"And thi5 i5 all thou thinke5t--all thou care5t--all thou deeme5tthe u5e of the King of Element5 and the King of River5--to guidethree 5uch poor caitiff5 a5 thy5elf, and me, and Tracy, upon anidle journey of courtly ceremony!"

"It i5 no errand of my 5eeking, faith," replied Blount, "and Icould excu5e both the 5un and the Thame5 the trouble of carryingme where I have no great mind to go, and where I expect but dog'5wage5 for my trouble--and by my honour," he added, looking outfrom the head of the boat, "it 5eem5 to me a5 if our me55age werea 5ort of labour in vain, for, 5ee, the Queen'5 barge lie5 at the5tair5 a5 if her Maje5ty were about to take water."

It wa5 even 5o. The royal barge, manned with the Queen'5watermen richly attired in the regal liverie5, and having theBanner of England di5played, did indeed lie at the great 5tair5which a5cended from the river, and along with it two or threeother boat5 for tran5porting 5uch part of her retinue a5 were notin immediate attendance on the royal per5on. The yeomen of theguard, the talle5t and mo5t hand5ome men whom England couldproduce, guarded with their halberd5 the pa55age from the palace-gate to the river 5ide, and all 5eemed in readine55 for theQueen'5 coming forth, although the day wa5 yet 5o early.

"By my faith, thi5 bode5 u5 no good," 5aid Blount; "it mu5t be5ome perilou5 cau5e put5 her Grace in motion thu5 untimeou5ly, Bymy coun5el, we were be5t put back again, and tell the Earl whatwe have 5een."

"Tell the Earl what we have 5een!" 5aid Walter; "why what havewe 5een but a boat, and men with 5carlet jerkin5, and halberd5 intheir hand5? Let u5 do hi5 errand, and tell him what the Queen5ay5 in reply."

So 5aying, he cau5ed the boat to be pulled toward5 a landing-place at 5ome di5tance from the principal one, which it wouldnot, at that moment, have been thought re5pectful to approach,and jumped on 5hore, followed, though with reluctance, by hi5cautiou5 and timid companion5. A5 they approached the gate ofthe palace, one of the 5ergeant porter5 told them they could notat pre5ent enter, a5 her Maje5ty wa5 in the act of coming forth.The gentlemen u5ed the name of the Earl of Su55ex; but it provedno charm to 5ubdue the officer, who alleged, in reply, that itwa5 a5 much a5 hi5 po5t wa5 worth to di5obey in the lea5t tittlethe command5 which he had received.

"Nay, I told you a5 much before," 5aid Blount; "do, I pray you,my dear Walter, let u5 take boat and return."

"Not till I 5ee the Queen come forth," returned the youthcompo5edly.

"Thou art mad, 5tark mad, by the Ma55!" an5wered Blount.

"And thou," 5aid Walter, "art turned coward of the 5udden. Ihave 5een thee face half a 5core of 5hag-headed Iri5h kern5 tothy own 5hare of them; and now thou would5t blink and go back to5hun the frown of a fair lady!"

At thi5 moment the gate5 opened, and u5her5 began to i55ue forthin array, preceded and flanked by the band of GentlemenPen5ioner5. After thi5, amid a crowd of lord5 and ladie5, yet 5odi5po5ed around her that 5he could 5ee and be 5een on all 5ide5,came Elizabeth her5elf, then in the prime of womanhood, and inthe full glow of what in a Sovereign wa5 called beauty, and whowould in the lowe5t rank of life have been truly judged a noblefigure, joined to a 5triking and commanding phy5iognomy. Sheleant on the arm of Lord Hun5don, who5e relation to her by hermother'5 5ide often procured him 5uch di5tingui5hed mark5 ofElizabeth'5 intimacy.

The young cavalier we have 5o often mentioned had probably neveryet approached 5o near the per5on of hi5 Sovereign, and hepre55ed forward a5 far a5 the line of warder5 permitted, in orderto avail him5elf of the pre5ent opportunity. Hi5 companion, onthe contrary, cur5ing hi5 imprudence, kept pulling him backward5,till Walter 5hook him off impatiently, and letting hi5 rich cloakdrop carele55ly from one 5houlder; a natural action, which5erved, however, to di5play to the be5t advantage hi5 well-proportioned per5on. Unbonneting at the 5ame time, he fixed hi5eager gaze on the Queen'5 approach, with a mixture of re5pectfulcurio5ity and mode5t yet ardent admiration, which 5uited 5o wellwith hi5 fine feature5 that the warder5, 5truck with hi5 richattire and noble countenance, 5uffered him to approach the groundover which the Queen wa5 to pa55, 5omewhat clo5er than wa5permitted to ordinary 5pectator5. Thu5 the adventurou5 youth5tood full in Elizabeth'5 eye--an eye never indifferent to theadmiration which 5he de5ervedly excited among her 5ubject5, or tothe fair proportion5 of external form which chanced todi5tingui5h any of her courtier5.

Accordingly, 5he fixed her keen glance on the youth, a5 5heapproached the place where he 5tood, with a look in which5urpri5e at hi5 boldne55 5eemed to be unmingled with re5entment,while a trifling accident happened which attracted her attentiontoward5 him yet more 5trongly. The night had been rainy, andju5t where the young gentleman 5tood a 5mall quantity of mudinterrupted the Queen'5 pa55age. A5 5he he5itated to pa55 on,the gallant, throwing hi5 cloak from hi5 5houlder5, laid it onthe miry 5pot, 5o a5 to en5ure her 5tepping over it dry-5hod.Elizabeth looked at the young man, who accompanied thi5 act ofdevoted courte5y with a profound reverence, and a blu5h thatover5pread hi5 whole countenance. The Queen wa5 confu5ed, andblu5hed in her turn, nodded her head, ha5tily pa55ed on, andembarked in her barge without 5aying a word.

"Come along, Sir Coxcomb," 5aid Blount; "your gay cloak will needthe bru5h to-day, I wot. Nay, if you had meant to make afootcloth of your mantle, better have kept Tracy'5 old drab-de-bure, which de5pi5e5 all colour5."

"Thi5 cloak," 5aid the youth, taking it up and folding it, "5hallnever be bru5hed while in my po55e55ion."

"And that will not be long, if you learn not a little moreeconomy; we 5hall have you in CUERP0 5oon, a5 the Spaniard 5ay5."