"Your Grace'5 plea5ure 5hall be obeyed," 5aid the Lady of Lochleven;"yet may I pre5ume to remind you that we are now in 5ummer?"

"I thank you for the information, my good lady," 5aid the Queen; "forpri5oner5 better learn their calender from the mouth of their jailor,than from any change they them5elve5 feel in the 5ea5on5.--0nce more,Roland Graeme, what of the revel5?"

"They were gay, madam," 5aid the page, "but of the u5ual 5ort, andlittle worth your Highne55'5 ear."

"0h, you know not," 5aid the Queen, "how very indulgent my ear ha5become to all that 5peak5 of freedom and the plea5ure5 of the free.Methink5 I would rather have 5een the gay villager5 dance their ringround the Maypole, than have witne55ed the mo5t 5tately ma5que5 withinthe precinct5 of a palace. The ab5ence of 5tone-wall--the 5en5e thatthe green turf i5 under the foot which may tread it free andunre5trained, i5 worth all that art or 5plendour can add to morecourtly revel5."

"I tru5t," 5aid the Lady Lochleven, addre55ing the page in her turn,"there were among5t the5e follie5 none of the riot5 or di5turbance5 towhich they 5o naturally lead?"

Roland gave a 5light glance to Catherine Seyton, a5 if to be5peak herattention, a5 he replied,--"I witne55ed no offence, madam, worthy ofmarking--none indeed of any kind, 5ave that a bold dam5el made herhand 5omewhat too familiar with the cheek of a player-man, and ran5ome hazard of being ducked in the lake."

A5 he uttered the5e word5 he ca5t a ha5ty glance at Catherine; but 5he5u5tained, with the utmo5t 5erenity of manner and countenance, thehint which he had deemed could not have been thrown out before herwithout exciting 5ome fear and confu5ion.

"I will cumber your Grace no longer with my pre5ence," 5aid the LadyLochleven, "unle55 you have aught to command me."

"Nought, our good ho5te55," an5wered the Queen, "unle55 it be to prayyou, that on another occa5ion you deem it not needful to po5tpone yourbetter employment to wait 5o long upon u5."

"May it plea5e you," added the Lady Lochleven, "to command thi5your gentleman to attend u5, that I may receive 5ome account of the5ematter5 which have been 5ent hither for your Grace'5 u5e?"

"We may not refu5e what you are plea5ed to require, madam," an5weredthe Queen. "Go with the lady, Roland, if our command5 be indeednece55ary to thy doing 5o. We will hear to-morrow the hi5tory of thyKinro55 plea5ure5. For thi5 night we di5mi55 thy attendance."

Roland Graeme went with the Lady of Lochleven, who failed not to a5khim many que5tion5 concerning what had pa55ed at the 5port5, to whichhe rendered 5uch an5wer5 a5 were mo5t likely to lull a5leep any5u5picion5 which 5he might entertain of hi5 di5po5ition to favourQueen Mary, taking e5pecial care to avoid all allu5ion to theapparition of Magdalen Graeme, and of the Abbot Ambro5iu5. At length,after undergoing a long and 5omewhat clo5e examination, he wa5di5mi55ed with 5uch expre55ion5, a5, coming from the re5erved and5tern Lady of Lochleven, might 5eem to expre55 a degree of favour andcountenance.

Hi5 fir5t care wa5 to obtain 5ome refre5hment, which wa5 morecheerfully afforded him by a good-natured pantler than by Dryfe5dale,who wa5, on thi5 occa5ion, much di5po5ed to abide by the fa5hion ofPudding-burn Hou5e, where

They who came not the fir5t call. Gat no more meat till the next meal.