pagenum'><a name="page449" id="page449">449</a></span> made a note upon her
+paper, she stretched out her hand and took a piece of bread, putting it
+in her mouth, swallowing it quickly, writing again, and then once more
+eating, for the great and ceaseless hunger that afflicted her gnawed
+always at her vitals.</p>
+
+<p>A little boy with a fair poll was reaching on tiptoe to smell at a pink
+that depended from a vase of very thin glass standing in the deep
+window. The shield of the coloured pane cast a little patch of red and
+purple on to his callow head. He was dressed all in purple, very square,
+and with little chains and medallions, and a little dagger with a golden
+sheath was about his neck. In one hand he had a piece of paper, in the
+other a pencil. The Lady Mary wrote; the child moved on tiptoe, with a
+sedulous expression of silence about his lips, near to her elbow. He
+watched her writing for a long time with attentive eyes.</p>
+
+<p>Once he said, 'Sister, I&mdash;&mdash;' but she paid him no heed.</p>
+
+<p>After a time she looked coldly at his face and then he moved along the
+table, fingered the globe very gently, touched the books and returned to
+her side. He stood with his little legs wide apart. Then he sighed, then
+he said&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Sister, the Queen did bid me ask you a question.'</p>
+
+<p>She looked round upon him.</p>
+
+<p>'This was the Queen's question,' he said bravely:
+'"<i>Cur</i>&mdash;why&mdash;<i>nunquam</i>&mdash;never&mdash;<i>rides</i>&mdash;dost thou
+smile&mdash;<i>cum</i>&mdash;when&mdash;<i>ego, frater tuus</i>&mdash;I, thy little
+brother&mdash;<i>ludo</i>&mdash;play&mdash;<i>in camer&acirc; tu&acirc;</i>&mdash;in thy chamber?"'</p>
+
+<p>'Little Prince,' she said, 'art not afeared of me?'</p>
+
+<p>'Aye, am I,' he answered.</p>
+
+<p>'Say then to the Queen,' she said, '"<i>Domina Maria</i>&mdash;the Lady
+Mary&mdash;<i>ridet nunquam</i>&mdash;smileth never&mdash;<i>quod</i>&mdash;because&mdash;<i>timoris
+ratio</i>&mdash;the reason of my fear&mdash;<i>bona et satis</i>&mdash;is good and
+sufficient."'</p>
+
+<p>He held his little head upon one side.</p>
+
+<p>'The Queen did bid me say,' he uttered with his brave little voice,
+'"Holy Writ hath it: <i>Ecce quam bonum et dignum est fratres&mdash;fratres&mdash;&mdash;</i>"'
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="page450" id="page450">450</a></span>He faltered without embarrassment and added, 'I ha' forgot the words.'</p>
+
+<p>'Aye!' she said, 'they ha' been long forgotten in these places; I deem
+it is overlate to call them to mind.'</p>
+
+<p>She looked upon him coldly for a long time. Then she stretched out her
+hand for his paper.</p>
+
+<p>'Your Highness, I will set you a copy.'</p>
+
+<p>She took his paper and wrote&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'<i>Malo malo mal&acirc;.</i>'</p>
+
+<p>He held it in his chubby fist, his head on one side.</p>
+
+<p>'I cannot conster it,' he said.</p>
+
+<p>'Why, think upon it,' she answered. 'When I was thy age I knew it
+already two years. But I was better beaten than thou.'</p>
+
+<p>He rubbed his little arm.</p>
+
+<p>'I am beaten enow,' he said.</p>
+
+<p>'Knowest not what a swingeing is,' she answered.</p>
+
+<p>'Then thou hadst a bitter childhood,' he brought out.</p>
+
+<p>'I had a good mother,' she cut him short.</p>
+
+<p>She turned her face to her writing again; it was bitter and set. The
+little prince climbed slowly into the chair on the dais. He moved
+sturdily and curled himself up on the cushion, studying the words on the
+paper all the while with a little frown upon his brows. Then, shrugging
+his shoulders, he set the paper upon his knee and began to write.</p>
+
+<p>At that date the Lady Mary was still called a bastard, though most men
+thought that that hardship would soon be reversed. It was said that
+great honours had been shown her, and that was apparent in the
+furnishing of her rooms, the fineness of her gear, the increase in the
+number of the women that waited on her, and the store of sweet things
+that was provided for her to eat. A great many men noted the chair with
+a dais that was set up always where she might be, in her principal room,
+and though her ladies said that she never sat in it, most men believed
+that she had made a pact with the King to do him honour and so to be
+reinstated in the estate in which she held her own. It was considered,
+too, that she no longer plotted with the King's enemies inside or out of
+the realm; it was at least certain<span class='pagenum'><a name="page451" id="page451">451</a></span> that she no longer had men set to
+spy upon her, though it was noted that the Archbishop's gentleman,
+Lascelles, nosed about her quarters and her maids. But he was always
+spying somewhere and, as the Archbishop's days were thought to be
+numbered, he was accounted of little weight. Indeed, since the fall of
+Thomas Cromwell there seemed to be few spies about the Court, or almost
+none at all. It was known that gentlemen wrote accounts of what passed
+to Gardiner, the Bishop of Winchester. But Gardiner was gone back into
+his see and appeared to have little favour, though it was claimed for
+him that he had done much to advance the new Queen. So that, upon the
+whole, men breathed much more freely&mdash;and women too&mdash;than in the days
+before the fall of Privy Seal. The Queen had made little change, and
+seemed to have it in mind to make little more. Her relatives had, nearly
+none of them, been advanced. There were few Protestants oppressed,
+though many Catholics had been loosed from the gaols, most notably him
+whom the Archbishop Cranmer had taken to be his chaplain and confessor,
+and others that other lords had taken out of prison to be about them.</p>
+
+<p>All in all the months that had passed since Cromwell's fall had gone
+quietly. The King and Queen had gone very often to mass since Katharine
+had been shown for Queen in the gardens at Hampton Court, and saints'
+days and the feasts of the life of our Lady had been very carefully
+observed, along with fasts such as had used to be observed. The King,
+however, was mightily fond with his new Queen, and those that knew her
+well, or knew her servants well, expected great changes. Some were much
+encouraged, some feared very much, but nearly all were heartily glad of
+that summer of breathing space; and the weather was mostly good, so that
+the corn ripened well and there was little plague or ague abroad.</p>
+
+<p>Thus most men had been heartily glad to see the new Queen upon her
+journey there to the north parts. She had ridden upon a white horse with
+the King at her side; she had asked the names of several that had come
+to see her;<span class='pagenum'><a name="page452" id="page452">452</a></span> she had been fair to look at; and the King had pardoned
+many felons, so that men's wives and mothers had been made glad; and
+most old men said that the good times were come again, with the price of
+malt fallen and twenty-six to the score of herrings. It was reported,
+too, that a cider press in Herefordshire had let down a dozen firkins of
+cider without any apples being set in it, and this was accounted an omen
+of great plenty, whilst many sheep had died, so that men who had set
+their fields down in grass talked of giving them to the plough again,
+and upon St Swithin's Day no rain had fallen. All these things gave a
+great contentment, and many that in the hard days had thought to become
+Lutheran in search of betterment, now looked in byres and hidden valleys
+to find priests of the old faith. For if a man could plough he might
+eat, and if he might eat he could praise God after his father's manner
+as well as in a new way.</p>
+
+<p>Thus, around the Lady Mary, whilst she wrote, the people of the land
+breathed more peace. And even she could not but be conscious of a new
+softness, if it was only in the warmth that came from having her
+window-leads properly mended. She had hardly ever before known what it
+was to have warm hands when she wrote, and in most days of the year she
+had worn fur next her skin, indoors as well as out. But now the sun beat
+on her new windows, and in that warmth she could wear fine lawn, so
+that, in spite of herself, she took pleasure and was softened, though,
+since she spoke to no man save the Magister Udal, and to him only about
+the works of Plautus or the game of cards that they played together, few
+knew of any change in her.</p>
+
+<p>Nevertheless, on that day she had one of her more ill moods and,
+presently, having written a little more, she rang a small silver bell
+that was shaped like a Dutch woman with wide skirts.</p>
+
+<p>'The Prince annoys me,' she said to her woman; 'send for his lady
+governess.'</p>
+
+<p>The woman, dressed all in black, like her mistress, and with a little
+frill of white cambric over her temples as if she<span class='pagenum'><a name="page453" id="page453">453</a></span> were a nun, stood in
+the open doorway that was just level with the Lady Mary's chair, so that
+the stone wall of the passage caught the light from the window. She
+folded her hands before her.</p>
+
+<p>'Alack, Madam,' she said, 'your Madamship knows that at this hour his
+Highness' lady governess taketh ever the air.'</p>
+
+<p>The little boy in the chair looked over his paper at his sister.</p>
+
+<p>'Send for his physician then,' Mary said.</p>
+
+<p>'Alack, sister,' the little Prince said before the woman could move, 'my
+physician is ill. <i>Jacet</i>&mdash;He lieth&mdash;<i>in cubiculo</i>&mdash;in his bed.'</p>
+
+<p>The Lady Mary would not look round on him.</p>
+
+<p>'Get thee, then,' she uttered coldly, 'to thine own apartments, Prince.'</p>
+
+<p>'Alack, sister,' he answered,'thou knowest that I may not walk along the
+corridors alone for fear some slay me. Nor yet may I be anywhere save
+with the Queen, or thee, or with my uncles, or my lady governess, or my
+physicians, for fear some poison me.'</p>
+
+<p>He spoke with a clear and shrill voice, and the woman cast down her
+eyes, trembling a little, partly to hear such a small, weary child speak
+such a long speech as if by wizardry&mdash;for it was reported among the
+serving maids that he had been overlooked&mdash;and partly for fear of the
+black humour that she perceived to be upon her mistress.</p>
+
+<p>'Send me then my Magister to lay out cards with me,' the Lady Mary said.
+'I cannot make my studies with this Prince in my rooms.'</p>
+
+<p>'Alack, Madam,' the girl said. She was high coloured and with dark eyes,
+but when she faltered then the colour died from her cheeks. The Lady
+Mary surveyed her coldly, for she was in the mood to give pain. She
+uttered no words.</p>
+
+<p>'Alack, alack&mdash;&mdash;' the maid whimpered. She was full of fear lest the
+Lady Mary should order her to receive short rations or many stripes; she
+was filled with consternation and grief since her sweetheart, a server,
+had told her that<span class='pagenum'><a name="page454" id="page454">454</a></span> he must leave her. For it was rumoured that the
+Magister had been cast into gaol for sweethearting, and that the King
+had said that all sweethearts should be gaoled from thenceforth. 'The
+Magister is gaoled,' she said.</p>
+
+<p>'Wherefore?' the Lady uttered the one expressionless word.</p>
+
+<p>'I do not know,' the maid wailed; 'I do not know.'</p>
+
+<p>The form of the Archbishop's gentleman glided noiselessly behind her
+back. His eyes shot one sharp, sideways glance in at the door, and, like
+a russet fox, he was gone. He was so like a fox that the Lady Mary, when
+she spoke, used the words&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Catch me that gentleman.'</p>
+
+<p>He was brought to the doorsill by the panting maid, for he had walked
+away very fast. He stood there, blinking his eyes and stroking his
+fox-coloured beard. When the Lady Mary beckoned him into the room he
+pulled off his cap and fell to his thin knees. He expected her to bid
+him rise, but she left him there.</p>
+
+<p>'Wherefore is my secretary gaoled?' she asked cruelly.</p>
+
+<p>He ran his finger round the rim of his cap where it lay on the floor
+beside him.</p>
+
+<p>'That he is gaoled, I know,' he said; 'but the wherefore of it, not.'</p>
+
+<p>He looked down at the floor and she down at his drooped eyelids.</p>
+
+<p>'God help you,' she uttered scornfully. 'You are a spy and yet know no
+more than a Queen's daughter.'</p>
+
+<p>'God help me,' he repeated gravely and touched his eyelid with one
+finger. 'What passed, passed between the King and him. I know no more
+than common report.'</p>
+
+<p>'Common report?' she said. 'I warrant thee thou wast slinking around the
+terrace. I warrant thee thou heardst words of the King's mouth. I
+warrant thee thou followedst here to hear at my doorhole how I might
+take this adventure.'</p>
+
+<p>One of his eyelids moved delicately, but he said no word.<span class='pagenum'><a name="page455" id="page455">455</a></span> The Lady Mary
+turned her back on him and he expected her order to be gone. But she
+turned again&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Common report?' she uttered once more. 'I do bid you give me the common
+report upon this, that the Queen sends to me every day this little
+Prince to be alone with me two hours.'</p>
+
+<p>He winced with his eyebrows again.</p>
+
+<p>'Out with the common report,' she said.</p>
+
+<p>'Madam,' he uttered, 'it is usually commended that the Queen should seek
+to bring sister and Prince-brother together.'</p>
+
+<p>She shrugged her stiff shoulders up to her ears.</p>
+
+<p>'What a poor liar for a spy,' she said. 'It is more usually
+reported'&mdash;and she turned upon the little Prince&mdash;'that the Queen sends
+thee here that I may work thee a mischief so that thou die and her child
+reign after the King thy father.'</p>
+
+<p>The little Prince looked at her with pensive eyes. At that moment
+Katharine Howard came to the room door and looked in.</p>
+
+<p>'Body of God,' the Lady Mary said; 'here you spy out a spy committing
+treason. For it is still treason to kneel to me. I am of illegal birth
+and not of the blood royal.'</p>
+
+<p>Katharine essayed her smile upon the black-avised girl.</p>
+
+<p>'Give me leave,' she said.</p>
+
+<p>'Your Grace's poor room,' Mary said, 'is open ever to your Grace's
+entry. <i>Ubi venis ibi tibi.</i>'</p>
+
+<p>The Queen bade her waiting women go. She entered the room and looked at
+Lascelles.</p>
+
+<p>'I think I know thy face,' she said.</p>
+
+<p>'I am the Archbishop's poor gentleman,' he answered. 'I think you have
+seen me.'</p>
+
+<p>'No. It is not that,' she said. 'It was long ago.'</p>
+
+<p>She crossed the room to smell at the pinks in the window.</p>
+
+<p>'How late the flowers grow,' she said. 'It is August, yet here are still
+vernal perfumes.'<span class='pagenum'><a name="page456" id="page456">456</a></span></p>
+
+<p>She was unwilling to bid the gentleman rise and go, because this was the
+Lady Mary's room.</p>
+
+<p>'Where your Grace is, there the spring abideth,' Mary said sardonically.
+'<i>Ecce miraculum sicut erat, Joshu&acirc; rege.</i>'</p>
+
+<p>The little Prince came timidly down to beg a flower from the Queen and
+they all had their backs upon the spy. He ran his hands down his beard
+and considered the Queen's words. Then swiftly he was on his feet and
+through the door. He was more ready to brave the Lady Mary's after-wrath
+than let the Queen see him upon his knees. For actually it was a treason
+to kneel to the Lady Mary. It had been proclaimed so in the old days
+when the King's daughter was always subject to new debasements. And who
+knew whether now the penalty of treason might not still be enacted? It
+was certain that the Queen had no liking for the Archbishop. Then, what
+use might she not make of the fact that the Archbishop's man knelt,
+seeming to curry favour, though in these days all men knelt to her, even
+when the King was by? He cursed himself as he hastened away.</p>
+
+<p>The Queen looked over her shoulder and caught the glint of his red heel
+as it went past the doorpost.</p>
+
+<p>'In our north parts,' she said, and she was glad that Lascelles had
+fled, 'the seasons come ever tardily.'</p>
+
+<p>'Well, your Grace has not delayed to blossom,' Mary said.</p>
+
+<p>It was part of her humour when she was in a taunting mood to call the
+Queen always 'your Grace' or 'your Majesty' at every turn of the phrase.</p>
+
+<p>Katharine looked at the pink intently. Her face had no expression, she
+was determined at once to have a cheerful patience and not to show it in
+her face.</p>
+
+<p>The little Prince stole his hand into hers.</p>
+
+<p>'Wherefore did my father&mdash;<i>rex pater meus</i>&mdash;pummel the man in the long
+cloak?' he asked.</p>
+
+<p>'You knew it then?' Katharine asked of her stepdaughter.</p>
+
+<p>'I knew it not,' the Lady Mary answered.<span class='pagenum'><a name="page457" id="page457">457</a></span></p>
+
+<p>'I saw it from this window, but my sister would not look,' the Prince
+said.</p>
+
+<p>The Queen was going to shut, with her own hand, the door, the little boy
+trotting behind her, but, purple-clothed and huge, the King was there.</p>
+
+<p>'Well, I will not be shut out in mine own castle,' he said pleasantly.</p>
+
+<p>In those, the quiet days of his realm when most things were going well,
+his face beneath his beard had taken a rounder and a smoother outline.
+He moved with motions less hasty than those he had had two years before,
+and when he had cast a task off it was done with and went out of his
+mind, so that he appeared a very busy man with, between whiles, the
+leisure to saunter.</p>
+
+<p>'In a half hour,' he said, 'I go north to meet the King o' Scots. I
+would I had not the long journey to make but could stay with ye. It is
+pleasant here; the air is livening.' He caught his little son by the
+armpits and hoisted him on to his purple shoulders. 'Hey, princekin,' he
+said, 'what news ha' you o' the day?'</p>
+
+<p>The little Edward pulled his father's bonnet off that he might the
+better see the huge brows and the little eyes.</p>
+
+<p>'I told my sister that you did pummel a man in a long gown. What is even
+"long gown" in the learned tongue?' He played daintily and languidly
+with the hair of the King's temples, and when the King had said that he
+might call it '<i>doctorum toga</i>,' he added, 'But my sister would not come
+to look.'</p>
+
+<p>'Well, thy sister is a monstrous learned wench,' the King said with a
+heavy benignity. 'She could not leave her book.'</p>
+
+<p>The Lady Mary stood rigid, with a mock humility. She had her hands
+clasped before her, the folds of her black skirt fell stiffly just to
+the ground. She pursed her lips and strove with herself to speak, for
+she was minded to exhibit disdain, but her black mood was too strong for
+her.</p>
+
+<p>'I did not read in my book, because I could not,' she said numbly. 'Your
+son disturbed my reading. But I did not come to look, because I would
+not.'<span class='pagenum'><a name="page458" id="page458">458</a></span></p>
+
+<p>With one arm round the boy's little waist as he sat on high, and one
+hand on the little feet, the King looked at his daughter in a sudden hot
+rage; for to speak contemptuously of his son was a thing that filled him
+with anger and surprise. He opened his mouth to shout. Katharine Howard
+was gently turning a brass sphere with the constellations upon it that
+stood upon the table. She moved her fair face round towards the King and
+set her finger upon her lips. He shrugged his shoulders, prince and all
+moving up together, and his face took on the expression, half abashed
+and half resigned, of a man who is reminded by his womankind that he is
+near to a passionate folly.</p>
+
+<p>Katharine by that time had schooled him how to act when Mary was in that
+humour, and he let out no word.</p>
+
+<p>'I do not like that this Prince should play in my room,' the Lady Mary
+pursued him relentlessly, and he was so well lessoned that he answered
+only&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Ye must fight that cock with Kat. It is Kat that sends him, not I.'</p>
+
+<p>Nevertheless he was too masterful a man to keep his silence altogether;
+he was, besides, so content upon the whole that he was sure he could
+hold his temper in check, and the better to take breath for a long
+speech, he took the little boy from his shoulder and planted his feet
+abroad on the carpet.</p>
+
+<p>'See now, Moll,' he said, 'make friends!' and he stretched out a large
+hand. She shrugged her shoulders half invisibly.</p>
+
+<p>'I will kneel down to the King of this country and to the Supreme Head
+of the Church as it is here set up by law. What more would you have of
+me?'</p>
+
+<p>'See now, Moll!' he said.</p>
+
+<p>He fingered the medal upon his chest and cast about for words.</p>
+
+<p>'Let us have peace in this realm,' he said. 'We are very near it.'</p>
+
+<p>She raised her eyelids with a tiny contempt.<span class='pagenum'><a name="page459" id="page459">459</a></span></p>
+
+<p>'It hangs much around you,' he went on. 'Listen! I will tell ye the
+whole matter.'</p>
+
+<p>Slowly and sagaciously he disentangled all his coil of policies. His
+letter to the Holy Father was all drafted and ready to be put into fine
+words. But, before he sent it, he must be sure of peace abroad. It was
+like this&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Ye know,' he said, 'though great wrangles have been in the past betwixt
+him and thee and mine own self, how my heart has ever been well inclined
+to my nephew, thy cousin the Emperor. There are in Christendom now only
+he and France that are anyways strong to stand against me or to invade
+me. But France I ha' never loved, and him much.'</p>
+
+<p>'Ye are grown gentle then,' Mary said, 'and forgiving in your old age,
+for ye know I ha' plotted against you with my cousin and my cousin with
+me.'</p>
+
+<p>'It is a very ancient tale,' the King said. 'Forget it, as do I and he.'</p>
+
+<p>'Why, you live in the sun where the dial face moves. I in the shadow
+where Time stays still. To me it is every day a new tale,' the Lady Mary
+answered.</p>
+
+<p>His face took on an expression of patience and resignation that angered
+her, for she knew that when her father looked so it was always very
+difficult to move him.</p>
+
+<p>'Why, all the world forgets,' he said.</p>
+
+<p>'Save only I,' she answered. 'I had only one parent&mdash;a mother. She is
+dead: she was done to death.'</p>
+
+<p>'I have pardoned your cousin that he plotted against me,' he stuck to
+his tale, 'and he me what I did against your mother.'</p>
+
+<p>'Well, he was ever a popinjay,' the Lady Mary said.</p>
+
+<p>'Lately,' Henry continued, 'as ye wiz he had grown very thick with
+Francis of France. He went across the French country into the
+Netherlands, so strict was their alliance. It is more than I would do to
+trust myself to France's word. All Holland marvelled.'</p>
+
+<p>'What is this to me?' the Lady Mary said. 'Will you send me across
+France to the Netherlands?'</p>
+
+<p>He left her gibe alone.<span class='pagenum'><a name="page460" id="page460">460</a></span></p>
+
+<p>'But in these latter months,' he said, 'Kat and I ha' weakened with true
+messages and loyal conceits this unholy alliance.'</p>
+
+<p>'Why, I ha' heard,' Mary said, 'ye did send the Duke of Norfolk to tell
+the King o' France that my cousin had said in private that he was the
+greater King of the twain. These be princely princes!'</p>
+
+<p>'An unholy alliance it was,' Henry went on his way, 'for the Emperor is
+a very good Christian and a loyal son of the Church. But Francis
+worships the devil&mdash;I have heard it said and I believe it&mdash;or, at least,
+he believes not in God and our Saviour; and he pays allegiance to the
+Church only when it serves his turn, now holding on, now letting go. I
+am glad this alliance is dissolving.'</p>
+
+<p>'Why, I am glad to hear you speak like this,' Mary said bitterly. 'You
+are a goodly son to Mother Church.'</p>
+
+<p>The King took her scorn with a shrug of the shoulders.</p>
+
+<p>'I am glad this alliance is dissolved or dissolving,' he said, 'for when
+it is fully dissolved I will make my peace with Rome. And I long for
+that day, for I am weary of errors.'</p>
+
+<p>'Well, this is a very goodly tale,' Mary said. 'I am glad you are minded
+to escape hell-flame. What is it all to me?'</p>
+
+<p>'The burden of it rests with thee,' he answered, 'for thou alone canst
+make thy cousin believe in my true mind.'</p>
+
+<p>'God help me,' Mary said.</p>
+
+<p>'See you, Moll,' the King broke in on her eagerly, 'if you will marry
+the Infant of Spain&mdash;&mdash;'</p>
+
+<p>'God's sakes,' she said lightly, 'my cousin's son will wed no bastard as
+I be.'</p>
+
+<p>He brushed her jest aside with one hand.</p>
+
+<p>'See you,' he said, 'now I ride to the north to meet the King o' Scots.
+That nephew of mine has always been too thick with Francis. But I will
+be so friendly with him. And see you, with the Scots cut away and the
+Emperor unloyal, the teeth of Francis are drawn. I might not send my
+letter to the Pope with all Christendom arrayed together against me. But
+when they are set by the ears I am strong enow.'<span class='pagenum'><a name="page461" id="page461">461</a></span></p>
+
+<p>'Oh, good!' the Lady Mary said. 'Strong enow to be humble!'</p>
+
+<p>Her eyes sparkled so much and her bosom so heaved, that Katharine moved
+solicitously and swiftly to come between them.</p>
+
+<p>'See you, Moll,' the King said, 'forgive the ill I wrought thee, and so
+shall golden days come again. Once more there shall be a deep peace with
+contented husbandmen and the spreading of the vines abroad upon the
+stakes. And once more <i>venite creator spiritus</i> shall be sung in this
+land. And once more you shall be much honoured; nay, you shall be as one
+that saved this realm&mdash;&mdash;'</p>
+
+<p>She screamed out&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Stay your tongue!' with such a shrill voice that the King's words were
+drowned. Katharine Howard ran in between them, but she pushed her aside,
+speaking over her shoulder.</p>
+
+<p>'Before God,' she said, 'you gar me forget that you are the King that
+begot me illegally.'</p>
+
+<p>Katharine turned upon the King and sought to move him from the room. But
+he was still of opinion that he could convince his daughter and stood
+his ground, looking over her shoulder as Mary had done.</p>
+
+<p>'Body of God!' Mary said. 'Body of God! That a man could deem me so
+base!' She looked, convulsed, into Henry's eyes. 'Can you bring my
+mother alive by the truckling and cajoling and setting lying prince
+against lying prince? You slew my mother by lies, or your man slew her
+by poison. It is all one. And will you come to me that you have decreed
+misbegotten, to help you save your soul!'</p>
+
+<p>There was such a violent hatred in her tone that the King could bring no
+word out, and she swept on&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Could even a man be such a dull villain? To creep into heaven by
+bribing his daughter! To creep into heaven by strengthening himself with
+lies about one prince to another till he be strong enow to be humble!
+This is a king! This is even a man! I would be ashamed of such manhood!'</p>
+
+<p>She took a deep breath.<span class='pagenum'><a name="page462" id="page462">462</a></span></p>
+
+<p>'What can you bribe me with? A marriage with my cousin's son? Why, he
+has deserted my mother's cause. I had rather wed a falconer than that
+prince. You will have me no longer called bastard? Why, I had rather be
+called bastard than the acknowledged child of such a royal King. You
+will cover me with brocades and set me on high? By God, the sun in the
+heaven has looked upon such basenesses that I seek only a patch of
+shade. God help me; you will recall the decree that said my mother was
+not a Queen! God help us! God help us all! You will ennoble my mother's
+memory. With a decree! Can all the decrees you can make render my mother
+more sacred? When you decreed her not a Queen, did a soul believe it? If
+now you decree that a Queen she was, who will believe you? I think I had
+rather you left it alone, it is such a foul thing to have been thy
+wife!'</p>
+
+<p>The saying of these things had pleased her so much that she gained
+control of her tongue.</p>
+
+<p>'You cannot bribe me,' she said calmly. 'You have naught to give that I
+have need of.'</p>
+
+<p>But the King was so used to his daughter's speeches that, though he had
+seldom seen her so mutinous, he could still ignore them.</p>
+
+<p>'Well,' he said, 'I think you are angered with me for having set the
+Magister in gaol&mdash;&mdash;'</p>
+
+<p>'And in addition,' the Lady Mary pursued her own speech, for she deemed
+that she had thought of a thing to pain both him and the Queen, 'how
+might I with a good conscience tell my cousin that you have a true
+inclination to him? I do believe you have; it is this lady that has
+given it you. But how much longer will this lady sway you? No doubt the
+King o' Scots hath a new lady for you&mdash;and she will be on the French
+side, for the King o' Scots is the French King's man.'</p>
+
+<p>The King opened his mouth convulsively, but Katharine Howard laid her
+hand right across it.</p>
+
+<p>'You must be riding soon,' she said. 'I have had a collation set in my
+chamber.' She was so used by now to the<span class='pagenum'><a name="page463" id="page463">463</a></span> violent humours of these
+Tudors. 'You have still to direct me,' she added, 'what is to be done
+with these rived cattle.'</p>
+
+<p>As they went through the door, the little Prince holding his father's
+hand and she moving him gently by the shoulder, the child said&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'I thought ye wad ha' little profit speaking to my sister in her then
+mood.'</p>
+
+<p>The King, in the gallery, looked with a gentle apprehension at his wife.</p>
+
+<p>'I trow ye think I ha' done wrong,' he said.</p>
+
+<p>She answered&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Oh nay; she must come to know one day what your Grace had to tell her.
+Now it is over. But I would not have had you heated. For it is ill to
+start riding in a sweat. You shall not go for an hour yet.'</p>
+
+<p>That pleased him, for it made him think she was unwilling he should go.</p>
+
+<p>In her own room the Lady Mary sat back in her chair and smiled grimly at
+the ceiling.</p>
+
+<p>'Body of God,' she said, 'I wish he had married this wench or ever he
+saw my mother.' Nevertheless, upon reflection, she got pleasure from the
+thought that her mother, with her Aragonia pride, had given the King
+some ill hours before he had put her away to her death. Katharine of
+Aragon had been no Katharine Howard to study her lord's ways and twist
+him about her finger; and Mary took her rosary from a nail beside her
+and told her beads for a quarter hour to calm herself.</p>
+
+<h3>V</h3>
+
+<p>There fell upon the castle a deep peace when the King and most of the
+men were gone. The Queen had the ordering of all things in the castle
+and of most in the realm. Beneath her she had the Archbishop and some
+few of the lords of the council who met most days round a long table in
+the largest hall, and afterwards brought her many papers to<span class='pagenum'><a name="page464" id="page464">464</a></span> sign or to
+approve. But they were mostly papers of accounts for the castles that
+were then building, and some few letters from the King's envoys in
+foreign courts. Upon the whole, there was little stirring, though the
+Emperor Charles V was then about harrying the Protestant Princes of
+Almain and Germany. That was good enough news, and though the great
+castle had well-nigh seven hundred souls, for the most part women, in
+it, yet it appeared to be empty. High up upon the upper battlements the
+guards kept a lazy watch. Sometimes the Queen rode a-hawking with her
+ladies and several lords; when it rained she held readings from the
+learned writers amongst her ladies, to teach them Latin better. For she
+had set a fashion of good learning among women that did not for many
+years die out of the land. In that pursuit she missed the Magister Udal,
+for the ladies listened to him more willingly than to another. They were
+reading the <i>True History of Lucian</i>, which had been translated into
+Latin from the Greek about that time.</p>
+
+<p>What occupied her most was the writing of the King's letter to the Pope.
+Down in their cellar the Archbishop and Lascelles wrought many days at
+this very long piece of writing. But they made it too humble to suit
+her, for she would not have her lord to crawl, as if in the dust upon
+his belly, so she told the Archbishop. Henry was to show contrition and
+repentance, desire for pardon and the promise of amendment. But he was a
+very great King and had wrought greatly. And, having got the draft of it
+in the vulgar tongue, she set about herself to turn it into Latin, for
+she esteemed herself the best Latinist that they had there.</p>
+
+<p>But in that again she missed the Magister at last, and in the end she
+sent for him up from his prison to her ante-chamber where it pleased her
+to sit. It was a tall, narrow room, with much such a chair and dais as
+were in the room of the Lady Mary. It gave on to her bedchamber that was
+larger, and it had little, bright, deep windows in the thick walls. From
+them there could be seen nothing but the blue<span class='pagenum'><a name="page465" id="page465">465</a></span> sky, it was so high up.
+Here she sat, most often with the Lady Rochford, upon a little stool
+writing, with the parchments upon her knee or setting a maid to sew. The
+King had lately made her a gift of twenty-four satin quilts. Most of her
+maids sat in her painted gallery, carding and spinning wool, but usually
+she did not sit with them, since she was of opinion that they spoke more
+freely and took more pleasure when she was not there. She had brought
+many maids with her into Yorkshire for this spinning, for she believed
+that this northern wool was the best that could be had. Margot Poins sat
+always with these maids to keep them to their tasks, and her brother had
+been advanced to keep the Queen's door when she was in her private
+rooms, being always without the chamber in which she sat.</p>
+
+<p>When the Magister came to her, she had with her in the little room the
+Lady Rochford and the Lady Cicely Rochford that had married the old
+knight when she was Cicely Elliott. Udal had light chains on his wrists
+and on his ankles, and the Queen sent her guards to await him at her
+outer door. The Lady Cicely set back her head and laughed at the
+ceiling.</p>
+
+<p>'Why, here are the bonds of holy matrimony!' she said to his chains. 'I
+ha' never seen them so plain before.'</p>
+
+<p>The Magister had straws on his cloak, and he limped a little, being
+stiff with the damp of his cell.</p>
+
+<p>'<i>Ave, Regina!</i>' he said. '<i>Moriturus te saluto!</i>' He sought to kneel,
+but he could not bend his joints; he smiled with a humorous and rueful
+countenance at his own plight.</p>
+
+<p>The Queen said she had brought him there to read the Latin of her
+letter. He ducked his brown, lean head.</p>
+
+<p>'<i>Ha</i>,' he said, '<i>sine cane pastor</i>&mdash;without his dog, as Lucretius
+hath it, the shepherd watches in vain. Wolves&mdash;videlicet, errors&mdash;shall creep
+into your marshalled words.'</p>
+
+<p>Katharine kept to him a cold face and, a little abashed, he muttered
+under his breath&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'I ha' played with many maids, but this is the worst pickle that ever I
+was in.'</p>
+
+<p>He took her parchment and read, but, because she was<span class='pagenum'><a name="page466" id="page466">466</a></span> the Queen, he
+would not say aloud that he found solecisms in her words.</p>
+
+<p>'Give me,' he said, 'your best pen, and let me sit upon a stool!'</p>
+
+<p>He sat down upon the stool, set the writing on his knee, and groaned
+with his stiffness. He took up his task, but when those ladies began to
+talk&mdash;the Lady Cicely principally about a hawk that her old knight had
+training for the Queen, a white sea hawk from Norway&mdash;he winced and
+hissed a little because they disturbed him.</p>
+
+<p>'Misery!' he said; 'I remember the days when no mouse dared creak if I
+sat to my task in the learned tongues.'</p>
+
+<p>The Queen then remembered very well how she had been a little girl with
+the Magister for tutor in her father's great and bare house. It was
+after Udal had been turned out of his mastership at Eton. He had been in
+vile humour in most of those days, and had beaten her very often and
+fiercely with his bundle of twigs. It was only afterwards that he had
+called her his best pupil.</p>
+
+<p>Remembering these things, she dropped her voice and sat still, thinking.
+Cicely Elliott, who could not keep still, blew a feather into the air
+and caught it again and again. The old Lady Rochford, her joints swollen
+with rheumatism, played with her beads in her lap. From time to time she
+sighed heavily and, whilst the Magister wrote, he sighed after her.
+Katharine would not send her ladies away, because she would not be alone
+with him to have him plague her with entreaties. She would not go
+herself, because it would have been to show him too much honour then,
+though a few days before she would have gone willingly because his
+vocation and his knowledge of the learned tongues made him a man that it
+was right to respect.</p>
+
+<p>But when she read what he had written for her, his lean, brown face
+turning eagerly and with a ferreting motion from place to place on the
+parchment, she was filled with pity and with admiration for the man's
+talent. It was as if<span class='pagenum'><a name="page467" id="page467">467</a></span> Seneca were writing to his master, or Pliny to the
+Emperor Trajan. And, being a very tender woman at bottom&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Magister,' she said, 'though you have wrought me the greatest grief I
+think ye could, by so injuring one I like well, yet this is to me so
+great a service that I will entreat the King to remit some of your
+pains.'</p>
+
+<p>He stumbled up from his stool and this time managed to kneel.</p>
+
+<p>'Oh, Queen,' he said, '<i>Doctissima fuisti</i>; you were the best pupil that
+ever I had&mdash;&mdash;' She tried to silence him with a motion of her hand. But
+he twined his lean hands together with the little chains hanging from
+them. 'I call this to your pitiful mind,' he brought out, 'not because I
+would have you grateful, but to make you mindful of what I suffer&mdash;<i>non
+quia grata sed ut clemens sis</i>. For, for advancement I have no stomach,
+since by advancing me you will advance my wife from Paris, and for
+liberty I have no use since you may never make me free of her. Leave me
+to rot in my cell, but, if it be but the tractate of Diodorus Siculus, a
+very dull piece, let me be given some book in a learned tongue. I faint,
+I starve, I die for lack of good letters. I that no day in my life have
+passed&mdash;<i>nulla die sine</i>&mdash;no day without reading five hours in goodly
+books since I was six and breeched. Bethink you, you that love
+learning&mdash;&mdash;'</p>
+
+<p>'Now tell me,' Cicely Elliott cried out, 'which would you rather in your
+cell&mdash;the Letters of Cicero or a kitchen wench?'</p>
+
+<p>The Queen bade her hold her peace, and to the Magister she uttered&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Books I will have sent you, for I think it well that you should be so
+well employed. And, for your future, I will have you set down in a
+monastery where there shall be for you much learning and none of my sex.
+You have done harm enow! Now, get you gone!'</p>
+
+<p>He sighed that she had grown so stern, and she was glad to be rid of
+him. But he had not been gone a minute into the other room when there
+arose such a clamour of harsh<span class='pagenum'><a name="page468" id="page468">468</a></span> voices and shrieks and laughter that she
+threw her door open, coming to it herself before the other ladies could
+close their mouths, which had opened in amazement.</p>
+
+<p>The young Poins was beating the Magister, so that the fur gown made a
+greyish whirl about his scarlet suit in the midst of a tangle of spun
+wool; spinning wheels were overset, Margot Poins crashed around upon
+them, wailing; the girls with their distaffs were crouching against the
+window-places and in corners, crying out each one of them.</p>
+
+<p>The Queen had a single little gesture of the hand with which she
+dismissed all her waiting-women. She stood alone in the inner doorway
+with the Lady Cicely and the Lady Rochford behind her. The Lady Rochford
+wrung her gouty hands; the Lady Cicely set back her head and laughed.</p>
+
+<p>The Queen spoke no word, but in the new silence it was as if the
+Magister fell out of the boy's hands. He staggered amidst the trails of
+wool, nearly fell, and then made stiff zigzags towards the open outer
+door, where his prison guards awaited him, since they had no warrant to
+enter the antechamber. He dragged after him a little trail of fragments
+of spinning wheels and spindles.</p>
+
+<p>'Well, there's a fine roister-doister!' the Lady Cicely laughed behind
+the Queen's back. The Queen stood very still and frowned. To her the
+disturbance was monstrous and distasteful, for she was minded to have
+things very orderly and quiet. The boy, in his scarlet, pulled off his
+bonnet and panted, but he was not still more than a second, and suddenly
+he called out to the Queen&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Make that pynot to marry my sister!'</p>
+
+<p>Margot Poins hung round him and cried out&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Oh no! Oh no!'</p>
+
+<p>He shook her roughly loose.</p>
+
+<p>'An' you do not wed with him how shall I get advancement?' he said. ''A
+promised me that when 'a should come to be Chancellor 'a would advance
+me.'</p>
+
+<p>He pushed her from him again with his elbow when she came near.<span class='pagenum'><a name="page469" id="page469">469</a></span></p>
+
+<p>'Y've grown over familiar,' the Queen said, 'with being too much near
+me. Y'are grown over familiar. For seven days you shall no longer keep
+my door.'</p>
+
+<p>Margot Poins raised her arms over her head, then she leant against a
+window-pane and sobbed into the crook of her elbow. The boy's slender
+face was convulsed with rage; his blue eyes started from his head; his
+callow hair was crushed up.</p>
+
+<p>'Shall a man&mdash;&mdash;' he began to protest.</p>
+
+<p>'I say nothing against that you did beat this Magister,' the Queen said.
+'Such passions cannot be controlled, and I pass it by.'</p>
+
+<p>'But will ye not make this man to wed with my sister?' the boy said
+harshly.</p>
+
+<p>'I cannot. He hath a wedded wife!'</p>
+
+<p>He dropped his hands to his side.</p>
+
+<p>'Alack; then my father's house is down,' he cried out.</p>
+
+<p>'Gentleman Guard,' Katharine said, 'get you for seven days away from my
+door. I will have another sentry whilst you bethink you of a worthier
+way to advancement.'</p>
+
+<p>He gazed at her stupidly.</p>
+
+<p>'You will not make this wedding?' he asked.</p>
+
+<p>'Gentleman Guard,' Katharine said, 'you have your answer. Get you gone.'</p>
+
+<p>A sudden rage came into his eyes; he swallowed in his throat and made a
+gesture of despair with his hand. The Queen turned back into her room
+and busied herself with her task, which was the writing into a little
+vellum book of seven prayers to the Virgin that the Lady Elizabeth,
+Queen Anne Boleyn's daughter, a child then in London, was to turn each
+one into seven languages, written fair in the volume as a gift, against
+Christmas, for the King.</p>
+
+<p>'I would not have that boy to guard my door,' the Lady Cicely said to
+the Queen.</p>
+
+<p>'Why, 'tis a good boy,' Katharine answered; 'and his sister loves me
+very well.'</p>
+
+<p>'Get your Highness another,' the Lady Cicely persisted. 'I do not like
+his looks.'<span class='pagenum'><a name="page470" id="page470">470</a></span></p>
+
+<p>The Queen gazed up from her writing to where the dark girl, her figure
+raked very much back in her stiff bodice, played daintily with the
+tassels of the curtain next the window.</p>
+
+<p>'My Lady,' Katharine said, 'my Highness must get me a new maid in place
+of Margot Poins, that shall away into a nunnery. Is not that grief
+enough for poor Margot? Shall she think in truth that she has undone her
+father's house?'</p>
+
+<p>'Then advance the springald to some post away from you,' the Lady Cicely
+said.</p>
+
+<p>'Nay,' the Queen answered; 'he hath done nothing to merit advancement.'</p>
+
+<p>She continued, with her head bent down over the writing on her knee, her
+lips moving a little as, sedulously, she drew large and plain letters
+with her pen.</p>
+
+<p>'By Heaven,' the Lady Cicely said, 'you have too tickle a conscience to
+be a Queen of this world and day. In the time of C&aelig;sar you might have
+lived more easily.'</p>
+
+<p>The Queen looked up at her from her writing; her clear eyes were
+untroubled.</p>
+
+<p>'Aye,' she said. '<i>Lucio Domitio, Appio Claudio consulibus</i>&mdash;&mdash;'</p>
+
+<p>Cicely Rochford set back her head and laughed at the ceiling.</p>
+
+<p>'Aye, your Highness is a Roman,' she tittered like a magpie.</p>
+
+<p>'In the day of C&aelig;sar it was simple to do well,' the Queen said.</p>
+
+<p>'Why, I do not believe it,' Cicely answered her.</p>
+
+<p>'Cousin! Cousin!' The old Lady Rochford warned her that this was the
+Queen, not her old playmate.</p>
+
+<p>'But now,' the Queen said, 'with such a coming together and a concourse
+of peoples about us; with such holes and corners in a great Court&mdash;&mdash;'
+She paused and sighed.</p>
+
+<p>'Well, if I may not speak my mind,' Cicely Rochford said to the old
+lady, 'what good am I?'</p>
+
+<p>'I did even what I might to keep this lamb Margot from the teeth of that
+wolf Magister,' the Queen said. 'I take<span class='pagenum'><a name="page471" id="page471">471</a></span> shame to myself that I did no
+more. I will do a penance for it. But still I think that these be
+degenerate days.'</p>
+
+<p>'Oh, Queen of dreams and fancies,' Cicely Rochford said. 'I am very
+certain that in the days of your noble Romans it was as it is now. Tell
+me, if you can, that in all your readings of hic and hoc you lit not
+upon such basenesses? You will not lay your hand upon your heart and say
+that never a man of Rome bartered his sister for the hope of
+advancement, or that never a learned doctor was a corrupter of youth? I
+have seen the like in the plays of Plautus that here have been played at
+Court.'</p>
+
+<p>'Why,' the Queen said, 'the days of Plautus were days degenerated and
+fallen already from the ancient nobleness.'</p>
+
+<p>'You should have Queened it before Goodman Adam fell,' Cicely Rochford
+mocked her. 'If you go back before Plautus, go back all the way.'</p>
+
+<p>She shrugged her shoulders up to her ears and uttered a little sound
+like '<i>Pfui!</i>' Then she said quickly&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Give me leave to be gone, your Highness, that I may not grow over
+familiar like the boy with the pikestaff, for if it do not gall you it
+shall wring the withers of this my old husband's cousin!'</p>
+
+<p>The old Lady Rochford, who was always thinking of what had been said two
+speeches ago, because she was so slow-witted, raised her gouty hands in
+the air and opened her mouth. But the Queen smiled faintly at Cicely.</p>
+
+<p>'When I ask you to mince matters in my little room you shall do it. It
+was Lucius the Praetor that went always accompanied by a carping Stoic
+to keep him from being puffed up, and it was a good custom.'</p>
+
+<p>'Before Heaven,' Cicely Rochford said in the midst of her curtsey at the
+door, 'shall I have the office of such a one as Diogenes who derided
+Alexander the Emperor? Then must my old husband live with me in a tub!'</p>
+
+<p>'Pray you,' the Queen said after her through the door, 'look you around
+and spy me out a maid to be my tiring-woman and ward my spinsters. For
+nowadays I see few maids to choose from.'<span class='pagenum'><a name="page472" id="page472">472</a></span></p>
+
+<p>When she was gone the old Lady Rochford timorously berated the Queen.
+She would have her be more distant with knights' wives and the like. For
+it was fitting for a Queen to be feared and deemed awful.</p>
+
+<p>'I had rather be loved and deemed pitiful,' Katharine answered. 'For I
+was once such a one&mdash;no more&mdash;than she or thou, or very little more.
+Before the people I bear myself proudly for my lord his high honour. But
+I do lead a very cloistered life, and have leisure to reflect upon for
+what a little space authority endureth, and how that friendship and true
+love between friends are things that bear the weather better.' She did
+not say her Latin text, for the old lady had no Latin.</p>
+
+<h3>VI</h3>
+
+<p>In the underground cell, above the red and gold table that afternoon,
+Lascelles wrought at a fair copy of the King's letter to the Pope,
+amended as it had been by Udal's hand. The Archbishop had come into the
+room reading a book as he came from his prayers, and sate him down in
+his chair at the tablehead without glancing at his gentleman.</p>
+
+<p>'Prithee, your Grace,' Lascelles said, 'suffer me to carry this letter
+mine own self to the Queen.'</p>
+
+<p>The Archbishop looked up at him; his mournful eyes started wide; he
+leaned forward.</p>
+
+<p>'Art thou Lascelles?' he asked.</p>
+
+<p>'Aye, Lascelles I am,' the gentleman answered; 'but I have cut off my
+beard.'</p>
+
+<p>The Archbishop was very weak and startled; he fell into an anger.</p>
+
+<p>'Is this a time for vanities?' he said. 'Will you be after the wenches?
+You look a foolish boy! I do not like this prank.'</p>
+
+<p>Lascelles put up his hand to stroke his vanished beard. His risible lips
+writhed in a foxy smile; his chin was fuller than you would have
+expected, round and sensuous with a dimple in the peak of it.<span class='pagenum'><a name="page473" id="page473">473</a></span></p>
+
+<p>'Please it, your Grace,' he said, 'this is no vanity, but a scheme that
+I will try.'</p>
+
+<p>'What scheme? What scheme?' the Archbishop said. 'Here have been too
+many schemes.' He was very shaken and afraid, because this world was
+beyond his control.</p>
+
+<p>'Please it, your Grace,' Lascelles answered, 'ask me not what this
+scheme is.'</p>
+
+<p>The Archbishop shook his head and pursed his lips feebly.</p>
+
+<p>'Please it, your Grace,' Lascelles urged, 'if this scheme miscarry, your
+Grace shall hear no more of it. If this scheme succeed I trow it shall
+help some things forward that your Grace would much have forwarded.
+Please it, your Grace, to ask me no more, and to send me with this
+letter to the Queen's Highness.'</p>
+
+<p>The Archbishop opened his nerveless hands before him; they were pale and
+wrinkled as if they had been much soddened in water. Since the King had
+bidden him compose that letter to the Pope of Rome, his hands had grown
+so. Lascelles wrote on at the new draft of the letter, his lips
+following the motions of his pen. Still writing, and with his eyes down,
+he said&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'The Queen's Highness will put from her her tirewoman in a week from
+now.'</p>
+
+<p>The Archbishop moved his fingers as who should say&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'What is that to me!' His eyes gazed into the space above his book that
+lay before him on the table.</p>
+
+<p>'This Margot Poins is a niece of the master-printer Badge, a Lutheran,
+of the Austin Friars.' Lascelles pursued his writing for a line further.
+Then he added&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'This putting away and the occasion of it shall make a great noise in
+the town of London. It will be said amongst the Lutherans that the Queen
+is answerable therefor. It will be said that the Queen hath a very lewd
+Court and companionship.'</p>
+
+<p>The Archbishop muttered wearily&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'It hath been said already.'</p>
+
+<p>'But not,' Lascelles said, 'since she came to be Queen.'<span class='pagenum'><a name="page474" id="page474">474</a></span></p>
+
+<p>The Archbishop directed upon him his hang-dog eyes, and his voice was
+the voice of a man that would not be disturbed from woeful musings.</p>
+
+<p>'What use?' he said bitterly; and then again, 'What use?'</p>
+
+<p>Lascelles wrote on sedulously. He used his sandarach to the end of the
+page, blew off the sand, eyed the sheet sideways, laid it down, and set
+another on his writing-board.</p>
+
+<p>'Why,' he brought out quietly, 'it may be brought to the King's
+Highness' ears.'</p>
+
+<p>'What way?' the Archbishop said heavily, as if the thing were
+impossible. His gentleman answered&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'This way and that!' The King's Highness had a trick of wandering about
+among his faithful lieges unbeknown; foreign ambassadors wrote abroad
+such rumours which might be re-reported from the foreign by the King's
+servants.</p>
+
+<p>'Such a report,' Lascelles said, 'hath gone up already to London town by
+a swift carrier.'</p>
+
+<p>The Archbishop brought out wearily and distastefully&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'How know you? Was it you that wrote it?'</p>
+
+<p>'Please it, your Grace,' his gentleman answered him, 'it was in this
+wise. As I was passing by the Queen's chamber wall I heard a great
+outcry&mdash;&mdash;'</p>
+
+<p>He laid down his pen beside his writing-board the more leisurely to
+speak.</p>
+
+<p>He had seen Udal, beaten and shaking, stagger out from the Queen's door
+to where his guards waited to set him back in prison. From Udal he had
+learned of this new draft of the letter; of Udal's trouble he knew
+before. Udal gone, he had waited a little, hearing the Queen's voice and
+what she said very plainly, for the castle was very great and quiet.
+Then out had come the young Poins, breathing like a volcano through his
+nostrils, and like to be stricken with palsy, boy though he was. Him
+Lascelles had followed at a convenient distance, where he staggered and
+snorted. And, coming upon the boy in an empty guard-room near the great
+gate, he had found him aflame with passion against the Queen's
+Highness.<span class='pagenum'><a name="page475" id="page475">475</a></span></p>
+
+<p>'I,' the boy had cried out, 'I that by my carrying of letters set this
+Howard where she sits! I!&mdash;and this is my advancement. My sister cast
+down, and I cast out, and another maid to take my sister's place.'</p>
+
+<p>And Lascelles, in the guard-chamber, had shown him sympathy and reminded
+him that there was gospel for saying that princes had short memories.</p>
+
+<p>'But I did not calm him!' Lascelles said.</p>
+
+<p>On the contrary, upon Lascelles' suggestion that the boy had but to hold
+his tongue and pocket his wrongs, the young Poins had burst out that he
+would shout it all abroad at every street corner. And suddenly it had
+come into his head to write such a letter to his Uncle Badge the printer
+as, printed in a broadside, would make the Queen's name to stink, until
+the last generation was of men, in men's nostrils.</p>
+
+<p>Lascelles rubbed his hands gently and sinuously together. He cast one
+sly glance at the Archbishop.</p>
+
+<p>'Well, the letter was written,' he said. 'Be sure the broadside shall be
+printed.'</p>
+
+<p>Cranmer's head was sunk over his book.</p>
+
+<p>'This lad,' Lascelles said softly, 'who in seven days' time again shall
+keep the Queen's door (for it is not true that the Queen's Highness is
+an ingrate, well sure am I), this lad shall be a very useful confidant;
+a very serviceable guide to help us to a knowledge of who goes in to the
+Queen and who cometh out.'</p>
+
+<p>The Archbishop did not appear to be listening to his gentleman's soft
+voice and, resuming his pen, Lascelles finished his tale with&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'For I have made this lad my friend. It shall cost me some money, but I
+do not doubt that your Grace shall repay.'</p>
+
+<p>The Archbishop raised his head.</p>
+
+<p>'No, before God in heaven on His throne!' he said. His voice was shrill
+and high; he agitated his hands in their fine, tied sleeves. 'I will
+have no part in these Cromwell tricks. All is lost; let it be lost. I
+must say my prayers.'<span class='pagenum'><a name="page476" id="page476">476</a></span></p>
+
+<p>'Has it been by saying of your Grace's prayers that your Grace has lived
+through these months?' Lascelles asked softly.</p>
+
+<p>'Aye,' the Archbishop wrung his hands; 'you girded me and moved me when
+Cromwell lay at death, to write a letter to the King's Highness. To
+write such a letter as should appear brave and faithful and true to
+Privy Seal's cause.'</p>
+
+<p>'Such a letter your Grace wrote,' Lascelles said; 'and it was the best
+writing that ever your Grace made.'</p>
+
+<p>The Archbishop gazed at the table.</p>
+
+<p>'How do I know that?' he said in a whisper. 'You say so, who bade me
+write it.'</p>
+
+<p>'For that your Grace lives yet,' Lascelles said softly; 'though in those
+days a warrant was written for your capture. For, sure it is, and your
+Grace has heard it from the King's lips, that your letter sounded so
+faithful and piteous and true to him your late leader, that the King
+could not but believe that you, so loyal in such a time to a man
+disgraced and cast down beyond hope, could not but be faithful and loyal
+in the future to him, the King, with so many bounties to bestow.'</p>
+
+<p>'Aye,' the Archbishop said, 'but how do I know what of a truth was in
+the King's mind who casteth down to-day one, to-morrow another, till
+none are left?'</p>
+
+<p>And again Cranmer dropped his anguished eyes to the table.</p>
+
+<hr style="width: 45%;" />
+
+<p>In those days still&mdash;and he slept still worse since the King had bidden
+him write this letter to Rome&mdash;the Archbishop could not sleep on any
+night without startings and sweats and cryings out in his sleep. And he
+gave orders that, when he so cried out, the page at his bedside should
+wake him.</p>
+
+<p>For then he was seeing the dreadful face of his great master, Privy
+Seal, when the day of his ruin had come. Cromwell had been standing in a
+window of the council chamber at Westminster looking out upon a
+courtyard. In<span class='pagenum'><a name="page477" id="page477">477</a></span> behind him had come the other lords of the council,
+Norfolk with his yellow face, the High Admiral, and many others; and
+each, seating himself at the table, had kept his bonnet on his head. So
+Cromwell, turning, had seen them and had asked with his hard insolence
+and embittered eyes of hatred, how they dared be covered before he who
+was their president sat down. Then, up against him in the window-place
+there had sprung Norfolk at the chain of the George round his neck, and
+Suffolk at the Garter on his knee; and Norfolk had cried out that Thomas
+Cromwell was no longer Privy Seal of that kingdom, nor president of that
+council, but a traitor that must die. Then such rage and despair had
+come into Thomas Cromwell's terrible face that Cranmer's senses had
+reeled. He had seen Norfolk and the Admiral fall back before this
+passion; he had seen Thomas Cromwell tear off his cap and cast it on the
+floor; he had heard him bark and snarl out certain words into the face
+of the yellow dog of Norfolk.</p>
+
+<p>'<i>Upon your life you dare not call me traitor!</i>' and Norfolk had fallen
+back abashed.</p>
+
+<p>Then the chamber had seemed to fill with an awful gloom and darkness;
+men showed only like shadows against the window lights; the constable of
+the Tower had come in with the warrants, and in that gloom the earth had
+appeared to tremble and quake beneath the Archbishop's feet.</p>
+
+<hr style="width: 45%;" />
+
+<p>He crossed himself at the recollection, and, coming out of his stupor,
+saw that Lascelles was finishing his writings. And he was glad that he
+was here now and not there then.</p>
+
+<p>'Prithee, your Grace,' the gentleman's soft voice said, 'let me bear,
+myself, this letter to the Queen.'</p>
+
+<p>The Archbishop shivered frostily in his robes.</p>
+
+<p>'I will have no more Cromwell tricks,' he said. 'I have said it'; and he
+affected an obdurate tone.</p>
+
+<p>'Then, indeed, all is lost,' Lascelles answered; 'for this Queen is very
+resolved.'<span class='pagenum'><a name="page478" id="page478">478</a></span></p>
+
+<p>The Archbishop cast his eyes up to the cold stone ceiling above him. He
+crossed himself.</p>
+
+<p>'You are a very devil,' he said, and panic came into his eyes, so that
+he turned them all round him as if he sought an issue at which to run
+out.</p>
+
+<p>'The Papist lords in this castle met on Saturday night,' Lascelles said;
+'their meeting was very secret, and Norfolk was their head. But I have
+heard it said that not one of them was for the Queen.'</p>
+
+<p>The Archbishop shrank within himself.</p>
+
+<p>'I am not minded to hear this,' he said.</p>
+
+<p>'Not one of them was for the Queen altogether; for she will render all
+lands and goods back to the Church, and there is no one of them but is
+rich with the lands and goods of the Church. That they that followed
+Cromwell are not for the Queen well your Grace knoweth,' his gentleman
+continued.</p>
+
+<p>'I will not hear this; this is treason,' the Archbishop muttered.</p>
+
+<p>'So that who standeth for the Queen?' Lascelles whispered. 'Only a few
+of the baser sort that have no lands to lose.'</p>
+
+<p>'The King,' the Archbishop cried out in a terrible voice; 'the King
+standeth for her!'</p>
+
+<p>He sprang up in his chair and then sank down again, covering his mouth
+with his hands, as if he would have intercepted the uttered words. For
+who knew who listened at what doors in these days. He whispered
+horribly&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'What a folly is this. Who shall move the King? Will reports of his
+ambassadors that Cleves, or Charles, or Francis miscall the Queen? You
+know they will not, for the King is aware of how these princes batten on
+carrion. Will broad sheets of the Lutheran? You know they will not, for
+the King is aware of how those coggers come by their tales. Will the
+King go abroad among the people any more to hear what they say? You know
+he will not. For he <span class='pagenum'><a name="page479" id="page479">479</a></span>is grown too old, and his fireside is made too
+sweet&mdash;&mdash;'</p>
+
+<p>He wavered, and he could not work himself up with a longer show of
+anger.</p>
+
+<p>'Prithee,' Lascelles said, 'let me bear this letter myself to the
+Queen.' His voice was patient and calm.</p>
+
+<p>The Archbishop lay back, impotent, in his chair. His arms were along the
+arms of it: he had dropped his book upon the table. His long gown was
+draped all over him down to his feet; his head remained motionless; his
+eyes did not wink, and gazed at despair; his hands drooped, open and
+impotent.</p>
+
+<p>Suddenly he moved one of them a very little.</p>
+
+<h3>VII</h3>
+
+<p>It was the Queen's habit to go every night, when the business of the day
+was done, to pray, along with the Lady Mary, in the small chapel that
+was in the roof of the castle. To vespers she went with all the Court to
+the big chapel in the courtyard that the King had builded especially for
+her. But to this little chapel, that was of Edward IV's time, small and
+round-arched, all stone and dark and bare, she went with the Lady Mary
+alone. Her ladies and her doorguards they left at the stair foot, on a
+level with the sleeping rooms of the poorer sort, but up the little
+stairway they climbed by themselves, in darkness, to pray privately for
+the conversion of England. For this little place was so small and so
+forgotten that it had never been desecrated by Privy Seal's men. It had
+had no vessels worth the taking, and only very old vestments and a few
+ill-painted pictures on the stone walls that were half hidden in the
+dust.</p>
+
+<p>Katharine had found this little place when, on her first day at
+Pontefract, she had gone a-wandering over the castle with the King. For
+she was curious to know how men had lived in the old times; to see their
+rooms and to mark what old things were there still in use. And she had
+climbed thus high because she was minded to gaze upon<span class='pagenum'><a name="page480" id="page480">480</a></span> the huge expanse
+of country and of moors that from the upper leads of the castle was to
+be seen. But this little chapel had seemed to her to be all the more
+sacred because it had been undesecrated and forgotten. She thought that
+you could not find such another in the King's realm at that time; she
+was very assured that not one was to be found in any house of the King's
+and hers.</p>
+
+<p>And, making inquiries, she had found that there was also an old priest
+there served the chapel, doing it rather secretly for the well-disposed
+of the castle's own guards. This old man had fled, at the approach of
+the King's many, into the hidden valleys of that countryside, where
+still the faith lingered and lingers now. For, so barbarous and remote
+those north parts were, that a great many people had never heard that
+the King was married again, and fewer still, or none, knew that he and
+his wife were well inclined again towards Rome.</p>
+
+<p>This old priest she had had brought to her. And he was so well loved
+that along with him came a cluster of weather-battered moorsmen, right
+with him into her presence. They kneeled down, being clothed with skins,
+and several of them having bows of a great size, to beg her not to harm
+this old man, for he was reputed a saint. The Queen could not understand
+their jargon but, when their suit was interpreted to her by the Lord
+Dacre of the North, and when she had had a little converse with the old
+priest, she answered that, so touched was her heart by his simplicity
+and gentleness, that she would pray the good King, her lord and master,
+to let this priest be made her confessor whilst there they stayed. And
+afterwards, if it were convenient, in reward for his faithfulness, he
+should be made a prior or a bishop in those parts. So the moorsmen,
+blessing her uncouthly for her fairness and kind words, went back with
+their furs and bows into their fastnesses. One of them was a great lord
+of that countryside, and each day he sent into the castle bucks and moor
+fowl, and once or twice a wolf. His name was Sir John Peel, and Sir John
+Peel, too, the priest was called.<span class='pagenum'><a name="page481" id="page481">481</a></span></p>
+
+<p>So the priest served that little altar, and of a night, when the Queen
+was minded next day to partake of the host, he heard her confession. On
+other nights he left them there alone to say their prayers. It was
+always very dark with the little red light burning before the altar and
+two tapers that they lit beneath a statue of the Virgin, old and black
+and ill-carved by antique hands centuries before. And, in that
+blackness, they knelt, invisible almost, and still in the black gowns
+that they put on for prayers, beside a low pillar that gloomed out at
+their sides and vanished up into the darkness of the roof.</p>
+
+<p>Having done their prayers, sometimes they stayed to converse and to
+meditate, for there they could be very private. On the night when the
+letter to Rome was redrafted, the Queen prayed much longer than the Lady
+Mary, who sat back upon a stool, silently, to await her finishing&mdash;for
+it seemed that the Queen was more zealous for the converting of those
+realms again to the old faith than was ever the Lady Mary. The tapers
+burned with a steady, invisible glow in the little side chapel behind
+the pillar; the altar gleamed duskily before them, and it was so still
+that through the unglassed windows they could hear, from far below in
+the black countryside, a tenuous bleating of late-dropped lambs.
+Katharine Howard's beads clicked and her dress rustled as she came up
+from her knees.</p>
+
+<p>'It rests more with thee than with any other in this land,' her voice
+reverberated amongst the distant shadows. A bat that had been drawn in
+by the light flittered invisibly near them.</p>
+
+<p>'Even what?' the Lady Mary asked.</p>
+
+<p>'Well you know,' the Queen answered; 'and may the God to whom you have
+prayed, that softened the heart of Paul, soften thine in this hour!'</p>
+
+<p>The Lady Mary maintained a long silence. The bat flittered, with a
+leathern rustle, invisible, between their very faces. At last Mary
+uttered, and her voice was taunting and malicious<span class='pagenum'><a name="page482" id="page482">482</a></span>&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'If you will soften my heart much you must beseech me.'</p>
+
+<p>'Why, I will kneel to you,' the Queen said.</p>
+
+<p>'Aye, you shall,' Mary answered. 'Tell me what you would have of me.'</p>
+
+<p>'Well you know!' Katharine said again.</p>
+
+<p>In the darkness the lady's voice maintained its bitter mirth, as it were
+the broken laughter of a soul in anguish.</p>
+
+<p>'I will have you tell me, for it is a shameful tale that will shame you
+in the telling.'</p>
+
+<p>The Queen paused to consider of her words.</p>
+
+<p>'First, you shall be reconciled with, and speak pleasantly with, the
+King your father and my lord.'</p>
+
+<p>'And is it not a shameful thing you bid me do, to bid me speak pleasant
+words to him that slew my mother and called me bastard?'</p>
+
+<p>The Queen answered that she asked it in the name of Christ, His pitiful
+sake, and for the good of this suffering land.</p>
+
+<p>'None the less, Queen, thou askest it in the darkness that thy face may
+not be seen. And what more askest thou?'</p>
+
+<p>'That when the Duke of Orleans his ambassadors come asking your hand in
+marriage, you do show them a pleasant and acquiescent countenance.'</p>
+
+<p>The sacredness of that dark place kept Mary from laughing aloud.</p>
+
+<p>'That, too, you dare not ask in the light of day, Queen,' she said. 'Ask
+on!'</p>
+
+<p>'That when the Emperor's ambassadors shall ask for your hand you shall
+profess yourself glad indeed.'</p>
+
+<p>'Well, here is more shame, that I should be prayed to feign this
+gladness. I think the angels do laugh that hear you. Ask even more.'</p>
+
+<p>Katharine said patiently&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'That, having in reward of these favours, been set again on high, having
+honours shown you and a Court appointed round you, you shall gladly play
+the part of a princess royal to these realms, never gibing, nor sneering
+upon this<span class='pagenum'><a name="page483" id="page483">483</a></span> King your father, nor calling upon the memory of the wronged
+Queen your mother.'</p>
+
+<p>'Queen,' the Lady Mary said, 'I had thought that even in the darkness
+you had not dared to ask me this.'</p>
+
+<p>'I will ask it you again,' the Queen said, 'in your room where the light
+of the candles shines upon my face.'</p>
+
+<p>'Why, you shall,' the Lady Mary said. 'Let us presently go there.'</p>
+
+<hr style="width: 45%;" />
+
+<p>They went down the dark and winding stair. At the foot the procession of
+the <i>coucher de la royne</i> awaited them, first being two trumpeters in
+black and gold, then four pikemen with lanthorns, then the marshal of
+the Queen's household and five or seven lords, then the Queen's ladies,
+the Lady Rochford that slept with her, the Lady Cicely Rochford; the
+Queen's tiring-women, leaving a space between them for the Queen and the
+Lady Mary to walk in, then four young pages in scarlet and with the
+Queen's favours in their caps, and then the guard of the Queen's door,
+and four pikemen with torches whose light, falling from behind,
+illumined the path for the Queen's steps. The trumpeters blew four
+shrill blasts and then four with their fists in the trumpet mouths to
+muffle them. The brazen cries wound down the dark corridors, fathoms and
+fathoms down, to let men know that the Queen had done her prayers and
+was going to her bed. This great state was especially devised by the
+King to do honour to the new Queen that he loved better than any he had
+had. The purpose of it was to let all men know what she did that she
+might be the more imitated.</p>
+
+<p>But the Queen bade them guide her to the Lady Mary's door, and in the
+doorway she dismissed them all, save only her women and her door guard
+and pikemen who awaited her without, some on stools and some against the
+wall, ladies and men alike.</p>
+
+<p>The Lady Mary looked into the Queen's face very close and laughed at her
+when they were in the fair room and the light of the candles.<span class='pagenum'><a name="page484" id="page484">484</a></span></p>
+
+<p>'Now you shall say your litany over again,' she sneered; 'I will sit me
+down and listen.' And in her chair at the table, with her face averted,
+she dug with little stabs into the covering rug the stiletto with which
+she was wont to mend her pens.</p>
+
+<p>Standing by her, her face fully lit by the many candles that were upon
+the mantel, the Queen, dressed all in black and with the tail of her
+hood falling down behind to her feet, went patiently through the list of
+her prayers&mdash;that the Lady Mary should be reconciled with her father,
+that she should show at first favour to the ambassadors that sued for
+her hand for the Duke of Orleans, and afterwards give a glad consent to
+her marriage with the Prince Philip, the Emperor's son; and then, having
+been reinstated as a princess of the royal house of England, she should
+bear herself as such, and no more cry out upon the memory of Katharine
+of Aragon that had been put away from the King's side.</p>
+
+<p>The Queen spoke these words with a serious patience and a level voice;
+but when she came to the end of them she stretched out her hand and her
+voice grew full.</p>
+
+<p>'And oh,' she said, her face being set and earnest in entreaty towards
+the girl's back, 'if you have any love for the green and fertile land
+that gave birth both to you and to me&mdash;&mdash;'</p>
+
+<p>'But to me a bastard,' the Lady Mary said.</p>
+
+<p>'If you would have the dishoused saints to return home to their loved
+pastures; if you would have the Mother of God and of us all to rejoice
+again in her dowry; if you would see a great multitude of souls, gentle
+and simple reconducted again towards Heaven&mdash;&mdash;'</p>
+
+<p>'Well, well!' the Lady Mary said; 'grovel! grovel! I had thought you
+would have been shamed thus to crawl upon your belly before me.'</p>
+
+<p>'I would crawl in the dust,' Katharine said. 'I would kiss the mire from
+the shoon of the vilest man there is if in that way I might win for the
+Church of God&mdash;&mdash;'</p>
+
+<p>'Well, well!' the Lady Mary said.<span class='pagenum'><a name="page485" id="page485">485</a></span></p>
+
+<p>'You will not let me finish my speech about our Saviour and His mother,'
+the Queen said. 'You are afraid I should move you.'</p>
+
+<p>The Lady Mary turned suddenly round upon her in her chair. Her face was
+pallid, the skin upon her hollowed temples trembled&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Queen,' she called out, 'ye blaspheme when ye say that a few paltry
+speeches of yours about God and souls will make me fail my mother's
+memory and the remembrances of the shames I have had.'</p>
+
+<p>She closed her eyes; she swallowed in her throat and then, starting up,
+she overset her chair.</p>
+
+<p>'To save souls!' she said. 'To save a few craven English souls! What are
+they to me? Let them burn in the eternal fires! Who among them raised a
+hand or struck a blow for my mother or me? Let them go shivering to
+hell.'</p>
+
+<p>'Lady,' the Queen said, 'ye know well how many have gone to the stake
+over conspiracies for you in this realm.'</p>
+
+<p>'Then they are dead and wear the martyr's crown,' the Lady Mary said.
+'Let the rest that never aided me, nor struck blow for my mother, go rot
+in their heresies.'</p>
+
+<p>'But the Church of God!' the Queen said. 'The King's Highness has
+promised me that upon the hour when you shall swear to do these things
+he will send the letter that ye wot of to our Father in Rome.'</p>
+
+<p>The Lady Mary laughed aloud&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Here is a fine woman,' she said. 'This is ever the woman's part to
+gloss over crimes of their men folk. What say you to the death of Lady
+Salisbury that died by the block a little since?'</p>
+
+<p>She bent her body and poked her head forward into the Queen's very face.
+Katharine stood still before her.</p>
+
+<p>'God knows,' she said. 'I might not stay it. There was much false
+witness&mdash;or some of it true&mdash;against her. I pray that the King my Lord
+may atone for it in the peace that shall come.'</p>
+
+<p>'The peace that shall come!' the Lady Mary laughed. 'Oh, God, what
+things we women are when a man rules us.<span class='pagenum'><a name="page486" id="page486">486</a></span> The peace that shall come? By
+what means shall it have been brought on?'</p>
+
+<p>'I will tell you,' she pursued after a moment. 'All this is cogging and
+lying and feigning and chicaning. And you who are so upright will crawl
+before me to bring it about. Listen!'</p>
+
+<p>And she closed her eyes the better to calm herself and to collect her
+thoughts, for she hated to appear moved.</p>
+
+<p>'I am to feign a friendship to my father. That is a lie that you ask me
+to do, for I hate him as he were the devil. And why must I do this? To
+feign a smooth face to the world that his pride may not be humbled. I am
+to feign to receive the ambassadors of the Duke of Orleans. That is
+cogging that you ask of me. For it is not intended that ever I shall wed
+with a prince of the French house. But I must lead them on and on till
+the Emperor be affrighted lest your King make alliance with the French.
+What a foul tale! And you lend it your countenance!'</p>
+
+<p>'I would well&mdash;&mdash;' Katharine began.</p>
+
+<p>'Oh, I know, I know,' Mary snickered. 'Ye would well be chaste but that
+it must needs be other with you. It was the thief's wife said that.</p>
+
+<p>'Listen again,' she pursued, 'anon there shall come the Emperor's men,
+and there shall be more cogging and chicaning, and honours shall be
+given me that I may be bought dear, and petitioning that I should be set
+in the succession to make them eager. And then, perhaps, it shall all be
+cried off and a Schmalkaldner prince shall send ambassadors&mdash;&mdash;'</p>
+
+<p>'No, before God,' Katharine said.</p>
+
+<p>'Oh, I know my father,' Mary laughed at her. 'You will keep him tied to
+Rome if you can. But you could not save the venerable Lady of Salisbury,
+nor you shall not save him from trafficking with Schmalkaldners and
+Lutherans if it shall serve his monstrous passions and his vanities. And
+if he do not this yet he will do other villainies. And you will cosset
+him in them&mdash;to save his hoggish dignity<span class='pagenum'><a name="page487" id="page487">487</a></span> and buttress up his heavy
+pride. All this you stand there and ask.'</p>
+
+<p>'In the name of God I ask it,' Katharine said. 'There is no other way.'</p>
+
+<p>'Well then,' the Lady Mary said, 'you shall ask it many times. I will
+have you shamed.'</p>
+
+<p>'Day and night I will ask it,' Katharine said.</p>
+
+<p>The Lady Mary sniffed.</p>
+
+<p>'It is very well,' she said. 'You are a proud and virtuous piece. I will
+humble you. It were nothing to my father to crawl on his belly and
+humble himself and slaver. He would do it with joy, weeping with a
+feigned penitence, making huge promises, foaming at the mouth with oaths
+that he repented, calling me his ever loved child&mdash;&mdash;'</p>
+
+<p>She stayed and then added&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'That would cost him nothing. But that you that are his pride, that you
+should do it who are in yourself proud&mdash;that is somewhat to pay oneself
+with for shamed nights and days despised. If you will have this thing
+you shall do some praying for it.'</p>
+
+<p>'Even as Jacob served so will I,' Katharine said.</p>
+
+<p>'Seven years!' the Lady Mary mocked at her. 'God forbid that I should
+suffer you for so long. I will get me gone with an Orleans, a Kaiserlik,
+or a Schmalkaldner leaguer before that. So much comfort I will give
+you.' She stopped, lifted her head and said, 'One knocks!'</p>
+
+<p>They said from the door that a gentleman was come from the Archbishop
+with a letter to the Queen's Grace.</p>
+
+<h3>VIII</h3>
+
+<p>There came in the shaven Lascelles and fell upon his knees, holding up
+the sheets of the letter he had copied.</p>
+
+<p>The Queen took them from him and laid them upon the great table, being
+minded later to read them to the Lady Mary, in proof that the King very
+truly would make his<span class='pagenum'><a name="page488" id="page488">488</a></span> submission to Rome, supposing only that his
+daughter would make submission to her.</p>
+
+<p>When she turned, Lascelles was still kneeling before the doorway, his
+eyes upon the ground.</p>
+
+<p>'Why, I thank you,' she said. 'Gentleman, you may get you gone back to
+the Archbishop.'</p>
+
+<p>She was thinking of returning to her duel of patience with the Lady
+Mary. But looking upon his blond and agreeable features she stayed for a
+minute.</p>
+
+<p>'I know your face,' she said. 'Where have I seen you?'</p>
+
+<p>He looked up at her; his eyes were blue and noticeable, because at times
+of emotion he was so wide-lidded that the whites showed round the pupils
+of them.</p>
+
+<p>'Certainly I have seen you,' the Queen said.</p>
+
+<p>'It is a royal gift,' he said, 'the memory of faces. I am the
+Archbishop's poor gentleman, Lascelles.'</p>
+
+<p>The Queen said&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Lascelles? Lascelles?' and searched her memory.</p>
+
+<p>'I have a sister, the spit and twin of me,' he answered; 'and her name
+is Mary.'</p>
+
+<p>The Queen said&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Ah! ah!' and then, 'Your sister was my bed-fellow in the maid's room at
+my grandmother's.'</p>
+
+<p>He answered gravely&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Even so!'</p>
+
+<p>And she&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Stand up and tell me how your sister fares. I had some kindnesses of
+her when I was a child. I remember when I had cold feet she would heat a
+brick in the fire to lay to them, and such tricks. How fares she? Will
+you not stand up?'</p>
+
+<p>'Because she fares very ill I will not stand upon my feet,' he answered.</p>
+
+<p>'Well, you will beg a boon of me,' she said. 'If it is for your sister I
+will do what I may with a good conscience.'</p>
+
+<p>He answered, remaining kneeling, that he would fain see his sister. But
+she was very poor, having married an esquire called Hall of these parts,
+and he was dead, leaving<span class='pagenum'><a name="page489" id="page489">489</a></span> her but one little farm where, too, his old
+father and mother dwelt.</p>
+
+<p>'I will pay for her visit here,' she said; 'and she shall have lodging.'</p>
+
+<p>'Safe-conduct she must have too,' he answered; 'for none cometh within
+seven miles of this court without your permit and approval.'</p>
+
+<p>'Well, I will send horses of my own, and men to safeguard her,' the
+Queen said. 'For, sure, I am beholden to her in many little things. I
+think she sewed the first round gown that ever I had.'</p>
+
+<p>He remained kneeling, his eyes still upon the floor.</p>
+
+<p>'We are your very good servants, my sister and I,' he said. 'For she did
+marry one&mdash;that Esquire Hall&mdash;that was done to death upon the gallows
+for the old faith's sake. And it was I that wrote the English of most of
+this letter to his Holiness, the Archbishop being ill and keeping his
+bed.'</p>
+
+<p>'Well, you have served me very well, it is true,' the Queen answered.
+'What would you have of me?'</p>
+
+<p>'Your Highness,' he answered, 'I do well love my sister and she me. I
+would have her given a place here at the Court. I do not ask a great
+one; not one so high as about your person. For I am sure that you are
+well attended, and places few there are to spare about you.'</p>
+
+<p>And then, even as he willed it, she bethought her that Margot Poins was
+to go to a nunnery. That afternoon she had decided that Mary Trelyon,
+who was her second maid, should become her first, and others be moved up
+in a rote.</p>
+
+<p>'Why,' she said, 'it may be that I shall find her an occupation. I will
+not have it said&mdash;nor yet do it&mdash;that I have ever recompensed them that
+did me favours in the old times, for there are a many that have served
+well in the Court that then I was outside of, and those it is fitting
+first to reward. Yet, since, as you say you have writ the English of
+this letter, that is a very great service to the Republic, and if by
+rewarding her I may recompense thee, I will think how I may come to do
+it.'<span class='pagenum'><a name="page490" id="page490">490</a></span></p>
+
+<p>He stood up upon his feet.</p>
+
+<p>'It may be,' he said, 'that my sister is rustic and unsuited. I have not
+seen her in many years. Therefore, I will not pray too high a place for
+her, but only that she and I may be near, the one to the other, upon
+occasions, and that she be housed and fed and clothed.'</p>
+
+<p>'Why, that is very well said,' the Queen answered him. 'I will bid my
+men to make inquiries into her demeanour and behaviour in the place
+where she bides, and if she is well fitted and modest, she shall have a
+place about me. If she be too rustic she shall have another place. Get
+you gone, gentleman, and a good-night to ye.'</p>
+
+<p>He bent himself half double, in the then newest courtly way, and still
+bent, pivoted through the door. The Queen stayed a little while musing.</p>
+
+<p>'Why,' she said, 'when I was a little child I fared very ill, if now I
+think of it; but then it seemed a little thing.'</p>
+
+<p>'Y'had best forget it,' the Lady Mary answered.</p>
+
+<p>'Nay,' the Queen said. 'I have known too well what it was to go
+supperless to my bed to forget it. A great shadowy place&mdash;all shadows,
+where the night airs crept in under the rafters.'</p>
+
+<p>She was thinking of the maids' dormitory at her grandmother's, the old
+Duchess.</p>
+
+<p>'I am climbed very high,' she said; 'but to think&mdash;&mdash;'</p>
+
+<p>She was such a poor man's child and held of only the littlest account,
+herding with the maids and the servingmen's children. At eight by the
+clock her grandmother locked her and all the maids&mdash;at times there were
+but ten, at times as many as a score&mdash;into that great dormitory that
+was, in fact, nothing but one long attic or grange beneath the bare
+roof. And sometimes the maids told tales or slept soon, and sometimes
+their gallants, grooms and others, came climbing through the windows
+with rope ladders. They would bring pasties and wines and lights, and
+coarsely they would revel.</p>
+
+<p>'Why,' she said, 'I had a gallant myself. He was a musician, but I have
+forgot his name. Aye, and then there<span class='pagenum'><a name="page491" id="page491">491</a></span> was another, Dearham, I think; but
+I have heard he is since dead. He may have been my cousin; we were so
+many in family, I have a little forgot.'</p>
+
+<p>She stood still, searching her memory, with her eyes distant. The Lady
+Mary surveyed her face with a curious irony.</p>
+
+<p>'Why, what a simple Queen you are!' she said. 'This is something
+rustic.'</p>
+
+<p>The Queen joined her hands together before her, as if she caught at a
+clue.</p>
+
+<p>'I do remember me,' she said. 'It was a make of a comedy. This Dearham,
+calling himself my cousin, beat this music musician for calling himself
+my gallant. Then goes the musicker to my grandam, bidding the old
+Duchess rise up again one hour after she had sought her bed. So comes my
+grandam and turns the key in the padlock and looketh in over all the
+gallimaufrey of lights and pasties and revels.</p>
+
+<p>'Why,' she continued. 'I think I was beaten upon that occasion, but I
+could not well tell why. And I was put to sleep in another room. And
+later came my father home from some war. And he was angry that I had
+consorted so with false minions, and had me away to his own poor house.
+And there I had Udal for my Magister and evil fare and many beatings.
+But this Mary Lascelles was my bed-fellow.'</p>
+
+<p>'Why, forget it,' the Lady Mary said again.</p>
+
+<p>'Other teachers would bid me remember it that I might remain humble,'
+Katharine answered.</p>
+
+<p>'Y'are humble enow and to spare,' the Lady Mary said. 'And these are not
+good memories for such a place as this. Y'had best keep this Mary
+Lascelles at a great distance.'</p>
+
+<p>Katharine said&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'No; for I have passed my word.'</p>
+
+<p>'Then reward her very fully,' the Lady Mary commended, and the Queen
+answered&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'No, for that is against my conscience. What have I to fear now that I
+be Queen?'<span class='pagenum'><a name="page492" id="page492">492</a></span></p>
+
+<p>Mary shrugged her squared shoulders.</p>
+
+<p>'Where is your Latin,' she said, 'with its <i>nulla dies felix</i>&mdash;call no
+day fortunate till it be ended.'</p>
+
+<p>'I will set another text against that,' she said, 'and that from holy
+sayings&mdash;that <i>justus ab aestimatione non timebit</i>.'</p>
+
+<p>'Well,' Mary answered, 'you will make your bed how you will. But I think
+you would better have learned of these maids how to steer a course than
+of your Magister and the Signor Plutarchus.'</p>
+
+<p>The Queen did not answer her, save by begging her to read the King's
+letter to his Holiness.</p>
+
+<p>'And surely,' she said, 'if I had never read in the noble Romans I had
+never had the trick of tongue to gar the King do so much of what I
+will.'</p>
+
+<p>'Why, God help you,' her step-daughter said. 'Pray you may never come to
+repent it.'</p>
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="page493" id="page493">493</a></span></p>
+
+<h2>PART TWO</h2>
+
+<h3>THE THREATENED RIFT</h3>
+
+<h3>I</h3>
+
+<p>In these summer days there was much faring abroad in the broad lands to
+north and to south of the Pontefract Castle. The sunlight lay across
+moors and uplands. The King was come with all his many to Newcastle; but
+no Scots King was there to meet him. So he went farther to northwards.
+His butchers drove before him herds of cattle that they slew some of
+each night: their hooves made a broad and beaten way before the King's
+horses. Behind came an army of tent men: cooks, servers, and sutlers.
+For, since they went where new castles were few, at times they must
+sleep on moorsides, and they had tents all of gold cloth and black, with
+gilded tent-poles and cords of silk and silver wire. The lords and
+principal men of those parts came out to meet him with green boughs, and
+music, and slain deer, and fair wooden kegs filled with milk. But when
+he was come near to Berwick there was still no Scots King to meet him,
+and it became manifest that the King's nephew would fail that tryst.
+Henry, riding among his people, swore a mighty oath that he would take
+way even into Edinburgh town and there act as he listed, for he had with
+him nigh on seven thousand men of all arms and some cannon which he had
+been minded to display for the instruction of his nephew. But he had, in
+real truth, little stomach for this feat. For, if he would go into
+Scotland armed, he must wait till he got together all the men that the
+Council of the North had under arms. These were scattered over the whole
+of the Border country, and it must be many days before he had them all
+there together. And<span class='pagenum'><a name="page494" id="page494">494</a></span> already the summer was well advanced, and if he
+delayed much longer his return, the after progress from Pontefract to
+London must draw them to late in the winter. And he was little minded
+that either Katharine or his son should bear the winter travel. Indeed,
+he sent a messenger back to Pontefract with orders that the Prince
+should be sent forthwith with a great guard to Hampton Court, so that he
+should reach that place before the nights grew cold.</p>
+
+<p>And, having stayed in camp four days near the Scots border&mdash;for he loved
+well to live in a tent, since it re-awoke in him the ardour of his youth
+and made him think himself not so old a man&mdash;he delivered over to the
+Earl Marshal forty Scots borderers and cattle thieves that had been
+taken that summer. These men he had meant to have handed, pardoned, to
+the Scots King when he met him. But the Earl Marshal set up, along the
+road into Scotland, from where the stone marks the border, a row of
+forty gallows, all high, but some higher than others; for some of the
+prisoners were men of condition. And, within sight of a waiting crowd of
+Scots that had come down to the boundaries of their land to view the
+King of England, Norfolk hanged on these trees the forty men.</p>
+
+<p>And, laughing over their shoulders at this fine harvest of fruit,
+gibbering and dangling against the heavens on high, the King and his
+host rode back into the Border country. It was pleasant to ride in the
+summer weather, and they hunted and rendered justice by the way, and
+heard tales of battle that there had been before in the north country.</p>
+
+<p>But there was one man, Thomas Culpepper, in the town of Edinburgh to
+whom this return was grievous. He had been in these outlandish parts now
+for more than nineteen months. The Scots were odious to him, the town
+was odious; he had no stomach for his food, and such clothes as he had
+were ragged, for he would wear nothing that had there been woven. He was
+even a sort of prisoner. For he had been appointed to wait on the King's
+Ambassador to the King of Scots, and the last thing that Throckmorton,<span class='pagenum'><a name="page495" id="page495">495</a></span>
+the notable spy, had done before he had left the Court had been to write
+to Edinburgh that T. Culpepper, the Queen's cousin, who was a dangerous
+man, was to be kept very close and given no leave of absence.</p>
+
+<p>And one thing very much had aided this: for, upon receiving news, or the
+rumour of news, that his cousin Katharine Howard&mdash;he was her mother's
+brother's son&mdash;had wedded the King, or had been shown for Queen at
+Hampton Court, he had suddenly become seized with such a rage that,
+incontinently, he had run his sword through an old fishwife in the
+fishmarket where he was who had given him the news, newly come by sea,
+thinking that because he was an Englishman this marriage of his King
+might gladden him. The fishwife died among her fish, and Culpepper with
+his sword fell upon all that were near him in the market, till, his heel
+slipping upon a haddock, he fell, and was fallen upon by a great many
+men.</p>
+
+<p>He must stay in jail for this till he had compounded with the old
+woman's heirs and had paid for a great many cuts and bruises. And Sir
+Nicholas Hoby, happening to be in Edinburgh at that time, understood
+well what ailed Thomas Culpepper, and that he was mad for love of the
+Queen his cousin&mdash;for was it not this Culpepper that had brought her to
+the court, and, as it was said, had aforetime sold farms to buy her food
+and gowns when, her father being a poor man, she was well-nigh starving?
+Therefore Sir Nicholas begged alike the Ambassador and the King of Scots
+that they would keep this madman clapped up till they were very certain
+that the fit was off him. And, what with the charges of blood ransom and
+jailing for nine months, Culpepper had no money at all when at last he
+was enlarged, but must eat his meals at the Ambassador's table, so that
+he could not in any way come away into England till he had written for
+more money and had earned a further salary. And that again was a matter
+of many months, and later he spent more in drinking and with Scots women
+till he persuaded himself that he had forgotten his cousin that was now
+a Queen. Moreover, it was<span class='pagenum'><a name="page496" id="page496">496</a></span> made clear to him by those about him that it
+was death to leave his post unpermitted.</p>
+
+<p>But, with the coming of the Court up into the north parts, his
+impatience grew again, so that he could no longer eat but only drink and
+fight. It was rumoured that the Queen was riding with the King, and he
+swore a mighty oath that he would beg of her or of the King leave at
+last to be gone from that hateful city; and the nearer came the King the
+more his ardour grew. So that, when the news came that the King was
+turned back, Culpepper could no longer compound it with himself. He had
+then a plenty of money, having kept his room for seven days, and the
+night before that he had won half a barony at dice from a Scots archer.
+But he had no passport into England; therefore, because he was afraid to
+ask for one, being certain of a refusal, he blacked his face and hands
+with coal and then took refuge on a coble, leaving the port of Leith for
+Durham. He had well bribed the master of this ship to take him as one of
+his crew. In Durham he stayed neither to wash nor to eat, but, having
+bought himself a horse, he rode after the King's progress that was then
+two days' journey to the south, and came up with them. He had no wits
+left more than to ask of the sutlers at the tail of the host where the
+Queen was. They laughed at this apparition upon a haggard horse, and one
+of them that was a notable cutpurse took all the gold that he had, only
+giving him in exchange the news that the Queen was at Pontefract, from
+which place she had never stirred. With a little silver that he had in
+another bag he bought himself a provision of food, a store of drink, and
+a poor Kern to guide him, running at his saddle-bow.</p>
+
+<p>He saw neither hills nor valleys, neither heather nor ling: he had no
+thoughts but only that of finding the Queen his cousin. At times the
+tears ran down his begrimed face, at times he waved his sword in the air
+and, spurring his horse, he swore great oaths. How he fared, where he
+rested, by what roads he went over the hills, that he never knew.
+Without a doubt the Kern guided him faithfully.<span class='pagenum'><a name="page497" id="page497">497</a></span></p>
+
+<p>For the Queen, having news that the King was nearly come within a day's
+journey, rode out towards the north to meet him. And as she went along
+the road, she saw, upon a hillside not very far away, a man that sat
+upon a dead horse, beating it and tugging at its bridle. Beside him
+stood a countryman, in a garment of furs and pelts, with rawhide boots.
+She had a great many men and ladies riding behind her, and she had come
+as far as she was minded to go. So she reined in her horse and sent two
+prickers to ask who these men were.</p>
+
+<p>And when she heard that this was a traveller, robbed of all his money
+and insensate, and his poor guide who knew nothing of who he might be,
+she turned her cavalcade back and commanded that the traveller should be
+borne to the castle on a litter of boughs and there attended to and
+comforted until again he could take the road. And she made occasion upon
+this to comment how ill it was for travellers that the old monasteries
+were done away with. For in the old time there were seven monasteries
+between there and Durham, wherein poor travellers might lodge. Then, if
+a merchant were robbed upon the highways, he could be housed at
+convenient stages on his road home, and might afterwards send recompense
+to the good fathers or not as he pleased or was able. Now, there was no
+harbourage left on all that long road, and, but for the grace of God,
+that pitiful traveller might have lain there till the ravens picked out
+his eyes.</p>
+
+<p>And some commended the Queen's words and actions, and some few, behind
+their hands, laughed at her for her soft heart. And the more Lutheran
+sort said that it was God's mercy that the old monasteries were gone;
+for they had, they said, been the nests for lowsels, idle wayfarers,
+palmers, pilgrims, and the like. And, praise God, since that clearance
+fourteen thousand of these had been hanged by the waysides for sturdy
+rogues, to the great purging of the land.<span class='pagenum'><a name="page498" id="page498">498</a></span></p>
+
+<h3>II</h3>
+
+<p>In the part of Lincolnshire that is a little to the northeastward of
+Stamford was a tract of country that had been granted to the monks of St
+Radigund's at Dover by William the Conqueror. These monks had drained
+this land many centuries before, leaving the superintendence of the work
+at first to priors by them appointed, and afterwards, when the dykes,
+ditches, and flood walls were all made, to knights and poor gentlemen,
+their tenants, who farmed the land and kept up the defences against
+inundations, paying scot and lot to a bailiff and water-wardens and
+jurats, just as was done on the Romney marshes by the bailiff and jurats
+of that level.</p>
+
+<p>And one of these tenants, holding two hundred acres in a simple fee from
+St Radigund's for a hundred and fifty years back, had been always a man
+of the name of Hall. It was an Edward Hall that Mary Lascelles had
+married when she was a maid at the Duchess of Norfolk's. This Edward
+Hall was then a squire, a little above the condition of a groom, in the
+Duchess's service. His parents dwelled still on the farm which was
+called Neot's End, because it was in the angle of the great dyke called
+St Neot's and the little sewer where St Radigund's land had its boundary
+stone.</p>
+
+<p>But in the troublesome days of the late Privy Seal, Edward Hall had
+informed Throckmorton the spy of a conspiracy and rising that was
+hatching amongst the Radigund's men a little before the Pilgrimage of
+Grace, when all the north parts rose. For the Radigund's men cried out
+and murmured amongst themselves that if the Priory was done away with
+there would be an end of their easy and comfortable tenancy. Their rents
+had been estimated and appointed a great number of years before, when
+all goods and the produce of the earth were very low priced. And the
+tenants said that if now the King took their lands to himself or gave
+them to some great lord, very heavy bur<span class='pagenum'><a name="page499" id="page499">499</a></span>dens would be laid upon them and
+exacted; whereas in some years under easy priors the monks forgot their
+distant territory, and in bad seasons they took no rents at all. And
+even under hard and exacting priors the monks could take no more than
+their rentals, which were so small. They said, too, that the King and
+Thomas Cromwell would make them into heathen Greeks and turn their
+children to be Saracens. So these Radigund's men meditated a rising and
+conspiracy.</p>
+
+<p>But, because Edward Hall informed Throckmorton of what was agate, a
+posse was sent into that country, and most of the men were hanged and
+their lands all taken from them. Those that survived from the jailing
+betook themselves to the road, and became sturdy beggars, so that many
+of them too came to the gallows tree.</p>
+
+<p>Most of the land was granted to the Sieur Throckmorton with the abbey's
+buildings and tithe barns. But the Halls' farm and another of near three
+hundred acres were granted to Edward Hall. Then it was that Edward Hall
+could marry and take his wife, Mary Lascelles, down into Lincolnshire to
+Neot's End. But when the Pilgrimage of Grace came, and the great risings
+all over Lincolnshire, very early the rioters came to Neot's End, and
+they burned the farm and the byres, they killed all the beasts or drove
+them off, they trampled down the corn and laid waste the flax fields.
+And, between two willow trees along the great dyke, they set a pole, and
+from it they hanged Edward Hall over the waters, so that he dried and
+was cured like a ham in the smoke from his own stacks.</p>
+
+<p>Then Mary Lascelles' case was a very miserable one; for she had to fend
+for the aged father and bedridden mother of Edward Hall, and there were
+no beasts left but only a few geese and ducks that the rebels could not
+lay their hands on. And the only home that they had was the farmhouse
+that was upon Edward Hall's other farm, and that they had let fall
+nearly into ruin. And for a long time no men would work for her.</p>
+
+<p>But at last, after the rebellion was pitifully ended, a few<span class='pagenum'><a name="page500" id="page500">500</a></span> hinds came
+to her, and she made a shift. And it was better still after Privy Seal
+fell, for then came Throckmorton the spy into his lands, and he brought
+with him carpenters and masons and joiners to make his house fair, and
+some of these men he lent to Mary Hall. But it had been prophesied by a
+wise woman in those parts that no land that had been taken from the
+monks would prosper. And, because all the jurats, bailiffs, and
+water-wardens had been hanged either on the one part or the other and no
+more had been appointed, at about that time the sewers began to clog up,
+the lands to swamp, murrain and fluke to strike the beasts and the
+sheep, and night mists to blight the grain and the fruit blossoms. So
+that even Throckmorton had little good of his wealth and lands.</p>
+
+<p>Thus one morning to Mary Hall, who stood before her door feeding her
+geese and ducks, there came a little boy running to say that men-at-arms
+stood on the other side of the dyke that was very swollen and grey and
+broad. And they shouted that they came from the Queen's Highness, and
+would have a boat sent to ferry them over.</p>
+
+<p>The colour came into Mary Hall's pale face, for even there she had heard
+that her former bedfellow was come to be Queen. And at times even she
+had thought to write to the Queen to help her in her misery. But always
+she had been afraid, because she thought that the Queen might remember
+her only as one that had wronged her childish innocence. For she
+remembered that the maids' dormitory at the old Duchess's had been no
+cloister of pure nuns. So that, at best, she was afraid, and she sent
+her yard-worker and a shepherd a great way round to fetch the larger
+boat of two to ferry over the Queen's men. Then she went indoors to redd
+up the houseplace and to attire herself.</p>
+
+<p>To the old farmstead, that was made of wood hung over here and there
+with tilework with a base of bricks, she had added a houseplace for the
+old folk to sit all day. It was built of wattles that had had clay cast
+over them, and was whitened on the outside and thatched nearly down to
+the ground like any squatter's hut; it had cupboards of wood<span class='pagenum'><a name="page501" id="page501">501</a></span> nearly all
+round it, and beneath the cupboards were lockers worn smooth with men
+sitting upon them, after the Dutch fashion&mdash;for there in Lincolnshire
+they had much traffic with the Dutch. There was a great table made of
+one slab of a huge oak from near Boston. Here they all ate. And above
+the ingle was another slab of oak from the same tree. Her little old
+step-mother sat in a stuff chair covered with a sheep-skin; she sat
+there night and day, shivering with the shaking palsy. At times she let
+out of her an eldritch shriek, very like the call of a hedgehog; but she
+never spoke, and she was fed with a spoon by a little misbegotten son of
+Edward Hall's. The old step-father sat always opposite her; he had no
+use of his legs, and his head was always stiffly screwed round towards
+the door as if he were peering, but that was the rheumatism. To atone
+for his wife's dumbness, he chattered incessantly whenever anyone was on
+that floor; but because he spoke always in Lincolnshire, Mary Hall could
+scarce understand him, and indeed she had long ceased to listen. He
+spoke of forgotten floods and ploughings, ancient fairs, the boundaries
+of fields long since flooded over, of a visit to Boston that King Edward
+IV had made, and of how he, for his fair speech and old lineage, had
+been chosen of all the Radigund's men to present into the King's hands
+three silver horseshoes. Behind his back was a great dresser with railed
+shelves, having upon them a little pewter ware and many wooden bowls for
+the hinds' feeding. A door on the right side, painted black, went down
+into the cellar beneath the old house. Another door, of bars of iron
+with huge locks from the old monastery, went into the old house where
+slept the maids and the hinds. This was always open by day but locked in
+the dark hours. For the hinds were accounted brutish lumps that went
+savage at night, like wild beasts, so that, if they spared the master's
+throat, which was unlikely, it was certain that they would little spare
+the salted meat, the dried fish, the mead, metheglin, and cyder that
+their poor cellar afforded. The floor was of stamped clay, wet and
+sweating but covered with rushes,<span class='pagenum'><a name="page502" id="page502">502</a></span> so that the place had a mouldering
+smell. Behind the heavy door there were huge bolts and crossbars against
+robbers: the raftered ceiling was so low that it touched her hair when
+she walked across the floor. The windows had no glass but were filled
+with a thin reddish sheep-skin like parchment. Before the stairway was a
+wicket gate to keep the dogs&mdash;of whom there were many, large and fierce,
+to protect them alike from robbers and the hinds&mdash;to keep the dogs from
+going into the upper room.</p>
+
+<p>Each time that Mary Hall came into this home of hers her heart sank
+lower; for each day the corner posts gave sideways a little more, the
+cupboard bulged, the doors were loth to close or open. And more and more
+the fields outside were inundated, the lands grew sour, the sheep would
+not eat or died of the fluke.</p>
+
+<p>'And surely,' she would cry out at times, 'God created me for other
+guesswork than this!'</p>
+
+<p>At nights she was afraid, and shivered at the thought of the fens and
+the black and trackless worlds all round her; and the ravens croaked,
+night-hawks screamed, the dog-foxes cried out, and the flames danced
+over the swampy grounds. Her mirror was broken on the night that they
+hanged her husband: she had never had another but the water in her
+buckets, so that she could not tell whether she had much aged or whether
+she were still brown-haired and pink-cheeked, and she had forgotten how
+to laugh, and was sure that there were crow's-feet about her eyelids.</p>
+
+<p>Her best gown was all damp and mouldy in the attic that was her bower.
+She made it meet as best she could, and indeed she had had so little fat
+living, sitting at the head of her table with a whip for unruly hinds
+and louts before her&mdash;so little fat living that she could well get into
+her wedding-gown of yellow cramosyn. She smoothed her hair back into her
+cord hood that for so long had not come out of its press. She washed her
+face in a bucket of water: that and the press and her bed with grey
+woollen curtains were all the furnishing her room had. The straw of the
+roof caught in her hood when she moved, and she heard<span class='pagenum'><a name="page503" id="page503">503</a></span> her old
+father-in-law cackling to the serving-maids through the cracks of the
+floor.</p>
+
+<p>When she came down there were approaching, across the field before the
+door, six men in scarlet and one in black, having all the six halberds
+and swords, and one a little banner, but the man in black had a sword
+only. Their horses were tethered in a clump on the farther side of the
+dyke. Within the room the serving-maids were throwing knives and pewter
+dishes with a great din on to the table slab. They dropped
+drinking-horns and the salt-cellar itself all of a heap into the rushes.
+The grandfather was cackling from his chair; a hen and its chickens ran
+screaming between the maids' feet. Then Lascelles came in at the
+doorway.</p>
+
+<h3>III</h3>
+
+<p>The Sieur Lascelles looked round him in that dim cave.</p>
+
+<p>'Ho!' he said, 'this place stinks,' and he pulled from his pocket a
+dried and shrivelled orange-peel purse stuffed with cloves and ginger.
+'Ho!' he said to the cornet that was come behind him with the Queen's
+horsemen. 'Come not in here. This will breed a plague amongst your men!'
+and he added&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Did I not tell you my sister was ill-housed?'</p>
+
+<p>'Well, I was not prepared against this,' the cornet said. He was a man
+with a grizzling beard that had little patience away from the Court,
+where he had a bottle that he loved and a crony or two that he played
+all day at chequers with, except when the Queen rode out; then he was of
+her train. He did not come over the sill, but spoke sharply to his men.</p>
+
+<p>'Ungird not here,' he said. 'We will go farther.' For some of them were
+for setting their pikes against the mud wall and casting their swords
+and heavy bottle-belts on to the table before the door. The old man in
+the armchair began suddenly to prattle to them all&mdash;of a horse-thief
+that had been dismembered and then hanged in pieces thirty<span class='pagenum'><a name="page504" id="page504">504</a></span> years
+before. The cornet looked at him for a moment and said&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Sir, you are this woman's father-in-law, I do think. Have you aught to
+report against her?' He bent in at the door, holding his nose. The old
+man babbled of one Pease-Cod Noll that had no history to speak of but a
+swivel eye.</p>
+
+<p>'Well,' the grizzled cornet said, 'I shall get little sense here.' He
+turned upon Mary Hall.</p>
+
+<p>'Mistress,' he said, 'I have a letter here from the Queen's High Grace,'
+and, whilst he fumbled in his belt to find a little wallet that held the
+letter, he spoke on: 'But I misdoubt you cannot read. Therefore I shall
+tell you the Queen's High Grace commandeth you to come into her
+service&mdash;or not, as the report of your character shall be. But at any
+rate you shall come to the castle.'</p>
+
+<p>Mary Hall could find no words for men of condition, so long she had been
+out of the places where such are found. She swallowed in her throat and
+held her breast over her heart.</p>
+
+<p>'Where is the village here?' the cornet said, 'or what justice is there
+that can write you a character under his seal?'</p>
+
+<p>She made out to say that there was no village, all the neighbourhood
+having been hanged. A half-mile from there there was the house of Sir
+Nicholas Throckmorton, a justice. From the house-end he might see it, or
+he might have a hind to guide him. But he would have no guide; he would
+have no man nor maid nor child to go from there to the justice's house.
+He set one soldier to guard the back door and one the front, that none
+came out nor went beyond the dyke-end.</p>
+
+<p>'Neither shall you go, Sir Lascelles,' he said.</p>
+
+<p>'Well, give me leave with my sister to walk this knoll,' Lascelles said
+good-humouredly. 'We shall not corrupt the grass blades to bear false
+witness of my sister's chastity.'</p>
+
+<p>'Ay, you may walk upon this mound,' the cornet answered. Having got out
+the packet of the Queen's letter, he girded up his belt again.<span class='pagenum'><a name="page505" id="page505">505</a></span></p>
+
+<p>'You will get you ready to ride with me,' he said to Mary Hall. 'For I
+will not be in these marshes after nightfall, but will sleep at
+Shrimpton Inn.'</p>
+
+<p>He looked around him and added&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'I will have three of your geese to take with us,' he said. 'Kill me
+them presently.'</p>
+
+<p>Lascelles looked after him as he strode away round the house with the
+long paces of a stiff horseman.</p>
+
+<p>'Before God,' he laughed, 'that is one way to have information about a
+quean. Now are we prisoners whilst he inquires after your character.'</p>
+
+<p>'Oh, alack!' Mary Hall said, and she cast up her hands.</p>
+
+<p>'Well, we are prisoners till he come again,' her brother said
+good-humouredly. 'But this is a foul hole. Come out into the sunlight.'</p>
+
+<p>She said&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'If you are with them, they cannot come to take me prisoner.'</p>
+
+<p>He looked her full in the eyes with his own that twinkled inscrutably.
+He said very slowly&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Were your mar-locks and prinking-prankings so very evil at the old
+Duchess's?'</p>
+
+<p>She grew white: she shrank away as if he had threatened her with his
+fist.</p>
+
+<p>'The Queen's Highness was such a child,' she said. 'She cannot remember.
+I have lived very godly since.'</p>
+
+<p>'I will do what I can to save you,' he said. 'Let me hear about it, as,
+being prisoners, we may never come off.'</p>
+
+<p>'You!' she cried out. 'You who stole my wedding portion!'</p>
+
+<p>He laughed deviously.</p>
+
+<p>'Why, I have laid it up so well for you that you may wed a knight now if
+you do my bidding. I was ever against your wedding Hall.'</p>
+
+<p>'You lie!' she said. 'You gar'd me do it.'</p>
+
+<p>The maids were peeping out of the cellar, whither they had fled.</p>
+
+<p>'Come upon the grass,' he said. 'I will not be heard to<span class='pagenum'><a name="page506" id="page506">506</a></span> say more than
+this: that you and I stand and fall together like good sister and goodly
+brother.'</p>
+
+<p>Their faces differed only in that hers was afraid and his smiling as he
+thought of new lies to tell her. Her face in her hood, pale beneath its
+weathering, approached the colour of his that shewed the pink and white
+of indoors. She came very slowly near him, for she was dazed. But when
+she was almost at the sill he caught her hand and drew it beneath his
+elbow.</p>
+
+<p>'Tell me truly,' she said, 'shall I see the Court or a prison?... But
+you cannot speak truth, nor ever could when we were tiny twins. God help
+me: last Sunday I had the mind to wed my yard-man. I would become such a
+liar as thou to come away from here.'</p>
+
+<p>'Sister,' he said, 'this I tell you most truly: that this shall fall out
+according as you obey me and inform me'; and, because he was a little
+the taller, he leaned over her as they walked away together.</p>
+
+<hr style="width: 45%;" />
+
+<p>On the fourth day from then they were come to the great wood that is to
+south and east of the castle of Pontefract. Here Lascelles, who had
+ridden much with his sister, forsook her and went ahead of the slow and
+heavy horses of that troop of men. The road was broadened out to forty
+yards of green turf between the trees, for this was a precaution against
+ambushes of robbers. Across the road, after he had ridden alone for an
+hour and a half, there was a guard of four men placed. And here, whilst
+he searched for his pass to come within the limits of the Court, he
+asked what news, and where the King was.</p>
+
+<p>It was told him that the King lay still at the Fivefold Vents, two days'
+progress from the castle, and as it chanced that a verderer's pricker
+came out of the wood where he had been to mark where the deer lay for
+to-morrow's killing, Lascelles bade this man come along with him for a
+guide.</p>
+
+<p>'Sir, ye cannot miss the way,' the pricker said surlily. 'I have my deer
+to watch.'<span class='pagenum'><a name="page507" id="page507">507</a></span></p>
+
+<p>'I will have you to guide me,' Lascelles said, 'for I little know these
+parts.'</p>
+
+<p>'Well,' the pricker answered him, 'it is true that I have not often seen
+you ride a-hawking.'</p>
+
+<p>Whilst they went along the straight road, Lascelles, who unloosened the
+woodman's tongue with a great drink of sherry-sack, learned that it was
+said that only very unwillingly did the King lie so long at the Fivefold
+Vents. For on the morrow there was to be driven by, up there, a great
+herd of moor stags and maybe a wolf or two. The King would be home with
+his wife, it was reported, but the younger lords had been so importunate
+with him to stay and abide this gallant chase and great slaughter that,
+they having ridden loyally with him, he had yielded to their prayers and
+stayed there&mdash;twenty-four hours, it was said.</p>
+
+<p>'Why, you know a great deal,' Lascelles answered.</p>
+
+<p>'We who stand and wait had needs have knowledge,' the woodman said, 'for
+we have little else.'</p>
+
+<p>'Aye, 'tis a hard service,' Lascelles said. 'Did you see the Queen's
+Highness o' Thursday week borrow a handkerchief of Sir Roger Pelham to
+lure her falcon back?'</p>
+
+<p>'That did not I,' the woodman answered, 'for o' Thursday week it was a
+frost and the Queen rode not out.'</p>
+
+<p>'Well, it was o' Saturday,' Lascelles said.</p>
+
+<p>'Nor was it yet o' Saturday,' the woodman cried; 'I will swear it. For
+o' Saturday the Queen's Highness shot with the bow, and Sir Roger
+Pelham, as all men know, fell with his horse on Friday, and lies up
+still.'</p>
+
+<p>'Then it was Sir Nicholas Rochford,' Lascelles persisted.</p>
+
+<p>'Sir,' the woodman said, 'you have a very wrong tale, and patent it is
+that little you ride a-hunting.'</p>
+
+<p>'Well, I mind my book,' Lascelles said. 'But wherefore?'</p>
+
+<p>'Sir,' the woodman answered, 'it is thus: The Queen when she rides
+a-hawking has always behind her her page Toussaint, a little boy. And
+this little boy holdeth ever the separate lures for each hawk that the
+Queen setteth up. And the falcon or hawk or genette or tiercel having
+stooped, the Queen will call upon that eyass for the lure<span class='pagenum'><a name="page508" id="page508">508</a></span> appropriated
+to each bird as it chances. And very carefully the Queen's Highness
+observeth the laws of the chase, of venery and hawking. For the which I
+honour her.'</p>
+
+<p>Lascelles said, 'Well, well!'</p>
+
+<p>'As for the borrowing of a handkerchief,' the woodman pursued, 'that is
+a very idle tale. For, let me tell you, a lady might borrow a jewelled
+feather or a scarlet pouch or what not that is bright and shall take a
+bird's eye&mdash;a little mirror upon a cord were a good thing. But a
+handkerchief! Why, Sir Bookman, that a lady can only do if she will
+signify to all the world: "This knight is my servant and I his
+mistress." Those very words it signifieth&mdash;and that the better for it
+showeth that that lady is minded to let her hawk go, luring the
+gentleman to her with that favour of his.'</p>
+
+<p>'Well, well,' Lascelles said, 'I am not so ignorant that I did not know
+that. Therefore I asked you, for it seemed a very strange thing.'</p>
+
+<p>'It is a very foolish tale and very evil,' the man answered. 'For this I
+will swear: that the Queen's Highness&mdash;and I and her honour for
+it&mdash;observeth very jealously the laws of wood and moorland and chase.'</p>
+
+<p>'So I have heard,' Lascelles said. 'But I see the castle. I will not
+take you farther, but will let you go back to the goodly deer.'</p>
+
+<p>'Pray God they be not wandered fore,' the woodman said. 'You could have
+found this way without me.'</p>
+
+<hr style="width: 45%;" />
+
+<p>There was but one road into the castle, and that from the south, up a
+steep green bank. Up the roadway Lascelles must ride his horse past four
+men that bore a litter made of two pikes wattled with green boughs and
+covered with a horse-cloth. As Lascelles passed by the very head of it,
+the man that lay there sprang off it to his feet, and cried out&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'I be the Queen's cousin and servant. I brought her to the Court.'
+Lascelles' horse sprang sideways, a great bound up the bank. He galloped
+ten paces ahead before the rider could stay him and turn round. The man,
+all rags and with<span class='pagenum'><a name="page509" id="page509">509</a></span> a black face, had fallen into the dust of the road,
+and still cried out outrageously. The bearers set down the litter, wiped
+their brows, and then, falling all four upon Culpepper, made to carry
+him by his legs and arms, for they were weary of laying him upon the
+litter from which incessantly he sprang.</p>
+
+<p>But before them upon his horse was Lascelles and impeded their way.
+Culpepper drew in and pushed out his legs and arms, so that they all
+four staggered, and&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'For God's sake, master,' one of them grunted out, 'stand aside that we
+may pass. We have toil enow in bearing him.'</p>
+
+<p>'Why, set the poor gentleman down upon the litter,' Lascelles said, 'and
+let us talk a little.'</p>
+
+<p>The men set Culpepper on the horse-cloth, and one of them knelt down to
+hold him there.</p>
+
+<p>'If you will lend us your horse to lay him across, we may come more
+easily up,' one said. In these days the position and trade of a spy was
+so little esteemed&mdash;it had been far other with the great informers of
+Privy Seal's day&mdash;that these men, being of the Queen's guard, would talk
+roughly to Lascelles, who was a mere poor gentleman of the Archbishop's
+if his other vocation could be neglected. Lascelles sat, his hand upon
+his chin.</p>
+
+<p>'You use him very roughly if this be the Queen's cousin,' he said.</p>
+
+<p>The bearer set back his beard and laughed at the sky.</p>
+
+<p>'This is a coif&mdash;a poor rag of a merchant,' he cried out. 'If this were
+the Queen's cousin should we bear him thus on a clout?'</p>
+
+<p>'I am the Queen's cousin, T. Culpepper,' Culpepper shouted at the sky.
+'Who be you that stay me from her?'</p>
+
+<p>'Why, you may hear plainly,' the bearer said. 'He is mazed, doited,
+starved, thirsted, and a seer of visions.'</p>
+
+<p>Lascelles pondered, his elbow upon his saddle-peak, his chin caught in
+his hand.</p>
+
+<p>'How came ye by him?' he asked.</p>
+
+<p>One with another they told him the tale, how, the Queen<span class='pagenum'><a name="page510" id="page510">510</a></span> being ridden
+towards the north parts, at the extreme end of her ride had seen the
+man, at a distance, among the heather, flogging a dead horse with a
+moorland kern beside him. He was a robbed, parched, fevered, and amazed
+traveller. The Queen's Highness, compassionating, had bidden bear him to
+the castle and comfort and cure him, not having looked upon his face or
+heard his tongue. For, for sure then, she had let him die where he was;
+since, no sooner were these four, his new bearers, nearly come up among
+the knee-deep heather, than this man had started up, his eyes upon the
+Queen's cavalcade and many at a distance. And, with his sword drawn and
+screaming, he had cried out that, if that was the Queen, he was the
+Queen's cousin. They had tripped up his heels in a bed of ling and
+quieted him with a clout on the poll from an axe end.</p>
+
+<p>'But now we have him here,' the eldest said; 'where we shall bestow him
+we know not.'</p>
+
+<p>Lascelles had his eyes upon the sick man's face as if it fascinated him,
+and, slowly, he got down from his horse. Culpepper then lay very still
+with his eyes closed, but his breast heaved as though against tight and
+strong ropes that bound him.</p>
+
+<p>'I think I do know this gentleman for one John Robb,' he said. 'Are you
+very certain the Queen's Highness did not know his face?'</p>
+
+<p>'Why, she came not ever within a quarter mile of him,' the bearer said.</p>
+
+<p>'Then it is a great charity of the Queen to show mercy to a man she hath
+never seen,' Lascelles answered absently. He was closely casting his
+eyes over Culpepper. Culpepper lay very still, his begrimed face to the
+sky, his hands abroad above his head. But when Lascelles bent over him
+it was as if he shuddered, and then he wept.</p>
+
+<p>Lascelles bent down, his hands upon his knees. He was afraid&mdash;he was
+very afraid. Thomas Culpepper, the Queen's cousin, he had never seen in
+his life. But he had heard it reported that he had red hair and beard,
+and went<span class='pagenum'><a name="page511" id="page511">511</a></span> always dressed in green with stockings of red. And this man's
+hair was red, and his beard, beneath coal grime, was a curly red, and
+his coat, beneath a crust of black filth, was Lincoln green and of a
+good cloth. And, beneath the black, his stockings were of red silk. He
+reflected slowly, whilst the bearers laughed amongst themselves at this
+Queen's kinsman in rags and filth.</p>
+
+<p>Lascelles gave them his bottle of sack to drink empty among them, that
+he might have the longer time to think.</p>
+
+<p>If this were indeed the Queen's cousin, come unknown to the Queen and
+mazed and muddled in himself to Pontefract, what might not Lascelles
+make of him? For all the world knew that he loved her with a mad
+love&mdash;he had sold farms to buy her gowns. It was he that had brought her
+to Court, upon an ass, at Greenwich, when her mule&mdash;as all men knew&mdash;had
+stumbled upon the threshold. Once before, it was said, Culpepper had
+burst in with his sword drawn upon the King and Kate Howard when they
+sat together. And Lascelles trembled with eagerness at the thought of
+what use he might not make of this mad and insolent lover of the
+Queen's!</p>
+
+<p>But did he dare?</p>
+
+<p>Culpepper had been sent into Scotland to secure him up, away at the
+farthest limits of the realm. Then, if he was come back? This grime was
+the grime of a sea-coal ship! He knew that men without passports,
+outlaws and the like, escaped from Scotland on the Durham ships that
+went to Leith with coal. And this man came on the Durham road. Then....</p>
+
+<p>If it were Culpepper he had come unpermitted. He was an outlaw. Dare
+Lascelles have trade with&mdash;dare he harbour&mdash;an outlaw? It would be
+unbeknown to the Queen's Highness! He kicked his heels with impatience
+to come to a resolution.</p>
+
+<p>He reflected swiftly:</p>
+
+<p>What hitherto he had were: some tales spread abroad about the Queen's
+lewd Court&mdash;tales in London Town. He had, too, the keeper of the Queen's
+door bribed and<span class='pagenum'><a name="page512" id="page512">512</a></span> talked into his service and interest. And he had his
+sister....</p>
+
+<p>His sister would, with threatening, tell tales of the Queen before
+marriage. And she would find him other maids and grooms, some no doubt
+more willing still than Mary Hall. But the keeper of the Queen's door!
+And, in addition, the Queen's cousin mad of love for her! What might he
+not do with these two?</p>
+
+<p>The prickly sweat came to his forehead. Four horsemen were issuing from
+the gate of the castle above. He must come to a decision. His fingers
+trembled as if they were a pickpocket's near a purse of gold.</p>
+
+<p>He straightened his back and stood erect.</p>
+
+<p>'Yes,' he said very calmly, 'this is my friend John Robb.'</p>
+
+<p>He added that this man had been in Edinburgh where the Queen's cousin
+was. He had had letters from him that told how they were sib and rib.
+Thus this fancy had doubtless come into his brain at sight of the Queen
+in his madness.</p>
+
+<p>He breathed calmly, having got out these words, for now the doubt was
+ended. He would have both the Queen's door-keeper and the Queen's mad
+lover.</p>
+
+<p>He bade the bearers set Culpepper upon his horse and, supporting him,
+lead him to a room that he would hire of the Archbishop's chamberlain,
+near his own in the dark entrails of the castle. And there John Robb
+should live at his expenses.</p>
+
+<p>And when the men protested that, though this was very Christian of
+Lascelles, yet they would have recompense of the Queen for their toils,
+he said that he himself would give them a crown apiece, and they might
+get in addition what recompense from the Queen's steward that they
+could. He asked them each their names and wrote them down, pretending
+that it was that he might send each man his crown piece.</p>
+
+<p>So, when the four horsemen were ridden past, the men hoisted Culpepper
+into Lascelles' horse and went all together up into the castle.<span class='pagenum'><a name="page513" id="page513">513</a></span></p>
+
+<p>But, that night, when Culpepper lay in a stupor, Lascelles went to the
+Archbishop's chamberlain and begged that four men, whose names he had
+written down, might be chosen to go in the Archbishop's paritor's guard
+that went next dawn to Ireland over the sea to bring back tithes from
+Dublin. And, next day, he had Culpepper moved to another room; and, in
+three days' time, he set it about in the castle that the Queen's cousin
+was come from Scotland. By that time most of the liquor had come down
+out of Culpepper's brain, but he was still muddled and raved at times.</p>
+
+<h3>IV</h3>
+
+<p>On that third night the Queen was with the Lady Mary, once more in her
+chamber, having come down as before, from the chapel in the roof, to
+pray her submit to her father's will. Mary had withstood her with a more
+good-humoured irony; and, whilst she was in the midst of her pleadings,
+a letter marked most pressing was brought to her. The Queen opened it,
+and raised her eyebrows; she looked down at the subscription and
+frowned. Then she cast it upon the table.</p>
+
+<p>'Shall there never be an end of old things?' she said.</p>
+
+<p>'Even what old things?' the Lady Mary asked.</p>
+
+<p>The Queen shrugged her shoulders.</p>
+
+<p>'It was not they I came to talk of,' she said. 'I would sleep early, for
+the King comes to-morrow and I have much to plead with you.'</p>
+
+<p>'I am weary of your pleadings,' the Lady Mary said. 'You have pleaded
+enow. If you would be fresh for the King, be first fresh for me. Start a
+new hare.'</p>
+
+<p>The Queen would have gainsaid her.</p>
+
+<p>'I have said you have pleaded enow,' the Lady Mary said. 'And you have
+pleaded enow. This no more amuses me. I will wager I guess from whom
+your letter was.'</p>
+
+<p>Reluctantly the Queen held her peace; that day she had read in many
+ancient books, as well profane as of the<span class='pagenum'><a name="page514" id="page514">514</a></span> Fathers of the Church, and she
+had many things to say, and they were near her lips and warm in her
+heart. She was much minded to have good news to give the King against
+his coming on the morrow; the great good news that should set up in that
+realm once more abbeys and chapters and the love of God. But she could
+not press these sayings upon the girl, though she pleaded still with her
+blue eyes.</p>
+
+<p>'Your letter is from Sir Nicholas Throckmorton,' the Lady Mary said.
+'Even let me read it.'</p>
+
+<p>'You did know that that knight was come to Court again?' the Queen said.</p>
+
+<p>'Aye; and that you would not see him, but like a fool did bid him depart
+again.'</p>
+
+<p>'You will ever be calling me a fool,' Katharine retorted, 'for giving
+ear to my conscience and hating spies and the suborners of false
+evidence.'</p>
+
+<p>'Why,' the Lady Mary answered, 'I do call it a folly to refuse to give
+ear to the tale of a man who has ridden far and fast, and at the risk of
+a penalty to tell it you.'</p>
+
+<p>'Why,' Katharine said, 'if I did forbid his coming to the Court under a
+penalty, it was because I would not have him here.'</p>
+
+<p>'Yet he much loved you, and did you some service.'</p>
+
+<p>'He did me a service of lies,' the Queen said, and she was angry. 'I
+would not have had him serve me. By his false witness Cromwell was cast
+down to make way for me. But I had rather have cast down Cromwell by the
+truth which is from God. Or I had rather he had never been cast down.
+And that I swear.'</p>
+
+<p>'Well, you are a fool,' the Lady Mary said. 'Let me look upon this
+knight's letter.'</p>
+
+<p>'I have not read it,' Katharine said.</p>
+
+<p>'Then will I,' the Lady Mary answered. She made across the room to where
+the paper lay upon the table beside the great globe of the earth. She
+came back; she turned her round to the Queen; she made her a deep
+reverence, so that her black gown spread out stiffly around her, and,<span class='pagenum'><a name="page515" id="page515">515</a></span>
+keeping her eyes ironically on Katharine's face, she mounted backward up
+to the chair that was beneath the dais.</p>
+
+<p>Katharine put her hand over her heart.</p>
+
+<p>'What mean you?' she said. 'You have never sat there before.'</p>
+
+<p>'That is not true,' the Lady Mary said harshly. 'For this last three
+days I have practised how, thus backward, I might climb to this chair
+and, thus seemly, sit in it.'</p>
+
+<p>'Even then?' Katharine asked.</p>
+
+<p>'Even then I will be asked no more questions,' her step-daughter
+answered. 'This signifieth that I ha' heard enow o' thy voice, Queen.'</p>
+
+<p>Katharine did not dare to speak, for she knew well this girl's tyrannous
+and capricious nature. But she was nearly faint with emotion and reached
+sideways for the chair at the table; there she sat and gazed at the girl
+beneath the dais, her lips parted, her body leaning forward.</p>
+
+<p>Mary spread out the great sheet of Throckmorton's parchment letter upon
+her black knees. She bent forward so that the light from the mantel at
+the room-end might fall upon the writing.</p>
+
+<p>'It seemeth,' she said ironically,'that one descrieth better at the
+humble end of the room than here on high'&mdash;and she read whilst the Queen
+panted.</p>
+
+<p>At last she raised her eyes and bent them darkly upon the Queen's face.</p>
+
+<p>'Will you do what this knight asks?' she uttered. 'For what he asks
+seemeth prudent.'</p>
+
+<p>'A' God's name,' Katharine said, 'let me not now hear of this man.'</p>
+
+<p>'Why,' the Lady Mary answered coolly, 'if I am to be of the Queen's
+alliance I must be of the Queen's council and my voice have a weight.'</p>
+
+<p>'But will you? Will you?' Katharine brought out.</p>
+
+<p>'Will you listen to my voice?' Mary said. 'I will not listen to yours.
+Hear now what this goodly knight saith. For, if<span class='pagenum'><a name="page516" id="page516">516</a></span> I am to be your
+well-wisher, I must call him goodly that so well wishes to you.'</p>
+
+<p>Katharine wrung her hands.</p>
+
+<p>'Ye torture me,' she said.</p>
+
+<p>'Well, I have been tortured,' Mary answered, 'and I have come through it
+and live.'</p>
+
+<p>She swallowed in her throat, and thus, with her eyes upon the writing,
+brought out the words&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'This knight bids you beware of one Mary Lascelles or Hall, and her
+brother, Edward Lascelles, that is of the Archbishop's service.'</p>
+
+<p>'I will not hear what Throckmorton says,' Katharine answered.</p>
+
+<p>'Ay, but you shall,' Mary said, 'or I come down from this chair. I am
+not minded to be allied to a Queen that shall be undone. That is not
+prudence.'</p>
+
+<p>'God help me!' the Queen said.</p>
+
+<p>'God helps most willingly them that take counsel with themselves and
+prudence,' her step-daughter answered; 'and these are the words of the
+knight.' She held up the parchment and read out:</p>
+
+<p>'"Therefore I&mdash;and you know how much your well-wisher I be&mdash;upon my
+bended knees do pray you do one of two things: either to put out both
+these twain from your courts and presence, or if that you cannot or will
+not do, so richly to reward them as that you shall win them to your
+service. For a little rotten fruit will spread a great stink; a small
+ferment shall pollute a whole well. And these twain, I am advised,
+assured, convinced, and have convicted them, will spread such a rotten
+fog and mist about your reputation and so turn even your good and
+gracious actions to evil seeming that&mdash;I swear and vow, O most high
+Sovereign, for whom I have risked, as you wot, life, limb and the fell
+rack&mdash;&mdash;"'</p>
+
+<p>The Lady Mary looked up at the Queen's face.</p>
+
+<p>'Will you not listen to the pleadings of this man?' she said.</p>
+
+<p>'I will so reward Lascelles and his sister as they have<span class='pagenum'><a name="page517" id="page517">517</a></span> merited.' the
+Queen said. 'So much and no more. And not all the pleadings of this
+knight shall move me to listen to any witness that he brings against any
+man nor maid. So help me, God; for I do know how he served his master
+Cromwell.'</p>
+
+<p>'For love of thee!' the Lady Mary said.</p>
+
+<p>The Queen wrung her hands as if she would wash a stain from them.</p>
+
+<p>'God help me!' she said. 'I prayed the King for the life of Privy Seal
+that was!'</p>
+
+<p>'He would not hear thee,' the Lady Mary said. She looked long upon the
+Queen's face with unmoved and searching eyes.</p>
+
+<p>'It is a new thing to me,' she said,'to hear that you prayed for Privy
+Seal's life.'</p>
+
+<p>'Well, I prayed,' Katharine said, 'for I did not think he worked treason
+against the King.'</p>
+
+<p>The Lady Mary straightened her back where she sat.</p>
+
+<p>'I think I will not show myself less queenly than you,' she said. 'For I
+be of a royal race. But hear this knight.'</p>
+
+<p>And again she read:</p>
+
+<p>'"I have it from the lips of the cornet that came with this Lascelles to
+fetch this Mary Lascelles or Hall: I, Throckmorton, a knight, swear that
+I heard with mine own ears, how for ever as they rode, this Lascelles
+plied this cornet with questions about your high self. As thus: 'Did you
+favour any gentleman when you rode out, the cornet being of your guard?'
+or, 'Had he heard a tale of one Pelham, a knight, of whom you should
+have taken a kerchief?'&mdash;and this, that and the other, for ever, till
+the cornet spewed at the hearing of him. Now, gracious and most high
+Sovereign Consort, what is it that this man seeketh?"'</p>
+
+<p>Again the Lady Mary paused to look at the Queen.</p>
+
+<p>'Why,' Katharine said, 'so mine enemies will talk of me. I had been the
+fool you styled me if I had not awaited it. <span class='pagenum'><a name="page518" id="page518">518</a></span>But&mdash;&mdash;' and she drew up
+her body highly. 'My life is such and such shall be that none such arrow
+shall pierce my corslet.'</p>
+
+<p>'God help you,' the Lady Mary said. 'What has your life to do with it,
+if you will not cut out the tongues of slanderers?'</p>
+
+<p>She laughed mirthlessly, and added&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Now this knight concludes&mdash;and it is as if he writhed his hands and
+knelt and whined and kissed your feet&mdash;he concludeth with a prayer that
+you will let him come again to the Court. "For," says he, "I will clean
+your vessels, serve you at table, scrape the sweat off your horse, or do
+all that is vilest. But suffer me to come that I may know and report to
+you what there is whispered in these jail places."'</p>
+
+<p>Katharine Howard said&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'I had rather borrow Pelham's kerchief.'</p>
+
+<p>The Lady Mary dropped the parchment on to the floor at her side.</p>
+
+<p>'I rede you do as this knight wills,' she said; 'for, amidst the little
+sticklers of spies that are here, this knight, this emperor of spies,
+moves as a pillow of shadow. He stalks amongst them as, in the night,
+the dread and awful lion of Numidia. He shall be to you more a corslet
+of proof than all the virtue that your life may borrow from the precepts
+of Diana. We, that are royal and sit in high places, have our feet in
+such mire.'</p>
+
+<p>'Now before God on His throne,' Katharine Howard said, 'if you be of
+royal blood, I will teach you a lesson. For hear me&mdash;&mdash;'</p>
+
+<p>'No, I will hear thee no more,' the Lady Mary answered; 'I will teach
+thee. For thou art not the only one in this land to be proud. I will
+show thee such a pride as shall make thee blush.'</p>
+
+<p>She stood up and came slowly down the steps of the dais. She squared
+back her shoulders and folded her hands before her; she erected her
+head, and her eyes were dark. When she was come to where the Queen sat,
+she kneeled down.<span class='pagenum'><a name="page519" id="page519">519</a></span></p>
+
+<p>'I acknowledge thee to be my mother,' she said, 'that have married the
+King, my father. I pray you that you do take me by the hand and set me
+in that seat that you did raise for me. I pray you that you do style me
+a princess, royal again in this land. And I pray you to lesson me and
+teach me that which you would have me do as well as that which it befits
+me to do. Take me by the hand.'</p>
+
+<p>'Nay, it is my lord that should do this,' the Queen whispered. Before
+that she had started to her feet; her face had a flush of joy; her eyes
+shone with her transparent faith. She brushed back a strand of hair from
+her brow; she folded her hands on her breasts and raised her glance
+upwards to seek the dwelling-place of Almighty God and the saints in
+their glorious array.</p>
+
+<p>'It is my lord should do this!' she said again.</p>
+
+<p>'Speak no more words,' the Lady Mary said. 'I have heard enow of thy
+pleadings. You have heard me say that.'</p>
+
+<p>She continued upon her knees.</p>
+
+<p>'It is thou or none!' she said. 'It is thou or none shall witness this
+my humiliation and my pride. Take me by the hand. My patience will not
+last for ever.'</p>
+
+<p>The Queen set her hand between the girl's. She raised her to her feet.</p>
+
+<p>When the Lady Mary stood high and shadowy, in black, with her white face
+beneath that dais, she looked down upon the Queen.</p>
+
+<p>'Now, hear me!' she said. 'In this I have been humble to you; but I have
+been most proud. For I have in my veins a greater blood than thine or
+the King's, my father's. For, inasmuch as Tudor blood is above Howard's,
+so my mother's, that was royal of Spain, is above Tudor's. And this it
+is to be royal&mdash;&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'I have had you, a Queen, kneel before me. It is royal to receive
+petitions&mdash;more royal still it is to grant them. And in this, further, I
+am more proud. For, hearing you say that you had prayed the King for
+Cromwell's life, I thought, this is a virtue-mad Queen. She shall most
+likely fall!&mdash;Prudence biddeth me not to be of her party. But shall I,<span class='pagenum'><a name="page520" id="page520">520</a></span>
+who am royal, be prudent? Shall I, who am of the house of Aragon, be
+more afraid than thou, a Howard?</p>
+
+<p>'I tell you&mdash;No! If you will be undone for the sake of virtue, blindly,
+and like a fool, unknowing the consequences, I, Mary of Aragon and
+England, will make alliance with thee, knowing that the alliance is
+dangerous. And, since it is more valiant to go to a doom knowingly than
+blindfold, so I do show myself more valiant than thou. For well I
+know&mdash;since I saw my mother die&mdash;that virtue is a thing profitless, and
+impracticable in this world. But you&mdash;you think it shall set up temporal
+monarchies and rule peoples. Therefore, what you do you do for profit. I
+do it for none.'</p>
+
+<p>'Now, by the Mother of God,' Katharine Howard said, 'this is the
+gladdest day of my life.'</p>
+
+<p>'Pray you,' Mary said, 'get you gone from my sight and hearing, for I
+endure ill the appearance and sound of joy. And, Queen, again I bid you
+beware of calling any day fortunate till its close. For, before midnight
+you may be ruined utterly. I have known more Queens than thou. Thou art
+the fifth I have known.'</p>
+
+<p>She added&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'For the rest, what you will I will do: submission to the King and such
+cozening as he will ask of me. God keep you, for you stand in need of
+it.'</p>
+
+<hr style="width: 45%;" />
+
+<p>At supper that night there sat all such knights and lordlings as ate at
+the King's expense in the great hall that was in the midmost of the
+castle, looking on to the courtyard. There were not such a many of them,
+maybe forty; from the keeper of the Queen's records, the Lord d'Espahn,
+who sat at the table head, down to the lowest of all, the young Poins,
+who sat far below the salt-cellar. The greater lords of the Queen's
+household, like the Lord Dacre of the North, did not eat at this common
+table, or only when the Queen herself there ate, which she did at midday
+when there was a feast.</p>
+
+<p>Nevertheless, this eating was conducted with gravity,<span class='pagenum'><a name="page521" id="page521">521</a></span> the Lord d'Espahn
+keeping a vigilant eye down the table, which was laid with a fair white
+cloth. It cost a man a fine to be drunk before the white meats were
+eaten&mdash;unless, indeed, a man came drunk to the board&mdash;and the
+salt-cellar of state stood a-midmost of the cloth. It was of silver from
+Holland, and represented a globe of the earth, opened at the top, and
+supported by knights' bannerets.</p>
+
+<p>The hall was all of stone, with creamy walls, only marked above the iron
+torch-holds with brandons of soot. A scutcheon of the King's arms was
+above one end-door, with the Queen's above the other. Over each window
+were notable deers' antlers, and over each side-door, that let in the
+servers from the courtyard, was a scutcheon with the arms of a king
+deceased that had visited the castle. The roof was all gilded and
+coloured, and showed knaves' faces leering and winking, so that when a
+man was in drink, and looked upwards with his head on his chair back,
+these appeared to have life. The hall was called the Dacre Hall, because
+the Lords Dacre of the North had built it to be an offering to various
+kings that died whilst it was a-building.</p>
+
+<p>Such knights as had pages had them behind their chairs, holding napkins
+and ready to fill the horns with wine or beer. From kitchens or from
+buttery-hatches the servers ran continually across the courtyard and
+across the tiled floor, for the table was set back against the farther
+wall, all the knights being on the wall side, since there were not so
+many, and thus it was easier to come to them. There was a great clatter
+with the knives going and the feet on the tiles, but little conversing,
+for in that keen air eating was the principal thing, and in five minutes
+a boar or a sheep's head would be stripped till the skull alone was
+shown.</p>
+
+<p>It was in this manner that Thomas Culpepper came into the hall when they
+were all well set to, without having many eyes upon him. But the Lord
+d'Espahn was aware, suddenly, of one that stood beside him.</p>
+
+<p>'Gentleman, will you have a seat?' he said. 'Tell me your name and
+estate, that I may appoint you one.' He was a grave lord, with a pointed
+nose, dented at the end, a grey,<span class='pagenum'><a name="page522" id="page522">522</a></span> square beard, and fresh colours on his
+face. He wore his bonnet because he was the highest there, and because
+there were currents of air at the openings of the doors.</p>
+
+<p>Thomas Culpepper's face was of a chalky white. Somewhere Lascelles had
+found for him a suit of green and red stockings. His red beard framed
+his face, but his lips were pursed.</p>
+
+<p>'Your seat I will have,' he said, 'for I am the Queen's cousin, T.
+Culpepper.'</p>
+
+<p>The Lord d'Espahn looked down upon his platter.</p>
+
+<p>'You may not have my seat,' he said. 'But you shall have this seat at my
+right hand that is empty. It is a very honourable seat, but mine you may
+not have for it is the Queen's own that I hold, being her vicar here.'</p>
+
+<p>'Your seat I will have,' Culpepper said.</p>
+
+<p>The Lord d'Espahn was set upon keeping order and quiet in that place
+more than on any other thing. He looked again down upon his platter, and
+then he was aware of a voice that whispered in his ear&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'A' God's name, humour him, for he is very mad,' and, turning his eyes a
+little, he saw that it was Lascelles above his chair head.</p>
+
+<p>'Your seat I will have,' Culpepper said again. 'And this fellow, that
+tells me he is the most potent lord there is here, shall serve behind my
+chair.'</p>
+
+<p>The Lord d'Espahn took up his knife and fork in one hand and his manchet
+of bread in the other. He made as if to bow to Culpepper, who pushed him
+by the shoulder away. Some lordlings saw this and wondered, but in the
+noise none heard their words. At the foot of the table the squires said
+that the Lord d'Espahn must have been found out in a treason. Only the
+young Poins said that that was the Queen's cousin, come from Scotland,
+withouten leave, for love of the Queen through whom he was sick in the
+wits. This news ran through the castle by means of servers, cooks,
+undercooks, scullions, maids, tiring-maids, and maids of honour, more
+swiftly than it progressed up the table where men had the meats to keep
+their minds upon.<span class='pagenum'><a name="page523" id="page523">523</a></span></p>
+
+<p>Culpepper sat, flung back in his chair, his eyes, lacklustre and open,
+upon the cloth where his hands sprawled out. He said few words&mdash;only
+when the Lord d'Espahn's server carved boar's head for him, he took one
+piece in his mouth and then threw the plate full into the server's face.
+This caused great offence amongst the serving-men, for this server was a
+portly fellow that had served the Lord d'Espahn many years, and had a
+face like a ram's, so grave it was. Having drunk a little of his wine,
+Culpepper turned out the rest upon the cloth; his salt he brushed off
+his plate with his sleeve. That was remembered for long afterwards by
+many men and women. And it was as if he could not swallow, for he put
+down neither meat nor drink, but sat, deadly and pale, so that some said
+that he was rabid. Once he turned his head to ask the Lord d'Espahn&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'If a quean prove forsworn, and turn to a Queen, what should her true
+love do?'</p>
+
+<p>The Lord d'Espahn never made any answer, but wagged his beard from side
+to side, and Culpepper repeated his question three separate times.
+Finally, the platters were raised, and the Lord d'Espahn went away to
+the sound of trumpets. Many of the lords there came peering round
+Culpepper to see what sport he might yield. Lascelles went away,
+following the scarlet figure of the young Poins, working his hand into
+the boy's arm and whispering to him. The servers and disservers went to
+their work of clearing the board.</p>
+
+<p>But Culpepper sat there without word or motion, so that none of those
+lords had any sport out of him. Some of them went away to roast pippins
+at the Widow Amnot's, some to speak with the alchemist that, on the
+roof, watched the stars. So one and the other left the room; the torches
+burned out, most of them, and, save for two lords of the Archbishop's
+following, who said boldly that they would watch and care for this man,
+because he was the Queen's cousin, and there might be advancement in it,
+Culpepper was left alone.</p>
+
+<p>His sword he had not with him, but he had his dagger,<span class='pagenum'><a name="page524" id="page524">524</a></span> and, just as he
+drew it, appearing about to stab himself in the heart, there ran across
+the hall the black figure of Lascelles, so that he appeared to have been
+watching through a window, and the two lords threw themselves upon
+Culpepper's arm. And all three began to tell him that there was better
+work for him to do than that of stabbing himself; and Lascelles brought
+with him a flagon of <i>aqua vit&aelig;</i> from Holland, and poured out a little
+for Culpepper to drink. And one of the lords said that his room was up
+in the gallery near the Queen's, and, if Culpepper would go with him
+there, they might make good cheer. Only he must be silent in the going
+thither; afterwards it would not so much matter, for they would be past
+the guards. So, linking their arms in his, they wound up and across the
+courtyard, where the torchmen that waited on their company of diners to
+light them, blessed God that the sitting was over, and beat their
+torches out against the ground.</p>
+
+<p>In the shadow of the high walls, and some in the moonlight, the
+serving-men held their parliament. They discoursed of these things, and
+some said that it was a great pity that T. Culpepper was come to Court.
+For he was an idle braggart, and where he was disorder grew, and that
+was a pity, since the Queen had made the Court orderly, and servants
+were little beaten. But some said that like sire was like child, and
+that great disorders there were in the Court, but quiet ones, and the
+Queen the centre. But these were mostly the cleaners of dishes and the
+women that swept rooms and spread new rushes. Upon the whole, the cooks
+blessed the Queen, along with all them that had to do with feeding and
+the kitchens. They thanked God for her because she had brought back the
+old fasts. For, as they argued, your fast brings honours to cooks,
+since, after a meagre day, your lord cometh to his trencher with a
+better appetite, and then is your cook commended. The Archbishop's cooks
+were the hottest in this contention, for they had the most reason to
+know. The stablemen, palfreniers, and falconers' mates were, most part
+of them,<span class='pagenum'><a name="page525" id="page525">525</a></span> politicians more than the others, and these wondered to have
+seen, through their peep-holes and door-cracks, the Queen's cousin go
+away with these lords that were of the contrary party. Some said that T.
+Culpepper was her emissary to win them over to her interests, and some,
+that always cousins, uncles, and kin were the bitterest foes a Queen
+had, as witness the case of Queen Anne Boleyn and the Yellow Dog of
+Norfolk who had worked to ruin her. And some said it was marvellous that
+there they could sit or stand and talk of such things&mdash;for a year or so
+ago all the Court was spies, so that the haymen mistrusted them that
+forked down the straw, and meat-servers them with the wine. But now each
+man could talk as he would, and it made greatly for fellowship when a
+man could sit against a wall, unbutton in the warm nights, and say what
+he listed.</p>
+
+<p>The light of the great fires grew dull in the line of kitchen windows;
+sweethearting couples came in through the great gateway from the
+grass-slopes beneath the castle walls. There was a little bustle when
+four horsemen rode in to say that the King's Highness was but nine miles
+from the castle, and torchmen must be there to light him in towards
+midnight. But the Queen should not be told for her greater pleasure and
+surprise. Then all these servingmen stood up and shook themselves, and
+said&mdash;'To bed.' For, on the morrow, with the King back, there would
+surely be great doings and hard work. And to mews and kennels and huts,
+in the straw and beds of rushes, these men betook themselves. The young
+lords came back laughing from Widow Amnot's at the castle foot; there
+was not any light to be seen save one in all that courtyard full of
+windows. The King's torchmen slumbered in the guard-room where they
+awaited his approach. Darkness, silence, and deep shadow lay everywhere,
+though overhead the sky was pale with moonlight, and, from high in the
+air, the thin and silvery tones of the watchman's horn on the roof
+filtered down at the quarter hours. A drowsy bell marked the hours, and
+the cries and drillings of the night birds vibrated from very high.<span class='pagenum'><a name="page526" id="page526">526</a></span></p>
+
+<h3>V</h3>
+
+<p>Coming very late to her bedroom the Queen found awaiting her her
+tiring-maid, Mary Trelyon, whom she had advanced into the post that
+Margot Poins had held, and the old Lady Rochford.</p>
+
+<p>'Why,' she said to her maid, 'when you have unlaced me you may go, or
+you will not love my service that keeps you so late.'</p>
+
+<p>Mary Trelyon cast her eyes on the ground, and said that it was such
+pleasure to attend her mistress, that not willingly would she give up
+that discoiffing, undoing of hair, and all the rest, for long she had
+desired to have the handling of these precious things and costly
+garments.</p>
+
+<p>'No, you shall get you gone,' the Queen said, 'for I will not have you,
+sweetheart, be red-lidded in the morning with this long watching, for
+to-morrow the King comes, and I will have him see my women comely and
+fair, though in your love you will not care for yourselves.'</p>
+
+<p>Standing before her mirror, where there burned in silver dishes four
+tall candles with perfumed wicks, Katharine offered her back to the
+loosening fingers of this girl.</p>
+
+<p>'I would not have you to think,' she said, 'that I am always thus late
+and a gadabout. But this day'&mdash;the Queen's eyes sparkled, and her cheeks
+were red with exaltation&mdash;'this day and this night are one that shall be
+marked with red stones in the calendar of England, and late have I
+travailed so to make them be.'</p>
+
+<p>The girl was very black-avised, and her face beneath her grey hood&mdash;for
+the Queen's maids were all in grey, with crowned roses, the device that
+the King had given her at their wedding, worked in red silk on each
+shoulder&mdash;her face beneath her grey hood was the clear shape of the thin
+end of an egg. She worked at the unlacing of the Queen's gown, so that
+she at last must kneel down to it.</p>
+
+<p>Having finished, she remained upon her knees, but she<span class='pagenum'><a name="page527" id="page527">527</a></span> twisted her
+fingers in her skirt as if she were bashful, yet her face was perturbed
+with red flushes on the dark cheeks.</p>
+
+<p>The Queen, feeling that she knelt there upon her loosened gown and did
+not get her gone, said&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Anan?'</p>
+
+<p>'Please you let me stay,' the girl said; but Katharine answered&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'I would commune with my own thoughts.'</p>
+
+<p>'Please you hear me,' the girl said, and she was very earnest; but the
+Queen answered&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Why, no! If you have any boon to ask of me, you know very well that
+to-morrow at eleven is the hour for asking. Now, I will sit still with
+the silence. Bring me my chair to the table. The Lady Rochford shall put
+out my lights when I be abed.'</p>
+
+<p>The girl stood up and rolled, with a trick of appeal, her eyes to the
+old Lady Rochford. This lady, all in grey too, but with a great white
+hood because she was a widow, sat back upon the foot of the great bed.
+Her face was perturbed, but it had been always perturbed since her
+cousin, the Queen Anne Boleyn, had fallen by the axe. She put a gouty
+and swollen finger to her lips, and the girl shrugged her shoulders with
+a passion of despair, for she was very hot-tempered, and it was as if
+mutinously that she fetched the Queen her chair and set it behind her
+where she stood before the mirror taking off her breast jewel from its
+chain. And again the girl shrugged her shoulders. Then she went to the
+little wall-door that corkscrewed down into the courtyard through the
+thick of the wall. Immediately after she was gone they heard the
+lockguard that awaited her without set on the great padlock without the
+door. Then his feet clanked down the stairway, he being heavily loaded
+with weighty keys. It was the doors along the corridor that the young
+Poins guarded, and these were never opened once the Queen was in her
+room, save by the King. The Lady Rochford slept in the anteroom upon a
+truckle-bed, and the great withdrawing-room was empty.</p>
+
+<p>It was very still in the Queen's room and most shadowy,<span class='pagenum'><a name="page528" id="page528">528</a></span> except before
+the mirror where the candle flames streamed upwards. The pillars of the
+great bed were twisted out of dark wood; the hangings of bed and walls
+were all of a dark blue arras, and the bedspread was of a dark red
+velvet worked in gold with pomegranates and pomegranate leaves. Only the
+pillows and the turnover of the sheets were of white linen-lawn, and the
+bed curtains nearly hid them with shadows. Where the Queen sat there was
+light like that of an altar in a dim chapel, for the room was so huge.</p>
+
+<p>She sat before her glass, silently taking off her golden things. She
+took the jewel off the chain round her neck and laid it in a casket of
+gold and ivory. She took the rings off her fingers and hung them on the
+lance of a little knight in silver. She took off her waist where it hung
+to a brooch of feridets, her pomander of enamel and gold; she opened it
+and marked the time by the watch studded with sable diamonds that it
+held.</p>
+
+<p>'Past eleven,' she said, 'if my watch goes right.'</p>
+
+<p>'Indeed it is past eleven,' the Lady Rochford sighed behind her.</p>
+
+<p>The Queen sat forward in her chair, looking deep into the shadows of her
+mirror. A great relaxation was in all her limbs, for she was very tired,
+so that though she was minded to let down her hair she did not begin to
+undo her coif, and though she desired to think, she had no thoughts.
+From far away there came a muffled sound as if a door had been roughly
+closed, and the Lady Rochford shot out a little sound between a scream
+and a sigh.</p>
+
+<p>'Why, you are very affrighted,' the Queen said. 'One would think you
+feared robbers; but my guards are too good.'</p>
+
+<p>She began to unloosen from her hood her jewel, which was a rose
+fashioned out of pink shell work set with huge dewdrops of diamonds and
+crowned with a little crown of gold.</p>
+
+<p>'God knows,' she said, 'I ha' trinkets enow for robbers. It takes me too
+long to undo them. I would the King did not so load me.'<span class='pagenum'><a name="page529" id="page529">529</a></span></p>
+
+<p>'Your Highness is too humble for a Queen,' the old Lady Rochford
+grumbled. 'Let me aid you, since the maid is gone. I would not have you
+speak your maids so humbly. My Cousin Anne that was the Queen&mdash;&mdash;'</p>
+
+<p>She came stiffly and heavily forward from the bed with her hands out to
+discoif her lady; but the Queen turned her head, caught at her fat hand,
+put it against her cheek and fondled it.</p>
+
+<p>'I would have your Highness feared by all,' the old lady said.</p>
+
+<p>'I would have myself by all beloved,' Katharine answered. 'What, am I to
+play the Queen and Highness to such serving-maids as I was once the
+fellow and companion to?'</p>
+
+<p>'Your Highness should not have sent the wench away,' the old woman said.</p>
+
+<p>'Well, you have taken on a very sour voice,' the Queen said. 'I will
+study to pleasure you more. Get you now back and rest you, for I know
+you stand uneasily, and you shall not uncoif me.'</p>
+
+<p>She began to unpin her coif, laying the golden pins in the silver
+candle-dishes. When her hair was thus set free of a covering, though it
+was smoothly braided and parted over her forehead, yet it was lightly
+rebellious, so that little mists of it caught the light, golden and
+rejoiceful. Her face was serious, her nose a little peaked, her lips
+rested lightly together, and her blue eyes steadily challenged their
+counterparts in the mirror with an assured and gentle glance.</p>
+
+<p>'Why,' she said, 'I believe you have the right of it&mdash;but for a queen I
+must be the same make of queen that I am as a woman. A queen gracious
+rather than a queen regnant; a queen to grant petitions rather than one
+to brush aside the petitioners.'</p>
+
+<p>She stopped and mused.</p>
+
+<p>'Yet,' she said, 'you will do me the justice to say that in the open and
+in the light of day, when men are by or the King's presence demands it,
+I do ape as well as I may the<span class='pagenum'><a name="page530" id="page530">530</a></span> painted queens of galleries and the
+stately ladies that are to be seen in pictured books.'</p>
+
+<p>'I would not have had you send away the maid,' the old Lady Rochford
+said.</p>
+
+<p>'God help me,' the Queen answered. 'I stayed her petition till the
+morrow. Is that not queening it enough?'</p>
+
+<p>The Lady Rochford suddenly wrung her hands.</p>
+
+<p>'I had rather,' she said, 'you had heard her and let her stay. Here
+there are not people enough to guard you. You should have many scores of
+people. This is a dreary place.'</p>
+
+<p>'Heaven help me,' the Queen said. 'If I were such a queen as to be
+affrighted, you would affright me. Tell me of your cousin that was a
+sinful queen.'</p>
+
+<p>The Lady Rochford raised her hands lamentably and bleated out&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Ah God, not to-night!'</p>
+
+<p>'You have been ready enough on other nights,' the Queen said. And,
+indeed, it was so much the practice of this lady to talk always of her
+cousin, whose death had affrighted her, that often the Queen had begged
+her to cease. But to-night she was willing to hear, for she felt afraid
+of no omens, and, being joyful, was full of pity for the dead
+unfortunate. She began with slow, long motions to withdraw the great
+pins from her hair. The deep silence settled down again, and she hummed
+the melancholy and stately tune that goes with the words&mdash;</p>
+
+<table summary="poetry">
+<tr>
+<td><i>'When all the little hills are hid in snow,</i><br />
+<i>And all the small brown birds by frost are slain,</i><br />
+<i>And sad and slow</i><br />
+<i>The silly sheep do go,</i><br />
+<i>All seeking shelter to and fro&mdash;</i><br />
+<i>Come once again</i><br />
+<i>To these familiar, silent, misty lands&mdash;&mdash;'</i></td>
+</tr>
+</table>
+
+<p>And&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Aye,' she said; 'to these ancient and familiar lands of the dear
+saints, please God, when the winter snows are upon them, once again
+shall come the feet of God's messenger,<span class='pagenum'><a name="page531" id="page531">531</a></span> for this is the joyfullest day
+this land hath known since my namesake was cast down and died.'</p>
+
+<p>Suddenly there were muffled cries from beyond the thick door in the
+corridor, and on the door itself resounding blows. The Lady Rochford
+gave out great shrieks, more than her feeble body could have been deemed
+to hold.</p>
+
+<p>'Body of God!' the Queen said, 'what is this?'</p>
+
+<p>'Your cousin!' the Lady Rochford cried out. She came running to the
+Queen, who, in standing up, had overset her heavy chair, and, falling to
+her knees, she babbled out&mdash;'Your cousin! Oh, let it not all come again.
+Call your guard. Let it not all come again'; and she clawed into the
+Queen's skirt, uttering incomprehensible clamours.</p>
+
+<p>'What? What? What?' Katharine said.</p>
+
+<p>'He was with the Archbishop. Your cousin with the Archbishop. I heard
+it. I sent to stay him if it were so'; and the old woman's teeth
+crackled within her jaws. 'O God, it is come again!' she cried.</p>
+
+<p>The door flung open heavily, but slowly, because it was so heavy. And,
+in the archway, whilst a great scream from the old woman wailed out down
+the corridors, Katharine was aware of a man in scarlet, locked in a
+struggle with a raging swirl of green manhood. The man in scarlet fell
+back, and then, crying out, ran away. The man in green, his bonnet off,
+his red hair sticking all up, his face pallid, and his eyes staring like
+those of a sleep-walker, entered the room. In his right hand he had a
+dagger. He walked very slowly.</p>
+
+<p>The Queen thought fast: the old Lady Rochford had her mouth open; her
+eyes were upon the dagger in Culpepper's hand.</p>
+
+<p>'I seek the Queen,' he said, but his eyes were lacklustre; they fell
+upon Katharine's face as if they had no recognition, or could not see.
+She turned her body round to the old Lady Rochford, bending from the
+hips so as not to move her feet. She set her fingers upon her lips.</p>
+
+<p>'I seek&mdash;I seek&mdash;&mdash;' he said, and always he came closer to her. His
+eyes were upon her face, and the lids moved.<span class='pagenum'><a name="page532" id="page532">532</a></span></p>
+
+<p>'I seek the Queen,' he said, and beneath his husky voice there were bass
+notes of quivering anger, as if, just as he had been by chance calmed by
+throwing down the guard, so by chance his anger might arise again.</p>
+
+<p>The Queen never moved, but stood up full and fair; one strand of her
+hair, loosened, fell low over her left ear. When he was so close to her
+that his protruded hips touched her skirt, she stole her hand slowly
+round him till it closed upon his wrist above the dagger. His mouth
+opened, his eyes distended.</p>
+
+<p>'I seek&mdash;&mdash;' he said, and then&mdash;'Kat!' as if the touch of her cool and
+firm fingers rather than the sight of her had told to his bruised senses
+who she was.</p>
+
+<p>'Get you gone!' she said. 'Give me your dagger.' She uttered each word
+roundly and fully as if she were pondering the next move over a
+chequer-board.</p>
+
+<p>'Well, I will kill the Queen,' he said. 'How may I do it without my
+knife?'</p>
+
+<p>'Get you gone!' she said again. 'I will direct you to the Queen.'</p>
+
+<p>He passed the back of his left hand wearily over his brow.</p>
+
+<p>'Well, I have found thee, Kat!' he said.</p>
+
+<p>She answered: 'Aye!' and her fingers twined round his on the hilt of the
+dagger, so that his were loosening.</p>
+
+<p>Then the old Lady Rochford screamed out&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Ha! God's mercy! Guards, swords, come!' The furious blood came into
+Culpepper's face at the sound. His hand he tore from Katharine's, and
+with the dagger raised on high he ran back from her and then forward
+towards the Lady Rochford. With an old trick of fence, that she had
+learned when she was a child, Katharine Howard set out her foot before
+him, and, with the speed of his momentum, he pitched over forward. He
+fell upon his face so that his forehead was upon the Lady Rochford's
+right foot. His dagger he still grasped, but he lay prone with the drink
+and the fever.<span class='pagenum'><a name="page533" id="page533">533</a></span></p>
+
+<p>'Now, by God in His mercy,' Katharine said to her, 'as I am the Queen I
+charge you&mdash;&mdash;'</p>
+
+<p>'Take his knife and stab him to the heart!' the Lady Rochford cried out.
+'This will slay us two.'</p>
+
+<p>'I charge you that you listen to me,' the Queen said, 'or, by God, I
+will have you in chains!'</p>
+
+<p>'I will call your many,' the Lady Rochford cried out, for terror had
+stopped up the way from her ears to her brain, and she made towards the
+door. But Katharine set her hand to the old woman's shoulder.</p>
+
+<p>'Call no man,' she commanded. 'This is a device of mine enemies to have
+men see this of me.'</p>
+
+<p>'I will not stay here to be slain,' the old woman said.</p>
+
+<p>'Then mine own self will slay you,' the Queen answered. Culpepper moved
+in his stupor. 'Before Heaven,' the Queen said, 'stay you there, and he
+shall not again stand up.'</p>
+
+<p>'I will go call&mdash;&mdash;' the old woman besought her, and again Culpepper
+moved. The Queen stood right up against her; her breast heaved, her face
+was rigid. Suddenly she turned and ran to the door. That key she
+wrenched round and out, and then to the other door beside it, and that
+key too she wrenched round and out.</p>
+
+<p>'I will not stay alone with my cousin,' she said, 'for that is what mine
+enemies would have. And this I vow, that if again you squeak I will have
+you tried as being an abettor of this treason.' She went and knelt down
+at her cousin's head; she moved his face round till it was upon her lap.</p>
+
+<p>'Poor Tom,' she said; he opened his eyes and muttered stupid words.</p>
+
+<p>She looked again at Lady Rochford.</p>
+
+<p>'All this is nothing,' she said, 'if you will hide in the shadow of the
+bed and keep still. I have seen my cousin a hundred times thus muddied
+with drink, and do not fear him. He shall not stand up till he is ready
+to go through the door; but I will not be alone with him and tend him.'</p>
+
+<p>The Lady Rochford waddled and quaked like a jelly to the shadow of the
+bed curtains. She pulled back the<span class='pagenum'><a name="page534" id="page534">534</a></span> curtain over the window, and, as if
+the contact with the world without would help her, threw back the
+casement. Below, in the black night, a row of torches shook and
+trembled, like little planets, in the distance.</p>
+
+<p>Katharine Howard held her cousin's head upon her knees. She had seen him
+thus a hundred times and had no fear of him. For thus in his cups, and
+fevered as he was with ague that he had had since a child, he was always
+amenable to her voice though all else in the world enraged him. So that,
+if she could keep the Lady Rochford still, she might well win him out
+through the door at which he came in.</p>
+
+<p>And, first, when he moved to come to his knees, she whispered&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Lie down, lie down,' and he set one elbow on to the carpet and lay over
+on his side, then on his back. She took his head again on to her lap,
+and with soft motions reached to take the dagger from his hand. He
+yielded it up and gazed upwards into her face.</p>
+
+<p>'Kat!' he said, and she answered&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Aye!'</p>
+
+<p>There came from very far the sound of a horn.</p>
+
+<p>'When you can stand,' she said, 'you must get you gone.'</p>
+
+<p>'I have sold farms to get you gowns,' he answered.</p>
+
+<p>'And then we came to Court,' she said, 'to grow great.'</p>
+
+<p>He passed his left hand once more over his eyes with a gesture of
+ineffable weariness, but his other arm that was extended, she knelt
+upon.</p>
+
+<p>'Now we are great,' she said.</p>
+
+<p>He muttered, 'I wooed thee in an apple orchard. Let us go back to
+Lincolnshire.'</p>
+
+<p>'Why, we will talk of it in the morning,' she said. 'It is very late.'</p>
+
+<p>Her brain throbbed with the pulsing blood. She was set to get him gone
+before the young Poins could call men to her door. It was maddeningly
+strange to think that none hitherto had come. Maybe Culpepper had struck
+him dead with his knife, or he lay without fainting. This black<span class='pagenum'><a name="page535" id="page535">535</a></span> enigma,
+calling for haste that she dare not show, filled all the shadows of that
+shadowy room.</p>
+
+<p>'It is very late,' she said, 'you must get you gone. It was compacted
+between us that ever you would get you gone early.'</p>
+
+<p>'Aye, I would not have thee shamed,' he said. He spoke upwards, slowly
+and luxuriously, his head so softly pillowed, his eyes gazing at the
+ceiling. He had never been so easy in two years past. 'I remember that
+was the occasion of our pact. I did wooe thee in an apple orchard to the
+grunting of hogs.'</p>
+
+<p>'Get you gone,' she said; 'buy me a favour against the morning.'</p>
+
+<p>'Why,' he said, 'I am a very rich lord. I have lands in Kent now. I will
+buy thee such a gown ... such a gown.... The hogs grunted.... There is a
+song about it.... Let me go to buy thy gown. Aye, now, presently. I
+remember a great many things. As thus ... there is a song of a lady
+loved a swine. Honey, said she, and hunc, said he.'</p>
+
+<p>Whilst she listened a great many thoughts came into her mind&mdash;of their
+youth at home, where indeed, to the grunting of hogs, he had wooed her
+when she came out from conning her Plautus with the Magister. And at the
+same time it troubled her to consider where the young Poins had bestowed
+himself. Maybe he was dead; maybe he lay in a faint.</p>
+
+<p>'It was in our pact,' she said to Culpepper, 'that you should get you
+gone ever when I would have it.'</p>
+
+<p>'Aye, sure, it was in our pact,' he said.</p>
+
+<p>He closed his eyes as if he would fall asleep, being very weary and come
+to his desired haven. Above his closed eyes Katharine threw the key of
+her antechamber on to the bed. She pointed with her hand to that door
+that the Lady Rochford should undo. If she could get her cousin through
+that door&mdash;and now he was in the mood&mdash;if she could but get him through
+there and out at the door beyond the Big Room into the corridor, before
+her guard came back....<span class='pagenum'><a name="page536" id="page536">536</a></span></p>
+
+<p>But the Lady Rochford was leaning far out beyond the window-sill and did
+not see her gesture.</p>
+
+<p>Culpepper muttered&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Ah; well; aye; even so&mdash;&mdash;' And from the window came a scream that
+tore the air&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'The King! the King!'</p>
+
+<p>And immediately it was as if the life of a demon had possessed Culpepper
+in all his limbs.</p>
+
+<p>'Merciful God!' the Queen cried out. 'I am patient.'</p>
+
+<p>Culpepper had writhed from her till he sat up, but she hollowed her hand
+around his throat. His head she forced back till she held it upon the
+floor, and whilst he writhed with his legs she knelt upon his chest with
+one knee. He screamed out words like: 'Bawd,' and 'Ilcock,' and
+'Hecate,' and the Lady Rochford screamed&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'The King comes! the King comes!'</p>
+
+<p>Then Katharine said within herself&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Is it this to be a Queen?'</p>
+
+<p>She set both her hands upon his neck and pressed down the whole weight
+of her frame, till the voice died in his throat. His body stirred
+beneath her knee, convulsively, so that it was as if she rode a horse.
+His eyes, as slowly he strangled, glared hideously at the ceiling, from
+which the carven face of a Queen looked down into them. At last he lay
+still, and Katharine Howard rose up.</p>
+
+<p>She ran at the old woman&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'God forgive me if I have killed my cousin,' she said. 'I am certain
+that now He will forgive me if I slay thee.' And she had Culpepper's
+dagger in her hand.</p>
+
+<p>'For,' she said, 'I stand for Christ His cause: I will not be undone by
+meddlers. Hold thy peace!'</p>
+
+<p>The Lady Rochford opened her mouth to speak.</p>
+
+<p>'Hold thy peace!' the Queen said again, and she lifted up the dagger.
+'Speak not. Do as I bid thee. Answer me when I ask. For this I swear as
+I am the Queen that, since I have the power to slay whom I will and none
+question it, I will slay thee if thou do not my bidding.'</p>
+
+<p>The old woman trembled lamentably.<span class='pagenum'><a name="page537" id="page537">537</a></span></p>
+
+<p>'Where is the King come to?' the Queen said.</p>
+
+<p>'Even to the great gate; he is out of sight,' was her answer.</p>
+
+<p>'Come now,' the Queen commanded. 'Let us drag my cousin behind my
+table.'</p>
+
+<p>'Shall he be hidden there?' the Lady Rochford cried out. 'Let us cast
+him from the window.'</p>
+
+<p>'Hold your peace,' the Queen cried out. 'Speak you never one word more.
+But come!'</p>
+
+<p>She took her cousin by the arm, the Lady Rochford took him by the other
+and they dragged him, inert and senseless, into the shadow of the
+Queen's mirror table.</p>
+
+<p>'Pray God the King comes soon,' the Queen said. She stood above her
+cousin and looked down upon him. A great pitifulness came into her face.</p>
+
+<p>'Loosen his shirt,' she said. 'Feel if his heart beats!'</p>
+
+<p>The Lady Rochford had a face full of fear and repulsion.</p>
+
+<p>'Loosen his shirt. Feel if his heart beats,' the Queen said. 'And oh!'
+she added, 'woe shall fall upon thee if he be dead.'</p>
+
+<p>She reflected a moment to think upon how long it should be ere the King
+came to her door. Then she raised her chair, and sat down at her mirror.
+For one minute she set her face into her hands; then she began to
+straighten herself, and with her hands behind her to tighten the laces
+of her dress.</p>
+
+<p>'For,' she continued to Lady Rochford, 'I do hold thee more guilty of
+his death than himself. He is but a drunkard in his cups, thou a
+palterer in sobriety.'</p>
+
+<p>She set her cap upon her head and smoothed the hair beneath it. In all
+her movements there was a great swiftness and decision. She set the
+jewel in her cap, the pomander at her side, the chain around her neck,
+the jewel at her breast.</p>
+
+<p>'His heart beats,' the Lady Rochford said, from her knees at Culpepper's
+side.</p>
+
+<p>'Then thank the saints,' Katharine answered, 'and do up again his
+shirt.'<span class='pagenum'><a name="page538" id="page538">538</a></span></p>
+
+<p>She hurried in her attiring, and uttered engrossed commands.</p>
+
+<p>'Kneel thou there by his side. If he stir or mutter before the King be
+in and the door closed, put thy hand across his mouth.'</p>
+
+<p>'But the King&mdash;&mdash;' the Lady Rochford said. 'And&mdash;&mdash;'</p>
+
+<p>'Merciful God!' Katharine cried out again. 'I am the Queen. Kneel
+there.'</p>
+
+<p>The Lady Rochford trembled down upon her knees; she was in fear for her
+life by the axe if the King came in.</p>
+
+<p>'I thank God that the King is come,' the Queen said. 'If he had not,
+this man must have gone from hence in the sight of other men. So I will
+pardon thee for having cried out if now thou hold him silent till the
+King be in.'</p>
+
+<p>There came from very near a blare of trumpets. Katharine rose up, and
+went again to gaze upon her cousin. The dagger she laid upon her table.</p>
+
+<p>'He may hold still yet,' she said. 'But I charge you that you muzzle him
+if he move or squeak.'</p>
+
+<p>There came great blows upon the door, and through the heavy wood, the
+Ha-ha of many voices. Slowly the Queen moved to the bed, and from it
+took the key where she had thrown it. There came again the heavy
+knocking, and she unlocked the door, slowly still.</p>
+
+<p>In the corridor there were many torches, and beneath them the figure of
+the King in scarlet. Behind him was Norfolk all in black and with his
+yellow face, and Cranmer in black and with his anxious eyes, and behind
+them many other lords. The King came in, and, slow and stately, the
+Queen went down on her knees to greet him. The torch-light shone upon
+her jewels and her garments; her fair face was immobile, and her eyes
+upon the ground. The King raised her up, bent his knee to her, and
+kissed her on the hands, and so, turning to the men without, he uttered,
+roundly and fully, and his cheeks were ruddy with joy, and his eyes
+smiled&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'My lords, I am beholden to the King o' Scots. For had<span class='pagenum'><a name="page539" id="page539">539</a></span> he met me I had
+not yet been here. Get you to your beds; I could wish ye had such
+wives&mdash;&mdash;'</p>
+
+<p>'The King! the King!' a voice muttered.</p>
+
+<p>Henry said&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Ha, who spoke?'</p>
+
+<p>There was a faint squeak, a dull rustle.</p>
+
+<p>'My cousin Kat&mdash;&mdash;' the voice said.</p>
+
+<p>The King said&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Ha!' again, and incredulous and haughty he raised his brows.</p>
+
+<p>Above the mirror, in the great light of the candles, there showed the
+pale face, the fishy, wide-open and bewildered eyes of Culpepper. His
+hair was dishevelled in points; his mouth was open in amazement. He
+uttered&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'The King!' as if that were the most astonishing thing, and, standing
+behind the table, staggered and clutched the arras to sustain himself.</p>
+
+<p>Henry said&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Ha! Treason!'</p>
+
+<p>But Katharine whispered at his ear&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'No; this my cousin is distraught. Speak on to the lords.'</p>
+
+<p>In the King's long pause several lords said aloud&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'The King cried "Treason!" Draw your swords!'</p>
+
+<p>Then the King cast his cap upon the ground.</p>
+
+<p>'By God!' he said. 'What marlocking is this? Is it general joy that
+emboldens ye to this license? God help me!' he said, and he stamped his
+foot upon the ground&mdash;'Body of God!' And many other oaths he uttered.
+Then, with a sudden clutching at his throat, he called out&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Well! well! I pardon ye. For no doubt to some that be young&mdash;and to
+some that be old too&mdash;it is an occasion for mummeries and japes when a
+good man cometh home to his dame.'</p>
+
+<p>He looked round upon Culpepper. The Queen's cousin stood, his jaw still
+hanging wide, and his body crumpled back against the arras. He was
+hidden from them all by wall and door, but Henry could not judge how
+long he would there remain. Riding through the night he had<span class='pagenum'><a name="page540" id="page540">540</a></span> conned a
+speech that he would have said at the Queen's door, and at the times of
+joy and graciousness he loved to deliver great speeches. But there he
+said only&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Why, God keep you. I thank such of you as were with me upon the
+campaign and journey. Now this campaign and journey is ended&mdash;I dissolve
+you each to his housing and bed. Farewell. Be as content as I be!'</p>
+
+<p>And, with his great hand he swung to the heavy door.</p>
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="page541" id="page541">541</a></span></p>
+
+<h2>PART THREE</h2>
+
+<h3>THE DWINDLING MELODY</h3>
+
+<h3>I</h3>
+
+<p>The Lady Rochford lay back upon the floor in a great faint.</p>
+
+<p>'Heaven help me!' the Queen said. 'I had rather she had played the
+villain than been such a palterer.' She glided to the table and picked
+up the dagger that shone there beneath Culpepper's nose. 'Take even
+this,' she said to the King. 'It is an ill thing to bestow. Sword he
+hath none.'</p>
+
+<p>Having had such an estimation of his good wife's wit that, since he
+would not have her think him a dullard, he passed over the first
+question that he would have asked, such as, 'I think this be thy cousin
+and how came he here?'</p>
+
+<p>'Would he have slain me?' he asked instead, as if it were a little
+thing.</p>
+
+<p>'I do not think so,' Katharine said. 'Maybe it was me he would have
+slain.'</p>
+
+<p>'Body of God!' the King said sardonically. 'He cometh for no cheap
+goods.'</p>
+
+<p>He had so often questioned his wife of this cousin of hers that he had
+his measure indifferent well.</p>
+
+<p>'Why,' the Queen said, 'I do not know that he would have slain me. Maybe
+it was to save me from dragons that he came with his knife. He was, I
+think, with the Archbishop's men and came here very drunk. I would pray
+your Highness' Grace to punish him not over much for he is my mother's
+nephew and the only friend I had when I was very poor and a young
+child.'</p>
+
+<p>The King hung his head on his chest, and his rustic eyes surveyed the
+ground.<span class='pagenum'><a name="page542" id="page542">542</a></span></p>
+
+<p>'I would have you to think,' she said, 'that he has been among evil men
+that advised and prompted him thus to assault my door. They would ruin
+and undo him and me.'</p>
+
+<p>'Well I know it,' Henry said. He rubbed his hand up his left side,
+opened it and dropped it again&mdash;a trick he had when he thought deeply.</p>
+
+<p>'The Archbishop,' he said, 'babbled somewhat&mdash;I know not what&mdash;of a
+cousin of thine that was come from the Scots, he thought, without leave
+or license.'</p>
+
+<p>'But how to get him hence, that my foes triumph not?' the Queen said,
+'for I would not have them triumph.'</p>
+
+<p>'I do think upon it,' the King said.</p>
+
+<p>'You are better at it than I,' she answered.</p>
+
+<p>Culpepper stood there at gaze, as if he were a corpse about which they
+talked. But the speaking of the Queen to another man excited him to
+gurgle and snarl in his throat like an ape. Then another mood coming
+into the channels of his brain&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'It was the King my cousin Kate did marry. This then is the Queen; I had
+pacted with myself to forget this Queen.' He spoke straight out before
+him with the echo of thoughts that he had had during his exile.</p>
+
+<p>'Ho!' the King said and smote his thigh. 'It is plain what to do,' and
+in spite of his scarlet and his bulk he had the air of a heavy but very
+cunning peasant. He reflected for a little more.</p>
+
+<p>'It fits very well,' he brought out. 'This man must be richly rewarded.'</p>
+
+<p>'Why,' Katharine said; 'I had nigh strangled him. It makes me tremble to
+think how nigh I had strangled him. I would well he were rewarded.'</p>
+
+<p>The King considered his wife's cousin.</p>
+
+<p>'Sirrah,' he said, 'we believe that thou canst not kneel, or kneeling,
+couldst not well again arise.'</p>
+
+<p>Culpepper regarded him with wide, blue, and uncomprehending eyes.</p>
+
+<p>'So, thou standing as thou makest shift to do, we do make thee the
+keeper of this our Queen's ante-room.'<span class='pagenum'><a name="page543" id="page543">543</a></span></p>
+
+<p>He spoke with a pleasant and ironical glee, since it joyed him thus to
+gibe at one that had loved his wife. He&mdash;with his own prowess&mdash;had
+carried her off.</p>
+
+<p>'Master Culpepper,' he said&mdash;'or Sir Thomas&mdash;for I remember to have
+knighted you&mdash;if you can walk, now walk.'</p>
+
+<p>Culpepper muttered&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'The King! Why the King did wed my cousin Kat!'</p>
+
+<p>And again&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'I must be circumspect. Oh aye, I must be circumspect or all is lost.'
+For that was one of the things which in Scotland he had again and again
+impressed upon himself. 'But in Lincoln, in bygone times, of a summer's
+night&mdash;&mdash;'</p>
+
+<p>'Poor Tom!' the Queen said; 'once this fellow did wooe me.'</p>
+
+<p>Great tears gathered in Culpepper's eyes. They overflowed and rolled
+down his cheeks.</p>
+
+<p>'In the apple-orchard,' he said, 'to the grunting of hogs ... for the
+hogs were below the orchard wall....'</p>
+
+<p>The King was pleased to think that it had been in his power to raise
+this lady an infinite distance above the wooing of this poor lout. It
+gave him an interlude of comedy. But though he set his hands on his hips
+and chuckled, he was a man too ready for action to leave much time for
+enjoyment.</p>
+
+<p>'Why weep?' he said to Culpepper. 'We have advanced thee to the Queen's
+ante-chamber. Come up thither.'</p>
+
+<p>He approached to Culpepper behind the mirror table and caught him by the
+arm. The poor drunkard, his face pallid, shrank away from this great
+bulk of shining scarlet. His eyes moved lamentably round the chamber and
+rested first upon Katharine, then upon the King.</p>
+
+<p>'Which of us was it you would ha' killed?' the King said, to show the
+Queen how brave he was in thus handling a madman. And, being very
+strong, he dragged the swaying drunkard, who held back and whose head
+wagged on his shoulders, towards the door.</p>
+
+<p>'Guard ho!' he called out, and before the door there stood three of his
+own men in scarlet and with pikes.<span class='pagenum'><a name="page544" id="page544">544</a></span></p>
+
+<p>'Ho, where is the Queen's door-ward?' he called with a great voice.
+Before him, from the door side, there came the young Poins; his face was
+like chalk; he had a bruise above his eyes; his knees trembled beneath
+him.</p>
+
+<p>'Ho thou!' the King said, 'who art thou that would hinder my messenger
+from coming to the Queen?'</p>
+
+<p>He stood back upon his feet; he clutched the drunkard in his great fist;
+his eyes started dreadfully.</p>
+
+<p>The young Poins' lips moved, but no sound came out.</p>
+
+<p>'This was my messenger,' the King said, 'and you hindered him. Body of
+God! Body of God!' and he made his voice to tremble as if with rage,
+whilst he told this lie to save his wife's fair fame. 'Where have you
+been? Where have you tarried? What treason is this? For either you knew
+this was my messenger&mdash;as well I would have you know that he is&mdash;and it
+was treason and death to stay him. Or, if because he was drunk and
+speechless&mdash;as well he might be having travelled far and with
+expedition&mdash;ye did not know he was my messenger; then wherefore did ye
+not run to raise all the castle for succour?'</p>
+
+<p>The young Poins pointed to the wound above his eye and then to the
+ground of the corridor. He would signify that Culpepper had struck him,
+and that there, on the ground, he had lain senseless.</p>
+
+<p>'Ho!' the King said, for he was willing to know how many men in that
+castle had wind of this mischance. 'You lay not there all this while.
+When I came here along, you stood here by the door in your place.'</p>
+
+<p>The young Poins fell upon his knees. He shook more violently than a
+naked man on a frosty day. For here indeed was the centre of his
+treason, since Lascelles had bidden him stay there, once Culpepper was
+in the Queen's room, and to say later that there the Queen had bidden
+him stay whilst she had her lover. And now, before the King's tremendous
+presence, he had the fear at his heart that the King knew this.</p>
+
+<p>'Wherefore! wherefore!' the King thundered, 'where<span class='pagenum'><a name="page545" id="page545">545</a></span>fore didst not cry
+out&mdash;cry out&mdash;"Treason, Raise the watch!"? Hail out aloud?'</p>
+
+<p>He waited, silent for a long time. The three pikemen leaned upon their
+pikes; and now Culpepper had fallen against the door-post, where the
+King held him up. And behind his back the Queen marvelled at the King's
+ready wit. This was the best stroke that ever she had known him do. And
+the Lady Rochford lay where she had feigned to faint, straining her
+ears.</p>
+
+<p>With all these ears listening for his words the young Poins knelt, his
+teeth chattering like burning wood that crackles.</p>
+
+<p>'Wherefore? wherefore?' the King cried again.</p>
+
+<p>Half inaudibly, his eyes upon the ground, the boy mumbled, 'It was to
+save the Queen from scandal!'</p>
+
+<p>The King let his jaw fall, in a fine aping of amazement. Then, with the
+huge swiftness of a bull, he threw Culpepper towards one of the guards,
+and, leaning over, had the kneeling boy by the throat.</p>
+
+<p>'Scandal!' he said. 'Body of God! Scandal!' And the boy screamed out,
+and raised his hands to hide the King's intolerable great face that
+blazed down over his eyes.</p>
+
+<p>The huge man cast him from him, so that he fell over backwards, and lay
+upon his side.</p>
+
+<p>'Scandal!' the King cried out to his guards. 'Here is a pretty scandal!
+That a King may not send a messenger to his wife withouten scandal! God
+help me....'</p>
+
+<p>He stood suddenly again over the boy as if he would trample him to a
+shapeless pulp. But, trembling there, he stepped back.</p>
+
+<p>'Up, bastard!' he called out. 'Run as ye never ran. Fetch hither the
+Lord d'Espahn and His Grace of Canterbury, that should have ordered
+these matters.'</p>
+
+<p>The boy stumbled to his knees, and then, a flash of scarlet, ran, his
+head down, as if eagles were tearing at his hair.</p>
+
+<p>The King turned upon his guard.</p>
+
+<p>'Ho!' he said, 'you, Jenkins, stay here with this my<span class='pagenum'><a name="page546" id="page546">546</a></span> knight cousin.
+You, Cale and Richards, run to fetch a launderer that shall set a
+mattress in the ante-chamber for this my cousin to lie on. For this my
+cousin is the Queen's chamber-ward, and shall there lie when I am here,
+if so be I have occasion for a messenger at night.'</p>
+
+<p>The two guards ran off, striking upon the ground before them as they ran
+the heavy staves of their pikes. This noise was intended to warn all to
+make way for his Highness' errand-bearers.</p>
+
+<p>'Why,' the King said pleasantly to Jenkins, a guard with a blond and
+shaven face whom he liked well, 'let us set this gentleman against the
+wall in the ante-room till his bed be come. He hath earned gentle usage,
+since he hasted much, bringing my message from Scotland to the Queen,
+and is very ill.'</p>
+
+<p>So, helping his guard gently to conduct the drunkard into his wife's
+dark ante-room, the King came out again to his wife.</p>
+
+<p>'Is it well done?' he asked.</p>
+
+<p>'Marvellous well done,' she answered.</p>
+
+<p>'I am the man for these difficult times!' he answered, and was glad.</p>
+
+<p>The Queen sighed a little. For if she admired and wondered at her lord's
+power skilfully to have his way, it made her sad to think&mdash;as she must
+think&mdash;that so devious was man's work.</p>
+
+<p>'I would,' she said, 'that it was not to such an occasion that I spurred
+thee.'</p>
+
+<p>Her eyes, being cast downwards, fell upon the Lady Rochford, by the
+table.</p>
+
+<p>'Ho, get up,' she cried. 'You have feigned fainting long enough. But for
+you all this had been more easy. I would have you relieve mine eyes of
+the sight of your face.' She moved to aid the old woman to rise, but
+before she was upon her knees there stood without the door both the Lord
+d'Espahn and the Archbishop. They had waited just beyond the
+corridor-end with a great many of the other lords,<span class='pagenum'><a name="page547" id="page547">547</a></span> all afraid of
+mysteries they knew not what, and thus it was that they came so soon
+upon the young Poins' summoning.</p>
+
+<h3>II</h3>
+
+<p>The King thought fit to change his mood, so that it was with uplifted
+brows and a quizzing smile at the corners of his mouth that for a minute
+he greeted these frightened lords in the doorway. They stood there
+silent, the Archbishop very dejected, the Lord d'Espahn, with his grey
+beard, very erect and ruddy featured.</p>
+
+<p>'Why, God help me,' the King said, 'what make of Court is this of mine
+where a King may not send a messenger to his wife?'</p>
+
+<p>The Archbishop swallowed in his throat; the Lord d'Espahn did not speak
+but gazed before him.</p>
+
+<p>'You shall tell me what befell, for I am ignorant,' the King said; 'but
+first I will tell you what I do know.</p>
+
+<p>'Why, come out with me into the corridor, wife,' he cried over his
+shoulder. 'For it is not fitting that these lords come into thy
+apartment. I will walk with them and talk.'</p>
+
+<p>He took the Archbishop by the elbow and the Lord d'Espahn by the upper
+arm, and, leaning upon them, propelled them gently before him.</p>
+
+<p>'Thus it was,' he said; 'this cousin of my wife's was in the King o'
+Scots' good town of Edinboro'. And, being there, he was much upon my
+conscience&mdash;for I would not have a cousin of my wife's be there in
+exile, he being one that formerly much fended for her....'</p>
+
+<p>He spoke out his words and repeated these things for his own purposes,
+the Queen following behind. When they were come to the corridor-end,
+there he found, as he had thought, a knot of lords and gentlemen,
+babbling with their ears pricked up.</p>
+
+<p>'Nay, stay,' he said, 'this is a matter that all may hear.'</p>
+
+<p>There were there the Duke of Norfolk and his son, young Surrey with the
+vacant mouth, Sir Henry Wriothesley with<span class='pagenum'><a name="page548" id="page548">548</a></span> the great yellow beard, the
+Lord Dacre of the North, the old knight Sir N. Rochford, Sir Henry Peel
+of these parts, with a many of their servants, amongst them Lascelles.
+Most of them were in scarlet or purple, but many were in black. The Earl
+of Surrey had the Queen's favour of a crowned rose in his bonnet, for he
+was of her party. The gallery opened out there till it was as big as a
+large room, broad and low-ceiled, and lit with torches in irons at the
+angles of it. On rainy days the Queen's maids were here accustomed to
+play at stool-ball.</p>
+
+<p>'This is a matter that all may hear,' the King said, 'and some shall
+render account.' He let the Lord d'Espahn and the Archbishop go, so that
+they faced him. The Queen looked over his shoulder.</p>
+
+<p>'As thus ...' he said.</p>
+
+<p>And he repeated how it had lain upon his conscience and near his heart
+that the Queen's good cousin languished in the town of Edinburgh.</p>
+
+<p>'And how near we came to Edinboro' those of ye that were with me can
+make account.'</p>
+
+<p>And, lying there, he had taken occasion to send a messenger with others
+that went to the King o' Scots&mdash;to send a messenger with letters unto
+this T. Culpepper. One letter was to bid him hasten home unto the Queen,
+and one was a letter that he should bear.</p>
+
+<p>'For,' said the King, 'we thought thus&mdash;as ye wist&mdash;that the King o'
+Scots would come obedient to our summoning and that there we should lie
+some days awaiting and entertaining him. Thus did I wish to send my
+Queen swift message of our faring, and I was willing that this, her
+cousin and mine, should be my postman and messenger. For he should&mdash;I
+bade him&mdash;set sail in a swift ship for these coasts and so come quicker
+than ever a man might by land.'</p>
+
+<p>He paused to observe the effect of his words, but no lord spoke though
+some whispered amongst themselves.</p>
+
+<p>'Now,' he said, 'what stood within my letter to the Queen was this,
+after salutations, that she should reward<span class='pagenum'><a name="page549" id="page549">549</a></span> this her cousin that in the
+aforetime had much fended for her when she was a child. For I was aware
+how, out of a great delicacy and fear of nepotism, such as was shown by
+certain of the Popes now dead, she raised up none of her relations and
+blood, nor none that before had aided her when she was a child and poor.
+But I was willing that this should be otherwise, and they be much helped
+that before had helped her since now she helpeth me and assuageth my
+many and fell labours.'</p>
+
+<p>He paused and went a step back that he might stand beside the Queen, and
+there, before them all, Katharine was most glad that she had again set
+on all her jewels and was queen-like. She had composed her features, and
+gazed before her over their heads, her hands being folded in the lap of
+her gown.</p>
+
+<p>'Now,' the King said, 'this letter of mine was a little thing&mdash;but great
+maybe, since it bore my will. Yet'&mdash;and he made his voice minatory&mdash;'in
+these evil and tickle times well it might have been that that letter
+held delicate news. Then all my plots had gone to ruin. How came it that
+some of ye&mdash;I know not whom!&mdash;thus letted and hindered my messenger?'</p>
+
+<p>He had raised his voice very high. He stayed it suddenly, and some there
+shivered.</p>
+
+<p>He uttered balefully, 'Anan!'</p>
+
+<p>'As Christ is my Saviour,' the Lord d'Espahn said, 'I, since I am the
+Queen's Marshal, am answerable in this, as well I know. Yet never saw I
+this man till to-night at supper. He would have my seat then, and I gave
+it him. Ne let ne hindrance had he of me, but went his way where and
+when he would.'</p>
+
+<p>'You did very well,' the King said. 'Who else speaks?'</p>
+
+<p>The Archbishop looked over his shoulder, and with a dry mouth uttered,
+'Lascelles!'</p>
+
+<p>Lascelles, deft and blond and gay, shouldered his way through that
+unwilling crowd, and fell upon his knees.</p>
+
+<p>'Of this I know something,' he said; 'and if any have offended,
+doubtless it is I, though with good will.'<span class='pagenum'><a name="page550" id="page550">550</a></span></p>
+
+<p>'Well, speak!' the King said.</p>
+
+<p>Lascelles recounted how the Queen, riding out, had seen afar this
+gentleman lying amid the heather.</p>
+
+<p>'And if she should not know him who was her cousin, how should we who
+are servants?' he said. But, having heard that the Queen would have this
+poor, robbed wayfarer tended and comforted, he, Lascelles, out of the
+love and loyalty he owed her Grace, had so tended and so comforted him
+that he had given up to him his own bed and board. But it was not till
+that day that, Culpepper being washed and apparelled&mdash;not till that day
+a little before supper, had he known him for Culpepper, the Queen's
+cousin. So he had gone with him that night to the banquet-hall, and
+there had served him, and, after, had attended him with some lords and
+gentles. But, at the last, Culpepper had shaken them off and bidden them
+leave him.</p>
+
+<p>'And who were we, what warrants had we, to restrain the Queen's noble
+cousin?' he finished. 'And, as for letters, I never saw one, though all
+his apparel, in rags, was in my hands. I think he must have lost this
+letter amongst the robbers he fell in with. But what I could do, I did
+for love of the Queen's Grace, who much hath favoured me.'</p>
+
+<p>The King studied his words. He looked at the Queen's face and then at
+those of the lords before him.</p>
+
+<p>'Why, this tale hath a better shewing,' he said. 'Herein appeareth that
+none, save the Queen's door-ward, came ever against this good knight and
+cousin of mine. And, since this knight was in liquor, and not overwise
+sensible&mdash;as well he might be after supping in moors and deserts&mdash;maybe
+that door-ward had his reasonable reasonings.'</p>
+
+<p>He paused again, and looking upon the Queen's face for a sign:</p>
+
+<p>'If it be thus, it is well,' he said, 'I will pardon and assoil you all,
+if later it shall appear that this is the true truth.'</p>
+
+<p>Lascelles whispered in the Archbishop's ear, and Cranmer uttered&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'The witnesses be here to prove it, if your Highness will.'</p>
+
+<p>'Why,' the King said, 'it is late enough,' and he leered at<span class='pagenum'><a name="page551" id="page551">551</a></span> Cranmer,
+for whom he had an affection. He looked again upon the Queen to see how
+fair she was and how bravely she bore herself, upright and without
+emotion. 'This wife of mine,' he said, 'is ever of the pardoning side.
+If ye had so injured me I had been among ye with fines and amercements.
+But she, I perceive, will not have it so, and I am too glad to be smiled
+upon now to cross her will. So, get you gone and sleep well. But, before
+you go, I will have you listen to some words....'</p>
+
+<p>He cleared his throat, and in his left hand took the Queen's.</p>
+
+<p>'Know ye,' he said, 'that I am as proud of this my Queen as was ever
+mother of her first-born child. For lo, even as the Latin poet saith,
+that, upon bearing a child, many evil women are led to repentance and
+right paths, so have I, your King, been led towards righteousness by
+wedding of this lady. For I tell you that, but for certain small
+hindrances&mdash;and mostly this treacherous disloyalty of the King o' Scots
+that thus with his craven marrow hath featorously dallied to look upon
+my face&mdash;but for that and other small things there had gone forth this
+night through the dark to the Bishop of Rome certain tidings that,
+please God, had made you and me and all this land the gladdest that be
+in Christendom. And this I tell you, too, that though by this
+misadventure and fear of the King o' Scots, these tidings have been
+delayed, yet is it only for a little space and, full surely, that day
+cometh. And for this you shall give thanks first to God and then to this
+royal lady here. For she, before all things, having the love of God in
+her heart, hath brought about this desired consummation. And this I say,
+to her greater praise, here in the midmost of you all, that it be noised
+unto the utmost corners of the world how good a Queen the King hath
+taken to wife.'</p>
+
+<p>The Queen had stood very motionless in the bright illuminations and
+dancings of the torches. But at the news of delay, through the King of
+Scots, a spasm of pain and concern came into her face. So that, if her
+features did not<span class='pagenum'><a name="page552" id="page552">552</a></span> again move they had in them a savour of anguish, her
+eyebrows drooping, and the corners of her mouth.</p>
+
+<p>'And now, good-night!' the King pursued with raised tones. 'If ever ye
+slept well since these troublous times began, now ye may sleep well in
+the drowsy night. For now, in this my reign, are come the shortening
+years like autumn days. Now I will have such peace in land as cometh to
+the husbandman. He hath ingarnered his grain; he hath barned his fodder
+and straw; his sheep are in the byres and in the stalls his oxen. So,
+sitteth he by his fireside with wife and child, and hath no fear of
+winter. Such a man am I, your King, who in the years to come shall rest
+in peace.'</p>
+
+<p>The lords and gentlemen made their reverences, bows and knees; they
+swept round in their coloured assembly, and the Queen stood very tall
+and straight, watching their departure with saddened eyes.</p>
+
+<p>The King was very gay and caught her by the waist.</p>
+
+<p>'God help me, it is very late,' he said. 'Hearken!'</p>
+
+<p>From above the corridor there came the drowsy sound of the clock.</p>
+
+<p>'Thy daughter hath made her submission,' the Queen said. 'I had thought
+this was the gladdest day in my life.'</p>
+
+<p>'Why, so it is,' he said, 'as now day passeth to day.' The clock ceased.
+'Every day shall be glad,' he said, 'and gladder than the rest.'</p>
+
+<p>At her chamber door he made a bustle. He would have the Queen's women
+come to untire her, a leech to see to Culpepper's recovery. He was
+willing to drink mulled wine before he slept. He was afraid to talk with
+his wife of delaying his letter to Rome. That was why he had told the
+news before her to his lords.</p>
+
+<p>He fell upon the Lady Rochford that stood, not daring to go, within the
+Queen's room. He bade her sit all night by the bedside of T. Culpepper;
+he reviled her for a craven coward that had discountenanced the Queen.
+She should pay for it by watching all night, and woe betide her if any
+had speech with T. Culpepper before the King rose.<span class='pagenum'><a name="page553" id="page553">553</a></span></p>
+
+<h3>III</h3>
+
+<p>Down in the lower castle, the Archbishop was accustomed, when he
+undressed, to have with him neither priest nor page, but only, when he
+desired to converse of public matters&mdash;as now he did&mdash;his gentleman,
+Lascelles. He knelt above his kneeling-stool of black wood; he was
+telling his beads before a great crucifix with an ivory Son of God upon
+it. His chamber had bare white walls, his bed no curtains, and all the
+other furnishing of the room was a great black lectern whereto there was
+chained a huge Book of the Holy Writ that had his Preface. The tears
+were in his eyes as he muttered his prayers; he glanced upwards at the
+face of his Saviour, who looked down with a pallid, uncoloured face of
+ivory, the features shewing a great agony so that the mouth was opened.
+It was said that this image, that came from Italy, had had a face
+serene, before the Queen Katharine of Aragon had been put away. Then it
+had cried out once, and so remained ever lachrymose and in agony.</p>
+
+<p>'God help me, I cannot well pray,' the Archbishop said. 'The peril that
+we have been in stays with me still.'</p>
+
+<p>'Why, thank God that we are come out of it very well,' Lascelles said.
+'You may pray and then sleep more calm than ever you have done this
+sennight.'</p>
+
+<p>He leant back against the reading-pulpit, and had his arm across the
+Bible as if it had been the shoulder of a friend.</p>
+
+<p>'Why,' the Archbishop said, 'this is the worst day ever I have been
+through since Cromwell fell.'</p>
+
+<p>'Please it your Grace,' his confidant said, 'it shall yet turn out the
+best.'</p>
+
+<p>The Archbishop faced round upon his knees; he had taken off the jewel
+from before his breast, and, with his chain of Chaplain of the George,
+it dangled across the corner of the fald-stool. His coat was unbuttoned
+at the neck, his robe open, and it was manifest that his sleeves of<span class='pagenum'><a name="page554" id="page554">554</a></span>
+lawn were but sleeves, for in the opening was visible, harsh and grey,
+the shirt of hair that night and day he wore.</p>
+
+<p>'I am weary of this talk of the world,' he said. 'Pray you begone and
+leave me to my prayers.'</p>
+
+<p>'Please it your Grace to let me stay and hearten you,' Lascelles said,
+and he was aware that the Archbishop was afraid to be alone with the
+white Christ. 'All your other gentry are in bed. I shall watch your
+sleep, to wake you if you cry out.'</p>
+
+<p>And in his fear of Cromwell's ghost that came to him in his dreams, the
+Archbishop sighed&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Why stay, but speak not. Y'are over bold.'</p>
+
+<p>He turned again to the wall; his beads clicked; he sighed and remained
+still for a long time, a black shadow, huddled together in a black gown,
+sighing before the white and lamenting image that hung above him.</p>
+
+<p>'God help me,' he said at last. 'Tell me why you say this is <i>dies
+felix</i>?'</p>
+
+<p>Lascelles, who smiled for ever and without mirth, said&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'For two things: firstly, because this letter and its sending are put
+off. And secondly, because the Queen is&mdash;patently and to all
+people&mdash;proved lewd.'</p>
+
+<p>The Archbishop swung his head round upon his shoulders.</p>
+
+<p>'You dare not say it!' he said.</p>
+
+<p>'Why, the late Queen Katharine from Aragon was accounted a model of
+piety, yet all men know she was over fond with her confessor,' Lascelles
+smiled.</p>
+
+<p>'It is an approved lie and slander,' the Archbishop said.</p>
+
+<p>'It served mightily well in pulling down that Katharine,' his confidant
+answered.</p>
+
+<p>'One day'&mdash;the Archbishop shivered within his robes&mdash;'the account and
+retribution for these lies shall be to be paid. For well we know, you,
+I, and all of us, that these be falsities and cozenings.'</p>
+
+<p>'Marry,' Lascelles said, 'of this Queen it is now sufficiently proved
+true.'</p>
+
+<p>The Archbishop made as if he washed his hands.<span class='pagenum'><a name="page555" id="page555">555</a></span></p>
+
+<p>'Why,' Lascelles said, 'what man shall believe it was by chance and
+accident that she met her cousin on these moors? She is not a compass
+that pointeth, of miraculous power, true North.'</p>
+
+<p>'No good man shall believe what you do say,' the Archbishop cried out.</p>
+
+<p>'But a multitude of indifferent will,' Lascelles answered.</p>
+
+<p>'God help me,' the Archbishop said, 'what a devil you are that thus hold
+out and hold out for ever hopes.'</p>
+
+<p>'Why,' Lascelles said, 'I think you were well helped that day that I
+came into your service. It was the Great Privy Seal that bade me serve
+you and commended me.'</p>
+
+<p>The Archbishop shivered at that name.</p>
+
+<p>'What an end had Thomas Cromwell!' he said.</p>
+
+<p>'Why, such an end shall not be yours whilst this King lives, so well he
+loves you,' Lascelles answered.</p>
+
+<p>The Archbishop stood upon his feet; he raised his hands above his head.</p>
+
+<p>'Begone! Begone!' he cried. 'I will not be of your evil schemes.'</p>
+
+<p>'Your Grace shall not,' Lascelles said very softly, 'if they miscarry.
+But when it is proven to the hilt that this Queen is a very lewd
+woman&mdash;and proven it shall be&mdash;your Grace may carry an accusation to the
+King&mdash;&mdash;'</p>
+
+<p>Cranmer said&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Never! never! Shall I come between the lion and his food?'</p>
+
+<p>'It were better if your Grace would carry the accusation,' Lascelles
+uttered nonchalantly, 'for the King will better hearken to you than to
+any other. But another man will do it too.'</p>
+
+<p>'I will not be of this plotting,' the Archbishop cried out. 'It is a
+very wicked thing!' He looked round at the white Christ that, upon the
+dark cross, bent anguished brows upon him. 'Give me strength,' he said.</p>
+
+<p>'Why, your Grace shall not be of it,' Lascelles answered, 'until it is
+proven in the eyes of your Grace&mdash;ay, and in the eyes of some of the
+Papist Lords&mdash;as, for instance, her<span class='pagenum'><a name="page556" id="page556">556</a></span> very uncle&mdash;that this Queen was
+evil in her life before the King took her, and that she hath acted very
+suspicious in the aftertime.'</p>
+
+<p>'You shall not prove it to the Papist Lords,' Cranmer said. 'It is a
+folly.'</p>
+
+<p>He added vehemently&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'It is a wicked plot. It is a folly too. I will not be of it.'</p>
+
+<p>'This is a very fortunate day,' Lascelles said. 'I think it is proven to
+all discerning men that that letter to him of Rome shall never be sent.'</p>
+
+<p>'Why, it is as plain as the truths of the Six Articles,' Cranmer
+remonstrated, 'that it shall be sent to-morrow or the next day. Get you
+gone! This King hath but the will of the Queen to guide him, and all her
+will turns upon that letter. Get you gone!'</p>
+
+<p>'Please it your Grace,' the spy said, 'it is very manifest that with the
+Queen so it is. But with the King it is otherwise. He will pleasure the
+Queen if he may. But&mdash;mark me well&mdash;for this is a subtle matter&mdash;&mdash;'</p>
+
+<p>'I will not mark you,' the Archbishop said. 'Get you gone and find
+another master. I will not hear you. This is the very end.'</p>
+
+<p>Lascelles moved his arm from the Bible. He bent his form to a bow&mdash;he
+moved till his hand was on the latch of the door.</p>
+
+<p>'Why, continue,' the Archbishop said. 'If you have awakened my fears,
+you shall slake them if you can&mdash;for this night I shall not sleep.'</p>
+
+<p>And so, very lengthily, Lascelles unfolded his view of the King's
+nature. For, said he, if this alliance with the Pope should come, it
+must be an alliance with the Pope and the Emperor Charles. For the King
+of France was an atheist, as all men knew. And an alliance with the Pope
+and the Emperor must be an alliance against France. But the King o'
+Scots was the closest ally that Francis had, and never should the King
+dare to wage war upon Francis till the King o' Scots was placated or
+wooed by treachery to be a prisoner, as the King would have made him if
+James<span class='pagenum'><a name="page557" id="page557">557</a></span> had come into England to the meeting. Well would the King, to
+save his soul, placate and cosset his wife. But that he never dare do
+whilst James was potent at his back.</p>
+
+<p>And again, Lascelles said, well knew the Archbishop that the Duke of
+Norfolk and his following were the ancient friends of France. If the
+Queen should force the King to this Imperial League, it must turn
+Norfolk and the Bishop of Winchester for ever to her bitter foes in that
+land. And along with them all the Protestant nobles and all the Papists
+too that had lands of the Church.</p>
+
+<p>The Archbishop had been marking his words very eagerly. But suddenly he
+cried out&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'But the King! The King! What shall it boot if all these be against her
+so the King be but for her?'</p>
+
+<p>'Why,' Lascelles said, 'this King is not a very stable man. Still, man
+he is, a man very jealous and afraid of fleers and flouts. If we can
+show him&mdash;I do accede to it that after what he hath done to-night it
+shall not be easy, but we may accomplish it&mdash;if before this letter is
+sent we may show him that all his land cries out at him and mocks him
+with a great laughter because of his wife's evil ways&mdash;why then, though
+in his heart he may believe her as innocent as you or I do now, it shall
+not be long before he shall put her away from him. Maybe he shall send
+her to the block.'</p>
+
+<p>'God help me,' Cranmer said. 'What a hellish scheme is this.'</p>
+
+<p>He pondered for a while, standing upright and frailly thrusting his hand
+into his bosom.</p>
+
+<p>'You shall never get the King so to believe,' he said; 'this is an idle
+invention. I will none of it.'</p>
+
+<p>'Why, it may be done, I do believe,' Lascelles said, 'and greatly it
+shall help us.'</p>
+
+<p>'No, I will none of it,' the Archbishop said. 'It is a foul scheme.
+Besides, you must have many witnesses.'</p>
+
+<p>'I have some already,' Lascelles said, 'and when we come to London Town
+I shall have many more. It was not for nothing that the Great Privy Seal
+commended me.'<span class='pagenum'><a name="page558" id="page558">558</a></span></p>
+
+<p>'But to make the King,' Cranmer uttered, as if he were aghast and
+amazed, 'to make the King&mdash;this King who knoweth that his wife hath done
+no wrong&mdash;who knoweth it so well as to-night he hath proven&mdash;to make
+<i>him</i>, him, to put her away ... why, the tiger is not so fell, nor the
+Egyptian worm preyeth not on its kind. This is an imagination so
+horrible&mdash;&mdash;'</p>
+
+<p>'Please it your Grace,' Lascelles said softly, 'what beast or brute hath
+your Grace ever seen to betray its kind as man will betray brother, son,
+father, or consort?'</p>
+
+<p>The Archbishop raised his hands above his head.</p>
+
+<p>'What lesser bull of the herd, or lesser ram, ever so played traitor to
+his leader as Brutus played to C&aelig;sar Julius? And these be times less
+noble.'</p>
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="page559" id="page559">559</a></span></p>
+
+<h2>PART FOUR</h2>
+
+<h3>THE END OF THE SONG</h3>
+
+<h3>I</h3>
+
+<p>The Queen was at Hampton, and it was the late autumn. She had been sad
+since they came from Pontefract, for it had seemed more than ever
+apparent that the King's letter to Rome must be ever delayed in the
+sending. Daily, at night, the King swore with great oaths that the
+letter must be sent and his soul saved. He trembled to think that if
+then he died in his bed he must be eternally damned, and she added her
+persuasions, such as that each soul that died in his realms before that
+letter was sent went before the Throne of Mercy unshriven and
+unhouselled, so that their burden of souls grew very great. And in the
+midnights, the King would start up and cry that all was lost and himself
+accursed.</p>
+
+<p>And it appeared that he and his house were accursed in these days, for
+when they were come back to Hampton, they found the small Prince Edward
+was very ill. He was swollen all over his little body, so that the
+doctors said it was a dropsy. But how, the King cried, could it be a
+dropsy in so young a child and one so grave and so nurtured and tended?
+Assuredly it must be some marvel wrought by the saints to punish him, or
+by the Fiend to tempt him. And so he would rave, and cast tremulous
+hands above his head. And he would say that God, to punish him, would
+have of him his dearest and best.</p>
+
+<p>And when the Queen urged him, therefore, to make his peace with God, he
+would cry out that it was too late. God would make no peace with him.
+For if God were minded to have him at peace, wherefore would He not
+smoothe the<span class='pagenum'><a name="page560" id="page560">560</a></span> way to this reconciliation with His vicegerent that sat at
+Rome in Peter's chair? There was no smoothing of that way&mdash;for every day
+there arose new difficulties and torments.</p>
+
+<p>The King o' Scots would come into no alliance with him; the King of
+France would make no bid for the hand of his daughter Mary; it went ill
+with the Emperor in his fighting with the Princes of Almain and the
+Schmalkaldners, so that the Emperor would be of the less use as an ally
+against France and the Scots.</p>
+
+<p>'Why!' he would cry to the Queen, 'if God in His Heaven would have me
+make a peace with Rome, wherefore will He not give victory over a parcel
+of Lutheran knaves and swine? Wherefore will He not deliver into my
+hands these beggarly Scots and these atheists of France?'</p>
+
+<p>At night the Queen would bring him round to vowing that first he would
+make peace with God and trust in His great mercy for a prosperous issue.
+But each morning he would be afraid for his sovereignty; a new letter
+would come from Norfolk, who had gone on an embassy to his French
+friends, believing fully that the King was minded to marry to one of
+them his daughter. But the French King was not ready to believe this.
+And the King's eyes grew red and enraged; he looked no man in the face,
+not even the Queen, but glanced aside into corners, uttered blasphemies,
+and said that he&mdash;he!&mdash;was the head of the Church and would have no
+overlord.</p>
+
+<p>The Bishop Gardiner came up from his See in Winchester. But though he
+was the head of the Papist party in the realm, the Queen had little
+comfort in him. For he was a dark and masterful prelate, and never
+ceased to urge her to cast out Cranmer from his archbishopric and to
+give it to him. And with him the Lady Mary sided, for she would have
+Cranmer's head before all things, since Cranmer it was that most had
+injured her mother. Moreover, he was so incessant in his urging the King
+to make an alliance with the Catholic Emperor that at last, about the
+time that Norfolk came back from France, the King was mightily<span class='pagenum'><a name="page561" id="page561">561</a></span> enraged,
+so that he struck the Bishop of Winchester in the face, and swore that
+his friend the Kaiser was a rotten plank, since he could not rid himself
+of a few small knaves of Lutheran princes.</p>
+
+<p>Thus for long the Queen was sad; the little Prince very sick; and the
+King ate no food, but sat gazing at the victuals, though the Queen
+cooked some messes for him with her own hand.</p>
+
+<hr style="width: 45%;" />
+
+<p>One Sunday after evensong, at which Cranmer himself had read prayers,
+the King came nearly merrily to his supper.</p>
+
+<p>'Ho, chuck,' he said, 'you have your enemies. Here hath been Cranmer
+weeping to me with a parcel of tales writ on paper.'</p>
+
+<p>He offered it to her to read, but she would not; for, she said, she knew
+well that she had many enemies, only, very safely she could trust her
+fame in her Lord's hands.</p>
+
+<p>'Why, you may,' he said, and sat him down at the table to eat, with the
+paper stuck in his belt. 'Body o' God!' he said. 'If it had been any but
+Cranmer he had eaten bread in Hell this night. 'A wept and trembled!
+Body o' God! Body o' God!'</p>
+
+<p>And that night he was more merry before the fire than he had been for
+many weeks. He had in the music to play a song of his own writing, and
+afterwards he swore that next day he would ride to London, and then at
+his council send that which she would have sent to Rome.</p>
+
+<p>'For, for sure,' he said, 'there is no peace in this world for me save
+when I hear you pray. And how shall you pray well for me save in the old
+form and fashion?'</p>
+
+<p>He lolled back in his chair and gazed at her.</p>
+
+<p>'Why,' he said, 'it is a proof of the great mercy of the Saviour that He
+sent you on earth in so fair a guise. For if you had not been so fair,
+assuredly I had not noticed you. Then would my soul have gone
+straightway to Hell.'</p>
+
+<p>And he called that the letter to Rome might be brought to him, and read
+it over in the firelight. He set it in his<span class='pagenum'><a name="page562" id="page562">562</a></span> belt alongside the other
+paper, that next day when he came to London he might lay it in the hands
+of Sir Thomas Carter, that should carry it to Rome.</p>
+
+<p>The Queen said: 'Praise God!'</p>
+
+<p>For though she was not set to believe that next day that letter would be
+sent, or for many days more, yet it seemed to her that by little and
+little she was winning him to her will.</p>
+
+<h3>II</h3>
+
+<p>Gardiner, Bishop of Winchester, had builded him a new tennis court in
+where his stables had been before poverty had caused him to sell the
+major part of his horseflesh. He called to him the Duke of Norfolk, who
+was of the Papist cause, and Sir Henry Wriothesley who was always
+betwixt and between, according as the cat jumped, to see this new
+building of his that was made of a roofed-in quadrangle where the stable
+doors were bricked up or barred to make the grille.</p>
+
+<p>But though Norfolk and Wriothesley came very early in the afternoon,
+while it was yet light, to his house, they wasted most of the daylight
+hours in talking of things indifferent before they went to their
+inspection of this court. They stood talking in a long gallery beneath
+very high windows, and there were several chaplains and young priests
+and young gentlemen with them, and most of the talk was of a
+bear-baiting that there should be in Smithfield come Saturday. Sir Henry
+Wriothesley matched seven of his dogs against the seven best of the
+Duke's, that they should the longer hold to the bear once they were on
+him, and most of the young gentlemen wagered for Sir Henry's dogs that
+he had bred from a mastiff out of Portugal.</p>
+
+<p>But when this talk had mostly died down, and when already twilight had
+long fallen, the Bishop said&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Come, let us visit this new tennis place of mine. I think I shall show
+you somewhat that you have not before seen.'</p>
+
+<p>He bade, however, his gentlemen and priests to stay<span class='pagenum'><a name="page563" id="page563">563</a></span> where they were,
+for they had all many times seen the court or building. When he led the
+way, prelatical and black, for the Duke and Wriothesley, into the lower
+corridors of his house, the priests and young gentlemen bowed behind his
+back, one at the other.</p>
+
+<p>In the courtyard there were four hounds of a heavy and stocky breed that
+came bounding and baying all round them, so that it was only by
+vigilance that Gardiner could save Wriothesley's shins, for he was a man
+that all dogs and children hated.</p>
+
+<p>'Sirs,' the Bishop said, 'these dogs that ye see and hear will let no
+man but me&mdash;not even my grooms or stablemen&mdash;pass this yard. I have bred
+them to that so I may be secret when I will.'</p>
+
+<p>He set the key in the door that was in the bottom wall of the court.</p>
+
+<p>'There is no other door here save that which goes into the stable where
+the grille is. There I have a door to enter and fetch out the balls that
+pass there.'</p>
+
+<p>In the court itself it was absolute blackness.</p>
+
+<p>'I trow we may talk very well without lights,' he said. 'Come into this
+far corner.'</p>
+
+<p>Yet, though there was no fear of being overheard, each of these three
+stole almost on tiptoe and held his breath, and in the dark and shadowy
+place they made a more dark and more shadowy patch with their heads all
+close together.</p>
+
+<p>Suddenly it was as if the Bishop dropped the veil that covered his
+passions.</p>
+
+<p>'I may well build tennis courts,' he said, and his voice had a ring of
+wild and malignant passion. 'I may well build courts for tennis play.
+Nothing else is left for me to do.'</p>
+
+<p>In the blackness no word came from his listeners.</p>
+
+<p>'You too may do the like,' the Bishop said. 'But I would you do it
+quickly, for soon neither the one nor the other of you but will be
+stripped so bare that you shall not have enough to buy balls with.'</p>
+
+<p>The Duke made an impatient sound like a drawing in of his breath, but
+still he spoke no word.<span class='pagenum'><a name="page564" id="page564">564</a></span></p>
+
+<p>'I tell you, both of you,' the Bishop's voice came, 'that all of us have
+been fooled. Who was it that helped to set on high this one that now
+presses us down? I did! I!...</p>
+
+<p>'It was I that called the masque at my house where first the King did
+see her. It was I that advised her how to bear herself. And what
+gratitude has been shown me? I have been sent to sequester myself in my
+see; I have been set to gnaw my fingers as they had been old bones
+thrown to a dog. Truly, no juicy meats have been my share. Yet it was I
+set this woman where she sits....'</p>
+
+<p>'I too have my griefs,' the Duke of Norfolk's voice came.</p>
+
+<p>'And I, God wot,' came Wriothesley's.</p>
+
+<p>'Why, you have been fooled,' Gardiner's voice; 'and well you know it.
+For who was it that sent you both, one after the other, into France
+thinking that you might make a match between the Lady Royal and the Duke
+of Orleans?&mdash;Who but the Queen?&mdash;For well she knew that ye loved the
+French and their King as they had been your brothers. And well we know
+now that never in the mind of her, nor in that of the King whom she
+bewitches and enslaves, was there any thought save that the Lady Royal
+should be wedded to Spain. So ye are fooled.'</p>
+
+<p>He let his voice sink low; then he raised it again&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Fooled! Fooled! Fooled! You two and I. For who of your friends the
+French shall ever believe again word that you utter. And all your goods
+and lands this Queen will have for the Church, so that she may have
+utter power with a parcel of new shavelings, that will not withstand
+her. So all the land will come in to her leash.... We are fooled and
+ruined, ye and I alike.'</p>
+
+<p>'Well, we know this,' the Duke's voice said distastefully. 'You have no
+need to rehearse griefs that too well we feel. There is no lord, either
+of our part or of the other, that would not have her down.'</p>
+
+<p>'But what will ye do?' Gardiner said.</p>
+
+<p>'Nothing may we do!' the voice of Wriothesley with its dismal terror
+came to their ears. 'The King is too firmly her Highness's man.'<span class='pagenum'><a name="page565" id="page565">565</a></span></p>
+
+<p>'Her "Highness,"' the Bishop mocked him with a bitter scorn. 'I believe
+you would yet curry favour with this Queen of straw.'</p>
+
+<p>'It is a man's province to be favourable in the eyes of his Prince,' the
+buried voice came again. 'If I could win her favour I would. But well ye
+know there is no way.'</p>
+
+<p>'Ye ha' mingled too much with Lutheran swine,' the Bishop said. 'Now it
+is too late for you.'</p>
+
+<p>'So it is,' Wriothesley said. 'I think you, Bishop, would have done it
+too had you been able to make your account of it.'</p>
+
+<p>The Bishop snarled invisibly.</p>
+
+<p>But the voice of Norfolk came malignantly upon them.</p>
+
+<p>'This is all of a piece with your silly schemings. Did I come here to
+hear ye wrangle? It is peril enow to come here. What will ye do?'</p>
+
+<p>'I will make a pact with him of the other side?' the Bishop said.</p>
+
+<p>'Misery!' the Duke said; 'did I come here to hear this madness? You and
+Cranmer have sought each other's heads this ten years. Will you seek his
+aid now? What may he do? He is as rotten a reed as thou or Wriothesley.'</p>
+
+<p>The Bishop cried suddenly with a loud voice&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Ho, there! Come you out!'</p>
+
+<p>Norfolk set his hand to his sword and so did Wriothesley. It was in both
+their minds, as it were one thought, that if this was a treason of the
+Bishop's he should there die.</p>
+
+<p>From the blackness of the wall sides where the grille was there came the
+sound of a terroring lock and a creaking door.</p>
+
+<p>'God!' Norfolk said; 'who is this?'</p>
+
+<p>There came the sound of breathing of one man who walked with noiseless
+shoes.</p>
+
+<p>'Have you heard enow to make you believe that these lords' hearts are
+true to the endeavour of casting the Queen down?'</p>
+
+<p>'I have heard enow,' a smooth voice said. 'I never thought it had been
+otherwise.'<span class='pagenum'><a name="page566" id="page566">566</a></span></p>
+
+<p>'Who is this?' Wriothesley said. 'I will know who this is that has heard
+us.'</p>
+
+<p>'You fool,' Gardiner said; 'this man is of the other side.'</p>
+
+<p>'They have come to you!' Norfolk said.</p>
+
+<p>'To whom else should we come,' the voice answered.</p>
+
+<p>A subtler silence of agitation and thought was between these two men. At
+last Gardiner said&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Tell these lords what you would have of us?'</p>
+
+<p>'We would have these promises,' the voice said; 'first, of you, my Lord
+Duke, that if by our endeavours your brother's child be brought to a
+trial for unchastity you will in no wise aid her at that trial with your
+voice or your encouragement.'</p>
+
+<p>'A trial!' and 'Unchastity!' the Duke said. 'This is a winter madness.
+Ye know that my niece&mdash;St Kevin curse her for it&mdash;is as chaste as the
+snow.'</p>
+
+<p>'So was your other niece, Anne Boleyn, for all you knew, yet you dogged
+her to death,' Gardiner said. 'Then you plotted with Papists; now it is
+the turn of the Lutherans. It is all one, so we are rid of this pest.'</p>
+
+<p>'Well, I will promise it,' the Duke said. 'Ye knew I would. It was not
+worth while to ask me.'</p>
+
+<p>'Secondly,' the voice said, 'of you, my Lord Duke, we would have this
+service: that you should swear your niece is a much older woman than she
+looks. Say, for instance, that she was in truth not the eleventh but the
+second child of your brother Edmund. Say that, out of vanity, to make
+herself seem more forward with the learned tongues when she was a child,
+she would call herself her younger sister that died in childbed.'</p>
+
+<p>'But wherefore?' the Duke said.</p>
+
+<p>'Why,' Gardiner answered, 'this is a very subtle scheme of this
+gentleman's devising. He will prove against her certain lewdnesses when
+she was a child in your mother's house. If then she was a child of ten
+or so, knowing not evil from good, this might not undo her. But if you
+can make her seem then eighteen or twenty it will be enough to hang
+her.'<span class='pagenum'><a name="page567" id="page567">567</a></span></p>
+
+<p>Norfolk reflected.</p>
+
+<p>'Well, I will say I heard that of her age,' he said; 'but ye had best
+get nurses and women to swear to these things.'</p>
+
+<p>'We have them now,' the voice said. 'And it will suffice if your Grace
+will say that you heard these things of old of your brother. For your
+Grace will judge this woman.'</p>
+
+<p>'Very willingly I will,' Norfolk said; 'for if I do not soon, she will
+utterly undo both me and all my friends.'</p>
+
+<p>He reflected again.</p>
+
+<p>'Those things will I do and more yet, if you will.'</p>
+
+<p>'Why, that will suffice,' the voice said. It took a new tone in the
+darkness.</p>
+
+<p>'Now for you, Sir Henry Wriothesley,' it said. 'These simple things you
+shall promise. Firstly, since you have the ear of the Mayor of London
+you shall advise him in no way to hinder certain meetings of Lutherans
+that I shall tell you of later. And, though it is your province so to
+do, you shall in no wise hinder a certain master printer from printing
+what broadsides and libels he will against the Queen. For it is
+essential, if this project is to grow and flourish, that it shall be
+spread abroad that the Queen did bewitch the King to her will on that
+night at Pontefract that you remember, when she had her cousin in her
+bedroom. So broadsides shall be made alleging that by sorcery she
+induced the King to countenance his own shame. And we have witnesses to
+swear that it was by appointment, not by chance, that she met with
+Culpepper upon the moorside. But all that we will have of you is that
+you will promise these two things&mdash;that the Lutherans may hold certain
+meetings and the broadsides be printed.'</p>
+
+<p>'Those I will promise,' came in Wriothesley's buried voice.</p>
+
+<p>'Then I will no more of you,' the other's words came. They heard his
+hands feeling along the wall till he came to the door by which he had
+entered. The Bishop followed him, to let him out by a little door he had
+had opened for that one night, into the street.<span class='pagenum'><a name="page568" id="page568">568</a></span></p>
+
+<p>When he came back to the other two and unfolded to them what was the
+scheme of the Archbishop's man, they agreed that it was a very good
+plan. Then they fell to considering whether it should not serve their
+turn to betray this plan at once to the Queen. But they agreed that, if
+they preserved the Queen, they would be utterly ruined, as they were
+like to be now, whereas, if it succeeded, they would be much the better
+off. And, even if it failed, they lost nothing, for it would not readily
+be believed that they had aided Lutherans, and there were no letters or
+writings.</p>
+
+<p>So they agreed to abide honourably by their promises&mdash;and very certain
+they were that if clamour enough could be raised against the Queen, the
+King would be bound into putting her away, though it were against his
+will.</p>
+
+<h3>III</h3>
+
+<p>In the Master Printer Badge's house&mdash;and he was the uncle of Margot and
+of the young Poins&mdash;there was a great and solemn dissertation towards.
+For word had been brought that certain strangers come on an embassy from
+the Duke of Cleves were minded to hear how the citizens of London&mdash;or at
+any rate those of them that held German doctrines&mdash;bore themselves
+towards Schmalkaldnerism and the doctrines of Luther.</p>
+
+<p>It was understood that these strangers were of very high degree&mdash;of a
+degree so high that they might scarce be spoken to by the meaner sort.
+And for many days messengers had been going between the house of the
+Archbishop at Lambeth and that of the Master Printer, to school him how
+this meeting must be conducted.</p>
+
+<p>His old father was by that time dead&mdash;having died shortly after his
+granddaughter Margot had been put away from the Queen's Court&mdash;so that
+the house-place was clear. And of all the old furnishings none remained.
+There were presses all round the wall, and lockers for men to sit upon.<span class='pagenum'><a name="page569" id="page569">569</a></span>
+The table had been cleared away into the printer's chapel; a lectern
+stood a-midmost of the room, and before the hearth-place, in the very
+ingle, there was set the great chair in which aforetimes the old man had
+sat so long.</p>
+
+<p>Early that evening, though already it was dusk, the body of citizens
+were assembled. Most of them had haggard faces, for the times were evil
+for men of their persuasion, and nearly all of them were draped in black
+after the German fashion among Lutherans of that day. They ranged
+themselves on the lockers along the wall, and with set faces, in a
+funereal row, they awaited the coming of this great stranger. There were
+no Germans amongst them, for so, it was given out, he would have
+it&mdash;either because he would not be known by name or for some other
+reason.</p>
+
+<p>The Master Printer, in the pride of his craft, wore his apron. He stood
+in the centre of the room facing the hearth-place; his huge arms were
+bare&mdash;for bare-armed he always worked&mdash;his black beard was knotted into
+little curls, his face was so broad that you hardly remarked that his
+nose was hooked like an owl's beak. And about the man there was an air
+of sombreness and mystery. He had certain papers on his lectern, and
+several sheets of the great Bible that he was then printing by the
+Archbishop's license and command. They sang all together and with loud
+voices the canticle called 'A Refuge fast is God the Lord.'</p>
+
+<p>Then, with huge gestures of his hands, he uttered the words&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'This is the very word of God,' and began to read from the pages of his
+Bible. He read first the story of David and Saul, his great voice
+trembling with ecstasy.</p>
+
+<p>'This David is our King,' he said. 'This Saul that he slew is the Beast
+of Rome. The Solomon that cometh after shall be the gracious princeling
+that ye wot of, for already he is wise beyond his years and beyond most
+grown men.'</p>
+
+<p>The citizens around the walls cried 'Amen.' And because the strangers
+tarried to come, he called to his journeymen that stood in the inner
+doorway to bring him<span class='pagenum'><a name="page570" id="page570">570</a></span> the sheets of the Bible whereon he had printed the
+story of Ehud and Eglon.</p>
+
+<p>'This king that ye shall hear of as being slain,' he cried out, 'is that
+foul bird the Kaiser Carl, that harries the faithful in Almain. This
+good man that shall slay him is some German lord. Who he shall be we
+know not yet; maybe it shall be this very stranger that to-night shall
+sit to hear us.'</p>
+
+<p>His brethren muttered a low, deep, and uniform prayer that soon, soon
+the Lord should send them this boon.</p>
+
+<p>But he had not got beyond the eleventh verse of this history before
+there came from without a sound of trumpets, and through the windows the
+light of torches and the scarlet of the guard that, it was said, the
+King had sent to do honour to this stranger.</p>
+
+<p>'Come in, be ye who ye may!' the printer cried to the knockers at his
+door.</p>
+
+<p>There entered the hugest masked man that they ever had seen. All in
+black he was, and horrifying and portentous he strode in. His sleeves
+and shoulders were ballooned after the German fashion, his sword clanked
+on the tiles. He was a vision of black, for his mask that appeared as
+big as another man's garment covered all his face, though they could see
+he had a grey beard when sitting down. He gazed at the fire askance.</p>
+
+<p>He said&mdash;his voice was heavy and husky&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'<i>Gruesset Gott</i>,' and those of the citizens that had painfully attained
+to so much of that tongue answered him with&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'<i>Lobet den Herr im Himmels Reich!</i>'</p>
+
+<p>He had with him one older man that wore a half-mask, and was trembling
+and clean-shaven, and one younger, that was English, to act as
+interpreter when it was needed. He was clean-shaven, too, and in the
+English habit he appeared thin and tenuous. They said he was a gentleman
+of the Archbishop's, and that his name was Lascelles.</p>
+
+<p>He opened the meeting with saying that these great strangers were come
+from beyond the seas, and would hear<span class='pagenum'><a name="page571" id="page571">571</a></span> answers to certain questions. He
+took a paper from his pouch and said that, in order that he might stick
+to the points that these strangers would know of, he had written down
+those questions on that paper.</p>
+
+<p>'How say ye, masters?' he finished. 'Will ye give answers to these
+questions truly, and of your knowledge?'</p>
+
+<p>'Aye will we,' the printer said, 'for to that end we are gathered here.
+Is it not so, my masters?'</p>
+
+<p>And the assembly answered&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Aye, so it is.'</p>
+
+<p>Lascelles read from his paper:</p>
+
+<p>'How is it with this realm of England?'</p>
+
+<p>The printer glanced at the paper that was upon his lectern. He made
+answer&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Well! But not over well!'</p>
+
+<p>And at these words Lascelles feigned surprise, lifting his well-shapen
+and white hand in the air.</p>
+
+<p>'How is this that ye say?' he uttered. 'Are ye all of this tale?'</p>
+
+<p>A deep 'Aye!' came from all these chests. There was one old man that
+could never keep still. He had huge limbs, a great ruffled poll of
+grizzling hair, and his legs that were in jerkins of red leather kicked
+continuously in little convulsions. He peered every minute at some new
+thing, very closely, holding first his tablets so near that he could see
+only with one eye, then the whistle that hung round his neck, then a
+little piece of paper that he took from his poke. He cried out in a deep
+voice&mdash;'Aye! aye! Not over well. Witchcraft and foul weather and rocks,
+my mates and masters all!' so that he appeared to be a seaman&mdash;and
+indeed he traded to the port of Antwerp, in the Low Countries, where he
+had learned of some of the Faith.</p>
+
+<p>'Why,' Lascelles said, 'be ye not contented with our goodly King?'</p>
+
+<p>'Never was a better since Solomon ruled in Jewry,' the shipman cried
+out.</p>
+
+<p>'Is it, then, the Lords of the King's Council that ye are discontented
+with?'<span class='pagenum'><a name="page572" id="page572">572</a></span></p>
+
+<p>'Nay, they are goodly men, for they are of the King's choosing,' one
+answered&mdash;a little man with a black pill-hat.</p>
+
+<p>'Why, speak through your leader,' the stranger said heavily from the
+hearth-place. 'Here is too much skimble-skamble.' The old man beside him
+leaned over his chair-back and whispered in his ear. But the stranger
+shook his head heavily. He sat and gazed at the brands. His great hands
+were upon his knees, pressed down, but now and again they moved as if he
+were in some agony.</p>
+
+<p>'It is well that ye do as the Lord commandeth,' Lascelles said; 'for in
+Almain, whence he cometh, there is wont to be a great order and
+observance.' He held his paper up again to the light. 'Master Printer,
+answer now to this question: Find ye aught amiss with the judges and
+justices of this realm?'</p>
+
+<p>'Nay; they do judge indifferent well betwixt cause and cause,' the
+printer answered from his paper.</p>
+
+<p>'Or with the serjeants, the apparitors, the collectors of taxes, or the
+Parliament men?'</p>
+
+<p>'These, too, perform indifferent well their appointed tasks,' the
+printer said gloomily.</p>
+
+<p>'Or is it with the Church of this realm that ye find fault?'</p>
+
+<p>'Body of God!' the stranger said heavily.</p>
+
+<p>'Nay!' the printer answered, 'for the supreme head of that Church is the
+King, a man learned before all others in the law of God; such a King as
+speaketh as though he were that mouthpiece of the Most High that the
+Antichrist at Rome claimeth to be.'</p>
+
+<p>'Is it, then, with the worshipful the little Prince of Wales that ye are
+discontented?' Lascelles read, and the printer answered that there was
+not such another Prince of his years for promise and for performance,
+too, in all Christendom.</p>
+
+<p>The stranger said from the hearth-place&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Well! we are commended,' and his voice was bitter and ironical.</p>
+
+<p>'How is it, then,' Lascelles read on, 'that ye say all is not over well
+in the land?'<span class='pagenum'><a name="page573" id="page573">573</a></span></p>
+
+<p>The printer's gloomy and black features glared with a sudden rage.</p>
+
+<p>'How should all be well with a land,' he cried, 'where in high places
+reigns harlotry?' He raised his clenched fist on high and glared round
+upon his audience. 'Corruption that reacheth round and about and down
+till it hath found a seedbed even in this poor house of my father's? Or
+if it is well with this land now, how shall it continue well when
+witchcraft rules near the King himself, and the Devil of Rome hath there
+his emissaries.'</p>
+
+<p>A chitter of sound came from his audience, so that it appeared that they
+were all of a strain. They moved in their seats; the shipman cried out&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Ay! witchcraft! witchcraft!'</p>
+
+<p>The huge bulk of the stranger, black and like a bull's, half rose from
+its chair.</p>
+
+<p>'Body of God!' he cried out. 'This I will not bear.'</p>
+
+<p>Again the older man leaned solicitously above him and whispered,
+pleading with his hands, and Lascelles said hastily&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Speak of your own knowledge. How should you know of what passes in high
+places?'</p>
+
+<p>'Why!' the printer cried out, 'is it not the common report? Do not all
+men know it? Do not the butchers sing of it in the shambles, and the
+bot-flies buzz of it one to the other? I tell you it is spread from here
+into Almain, where the very horse-sellers are a-buzz with it.'</p>
+
+<p>In his chair the stranger cried out&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Ah! ah!' as if he were in great pain. He struggled with his feet and
+then sat still.</p>
+
+<p>'I have heard witnesses that will testify to these things,' the printer
+said. 'I will bring them here into this room before ye.' He turned upon
+the stranger. 'Master,' he said, 'if ye know not of this, you are the
+only man in England that is ignorant!'</p>
+
+<p>The stranger said with a bitter despair&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Well, I am come to hear what ye do say!'<span class='pagenum'><a name="page574" id="page574">574</a></span></p>
+
+<p>So he heard tales from all the sewers of London, and it was plain to him
+that all the commonalty cried shame upon their King. He screamed and
+twisted there in his chair at the last, and when he was come out into
+the darkness he fell upon his companion, and beat him so that he
+screamed out.</p>
+
+<p>He might have died&mdash;for, though the King's guard with their torches and
+halberds were within a bowshot of them, they stirred no limb. And it was
+a party of fellows bat-fowling along the hedges of that field that came
+through the dark, attracted by the glare of the torches, the blaze of
+the scarlet clothes, and the outcry.</p>
+
+<p>And when they came, asking why that great man belaboured this thin and
+fragile one, black shadows both against the light, the big man answered,
+howling&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'This man hath made me bounden to slay my wife.'</p>
+
+<p>They said that that was a thing some of them would have been glad of.</p>
+
+<p>But the great figure cast itself on the ground at the foot of a tree
+that stretched up like nerves and tentacles into the black sky. He tore
+the wet earth with his fingers, and the men stood round him till the
+Duke of Norfolk, coming with his sword drawn, hunted them afar off, and
+they fell again to beating the hedges to drive small birds into their
+nets.</p>
+
+<p>For, they said, these were evidently of the quality whose griefs were
+none of theirs.</p>
+
+<h3>IV</h3>
+
+<p>The Queen was walking in the long gallery of Hampton Court. The
+afternoon was still new, but rain was falling very fast, so that through
+the windows all trees were blurred with mist, and all alleys ran with
+water, and it was very grey in the gallery. The Lady Mary was with her,
+and sat in a window-seat reading in a book. The Queen, as she walked,
+was netting a silken purse of a purple colour; her<span class='pagenum'><a name="page575" id="page575">575</a></span> gown was very richly
+embroidered of gold thread worked into black velvet, and the heavy day
+pressed heavily on her senses, so that she sought that silence more
+willingly. For three days she had had no news of her lord, but that
+morning he was come back to Hampton, though she had not yet seen him,
+for it was ever his custom to put off all work of the day before he came
+to the Queen. Thus, if she were sad, she was tranquil; and, considering
+only that her work of bringing him to God must begin again that night,
+she let her thoughts rest upon the netting of her purse. The King, she
+had heard, was with his council. Her uncle was come to Court, and
+Gardiner of Winchester, and Cranmer of Canterbury, along with Sir A.
+Wriothesley, and many other lords, so that she augured it would be a
+very full council, and that night there would be a great banquet if she
+was not mistaken.</p>
+
+<p>She remembered that it was now many months since she had been shown for
+Queen from that very gallery in the window that opened upon the
+Cardinal's garden. The King had led her by the hand. There had been a
+great crying out of many people of the lower sort that crowded the
+terrace before the garden. Now the rain fell, and all was desolation. A
+yeoman in brown fustian ran bending his head before the tempestuous
+rain. A rook, blown impotently backwards, essayed slowly to cross
+towards the western trees. Her eyes followed him until a great gust blew
+him in a wider curve, backwards and up, and when again he steadied
+himself he was no more than a blot on the wet greyness of the heavens.</p>
+
+<p>There was an outcry at the door, and a woman ran in. She was crying out
+still: she was all in grey, with the white coif of the Queen's service.
+She fell down upon her knees, her hands held out.</p>
+
+<p>'Pardon!' she cried. 'Pardon! Let not my brother come in. He prowls at
+the door.'</p>
+
+<p>It was Mary Hall, she that had been Mary Lascelles. The Queen came over
+to raise her up, and to ask what it was she sought. But the woman wept
+so loud, and so<span class='pagenum'><a name="page576" id="page576">576</a></span> continually cried out that her brother was the fiend
+incarnate, that the Queen could ask no questions. The Lady Mary looked
+up over her book without stirring her body. Her eyes were awakened and
+sardonic.</p>
+
+<p>The waiting-maid looked affrightedly over her shoulders at the door.</p>
+
+<p>'Well, your brother shall not come in here,' the Queen said. 'What would
+he have done to you?'</p>
+
+<p>'Pardon!' the woman cried out. 'Pardon!'</p>
+
+<p>'Why, tell me of your fault,' the Queen said.</p>
+
+<p>'I have given false witness!' Mary Hall blubbered out. 'I would not do
+it. But you do not know how they confuse a body. And they threaten with
+cords and thumbscrews.' She shuddered with her whole body. 'Pardon!' she
+cried out. 'Pardon!'</p>
+
+<p>And then suddenly she poured forth a babble of lamentations, wringing
+her hands, and rubbing her lips together. She was a woman passed of
+thirty, but thin still and fair like her brother in the face, for she
+was his twin.</p>
+
+<p>'Ah,' she cried, 'he threated that if I would not give evidence I must
+go back to Lincolnshire. You do not know what it is to go back to
+Lincolnshire. Ah, God! the old father, the old house, the wet. My
+clothes were all mouldered. I was willing to give true evidence to save
+myself, but they twisted it to false. It was the Duke of Norfolk ...'</p>
+
+<p>The Lady Mary came slowly over the floor.</p>
+
+<p>'Against whom did you give your evidence?' she said, and her voice was
+cold, hard, and commanding.</p>
+
+<p>Mary Hall covered her face with her hands, and wailed desolately in a
+high note, like a wolf's howl, that reverberated in that dim gallery.</p>
+
+<p>The Lady Mary struck her a hard blow with the cover of her book upon the
+hands and the side of her head.</p>
+
+<p>'Against whom did you give your evidence?' she said again.</p>
+
+<p>The woman fell over upon one hand, the other she raised to shield
+herself. Her eyes were flooded with great<span class='pagenum'><a name="page577" id="page577">577</a></span> teardrops; her mouth was open
+in an agony. The Lady Mary raised her book to strike again: its covers
+were of wood, and its angles bound with silver work. The woman screamed
+out, and then uttered&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Against Dearham and one Mopock first. And then against Sir T.
+Culpepper.'</p>
+
+<p>The Queen stood up to her height; her hand went over her heart; the
+netted purse dropped to the floor soundlessly.</p>
+
+<p>'God help me!' Mary Hall cried out. 'Dearham and Culpepper are both
+dead!'</p>
+
+<p>The Queen sprang back three paces.</p>
+
+<p>'How dead!' she cried. 'They were not even ill.'</p>
+
+<p>'Upon the block,' the maid said. 'Last night, in the dark, in their
+gaols.'</p>
+
+<p>The Queen let her hands fall slowly to her sides.</p>
+
+<p>'Who did this?' she said, and Mary Hall answered&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'It was the King!'</p>
+
+<p>The Lady Mary set her book under her arm.</p>
+
+<p>'Ye might have known it was the King,' she said harshly. The Queen was
+as still as a pillar of ebony and ivory, so black her dress was, and so
+white her face and pendant hands.</p>
+
+<p>'I repent me! I repent me!' the maid cried out. 'When I heard that they
+were dead I repented me and came here. The old Duchess of Norfolk is in
+gaol: she burned the letters of Dearham! The Lady Rochford is in gaol,
+and old Sir Nicholas, and the Lady Cicely that was ever with the Queen;
+the Lord Edmund Howard shall to gaol and his lady.'</p>
+
+<p>'Why,' the Lady Mary said to the Queen, 'if you had not had such a fear
+of nepotism, your father and mother and grandmother and cousin had been
+here about you, and not so easily taken.'</p>
+
+<p>The Queen stood still whilst all her hopes fell down.</p>
+
+<p>'They have taken Lady Cicely that was ever with me,' she said.</p>
+
+<p>'It was the Duke of Norfolk that pressed me most,' Mary Lascelles cried
+out.<span class='pagenum'><a name="page578" id="page578">578</a></span></p>
+
+<p>'Aye, he would,' the Lady Mary answered.</p>
+
+<p>The Queen tottered upon her feet.</p>
+
+<p>'Ask her more,' she said. 'I will not speak with her.'</p>
+
+<p>'The King in his council ...' the girl began.</p>
+
+<p>'Is the King in his council upon these matters?' the Lady Mary asked.</p>
+
+<p>'Aye, he sitteth there,' Mary Hall said. 'And he hath heard evidence of
+Mary Trelyon the Queen's maid, how that the Queen's Highness did bid her
+begone on the night that Sir T. Culpepper came to her room, before he
+came. And how that the Queen was very insistent that she should go, upon
+the score of fatigue and the lateness of the hour. And she hath deponed
+that on other nights, too, this has happened, that the Queen's Highness,
+when she hath come late to bed, hath equally done the same thing. And
+other her maids have deponed how the Queen hath sent them from her
+presence and relieved them of tasks&mdash;&mdash;'</p>
+
+<p>'Well, well,' the Lady Mary said, 'often I have urged the Queen that she
+should be less gracious. Better it had been if she had beat ye all as I
+have done; then had ye feared to betray her.'</p>
+
+<p>'Aye,' Mary Hall said, 'it is a true thing that your Grace saith there.'</p>
+
+<p>'Call me not your Grace,' the Lady Mary said. 'I will be no Grace in
+this court of wolves and hogs.'</p>
+
+<p>That was the sole thing that she said to show she was of the Queen's
+party. But ever she questioned the kneeling woman to know what evidence
+had been given, and of the attitude of the lords.</p>
+
+<p>The young Poins had sworn roundly that the Queen had bidden him to
+summon no guards when her cousin had broken in upon her. Only Udal had
+said that he knew nothing of how Katharine had agreed with her cousin
+whilst they were in Lincolnshire. It had been after his time there that
+Culpepper came. It had been after his time, too, and whilst he lay in
+chains at Pontefract that Culpepper had come to her door. He stuck to
+that tale, though the Duke of Norfolk had beat and threatened him never
+so.<span class='pagenum'><a name="page579" id="page579">579</a></span></p>
+
+<p>'Why, what wolves Howards be,' the Lady Mary said, 'for it is only
+wolves, of all beasts, that will prey upon the sick of their kind.'</p>
+
+<p>The Queen stood there, swaying back as if she were very sick, her eyes
+fast closed, and the lids over them very blue.</p>
+
+<p>It was only when the Lady Mary drew from the woman an account of the
+King's demeanour that she showed a sign of hearing.</p>
+
+<p>'His Highness,' the woman said, 'sate always mute.'</p>
+
+<p>'His Highness would,' the Lady Mary said. 'He is in that at least
+royal&mdash;that he letteth jackals do his hunting.'</p>
+
+<p>It was only when the Archbishop of Canterbury, reading from the
+indictment of Culpepper, had uttered the words: 'did by the obtaining of
+the Lady Rochford meet with the Queen's Highness by night in a secret
+and vile place,' that the King had called out&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Body of God! mine own bedchamber!' as if he were hatefully mocking the
+Archbishop.</p>
+
+<p>The Queen leant suddenly forward&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Said he no more than that?' she cried eagerly.</p>
+
+<p>'No more, oh your dear Grace,' the maid said. And the Queen shuddered
+and whispered&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'No more!&mdash;And I have spoken to this woman to obtain no more than "no
+more."'</p>
+
+<p>Again she closed her eyes, and she did not again speak, but hung her
+head forward as if she were thinking.</p>
+
+<p>'Heaven help me!' the maid said.</p>
+
+<p>'Why, think no more of Heaven,' the Lady Mary said, 'there is but the
+fire of hell for such beasts as you.'</p>
+
+<p>'Had you such a brother as mine&mdash;&mdash;' Mary Hall began. But the Lady Mary
+cried out&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Cease, dog! I have a worse father, but you have not found him force me
+to work vileness.'</p>
+
+<p>'All the other Papists have done worse than I,' Mary Hall said, 'for
+they it was that forced us by threats to speak.'</p>
+
+<p>'Not one was of the Queen's side?' the Lady Mary said.</p>
+
+<p>'Not one,' Mary Hall answered. 'Gardiner was more<span class='pagenum'><a name="page580" id="page580">580</a></span> fierce against her
+than he of Canterbury, the Duke of Norfolk than either.'</p>
+
+<p>The Lady Mary said&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Well! well!'</p>
+
+<p>'Myself I did hear the Duke of Norfolk say, when I was drawn to give
+evidence, that he begged the King to let him tear my secrets from my
+heart. For so did he abhor the abominable deeds done by his two nieces,
+Anne Boleyn and Katharine Howard, that he could no longer desire to
+live. And he said neither could he live longer without some comfortable
+assurance of His Highness's royal favour. And so he fell upon me&mdash;&mdash;'</p>
+
+<p>The woman fell to silence. Without, the rain had ceased, and, like heavy
+curtains trailing near the ground, the clouds began to part and sweep
+away. A horn sounded, and there went a party of men with pikes across
+the terrace.</p>
+
+<p>'Well, and what said you?' the Lady Mary said.</p>
+
+<p>'Ask me not,' Mary Lascelles said woefully. She averted her eyes to the
+floor at her side.</p>
+
+<p>'By God, but I will know,' the Lady Mary snarled. 'You shall tell me.'
+She had that of royal bearing from her sire that the woman was amazed at
+her words, and, awakening like one in a dream, she rehearsed the
+evidence that had been threated from her.</p>
+
+<p>She had told of the lascivious revels and partings, in the maid's garret
+at the old Duchess's, when Katharine had been a child there. She had
+told how Marnock the musicker had called her his mistress, and how
+Dearham, Katharine's cousin, had beaten him. And how Dearham had given
+Katharine a half of a silver coin.</p>
+
+<p>'Well, that is all true,' the Lady Mary said. 'How did you perjure
+yourself?'</p>
+
+<p>'In the matter of the Queen's age,' the woman faltered.</p>
+
+<p>'How that?' the Lady Mary asked.</p>
+
+<p>'The Duke would have me say that she was more than a young child.'</p>
+
+<p>The Lady Mary said, 'Ah! ah! there is the yellow dog!' She thought for a
+moment.<span class='pagenum'><a name="page581" id="page581">581</a></span></p>
+
+<p>'And you said?' she asked at last.</p>
+
+<p>'The Duke threated me and threated me. And say I, "Your Grace must know
+how young she was." And says he, "I would swear that at that date she
+was no child, but that I do not know how many of these nauseous Howard
+brats there be. Nor yet the order in which they came. But this I will
+swear that I think there has been some change of the Queen with a whelp
+that died in the litter, that she might seem more young. And of a surety
+she was always learned beyond her assumed years, so that it was not to
+be believed."'</p>
+
+<p>Mary Lascelles closed her eyes and appeared about to faint.</p>
+
+<p>'Speak on, dog,' Mary said.</p>
+
+<p>The woman roused herself to say with a solemn piteousness&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'This I swear that before this trial, when my brother pressed me and
+threated me thus to perjure myself, I abhorred it and spat in his face.
+There was none more firm&mdash;nor one half so firm as I&mdash;against him. But
+oh, the Duke and the terror&mdash;and to be in a ring of so many villainous
+men....'</p>
+
+<p>'So that you swore that the Queen's Highness, to your knowledge, was
+older than a child,' the Lady Mary pressed her.</p>
+
+<p>'Ay; they would have me say that it was she that commanded to have these
+revels....'</p>
+
+<p>She leaned forward with both her hands on the floor, in the attitude of
+a beast that goes four-footed. She cried out&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Ask me no more! ask me no more!'</p>
+
+<p>'Tell! tell! Beast!' the Lady Mary said.</p>
+
+<p>'They threated me with torture,' the woman panted. 'I could do no less.
+I heard Margot Poins scream.'</p>
+
+<p>'They have tortured her?' the Lady Mary said.</p>
+
+<p>'Ay, and she was in her pains elsewise,' the woman said.</p>
+
+<p>'Did she say aught?' the Lady Mary said.<span class='pagenum'><a name="page582" id="page582">582</a></span></p>
+
+<p>'No! no!' the woman panted. Her hair had fallen loose in her coif, it
+depended on to her shoulder.</p>
+
+<p>'Tell on! tell on!' the Lady Mary said.</p>
+
+<p>'They tortured her, and she did not say one word more, but ever in her
+agony cried out, "Virtuous! virtuous!" till her senses went.'</p>
+
+<p>Mary Hall again raised herself to her knees.</p>
+
+<p>'Let me go, let me go,' she moaned. 'I will not speak before the Queen.
+I had been as loyal as Margot Poins.... But I will not speak before the
+Queen. I love her as well as Margot Poins. But ... I will not&mdash;&mdash;'</p>
+
+<p>She cried out as the Lady Mary struck her, and her face was lamentable
+with its opened mouth. She scrambled to one knee; she got on both, and
+ran to the door. But there she cried out&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'My brother!' and fell against the wall. Her eyes were fixed upon the
+Lady Mary with a baleful despair, she gasped and panted for breath.</p>
+
+<p>'It is upon you if I speak,' she said. 'Merciful God, do not bid me
+speak before the Queen!'</p>
+
+<p>She held out her hands as if she had been praying.</p>
+
+<p>'Have I not proved that I loved this Queen?' she said. 'Have I not fled
+here to warn her? Is it not my life that I risk? Merciful God! Merciful
+God! Bid me not to speak.'</p>
+
+<p>'Speak!' the Lady Mary said.</p>
+
+<p>The woman appealed to the Queen with her eyes streaming, but Katharine
+stood silent and like a statue with sightless eyes. Her lips smiled, for
+she thought of her Redeemer; for this woman she had neither ears nor
+eyes.</p>
+
+<p>'Speak!' the Lady Mary said.</p>
+
+<p>'God help you, be it on your head,' the woman cried out, 'that I speak
+before the Queen. It was the King that bade me say she was so old. I
+would not say it before the Queen, but you have made me!'</p>
+
+<p>The Lady Mary's hands fell powerless to her sides, the book from her
+opened fingers jarred on the hard floor.</p>
+
+<p>'Merciful God!' she said. 'Have I such a father?'</p>
+
+<p>'It was the King!' the woman said. 'His Highness came<span class='pagenum'><a name="page583" id="page583">583</a></span> to life when he
+heard these words of the Duke's, that the Queen was older than she
+reported. He would have me say that the Queen's Highness was of a
+marriageable age and contracted to her cousin Dearham.'</p>
+
+<p>'Merciful God!' the Lady Mary said again. 'Dear God, show me some way to
+tear from myself the sin of my begetting. I had rather my mother's
+confessor had been my father than the King! Merciful God!'</p>
+
+<p>'Never was woman pressed as I was to say this thing. And well ye
+wot&mdash;better than I did before&mdash;what this King is. I tell you&mdash;and I
+swear it&mdash;&mdash;'</p>
+
+<p>She stopped and trembled, her eyes, from which the colour had gone, wide
+open and lustreless, her face pallid and ashen, her mouth hanging open.
+The Queen was moving towards her.</p>
+
+<p>She came very slowly, her hands waving as if she sought support from the
+air, but her head was erect.</p>
+
+<p>'What will you do?' the Lady Mary said. 'Let us take counsel!'</p>
+
+<p>Katharine Howard said no word. It was as if she walked in her sleep.</p>
+
+<h3>V</h3>
+
+<p>The King sat on the raised throne of his council chamber. All the Lords
+of his Council were there and all in black. There was Norfolk with his
+yellow face who feigned to laugh and scoff, now that he had proved
+himself no lover of the Queen's. There was Gardiner of Winchester,
+sitting forward with his cruel and eager eyes upon the table. Next him
+was the Lord Mayor, Michael Dormer, and the Lord Chancellor. And so
+round the horse-shoe table against the wall sat all the other lords and
+commissioners that had been appointed to make inquiry. Sir Anthony
+Browne was there, and Wriothesley with his great beard, and the Duke of
+Suffolk with his hanging jaw. A silence had fallen upon them all, and
+the witnesses were all done with.</p>
+
+<p>On high on his throne the King sat, monstrous and<span class='pagenum'><a name="page584" id="page584">584</a></span> leaning over to one
+side, his face dabbled with tears. He gazed upon Cranmer who stood on
+high beside him, the King gazing upwards into his face as if for comfort
+and counsel.</p>
+
+<p>'Why, you shall save her for me?' he said.</p>
+
+<p>Cranmer's face was haggard, and upon it too there were tears.</p>
+
+<p>'It were the gladdest thing that ever I did,' he said, 'for I do believe
+this Queen is not so guilty.'</p>
+
+<p>'God of His mercy bless thee, Cranmer,' he said, and wearily he touched
+his black bonnet at the sacred name. 'I have done all that I might when
+I spoke with Mary Hall. It shall save me her life.'</p>
+
+<p>Cranmer looked round upon the lords below them; they were all silent but
+only the Duke of Norfolk who laughed to the Lord Mayor. The Lord Mayor,
+a burly man, was more pallid and haggard than any. All the others had
+fear for themselves written upon their faces. But the citizen was not
+used to these trials, of which the others had seen so many.</p>
+
+<p>The Archbishop fell on his knees on the step before the King's throne.</p>
+
+<p>'Gracious and dread Lord,' he said, and his low voice trembled like that
+of a schoolboy, 'Saviour, Lord, and Fount of Justice of this realm!
+Hitherto these trials have been of traitor-felons and villains outside
+the circle of your house. Now that they be judged and dead, we, your
+lords, pray you that you put off from you this most heavy task of judge.
+For inasmuch as we live by your life and have health by your health, in
+this realm afflicted with many sores that you alone can heal and dangers
+that you alone can ward off, so we have it assured and certain that many
+too great labours and matters laid upon you imperil us all. In that, as
+well for our selfish fears as for the great love, self-forgetting, that
+we have of your person, we pray you that&mdash;coming now to the trial of
+this your wife&mdash;you do rest, though well assured we are that greatly and
+courageously you would adventure it, upon the love of us your lords.<span class='pagenum'><a name="page585" id="page585">585</a></span>
+Appoint, therefore, such a Commission as you shall well approve to make
+this most heavy essay and trial.'</p>
+
+<p>So low was his voice that, to hear him, many lords rose from their seats
+and came over against the throne. Thus all that company were in the
+upper part of the hall, and through the great window at the further end
+the sun shone down upon them, having parted the watery clouds. To their
+mass of black it gave blots and gouts of purple and blue and scarlet,
+coming through the dight panes.</p>
+
+<p>'Lay off this burden of trial and examination upon us that so willingly,
+though with sighs and groans, would bear it.'</p>
+
+<p>Suddenly the King stood up and pointed, his jaw fallen open. Katharine
+Howard was coming up the floor of the hall. Her hands were folded before
+her; her face was rigid and calm; she looked neither to right nor to
+left, but only upon the King's face. At the edge of the sunlight she
+halted, so that she stood, a black figure in the bluish and stony gloom
+of the hall with the high roof a great way above her head. All the lords
+began to pull off their bonnets, only Norfolk said that he would not
+uncover before a harlot.</p>
+
+<p>The Queen, looking upon Henry's face, said with icy and cold tones&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'I would have you to cease this torturing of witnesses. I will make
+confession.'</p>
+
+<p>No man then had a word to say. Norfolk had no word either.</p>
+
+<p>'If you will have me confess to heresy, I will confess to heresy; if to
+treason, to treason. If you will have me confess to adultery, God help
+me and all of you, I will confess to adultery and all such sins.'</p>
+
+<p>The King cried out&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'No! no!' like a beast that is stabbed to the heart; but with cold eyes
+the Queen looked back at him.</p>
+
+<p>'If you will have it adultery before marriage, it shall be so. If it be
+to be falseness to my Lord's bed, it shall be so; if it be both, in the
+name of God, be it both, and where<span class='pagenum'><a name="page586" id="page586">586</a></span> you will and how. If you will have
+it spoken, here I speak it. If you will have it written, I will write
+out such words as you shall bid me write. I pray you leave my poor women
+be, especially them that be sick, for there are none that do not love
+me, and I do think that my death is all that you need.'</p>
+
+<p>She paused; there was no sound in the hall but the strenuous panting of
+the King.</p>
+
+<p>'But whether,' she said, 'you shall believe this confession of mine, I
+leave to you that very well do know my conversation and my manner of
+life.'</p>
+
+<p>Again she paused and said&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'I have spoken. To it I will add that heartily I do thank my sovereign
+lord that raised me up. And, in public, I do say it, that he hath dealt
+justly by me. I pray you pardon me for having delayed thus long your
+labours. I will get me gone.'</p>
+
+<p>Then she dropped her eyes to the ground.</p>
+
+<p>Again the King cried out&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'No! no!' and, stumbling to his feet he rushed down upon his courtiers
+and round the table. He came upon her before she was at the distant
+door.</p>
+
+<p>'You shall not go!' he said. 'Unsay! unsay!'</p>
+
+<p>She said, 'Ah!' and recoiled before him with an obdurate and calm
+repulsion.</p>
+
+<p>'Get ye gone, all you minions and hounds,' he cried. And running in upon
+them he assailed them with huge blows and curses, sobbing lamentably, so
+that they fled up the steps and out on to the rooms behind the throne.
+He came sobbing, swift and maddened, panting and crying out, back to
+where she awaited him.</p>
+
+<p>'Unsay! unsay!' he cried out.</p>
+
+<p>She stood calmly.</p>
+
+<p>'Never will I unsay,' she said. 'For it is right that such a King as
+thou should be punished, and I do believe this: that there can no agony
+come upon you such as shall come if you do believe me false to you.'</p>
+
+<p>The coloured sunlight fell upon his face just down to<span class='pagenum'><a name="page587" id="page587">587</a></span> the chin; his
+eyes glared horribly. She confronted him, being in the shadow. High up
+above them, painted and moulded angels soared on the roof with golden
+wings. He clutched at his throat.</p>
+
+<p>'I do not believe it,' he cried out.</p>
+
+<p>'Then,' she said, 'I believe that it shall be only a second greater
+agony to you: for you shall have done me to death believing me
+guiltless.'</p>
+
+<p>A great motion of despair went over his whole body.</p>
+
+<p>'Kat!' he said; 'Body of God, Kat! I would not have you done to death. I
+have saved your life from your enemies.'</p>
+
+<p>She made him no answer, and he protested desperately&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'All this afternoon I have wrestled with a woman to make her say that
+you are older than your age, and precontracted to a cousin of yours. I
+have made her say it at last, so your life is saved.'</p>
+
+<p>She turned half to go from him, but he ran round in front of her.</p>
+
+<p>'Your life is saved!' he said desperately, 'for if you were
+precontracted to Dearham your marriage with me is void. And if your
+marriage with me is void, though it be proved against you that you were
+false to me, yet it is not treason, for you are not my wife.'</p>
+
+<p>Again she moved to circumvent him, and again he came before her.</p>
+
+<p>'Speak!' he said, 'speak!' But she folded her lips close. He cast his
+arms abroad in a passion of despair. 'You shall be put away into a
+castle where you shall have such state as never empress had yet. All
+your will I will do. Always I will live near you in secret fashion.'</p>
+
+<p>'I will not be your leman,' she said.</p>
+
+<p>'But once you offered it!' he answered.</p>
+
+<p>'Then you appeared in the guise of a king!' she said.</p>
+
+<p>He withered beneath her tone.</p>
+
+<p>'All you would have you shall have,' he said. 'I will call in a
+messenger and here and now send the letter that you wot of to Rome.'<span class='pagenum'><a name="page588" id="page588">588</a></span></p>
+
+<p>'Your Highness,' she said, 'I would not have the Church brought back to
+this land by one deemed an adult'ress. Assuredly, it should not
+prosper.'</p>
+
+<p>Again he sought to stay her going, holding out his arms to enfold her.
+She stepped back.</p>
+
+<p>'Your Highness,' she said, 'I will speak some last words. And, as you
+know me well, you know that these irrevocably shall be my last to you!'</p>
+
+<p>He cried&mdash;'Delay till you hear&mdash;&mdash;'</p>
+
+<p>'There shall be no delay,' she said; 'I will not hear.' She smoothed a
+strand of hair that had fallen over her forehead in a gesture that she
+always had when she was deep in thoughts.</p>
+
+<p>'This is what I would say,' she uttered. And she began to speak
+levelly&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Very truly you say when you say that once I made offer to be your
+leman. But it was when I was a young girl, mazed with reading of books
+in the learned tongue, and seeing all men as if they were men of those
+days. So you appeared to me such a man as was Pompey the Great, or as
+was Marius, or as was Sylla. For each of these great men erred; yet they
+erred greatly as rulers that would rule. Or rather I did see you such a
+one as was C&aelig;sar Julius, who, as you well wot, crossed a Rubicon and set
+out upon a high endeavour. But you&mdash;never will you cross any Rubicon;
+always you blow hot in the evening and cold at dawn. Neither do you, as
+I had dreamed you did, rule in this your realm. For, even as a crow that
+just now I watched, you are blown hither and thither by every gust that
+blows. Now the wind of gossips blows so that you must have my life. And,
+before God, I am glad of it.'</p>
+
+<p>'Before God!' he cried out, 'I would save you!'</p>
+
+<p>'Aye,' she answered sadly, 'to-day you would save me; to-morrow a foul
+speech of one mine enemy shall gird you again to slay me. On the morrow
+you will repent, and on the morrow of that again you will repent of
+that. So you will balance and trim. If to-day you send a messenger to
+Rome, to-morrow you will send another, hastening by a<span class='pagenum'><a name="page589" id="page589">589</a></span> shorter route, to
+stay him. And this I tell you, that I am not one to let my name be
+bandied for many days in the mouths of men. I had rather be called a
+sinner, adjudged and dead and forgotten. So I am glad that I am cast to
+die.'</p>
+
+<p>'You shall not die!' the King cried. 'Body of God, you shall not die! I
+cannot live lacking thee. Kat&mdash;&mdash; Kat&mdash;&mdash;'</p>
+
+<p>'Aye,' she said, 'I must die, for you are not such a one as can stay in
+the wind. Thus I tell you it will fall about that for many days you will
+waver, but one day you will cry out&mdash;Let her die this day! On the morrow
+of that day you will repent you, but, being dead, I shall be no more to
+be recalled to life. Why, man, with this confession of mine, heard by
+grooms and mayors of cities and the like, how shall you dare to save me?
+You know you shall not.</p>
+
+<p>'And so, now I am cast for death, and I am very glad of it. For, if I
+had not so ensured and made it fated, I might later have wavered. For I
+am a weak woman, and strong men have taken dishonourable means to escape
+death when it came near. Now I am assured of death, and know that no
+means of yours can save me, nor no prayers nor yielding of mine. I came
+to you for that you might give this realm again to God. Now I see you
+will not&mdash;for not ever will you do it if it must abate you a jot of your
+sovereignty, and you never will do it without that abatement. So it is
+in vain that I have sinned.</p>
+
+<p>'For I trow that I sinned in taking the crown from the woman that was
+late your wife. I would not have it, but you would, and I yielded. Yet
+it was a sin. Then I did a sin that good might ensue, and again I do it,
+and I hope that this sin that brings me down shall counterbalance that
+other that set me up. For well I know that to make this confession is a
+sin; but whether the one shall balance the other only the angels that
+are at the gates of Paradise shall assure me.</p>
+
+<p>'In some sort I have done it for your Highness' sake&mdash;or, at least, that
+your Highness may profit in your fame thereby. For, though all that do
+know me will scarcely believe in it, the most part of men shall needs
+judge me by<span class='pagenum'><a name="page590" id="page590">590</a></span> the reports that are set about. In the commonalty, and the
+princes of foreign courts, one may believe you justified of my blood,
+and, for this event, even to posterity your name shall be spared. I
+shall become such a little dust as will not fill a cup. Yet, at least, I
+shall not sully, in the eyes of men to come, your record.</p>
+
+<p>'And that I am glad of; for this world is no place for me who am mazed
+by too much reading in old books. At first I would not believe it,
+though many have told me it was so. I was of the opinion that in the end
+right must win through. I think now that it never shall&mdash;or not for many
+ages&mdash;till our Saviour again come upon this earth with a great glory.
+But all this is a mystery of the great goodness of God and the
+temptations that do beset us poor mortality.</p>
+
+<p>'So now I go! I think that you will not any more seek to hinder me, for
+you have heard how set I am on this course. I think, if I have done
+little good, I have done little harm, for I have sought to injure no
+man&mdash;though through me you have wracked some of my poor servants and
+slain my poor simple cousin. But that is between you and God. If I must
+weep for them yet, though I was the occasion of their deaths and
+tortures, I cannot much lay it to my account.</p>
+
+<p>'If, by being reputed your leman, as you would have it, I could again
+set up the Church of God, willingly I would do it. But I see that there
+is not one man&mdash;save maybe some poor simple souls&mdash;that would have this
+done. Each man is set to save his skin and his goods&mdash;and you are such a
+weathercock that I should never blow you to a firm quarter. For what am
+I set against all this nation?</p>
+
+<p>'If you should say that our wedding was no wedding because of the
+pre-contract to my cousin Dearham that you have feigned was made&mdash;why, I
+might live as your reputed leman in a secret place. But it is not very
+certain that even at that I should live very long. For, if I lived, I
+must work upon you to do the right. And, if that I did, not very long
+should I live before mine enemies again did come about me and to you.
+And so I must die. And now I see that you<span class='pagenum'><a name="page591" id="page591">591</a></span> are not such a man as I would
+live with willingly to preserve my life.</p>
+
+<p>'I speak not to reprove you what I have spoken, but to make you see that
+as I am so I am. You are as God made you, setting you for His own
+purposes a weak man in very evil and turbulent times. As a man is born
+so a man lives; as is his strength so the strain breaks him or he
+resists the strain. If I have wounded you with these my words, I do ask
+your pardon. Much of this long speech I have thought upon when I was
+despondent this long time past. But much of it has come to my lips
+whilst I spake, and, maybe, it is harsh and rash in the wording. That I
+would not have, but I may not help myself. I would have you wounded by
+the things as they are, and by what of conscience you have, in your
+passions and your prides. And this, I will add, that I die a Queen, but
+I would rather have died the wife of my cousin Culpepper or of any other
+simple lout that loved me as he did, without regard, without thought,
+and without falter. He sold farms to buy me bread. You would not imperil
+a little alliance with a little King o' Scots to save my life. And this
+I tell you, that I will spend the last hours of the days that I have to
+live in considering of this simple man and of his love, and in praying
+for his soul, for I hear you have slain him! And for the rest, I commend
+you to your friends!'</p>
+
+<p>The King had staggered back against the long table; his jaw fell open;
+his head leaned down upon his chest. In all that long speech&mdash;the
+longest she had ever made save when she was shown for Queen&mdash;she had not
+once raised or lowered her voice, nor once dropped her eyes. But she had
+remembered the lessons of speaking that had been given her by her master
+Udal, in the aforetime, away in Lincolnshire, where there was an orchard
+with green boughs, and below it a pig-pound where the hogs grunted.</p>
+
+<p>She went slowly down over the great stone flags of the great hall. It
+was very gloomy now, and her figure in black velvet was like a small
+shadow, dark and liquid, amongst shadows that fell softly and like
+draperies from the roof.<span class='pagenum'><a name="page592" id="page592">592</a></span> Up there it was all dark already, for the
+light came downwards from the windows. She went slowly, walking as she
+had been schooled to walk.</p>
+
+<p>'God!' Henry cried out; 'you have not played false with Culpepper?' His
+voice echoed all round the hall.</p>
+
+<p>The Queen's white face and her folded hands showed as she turned&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Aye, there the shoe pinches!' she said. 'Think upon it. Most times you
+shall not believe it, for you know me. But I have made confession of it
+before your Council. So it may be true. For I hope some truth cometh to
+the fore even in Councils.'</p>
+
+<p>Near the doorway it was all shadow, and soundlessly she faded away among
+them. The hinge of the door creaked; through it there came the sound of
+the pikestaves of her guard upon the stone of the steps. The sound
+whispered round amidst the statues of old knights and kings that stood
+upon corbels between the windows. It whispered amongst the invisible
+carvings of the roof. Then it died away.</p>
+
+<p>The King made no sound. Suddenly he cast his hat upon the paving.</p>
+
+<hr style="width: 45%;" />
+
+<p class="center"><img src="images/katharine.jpg" alt="Katharine Howard" title="Katharine Howard" /> was executed on
+Tower Hill, the 13th of February, in the 33rd year
+of the reign of <img src="images/henry.jpg" alt="King Henry VIII" title="King Henry VIII" />.</p>
+
+<p class="center"><b>MDXLI-II</b></p>
+
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+<hr class="full" />
+<p>***END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE FIFTH QUEEN CROWNED***</p>
+<p>******* This file should be named 27432-h.txt or 27432-h.zip *******</p>
+<p>This and all associated files of various formats will be found in:<br />
+<a href="http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/2/7/4/3/27432">http://www.gutenberg.org/2/7/4/3/27432</a></p>
+<p>Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions
+will be renamed.</p>
+
+<p>Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no
+one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation
+(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without
+permission and without paying copyright royalties.  Special rules,
+set forth in the General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to
+copying and distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works to
+protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm concept and trademark.  Project
+Gutenberg is a registered trademark, and may not be used if you
+charge for the eBooks, unless you receive specific permission.  If you
+do not charge anything for copies of this eBook, complying with the
+rules is very easy.  You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose
+such as creation of derivative works, reports, performances and
+research.  They may be modified and printed and given away--you may do
+practically ANYTHING with public domain eBooks.  Redistribution is
+subject to the trademark license, especially commercial
+redistribution.</p>
+
+
+
+<pre>
+*** START: FULL LICENSE ***
+
+THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE
+PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK
+
+To protect the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting the free
+distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work
+(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase "Project
+Gutenberg"), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full Project
+Gutenberg-tm License (available with this file or online at
+<a href="http://www.gutenberg.org/license">http://www.gutenberg.org/license)</a>.
+
+
+Section 1.  General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic works
+
+1.A.  By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to
+and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property
+(trademark/copyright) agreement.  If you do not agree to abide by all
+the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or destroy
+all copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in your possession.
+If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic work and you do not agree to be bound by the
+terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the person or
+entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph 1.E.8.
+
+1.B.  "Project Gutenberg" is a registered trademark.  It may only be
+used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who
+agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement.  There are a few
+things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works
+even without complying with the full terms of this agreement.  See
+paragraph 1.C below.  There are a lot of things you can do with Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this agreement
+and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
+works.  See paragraph 1.E below.
+
+1.C.  The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation ("the Foundation"
+or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection of Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic works.  Nearly all the individual works in the
+collection are in the public domain in the United States.  If an
+individual work is in the public domain in the United States and you are
+located in the United States, we do not claim a right to prevent you from
+copying, distributing, performing, displaying or creating derivative
+works based on the work as long as all references to Project Gutenberg
+are removed.  Of course, we hope that you will support the Project
+Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting free access to electronic works by
+freely sharing Project Gutenberg-tm works in compliance with the terms of
+this agreement for keeping the Project Gutenberg-tm name associated with
+the work.  You can easily comply with the terms of this agreement by
+keeping this work in the same format with its attached full Project
+Gutenberg-tm License when you share it without charge with others.
+
+1.D.  The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern
+what you can do with this work.  Copyright laws in most countries are in
+a constant state of change.  If you are outside the United States, check
+the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this agreement
+before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, distributing or
+creating derivative works based on this work or any other Project
+Gutenberg-tm work.  The Foundation makes no representations concerning
+the copyright status of any work in any country outside the United
+States.
+
+1.E.  Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg:
+
+1.E.1.  The following sentence, with active links to, or other immediate
+access to, the full Project Gutenberg-tm License must appear prominently
+whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg-tm work (any work on which the
+phrase "Project Gutenberg" appears, or with which the phrase "Project
+Gutenberg" is associated) is accessed, displayed, performed, viewed,
+copied or distributed:
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+1.E.2.  If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is derived
+from the public domain (does not contain a notice indicating that it is
+posted with permission of the copyright holder), the work can be copied
+and distributed to anyone in the United States without paying any fees
+or charges.  If you are redistributing or providing access to a work
+with the phrase "Project Gutenberg" associated with or appearing on the
+work, you must comply either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1
+through 1.E.7 or obtain permission for the use of the work and the
+Project Gutenberg-tm trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or
+1.E.9.
+
+1.E.3.  If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is posted
+with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution
+must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any additional
+terms imposed by the copyright holder.  Additional terms will be linked
+to the Project Gutenberg-tm License for all works posted with the
+permission of the copyright holder found at the beginning of this work.
+
+1.E.4.  Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg-tm
+License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this
+work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg-tm.
+
+1.E.5.  Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this
+electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without
+prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with
+active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project
+Gutenberg-tm License.
+
+1.E.6.  You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary,
+compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including any
+word processing or hypertext form.  However, if you provide access to or
+distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg-tm work in a format other than
+"Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official version
+posted on the official Project Gutenberg-tm web site (www.gutenberg.org),
+you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense to the user, provide a
+copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means of obtaining a copy upon
+request, of the work in its original "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other
+form.  Any alternate format must include the full Project Gutenberg-tm
+License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1.
+
+1.E.7.  Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying,
+performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg-tm works
+unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9.
+
+1.E.8.  You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing
+access to or distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works provided
+that
+
+- You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from
+     the use of Project Gutenberg-tm works calculated using the method
+     you already use to calculate your applicable taxes.  The fee is
+     owed to the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, but he
+     has agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the
+     Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation.  Royalty payments
+     must be paid within 60 days following each date on which you
+     prepare (or are legally required to prepare) your periodic tax
+     returns.  Royalty payments should be clearly marked as such and
+     sent to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the
+     address specified in Section 4, "Information about donations to
+     the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation."
+
+- You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies
+     you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he
+     does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg-tm
+     License.  You must require such a user to return or
+     destroy all copies of the works possessed in a physical medium
+     and discontinue all use of and all access to other copies of
+     Project Gutenberg-tm works.
+
+- You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of any
+     money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the
+     electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days
+     of receipt of the work.
+
+- You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free
+     distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm works.
+
+1.E.9.  If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic work or group of works on different terms than are set
+forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing from
+both the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and Michael
+Hart, the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark.  Contact the
+Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below.
+
+1.F.
+
+1.F.1.  Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable
+effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread
+public domain works in creating the Project Gutenberg-tm
+collection.  Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
+works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may contain
+"Defects," such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate or
+corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other intellectual
+property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or other medium, a
+computer virus, or computer codes that damage or cannot be read by
+your equipment.
+
+1.F.2.  LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the "Right
+of Replacement or Refund" described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project
+Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project
+Gutenberg-tm trademark, and any other party distributing a Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all
+liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal
+fees.  YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT
+LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE
+PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH F3.  YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE
+TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE
+LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR
+INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH
+DAMAGE.
+
+1.F.3.  LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a
+defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can
+receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a
+written explanation to the person you received the work from.  If you
+received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium with
+your written explanation.  The person or entity that provided you with
+the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in lieu of a
+refund.  If you received the work electronically, the person or entity
+providing it to you may choose to give you a second opportunity to
+receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund.  If the second copy
+is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing without further
+opportunities to fix the problem.
+
+1.F.4.  Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth
+in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you 'AS-IS,' WITH NO OTHER
+WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO
+WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTIBILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE.
+
+1.F.5.  Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied
+warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of damages.
+If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement violates the
+law of the state applicable to this agreement, the agreement shall be
+interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or limitation permitted by
+the applicable state law.  The invalidity or unenforceability of any
+provision of this agreement shall not void the remaining provisions.
+
+1.F.6.  INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the
+trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone
+providing copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in accordance
+with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the production,
+promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works,
+harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, including legal fees,
+that arise directly or indirectly from any of the following which you do
+or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this or any Project Gutenberg-tm
+work, (b) alteration, modification, or additions or deletions to any
+Project Gutenberg-tm work, and (c) any Defect you cause.
+
+
+Section  2.  Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg-tm
+
+Project Gutenberg-tm is synonymous with the free distribution of
+electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of computers
+including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers.  It exists
+because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations from
+people in all walks of life.
+
+Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the
+assistance they need, is critical to reaching Project Gutenberg-tm's
+goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg-tm collection will
+remain freely available for generations to come.  In 2001, the Project
+Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure
+and permanent future for Project Gutenberg-tm and future generations.
+To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation
+and how your efforts and donations can help, see Sections 3 and 4
+and the Foundation web page at http://www.gutenberg.org/fundraising/pglaf.
+
+
+Section 3.  Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive
+Foundation
+
+The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non profit
+501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the
+state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal
+Revenue Service.  The Foundation's EIN or federal tax identification
+number is 64-6221541.  Contributions to the Project Gutenberg
+Literary Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent
+permitted by U.S. federal laws and your state's laws.
+
+The Foundation's principal office is located at 4557 Melan Dr. S.
+Fairbanks, AK, 99712., but its volunteers and employees are scattered
+throughout numerous locations.  Its business office is located at
+809 North 1500 West, Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887, email
+business@pglaf.org.  Email contact links and up to date contact
+information can be found at the Foundation's web site and official
+page at http://www.gutenberg.org/about/contact
+
+For additional contact information:
+     Dr. Gregory B. Newby
+     Chief Executive and Director
+     gbnewby@pglaf.org
+
+Section 4.  Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg
+Literary Archive Foundation
+
+Project Gutenberg-tm depends upon and cannot survive without wide
+spread public support and donations to carry out its mission of
+increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be
+freely distributed in machine readable form accessible by the widest
+array of equipment including outdated equipment.  Many small donations
+($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt
+status with the IRS.
+
+The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating
+charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United
+States.  Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a
+considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up
+with these requirements.  We do not solicit donations in locations
+where we have not received written confirmation of compliance.  To
+SEND DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any
+particular state visit http://www.gutenberg.org/fundraising/pglaf
+
+While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we
+have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition
+against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who
+approach us with offers to donate.
+
+International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make
+any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from
+outside the United States.  U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff.
+
+Please check the Project Gutenberg Web pages for current donation
+methods and addresses.  Donations are accepted in a number of other
+ways including checks, online payments and credit card donations.
+To donate, please visit: http://www.gutenberg.org/fundraising/donate
+
+
+Section 5.  General Information About Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
+works.
+
+Professor Michael S. Hart is the originator of the Project Gutenberg-tm
+concept of a library of electronic works that could be freely shared
+with anyone.  For thirty years, he produced and distributed Project
+Gutenberg-tm eBooks with only a loose network of volunteer support.
+
+Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks are often created from several printed
+editions, all of which are confirmed as Public Domain in the U.S.
+unless a copyright notice is included.  Thus, we do not necessarily
+keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper edition.
+
+Each eBook is in a subdirectory of the same number as the eBook's
+eBook number, often in several formats including plain vanilla ASCII,
+compressed (zipped), HTML and others.
+
+Corrected EDITIONS of our eBooks replace the old file and take over
+the old filename and etext number.  The replaced older file is renamed.
+VERSIONS based on separate sources are treated as new eBooks receiving
+new filenames and etext numbers.
+
+Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search facility:
+
+<a href="http://www.gutenberg.org">http://www.gutenberg.org</a>
+
+This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm,
+including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary
+Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to
+subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks.
+
+EBooks posted prior to November 2003, with eBook numbers BELOW #10000,
+are filed in directories based on their release date.  If you want to
+download any of these eBooks directly, rather than using the regular
+search system you may utilize the following addresses and just
+download by the etext year.
+
+<a href="http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/etext06/">http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/etext06/</a>
+
+    (Or /etext 05, 04, 03, 02, 01, 00, 99,
+     98, 97, 96, 95, 94, 93, 92, 92, 91 or 90)
+
+EBooks posted since November 2003, with etext numbers OVER #10000, are
+filed in a different way.  The year of a release date is no longer part
+of the directory path.  The path is based on the etext number (which is
+identical to the filename).  The path to the file is made up of single
+digits corresponding to all but the last digit in the filename.  For
+example an eBook of filename 10234 would be found at:
+
+http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/1/0/2/3/10234
+
+or filename 24689 would be found at:
+http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/2/4/6/8/24689
+
+An alternative method of locating eBooks:
+<a href="http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/GUTINDEX.ALL">http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/GUTINDEX.ALL</a>
+
+*** END: FULL LICENSE ***
+</pre>
+</body>
+</html>
diff --git a/27432-h/images/henry.jpg b/27432-h/images/henry.jpg
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..6848a58
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-h/images/henry.jpg
diff --git a/27432-h/images/katharine.jpg b/27432-h/images/katharine.jpg
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..9d3d441
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-h/images/katharine.jpg
diff --git a/27432-page-images/f001.png b/27432-page-images/f001.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..0d9adfc
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/f001.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/f002.png b/27432-page-images/f002.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..9c510c6
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/f002.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/f003.png b/27432-page-images/f003.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..496b6f9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/f003.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/f004.png b/27432-page-images/f004.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..d89f645
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/f004.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/f005.png b/27432-page-images/f005.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..4126aa0
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/f005.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p419.png b/27432-page-images/p419.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..0da7beb
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p419.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p420.png b/27432-page-images/p420.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..efe6850
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p420.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p421.png b/27432-page-images/p421.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..0753cda
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p421.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p422.png b/27432-page-images/p422.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..99cbfda
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p422.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p423.png b/27432-page-images/p423.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..1fe3b60
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p423.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p424.png b/27432-page-images/p424.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..4f59dc9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p424.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p425.png b/27432-page-images/p425.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..a4d3710
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p425.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p426.png b/27432-page-images/p426.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..82b3f73
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p426.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p427.png b/27432-page-images/p427.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..4f4d6e4
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p427.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p428.png b/27432-page-images/p428.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..d548c9b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p428.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p429.png b/27432-page-images/p429.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..3166118
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p429.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p430.png b/27432-page-images/p430.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..c7f1fdf
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p430.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p431.png b/27432-page-images/p431.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..bb8f690
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p431.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p432.png b/27432-page-images/p432.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..439d7dc
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p432.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p433.png b/27432-page-images/p433.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..81ffc09
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p433.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p434.png b/27432-page-images/p434.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..8531cea
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p434.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p435.png b/27432-page-images/p435.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..2cf4936
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p435.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p436.png b/27432-page-images/p436.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..b1577e1
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p436.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p437.png b/27432-page-images/p437.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..91498c2
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p437.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p438.png b/27432-page-images/p438.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..0c94aa8
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p438.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p439.png b/27432-page-images/p439.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..5c01106
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p439.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p440.png b/27432-page-images/p440.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..8b15e76
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p440.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p441.png b/27432-page-images/p441.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..f54c1cd
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p441.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p442.png b/27432-page-images/p442.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..2612da1
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p442.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p443.png b/27432-page-images/p443.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..0ecd993
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p443.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p444.png b/27432-page-images/p444.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..5302c67
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p444.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p445.png b/27432-page-images/p445.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..d26ab85
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p445.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p446.png b/27432-page-images/p446.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..ac73e19
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p446.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p447.png b/27432-page-images/p447.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..cbedbe3
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p447.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p448.png b/27432-page-images/p448.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..eeb5224
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p448.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p449.png b/27432-page-images/p449.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..2db695f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p449.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p450.png b/27432-page-images/p450.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..76dd8ac
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p450.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p451.png b/27432-page-images/p451.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..617e16b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p451.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p452.png b/27432-page-images/p452.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..f8665a9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p452.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p453.png b/27432-page-images/p453.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..5c7399b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p453.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p454.png b/27432-page-images/p454.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..4814246
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p454.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p455.png b/27432-page-images/p455.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..bcc39cd
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p455.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p456.png b/27432-page-images/p456.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..c97592f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p456.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p457.png b/27432-page-images/p457.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..e5f31d0
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p457.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p458.png b/27432-page-images/p458.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..4d525ed
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p458.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p459.png b/27432-page-images/p459.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..55d6f16
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p459.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p460.png b/27432-page-images/p460.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..202cda2
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p460.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p461.png b/27432-page-images/p461.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..cd981ed
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p461.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p462.png b/27432-page-images/p462.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..a90b56f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p462.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p463.png b/27432-page-images/p463.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..0d5330f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p463.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p464.png b/27432-page-images/p464.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..d5a313e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p464.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p465.png b/27432-page-images/p465.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..5325575
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p465.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p466.png b/27432-page-images/p466.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..6753345
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p466.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p467.png b/27432-page-images/p467.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..7b14a82
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p467.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p468.png b/27432-page-images/p468.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..78c6f82
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p468.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p469.png b/27432-page-images/p469.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..1d26c91
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p469.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p470.png b/27432-page-images/p470.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..bd98a3f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p470.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p471.png b/27432-page-images/p471.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..b91eea2
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p471.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p472.png b/27432-page-images/p472.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..63d8b43
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p472.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p473.png b/27432-page-images/p473.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..d47b4d4
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p473.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p474.png b/27432-page-images/p474.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..4606eaf
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p474.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p475.png b/27432-page-images/p475.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..9ef45d9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p475.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p476.png b/27432-page-images/p476.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..44a3fb4
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p476.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p477.png b/27432-page-images/p477.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..4610a0b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p477.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p478.png b/27432-page-images/p478.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..a6435f7
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p478.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p479.png b/27432-page-images/p479.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..2135255
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p479.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p480.png b/27432-page-images/p480.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..abac8ac
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p480.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p481.png b/27432-page-images/p481.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..2517007
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p481.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p482.png b/27432-page-images/p482.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..d1c88c5
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p482.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p483.png b/27432-page-images/p483.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..8eabde3
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p483.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p484.png b/27432-page-images/p484.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..c9b71c9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p484.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p485.png b/27432-page-images/p485.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..7489cce
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p485.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p486.png b/27432-page-images/p486.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..981394b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p486.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p487.png b/27432-page-images/p487.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..efa6d03
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p487.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p488.png b/27432-page-images/p488.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..cec68b1
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p488.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p489.png b/27432-page-images/p489.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..310725a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p489.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p490.png b/27432-page-images/p490.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..648049c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p490.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p491.png b/27432-page-images/p491.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..a11393c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p491.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p492.png b/27432-page-images/p492.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..fb9960e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p492.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p493.png b/27432-page-images/p493.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..66840a2
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p493.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p494.png b/27432-page-images/p494.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..21f47fe
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p494.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p495.png b/27432-page-images/p495.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..1734ee8
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p495.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p496.png b/27432-page-images/p496.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..1a94d56
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p496.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p497.png b/27432-page-images/p497.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..ced8d06
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p497.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p498.png b/27432-page-images/p498.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..a9ebfb5
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p498.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p499.png b/27432-page-images/p499.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..70178f5
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p499.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p500.png b/27432-page-images/p500.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..11729b8
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p500.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p501.png b/27432-page-images/p501.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..cf7e4bd
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p501.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p502.png b/27432-page-images/p502.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..9650863
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p502.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p503.png b/27432-page-images/p503.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..b4b219c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p503.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p504.png b/27432-page-images/p504.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..6ee129d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p504.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p505.png b/27432-page-images/p505.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..a09063b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p505.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p506.png b/27432-page-images/p506.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..db09a3f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p506.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p507.png b/27432-page-images/p507.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..adb5a63
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p507.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p508.png b/27432-page-images/p508.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..8843ae9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p508.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p509.png b/27432-page-images/p509.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..df6bb29
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p509.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p510.png b/27432-page-images/p510.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..17a9fcd
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p510.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p511.png b/27432-page-images/p511.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..5ea785c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p511.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p512.png b/27432-page-images/p512.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..e9ea90e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p512.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p513.png b/27432-page-images/p513.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..8b56073
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p513.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p514.png b/27432-page-images/p514.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..0410c1b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p514.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p515.png b/27432-page-images/p515.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..680c622
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p515.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p516.png b/27432-page-images/p516.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..34d80ae
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p516.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p517.png b/27432-page-images/p517.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..e2c25c7
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p517.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p518.png b/27432-page-images/p518.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..c8e9732
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p518.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p519.png b/27432-page-images/p519.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..f4cb7a2
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p519.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p520.png b/27432-page-images/p520.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..4998754
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p520.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p521.png b/27432-page-images/p521.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..213c500
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p521.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p522.png b/27432-page-images/p522.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..888da8c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p522.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p523.png b/27432-page-images/p523.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..dc60fe7
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p523.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p524.png b/27432-page-images/p524.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..1c6d345
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p524.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p525.png b/27432-page-images/p525.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..bf4d099
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p525.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p526.png b/27432-page-images/p526.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..b21ea5f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p526.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p527.png b/27432-page-images/p527.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..512ce2d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p527.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p528.png b/27432-page-images/p528.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..48bc5cb
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p528.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p529.png b/27432-page-images/p529.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..888cbc5
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p529.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p530.png b/27432-page-images/p530.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..33b61cb
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p530.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p531.png b/27432-page-images/p531.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..3df6f34
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p531.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p532.png b/27432-page-images/p532.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..8180731
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p532.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p533.png b/27432-page-images/p533.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..c9a8248
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p533.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p534.png b/27432-page-images/p534.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..65d277b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p534.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p535.png b/27432-page-images/p535.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..2237f68
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p535.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p536.png b/27432-page-images/p536.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..223a8bf
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p536.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p537.png b/27432-page-images/p537.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..f344b1e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p537.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p538.png b/27432-page-images/p538.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..fe6edf8
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p538.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p539.png b/27432-page-images/p539.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..8bc5605
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p539.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p540.png b/27432-page-images/p540.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..248c9e2
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p540.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p541.png b/27432-page-images/p541.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..5c13cb1
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p541.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p542.png b/27432-page-images/p542.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..3c73f35
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p542.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p543.png b/27432-page-images/p543.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..5bfbdae
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p543.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p544.png b/27432-page-images/p544.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..1cd2e12
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p544.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p545.png b/27432-page-images/p545.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..d359511
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p545.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p546.png b/27432-page-images/p546.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..29a2840
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p546.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p547.png b/27432-page-images/p547.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..aa0c427
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p547.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p548.png b/27432-page-images/p548.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..22b8b33
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p548.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p549.png b/27432-page-images/p549.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..1b39fa1
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p549.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p550.png b/27432-page-images/p550.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..334cea6
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p550.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p551.png b/27432-page-images/p551.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..f04d006
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p551.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p552.png b/27432-page-images/p552.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..2fb5450
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p552.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p553.png b/27432-page-images/p553.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..5e53330
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p553.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p554.png b/27432-page-images/p554.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..af2ba7b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p554.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p555.png b/27432-page-images/p555.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..4aeee20
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p555.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p556.png b/27432-page-images/p556.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..122534f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p556.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p557.png b/27432-page-images/p557.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..fb0f9b4
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p557.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p558.png b/27432-page-images/p558.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..3aadeda
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p558.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p559.png b/27432-page-images/p559.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..8e3a939
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p559.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p560.png b/27432-page-images/p560.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..8011243
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p560.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p561.png b/27432-page-images/p561.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..329819b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p561.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p562.png b/27432-page-images/p562.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..eec4b70
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p562.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p563.png b/27432-page-images/p563.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..c1aa12e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p563.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p564.png b/27432-page-images/p564.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..98668a0
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p564.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p565.png b/27432-page-images/p565.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..d082db7
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p565.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p566.png b/27432-page-images/p566.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..bfd22ea
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p566.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p567.png b/27432-page-images/p567.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..0d1518b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p567.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p568.png b/27432-page-images/p568.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..64ca5cd
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p568.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p569.png b/27432-page-images/p569.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..0c4dad6
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p569.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p570.png b/27432-page-images/p570.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..92b3dbf
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p570.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p571.png b/27432-page-images/p571.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..aa7f4ca
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p571.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p572.png b/27432-page-images/p572.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..b868c45
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p572.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p573.png b/27432-page-images/p573.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..b776dab
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p573.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p574.png b/27432-page-images/p574.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..9a854ec
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p574.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p575.png b/27432-page-images/p575.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..86d672e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p575.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p576.png b/27432-page-images/p576.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..d41aac6
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p576.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p577.png b/27432-page-images/p577.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..ee46751
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p577.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p578.png b/27432-page-images/p578.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..c03b40c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p578.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p579.png b/27432-page-images/p579.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..7ff97cf
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p579.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p580.png b/27432-page-images/p580.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..c5c9b0e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p580.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p581.png b/27432-page-images/p581.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..86365e6
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p581.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p582.png b/27432-page-images/p582.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..1012788
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p582.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p583.png b/27432-page-images/p583.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..0ca0fe6
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p583.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p584.png b/27432-page-images/p584.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..e2323ee
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p584.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p585.png b/27432-page-images/p585.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..6347fab
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p585.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p586.png b/27432-page-images/p586.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..9e775b0
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p586.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p587.png b/27432-page-images/p587.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..0f33524
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p587.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p588.png b/27432-page-images/p588.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..76a0fe9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p588.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p589.png b/27432-page-images/p589.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..6b6d09c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p589.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p590.png b/27432-page-images/p590.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..7092206
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p590.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p591.png b/27432-page-images/p591.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..73db09e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p591.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p592.png b/27432-page-images/p592.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..7e1a2c4
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p592.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p593.png b/27432-page-images/p593.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..906e1f5
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p593.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p594.png b/27432-page-images/p594.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..61be8f4
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p594.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p595.png b/27432-page-images/p595.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..faa6823
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p595.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p596.png b/27432-page-images/p596.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..abf8469
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p596.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p597.png b/27432-page-images/p597.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..2fd9baa
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p597.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p598.png b/27432-page-images/p598.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..fb874a4
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p598.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p599.png b/27432-page-images/p599.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..0d0899b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p599.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p600.png b/27432-page-images/p600.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..aab6d53
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p600.png
diff --git a/27432-page-images/p601.png b/27432-page-images/p601.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..2b05dbb
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432-page-images/p601.png
diff --git a/27432.txt b/27432.txt
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..49adfd4
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432.txt
@@ -0,0 +1,7550 @@
+The Project Gutenberg eBook, The Fifth Queen Crowned, by Ford Madox Ford
+
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+
+
+
+Title: The Fifth Queen Crowned
+
+
+Author: Ford Madox Ford
+
+
+
+Release Date: December 7, 2008  [eBook #27432]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ISO-646-US (US-ASCII)
+
+
+***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE FIFTH QUEEN CROWNED***
+
+
+E-text prepared by Verity White, Suzanne Shell, and the Project Gutenberg
+Online Distributed Proofreading Team (http://www.pgdp.net)
+
+
+
+   +-----------------------------------------------------------+
+   | Transcriber's note:                                       |
+   |                                                           |
+   | This edition of _The Fifth Queen Crowned_ was extracted   |
+   | from an omnibus edition of the trilogy. The two previous  |
+   | books of the trilogy are _The Fifth Queen_ and _Privy     |
+   | Seal: His Last Venture_.                                  |
+   |                                                           |
+   | Inconsistent hyphenation in the original document has     |
+   | been preserved.                                           |
+   +-----------------------------------------------------------+
+
+
+
+
+
+THE FIFTH QUEEN CROWNED
+
+A Romance
+
+_"Da habt Ihr schon das End vom Lied"_
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+To
+Arthur Marwood
+
+
+
+
+CONTENTS
+
+   PART ONE
+   The Major Cord
+
+   PART TWO
+   The Threatened Rift
+
+   PART THREE
+   The Dwindling Melody
+
+   PART FOUR
+   The End of the Song
+
+
+
+
+PART ONE
+
+THE MAJOR CHORD
+
+
+I
+
+'The Bishop of Rome----'
+
+Thomas Cranmer began a hesitating speech. In the pause after the words
+the King himself hesitated, as if he poised between a heavy rage and a
+sardonic humour. He deemed, however, that the humour could the more
+terrify the Archbishop--and, indeed, he was so much upon the joyous side
+in those summer days that he had forgotten how to browbeat.
+
+'Our holy father,' he corrected the Archbishop. 'Or I will say my holy
+father, since thou art a heretic----'
+
+Cranmer's eyes had always the expression of a man's who looked at
+approaching calamity, but at the King's words his whole face, his closed
+lips, his brows, the lines from his round nose, all drooped suddenly
+downwards.
+
+'Your Grace will have me write a letter to the--to his--to him----'
+
+The downward lines fixed themselves, and from amongst them the
+panic-stricken eyes made a dumb appeal to the griffins and crowns of his
+dark green hangings, for they were afraid to turn to the King. Henry
+retained his heavy look of jocularity: he jumped at a weighty gibe--
+
+'My Grace will have thy Grace write a letter to his Holiness.'
+
+He dropped into a heavy impassivity, rolled his eyes, fluttered his
+swollen fingers on the red and gilded table, and then said clearly, 'My.
+Thy. His.'
+
+When he was in that mood he spoke with a singular distinctness that came
+up from his husky and ordinary joviality like something dire and
+terrible--like that something that upon a clear smooth day will suggest
+to you suddenly the cruelty that lies always hidden in the limpid sea.
+
+'To Caesar--egomet, I mineself--that which is Caesar's: to him--that is to
+say to his Holiness, our lord of Rome--the things which are of God! But
+to thee, Archbishop, I know not what belongs.'
+
+He paused and then struck his hand upon the table: 'Cold porridge is thy
+portion! Cold porridge!' he laughed; 'for they say: Cold porridge to the
+devil! And, since thou art neither God's nor the King's, what may I call
+thee but the devil's self's man?'
+
+A heavy and minatory silence seemed to descend upon him; the
+Archbishop's thin hands opened suddenly as if he were letting something
+fall to the ground. The King scowled heavily, but rather as if he were
+remembering past heavinesses than for any present griefs.
+
+'Why,' he said, 'I am growing an old man. It is time I redded up my
+house.'
+
+It was as if he thought he could take his time, for his heavily pursed
+eyes looked down at the square tips of his fingers where they drummed on
+the table. He was such a weighty man that the old chair in which he sat
+creaked at the movement of his limbs. It was his affectation of courtesy
+that he would not sit in the Archbishop's own new gilded and great chair
+that had been brought from Lambeth on a mule's back along with the
+hangings. But the other furnishings of that Castle of Pontefract were as
+old as the days of Edward IV--even the scarlet wood of the table had
+upon it the arms of Edward IV's Queen Elizabeth, side by side with that
+King's. Henry noted it and said--
+
+'It is time these arms were changed. See that you have here fairly
+painted the arms of my Queen and me--Howard and Tudor--in token that we
+have passed this way and sojourned in this Castle of Pontefract.'
+
+He was dallying with time as if it were a luxury to dally: he looked
+curiously round the room.
+
+'Why, they have not housed you very well,' he said, and, as the
+Archbishop shivered suddenly, he added, 'there should be glass in the
+windows. This is a foul old kennel.'
+
+'I have made a complaint to the Earl Marshal,' Cranmer said dismally,
+'but 'a said there was overmuch room needed above ground.'
+
+This room was indeed below ground and very old, strong, and damp. The
+Archbishop's own hangings covered the walls, but the windows shot
+upwards through the stones to the light; there was upon the ground of
+stone not a carpet but only rushes; being early in the year, no
+provision was made for firing, and the soot of the chimney back was
+damp, and sparkled with the track of a snail that had lived there
+undisturbed for many years, and neither increasing, because it had no
+mate, nor dying, because it was well fed by the ferns that, behind the
+present hangings, grew in the joints of the stones. In that low-ceiled
+and dark place the Archbishop was aware that above his head were fair
+and sunlit rooms, newly painted and hung, with the bosses on the
+ceilings fresh silvered or gilt, all these fair places having been given
+over to kinsmen of the yellow Earl Marshal from the Norfolk Queen
+downwards. And the temporal and material neglect angered him and filled
+him with a querulous bitterness that gnawed up even through his dread of
+a future--still shadowy--fall and ruin.
+
+The King looked sardonically at the line of the ceiling. He had known
+that Norfolk, who was the Earl Marshal, had the mean mind to make him
+set these indignities upon the Archbishop, and loftily he considered
+this result as if the Archbishop were a cat mauled by his own dog whose
+nature it was to maul cats.
+
+The Archbishop had been standing with one hand on the arm of his heavy
+chair, about to haul it back from the table to sit himself down. He had
+been standing thus when the King had entered with the brusque words--
+
+'Make you ready to write a letter to Rome.'
+
+And he still stood there, the cold feet among the damp rushes, the cold
+hand still upon the arm of the chair, the cap pulled forward over his
+eyes, the long black gown hanging motionless to the boot tops that were
+furred around the ankles.
+
+'I have made a plaint to the Earl Marshal,' he said; 'it is not fitting
+that a lord of the Church should be so housed.'
+
+Henry eyed him sardonically.
+
+'Sir,' he said, 'I am being brought round to think that ye are only a
+false lord of the Church. And I am minded to think that ye are being
+brought round to trow even the like to mine own self.'
+
+His eyes rested, little and twinkling like a pig's, upon the opening of
+the Archbishop's cloak above his breastbone, and the Archbishop's right
+hand nervously sought that spot.
+
+'I was always of the thought,' he said, 'that the prohibition of the
+wearing of crucifixes was against your Highness' will and the teachings
+of the Church.'
+
+A great crucifix of silver, the Man of Sorrows depending dolorously from
+its arms and backed up by a plaque of silver so that it resembled a
+porter's badge, depended over the black buttons of his undercoat. He had
+put it on upon the day when secretly he had married Henry to the papist
+Lady Katharine Howard. On the same day he had put on a hair shirt, and
+he had never since removed either the one or the other. He had known
+very well that this news would reach the Queen's ears, as also that he
+had fasted thrice weekly and had taken a Benedictine sub-prior out of
+chains in the tower to be his second chaplain.
+
+'Holy Church! Holy Church!' the King muttered amusedly into the stiff
+hair of his chin and lips. The Archbishop was driven into one of his
+fits of panic-stricken boldness.
+
+'Your Grace,' he said, 'if ye write a letter to Rome you will--for I see
+not how ye may avoid it--reverse all your acts of this last twenty
+years.'
+
+'Your Grace,' the King mocked him, 'by your setting on of chains,
+crucifixes, phylacteries, and by your aping of monkish ways, ye have
+reversed--well ye know it--all my and thy acts of a long time gone.'
+
+He cast himself back from the table into the leathern shoulder-straps of
+the chair.
+
+'And if,' he continued with sardonic good-humour, 'my fellow and servant
+may reverse my acts--videlicet, the King's--wherefore shall not
+I--videlicet, the King--reverse what acts I will? It is to set me below
+my servants!'
+
+'I am minded to redd up my house!' he repeated after a moment.
+
+'Please it, your Grace----' the Archbishop muttered. His eyes were upon
+the door.
+
+The King said, 'Anan?' He could not turn his bulky head, he would not
+move his bulky body.
+
+'My gentleman!' the Archbishop whispered.
+
+The King looked at the opposite wall and cried out--
+
+'Come in, Lascelles. I am about cleaning out some stables of mine.'
+
+The door moved noiselessly and heavily back, taking the hangings with
+it; as if with the furtive eyes and feathery grace of a blonde fox
+Cranmer's spy came round the great boards.
+
+'Ay! I am doing some cleansing,' the King said again. 'Come hither and
+mend thy pen to write.'
+
+Against the King's huge bulk--Henry was wearing purple and black upon
+that day--and against the Archbishop's black and pillar-like form,
+Lascelles, in his scarlet, with his blonde and tender beard had an air
+of being quill-like. The bones of his knees through his tight and thin
+silken stockings showed almost as those of a skeleton; where the King
+had great chains of gilt and green jewels round his neck, and where the
+Archbishop had a heavy chain of silver, he had a thin chain of fine gold
+and a tiny badge of silver-gilt. He dragged one of his legs a little
+when he walked. That was the fashion of that day, because the King
+himself dragged his right leg, though the ulcer in it had been cured.
+
+Sitting askew in his chair at the table, the King did not look at this
+gentleman, but moved the fingers of his outstretched hand in token that
+his crook of the leg was kneeling enough for him.
+
+'Take your tablets and write,' Henry said; 'nay, take a great sheet of
+parchment and write----'
+
+'Your Grace,' he added to the Archbishop, 'ye are the greatest penner of
+solemn sentences that I have in my realm. What I shall say roughly to
+Lascelles you shall ponder upon and set down nobly, at first in the
+vulgar tongue and then in fine Latin.' He paused and added--
+
+'Nay; ye shall write it in the vulgar tongue, and the Magister Udal
+shall set it into Latin. He is the best Latinist we have--better than
+myself, for I have no time----'
+
+Lascelles was going between a great cabinet with iron hinges and the
+table. He fetched an inkhorn set into a tripod, a sandarach, and a roll
+of clean parchment that was tied around with a green ribbon.
+
+Upon the gold and red of the table he stretched out the parchment as if
+it had been a map. He mended his pen with a little knife and kneeled
+down upon the rushes beside the table, his chin level with the edge. His
+whole mind appeared to be upon keeping the yellowish sheet straight and
+true upon the red and gold, and he raised his eyes neither to the
+Archbishop's white face nor yet to the King's red one.
+
+Henry stroked the short hairs of his neck below the square grey beard.
+He was reflecting that very soon all the people in that castle, and very
+soon after, most of the people in that land would know what he was about
+to say.
+
+'Write now,' he said. '"Henry--by the grace of God--Defender of the
+Faith--King, Lord Paramount."' He stirred in his chair.
+
+'Set down all my styles and titles: "Duke
+Palatine--Earl--Baron--Knight"--leave out nothing, for I will show how
+mighty I am.' He hummed, considered, set his head on one side and then
+began to speak swiftly--
+
+'Set it down thus: "We, Henry, and the rest, being a very mighty King,
+such as few have been, are become a very humble man. A man broken by
+years, having suffered much. A man humbled to the dust, crawling to kiss
+the wounds of his Redeemer. A Lord of many miles both of sea and land."
+Why, say--
+
+'"Guide and Leader of many legions, yet comes he to thee for guidance."
+Say, too, "He who was proud cometh to thee to regain his pride. He who
+was proud in things temporal cometh to thee that he may once more have
+the pride of a champion in Christendom----"'
+
+He had been speaking as if with a malicious glee, for his words seemed
+to strike, each one, into the face of the pallid figure, darkly standing
+before him. And he was aware that each word increased the stiff and
+watchful constraint of the figure that knelt beside the table to write.
+But suddenly his glee left him; he scowled at the Archbishop as if
+Cranmer had caused him to sin. He pulled at the collar around his
+throat.
+
+'No,' he cried out, 'write down in simple words that I am a very sinful
+man. Set it down that I grow old! That I am filled with fears for my
+poor soul! That I have sinned much! That I recall all that I have done!
+An old man, I come to my Saviour's Regent upon earth. A man aware of
+error, I will make restitution tenfold! Say I am broken and aged and
+afraid! I kneel down on the ground----'
+
+He cast his inert mass suddenly a little forward as if indeed he were
+about to come on to his knees in the rushes.
+
+'Say----' he muttered--'say----'
+
+But his face and his eyes became suffused with blood.
+
+'It is a very difficult thing,' he uttered huskily, 'to meddle in these
+sacred matters.'
+
+He fell heavily back into his chair-straps once more.
+
+'I do not know what I will have you to say,' he said.
+
+He looked broodingly at the floor.
+
+'I do not know,' he muttered.
+
+He rolled his eyes, first to the face of the Archbishop, then to
+Lascelles--
+
+'Body of God--what carved turnips!' he said, for in the one face there
+was only panic, and in the other nothing at all. He rolled on to his
+feet, catching at the table to steady himself.
+
+'Write what you will,' he called, 'to these intents and purposes. Or
+stay to write--I will send you a letter much more good from the upper
+rooms.'
+
+Cranmer suddenly stretched out, with a timid pitifulness, his white
+hands. But, rolling his huge shoulders, like a hastening bear, the King
+went over the rushes. He pulled the heavy door to with such a vast force
+that the latch came again out of the hasp, and the door, falling slowly
+back and quivering as if with passion, showed them his huge legs
+mounting the little staircase.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+A long silence fell in that dim room. The Archbishop's lips moved
+silently, the spy's glance went, level, along his parchment. Suddenly he
+grinned mirthlessly and as if at a shameless thought.
+
+'The Queen will write the letter his Grace shall send us,' he said.
+
+Then their eyes met. The one glance, panic-stricken, seeing no issue,
+hopeless and without resource, met the other--crafty, alert, fox-like,
+with a dance in it. The glances transfused and mingled. Lascelles
+remained upon his knees as if, stretching out his right knee behind him,
+he were taking a long rest.
+
+
+II
+
+It was almost within earshot of these two men in their dim cell that the
+Queen walked from the sunlight into shadow and out again. This great
+terrace looked to the north and west, and, from the little hillock,
+dominating miles of gently rising ground, she had a great view over
+rolling and very green country. The original builders of the Castle of
+Pontefract had meant this terrace to be flagged with stone: but the
+work had never been carried so far forward. There was only a path of
+stone along the bowshot and a half of stone balustrade; the rest had
+once been gravel, but the grass had grown over it; that had been
+scythed, and nearly the whole space was covered with many carpets of
+blue and red and other very bright colours. In the left corner when you
+faced inwards there was a great pavilion of black cloth, embroidered
+very closely with gold and held up by ropes of red and white. Though
+forty people could sit in it round the table, it appeared very small,
+the walls of the castle towered up so high. They towered up so high, so
+square, and so straight that from the terrace below you could hardly
+hear the flutter of the huge banner of St George, all red and white
+against the blue sky, though sometimes in a gust it cracked like a huge
+whip, and its shadow, where it fell upon the terrace, was sufficient to
+cover four men.
+
+To take away from the grimness of the flat walls many little banners had
+been suspended from loopholes and beneath windows. Swallow-tailed, long,
+or square, they hung motionless in the shelter, or, since the dying away
+of the great gale three days before, had looped themselves over their
+staffs. These were all painted green, because that was the Queen's
+favourite colour, being the emblem of Hope.
+
+A little pavilion, all of green silk, at the very edge of the platform,
+had all its green curtains looped up, so that only the green roof
+showed; and, within, two chairs, a great leathern one for the King, a
+little one of red and white wood for the Queen, stood side by side as if
+they conversed with each other. At the top of it was a golden image of a
+lion, and above the peak of the entrance another, golden too, of the
+Goddess Flora, carrying a cornucopia of flowers, to symbolise that this
+tent was a summer abode for pleasantness.
+
+Here the King and Queen, for the four days that they had been in the
+castle, had delighted much to sit, resting after their long ride up from
+the south country. For it pleased Henry to let his eyes rest upon a
+great view of this realm that was his, and to think nothing; and it
+pleased Katharine Howard to think that now she swayed this land, and
+that soon she would alter its face.
+
+They looked out, over the tops of the elm trees that grew right up
+against the terrace wall; but the land itself was too green, the fields
+too empty of dwellings. There was no one but sheep between all the
+hedgerows: there was, in all the wide view, but one church tower, and
+where, in place and place, there stood clusters of trees as if to
+shelter homesteads--nearly always the homesteads had fallen to ruin
+beneath the boughs. Upon one ridge one could see the long walls of an
+unroofed abbey. But, to the keenest eye no men were visible, save now
+and then a shepherd leaning on his crook. There was no ploughland at
+all. Now and then companies of men in helmets and armour rode up to or
+away from the castle. Once she had seen the courtyard within the keep
+filled with cattle that lowed uneasily. But these, she had learned, had
+been taken from cattle thieves by the men of the Council of the Northern
+Borders. They were destined for the provisioning of that castle during
+her stay there, they being forfeit, whether Scotch or English.
+
+'Ah,' she said, 'whilst his Grace rides north to meet the King's Scots I
+will ride east and west and south each day.'
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+At that moment, whilst the King had left Cranmer and his spy and, to
+regain his composure, was walking up and down in her chamber, she was
+standing beside the Duke of Norfolk about midway between the end of the
+terrace and the little green pavilion.
+
+She was all in a dark purple dress, to please the King whose mood that
+colour suited; and the Duke's yellow face looked out above a suit all of
+black. He wore that to please the King too, for the King was of opinion
+that no gathering looked gay in its colours that had not many men in
+black amongst the number.
+
+He said--
+
+'You do not ride north with his Grace?'
+
+He leaned upon his two staves, one long and of silver, the other shorter
+and gilt; his gown fell down to his ankles, his dark and half-closed
+eyes looked out at a tree that, struck lately by lightning, stretched up
+half its boughs all naked from a little hillock beside a pond a mile
+away.
+
+'So it is settled between his Grace and me,' she said. She did not much
+like her uncle, for she had little cause. But, the King being away, she
+walked with him rather than with another man.
+
+'I ask, perforce,' he said, 'for I have much work in the ordering of
+your progresses.'
+
+'We meant that you should have that news this day,' she said.
+
+He shot one glance at her face, then turned his eyes again upon the
+stricken tree. Her face was absolutely calm and without expression, as
+it had been always when she had directed him what she would have done.
+He could trace no dejection in it: on the other hand, he gave her credit
+for a great command over her features. That he had himself. And, in the
+niece's eyes, as they moved from the backs of a flock of sheep to the
+dismantled abbey on the ridge, there was something of the enigmatic
+self-containment that was in the uncle's steady glance. He could observe
+no dejection, and at that he humbled himself a little more.
+
+'Ay,' he said, 'the ordering of your progresses is a heavy burden. I
+would have you commend what I have done here.'
+
+She looked at him, at that, as if with a swift jealousy. His eyes were
+roving upon the gay carpets, the pavilions, and the flags against the
+grim walls, depending in motionless streaks of colour.
+
+'The King's Grace's self,' she said, 'did tell me that all these things
+he ordered and thought out for my pleasuring.'
+
+Norfolk dropped his eyes to the ground.
+
+'Aye,' he said, 'his Grace ordered them and their placing. There is no
+man to equal his Grace for such things; but I had the work of setting
+them where they are. I would have your favour for that.'
+
+She appeared appeased and gave him her hand to kiss. There was a little
+dark mole upon the third finger.
+
+'The last niece that I had for Queen,' he said, 'would not suffer me to
+kiss her hand.'
+
+She looked at him a little absently, for, because since she had been
+Queen--and before--she had been a lonely woman, she was given to
+thinking her own thoughts whilst others talked.
+
+She was troubled by the condition of her chief maid Margot Poins. Margot
+Poins was usually tranquil, modest, submissive in a cheerful manner and
+ready to converse. But of late she had been moody, and sunk in a dull
+silence. And that morning she had suddenly burst out into a smouldering,
+heavy passion, and had torn Katharine's hair whilst she dressed it.
+
+'Ay,' Margot had said, 'you are Queen: you can do what you will. It is
+well to be Queen. But we who are dirt underfoot, we cannot do one single
+thing.'
+
+And, because she was lonely, with only Lady Rochford, who was foolish,
+and this girl to talk to, it had grieved the Queen to find this girl
+growing so lumpish and dull. At that time, whilst her hair was being
+dressed, she had answered only--
+
+'Yea; it is good to be a Queen. But you will find it in Seneca----' and
+she had translated for Margot the passage which says that eagles are as
+much tied by weighty ropes as are finches caught in tiny fillets.
+
+'Oh, your Latin,' Margot had said. 'I would I had never heard the sound
+of it, but had stuck to clean English.'
+
+Katharine imagined then that it was some new flame of the Magister
+Udal's that was troubling the girl, and this troubled her too, for she
+did not like that her maids should be played with by men, and she loved
+Margot for her past loyalties, readiness, and companionship.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+She came out of her thoughts to say to her uncle, remembering his speech
+about her hands--
+
+'Aye; I have heard that Anne Boleyn had six fingers upon her right
+hand.'
+
+'She had six upon each, but she concealed it,' he answered. 'It was her
+greatest grief.'
+
+Katharine realised that his sardonic tone, his bitter yellow face, the
+croak in his voice, and his stiff gait--all these things were signs of
+his hostility to her. And his mention of Anne Boleyn, who had been
+Queen, much as she was, and of her bitter fate, this mention, if it
+could not be a threat, was, at least, a reminder meant to give her fears
+and misgiving. When she had been a child--and afterwards, until the very
+day when she had been shown for Queen--her uncle had always treated her
+with a black disdain, as he treated all the rest of the world. When he
+had--and it was rarely enough--come to visit her grandmother, the old
+Duchess of Norfolk, he had always been like that. Through the old
+woman's huge, lonely, and ugly halls he had always stridden, halting a
+little over the rushes, and all creatures must keep out of his way. Once
+he had kicked her little dog, once he had pushed her aside; but
+probably, then, when she had been no more than a child, he had not known
+who she was, for she had lived with the servants and played with the
+servants' children, much like one of them, and her grandmother had known
+little of the household or its ways.
+
+She answered him sharply--
+
+'I have heard that you were no good friend to your niece, Anne Boleyn,
+when she was in her troubles.'
+
+He swallowed in his throat and gazed impassively at the distant oak
+tree, nevertheless his knee trembled with fury. And Katharine knew very
+well that if, more than another, he took pleasure in giving pain with
+his words, he bore the pain of other's words less well than most men.
+
+'The Queen Anne,' he said, 'was a heretic. No better was she than a
+Protestant. She battened upon the goods of our Church. Why should I
+defend her?'
+
+'Uncle,' she said, 'where got you the jewel in your bonnet?'
+
+He started a little back at that, and the small veins in his yellow
+eye-whites grew inflamed with blood.
+
+'Queen----' he brought out between rage and astonishment that she
+should dare the taunt.
+
+'I think it came from the great chalice of the Abbey of Rising,' she
+said. 'We are valiant defenders of the Church, who wear its spoils upon
+our very brows.'
+
+It was as if she had thrown down a glove to him and to a great many that
+were behind him.
+
+She knew very well where she stood, and she knew very well what her
+uncle and his friends awaited for her, for Margot, her maid, brought her
+alike the gossip of the Court and the loudly voiced threats and
+aspirations of the city. For the Protestants--she knew them and cared
+little for them. She did not believe there were very many in the King's
+and her realm, and mostly they were foreign merchants and poor men who
+cared little as long as their stomachs were filled. If these had their
+farms again they would surely return to the old faith, and she was
+minded to do away with the sheep. For it was the sheep that had brought
+discontent to England. To make way for these fleeces the ploughmen had
+been dispossessed.
+
+It was natural that Protestants should hate her; but with Norfolk and
+his like it was different. She knew very well that Norfolk came there
+that day and waited every day, watching anxiously for the first sign
+that the King's love for her should cool. She knew very well that they
+said in the Court that with the King it was only possession and then
+satiety. And she knew very well that when Norfolk's eyes searched her
+face it was for signs of dismay and of discouragement. And when Norfolk
+had said that he himself had placed the banners, the tents, the
+pavilions and carpets that made gay all that grim terrace of the air, he
+was essaying to make her think that the King was abandoning the task of
+doing her honour. This had made her angry, for it was such folly. Her
+uncle should have known that the King had discussed all these things
+with her, asking her what she liked, and that all these bright colours
+and these plaisaunces were what her man had gallantly thought out for
+her. She carried her challenge still further.
+
+'It ill becomes us Howards and all like us,' she said, 'to talk of how
+we will defend the Church of God----'
+
+'I am a swordsman only,' he said. 'Give me that----'
+
+She was not minded to listen to him.
+
+'It becomes us ill,' she said; 'and I take shame in it. For, a very few
+years agone we Howards were very poor. Now we are very rich--though it
+is true that my father is still a very poor man, and your stepmother, my
+grandmother, has known hard shifts. But we Howards, through you who are
+our head, became amongst the richest in the land. And how?'
+
+'I have done services----' the Duke began.
+
+'Why, there has been no new wealth made in this realm,' she said; 'it
+came from the Church. Consider what you have had of this Abbey of
+Risings that I speak of, because I knew it well as a child, and saw many
+times then, sparkling in that which held the blood of my Saviour, the
+jewel that is now in your cap.'
+
+The Abbey of Risings, after the visitors had been to it and the monks
+had been driven out, had fallen to the Duke of Norfolk. And his men had
+stripped the lead from the roofs, the glass from the windows, the very
+tiles from the floor. And this little abbey was only one of many, large
+and small, that had fallen to the Duke, so that it was true enough that,
+through him, the Howards had become a very rich family.
+
+Norfolk burst into a sudden speech--
+
+'I hold these things only as a trust,' he said. 'I am ready to restore.'
+
+'Why, that is very well,' Katharine said; 'and I have hopes that soon
+you will be called to make that restoration to your God.'
+
+Norfolk looked at the square toes of his shoes for a long time.
+
+'Will you have _all_ things to be given back?' he said at last after he
+had thought much.
+
+'The King will have all things be as they were before the Queen
+Katharine, my namesake of Aragon, was undone,' Katharine answered. 'And
+me he will have to take her place so that all things shall be as before
+they were.'
+
+The Duke, leaning on his silver and gold staves, shrugged his shoulders
+very slowly.
+
+'This will make a very great confusion,' he said.
+
+'Ay,' Katharine answered, 'there will a very many be confounded, and a
+great number of hundreds be much annoyed.'
+
+She broke in again upon his slow meditations--
+
+'Sir,' she said, 'this is a very pitiful thing! Privy Seal that is dead
+and done with worked with a very great cunning. Well he knew that for
+most men the heart resideth in the pocket. Therefore, though ye said all
+that he rode this land with a bridle of iron, he was very careful to
+stop all your mouths alike with pieces of gold. It was not only to his
+friends that he gave what had been taken from God, but he was very
+careful that much also should fall into the greedy mouths of those that
+cried out. If he had not done this, do you think that he would have
+remained so long above the earth that he made weary? No. But since he
+made all rich alike with this plunder, so there was no man, either
+Catholic or Lutheran, very anxious to have him away. And, now that he is
+dead he worketh still. For who among you lords that do call yourselves
+sons of the Church, but holdeth of the Church's goods? Oh, bethink you!
+bethink you! The moment is at hand when ye may work restoration. See
+that ye do it willingly and with good hearts, smoothing and making plain
+the way by which the bruised feet of our Saviour shall come across this,
+His land.'
+
+Norfolk kept his eyes upon the ground.
+
+'Why, for me,' he said, 'I am very willing. This day I will send to set
+clerks at work discovering that which is mine and that which came from
+the Church; but I think you will find some that will not do it so
+eagerly.'
+
+She believed him very little; and she said--
+
+'Why, if you will do this thing I think there will not many be
+behindhand.'
+
+He did what he could to conceal his wincing, and her voice changed its
+tone.
+
+'Sir,' she said, and she was eager and pleading, 'you have many men that
+take counsel with you, for I trow that you and my Lord of Winchester do
+lead such lords as be Catholic in this realm. I know very well that you
+and my Lord Bishop of Winchester and such Catholic lords would have me
+to be your puppet and so work as you would have me, giving back to the
+Church such things as have fallen to Protestants or to men that ye
+mislike. But that may not be, for, since I owe mine advancement not to
+you, nor to mine own efforts, but to God alone, so to God alone do I owe
+fealty.'
+
+She stretched out towards him the hand that he had kissed. The tail of
+her coif fell almost to her feet; her body in the fresh sunlight was all
+cased in purple velvet, only the lawn of her undershirt showed, white
+and tremulous at her wrists and her neck; and, fair and contrasted with
+the gold of her hair, her face came out of its abstraction, to take on a
+pitiful and mournful earnestness.
+
+'Sir,' she said, 'if you shall speak for God in the councils that you
+will hold, believe that your rewards shall be very great. I think that
+you have been a man of a very troubled mind, for you have thought only
+or mostly of the affairs of this world. But do now this one good stroke
+for God His piteous sake, and such a peace shall descend upon you as you
+have never yet known. You shall have no more griefs; you shall have no
+more fears. And that is better than the jewels of chalices, and than
+much lead from the roofs of abbeys. Speak you thus in these councils
+that you shall hold, give you such advice to them that come to you
+seeking it, and this I promise you--for it is too little a thing to
+promise you the love of a Queen and a King's favour, though that too ye
+shall not lack--but this I promise you, that there shall descend upon
+your heart that most blessed miracle and precious wealth, the peace of
+God.'
+
+
+III
+
+When Henry was calmed by his pacing in her chamber he came out to her in
+the sunlight, rolling and bear-like, and so huge that the terrace seemed
+to grow smaller.
+
+'Chuck,' he said to her, 'I ha' done a thing to pleasure thee.' He moved
+two fingers upwards to save the Duke of Norfolk from falling to his
+knees, caught Katharine by the elbow, and, turning upon himself as on a
+huge pivot, swung her round him so that they faced the pavilion. 'Sha't
+not talk with a citron-faced uncle,' he said; 'sha't save sweet words
+for me. I will tell thee what I ha' done to pleasure thee.'
+
+'Save it a while and do another ere ye tell me,' she said.
+
+'Now, what is your reasoning about that, wise one?' he asked.
+
+She laughed at him, for she took pleasure in his society and, except
+when she was earnest to beg things of him, she was mostly gay at his
+side.
+
+'It takes a woman to teach kings,' she said.
+
+He answered that it took a Queen to teach him.
+
+'Why,' she said, 'listen! I know that each day ye do things to pleasure
+me, things prodigal or such little things as giving me pouncet boxes.
+But you will find--and a woman, quean or queen, knows it well--that to
+take the full pleasure of her lover's surprises well, she must have an
+easy mind. And to have an easy mind she must have granted her the
+little, little boons she asketh.'
+
+He reflected ponderously upon this point and at last, with a sort of
+peasant's gravity, nodded his head.
+
+'For,' she said, 'if a woman is to take pleasure she must guess at what
+you men have done for her. And if she be to guess pleasurably, she must
+have a clear mind. And if I am to have a clear mind I must have a maiden
+consoled with a husband.'
+
+Henry seated himself carefully in the great chair of the small pavilion.
+He spread out his knees, blinked at the view and when, having cast a
+look round to see that Norfolk was gone--for it did not suit her that he
+should see on what terms she was with the King--she seated herself on a
+little foot-pillow at his feet, he set a great hand upon her head. She
+leaned her arms across over his knees, and looked up at him appealingly.
+
+'I do take it,' he said, 'that I must make some man rich to wed some
+poor maid.'
+
+'Oh, Solomon!' she said.
+
+'And I do take it,' he continued with gravity, 'that this maid is thy
+maid Margot.'
+
+'How know you that?' she said.
+
+'I have observed her,' he maintained gravely.
+
+'Why, you could not well miss her,' she answered. 'She is as big as a
+plough-ox.'
+
+'I have observed,' he said--and he blinked his little eyes as if,
+pleasurably, she were, with her words, whispering around his head. 'I
+have observed that ye affected her.'
+
+'Why, she likes me well. She is a good wench--and to-day she tore my
+hair.'
+
+'Then that is along of a man?' he asked. 'Didst not stick thy needle in
+her arm? Or wilto be quit of her?'
+
+She rubbed her chin.
+
+'Why, if she wed, I mun be quit of her,' she said, as if she had never
+thought of that thing.
+
+He answered--
+
+'Assuredly; for ye may not part man and lawful wife were you seven times
+Queen.'
+
+'Why,' she said, 'I have little pleasure in Margot as she is.'
+
+'Then let her go,' he answered.
+
+'But I am a very lonely Queen,' she said, 'for you are much absent.'
+
+He reflected pleasurably.
+
+'Thee wouldst have about thee a little company of well-wishers?'
+
+'So that they be those thou lovest well,' she said.
+
+'Why, thy maid contents me,' he answered. He reflected slowly. 'We must
+give her man a post about thee,' he uttered triumphantly.
+
+'Why, trust thee to pleasure me,' she said. 'You will find out a way
+always.'
+
+He scrubbed her nose gently with his heavy finger.
+
+'Who is the man?' he said. 'What ruffler?'
+
+'I think it is the Magister Udal,' she answered.
+
+Henry said--
+
+'Oh ho! oh ho!' And after a moment he slapped his thigh and laughed like
+a child. She laughed with him, silverly upon a little sound between 'ah'
+and 'e.' He stopped his laugh to listen to hers, and then he said
+gravely--
+
+'I think your laugh is the prettiest sound I ever heard. I would give
+thy maid Margot a score of husbands to make thee laugh.'
+
+'One is enough to make her weep,' she said; 'and I may laugh at thee.'
+
+He said--
+
+'Let us finish this business within the hour. Sit you upon your chair
+that I may call one to send this ruffler here.'
+
+She rose, with one sinuous motion that pleased him well, half to her
+feet and, feeling behind her with one hand for the chair, aided herself
+with the other upon his shoulder because she knew that it gave him joy
+to be her prop.
+
+'Call the maid, too,' she said, 'for I would come to the secret soon.'
+
+That pleased him too, and, having shouted for a knave he once more shook
+with laughter.
+
+'Oh ho,' he said, 'you will net this old fox, will you?'
+
+And, having sent his messenger off to summon the Magister from the Lady
+Mary's room, and the maid from the Queen's, he continued for a while to
+soliloquise as to Udal's predicament. For he had heard the Magister rail
+against matrimony in Latin hexameters and doggerel Greek. He knew that
+the Magister was an incorrigible fumbler after petticoats. And now, he
+said, this old fox was to be bagged and tied up.
+
+He said--
+
+'Well, well, well; well, well!'
+
+For, if a Queen commanded a marriage, a marriage there must be; there
+was no more hope for the Magister than for any slave of Cato's. He was
+cabined, ginned, trapped, shut in from the herd of bachelors. It pleased
+the King very well.
+
+The King grasped the gilded arms of his great chair, Katharine sat
+beside him, her hands laid one within another upon her lap. She did not
+say one single word during the King's interview with Magister Udal.
+
+The Magister fell upon his knees before them and, seeing the laughing
+wrinkles round the King's little eyes, made sure that he was sent
+for--as had often been the case--to turn into Latin some jest the King
+had made. His gown fell about his kneeling shins, his cap was at his
+side, his lean, brown, and sly face, with the long nose and crafty eyes,
+was like a woodpecker's.
+
+'Goodman Magister,' Henry said. 'Stand up. We have sent for thee to
+advance thee.' Without moving his head he rolled his eyes to one side.
+He loved his dramatic effects and wished to await the coming of the
+Queen's maid, Margot, before he gave the weight of his message.
+
+Udal picked up his cap and came up to his feet before them; he had
+beneath his gown a little book, and one long finger between its leaves
+to keep his place where he had been reading. For he had forgotten a
+saying of Thales, and was reading through Caesar's Commentaries to find
+it.
+
+'As Seneca said,' he uttered in his throat, 'advancement is doubly sweet
+to them that deserve it not.'
+
+'Why,' the King said, 'we advance thee on the deserts of one that finds
+thee sweet, and is sweet to one doubly sweet to us, Henry of Windsor
+that speak sweet words to thee.'
+
+The lines on Udal's face drooped all a little downwards.
+
+'Y'are reader in Latin to the Lady Mary,' the King said.
+
+'I have little deserved in that office,' Udal answered; 'the lady reads
+Latin better than even I.'
+
+'Why, you lie in that,' Henry said, ''a readeth well for she's my
+daughter; but not so well as thee.'
+
+Udal ducked his head; he was not minded to carry modesty further than in
+reason.
+
+'The Lady Mary--the Lady Mary of England----' the King said
+weightily--and these last two words of his had a weight all their own,
+so that he added, 'of England' again, and then, 'will have little longer
+need of thee. She shall wed with a puissant Prince.'
+
+'I hail, I felicitate, I bless the day I hear those words,' the Magister
+said.
+
+'Therefore,' the King said--and his ears had caught the rustle of
+Margot's grey gown--'we will let thee no more be reader to that my
+daughter.'
+
+Margot came round the green silk curtains that were looped on the corner
+posts of the pavilion. When she saw the Magister her great, fair face
+became slowly of a fiery red; slowly and silently she fell, with motions
+as if bovine, to her knees at the Queen's side. Her gown was all grey,
+but it had roses of red and white silk round the upper edges of the
+square neck-place, and white lawn showed beneath her grey cap.
+
+'We advance thee,' Henry said, 'to be Chancellier de la Royne, with an
+hundred pounds by the year from my purse. Do homage for thine office.'
+
+Udal fell upon one knee before Katharine, and dropping both cap and
+book, took her hand to raise to his lips. But Margot caught her hand
+when he had done with it and set upon it a huge pressure.
+
+'But, Sir Chancellor,' the King said, 'it is evident that so grave an
+office must have a grave fulfiller. And, to ballast thee the better, the
+Queen of her graciousness hath found thee a weighty helpmeet. So that,
+before you shall touch the duties and emoluments of this charge you
+shall, and that even to-night, wed this Madam Margot that here kneels.'
+
+Udal's face had been of a coppery green pallor ever since he had heard
+the title of Chancellor.
+
+'Eheu!' he said, 'this is the torture of Tantalus that might never
+drink.'
+
+In its turn the face of Margot Poins grew pale, pushed forward towards
+him; but her eyes appeared to blaze, for all they were a mild blue, and
+the Queen felt the pressure upon her hand grow so hard that it pained
+her.
+
+The King uttered the one word, 'Magister!'
+
+Udal's fingers picked at the fur of his moth-eaten gown.
+
+'God be favourable to me,' he said. 'If it were anything but
+Chancellor!'
+
+The King grew more rigid.
+
+'Body of God,' he said, 'will you wed with this maid?'
+
+'Ahi!' the Magister wailed; and his perturbation had in it something
+comic and scarecrowlike, as if a wind shook him from within. 'If you
+will make me anything but a Chancellor, I will. But a Chancellor, I dare
+not.'
+
+The King cast himself back in his chair. The suggested gibe rose
+furiously to his lips; the Magister quailed and bent before him,
+throwing out his hands.
+
+'Sire,' he said, 'if--which God forbid--this were a Protestant realm I
+might do it. But oh, pardon and give ear. Pardon and give ear----'
+
+He waved one hand furiously at the silken canopy above them.
+
+'It is agreed with one of mine in Paris that she shall come hither--God
+forgive me, I must make avowal, though God knows I would not--she shall
+come hither to me if she do hear that I have risen to be a Chancellor.'
+
+The King said, 'Body of God!' as if it were an earthquake.
+
+'If it were anything else but Chancellor she might not come, and I would
+wed Margot Poins more willingly than any other. But--God knows I do not
+willingly make this avowal, but am in a corner, _sicut vulpis in
+lucubris_, like a fox in the coils--this Paris woman is my wife.'
+
+Henry gave a great shout of laughter, but slowly Margot Poins fell
+across the Queen's knees. She uttered no sound, but lay there
+motionless. The sight affected Udal to an epileptic fury.
+
+'Jove be propitious to me!' he stuttered out. 'I know not what I can
+do.' He began to tear the fur of his cloak and toss it over the
+battlements. 'The woman is my wife--wed by a friar. If this were a
+Protestant realm now--or if I pleaded pre-contract--and God knows I ha'
+promised marriage to twenty women before I, in an evil day, married
+one--eheu!--to this one----'
+
+He began to sob and to wring his thin hands.
+
+'_Quod faciam? Me miser! Utinam. Utinam----_'
+
+He recovered a little coherence.
+
+'If this were a Protestant land ye might say this wedding was no
+wedding, for that a friar did it; but I know ye will not suffer that----'
+His eyes appealed piteously to the Queen.
+
+'Why, then,' he said, 'it is not upon my head that I do not wed this
+wench. You be my witness that I would wed; it gores my heart to see her
+look so pale. It tears my vitals to see any woman look pale. As
+Lucretius says, "Better the sunshine of smiles----"'
+
+A little outputting of impatient breath from Katharine made him stop.
+
+'It is you, your Grace,' he said, 'that make me thus tied. If you would
+let us be Protestant, or, again, if I could plead pre-contract to void
+this Paris marriage it would let me wed with this wench--eheu--eheu. Her
+brother will break my bones----'
+
+He began to cry out so lamentably, invoking Pluto to bear him to the
+underworld, that the King roared out upon him--
+
+'Why, get you gone, fool.'
+
+The Magister threw himself suddenly upon his knees, his hands clasped,
+his gown drooping over them down to his wrists. He turned his face to
+the Queen.
+
+'Before God,' he said, 'before high and omnipotent Jove, I swear that
+when I made this marriage I thought it was no marriage!' He reflected
+for a breath and added, at the recollection of the cook's spits that had
+been turned against him when he had by woman's guile been forced into
+marriage with the widow in Paris, 'I was driven into it by force, with
+sharp points at my throat. Is that not enow to void a marriage? Is that
+not enow? Is that not enow?'
+
+Katharine looked out over the great levels of the view. Her face was
+rigid, and she swallowed in her throat, her eye being glazed and hard.
+The King took his cue from a glance at her face.
+
+'Get you gone, Goodman Rogue Magister,' he said, and he adopted a
+canonical tone that went heavily with his rustic pose. 'A marriage made
+and consummated and properly blessed by holy friar there is no undoing.
+You are learned enough to know that. Rogue that you be, I am very glad
+that you are trapped by this marriage. Well I know that you have dangled
+too much with petticoats, to the great scandal of this my Court. Now you
+have lost your preferment, and I am glad of it. Another and a better
+than thou shall be the Queen's Chancellor, for another and a better than
+thou shall wed this wench. We will get her such a goodly husband----'
+
+A low, melancholy wail from Margot Poins' agonised face--a sound such as
+might have been made by an ox in pain--brought him to a stop. It wrung
+the Magister, who could not bear to see a woman pained, up to a pitch of
+ecstatic courage.
+
+'_Quid fecit Caesar_,' he stuttered; 'what Caesar hath done, Caesar can do
+again. It was not till very lately since this canon of wedding and
+consummating and blessing by a holy friar hath been derided and
+contemned in this realm. And so it might be again----'
+
+Katharine Howard cried out, 'Ah!' Her features grew rigid and as ashen
+as cold steel. And, at her cry, the King--who could less bear than Udal
+to hear a woman in pain--the King sprang up from his chair. It was as
+amazing to all them as to hunters it is to see a great wild bull charge
+with a monstrous velocity. Udal was rigid with fear, and the King had
+him by the throat. He shook him backwards and forwards so that his book
+fell upon the Queen's feet, bursting out of his ragged gown, and his
+cap, flying from his opened hand, fell down over the battlement into an
+elm top. The King guttered out unintelligible sounds of fury from his
+vast chest and, planted on his huge feet, he swung the Magister round
+him till, backwards and staggering, the eyes growing fixed in his brown
+and rigid face, he was pushed, jerking at each step of the King, out of
+sight behind the green silk curtains.
+
+The Queen sat motionless in her purple velvet. She twisted one hand into
+the chain of the medallion about her throat, and one hand lay open and
+pale by her side. Margot Poins knelt at her side, her face hidden in the
+Queen's lap, her two arms stretched out beyond her grey coifed head. For
+a minute she was silent. Then great sobs shook her so that Katharine
+swayed upon her seat. From her hidden face there came muffled and
+indistinguishable words, and at last Katharine said dully--
+
+'What, child? What, child?'
+
+Margot moved her face sideways so that her mouth was towards Katharine.
+
+'You can unmake it! You can unmake the marriage,' she brought out in
+huge sobs.
+
+Katharine said--
+
+'No! No!'
+
+'You unmade a King's marriage,' Margot wailed.
+
+Katharine said--
+
+'No! No!' She started and uttered the words loudly; she added pitifully,
+'You do not understand! You do not understand!'
+
+It was the more pitiful in that Margot understood very well. She hid her
+face again and only sobbed heavily and at long intervals, and then with
+many sobs at once. The Queen laid her white hand upon the girl's head.
+Her other still played with the chain.
+
+'Christ be piteous to me,' she said. 'I think it had been better if I
+had never married the King.'
+
+Margot uttered an indistinguishable sound.
+
+'I think it had been better,' the Queen said; 'though I had jeoparded my
+immortal part.'
+
+Margot moved her head up to cry out in her turn--
+
+'No! No! You may not say it!'
+
+Then she dropped her face again. When she heard the King coming back and
+breathing heavily, she stood up, and with huge tears on her red and
+crumpled face she looked out upon the fields as if she had never seen
+them before. An immense sob shook her. The King stamped his foot with
+rage, and then, because he was soft-hearted to them that he saw in
+sorrow, he put his hand upon her shoulder.
+
+'Sha't have a better mate,' he uttered. 'Sha't be a knight's dame!
+There! there!' and he fondled her great back with his hand. Her eyes
+screwed tightly up, she opened her mouth wide, but no words came out,
+and suddenly she shook her head as if she had been an enraged child. Her
+loud cries, shaken out of her with her tears, died away as she went
+across the terrace, a loud one and then a little echo, a loud one and
+then two more.
+
+'Before God!' the King said, 'that knave shall eat ten years of prison
+bread.'
+
+His wife looked still over the wooded enclosures, the little stone
+walls, and the copses. A small cloud had come before the sun, and its
+shadow was moving leisurely across the ridge where stood the roofless
+abbey.
+
+'The maid shall have the best man I can give her,' the King said.
+
+'Why, no good man would wed her!' Katharine answered dully.
+
+Henry said--
+
+'Anan?' Then he fingered the dagger on the chain before his chest.
+
+'Why,' he added slowly, 'then the Magister shall die by the rope. It is
+an offence that can be quitted with death. It is time such a thing were
+done.'
+
+Katharine's dull silence spurred him; he shrugged his shoulders and
+heaved a deep breath out.
+
+'Why,' he said, 'a man can be found to wed the wench.'
+
+She moved one hand and uttered--
+
+'I would not wed her to such a man!' as if it were a matter that was not
+much in her thoughts.
+
+'Then she may go into a nunnery,' the King said; 'for before three
+months are out we will have many nunneries in this realm.'
+
+She looked upon him a little absently, but she smiled at him to give him
+pleasure. She was thinking that she wished she had not wedded him; but
+she smiled because, things being as they were, she thought that she had
+all the authorities of the noble Greeks and Romans to bid her do what a
+good wife should.
+
+He laughed at her griefs, thinking that they were all about Margot
+Poins. He uttered jolly grossnesses; he said that she little knew the
+way of courts if she thought that a man, and a very good man, might not
+be found to wed the wench.
+
+She was troubled that he could not better read what was upon her mind,
+for she was thinking that her having consented to his making null his
+marriage with the Princess of Cleves that he might wed her would render
+her work always the more difficult. It would render her more the target
+for evil tongues, it would set a sterner and a more stubborn opposition
+against her task of restoring the Kingdom of God within that realm.
+
+Henry said--
+
+'Ye hannot guessed what my secret was? What have I done for thee this
+day?'
+
+She still looked away over the lands. She made her face smile--
+
+'Nay, I know not. Ha' ye brought me the musk I love well?'
+
+He shook his head.
+
+'It is more than that!' he said.
+
+She still smiled--
+
+'Ha' ye--ha' ye--made make for me a new crown?'
+
+She feared a little that that was what he had done. For he had been
+urgent with her, many months, to be crowned. It was his way to love
+these things. And her heart was a little gladder when he shook his head
+once again and uttered--
+
+'It is more than that!'
+
+She dreaded his having made ready in secret a great pageant in her
+honour, for she was afraid of all aggrandisements, and thought still it
+had been better that she had remained his sweet friend ever and not the
+Queen. For in that way she would have had as much empire over him, and
+there would have been much less clamour against her--much less clamour
+against the Church of her Saviour.
+
+She forced her mind to run upon all the things that she could wish for.
+When she said it must be that he had ordered for her enough French
+taffetas to make twelve gowns, he laughed and said that he had said that
+it was more than a crown. When she guessed that he had made ready such a
+huge cavalcade that she might with great comfort and safety ride with
+him into Scotland, he laughed, contented that she should think of going
+with him upon that long journey. He stood looking at her, his little
+eyes blinking, his face full of pride and joy, and suddenly he uttered--
+
+'The Church of God is come back again.' He touched his cap at the sacred
+name. 'I ha' made submission to the Pope.'
+
+He looked her full in the face to get all the delight he might from her
+looks and her movements.
+
+Her blue eyes grew large; she leaned forward in her chair; her mouth
+opened a little; her sleeves fell down to the ground. 'Now am I indeed
+crowned!' she said, and closed her eyes. '_Benedicta sit mater dei!_'
+she uttered, and her hand went over her heart place; '_deo clamavi nocte
+atque die._'
+
+She was silent again, and she leaned more forward.
+
+'_Sit benedicta dies haec; sit benedicta hora haec benedictaque,
+saeculum saeculum, castra haec._'
+
+She looked out upon the great view: she aspired the air.
+
+'_Ad colles_,' she breathed, '_levavi oculos meos; unde venit salvatio
+nostra!_'
+
+'Body of God,' Henry said, 'all things grow plain. All things grow
+plain. This is the best day that ever I knew.'
+
+
+IV
+
+The Lady Mary of England sat alone in a fair room with little arched
+windows that gave high up on to the terrace. It was the best room that
+ever she had had since her mother, the Queen Katharine of Aragon, had
+been divorced.
+
+Dressed in black she sat writing at a large table before one window. Her
+paper was fitted on to a wooden pulpit that rose before her; one book
+stood open upon it, three others lay open too upon the red and blue and
+green pattern of the Saracen rug that covered her table. At her right
+hand was a three-tiered inkstand of pewter, set about with the white
+feathers of pens; and the snakelike pattern of the table-rug serpentined
+in and out beneath seals of parcel gilt, a platter of bread, a sandarach
+of pewter, books bound in wooden covers and locked with chains, books in
+red velvet covers, sewn with silver wire and tied with ribbons. It ran
+beneath a huge globe of the world, blue and pink, that had a golden pin
+in it to mark the city of Rome. There were little wooden racks stuck
+full with written papers and parchments along the wainscoting between
+the arched windows, but all the hangings of the other walls were of
+tinted and dyed silks, not any with dark colours, because Katharine
+Howard had deemed that that room with its deep windows in the thick
+walls would be otherwise dark. The room was ten paces deep by twenty
+long, and the wood of the floor was polished. Against the wall, behind
+the Lady Mary's back, there stood a high chair upon a platform. Upon the
+platform a carpet began that ran up the wall and, overhead, depended
+from the gilded rafters of the ceiling so that it formed a dais and a
+canopy.
+
+The Lady Mary sat grimly amongst all these things as if none of them
+belonged to her. She looked in her book, she made a note upon her
+paper, she stretched out her hand and took a piece of bread, putting it
+in her mouth, swallowing it quickly, writing again, and then once more
+eating, for the great and ceaseless hunger that afflicted her gnawed
+always at her vitals.
+
+A little boy with a fair poll was reaching on tiptoe to smell at a pink
+that depended from a vase of very thin glass standing in the deep
+window. The shield of the coloured pane cast a little patch of red and
+purple on to his callow head. He was dressed all in purple, very square,
+and with little chains and medallions, and a little dagger with a golden
+sheath was about his neck. In one hand he had a piece of paper, in the
+other a pencil. The Lady Mary wrote; the child moved on tiptoe, with a
+sedulous expression of silence about his lips, near to her elbow. He
+watched her writing for a long time with attentive eyes.
+
+Once he said, 'Sister, I----' but she paid him no heed.
+
+After a time she looked coldly at his face and then he moved along the
+table, fingered the globe very gently, touched the books and returned to
+her side. He stood with his little legs wide apart. Then he sighed, then
+he said--
+
+'Sister, the Queen did bid me ask you a question.'
+
+She looked round upon him.
+
+'This was the Queen's question,' he said bravely:
+'"_Cur_--why--_nunquam_--never--_rides_--dost thou
+smile--_cum_--when--_ego, frater tuus_--I, thy little
+brother--_ludo_--play--_in camera tua_--in thy chamber?"'
+
+'Little Prince,' she said, 'art not afeared of me?'
+
+'Aye, am I,' he answered.
+
+'Say then to the Queen,' she said, '"_Domina Maria_--the Lady
+Mary--_ridet nunquam_--smileth never--_quod_--because--_timoris
+ratio_--the reason of my fear--_bona et satis_--is good and
+sufficient."'
+
+He held his little head upon one side.
+
+'The Queen did bid me say,' he uttered with his brave little voice,
+'"Holy Writ hath it: _Ecce quam bonum et dignum est fratres--fratres----_"'
+He faltered without embarrassment and added, 'I ha' forgot the words.'
+
+'Aye!' she said, 'they ha' been long forgotten in these places; I deem
+it is overlate to call them to mind.'
+
+She looked upon him coldly for a long time. Then she stretched out her
+hand for his paper.
+
+'Your Highness, I will set you a copy.'
+
+She took his paper and wrote--
+
+'_Malo malo mala._'
+
+He held it in his chubby fist, his head on one side.
+
+'I cannot conster it,' he said.
+
+'Why, think upon it,' she answered. 'When I was thy age I knew it
+already two years. But I was better beaten than thou.'
+
+He rubbed his little arm.
+
+'I am beaten enow,' he said.
+
+'Knowest not what a swingeing is,' she answered.
+
+'Then thou hadst a bitter childhood,' he brought out.
+
+'I had a good mother,' she cut him short.
+
+She turned her face to her writing again; it was bitter and set. The
+little prince climbed slowly into the chair on the dais. He moved
+sturdily and curled himself up on the cushion, studying the words on the
+paper all the while with a little frown upon his brows. Then, shrugging
+his shoulders, he set the paper upon his knee and began to write.
+
+At that date the Lady Mary was still called a bastard, though most men
+thought that that hardship would soon be reversed. It was said that
+great honours had been shown her, and that was apparent in the
+furnishing of her rooms, the fineness of her gear, the increase in the
+number of the women that waited on her, and the store of sweet things
+that was provided for her to eat. A great many men noted the chair with
+a dais that was set up always where she might be, in her principal room,
+and though her ladies said that she never sat in it, most men believed
+that she had made a pact with the King to do him honour and so to be
+reinstated in the estate in which she held her own. It was considered,
+too, that she no longer plotted with the King's enemies inside or out of
+the realm; it was at least certain that she no longer had men set to
+spy upon her, though it was noted that the Archbishop's gentleman,
+Lascelles, nosed about her quarters and her maids. But he was always
+spying somewhere and, as the Archbishop's days were thought to be
+numbered, he was accounted of little weight. Indeed, since the fall of
+Thomas Cromwell there seemed to be few spies about the Court, or almost
+none at all. It was known that gentlemen wrote accounts of what passed
+to Gardiner, the Bishop of Winchester. But Gardiner was gone back into
+his see and appeared to have little favour, though it was claimed for
+him that he had done much to advance the new Queen. So that, upon the
+whole, men breathed much more freely--and women too--than in the days
+before the fall of Privy Seal. The Queen had made little change, and
+seemed to have it in mind to make little more. Her relatives had, nearly
+none of them, been advanced. There were few Protestants oppressed,
+though many Catholics had been loosed from the gaols, most notably him
+whom the Archbishop Cranmer had taken to be his chaplain and confessor,
+and others that other lords had taken out of prison to be about them.
+
+All in all the months that had passed since Cromwell's fall had gone
+quietly. The King and Queen had gone very often to mass since Katharine
+had been shown for Queen in the gardens at Hampton Court, and saints'
+days and the feasts of the life of our Lady had been very carefully
+observed, along with fasts such as had used to be observed. The King,
+however, was mightily fond with his new Queen, and those that knew her
+well, or knew her servants well, expected great changes. Some were much
+encouraged, some feared very much, but nearly all were heartily glad of
+that summer of breathing space; and the weather was mostly good, so that
+the corn ripened well and there was little plague or ague abroad.
+
+Thus most men had been heartily glad to see the new Queen upon her
+journey there to the north parts. She had ridden upon a white horse with
+the King at her side; she had asked the names of several that had come
+to see her; she had been fair to look at; and the King had pardoned
+many felons, so that men's wives and mothers had been made glad; and
+most old men said that the good times were come again, with the price of
+malt fallen and twenty-six to the score of herrings. It was reported,
+too, that a cider press in Herefordshire had let down a dozen firkins of
+cider without any apples being set in it, and this was accounted an omen
+of great plenty, whilst many sheep had died, so that men who had set
+their fields down in grass talked of giving them to the plough again,
+and upon St Swithin's Day no rain had fallen. All these things gave a
+great contentment, and many that in the hard days had thought to become
+Lutheran in search of betterment, now looked in byres and hidden valleys
+to find priests of the old faith. For if a man could plough he might
+eat, and if he might eat he could praise God after his father's manner
+as well as in a new way.
+
+Thus, around the Lady Mary, whilst she wrote, the people of the land
+breathed more peace. And even she could not but be conscious of a new
+softness, if it was only in the warmth that came from having her
+window-leads properly mended. She had hardly ever before known what it
+was to have warm hands when she wrote, and in most days of the year she
+had worn fur next her skin, indoors as well as out. But now the sun beat
+on her new windows, and in that warmth she could wear fine lawn, so
+that, in spite of herself, she took pleasure and was softened, though,
+since she spoke to no man save the Magister Udal, and to him only about
+the works of Plautus or the game of cards that they played together, few
+knew of any change in her.
+
+Nevertheless, on that day she had one of her more ill moods and,
+presently, having written a little more, she rang a small silver bell
+that was shaped like a Dutch woman with wide skirts.
+
+'The Prince annoys me,' she said to her woman; 'send for his lady
+governess.'
+
+The woman, dressed all in black, like her mistress, and with a little
+frill of white cambric over her temples as if she were a nun, stood in
+the open doorway that was just level with the Lady Mary's chair, so that
+the stone wall of the passage caught the light from the window. She
+folded her hands before her.
+
+'Alack, Madam,' she said, 'your Madamship knows that at this hour his
+Highness' lady governess taketh ever the air.'
+
+The little boy in the chair looked over his paper at his sister.
+
+'Send for his physician then,' Mary said.
+
+'Alack, sister,' the little Prince said before the woman could move, 'my
+physician is ill. _Jacet_--He lieth--_in cubiculo_--in his bed.'
+
+The Lady Mary would not look round on him.
+
+'Get thee, then,' she uttered coldly, 'to thine own apartments, Prince.'
+
+'Alack, sister,' he answered,'thou knowest that I may not walk along the
+corridors alone for fear some slay me. Nor yet may I be anywhere save
+with the Queen, or thee, or with my uncles, or my lady governess, or my
+physicians, for fear some poison me.'
+
+He spoke with a clear and shrill voice, and the woman cast down her
+eyes, trembling a little, partly to hear such a small, weary child speak
+such a long speech as if by wizardry--for it was reported among the
+serving maids that he had been overlooked--and partly for fear of the
+black humour that she perceived to be upon her mistress.
+
+'Send me then my Magister to lay out cards with me,' the Lady Mary said.
+'I cannot make my studies with this Prince in my rooms.'
+
+'Alack, Madam,' the girl said. She was high coloured and with dark eyes,
+but when she faltered then the colour died from her cheeks. The Lady
+Mary surveyed her coldly, for she was in the mood to give pain. She
+uttered no words.
+
+'Alack, alack----' the maid whimpered. She was full of fear lest the
+Lady Mary should order her to receive short rations or many stripes; she
+was filled with consternation and grief since her sweetheart, a server,
+had told her that he must leave her. For it was rumoured that the
+Magister had been cast into gaol for sweethearting, and that the King
+had said that all sweethearts should be gaoled from thenceforth. 'The
+Magister is gaoled,' she said.
+
+'Wherefore?' the Lady uttered the one expressionless word.
+
+'I do not know,' the maid wailed; 'I do not know.'
+
+The form of the Archbishop's gentleman glided noiselessly behind her
+back. His eyes shot one sharp, sideways glance in at the door, and, like
+a russet fox, he was gone. He was so like a fox that the Lady Mary, when
+she spoke, used the words--
+
+'Catch me that gentleman.'
+
+He was brought to the doorsill by the panting maid, for he had walked
+away very fast. He stood there, blinking his eyes and stroking his
+fox-coloured beard. When the Lady Mary beckoned him into the room he
+pulled off his cap and fell to his thin knees. He expected her to bid
+him rise, but she left him there.
+
+'Wherefore is my secretary gaoled?' she asked cruelly.
+
+He ran his finger round the rim of his cap where it lay on the floor
+beside him.
+
+'That he is gaoled, I know,' he said; 'but the wherefore of it, not.'
+
+He looked down at the floor and she down at his drooped eyelids.
+
+'God help you,' she uttered scornfully. 'You are a spy and yet know no
+more than a Queen's daughter.'
+
+'God help me,' he repeated gravely and touched his eyelid with one
+finger. 'What passed, passed between the King and him. I know no more
+than common report.'
+
+'Common report?' she said. 'I warrant thee thou wast slinking around the
+terrace. I warrant thee thou heardst words of the King's mouth. I
+warrant thee thou followedst here to hear at my doorhole how I might
+take this adventure.'
+
+One of his eyelids moved delicately, but he said no word. The Lady Mary
+turned her back on him and he expected her order to be gone. But she
+turned again--
+
+'Common report?' she uttered once more. 'I do bid you give me the common
+report upon this, that the Queen sends to me every day this little
+Prince to be alone with me two hours.'
+
+He winced with his eyebrows again.
+
+'Out with the common report,' she said.
+
+'Madam,' he uttered, 'it is usually commended that the Queen should seek
+to bring sister and Prince-brother together.'
+
+She shrugged her stiff shoulders up to her ears.
+
+'What a poor liar for a spy,' she said. 'It is more usually
+reported'--and she turned upon the little Prince--'that the Queen sends
+thee here that I may work thee a mischief so that thou die and her child
+reign after the King thy father.'
+
+The little Prince looked at her with pensive eyes. At that moment
+Katharine Howard came to the room door and looked in.
+
+'Body of God,' the Lady Mary said; 'here you spy out a spy committing
+treason. For it is still treason to kneel to me. I am of illegal birth
+and not of the blood royal.'
+
+Katharine essayed her smile upon the black-avised girl.
+
+'Give me leave,' she said.
+
+'Your Grace's poor room,' Mary said, 'is open ever to your Grace's
+entry. _Ubi venis ibi tibi._'
+
+The Queen bade her waiting women go. She entered the room and looked at
+Lascelles.
+
+'I think I know thy face,' she said.
+
+'I am the Archbishop's poor gentleman,' he answered. 'I think you have
+seen me.'
+
+'No. It is not that,' she said. 'It was long ago.'
+
+She crossed the room to smell at the pinks in the window.
+
+'How late the flowers grow,' she said. 'It is August, yet here are still
+vernal perfumes.'
+
+She was unwilling to bid the gentleman rise and go, because this was the
+Lady Mary's room.
+
+'Where your Grace is, there the spring abideth,' Mary said sardonically.
+'_Ecce miraculum sicut erat, Joshua rege._'
+
+The little Prince came timidly down to beg a flower from the Queen and
+they all had their backs upon the spy. He ran his hands down his beard
+and considered the Queen's words. Then swiftly he was on his feet and
+through the door. He was more ready to brave the Lady Mary's after-wrath
+than let the Queen see him upon his knees. For actually it was a treason
+to kneel to the Lady Mary. It had been proclaimed so in the old days
+when the King's daughter was always subject to new debasements. And who
+knew whether now the penalty of treason might not still be enacted? It
+was certain that the Queen had no liking for the Archbishop. Then, what
+use might she not make of the fact that the Archbishop's man knelt,
+seeming to curry favour, though in these days all men knelt to her, even
+when the King was by? He cursed himself as he hastened away.
+
+The Queen looked over her shoulder and caught the glint of his red heel
+as it went past the doorpost.
+
+'In our north parts,' she said, and she was glad that Lascelles had
+fled, 'the seasons come ever tardily.'
+
+'Well, your Grace has not delayed to blossom,' Mary said.
+
+It was part of her humour when she was in a taunting mood to call the
+Queen always 'your Grace' or 'your Majesty' at every turn of the phrase.
+
+Katharine looked at the pink intently. Her face had no expression, she
+was determined at once to have a cheerful patience and not to show it in
+her face.
+
+The little Prince stole his hand into hers.
+
+'Wherefore did my father--_rex pater meus_--pummel the man in the long
+cloak?' he asked.
+
+'You knew it then?' Katharine asked of her stepdaughter.
+
+'I knew it not,' the Lady Mary answered.
+
+'I saw it from this window, but my sister would not look,' the Prince
+said.
+
+The Queen was going to shut, with her own hand, the door, the little boy
+trotting behind her, but, purple-clothed and huge, the King was there.
+
+'Well, I will not be shut out in mine own castle,' he said pleasantly.
+
+In those, the quiet days of his realm when most things were going well,
+his face beneath his beard had taken a rounder and a smoother outline.
+He moved with motions less hasty than those he had had two years before,
+and when he had cast a task off it was done with and went out of his
+mind, so that he appeared a very busy man with, between whiles, the
+leisure to saunter.
+
+'In a half hour,' he said, 'I go north to meet the King o' Scots. I
+would I had not the long journey to make but could stay with ye. It is
+pleasant here; the air is livening.' He caught his little son by the
+armpits and hoisted him on to his purple shoulders. 'Hey, princekin,' he
+said, 'what news ha' you o' the day?'
+
+The little Edward pulled his father's bonnet off that he might the
+better see the huge brows and the little eyes.
+
+'I told my sister that you did pummel a man in a long gown. What is even
+"long gown" in the learned tongue?' He played daintily and languidly
+with the hair of the King's temples, and when the King had said that he
+might call it '_doctorum toga_,' he added, 'But my sister would not come
+to look.'
+
+'Well, thy sister is a monstrous learned wench,' the King said with a
+heavy benignity. 'She could not leave her book.'
+
+The Lady Mary stood rigid, with a mock humility. She had her hands
+clasped before her, the folds of her black skirt fell stiffly just to
+the ground. She pursed her lips and strove with herself to speak, for
+she was minded to exhibit disdain, but her black mood was too strong for
+her.
+
+'I did not read in my book, because I could not,' she said numbly. 'Your
+son disturbed my reading. But I did not come to look, because I would
+not.'
+
+With one arm round the boy's little waist as he sat on high, and one
+hand on the little feet, the King looked at his daughter in a sudden hot
+rage; for to speak contemptuously of his son was a thing that filled him
+with anger and surprise. He opened his mouth to shout. Katharine Howard
+was gently turning a brass sphere with the constellations upon it that
+stood upon the table. She moved her fair face round towards the King and
+set her finger upon her lips. He shrugged his shoulders, prince and all
+moving up together, and his face took on the expression, half abashed
+and half resigned, of a man who is reminded by his womankind that he is
+near to a passionate folly.
+
+Katharine by that time had schooled him how to act when Mary was in that
+humour, and he let out no word.
+
+'I do not like that this Prince should play in my room,' the Lady Mary
+pursued him relentlessly, and he was so well lessoned that he answered
+only--
+
+'Ye must fight that cock with Kat. It is Kat that sends him, not I.'
+
+Nevertheless he was too masterful a man to keep his silence altogether;
+he was, besides, so content upon the whole that he was sure he could
+hold his temper in check, and the better to take breath for a long
+speech, he took the little boy from his shoulder and planted his feet
+abroad on the carpet.
+
+'See now, Moll,' he said, 'make friends!' and he stretched out a large
+hand. She shrugged her shoulders half invisibly.
+
+'I will kneel down to the King of this country and to the Supreme Head
+of the Church as it is here set up by law. What more would you have of
+me?'
+
+'See now, Moll!' he said.
+
+He fingered the medal upon his chest and cast about for words.
+
+'Let us have peace in this realm,' he said. 'We are very near it.'
+
+She raised her eyelids with a tiny contempt.
+
+'It hangs much around you,' he went on. 'Listen! I will tell ye the
+whole matter.'
+
+Slowly and sagaciously he disentangled all his coil of policies. His
+letter to the Holy Father was all drafted and ready to be put into fine
+words. But, before he sent it, he must be sure of peace abroad. It was
+like this--
+
+'Ye know,' he said, 'though great wrangles have been in the past betwixt
+him and thee and mine own self, how my heart has ever been well inclined
+to my nephew, thy cousin the Emperor. There are in Christendom now only
+he and France that are anyways strong to stand against me or to invade
+me. But France I ha' never loved, and him much.'
+
+'Ye are grown gentle then,' Mary said, 'and forgiving in your old age,
+for ye know I ha' plotted against you with my cousin and my cousin with
+me.'
+
+'It is a very ancient tale,' the King said. 'Forget it, as do I and he.'
+
+'Why, you live in the sun where the dial face moves. I in the shadow
+where Time stays still. To me it is every day a new tale,' the Lady Mary
+answered.
+
+His face took on an expression of patience and resignation that angered
+her, for she knew that when her father looked so it was always very
+difficult to move him.
+
+'Why, all the world forgets,' he said.
+
+'Save only I,' she answered. 'I had only one parent--a mother. She is
+dead: she was done to death.'
+
+'I have pardoned your cousin that he plotted against me,' he stuck to
+his tale, 'and he me what I did against your mother.'
+
+'Well, he was ever a popinjay,' the Lady Mary said.
+
+'Lately,' Henry continued, 'as ye wiz he had grown very thick with
+Francis of France. He went across the French country into the
+Netherlands, so strict was their alliance. It is more than I would do to
+trust myself to France's word. All Holland marvelled.'
+
+'What is this to me?' the Lady Mary said. 'Will you send me across
+France to the Netherlands?'
+
+He left her gibe alone.
+
+'But in these latter months,' he said, 'Kat and I ha' weakened with true
+messages and loyal conceits this unholy alliance.'
+
+'Why, I ha' heard,' Mary said, 'ye did send the Duke of Norfolk to tell
+the King o' France that my cousin had said in private that he was the
+greater King of the twain. These be princely princes!'
+
+'An unholy alliance it was,' Henry went on his way, 'for the Emperor is
+a very good Christian and a loyal son of the Church. But Francis
+worships the devil--I have heard it said and I believe it--or, at least,
+he believes not in God and our Saviour; and he pays allegiance to the
+Church only when it serves his turn, now holding on, now letting go. I
+am glad this alliance is dissolving.'
+
+'Why, I am glad to hear you speak like this,' Mary said bitterly. 'You
+are a goodly son to Mother Church.'
+
+The King took her scorn with a shrug of the shoulders.
+
+'I am glad this alliance is dissolved or dissolving,' he said, 'for when
+it is fully dissolved I will make my peace with Rome. And I long for
+that day, for I am weary of errors.'
+
+'Well, this is a very goodly tale,' Mary said. 'I am glad you are minded
+to escape hell-flame. What is it all to me?'
+
+'The burden of it rests with thee,' he answered, 'for thou alone canst
+make thy cousin believe in my true mind.'
+
+'God help me,' Mary said.
+
+'See you, Moll,' the King broke in on her eagerly, 'if you will marry
+the Infant of Spain----'
+
+'God's sakes,' she said lightly, 'my cousin's son will wed no bastard as
+I be.'
+
+He brushed her jest aside with one hand.
+
+'See you,' he said, 'now I ride to the north to meet the King o' Scots.
+That nephew of mine has always been too thick with Francis. But I will
+be so friendly with him. And see you, with the Scots cut away and the
+Emperor unloyal, the teeth of Francis are drawn. I might not send my
+letter to the Pope with all Christendom arrayed together against me. But
+when they are set by the ears I am strong enow.'
+
+'Oh, good!' the Lady Mary said. 'Strong enow to be humble!'
+
+Her eyes sparkled so much and her bosom so heaved, that Katharine moved
+solicitously and swiftly to come between them.
+
+'See you, Moll,' the King said, 'forgive the ill I wrought thee, and so
+shall golden days come again. Once more there shall be a deep peace with
+contented husbandmen and the spreading of the vines abroad upon the
+stakes. And once more _venite creator spiritus_ shall be sung in this
+land. And once more you shall be much honoured; nay, you shall be as one
+that saved this realm----'
+
+She screamed out--
+
+'Stay your tongue!' with such a shrill voice that the King's words were
+drowned. Katharine Howard ran in between them, but she pushed her aside,
+speaking over her shoulder.
+
+'Before God,' she said, 'you gar me forget that you are the King that
+begot me illegally.'
+
+Katharine turned upon the King and sought to move him from the room. But
+he was still of opinion that he could convince his daughter and stood
+his ground, looking over her shoulder as Mary had done.
+
+'Body of God!' Mary said. 'Body of God! That a man could deem me so
+base!' She looked, convulsed, into Henry's eyes. 'Can you bring my
+mother alive by the truckling and cajoling and setting lying prince
+against lying prince? You slew my mother by lies, or your man slew her
+by poison. It is all one. And will you come to me that you have decreed
+misbegotten, to help you save your soul!'
+
+There was such a violent hatred in her tone that the King could bring no
+word out, and she swept on--
+
+'Could even a man be such a dull villain? To creep into heaven by
+bribing his daughter! To creep into heaven by strengthening himself with
+lies about one prince to another till he be strong enow to be humble!
+This is a king! This is even a man! I would be ashamed of such manhood!'
+
+She took a deep breath.
+
+'What can you bribe me with? A marriage with my cousin's son? Why, he
+has deserted my mother's cause. I had rather wed a falconer than that
+prince. You will have me no longer called bastard? Why, I had rather be
+called bastard than the acknowledged child of such a royal King. You
+will cover me with brocades and set me on high? By God, the sun in the
+heaven has looked upon such basenesses that I seek only a patch of
+shade. God help me; you will recall the decree that said my mother was
+not a Queen! God help us! God help us all! You will ennoble my mother's
+memory. With a decree! Can all the decrees you can make render my mother
+more sacred? When you decreed her not a Queen, did a soul believe it? If
+now you decree that a Queen she was, who will believe you? I think I had
+rather you left it alone, it is such a foul thing to have been thy
+wife!'
+
+The saying of these things had pleased her so much that she gained
+control of her tongue.
+
+'You cannot bribe me,' she said calmly. 'You have naught to give that I
+have need of.'
+
+But the King was so used to his daughter's speeches that, though he had
+seldom seen her so mutinous, he could still ignore them.
+
+'Well,' he said, 'I think you are angered with me for having set the
+Magister in gaol----'
+
+'And in addition,' the Lady Mary pursued her own speech, for she deemed
+that she had thought of a thing to pain both him and the Queen, 'how
+might I with a good conscience tell my cousin that you have a true
+inclination to him? I do believe you have; it is this lady that has
+given it you. But how much longer will this lady sway you? No doubt the
+King o' Scots hath a new lady for you--and she will be on the French
+side, for the King o' Scots is the French King's man.'
+
+The King opened his mouth convulsively, but Katharine Howard laid her
+hand right across it.
+
+'You must be riding soon,' she said. 'I have had a collation set in my
+chamber.' She was so used by now to the violent humours of these
+Tudors. 'You have still to direct me,' she added, 'what is to be done
+with these rived cattle.'
+
+As they went through the door, the little Prince holding his father's
+hand and she moving him gently by the shoulder, the child said--
+
+'I thought ye wad ha' little profit speaking to my sister in her then
+mood.'
+
+The King, in the gallery, looked with a gentle apprehension at his wife.
+
+'I trow ye think I ha' done wrong,' he said.
+
+She answered--
+
+'Oh nay; she must come to know one day what your Grace had to tell her.
+Now it is over. But I would not have had you heated. For it is ill to
+start riding in a sweat. You shall not go for an hour yet.'
+
+That pleased him, for it made him think she was unwilling he should go.
+
+In her own room the Lady Mary sat back in her chair and smiled grimly at
+the ceiling.
+
+'Body of God,' she said, 'I wish he had married this wench or ever he
+saw my mother.' Nevertheless, upon reflection, she got pleasure from the
+thought that her mother, with her Aragonia pride, had given the King
+some ill hours before he had put her away to her death. Katharine of
+Aragon had been no Katharine Howard to study her lord's ways and twist
+him about her finger; and Mary took her rosary from a nail beside her
+and told her beads for a quarter hour to calm herself.
+
+
+V
+
+There fell upon the castle a deep peace when the King and most of the
+men were gone. The Queen had the ordering of all things in the castle
+and of most in the realm. Beneath her she had the Archbishop and some
+few of the lords of the council who met most days round a long table in
+the largest hall, and afterwards brought her many papers to sign or to
+approve. But they were mostly papers of accounts for the castles that
+were then building, and some few letters from the King's envoys in
+foreign courts. Upon the whole, there was little stirring, though the
+Emperor Charles V was then about harrying the Protestant Princes of
+Almain and Germany. That was good enough news, and though the great
+castle had well-nigh seven hundred souls, for the most part women, in
+it, yet it appeared to be empty. High up upon the upper battlements the
+guards kept a lazy watch. Sometimes the Queen rode a-hawking with her
+ladies and several lords; when it rained she held readings from the
+learned writers amongst her ladies, to teach them Latin better. For she
+had set a fashion of good learning among women that did not for many
+years die out of the land. In that pursuit she missed the Magister Udal,
+for the ladies listened to him more willingly than to another. They were
+reading the _True History of Lucian_, which had been translated into
+Latin from the Greek about that time.
+
+What occupied her most was the writing of the King's letter to the Pope.
+Down in their cellar the Archbishop and Lascelles wrought many days at
+this very long piece of writing. But they made it too humble to suit
+her, for she would not have her lord to crawl, as if in the dust upon
+his belly, so she told the Archbishop. Henry was to show contrition and
+repentance, desire for pardon and the promise of amendment. But he was a
+very great King and had wrought greatly. And, having got the draft of it
+in the vulgar tongue, she set about herself to turn it into Latin, for
+she esteemed herself the best Latinist that they had there.
+
+But in that again she missed the Magister at last, and in the end she
+sent for him up from his prison to her ante-chamber where it pleased her
+to sit. It was a tall, narrow room, with much such a chair and dais as
+were in the room of the Lady Mary. It gave on to her bedchamber that was
+larger, and it had little, bright, deep windows in the thick walls. From
+them there could be seen nothing but the blue sky, it was so high up.
+Here she sat, most often with the Lady Rochford, upon a little stool
+writing, with the parchments upon her knee or setting a maid to sew. The
+King had lately made her a gift of twenty-four satin quilts. Most of her
+maids sat in her painted gallery, carding and spinning wool, but usually
+she did not sit with them, since she was of opinion that they spoke more
+freely and took more pleasure when she was not there. She had brought
+many maids with her into Yorkshire for this spinning, for she believed
+that this northern wool was the best that could be had. Margot Poins sat
+always with these maids to keep them to their tasks, and her brother had
+been advanced to keep the Queen's door when she was in her private
+rooms, being always without the chamber in which she sat.
+
+When the Magister came to her, she had with her in the little room the
+Lady Rochford and the Lady Cicely Rochford that had married the old
+knight when she was Cicely Elliott. Udal had light chains on his wrists
+and on his ankles, and the Queen sent her guards to await him at her
+outer door. The Lady Cicely set back her head and laughed at the
+ceiling.
+
+'Why, here are the bonds of holy matrimony!' she said to his chains. 'I
+ha' never seen them so plain before.'
+
+The Magister had straws on his cloak, and he limped a little, being
+stiff with the damp of his cell.
+
+'_Ave, Regina!_' he said. '_Moriturus te saluto!_' He sought to kneel,
+but he could not bend his joints; he smiled with a humorous and rueful
+countenance at his own plight.
+
+The Queen said she had brought him there to read the Latin of her
+letter. He ducked his brown, lean head.
+
+'_Ha_,' he said, '_sine cane pastor_--without his dog, as Lucretius
+hath it, the shepherd watches in vain. Wolves--videlicet, errors--shall
+creep into your marshalled words.'
+
+Katharine kept to him a cold face and, a little abashed, he muttered
+under his breath--
+
+'I ha' played with many maids, but this is the worst pickle that ever I
+was in.'
+
+He took her parchment and read, but, because she was the Queen, he
+would not say aloud that he found solecisms in her words.
+
+'Give me,' he said, 'your best pen, and let me sit upon a stool!'
+
+He sat down upon the stool, set the writing on his knee, and groaned
+with his stiffness. He took up his task, but when those ladies began to
+talk--the Lady Cicely principally about a hawk that her old knight had
+training for the Queen, a white sea hawk from Norway--he winced and
+hissed a little because they disturbed him.
+
+'Misery!' he said; 'I remember the days when no mouse dared creak if I
+sat to my task in the learned tongues.'
+
+The Queen then remembered very well how she had been a little girl with
+the Magister for tutor in her father's great and bare house. It was
+after Udal had been turned out of his mastership at Eton. He had been in
+vile humour in most of those days, and had beaten her very often and
+fiercely with his bundle of twigs. It was only afterwards that he had
+called her his best pupil.
+
+Remembering these things, she dropped her voice and sat still, thinking.
+Cicely Elliott, who could not keep still, blew a feather into the air
+and caught it again and again. The old Lady Rochford, her joints swollen
+with rheumatism, played with her beads in her lap. From time to time she
+sighed heavily and, whilst the Magister wrote, he sighed after her.
+Katharine would not send her ladies away, because she would not be alone
+with him to have him plague her with entreaties. She would not go
+herself, because it would have been to show him too much honour then,
+though a few days before she would have gone willingly because his
+vocation and his knowledge of the learned tongues made him a man that it
+was right to respect.
+
+But when she read what he had written for her, his lean, brown face
+turning eagerly and with a ferreting motion from place to place on the
+parchment, she was filled with pity and with admiration for the man's
+talent. It was as if Seneca were writing to his master, or Pliny to the
+Emperor Trajan. And, being a very tender woman at bottom--
+
+'Magister,' she said, 'though you have wrought me the greatest grief I
+think ye could, by so injuring one I like well, yet this is to me so
+great a service that I will entreat the King to remit some of your
+pains.'
+
+He stumbled up from his stool and this time managed to kneel.
+
+'Oh, Queen,' he said, '_Doctissima fuisti_; you were the best pupil that
+ever I had----' She tried to silence him with a motion of her hand. But
+he twined his lean hands together with the little chains hanging from
+them. 'I call this to your pitiful mind,' he brought out, 'not because I
+would have you grateful, but to make you mindful of what I suffer--_non
+quia grata sed ut clemens sis_. For, for advancement I have no stomach,
+since by advancing me you will advance my wife from Paris, and for
+liberty I have no use since you may never make me free of her. Leave me
+to rot in my cell, but, if it be but the tractate of Diodorus Siculus, a
+very dull piece, let me be given some book in a learned tongue. I faint,
+I starve, I die for lack of good letters. I that no day in my life have
+passed--_nulla die sine_--no day without reading five hours in goodly
+books since I was six and breeched. Bethink you, you that love
+learning----'
+
+'Now tell me,' Cicely Elliott cried out, 'which would you rather in your
+cell--the Letters of Cicero or a kitchen wench?'
+
+The Queen bade her hold her peace, and to the Magister she uttered--
+
+'Books I will have sent you, for I think it well that you should be so
+well employed. And, for your future, I will have you set down in a
+monastery where there shall be for you much learning and none of my sex.
+You have done harm enow! Now, get you gone!'
+
+He sighed that she had grown so stern, and she was glad to be rid of
+him. But he had not been gone a minute into the other room when there
+arose such a clamour of harsh voices and shrieks and laughter that she
+threw her door open, coming to it herself before the other ladies could
+close their mouths, which had opened in amazement.
+
+The young Poins was beating the Magister, so that the fur gown made a
+greyish whirl about his scarlet suit in the midst of a tangle of spun
+wool; spinning wheels were overset, Margot Poins crashed around upon
+them, wailing; the girls with their distaffs were crouching against the
+window-places and in corners, crying out each one of them.
+
+The Queen had a single little gesture of the hand with which she
+dismissed all her waiting-women. She stood alone in the inner doorway
+with the Lady Cicely and the Lady Rochford behind her. The Lady Rochford
+wrung her gouty hands; the Lady Cicely set back her head and laughed.
+
+The Queen spoke no word, but in the new silence it was as if the
+Magister fell out of the boy's hands. He staggered amidst the trails of
+wool, nearly fell, and then made stiff zigzags towards the open outer
+door, where his prison guards awaited him, since they had no warrant to
+enter the antechamber. He dragged after him a little trail of fragments
+of spinning wheels and spindles.
+
+'Well, there's a fine roister-doister!' the Lady Cicely laughed behind
+the Queen's back. The Queen stood very still and frowned. To her the
+disturbance was monstrous and distasteful, for she was minded to have
+things very orderly and quiet. The boy, in his scarlet, pulled off his
+bonnet and panted, but he was not still more than a second, and suddenly
+he called out to the Queen--
+
+'Make that pynot to marry my sister!'
+
+Margot Poins hung round him and cried out--
+
+'Oh no! Oh no!'
+
+He shook her roughly loose.
+
+'An' you do not wed with him how shall I get advancement?' he said. ''A
+promised me that when 'a should come to be Chancellor 'a would advance
+me.'
+
+He pushed her from him again with his elbow when she came near.
+
+'Y've grown over familiar,' the Queen said, 'with being too much near
+me. Y'are grown over familiar. For seven days you shall no longer keep
+my door.'
+
+Margot Poins raised her arms over her head, then she leant against a
+window-pane and sobbed into the crook of her elbow. The boy's slender
+face was convulsed with rage; his blue eyes started from his head; his
+callow hair was crushed up.
+
+'Shall a man----' he began to protest.
+
+'I say nothing against that you did beat this Magister,' the Queen said.
+'Such passions cannot be controlled, and I pass it by.'
+
+'But will ye not make this man to wed with my sister?' the boy said
+harshly.
+
+'I cannot. He hath a wedded wife!'
+
+He dropped his hands to his side.
+
+'Alack; then my father's house is down,' he cried out.
+
+'Gentleman Guard,' Katharine said, 'get you for seven days away from my
+door. I will have another sentry whilst you bethink you of a worthier
+way to advancement.'
+
+He gazed at her stupidly.
+
+'You will not make this wedding?' he asked.
+
+'Gentleman Guard,' Katharine said, 'you have your answer. Get you gone.'
+
+A sudden rage came into his eyes; he swallowed in his throat and made a
+gesture of despair with his hand. The Queen turned back into her room
+and busied herself with her task, which was the writing into a little
+vellum book of seven prayers to the Virgin that the Lady Elizabeth,
+Queen Anne Boleyn's daughter, a child then in London, was to turn each
+one into seven languages, written fair in the volume as a gift, against
+Christmas, for the King.
+
+'I would not have that boy to guard my door,' the Lady Cicely said to
+the Queen.
+
+'Why, 'tis a good boy,' Katharine answered; 'and his sister loves me
+very well.'
+
+'Get your Highness another,' the Lady Cicely persisted. 'I do not like
+his looks.'
+
+The Queen gazed up from her writing to where the dark girl, her figure
+raked very much back in her stiff bodice, played daintily with the
+tassels of the curtain next the window.
+
+'My Lady,' Katharine said, 'my Highness must get me a new maid in place
+of Margot Poins, that shall away into a nunnery. Is not that grief
+enough for poor Margot? Shall she think in truth that she has undone her
+father's house?'
+
+'Then advance the springald to some post away from you,' the Lady Cicely
+said.
+
+'Nay,' the Queen answered; 'he hath done nothing to merit advancement.'
+
+She continued, with her head bent down over the writing on her knee, her
+lips moving a little as, sedulously, she drew large and plain letters
+with her pen.
+
+'By Heaven,' the Lady Cicely said, 'you have too tickle a conscience to
+be a Queen of this world and day. In the time of Caesar you might have
+lived more easily.'
+
+The Queen looked up at her from her writing; her clear eyes were
+untroubled.
+
+'Aye,' she said. '_Lucio Domitio, Appio Claudio consulibus_----'
+
+Cicely Rochford set back her head and laughed at the ceiling.
+
+'Aye, your Highness is a Roman,' she tittered like a magpie.
+
+'In the day of Caesar it was simple to do well,' the Queen said.
+
+'Why, I do not believe it,' Cicely answered her.
+
+'Cousin! Cousin!' The old Lady Rochford warned her that this was the
+Queen, not her old playmate.
+
+'But now,' the Queen said, 'with such a coming together and a concourse
+of peoples about us; with such holes and corners in a great Court----'
+She paused and sighed.
+
+'Well, if I may not speak my mind,' Cicely Rochford said to the old
+lady, 'what good am I?'
+
+'I did even what I might to keep this lamb Margot from the teeth of that
+wolf Magister,' the Queen said. 'I take shame to myself that I did no
+more. I will do a penance for it. But still I think that these be
+degenerate days.'
+
+'Oh, Queen of dreams and fancies,' Cicely Rochford said. 'I am very
+certain that in the days of your noble Romans it was as it is now. Tell
+me, if you can, that in all your readings of hic and hoc you lit not
+upon such basenesses? You will not lay your hand upon your heart and say
+that never a man of Rome bartered his sister for the hope of
+advancement, or that never a learned doctor was a corrupter of youth? I
+have seen the like in the plays of Plautus that here have been played at
+Court.'
+
+'Why,' the Queen said, 'the days of Plautus were days degenerated and
+fallen already from the ancient nobleness.'
+
+'You should have Queened it before Goodman Adam fell,' Cicely Rochford
+mocked her. 'If you go back before Plautus, go back all the way.'
+
+She shrugged her shoulders up to her ears and uttered a little sound
+like '_Pfui!_' Then she said quickly--
+
+'Give me leave to be gone, your Highness, that I may not grow over
+familiar like the boy with the pikestaff, for if it do not gall you it
+shall wring the withers of this my old husband's cousin!'
+
+The old Lady Rochford, who was always thinking of what had been said two
+speeches ago, because she was so slow-witted, raised her gouty hands in
+the air and opened her mouth. But the Queen smiled faintly at Cicely.
+
+'When I ask you to mince matters in my little room you shall do it. It
+was Lucius the Praetor that went always accompanied by a carping Stoic
+to keep him from being puffed up, and it was a good custom.'
+
+'Before Heaven,' Cicely Rochford said in the midst of her curtsey at the
+door, 'shall I have the office of such a one as Diogenes who derided
+Alexander the Emperor? Then must my old husband live with me in a tub!'
+
+'Pray you,' the Queen said after her through the door, 'look you around
+and spy me out a maid to be my tiring-woman and ward my spinsters. For
+nowadays I see few maids to choose from.'
+
+When she was gone the old Lady Rochford timorously berated the Queen.
+She would have her be more distant with knights' wives and the like. For
+it was fitting for a Queen to be feared and deemed awful.
+
+'I had rather be loved and deemed pitiful,' Katharine answered. 'For I
+was once such a one--no more--than she or thou, or very little more.
+Before the people I bear myself proudly for my lord his high honour. But
+I do lead a very cloistered life, and have leisure to reflect upon for
+what a little space authority endureth, and how that friendship and true
+love between friends are things that bear the weather better.' She did
+not say her Latin text, for the old lady had no Latin.
+
+
+VI
+
+In the underground cell, above the red and gold table that afternoon,
+Lascelles wrought at a fair copy of the King's letter to the Pope,
+amended as it had been by Udal's hand. The Archbishop had come into the
+room reading a book as he came from his prayers, and sate him down in
+his chair at the tablehead without glancing at his gentleman.
+
+'Prithee, your Grace,' Lascelles said, 'suffer me to carry this letter
+mine own self to the Queen.'
+
+The Archbishop looked up at him; his mournful eyes started wide; he
+leaned forward.
+
+'Art thou Lascelles?' he asked.
+
+'Aye, Lascelles I am,' the gentleman answered; 'but I have cut off my
+beard.'
+
+The Archbishop was very weak and startled; he fell into an anger.
+
+'Is this a time for vanities?' he said. 'Will you be after the wenches?
+You look a foolish boy! I do not like this prank.'
+
+Lascelles put up his hand to stroke his vanished beard. His risible lips
+writhed in a foxy smile; his chin was fuller than you would have
+expected, round and sensuous with a dimple in the peak of it.
+
+'Please it, your Grace,' he said, 'this is no vanity, but a scheme that
+I will try.'
+
+'What scheme? What scheme?' the Archbishop said. 'Here have been too
+many schemes.' He was very shaken and afraid, because this world was
+beyond his control.
+
+'Please it, your Grace,' Lascelles answered, 'ask me not what this
+scheme is.'
+
+The Archbishop shook his head and pursed his lips feebly.
+
+'Please it, your Grace,' Lascelles urged, 'if this scheme miscarry, your
+Grace shall hear no more of it. If this scheme succeed I trow it shall
+help some things forward that your Grace would much have forwarded.
+Please it, your Grace, to ask me no more, and to send me with this
+letter to the Queen's Highness.'
+
+The Archbishop opened his nerveless hands before him; they were pale and
+wrinkled as if they had been much soddened in water. Since the King had
+bidden him compose that letter to the Pope of Rome, his hands had grown
+so. Lascelles wrote on at the new draft of the letter, his lips
+following the motions of his pen. Still writing, and with his eyes down,
+he said--
+
+'The Queen's Highness will put from her her tirewoman in a week from
+now.'
+
+The Archbishop moved his fingers as who should say--
+
+'What is that to me!' His eyes gazed into the space above his book that
+lay before him on the table.
+
+'This Margot Poins is a niece of the master-printer Badge, a Lutheran,
+of the Austin Friars.' Lascelles pursued his writing for a line further.
+Then he added--
+
+'This putting away and the occasion of it shall make a great noise in
+the town of London. It will be said amongst the Lutherans that the Queen
+is answerable therefor. It will be said that the Queen hath a very lewd
+Court and companionship.'
+
+The Archbishop muttered wearily--
+
+'It hath been said already.'
+
+'But not,' Lascelles said, 'since she came to be Queen.'
+
+The Archbishop directed upon him his hang-dog eyes, and his voice was
+the voice of a man that would not be disturbed from woeful musings.
+
+'What use?' he said bitterly; and then again, 'What use?'
+
+Lascelles wrote on sedulously. He used his sandarach to the end of the
+page, blew off the sand, eyed the sheet sideways, laid it down, and set
+another on his writing-board.
+
+'Why,' he brought out quietly, 'it may be brought to the King's
+Highness' ears.'
+
+'What way?' the Archbishop said heavily, as if the thing were
+impossible. His gentleman answered--
+
+'This way and that!' The King's Highness had a trick of wandering about
+among his faithful lieges unbeknown; foreign ambassadors wrote abroad
+such rumours which might be re-reported from the foreign by the King's
+servants.
+
+'Such a report,' Lascelles said, 'hath gone up already to London town by
+a swift carrier.'
+
+The Archbishop brought out wearily and distastefully--
+
+'How know you? Was it you that wrote it?'
+
+'Please it, your Grace,' his gentleman answered him, 'it was in this
+wise. As I was passing by the Queen's chamber wall I heard a great
+outcry----'
+
+He laid down his pen beside his writing-board the more leisurely to
+speak.
+
+He had seen Udal, beaten and shaking, stagger out from the Queen's door
+to where his guards waited to set him back in prison. From Udal he had
+learned of this new draft of the letter; of Udal's trouble he knew
+before. Udal gone, he had waited a little, hearing the Queen's voice and
+what she said very plainly, for the castle was very great and quiet.
+Then out had come the young Poins, breathing like a volcano through his
+nostrils, and like to be stricken with palsy, boy though he was. Him
+Lascelles had followed at a convenient distance, where he staggered and
+snorted. And, coming upon the boy in an empty guard-room near the great
+gate, he had found him aflame with passion against the Queen's
+Highness.
+
+'I,' the boy had cried out, 'I that by my carrying of letters set this
+Howard where she sits! I!--and this is my advancement. My sister cast
+down, and I cast out, and another maid to take my sister's place.'
+
+And Lascelles, in the guard-chamber, had shown him sympathy and reminded
+him that there was gospel for saying that princes had short memories.
+
+'But I did not calm him!' Lascelles said.
+
+On the contrary, upon Lascelles' suggestion that the boy had but to hold
+his tongue and pocket his wrongs, the young Poins had burst out that he
+would shout it all abroad at every street corner. And suddenly it had
+come into his head to write such a letter to his Uncle Badge the printer
+as, printed in a broadside, would make the Queen's name to stink, until
+the last generation was of men, in men's nostrils.
+
+Lascelles rubbed his hands gently and sinuously together. He cast one
+sly glance at the Archbishop.
+
+'Well, the letter was written,' he said. 'Be sure the broadside shall be
+printed.'
+
+Cranmer's head was sunk over his book.
+
+'This lad,' Lascelles said softly, 'who in seven days' time again shall
+keep the Queen's door (for it is not true that the Queen's Highness is
+an ingrate, well sure am I), this lad shall be a very useful confidant;
+a very serviceable guide to help us to a knowledge of who goes in to the
+Queen and who cometh out.'
+
+The Archbishop did not appear to be listening to his gentleman's soft
+voice and, resuming his pen, Lascelles finished his tale with--
+
+'For I have made this lad my friend. It shall cost me some money, but I
+do not doubt that your Grace shall repay.'
+
+The Archbishop raised his head.
+
+'No, before God in heaven on His throne!' he said. His voice was shrill
+and high; he agitated his hands in their fine, tied sleeves. 'I will
+have no part in these Cromwell tricks. All is lost; let it be lost. I
+must say my prayers.'
+
+'Has it been by saying of your Grace's prayers that your Grace has lived
+through these months?' Lascelles asked softly.
+
+'Aye,' the Archbishop wrung his hands; 'you girded me and moved me when
+Cromwell lay at death, to write a letter to the King's Highness. To
+write such a letter as should appear brave and faithful and true to
+Privy Seal's cause.'
+
+'Such a letter your Grace wrote,' Lascelles said; 'and it was the best
+writing that ever your Grace made.'
+
+The Archbishop gazed at the table.
+
+'How do I know that?' he said in a whisper. 'You say so, who bade me
+write it.'
+
+'For that your Grace lives yet,' Lascelles said softly; 'though in those
+days a warrant was written for your capture. For, sure it is, and your
+Grace has heard it from the King's lips, that your letter sounded so
+faithful and piteous and true to him your late leader, that the King
+could not but believe that you, so loyal in such a time to a man
+disgraced and cast down beyond hope, could not but be faithful and loyal
+in the future to him, the King, with so many bounties to bestow.'
+
+'Aye,' the Archbishop said, 'but how do I know what of a truth was in
+the King's mind who casteth down to-day one, to-morrow another, till
+none are left?'
+
+And again Cranmer dropped his anguished eyes to the table.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+In those days still--and he slept still worse since the King had bidden
+him write this letter to Rome--the Archbishop could not sleep on any
+night without startings and sweats and cryings out in his sleep. And he
+gave orders that, when he so cried out, the page at his bedside should
+wake him.
+
+For then he was seeing the dreadful face of his great master, Privy
+Seal, when the day of his ruin had come. Cromwell had been standing in a
+window of the council chamber at Westminster looking out upon a
+courtyard. In behind him had come the other lords of the council,
+Norfolk with his yellow face, the High Admiral, and many others; and
+each, seating himself at the table, had kept his bonnet on his head. So
+Cromwell, turning, had seen them and had asked with his hard insolence
+and embittered eyes of hatred, how they dared be covered before he who
+was their president sat down. Then, up against him in the window-place
+there had sprung Norfolk at the chain of the George round his neck, and
+Suffolk at the Garter on his knee; and Norfolk had cried out that Thomas
+Cromwell was no longer Privy Seal of that kingdom, nor president of that
+council, but a traitor that must die. Then such rage and despair had
+come into Thomas Cromwell's terrible face that Cranmer's senses had
+reeled. He had seen Norfolk and the Admiral fall back before this
+passion; he had seen Thomas Cromwell tear off his cap and cast it on the
+floor; he had heard him bark and snarl out certain words into the face
+of the yellow dog of Norfolk.
+
+'_Upon your life you dare not call me traitor!_' and Norfolk had fallen
+back abashed.
+
+Then the chamber had seemed to fill with an awful gloom and darkness;
+men showed only like shadows against the window lights; the constable of
+the Tower had come in with the warrants, and in that gloom the earth had
+appeared to tremble and quake beneath the Archbishop's feet.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+He crossed himself at the recollection, and, coming out of his stupor,
+saw that Lascelles was finishing his writings. And he was glad that he
+was here now and not there then.
+
+'Prithee, your Grace,' the gentleman's soft voice said, 'let me bear,
+myself, this letter to the Queen.'
+
+The Archbishop shivered frostily in his robes.
+
+'I will have no more Cromwell tricks,' he said. 'I have said it'; and he
+affected an obdurate tone.
+
+'Then, indeed, all is lost,' Lascelles answered; 'for this Queen is very
+resolved.'
+
+The Archbishop cast his eyes up to the cold stone ceiling above him. He
+crossed himself.
+
+'You are a very devil,' he said, and panic came into his eyes, so that
+he turned them all round him as if he sought an issue at which to run
+out.
+
+'The Papist lords in this castle met on Saturday night,' Lascelles said;
+'their meeting was very secret, and Norfolk was their head. But I have
+heard it said that not one of them was for the Queen.'
+
+The Archbishop shrank within himself.
+
+'I am not minded to hear this,' he said.
+
+'Not one of them was for the Queen altogether; for she will render all
+lands and goods back to the Church, and there is no one of them but is
+rich with the lands and goods of the Church. That they that followed
+Cromwell are not for the Queen well your Grace knoweth,' his gentleman
+continued.
+
+'I will not hear this; this is treason,' the Archbishop muttered.
+
+'So that who standeth for the Queen?' Lascelles whispered. 'Only a few
+of the baser sort that have no lands to lose.'
+
+'The King,' the Archbishop cried out in a terrible voice; 'the King
+standeth for her!'
+
+He sprang up in his chair and then sank down again, covering his mouth
+with his hands, as if he would have intercepted the uttered words. For
+who knew who listened at what doors in these days. He whispered
+horribly--
+
+'What a folly is this. Who shall move the King? Will reports of his
+ambassadors that Cleves, or Charles, or Francis miscall the Queen? You
+know they will not, for the King is aware of how these princes batten on
+carrion. Will broad sheets of the Lutheran? You know they will not, for
+the King is aware of how those coggers come by their tales. Will the
+King go abroad among the people any more to hear what they say? You know
+he will not. For he is grown too old, and his fireside is made too
+sweet----'
+
+He wavered, and he could not work himself up with a longer show of
+anger.
+
+'Prithee,' Lascelles said, 'let me bear this letter myself to the
+Queen.' His voice was patient and calm.
+
+The Archbishop lay back, impotent, in his chair. His arms were along the
+arms of it: he had dropped his book upon the table. His long gown was
+draped all over him down to his feet; his head remained motionless; his
+eyes did not wink, and gazed at despair; his hands drooped, open and
+impotent.
+
+Suddenly he moved one of them a very little.
+
+
+VII
+
+It was the Queen's habit to go every night, when the business of the day
+was done, to pray, along with the Lady Mary, in the small chapel that
+was in the roof of the castle. To vespers she went with all the Court to
+the big chapel in the courtyard that the King had builded especially for
+her. But to this little chapel, that was of Edward IV's time, small and
+round-arched, all stone and dark and bare, she went with the Lady Mary
+alone. Her ladies and her doorguards they left at the stair foot, on a
+level with the sleeping rooms of the poorer sort, but up the little
+stairway they climbed by themselves, in darkness, to pray privately for
+the conversion of England. For this little place was so small and so
+forgotten that it had never been desecrated by Privy Seal's men. It had
+had no vessels worth the taking, and only very old vestments and a few
+ill-painted pictures on the stone walls that were half hidden in the
+dust.
+
+Katharine had found this little place when, on her first day at
+Pontefract, she had gone a-wandering over the castle with the King. For
+she was curious to know how men had lived in the old times; to see their
+rooms and to mark what old things were there still in use. And she had
+climbed thus high because she was minded to gaze upon the huge expanse
+of country and of moors that from the upper leads of the castle was to
+be seen. But this little chapel had seemed to her to be all the more
+sacred because it had been undesecrated and forgotten. She thought that
+you could not find such another in the King's realm at that time; she
+was very assured that not one was to be found in any house of the King's
+and hers.
+
+And, making inquiries, she had found that there was also an old priest
+there served the chapel, doing it rather secretly for the well-disposed
+of the castle's own guards. This old man had fled, at the approach of
+the King's many, into the hidden valleys of that countryside, where
+still the faith lingered and lingers now. For, so barbarous and remote
+those north parts were, that a great many people had never heard that
+the King was married again, and fewer still, or none, knew that he and
+his wife were well inclined again towards Rome.
+
+This old priest she had had brought to her. And he was so well loved
+that along with him came a cluster of weather-battered moorsmen, right
+with him into her presence. They kneeled down, being clothed with skins,
+and several of them having bows of a great size, to beg her not to harm
+this old man, for he was reputed a saint. The Queen could not understand
+their jargon but, when their suit was interpreted to her by the Lord
+Dacre of the North, and when she had had a little converse with the old
+priest, she answered that, so touched was her heart by his simplicity
+and gentleness, that she would pray the good King, her lord and master,
+to let this priest be made her confessor whilst there they stayed. And
+afterwards, if it were convenient, in reward for his faithfulness, he
+should be made a prior or a bishop in those parts. So the moorsmen,
+blessing her uncouthly for her fairness and kind words, went back with
+their furs and bows into their fastnesses. One of them was a great lord
+of that countryside, and each day he sent into the castle bucks and moor
+fowl, and once or twice a wolf. His name was Sir John Peel, and Sir John
+Peel, too, the priest was called.
+
+So the priest served that little altar, and of a night, when the Queen
+was minded next day to partake of the host, he heard her confession. On
+other nights he left them there alone to say their prayers. It was
+always very dark with the little red light burning before the altar and
+two tapers that they lit beneath a statue of the Virgin, old and black
+and ill-carved by antique hands centuries before. And, in that
+blackness, they knelt, invisible almost, and still in the black gowns
+that they put on for prayers, beside a low pillar that gloomed out at
+their sides and vanished up into the darkness of the roof.
+
+Having done their prayers, sometimes they stayed to converse and to
+meditate, for there they could be very private. On the night when the
+letter to Rome was redrafted, the Queen prayed much longer than the Lady
+Mary, who sat back upon a stool, silently, to await her finishing--for
+it seemed that the Queen was more zealous for the converting of those
+realms again to the old faith than was ever the Lady Mary. The tapers
+burned with a steady, invisible glow in the little side chapel behind
+the pillar; the altar gleamed duskily before them, and it was so still
+that through the unglassed windows they could hear, from far below in
+the black countryside, a tenuous bleating of late-dropped lambs.
+Katharine Howard's beads clicked and her dress rustled as she came up
+from her knees.
+
+'It rests more with thee than with any other in this land,' her voice
+reverberated amongst the distant shadows. A bat that had been drawn in
+by the light flittered invisibly near them.
+
+'Even what?' the Lady Mary asked.
+
+'Well you know,' the Queen answered; 'and may the God to whom you have
+prayed, that softened the heart of Paul, soften thine in this hour!'
+
+The Lady Mary maintained a long silence. The bat flittered, with a
+leathern rustle, invisible, between their very faces. At last Mary
+uttered, and her voice was taunting and malicious--
+
+'If you will soften my heart much you must beseech me.'
+
+'Why, I will kneel to you,' the Queen said.
+
+'Aye, you shall,' Mary answered. 'Tell me what you would have of me.'
+
+'Well you know!' Katharine said again.
+
+In the darkness the lady's voice maintained its bitter mirth, as it were
+the broken laughter of a soul in anguish.
+
+'I will have you tell me, for it is a shameful tale that will shame you
+in the telling.'
+
+The Queen paused to consider of her words.
+
+'First, you shall be reconciled with, and speak pleasantly with, the
+King your father and my lord.'
+
+'And is it not a shameful thing you bid me do, to bid me speak pleasant
+words to him that slew my mother and called me bastard?'
+
+The Queen answered that she asked it in the name of Christ, His pitiful
+sake, and for the good of this suffering land.
+
+'None the less, Queen, thou askest it in the darkness that thy face may
+not be seen. And what more askest thou?'
+
+'That when the Duke of Orleans his ambassadors come asking your hand in
+marriage, you do show them a pleasant and acquiescent countenance.'
+
+The sacredness of that dark place kept Mary from laughing aloud.
+
+'That, too, you dare not ask in the light of day, Queen,' she said. 'Ask
+on!'
+
+'That when the Emperor's ambassadors shall ask for your hand you shall
+profess yourself glad indeed.'
+
+'Well, here is more shame, that I should be prayed to feign this
+gladness. I think the angels do laugh that hear you. Ask even more.'
+
+Katharine said patiently--
+
+'That, having in reward of these favours, been set again on high, having
+honours shown you and a Court appointed round you, you shall gladly play
+the part of a princess royal to these realms, never gibing, nor sneering
+upon this King your father, nor calling upon the memory of the wronged
+Queen your mother.'
+
+'Queen,' the Lady Mary said, 'I had thought that even in the darkness
+you had not dared to ask me this.'
+
+'I will ask it you again,' the Queen said, 'in your room where the light
+of the candles shines upon my face.'
+
+'Why, you shall,' the Lady Mary said. 'Let us presently go there.'
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+They went down the dark and winding stair. At the foot the procession of
+the _coucher de la royne_ awaited them, first being two trumpeters in
+black and gold, then four pikemen with lanthorns, then the marshal of
+the Queen's household and five or seven lords, then the Queen's ladies,
+the Lady Rochford that slept with her, the Lady Cicely Rochford; the
+Queen's tiring-women, leaving a space between them for the Queen and the
+Lady Mary to walk in, then four young pages in scarlet and with the
+Queen's favours in their caps, and then the guard of the Queen's door,
+and four pikemen with torches whose light, falling from behind,
+illumined the path for the Queen's steps. The trumpeters blew four
+shrill blasts and then four with their fists in the trumpet mouths to
+muffle them. The brazen cries wound down the dark corridors, fathoms and
+fathoms down, to let men know that the Queen had done her prayers and
+was going to her bed. This great state was especially devised by the
+King to do honour to the new Queen that he loved better than any he had
+had. The purpose of it was to let all men know what she did that she
+might be the more imitated.
+
+But the Queen bade them guide her to the Lady Mary's door, and in the
+doorway she dismissed them all, save only her women and her door guard
+and pikemen who awaited her without, some on stools and some against the
+wall, ladies and men alike.
+
+The Lady Mary looked into the Queen's face very close and laughed at her
+when they were in the fair room and the light of the candles.
+
+'Now you shall say your litany over again,' she sneered; 'I will sit me
+down and listen.' And in her chair at the table, with her face averted,
+she dug with little stabs into the covering rug the stiletto with which
+she was wont to mend her pens.
+
+Standing by her, her face fully lit by the many candles that were upon
+the mantel, the Queen, dressed all in black and with the tail of her
+hood falling down behind to her feet, went patiently through the list of
+her prayers--that the Lady Mary should be reconciled with her father,
+that she should show at first favour to the ambassadors that sued for
+her hand for the Duke of Orleans, and afterwards give a glad consent to
+her marriage with the Prince Philip, the Emperor's son; and then, having
+been reinstated as a princess of the royal house of England, she should
+bear herself as such, and no more cry out upon the memory of Katharine
+of Aragon that had been put away from the King's side.
+
+The Queen spoke these words with a serious patience and a level voice;
+but when she came to the end of them she stretched out her hand and her
+voice grew full.
+
+'And oh,' she said, her face being set and earnest in entreaty towards
+the girl's back, 'if you have any love for the green and fertile land
+that gave birth both to you and to me----'
+
+'But to me a bastard,' the Lady Mary said.
+
+'If you would have the dishoused saints to return home to their loved
+pastures; if you would have the Mother of God and of us all to rejoice
+again in her dowry; if you would see a great multitude of souls, gentle
+and simple reconducted again towards Heaven----'
+
+'Well, well!' the Lady Mary said; 'grovel! grovel! I had thought you
+would have been shamed thus to crawl upon your belly before me.'
+
+'I would crawl in the dust,' Katharine said. 'I would kiss the mire from
+the shoon of the vilest man there is if in that way I might win for the
+Church of God----'
+
+'Well, well!' the Lady Mary said.
+
+'You will not let me finish my speech about our Saviour and His mother,'
+the Queen said. 'You are afraid I should move you.'
+
+The Lady Mary turned suddenly round upon her in her chair. Her face was
+pallid, the skin upon her hollowed temples trembled--
+
+'Queen,' she called out, 'ye blaspheme when ye say that a few paltry
+speeches of yours about God and souls will make me fail my mother's
+memory and the remembrances of the shames I have had.'
+
+She closed her eyes; she swallowed in her throat and then, starting up,
+she overset her chair.
+
+'To save souls!' she said. 'To save a few craven English souls! What are
+they to me? Let them burn in the eternal fires! Who among them raised a
+hand or struck a blow for my mother or me? Let them go shivering to
+hell.'
+
+'Lady,' the Queen said, 'ye know well how many have gone to the stake
+over conspiracies for you in this realm.'
+
+'Then they are dead and wear the martyr's crown,' the Lady Mary said.
+'Let the rest that never aided me, nor struck blow for my mother, go rot
+in their heresies.'
+
+'But the Church of God!' the Queen said. 'The King's Highness has
+promised me that upon the hour when you shall swear to do these things
+he will send the letter that ye wot of to our Father in Rome.'
+
+The Lady Mary laughed aloud--
+
+'Here is a fine woman,' she said. 'This is ever the woman's part to
+gloss over crimes of their men folk. What say you to the death of Lady
+Salisbury that died by the block a little since?'
+
+She bent her body and poked her head forward into the Queen's very face.
+Katharine stood still before her.
+
+'God knows,' she said. 'I might not stay it. There was much false
+witness--or some of it true--against her. I pray that the King my Lord
+may atone for it in the peace that shall come.'
+
+'The peace that shall come!' the Lady Mary laughed. 'Oh, God, what
+things we women are when a man rules us. The peace that shall come? By
+what means shall it have been brought on?'
+
+'I will tell you,' she pursued after a moment. 'All this is cogging and
+lying and feigning and chicaning. And you who are so upright will crawl
+before me to bring it about. Listen!'
+
+And she closed her eyes the better to calm herself and to collect her
+thoughts, for she hated to appear moved.
+
+'I am to feign a friendship to my father. That is a lie that you ask me
+to do, for I hate him as he were the devil. And why must I do this? To
+feign a smooth face to the world that his pride may not be humbled. I am
+to feign to receive the ambassadors of the Duke of Orleans. That is
+cogging that you ask of me. For it is not intended that ever I shall wed
+with a prince of the French house. But I must lead them on and on till
+the Emperor be affrighted lest your King make alliance with the French.
+What a foul tale! And you lend it your countenance!'
+
+'I would well----' Katharine began.
+
+'Oh, I know, I know,' Mary snickered. 'Ye would well be chaste but that
+it must needs be other with you. It was the thief's wife said that.
+
+'Listen again,' she pursued, 'anon there shall come the Emperor's men,
+and there shall be more cogging and chicaning, and honours shall be
+given me that I may be bought dear, and petitioning that I should be set
+in the succession to make them eager. And then, perhaps, it shall all be
+cried off and a Schmalkaldner prince shall send ambassadors----'
+
+'No, before God,' Katharine said.
+
+'Oh, I know my father,' Mary laughed at her. 'You will keep him tied to
+Rome if you can. But you could not save the venerable Lady of Salisbury,
+nor you shall not save him from trafficking with Schmalkaldners and
+Lutherans if it shall serve his monstrous passions and his vanities. And
+if he do not this yet he will do other villainies. And you will cosset
+him in them--to save his hoggish dignity and buttress up his heavy
+pride. All this you stand there and ask.'
+
+'In the name of God I ask it,' Katharine said. 'There is no other way.'
+
+'Well then,' the Lady Mary said, 'you shall ask it many times. I will
+have you shamed.'
+
+'Day and night I will ask it,' Katharine said.
+
+The Lady Mary sniffed.
+
+'It is very well,' she said. 'You are a proud and virtuous piece. I will
+humble you. It were nothing to my father to crawl on his belly and
+humble himself and slaver. He would do it with joy, weeping with a
+feigned penitence, making huge promises, foaming at the mouth with oaths
+that he repented, calling me his ever loved child----'
+
+She stayed and then added--
+
+'That would cost him nothing. But that you that are his pride, that you
+should do it who are in yourself proud--that is somewhat to pay oneself
+with for shamed nights and days despised. If you will have this thing
+you shall do some praying for it.'
+
+'Even as Jacob served so will I,' Katharine said.
+
+'Seven years!' the Lady Mary mocked at her. 'God forbid that I should
+suffer you for so long. I will get me gone with an Orleans, a Kaiserlik,
+or a Schmalkaldner leaguer before that. So much comfort I will give
+you.' She stopped, lifted her head and said, 'One knocks!'
+
+They said from the door that a gentleman was come from the Archbishop
+with a letter to the Queen's Grace.
+
+
+VIII
+
+There came in the shaven Lascelles and fell upon his knees, holding up
+the sheets of the letter he had copied.
+
+The Queen took them from him and laid them upon the great table, being
+minded later to read them to the Lady Mary, in proof that the King very
+truly would make his submission to Rome, supposing only that his
+daughter would make submission to her.
+
+When she turned, Lascelles was still kneeling before the doorway, his
+eyes upon the ground.
+
+'Why, I thank you,' she said. 'Gentleman, you may get you gone back to
+the Archbishop.'
+
+She was thinking of returning to her duel of patience with the Lady
+Mary. But looking upon his blond and agreeable features she stayed for a
+minute.
+
+'I know your face,' she said. 'Where have I seen you?'
+
+He looked up at her; his eyes were blue and noticeable, because at times
+of emotion he was so wide-lidded that the whites showed round the pupils
+of them.
+
+'Certainly I have seen you,' the Queen said.
+
+'It is a royal gift,' he said, 'the memory of faces. I am the
+Archbishop's poor gentleman, Lascelles.'
+
+The Queen said--
+
+'Lascelles? Lascelles?' and searched her memory.
+
+'I have a sister, the spit and twin of me,' he answered; 'and her name
+is Mary.'
+
+The Queen said--
+
+'Ah! ah!' and then, 'Your sister was my bed-fellow in the maid's room at
+my grandmother's.'
+
+He answered gravely--
+
+'Even so!'
+
+And she--
+
+'Stand up and tell me how your sister fares. I had some kindnesses of
+her when I was a child. I remember when I had cold feet she would heat a
+brick in the fire to lay to them, and such tricks. How fares she? Will
+you not stand up?'
+
+'Because she fares very ill I will not stand upon my feet,' he answered.
+
+'Well, you will beg a boon of me,' she said. 'If it is for your sister I
+will do what I may with a good conscience.'
+
+He answered, remaining kneeling, that he would fain see his sister. But
+she was very poor, having married an esquire called Hall of these parts,
+and he was dead, leaving her but one little farm where, too, his old
+father and mother dwelt.
+
+'I will pay for her visit here,' she said; 'and she shall have lodging.'
+
+'Safe-conduct she must have too,' he answered; 'for none cometh within
+seven miles of this court without your permit and approval.'
+
+'Well, I will send horses of my own, and men to safeguard her,' the
+Queen said. 'For, sure, I am beholden to her in many little things. I
+think she sewed the first round gown that ever I had.'
+
+He remained kneeling, his eyes still upon the floor.
+
+'We are your very good servants, my sister and I,' he said. 'For she did
+marry one--that Esquire Hall--that was done to death upon the gallows
+for the old faith's sake. And it was I that wrote the English of most of
+this letter to his Holiness, the Archbishop being ill and keeping his
+bed.'
+
+'Well, you have served me very well, it is true,' the Queen answered.
+'What would you have of me?'
+
+'Your Highness,' he answered, 'I do well love my sister and she me. I
+would have her given a place here at the Court. I do not ask a great
+one; not one so high as about your person. For I am sure that you are
+well attended, and places few there are to spare about you.'
+
+And then, even as he willed it, she bethought her that Margot Poins was
+to go to a nunnery. That afternoon she had decided that Mary Trelyon,
+who was her second maid, should become her first, and others be moved up
+in a rote.
+
+'Why,' she said, 'it may be that I shall find her an occupation. I will
+not have it said--nor yet do it--that I have ever recompensed them that
+did me favours in the old times, for there are a many that have served
+well in the Court that then I was outside of, and those it is fitting
+first to reward. Yet, since, as you say you have writ the English of
+this letter, that is a very great service to the Republic, and if by
+rewarding her I may recompense thee, I will think how I may come to do
+it.'
+
+He stood up upon his feet.
+
+'It may be,' he said, 'that my sister is rustic and unsuited. I have not
+seen her in many years. Therefore, I will not pray too high a place for
+her, but only that she and I may be near, the one to the other, upon
+occasions, and that she be housed and fed and clothed.'
+
+'Why, that is very well said,' the Queen answered him. 'I will bid my
+men to make inquiries into her demeanour and behaviour in the place
+where she bides, and if she is well fitted and modest, she shall have a
+place about me. If she be too rustic she shall have another place. Get
+you gone, gentleman, and a good-night to ye.'
+
+He bent himself half double, in the then newest courtly way, and still
+bent, pivoted through the door. The Queen stayed a little while musing.
+
+'Why,' she said, 'when I was a little child I fared very ill, if now I
+think of it; but then it seemed a little thing.'
+
+'Y'had best forget it,' the Lady Mary answered.
+
+'Nay,' the Queen said. 'I have known too well what it was to go
+supperless to my bed to forget it. A great shadowy place--all shadows,
+where the night airs crept in under the rafters.'
+
+She was thinking of the maids' dormitory at her grandmother's, the old
+Duchess.
+
+'I am climbed very high,' she said; 'but to think----'
+
+She was such a poor man's child and held of only the littlest account,
+herding with the maids and the servingmen's children. At eight by the
+clock her grandmother locked her and all the maids--at times there were
+but ten, at times as many as a score--into that great dormitory that
+was, in fact, nothing but one long attic or grange beneath the bare
+roof. And sometimes the maids told tales or slept soon, and sometimes
+their gallants, grooms and others, came climbing through the windows
+with rope ladders. They would bring pasties and wines and lights, and
+coarsely they would revel.
+
+'Why,' she said, 'I had a gallant myself. He was a musician, but I have
+forgot his name. Aye, and then there was another, Dearham, I think; but
+I have heard he is since dead. He may have been my cousin; we were so
+many in family, I have a little forgot.'
+
+She stood still, searching her memory, with her eyes distant. The Lady
+Mary surveyed her face with a curious irony.
+
+'Why, what a simple Queen you are!' she said. 'This is something
+rustic.'
+
+The Queen joined her hands together before her, as if she caught at a
+clue.
+
+'I do remember me,' she said. 'It was a make of a comedy. This Dearham,
+calling himself my cousin, beat this music musician for calling himself
+my gallant. Then goes the musicker to my grandam, bidding the old
+Duchess rise up again one hour after she had sought her bed. So comes my
+grandam and turns the key in the padlock and looketh in over all the
+gallimaufrey of lights and pasties and revels.
+
+'Why,' she continued. 'I think I was beaten upon that occasion, but I
+could not well tell why. And I was put to sleep in another room. And
+later came my father home from some war. And he was angry that I had
+consorted so with false minions, and had me away to his own poor house.
+And there I had Udal for my Magister and evil fare and many beatings.
+But this Mary Lascelles was my bed-fellow.'
+
+'Why, forget it,' the Lady Mary said again.
+
+'Other teachers would bid me remember it that I might remain humble,'
+Katharine answered.
+
+'Y'are humble enow and to spare,' the Lady Mary said. 'And these are not
+good memories for such a place as this. Y'had best keep this Mary
+Lascelles at a great distance.'
+
+Katharine said--
+
+'No; for I have passed my word.'
+
+'Then reward her very fully,' the Lady Mary commended, and the Queen
+answered--
+
+'No, for that is against my conscience. What have I to fear now that I
+be Queen?'
+
+Mary shrugged her squared shoulders.
+
+'Where is your Latin,' she said, 'with its _nulla dies felix_--call no
+day fortunate till it be ended.'
+
+'I will set another text against that,' she said, 'and that from holy
+sayings--that _justus ab aestimatione non timebit_.'
+
+'Well,' Mary answered, 'you will make your bed how you will. But I think
+you would better have learned of these maids how to steer a course than
+of your Magister and the Signor Plutarchus.'
+
+The Queen did not answer her, save by begging her to read the King's
+letter to his Holiness.
+
+'And surely,' she said, 'if I had never read in the noble Romans I had
+never had the trick of tongue to gar the King do so much of what I
+will.'
+
+'Why, God help you,' her step-daughter said. 'Pray you may never come to
+repent it.'
+
+
+
+
+PART TWO
+
+THE THREATENED RIFT
+
+
+I
+
+In these summer days there was much faring abroad in the broad lands to
+north and to south of the Pontefract Castle. The sunlight lay across
+moors and uplands. The King was come with all his many to Newcastle; but
+no Scots King was there to meet him. So he went farther to northwards.
+His butchers drove before him herds of cattle that they slew some of
+each night: their hooves made a broad and beaten way before the King's
+horses. Behind came an army of tent men: cooks, servers, and sutlers.
+For, since they went where new castles were few, at times they must
+sleep on moorsides, and they had tents all of gold cloth and black, with
+gilded tent-poles and cords of silk and silver wire. The lords and
+principal men of those parts came out to meet him with green boughs, and
+music, and slain deer, and fair wooden kegs filled with milk. But when
+he was come near to Berwick there was still no Scots King to meet him,
+and it became manifest that the King's nephew would fail that tryst.
+Henry, riding among his people, swore a mighty oath that he would take
+way even into Edinburgh town and there act as he listed, for he had with
+him nigh on seven thousand men of all arms and some cannon which he had
+been minded to display for the instruction of his nephew. But he had, in
+real truth, little stomach for this feat. For, if he would go into
+Scotland armed, he must wait till he got together all the men that the
+Council of the North had under arms. These were scattered over the whole
+of the Border country, and it must be many days before he had them all
+there together. And already the summer was well advanced, and if he
+delayed much longer his return, the after progress from Pontefract to
+London must draw them to late in the winter. And he was little minded
+that either Katharine or his son should bear the winter travel. Indeed,
+he sent a messenger back to Pontefract with orders that the Prince
+should be sent forthwith with a great guard to Hampton Court, so that he
+should reach that place before the nights grew cold.
+
+And, having stayed in camp four days near the Scots border--for he loved
+well to live in a tent, since it re-awoke in him the ardour of his youth
+and made him think himself not so old a man--he delivered over to the
+Earl Marshal forty Scots borderers and cattle thieves that had been
+taken that summer. These men he had meant to have handed, pardoned, to
+the Scots King when he met him. But the Earl Marshal set up, along the
+road into Scotland, from where the stone marks the border, a row of
+forty gallows, all high, but some higher than others; for some of the
+prisoners were men of condition. And, within sight of a waiting crowd of
+Scots that had come down to the boundaries of their land to view the
+King of England, Norfolk hanged on these trees the forty men.
+
+And, laughing over their shoulders at this fine harvest of fruit,
+gibbering and dangling against the heavens on high, the King and his
+host rode back into the Border country. It was pleasant to ride in the
+summer weather, and they hunted and rendered justice by the way, and
+heard tales of battle that there had been before in the north country.
+
+But there was one man, Thomas Culpepper, in the town of Edinburgh to
+whom this return was grievous. He had been in these outlandish parts now
+for more than nineteen months. The Scots were odious to him, the town
+was odious; he had no stomach for his food, and such clothes as he had
+were ragged, for he would wear nothing that had there been woven. He was
+even a sort of prisoner. For he had been appointed to wait on the King's
+Ambassador to the King of Scots, and the last thing that Throckmorton,
+the notable spy, had done before he had left the Court had been to write
+to Edinburgh that T. Culpepper, the Queen's cousin, who was a dangerous
+man, was to be kept very close and given no leave of absence.
+
+And one thing very much had aided this: for, upon receiving news, or the
+rumour of news, that his cousin Katharine Howard--he was her mother's
+brother's son--had wedded the King, or had been shown for Queen at
+Hampton Court, he had suddenly become seized with such a rage that,
+incontinently, he had run his sword through an old fishwife in the
+fishmarket where he was who had given him the news, newly come by sea,
+thinking that because he was an Englishman this marriage of his King
+might gladden him. The fishwife died among her fish, and Culpepper with
+his sword fell upon all that were near him in the market, till, his heel
+slipping upon a haddock, he fell, and was fallen upon by a great many
+men.
+
+He must stay in jail for this till he had compounded with the old
+woman's heirs and had paid for a great many cuts and bruises. And Sir
+Nicholas Hoby, happening to be in Edinburgh at that time, understood
+well what ailed Thomas Culpepper, and that he was mad for love of the
+Queen his cousin--for was it not this Culpepper that had brought her to
+the court, and, as it was said, had aforetime sold farms to buy her food
+and gowns when, her father being a poor man, she was well-nigh starving?
+Therefore Sir Nicholas begged alike the Ambassador and the King of Scots
+that they would keep this madman clapped up till they were very certain
+that the fit was off him. And, what with the charges of blood ransom and
+jailing for nine months, Culpepper had no money at all when at last he
+was enlarged, but must eat his meals at the Ambassador's table, so that
+he could not in any way come away into England till he had written for
+more money and had earned a further salary. And that again was a matter
+of many months, and later he spent more in drinking and with Scots women
+till he persuaded himself that he had forgotten his cousin that was now
+a Queen. Moreover, it was made clear to him by those about him that it
+was death to leave his post unpermitted.
+
+But, with the coming of the Court up into the north parts, his
+impatience grew again, so that he could no longer eat but only drink and
+fight. It was rumoured that the Queen was riding with the King, and he
+swore a mighty oath that he would beg of her or of the King leave at
+last to be gone from that hateful city; and the nearer came the King the
+more his ardour grew. So that, when the news came that the King was
+turned back, Culpepper could no longer compound it with himself. He had
+then a plenty of money, having kept his room for seven days, and the
+night before that he had won half a barony at dice from a Scots archer.
+But he had no passport into England; therefore, because he was afraid to
+ask for one, being certain of a refusal, he blacked his face and hands
+with coal and then took refuge on a coble, leaving the port of Leith for
+Durham. He had well bribed the master of this ship to take him as one of
+his crew. In Durham he stayed neither to wash nor to eat, but, having
+bought himself a horse, he rode after the King's progress that was then
+two days' journey to the south, and came up with them. He had no wits
+left more than to ask of the sutlers at the tail of the host where the
+Queen was. They laughed at this apparition upon a haggard horse, and one
+of them that was a notable cutpurse took all the gold that he had, only
+giving him in exchange the news that the Queen was at Pontefract, from
+which place she had never stirred. With a little silver that he had in
+another bag he bought himself a provision of food, a store of drink, and
+a poor Kern to guide him, running at his saddle-bow.
+
+He saw neither hills nor valleys, neither heather nor ling: he had no
+thoughts but only that of finding the Queen his cousin. At times the
+tears ran down his begrimed face, at times he waved his sword in the air
+and, spurring his horse, he swore great oaths. How he fared, where he
+rested, by what roads he went over the hills, that he never knew.
+Without a doubt the Kern guided him faithfully.
+
+For the Queen, having news that the King was nearly come within a day's
+journey, rode out towards the north to meet him. And as she went along
+the road, she saw, upon a hillside not very far away, a man that sat
+upon a dead horse, beating it and tugging at its bridle. Beside him
+stood a countryman, in a garment of furs and pelts, with rawhide boots.
+She had a great many men and ladies riding behind her, and she had come
+as far as she was minded to go. So she reined in her horse and sent two
+prickers to ask who these men were.
+
+And when she heard that this was a traveller, robbed of all his money
+and insensate, and his poor guide who knew nothing of who he might be,
+she turned her cavalcade back and commanded that the traveller should be
+borne to the castle on a litter of boughs and there attended to and
+comforted until again he could take the road. And she made occasion upon
+this to comment how ill it was for travellers that the old monasteries
+were done away with. For in the old time there were seven monasteries
+between there and Durham, wherein poor travellers might lodge. Then, if
+a merchant were robbed upon the highways, he could be housed at
+convenient stages on his road home, and might afterwards send recompense
+to the good fathers or not as he pleased or was able. Now, there was no
+harbourage left on all that long road, and, but for the grace of God,
+that pitiful traveller might have lain there till the ravens picked out
+his eyes.
+
+And some commended the Queen's words and actions, and some few, behind
+their hands, laughed at her for her soft heart. And the more Lutheran
+sort said that it was God's mercy that the old monasteries were gone;
+for they had, they said, been the nests for lowsels, idle wayfarers,
+palmers, pilgrims, and the like. And, praise God, since that clearance
+fourteen thousand of these had been hanged by the waysides for sturdy
+rogues, to the great purging of the land.
+
+
+II
+
+In the part of Lincolnshire that is a little to the northeastward of
+Stamford was a tract of country that had been granted to the monks of St
+Radigund's at Dover by William the Conqueror. These monks had drained
+this land many centuries before, leaving the superintendence of the work
+at first to priors by them appointed, and afterwards, when the dykes,
+ditches, and flood walls were all made, to knights and poor gentlemen,
+their tenants, who farmed the land and kept up the defences against
+inundations, paying scot and lot to a bailiff and water-wardens and
+jurats, just as was done on the Romney marshes by the bailiff and jurats
+of that level.
+
+And one of these tenants, holding two hundred acres in a simple fee from
+St Radigund's for a hundred and fifty years back, had been always a man
+of the name of Hall. It was an Edward Hall that Mary Lascelles had
+married when she was a maid at the Duchess of Norfolk's. This Edward
+Hall was then a squire, a little above the condition of a groom, in the
+Duchess's service. His parents dwelled still on the farm which was
+called Neot's End, because it was in the angle of the great dyke called
+St Neot's and the little sewer where St Radigund's land had its boundary
+stone.
+
+But in the troublesome days of the late Privy Seal, Edward Hall had
+informed Throckmorton the spy of a conspiracy and rising that was
+hatching amongst the Radigund's men a little before the Pilgrimage of
+Grace, when all the north parts rose. For the Radigund's men cried out
+and murmured amongst themselves that if the Priory was done away with
+there would be an end of their easy and comfortable tenancy. Their rents
+had been estimated and appointed a great number of years before, when
+all goods and the produce of the earth were very low priced. And the
+tenants said that if now the King took their lands to himself or gave
+them to some great lord, very heavy burdens would be laid upon them and
+exacted; whereas in some years under easy priors the monks forgot their
+distant territory, and in bad seasons they took no rents at all. And
+even under hard and exacting priors the monks could take no more than
+their rentals, which were so small. They said, too, that the King and
+Thomas Cromwell would make them into heathen Greeks and turn their
+children to be Saracens. So these Radigund's men meditated a rising and
+conspiracy.
+
+But, because Edward Hall informed Throckmorton of what was agate, a
+posse was sent into that country, and most of the men were hanged and
+their lands all taken from them. Those that survived from the jailing
+betook themselves to the road, and became sturdy beggars, so that many
+of them too came to the gallows tree.
+
+Most of the land was granted to the Sieur Throckmorton with the abbey's
+buildings and tithe barns. But the Halls' farm and another of near three
+hundred acres were granted to Edward Hall. Then it was that Edward Hall
+could marry and take his wife, Mary Lascelles, down into Lincolnshire to
+Neot's End. But when the Pilgrimage of Grace came, and the great risings
+all over Lincolnshire, very early the rioters came to Neot's End, and
+they burned the farm and the byres, they killed all the beasts or drove
+them off, they trampled down the corn and laid waste the flax fields.
+And, between two willow trees along the great dyke, they set a pole, and
+from it they hanged Edward Hall over the waters, so that he dried and
+was cured like a ham in the smoke from his own stacks.
+
+Then Mary Lascelles' case was a very miserable one; for she had to fend
+for the aged father and bedridden mother of Edward Hall, and there were
+no beasts left but only a few geese and ducks that the rebels could not
+lay their hands on. And the only home that they had was the farmhouse
+that was upon Edward Hall's other farm, and that they had let fall
+nearly into ruin. And for a long time no men would work for her.
+
+But at last, after the rebellion was pitifully ended, a few hinds came
+to her, and she made a shift. And it was better still after Privy Seal
+fell, for then came Throckmorton the spy into his lands, and he brought
+with him carpenters and masons and joiners to make his house fair, and
+some of these men he lent to Mary Hall. But it had been prophesied by a
+wise woman in those parts that no land that had been taken from the
+monks would prosper. And, because all the jurats, bailiffs, and
+water-wardens had been hanged either on the one part or the other and no
+more had been appointed, at about that time the sewers began to clog up,
+the lands to swamp, murrain and fluke to strike the beasts and the
+sheep, and night mists to blight the grain and the fruit blossoms. So
+that even Throckmorton had little good of his wealth and lands.
+
+Thus one morning to Mary Hall, who stood before her door feeding her
+geese and ducks, there came a little boy running to say that men-at-arms
+stood on the other side of the dyke that was very swollen and grey and
+broad. And they shouted that they came from the Queen's Highness, and
+would have a boat sent to ferry them over.
+
+The colour came into Mary Hall's pale face, for even there she had heard
+that her former bedfellow was come to be Queen. And at times even she
+had thought to write to the Queen to help her in her misery. But always
+she had been afraid, because she thought that the Queen might remember
+her only as one that had wronged her childish innocence. For she
+remembered that the maids' dormitory at the old Duchess's had been no
+cloister of pure nuns. So that, at best, she was afraid, and she sent
+her yard-worker and a shepherd a great way round to fetch the larger
+boat of two to ferry over the Queen's men. Then she went indoors to redd
+up the houseplace and to attire herself.
+
+To the old farmstead, that was made of wood hung over here and there
+with tilework with a base of bricks, she had added a houseplace for the
+old folk to sit all day. It was built of wattles that had had clay cast
+over them, and was whitened on the outside and thatched nearly down to
+the ground like any squatter's hut; it had cupboards of wood nearly all
+round it, and beneath the cupboards were lockers worn smooth with men
+sitting upon them, after the Dutch fashion--for there in Lincolnshire
+they had much traffic with the Dutch. There was a great table made of
+one slab of a huge oak from near Boston. Here they all ate. And above
+the ingle was another slab of oak from the same tree. Her little old
+step-mother sat in a stuff chair covered with a sheep-skin; she sat
+there night and day, shivering with the shaking palsy. At times she let
+out of her an eldritch shriek, very like the call of a hedgehog; but she
+never spoke, and she was fed with a spoon by a little misbegotten son of
+Edward Hall's. The old step-father sat always opposite her; he had no
+use of his legs, and his head was always stiffly screwed round towards
+the door as if he were peering, but that was the rheumatism. To atone
+for his wife's dumbness, he chattered incessantly whenever anyone was on
+that floor; but because he spoke always in Lincolnshire, Mary Hall could
+scarce understand him, and indeed she had long ceased to listen. He
+spoke of forgotten floods and ploughings, ancient fairs, the boundaries
+of fields long since flooded over, of a visit to Boston that King Edward
+IV had made, and of how he, for his fair speech and old lineage, had
+been chosen of all the Radigund's men to present into the King's hands
+three silver horseshoes. Behind his back was a great dresser with railed
+shelves, having upon them a little pewter ware and many wooden bowls for
+the hinds' feeding. A door on the right side, painted black, went down
+into the cellar beneath the old house. Another door, of bars of iron
+with huge locks from the old monastery, went into the old house where
+slept the maids and the hinds. This was always open by day but locked in
+the dark hours. For the hinds were accounted brutish lumps that went
+savage at night, like wild beasts, so that, if they spared the master's
+throat, which was unlikely, it was certain that they would little spare
+the salted meat, the dried fish, the mead, metheglin, and cyder that
+their poor cellar afforded. The floor was of stamped clay, wet and
+sweating but covered with rushes, so that the place had a mouldering
+smell. Behind the heavy door there were huge bolts and crossbars against
+robbers: the raftered ceiling was so low that it touched her hair when
+she walked across the floor. The windows had no glass but were filled
+with a thin reddish sheep-skin like parchment. Before the stairway was a
+wicket gate to keep the dogs--of whom there were many, large and fierce,
+to protect them alike from robbers and the hinds--to keep the dogs from
+going into the upper room.
+
+Each time that Mary Hall came into this home of hers her heart sank
+lower; for each day the corner posts gave sideways a little more, the
+cupboard bulged, the doors were loth to close or open. And more and more
+the fields outside were inundated, the lands grew sour, the sheep would
+not eat or died of the fluke.
+
+'And surely,' she would cry out at times, 'God created me for other
+guesswork than this!'
+
+At nights she was afraid, and shivered at the thought of the fens and
+the black and trackless worlds all round her; and the ravens croaked,
+night-hawks screamed, the dog-foxes cried out, and the flames danced
+over the swampy grounds. Her mirror was broken on the night that they
+hanged her husband: she had never had another but the water in her
+buckets, so that she could not tell whether she had much aged or whether
+she were still brown-haired and pink-cheeked, and she had forgotten how
+to laugh, and was sure that there were crow's-feet about her eyelids.
+
+Her best gown was all damp and mouldy in the attic that was her bower.
+She made it meet as best she could, and indeed she had had so little fat
+living, sitting at the head of her table with a whip for unruly hinds
+and louts before her--so little fat living that she could well get into
+her wedding-gown of yellow cramosyn. She smoothed her hair back into her
+cord hood that for so long had not come out of its press. She washed her
+face in a bucket of water: that and the press and her bed with grey
+woollen curtains were all the furnishing her room had. The straw of the
+roof caught in her hood when she moved, and she heard her old
+father-in-law cackling to the serving-maids through the cracks of the
+floor.
+
+When she came down there were approaching, across the field before the
+door, six men in scarlet and one in black, having all the six halberds
+and swords, and one a little banner, but the man in black had a sword
+only. Their horses were tethered in a clump on the farther side of the
+dyke. Within the room the serving-maids were throwing knives and pewter
+dishes with a great din on to the table slab. They dropped
+drinking-horns and the salt-cellar itself all of a heap into the rushes.
+The grandfather was cackling from his chair; a hen and its chickens ran
+screaming between the maids' feet. Then Lascelles came in at the
+doorway.
+
+
+III
+
+The Sieur Lascelles looked round him in that dim cave.
+
+'Ho!' he said, 'this place stinks,' and he pulled from his pocket a
+dried and shrivelled orange-peel purse stuffed with cloves and ginger.
+'Ho!' he said to the cornet that was come behind him with the Queen's
+horsemen. 'Come not in here. This will breed a plague amongst your men!'
+and he added--
+
+'Did I not tell you my sister was ill-housed?'
+
+'Well, I was not prepared against this,' the cornet said. He was a man
+with a grizzling beard that had little patience away from the Court,
+where he had a bottle that he loved and a crony or two that he played
+all day at chequers with, except when the Queen rode out; then he was of
+her train. He did not come over the sill, but spoke sharply to his men.
+
+'Ungird not here,' he said. 'We will go farther.' For some of them were
+for setting their pikes against the mud wall and casting their swords
+and heavy bottle-belts on to the table before the door. The old man in
+the armchair began suddenly to prattle to them all--of a horse-thief
+that had been dismembered and then hanged in pieces thirty years
+before. The cornet looked at him for a moment and said--
+
+'Sir, you are this woman's father-in-law, I do think. Have you aught to
+report against her?' He bent in at the door, holding his nose. The old
+man babbled of one Pease-Cod Noll that had no history to speak of but a
+swivel eye.
+
+'Well,' the grizzled cornet said, 'I shall get little sense here.' He
+turned upon Mary Hall.
+
+'Mistress,' he said, 'I have a letter here from the Queen's High Grace,'
+and, whilst he fumbled in his belt to find a little wallet that held the
+letter, he spoke on: 'But I misdoubt you cannot read. Therefore I shall
+tell you the Queen's High Grace commandeth you to come into her
+service--or not, as the report of your character shall be. But at any
+rate you shall come to the castle.'
+
+Mary Hall could find no words for men of condition, so long she had been
+out of the places where such are found. She swallowed in her throat and
+held her breast over her heart.
+
+'Where is the village here?' the cornet said, 'or what justice is there
+that can write you a character under his seal?'
+
+She made out to say that there was no village, all the neighbourhood
+having been hanged. A half-mile from there there was the house of Sir
+Nicholas Throckmorton, a justice. From the house-end he might see it, or
+he might have a hind to guide him. But he would have no guide; he would
+have no man nor maid nor child to go from there to the justice's house.
+He set one soldier to guard the back door and one the front, that none
+came out nor went beyond the dyke-end.
+
+'Neither shall you go, Sir Lascelles,' he said.
+
+'Well, give me leave with my sister to walk this knoll,' Lascelles said
+good-humouredly. 'We shall not corrupt the grass blades to bear false
+witness of my sister's chastity.'
+
+'Ay, you may walk upon this mound,' the cornet answered. Having got out
+the packet of the Queen's letter, he girded up his belt again.
+
+'You will get you ready to ride with me,' he said to Mary Hall. 'For I
+will not be in these marshes after nightfall, but will sleep at
+Shrimpton Inn.'
+
+He looked around him and added--
+
+'I will have three of your geese to take with us,' he said. 'Kill me
+them presently.'
+
+Lascelles looked after him as he strode away round the house with the
+long paces of a stiff horseman.
+
+'Before God,' he laughed, 'that is one way to have information about a
+quean. Now are we prisoners whilst he inquires after your character.'
+
+'Oh, alack!' Mary Hall said, and she cast up her hands.
+
+'Well, we are prisoners till he come again,' her brother said
+good-humouredly. 'But this is a foul hole. Come out into the sunlight.'
+
+She said--
+
+'If you are with them, they cannot come to take me prisoner.'
+
+He looked her full in the eyes with his own that twinkled inscrutably.
+He said very slowly--
+
+'Were your mar-locks and prinking-prankings so very evil at the old
+Duchess's?'
+
+She grew white: she shrank away as if he had threatened her with his
+fist.
+
+'The Queen's Highness was such a child,' she said. 'She cannot remember.
+I have lived very godly since.'
+
+'I will do what I can to save you,' he said. 'Let me hear about it, as,
+being prisoners, we may never come off.'
+
+'You!' she cried out. 'You who stole my wedding portion!'
+
+He laughed deviously.
+
+'Why, I have laid it up so well for you that you may wed a knight now if
+you do my bidding. I was ever against your wedding Hall.'
+
+'You lie!' she said. 'You gar'd me do it.'
+
+The maids were peeping out of the cellar, whither they had fled.
+
+'Come upon the grass,' he said. 'I will not be heard to say more than
+this: that you and I stand and fall together like good sister and goodly
+brother.'
+
+Their faces differed only in that hers was afraid and his smiling as he
+thought of new lies to tell her. Her face in her hood, pale beneath its
+weathering, approached the colour of his that shewed the pink and white
+of indoors. She came very slowly near him, for she was dazed. But when
+she was almost at the sill he caught her hand and drew it beneath his
+elbow.
+
+'Tell me truly,' she said, 'shall I see the Court or a prison?... But
+you cannot speak truth, nor ever could when we were tiny twins. God help
+me: last Sunday I had the mind to wed my yard-man. I would become such a
+liar as thou to come away from here.'
+
+'Sister,' he said, 'this I tell you most truly: that this shall fall out
+according as you obey me and inform me'; and, because he was a little
+the taller, he leaned over her as they walked away together.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+On the fourth day from then they were come to the great wood that is to
+south and east of the castle of Pontefract. Here Lascelles, who had
+ridden much with his sister, forsook her and went ahead of the slow and
+heavy horses of that troop of men. The road was broadened out to forty
+yards of green turf between the trees, for this was a precaution against
+ambushes of robbers. Across the road, after he had ridden alone for an
+hour and a half, there was a guard of four men placed. And here, whilst
+he searched for his pass to come within the limits of the Court, he
+asked what news, and where the King was.
+
+It was told him that the King lay still at the Fivefold Vents, two days'
+progress from the castle, and as it chanced that a verderer's pricker
+came out of the wood where he had been to mark where the deer lay for
+to-morrow's killing, Lascelles bade this man come along with him for a
+guide.
+
+'Sir, ye cannot miss the way,' the pricker said surlily. 'I have my deer
+to watch.'
+
+'I will have you to guide me,' Lascelles said, 'for I little know these
+parts.'
+
+'Well,' the pricker answered him, 'it is true that I have not often seen
+you ride a-hawking.'
+
+Whilst they went along the straight road, Lascelles, who unloosened the
+woodman's tongue with a great drink of sherry-sack, learned that it was
+said that only very unwillingly did the King lie so long at the Fivefold
+Vents. For on the morrow there was to be driven by, up there, a great
+herd of moor stags and maybe a wolf or two. The King would be home with
+his wife, it was reported, but the younger lords had been so importunate
+with him to stay and abide this gallant chase and great slaughter that,
+they having ridden loyally with him, he had yielded to their prayers and
+stayed there--twenty-four hours, it was said.
+
+'Why, you know a great deal,' Lascelles answered.
+
+'We who stand and wait had needs have knowledge,' the woodman said, 'for
+we have little else.'
+
+'Aye, 'tis a hard service,' Lascelles said. 'Did you see the Queen's
+Highness o' Thursday week borrow a handkerchief of Sir Roger Pelham to
+lure her falcon back?'
+
+'That did not I,' the woodman answered, 'for o' Thursday week it was a
+frost and the Queen rode not out.'
+
+'Well, it was o' Saturday,' Lascelles said.
+
+'Nor was it yet o' Saturday,' the woodman cried; 'I will swear it. For
+o' Saturday the Queen's Highness shot with the bow, and Sir Roger
+Pelham, as all men know, fell with his horse on Friday, and lies up
+still.'
+
+'Then it was Sir Nicholas Rochford,' Lascelles persisted.
+
+'Sir,' the woodman said, 'you have a very wrong tale, and patent it is
+that little you ride a-hunting.'
+
+'Well, I mind my book,' Lascelles said. 'But wherefore?'
+
+'Sir,' the woodman answered, 'it is thus: The Queen when she rides
+a-hawking has always behind her her page Toussaint, a little boy. And
+this little boy holdeth ever the separate lures for each hawk that the
+Queen setteth up. And the falcon or hawk or genette or tiercel having
+stooped, the Queen will call upon that eyass for the lure appropriated
+to each bird as it chances. And very carefully the Queen's Highness
+observeth the laws of the chase, of venery and hawking. For the which I
+honour her.'
+
+Lascelles said, 'Well, well!'
+
+'As for the borrowing of a handkerchief,' the woodman pursued, 'that is
+a very idle tale. For, let me tell you, a lady might borrow a jewelled
+feather or a scarlet pouch or what not that is bright and shall take a
+bird's eye--a little mirror upon a cord were a good thing. But a
+handkerchief! Why, Sir Bookman, that a lady can only do if she will
+signify to all the world: "This knight is my servant and I his
+mistress." Those very words it signifieth--and that the better for it
+showeth that that lady is minded to let her hawk go, luring the
+gentleman to her with that favour of his.'
+
+'Well, well,' Lascelles said, 'I am not so ignorant that I did not know
+that. Therefore I asked you, for it seemed a very strange thing.'
+
+'It is a very foolish tale and very evil,' the man answered. 'For this I
+will swear: that the Queen's Highness--and I and her honour for
+it--observeth very jealously the laws of wood and moorland and chase.'
+
+'So I have heard,' Lascelles said. 'But I see the castle. I will not
+take you farther, but will let you go back to the goodly deer.'
+
+'Pray God they be not wandered fore,' the woodman said. 'You could have
+found this way without me.'
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+There was but one road into the castle, and that from the south, up a
+steep green bank. Up the roadway Lascelles must ride his horse past four
+men that bore a litter made of two pikes wattled with green boughs and
+covered with a horse-cloth. As Lascelles passed by the very head of it,
+the man that lay there sprang off it to his feet, and cried out--
+
+'I be the Queen's cousin and servant. I brought her to the Court.'
+Lascelles' horse sprang sideways, a great bound up the bank. He galloped
+ten paces ahead before the rider could stay him and turn round. The man,
+all rags and with a black face, had fallen into the dust of the road,
+and still cried out outrageously. The bearers set down the litter, wiped
+their brows, and then, falling all four upon Culpepper, made to carry
+him by his legs and arms, for they were weary of laying him upon the
+litter from which incessantly he sprang.
+
+But before them upon his horse was Lascelles and impeded their way.
+Culpepper drew in and pushed out his legs and arms, so that they all
+four staggered, and--
+
+'For God's sake, master,' one of them grunted out, 'stand aside that we
+may pass. We have toil enow in bearing him.'
+
+'Why, set the poor gentleman down upon the litter,' Lascelles said, 'and
+let us talk a little.'
+
+The men set Culpepper on the horse-cloth, and one of them knelt down to
+hold him there.
+
+'If you will lend us your horse to lay him across, we may come more
+easily up,' one said. In these days the position and trade of a spy was
+so little esteemed--it had been far other with the great informers of
+Privy Seal's day--that these men, being of the Queen's guard, would talk
+roughly to Lascelles, who was a mere poor gentleman of the Archbishop's
+if his other vocation could be neglected. Lascelles sat, his hand upon
+his chin.
+
+'You use him very roughly if this be the Queen's cousin,' he said.
+
+The bearer set back his beard and laughed at the sky.
+
+'This is a coif--a poor rag of a merchant,' he cried out. 'If this were
+the Queen's cousin should we bear him thus on a clout?'
+
+'I am the Queen's cousin, T. Culpepper,' Culpepper shouted at the sky.
+'Who be you that stay me from her?'
+
+'Why, you may hear plainly,' the bearer said. 'He is mazed, doited,
+starved, thirsted, and a seer of visions.'
+
+Lascelles pondered, his elbow upon his saddle-peak, his chin caught in
+his hand.
+
+'How came ye by him?' he asked.
+
+One with another they told him the tale, how, the Queen being ridden
+towards the north parts, at the extreme end of her ride had seen the
+man, at a distance, among the heather, flogging a dead horse with a
+moorland kern beside him. He was a robbed, parched, fevered, and amazed
+traveller. The Queen's Highness, compassionating, had bidden bear him to
+the castle and comfort and cure him, not having looked upon his face or
+heard his tongue. For, for sure then, she had let him die where he was;
+since, no sooner were these four, his new bearers, nearly come up among
+the knee-deep heather, than this man had started up, his eyes upon the
+Queen's cavalcade and many at a distance. And, with his sword drawn and
+screaming, he had cried out that, if that was the Queen, he was the
+Queen's cousin. They had tripped up his heels in a bed of ling and
+quieted him with a clout on the poll from an axe end.
+
+'But now we have him here,' the eldest said; 'where we shall bestow him
+we know not.'
+
+Lascelles had his eyes upon the sick man's face as if it fascinated him,
+and, slowly, he got down from his horse. Culpepper then lay very still
+with his eyes closed, but his breast heaved as though against tight and
+strong ropes that bound him.
+
+'I think I do know this gentleman for one John Robb,' he said. 'Are you
+very certain the Queen's Highness did not know his face?'
+
+'Why, she came not ever within a quarter mile of him,' the bearer said.
+
+'Then it is a great charity of the Queen to show mercy to a man she hath
+never seen,' Lascelles answered absently. He was closely casting his
+eyes over Culpepper. Culpepper lay very still, his begrimed face to the
+sky, his hands abroad above his head. But when Lascelles bent over him
+it was as if he shuddered, and then he wept.
+
+Lascelles bent down, his hands upon his knees. He was afraid--he was
+very afraid. Thomas Culpepper, the Queen's cousin, he had never seen in
+his life. But he had heard it reported that he had red hair and beard,
+and went always dressed in green with stockings of red. And this man's
+hair was red, and his beard, beneath coal grime, was a curly red, and
+his coat, beneath a crust of black filth, was Lincoln green and of a
+good cloth. And, beneath the black, his stockings were of red silk. He
+reflected slowly, whilst the bearers laughed amongst themselves at this
+Queen's kinsman in rags and filth.
+
+Lascelles gave them his bottle of sack to drink empty among them, that
+he might have the longer time to think.
+
+If this were indeed the Queen's cousin, come unknown to the Queen and
+mazed and muddled in himself to Pontefract, what might not Lascelles
+make of him? For all the world knew that he loved her with a mad
+love--he had sold farms to buy her gowns. It was he that had brought her
+to Court, upon an ass, at Greenwich, when her mule--as all men knew--had
+stumbled upon the threshold. Once before, it was said, Culpepper had
+burst in with his sword drawn upon the King and Kate Howard when they
+sat together. And Lascelles trembled with eagerness at the thought of
+what use he might not make of this mad and insolent lover of the
+Queen's!
+
+But did he dare?
+
+Culpepper had been sent into Scotland to secure him up, away at the
+farthest limits of the realm. Then, if he was come back? This grime was
+the grime of a sea-coal ship! He knew that men without passports,
+outlaws and the like, escaped from Scotland on the Durham ships that
+went to Leith with coal. And this man came on the Durham road. Then....
+
+If it were Culpepper he had come unpermitted. He was an outlaw. Dare
+Lascelles have trade with--dare he harbour--an outlaw? It would be
+unbeknown to the Queen's Highness! He kicked his heels with impatience
+to come to a resolution.
+
+He reflected swiftly:
+
+What hitherto he had were: some tales spread abroad about the Queen's
+lewd Court--tales in London Town. He had, too, the keeper of the Queen's
+door bribed and talked into his service and interest. And he had his
+sister....
+
+His sister would, with threatening, tell tales of the Queen before
+marriage. And she would find him other maids and grooms, some no doubt
+more willing still than Mary Hall. But the keeper of the Queen's door!
+And, in addition, the Queen's cousin mad of love for her! What might he
+not do with these two?
+
+The prickly sweat came to his forehead. Four horsemen were issuing from
+the gate of the castle above. He must come to a decision. His fingers
+trembled as if they were a pickpocket's near a purse of gold.
+
+He straightened his back and stood erect.
+
+'Yes,' he said very calmly, 'this is my friend John Robb.'
+
+He added that this man had been in Edinburgh where the Queen's cousin
+was. He had had letters from him that told how they were sib and rib.
+Thus this fancy had doubtless come into his brain at sight of the Queen
+in his madness.
+
+He breathed calmly, having got out these words, for now the doubt was
+ended. He would have both the Queen's door-keeper and the Queen's mad
+lover.
+
+He bade the bearers set Culpepper upon his horse and, supporting him,
+lead him to a room that he would hire of the Archbishop's chamberlain,
+near his own in the dark entrails of the castle. And there John Robb
+should live at his expenses.
+
+And when the men protested that, though this was very Christian of
+Lascelles, yet they would have recompense of the Queen for their toils,
+he said that he himself would give them a crown apiece, and they might
+get in addition what recompense from the Queen's steward that they
+could. He asked them each their names and wrote them down, pretending
+that it was that he might send each man his crown piece.
+
+So, when the four horsemen were ridden past, the men hoisted Culpepper
+into Lascelles' horse and went all together up into the castle.
+
+But, that night, when Culpepper lay in a stupor, Lascelles went to the
+Archbishop's chamberlain and begged that four men, whose names he had
+written down, might be chosen to go in the Archbishop's paritor's guard
+that went next dawn to Ireland over the sea to bring back tithes from
+Dublin. And, next day, he had Culpepper moved to another room; and, in
+three days' time, he set it about in the castle that the Queen's cousin
+was come from Scotland. By that time most of the liquor had come down
+out of Culpepper's brain, but he was still muddled and raved at times.
+
+
+IV
+
+On that third night the Queen was with the Lady Mary, once more in her
+chamber, having come down as before, from the chapel in the roof, to
+pray her submit to her father's will. Mary had withstood her with a more
+good-humoured irony; and, whilst she was in the midst of her pleadings,
+a letter marked most pressing was brought to her. The Queen opened it,
+and raised her eyebrows; she looked down at the subscription and
+frowned. Then she cast it upon the table.
+
+'Shall there never be an end of old things?' she said.
+
+'Even what old things?' the Lady Mary asked.
+
+The Queen shrugged her shoulders.
+
+'It was not they I came to talk of,' she said. 'I would sleep early, for
+the King comes to-morrow and I have much to plead with you.'
+
+'I am weary of your pleadings,' the Lady Mary said. 'You have pleaded
+enow. If you would be fresh for the King, be first fresh for me. Start a
+new hare.'
+
+The Queen would have gainsaid her.
+
+'I have said you have pleaded enow,' the Lady Mary said. 'And you have
+pleaded enow. This no more amuses me. I will wager I guess from whom
+your letter was.'
+
+Reluctantly the Queen held her peace; that day she had read in many
+ancient books, as well profane as of the Fathers of the Church, and she
+had many things to say, and they were near her lips and warm in her
+heart. She was much minded to have good news to give the King against
+his coming on the morrow; the great good news that should set up in that
+realm once more abbeys and chapters and the love of God. But she could
+not press these sayings upon the girl, though she pleaded still with her
+blue eyes.
+
+'Your letter is from Sir Nicholas Throckmorton,' the Lady Mary said.
+'Even let me read it.'
+
+'You did know that that knight was come to Court again?' the Queen said.
+
+'Aye; and that you would not see him, but like a fool did bid him depart
+again.'
+
+'You will ever be calling me a fool,' Katharine retorted, 'for giving
+ear to my conscience and hating spies and the suborners of false
+evidence.'
+
+'Why,' the Lady Mary answered, 'I do call it a folly to refuse to give
+ear to the tale of a man who has ridden far and fast, and at the risk of
+a penalty to tell it you.'
+
+'Why,' Katharine said, 'if I did forbid his coming to the Court under a
+penalty, it was because I would not have him here.'
+
+'Yet he much loved you, and did you some service.'
+
+'He did me a service of lies,' the Queen said, and she was angry. 'I
+would not have had him serve me. By his false witness Cromwell was cast
+down to make way for me. But I had rather have cast down Cromwell by the
+truth which is from God. Or I had rather he had never been cast down.
+And that I swear.'
+
+'Well, you are a fool,' the Lady Mary said. 'Let me look upon this
+knight's letter.'
+
+'I have not read it,' Katharine said.
+
+'Then will I,' the Lady Mary answered. She made across the room to where
+the paper lay upon the table beside the great globe of the earth. She
+came back; she turned her round to the Queen; she made her a deep
+reverence, so that her black gown spread out stiffly around her, and,
+keeping her eyes ironically on Katharine's face, she mounted backward up
+to the chair that was beneath the dais.
+
+Katharine put her hand over her heart.
+
+'What mean you?' she said. 'You have never sat there before.'
+
+'That is not true,' the Lady Mary said harshly. 'For this last three
+days I have practised how, thus backward, I might climb to this chair
+and, thus seemly, sit in it.'
+
+'Even then?' Katharine asked.
+
+'Even then I will be asked no more questions,' her step-daughter
+answered. 'This signifieth that I ha' heard enow o' thy voice, Queen.'
+
+Katharine did not dare to speak, for she knew well this girl's tyrannous
+and capricious nature. But she was nearly faint with emotion and reached
+sideways for the chair at the table; there she sat and gazed at the girl
+beneath the dais, her lips parted, her body leaning forward.
+
+Mary spread out the great sheet of Throckmorton's parchment letter upon
+her black knees. She bent forward so that the light from the mantel at
+the room-end might fall upon the writing.
+
+'It seemeth,' she said ironically,'that one descrieth better at the
+humble end of the room than here on high'--and she read whilst the Queen
+panted.
+
+At last she raised her eyes and bent them darkly upon the Queen's face.
+
+'Will you do what this knight asks?' she uttered. 'For what he asks
+seemeth prudent.'
+
+'A' God's name,' Katharine said, 'let me not now hear of this man.'
+
+'Why,' the Lady Mary answered coolly, 'if I am to be of the Queen's
+alliance I must be of the Queen's council and my voice have a weight.'
+
+'But will you? Will you?' Katharine brought out.
+
+'Will you listen to my voice?' Mary said. 'I will not listen to yours.
+Hear now what this goodly knight saith. For, if I am to be your
+well-wisher, I must call him goodly that so well wishes to you.'
+
+Katharine wrung her hands.
+
+'Ye torture me,' she said.
+
+'Well, I have been tortured,' Mary answered, 'and I have come through it
+and live.'
+
+She swallowed in her throat, and thus, with her eyes upon the writing,
+brought out the words--
+
+'This knight bids you beware of one Mary Lascelles or Hall, and her
+brother, Edward Lascelles, that is of the Archbishop's service.'
+
+'I will not hear what Throckmorton says,' Katharine answered.
+
+'Ay, but you shall,' Mary said, 'or I come down from this chair. I am
+not minded to be allied to a Queen that shall be undone. That is not
+prudence.'
+
+'God help me!' the Queen said.
+
+'God helps most willingly them that take counsel with themselves and
+prudence,' her step-daughter answered; 'and these are the words of the
+knight.' She held up the parchment and read out:
+
+'"Therefore I--and you know how much your well-wisher I be--upon my
+bended knees do pray you do one of two things: either to put out both
+these twain from your courts and presence, or if that you cannot or will
+not do, so richly to reward them as that you shall win them to your
+service. For a little rotten fruit will spread a great stink; a small
+ferment shall pollute a whole well. And these twain, I am advised,
+assured, convinced, and have convicted them, will spread such a rotten
+fog and mist about your reputation and so turn even your good and
+gracious actions to evil seeming that--I swear and vow, O most high
+Sovereign, for whom I have risked, as you wot, life, limb and the fell
+rack----"'
+
+The Lady Mary looked up at the Queen's face.
+
+'Will you not listen to the pleadings of this man?' she said.
+
+'I will so reward Lascelles and his sister as they have merited.' the
+Queen said. 'So much and no more. And not all the pleadings of this
+knight shall move me to listen to any witness that he brings against any
+man nor maid. So help me, God; for I do know how he served his master
+Cromwell.'
+
+'For love of thee!' the Lady Mary said.
+
+The Queen wrung her hands as if she would wash a stain from them.
+
+'God help me!' she said. 'I prayed the King for the life of Privy Seal
+that was!'
+
+'He would not hear thee,' the Lady Mary said. She looked long upon the
+Queen's face with unmoved and searching eyes.
+
+'It is a new thing to me,' she said,'to hear that you prayed for Privy
+Seal's life.'
+
+'Well, I prayed,' Katharine said, 'for I did not think he worked treason
+against the King.'
+
+The Lady Mary straightened her back where she sat.
+
+'I think I will not show myself less queenly than you,' she said. 'For I
+be of a royal race. But hear this knight.'
+
+And again she read:
+
+'"I have it from the lips of the cornet that came with this Lascelles to
+fetch this Mary Lascelles or Hall: I, Throckmorton, a knight, swear that
+I heard with mine own ears, how for ever as they rode, this Lascelles
+plied this cornet with questions about your high self. As thus: 'Did you
+favour any gentleman when you rode out, the cornet being of your guard?'
+or, 'Had he heard a tale of one Pelham, a knight, of whom you should
+have taken a kerchief?'--and this, that and the other, for ever, till
+the cornet spewed at the hearing of him. Now, gracious and most high
+Sovereign Consort, what is it that this man seeketh?"'
+
+Again the Lady Mary paused to look at the Queen.
+
+'Why,' Katharine said, 'so mine enemies will talk of me. I had been the
+fool you styled me if I had not awaited it. But----' and she drew up
+her body highly. 'My life is such and such shall be that none such arrow
+shall pierce my corslet.'
+
+'God help you,' the Lady Mary said. 'What has your life to do with it,
+if you will not cut out the tongues of slanderers?'
+
+She laughed mirthlessly, and added--
+
+'Now this knight concludes--and it is as if he writhed his hands and
+knelt and whined and kissed your feet--he concludeth with a prayer that
+you will let him come again to the Court. "For," says he, "I will clean
+your vessels, serve you at table, scrape the sweat off your horse, or do
+all that is vilest. But suffer me to come that I may know and report to
+you what there is whispered in these jail places."'
+
+Katharine Howard said--
+
+'I had rather borrow Pelham's kerchief.'
+
+The Lady Mary dropped the parchment on to the floor at her side.
+
+'I rede you do as this knight wills,' she said; 'for, amidst the little
+sticklers of spies that are here, this knight, this emperor of spies,
+moves as a pillow of shadow. He stalks amongst them as, in the night,
+the dread and awful lion of Numidia. He shall be to you more a corslet
+of proof than all the virtue that your life may borrow from the precepts
+of Diana. We, that are royal and sit in high places, have our feet in
+such mire.'
+
+'Now before God on His throne,' Katharine Howard said, 'if you be of
+royal blood, I will teach you a lesson. For hear me----'
+
+'No, I will hear thee no more,' the Lady Mary answered; 'I will teach
+thee. For thou art not the only one in this land to be proud. I will
+show thee such a pride as shall make thee blush.'
+
+She stood up and came slowly down the steps of the dais. She squared
+back her shoulders and folded her hands before her; she erected her
+head, and her eyes were dark. When she was come to where the Queen sat,
+she kneeled down.
+
+'I acknowledge thee to be my mother,' she said, 'that have married the
+King, my father. I pray you that you do take me by the hand and set me
+in that seat that you did raise for me. I pray you that you do style me
+a princess, royal again in this land. And I pray you to lesson me and
+teach me that which you would have me do as well as that which it befits
+me to do. Take me by the hand.'
+
+'Nay, it is my lord that should do this,' the Queen whispered. Before
+that she had started to her feet; her face had a flush of joy; her eyes
+shone with her transparent faith. She brushed back a strand of hair from
+her brow; she folded her hands on her breasts and raised her glance
+upwards to seek the dwelling-place of Almighty God and the saints in
+their glorious array.
+
+'It is my lord should do this!' she said again.
+
+'Speak no more words,' the Lady Mary said. 'I have heard enow of thy
+pleadings. You have heard me say that.'
+
+She continued upon her knees.
+
+'It is thou or none!' she said. 'It is thou or none shall witness this
+my humiliation and my pride. Take me by the hand. My patience will not
+last for ever.'
+
+The Queen set her hand between the girl's. She raised her to her feet.
+
+When the Lady Mary stood high and shadowy, in black, with her white face
+beneath that dais, she looked down upon the Queen.
+
+'Now, hear me!' she said. 'In this I have been humble to you; but I have
+been most proud. For I have in my veins a greater blood than thine or
+the King's, my father's. For, inasmuch as Tudor blood is above Howard's,
+so my mother's, that was royal of Spain, is above Tudor's. And this it
+is to be royal----
+
+'I have had you, a Queen, kneel before me. It is royal to receive
+petitions--more royal still it is to grant them. And in this, further, I
+am more proud. For, hearing you say that you had prayed the King for
+Cromwell's life, I thought, this is a virtue-mad Queen. She shall most
+likely fall!--Prudence biddeth me not to be of her party. But shall I,
+who am royal, be prudent? Shall I, who am of the house of Aragon, be
+more afraid than thou, a Howard?
+
+'I tell you--No! If you will be undone for the sake of virtue, blindly,
+and like a fool, unknowing the consequences, I, Mary of Aragon and
+England, will make alliance with thee, knowing that the alliance is
+dangerous. And, since it is more valiant to go to a doom knowingly than
+blindfold, so I do show myself more valiant than thou. For well I
+know--since I saw my mother die--that virtue is a thing profitless, and
+impracticable in this world. But you--you think it shall set up temporal
+monarchies and rule peoples. Therefore, what you do you do for profit. I
+do it for none.'
+
+'Now, by the Mother of God,' Katharine Howard said, 'this is the
+gladdest day of my life.'
+
+'Pray you,' Mary said, 'get you gone from my sight and hearing, for I
+endure ill the appearance and sound of joy. And, Queen, again I bid you
+beware of calling any day fortunate till its close. For, before midnight
+you may be ruined utterly. I have known more Queens than thou. Thou art
+the fifth I have known.'
+
+She added--
+
+'For the rest, what you will I will do: submission to the King and such
+cozening as he will ask of me. God keep you, for you stand in need of
+it.'
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+At supper that night there sat all such knights and lordlings as ate at
+the King's expense in the great hall that was in the midmost of the
+castle, looking on to the courtyard. There were not such a many of them,
+maybe forty; from the keeper of the Queen's records, the Lord d'Espahn,
+who sat at the table head, down to the lowest of all, the young Poins,
+who sat far below the salt-cellar. The greater lords of the Queen's
+household, like the Lord Dacre of the North, did not eat at this common
+table, or only when the Queen herself there ate, which she did at midday
+when there was a feast.
+
+Nevertheless, this eating was conducted with gravity, the Lord d'Espahn
+keeping a vigilant eye down the table, which was laid with a fair white
+cloth. It cost a man a fine to be drunk before the white meats were
+eaten--unless, indeed, a man came drunk to the board--and the
+salt-cellar of state stood a-midmost of the cloth. It was of silver from
+Holland, and represented a globe of the earth, opened at the top, and
+supported by knights' bannerets.
+
+The hall was all of stone, with creamy walls, only marked above the iron
+torch-holds with brandons of soot. A scutcheon of the King's arms was
+above one end-door, with the Queen's above the other. Over each window
+were notable deers' antlers, and over each side-door, that let in the
+servers from the courtyard, was a scutcheon with the arms of a king
+deceased that had visited the castle. The roof was all gilded and
+coloured, and showed knaves' faces leering and winking, so that when a
+man was in drink, and looked upwards with his head on his chair back,
+these appeared to have life. The hall was called the Dacre Hall, because
+the Lords Dacre of the North had built it to be an offering to various
+kings that died whilst it was a-building.
+
+Such knights as had pages had them behind their chairs, holding napkins
+and ready to fill the horns with wine or beer. From kitchens or from
+buttery-hatches the servers ran continually across the courtyard and
+across the tiled floor, for the table was set back against the farther
+wall, all the knights being on the wall side, since there were not so
+many, and thus it was easier to come to them. There was a great clatter
+with the knives going and the feet on the tiles, but little conversing,
+for in that keen air eating was the principal thing, and in five minutes
+a boar or a sheep's head would be stripped till the skull alone was
+shown.
+
+It was in this manner that Thomas Culpepper came into the hall when they
+were all well set to, without having many eyes upon him. But the Lord
+d'Espahn was aware, suddenly, of one that stood beside him.
+
+'Gentleman, will you have a seat?' he said. 'Tell me your name and
+estate, that I may appoint you one.' He was a grave lord, with a pointed
+nose, dented at the end, a grey, square beard, and fresh colours on his
+face. He wore his bonnet because he was the highest there, and because
+there were currents of air at the openings of the doors.
+
+Thomas Culpepper's face was of a chalky white. Somewhere Lascelles had
+found for him a suit of green and red stockings. His red beard framed
+his face, but his lips were pursed.
+
+'Your seat I will have,' he said, 'for I am the Queen's cousin, T.
+Culpepper.'
+
+The Lord d'Espahn looked down upon his platter.
+
+'You may not have my seat,' he said. 'But you shall have this seat at my
+right hand that is empty. It is a very honourable seat, but mine you may
+not have for it is the Queen's own that I hold, being her vicar here.'
+
+'Your seat I will have,' Culpepper said.
+
+The Lord d'Espahn was set upon keeping order and quiet in that place
+more than on any other thing. He looked again down upon his platter, and
+then he was aware of a voice that whispered in his ear--
+
+'A' God's name, humour him, for he is very mad,' and, turning his eyes a
+little, he saw that it was Lascelles above his chair head.
+
+'Your seat I will have,' Culpepper said again. 'And this fellow, that
+tells me he is the most potent lord there is here, shall serve behind my
+chair.'
+
+The Lord d'Espahn took up his knife and fork in one hand and his manchet
+of bread in the other. He made as if to bow to Culpepper, who pushed him
+by the shoulder away. Some lordlings saw this and wondered, but in the
+noise none heard their words. At the foot of the table the squires said
+that the Lord d'Espahn must have been found out in a treason. Only the
+young Poins said that that was the Queen's cousin, come from Scotland,
+withouten leave, for love of the Queen through whom he was sick in the
+wits. This news ran through the castle by means of servers, cooks,
+undercooks, scullions, maids, tiring-maids, and maids of honour, more
+swiftly than it progressed up the table where men had the meats to keep
+their minds upon.
+
+Culpepper sat, flung back in his chair, his eyes, lacklustre and open,
+upon the cloth where his hands sprawled out. He said few words--only
+when the Lord d'Espahn's server carved boar's head for him, he took one
+piece in his mouth and then threw the plate full into the server's face.
+This caused great offence amongst the serving-men, for this server was a
+portly fellow that had served the Lord d'Espahn many years, and had a
+face like a ram's, so grave it was. Having drunk a little of his wine,
+Culpepper turned out the rest upon the cloth; his salt he brushed off
+his plate with his sleeve. That was remembered for long afterwards by
+many men and women. And it was as if he could not swallow, for he put
+down neither meat nor drink, but sat, deadly and pale, so that some said
+that he was rabid. Once he turned his head to ask the Lord d'Espahn--
+
+'If a quean prove forsworn, and turn to a Queen, what should her true
+love do?'
+
+The Lord d'Espahn never made any answer, but wagged his beard from side
+to side, and Culpepper repeated his question three separate times.
+Finally, the platters were raised, and the Lord d'Espahn went away to
+the sound of trumpets. Many of the lords there came peering round
+Culpepper to see what sport he might yield. Lascelles went away,
+following the scarlet figure of the young Poins, working his hand into
+the boy's arm and whispering to him. The servers and disservers went to
+their work of clearing the board.
+
+But Culpepper sat there without word or motion, so that none of those
+lords had any sport out of him. Some of them went away to roast pippins
+at the Widow Amnot's, some to speak with the alchemist that, on the
+roof, watched the stars. So one and the other left the room; the torches
+burned out, most of them, and, save for two lords of the Archbishop's
+following, who said boldly that they would watch and care for this man,
+because he was the Queen's cousin, and there might be advancement in it,
+Culpepper was left alone.
+
+His sword he had not with him, but he had his dagger, and, just as he
+drew it, appearing about to stab himself in the heart, there ran across
+the hall the black figure of Lascelles, so that he appeared to have been
+watching through a window, and the two lords threw themselves upon
+Culpepper's arm. And all three began to tell him that there was better
+work for him to do than that of stabbing himself; and Lascelles brought
+with him a flagon of _aqua vitae_ from Holland, and poured out a little
+for Culpepper to drink. And one of the lords said that his room was up
+in the gallery near the Queen's, and, if Culpepper would go with him
+there, they might make good cheer. Only he must be silent in the going
+thither; afterwards it would not so much matter, for they would be past
+the guards. So, linking their arms in his, they wound up and across the
+courtyard, where the torchmen that waited on their company of diners to
+light them, blessed God that the sitting was over, and beat their
+torches out against the ground.
+
+In the shadow of the high walls, and some in the moonlight, the
+serving-men held their parliament. They discoursed of these things, and
+some said that it was a great pity that T. Culpepper was come to Court.
+For he was an idle braggart, and where he was disorder grew, and that
+was a pity, since the Queen had made the Court orderly, and servants
+were little beaten. But some said that like sire was like child, and
+that great disorders there were in the Court, but quiet ones, and the
+Queen the centre. But these were mostly the cleaners of dishes and the
+women that swept rooms and spread new rushes. Upon the whole, the cooks
+blessed the Queen, along with all them that had to do with feeding and
+the kitchens. They thanked God for her because she had brought back the
+old fasts. For, as they argued, your fast brings honours to cooks,
+since, after a meagre day, your lord cometh to his trencher with a
+better appetite, and then is your cook commended. The Archbishop's cooks
+were the hottest in this contention, for they had the most reason to
+know. The stablemen, palfreniers, and falconers' mates were, most part
+of them, politicians more than the others, and these wondered to have
+seen, through their peep-holes and door-cracks, the Queen's cousin go
+away with these lords that were of the contrary party. Some said that T.
+Culpepper was her emissary to win them over to her interests, and some,
+that always cousins, uncles, and kin were the bitterest foes a Queen
+had, as witness the case of Queen Anne Boleyn and the Yellow Dog of
+Norfolk who had worked to ruin her. And some said it was marvellous that
+there they could sit or stand and talk of such things--for a year or so
+ago all the Court was spies, so that the haymen mistrusted them that
+forked down the straw, and meat-servers them with the wine. But now each
+man could talk as he would, and it made greatly for fellowship when a
+man could sit against a wall, unbutton in the warm nights, and say what
+he listed.
+
+The light of the great fires grew dull in the line of kitchen windows;
+sweethearting couples came in through the great gateway from the
+grass-slopes beneath the castle walls. There was a little bustle when
+four horsemen rode in to say that the King's Highness was but nine miles
+from the castle, and torchmen must be there to light him in towards
+midnight. But the Queen should not be told for her greater pleasure and
+surprise. Then all these servingmen stood up and shook themselves, and
+said--'To bed.' For, on the morrow, with the King back, there would
+surely be great doings and hard work. And to mews and kennels and huts,
+in the straw and beds of rushes, these men betook themselves. The young
+lords came back laughing from Widow Amnot's at the castle foot; there
+was not any light to be seen save one in all that courtyard full of
+windows. The King's torchmen slumbered in the guard-room where they
+awaited his approach. Darkness, silence, and deep shadow lay everywhere,
+though overhead the sky was pale with moonlight, and, from high in the
+air, the thin and silvery tones of the watchman's horn on the roof
+filtered down at the quarter hours. A drowsy bell marked the hours, and
+the cries and drillings of the night birds vibrated from very high.
+
+
+V
+
+Coming very late to her bedroom the Queen found awaiting her her
+tiring-maid, Mary Trelyon, whom she had advanced into the post that
+Margot Poins had held, and the old Lady Rochford.
+
+'Why,' she said to her maid, 'when you have unlaced me you may go, or
+you will not love my service that keeps you so late.'
+
+Mary Trelyon cast her eyes on the ground, and said that it was such
+pleasure to attend her mistress, that not willingly would she give up
+that discoiffing, undoing of hair, and all the rest, for long she had
+desired to have the handling of these precious things and costly
+garments.
+
+'No, you shall get you gone,' the Queen said, 'for I will not have you,
+sweetheart, be red-lidded in the morning with this long watching, for
+to-morrow the King comes, and I will have him see my women comely and
+fair, though in your love you will not care for yourselves.'
+
+Standing before her mirror, where there burned in silver dishes four
+tall candles with perfumed wicks, Katharine offered her back to the
+loosening fingers of this girl.
+
+'I would not have you to think,' she said, 'that I am always thus late
+and a gadabout. But this day'--the Queen's eyes sparkled, and her cheeks
+were red with exaltation--'this day and this night are one that shall be
+marked with red stones in the calendar of England, and late have I
+travailed so to make them be.'
+
+The girl was very black-avised, and her face beneath her grey hood--for
+the Queen's maids were all in grey, with crowned roses, the device that
+the King had given her at their wedding, worked in red silk on each
+shoulder--her face beneath her grey hood was the clear shape of the thin
+end of an egg. She worked at the unlacing of the Queen's gown, so that
+she at last must kneel down to it.
+
+Having finished, she remained upon her knees, but she twisted her
+fingers in her skirt as if she were bashful, yet her face was perturbed
+with red flushes on the dark cheeks.
+
+The Queen, feeling that she knelt there upon her loosened gown and did
+not get her gone, said--
+
+'Anan?'
+
+'Please you let me stay,' the girl said; but Katharine answered--
+
+'I would commune with my own thoughts.'
+
+'Please you hear me,' the girl said, and she was very earnest; but the
+Queen answered--
+
+'Why, no! If you have any boon to ask of me, you know very well that
+to-morrow at eleven is the hour for asking. Now, I will sit still with
+the silence. Bring me my chair to the table. The Lady Rochford shall put
+out my lights when I be abed.'
+
+The girl stood up and rolled, with a trick of appeal, her eyes to the
+old Lady Rochford. This lady, all in grey too, but with a great white
+hood because she was a widow, sat back upon the foot of the great bed.
+Her face was perturbed, but it had been always perturbed since her
+cousin, the Queen Anne Boleyn, had fallen by the axe. She put a gouty
+and swollen finger to her lips, and the girl shrugged her shoulders with
+a passion of despair, for she was very hot-tempered, and it was as if
+mutinously that she fetched the Queen her chair and set it behind her
+where she stood before the mirror taking off her breast jewel from its
+chain. And again the girl shrugged her shoulders. Then she went to the
+little wall-door that corkscrewed down into the courtyard through the
+thick of the wall. Immediately after she was gone they heard the
+lockguard that awaited her without set on the great padlock without the
+door. Then his feet clanked down the stairway, he being heavily loaded
+with weighty keys. It was the doors along the corridor that the young
+Poins guarded, and these were never opened once the Queen was in her
+room, save by the King. The Lady Rochford slept in the anteroom upon a
+truckle-bed, and the great withdrawing-room was empty.
+
+It was very still in the Queen's room and most shadowy, except before
+the mirror where the candle flames streamed upwards. The pillars of the
+great bed were twisted out of dark wood; the hangings of bed and walls
+were all of a dark blue arras, and the bedspread was of a dark red
+velvet worked in gold with pomegranates and pomegranate leaves. Only the
+pillows and the turnover of the sheets were of white linen-lawn, and the
+bed curtains nearly hid them with shadows. Where the Queen sat there was
+light like that of an altar in a dim chapel, for the room was so huge.
+
+She sat before her glass, silently taking off her golden things. She
+took the jewel off the chain round her neck and laid it in a casket of
+gold and ivory. She took the rings off her fingers and hung them on the
+lance of a little knight in silver. She took off her waist where it hung
+to a brooch of feridets, her pomander of enamel and gold; she opened it
+and marked the time by the watch studded with sable diamonds that it
+held.
+
+'Past eleven,' she said, 'if my watch goes right.'
+
+'Indeed it is past eleven,' the Lady Rochford sighed behind her.
+
+The Queen sat forward in her chair, looking deep into the shadows of her
+mirror. A great relaxation was in all her limbs, for she was very tired,
+so that though she was minded to let down her hair she did not begin to
+undo her coif, and though she desired to think, she had no thoughts.
+From far away there came a muffled sound as if a door had been roughly
+closed, and the Lady Rochford shot out a little sound between a scream
+and a sigh.
+
+'Why, you are very affrighted,' the Queen said. 'One would think you
+feared robbers; but my guards are too good.'
+
+She began to unloosen from her hood her jewel, which was a rose
+fashioned out of pink shell work set with huge dewdrops of diamonds and
+crowned with a little crown of gold.
+
+'God knows,' she said, 'I ha' trinkets enow for robbers. It takes me too
+long to undo them. I would the King did not so load me.'
+
+'Your Highness is too humble for a Queen,' the old Lady Rochford
+grumbled. 'Let me aid you, since the maid is gone. I would not have you
+speak your maids so humbly. My Cousin Anne that was the Queen----'
+
+She came stiffly and heavily forward from the bed with her hands out to
+discoif her lady; but the Queen turned her head, caught at her fat hand,
+put it against her cheek and fondled it.
+
+'I would have your Highness feared by all,' the old lady said.
+
+'I would have myself by all beloved,' Katharine answered. 'What, am I to
+play the Queen and Highness to such serving-maids as I was once the
+fellow and companion to?'
+
+'Your Highness should not have sent the wench away,' the old woman said.
+
+'Well, you have taken on a very sour voice,' the Queen said. 'I will
+study to pleasure you more. Get you now back and rest you, for I know
+you stand uneasily, and you shall not uncoif me.'
+
+She began to unpin her coif, laying the golden pins in the silver
+candle-dishes. When her hair was thus set free of a covering, though it
+was smoothly braided and parted over her forehead, yet it was lightly
+rebellious, so that little mists of it caught the light, golden and
+rejoiceful. Her face was serious, her nose a little peaked, her lips
+rested lightly together, and her blue eyes steadily challenged their
+counterparts in the mirror with an assured and gentle glance.
+
+'Why,' she said, 'I believe you have the right of it--but for a queen I
+must be the same make of queen that I am as a woman. A queen gracious
+rather than a queen regnant; a queen to grant petitions rather than one
+to brush aside the petitioners.'
+
+She stopped and mused.
+
+'Yet,' she said, 'you will do me the justice to say that in the open and
+in the light of day, when men are by or the King's presence demands it,
+I do ape as well as I may the painted queens of galleries and the
+stately ladies that are to be seen in pictured books.'
+
+'I would not have had you send away the maid,' the old Lady Rochford
+said.
+
+'God help me,' the Queen answered. 'I stayed her petition till the
+morrow. Is that not queening it enough?'
+
+The Lady Rochford suddenly wrung her hands.
+
+'I had rather,' she said, 'you had heard her and let her stay. Here
+there are not people enough to guard you. You should have many scores of
+people. This is a dreary place.'
+
+'Heaven help me,' the Queen said. 'If I were such a queen as to be
+affrighted, you would affright me. Tell me of your cousin that was a
+sinful queen.'
+
+The Lady Rochford raised her hands lamentably and bleated out--
+
+'Ah God, not to-night!'
+
+'You have been ready enough on other nights,' the Queen said. And,
+indeed, it was so much the practice of this lady to talk always of her
+cousin, whose death had affrighted her, that often the Queen had begged
+her to cease. But to-night she was willing to hear, for she felt afraid
+of no omens, and, being joyful, was full of pity for the dead
+unfortunate. She began with slow, long motions to withdraw the great
+pins from her hair. The deep silence settled down again, and she hummed
+the melancholy and stately tune that goes with the words--
+
+  _'When all the little hills are hid in snow,_
+  _And all the small brown birds by frost are slain,_
+  _And sad and slow_
+  _The silly sheep do go,_
+  _All seeking shelter to and fro--_
+  _Come once again_
+  _To these familiar, silent, misty lands----'_
+
+And--
+
+'Aye,' she said; 'to these ancient and familiar lands of the dear
+saints, please God, when the winter snows are upon them, once again
+shall come the feet of God's messenger, for this is the joyfullest day
+this land hath known since my namesake was cast down and died.'
+
+Suddenly there were muffled cries from beyond the thick door in the
+corridor, and on the door itself resounding blows. The Lady Rochford
+gave out great shrieks, more than her feeble body could have been deemed
+to hold.
+
+'Body of God!' the Queen said, 'what is this?'
+
+'Your cousin!' the Lady Rochford cried out. She came running to the
+Queen, who, in standing up, had overset her heavy chair, and, falling to
+her knees, she babbled out--'Your cousin! Oh, let it not all come again.
+Call your guard. Let it not all come again'; and she clawed into the
+Queen's skirt, uttering incomprehensible clamours.
+
+'What? What? What?' Katharine said.
+
+'He was with the Archbishop. Your cousin with the Archbishop. I heard
+it. I sent to stay him if it were so'; and the old woman's teeth
+crackled within her jaws. 'O God, it is come again!' she cried.
+
+The door flung open heavily, but slowly, because it was so heavy. And,
+in the archway, whilst a great scream from the old woman wailed out down
+the corridors, Katharine was aware of a man in scarlet, locked in a
+struggle with a raging swirl of green manhood. The man in scarlet fell
+back, and then, crying out, ran away. The man in green, his bonnet off,
+his red hair sticking all up, his face pallid, and his eyes staring like
+those of a sleep-walker, entered the room. In his right hand he had a
+dagger. He walked very slowly.
+
+The Queen thought fast: the old Lady Rochford had her mouth open; her
+eyes were upon the dagger in Culpepper's hand.
+
+'I seek the Queen,' he said, but his eyes were lacklustre; they fell
+upon Katharine's face as if they had no recognition, or could not see.
+She turned her body round to the old Lady Rochford, bending from the
+hips so as not to move her feet. She set her fingers upon her lips.
+
+'I seek--I seek----' he said, and always he came closer to her. His
+eyes were upon her face, and the lids moved.
+
+'I seek the Queen,' he said, and beneath his husky voice there were bass
+notes of quivering anger, as if, just as he had been by chance calmed by
+throwing down the guard, so by chance his anger might arise again.
+
+The Queen never moved, but stood up full and fair; one strand of her
+hair, loosened, fell low over her left ear. When he was so close to her
+that his protruded hips touched her skirt, she stole her hand slowly
+round him till it closed upon his wrist above the dagger. His mouth
+opened, his eyes distended.
+
+'I seek----' he said, and then--'Kat!' as if the touch of her cool and
+firm fingers rather than the sight of her had told to his bruised senses
+who she was.
+
+'Get you gone!' she said. 'Give me your dagger.' She uttered each word
+roundly and fully as if she were pondering the next move over a
+chequer-board.
+
+'Well, I will kill the Queen,' he said. 'How may I do it without my
+knife?'
+
+'Get you gone!' she said again. 'I will direct you to the Queen.'
+
+He passed the back of his left hand wearily over his brow.
+
+'Well, I have found thee, Kat!' he said.
+
+She answered: 'Aye!' and her fingers twined round his on the hilt of the
+dagger, so that his were loosening.
+
+Then the old Lady Rochford screamed out--
+
+'Ha! God's mercy! Guards, swords, come!' The furious blood came into
+Culpepper's face at the sound. His hand he tore from Katharine's, and
+with the dagger raised on high he ran back from her and then forward
+towards the Lady Rochford. With an old trick of fence, that she had
+learned when she was a child, Katharine Howard set out her foot before
+him, and, with the speed of his momentum, he pitched over forward. He
+fell upon his face so that his forehead was upon the Lady Rochford's
+right foot. His dagger he still grasped, but he lay prone with the drink
+and the fever.
+
+'Now, by God in His mercy,' Katharine said to her, 'as I am the Queen I
+charge you----'
+
+'Take his knife and stab him to the heart!' the Lady Rochford cried out.
+'This will slay us two.'
+
+'I charge you that you listen to me,' the Queen said, 'or, by God, I
+will have you in chains!'
+
+'I will call your many,' the Lady Rochford cried out, for terror had
+stopped up the way from her ears to her brain, and she made towards the
+door. But Katharine set her hand to the old woman's shoulder.
+
+'Call no man,' she commanded. 'This is a device of mine enemies to have
+men see this of me.'
+
+'I will not stay here to be slain,' the old woman said.
+
+'Then mine own self will slay you,' the Queen answered. Culpepper moved
+in his stupor. 'Before Heaven,' the Queen said, 'stay you there, and he
+shall not again stand up.'
+
+'I will go call----' the old woman besought her, and again Culpepper
+moved. The Queen stood right up against her; her breast heaved, her face
+was rigid. Suddenly she turned and ran to the door. That key she
+wrenched round and out, and then to the other door beside it, and that
+key too she wrenched round and out.
+
+'I will not stay alone with my cousin,' she said, 'for that is what mine
+enemies would have. And this I vow, that if again you squeak I will have
+you tried as being an abettor of this treason.' She went and knelt down
+at her cousin's head; she moved his face round till it was upon her lap.
+
+'Poor Tom,' she said; he opened his eyes and muttered stupid words.
+
+She looked again at Lady Rochford.
+
+'All this is nothing,' she said, 'if you will hide in the shadow of the
+bed and keep still. I have seen my cousin a hundred times thus muddied
+with drink, and do not fear him. He shall not stand up till he is ready
+to go through the door; but I will not be alone with him and tend him.'
+
+The Lady Rochford waddled and quaked like a jelly to the shadow of the
+bed curtains. She pulled back the curtain over the window, and, as if
+the contact with the world without would help her, threw back the
+casement. Below, in the black night, a row of torches shook and
+trembled, like little planets, in the distance.
+
+Katharine Howard held her cousin's head upon her knees. She had seen him
+thus a hundred times and had no fear of him. For thus in his cups, and
+fevered as he was with ague that he had had since a child, he was always
+amenable to her voice though all else in the world enraged him. So that,
+if she could keep the Lady Rochford still, she might well win him out
+through the door at which he came in.
+
+And, first, when he moved to come to his knees, she whispered--
+
+'Lie down, lie down,' and he set one elbow on to the carpet and lay over
+on his side, then on his back. She took his head again on to her lap,
+and with soft motions reached to take the dagger from his hand. He
+yielded it up and gazed upwards into her face.
+
+'Kat!' he said, and she answered--
+
+'Aye!'
+
+There came from very far the sound of a horn.
+
+'When you can stand,' she said, 'you must get you gone.'
+
+'I have sold farms to get you gowns,' he answered.
+
+'And then we came to Court,' she said, 'to grow great.'
+
+He passed his left hand once more over his eyes with a gesture of
+ineffable weariness, but his other arm that was extended, she knelt
+upon.
+
+'Now we are great,' she said.
+
+He muttered, 'I wooed thee in an apple orchard. Let us go back to
+Lincolnshire.'
+
+'Why, we will talk of it in the morning,' she said. 'It is very late.'
+
+Her brain throbbed with the pulsing blood. She was set to get him gone
+before the young Poins could call men to her door. It was maddeningly
+strange to think that none hitherto had come. Maybe Culpepper had struck
+him dead with his knife, or he lay without fainting. This black enigma,
+calling for haste that she dare not show, filled all the shadows of that
+shadowy room.
+
+'It is very late,' she said, 'you must get you gone. It was compacted
+between us that ever you would get you gone early.'
+
+'Aye, I would not have thee shamed,' he said. He spoke upwards, slowly
+and luxuriously, his head so softly pillowed, his eyes gazing at the
+ceiling. He had never been so easy in two years past. 'I remember that
+was the occasion of our pact. I did wooe thee in an apple orchard to the
+grunting of hogs.'
+
+'Get you gone,' she said; 'buy me a favour against the morning.'
+
+'Why,' he said, 'I am a very rich lord. I have lands in Kent now. I will
+buy thee such a gown ... such a gown.... The hogs grunted.... There is a
+song about it.... Let me go to buy thy gown. Aye, now, presently. I
+remember a great many things. As thus ... there is a song of a lady
+loved a swine. Honey, said she, and hunc, said he.'
+
+Whilst she listened a great many thoughts came into her mind--of their
+youth at home, where indeed, to the grunting of hogs, he had wooed her
+when she came out from conning her Plautus with the Magister. And at the
+same time it troubled her to consider where the young Poins had bestowed
+himself. Maybe he was dead; maybe he lay in a faint.
+
+'It was in our pact,' she said to Culpepper, 'that you should get you
+gone ever when I would have it.'
+
+'Aye, sure, it was in our pact,' he said.
+
+He closed his eyes as if he would fall asleep, being very weary and come
+to his desired haven. Above his closed eyes Katharine threw the key of
+her antechamber on to the bed. She pointed with her hand to that door
+that the Lady Rochford should undo. If she could get her cousin through
+that door--and now he was in the mood--if she could but get him through
+there and out at the door beyond the Big Room into the corridor, before
+her guard came back....
+
+But the Lady Rochford was leaning far out beyond the window-sill and did
+not see her gesture.
+
+Culpepper muttered--
+
+'Ah; well; aye; even so----' And from the window came a scream that
+tore the air--
+
+'The King! the King!'
+
+And immediately it was as if the life of a demon had possessed Culpepper
+in all his limbs.
+
+'Merciful God!' the Queen cried out. 'I am patient.'
+
+Culpepper had writhed from her till he sat up, but she hollowed her hand
+around his throat. His head she forced back till she held it upon the
+floor, and whilst he writhed with his legs she knelt upon his chest with
+one knee. He screamed out words like: 'Bawd,' and 'Ilcock,' and
+'Hecate,' and the Lady Rochford screamed--
+
+'The King comes! the King comes!'
+
+Then Katharine said within herself--
+
+'Is it this to be a Queen?'
+
+She set both her hands upon his neck and pressed down the whole weight
+of her frame, till the voice died in his throat. His body stirred
+beneath her knee, convulsively, so that it was as if she rode a horse.
+His eyes, as slowly he strangled, glared hideously at the ceiling, from
+which the carven face of a Queen looked down into them. At last he lay
+still, and Katharine Howard rose up.
+
+She ran at the old woman--
+
+'God forgive me if I have killed my cousin,' she said. 'I am certain
+that now He will forgive me if I slay thee.' And she had Culpepper's
+dagger in her hand.
+
+'For,' she said, 'I stand for Christ His cause: I will not be undone by
+meddlers. Hold thy peace!'
+
+The Lady Rochford opened her mouth to speak.
+
+'Hold thy peace!' the Queen said again, and she lifted up the dagger.
+'Speak not. Do as I bid thee. Answer me when I ask. For this I swear as
+I am the Queen that, since I have the power to slay whom I will and none
+question it, I will slay thee if thou do not my bidding.'
+
+The old woman trembled lamentably.
+
+'Where is the King come to?' the Queen said.
+
+'Even to the great gate; he is out of sight,' was her answer.
+
+'Come now,' the Queen commanded. 'Let us drag my cousin behind my
+table.'
+
+'Shall he be hidden there?' the Lady Rochford cried out. 'Let us cast
+him from the window.'
+
+'Hold your peace,' the Queen cried out. 'Speak you never one word more.
+But come!'
+
+She took her cousin by the arm, the Lady Rochford took him by the other
+and they dragged him, inert and senseless, into the shadow of the
+Queen's mirror table.
+
+'Pray God the King comes soon,' the Queen said. She stood above her
+cousin and looked down upon him. A great pitifulness came into her face.
+
+'Loosen his shirt,' she said. 'Feel if his heart beats!'
+
+The Lady Rochford had a face full of fear and repulsion.
+
+'Loosen his shirt. Feel if his heart beats,' the Queen said. 'And oh!'
+she added, 'woe shall fall upon thee if he be dead.'
+
+She reflected a moment to think upon how long it should be ere the King
+came to her door. Then she raised her chair, and sat down at her mirror.
+For one minute she set her face into her hands; then she began to
+straighten herself, and with her hands behind her to tighten the laces
+of her dress.
+
+'For,' she continued to Lady Rochford, 'I do hold thee more guilty of
+his death than himself. He is but a drunkard in his cups, thou a
+palterer in sobriety.'
+
+She set her cap upon her head and smoothed the hair beneath it. In all
+her movements there was a great swiftness and decision. She set the
+jewel in her cap, the pomander at her side, the chain around her neck,
+the jewel at her breast.
+
+'His heart beats,' the Lady Rochford said, from her knees at Culpepper's
+side.
+
+'Then thank the saints,' Katharine answered, 'and do up again his
+shirt.'
+
+She hurried in her attiring, and uttered engrossed commands.
+
+'Kneel thou there by his side. If he stir or mutter before the King be
+in and the door closed, put thy hand across his mouth.'
+
+'But the King----' the Lady Rochford said. 'And----'
+
+'Merciful God!' Katharine cried out again. 'I am the Queen. Kneel
+there.'
+
+The Lady Rochford trembled down upon her knees; she was in fear for her
+life by the axe if the King came in.
+
+'I thank God that the King is come,' the Queen said. 'If he had not,
+this man must have gone from hence in the sight of other men. So I will
+pardon thee for having cried out if now thou hold him silent till the
+King be in.'
+
+There came from very near a blare of trumpets. Katharine rose up, and
+went again to gaze upon her cousin. The dagger she laid upon her table.
+
+'He may hold still yet,' she said. 'But I charge you that you muzzle him
+if he move or squeak.'
+
+There came great blows upon the door, and through the heavy wood, the
+Ha-ha of many voices. Slowly the Queen moved to the bed, and from it
+took the key where she had thrown it. There came again the heavy
+knocking, and she unlocked the door, slowly still.
+
+In the corridor there were many torches, and beneath them the figure of
+the King in scarlet. Behind him was Norfolk all in black and with his
+yellow face, and Cranmer in black and with his anxious eyes, and behind
+them many other lords. The King came in, and, slow and stately, the
+Queen went down on her knees to greet him. The torch-light shone upon
+her jewels and her garments; her fair face was immobile, and her eyes
+upon the ground. The King raised her up, bent his knee to her, and
+kissed her on the hands, and so, turning to the men without, he uttered,
+roundly and fully, and his cheeks were ruddy with joy, and his eyes
+smiled--
+
+'My lords, I am beholden to the King o' Scots. For had he met me I had
+not yet been here. Get you to your beds; I could wish ye had such
+wives----'
+
+'The King! the King!' a voice muttered.
+
+Henry said--
+
+'Ha, who spoke?'
+
+There was a faint squeak, a dull rustle.
+
+'My cousin Kat----' the voice said.
+
+The King said--
+
+'Ha!' again, and incredulous and haughty he raised his brows.
+
+Above the mirror, in the great light of the candles, there showed the
+pale face, the fishy, wide-open and bewildered eyes of Culpepper. His
+hair was dishevelled in points; his mouth was open in amazement. He
+uttered--
+
+'The King!' as if that were the most astonishing thing, and, standing
+behind the table, staggered and clutched the arras to sustain himself.
+
+Henry said--
+
+'Ha! Treason!'
+
+But Katharine whispered at his ear--
+
+'No; this my cousin is distraught. Speak on to the lords.'
+
+In the King's long pause several lords said aloud--
+
+'The King cried "Treason!" Draw your swords!'
+
+Then the King cast his cap upon the ground.
+
+'By God!' he said. 'What marlocking is this? Is it general joy that
+emboldens ye to this license? God help me!' he said, and he stamped his
+foot upon the ground--'Body of God!' And many other oaths he uttered.
+Then, with a sudden clutching at his throat, he called out--
+
+'Well! well! I pardon ye. For no doubt to some that be young--and to
+some that be old too--it is an occasion for mummeries and japes when a
+good man cometh home to his dame.'
+
+He looked round upon Culpepper. The Queen's cousin stood, his jaw still
+hanging wide, and his body crumpled back against the arras. He was
+hidden from them all by wall and door, but Henry could not judge how
+long he would there remain. Riding through the night he had conned a
+speech that he would have said at the Queen's door, and at the times of
+joy and graciousness he loved to deliver great speeches. But there he
+said only--
+
+'Why, God keep you. I thank such of you as were with me upon the
+campaign and journey. Now this campaign and journey is ended--I dissolve
+you each to his housing and bed. Farewell. Be as content as I be!'
+
+And, with his great hand he swung to the heavy door.
+
+
+
+
+PART THREE
+
+THE DWINDLING MELODY
+
+
+I
+
+The Lady Rochford lay back upon the floor in a great faint.
+
+'Heaven help me!' the Queen said. 'I had rather she had played the
+villain than been such a palterer.' She glided to the table and picked
+up the dagger that shone there beneath Culpepper's nose. 'Take even
+this,' she said to the King. 'It is an ill thing to bestow. Sword he
+hath none.'
+
+Having had such an estimation of his good wife's wit that, since he
+would not have her think him a dullard, he passed over the first
+question that he would have asked, such as, 'I think this be thy cousin
+and how came he here?'
+
+'Would he have slain me?' he asked instead, as if it were a little
+thing.
+
+'I do not think so,' Katharine said. 'Maybe it was me he would have
+slain.'
+
+'Body of God!' the King said sardonically. 'He cometh for no cheap
+goods.'
+
+He had so often questioned his wife of this cousin of hers that he had
+his measure indifferent well.
+
+'Why,' the Queen said, 'I do not know that he would have slain me. Maybe
+it was to save me from dragons that he came with his knife. He was, I
+think, with the Archbishop's men and came here very drunk. I would pray
+your Highness' Grace to punish him not over much for he is my mother's
+nephew and the only friend I had when I was very poor and a young
+child.'
+
+The King hung his head on his chest, and his rustic eyes surveyed the
+ground.
+
+'I would have you to think,' she said, 'that he has been among evil men
+that advised and prompted him thus to assault my door. They would ruin
+and undo him and me.'
+
+'Well I know it,' Henry said. He rubbed his hand up his left side,
+opened it and dropped it again--a trick he had when he thought deeply.
+
+'The Archbishop,' he said, 'babbled somewhat--I know not what--of a
+cousin of thine that was come from the Scots, he thought, without leave
+or license.'
+
+'But how to get him hence, that my foes triumph not?' the Queen said,
+'for I would not have them triumph.'
+
+'I do think upon it,' the King said.
+
+'You are better at it than I,' she answered.
+
+Culpepper stood there at gaze, as if he were a corpse about which they
+talked. But the speaking of the Queen to another man excited him to
+gurgle and snarl in his throat like an ape. Then another mood coming
+into the channels of his brain--
+
+'It was the King my cousin Kate did marry. This then is the Queen; I had
+pacted with myself to forget this Queen.' He spoke straight out before
+him with the echo of thoughts that he had had during his exile.
+
+'Ho!' the King said and smote his thigh. 'It is plain what to do,' and
+in spite of his scarlet and his bulk he had the air of a heavy but very
+cunning peasant. He reflected for a little more.
+
+'It fits very well,' he brought out. 'This man must be richly rewarded.'
+
+'Why,' Katharine said; 'I had nigh strangled him. It makes me tremble to
+think how nigh I had strangled him. I would well he were rewarded.'
+
+The King considered his wife's cousin.
+
+'Sirrah,' he said, 'we believe that thou canst not kneel, or kneeling,
+couldst not well again arise.'
+
+Culpepper regarded him with wide, blue, and uncomprehending eyes.
+
+'So, thou standing as thou makest shift to do, we do make thee the
+keeper of this our Queen's ante-room.'
+
+He spoke with a pleasant and ironical glee, since it joyed him thus to
+gibe at one that had loved his wife. He--with his own prowess--had
+carried her off.
+
+'Master Culpepper,' he said--'or Sir Thomas--for I remember to have
+knighted you--if you can walk, now walk.'
+
+Culpepper muttered--
+
+'The King! Why the King did wed my cousin Kat!'
+
+And again--
+
+'I must be circumspect. Oh aye, I must be circumspect or all is lost.'
+For that was one of the things which in Scotland he had again and again
+impressed upon himself. 'But in Lincoln, in bygone times, of a summer's
+night----'
+
+'Poor Tom!' the Queen said; 'once this fellow did wooe me.'
+
+Great tears gathered in Culpepper's eyes. They overflowed and rolled
+down his cheeks.
+
+'In the apple-orchard,' he said, 'to the grunting of hogs ... for the
+hogs were below the orchard wall....'
+
+The King was pleased to think that it had been in his power to raise
+this lady an infinite distance above the wooing of this poor lout. It
+gave him an interlude of comedy. But though he set his hands on his hips
+and chuckled, he was a man too ready for action to leave much time for
+enjoyment.
+
+'Why weep?' he said to Culpepper. 'We have advanced thee to the Queen's
+ante-chamber. Come up thither.'
+
+He approached to Culpepper behind the mirror table and caught him by the
+arm. The poor drunkard, his face pallid, shrank away from this great
+bulk of shining scarlet. His eyes moved lamentably round the chamber and
+rested first upon Katharine, then upon the King.
+
+'Which of us was it you would ha' killed?' the King said, to show the
+Queen how brave he was in thus handling a madman. And, being very
+strong, he dragged the swaying drunkard, who held back and whose head
+wagged on his shoulders, towards the door.
+
+'Guard ho!' he called out, and before the door there stood three of his
+own men in scarlet and with pikes.
+
+'Ho, where is the Queen's door-ward?' he called with a great voice.
+Before him, from the door side, there came the young Poins; his face was
+like chalk; he had a bruise above his eyes; his knees trembled beneath
+him.
+
+'Ho thou!' the King said, 'who art thou that would hinder my messenger
+from coming to the Queen?'
+
+He stood back upon his feet; he clutched the drunkard in his great fist;
+his eyes started dreadfully.
+
+The young Poins' lips moved, but no sound came out.
+
+'This was my messenger,' the King said, 'and you hindered him. Body of
+God! Body of God!' and he made his voice to tremble as if with rage,
+whilst he told this lie to save his wife's fair fame. 'Where have you
+been? Where have you tarried? What treason is this? For either you knew
+this was my messenger--as well I would have you know that he is--and it
+was treason and death to stay him. Or, if because he was drunk and
+speechless--as well he might be having travelled far and with
+expedition--ye did not know he was my messenger; then wherefore did ye
+not run to raise all the castle for succour?'
+
+The young Poins pointed to the wound above his eye and then to the
+ground of the corridor. He would signify that Culpepper had struck him,
+and that there, on the ground, he had lain senseless.
+
+'Ho!' the King said, for he was willing to know how many men in that
+castle had wind of this mischance. 'You lay not there all this while.
+When I came here along, you stood here by the door in your place.'
+
+The young Poins fell upon his knees. He shook more violently than a
+naked man on a frosty day. For here indeed was the centre of his
+treason, since Lascelles had bidden him stay there, once Culpepper was
+in the Queen's room, and to say later that there the Queen had bidden
+him stay whilst she had her lover. And now, before the King's tremendous
+presence, he had the fear at his heart that the King knew this.
+
+'Wherefore! wherefore!' the King thundered, 'wherefore didst not cry
+out--cry out--"Treason, Raise the watch!"? Hail out aloud?'
+
+He waited, silent for a long time. The three pikemen leaned upon their
+pikes; and now Culpepper had fallen against the door-post, where the
+King held him up. And behind his back the Queen marvelled at the King's
+ready wit. This was the best stroke that ever she had known him do. And
+the Lady Rochford lay where she had feigned to faint, straining her
+ears.
+
+With all these ears listening for his words the young Poins knelt, his
+teeth chattering like burning wood that crackles.
+
+'Wherefore? wherefore?' the King cried again.
+
+Half inaudibly, his eyes upon the ground, the boy mumbled, 'It was to
+save the Queen from scandal!'
+
+The King let his jaw fall, in a fine aping of amazement. Then, with the
+huge swiftness of a bull, he threw Culpepper towards one of the guards,
+and, leaning over, had the kneeling boy by the throat.
+
+'Scandal!' he said. 'Body of God! Scandal!' And the boy screamed out,
+and raised his hands to hide the King's intolerable great face that
+blazed down over his eyes.
+
+The huge man cast him from him, so that he fell over backwards, and lay
+upon his side.
+
+'Scandal!' the King cried out to his guards. 'Here is a pretty scandal!
+That a King may not send a messenger to his wife withouten scandal! God
+help me....'
+
+He stood suddenly again over the boy as if he would trample him to a
+shapeless pulp. But, trembling there, he stepped back.
+
+'Up, bastard!' he called out. 'Run as ye never ran. Fetch hither the
+Lord d'Espahn and His Grace of Canterbury, that should have ordered
+these matters.'
+
+The boy stumbled to his knees, and then, a flash of scarlet, ran, his
+head down, as if eagles were tearing at his hair.
+
+The King turned upon his guard.
+
+'Ho!' he said, 'you, Jenkins, stay here with this my knight cousin.
+You, Cale and Richards, run to fetch a launderer that shall set a
+mattress in the ante-chamber for this my cousin to lie on. For this my
+cousin is the Queen's chamber-ward, and shall there lie when I am here,
+if so be I have occasion for a messenger at night.'
+
+The two guards ran off, striking upon the ground before them as they ran
+the heavy staves of their pikes. This noise was intended to warn all to
+make way for his Highness' errand-bearers.
+
+'Why,' the King said pleasantly to Jenkins, a guard with a blond and
+shaven face whom he liked well, 'let us set this gentleman against the
+wall in the ante-room till his bed be come. He hath earned gentle usage,
+since he hasted much, bringing my message from Scotland to the Queen,
+and is very ill.'
+
+So, helping his guard gently to conduct the drunkard into his wife's
+dark ante-room, the King came out again to his wife.
+
+'Is it well done?' he asked.
+
+'Marvellous well done,' she answered.
+
+'I am the man for these difficult times!' he answered, and was glad.
+
+The Queen sighed a little. For if she admired and wondered at her lord's
+power skilfully to have his way, it made her sad to think--as she must
+think--that so devious was man's work.
+
+'I would,' she said, 'that it was not to such an occasion that I spurred
+thee.'
+
+Her eyes, being cast downwards, fell upon the Lady Rochford, by the
+table.
+
+'Ho, get up,' she cried. 'You have feigned fainting long enough. But for
+you all this had been more easy. I would have you relieve mine eyes of
+the sight of your face.' She moved to aid the old woman to rise, but
+before she was upon her knees there stood without the door both the Lord
+d'Espahn and the Archbishop. They had waited just beyond the
+corridor-end with a great many of the other lords, all afraid of
+mysteries they knew not what, and thus it was that they came so soon
+upon the young Poins' summoning.
+
+
+II
+
+The King thought fit to change his mood, so that it was with uplifted
+brows and a quizzing smile at the corners of his mouth that for a minute
+he greeted these frightened lords in the doorway. They stood there
+silent, the Archbishop very dejected, the Lord d'Espahn, with his grey
+beard, very erect and ruddy featured.
+
+'Why, God help me,' the King said, 'what make of Court is this of mine
+where a King may not send a messenger to his wife?'
+
+The Archbishop swallowed in his throat; the Lord d'Espahn did not speak
+but gazed before him.
+
+'You shall tell me what befell, for I am ignorant,' the King said; 'but
+first I will tell you what I do know.
+
+'Why, come out with me into the corridor, wife,' he cried over his
+shoulder. 'For it is not fitting that these lords come into thy
+apartment. I will walk with them and talk.'
+
+He took the Archbishop by the elbow and the Lord d'Espahn by the upper
+arm, and, leaning upon them, propelled them gently before him.
+
+'Thus it was,' he said; 'this cousin of my wife's was in the King o'
+Scots' good town of Edinboro'. And, being there, he was much upon my
+conscience--for I would not have a cousin of my wife's be there in
+exile, he being one that formerly much fended for her....'
+
+He spoke out his words and repeated these things for his own purposes,
+the Queen following behind. When they were come to the corridor-end,
+there he found, as he had thought, a knot of lords and gentlemen,
+babbling with their ears pricked up.
+
+'Nay, stay,' he said, 'this is a matter that all may hear.'
+
+There were there the Duke of Norfolk and his son, young Surrey with the
+vacant mouth, Sir Henry Wriothesley with the great yellow beard, the
+Lord Dacre of the North, the old knight Sir N. Rochford, Sir Henry Peel
+of these parts, with a many of their servants, amongst them Lascelles.
+Most of them were in scarlet or purple, but many were in black. The Earl
+of Surrey had the Queen's favour of a crowned rose in his bonnet, for he
+was of her party. The gallery opened out there till it was as big as a
+large room, broad and low-ceiled, and lit with torches in irons at the
+angles of it. On rainy days the Queen's maids were here accustomed to
+play at stool-ball.
+
+'This is a matter that all may hear,' the King said, 'and some shall
+render account.' He let the Lord d'Espahn and the Archbishop go, so that
+they faced him. The Queen looked over his shoulder.
+
+'As thus ...' he said.
+
+And he repeated how it had lain upon his conscience and near his heart
+that the Queen's good cousin languished in the town of Edinburgh.
+
+'And how near we came to Edinboro' those of ye that were with me can
+make account.'
+
+And, lying there, he had taken occasion to send a messenger with others
+that went to the King o' Scots--to send a messenger with letters unto
+this T. Culpepper. One letter was to bid him hasten home unto the Queen,
+and one was a letter that he should bear.
+
+'For,' said the King, 'we thought thus--as ye wist--that the King o'
+Scots would come obedient to our summoning and that there we should lie
+some days awaiting and entertaining him. Thus did I wish to send my
+Queen swift message of our faring, and I was willing that this, her
+cousin and mine, should be my postman and messenger. For he should--I
+bade him--set sail in a swift ship for these coasts and so come quicker
+than ever a man might by land.'
+
+He paused to observe the effect of his words, but no lord spoke though
+some whispered amongst themselves.
+
+'Now,' he said, 'what stood within my letter to the Queen was this,
+after salutations, that she should reward this her cousin that in the
+aforetime had much fended for her when she was a child. For I was aware
+how, out of a great delicacy and fear of nepotism, such as was shown by
+certain of the Popes now dead, she raised up none of her relations and
+blood, nor none that before had aided her when she was a child and poor.
+But I was willing that this should be otherwise, and they be much helped
+that before had helped her since now she helpeth me and assuageth my
+many and fell labours.'
+
+He paused and went a step back that he might stand beside the Queen, and
+there, before them all, Katharine was most glad that she had again set
+on all her jewels and was queen-like. She had composed her features, and
+gazed before her over their heads, her hands being folded in the lap of
+her gown.
+
+'Now,' the King said, 'this letter of mine was a little thing--but great
+maybe, since it bore my will. Yet'--and he made his voice minatory--'in
+these evil and tickle times well it might have been that that letter
+held delicate news. Then all my plots had gone to ruin. How came it that
+some of ye--I know not whom!--thus letted and hindered my messenger?'
+
+He had raised his voice very high. He stayed it suddenly, and some there
+shivered.
+
+He uttered balefully, 'Anan!'
+
+'As Christ is my Saviour,' the Lord d'Espahn said, 'I, since I am the
+Queen's Marshal, am answerable in this, as well I know. Yet never saw I
+this man till to-night at supper. He would have my seat then, and I gave
+it him. Ne let ne hindrance had he of me, but went his way where and
+when he would.'
+
+'You did very well,' the King said. 'Who else speaks?'
+
+The Archbishop looked over his shoulder, and with a dry mouth uttered,
+'Lascelles!'
+
+Lascelles, deft and blond and gay, shouldered his way through that
+unwilling crowd, and fell upon his knees.
+
+'Of this I know something,' he said; 'and if any have offended,
+doubtless it is I, though with good will.'
+
+'Well, speak!' the King said.
+
+Lascelles recounted how the Queen, riding out, had seen afar this
+gentleman lying amid the heather.
+
+'And if she should not know him who was her cousin, how should we who
+are servants?' he said. But, having heard that the Queen would have this
+poor, robbed wayfarer tended and comforted, he, Lascelles, out of the
+love and loyalty he owed her Grace, had so tended and so comforted him
+that he had given up to him his own bed and board. But it was not till
+that day that, Culpepper being washed and apparelled--not till that day
+a little before supper, had he known him for Culpepper, the Queen's
+cousin. So he had gone with him that night to the banquet-hall, and
+there had served him, and, after, had attended him with some lords and
+gentles. But, at the last, Culpepper had shaken them off and bidden them
+leave him.
+
+'And who were we, what warrants had we, to restrain the Queen's noble
+cousin?' he finished. 'And, as for letters, I never saw one, though all
+his apparel, in rags, was in my hands. I think he must have lost this
+letter amongst the robbers he fell in with. But what I could do, I did
+for love of the Queen's Grace, who much hath favoured me.'
+
+The King studied his words. He looked at the Queen's face and then at
+those of the lords before him.
+
+'Why, this tale hath a better shewing,' he said. 'Herein appeareth that
+none, save the Queen's door-ward, came ever against this good knight and
+cousin of mine. And, since this knight was in liquor, and not overwise
+sensible--as well he might be after supping in moors and deserts--maybe
+that door-ward had his reasonable reasonings.'
+
+He paused again, and looking upon the Queen's face for a sign:
+
+'If it be thus, it is well,' he said, 'I will pardon and assoil you all,
+if later it shall appear that this is the true truth.'
+
+Lascelles whispered in the Archbishop's ear, and Cranmer uttered--
+
+'The witnesses be here to prove it, if your Highness will.'
+
+'Why,' the King said, 'it is late enough,' and he leered at Cranmer,
+for whom he had an affection. He looked again upon the Queen to see how
+fair she was and how bravely she bore herself, upright and without
+emotion. 'This wife of mine,' he said, 'is ever of the pardoning side.
+If ye had so injured me I had been among ye with fines and amercements.
+But she, I perceive, will not have it so, and I am too glad to be smiled
+upon now to cross her will. So, get you gone and sleep well. But, before
+you go, I will have you listen to some words....'
+
+He cleared his throat, and in his left hand took the Queen's.
+
+'Know ye,' he said, 'that I am as proud of this my Queen as was ever
+mother of her first-born child. For lo, even as the Latin poet saith,
+that, upon bearing a child, many evil women are led to repentance and
+right paths, so have I, your King, been led towards righteousness by
+wedding of this lady. For I tell you that, but for certain small
+hindrances--and mostly this treacherous disloyalty of the King o' Scots
+that thus with his craven marrow hath featorously dallied to look upon
+my face--but for that and other small things there had gone forth this
+night through the dark to the Bishop of Rome certain tidings that,
+please God, had made you and me and all this land the gladdest that be
+in Christendom. And this I tell you, too, that though by this
+misadventure and fear of the King o' Scots, these tidings have been
+delayed, yet is it only for a little space and, full surely, that day
+cometh. And for this you shall give thanks first to God and then to this
+royal lady here. For she, before all things, having the love of God in
+her heart, hath brought about this desired consummation. And this I say,
+to her greater praise, here in the midmost of you all, that it be noised
+unto the utmost corners of the world how good a Queen the King hath
+taken to wife.'
+
+The Queen had stood very motionless in the bright illuminations and
+dancings of the torches. But at the news of delay, through the King of
+Scots, a spasm of pain and concern came into her face. So that, if her
+features did not again move they had in them a savour of anguish, her
+eyebrows drooping, and the corners of her mouth.
+
+'And now, good-night!' the King pursued with raised tones. 'If ever ye
+slept well since these troublous times began, now ye may sleep well in
+the drowsy night. For now, in this my reign, are come the shortening
+years like autumn days. Now I will have such peace in land as cometh to
+the husbandman. He hath ingarnered his grain; he hath barned his fodder
+and straw; his sheep are in the byres and in the stalls his oxen. So,
+sitteth he by his fireside with wife and child, and hath no fear of
+winter. Such a man am I, your King, who in the years to come shall rest
+in peace.'
+
+The lords and gentlemen made their reverences, bows and knees; they
+swept round in their coloured assembly, and the Queen stood very tall
+and straight, watching their departure with saddened eyes.
+
+The King was very gay and caught her by the waist.
+
+'God help me, it is very late,' he said. 'Hearken!'
+
+From above the corridor there came the drowsy sound of the clock.
+
+'Thy daughter hath made her submission,' the Queen said. 'I had thought
+this was the gladdest day in my life.'
+
+'Why, so it is,' he said, 'as now day passeth to day.' The clock ceased.
+'Every day shall be glad,' he said, 'and gladder than the rest.'
+
+At her chamber door he made a bustle. He would have the Queen's women
+come to untire her, a leech to see to Culpepper's recovery. He was
+willing to drink mulled wine before he slept. He was afraid to talk with
+his wife of delaying his letter to Rome. That was why he had told the
+news before her to his lords.
+
+He fell upon the Lady Rochford that stood, not daring to go, within the
+Queen's room. He bade her sit all night by the bedside of T. Culpepper;
+he reviled her for a craven coward that had discountenanced the Queen.
+She should pay for it by watching all night, and woe betide her if any
+had speech with T. Culpepper before the King rose.
+
+
+III
+
+Down in the lower castle, the Archbishop was accustomed, when he
+undressed, to have with him neither priest nor page, but only, when he
+desired to converse of public matters--as now he did--his gentleman,
+Lascelles. He knelt above his kneeling-stool of black wood; he was
+telling his beads before a great crucifix with an ivory Son of God upon
+it. His chamber had bare white walls, his bed no curtains, and all the
+other furnishing of the room was a great black lectern whereto there was
+chained a huge Book of the Holy Writ that had his Preface. The tears
+were in his eyes as he muttered his prayers; he glanced upwards at the
+face of his Saviour, who looked down with a pallid, uncoloured face of
+ivory, the features shewing a great agony so that the mouth was opened.
+It was said that this image, that came from Italy, had had a face
+serene, before the Queen Katharine of Aragon had been put away. Then it
+had cried out once, and so remained ever lachrymose and in agony.
+
+'God help me, I cannot well pray,' the Archbishop said. 'The peril that
+we have been in stays with me still.'
+
+'Why, thank God that we are come out of it very well,' Lascelles said.
+'You may pray and then sleep more calm than ever you have done this
+sennight.'
+
+He leant back against the reading-pulpit, and had his arm across the
+Bible as if it had been the shoulder of a friend.
+
+'Why,' the Archbishop said, 'this is the worst day ever I have been
+through since Cromwell fell.'
+
+'Please it your Grace,' his confidant said, 'it shall yet turn out the
+best.'
+
+The Archbishop faced round upon his knees; he had taken off the jewel
+from before his breast, and, with his chain of Chaplain of the George,
+it dangled across the corner of the fald-stool. His coat was unbuttoned
+at the neck, his robe open, and it was manifest that his sleeves of
+lawn were but sleeves, for in the opening was visible, harsh and grey,
+the shirt of hair that night and day he wore.
+
+'I am weary of this talk of the world,' he said. 'Pray you begone and
+leave me to my prayers.'
+
+'Please it your Grace to let me stay and hearten you,' Lascelles said,
+and he was aware that the Archbishop was afraid to be alone with the
+white Christ. 'All your other gentry are in bed. I shall watch your
+sleep, to wake you if you cry out.'
+
+And in his fear of Cromwell's ghost that came to him in his dreams, the
+Archbishop sighed--
+
+'Why stay, but speak not. Y'are over bold.'
+
+He turned again to the wall; his beads clicked; he sighed and remained
+still for a long time, a black shadow, huddled together in a black gown,
+sighing before the white and lamenting image that hung above him.
+
+'God help me,' he said at last. 'Tell me why you say this is _dies
+felix_?'
+
+Lascelles, who smiled for ever and without mirth, said--
+
+'For two things: firstly, because this letter and its sending are put
+off. And secondly, because the Queen is--patently and to all
+people--proved lewd.'
+
+The Archbishop swung his head round upon his shoulders.
+
+'You dare not say it!' he said.
+
+'Why, the late Queen Katharine from Aragon was accounted a model of
+piety, yet all men know she was over fond with her confessor,' Lascelles
+smiled.
+
+'It is an approved lie and slander,' the Archbishop said.
+
+'It served mightily well in pulling down that Katharine,' his confidant
+answered.
+
+'One day'--the Archbishop shivered within his robes--'the account and
+retribution for these lies shall be to be paid. For well we know, you,
+I, and all of us, that these be falsities and cozenings.'
+
+'Marry,' Lascelles said, 'of this Queen it is now sufficiently proved
+true.'
+
+The Archbishop made as if he washed his hands.
+
+'Why,' Lascelles said, 'what man shall believe it was by chance and
+accident that she met her cousin on these moors? She is not a compass
+that pointeth, of miraculous power, true North.'
+
+'No good man shall believe what you do say,' the Archbishop cried out.
+
+'But a multitude of indifferent will,' Lascelles answered.
+
+'God help me,' the Archbishop said, 'what a devil you are that thus hold
+out and hold out for ever hopes.'
+
+'Why,' Lascelles said, 'I think you were well helped that day that I
+came into your service. It was the Great Privy Seal that bade me serve
+you and commended me.'
+
+The Archbishop shivered at that name.
+
+'What an end had Thomas Cromwell!' he said.
+
+'Why, such an end shall not be yours whilst this King lives, so well he
+loves you,' Lascelles answered.
+
+The Archbishop stood upon his feet; he raised his hands above his head.
+
+'Begone! Begone!' he cried. 'I will not be of your evil schemes.'
+
+'Your Grace shall not,' Lascelles said very softly, 'if they miscarry.
+But when it is proven to the hilt that this Queen is a very lewd
+woman--and proven it shall be--your Grace may carry an accusation to the
+King----'
+
+Cranmer said--
+
+'Never! never! Shall I come between the lion and his food?'
+
+'It were better if your Grace would carry the accusation,' Lascelles
+uttered nonchalantly, 'for the King will better hearken to you than to
+any other. But another man will do it too.'
+
+'I will not be of this plotting,' the Archbishop cried out. 'It is a
+very wicked thing!' He looked round at the white Christ that, upon the
+dark cross, bent anguished brows upon him. 'Give me strength,' he said.
+
+'Why, your Grace shall not be of it,' Lascelles answered, 'until it is
+proven in the eyes of your Grace--ay, and in the eyes of some of the
+Papist Lords--as, for instance, her very uncle--that this Queen was
+evil in her life before the King took her, and that she hath acted very
+suspicious in the aftertime.'
+
+'You shall not prove it to the Papist Lords,' Cranmer said. 'It is a
+folly.'
+
+He added vehemently--
+
+'It is a wicked plot. It is a folly too. I will not be of it.'
+
+'This is a very fortunate day,' Lascelles said. 'I think it is proven to
+all discerning men that that letter to him of Rome shall never be sent.'
+
+'Why, it is as plain as the truths of the Six Articles,' Cranmer
+remonstrated, 'that it shall be sent to-morrow or the next day. Get you
+gone! This King hath but the will of the Queen to guide him, and all her
+will turns upon that letter. Get you gone!'
+
+'Please it your Grace,' the spy said, 'it is very manifest that with the
+Queen so it is. But with the King it is otherwise. He will pleasure the
+Queen if he may. But--mark me well--for this is a subtle matter----'
+
+'I will not mark you,' the Archbishop said. 'Get you gone and find
+another master. I will not hear you. This is the very end.'
+
+Lascelles moved his arm from the Bible. He bent his form to a bow--he
+moved till his hand was on the latch of the door.
+
+'Why, continue,' the Archbishop said. 'If you have awakened my fears,
+you shall slake them if you can--for this night I shall not sleep.'
+
+And so, very lengthily, Lascelles unfolded his view of the King's
+nature. For, said he, if this alliance with the Pope should come, it
+must be an alliance with the Pope and the Emperor Charles. For the King
+of France was an atheist, as all men knew. And an alliance with the Pope
+and the Emperor must be an alliance against France. But the King o'
+Scots was the closest ally that Francis had, and never should the King
+dare to wage war upon Francis till the King o' Scots was placated or
+wooed by treachery to be a prisoner, as the King would have made him if
+James had come into England to the meeting. Well would the King, to
+save his soul, placate and cosset his wife. But that he never dare do
+whilst James was potent at his back.
+
+And again, Lascelles said, well knew the Archbishop that the Duke of
+Norfolk and his following were the ancient friends of France. If the
+Queen should force the King to this Imperial League, it must turn
+Norfolk and the Bishop of Winchester for ever to her bitter foes in that
+land. And along with them all the Protestant nobles and all the Papists
+too that had lands of the Church.
+
+The Archbishop had been marking his words very eagerly. But suddenly he
+cried out--
+
+'But the King! The King! What shall it boot if all these be against her
+so the King be but for her?'
+
+'Why,' Lascelles said, 'this King is not a very stable man. Still, man
+he is, a man very jealous and afraid of fleers and flouts. If we can
+show him--I do accede to it that after what he hath done to-night it
+shall not be easy, but we may accomplish it--if before this letter is
+sent we may show him that all his land cries out at him and mocks him
+with a great laughter because of his wife's evil ways--why then, though
+in his heart he may believe her as innocent as you or I do now, it shall
+not be long before he shall put her away from him. Maybe he shall send
+her to the block.'
+
+'God help me,' Cranmer said. 'What a hellish scheme is this.'
+
+He pondered for a while, standing upright and frailly thrusting his hand
+into his bosom.
+
+'You shall never get the King so to believe,' he said; 'this is an idle
+invention. I will none of it.'
+
+'Why, it may be done, I do believe,' Lascelles said, 'and greatly it
+shall help us.'
+
+'No, I will none of it,' the Archbishop said. 'It is a foul scheme.
+Besides, you must have many witnesses.'
+
+'I have some already,' Lascelles said, 'and when we come to London Town
+I shall have many more. It was not for nothing that the Great Privy Seal
+commended me.'
+
+'But to make the King,' Cranmer uttered, as if he were aghast and
+amazed, 'to make the King--this King who knoweth that his wife hath done
+no wrong--who knoweth it so well as to-night he hath proven--to make
+_him_, him, to put her away ... why, the tiger is not so fell, nor the
+Egyptian worm preyeth not on its kind. This is an imagination so
+horrible----'
+
+'Please it your Grace,' Lascelles said softly, 'what beast or brute hath
+your Grace ever seen to betray its kind as man will betray brother, son,
+father, or consort?'
+
+The Archbishop raised his hands above his head.
+
+'What lesser bull of the herd, or lesser ram, ever so played traitor to
+his leader as Brutus played to Caesar Julius? And these be times less
+noble.'
+
+
+
+
+PART FOUR
+
+THE END OF THE SONG
+
+
+I
+
+The Queen was at Hampton, and it was the late autumn. She had been sad
+since they came from Pontefract, for it had seemed more than ever
+apparent that the King's letter to Rome must be ever delayed in the
+sending. Daily, at night, the King swore with great oaths that the
+letter must be sent and his soul saved. He trembled to think that if
+then he died in his bed he must be eternally damned, and she added her
+persuasions, such as that each soul that died in his realms before that
+letter was sent went before the Throne of Mercy unshriven and
+unhouselled, so that their burden of souls grew very great. And in the
+midnights, the King would start up and cry that all was lost and himself
+accursed.
+
+And it appeared that he and his house were accursed in these days, for
+when they were come back to Hampton, they found the small Prince Edward
+was very ill. He was swollen all over his little body, so that the
+doctors said it was a dropsy. But how, the King cried, could it be a
+dropsy in so young a child and one so grave and so nurtured and tended?
+Assuredly it must be some marvel wrought by the saints to punish him, or
+by the Fiend to tempt him. And so he would rave, and cast tremulous
+hands above his head. And he would say that God, to punish him, would
+have of him his dearest and best.
+
+And when the Queen urged him, therefore, to make his peace with God, he
+would cry out that it was too late. God would make no peace with him.
+For if God were minded to have him at peace, wherefore would He not
+smoothe the way to this reconciliation with His vicegerent that sat at
+Rome in Peter's chair? There was no smoothing of that way--for every day
+there arose new difficulties and torments.
+
+The King o' Scots would come into no alliance with him; the King of
+France would make no bid for the hand of his daughter Mary; it went ill
+with the Emperor in his fighting with the Princes of Almain and the
+Schmalkaldners, so that the Emperor would be of the less use as an ally
+against France and the Scots.
+
+'Why!' he would cry to the Queen, 'if God in His Heaven would have me
+make a peace with Rome, wherefore will He not give victory over a parcel
+of Lutheran knaves and swine? Wherefore will He not deliver into my
+hands these beggarly Scots and these atheists of France?'
+
+At night the Queen would bring him round to vowing that first he would
+make peace with God and trust in His great mercy for a prosperous issue.
+But each morning he would be afraid for his sovereignty; a new letter
+would come from Norfolk, who had gone on an embassy to his French
+friends, believing fully that the King was minded to marry to one of
+them his daughter. But the French King was not ready to believe this.
+And the King's eyes grew red and enraged; he looked no man in the face,
+not even the Queen, but glanced aside into corners, uttered blasphemies,
+and said that he--he!--was the head of the Church and would have no
+overlord.
+
+The Bishop Gardiner came up from his See in Winchester. But though he
+was the head of the Papist party in the realm, the Queen had little
+comfort in him. For he was a dark and masterful prelate, and never
+ceased to urge her to cast out Cranmer from his archbishopric and to
+give it to him. And with him the Lady Mary sided, for she would have
+Cranmer's head before all things, since Cranmer it was that most had
+injured her mother. Moreover, he was so incessant in his urging the King
+to make an alliance with the Catholic Emperor that at last, about the
+time that Norfolk came back from France, the King was mightily enraged,
+so that he struck the Bishop of Winchester in the face, and swore that
+his friend the Kaiser was a rotten plank, since he could not rid himself
+of a few small knaves of Lutheran princes.
+
+Thus for long the Queen was sad; the little Prince very sick; and the
+King ate no food, but sat gazing at the victuals, though the Queen
+cooked some messes for him with her own hand.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+One Sunday after evensong, at which Cranmer himself had read prayers,
+the King came nearly merrily to his supper.
+
+'Ho, chuck,' he said, 'you have your enemies. Here hath been Cranmer
+weeping to me with a parcel of tales writ on paper.'
+
+He offered it to her to read, but she would not; for, she said, she knew
+well that she had many enemies, only, very safely she could trust her
+fame in her Lord's hands.
+
+'Why, you may,' he said, and sat him down at the table to eat, with the
+paper stuck in his belt. 'Body o' God!' he said. 'If it had been any but
+Cranmer he had eaten bread in Hell this night. 'A wept and trembled!
+Body o' God! Body o' God!'
+
+And that night he was more merry before the fire than he had been for
+many weeks. He had in the music to play a song of his own writing, and
+afterwards he swore that next day he would ride to London, and then at
+his council send that which she would have sent to Rome.
+
+'For, for sure,' he said, 'there is no peace in this world for me save
+when I hear you pray. And how shall you pray well for me save in the old
+form and fashion?'
+
+He lolled back in his chair and gazed at her.
+
+'Why,' he said, 'it is a proof of the great mercy of the Saviour that He
+sent you on earth in so fair a guise. For if you had not been so fair,
+assuredly I had not noticed you. Then would my soul have gone
+straightway to Hell.'
+
+And he called that the letter to Rome might be brought to him, and read
+it over in the firelight. He set it in his belt alongside the other
+paper, that next day when he came to London he might lay it in the hands
+of Sir Thomas Carter, that should carry it to Rome.
+
+The Queen said: 'Praise God!'
+
+For though she was not set to believe that next day that letter would be
+sent, or for many days more, yet it seemed to her that by little and
+little she was winning him to her will.
+
+
+II
+
+Gardiner, Bishop of Winchester, had builded him a new tennis court in
+where his stables had been before poverty had caused him to sell the
+major part of his horseflesh. He called to him the Duke of Norfolk, who
+was of the Papist cause, and Sir Henry Wriothesley who was always
+betwixt and between, according as the cat jumped, to see this new
+building of his that was made of a roofed-in quadrangle where the stable
+doors were bricked up or barred to make the grille.
+
+But though Norfolk and Wriothesley came very early in the afternoon,
+while it was yet light, to his house, they wasted most of the daylight
+hours in talking of things indifferent before they went to their
+inspection of this court. They stood talking in a long gallery beneath
+very high windows, and there were several chaplains and young priests
+and young gentlemen with them, and most of the talk was of a
+bear-baiting that there should be in Smithfield come Saturday. Sir Henry
+Wriothesley matched seven of his dogs against the seven best of the
+Duke's, that they should the longer hold to the bear once they were on
+him, and most of the young gentlemen wagered for Sir Henry's dogs that
+he had bred from a mastiff out of Portugal.
+
+But when this talk had mostly died down, and when already twilight had
+long fallen, the Bishop said--
+
+'Come, let us visit this new tennis place of mine. I think I shall show
+you somewhat that you have not before seen.'
+
+He bade, however, his gentlemen and priests to stay where they were,
+for they had all many times seen the court or building. When he led the
+way, prelatical and black, for the Duke and Wriothesley, into the lower
+corridors of his house, the priests and young gentlemen bowed behind his
+back, one at the other.
+
+In the courtyard there were four hounds of a heavy and stocky breed that
+came bounding and baying all round them, so that it was only by
+vigilance that Gardiner could save Wriothesley's shins, for he was a man
+that all dogs and children hated.
+
+'Sirs,' the Bishop said, 'these dogs that ye see and hear will let no
+man but me--not even my grooms or stablemen--pass this yard. I have bred
+them to that so I may be secret when I will.'
+
+He set the key in the door that was in the bottom wall of the court.
+
+'There is no other door here save that which goes into the stable where
+the grille is. There I have a door to enter and fetch out the balls that
+pass there.'
+
+In the court itself it was absolute blackness.
+
+'I trow we may talk very well without lights,' he said. 'Come into this
+far corner.'
+
+Yet, though there was no fear of being overheard, each of these three
+stole almost on tiptoe and held his breath, and in the dark and shadowy
+place they made a more dark and more shadowy patch with their heads all
+close together.
+
+Suddenly it was as if the Bishop dropped the veil that covered his
+passions.
+
+'I may well build tennis courts,' he said, and his voice had a ring of
+wild and malignant passion. 'I may well build courts for tennis play.
+Nothing else is left for me to do.'
+
+In the blackness no word came from his listeners.
+
+'You too may do the like,' the Bishop said. 'But I would you do it
+quickly, for soon neither the one nor the other of you but will be
+stripped so bare that you shall not have enough to buy balls with.'
+
+The Duke made an impatient sound like a drawing in of his breath, but
+still he spoke no word.
+
+'I tell you, both of you,' the Bishop's voice came, 'that all of us have
+been fooled. Who was it that helped to set on high this one that now
+presses us down? I did! I!...
+
+'It was I that called the masque at my house where first the King did
+see her. It was I that advised her how to bear herself. And what
+gratitude has been shown me? I have been sent to sequester myself in my
+see; I have been set to gnaw my fingers as they had been old bones
+thrown to a dog. Truly, no juicy meats have been my share. Yet it was I
+set this woman where she sits....'
+
+'I too have my griefs,' the Duke of Norfolk's voice came.
+
+'And I, God wot,' came Wriothesley's.
+
+'Why, you have been fooled,' Gardiner's voice; 'and well you know it.
+For who was it that sent you both, one after the other, into France
+thinking that you might make a match between the Lady Royal and the Duke
+of Orleans?--Who but the Queen?--For well she knew that ye loved the
+French and their King as they had been your brothers. And well we know
+now that never in the mind of her, nor in that of the King whom she
+bewitches and enslaves, was there any thought save that the Lady Royal
+should be wedded to Spain. So ye are fooled.'
+
+He let his voice sink low; then he raised it again--
+
+'Fooled! Fooled! Fooled! You two and I. For who of your friends the
+French shall ever believe again word that you utter. And all your goods
+and lands this Queen will have for the Church, so that she may have
+utter power with a parcel of new shavelings, that will not withstand
+her. So all the land will come in to her leash.... We are fooled and
+ruined, ye and I alike.'
+
+'Well, we know this,' the Duke's voice said distastefully. 'You have no
+need to rehearse griefs that too well we feel. There is no lord, either
+of our part or of the other, that would not have her down.'
+
+'But what will ye do?' Gardiner said.
+
+'Nothing may we do!' the voice of Wriothesley with its dismal terror
+came to their ears. 'The King is too firmly her Highness's man.'
+
+'Her "Highness,"' the Bishop mocked him with a bitter scorn. 'I believe
+you would yet curry favour with this Queen of straw.'
+
+'It is a man's province to be favourable in the eyes of his Prince,' the
+buried voice came again. 'If I could win her favour I would. But well ye
+know there is no way.'
+
+'Ye ha' mingled too much with Lutheran swine,' the Bishop said. 'Now it
+is too late for you.'
+
+'So it is,' Wriothesley said. 'I think you, Bishop, would have done it
+too had you been able to make your account of it.'
+
+The Bishop snarled invisibly.
+
+But the voice of Norfolk came malignantly upon them.
+
+'This is all of a piece with your silly schemings. Did I come here to
+hear ye wrangle? It is peril enow to come here. What will ye do?'
+
+'I will make a pact with him of the other side?' the Bishop said.
+
+'Misery!' the Duke said; 'did I come here to hear this madness? You and
+Cranmer have sought each other's heads this ten years. Will you seek his
+aid now? What may he do? He is as rotten a reed as thou or Wriothesley.'
+
+The Bishop cried suddenly with a loud voice--
+
+'Ho, there! Come you out!'
+
+Norfolk set his hand to his sword and so did Wriothesley. It was in both
+their minds, as it were one thought, that if this was a treason of the
+Bishop's he should there die.
+
+From the blackness of the wall sides where the grille was there came the
+sound of a terroring lock and a creaking door.
+
+'God!' Norfolk said; 'who is this?'
+
+There came the sound of breathing of one man who walked with noiseless
+shoes.
+
+'Have you heard enow to make you believe that these lords' hearts are
+true to the endeavour of casting the Queen down?'
+
+'I have heard enow,' a smooth voice said. 'I never thought it had been
+otherwise.'
+
+'Who is this?' Wriothesley said. 'I will know who this is that has heard
+us.'
+
+'You fool,' Gardiner said; 'this man is of the other side.'
+
+'They have come to you!' Norfolk said.
+
+'To whom else should we come,' the voice answered.
+
+A subtler silence of agitation and thought was between these two men. At
+last Gardiner said--
+
+'Tell these lords what you would have of us?'
+
+'We would have these promises,' the voice said; 'first, of you, my Lord
+Duke, that if by our endeavours your brother's child be brought to a
+trial for unchastity you will in no wise aid her at that trial with your
+voice or your encouragement.'
+
+'A trial!' and 'Unchastity!' the Duke said. 'This is a winter madness.
+Ye know that my niece--St Kevin curse her for it--is as chaste as the
+snow.'
+
+'So was your other niece, Anne Boleyn, for all you knew, yet you dogged
+her to death,' Gardiner said. 'Then you plotted with Papists; now it is
+the turn of the Lutherans. It is all one, so we are rid of this pest.'
+
+'Well, I will promise it,' the Duke said. 'Ye knew I would. It was not
+worth while to ask me.'
+
+'Secondly,' the voice said, 'of you, my Lord Duke, we would have this
+service: that you should swear your niece is a much older woman than she
+looks. Say, for instance, that she was in truth not the eleventh but the
+second child of your brother Edmund. Say that, out of vanity, to make
+herself seem more forward with the learned tongues when she was a child,
+she would call herself her younger sister that died in childbed.'
+
+'But wherefore?' the Duke said.
+
+'Why,' Gardiner answered, 'this is a very subtle scheme of this
+gentleman's devising. He will prove against her certain lewdnesses when
+she was a child in your mother's house. If then she was a child of ten
+or so, knowing not evil from good, this might not undo her. But if you
+can make her seem then eighteen or twenty it will be enough to hang
+her.'
+
+Norfolk reflected.
+
+'Well, I will say I heard that of her age,' he said; 'but ye had best
+get nurses and women to swear to these things.'
+
+'We have them now,' the voice said. 'And it will suffice if your Grace
+will say that you heard these things of old of your brother. For your
+Grace will judge this woman.'
+
+'Very willingly I will,' Norfolk said; 'for if I do not soon, she will
+utterly undo both me and all my friends.'
+
+He reflected again.
+
+'Those things will I do and more yet, if you will.'
+
+'Why, that will suffice,' the voice said. It took a new tone in the
+darkness.
+
+'Now for you, Sir Henry Wriothesley,' it said. 'These simple things you
+shall promise. Firstly, since you have the ear of the Mayor of London
+you shall advise him in no way to hinder certain meetings of Lutherans
+that I shall tell you of later. And, though it is your province so to
+do, you shall in no wise hinder a certain master printer from printing
+what broadsides and libels he will against the Queen. For it is
+essential, if this project is to grow and flourish, that it shall be
+spread abroad that the Queen did bewitch the King to her will on that
+night at Pontefract that you remember, when she had her cousin in her
+bedroom. So broadsides shall be made alleging that by sorcery she
+induced the King to countenance his own shame. And we have witnesses to
+swear that it was by appointment, not by chance, that she met with
+Culpepper upon the moorside. But all that we will have of you is that
+you will promise these two things--that the Lutherans may hold certain
+meetings and the broadsides be printed.'
+
+'Those I will promise,' came in Wriothesley's buried voice.
+
+'Then I will no more of you,' the other's words came. They heard his
+hands feeling along the wall till he came to the door by which he had
+entered. The Bishop followed him, to let him out by a little door he had
+had opened for that one night, into the street.
+
+When he came back to the other two and unfolded to them what was the
+scheme of the Archbishop's man, they agreed that it was a very good
+plan. Then they fell to considering whether it should not serve their
+turn to betray this plan at once to the Queen. But they agreed that, if
+they preserved the Queen, they would be utterly ruined, as they were
+like to be now, whereas, if it succeeded, they would be much the better
+off. And, even if it failed, they lost nothing, for it would not readily
+be believed that they had aided Lutherans, and there were no letters or
+writings.
+
+So they agreed to abide honourably by their promises--and very certain
+they were that if clamour enough could be raised against the Queen, the
+King would be bound into putting her away, though it were against his
+will.
+
+
+III
+
+In the Master Printer Badge's house--and he was the uncle of Margot and
+of the young Poins--there was a great and solemn dissertation towards.
+For word had been brought that certain strangers come on an embassy from
+the Duke of Cleves were minded to hear how the citizens of London--or at
+any rate those of them that held German doctrines--bore themselves
+towards Schmalkaldnerism and the doctrines of Luther.
+
+It was understood that these strangers were of very high degree--of a
+degree so high that they might scarce be spoken to by the meaner sort.
+And for many days messengers had been going between the house of the
+Archbishop at Lambeth and that of the Master Printer, to school him how
+this meeting must be conducted.
+
+His old father was by that time dead--having died shortly after his
+granddaughter Margot had been put away from the Queen's Court--so that
+the house-place was clear. And of all the old furnishings none remained.
+There were presses all round the wall, and lockers for men to sit upon.
+The table had been cleared away into the printer's chapel; a lectern
+stood a-midmost of the room, and before the hearth-place, in the very
+ingle, there was set the great chair in which aforetimes the old man had
+sat so long.
+
+Early that evening, though already it was dusk, the body of citizens
+were assembled. Most of them had haggard faces, for the times were evil
+for men of their persuasion, and nearly all of them were draped in black
+after the German fashion among Lutherans of that day. They ranged
+themselves on the lockers along the wall, and with set faces, in a
+funereal row, they awaited the coming of this great stranger. There were
+no Germans amongst them, for so, it was given out, he would have
+it--either because he would not be known by name or for some other
+reason.
+
+The Master Printer, in the pride of his craft, wore his apron. He stood
+in the centre of the room facing the hearth-place; his huge arms were
+bare--for bare-armed he always worked--his black beard was knotted into
+little curls, his face was so broad that you hardly remarked that his
+nose was hooked like an owl's beak. And about the man there was an air
+of sombreness and mystery. He had certain papers on his lectern, and
+several sheets of the great Bible that he was then printing by the
+Archbishop's license and command. They sang all together and with loud
+voices the canticle called 'A Refuge fast is God the Lord.'
+
+Then, with huge gestures of his hands, he uttered the words--
+
+'This is the very word of God,' and began to read from the pages of his
+Bible. He read first the story of David and Saul, his great voice
+trembling with ecstasy.
+
+'This David is our King,' he said. 'This Saul that he slew is the Beast
+of Rome. The Solomon that cometh after shall be the gracious princeling
+that ye wot of, for already he is wise beyond his years and beyond most
+grown men.'
+
+The citizens around the walls cried 'Amen.' And because the strangers
+tarried to come, he called to his journeymen that stood in the inner
+doorway to bring him the sheets of the Bible whereon he had printed the
+story of Ehud and Eglon.
+
+'This king that ye shall hear of as being slain,' he cried out, 'is that
+foul bird the Kaiser Carl, that harries the faithful in Almain. This
+good man that shall slay him is some German lord. Who he shall be we
+know not yet; maybe it shall be this very stranger that to-night shall
+sit to hear us.'
+
+His brethren muttered a low, deep, and uniform prayer that soon, soon
+the Lord should send them this boon.
+
+But he had not got beyond the eleventh verse of this history before
+there came from without a sound of trumpets, and through the windows the
+light of torches and the scarlet of the guard that, it was said, the
+King had sent to do honour to this stranger.
+
+'Come in, be ye who ye may!' the printer cried to the knockers at his
+door.
+
+There entered the hugest masked man that they ever had seen. All in
+black he was, and horrifying and portentous he strode in. His sleeves
+and shoulders were ballooned after the German fashion, his sword clanked
+on the tiles. He was a vision of black, for his mask that appeared as
+big as another man's garment covered all his face, though they could see
+he had a grey beard when sitting down. He gazed at the fire askance.
+
+He said--his voice was heavy and husky--
+
+'_Gruesset Gott_,' and those of the citizens that had painfully attained
+to so much of that tongue answered him with--
+
+'_Lobet den Herr im Himmels Reich!_'
+
+He had with him one older man that wore a half-mask, and was trembling
+and clean-shaven, and one younger, that was English, to act as
+interpreter when it was needed. He was clean-shaven, too, and in the
+English habit he appeared thin and tenuous. They said he was a gentleman
+of the Archbishop's, and that his name was Lascelles.
+
+He opened the meeting with saying that these great strangers were come
+from beyond the seas, and would hear answers to certain questions. He
+took a paper from his pouch and said that, in order that he might stick
+to the points that these strangers would know of, he had written down
+those questions on that paper.
+
+'How say ye, masters?' he finished. 'Will ye give answers to these
+questions truly, and of your knowledge?'
+
+'Aye will we,' the printer said, 'for to that end we are gathered here.
+Is it not so, my masters?'
+
+And the assembly answered--
+
+'Aye, so it is.'
+
+Lascelles read from his paper:
+
+'How is it with this realm of England?'
+
+The printer glanced at the paper that was upon his lectern. He made
+answer--
+
+'Well! But not over well!'
+
+And at these words Lascelles feigned surprise, lifting his well-shapen
+and white hand in the air.
+
+'How is this that ye say?' he uttered. 'Are ye all of this tale?'
+
+A deep 'Aye!' came from all these chests. There was one old man that
+could never keep still. He had huge limbs, a great ruffled poll of
+grizzling hair, and his legs that were in jerkins of red leather kicked
+continuously in little convulsions. He peered every minute at some new
+thing, very closely, holding first his tablets so near that he could see
+only with one eye, then the whistle that hung round his neck, then a
+little piece of paper that he took from his poke. He cried out in a deep
+voice--'Aye! aye! Not over well. Witchcraft and foul weather and rocks,
+my mates and masters all!' so that he appeared to be a seaman--and
+indeed he traded to the port of Antwerp, in the Low Countries, where he
+had learned of some of the Faith.
+
+'Why,' Lascelles said, 'be ye not contented with our goodly King?'
+
+'Never was a better since Solomon ruled in Jewry,' the shipman cried
+out.
+
+'Is it, then, the Lords of the King's Council that ye are discontented
+with?'
+
+'Nay, they are goodly men, for they are of the King's choosing,' one
+answered--a little man with a black pill-hat.
+
+'Why, speak through your leader,' the stranger said heavily from the
+hearth-place. 'Here is too much skimble-skamble.' The old man beside him
+leaned over his chair-back and whispered in his ear. But the stranger
+shook his head heavily. He sat and gazed at the brands. His great hands
+were upon his knees, pressed down, but now and again they moved as if he
+were in some agony.
+
+'It is well that ye do as the Lord commandeth,' Lascelles said; 'for in
+Almain, whence he cometh, there is wont to be a great order and
+observance.' He held his paper up again to the light. 'Master Printer,
+answer now to this question: Find ye aught amiss with the judges and
+justices of this realm?'
+
+'Nay; they do judge indifferent well betwixt cause and cause,' the
+printer answered from his paper.
+
+'Or with the serjeants, the apparitors, the collectors of taxes, or the
+Parliament men?'
+
+'These, too, perform indifferent well their appointed tasks,' the
+printer said gloomily.
+
+'Or is it with the Church of this realm that ye find fault?'
+
+'Body of God!' the stranger said heavily.
+
+'Nay!' the printer answered, 'for the supreme head of that Church is the
+King, a man learned before all others in the law of God; such a King as
+speaketh as though he were that mouthpiece of the Most High that the
+Antichrist at Rome claimeth to be.'
+
+'Is it, then, with the worshipful the little Prince of Wales that ye are
+discontented?' Lascelles read, and the printer answered that there was
+not such another Prince of his years for promise and for performance,
+too, in all Christendom.
+
+The stranger said from the hearth-place--
+
+'Well! we are commended,' and his voice was bitter and ironical.
+
+'How is it, then,' Lascelles read on, 'that ye say all is not over well
+in the land?'
+
+The printer's gloomy and black features glared with a sudden rage.
+
+'How should all be well with a land,' he cried, 'where in high places
+reigns harlotry?' He raised his clenched fist on high and glared round
+upon his audience. 'Corruption that reacheth round and about and down
+till it hath found a seedbed even in this poor house of my father's? Or
+if it is well with this land now, how shall it continue well when
+witchcraft rules near the King himself, and the Devil of Rome hath there
+his emissaries.'
+
+A chitter of sound came from his audience, so that it appeared that they
+were all of a strain. They moved in their seats; the shipman cried out--
+
+'Ay! witchcraft! witchcraft!'
+
+The huge bulk of the stranger, black and like a bull's, half rose from
+its chair.
+
+'Body of God!' he cried out. 'This I will not bear.'
+
+Again the older man leaned solicitously above him and whispered,
+pleading with his hands, and Lascelles said hastily--
+
+'Speak of your own knowledge. How should you know of what passes in high
+places?'
+
+'Why!' the printer cried out, 'is it not the common report? Do not all
+men know it? Do not the butchers sing of it in the shambles, and the
+bot-flies buzz of it one to the other? I tell you it is spread from here
+into Almain, where the very horse-sellers are a-buzz with it.'
+
+In his chair the stranger cried out--
+
+'Ah! ah!' as if he were in great pain. He struggled with his feet and
+then sat still.
+
+'I have heard witnesses that will testify to these things,' the printer
+said. 'I will bring them here into this room before ye.' He turned upon
+the stranger. 'Master,' he said, 'if ye know not of this, you are the
+only man in England that is ignorant!'
+
+The stranger said with a bitter despair--
+
+'Well, I am come to hear what ye do say!'
+
+So he heard tales from all the sewers of London, and it was plain to him
+that all the commonalty cried shame upon their King. He screamed and
+twisted there in his chair at the last, and when he was come out into
+the darkness he fell upon his companion, and beat him so that he
+screamed out.
+
+He might have died--for, though the King's guard with their torches and
+halberds were within a bowshot of them, they stirred no limb. And it was
+a party of fellows bat-fowling along the hedges of that field that came
+through the dark, attracted by the glare of the torches, the blaze of
+the scarlet clothes, and the outcry.
+
+And when they came, asking why that great man belaboured this thin and
+fragile one, black shadows both against the light, the big man answered,
+howling--
+
+'This man hath made me bounden to slay my wife.'
+
+They said that that was a thing some of them would have been glad of.
+
+But the great figure cast itself on the ground at the foot of a tree
+that stretched up like nerves and tentacles into the black sky. He tore
+the wet earth with his fingers, and the men stood round him till the
+Duke of Norfolk, coming with his sword drawn, hunted them afar off, and
+they fell again to beating the hedges to drive small birds into their
+nets.
+
+For, they said, these were evidently of the quality whose griefs were
+none of theirs.
+
+
+IV
+
+The Queen was walking in the long gallery of Hampton Court. The
+afternoon was still new, but rain was falling very fast, so that through
+the windows all trees were blurred with mist, and all alleys ran with
+water, and it was very grey in the gallery. The Lady Mary was with her,
+and sat in a window-seat reading in a book. The Queen, as she walked,
+was netting a silken purse of a purple colour; her gown was very richly
+embroidered of gold thread worked into black velvet, and the heavy day
+pressed heavily on her senses, so that she sought that silence more
+willingly. For three days she had had no news of her lord, but that
+morning he was come back to Hampton, though she had not yet seen him,
+for it was ever his custom to put off all work of the day before he came
+to the Queen. Thus, if she were sad, she was tranquil; and, considering
+only that her work of bringing him to God must begin again that night,
+she let her thoughts rest upon the netting of her purse. The King, she
+had heard, was with his council. Her uncle was come to Court, and
+Gardiner of Winchester, and Cranmer of Canterbury, along with Sir A.
+Wriothesley, and many other lords, so that she augured it would be a
+very full council, and that night there would be a great banquet if she
+was not mistaken.
+
+She remembered that it was now many months since she had been shown for
+Queen from that very gallery in the window that opened upon the
+Cardinal's garden. The King had led her by the hand. There had been a
+great crying out of many people of the lower sort that crowded the
+terrace before the garden. Now the rain fell, and all was desolation. A
+yeoman in brown fustian ran bending his head before the tempestuous
+rain. A rook, blown impotently backwards, essayed slowly to cross
+towards the western trees. Her eyes followed him until a great gust blew
+him in a wider curve, backwards and up, and when again he steadied
+himself he was no more than a blot on the wet greyness of the heavens.
+
+There was an outcry at the door, and a woman ran in. She was crying out
+still: she was all in grey, with the white coif of the Queen's service.
+She fell down upon her knees, her hands held out.
+
+'Pardon!' she cried. 'Pardon! Let not my brother come in. He prowls at
+the door.'
+
+It was Mary Hall, she that had been Mary Lascelles. The Queen came over
+to raise her up, and to ask what it was she sought. But the woman wept
+so loud, and so continually cried out that her brother was the fiend
+incarnate, that the Queen could ask no questions. The Lady Mary looked
+up over her book without stirring her body. Her eyes were awakened and
+sardonic.
+
+The waiting-maid looked affrightedly over her shoulders at the door.
+
+'Well, your brother shall not come in here,' the Queen said. 'What would
+he have done to you?'
+
+'Pardon!' the woman cried out. 'Pardon!'
+
+'Why, tell me of your fault,' the Queen said.
+
+'I have given false witness!' Mary Hall blubbered out. 'I would not do
+it. But you do not know how they confuse a body. And they threaten with
+cords and thumbscrews.' She shuddered with her whole body. 'Pardon!' she
+cried out. 'Pardon!'
+
+And then suddenly she poured forth a babble of lamentations, wringing
+her hands, and rubbing her lips together. She was a woman passed of
+thirty, but thin still and fair like her brother in the face, for she
+was his twin.
+
+'Ah,' she cried, 'he threated that if I would not give evidence I must
+go back to Lincolnshire. You do not know what it is to go back to
+Lincolnshire. Ah, God! the old father, the old house, the wet. My
+clothes were all mouldered. I was willing to give true evidence to save
+myself, but they twisted it to false. It was the Duke of Norfolk ...'
+
+The Lady Mary came slowly over the floor.
+
+'Against whom did you give your evidence?' she said, and her voice was
+cold, hard, and commanding.
+
+Mary Hall covered her face with her hands, and wailed desolately in a
+high note, like a wolf's howl, that reverberated in that dim gallery.
+
+The Lady Mary struck her a hard blow with the cover of her book upon the
+hands and the side of her head.
+
+'Against whom did you give your evidence?' she said again.
+
+The woman fell over upon one hand, the other she raised to shield
+herself. Her eyes were flooded with great teardrops; her mouth was open
+in an agony. The Lady Mary raised her book to strike again: its covers
+were of wood, and its angles bound with silver work. The woman screamed
+out, and then uttered--
+
+'Against Dearham and one Mopock first. And then against Sir T.
+Culpepper.'
+
+The Queen stood up to her height; her hand went over her heart; the
+netted purse dropped to the floor soundlessly.
+
+'God help me!' Mary Hall cried out. 'Dearham and Culpepper are both
+dead!'
+
+The Queen sprang back three paces.
+
+'How dead!' she cried. 'They were not even ill.'
+
+'Upon the block,' the maid said. 'Last night, in the dark, in their
+gaols.'
+
+The Queen let her hands fall slowly to her sides.
+
+'Who did this?' she said, and Mary Hall answered--
+
+'It was the King!'
+
+The Lady Mary set her book under her arm.
+
+'Ye might have known it was the King,' she said harshly. The Queen was
+as still as a pillar of ebony and ivory, so black her dress was, and so
+white her face and pendant hands.
+
+'I repent me! I repent me!' the maid cried out. 'When I heard that they
+were dead I repented me and came here. The old Duchess of Norfolk is in
+gaol: she burned the letters of Dearham! The Lady Rochford is in gaol,
+and old Sir Nicholas, and the Lady Cicely that was ever with the Queen;
+the Lord Edmund Howard shall to gaol and his lady.'
+
+'Why,' the Lady Mary said to the Queen, 'if you had not had such a fear
+of nepotism, your father and mother and grandmother and cousin had been
+here about you, and not so easily taken.'
+
+The Queen stood still whilst all her hopes fell down.
+
+'They have taken Lady Cicely that was ever with me,' she said.
+
+'It was the Duke of Norfolk that pressed me most,' Mary Lascelles cried
+out.
+
+'Aye, he would,' the Lady Mary answered.
+
+The Queen tottered upon her feet.
+
+'Ask her more,' she said. 'I will not speak with her.'
+
+'The King in his council ...' the girl began.
+
+'Is the King in his council upon these matters?' the Lady Mary asked.
+
+'Aye, he sitteth there,' Mary Hall said. 'And he hath heard evidence of
+Mary Trelyon the Queen's maid, how that the Queen's Highness did bid her
+begone on the night that Sir T. Culpepper came to her room, before he
+came. And how that the Queen was very insistent that she should go, upon
+the score of fatigue and the lateness of the hour. And she hath deponed
+that on other nights, too, this has happened, that the Queen's Highness,
+when she hath come late to bed, hath equally done the same thing. And
+other her maids have deponed how the Queen hath sent them from her
+presence and relieved them of tasks----'
+
+'Well, well,' the Lady Mary said, 'often I have urged the Queen that she
+should be less gracious. Better it had been if she had beat ye all as I
+have done; then had ye feared to betray her.'
+
+'Aye,' Mary Hall said, 'it is a true thing that your Grace saith there.'
+
+'Call me not your Grace,' the Lady Mary said. 'I will be no Grace in
+this court of wolves and hogs.'
+
+That was the sole thing that she said to show she was of the Queen's
+party. But ever she questioned the kneeling woman to know what evidence
+had been given, and of the attitude of the lords.
+
+The young Poins had sworn roundly that the Queen had bidden him to
+summon no guards when her cousin had broken in upon her. Only Udal had
+said that he knew nothing of how Katharine had agreed with her cousin
+whilst they were in Lincolnshire. It had been after his time there that
+Culpepper came. It had been after his time, too, and whilst he lay in
+chains at Pontefract that Culpepper had come to her door. He stuck to
+that tale, though the Duke of Norfolk had beat and threatened him never
+so.
+
+'Why, what wolves Howards be,' the Lady Mary said, 'for it is only
+wolves, of all beasts, that will prey upon the sick of their kind.'
+
+The Queen stood there, swaying back as if she were very sick, her eyes
+fast closed, and the lids over them very blue.
+
+It was only when the Lady Mary drew from the woman an account of the
+King's demeanour that she showed a sign of hearing.
+
+'His Highness,' the woman said, 'sate always mute.'
+
+'His Highness would,' the Lady Mary said. 'He is in that at least
+royal--that he letteth jackals do his hunting.'
+
+It was only when the Archbishop of Canterbury, reading from the
+indictment of Culpepper, had uttered the words: 'did by the obtaining of
+the Lady Rochford meet with the Queen's Highness by night in a secret
+and vile place,' that the King had called out--
+
+'Body of God! mine own bedchamber!' as if he were hatefully mocking the
+Archbishop.
+
+The Queen leant suddenly forward--
+
+'Said he no more than that?' she cried eagerly.
+
+'No more, oh your dear Grace,' the maid said. And the Queen shuddered
+and whispered--
+
+'No more!--And I have spoken to this woman to obtain no more than "no
+more."'
+
+Again she closed her eyes, and she did not again speak, but hung her
+head forward as if she were thinking.
+
+'Heaven help me!' the maid said.
+
+'Why, think no more of Heaven,' the Lady Mary said, 'there is but the
+fire of hell for such beasts as you.'
+
+'Had you such a brother as mine----' Mary Hall began. But the Lady Mary
+cried out--
+
+'Cease, dog! I have a worse father, but you have not found him force me
+to work vileness.'
+
+'All the other Papists have done worse than I,' Mary Hall said, 'for
+they it was that forced us by threats to speak.'
+
+'Not one was of the Queen's side?' the Lady Mary said.
+
+'Not one,' Mary Hall answered. 'Gardiner was more fierce against her
+than he of Canterbury, the Duke of Norfolk than either.'
+
+The Lady Mary said--
+
+'Well! well!'
+
+'Myself I did hear the Duke of Norfolk say, when I was drawn to give
+evidence, that he begged the King to let him tear my secrets from my
+heart. For so did he abhor the abominable deeds done by his two nieces,
+Anne Boleyn and Katharine Howard, that he could no longer desire to
+live. And he said neither could he live longer without some comfortable
+assurance of His Highness's royal favour. And so he fell upon me----'
+
+The woman fell to silence. Without, the rain had ceased, and, like heavy
+curtains trailing near the ground, the clouds began to part and sweep
+away. A horn sounded, and there went a party of men with pikes across
+the terrace.
+
+'Well, and what said you?' the Lady Mary said.
+
+'Ask me not,' Mary Lascelles said woefully. She averted her eyes to the
+floor at her side.
+
+'By God, but I will know,' the Lady Mary snarled. 'You shall tell me.'
+She had that of royal bearing from her sire that the woman was amazed at
+her words, and, awakening like one in a dream, she rehearsed the
+evidence that had been threated from her.
+
+She had told of the lascivious revels and partings, in the maid's garret
+at the old Duchess's, when Katharine had been a child there. She had
+told how Marnock the musicker had called her his mistress, and how
+Dearham, Katharine's cousin, had beaten him. And how Dearham had given
+Katharine a half of a silver coin.
+
+'Well, that is all true,' the Lady Mary said. 'How did you perjure
+yourself?'
+
+'In the matter of the Queen's age,' the woman faltered.
+
+'How that?' the Lady Mary asked.
+
+'The Duke would have me say that she was more than a young child.'
+
+The Lady Mary said, 'Ah! ah! there is the yellow dog!' She thought for a
+moment.
+
+'And you said?' she asked at last.
+
+'The Duke threated me and threated me. And say I, "Your Grace must know
+how young she was." And says he, "I would swear that at that date she
+was no child, but that I do not know how many of these nauseous Howard
+brats there be. Nor yet the order in which they came. But this I will
+swear that I think there has been some change of the Queen with a whelp
+that died in the litter, that she might seem more young. And of a surety
+she was always learned beyond her assumed years, so that it was not to
+be believed."'
+
+Mary Lascelles closed her eyes and appeared about to faint.
+
+'Speak on, dog,' Mary said.
+
+The woman roused herself to say with a solemn piteousness--
+
+'This I swear that before this trial, when my brother pressed me and
+threated me thus to perjure myself, I abhorred it and spat in his face.
+There was none more firm--nor one half so firm as I--against him. But
+oh, the Duke and the terror--and to be in a ring of so many villainous
+men....'
+
+'So that you swore that the Queen's Highness, to your knowledge, was
+older than a child,' the Lady Mary pressed her.
+
+'Ay; they would have me say that it was she that commanded to have these
+revels....'
+
+She leaned forward with both her hands on the floor, in the attitude of
+a beast that goes four-footed. She cried out--
+
+'Ask me no more! ask me no more!'
+
+'Tell! tell! Beast!' the Lady Mary said.
+
+'They threated me with torture,' the woman panted. 'I could do no less.
+I heard Margot Poins scream.'
+
+'They have tortured her?' the Lady Mary said.
+
+'Ay, and she was in her pains elsewise,' the woman said.
+
+'Did she say aught?' the Lady Mary said.
+
+'No! no!' the woman panted. Her hair had fallen loose in her coif, it
+depended on to her shoulder.
+
+'Tell on! tell on!' the Lady Mary said.
+
+'They tortured her, and she did not say one word more, but ever in her
+agony cried out, "Virtuous! virtuous!" till her senses went.'
+
+Mary Hall again raised herself to her knees.
+
+'Let me go, let me go,' she moaned. 'I will not speak before the Queen.
+I had been as loyal as Margot Poins.... But I will not speak before the
+Queen. I love her as well as Margot Poins. But ... I will not----'
+
+She cried out as the Lady Mary struck her, and her face was lamentable
+with its opened mouth. She scrambled to one knee; she got on both, and
+ran to the door. But there she cried out--
+
+'My brother!' and fell against the wall. Her eyes were fixed upon the
+Lady Mary with a baleful despair, she gasped and panted for breath.
+
+'It is upon you if I speak,' she said. 'Merciful God, do not bid me
+speak before the Queen!'
+
+She held out her hands as if she had been praying.
+
+'Have I not proved that I loved this Queen?' she said. 'Have I not fled
+here to warn her? Is it not my life that I risk? Merciful God! Merciful
+God! Bid me not to speak.'
+
+'Speak!' the Lady Mary said.
+
+The woman appealed to the Queen with her eyes streaming, but Katharine
+stood silent and like a statue with sightless eyes. Her lips smiled, for
+she thought of her Redeemer; for this woman she had neither ears nor
+eyes.
+
+'Speak!' the Lady Mary said.
+
+'God help you, be it on your head,' the woman cried out, 'that I speak
+before the Queen. It was the King that bade me say she was so old. I
+would not say it before the Queen, but you have made me!'
+
+The Lady Mary's hands fell powerless to her sides, the book from her
+opened fingers jarred on the hard floor.
+
+'Merciful God!' she said. 'Have I such a father?'
+
+'It was the King!' the woman said. 'His Highness came to life when he
+heard these words of the Duke's, that the Queen was older than she
+reported. He would have me say that the Queen's Highness was of a
+marriageable age and contracted to her cousin Dearham.'
+
+'Merciful God!' the Lady Mary said again. 'Dear God, show me some way to
+tear from myself the sin of my begetting. I had rather my mother's
+confessor had been my father than the King! Merciful God!'
+
+'Never was woman pressed as I was to say this thing. And well ye
+wot--better than I did before--what this King is. I tell you--and I
+swear it----'
+
+She stopped and trembled, her eyes, from which the colour had gone, wide
+open and lustreless, her face pallid and ashen, her mouth hanging open.
+The Queen was moving towards her.
+
+She came very slowly, her hands waving as if she sought support from the
+air, but her head was erect.
+
+'What will you do?' the Lady Mary said. 'Let us take counsel!'
+
+Katharine Howard said no word. It was as if she walked in her sleep.
+
+
+V
+
+The King sat on the raised throne of his council chamber. All the Lords
+of his Council were there and all in black. There was Norfolk with his
+yellow face who feigned to laugh and scoff, now that he had proved
+himself no lover of the Queen's. There was Gardiner of Winchester,
+sitting forward with his cruel and eager eyes upon the table. Next him
+was the Lord Mayor, Michael Dormer, and the Lord Chancellor. And so
+round the horse-shoe table against the wall sat all the other lords and
+commissioners that had been appointed to make inquiry. Sir Anthony
+Browne was there, and Wriothesley with his great beard, and the Duke of
+Suffolk with his hanging jaw. A silence had fallen upon them all, and
+the witnesses were all done with.
+
+On high on his throne the King sat, monstrous and leaning over to one
+side, his face dabbled with tears. He gazed upon Cranmer who stood on
+high beside him, the King gazing upwards into his face as if for comfort
+and counsel.
+
+'Why, you shall save her for me?' he said.
+
+Cranmer's face was haggard, and upon it too there were tears.
+
+'It were the gladdest thing that ever I did,' he said, 'for I do believe
+this Queen is not so guilty.'
+
+'God of His mercy bless thee, Cranmer,' he said, and wearily he touched
+his black bonnet at the sacred name. 'I have done all that I might when
+I spoke with Mary Hall. It shall save me her life.'
+
+Cranmer looked round upon the lords below them; they were all silent but
+only the Duke of Norfolk who laughed to the Lord Mayor. The Lord Mayor,
+a burly man, was more pallid and haggard than any. All the others had
+fear for themselves written upon their faces. But the citizen was not
+used to these trials, of which the others had seen so many.
+
+The Archbishop fell on his knees on the step before the King's throne.
+
+'Gracious and dread Lord,' he said, and his low voice trembled like that
+of a schoolboy, 'Saviour, Lord, and Fount of Justice of this realm!
+Hitherto these trials have been of traitor-felons and villains outside
+the circle of your house. Now that they be judged and dead, we, your
+lords, pray you that you put off from you this most heavy task of judge.
+For inasmuch as we live by your life and have health by your health, in
+this realm afflicted with many sores that you alone can heal and dangers
+that you alone can ward off, so we have it assured and certain that many
+too great labours and matters laid upon you imperil us all. In that, as
+well for our selfish fears as for the great love, self-forgetting, that
+we have of your person, we pray you that--coming now to the trial of
+this your wife--you do rest, though well assured we are that greatly and
+courageously you would adventure it, upon the love of us your lords.
+Appoint, therefore, such a Commission as you shall well approve to make
+this most heavy essay and trial.'
+
+So low was his voice that, to hear him, many lords rose from their seats
+and came over against the throne. Thus all that company were in the
+upper part of the hall, and through the great window at the further end
+the sun shone down upon them, having parted the watery clouds. To their
+mass of black it gave blots and gouts of purple and blue and scarlet,
+coming through the dight panes.
+
+'Lay off this burden of trial and examination upon us that so willingly,
+though with sighs and groans, would bear it.'
+
+Suddenly the King stood up and pointed, his jaw fallen open. Katharine
+Howard was coming up the floor of the hall. Her hands were folded before
+her; her face was rigid and calm; she looked neither to right nor to
+left, but only upon the King's face. At the edge of the sunlight she
+halted, so that she stood, a black figure in the bluish and stony gloom
+of the hall with the high roof a great way above her head. All the lords
+began to pull off their bonnets, only Norfolk said that he would not
+uncover before a harlot.
+
+The Queen, looking upon Henry's face, said with icy and cold tones--
+
+'I would have you to cease this torturing of witnesses. I will make
+confession.'
+
+No man then had a word to say. Norfolk had no word either.
+
+'If you will have me confess to heresy, I will confess to heresy; if to
+treason, to treason. If you will have me confess to adultery, God help
+me and all of you, I will confess to adultery and all such sins.'
+
+The King cried out--
+
+'No! no!' like a beast that is stabbed to the heart; but with cold eyes
+the Queen looked back at him.
+
+'If you will have it adultery before marriage, it shall be so. If it be
+to be falseness to my Lord's bed, it shall be so; if it be both, in the
+name of God, be it both, and where you will and how. If you will have
+it spoken, here I speak it. If you will have it written, I will write
+out such words as you shall bid me write. I pray you leave my poor women
+be, especially them that be sick, for there are none that do not love
+me, and I do think that my death is all that you need.'
+
+She paused; there was no sound in the hall but the strenuous panting of
+the King.
+
+'But whether,' she said, 'you shall believe this confession of mine, I
+leave to you that very well do know my conversation and my manner of
+life.'
+
+Again she paused and said--
+
+'I have spoken. To it I will add that heartily I do thank my sovereign
+lord that raised me up. And, in public, I do say it, that he hath dealt
+justly by me. I pray you pardon me for having delayed thus long your
+labours. I will get me gone.'
+
+Then she dropped her eyes to the ground.
+
+Again the King cried out--
+
+'No! no!' and, stumbling to his feet he rushed down upon his courtiers
+and round the table. He came upon her before she was at the distant
+door.
+
+'You shall not go!' he said. 'Unsay! unsay!'
+
+She said, 'Ah!' and recoiled before him with an obdurate and calm
+repulsion.
+
+'Get ye gone, all you minions and hounds,' he cried. And running in upon
+them he assailed them with huge blows and curses, sobbing lamentably, so
+that they fled up the steps and out on to the rooms behind the throne.
+He came sobbing, swift and maddened, panting and crying out, back to
+where she awaited him.
+
+'Unsay! unsay!' he cried out.
+
+She stood calmly.
+
+'Never will I unsay,' she said. 'For it is right that such a King as
+thou should be punished, and I do believe this: that there can no agony
+come upon you such as shall come if you do believe me false to you.'
+
+The coloured sunlight fell upon his face just down to the chin; his
+eyes glared horribly. She confronted him, being in the shadow. High up
+above them, painted and moulded angels soared on the roof with golden
+wings. He clutched at his throat.
+
+'I do not believe it,' he cried out.
+
+'Then,' she said, 'I believe that it shall be only a second greater
+agony to you: for you shall have done me to death believing me
+guiltless.'
+
+A great motion of despair went over his whole body.
+
+'Kat!' he said; 'Body of God, Kat! I would not have you done to death. I
+have saved your life from your enemies.'
+
+She made him no answer, and he protested desperately--
+
+'All this afternoon I have wrestled with a woman to make her say that
+you are older than your age, and precontracted to a cousin of yours. I
+have made her say it at last, so your life is saved.'
+
+She turned half to go from him, but he ran round in front of her.
+
+'Your life is saved!' he said desperately, 'for if you were
+precontracted to Dearham your marriage with me is void. And if your
+marriage with me is void, though it be proved against you that you were
+false to me, yet it is not treason, for you are not my wife.'
+
+Again she moved to circumvent him, and again he came before her.
+
+'Speak!' he said, 'speak!' But she folded her lips close. He cast his
+arms abroad in a passion of despair. 'You shall be put away into a
+castle where you shall have such state as never empress had yet. All
+your will I will do. Always I will live near you in secret fashion.'
+
+'I will not be your leman,' she said.
+
+'But once you offered it!' he answered.
+
+'Then you appeared in the guise of a king!' she said.
+
+He withered beneath her tone.
+
+'All you would have you shall have,' he said. 'I will call in a
+messenger and here and now send the letter that you wot of to Rome.'
+
+'Your Highness,' she said, 'I would not have the Church brought back to
+this land by one deemed an adult'ress. Assuredly, it should not
+prosper.'
+
+Again he sought to stay her going, holding out his arms to enfold her.
+She stepped back.
+
+'Your Highness,' she said, 'I will speak some last words. And, as you
+know me well, you know that these irrevocably shall be my last to you!'
+
+He cried--'Delay till you hear----'
+
+'There shall be no delay,' she said; 'I will not hear.' She smoothed a
+strand of hair that had fallen over her forehead in a gesture that she
+always had when she was deep in thoughts.
+
+'This is what I would say,' she uttered. And she began to speak
+levelly--
+
+'Very truly you say when you say that once I made offer to be your
+leman. But it was when I was a young girl, mazed with reading of books
+in the learned tongue, and seeing all men as if they were men of those
+days. So you appeared to me such a man as was Pompey the Great, or as
+was Marius, or as was Sylla. For each of these great men erred; yet they
+erred greatly as rulers that would rule. Or rather I did see you such a
+one as was Caesar Julius, who, as you well wot, crossed a Rubicon and set
+out upon a high endeavour. But you--never will you cross any Rubicon;
+always you blow hot in the evening and cold at dawn. Neither do you, as
+I had dreamed you did, rule in this your realm. For, even as a crow that
+just now I watched, you are blown hither and thither by every gust that
+blows. Now the wind of gossips blows so that you must have my life. And,
+before God, I am glad of it.'
+
+'Before God!' he cried out, 'I would save you!'
+
+'Aye,' she answered sadly, 'to-day you would save me; to-morrow a foul
+speech of one mine enemy shall gird you again to slay me. On the morrow
+you will repent, and on the morrow of that again you will repent of
+that. So you will balance and trim. If to-day you send a messenger to
+Rome, to-morrow you will send another, hastening by a shorter route, to
+stay him. And this I tell you, that I am not one to let my name be
+bandied for many days in the mouths of men. I had rather be called a
+sinner, adjudged and dead and forgotten. So I am glad that I am cast to
+die.'
+
+'You shall not die!' the King cried. 'Body of God, you shall not die! I
+cannot live lacking thee. Kat---- Kat----'
+
+'Aye,' she said, 'I must die, for you are not such a one as can stay in
+the wind. Thus I tell you it will fall about that for many days you will
+waver, but one day you will cry out--Let her die this day! On the morrow
+of that day you will repent you, but, being dead, I shall be no more to
+be recalled to life. Why, man, with this confession of mine, heard by
+grooms and mayors of cities and the like, how shall you dare to save me?
+You know you shall not.
+
+'And so, now I am cast for death, and I am very glad of it. For, if I
+had not so ensured and made it fated, I might later have wavered. For I
+am a weak woman, and strong men have taken dishonourable means to escape
+death when it came near. Now I am assured of death, and know that no
+means of yours can save me, nor no prayers nor yielding of mine. I came
+to you for that you might give this realm again to God. Now I see you
+will not--for not ever will you do it if it must abate you a jot of your
+sovereignty, and you never will do it without that abatement. So it is
+in vain that I have sinned.
+
+'For I trow that I sinned in taking the crown from the woman that was
+late your wife. I would not have it, but you would, and I yielded. Yet
+it was a sin. Then I did a sin that good might ensue, and again I do it,
+and I hope that this sin that brings me down shall counterbalance that
+other that set me up. For well I know that to make this confession is a
+sin; but whether the one shall balance the other only the angels that
+are at the gates of Paradise shall assure me.
+
+'In some sort I have done it for your Highness' sake--or, at least, that
+your Highness may profit in your fame thereby. For, though all that do
+know me will scarcely believe in it, the most part of men shall needs
+judge me by the reports that are set about. In the commonalty, and the
+princes of foreign courts, one may believe you justified of my blood,
+and, for this event, even to posterity your name shall be spared. I
+shall become such a little dust as will not fill a cup. Yet, at least, I
+shall not sully, in the eyes of men to come, your record.
+
+'And that I am glad of; for this world is no place for me who am mazed
+by too much reading in old books. At first I would not believe it,
+though many have told me it was so. I was of the opinion that in the end
+right must win through. I think now that it never shall--or not for many
+ages--till our Saviour again come upon this earth with a great glory.
+But all this is a mystery of the great goodness of God and the
+temptations that do beset us poor mortality.
+
+'So now I go! I think that you will not any more seek to hinder me, for
+you have heard how set I am on this course. I think, if I have done
+little good, I have done little harm, for I have sought to injure no
+man--though through me you have wracked some of my poor servants and
+slain my poor simple cousin. But that is between you and God. If I must
+weep for them yet, though I was the occasion of their deaths and
+tortures, I cannot much lay it to my account.
+
+'If, by being reputed your leman, as you would have it, I could again
+set up the Church of God, willingly I would do it. But I see that there
+is not one man--save maybe some poor simple souls--that would have this
+done. Each man is set to save his skin and his goods--and you are such a
+weathercock that I should never blow you to a firm quarter. For what am
+I set against all this nation?
+
+'If you should say that our wedding was no wedding because of the
+pre-contract to my cousin Dearham that you have feigned was made--why, I
+might live as your reputed leman in a secret place. But it is not very
+certain that even at that I should live very long. For, if I lived, I
+must work upon you to do the right. And, if that I did, not very long
+should I live before mine enemies again did come about me and to you.
+And so I must die. And now I see that you are not such a man as I would
+live with willingly to preserve my life.
+
+'I speak not to reprove you what I have spoken, but to make you see that
+as I am so I am. You are as God made you, setting you for His own
+purposes a weak man in very evil and turbulent times. As a man is born
+so a man lives; as is his strength so the strain breaks him or he
+resists the strain. If I have wounded you with these my words, I do ask
+your pardon. Much of this long speech I have thought upon when I was
+despondent this long time past. But much of it has come to my lips
+whilst I spake, and, maybe, it is harsh and rash in the wording. That I
+would not have, but I may not help myself. I would have you wounded by
+the things as they are, and by what of conscience you have, in your
+passions and your prides. And this, I will add, that I die a Queen, but
+I would rather have died the wife of my cousin Culpepper or of any other
+simple lout that loved me as he did, without regard, without thought,
+and without falter. He sold farms to buy me bread. You would not imperil
+a little alliance with a little King o' Scots to save my life. And this
+I tell you, that I will spend the last hours of the days that I have to
+live in considering of this simple man and of his love, and in praying
+for his soul, for I hear you have slain him! And for the rest, I commend
+you to your friends!'
+
+The King had staggered back against the long table; his jaw fell open;
+his head leaned down upon his chest. In all that long speech--the
+longest she had ever made save when she was shown for Queen--she had not
+once raised or lowered her voice, nor once dropped her eyes. But she had
+remembered the lessons of speaking that had been given her by her master
+Udal, in the aforetime, away in Lincolnshire, where there was an orchard
+with green boughs, and below it a pig-pound where the hogs grunted.
+
+She went slowly down over the great stone flags of the great hall. It
+was very gloomy now, and her figure in black velvet was like a small
+shadow, dark and liquid, amongst shadows that fell softly and like
+draperies from the roof. Up there it was all dark already, for the
+light came downwards from the windows. She went slowly, walking as she
+had been schooled to walk.
+
+'God!' Henry cried out; 'you have not played false with Culpepper?' His
+voice echoed all round the hall.
+
+The Queen's white face and her folded hands showed as she turned--
+
+'Aye, there the shoe pinches!' she said. 'Think upon it. Most times you
+shall not believe it, for you know me. But I have made confession of it
+before your Council. So it may be true. For I hope some truth cometh to
+the fore even in Councils.'
+
+Near the doorway it was all shadow, and soundlessly she faded away among
+them. The hinge of the door creaked; through it there came the sound of
+the pikestaves of her guard upon the stone of the steps. The sound
+whispered round amidst the statues of old knights and kings that stood
+upon corbels between the windows. It whispered amongst the invisible
+carvings of the roof. Then it died away.
+
+The King made no sound. Suddenly he cast his hat upon the paving.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+KATHARINE HOWARD was executed on
+Tower Hill, the 13th of February, in the 33rd year
+of the reign of KING HENRY VIII.
+
+MDXLI-II
+
+
+
+***END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE FIFTH QUEEN CROWNED***
+
+
+******* This file should be named 27432.txt or 27432.zip *******
+
+
+This and all associated files of various formats will be found in:
+http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/2/7/4/3/27432
+
+
+
+Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions
+will be renamed.
+
+Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no
+one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation
+(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without
+permission and without paying copyright royalties.  Special rules,
+set forth in the General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to
+copying and distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works to
+protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm concept and trademark.  Project
+Gutenberg is a registered trademark, and may not be used if you
+charge for the eBooks, unless you receive specific permission.  If you
+do not charge anything for copies of this eBook, complying with the
+rules is very easy.  You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose
+such as creation of derivative works, reports, performances and
+research.  They may be modified and printed and given away--you may do
+practically ANYTHING with public domain eBooks.  Redistribution is
+subject to the trademark license, especially commercial
+redistribution.
+
+
+
+*** START: FULL LICENSE ***
+
+THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE
+PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK
+
+To protect the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting the free
+distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work
+(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase "Project
+Gutenberg"), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full Project
+Gutenberg-tm License (available with this file or online at
+http://www.gutenberg.org/license).
+
+
+Section 1.  General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic works
+
+1.A.  By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to
+and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property
+(trademark/copyright) agreement.  If you do not agree to abide by all
+the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or destroy
+all copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in your possession.
+If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic work and you do not agree to be bound by the
+terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the person or
+entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph 1.E.8.
+
+1.B.  "Project Gutenberg" is a registered trademark.  It may only be
+used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who
+agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement.  There are a few
+things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works
+even without complying with the full terms of this agreement.  See
+paragraph 1.C below.  There are a lot of things you can do with Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this agreement
+and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
+works.  See paragraph 1.E below.
+
+1.C.  The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation ("the Foundation"
+or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection of Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic works.  Nearly all the individual works in the
+collection are in the public domain in the United States.  If an
+individual work is in the public domain in the United States and you are
+located in the United States, we do not claim a right to prevent you from
+copying, distributing, performing, displaying or creating derivative
+works based on the work as long as all references to Project Gutenberg
+are removed.  Of course, we hope that you will support the Project
+Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting free access to electronic works by
+freely sharing Project Gutenberg-tm works in compliance with the terms of
+this agreement for keeping the Project Gutenberg-tm name associated with
+the work.  You can easily comply with the terms of this agreement by
+keeping this work in the same format with its attached full Project
+Gutenberg-tm License when you share it without charge with others.
+
+1.D.  The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern
+what you can do with this work.  Copyright laws in most countries are in
+a constant state of change.  If you are outside the United States, check
+the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this agreement
+before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, distributing or
+creating derivative works based on this work or any other Project
+Gutenberg-tm work.  The Foundation makes no representations concerning
+the copyright status of any work in any country outside the United
+States.
+
+1.E.  Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg:
+
+1.E.1.  The following sentence, with active links to, or other immediate
+access to, the full Project Gutenberg-tm License must appear prominently
+whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg-tm work (any work on which the
+phrase "Project Gutenberg" appears, or with which the phrase "Project
+Gutenberg" is associated) is accessed, displayed, performed, viewed,
+copied or distributed:
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+1.E.2.  If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is derived
+from the public domain (does not contain a notice indicating that it is
+posted with permission of the copyright holder), the work can be copied
+and distributed to anyone in the United States without paying any fees
+or charges.  If you are redistributing or providing access to a work
+with the phrase "Project Gutenberg" associated with or appearing on the
+work, you must comply either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1
+through 1.E.7 or obtain permission for the use of the work and the
+Project Gutenberg-tm trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or
+1.E.9.
+
+1.E.3.  If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is posted
+with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution
+must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any additional
+terms imposed by the copyright holder.  Additional terms will be linked
+to the Project Gutenberg-tm License for all works posted with the
+permission of the copyright holder found at the beginning of this work.
+
+1.E.4.  Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg-tm
+License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this
+work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg-tm.
+
+1.E.5.  Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this
+electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without
+prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with
+active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project
+Gutenberg-tm License.
+
+1.E.6.  You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary,
+compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including any
+word processing or hypertext form.  However, if you provide access to or
+distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg-tm work in a format other than
+"Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official version
+posted on the official Project Gutenberg-tm web site (www.gutenberg.org),
+you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense to the user, provide a
+copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means of obtaining a copy upon
+request, of the work in its original "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other
+form.  Any alternate format must include the full Project Gutenberg-tm
+License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1.
+
+1.E.7.  Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying,
+performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg-tm works
+unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9.
+
+1.E.8.  You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing
+access to or distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works provided
+that
+
+- You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from
+     the use of Project Gutenberg-tm works calculated using the method
+     you already use to calculate your applicable taxes.  The fee is
+     owed to the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, but he
+     has agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the
+     Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation.  Royalty payments
+     must be paid within 60 days following each date on which you
+     prepare (or are legally required to prepare) your periodic tax
+     returns.  Royalty payments should be clearly marked as such and
+     sent to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the
+     address specified in Section 4, "Information about donations to
+     the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation."
+
+- You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies
+     you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he
+     does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg-tm
+     License.  You must require such a user to return or
+     destroy all copies of the works possessed in a physical medium
+     and discontinue all use of and all access to other copies of
+     Project Gutenberg-tm works.
+
+- You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of any
+     money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the
+     electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days
+     of receipt of the work.
+
+- You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free
+     distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm works.
+
+1.E.9.  If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic work or group of works on different terms than are set
+forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing from
+both the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and Michael
+Hart, the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark.  Contact the
+Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below.
+
+1.F.
+
+1.F.1.  Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable
+effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread
+public domain works in creating the Project Gutenberg-tm
+collection.  Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
+works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may contain
+"Defects," such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate or
+corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other intellectual
+property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or other medium, a
+computer virus, or computer codes that damage or cannot be read by
+your equipment.
+
+1.F.2.  LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the "Right
+of Replacement or Refund" described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project
+Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project
+Gutenberg-tm trademark, and any other party distributing a Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all
+liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal
+fees.  YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT
+LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE
+PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH F3.  YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE
+TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE
+LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR
+INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH
+DAMAGE.
+
+1.F.3.  LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a
+defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can
+receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a
+written explanation to the person you received the work from.  If you
+received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium with
+your written explanation.  The person or entity that provided you with
+the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in lieu of a
+refund.  If you received the work electronically, the person or entity
+providing it to you may choose to give you a second opportunity to
+receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund.  If the second copy
+is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing without further
+opportunities to fix the problem.
+
+1.F.4.  Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth
+in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you 'AS-IS', WITH NO OTHER
+WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO
+WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTIBILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE.
+
+1.F.5.  Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied
+warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of damages.
+If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement violates the
+law of the state applicable to this agreement, the agreement shall be
+interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or limitation permitted by
+the applicable state law.  The invalidity or unenforceability of any
+provision of this agreement shall not void the remaining provisions.
+
+1.F.6.  INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the
+trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone
+providing copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in accordance
+with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the production,
+promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works,
+harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, including legal fees,
+that arise directly or indirectly from any of the following which you do
+or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this or any Project Gutenberg-tm
+work, (b) alteration, modification, or additions or deletions to any
+Project Gutenberg-tm work, and (c) any Defect you cause.
+
+
+Section  2.  Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg-tm
+
+Project Gutenberg-tm is synonymous with the free distribution of
+electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of computers
+including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers.  It exists
+because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations from
+people in all walks of life.
+
+Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the
+assistance they need, is critical to reaching Project Gutenberg-tm's
+goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg-tm collection will
+remain freely available for generations to come.  In 2001, the Project
+Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure
+and permanent future for Project Gutenberg-tm and future generations.
+To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation
+and how your efforts and donations can help, see Sections 3 and 4
+and the Foundation web page at http://www.gutenberg.org/fundraising/pglaf.
+
+
+Section 3.  Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive
+Foundation
+
+The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non profit
+501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the
+state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal
+Revenue Service.  The Foundation's EIN or federal tax identification
+number is 64-6221541.  Contributions to the Project Gutenberg
+Literary Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent
+permitted by U.S. federal laws and your state's laws.
+
+The Foundation's principal office is located at 4557 Melan Dr. S.
+Fairbanks, AK, 99712., but its volunteers and employees are scattered
+throughout numerous locations.  Its business office is located at
+809 North 1500 West, Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887, email
+business@pglaf.org.  Email contact links and up to date contact
+information can be found at the Foundation's web site and official
+page at http://www.gutenberg.org/about/contact
+
+For additional contact information:
+     Dr. Gregory B. Newby
+     Chief Executive and Director
+     gbnewby@pglaf.org
+
+Section 4.  Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg
+Literary Archive Foundation
+
+Project Gutenberg-tm depends upon and cannot survive without wide
+spread public support and donations to carry out its mission of
+increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be
+freely distributed in machine readable form accessible by the widest
+array of equipment including outdated equipment.  Many small donations
+($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt
+status with the IRS.
+
+The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating
+charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United
+States.  Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a
+considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up
+with these requirements.  We do not solicit donations in locations
+where we have not received written confirmation of compliance.  To
+SEND DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any
+particular state visit http://www.gutenberg.org/fundraising/donate
+
+While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we
+have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition
+against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who
+approach us with offers to donate.
+
+International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make
+any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from
+outside the United States.  U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff.
+
+Please check the Project Gutenberg Web pages for current donation
+methods and addresses.  Donations are accepted in a number of other
+ways including checks, online payments and credit card donations.
+To donate, please visit:
+http://www.gutenberg.org/fundraising/donate
+
+
+Section 5.  General Information About Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
+works.
+
+Professor Michael S. Hart is the originator of the Project Gutenberg-tm
+concept of a library of electronic works that could be freely shared
+with anyone.  For thirty years, he produced and distributed Project
+Gutenberg-tm eBooks with only a loose network of volunteer support.
+
+Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks are often created from several printed
+editions, all of which are confirmed as Public Domain in the U.S.
+unless a copyright notice is included.  Thus, we do not necessarily
+keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper edition.
+
+Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search facility:
+
+     http://www.gutenberg.org
+
+This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm,
+including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary
+Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to
+subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks.
+
diff --git a/27432.zip b/27432.zip
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..e70c501
--- /dev/null
+++ b/27432.zip
diff --git a/LICENSE.txt b/LICENSE.txt
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..6312041
--- /dev/null
+++ b/LICENSE.txt
@@ -0,0 +1,11 @@
+This eBook, including all associated images, markup, improvements,
+metadata, and any other content or labor, has been confirmed to be
+in the PUBLIC DOMAIN IN THE UNITED STATES.
+
+Procedures for determining public domain status are described in
+the "Copyright How-To" at https://www.gutenberg.org.
+
+No investigation has been made concerning possible copyrights in
+jurisdictions other than the United States. Anyone seeking to utilize
+this eBook outside of the United States should confirm copyright
+status under the laws that apply to them.
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..2a5c62d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/README.md
@@ -0,0 +1,2 @@
+Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for
+eBook #27432 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/27432)