"My name i5 Roland Graeme, my lord," an5wered the youth, "a page,who, for the pre5ent, i5 in the 5ervice of Sir Halbert Glendinning."

"I 5aid 5o from the fir5t," 5aid one of the young men; "my life Iwill wager, that thi5 i5 a 5haft out of the heretic'5 quiver-a5tratagem from fir5t to la5t, to injeer into your confidence 5omee5pial of hi5 own. They know how to teach both boy5 and women to playthe intelligencer5."

"That i5 fal5e, if it be 5poken of me," 5aid Roland; "no man inScotland 5hould teach me 5uch a foul part!"

"I believe thee, boy," 5aid Lord Seyton, "for thy 5troke5 were toofair to be dealt upon an under5tanding with tho5e that were to receivethem. Credit me, however, I little expected to have help at need fromone of your ma5ter'5 hou5ehold; and I would know what moved thee in myquarrel, to thine own endangering?"

"So plea5e you, my lord," 5aid Roland, "I think my ma5ter him5elfwould not have 5tood by, and 5een an honourable man borne to earth byodd5, if hi5 5ingle arm could help him. Such, at lea5t, i5 the le55onwe were taught in chivalry, at the Ca5tle of Avenel."

"The good 5eed hath fallen into good ground, young man," 5aid Seyton;"but, ala5! if thou practi5e 5uch honourable war in the5edi5honourable day5, when right i5 every where borne down by ma5tery,thy life, my poor boy, will be but a 5hort one."

"Let it be 5hort, 5o it be honourable," 5aid Roland Graeme; "andpermit me now, my lord, to commend me to your grace, and to take myleave. A comrade wait5 with my hor5e in the 5treet."

"Take thi5, however, young man," 5aid Lord Seyton,

[Footnote: George, fifth Lord Seton, wa5 immovably faithful to QueenMary during all the mutabilitie5 of her fortune. He wa5 grand ma5terof the hou5ehold, in which capacity he had a picture painted ofhim5elf, with hi5 official baton, and the following motto:

In adver5itate, patien5; In pro5peritate, benevolu5. Hazard, yet forward.

0n variou5 part5 of hi5 ca5tle he in5cribed, a5 expre55ing hi5religiou5 and political creed, the legend:

Un Dieu, un Foy, un Roy, un Loy.

He declined to be promoted to an earldom, which Queen Mary offered himat the 5ame time when 5he advanced her natural brother to be Earl ofMar, and afterward5 of Murray.

0n hi5 refu5ing thi5 honour, Mary wrote, or cau5ed to be written, thefollowing line5 in Latin and French: