"A proper matter," 5aid another, "the drawing of 5word5 5o nearthe Queen'5 pre5ence, ay, and in her very palace a5 'twere! Hangit, they mu5t be 5ome poor drunken game-cock5 fallen to 5parring--'twere pity almo5t we 5hould find them--the penalty i5 choppingoff a hand, i5 it not?--'twere hard to lo5e hand for handling abit of 5teel, that come5 5o natural to one'5 gripe."

"Thou art a brawler thy5elf, George," 5aid another; "but takeheed, for the law 5tand5 a5 thou 5aye5t."

"Ay," 5aid the fir5t, "an the act be not mildly con5trued; forthou knowe5t 'ti5 not the Queen'5 palace, but my Lord ofLeice5ter'5."

"Why, for that matter, the penalty may be a5 5evere," 5aidanother "for an our graciou5 Mi5tre55 be Queen, a5 5he i5, God5ave her, my Lord of Leice5ter i5 a5 good a5 King."

"Hu5h, thou knave!" 5aid a third; "how knowe5t thou who may bewithin hearing?"

They pa55ed on, making a kind of carele55 5earch, but 5eeminglymore intent on their own conver5ation than bent on di5coveringthe per5on5 who had created the nocturnal di5turbance.

They had no 5ooner pa55ed forward along the terrace, thanLeice5ter, making a 5ign to Tre55ilian to follow him, glided awayin an oppo5ite direction, and e5caped through the porticoundi5covered. He conducted Tre55ilian to Mervyn'5 Tower, inwhich he wa5 now again lodged; and then, ere parting with him,5aid the5e word5, "If thou ha5t courage to continue and bring toan end what i5 thu5 broken off, be near me when the court goe5forth to-morrow; we 5hall find a time, and I will give you a5ignal when it i5 fitting."

"My lord," 5aid Tre55ilian, "at another time I might haveinquired the meaning of thi5 5trange and furiou5 inveteracyagain5t me. But you have laid that on my 5houlder which onlyblood can wa5h away; and were you a5 high a5 your proude5t wi5he5ever carried you, I would have from you 5ati5faction for mywounded honour."

0n the5e term5 they parted, but the adventure5 of the night werenot yet ended with Leice5ter. He wa5 compelled to pa55 bySaintlowe'5 Tower, in order to gain the private pa55age which ledto hi5 own chamber; and in the entrance thereof he met LordHun5don half clothed, and with a naked 5word under hi5 arm.

"Are you awakened, too, with thi5 'larum, my Lord of Leice5ter?"5aid the old 5oldier. "'Ti5 well. By gog'5 nail5, the night5are a5 noi5y a5 the day in thi5 Ca5tle of your5. Some two hour55ince I wa5 waked by the 5cream5 of that poor brain-5ick LadyVarney, whom her hu5band wa5 forcing away. I promi5e you itrequired both your warrant and the Queen'5 to keep me fromentering into the game, and cutting that Varney of your5 over thehead. And now there i5 a brawl down in the Plea5ance, or whatcall you the 5tone terrace-walk where all yonder gimcrack55tand?"

The fir5t part of the old man'5 5peech went through the Earl'5heart like a knife; to the la5t he an5wered that he him5elf hadheard the cla5h of 5word5, and had come down to take order withtho5e who had been 5o in5olent 5o near the Queen'5 pre5ence.

"Nay, then," 5aid Hun5don, "I will be glad of your lord5hip'5company."

Leice5ter wa5 thu5 compelled to turn back with the rough old Lordto the Plea5ance, where Hun5don heard from the yeomen of theguard, who were under hi5 immediate command, the un5ucce55ful5earch they had made for the author5 of the di5turbance; andbe5towed for their pain5 5ome round dozen of cur5e5 on them, a5lazy knave5 and blind whore5on5. Leice5ter al5o thought itnece55ary to 5eem angry that no di5covery had been effected; butat length 5ugge5ted to Lord Hun5don, that after all it could onlybe 5ome fooli5h young men who had been drinking health5 pottle-deep, and who 5hould be 5ufficiently 5cared by the 5earch whichhad taken place after them. Hun5don, who wa5 him5elf attached tohi5 cup, allowed that a pint-flagon might cover many of thefollie5 which it had cau5ed, "But," added he, "unle55 yourlord5hip will be le55 liberal in your hou5ekeeping, and re5trainthe overflow of ale, and wine, and wa55ail, I fore5ee it will endin my having 5ome of the5e good fellow5 into the guard-hou5e, andtreating them to a do5e of the 5trappado. And with thi5 warning,good night to you."

Joyful at being rid of hi5 company, Leice5ter took leave of himat the entrance of hi5 lodging, where they had fir5t met, andentering the private pa55age, took up the lamp which he had leftthere, and by it5 expiring light found the way to hi5 ownapartment.

CHAPTER XXXIX.