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 ^CT^F- F P 
 
 I 
 
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 BY JOHN A. COPIAWD. 
 
 BY THE AUTHOR. 
 
 HARRISTON, ONTARIO 
 
 Printed and Published by The Harriston Tribune 
 
 Steam Power Printing House. 
 
 July, 1899. 
 
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-^•A METEOR KING-^ 
 
 BY JOHN A COPLAND. 
 
 ^RAZINESS ! That man is an ass ! Such in- 
 fernal rot !" 
 
 This was remarkable language for orthodox 
 Mr. Joseph Brains to use; but he was excited 
 this night. He had been to hear Professor 
 Acumen deliver an address on the character of 
 King Richard Third of England, Mr. Brains' favorite 
 hobby, and T^Ir. Brains was irritated because the learned 
 lecturer had taken the ground that King Richard was a 
 man w^ho had been greatly maligned and whose career 
 had been distorted by the majority of historians. Mr. 
 Joseph Brains believed King Richard Third to have 
 been even a worse monster than Shakespeare has pictur- 
 ed him; and he resolved to stick to his belief. 
 
 Mr. Brains, confirmed bachelor that he was, slam- 
 med his fur gauntlets and his cap on to the sofa, pitched 
 his big overcoat into one chair and himself into another, 
 and fiercely smoked his cigar in front of the fire. Pres- 
 ently: 
 
A METEOR KING. 
 
 " 1^11 have a toddy and go to bed ", said he. 
 
 Hardly had he begun the concoction of his soother 
 before he heard a sturdy tread upon the stairs and com- 
 ing along the passage to his apartments. Joseph look- 
 ed at his clock, then at his watch, muttering: 
 
 *^ Who comes in upon me at this unholy hour — 
 half-past eleven ? Confound him whoever he is. I ex- 
 pect it is that ridiculous fellow Dullwinniger; lie^s al- 
 ways " 
 
 ** Kong ! Kong ! Kong !^' resounded on the door. 
 
 " Hello, there !'' shouted Mr. Brains; " why don't 
 you smash in the door ?'' 
 
 Without another signal in strode a finely-construct- 
 ed and handsome man, dressed like a nobleman of the 
 end of the fifteenth century. Mr. Brains recognized the 
 dress immediately, so well had he made historic research. 
 
 Astonishment personified was Mr. Brains as he 
 saw his stranger visitor bow profoundl}^ to him, mention 
 his name, remove Joseph's coat from the chair to the 
 lounge and take a seat at the table opposite to him. 
 
 *' Pray, sir '', quoth Joseph, " whom have I the 
 honor " 
 
 " Call me Astragus, Sire. My human name that 
 was is of no consequence.'' 
 
 *^ Well, Mr. Astragus, Sire, I deem that a cheek}^, 
 very cheeky, intrusion; not to say remarkable." 
 
 ^* It may be. Sire, from your point of view; but we 
 Astragans have no secrets, therefore we enter where 
 we may; we move where we list and banish space as 
 nothing." 
 
 ** A lunatic ", thought Mr. Brains; " and there are 
 more of them ! I must humor him." 
 
 *^ Not a lunatic. Sire Brains ", retorted Astragus; 
 and Joseph was startled at this correct reading of his 
 thought. 
 
 *' Well, bless me ", he said, " this is extraordinary. 
 Why do you speak so archaically ?" 
 
 ^' It is the accent of our time." 
 
 "Your time?" 
 
A METEOR KING. 
 
 " A3^e, the Fifteenth Ceutury in England.'^ 
 
 " Bless me more and more, what a phenomenal 
 man you are !'^ 
 
 ** Nay, mortal Sire, you mistake; I am not a man; I 
 am an Astragan.'* 
 
 " Pray what is that; something connected with the 
 stars ?" 
 
 ^^ Yes, Sire; my abode is in the Eternity of Stars; 
 when I travel they are but lamps to light me on my 
 way." 
 
 " You have the properties of Roentgen's X rays; 
 you pass through apparently opaque objects; are you a 
 spirit?" 
 
 *' I am of spirit, as you will; but there existeth no 
 such thing as a spirit." 
 
 " That accounts for your coming through my door, 
 when I know that it is locked." 
 
 " Truly we recognize not bars and bolts "; and As- 
 tragus chuckled. 
 
 ^* I should like to test your spiritism ", went on 
 Mr. Brains; ^^ from here you seem solid flesh and bones." 
 
 ** Smite me, Sire Brains." 
 
 Joseph did so — once, twice, thrice. As well might 
 he have tried to beat the wind. Only that he could see 
 Astragus, he would have sworn that he-of-spirit's chair 
 was vacant. 
 
 ** Now shake hands '*, smiling said Astragus. 
 
 Mr. Brains reached out; they clasped hands. From 
 that moment Joseph realized the sympathy of intellect 
 and knew the origin of imagination. Their thoughts 
 were in inter-communion. 
 
 " Thus ", quoth Astragus, " can we converse." 
 
 "Yes, yes ", admitted Mr. Brains; " I recognize at 
 last that you are not a mortal. But such visits as yours 
 are very rare; to what or to whom am I indebted for this 
 one?'* 
 
 " Simply to your zeal in the study of King Richard's 
 character — England s libelled monarch." 
 
 *^Ah, so 3''ou think he was not bad like he is painted?" 
 
A METEOR KING. 
 
 ** I think nothing; I know." 
 
 " Ah, yes; of course; you were his contemporary; 
 and near to his person, eh ?'* 
 
 " Exactly, vSire Brains; now you begin to under- 
 stand." 
 
 ** You are here to tell me the truth about King 
 Richard Third of England?" 
 
 ** If such should be your pleasure.*' 
 
 " My pleasure ! Ye gods ! Nothing could be 
 more suited to my taste. Converse or controversy on that 
 subject is to me as the smell of blood is to the warhorse.' 
 
 " Good; then shall I weave thee the web of my 
 reminiscence." 
 
 They composed themselves, the one to listen and 
 the other to talk; Astragus began: — 
 
 Thou hast read that those were troublous times for 
 England in the middle of the Fifteenth Century. 
 
 Shortly after the notable flight of beautiful and 
 valiant ^largaret of Anjou to Flanders, and early in the 
 year 1464, a young widow gazed out through one of 
 the deep mullioned windows of Grafton — the historic 
 home of Sir Richard Woodville in Northamptonshire. 
 
 Portly but comely was a matron who also occupied 
 the room and spoke in quiet tones with her sad-faced 
 sweet companion. Resemblance between the two was 
 striking; the younger was daughter to the elder. 
 
 This elder lady was once the widow of the great 
 Duke of Bedford; but, by second consummation of the 
 banns,' her name had been changed to Lady Woodville 
 and the mourning adolescent beauty by her side who 
 languidly perused the landscape was relict of unfortunate 
 Sir John Grey, who fell whilst struggling beneath the 
 red rose, emblem of the then repressed Lancastrians, at 
 the second battle of St. Alban. 
 
 ** Dear daughter Elizabeth ", said Lady Woodville, 
 " why will you persist in saddening all your days ? 
 
A METEOR KING. 
 
 John Grey is dead; and weeping or fretting cannot bring 
 him to your side again." 
 
 ** I know that well, respected mother; nor is it now 
 my husband's death that I lament." 
 
 ** And, prithee, what, my child?" asked Lady 
 Woodville, elevating in astonishment her silken eye- 
 brows. 
 
 Widow Grey plucked nervously awhile the fringes 
 of her facinator before she replied: 
 
 *^ All our property is confiscated; I feel I am a bur- 
 den, kindest mother" 
 
 *' Have I not forbidden all such language V inter- 
 rupted Lady Woodville, testily. ** How can a dutious 
 child become a burden in her parent's house ? Your 
 misfortunes are not of your breeding; and He who sent 
 can just as quick reclaim. Elizabeth, your moodiness 
 insults Sir Richard and myself — who both have thought 
 for but your welfare; and now you fret beneath your 
 childhood's roof, because Providence hath willed that you 
 return. Oh, fie, my daughter, that did love me so !'* 
 
 Tears stood in the gentle lady's eyes; quick the 
 pretty widow was at her side to soothe her: 
 
 Mother, mother, mother; come; we'll kiss and 
 laugh." 
 
 Elizabeth wound her arm around her mother's waist 
 and brought her to the casement. 
 
 " Oh, mother, look," cried Lady Grey, vivacious for 
 her parent's sake; " there's Witch Penelope beside the 
 gate. Let me whisper: 3^estereve I had her tell my for- 
 tune." 
 
 '' What did she say ?" 
 
 *^ That I quite soon should be a queen, and lots of 
 things so nice !" 
 
 ^' Indeed; and said she nothing grue?" 
 
 " Ah, no; she said she saw a gloomy cloud, and ask- 
 ed if I would look it through; but I declined, preferring 
 only prophecies most bright." 
 
 ** Quite right, my child; your evil days will dawn 
 by far too soon, without your rushing to meet their 
 
8 A METEOR KING. 
 
 black habiliments." 
 
 ** Look, look there ", suddenly spoke Lady Grey, 
 nodding her head excitedly. 
 
 *' What do we see ?" 
 
 *^ A cavalcade, mother; yea, it is the king and his 
 hunting retinue." 
 
 *^ So it is, I vow; heralds and pursuivants already at 
 our gates." 
 
 *^ You do not seem displeased, my mother." 
 
 ** Why should I be ? Have I not known this Ed- 
 ward Fourth since he was wrapped in swaddling 
 bands ?" 
 
 ** It is well that he forgets not the friends, who are 
 friends, in his now great exaltation." 
 
 " He always was a noble boy; king Edward!" 
 
 " Mother, I do admit he sits a perfect king; his ma- 
 jesty becomes him. And there's his noble brother Rich- 
 ard by his side.'' 
 
 " Yes, yes; he is now the Duke of Gloucester." 
 
 " The king could hardly pass his brother George, 
 although he seemed to tender him dislike ", said Eliza- 
 beth, half musingly, " and so he made him the Duke of 
 Clarence. George is not with the king." 
 
 " Why should he be, Elizabeth ? His ways are too 
 austere toward King Edward. But let us out and greet 
 them, even though they represent the hated House of 
 York and we the rival House of Lancaster.'* 
 
 Gallant and handsome certainly was the young 
 King Edward; and he impressed the Lady Grey as being 
 all that a woman could desire in man. Again, Edward 
 admired instantly the sombre-garmented daughter of his 
 hostess. 
 
 Edward's brother Richard had a gift of keen obser- 
 vance, and generally his prescience was not at fault. 
 After their descent on the Woodville residence, Richard, 
 ever sauve and kindly toward his eldest brother, expos- 
 tulated with his majesty: 
 
 " Prithee, kingly brother, if it will not affront to 
 ask my sovereign's reason; but why didst turn us from 
 
A METEOR KING. 
 
 our way to detour into the encampment of our enemies ? 
 These Woodvilles are Lancastrians." 
 
 " Yea, my clever Richard, I know it ", quoth the 
 king; ** but it suits my whim to visit the widow of Bed- 
 ford — I notice not her present Woodville." 
 
 ^' Methinks, King Edward, that you have heard too 
 much about the beauty of the young Elizabeth." 
 
 *^ Nay; not too much; for she is more beautiful than 
 I had thought." 
 
 *^ I guessed you thought so, your majesty; control 
 yourself." 
 
 " It is but a passing amour, my Richard." 
 
 " So let it be, courageous brother King Edward; but 
 remember that these passing whims if multiplied may 
 ruin your government brain. I myself am passionate, 
 as you, my life's companion, know full well; yet should 
 I not allow my loves to while away my independence." 
 
 *^ Cleverl}^ spoken, Dick of Gloucester; you are vast 
 of intellect, as I have often noticed. I shall not let this 
 sweet widow pervert my sense of duty. With your 
 counsel, Dick, I can have no fear." 
 
 *^ Of a certainty, my sovereign, I am no dictator; 
 but I beg that your majesty will take tent of our power- 
 ful ally, Warwick. He is no friend of Lancaster." 
 
 " Nor art thou, I fear me, Dick "; and King Edward 
 laughed. 
 
 " You speak with a double meaning. King Ned, if 
 I may be so bold; you feign hilarit}^; 3''et you would not 
 savor being told that Warwick's anger might take him 
 off with Clarence." 
 
 " Damn Clarence ", said the king, frovming at the 
 thought of his wily brother George. 
 
 *^ He is our brother. Sovereign Ned." 
 
 *^Aye, Aye; so saith our mother." 
 
 Conversation was interrupted by a scuffle beside the 
 way among the courtiers. 
 
 " What now ? What now ?" cried Edward; the bro- 
 thers spurred their horses up. 
 
 Only Witch Penelojje being hustled off the road by 
 
lo A METEOR KING. 
 
 flunkeydom. 
 
 " Cease !" King Edward shouted. " ThouVt be- 
 ing rudely handled, my good dame; these dogs have 
 scurv3^ manners.'^ 
 
 " It was yon Catesby set them on'\ shrieked Pene- 
 lope. ^'Be ware of him, Your Majesty, as 3'ou would a 
 viper." 
 
 ^* A fortune-teller, now, I ween ", said Edw^ard. 
 
 *^ Your Majesty, but a poor one ", Penelope replied. 
 
 *^ Ah, well, my dame, set forth a sample of your sci- 
 ence." 
 
 *^ Believe me. Your Majesty, we find our troubles 
 soon enough without peering into futurity to overhaul 
 them. It is a good adage to let well enough alone." 
 
 " Canst tell nothing then to cheer us, dame; is ev- 
 erything so black ?" 
 
 " Not black, Your Majesty; but with the joys are 
 many sorrows. Divers battles Your ]\Iajesty shall fight; 
 aye, with even them who now profess to thee undying 
 friendship and allegiance. Ahnost your crown shall be 
 torn awa}^; but the spirit is wiili tliec and within thee; 
 therefore shall not a kingly calibre like thine be sufl'ered 
 to die in alien land. True king thou art; true kiug 
 thou'lt die." 
 
 " This is not so dark a future ", quoth King Ed- 
 ward; '' it deserves a shov/er of gold." 
 
 So speaking, he dropped a handful of coins into 
 Penelope's extended apron. 
 
 " Tell us somewhat of ni}^ beloved brother Rich- 
 ard ", pursued the King. 
 
 " Ah, Your Majesty, forbear " remonstrated Glouc- 
 ester. 
 
 King Edw^ard persisted. 
 
 " In his handsome form ", proceeded Penelope, her 
 eyes atwink, '' I see a METEOR KING." 
 
 *' That is arrant nonsense, Penelope ", Richard vex- 
 edly interpolated; ^' how can I ever be a king?" 
 
 " All things are possible. Your Royal Grace, with 
 the Unseen Power; especiall}^ when strong lords and 
 
A METEOR KING. ii 
 
 barons resolve to have it so. I say a king you shall be; 
 just long enough to let you taste the bitter and the sweet 
 of ruling. Again, I say you'll make a proper king. 
 vSorry the day for England when she loses you, whose 
 wisdom and valor none shall question. On the field of 
 battle shall your crow^n go down; but only when you fall, 
 treacherousl}^ deserted by one who here bears company." 
 
 Penelope became silent, for a moment regarding 
 Gloucester wdth half-closed lambent eyes. Every per- 
 son listened expectantly for some words from her. She 
 spoke again: 
 
 " York ! Fated York, of the rose sc white ! Thy 
 doom is sealed. Tapering toward the last, its disappear- 
 ing point is Richard, Duke of Gloucester, one of Eng- 
 land's bravest sons. Posterity shall be deceived by his- 
 torians, whose aim shall be to curry favor wdth the en- 
 emies of the powerful Richard by detracting from the 
 lustre of his fame. Na}' ! They shall try hard to black- 
 en him, so that their own dark deeds may seem to have 
 more brightness. They shall call him hunchback, de- 
 mon , fiend-in-human-form, murderer-of-the-innocents, 
 when they know 'tis false ! A lie ! 
 
 ^' But time and enlightenment can work w^onders. 
 In ages coming it shall dawm upon the world's vast multi- 
 tude that Richard of Gloucester was a man maligned. 
 Take courage, Gloucester; 3^ou shall reign again a de- 
 cade of centuries from when you die; but over an infin- 
 ite countr}^ and a greater people; your soul incarnate, 
 full^^-formed, wdthin a body glorious to behold, and with 
 an intellect only less prodigious than a god's." 
 
 Before the astonished company could glean their 
 wats, Penelope had gone. This incident I relate but as 
 example of wdiat can be knowm by a mentality already 
 etherealized. 
 
 Yes, yes, vSire Brains, that meeting of King Edward 
 and the Lad}^ Grey was but the beginning of the mighty 
 wave of strife that was once more to surge across Eng- 
 land and engulf many of the bravest of the realm. 
 
 Lady Woodville and Lady Grey wxre delighted that 
 
12 A METEOR KING. 
 
 the king should visit them, nor were they at any pains 
 to hide these pleasant feelings. True, true; love at a 
 glance it was on the part of King Edward for the Lady 
 Gre3^ That astute young dame instictively recognized 
 this, and, whilst admiring the handsome monarch, resol- 
 ved that it should be her purpose to regain thereby the 
 possessions that had been torn from her at the death of 
 her husband. She had a mother's true regard for her 
 children; so for their sake more than for her own must 
 the game be played. Her woman's intuition told her 
 that she held a winning hand. 
 
 Much to the anxiety of Richard of Gloucester, far- 
 seeing though merely a boy. King Edward made several 
 visits to Grafton, often incognito. Gloucester warned 
 his brother, and begged him to refrain from courting 
 Lady Grey; but Edwar''^ had become too much enamor- 
 ed, so kept on his com; t, Ke came to feel somewhat 
 conscience-stricken in the presence of Richard. 
 
 To ease circumstances, and to perhaps at the same 
 time appease his brother. King Edward granted Richard 
 the castles, lordships and lands of Henry de Beaufort, 
 Duke of Somerset, as well as the castle and manors of 
 Robert, Lord Hungerford, both of which noblemen had 
 been beheaded after the battle of Hexham. 
 
 Three ^^ears previously Edward had appointed Rich- 
 ard, at that time merely nine years of age, High Admir- 
 al of England. Thus the king's admiration for his 
 3^ounger brother's intellect was not only of the lips, as 
 3^ou will remark, for that position was one requiring ab- 
 ility and firmness of judgment above the ordinary. 
 Richard was rather chary about accepting the sover- 
 eign's munificence, and told him so. 
 
 When Edward and Richard were alone together they 
 eschewed all formalit}-, at the desire of the king. 
 
 *' King Ned ", said Gloucester, '^ you flatter me 
 most graciously with all these honors that you continue 
 to heap upon me, a mere child." 
 
 " I can't think you are so young, Dick ", exclaimed 
 the king, looking his fondness. ** You have an old head 
 
A METEOR KING. 13 
 
 or young shoulders, certainly. There is a sajdng that 
 the child of old age is eHher an idiot or extremely wise. 
 You were the eleventh child of our famous father, and 
 the youngest; surely you have inherited all the intellect 
 of Richard Plantagenet. Dick, you were rightly 
 named." 
 
 *^ M}'' fond brother Ned, you are satirical; as you 
 know, unmerited praise is the bitterest of sarcasm.'' 
 
 " Faugh, my clever Dick; really you are a pheno- 
 i menon.*' 
 
 *^ Aye, 'twill be but twelve years next second of Oc- 
 tober since I saw the light of day in the princely castle 
 of Fotheringay in Northamptonshire." 
 
 "Well do I remember it Dick. It was feared our 
 beloved mother, the Rose of Raby, would not survive that 
 travail; but she did — ah, yes, she did. She was most 
 beautiful." 
 
 King Edward sank into a retrospective mood. 
 
 Richard's eyes betokened coming ardor in the con- 
 versation. 
 
 " Pardon me, King Ned ", ejaculated he; " but when 
 I think of those occurrences it but makes your present 
 actions gall the more. ^My mother suffered much for 
 me; I am not ungrateful, nor can I ever be. Those hat- 
 ed Lancastrians have been our parents' bane and ours. 
 King Ned, I pray thee, keep pure the delicate white rose. 
 Although I was a child, did I not witness all those early 
 struggles between the House of York and the House of 
 Lancaster, which hurried our noble father, the Duke of 
 York, to his grave ?" 
 
 " Ah, but, Dick, remember that they also eventually 
 raised me to the throne of England ", said King Edward 
 facetiously. 
 
 ^'King Ned, sophistry cannot clear your conscience; 
 if mortals have such inconvenient things in these days 
 of dire calamities, when belted knights can deem it valor 
 to knock out a defenceless prelate's brains across the al- 
 tar, when a duke can hire assassins to rid him of a rival 
 and when a ^hol}'' bishop does the same because his bro- 
 
14 A METEOR KING. 
 
 ther cleric is obnoxious to His Grace. For nearly a 
 twelve-month, dost not recollect, King Ned, our mother 
 with myself and George were held prisoners by the vile 
 Lancastrians, until at length that glorious victory was 
 won by the Yorkists at Northampton ?" 
 
 *^ Yes, yes, Dick; it seems as yesterday. It was 
 three months after the battle when our honored mother, 
 rightly termed the Rose of Raby, arrived in London 
 with yourself, our sister Margaret and brother George. 
 He better never had come back; he cannot bode me good. 
 I do begrudge I made him Duke of Clarence." 
 
 ^' Repent not for your good deeds, King Ned. 
 George is not after our model, I admit with ease; too 
 much praying and hypocrisy. He is morose, ambitious; 
 worst of all, he is jealous; thus I say you did well to not 
 pass him, King Ned. His friendship is better than his 
 hatred, which I fear you assuredly must have if you. 
 hint at marrying Lady Grey." 
 
 King Edward sprang up and swore. 
 
 " The devil I care for his opinion ", cried His Ma- 
 jesty vehemently; ^^ again, if that were all, I forsooth 
 should do it out of spite for him; just to show the white- 
 livered patron of the priests that I take no account of 
 what he thinks." 
 
 *^ Steadily, steadily, my sovereign Ned ", Richard 
 interjected soothingly; " but that is not all. There is 
 our mother, there is Bona, and — to top all, there is War- 
 wick." 
 
 ** Aye, Warwick ", gloomily assented Edward, sit- 
 ting back among the cushions. *^ I like Warwick; and 
 he is a powerful Nobleman. He has been called the 
 King Maker. That is an obstacle." 
 
 ** Your mind takes better shape, King Ned; continue 
 thus." 
 
 Silence of thinking fell, broken at last suddenly by 
 the king. 
 
 " Brother Dick ", quoth he, " whatever happens you 
 will be true ?" 
 
 '' True to you as both my brother and my sover 
 
A METEOR KING. 15 
 
 eign 
 
 " I shall go and say adieu to Lady Grey." 
 
 " Nay, go not once more before tlie temptress; go 
 rather and pay address to Bona of Savoy." 
 
 *^My honor tells me to see again the Lady Grey." 
 
 "It may be once too often, King Ned; you have the 
 inclinations of a man. but you are a king. Were it be- 
 holden that you should be but the former, all right; yet 
 you cannot be. As a king you belong not to yourself; 
 you are your people's. Your honor is in^your own keep- 
 ing. Sully that honor and you degrade the worth of 
 what is theirs. Go to the widow, but let the king rule 
 the man." 
 
 So Richard left his royal brother. 
 
 Edward's soul was torn upon the rack; it was the 
 fight between the monarch and the man. As he sat with 
 his face sunk into his palms, the people of his thoughts 
 spoke of his majesty: 
 
 " Tonight the king comes, mother ", sighed Lady 
 Grey. 
 
 She was reclining on a luxurious couch in a cosy 
 comer of Grafton Castle. 
 
 " Why do you sigh, Elizabeth?" asked Lady Wood- 
 ville. 
 
 " I do not know; I simply feel slight wearines." 
 
 " You must not look weary tonight." 
 
 "I shall not." 
 
 " Every woman's lover is not a king, Elizabeth." 
 
 Lady Grey but smiled. 
 
 " He may not marry me ", she said. 
 
 " Why not ?" 
 
 *^There are powerful state reasons, my mother." 
 
 " Persuade him you; the marriage may be clandes- 
 tine." 
 
 " He shall say that himself." 
 
 So the day passed at last, and Lady Grey had her 
 toilet done bewitchingly. She felt now elated. She 
 stood radiant whilst her mother viewed her admiringly. 
 
 "• You'll do," said Lady Woodville. " There are 
 
i6 A METEOR KING. 
 
 sounds of horses. I shall leave you. He comes incognito. 
 See that the red rose and the white shall join their pow- 
 ers tonight." 
 
 Lady Grey was as vivacious as a purling brook 
 before the youthful and enamored king. Only a sorcer- 
 er could have guessed the depth of statecraft, yes, state- 
 craft, those laughing eyes concealed. In her presence 
 King Edward was nimble to forget his boy-mentor^s 
 words of warning. 
 
 " The King looks well tonight ", the fair lady rip- 
 pled, glancing roguishly, as her monarch craved and was 
 permitted the privilege of kissing her hand. ** Even 
 kings can condescend to request on occasion, and not 
 command, Your Majesty." 
 
 " Before this loveliness I stand subdued ", gallant- 
 ly spoke her royal lover, as he drew her gently to his 
 side upon the couch. 
 
 " You flatterer ", she said. 
 
 *' You witch ", he retaliated. 
 
 Edward continued to hold her hand, whilst his eyes 
 feasted on her magnificent beauty. 
 
 *^ Lady Grey — Elizabeth ", he uttered in a low deep 
 voice, "I sit upon the throne of England, but I am not 
 satisfied." 
 
 Lady Grey looked eloquently into the king's bright 
 e3^es. 
 
 "What further honor would the king desire?" she 
 queried. 
 
 '' A glorious honor, sweet one: that I should reign 
 supreme in the Queen of Beauty's heart." 
 
 *' Where is the Queen of Beauty ?" 
 Beside me." 
 
 She looked away, and was silent. 
 
 " What say you, dearest; do you love me just a lit- 
 tle ?" the king went on, drawing nearer and putting his 
 left arm about her, whilst he fondled her pretty fingers 
 with his right hand. 
 
 For answer Lady Gre}^ twined her arms around 
 King Edward's neck and kissed him. 
 
A METEOR KING. 17 
 
 Great was the triumph of small Cupid. How ex- 
 quisitely delighted would have been fair Venus could 
 she have succeeded but half so well with hard-to-win 
 Adonis ! Lady Grey^s lip touch and the velvety feeling 
 of her arms excited Edward's passion to an almost un- 
 controllable degree. 
 
 *^ My love, my love '' he said. 
 
 *^ You really love me — Edward ?" wnispered she. 
 
 " Heaven knows I do." 
 
 ** You'll grant me one favor ? A small one for the 
 king.'' 
 
 ^* My loveliest, do you but ask." 
 
 " Return to my children and myself the lands and 
 manors taken from my husband." 
 
 " Assuredly I shall, my love, if you but let me taste 
 the sweets of your delicious self, this precious moment, 
 here upon this couch." 
 
 ^' Fie, King Edward, that is dishonorable !" ex- 
 claimed the lady, as she freed herself and grasped his 
 hands. 
 
 *^ There are ladies in this land who would welcome 
 me without provided ", the king said, somewhat sulkily. 
 
 " I am not one of them. Rather would I die de- 
 pendent and have my offspring paupers than submit to 
 such dishonor. I did not expect it from the gallant 
 King Edward." 
 
 Covering her eyes with her fingers, she wept. 
 
 "By m}^ sword, but this is hard for mortal man to 
 bear ! Do not spend those tears; far rather would I have 
 your anger, sweet Elizabeth — my own Elizabeth. Come 
 to me. Far be it from me to dishonor one so sweet. Be 
 queen to me. Marry Edward, not the king of England. 
 There, there ". 
 
 u Yes ", she whispered, " I can consent to be your 
 queen; but otherwise — " 
 
 What Edward called the globules of sparkling frag- 
 rance had ceased to fall from her eyes; Lady Grey was 
 calm again. King Edward was much steadier; that 
 shower had done his ardor good. 
 
i8 A METE OR KING. 
 
 " Our marriage must be secret, Elizabeth ^\ said he. 
 
 " Ah, then, why. Your Majesty ?'* was the subtle 
 rejoinder of the Lady Grey, nestling on the king's 
 shoulder. 
 
 " For several reascis of state, my love; but chiefly 
 because m}^ Council in J influential states xuen consider 
 that they must be Cv./'siilted on matrimonial ideas I may 
 care to entertain. Already several young princesses 
 have been named as eligible, but Bona of Savoy has 
 presently the preference. Vqu know, she is the sister of 
 the Queen of France, and France's king it is deemed ex- 
 pedient to curry favor with." 
 
 "But do you love her?" 
 
 " Not I. I never saw her. What matters that ? 
 Royal weddings are seldom the result of love, my 
 sweet." 
 
 " Dear, Oh dear; I believe that's true; but j^ou do 
 not do any courting of 370ur affianced?" 
 
 *^ No; the powerful Earl of Warwick has been com- 
 missioned to make the necessar}- arrangements." 
 
 "So he makes queens as well as kings, eh ?" 
 
 " That's his forte, dearest. After the delays judged 
 proper in such matters, principally with the hope of 
 making better terms, Warwick has the contract dravvu 
 up and waiting only to be ratified." 
 
 " Then what shall you do, dear Edward ?" asked 
 Lady Gre}^, the tone of her voice presaging another tear 
 ciscade 
 
 "Do? What can I do?" 
 
 Lady Grey but shook her head. 
 
 Edw^ard regarded her in silence; presently he spoke: 
 
 "That question I may answer, sweetest; I must mar- 
 ry you tonight, if you but will." 
 
 " My gallant Edward, you know I would, most wil- 
 lingl}^; but no preparations have been made. There is 
 no priest at hand." 
 
 " M}^ confidential valet shall ride breakneck to fetch 
 a clergyman, say you but so, my queen." 
 
 " Can 3^ou trust him with our secrei- ?" 
 
A METEOR KING. 
 
 19 
 
 *^ Aye with a thousand of them; except my brother 
 Richard, no man is so close within my thoughts." 
 
 " How quick your majesty can act; how clever and 
 statesman-like you are, my Kdwari ?'^ murmured Lady 
 Grey. " Of course I say, do as you care." 
 
 Edward's conscience somewhat reminded him that 
 his present course was anything but statesmanlike, as 
 he recollected his brother Richard; but he crowded down 
 his mentor, and rang the servant's bell. 
 
 Lady Grey caressed King Edward. 
 
 ^' For the present, fare thee well ", she purred; "I 
 go to dress. An hour from now I shall come to thee." 
 
 His voluptuous under lip pursed out. King Edward 
 paced the floor until a giant of a man appeared — young, 
 tall, broadshouldered and fair-haired, his face clean-shav- 
 en. Surely he was body guard enough for any king ! 
 Strong as an elephant and lithe as a doe, was Richard 
 of Gloucester's apt description of the champion. Every 
 line of his face proclaimed that Dymoke was a keeper of 
 secrets, not a purveyor of them. 
 
 " Dymoke ", said the king, *^ ride thou thy maddest, 
 and bring here a clergyman." 
 
 Dymoke for an instant looked astonished. 
 
 " Lad}^ Woodville had taken ill quite suddenly ", 
 explained the king, with a grimace of which you would 
 say in these days, *^ he winked the other eye." 
 
 "Your Majesty shall be obeyed ", quoth the giant. 
 
 Drawing nigh to the casement King Edward heard 
 his doughty messenger go rattling to the highway; then 
 sat he dow^n and thought. He was doing something that 
 would have a terrible significance to himself as king of 
 England. Scan Future's dark vista as he would, no 
 peaceful way for his escape presented. Warwick's wrath 
 some day must be encountered; perhaps quite soon, for 
 excuses would have to be given for deferring marriage 
 with Bona of Savo3^ Then there was his brother George, 
 whom he had created so unwillingly Duke of Clarence 
 at the request of Dick. George awaited but some chance 
 to turn traitor to his brother Ned. 
 
20 
 
 A METEOR KING. 
 
 '' They shall not know !^' 
 
 King Edward thumped the cushions with his fist. 
 
 There are times \. hen even a king can make an ass 
 of himself, Sire Brains. 
 
 " For my part this secret shall be kept ^\ soliloquiz- 
 ed King Edward; *' if my queen loves me truly, she also 
 will keep it.'' 
 
 As is generally so with lovers, King Edw^ard 
 thought not of his future mother-in-law — the ambitious 
 Lady Woodville. 
 
 Dymoke smiled grimly, as his big cream-colored 
 stallion bore him clinking clanking through the night. 
 
 " War !" he muttered; ^4t means war — war — war — 
 Warwick." 
 
 Chuckling long and deeply, he dug his spurs a- 
 fresh into his horse. They fairly flew. Yellow Ajax 
 was a speeder, in spite of his enormous size and his 
 heavy master on his back. 
 
 Not much beyond an hour had flown before Dy- 
 moke ushered a trembling priest in to the presence of 
 the king. Dymoke had frightened the cleric nigh to 
 death with his blustering ways. 
 
 " Be discreet, Your Majesty. I espied the Duke cf 
 Clarence in the town beyond ", whispered Dymoke to 
 the king. 
 
 King Edward frowned and mused. 
 
 " We shall see that this cleric does not go back to- 
 night ", he said. 
 
 At this moment the door through which Elizabeth 
 had earlier departed was pushed awide to admit the Lady 
 Woodville, the Lady Grey and two gentlemen who es- 
 corted them. King Edward was surprised, and looked 
 enquiry at so many arrivals. 
 
 Lady Woodville spoke : 
 
 ** Witnesses, Your Majesty." 
 
 Lady Grey beamed on the king; his majesty suc- 
 cumbed, though groaning inwardly. 
 
 *^ Young Dymoke was all the witness we required, 
 my dearest ", he faintly remonstrated. 
 
A METEOR KING. 
 
 ai 
 
 *^ Our secret will be safe with my father and my 
 brother, surely, Your Majesty ", pouted Lady Grey. 
 
 " Well, well ", said the king. 
 
 Without much ado the ceremony was performed, 
 Elizabeth became the w^ife of Edward Fourth of England, 
 
 The reverend father w^as not permitted to depart, 
 for peradventure he might fall in with the Duke of Clar- 
 ence, and although he was sworn to secresy yet might 
 the wily George worm out enough to satisfy himself of 
 what had happened. 
 
 Hilarity was rampant at Castle Grafton that night, 
 led on by the big boyish Dymoke; even the cleric rolled 
 intoxicated upon the floor. 
 
 King Edward stayed until late next day with his 
 queen; night had fallen when His Majesty and Dymoke 
 betook themselves from Grafton Castle by a woodland 
 route. 
 
 The priest had departed several hours earlier in the 
 day, jogging dolefully along, his head throbbing fit to 
 burst at every footfall of his pudgy nag. No necessity 
 for the landlord at the first inn to exhort the suffering 
 churchman to enter; his thirst w^as appalling and must 
 be appeased; as well must his conscience be drowned to 
 smother its twingings of the night^s debauch; so he dis- 
 mounted with alacrity before the astute host had time to 
 say a word. 
 
 Inside was the Duke of Clarence. 
 
 *' Ha, my worthy cure, thou lookest wearj^ ^\ was 
 his exclamatory welcome to the prelate. " Only that 
 you are a holy son of the Church, I should guess that 
 you had been drinking too much wine. What is the 
 matter ? You look wild ". 
 
 " Thirsty, thirsty. Your Royal Highness; that is all. 
 Landlord, bring me some ale ". 
 
 *' Tut, tut ! You don't want ale. Reverend Sir ", in- 
 terjected Clarence. "Fetch vrine here, landlord ". 
 
 " No, no. Your Royal Highness; I touch it not out- 
 side the sacrament !" 
 
 So protested the priest, his palms toward the Duke 
 
22 A METEOR KING. 
 
 as if to ward off the evil; but the Duke of Clarence mere- 
 ly laughed, and said, with a just-appearing sneer. 
 
 "A little for thy stomach^s sake/' 
 
 "Very well; ah, very well", assented the friar, as 
 though reluctant; **give me one little glass/' 
 
 This was but the starter of an avalanche of thirst 
 which overwhelmed the priest and had to be appeased. 
 Clarence, bom an intriguer, contrived to keep quite so- 
 ber. Soon was the cleric rollicking drunk once more. 
 So much noise did he make that the Duke and he were 
 compelled perforce to retire to an inner room, whence a 
 sound was never known to emanate. 
 
 *^Tell me of what happened yesternight at Castle 
 Grafton'', suddenly the Duke insinuated. 
 
 *'No — hie — no, your Royal Highness; that is a sec- 
 ret of the King". 
 
 "Yes, yes, you true fellow; but am I not a brother of 
 the King, and love him as the apple of mine eye?" 
 
 "Ver' true, ver' true; but he do n' want me t' tell t' 
 he married t' Lady Grey, y'see, your Highness, beg pa'- 
 d'n, mean Ro3^al Highness. Y' know I could n' — hie — 
 break faith wi' t' King or " 
 
 "Never mind then, Father. I shall not press 3^ou. 
 You are a good fellow. Drink your wine." 
 
 With the Cleric asleep beneath the inn table, the 
 Duke of Clarence rode away, black thoughts against his 
 brother the King fomenting in his brain. 
 
 "A secret marriage, hey? O me! O me! Ho, ho; 
 he, he", the Duke went giggling to himself. "I'll see 
 that Warwick knows this. That will alienate his Earl- 
 ship from the King, bless his soul. George, my boy, 
 you may yet be king your noble self. Ho, ho! What 
 a fool that priest is! I shall send a post to Warwick in 
 an hour. No, by the Virgin, I shall go myself. This 
 is an important venture. To the middle of the next 
 shire is not a quarter of a hundred miles". 
 
 In spite of rapid riding, the machicolated towers 
 and battlemented walls of Warwick Castle were nearly 
 indiscernible in the dusk by the time the Duke of Clar- 
 
A METEOR KING. 23 
 
 cnce was pounding at the gate. 
 
 Bing! Bang! Bung! His blows reverberated for 
 the third attack. Then: 
 
 **Ho, there, without! What noise is this?" demand- 
 ed a stentorian voice across the parapet. 
 
 **Admit the Duke of Clarence!" 
 
 Delay suflBciently important intervened, then the 
 rattling of chains and the thumping of bolts back pre- 
 luded the entrance of the Duke. Advancing to meet 
 his Royal Highness came the Earl of Warwick, whose 
 strong features proclaimed the man of iron nerve and 
 will, with colossal mentality behind his opinionistic eyes. 
 Their purport at present was enquiry. He was study- 
 ing the face of Clarence. 
 
 "What news, friend Clarence ?" 
 
 The Duke pulled his sleeve, and they withdrew to- 
 gether into a secluded apartment. They became seated 
 and Clarence kicked the rushes on the floor for a mom- 
 ent, 1-hen, subitaneously darting his ophidian gaze toward 
 Earl Warwick: 
 
 " King Edward is married ", he said. 
 
 Warwick's face became a dusky crimson; it grew 
 paler, paler, paler, until not a drop of blood seemed 
 coursing through his veins. 
 
 ** I predicted it ", said Clarence. 
 
 Warwick's expression of countenance exhibited un- 
 belief and disappointment struggling for the mastery. 
 
 " Before God, Duke, do you swear that it is true ihe 
 king is married?" 
 
 " Yea, I do ", chanted Clarence. 
 
 " I was not consulted ", went on Warwick; "and he 
 was my Edward. On my soul I love that boy. Ye 
 gods ! Bona of Savoy — but tell me whom ?" 
 
 " Elizabeth Woodville, the widow of Sir John Grey, 
 that dastard Lancastrian who was killed in the second 
 battle of Saint Alban's " 
 
 " Say it not ", put in Warwick angrily. 
 
 *^ Aye but the bitter truth must out; she has played 
 her cards quite well. Edward married her last night at 
 
24 
 
 A METEOR KING. 
 
 Grafton, secretly.'' 
 
 " How know you this ?" 
 
 " Priestly bibulosity; Bacchus really." 
 
 ** Duke, you are a devil; a tempter of the Church; 
 and look and dress so sanctimoniously. One would mis- 
 take thee for a monk." 
 
 Clarence laughed his Satan's chuckle. 
 
 ** I shall have the king disclaim her ", said War- 
 wick, after musing. ** You can arrange with the priest; 
 that is in your line. Were there any other witnesses ?" 
 
 " Perchance ", and Clarence shook his head. 
 
 " I must see King Edward immediately ", groaned 
 Warwick. " There shall never be a proclamation of this 
 Woodville queen. It would kill the Nevilles." 
 
 " Especially the king-making Neville ", covertly 
 sneered the Duke. 
 
 ** A king-maker is useful ", growled Warwick; 
 " yourself would crave to have me laboring at that trade 
 for Clarence." 
 
 ** Which yourself would only do for benefit to you ", 
 retorted his royal highness the Duke, Prince George. 
 
 " Enough !" cried Warwick; ** I shall see King Ed- 
 ward. Duke, did you ply the spy; or was your knowledge 
 accidental ?" 
 
 *^ As you will. King Edward makes no confidant of 
 me; young Richard gets his secrets, forsooth, notwith- 
 standing that I am more advanced in years and much 
 matured in judgment." 
 
 " Dick is a faithful boy ", quoth Warwick. 
 
 " Which infers that I am not." 
 
 ** I am not so sure of your fidelit}^ to the king ", and 
 Warwick winked. 
 
 " Plainly spoken. Earl; we'll let it go at that." 
 
 " You rode alone to Grafton, no doubt ", went on 
 the Earl, "to aid the king, peradventure he might have 
 fallen foul of some murdering Woodvilles or footpads ?" 
 
 '' That was it, Earl ". 
 
 " Probably you had no thought of assassinating Ed- 
 
A METEOR KING. 
 
 25 
 
 ward, thus removing the one obstacle to your ascending 
 of the throne ?" 
 
 " None ; I swear it." 
 
 " Of course you could have blamed it on the Lan- 
 castrians ; did you think of that, good pious Duke?" 
 
 " Bagh !" Clarence grunted. 
 
 " Had you slain him, I should have felt called up- 
 on to relieve thy spirit from the cumber of the flesh, 
 and so fetch Richard by two steps to the English throne.'' 
 
 So the Duke of Clarence went out from the great 
 Earl of Warwick. 
 
 Backboneless and a coward, Clarence continually 
 brooded on how he might come to the throne. Could he 
 but foment trouble vast enough through his secret mar- 
 riage, Edward might be ousted from the throne on the 
 pretence that he was a favorer of the Lancastrians with 
 imbecile Henry VI. and Prince Edward, the latter then 
 in exile with his mother, Margaret of Anjou. If they 
 were not fit rulers, then was not Edward Fourth. 
 
 With this reasoning, by the time that Clarence had 
 returned to Westminster he had determined that he 
 would precede the Earl of Warwick and confront King 
 Edward with his knowledge of the secret marriage. 
 
 King Edward and his beloved Richard were alone 
 together. Clarence greeted both his brothers icily. 
 How lucky, thought he, that the Duke of Gloucester 
 would also be a listener to a revelation of the perfidy of 
 the king. Mayhap he might sow the seeds of alienation 
 between Richard and Edward, even though he did not 
 consider that Richard had much power. 
 
 " Permit me to felicitate the king," said Clarence, 
 "on his recent marriage with the Lady Grey, the Wood- 
 ville belle." 
 
 And the Duke of Clarence bowed until his chin but 
 scathed the floor. 
 
 Both the king and Richard turned pale — Edward 
 with dread that his secret had been discovered ; Richard 
 with fear that Clarence spoke the truth. 
 
 Richard of Gloucester was to astute, boy though he 
 was, not to fathom the design of Clarence. There and 
 
26 
 
 A METEOR KING. 
 
 then he registered a mental vow to stand by Edward at 
 whatever inconvenience to himself, jnst to offset his 
 brother George's treachery. 
 
 " This is more of his serpent work," said Richard. 
 
 ** I would ask the king," proceeded Clarence, ignor- 
 ing Richard, ^'if he intends to proclaim the Lady Grey 
 his queen ?" 
 
 ** The king's command is that the Duke of Clarence 
 shall leave his presence,'' quoth his majesty. 
 
 Which forthwith the Duke did, most ceremoniously. 
 
 " Richard of Gloucester," pursued His Majesty, 
 "wherever George has learned my secret God knows ; 
 but — I am married to Elizabeth Woodville." 
 
 Richard was silent ; but his countenance spoke 
 volumes. 
 
 " Gloucester," said the king, "for what do you fear ; 
 I see it in your gaze, my brother ?" 
 
 " Not for yourself. King Ned ; you have pleased 
 yourself, and have only yourself to blame, if there is 
 blame. From that view you have done right ; but there 
 are other views. This land of England now must over- 
 run with plebeian Lancastrians ; the Lady Grey is not 
 of royal blood." 
 
 " We shall make her royal, Richard." 
 
 " Oh, aye ; and all her relations as well. They'll 
 importune your life away, I fear. King Ned." 
 
 " Dread not, my brother Gloucester ; I be not of 
 the sort that let their troubles kill them." 
 
 Gloucester turned to the casement, and looked out 
 thoughtfully. Suddenly : 
 
 ** Here comes the Earl of Wan^uck," he said. 
 
 The powerful Earl's greeting to the king and Rich- 
 ard was affable to a high degree. 
 
 " How now ?" quoth Edward. 
 
 "Business, Your Majesty ; merely a little business, 
 which I hope Your Majesty shall deal with, as it con- 
 cerns yourself immediately." 
 
 King Edward smiled ; he liked the Earl. 
 
 "This document," proceeded Warwick; "your 
 Majesty's marriage contract with sweet Bona of Savoy, 
 
A METEOR KING. 
 
 ^ 
 
 It but awaits the royal sanction and ratification to be 
 brought before Your Majesty's sige councillors. To- 
 morrow has been set for the convening of the cabinet." 
 
 King Edward moved uneasily ; he was in awe of 
 Warwick. 
 
 Gloucester felt the cold perspiration dripping from 
 his spine at the thought of his brother's entangling 
 predicament. 
 
 " Warwick," began King Edward, "you have al- 
 ways befriended me and mine ; I shall not equivocate. 
 I am married." 
 
 " That heard I from the restless Duke of Clarence, 
 Your Majesty ; but I believed it not." 
 
 "Alas, it is true." 
 
 " Then you do well to say *alas'. I am torn at the 
 heart to think Your Majesty has acted so inconsequent- 
 ly. You have called me friend; you have not treated me 
 as such. Had I not some right to have your confidence?" 
 
 " Morally, you had, Earl Warwick." 
 
 " Which means legally I had not, eh, Your Majesty?" 
 
 " If so thou wiirt." 
 
 " Just that ; but here I make a proposition — dis- 
 claim this marriage with the Lady Grey." 
 
 " That cannot be." 
 
 " Why so, Your Majesty ?" 
 
 " There are witnesses." 
 
 " How many ?" 
 
 "Five" 
 
 " Their names?" 
 
 " Sir Richard Woodville, Anthony Woodville, Lady 
 Woodville, Dymoke and the priest." 
 
 " Leave this to me. King Edward, and all will be 
 well. My brother, whom Your Majesty has promised 
 to recommend to the archbishopric of York, can have 
 your marriage annuied ; his influence wdth the Head of 
 the Church is somewhat. Dymoke is all right ; demons 
 could not tear the secret from him. Thy brother 
 George will attend to the priest at my direction. As for 
 the Woodvilles — phut ! Let us call them liars, and 
 slay the male portion of them if they object ; far better 
 
28 
 
 A METEOR KING. 
 
 citLTens have been butchered already in these Wars of 
 Roses. Lady Grey and her estimable mother may be 
 given an asylum somewhere ; yet I fear me the mother 
 will talk too much. I could warrant she has already 
 told every dame within her hearing of the good fortune 
 of her daughter." 
 
 Which was the fact. 
 
 King Edward chewed his rather downy moustache 
 in deliberation ; Richard of Gloucester regarded his re- 
 gal brother anxiously ; the Earl of Warwick patiently 
 awaited, a self-satisfied smile in his eyes, as though he 
 considered himself the man who had shown a seasonable 
 and a reasonable escape from a troublesome dilemma. 
 
 At length spoke the king. Said he : 
 
 •* This procedure would give much pain to Lady 
 Grey and Lady Woodville, not to mention other con- 
 nections of their tamily." 
 
 " Well, what of that ?" enquired the Earl, testily. 
 "Are they not Lancastrians, and bitter enemies of the 
 king. Your Majesty ? What their arms cannot procure, 
 methinks they may get hold of it by strategy." 
 
 "That sneer, Earl of Warwick, ill becomes thee," 
 reproached King Edward. "Thou couldst not have thus 
 addressed King Henry Sixth ; thou art a sophist, Earl." 
 
 " Pah ! Too much praying made King Henry 
 mad ; beside the ills piled on him by his French wife of 
 intellect. Take warning, King Edward, from that 
 monarch's state." 
 
 " Methinks you do most foul to thus deride the 
 French Margaret, Earl. Wist I not that it was but 
 now you espoused for me the cause of Bona of Savoy, 
 who is the sister of the queen of the king of France ?" 
 
 " There is French and there is French ; Bona is 
 not Margaret of Anjou ; nor is Margaret Bona of Savoy." 
 
 " Cleverly put, Earl Warwick. Then there can a 
 good thing come out of Nazareth ?" 
 
 " Ha, ha ; His Majesty becomes quite scriptural ; 
 by-and-bye he sail say that this secret marriage was ap- 
 pointed oS the Lord, forsooth." 
 
A METEOR KING. 
 
 29 
 
 ** Blasphemy, Earl, blasphemy' \ cried the king in 
 righteous anger. "I do not act as a prater or a maker 
 of prayers; but, permit me to remark that the scripture 
 directs a forgiving of your enemies, not an extermin- 
 ation. '^ 
 
 **Verily, verily, things are coming to pass when we 
 hear ILing Edward turning into the hypocritical foot- 
 steps of the Duke of Clarence P* 
 
 ^'Damn!'* ejaculated the king. 
 
 The Earl of Warwick bowed. 
 
 " That word is neither royal nor polite'^, said he. 
 
 " Mention not the Duke of Clarence to me*', quoth 
 the king. 
 
 ^^ Agreed", said Warwick. "This vein of saAtim- 
 osity, this forgiving of your enemies. King Edward,hath 
 but arisen since Your Majesty met the Lady Grey. 
 Think of the proposition I have made; remember also 
 that the Earl of Warwick is aggrieved, which means the 
 aggrieving of his numerous myrmidons. Adieu, King 
 Edward; adieu, Duke Gloucester, and counsel thou His 
 Majesty aright." 
 
 Stately bowing, the Earl departed. 
 
 " Brother Dick", began the king, " I feel like a man 
 without a soul of his own; as if the one I have belonged 
 to these *great' men of England,whose province it seems 
 to be to rule the kingdom and the king. What shall I 
 do ?" 
 
 "Your Majesty should not require to ask a boy like 
 myself such a question." 
 
 "As I have often said, Dick, you are young in years 
 but old in brains. You have good judgment." 
 
 " Nay, that is not it; as a metaphysician,King Ned, 
 you are not a success. This wonderful condition of in- 
 tellect which you seem to think I enjoy is merely the 
 result of having a strong will-power to curb my inclin- 
 ations. Yourself, King Ned, are just as wise as I, but 
 you let your susceptibilities dwarf your mental powers. 
 You fear to offend where you should not; a failing gen- 
 erally termed good-heartedness." 
 
30 A METEOR KING. 
 
 ** You do yourself injustice, Dick; you are not so 
 cold a calculator as might be inferred from your own 
 diagnosis of your state; but I admit I am not firm enough 
 in will. In this matter I crave your advice; not bind- 
 ing myself to follow it of course." 
 
 " What action would you prefer, King Ned ?" 
 
 "To proclaim my wife queen." 
 
 " A laudable inclination,as becomes a man." 
 
 " Who, as you say, should be subordinated to a 
 king?" 
 
 " Yes; from the point of consideration taken by our 
 statesmen", said Gloucester. 
 
 " And from your own vantage?" 
 
 " I am not a king." 
 
 " Suppose yourself one." 
 
 " All right, I am a king." 
 
 " Put yourself in my predicament." 
 
 " I am in it." 
 
 " What will you do?" 
 
 " Use my own power; tell all objectors to go to the 
 devil; proclaim my wife my queen." 
 
 " Bravo! Richard, so shall I." 
 
 " What about the Lancastrians, King Ned?" 
 
 " They may go to the devil; I do not marry all of 
 them." 
 
 Gloucester laughed, and: 
 
 " I hope not", he said. 
 
 " Tomorrow, then", spoke Edward, "I shall go be- 
 fore the Council and inform them of my wedding; at the 
 same time commanding that steps be taken to have 
 Elizabeth proclaimed queen with due ceremony." 
 
 " That is a brave decision. King Ned; it entails 
 much. Not only will you raise Lady Grey to this most 
 eminent position; you shall have to ennoble all her 
 relatives; in fact, create a new horde of peers to harass 
 the old barons. These noblemen of long standing are 
 bound to rebel, through excess of jealousy. War to the 
 knife, I fear me, must result; but I stand by you, bro- 
 ther Ned, while your course is honorable." 
 
A METEOR KING. 
 
 31 
 
 There was much astonishment among the nobles 
 when King Edward announced his marriage to his 
 Council. Disgust was visible on the face of the Duke 
 of Clarence at this turn of events, for he had calculated 
 to hold a high trump card in the secret of which he had 
 become possessed. Anger was aroused in the bosom of 
 the Earl of Warwick; he remonstrated bitterly with His 
 Majesty. Not the least pain was he at to hide his opin- 
 ions; so the primary germs of mistrust were sprouted, 
 which soon bourgeoned into alienation and enmity, be- 
 tween the powerful Earl and the young king, for whom 
 he had contributed much energy to place upon the 
 throne. 
 
 Seeing how King Edward was exhibiting frmness, 
 George Neville concluded in his innate shrewdness that 
 his best policy was to confirm His Majesty in his action. 
 He refused to even consider the annuling of the mar- 
 riage, and went so far as to upbraid the great Earl. 
 Edward felt mollified and flattered; nor was he long be- 
 fore he had procured for the far seeing prelate the covet- 
 ed title of the Archbishop of York, as a reward for his 
 kind words. 
 
 This move contributed to widen the breach between 
 the king and Warwick, who was further incensed that 
 Edward should honor his brother for attacking him. 
 
 '' Me ! Myself ! I !'' ejaculated the Earl. 
 
 Not immediately did the outbreak occur, but the 
 harmony and confidence which had existed between the 
 monarch and his most powerful subject came to an end. 
 
 Orders were issued for the coronation of the queen, 
 which was performed with exceeding pomp. All the 
 populace were much impressed with the beauty of this 
 lady for whom King Edward had dared so much, so that 
 enthusiasm ran high, to the further chagrin of the Earl 
 of Warwick. 
 
 " How dared he ?" he would mutter. 
 
 In honor of the event King Edward created thirty- 
 eight knights of the bath, four of whom were chosen 
 from among the citizens of London. All was *^merry as 
 
32 
 
 A METEOR KING. 
 
 a marriage bell" ought to be; but soon the clouds began 
 to hover and lower. As Richard had predicted, the ele- 
 vation of the queen meant the exaltation of her family 
 and connections. First came the queen^s father. Her- 
 self broached it to His Majesty. 
 
 " It seems so commonplace to have my father but 
 plain Sir Richard Woodville/^ she sighed. 
 
 " Does it, sweetheart. Truth to tell, any man who 
 is father to such crystallized rapture ought to at least 
 be made an earl", quoth Edward. "He shall be called 
 the Earl Rivers, and I shall appoint him Treasurer and 
 Constable of England." 
 
 " Ah-h, you love; and brother Anthony ?" 
 
 " One at a time, my dearest; we shall arrange for 
 everyone." 
 
 So King Edward deputed the Duke of Gloucester to 
 attend to the ennobling process, and bring the candidates 
 before his attention — once more wormwood and gall to 
 the Earl of Warwick. Not that the Earl desired the 
 commission, but because he hated parvenu nobles on 
 general principles— he and all his associates in the ranks 
 of the ancient peers and nobles of the realm. 
 
 " I cannot understand, Richard", said the Earl to 
 Gloucester; "why yourself should abet King Edward in 
 this work of creating spurious nobility; enough that he 
 married a plebeian. This does dishonor to the remem- 
 brances of your noble mother, Duke. Was not Cecily 
 Neville the daughter of the Earl of Westmoreland?" 
 
 " Aey, Earl; and related to your noble self; but me- 
 thinks she bequeathed to King Edward more manhood 
 than agrees with the Earl of Warwick." 
 
 "Fie, Richard; no such thought have I ever uttered. 
 What distracts me is this new nobility craze which you 
 have fallen in with." 
 
 " I' faith, I love it not", quoth Richard; "but even 
 the most ancient lineage must have a start. Let these 
 begin today, in one thousand years from now, or a good 
 deal less, there shall be slight difference in the ancient- 
 ness of either. Leave this to me; there is much fiendish 
 
A METEOR KING. 
 
 33 
 
 delight in these matches I am making. Ha, here comes 
 your reverend brother, the new Archbishop of York.*! 
 
 "How fare thee. Archbishop ?'' 
 
 " Well, Your Royal Highness; good morrow to you 
 brother Warwick; you seem ill at ease.'* 
 
 " Bah !** cried the Earl. "Disgust is my malady. 
 These upstart nobles !'* 
 
 " Ho, ho, yes; how much of the programme, Glou- 
 cester, has been completed ?'* 
 
 Richard solemnly began to digitize: 
 
 " Sir Richard Woodville has become Earl Rivers 
 and Treasurer and Constable of England** 
 
 "Curse him !'* interjected Warwick. 
 
 " Brother!'* expostulated the archbishop. 
 
 " Anthony Woodville,*' pursued Richard, "has been 
 married to the daughter of the late Lord Scales, whose 
 title and estates have been conferred upon him. Those 
 five sisters of the queen have been married to young 
 noblemen all; and now comes the consummating work, 
 which Your Grace will perform for the king — that young 
 brother of the queen who has not yet attained majority 
 is to marry the wealthy dowager-duchess of Norfolk. 
 Let me see; yes, just four times his age. She is past 
 eighty. Your Grace.** 
 
 " Great God ! Maritagium diabolicum !** ejaculated 
 the archbishop. 
 
 Richard and Warwick laughed derisively, while the 
 prelate looked shocked and aghast. Nevertheless, he 
 did the king*s request subsequently. 
 
 Gloucester hoped that this maritagium diabolicum 
 would end the shower of "honors**; but not so. King 
 Edward sent for him, and: 
 
 "Richard**, quoth he, a light of exultation coming 
 in his eyes,** the Earl of Wanvick has asked me to pre- 
 vail upon the Duke of Exeter to bestow the hand of His 
 Grace's daughter and heiress, who is also our niece, as 
 you know, upon the nephew of the Earl of Warwick.** 
 
 " Yes, Your Majesty,** said Richard. 
 
 " I shall not," went on the king**; she has been 
 
34 
 
 A METEOR KING. 
 
 promised to the son begat of the queen's former mar- 
 riage. The wedding comes off shortly." 
 
 " Another blow in the face for the Earl of War- 
 wick.'' 
 
 So went it on; other and more distant connections 
 of this fortunate Woodville family were provided for by 
 marriages, gifts and ofiSces. Cause enough was there 
 for the origin of the feud which arose between the Nev- 
 illes and the Woodvilles. At heart the Archbishop of 
 York was with his brothers, the Earl of Warwick and 
 the Earl of Northumberland. Notwithstanding that 
 King Eward suspected this, he created the archbishop 
 Chancellor of the Kingdom, to the chagrin of the new 
 queen and her relatives. Why, even the Earl of Nor- 
 thumberland was enjoying the title and forfeited estates 
 of the Percys. 
 
 Of the three brothers there was no doubt that the 
 Earl of Warwick was the most influential; and, as you 
 must know, he had up to this time been the king's chief 
 adviser and most skilful general. 
 
 Jealous of the power of the three Nevilles, the 
 Woodvilles — queen, father, mother, brothers, sisters 
 and other relations — combined to foment the growing 
 dislike between King Edward and the dreaded trio. 
 Every little tale was borne carefully to His Majesty, 
 and insinuations were made, until finally innuendo was 
 dropped and Earl Rivers joined with the queen to con- 
 summate the rupture. 
 
 Warwick had been fuming over some of King 
 Edward's actions; especially was he chagrined at the 
 bilking of his aims with regard to the marriage of his 
 nephew with the king's niece; nor was the great Earl 
 averse to speaking strongly on these matters. 
 
 Earl Rivers was present with the queen when King 
 Edward in anger was commenting on the unseemly 
 language of the Earl of Warwick and the hypocrisy of 
 the Archbishop of York. 
 
 " Your Majesty should not permit it," said Earl 
 Rivers, rising to join the king in a walk of agitation up 
 
A METEOR KING. 
 
 35 
 
 and down the apartment. 
 
 " Of a truths you should not, Edward/^ commented 
 the queen, watching the monarch's flashing glances. 
 
 '' They are old friends of our family," said Edward; 
 **I owe the Earl of Warwick much." 
 
 *^ Not so much as to have to continually submit to 
 his tutelage," ejaculated Earl Rivers fervently. **Your 
 Majesty has been held at it too long already; and for 
 what?"^ 
 
 King Edward shook his head. 
 
 " Merely to serve the ends of the Nevilles," put in 
 Earl Rivers with emphasis. "Your Majesty will see 
 that as soon as they fear that their ambitions are to be 
 thwarted they will turn and rend their benefactor." 
 
 King Edward nodded his chin against his cravat, 
 and finally ejaculated : 
 
 " I shall put and keep them in their proper places 
 as subjects; there can be but one king; which king is not 
 the Earl of Warwick !" 
 
 Later the Duke of Gloucester was commissioned to 
 inform the Earl of Warwick of the king's displeasure. 
 
 Forthwith there sprang up a solider collusion be- 
 tween the Nevilles and that tricky intriguer, the Duke 
 of Clarence. In high dudgeon Warwick and Clarence 
 started for France, that favorite rendezvous in those 
 days for all malcontents and fugitives from England, 
 where trouble could be fomented and armies gathered 
 free from the tedium of the watchful eye of England's 
 king. France's king was ever ready to abet anything 
 w^hich foreshadowed prestige for himself or strife in 
 hated England. 
 
 ** Next year," quoth Warwick to the Duke of 
 Clarence shortly subsequent to their arrival in France, 
 "will begin the seventies, and here we are, five years 
 after that ghastly marriage of King Edward, little bet- 
 ter than exiles." 
 
 Clarence nodded and ruminated. 
 
 " I have a proposal to make," went on the Earl, 
 
 "You have ?" 
 
36 
 
 A METEOR KING. 
 
 " As you know, Duke, King Edward has as yet no 
 son by Elizabeth Woodville. We want no woman to 
 rule in England whilst good men of royal blood remain 
 ungraved. Yourself, my dear Duke, are the next in 
 succession to the throne; what is to hinder your getting 
 it ?" 
 
 " Much," said the Duke laconically. 
 
 " Pah !" exclaimed Warwick, snapping his fingers; 
 "there is not even that to prevent it." 
 
 **Clarence chuckled satirically." 
 
 *^ Hark", continued the Earl ! "You and I have 
 power enough to raise rebellion; we can muster nearly 
 an army of men between us." 
 
 " Yes." 
 
 " On one condition shall I co-operate with you," 
 pursued the Earl of Warwick.'* 
 
 " That is ?" 
 
 " Marry my daughter, Duke." 
 
 Clarence once more emitted that diabolical chuckle 
 without disarranging a lineament of his face. 
 
 **VVhat about informing my brother, the king, and 
 requesting his consent to this procedure ?'^ Clarence en- 
 quired. 
 
 *^ Are you, perforce, to have permission from the 
 king to do what I — I, the Earl of Warwick, the King- 
 Maker — proclaim you may ? My daughter is mine; not 
 King Edward's." 
 
 **No, Your Majesty the King-Maker," said the 
 Duke of Clarence mockingly; "I am not compelled to 
 ask his will; but were I to adopt that course it might 
 enamor him of his dutiful brother George once more." 
 
 "And enwrath me?" sententiously growled the 
 Earl. "Look here, Duke, I have made kings before; I 
 can still do so; do you choose to be my next material ?" 
 
 " To be made a puppet; to be set up; to be knocked 
 down; at your Majesty the King-Maker's pleasure," 
 quoth the Duke. 
 
 " As my son-in-law you would he sure of my con- 
 tinued good-will; you see, eventually the rulers would 
 
A METEOR KING. 
 
 37 
 
 trace their lineage to nie.'* 
 
 *^ Verily, thou art a man of great parts,'* remarked 
 the Duke of Clarence with sarcasm. *'I agree. Your 
 daughter shall become the Duchess of Clarence, in spite 
 of the anger of my kingly brother. It remains for her 
 powerful father to advance her to the position of the 
 queen of the king.'' 
 
 There was a knocking at the door; a message for 
 the Duke, from Richard of Gloucester, recounting that 
 an insurrection had occurred in Yorkshire. 
 
 Long had the Hospital of St. Leonard's claimed 
 the right to levy a thrave, in some parts signifying 
 twelve and in others twenty-four sheaves, of corn from 
 every ploughland iu the country. 
 
 '' This Robin of Redesdale has done nobly," quoth 
 the Duke of Clarence; "but Gloucester informs me that 
 his head has fallen. He led a rebellion in Yorkshire 
 against the government because of the exactions of the 
 Hospital of St. Leonard's. He had a good army, too — 
 over fifteen thousand men. What a pity they had no 
 better weapons chan pitch-forks, pikes and sickles." 
 
 ''Who marched against this insurgent and his rab- 
 ble?" asked the Earl. 
 
 ^^ Montacute, Earl of Northumberland; he soon 
 gained a victory and executed Robin." 
 
 " Who's cause was just," commented Warwick. 
 "There is a strong allegation that these extorted 
 thraves were not, as originalU^ designed, used for the 
 relief of the poor; they were cooly appropriated for the 
 benefit of the beastly varden and his fellows." 
 
 The Duke of Clarence emitted his horrid chuckle 
 
 agam. 
 
 " We can turn this to advantage," said he; "it 
 shows how the wind blovv^s. Earl." 
 
 " That does it," agreed the Earl. "Now is the time; 
 let us strike while the iron gleams. My nephew and 
 my cousin-german can take the initiative; we shall re- 
 main here for a little while." 
 
 So ever^^thing w^as arranged. The Duke of Clar- 
 
38 A METEOR KING. 
 
 ence married the Earl of Warwick's daughter at Calais; 
 then cabals and intrigues were the order of the day, to 
 put the Duke of Clarence on the throne of England. 
 Richard of Gloucester was righteously angry with his 
 brother George for the cool and negative reply he sent 
 to Richard's request to return to England and strength- 
 en the hands of King Edward. He also had intimated 
 that His Majesty required the return of the Earl of 
 Warwick; but the great Warwick had no intention of 
 going back at that time. 
 
 ^^ Have I not," said he to the Dute of Clarence, 
 *^again and again patched up a peace Vvith the king,only 
 to be each time fresh affronted ? His Majesty and my- 
 self have made friends and have quan-elled once too 
 often. The die is cast; I am against King Edward.'' 
 
 Warwick succeeded well; weak minded Clarence 
 abetted him in everything. Insurrection of a more 
 widespread and serious character broke out in England, 
 with which, for a certainty, the nephew and the cousin- 
 german of the Earl of Warwick were prominently iden- 
 tified. ^'Bills of Articles" were issued by the insur- 
 gents, which complained that King Edw^ard had debased 
 the coin; had raised money by new and grievous im- 
 positions^ through forced loans and by heavy fines con- 
 sequent upon vexations prosecutions. These extortions 
 within only the last year had amounted to over two 
 hundred thousand marks. Where was the need for such 
 procedure, the Bills of Articles enquired, while King 
 Edward possessed the livelihood of the English crown; 
 of the principality of Wales; of the duchies of Lancas- 
 ter, Cornwall and York; of the Earldoms of Chester and 
 March; also of the Lordship of Ireland ? 
 
 " King Ned," said Gloucester, ''you have given in- 
 to your enemies' hands a keen-cutting weapon through 
 3^our profligate gratification of desire to the det-hrone- 
 ment of your will." 
 
 ''None regrets that more than myself,*' quoth the 
 king. 
 
 *' Then rouse yourself, ni}^ royal brother; shake off 
 
I 
 
 A METEOR KING. 39 
 
 your unkingly indolence and become your former val- 
 iant self. Teach these Nevilles and our spiteful Clar- 
 ence a salutary lesson." 
 
 " What further says that insurrectionary docu- 
 ment ?'' asked Edward. 
 
 " It formulates excuses for Your Majesty^s bitter 
 course; which shows you have but to act to regain the 
 loving allegiance of your estranged people." 
 
 ^' Let us hear the excuses." 
 
 *^ It explains that your grievous modes of extorting 
 money are the necessary result of being surrounded by 
 seductions persons, who may abuse your generosity to 
 enrich themselves whilst impoverishing your Majesty." 
 
 ** Pray, whom are these seductions persons ?" 
 
 "They are set forth as being the queen ^s father,her 
 step-mother, her brother, the Lord Audeley, Sir John 
 Fogg, Treasurer of the household, and Herbert and 
 Stafford, the latter two of whom Your Majesty has but 
 created Earls of Pembrcke and Devon." 
 
 " YeSjI see " said Edward; "those names would ap- 
 pear to have been inserted at the instigation of some 
 malicious and jealous noblemen — per chance Warwick, 
 or the Archbishop of York, or the Duke of Clarence." 
 
 Richard performed a deprecatory motion with his 
 hand. 
 
 " Have they further to say?" queried King Edward. 
 
 " They have. They set forth that it is therefore 
 the humble petition of 3^our Majesty's faithful commons 
 that you v/ill call around yourself the lords of your 
 blood and the nobles of the realm and with their advice 
 inflict on these seductions persons the punishment 
 which they deserve." 
 
 " That will do," said Plis Majesty; "my sword I have 
 buckled on; let us proceed to Fotheringay. That castle 
 of your birth, Richard, is a strong one." 
 
 Not very long did the forces of the king and Glou- 
 cester remain at Fotheringay before they advanced to 
 Newark. Along the line of march no augmentation of 
 the troops took place. On the contrary, Edward be- 
 
40 A METEOR KING. 
 
 came somewhat alarmed at the open signs of disaffec- 
 tion. Something must be done. Richard and his maj- 
 esty might be brave enough, but they could do nothing 
 without men; so the king resolved to write to Warwick, 
 to the Archbishop of York and to his brother the Duke 
 of Clarence with his own hand, requesting that they 
 hasten to join him at Nottingham with the same re- 
 tinues which usually attended them in times of peace. 
 In the note to the Earl of Warwick the king added 
 significant words: 
 
 ''" We do not believe," he w-rote, ^^that you should 
 be of any such disposition tow^ard us as the rumor here 
 runneth, considering the trust and affection we bear you. 
 And, cousin, we think but 3^ou shall be to us welcome." 
 
 Nevertheless there was no intention on the part of 
 those noblemen to abandon the cause for which they 
 had fomented the insurrection in the north; acting other- 
 wise, they summoned ad their friends in Kent and the 
 neighboring counties to meet them on the next Sunday 
 at Canterbury, avowing that their purpose was to pro- 
 ceed in a company to the king and lay before His IMaj- 
 esty the petitions of the Commons. 
 
 *' That is a ruse," remarked the Duke of Glouces- 
 ter to King Edw^ard. 
 
 ^' I believe it, Dick," said the king. ^'We have now 
 but one source of hope." 
 
 ^' What is that ?" quoth Gloucester. 
 
 " The speed}^ arrival of the Earls of Pembroke and 
 Devon.'' 
 
 ^' A broken reed," said Richard; wdiicli statement 
 proved correct. 
 
 Not long afterward Dymoke came riding on his 
 ponderous horse. 
 
 "What news?" cried King Edward, in anxious 
 interest. 
 
 " Your Majesty," began Dymoke," the news is ill. 
 The Earl of Pembroke w^as hastening with nearly ten 
 thousand V/elshraen to the aid of Your Alajesty; the 
 Earl of Devon Vv'as follovv'ing w^itli a numerous bod}^ of 
 
A METEOR KING. 
 
 41 
 
 archers whom he had collected among the retainers of 
 his family. They entered Banbury, Your Majesty, to- 
 gether, and quarrelled about their quarters.*' 
 " Blockheads !" exclaimed the king. 
 Dymoke continued: 
 
 " The Earl of Pembroke left the Earl of Devon in 
 possession and marched inward to Edgecote. Lord 
 Fitzhugh was already in that neighborhood with the 
 I insurgents, and his forces fell upon the Welshmen like 
 |an avalanche atop a Tyrolean village." 
 
 King Edward made a gesture of despair; Glouces- 
 |ter stood stolid and pale as a statue. 
 
 ** Separated from their friends; without archers; 
 Iwhat could the Welshmen do ?'* queried Dymoke. **It 
 I was an easy victory for the multitude of their enemies; 
 two thousand courageous Welshmen lie dead on the bat- 
 Itle-field!" ^ ^ v . 
 
 " Where is Pembroke ?" asked the king, rather rue- 
 Fully. 
 
 " He and his brother were taken prisoners and im- 
 [mediately killed.** 
 
 ** Our hopes are extinguished,** remarked his maj- 
 |esty with bitterness. **We can find no man willing to 
 Iraw the sword for us !** 
 
 To add to the torment of the king, the troops whom 
 le had arrayed slipped away from their colors, and the 
 favorites of His Majesty had to seek safety in hiding. 
 [Mostly was this in vain. Earl Rivers and his son were 
 Jdiscovered in the forest of Dean, the Earl of Devon was 
 'taken at Bridgewater. All three were beheaded, osten- 
 jsibly because their names had appeared in the list ap- 
 pended to the petition of "the King's true subjects**; 
 really because the again all-powerful Warwick had 
 ordered their execution, pleased to think be could thus 
 rid of three of those obnoxious parvenus in the Eng- 
 lish nobility. 
 
 It was with overwhelming bombast and trumpeting 
 that the King-Maker waited upon his Majesty. King 
 [Edward, to his chagrin and mortification, was now vir- 
 
42 
 
 A METEOR KING. 
 
 tually a prisoner in the hands of the Nevilles. 
 
 *^ We want a general pardon for all concerned in 
 the late insurrection, if such it may be called," demand- 
 ed Warwick. 
 
 On the advice of Gloucester the king granted this; 
 also on Richard's recommendation a reconciliation was 
 patched up between Edward and Clarence and the Earl 
 of Warwick. 
 
 " For,'' intimated Gloucester, "we must be diplo- 
 matic, brother King Ned. Await our chance. When 
 the time comes you shall be rid of this Wanvick who 
 has become so pestilent. Lacking that warring demon 
 Warwick, Clarence can do nothing; we need have no 
 fear of him." 
 
 Storm of vaster fury verily was brewing beneatli 
 this deceitful calm on the surface. Richard trusted 
 neither Warwick nor the Duke of Clarence; nor their 
 vov/s of undying fealty to the king. Warwick was well 
 watched by Gloucester. His vigilance went not unre- 
 warded. 
 
 Richard discovered that the Earl of Warwick and 
 the Duke of Clarence v/ere planning another outbreak iu 
 Lincolnshire, and secretly notified King Edward to 
 march his troops to Erpingham, in Rutlandshire. Here 
 the main body of Warwick's forces were mustering, and 
 before the great Earl could strike his insurgents were 
 fallen upon by the royal army and utterly routed. This 
 occurred on March 12th, 1470. 
 
 Without delay King Edward issued a proclamation 
 requiring the Nevilles and the Duke of Clarence and 
 others who had been connected with the outbreak to 
 come and justify themselves, or submit to the royal 
 merc}^ within two weeks. Should this not be done,then 
 they were to be declared traitors and outlawed. As 
 neither the king nor Warwick would tiaist the promises 
 of the other, not even when made under most solemn 
 oaths, of course there was no surrender. 
 
 Warwick and the Duke of Clarence attempted to 
 corrupt the fidelity of Lord Stanley, but that cunning 
 

 A METEOR KING. 43 
 
 nobleman deemed the time inauspicious to join forces 
 against the ruling monarch; so, after some difficulty, 
 Warwick and Clarence reached the northern coast and 
 sailed to France, where they were cordially welcomed 
 once more by that crafty sovereign, King Louis El- 
 eventh. 
 
 That monarch, unrivalled for diplomatic cunning, 
 considered the moment oppc^rtune to detach himself 
 from King Edward and the Yorkists. Playing his cards 
 well, he effected, marvellous to relate, a reconciliation 
 between those sworn foes, Warwick and Margaret of 
 Anjou, each of whom had compassed the death of the 
 other's nearest aud dearest friends. 
 
 Margaret, you will remember, was the daughter of 
 Rene, the titular monarch of Naples and Jerusalem; and 
 she had been married to Henry Sixth of England in the 
 year 1445, ^^ April the 22nd. 
 
 This beauty of Anjou was responsible for the 
 death of Warwick's father and brother. On the other 
 hand, Warwick had not only torn the English crown 
 from the head of her husband, but had been chiefly in- 
 strumental in causing Margaret's banishment and suf- 
 ferings. 
 
 In spite of all, these fell antagonists agreed to act 
 in unison, having been drawn together by self-inter- 
 ested motives; they were united to the undoing of one 
 who had become equally to both obnoxious — King 
 Edward. 
 
 I relate all these circumstances that you may the 
 more fully realize the sort of conditions which surround- 
 ed the Duke of Gloucester at this time of his life. 
 
 Not a word of all the intriguing did the Earl of 
 Warwick whisper to the Duke of Clarence, but that 
 wily individual intuitively became cognizant that there 
 was double-dealing going on; nor did many days elapse 
 before the duke succeeded in finding confirmation of his 
 fears. He took the Earl of Warwick to task and up- 
 braided him with inconstancy. 
 
 *^ Inconstant !" exclaimed the Earl, with subsultlve 
 
 ^i- 
 
44 A METEOR KING. 
 
 movement of his heavy eyebrows. 
 
 " You have made terms with Margaret of \njou; 
 you have agreed to restore Heny Sixth to the throne, if 
 you get the assistance of Louis of France, Margaret and 
 the Lancastrians." 
 
 Warwick chuckled. 
 
 " Duke, you are cute; the hates of Margaret and I 
 have indeed swollen with such volume lately that now 
 their retaining banks have been overflowed, and both 
 streams, amalgamated, rush on as one, of mighty cur- 
 rent, destined to sweep the usurping Edward and his 
 friends adown the precipice of Hades. But, be not down- 
 hearted, Duke,'' cheered the Earl; **Margaret of Anjou 
 has agreed that the administration of the government 
 shall be vested in you and I." 
 
 " What about the young Prince Edward ?" 
 
 ** Margaret's son will marry my daughter a week 
 from to-morrow," said Warwick, watching Clarence nar- 
 rowly, his mobile face grown stern. 
 
 " So now you have three strings to your bow, King- 
 Maker," sneered Clarence. "Your son, the Duke of 
 Northumberland, is affianced to the daughter of King 
 Edward; one of your daughters is already my wife, and 
 another of your daughters is to become married to the 
 heir of the House of Lancaster ! Shrewd as ever." 
 
 Warwick smiled complacently. 
 
 "Poor consolation for me," continued the Duke, 
 *'who am made your miserable tool." 
 
 " Never mind," joked Warwick, "if the young 
 Prince Edward should die without issue you shall be de- 
 clared heir-apparent to the English throne." 
 
 Clarence laughed harshly. 
 
 King Edward sent an emissary to appeal to the 
 brotherly affection of Clarence, and inviting him to re- 
 turn to England, where full pardon would be granted to 
 him and increased rewards and honors would be bestow- 
 ed upon him. Edward's real purpose was to divide the 
 Duke of Clarence from Warwick, and have this weak 
 intriguing brother under his eye. 
 
 
A METEOR KING. 
 
 45 
 
 *' Tell the king I shall detach myself from this 
 traitor Warwick with all speed,'' he directed the mes- 
 senger. 
 
 But before the Duke of Clarence could act, the Earl 
 of Warwick had completed his designs, and returned to 
 England almost simultaneously with the royal messen- 
 ger. Clarence went with the Earh 
 
 King Edward and the Duke of Gloucester were in 
 the north of England with their troops quelling an up- 
 rising which had taken place under the leadership of 
 the new nephew of Warwick. 
 
 Word came to them. 
 
 " Back to Portsmouth with all speed !" was the cry, 
 the intensity of the tone showing how earnest it was. 
 
 Warwick was landing a big force there unopposed. 
 
 They moved too late. Warwick check-mated them. 
 He marched inward, his name in itself a tower of 
 strength and a rally ing-point for the many disaffected 
 spirits of the realm. His friends and numerous retain- 
 ers trooped to his banners,so that speedily he found him- 
 self at the head of an army of sixty-thousand men. 
 
 Marching into London unresisted, Warwick pro- 
 claimed the imbecile King Henry Sixth once more ruler 
 and released him from the tower. Then he proceeded 
 to the Midland counties to cope with King Edward and 
 Gloucester, the latter ever staunch and true to his troub- 
 led and forsaken brother. 
 
 Warwick's bold attitude, the numbers who attached 
 themselves to him, the sureness displayed by the old 
 Lancastrian party, with Warwick's rapid movement, all 
 contributed to startle the waverers and helped them 
 quickly to decide that Warwick would be the winner, 
 and was, therefore, the leader they should join. 
 
 On the other hand, the king's adherents dwindled 
 appallingly in number while Edward was marching from 
 Doncaster to Nottingham to meet Warwick. One cul- 
 minating and crushing desertion was that of Warwick's 
 brother, Montacute, who had been deprived of the Earl- 
 dom of Northumberland in order that the title might be 
 
46 
 
 A METEOR KING. 
 
 restored to the Percys, and had taken umbrage thereat 
 because he received instead but the barren title of a 
 Marquisate. He took his revenge by leading off six 
 thousand men from King Edward. 
 
 Despair seemed coming on perforce. 
 
 King Edward, Richard of Gloucester, Lord Hast- 
 ings, Anthony Woodville, that favorite brother of Ed- 
 ward's queen, and several other of the friends of the 
 sovereign, and a number of soldiers and archers were 
 occupying a fortified house, to which the sole access was 
 by a bridge over a deep and wide moat. In the neigh- 
 boring villages the rest of the royal troops were quarter- 
 ed. Dinner had just been sei*ved to the king and the 
 noblemen on that eventful day, when they were startled 
 by the sudden entrance of the ever-ready Dymoke. 
 
 '* Your Majesty," he said, ^'Montacute hath turned 
 traitor; but now he and some other noblemen are riding 
 through Your Majest3^'s forces singing out **God bless 
 King Henry !" 
 
 *'Then our life and dignity hang upon but meagre 
 moments," quoth the king. 
 
 " Dignity must be abandoned for a short space," 
 cried the Duke of Gloucester,springing to his feet; "our 
 lives w^e yet may save to do good service in a future 
 cause." 
 
 " Yea, Your Majesty must save your life," conjoin- 
 ed Ivord Hastings. 
 
 " To that I am agreed," shouted Edv/ard, also be- 
 coming active. "D3'moke, get 3^ou forth and ascertain 
 v/hich route is best to escape whilst I buckle on my ar- 
 mor. Richard and Hastings, post a battalion of faithful 
 guards at the bridge to resist any sudden assault." 
 
 D3mioke rode aw^a3'. 
 
 '* I advise Your Majest3^ to make all possible speed 
 from this," urged Anthony Woodville, not to seem lack- 
 ing in concern for the king's safet3^ 
 
 Dymoke came thundering back. 
 
 *^ Your Majesty, dela3^ means catastrope," reported 
 the trusty champion. *' Your Majesty's treacherous 
 
A METEOR KING. 
 
 47 
 
 friends, now becomes enemies, are marching to surround 
 you.'* 
 
 King Edward sprang up; fighting was out of the 
 question. Instantaneous escape was the only safety. 
 His Majesty, Richard of Gloucester and Anthou}^ mount- 
 ed hurriedly their horses. 
 
 One or two words of direction to Lord Hastings to 
 make the best arrangements possible for the few remain- 
 ing adherents, and away tore the king and his compan- 
 ions toward the nearest sea-port. 
 
 *^ D3'moke, my w^orthy fellow,'* quoth Lord Hast- 
 ings, **I leave 3^ou in command here. Men, he is your 
 commander. Go in with Warwick, for therein lies your 
 salvation; but when your time comes be ready to serve 
 again King Edward.'' 
 
 A cheer went up. 
 
 ** Make enough resistance to these miscreants at 
 the bridge to secure 3^our rights of capitulation, and to 
 give the king time to escape," cried Lord Hastings 
 significantly; then he mounted his steed and flew after 
 his monarch, whom he overtook before he had ridden 
 many miles. 
 
 With their retainers they safely reached L3^nn, 
 where they found tv/o Dutch ships and an English one 
 about to sail. -^x^W- 
 
 Without money in their pockets and with only the 
 clothes in which the^^ had been going to fight. King 
 Edward and his cr-mpany immediately put off to those 
 vessels. Not one in tw^enty of the party knew whither 
 they were bound, the one aim being but to leave the 
 shores of England behind before pursuing enemies 
 could come up. 
 
 The course of the ships w^as set for the coast of 
 Holland. 
 
 Barely had they sighted the flats of Holland before 
 some other ships hove into view. King Edward and 
 Gloiicester were standing on the deck of the English 
 ship, and the captain of the vessel was scrutinizing the 
 oncoming sails. 
 
48 
 
 A METEOR KING. 
 
 ** Whom the devil can they be ?'* quoth His Maj- 
 esty. "They are pursuing us Gloucester.'* 
 
 " They are Easterling vessels, Your Majesty.'* 
 vouchsafed the skipper. 
 
 •^ Yes, yes, so they are," assented the Dulce of 
 Gloucester; "at present warring with both France and 
 England. See, they have crowded on all sail and are 
 bearing down upon us full speed !" 
 
 " Those hostile guerillas,'* quoth Hastings, step- 
 ping up, "are expecting bounty. It will not do for this 
 ship to be overhauled. 
 
 " Can you outsail them, skipper ?" queried Glouces- 
 ter. 
 
 " That I cannot; also, with our few arms resistance 
 is hopeless." 
 
 " What do you purpose ?" asked the king. 
 
 " Our one alternative is but to run ashore." 
 
 " Which means peradventure the loss of the ship?" 
 
 "Aye, Your Majesty," said the captain. 
 
 " You shall be reimbursed three-fold, good mari- 
 
 ner. 
 
 )) 
 
 " I count coins of little value when I serve ni}^ 
 king," loyally responded the skipper. "Over ^^onder 
 lies Alcmaer; I shall strand my ship near there." 
 
 Not a word was spoken after this, but every person 
 present registered a resolution to have the courageous 
 captain honored at some future day for his sacrifice. 
 
 On sped the vessel toward the shore; en came the 
 pursuing Easterlings. Shallower and more shallow be- 
 came the water at each plumb-line descent. Down came 
 the canvas on the hostile ships; then were their helms 
 jumed hard aport — there was not enough water for them 
 to follow farther. Net many more leagues intervened 
 until the light-draught ship which bore the royal party 
 strucK' hard aground. 
 
 The Easterlings kept standing off and on, reluctant 
 to foresake their prey. 
 
 " They wait for the rising of the tide," said the 
 skipper. "Then they will attack us." 
 
A METEOR KING. 
 
 49 
 
 ** Humph !" ejaculated King Edward. 
 
 His Majesty noticed that the receding tide had left 
 by this time the vessel they were aboard of almost dry, 
 and: 
 
 ^* We might walk ashore/* he said. 
 
 *^ Dangerous quick-sand traps beset the footsteps 
 there," explained the skipper. ** vVait but a short space, 
 Your Majesty; there are those ashore can guide us 
 through the labyrinth. I shall signal, Your Majesty." 
 
 Not many minutes had elapsed, nor were there 
 many minutes to bestrew, for nearly had the time come 
 for the returning of the tide, when: 
 
 " A guide is coming down the sand," quoth the 
 captain. 
 
 Closely behind the guide came half a dozen people. 
 By his habiliments one of these was proclaimed to be a 
 servant of the Lord of the Province. Shortly this emis- 
 sary reached the ship, and came aboard, having been in- 
 formed by the master of the vessel that the king of Eng- 
 land was on the deck and wished speech of him. 
 
 Noticing the movements of the people ashore, the 
 ships of the Easterlings had come as near as the depth 
 of the water would allow and had dropped anchor. Their 
 intention was to board the king^s vessel at the next 
 tide, as the captain had said. King Edward^s safety de- 
 pended upon but a few hours. 
 
 Hastings and Anthony took a gloomy view of the 
 situation. They expected enemies on land in front to 
 augment those afloat behind. Richard of Gloucester 
 was more hopeful, and spoke cheery words to the gloomy 
 and despondent monarch, whilst the messenger with his 
 escort retraced his steps to inform the Lord of the Pro- 
 vince of the dire extremity of England\s king. 
 
 " He will prove our friend," said the Duke of Glou- 
 cester. 
 
 " In faith, heaven has turned against us," muttered 
 the king; "even this Hollander will glory in our down- 
 fall." 
 
 But His Majesty's dread was engendered by the 
 
so 
 
 A METEOR KING. 
 
 shadow of his tribulation; soon another party was de- 
 scribed approaching seaward. 
 
 "That is the Lord himself," vouchsafed the skipper. 
 **It bodes good for him to come in person; he is a mild- 
 mannered and a kindly man, indeed." 
 
 So the sequel proved. 
 
 There was some commotion among the "^asterlings 
 at the approach of this governing Lord, as though it 
 was an occurrence unexpected. They endeavored to 
 weigh anchor and sail away; but before they could do so 
 the Lord of the Province had come on board the strand- 
 ed ship, wherein lodged King Edward, whence he des- 
 patched two of his attendants in a dory to convey his 
 commands that the Easterlings should lie still. 
 
 To King Edward and his noble companions the 
 Lord was courtesy personified. 
 
 *^ Have I the honor to converse with England's 
 king ?" the Lord enquired, bowing graciously. 
 
 " Yea, with England's dethroned king; the shuttle- 
 cock of fate and traitors," His Majesty spoke bitterly. 
 
 *' Away v/ith dolor, Your Majesty !" cried the Loul; 
 "I say King Edward, beloved of the English people, 
 should not despair. The dregs are alwa3^s at the bottom 
 of the p('t. Your Majesty; your face-tv/isting draught 
 may now be well-nigh drunk." 
 
 " God grant 3' our kindly words may prove true pre- 
 science,*' said the king. *'I thank thee much, consoling 
 friend." 
 
 " Pray, speak not of it, Your Majest}^; it is but plain 
 humanity." 
 
 '^ It may be humanity; but it is not plain." 
 
 The Lord laughed, and said: 
 
 " I crave that Your Majesty and all your faithful 
 folio A'ers shall come ashore and partake of the comforts 
 cf my home. 
 
 Sumptuous was the hospitality bestowed upon the 
 king and his followers by this nobleman of Holland dur- 
 ing the daj^s that the ro^^al concourse stayed. Then at 
 his own expense did ihe Lord conduct his guests safely 
 
A METEOR KING. 
 
 51 
 
 to the Hague, where he bade farewell to them. 
 
 On a future day, when the sun shone again for 
 King Edward, His Alajesty displayed his gratitude in a 
 practical way to the Lord who had thus saved him from 
 death, added to debasement. The Holland Lord was 
 created Earl of Winchester. 
 
 Immediately after their touching leave-taking from 
 the Lord King Edv.ard sent forward the Duke of Glou- 
 cester to inform the Duke of Burgundy, the monarch's 
 brother-in-law, of his predicament. 
 
 First hearing of tlie king's presence in such solemn 
 plight, the Duke of Bergundy felt vexation and anxiety. 
 
 " Ye gods," expostulated Richard of Gloucester; he 
 is married to your wife's sister; yourself and His Maj- 
 esty are brothers, in law at all events. Duke. For the 
 love of duty do not permit the king of England to think 
 he is unwelcome." 
 
 In spite of the Duke of Burgundy's effort to appear 
 otherwise, the frigidity of his reception touched the exiled 
 sovereign to the quick. Here v/as he, thrown from for- 
 tune's highest pinnacle to sue for charity from his own 
 relations. More galling was this thought when he re- 
 membered that all had been wrought by his own weak- 
 ness and misconduct. 
 
 Being cut off from his old associations, however, 
 and thus cast upon his own resources, had a salutary ef- 
 fect upon His Majesty's nature. His sudden fall had 
 torn from him all that was enervating and had revivified 
 his innate energy of soul. 
 
 *' This adversity has remettled thee, my royal 
 brother," remarked the Duke of Gloucester, when he 
 noted the old fire in Edw^ard's eyes and heard him vow 
 to be avenged upon his enemies. 
 
 *^ Would to heaven 1 had come to my senses soon- 
 er !" exclaimed the king; ^^then this had not happened." 
 
 *' Which would have been a pity," put in Richard; 
 ^'for then you could not have had this purifying exper- 
 
 ience. 
 
 )) 
 
 " Had there been no dross, Dick," retorted Edward, 
 
52 A METEOR KING. 
 
 "then had we no need for the trying fire." 
 
 " Well said, Your Majesty," cried Hastings. 
 
 " The House of York is noted for its wit," quoth 
 Anthony Woodville. 
 
 " Aye, wit of the worthless sort," satirically ejacu- 
 lated the king. 
 
 " Clarence is the only Yorkist who can turn wit to 
 account," the Duke of Gloucester interposed. 
 
 " Verily, verily," said His Majesty; "his forte is wit 
 and Malmsey wine." 
 
 " Aye," quoth Gloucester, "he can tank more of that 
 inside himself than any dozen honest men." 
 
 " That means he is not honest," laughed Anthony. 
 
 "Methinks he has been outwitted by the Warwick 
 this time," Lord Hastings chuckled. 
 
 So, with such chat, the weary days wore on; and 
 king Edward and his brother Richard were impatient 
 and determined to renew once more their triumphs. 
 Fair battle was their one desire. 
 
 By-and-bye there came news from England that 
 there was trouble there. Warwick had fallen in a bed 
 of thorns. 
 
 Dymoke arrived, and soon sought out the king at 
 the residence of the Duke of Burgundy, iiie was greet- 
 ed joyfully. 
 
 " Bringest thou news?" asked King Edward. 
 
 " Yea, Your Majesty; from the Duke of Clarence. 
 He sends to tell Your Majesty that he but awaits your 
 coming to abandon Warwick and assist your cause with 
 several thousand men.'' 
 
 " This gives us courage somewhat," King Edward 
 spake. "Said the Duke of Clarence aught about our 
 letter to him during his sojourn in France?" 
 
 " He did. Your Majesty. At that time it had been 
 his purpose to cut loose from Warwick and return to his 
 allegiance to Your Majesty, his beloved brother, as he 
 was pleased to term Your Majesty." 
 
 " Why did he not, Dymoke ?" 
 
 " Warwick's plans were fully at maturity, he said; 
 
A METEOR KING. 53 
 
 so lie could not. He had to return to England with the 
 King-Maker against his will; so says the Duke of Clar- 
 
 ence.** 
 
 ** Forsooth ! Then why, in faith's name, did he not 
 forsake the traitor Warwick once the shores of England 
 were reached?" 
 
 " Ah, Your Majesty, the Duke says that was mere- 
 ly policy." 
 
 **^ A bastard policy; it was neither brotherly nor 
 valiant." 
 
 " As you say, Your Majesty; but he may be trusted 
 this time." 
 
 "Why?" 
 
 " Warwick has promised that he shall be declared 
 the heir-apparent to the crown of England if young Ed- 
 ward of Wales dies childless. That is perfidy; and 
 means nothing from the lips of Warwick. The Duke 
 of Clarence knows it, and is enraged. Even for his own 
 revenge he will support Your Majesty for at least a 
 time." 
 
 Dymoke's manner of speech and his eloquent ges- 
 tures had wonderful effect upon his listeners. All had 
 composed themselves to hearken to his tale of England's 
 woes, which he proceeded to relate, whilst his auditors' 
 faces bore unmistakable evidences of delight. 
 
 " Sudden and complete has been the revolution in 
 England, Your Majesty, as you have sorely felt," quoth 
 Dymoke; but just as sharp and as finished shall it be 
 again." 
 
 " A re-bouleversement, so to say," put in the Duke 
 of Burgundy. 
 
 Gleeful looks were exchanged. 
 
 " Subsequent to Your Majesty's retirement from 
 England," continued Dymoke, "Henry Sixth was 
 brought from his captivity in the tower; in name he be- 
 came once more the king of England; in fact, he was not. 
 Warwick and Clarence had executive power conferred 
 upon them by Margaret of Anjou, will Your Majesty 
 note? Worst of all, Henry Sixth was again reduced to 
 
54 A METEOR KING. 
 
 a state of imbecility most pitiful, but they would have 
 him out. This was in the month of October in the year 
 just gone, at the beginning of the month." 
 
 ** Aye, aye; the fateful 1470." 
 
 " The Bishop of Winchester, by the assent of the 
 Duke of Clarence and of the Earl of Warwick, went to 
 the Tower at London and took Henry from his keepers. 
 Then sent they forth a calumny — yea, it was a calumny, 
 Your Majesty — (here Dymoke made an outrageous facial 
 contortion) — that Henry was not arrayed as became a 
 prince; nor was he as clean, they said, Your Majesty, 
 as should be a prince. So they had him out and new 
 arrayed him. Thus they brought him to the Palace of 
 Westminster, and so he was restored to the crown of 
 England as a cloak for the arch-evil-doer Warwick!" 
 
 *^ Great God!^' ejaculated Gloucester. 
 
 "Although I say that the Earl of Warwick and the 
 Duke of Clarence have been declared protectors of the 
 realm during the minority of Edward Prince of Wales, 
 Your Majesty can guess that Wan\^ick is the voice of 
 the kingdom. His belittling of Your Majesty's brother 
 has played him right into Your Majesty's hands. Again 
 I repeat. Your Majesty, that the screaming part of the 
 farce is that in event of the dying of the prince without 
 issue the crown has been entailed upon the Duke of 
 Clarence. Who are they that can entail England's 
 crown upon any person, and at the same time proclaim 
 Your Majesty a usurper and the courageous Duke of 
 Gloucester an attainted outlav/ ? Their words are mere 
 sounds.'' 
 
 " So, so," quoth Gloucester. 
 
 " Your Majesty," vehemently spake Dymoke, "the 
 season has returned when the fruit is fully ripe to fall 
 into the grasp of the legitimate king. For myself, ycur 
 ^Majesty, I am sworn to do my doughtiest; and I shall ! 
 Long live Edward Fourth, sovereign of England!" 
 
 Then all rose up and cried together: 
 
 " Here stand we, thy lieges, King Edward of Eng- 
 land, prepared to pour our life's blood for the cause of 
 
A METEOR KING. 
 
 55 
 
 tlie truest !" 
 
 " Yes, yes," said the Duke of Burgundy; "Edward 
 recentlv so envied and feared, now denounced as a usur- 
 per by the usurpers, can rise again. I shall loan him 
 the funds if it take my final sou." 
 
 King Ed\vard was moved deeply; he grasped the 
 hand of the Duke of Burgundy in silence. 
 
 " How much will Your Majesty require?" asked the 
 Duke. 
 
 " We might make a start with five thousand guin- 
 eas," said the king. 
 
 " We shall make it fifty thousand francs," ejacula- 
 ted the Duke; "that's settled." 
 
 " How many men can we muster, Gloucester?" en- 
 quired the king. 
 
 "With the help of the Duke of Burgundy and of 
 the valiant Dymoke, I can raise three hundred men be- 
 side the two thousand that Your Majesty shall lead." 
 
 " A small force," quoth the king, "but. Heaven 
 helping us, w^e shall proceed to England; as David went 
 forth, dauntless, to slay the great Goliath of Gath." 
 
 Early in the month of March, 1471, King Edward 
 set sail from the Port of Vere, in the Island of Walcher- 
 en, with nearly two thousand men; and on the fourteenth 
 of that month he disembarked his little force at Raven- 
 spur in Yorkshire. As the last of the equipment came 
 ashore, Dymoke remarked: 
 
 "Your Majesty, here is a good omen — seventy-two 
 years ago Henry of Lancaster landed on this very spot, 
 w^hen he came to depose Richard Second. Edward 
 Fourth can turn the tables also, for the rule works either 
 way." 
 
 " Good !" laughed the king; "Dymoke you are a 
 brave fellow, and a good comforter. Job lacked men 
 like \ou." 
 
 D3mioke bowed low. 
 
 " Farther shall this analogy to Henry of Lancaster 
 be carried," spake the king. "Ride forth rapidly, 
 Dymoke, and disclaim that we have any design upon 
 
56 A METEOR KING . 
 
 the throne and crown. Say that our object at this re- 
 turn to England is merely to recover the inheritance to 
 which we are entitled as the Duke of York. Hold; tell 
 also the troops to dissimulate so far as to shout long live 
 King Henry — with an ardent mental reservation, of 
 course. Command that they do much of that shouting 
 in all the towns and villages through which we shall 
 pass. See; we shall decorate with this." 
 
 And King Edward plumed his helmet with an 
 ostrich feather, the device of his hated rival — Edward 
 Prince of Wales. 
 
 During the interim Richard of Gloucester had got 
 ashore at the head of his three-hundred men. His land- 
 ing had been made at a point about four miles from 
 Ravenspur. 
 
 Together these royal brothers began their seeming- 
 ly desperate march toward the south. Marching and 
 camping made up the tedium of the first few days. But 
 they were anxious ones to the king and Gloucester, for 
 progress was extremely discouraging when they noticed 
 that scarcely a single person of quality had joined the 
 king's standard. Some encouragement, though, existed 
 for the king in the fact that although the men of the 
 north kept aloof, still they permitted the unmolested 
 passage of the royal troops. 
 
 " At least they are neutral, if they do not side with 
 us," quoth the king; "which is all always an advantage." 
 
 " Aye, they await the turn of fortune in our favor," 
 vouchsafed Richard of Gloucester. 
 
 " We cannot go unmolested much longer," again 
 spoke King Edward," for tomorrow we pass within four 
 miles of Pomfret Castle, ^vhich is occupied by Warwick's 
 perfidious brother, whom we reduced to the title of Mar- 
 quis of Montagu when he revelled in the lands and 
 titles of the Percys. His force is a superior one. We 
 do not forget that his turning traitor compelled us to 
 flee from England." 
 
 " We are able," was Gloucester's laconic rejoin- 
 der, |*to make mince-meat of him." 
 
A METEOR KING. 
 
 57 
 
 Shortly Dymoke galloped up. Good news he 
 bn 'light. Quoth he: 
 
 *^ The Marquis of Montagu will keep his soldiers at 
 Ponifret Castle; so there will be no attack upon Your 
 Majesty from that quarter. I have the news from a 
 trusted emissary, Your Majesty." 
 
 His Majest}^ and the Duke of Gloucester laughed 
 merrily. 
 
 ^^ It seems as though our invasion is to be a peace- 
 ful one," remarked the king. 
 
 ^' By my word I shall fight Warwick!" cried Rich- 
 ard; "he shall be forced to battle, and we shall kill him 
 or take him prisoner." 
 
 Flashing of the young Duke's eyes showed that he 
 meant his words. 
 
 " Valorous Dick, we fear he is too powerful for your 
 tender arm," the king jocosely said. 
 
 " I share not your fear, 3^our Majesty. Let me but 
 meet the Kiug-maker on a fair field and I shall kill him 
 — or he kills me !'' 
 
 " Which he shall never do," remarked Dymoke with 
 
 grnn 
 
 sirrnificance. 
 
 o 
 
 Now came they to the Cit}^ of York. There was 
 some short parley at the gates; then they w^ere thrown 
 wide to admit King Edward and his soldiers. Thus had 
 the tide turned in favor of the invaders. 
 
 Right along circumstances kept improving. 
 
 No sooner had they reached Nottingham than Sir 
 William Stanley and Sir William Norres joined forces 
 with King Edward and the indomitable Duke of Glou- 
 cester, increasing their strength by nearly seven hun- 
 dred men. 
 
 Three thousand more men flocked to Edward^s 
 standard at Leicester. 
 
 Tims had the invasion been carried as far inland as 
 Warwick without the striking of a blow. Further satis- 
 faction was in store for King Edward at this City; for 
 his brother, the Duke of Clarence, carried out Dymoke's 
 predictions. 
 
58 
 
 A METEOR KING. 
 
 Clarence deserted to His Majesty with four thous- 
 and men. 
 
 So things went on. 
 
 Relying on his own and Gloucester's genius and 
 desperate valor, King Edward earnestly desired to do 
 battle with his enemies at the earliest opportunity. 
 
 '' Success on the field can be obtained by only in- 
 trepidity and proixiptitude/' remarked Richard of Glou- 
 cester. 
 
 *'Aye, aye," quoth the king, ^'let cowardice be fore- 
 ign to our vocabulary. To obtain victor}^ early in the 
 contest, Dick, is of vital importance toward our ultimate 
 success.'' 
 
 " That is a pregnant truth, Your Majesty," vouch- 
 safed the Duke; "we must be alive to the fact that delay 
 will give our foes time to concentrate their forces. If 
 my kingly brocher will accept a suggestion, let it be 
 
 that he challenge the arch-traitor Warv/ick to do im- 
 mediate battle." 
 
 " We had resolved on that course," said the l^ing; 
 then to D3mioke: 
 
 " The Earl of Warwick lies at Coven tr}'-, D^-moke, 
 does he not?" 
 
 *' He does, Your Majesty." 
 
 " His force, is it strong ?" 
 
 " In faith, 3^es, Your Majesty; superior to your 
 
 own. 
 
 }) 
 
 Edward ruminated, then: 
 
 " No matter," said he; "not only shall we risk an 
 engagement with his army, but we shall force a struggle 
 u].>on the King-AIaker!" 
 
 " Eravo!" cried Gloucester;" now speaks ni}^ brother 
 like unto his kingly self of old." 
 
 D3'moke soon thundered off with a challenge from 
 the king to the Earl of Warwick; nor did much time 
 elapse before he had returned. 
 
 ** What news?" demanded Edward. 
 
 " Your Majestv, the Earl of Warwick refuses to 
 fight." 
 
A METEOR KING. 
 
 59 
 
 The king and liis noblemen regarfed one another 
 in astonished silence. Richard of Gloucester was the 
 first to speak: 
 
 " It is a trick," he shouted, enraged. 
 
 " How, surely?'^ queried the king. 
 
 " To lead Your Majesty's army into ambush, should 
 we fall upon him; and to gain time for Margaret of 
 Anjou's troops to come.'' 
 
 '^ Then we shall press on to London rapidly," King 
 Edward said, determinedly. ^^We must wipe out that 
 other Neville traitor there, the Archbishop of York, who 
 masquerades in decorations of our bestowal." 
 
 Tremendous cheers greeted this speech, and cries of: 
 
 *Xong live King Edward." 
 
 Toward the English city of cities the march was 
 resumed, for there la}^ the key of the situation. All 
 were in confident hope that possession of the capital 
 would be obtained after little opposition. 
 
 So rapid had been the- progress of Edward's invad- 
 ing army, and so skilfully had the advance been con- 
 ducted, that King Edward and his legions had made 
 their way far into the midland counties before the news 
 of their landing even had reached the metropolis. 
 
 Great was the danger; for if London refused to re- 
 ceive King Edward, his discomfiture might be called 
 complete. Lord Hastings intimated this much to the 
 Duke of Gloucester. 
 
 " Na}^, but there is no such perad venture," retorted 
 Gloucester; *'Edv/ard is a favorite with the citizens of 
 London; they will not oppose his entry. As for the per- 
 fidious archbishop, he will coincide with the mass and 
 feign welcome to the king to save his traitorous head." 
 
 " Ah, yes," Anthony Woodville interposed"; the 
 city dames are enthusiastic in their admiration for a 
 prince so handsome and withal so affable. Many of these 
 fair ones have already been liberal with favors on the 
 king; others are ready to follow their example at a 
 glance of his bright eyes." 
 
 *^ You slander His Majesty, and he is not present," 
 
6o 
 
 A METEOR KING. 
 
 scornfully said the Duke of Gloucester. 
 
 " Also have their husbands powerful reasons for 
 wishing well to King Edward/^ interjected the Duke of 
 Clarence. 
 
 All but Richard laughed. 
 
 *^ Why so?" enquired the Duke of Gloucester, al- 
 ■ most angrily. 
 
 ** Well, you see,'^ explained the Duke of Clarence, 
 putting on a wily look, ''they are grateful to him, of 
 course, for the encouragement which His Alajesty ex- 
 tended to commerce.'' 
 
 '' You mean further," said Gloucester. 
 
 '' Maybe, yes." 
 
 '' Go on." 
 
 *' Not a trifling circumstance is it that His Majesty 
 is indebted to mau}^ of these rich Londoners for large 
 sums of money; to restore tiis ]\Iajesty to the crown is 
 their only hope for reimbursemeni-, vou see, Dicky, my 
 boy." 
 
 Richard but chewed his slim moustache; it irritated 
 him to be called ''Dicky, my boy," by Clarence; and 
 truth sometimes is bitter. 
 
 Lord Hastings hurried to add: 
 
 '' And those former gracious presents of royal veni- 
 son may not have been forgotten; nor the peaceful days 
 when, in the green glades of Hainault and in Windsor 
 forests, these city Magnates were regaled and flattered 
 by the most gallant and most fascinating king who ever 
 sat on Et>g;land's throne." 
 
 " Metbinks," quoth Richard, ''that Lord Hastings 
 hath himself been takins: lessens." 
 
 " ^ly words are truth," said Hastings sententiously. 
 
 " Aye, that be they," sneered the Duke of Clarence, 
 eyeing Richard of Gloucester cynically; "the gods be- 
 stowed the handsomeness provided for the children of 
 the Duke of York all upon King Edward.'' 
 
 " Faith, but I claim the others are not homely," 
 spo- e up Lord Hastings quickly, bowing to the Duke 
 of Gloucester. 
 
A METEOR KING, 
 
 6i 
 
 ** Perpaps not," persisted the Duke of Clarence; "at 
 all events they have been liberal in their bestowal of 
 wisdom upon my intrepid brother Richard. Why sit 
 thyself so silently, adolescent Dick ? Let us have a 
 sample of your wit." 
 
 ^' Perfidious fool," said Gloucester, with much feel- 
 ing; *'King Edward errs to place his faith in you." 
 
 Thus speaking, Richard spurred his horse and rode 
 away to join his own contingent of the army. 
 
 I was with Gloucester, Mr. Brains, and heard this 
 talk. I relate it to you because it exhibits well the 
 characters of the self-seeking snake Clarence and the 
 strong-minded Richard, who could thus curb his anger 
 with his will. 
 
 Again let me proceed: 
 
 Warwick the King-Maker showed no anxiety about 
 London^s fidelity to himself, for had he not entrusted 
 that great city^s care to his brother George Neville, the 
 Archbishop of York? He had not calculated the degrees 
 of cute diplomacy held by that same brother, however; 
 for, perforce, as the Duke of Gloucester had explained, 
 this priestly Neville was King Edward^s friend. 
 
 When His Majesty presented himself at the gates 
 of London, he was immediately invited to come within. 
 
 Richard of Gloucester and Dymoke were the royal 
 emissaries the first day of the invading army's approach 
 to the capital. This w^as the tenth of April, I remem- 
 ber v/el(. I rode close to the Duke's saddle. 
 
 Little parley was required. 
 
 Richard took possession of the Tower in King Ed- 
 ward's name, proclaiming that His Majesty would arrive 
 next day. 
 
 Like unto the turning of a kaleidoscope, London 
 became gay with flags and decoration. All the citizens 
 were enthusiastic. 
 
 Next day their gleeful joy culminated when, hand- 
 some and noble-looking. King Edward rode through the 
 city and took up his abode in the bishop's palace. 
 
 "Dick," His Majesty exclaimed to Gloucester, 
 
62 A METEOR KING. 
 
 shortly after his triumphal ride and while viewing the 
 gala appearance of the houses seen from a window of 
 the palace; "once more we feel that we are truly king of 
 England.'^ 
 
 " This is joyful, indeed," vouchsafed the Duke. 
 "Verily never before methinks has an expedition more 
 hazardous and apparently so desperate been crowned 
 with such unalloyed success. Just six months have 
 gone since Your Majesty escaped and landed in holland, 
 a fugitive. Truly, King Ned, you must stick to that 
 w^hich again 3^ou have won at so much daring and 
 anxiety.'* 
 
 King Edward moved his head thoughtfully, and: 
 
 " We can hardly realize," quoth he, "that it is only 
 twenty-eight days since we landed at Ravenspur; and 
 here we are in possession of the capital ! I think there 
 will be astonishment for Warwick." 
 
 "All goes well," said Gloucester; "soon shall I 
 have a chance to meet that arch-cabalist. We shall see 
 if he can once more refuse to fight." 
 
 " How" goes it with that unfortunate imbecile 
 Henry," King Edward asked. 
 
 " Clarence hath made him prisoner and hath return- 
 ed him to comfortable quarters in the Tower." 
 
 " S(. is he well." 
 
 Dymoke, in haste, was announced. 
 
 He spoke his news quickly. 
 
 " Warwick has been balked. Your Majesty," he 
 said; "now he marches on toward this place enraged. He 
 expects to find your forces camped outside the walls, his 
 sacerdotal brother holding out against Your Majesty.", < 
 
 " Let us march to meet him!" cried elatedly the 
 Duke of Gloucester. 
 
 "Aye, so be it," said the king. 
 
 And so they did. 
 
 They encountered the King-Maker, eleven miles 
 north from London, at Bamet, in Hertfordshire; and the 
 opposing forces engaged in battle on the fourteenth of 
 April in the year fourteen-seventy-one. 
 
 ,: ii j > M i )aji i )nj*f rt f i<wi 
 
A METEOR KING. 
 
 6S 
 
 Such fierce fighting as the king and the Duke of 
 Gloucester did that day is seldom recorded. 
 
 Their men were endued with the fer\^or of their 
 masters, especially those of Richard. His reckless valor 
 was appaling; his troops would not be outdone. 
 
 But through it all the Duke of Gloucester sought 
 to singly encounter the powerful Duke of VVarwick,that 
 veteran of war. 
 
 There was ghastly slaughtering of the Lancastrians; 
 their opponents' swords and bodies seemed forged into 
 one concretion of unyielding steel. 
 
 " York !" roared the Duke of Gloucester,as he clove 
 his track through the already faltering Lancastrians to- 
 ward the searched-f or King-Maker. *'York! You traitor, 
 that can fieht for Lancaster ! York ! You dastard hire- 
 ling." ^ 
 
 Like a hurricane the stripling Duke threw himself 
 upon the Earl of Warwick, amid sword-clashing and sur- 
 rounded by the fierce white faces of the combatants. 
 
 " An illustrious onslaught; one worthy of the House 
 of York," yelled the great Earl, almost transformed with 
 rage at the thought of impending defeat. '^Come not in 
 my way, rash youngster; I am in no mood to trifle. This 
 is a day for deeds of men, hark ye — Christ and the Vir- 
 gin !" 
 
 This blasphemous exclamation had resulted from 
 Richard's pell-mell attack on the Earl, who was forced 
 on his guard to parry the thrusts of his lithe opponent. 
 
 " You fight like the devil," growled Warwick,whose 
 helmet Richard had already battered much. 
 
 Warwick made a charge and a vicious lunge to rid 
 him of the active Duke. Gloucester swerved to avoid 
 the rush, but his horse stumbled on a pile of bloody 
 corpses and the two steeds collided with a stunning jar. 
 
 Both riders w^ere unhorsed. 
 
 Instantly their feet- were found, and each fell once 
 more upon the other. Fire flashed from swords and 
 helmets. 
 
 By his greater weight the Earl of Warwick threw 
 
64 A METEOR KING. 
 
 more force into his blows. Richard was nimble; but his 
 agility took him backward step by step,until they fought 
 a duel truly, without ere a second or a surgeon to look 
 on. 
 
 Gradually they had withdra^\^l from the heat of the 
 battle, all concerned there being too intent upon their 
 sanguinary labor to take notice of single combatants 
 
 On went the carnage; and on fought Warwick and 
 the Duke of Gloucester. 
 
 Nay, there were two pairs of eyes beholding them. 
 These belonged to the Duke of Clarence and to Dymoke. 
 Detaching themselves from the general melee, they rode 
 toward the duellists. 
 
 Dymoke could not trust this perfidious brother of 
 tlie king; and at that moment your humble servant also 
 found duty in yon part of the field. 
 
 " Fair play is a duel," quoth Dymoke under liis 
 breath. 
 
 Without a warning sound to the combatants, so 
 deeply engrossed in fencing for each others vitals, the 
 Duke of Clarence rode upon the two. Swinging in his 
 saddle, he plunged his sword in Warwick^s body from 
 behind. 
 
 ^* Great God ! What treachery !'' cried the Duke of 
 Gloucester, pale and panting. 
 
 Remorse for the horrible deed of his brother rent 
 his soul, although he had tried his fiercest to slay the 
 hero slain. Dropping his sword, he fell beside his re- 
 cent foe and raised his head. 
 
 " Bring water/' said the Duke. 
 
 Dymoke produced a flask. 
 
 ^* Never mind, brave Dick," faltered the dying War- 
 wick; **this is the end of the King-Maker. You fought 
 nobly; give me your hand; there — beware of false friends 
 — ambition — mind — is — death.*' 
 
 Thus died his greatness the Earl of Wanvick, foully 
 slain by a quondam friend, who even then stood by with 
 a superciliously 'aughing sneer upon his Jips. 
 
 D3^moke and Gloucester stood uncovered, their 
 
A METEOR KING. 
 
 65 
 
 swords asheath, whilst Clarence leaned upon his treach' 
 erousgory b'ade. 
 
 ** Of atl men the Duke of Clarence ought to have 
 been the last to do this coward's trick," quoth Richard, 
 addressing Dynioke. 
 
 ** I saved your life/' muttered Clarence, with satire 
 in his tone; "what would you?" 
 
 " That I had died, rather than see a nobleman so 
 grossly murdered." 
 
 " Methinks yourself w^as endeavoring to do the 
 same." 
 
 ** God forbid ! There is a difference between fair 
 fight and foul murder." 
 
 " Amen," said Dymoke. 
 
 Meanwhile the Lancastrians had been routed utter- 
 ly. Shrilly the bugle-calls of the pursuivants rang out, 
 and the Yorkists desisted from the slaughter of their 
 fellow-countrymen. Pursuers returned and fell into the 
 ranks. 
 
 King Edward rode to his brothers and Dymoke, 
 where we stot'd about the assassinated Earl, Edward 
 leaped from his horse, affected to his heart. 
 
 ** He w^as our enemy," said he; "but once he was 
 our friend; may he repose most peacefully." 
 
 The Duke of Clarence laughed with harshness. 
 
 " Your ribaldry is not opportune, our brother 
 George," the king rebuked him. 
 
 " These people who curse a man while yet he lives 
 and bless him when he dies are an enigma to my brain." 
 
 " You never had a brain." 
 
 " Ah, no; I had forgotten; our brother Richard got 
 all that. But, methinks. King Edward, that you owe 
 me something more than angry words for ridding Your 
 Majesty of such a mighty foe." 
 
 " For ridding me ?" 
 
 " Yea, t'was he," quoth Gloucester; "remark where 
 the blood poured forth. He stabbed him from behind, 
 and unawares; he murdered him." 
 
 " Have it as j^ou will,'' sneered Clarence; "albeit,he 
 
66 A METEOR KING. 
 
 is dead. I owed him a grudge for playing fast and 
 loose with me; he cannot do that any more. I am satis- 
 fied." 
 
 Sheathing his sword, he mounted his horse and let 
 it jog away. 
 
 " Dymoke, search for the Earl's retainers," order- 
 ed the king; ^4iave them bear his body from the field." 
 
 Nor did Dymoke delay to carry out the king's de- 
 sire; so that the great Earl of Warwick received that 
 burial which became a gallant nobleman, in the mauso- 
 leum of his ancestors, none of whom had equalled in lus- 
 tre the newly-encoffined scion of the famous House. 
 
 Little dreamed Margaret of x\njou as she landed at 
 Wf^ymouth that her chief ally that very day was being 
 arranged for his entry into the charnel house. Swift 
 couriers soon brought her the news, however, of the dis- 
 aster which had befallen her cause at Barnet; and she 
 grieved for the death of Warwick, not that she loved 
 him, but because his going meant almost hopelessness 
 for the cause of Henry Sixth, whose energetic and am- 
 bitious spouse she was. 
 
 Yet did she not utterly despair. 
 
 With those Lancaster allies who still were faithful, 
 she marched toward Wales. There she hoped to join 
 the Earl of Pembroke and his Welsh levies. 
 
 Day and night she pressed forward her troops, tak- 
 ing barely time to rest. Rapid as was her movement, 
 there were others too nimble to let the ex-queen pass un- 
 challenged. 
 
 King Edward and his legions, the intrepid Richard 
 ever with him, intercepted her progress. When her 
 forces reached Tewkesbury, there were King Edward's 
 soldiers, prepared to offer battle. 
 
 Margaret refused to recognize a useless venture; 
 so, on May 4th, 147 1, began that memorable struggle 
 which ended in the total overthrow for the Lancastrians. 
 
 Richard of Gloucester here again proved his re- 
 markable intrepidity. He fought like a man with 
 charmed life. Reckless apparentl}^, yet he emerged from 
 
A METEOR KING. 
 
 67 
 
 the battle unscratclied. 
 
 As quickly as Margaret of Anjou recognized that 
 the tide of battle had gone irretrievably against her, she 
 and her ladies fled. They sought and found refuge in a 
 neighboring convent, whence they were taken as prison- 
 ers by officers of the king. 
 
 *^ Tell me'', craved ]\Iargaret, "have you heard aught 
 of my son, the Prince of Wales ?" 
 
 Dymoke advanced, his head bared, and said: 
 
 " Your son, my lady, whom you called Prince Ed- 
 ward, I grieve to tell thee, was slain fighting bravely in 
 single combat with the Duke of Clarence." 
 
 One of the prettiest young ladies in the room swoon- 
 ed. She was a widow. Hov/ short her wedded life had 
 been, and fraught with so much trouble ! Ex-queen 
 Margaret but bowed her head and wept. 
 
 Immediately she dried her e3^es, and, speaking 
 calmly, said: 
 
 ^' Lead on; I care not where ye take us. Life for 
 me is lived." 
 
 So was she incarcerated; nor was she released for 
 close upon five years. You have heard, Mr. Brains, 
 how she was ransomed in 1476 by French Louis. 
 
 Harmonizing with the people,the weather apparent- 
 ly did its best to glorify King Edward when he returned 
 to London on May 20th, 1471. Spring was regal as 
 she can be only in England. Sunshine glinted from 
 the house-tops, from the pavements, from the river. Old 
 Thames seemed silvered especially for the occasion. 
 
 Edward's reception everywhere was enthusiastic 
 and magnificent. 
 
 Gloomy was the contrast in the tower; for there sat 
 the idiotic Henry, brooding, ever brooding; sunshine but 
 added to his misery. Full well he knew that he would 
 walk abroad in it no more. His keepers were harsh,but 
 he did not seem to reck. 
 
 This ill-starred and dethroned monarch became sub- 
 ject of discussion between King Edward and his 
 brothers. 
 
68 A METEOR KING. 
 
 '* Richard of Gloucester'^ was the ting but saying, 
 * Vhat shall we do with Henry Sixth ? He is old and 
 crazy. We fear he cannot live to prove annoyance to us 
 long — but in the interim ?" 
 
 ^* Sentence him to death for treason," interpolated 
 the Duke of Clarence, accompanying his speech with a 
 grin. 
 
 " Heartless wretch ! We adjure your horrid speech 
 to cease," quoth the king. *SVe would confer with 
 Richard; him was addressed." 
 
 *^ Let him have proper food, attention and fresh air; 
 a priest to utter consolation. He was ever of a churchy 
 trend," the Duke of Gloucester answered. 
 
 " I did but joke," spoke Clarence; "brother Richard 
 speaks my thoughts." 
 
 Had Satan tried he could not have invented a more 
 sardonic laugh than that one used so often by the Duke 
 of Clarence. True merriment and him were not akin. 
 Thus when he now relieved himself and added emphasis 
 to his lying words with such harsh cachinnation, both 
 King Edward and the Duke of Gloucester knew he was 
 insincere. 
 
 Perhaps King Edward had covert reasons for his 
 course, but when next he spoke he said: 
 
 " Clarence, we commission you to see carefully to 
 the making comfortable of the idiot Henry. Gloucester 
 goes to oversee the housing of our troops. Let these 
 things be done, as ye love us." 
 
 Scrupulously well did the Duke of Clarence carry 
 out his orders from the king. Next day came word, 
 whilst he and Gloucester were with the monarch, that 
 the unfortunate inbecile had died of grief and melan- 
 choly. 
 
 " King Edward glanced menacingly at his brother 
 George, and: 
 
 *^ Foul doing !" he vouchsafed. 
 
 *^ None of mine," added Clarence, with his chronic 
 sneer. 
 
 ^* How looked Henr}' yestereve?" 
 
A METEOR KING. 
 
 69 
 
 " Dirty, ill-clad and sick." 
 
 " What did you ?" 
 
 " Ordered his keepers to give him a bathe, and to 
 put whole clean garments upon him.'* 
 
 " Moreover?'* 
 
 " To be careful not to get his head below the water 
 in the bath, or he might peradventure drown." 
 
 " Gave you those orders as from the king?" 
 
 " Aye, did I; and recompensed the villains well, 
 also." 
 
 " You meant that they should understand your king 
 desired that they should end their prisoner's life ?" 
 
 " If Your Majesty will have it so." 
 
 " What vengeance could you have to w^reak upon a 
 being so childish as poor crazy Henry ?" 
 
 " We cannot tell; some day he might have been 
 again made king." 
 
 ** What w^ould that matter to the Duke of Clarence?" 
 
 "Yes, yes; what would it matter?" 
 
 Here came again the sneer. 
 
 ** Richard of Gloucester," remarked His Majesty, 
 and turned toward his younger brother; "see to it that 
 Henry Sixth hath decent burial." 
 
 ** Shall the *melancholy-and-grief ' explanation of his 
 demise be sent abroad, Your Majesty ?" asked Clarence. 
 
 " So, so," said the king; "they will not believe it; 
 but they will not openly complain, methinks." 
 
 The Duke of Clarence chuckled until his face grew 
 piirple at these words of the king. 
 
 Richard was grieved; yet still he thought there was 
 better safety in the death of Henry Sixth, so long as 
 King Edward nor himself were blood-guilty. The im- 
 becile's life had been much a living death. 
 
 Gloucester accordingly gave orders to have the body 
 of the late king Henry en-cofl&ned and displayed before 
 the populace at St. Paul's. From there the remains 
 were solemnly removed, and were conveyed by water to 
 Chertsey Abbey for interment. 
 
 Shortly afterward Kind Edward heard some gossip 
 
TO A METEOR KING. 
 
 which roused his ire toward the Duke of Clarence. It 
 was said that that worthy was intriguing for the crown; 
 even had it been hinted that he was concocting schemes 
 to get rid of not only King Edward but also his son and 
 heir-apparent, young Prince Edward. 
 
 Conscience could not deter this over-ambitious 
 Clarence from evil deeds. 
 
 Edward was fain to trust him, but he feared that 
 these distasteful rumors might prove too true, judging 
 from past actions of his perfidious brother George. 
 
 " What think you, Gloucester, of these rumors ? Of 
 a truth they annoy us," spake the king. 
 
 " King Ned," quoth Gloucester, "you know the 
 calibre of our brother George. Give these rumors all 
 the credence they deserve; be, at all events,aware. Only 
 security is safe." 
 
 ** Shall we commit him to the Tower?" 
 
 " Leave me to investigate. If the king desire my 
 council. His Majesty must let me be informed. I am 
 no jumper-to-conclusions." 
 
 " If; there is no if; we do wish the counsel of our 
 wise brother. Follow that course which seems proper 
 to yourself, then report." 
 
 " Fear not immediate danger from that source,King 
 Ned. I shall do as you command. He is here, under 
 our supervision. Your Majesty has more to fear from 
 Henry." 
 
 ** The exiled Earl of Richmond," completed Ed- 
 ward. 
 
 " A5^e; yes; forsooth,*' quoth Gloucester, nodding 
 his head many times and frowning deeply. *'He may be 
 considered Your Majesty's only rival." 
 
 " He is the sole surviving representative of the 
 House of Lancaster," reflectively proceeded the king. 
 *^We are aware he has fled the country; mayhap, Dick, 
 yourself have learned his hiding place ?" 
 
 *' That have I. He has found asylum with the 
 Duke of Bretagne." 
 
 " What a God-send to England is that country call- 
 
A METEOR KING. 71 
 
 ed France !" 
 
 " Yea, it harboreth the emasculated viper until his 
 sting grows forth again, that he may strike afresh," 
 quoth Gloucester. 
 
 ** We dare not then complain; we have been har- 
 bored there," laughed the king. 
 
 ** So have w^e," admitted Richard. 
 
 " Again," cried Edward, after a brooding space, *4t 
 has been tributary to our crown; we swear thus shall it 
 be again. But, Gloucester, a revenos a nous mouton, as 
 that country^s language says: what about yon Rich- 
 mond ?" 
 
 " Let Your Alajesty send an embassy to the Duke 
 of Bretagne, requesting that he surrender the Earl of 
 Richmond to Your Majesty; not as a prisoner, but in 
 order that he may resume the position and receive the 
 honors to which his rank entitles him." 
 
 ^* Good !" commented the king; **also shall we add 
 that it is our desire that he should marry our daughter." 
 
 " Surely then," quoth Gloucester, "they cannot but 
 believe our faith is sound toward him." 
 
 Both laughed; and w^ith that the Duke of Clarence 
 entered. 
 
 " How now?" he shouted. "What causeth all this 
 merriment?" 
 
 King Edward looked at Gloucester. 
 
 " This is a secret for two," remarked the Duke of 
 Gloucester. 
 
 " Ah, but," spoke Clarence, with an accompanying 
 leer, **methinks the Earl of Richmond should be made 
 a secret of three at least." 
 
 ** Eavesdropper!" roared King Edward. 
 
 " Paul Pry," sneered Richard. 
 
 " It matters not," quoth Edward; "tell him all, 
 Gloucester." 
 
 " Not I, forsooth; albeit Your Majesty command it." 
 
 " We shall not command it; he hath overheard.'* 
 
 " Now Your Majesty speaks sense, like the man 
 who admitted he was in the river when well-nigh was he 
 
72 A METEOR KING. 
 
 drowned," said the Duke of Clarence. 
 
 " Yourself; we hear evil whisperings of the Duke of 
 Clarence," quoth the king in anger. 
 
 *' Believe not all you hear; nor yet eat all you see, 
 Your Majesty. These rumors are but the breath of a 
 scandal, meant to turn Your Majesty against a loving 
 brother.*' 
 
 Thus said the Duke of Clarence in a slippery tone. 
 
 King Edward sat silent for a moment, then he said: 
 
 " Prove your fealty, brother George." 
 
 " But show the way, Your Majesty; then shall I, 
 willingly." 
 
 " Bring to me the Earl of Richmond." 
 
 " That deed requires much shrewdnesc; methinks 
 *tis Gloucester could best accomplish it." 
 
 ** But Clarence must,*' peremptorily concluded King 
 Edward. 
 
 " We bow with gratitude," quoth Clarence; "and 
 haste to do the sovereign's will. Sedulously shall I re- 
 hearse the honied words which treat of position, honors 
 and marriage with the daughter of England's greatest 
 king. I go immediately. Adieu, Your Majesty; fare 
 thee well, astute and gallant Richard." 
 
 Then he went out and straightway embarked for 
 France with other nobles as embassadors to Bretagne. 
 
 Well was their case presented; the Duke of Bretagne 
 consented to let his exile visitor depart; escorted by the 
 courteous embassadors As they rode forth: 
 
 ** One word !" exclaimed the Duke cf Clarence to 
 the good-humored Duke of Bretagne, as though a sudden 
 thought had caught him; and back went he to whisper: 
 
 " There is treachery. The Duke of Gloucester hath 
 advised the king to entice the Earl to England; then to 
 slay him." 
 
 Off rode Clarence with that after his cavalcade of 
 nobles. 
 
 Not many leagues farther had the party proceeded, 
 before the Duke of Bretagne and a goodly following 
 rode up and called upon the Englishmen to halt. They 
 
A METEOR KING. J3 
 
 did so. 
 
 Everyone but Clarence was wide-eyed with wonder. 
 Even Richmond seemed astonished. 
 
 " I cannot let him go ; my purpose has changed 
 meanwhile," explained the Duke of Bretagne. "The 
 Earl of Richmond, I beg, shall join my party and return 
 with me.'^ 
 
 "We cannot permit this," cried Lord Hastings. 
 
 There was delay. 
 
 " Well, well; well, well," began sly Clarence. "Let 
 there be no strife. The Duke of Bretagne no doubt has 
 proper aims. I deem it, though, he has not had faith in 
 England^sking." 
 
 Accordingly the Earl of Richmond stayed in 
 France. 
 
 So much did the Duke of Bretagne fear treachery 
 that he had the Earl of Richmond placed for securit}^ in 
 the sanctuary of a church. 
 
 Through the perfidy of the Duke of Clarence was 
 Richard of Gloucester's "viper'' left to regain his sting. 
 In this case there had been but embryo sting ; destined 
 not to reach maturity for years. 
 
 Perhaps Clarence himself had a sinister intent. It 
 suited not his purpose then to have the Earl of Rich- 
 mond removed. 
 
 " Wait until I am the last Plantagenet, and then 
 — " he muttered. 
 
 He augured not that it was for his brother Richard 
 that he had left this "viper" to mature. 
 
 King Edward was angered fiercely when he heard 
 how his attempt to lay hold upon the final adherent of 
 the red rose had been foiled. Suspicion that his brother 
 George had not acted honestly grew strong within His 
 Majesty. 
 
 O pshaw, but why should I waste time in detail ? 
 
 Sire Brains, you know how King Edward, aided 
 much by the prowess of the Duke of Gloucester, car- 
 ried out his threat to again bring France into allegiance 
 to the English crown ; how he allied himself with Char- 
 
74 A METEOR KING. 
 
 les the Bold of Burgundy and brought Louis the Ele- 
 veuth to treat with him on that historic bridge where the 
 grating was erected, because each could not trust the 
 other. 
 
 Who has not heard of the remarkable and perhaps 
 questionable modes made use of by King Edward to raise 
 money for his many wars ? 
 
 Through it all there continually cropped out the 
 perfidious harassments of the Duke of Clarence, who 
 never ceased to intrigue that he might gain the crown. 
 Richard of Gloucester was his thwarter every time ; for 
 well did Richard care for the safety of his sovereign 
 brother. 
 
 At length came a time when forbearance was ex- 
 hausted. 
 
 During these years another son had been bom to 
 King Edward, so that Clarence saw his purpose of com- 
 ing to the throne becoming daily harder to accomplish. 
 He resolved on a desperate measure, for he was getting 
 up in years. None other than to murder the princes 
 was his plot ; then to hire assassination for the king. 
 
 Subtly he contrived to suborn a member of the 
 king's household to poison slowly the children. 
 
 They began to fail. Listlessness displanted brisk- 
 ness. 
 
 Strangest of all, the Duke of Clarence became a 
 regular galliard. Often and deep j rank he of his favor- 
 ite Malmsev wine. 
 
 Gloucester noted the changes; nor was he long be- 
 fore he unearthed the devil's scheme, and laid it bare 
 before King Edward. 
 
 Quickly the poisoning menial was hanged, drawn 
 and quartered; the Duke of Clarence was cast into the 
 Tower of London to await his trial. 
 
 No sooner had the Duke of Clarence been imprison- 
 ed than he seemed to fling up all hope of ever reaching 
 the crow^n and the throne. Inebriety took an unrestrain- 
 ed hold upon him ; for he was allowed wine ad libitum. 
 Carousals with his keepers were the order of the night 
 
A METEOR KING. 75 
 
 — and day too, for that matter. Playing cards and drink- 
 ing were their pastimes. 
 
 Thus did the days go by, until the night of Feb- 
 ruary 19th, 1478. arrived. 
 
 More a galliard than ever did the Duke of Clarence 
 feel that night ; but this mien was merely an artificial 
 gaiety and briskness, bom of despair. He knew his 
 days were numbered. 
 
 Revelry held high carnival. When the clock 
 struck eleven the trio were extremely tipsy; especially 
 the two keepers. They were sleepily drunk. 
 
 " Hi, keeper," hiccoughed the Duke, **fill-ill-lup this 
 jug with Mam'sy ^gain, can^t you ?" 
 
 No response. 
 
 '^ You hear ? Fill up this jug with Mam'sy 'gain." 
 
 Both the keepers snored. 
 
 " Drunk; theyVe drunk. That Mam'sy butt's 
 where ? Lem see. Ah ! Dukie Clarence, you'll have t' 
 fill 't 'self — jug I mean — not butt," 
 
 He lurched and tottered out of the room with the 
 wine-jug in his right hand, guiding his equivocal pro- 
 gression with his left on chairs and walls, or whatever 
 support came handy. By-and-bye he entered a narrow 
 passage, damp glistening furtively from the black stone 
 of its walls in retort to a dim and flickering rush-light, 
 stuck on a bracket far toward the end of the gloomy 
 corridor. 
 
 " Boo-oo-o",sounded from the lips of the tipsy Duke; 
 " 't is ghastly here; have t' sing t' frighten bogles 
 'way." 
 
 His cracked and unsteady voice broke out: 
 
 ^^ He dud whissilun she dud singun all t' bellsun 
 earth dud ring for Jos'phun his fair ladie-ee-e !" 
 
 " Jos'ph; w^onder who's Jos'ph ? Dukie Clarence, 
 gott}^ go t' bottom o' these dirty steps." 
 
 He began, with drunken care, to descend to a lower 
 level. He reached the foot in safety, laughed bibulous- 
 ly at his own seeming nimbleness, planted the jug upon 
 the hard floor, and somewhat majestically performed a 
 
76 A METEOR KING. 
 
 -r — - - I III I 
 
 minuet around and in its vicinity, to prove to himself 
 that he was quite sober and full-witted. 
 
 This cellar was redolent of the Thames and rats, 
 and was even damper and more gruesome than the cor- 
 ridor above. Here flickered another rude rush-light, ap- 
 pearing to merely enhance the gloom. Over in a cor- 
 ner stood, upon a trestle-and-plank scaffold, a huge butt 
 of Malmsey wine. Toward this meandered the Duke, 
 having again secured possession of his jug. 
 
 Already had the great barrell been tapped. The 
 Duke tried to turn the spigot. Whether he was too 
 tipsy or whether it was difficult to move, it would be hard 
 to say; nevertheless, not one drop of Malmsey could the 
 Duke draw off. Drunken despair took hold of him; he 
 gazed helplessly around. His look fell upon a big 
 sledge-hammer and a diminutive ladder, just tall enough 
 to reach the top of the stubborn vat. 
 
 Deliberately and with bacchanalian precision once 
 more did he deposit his jug upon Lhe ground. 
 
 Accompanying his manipulation of the ladder came 
 from his lips a number of admonitory speeches. 
 
 " Lrl-ladder", said he, "stan' up. There ladder, 
 yuccan stan* 'f yul-like, can' you ? Yes 1-1-ladderk un 
 Stan' ; no, ladderk un fall !" 
 
 Which was the truth, for both ladder and Duke slid, 
 toppling over. 
 
 After repeated essays, however, the ladder was set; 
 the Duke smashed in the top of the butt with the heavy 
 hammer. He knew naught of vents ; all he desired was 
 to get at the wine. Stepping cautiously to the floor, he 
 procured his jug and reascended. He balanced himself 
 for a moment at the top, then ventured to dip his vessel 
 into the big barrel. 
 
 Out went his feet; he tipped headlong into the 
 liquor. 
 
 A gurgle ; a little scuffle. 
 
 In the morning his keepers found the feet of the 
 Duke projecting from the top of the butt; they hauled 
 him out ; he was dead. 
 
A METEOR KING. 77 
 
 His Royal Highness Prince George, the Duke of Clar- 
 ence, otherwise George Plantagenet, had been accident- 
 ally drowned in a butt of Malmsey wine, his favorite 
 liquor, which catastrophe annulled the state trial to be 
 he d and gave much relief to the ruling Monarch, also to 
 Richard of Gloucester, v/hose keen vigil the deceased 
 Duke had so much needed. 
 
 Surely the Duke of Clarence could not have died in 
 a more pleasant way. Just think ; in a sea of wine ! 
 
 Fate, as the mortals call that something which they 
 do not comprehend, was rapidly clearing the way for 
 the *'Meteor King*^ of Penelope. 
 
 More and more every day did the Duke of Glouces- 
 ter become King Edward's adviser. All the best laws 
 which His Majesty framed may be said to have been 
 propounded by Richard of Gloucester. 
 
 Events flowed evenly for five years after the tragic 
 death of the Duke of Clarence ; then was Gloucester 
 stricken with grief, for his beloved brother the king 
 passed onward to the realm of spirit. 
 
 That was the day, the ninth of April, 1483, when 
 the City of London was being made dreary by rain and 
 mud ; then came the demise of Edward. 
 
 Death struck suddenly. Edward, ever fond of lux- 
 ury and high living, had become quite apoplectic. 
 
 Had those days been these, it would have been said 
 that the king died of heart-failure, induced by Bright's 
 disease of the kidne3^s, whence had emanated a compli- 
 cation of disorders. 
 
 Young Edward, the heir, was but a mere boy. He 
 had been born in Westminster Abbey, on November 
 third, 1470, while his illustrious father was in exile ; 
 hence the prince was in but his thirteenth year. 
 
 Richard of Gloucester was at his seat of govern- 
 ment in the north when the tidings reached him that 
 his brother the king was dead. That he truly loved him 
 there is no doubt; for I was present, and saw his soul 
 bowed down with genuine grief at a time when dissem- 
 bling was unnecessary. 
 
78 A METEOR KING. 
 
 Yea ; but I had studied the moods of Richard long 
 enough to know when the outward signs were indices to 
 the hearths content. He could dissemble with a ven- 
 geance ; but whene'er his voice-tones touched my ear 
 that instant could I say : 
 
 " Ha, the Duke speaks vainly"; or 
 
 " Now then his soul is torn." 
 
 Many were those he might deceive ; but not, Sire 
 Brains, myself, IVe sworn. 
 
 Richard and the noblemen of his party at once be- 
 gan to cogitate on the succession. 
 
 The Duke of Buckingham and Lord Hastings w^ere 
 friends to my noble Duke of Gloucester, ostensibly. 
 They were pocket-friends. They but advised our Rich- 
 ard to the course which served their own ends best. 
 
 Thirteen-year-old Edward was proclaimed king by 
 order of the Council, his ruling title being Edward the 
 Fifth. 
 
 Messengers were despatched to Ludlow Castle to 
 bring his Young Majesty to London. 
 
 His mother, the Queen Elizabeth, desired her 
 brother. Earl Rivers, to levy an army in the vicinity of 
 Ludlow and on the border of Wales to escort the young- 
 ster on his journey, but Lord Hastings and his adher- 
 ents in the Council objected strongly. They desired 
 that not too much power and eclat be so soon bestowed 
 where it would redound to the glory of the hated Wood- 
 villes. 
 
 They had other fish to fry. 
 
 After a deal of wrangling it was finally resolved 
 that the escort for Edward should consist of merely 
 twenty-thousand men. 
 
 Dear ; Oh, dear ; God bless you. Sire Brains. I tell 
 you that, despite the fact that the late king had assem- 
 bled the leaders of the two factions around his death- 
 bed and had prevailed upon them to swear reconciliation 
 and fealty to each other, yet had they sworn with a 
 deadly mental reservation. 
 
 Here alread}^ was a struggle inevitable. 
 
A METEOR KING. 79 
 
 Rankling still in the memories of the Lords of Nor- 
 man decent was the insolent pride of some of the up- 
 start peers. 
 
 Both parties eschewed their oaths to the dying king 
 and prepared for the impending contest. 
 
 Abetted and aided strongly by the other members 
 of the Woodville family, the queen schemed to retain- 
 the functions of government during the minority of Eds 
 ward the Fifth. Contrariwise, the great body of noble, 
 and prelates determined to prevent the schemers success. 
 
 With all of this the Duke of Buckingham and Lord 
 Hastings kept the Duke of Gloucester perfectly famil- 
 iar ; and they artfully insinuated time and again that 
 there was but one rightful man in England powerful 
 enough to assume the Protectorship — that was the 
 Duke of Gloucester. 
 
 Meanwhile the days had not been passing unused 
 Richard had ordered us to mass a retinue of six-hund- 
 red horsemen, and we had done so. 
 
 Never shall I forget that 29th of April when we set 
 out for London. Richard rode moodily along, his chin 
 upon his breast. He had appointed to meet Bucking- 
 ham and Hastings at Northampton, and all along the 
 way to there he took part in religious ceremonials on be- 
 half of his dead brother. 
 
 Not far were we from Northampton when a caval- 
 cade hove into view in front, riding to meet us. These 
 proved to be the Earl of Rivers, brother of the queen, 
 and Sir Richard Gray, her son by her first marriage, 
 and their retinues, who had come upon the road to greet 
 the Duke of Gloucester. 
 
 Their speech was affable enough, but methought 
 that Richard^s voice had not the golden ring of faith. 
 He was annoyed when he learned that they had sent the 
 young king on to Stony Stratford, as if they feared that 
 he should encounter his uncle. 
 
 Part of the conversation of the three I did not hear, 
 as we rode into Northampton, until presently the Duke 
 of Gloucester raised his tone in authoritative argument : 
 
8o A METEOR KING. 
 
 "Your talk may be correct,'* said he ; "but these un- 
 seemly quarrels but rend ourselves," 
 
 Gloucester resolved and did. 
 
 He was one of the first to swear allegiance to his 
 nephew, and throughout Yorkshire his example was 
 generally followed. 
 
 No time lost he before he wrote a letter oi' condol- 
 ence to the queen. Indeed, I know it, he even made 
 overtures of amity to her relatives, whom I knew he de- 
 tested most heartily. 
 
 I gathered that Rivers and Gray had remained at 
 Northampton to await the Duke of Gloucester and sub- 
 mit to him their arrangements for the entry of young 
 King Edv/ard into London ; hence the reason for their 
 meeting us upon the road. 
 
 Affability personified was the Duke of Gloucester 
 as he invited Gray and Rivers to dine with him in 
 Northampton, but I could read from his manner that he 
 had taken umbrage at what he deemed their ofiicious- 
 ness ; for alread}^ the specious phrases of Buckingham 
 and Hastings had begun to arouse the green-eyed demon 
 in his heart ; which became all the easier from the fact 
 that he bore these Woodvilles no special love, although 
 he strove manfully not to let his feelings bias him. 
 
 The Duke of Buckingham and Lord Hastings were 
 ann('Unced shortly after dinner, and they bowed to the 
 two Woodvilles with cold formality, putting a more 
 genial tenor into their greeting of Richard. 
 
 " We would speak a word with the Duke of Glou- 
 cester apart," said Buckingham immediately. 
 
 Rivers and Gray withdrew ; then said Buckingham: 
 
 " These cursed Woodvilles are carrying a high 
 hand ; the Duke of Gloucester may not know that the 
 Marquis of Dorset has seized upon the King's Treasures 
 and is using the powers attached to his high ofiice as 
 Admiral of England to equip a naval force in aid of the 
 Woodville party." 
 
 " Well,;well," quoth Richard musingly ; "he is the 
 queen's brother; also uncle of the young king; but he is 
 
A MET EOR KING. 8i 
 
 too forward.^* 
 
 " True, true," Lord Hastings commented. 
 
 ** Allow them now to gain advantage, and England's 
 noblemen may soon become but paupers, or alien exiles. 
 Richard of Gloucester they fear the greatest ; his dowTi- 
 fail will they seek the earliest." 
 
 So spake Buckingham ; and Richard strode the 
 floor, with his under-lip pursed out, thinking furiously. 
 I could see the clamor of the contending forces of his 
 intellect depicted on his countenance ; at last his face 
 grew stern. 
 
 " Right !" he exclaimed ; "there is no time to be 
 lost. We shall act on the instant. Our first step—" 
 
 He paused. 
 
 " Arrest Rivers and Gray," spoke Buckingham and. 
 Hastings in a breath. 
 
 This was done. 
 
 Rivers and Gray were arrested early the following 
 morning, and, under a strong guard, were sent to Ponte- 
 fract. 
 
 Richar went immediately to Stonj'' Stratford; and 
 I saw him myself bow his knee before the young mon- 
 arch and do him homage. 
 
 " Arise^ good Uncle Richard," said the king" ; it 
 pleases me to see 3'ou." 
 
 Then Richard chatted with him, and shortly with- 
 drew, having noticed that all the attendants of the kin^ 
 were partisans of the Woodvilles. 
 
 Buckingham and Hastings that night had, at their 
 own and Richard's desire, all the loyal youth's confiden- 
 tial serv^ants arrested and despatched after Rivers and 
 Gray. 
 
 Our journey to London was resumed, Gloucester 
 now having taken charge of the young king. 
 
 Great was the acclaim of our progress. Everpvhere 
 along the road Edward and his uncle were received with 
 unstinted enthusiasm. 
 
 Finally, at Hornsey, the Lord Mayor and Alder- 
 men of L^mdon, arrayed in their official robes and ac- 
 
82 A METEOR KING. 
 
 companied by over five-liundred mounted citizens dressed 
 in purple govras, met the cavalcade ; and we n^ere led 
 into the metropolis amid all possible display of pomp 
 and rejoicing on May 4th, 1483. I have seen many fetes, 
 but none ever impressed me as being more hearty than 
 that which welcomed to London England's youthful 
 king. 
 
 What necessity is there for me to relate at length 
 these incidents which have become but details of his- 
 tory ? 
 
 The queen, as soon as she became apprised of the 
 fact that her brother and her son had been arrested at 
 Nr^i thampton, sought sanctuary at Westminster with 
 her other son, the Duke of York, who was then but 
 eleven years old. 
 
 Well would it have been for the unfortunate widow 
 if she could have at this time taken both her sons and 
 fled from Britain, for already the conspirators were at 
 work encompassing the destruction of those innocent 
 babes, for whose death Richard was to be maligned. 
 
 On the arrival of the Duke of Gloucester at his 
 residence in Crosby Place, Bishopsgate, he found it 
 thronged with nobles and prelates, assembled there to 
 tell him how delighted they were at the blow which had 
 been struck at the detested Woodvilles. Here did they 
 openly speak of the Pretectorship being assumed by 
 Gloucester, such a procedure being taken for granted as 
 a matter of course. 
 
 I had not much opportunity to obseri'e, but what I 
 had I made good use of. I could see that the duke was 
 flushed and elated, being somewhat carried out of him- 
 self by the overwhelming adoration which w^as apparent- 
 ly more directed toward him than to the new king. 
 
 This, I tell you, may have been the inception of the 
 Duke of Gloucester's ambition to ascend the throne of 
 England, if he ever had such an ambition. Personally, 
 I was convinced that he was the rightful one. The 
 flattery went on, and thus was he brought in the end to 
 believe himself the people's choice by the efforts of the 
 
A METEOR KING. 83 
 
 conspiring nobles and church dignitaries. 
 
 Gorgeous indeed was the coronation, of which you 
 have no doubt read so many times that I cannot teli you 
 anything new. You are perfectly acquainted with the 
 events leading up to Richard's crowning. Through all 
 of it he who had now become King Richard Third and 
 his queen, Anne Neville, as you will recall, bore them- 
 selves with becoming grace. 
 
 There was a match of love ! Well do I recall the 
 Avedding of the handsome couple : he nineteen ; she 
 seventeen. But that is b}- the way. 
 
 Prepossessing in appearanc-j, piiysicr^ny strong, of 
 powerful v/ill and brave, Richard as v/ell had the intel- 
 lect and judgment fitted for a king ; and so did he look 
 a perfect monarch. 
 
 Unsurpassed in grandeur was the procession whicli 
 took place from the great hall at Westminster to the 
 adjacent abbey, on Jul}^ 6th, the day following that of 
 King Richard's coronation ; but of all that history has 
 spoken the truch, so I need not dwell upon it. 
 
 That of which the recounting will interest you the 
 most was the banquet which was parti- ken of in the 
 great hall at four o^clock. No more magnificence could 
 man desire. 
 
 King Richard and his queen had nothing presented 
 fo them unless it were upon a dish of gold or silver. 
 
 Noblemen v/ere everywhere vying with one another 
 to do the monarch and his lady service. 
 
 Lord Audle}^ was State Carver, Lord Scrope was 
 Cupbearer, and during the banquet Lord Lovel stood be- 
 fore the king, two esquires 13'ing at the monarch's feet 
 beneath the iDoard. 
 
 Peers and peeresses supported canopies over the 
 heads of Richard and Anne, whilst on each side of the 
 queen stood a countess with a plaisance, or napkin, for 
 her use. 
 
 All the ladies sat apart at a long table in the mid- 
 dle of the hall. 
 
 The guests at the banquet were the Cardinal- Arch- 
 
84 A METEOR KING. 
 
 bishop, the Lord Chancellor, prelates, nobles and judges 
 of the land, the Lord Mayor and the chief citizens of 
 London. 
 
 Consistent with the king^s character was a scene 
 which took place immediately after the second course 
 had been put upon the table. Sir Robert Dymoke ; aye, 
 he was a *'Sir" now ; he was the king's champion, too, 
 and a rare good one. Sir Robert rode pell-mell into the 
 hall, his horse trapped with white silk and red silk, and 
 Sir Robert himself in white harness. As by the flash 
 of a fairy's wand, I saw also that the heralds of arms 
 were standing upon a stage. Great was the blare. 
 Then the King's Champion, looking more gallant than 
 ever and much admired of the ladies I could see, rode 
 before the king. 
 
 " Hark !" he roared; and there was instant silence. 
 
 He demanded : 
 
 " Is there one man here present who can say why 
 King Richard should not claim the crown of England ?" 
 
 Whether it was through fear of the king's dis- 
 pleasure, or whether it was that only strong partisans 
 of Richard graced the board, I am not prepared to ar- 
 gue ; but I know that, with one accord, when Dymoke 
 had ceased to talk, there burst from the assembly a 
 cry of 
 
 " King Richard !" 
 that set the slivers on the dry rafters buzzing. 
 
 One of the lords-in-waiting presently advanced to 
 the Champion and presented to him a covered cup, fill- 
 ed with red wine. Swinging it gracefully toward him- 
 self, Sir Robert uncovered the cup and drank of the con- 
 tents until, by his inverting the vessel, the concourse of 
 people were assured that it was empty to the very dregs. 
 
 After a few seconds he cast back all the wine from 
 his mouth into the cup and re-covered it. 
 
 Although I had good opportunity to learn that fair 
 D}^moke had a capacious maw, yet was I that time 
 astonished that his mouth could hold so much. 
 
 When he had finished his part of the ceremou}'', 
 
A METEOR KING. 85 
 
 meant to exhibit his physical powerfulness and to show 
 that the King's Champion was strong enough to taste 
 wine without becoming mastered by it, and also that he 
 would not regale himself before the king, Dymoke made 
 obeisance to King Richard, turned his great horse about 
 and rode through the halL bearing away in his right 
 hand the cup with the wine. 
 
 Following the exodus of big Dymoke, King-at- 
 Arms Garter, supported by eighteen heralds, advanced 
 in front of the king and solemnly proclaimed his style 
 and titles. 
 
 That daj'-'s splendor was perfectly harmonic ; not a 
 single accident or incident occurred to mar it. 
 
 When the darkness began to fall, the hall was bril- 
 liantly ilhiminated with wax torches and cressets. This 
 was the signal for the king and queen to retire. Wafers 
 and hipocras had been already served ; so Richard and 
 his consort arose and departed to their private apart- 
 ments in the palace. 
 
 Afterward, on the eighth of September of that year, 
 1483, the coronation ceremony was again gone through 
 with equal splendor at York, Richard wishing thereby 
 to do honor to the people whom he had for so long gov- 
 erned in the northern courties. 
 
 Then he made a regal procession through the north- 
 em and midland counties, everywhere meeting enthus- 
 iastic acclaim from the populace. In Warwick the peo- 
 ple went nearly wild with joy, in spite of the fact that 
 Richard had at the end been the foe of the great earl. 
 
 Yea, but, as I skim through events rapidly, I must 
 not omit. Sire Brains, to shed a correct lucidity upon 
 another incident. I refer to the execution of Lord Has- 
 tings. 
 
 You know the stories that have been handed down 
 by allegedly truthful chroniclers, among other legends 
 that of the strawberries and the banquet. 
 
 Let me ask you, studying the matter in the light of 
 my revelations and knowing as you now do the strong- 
 willed character of Richard, whether you believe that 
 
86 A METEOR KING. 
 
 he would give way to such imbecile anger as he is al- 
 leged to have displayed when he ordered the arrest of 
 Hastings ? And to prate about midwives and a wizened 
 arm, forsooth ; he had no wizened arm. Faugh ! It 
 would be improbable that he should talk in such an in- 
 ane way. 
 
 His Majesty commanded that Lord Hastings be ar- 
 rested only because he became cognizant, through men 
 w^hose integrity he could not doubt, that the nobleman 
 was conspiring wath other men to assassinate the sons of 
 the late King Edward, not that he feared treacher}^ to 
 himself. 
 
 Buckingham and that servale cur Catesby were re- 
 sponsible for the death of Hastings. 
 
 Lord Hastings was a genuine man ; good to the 
 core, he was true to the little fellows in the Tower. 
 That was reason enough to Buckingham, who plotted 
 continually and secretly for the exiled Richmond, why 
 Hastings should be gotten rid of. 
 
 **Catesby,'^ quoth Buckingham caie day, "you are a 
 worthy fellow, and one to be trusted" ; with which he 
 slapped his snakeship upon the shoulder. 
 
 " Your Grace flatters me," he retorted to the Duke, 
 sycophantically smiling. 
 
 *^Not at all, Catesb}^ ; T trust you. Listen : Hast- 
 tings desires the death of the wards of King Richard, 
 and also that His Majesty himself should pass away." 
 
 " No, then !" exclaimed Catesby, with deceitful 
 astonishment. 
 
 " Yea, does he that, to clear the way for Richmond 
 who is across the water. Hastings has but one desire 
 — that is to place 3^on Richmond on the throne of Eng- 
 land, which v/ould mean ruin to yourself and I, who are 
 faithful friends of Richard." 
 
 "Indeed, indeed, I do agree with that, Your Grace. 
 Cannot this evil be averted ? King Richard should be 
 told of the treachery of Hastings." 
 
 "Aye, that, Catesby, I dare not to do ; I could not 
 break in already upon the happiness of His Majesty 
 
A METEOR KING. 87 
 
 with tales of plots and intrigues." 
 
 "I say, but, your Grace, he lives upon a volcano's 
 mouth unwittingly, do we but not tell him." 
 
 " King Richard thinks worlds of Hastings. 
 
 ** What would not I risk to be but half as far into 
 the king's good thoughts," quoth Catesby with a sigh. 
 
 ** Then here lies your chance," quickly spoke Buck- 
 ingham ; '*by the pulling down of Hastings you may 
 climb up ; there will be one traitor less." 
 
 Buckingham had chosen well his confidant. Cates- 
 by lost not a moment before he had detailed more lies to 
 King Richard than even Buckingham had told to 
 Catesby. 
 
 King Richard was astonished. He would not be- 
 lieve Catesby. But when the Duke of Buckingham cor- 
 roborated in the main all Catesby's falsehoods and pro- 
 duced documents purporting to have passed between 
 Richmond and Lord Hastings then Richard permitted 
 that Hastings be confined until the truth might be 
 searched out. 
 
 This was exactly what the Duke of Buckingham re- 
 quired to suit his purpose. 
 
 Once arrested, Hastings was practically dead, for 
 Buckingham used his power and had him brought to 
 trial quickly, ostensibly to show whats trong fealty to the 
 king was his and how enraged he was at any person who 
 could think to circumvent His Majesty. 
 
 King Richard had great faith in Buckingham. 
 
 Easily did Buckingham and Catesby procure false 
 witnesses and papers, by which Lord Hastings was con- 
 demned. Buckingham brought the warrant for the 
 execution to His Majesty to sign. 
 
 So moved was King Richard that he wept, and : 
 
 ** I cannot sign away a life so kind ; I cannot thus 
 destroy a man who for so long has been my friend", he 
 said. 
 
 " Sorely doth it grieve myself," dissemblingly spake 
 Buckingham, *'that Hastings hath brought this upon 
 himself through falseness." 
 
88^^ A METEOR KING. 
 
 " These judges are horrible men ?" 
 
 " That be they Your Majesty " 
 
 King Richard thought painfully, then : 
 
 ** Send Lord Hastings into exile/^ quoth he. 
 
 " That he may live, alas, to strike a blow more 
 deadly at Your Majesty." 
 
 This said Buckingham with much subtlety. He 
 guessed aright that Richard would remember other 
 exiles. 
 
 " God ! God ! This crown is one of thorns already**, 
 groaned the king, for a moment losing hold upon him- 
 self. 
 
 Resuming stem control of self, he seized a pen 
 from out his private secretary's hand, and scratched 
 the quill through those convolutions which composed 
 his autograph. 
 
 Sealing the document, he passed it to the duke. 
 
 " Now go with it'*, cried he ; and, casting himself 
 upon a seat, he thrust his hands before his face. 
 
 Crushing was the emotion over which he strove to 
 gain control. 
 
 Buckingham moved with alacrity, and had Lord 
 Hastings quick beheaded, lest King Richard should re- 
 lent and countermand the execution order. 
 
 Lord Hastings thus was finished. 
 
 Buckingham let it go abroad that King Richard 
 had destroyed him merely because he was a friend of 
 the princes in the Tower. 
 
 Now come I to relate one of the most lamentable 
 events of my life. You must remember, though, that 
 these were peculiar times. Taking of life was not con- 
 sidered so terrible a crime, the general opinion seeming 
 to be that the end justified the means. 
 
 "Yea, although Richard trusted him much, one of 
 the most unscrupulous men in the king's Council was 
 the Duke of Buckingham, as I had reason to realize on 
 several occasions similar to the Lord Hastings affair. 
 He simulated to be plotting for the benefit of King 
 Richard, whilst he contrived to so arrange matters al- 
 
A METEOR KING. 89 
 
 ways that if anything blamable occurred he himself 
 should escape the censure, turning circumstances so that 
 the king might surely come easily into public condem 
 nation. 
 
 King Richard was unconsciously happy in the 
 plaudits of the people. 
 
 I noticed that the nobles of the king's train were 
 much in consultation. Sometimes I would accidentally 
 overhear some one or more of them bitterly denouncing 
 the hated Woodvilles. I came once past the door of a 
 chamber suddenly and heard the Duke of Buckingham 
 wrathfuUy exclaim : 
 
 " The last Woodville vestige should be obliterated ; 
 it can be done !" 
 
 Shortly afterward I was encountered by Sir James 
 Tyrrell. In his hand he had an official-looking docu- 
 ment. 
 
 ** Sire/* said he, "you are commanded by divers of 
 the king's councillors to carry this to Governor Bracken- 
 bury at the Tower in London, with all possible speed." 
 
 This Sir James Tyrrell was a hanger-on at King 
 Richard's court whom I had an unaccountable antipathy 
 to, so I answered shortly : 
 
 ** Prithee deliver me the Council's order." 
 
 " I have been commissioned to command thee, Sire," 
 he retorted savagely, scowling at me. 
 
 " Of that I know not ; I shall take no command 
 from thee," I growled, and brushed past him. 
 
 He was terribly annoyed, and cursed me from the 
 bottom of his hazelnut heart, vowing that some day not 
 far distant he would bring me down in the dust at his 
 feet to crave his pardon and spoil some of my fine 
 feathers. Not an answer did I deign him. 
 
 As I repassed the chamber door the Duke of Buck- 
 ingham caught a glance of me and called to me. I en- 
 tered. 
 
 " Have you seen Sir James Tyrrell ?" he asked. 
 
 " Your Grace, I have," said I. 
 
 " Gave he you the order?" 
 
90 A METEOR KING, 
 
 " Naught gave lie I." 
 
 "Eh?»^ 
 
 " He gave me nothing." 
 
 '' What said he, then ?" 
 
 " Ah, he bullied me a little, and ordered me to pro- 
 ceed to London with a message." 
 
 '' And thou ?'\ . . 
 
 " I answered him in kind ; told him to go to the 
 devil with his commands." 
 
 " He was deputed by the Councillors of the king to 
 see you," roared Buckingham in wrath. 
 
 " I knew that not, Your Grace. He said so ; but I 
 would not believe his most insignificant statement 
 though he took an oath on forty bibles. A king's mes- 
 senger does not rush off at the beck and boo of every 
 underling, let alone an underling of his poor calibre !" 
 
 For a moment Buckingham stood with his mouth 
 agape ; then he noticed Tyrrell fuming and fussing be- 
 hind me, and burst into a tremendous laugh. He liked 
 not Tyrrell himself, and was really delighted because I 
 had snubbed the knight. 
 
 Tyrrell now was purple and white with suppressed 
 rage, yet he spoke no v/ord. Buckingham took the 
 document from his hand and passed it to me, after which 
 he wrote an order in the king's name for me to hasten 
 its delivery. 
 
 ** Perhaps," quoth he, **you shall demand the per- 
 sonal signature of His Majesty ?" 
 
 " Satire you mean that for. Your Grace," said I ; 
 "nevertheless not one step toward London do I go with- 
 out." 
 
 He went ; and some cock and bull story he told the 
 king, for he returned shortly with the requisite signet 
 and seals. 
 
 In no time I was in the saddle and away. 
 
 Brack enbury, as your well-red memory will serve 
 you. Sire Brains, was governor of the famous Tower at 
 London, wherein were lodged the two boy princes. 
 
 Of course I had no idea of what was in the letter 
 
A METEOR KING. 91 
 
 that I carried ; never for a moment suspected I that it 
 had any importance for the princes. 
 
 Brackenbury received me heartily, for he was a 
 close friend of my honorable father. 
 
 " How now, my boy?'^ cried he. "Bring you good 
 news or bad?" 
 
 " That I cannot tell. Lord Brackenbury," I replied; 
 with which I handed him the letter. 
 
 He bade me be seated, and I heard him tear open 
 the document whilst I gazed carelessly through the case- 
 ment. Suddenly I was startled. 
 
 ** My God!" ejaculated Lord Brackenbury; " this is 
 damned knavery." 
 
 Springing to his feet simultaneously with this out- 
 break he had thrown over his chair, which clattered on 
 the oaken floor. I hastened to replace it. 
 
 Holding his chair with his right hand, he had the 
 letter in his left, and was regarding the missive with a 
 look which was a mixture of anger and bewilderment. 
 He spoke, more to himself than to me : 
 
 ** Do away with the Princes? Find them another 
 lodging ; one from which they cannot return ? May I 
 be hanged, drawn and quartered first ; and be damned to 
 King Richard." 
 
 ** Treason! Treason!" I said. - 
 
 He turned upon me. 
 
 " Aye, ^tis treason", he whispered hoarsely; * 'trea- 
 son, treason, treason " 
 
 I but watched the working of his agony. 
 
 " Nay, nay," he went on; "King Richard hath not 
 signed this. He would not. It merely says : ^it is the 
 king's desire. Buckingham\" 
 
 There was a loud singing in my ears at these 
 words, for I recollected the speech of that unscrupulous 
 duke about destroying the last Woodville vestige. Be- 
 fore I could think twice upon the matter, however, 
 Brackenbury had begun again to speak, this time to 
 me directly : 
 
 " Tell the Duke of Buckingham that I shall heed 
 
92 
 
 A METEOR KING. 
 
 no message in such a serious affair that is not signed 
 and sealed by the hand of King Richard himself." 
 
 ^' Is that all?'' abkedl. 
 
 "It is all." 
 
 So back I went. 
 
 Buckingham was furious. I deemed for a moment 
 that he would take an apoplectic fit ; yea, faith, had he 
 been a stouter man there is no doubt that then he would 
 have died, and King Richard and England would have 
 missed much tribulation. Buckingham was too shrewd 
 though to keep such anger long. I augured from his 
 eye that he had made a deadly resolve. 
 
 Being summoned next day to the presence of the 
 king in his private chamber, I had barely entered when 
 the Duke of Buckingham announced himself by his 
 usual loud knocks upon the doorpost and strode into the 
 room. 
 
 ^fter greeting and making his obeisance to the 
 king Buckingham glanced at me, and His Majesty 
 motioned that I withdraw. 
 
 Scarcely half an hour had gone before I was sum- 
 moned to the king's presence again. His Majesty pas- 
 sed me a document signed and sealed, addressed in his 
 own hand-writing to Brackenbury. Said His Majesty : 
 
 " Thou It deliver this immediately." 
 
 Shortly was I once more galloping toward London, 
 much racked in my brain as to what this message 
 meant. Surely, I thought, Buckingham had been 
 poisoning the mind of King Richard toward the gover- 
 nor of the Tower. 
 
 Afterward I learned about that interview of Buck- 
 ingham with the king. 
 
 " Your Majesty," said the Duke, "there are those 
 in England who still persii^u to say that only you are 
 the legitimate son of the Duke of York and Cicely of 
 Westmoreland. ' ' 
 
 *• What baseness ; where is he who would smirch 
 the honor of my mother ?" 
 
 " Ah, there are several, Your Majesty; and these 
 
A METEOR KING. 93 
 
 same profess to be acting for your welfare. You see, 
 by proving Edward Fourth a bastard there is escaped 
 the danger of the princes in the Tower becoming heirs- 
 apparent to the throne at any time." 
 
 **Explain, Duke ; why this innuendo? Do you think 
 my brothers Edward and George were bastards your- 
 self?" 
 
 " Nay, Sire, far be that from me. But methinks 
 there is a document in the hands of Brackenbury at the 
 Tower in London which can prove a great deal about 
 your mother's marriage." 
 
 " You only think so ; you do not know." 
 
 " Yea, then, Your Majesty, let us make sure." 
 
 " Aye, Buckingham, go search for that document." 
 
 " Brackenbury refuses that we shall without some 
 order from Your Majesty." 
 
 " Brackenbury is a safe man and true." 
 
 " Correctly spoken, Your Majesty; methinks he is 
 too conscientious sometimes " 
 
 "That cannot be, Buckingham." 
 
 " Your Majesty will pardon my effrontery, but, say 
 I, in this instance Brackenbury is too conscientious.'' 
 
 " How so, Duke?" quoth Richard, somewhat net- 
 tled. 
 
 "Well, Your Majesty, it is simple. He is a strong 
 friend of York, also strongly inclined to fair play. 
 Therefore, thus do I reason : Richard is king ; Bracken- 
 bury is his friend. Edward Fourth is dead, God rest 
 him. Brackenbury would like to please Your Majesty ; 
 yet would he have no scandal stirred up to malign dead 
 Edward. He deems best to leave well enough alone." 
 
 " More praise to his wisdom and his gentleness," 
 the king put in. 
 
 " Also," went on Buckingham, "he has sworn that 
 not even the suspicion of a taint shall touch the Rose 
 of Raby." 
 
 " Then, Duke, enough is said," quoth Richard with 
 some spirit. "He is resisting in a noble cause. Suffice 
 it that I am the king at your desire, who are chief 
 
94 
 
 A METEOR KING. 
 
 among the powerful nobles of this Island." 
 
 ** That is it,Your Majesty ; but let us have documen- 
 tary proof for the people, that we may show them we 
 have chosen legally as well as wisely." 
 
 " Thou art persistent, Buckingham." 
 
 ** Persistence reaches even Heaven^s throne, 'tis 
 said." 
 
 " Tut, tut ; why palaver ?" 
 
 ** Hearken, Your Majesty : No harm can fall on 
 Brackenbury should yourself indite an order that he 
 deliver for but one night the keys to Tyrrell, whom I 
 can send upon this search. Mayhap he shall find proof 
 that Cicely was formally and truly married ere the 
 birth of Edward ; then shall Your Majesty's soul be 
 quiet, and no stain shall mar York's past. Again, 
 should there be not that proof, conditions can remain 
 but as they are, with Richard unmistakably the king. 
 At all events, we shall know what is to know ; and that 
 is calming to harassment of the mind." 
 
 " Buckingham, how plausible you are. Egad, you 
 could sophisticate the Prince of Hell. I wearj^ of such 
 everlasting argument. Go to ; I shall write a note to 
 Brackenbury. Much rather would I though that some 
 more trusty man than T3Trell had the Tower keys for a 
 single night." 
 
 " You misjudge that man. King Richard ; I know 
 him well." 
 
 ** Perhaps too well," said Richard, and he laughed 
 metallically. ^'Gods, gods," he concluded, that deep 
 sound in his voice, "a man may be proved a bastard any 
 time methinks in England." 
 
 Brackenbury's face was rather gloomy when he 
 noted the royal chirography, and the seal imprinted with 
 King Richard's signet-ring. 
 
 He read, and was silent for some time ; then he 
 said : 
 
 *^ Mystery, mystery. I am commanded by His 
 Majesty to deliver the keys of the Tower to Sir James 
 Tyrrell, until such time as he shall return them, and to 
 
A METEOR KING. 95 
 
 absent myself. Tyrrell is unscrupulous ; I fear trouble 
 for those babes. Can this ; Oh, can this be King Rich- 
 ard ? There is no doubt about it, alas." 
 
 I related to him what Buckingham had done so far 
 as I opined. 
 
 " Then he has told the king some lie most specious ; 
 for I am assured His Majesty can wish the princes not 
 a particle of harm.'^ 
 
 " That shall I wager," added I. 
 
 " Well, well," said Brackenbury ; "these times are 
 reckless, but let us hope for the safety of the children. 
 Tonight I must deliver the ke^^s to Tyrrell and begone 
 myself. Would that I could stay ; or that the princes 
 could be spirited away. No, no ; the king's order is not 
 to be avoided ; and these innocents are strongly guard- 
 ed." 
 
 " You dare not stay," I vouchsafed ; "but I may. 
 Conceal me. I shall strive to thwart any diabolism of 
 that cowardly Tyrrell." 
 
 " That may be," quoth Brackenbury. 
 
 " Let us in," said I, "and have a chat with those 
 unfortunate princes against whose guilelessness the 
 nobility of England now doth concentrate their crafti- 
 ness." 
 
 Surrounded b}^ luxury, there were the princes ; but 
 methought they looxed care-worn, as if they ;oined to 
 romp a little with the boys who noised upon the street. 
 We spoke few words before their loneliness became the 
 topic. 
 
 " Our sweet mother comes not very oft to visit us. 
 We should rather wish that she could live with us, or 
 that we might go to her presence as of old," quoth Ed- 
 ward, pensively. 
 
 "Cheer up, cheer up," I blurted out ; "those old 
 days may soon come back again" ; and good Bracken- 
 bury went spluttering and hawking toward the case- 
 ment, as though suddenly he had drawn a fly into his 
 wind-pipe with his breath. 
 
 "^My, my,'' he cried, "this cough must be the death 
 
96 A METEOR KING. 
 
 . r " I T— 1— MMiiMj»< ni» BI» II ii n ii «■■ .i« «■ i ■ ■ i i ■ ■ i ■ ■ ■ 
 
 of me ; how my eyes do water !" 
 
 " Sire, sire, you choke," I shouted ; and I slapped 
 him between the shoulders until he roared and turned 
 with great show of wrath upon me. Then both the 
 princes laughed most merrily, and gloom for the mo- 
 ment had departed. 
 
 Upon the cheffonier I saw a harp, beautifully in- 
 laid with ivory and pearls, a dainty mandolin, a zither, 
 flutes, and other tuneful instruments. 
 
 ** Those are presents from our Uncle Richard,'^ 
 cried both the boys. "They are so handsome. Is he 
 not kind to us ?" 
 
 " Indeed he is," said I. 
 
 " We have learned some new music, and shall play 
 it to him when he comes again to London," Edward 
 said. 
 
 " That shall be a treat," quoth Brackenbury, "for 
 verily no man was ever fonder of the strains of melody 
 than is your Uncle Richard." 
 
 Which was a truth. His court was ever crowded 
 with good minstrels from all countries. Aye, have I 
 often seen him stop upon the highway to listen to a 
 strolling band. Should any of their members play a 
 little more bewitchingl}' than did the rest, Richard had 
 these added to his private troupe at once. 
 
 Mt^sic, Sire Brains, could move King Richard to 
 his deeper depths. Saints and angels, how he did love 
 sweet sounds ! 
 
 Next to the chase, the tournament and hawking he 
 was enamored of the violin. He oft-times essayed to 
 draw the bow across the strings, but as often did he cast 
 the instrument away because he could not draw from it 
 that music which his spiritism sought. 
 
 Times and times have I heard him curse vindictive- 
 ly and slip his fingers in his ears when he chanced to 
 overhear some idiot grating on a fiddle. 
 
 " Great gods ! he would cry ; there is one more of 
 those creatures who may have a soul for music and 
 abilfty to make but discord. Why does he torment his 
 
A METEOR KING. 97 
 
 soul aud mine ?'* 
 
 But his nephews, although so young, were sweet 
 musicians. They played and sang for Brackenbury 
 and myself, it seemed so sadly, until we were compelled 
 to say adieu to hide our bursting emotion. 
 
 " My Lord," said Brackenbur}^ when we were alone, 
 *^never was I touched so in my life. I could think of 
 naught but swan-songs. Guard well those innocents to- 
 night. Sire ; they seem to me already of the high angelic 
 choir.** 
 
 I grasped hard his hand. 
 
 Accordingly I remained inside the Tower that night, 
 little imagining what friends would bear me company. 
 
 My place of hiding was close upon the entrance to 
 the apartments of the little princes. Bending forward 
 from my dark nook, I could view the dimly-lighted cor- 
 ridor from end to end. 
 
 Night crept on. 
 
 The monotonous tramp, tramp of the sentries keep- 
 ing guard over the princes* rooms were the only sounds. 
 
 I heard a clock strike midnight. Almost at the 
 same instant I detected a noise toward the far end of the 
 passage. Watching, I saw three men approaching. 
 One was Tyrrell His two companions were the most 
 abandoned-looking rascals upon whom I had ever cast 
 gaze. 
 
 They were challenged by the soldiers. Tyrrell 
 gave the password, then exhibited a paper to the one in 
 charge of the guard. Without any parley, the soldiers 
 were filed up and marched down the corridor, leaving 
 Tyrrell and his two villains in charge. 
 
 After a few words to the men, Tyrrell also departed. 
 
 Wretch that he was, I felt like leaping at his throat 
 as he passed. 
 
 TyrrelPs departure was the signal for the two re- 
 maining ruffians to work. They unlocked a door and 
 began to pass surreptitiously through a slight opening. 
 Must I do anything, now was the time ; so I slipped to- 
 ward them swiftly, expecting to follow in when once 
 
98 
 
 A METEOR KING. 
 
 they had gone from the door. Chagrin and horror took 
 hold upon me as I placed my hand upon the latch ; the 
 door was barred on the other side. 
 
 Recollecting that there was another way toward the 
 princes* apartments, I sped to find it, only to discover, 
 as I feared, that here also had the murderers forestalled 
 any intrusion. 
 
 Galloping back to the first door, I hammered at it 
 with a vengeance and called upon them to open in the 
 name of King Richard. Come what might, I was de- 
 termined to compel attention. 
 
 For some moments they heeded not my noise. 
 Then I shouted several times at the top of my voice : 
 
 " Harm not the princes. Hurt them and ye shall 
 hang by order of King Richard." 
 
 With such quickness was the door pulled open that 
 I well-nigh fell my length upon the floor. 
 
 " Wat in 'ell do ee mean ?" asked he who stood 
 there, "we *ave the King's border." 
 
 " It is forged," said I. 
 
 " An' 'ave you a countermand?" asked he. 
 
 " A verbal one," quoth I, as bravely as possible 
 
 " Verbs be damned," he cried, and made to slam 
 the door ; but I was quick and passed half through. 
 
 By this the other murderer had come from an inner 
 chamber. 
 
 " Wot in 'ell's ee want ?'' he queried, with a grim- 
 ace. 
 
 " Hoh, 'ell knows," said the other. 
 
 " Maike hit ha triple job ; knock 'im on the 'ead ; 
 the two young uns his a-smothered an' done ; not a 
 bleedin' kick in em." 
 
 Sire Brains, at that my blood surged ; then I felt 
 myself grow stem and cold, and my muscles tautened 
 and hardened as does the wet moor-line of a schooner 
 before it snaps. 
 
 My hand sprang to m}'^ sword ; but these were 
 beasts, not men ; so, on second thought, my gloved fist 
 came crashing up beneath the nighest villain's jaw and 
 
A MET EOR KING. 99 
 
 he fell thump upon the tioor. 
 
 Like a frenzied lion I leaped after the second wretch, 
 who had stepped somewhat aback as his companion 
 dropped. He could not escape me, for the ante-room 
 in which we were was small. Quicker than I can tell 
 it to you, Sire Brains, that murderer and I were tied up 
 in a knot. Gods ! It was a struggle grim and great. 
 He was strong of muscle and strong of odor, which lat- 
 ter went well-high to overcome me first. From my 
 mother had I inherited a keen aversion to the unwashed 
 and filth of every kind. 
 
 Tusseling hither and across the room, sometimes 
 incommoded by my scabbard mixing with my knees and 
 shins, I noticed that the fallen villain was coming to his 
 feet again. Here would be an odds of two to one. 
 Knowledge of that egged me to a fiercer strain, and I 
 battled viciously to reach the door behind which usually 
 slept the princes. Fully was my spirit now aroused 
 and my strength attuned, the preliminary struggle hav- 
 ing apparently acted but to limber up my muscles. I 
 gathered in the burly heap of flesh and sent him bump- 
 ing through the opening. 
 
 Inside the chamber, by the rushlight's lowly glim- 
 mer, I had a view that sickened me, that unmanned me, 
 that sank my heart into my boots, that sent a yellow 
 blur before my eyes. Ye devils ! There lay the two 
 j^oungsters, side by side, their faces livid and distorted, 
 their eyeballs bulging and the terror-gleam yet in them. 
 How frightful ! 
 
 Thought of the authors of this diabolism had gone 
 from me as I stepped to the couch-side with a meagre 
 hope that I might find some lingering breath in the poor 
 wee bodies, or at the worst that I might close those ter- 
 rible eyes. 
 
 How vividly I mentally recalled their music and 
 their singing ! 
 
 Not even time had I to guess at the method of the 
 murder ere I was attacked behind and most viciously 
 belabored with a footstool in the hands of one rascal and 
 
loo A METEOR KING. 
 
 an iron wielded by the other. 
 
 I fell upon the bed where lay the princes, and in- 
 sensibility overcame me. 
 
 When I revived, I heard the gurgle of water, and 
 felt that I was lying on the ground in the open air. 
 They had not made a triple job. I was still alive. I 
 heard low speaking, and was aware that there were per- 
 sons near. 
 
 *' No, do not put him in the river. I have a better 
 plan. I shall degrade him in the eyes of the king. Go, 
 and leave him to me." 
 
 This was the voice of Tyrrell. 
 
 I tried to rise, but I felt I could not. I had been 
 roughly handled My body pained ever^^where. 
 
 Tyrrell came to me with a bottle in his hand. 
 
 I groaned. 
 
 " The King's Messenger is not dead yet, eh?" he 
 enquired sarcastically. 
 
 " You'll pay for this," said I ; and again I groaned. 
 
 " Take a sup," quoth Tyrrell ; and he put the bot- 
 tle's neck to my lips. 
 
 I turned away my head ; but some of the liquor got 
 into my mouth, and I found it to be strong wine. Of 
 course I feared it was poisoned ; though now I know it 
 was not. 
 
 Tyrrell pretended vexation at my refusal of the 
 wine, and poured it over my face and clothes until I 
 smelled like unto a tap-room. 
 
 Without more ado, having given me that baptism 
 of wine, Tyrrell, swearing a vindictive oath, fetched me 
 over the pate with the bottle, thus causing my relapse 
 into helplessness. 
 
 Long did I lie thus, for when I recovered darkness 
 had gone and the day was somewhat advanced. With 
 difficulty and much pain I got upon my feet. What a 
 sight I was ! 
 
 My clothes were all torn and dirty ; my face felt to 
 be a mass of bruises ; to cap all, I smelt horridly of in- 
 toxicants. 
 
A METEOR KING. loi 
 
 Here was a jolly predicament for a King^s Courier 
 and a nobleman like myself to be in, who prided him- 
 self much upon his personal appearance, 1 tried to guess 
 what would happen should a certain young damsel see 
 me in that fearful state. 
 
 Gods ! What would the king say ? 
 
 Beside, he would be wroth with me for dilatoriness 
 In bearing to him Brackenbury^s acknowledgement of 
 the royal message, which I had delivered to the gover- 
 nor the night before. 
 
 How brave I had been in the cause of the princes ! 
 How ignorainiously and cruelly I had been foiled ! 
 
 Both the princes were dead. I was sure of that. 
 How vividly I did picture the struggles of the two poor 
 little fellows beneath the murderous cushing of the ass- 
 assins ! 
 
 Even did I not know what disposition had been 
 made of their bodies. 
 
 I felt sick, and almost swooned again. 
 
 I resolved to go to the king as soon as possible and 
 tell His Majesty every circumstance. Mentally I was 
 convinced that Richard wotted not that the youths had 
 been killed. 
 
 Laboriously I walked to the hostelry where lodged 
 my horse. Here I was commiserated by the landlord, 
 v/ho, in spite of my protests, laughingly insinuated that 
 I had been on a spree ; and he was somewhat huffed be- 
 cause I had not spent my money in his house. 
 
 I ate a hasty meal, w^ashed myself and made my 
 raiment as presentable as possible ; but I could not 
 obliterate the bruise marks from my face, nor get rid of 
 the winesmells from m)'' clothes. 
 
 Finally I mounted, and put spurs to my horse 
 on the road to Wanv^ick, from which town I expected 
 the king had departed by that time. 
 
 Furiously did I ride, stopping only twice on the 
 road, and, myself and my horse thoroughly fatigued, I 
 arrived in the town of Warwick at an early hour on the 
 following morning, resolved to see the king as soon as 
 
I02 A METEOR KING. 
 
 practicable and tell His Majesty the truth about the 
 villainy of Buckingham and Tyrrell. 
 
 Sleep was a truant, in spite of my fatigue ; so that 
 it was with relief, though with some trepidation, that I at 
 last found the hour arrived when I should see the king. 
 
 King Richard, as I have told you. Sire Brains, was 
 the most self-controlled of mortals, yet I detected that 
 he looked somewhat aghast when I appeared with m}^ 
 discolored face and crestfallen mien caused by the pain 
 of my limbs. Then his nostrils sniffed the alcoholic 
 aroma of m}^ person, and his face darkened. 
 
 " Hast been at the king's business, man ?'' he quer- 
 ied sternly. 
 
 *' Your Majesty, I have.'* 
 
 " Those bruises, that battered drapery, and, worst 
 of all, that distillery smell, were they acquired in the 
 performance of 3^our duty to the king ?'' 
 
 " Aye, that were they, Your Majesty, I am com- 
 pelled to answer." 
 
 "Compelled?'' 
 
 " Yea, Your Majesty." 
 
 " You should be compelled b}^ no one but your 
 king." 
 
 " Circumstances, not persons, Your Majesty, com- 
 pel me." 
 
 King Richard assumed his cuttingly sarcastic 
 humor. Said he : 
 
 '^ Young men may enjoy, if it be enjo3mient, an 
 occasional debauch in hours of leisure ; but when a 
 King's Messenger is under orders and drinks to the be- 
 f uddlement of his brain and to the befoulment of him- 
 self, he becomes a traitor." 
 
 " Your Majesty, I can explain if" — 
 
 " Go from the presence of the king!" 
 
 " Your Majesty, 'tis but my duty to obey; I have a 
 verbal message from the Tower." 
 
 " Deliver it most rapidly, man, lest it spoil in your 
 keeping." 
 
 " The princes are dead, Your Majesty." 
 
A METEOR KING. 103 
 
 "Wbat!'^ 
 
 ** Even the sons of the late King Edward are no 
 more, Your Majesty." 
 
 Never before 1 ad I seen him so completely unman- 
 ned ; he took this even worse than the beheading of Lord 
 Hastings. He leaped upon his feet, and as I made my 
 adieu he commanded : 
 
 '' Remain !" 
 
 I returned, facing him. 
 
 " 111 will it fare with thee, Sire," he said, "if in 
 this you lie. 'Tis no subject for a joke. Sooner would 
 I that King Richard himself were dead than that those 
 words should be true." 
 
 " I crave permission of Your Majesty that I may 
 speak." 
 
 " Proceed." 
 
 With that told I His Majesty every Item of ni}^ 
 escapade. As I spoke on, his face turned pale and his 
 features hardened into such a look as even his visage 
 had never borne before. 
 
 When I bad finished he summoned a lackey and 
 bade him search for the Duke of Buckingham, and say 
 that the king had desire for that nobleman ^s instant 
 presence. 
 
 Soon the Duke strode in. 
 
 King Richard paced accross the room and back. 
 
 " Buckingham," he said, "I seek advice. One of 
 my most trusted friends hath turned traitor ; how shall 
 I punish him ?" 
 
 Buckingham knew Richard well ; so he was 
 cautious. 
 
 " Is this false friend now in Your Majesty's power?" 
 cooly enquired the duke. 
 
 " Nay, then, he is not." 
 
 " Then when Your Majesty catches him let him be 
 punished." 
 
 " Buckingham speaks imprudently." 
 
 " I did but joke. Your Majesty. In earnest I shall 
 say there ari traitors and seeming traitors ; perhaps 
 
I04 
 
 A METEOR KING. 
 
 this friend is but a seeming traitor to Your Majesty.'* 
 
 King Richard watched him keenly, folded his arms 
 and said : 
 
 '' Fox." 
 
 ** I am obliged to Your Majesty for the compli- 
 ment," added Buckingham,and he bowed low mockingly. 
 
 The king pursued : 
 
 " Dost know^ the princes, my nephews, lodged in 
 the Tower at London, have been basely assassinated ?" 
 
 " Say it not, Your Majesty !" 
 
 " Aye, smothered in their innocent sleep." 
 
 " But now am I apprised of it. Your Majesty. Yet, 
 were such the case, I should say it were an act of Provi- 
 dence, to secure more firmly on thy brow the crown of 
 England." 
 
 " False, false friend," quoth the king. **So this is 
 why you had yon order from me, asking Bracken bury 
 to give up the Tower keys, for but one night, mayhap ? 
 Hast found the document bearing on my mother's mar- 
 riage which thou made such pretence of wanting, and 
 which thou saidst Brackenbury refused to deliver ?" 
 
 " Sir James Tyrrell hath not ytt come with it, Your 
 Majesty." 
 
 ^* Tyrrell be damned ; and also thou. Fetch the 
 princes well guarded to my presence before two days, 
 else thy headless body shall be made dogmeat." 
 
 " Give me Your Majesty's warrant for their deliver- 
 ance and I shall go at once," said Buckingham, saluting 
 the king profoundly. 
 
 The king's secretary was called and ordered to pre- 
 pare the document, which he did forthwith. King Rich- 
 ard signed and sealed it, then delivered it to Bucking- 
 ham. 
 
 Buckingham left. 
 
 I was permitted by the king to retire and nurse 
 myself back into respectability. 
 
 During the following day the king continued his 
 progress through the northern and midland counties. 
 
 I have told you that I flattered myself the king had 
 
A METEOR 'KING. 105 
 
 a fondness for me. This he deigned now to show. Not 
 another word did His Majesty utter about my alleged 
 spree. I knew he believed my story. 
 
 Once and again when I noticed a look of pain in 
 his e3^es I knew he was thinking of the murdered prin- 
 ces, and wondering by what subterfuge Buckingham 
 would try to hoodwink and cajole him. His Majesty 
 was not to be kept long in suspense. 
 
 On October the twelfth, while we were in the city of 
 Lincoln, about the time that Buckingham's mission 
 should have been accomplished, that caitiff Catesby, who 
 sowehow had curried favor with the king, came riding 
 in great haste, fairly bursting with the importance of 
 the news he held. 
 
 Personally I am of the opinion that King Richard 
 had no liking for this man, but His Majesty tolerated 
 him because he was useful as an unscrupulous spy. 
 
 I say that Catesby was a lying sneak, and false as 
 Mephisto. 
 
 His news to the king now was that Buckingham 
 had had a rebellion already planned all through the 
 south of England at the time that he ostensibly left for 
 London to bring the princes from the Tower. Instead 
 of speeding to London he had gone to join his forces, 
 and was using the king's warrant to inflame the people 
 by sa3'ing that it had been issued to himself along with 
 orders to put the princes to death. Force was required 
 to save the lives of the youths, Buckingham was telling 
 the people. 
 
 To show the perfidy of Catesby, it is enough to say 
 that Buckingham had entrusted him with a message to 
 the Earl of Richmond, who was about to land a force of 
 men from Brittany and claim the crown of England for 
 himself. Catesby instead had gone to King Richard. 
 
 His Majesty was more perturbed over the assassin- 
 ation of his nephews than about the rising against him- 
 self, for now there was no doubt that Buckingham had 
 had the princes murdered. 
 
 For once I was convinced in my bones that Catesby 
 
io5 A METEOR KING. 
 
 spoke truth when he said : 
 
 " Your Majesty, Buckingham has been murdering 
 to clear the way for the Earl cf Richmond to usurp the 
 throne of England. All obstacles are at last removed 
 excepting " 
 
 ** King Richard," grimly added His Alajesty. 
 
 " This rising is to remove that final obstacle, Your 
 Majesty,'* quoth Catesby. 
 
 ** Enough !** cried Richard ; and he laughed. 
 
 By his countenance I read that Buckingham's doom 
 was sealed, could His Majesty but encounter him. As 
 for Henry Tudor, the Earl of Richmond, King Richard 
 feared him not. 
 
 That rebellion, Sire Brains, as you have read, was 
 as short-lived as it deserved. Nature was an ally of 
 King Richard in the cause of right. 
 
 King Richard, on the same day, immediately after 
 the departure of Catesby, sent for the ro}'al private 
 secretary, and dictated a letter to the Chancellor, then 
 severely ill in his bed at London. This letter I remem- 
 ber was in substance as follows : 
 
 " By the King. — Right Reverend Father in God, 
 and right trusty and well-beloved, we greet you well, 
 and in our heartiest wise thank you for the manifold 
 presents that your servants in your behalf have given 
 us since we have been here ; which we assure you we 
 took and accepted with good heart ; and so we have 
 cause. By God's grace we intend to advance toward 
 our rebel and traitor the Duke of Buckingham, to resist 
 and withstand his malicious purpose, for which caiise it 
 behoveth us to have our Great Seal here. We being 
 informed that» because of such diseases and infirmities 
 as you sustain in your person, you cannot to your ease 
 conveniently come unto us with the same, we hereb}^ 
 charge you that forthwith upon the sight of this you 
 safely do send our Great Seal unto us, receiving this our 
 letter for your sufficient discharge in that behalf. Even 
 under our signet at our City of Lincoln, the 12th day of 
 October.'' 
 
A METEOR KING. . 107 
 
 As soon as the secretary had finished writing, the 
 king added this postscript with his own hand : 
 
 "We would most gladly j^ou came yourself, if that 
 you may, and if you may not we pray you not to fail, 
 but to accomplish in all diligence our said command- 
 ment, to send our Seal incontment upon the sight here- 
 of, as we trust j^ou, with such as you trust and the o£3- 
 cers pertaining to attend with it. Here, loved be God, 
 our mind is all well and truly determined to resist the 
 malice of him that had best cause to be true, the Duke 
 of Buckingham, the most untrue creature living. With 
 God's grace we shall not be long until we are in those 
 parts and subdue his malice. We assure you there was 
 never falser traitor." 
 
 With which rode I out, and bore the missive to the 
 Chancellor. 
 
 Forthwith, with the usual ceremony and care, the 
 Great Seal was by the Chancellor sent to the king. 
 
 The professed object of Buckiagham's rising, as I 
 have said, was to rescue the princes from their imprison- 
 ment, so termed by that Duke and his officers ; but 
 shortly after Buckingham had been proclaimed leader 
 he sent forth the news that King Richard had contrived 
 assassination of the boys. Thus, ostensibly, the object 
 of the rtbellion was changed to revenge. 
 
 How ceaselessly and rapidly I rode on the king's 
 errands at that time only His Majesty and myself could 
 have told. 
 
 I got news for the king that, in conjunction with 
 the expected arrival of the Earl of Richmond, the i8th 
 of October had been fixed for the rising. Buckingham 
 raised his standard on that day at Brecknock, whilst 
 Dorset, St. Leger and others mustered their followers at 
 preconcerted stations. In Kent the rebels met at Maid- 
 stone and Rochester, proceeded to Gravesend, and went 
 thence tc> Guildford. In Berkshire they gathered at 
 Newbur}^ ; and in the west Salisbury and Exeter were 
 chosen. There was a coincident movement in nearly 
 ever}' southern county. 
 
io8 A METEOR KING. 
 
 Failure, nevertheless, was soon to descend upon 
 them. 
 
 Floods in the river Severn stopped the progress of 
 Buckingham ; the greater part of Richmond's fleet was 
 dispersed by a storm, so that he dare not land. The 
 rebellion needed hardly any putting down. 
 
 When it was found how matters stood, Dorset and 
 most of the other ring-leaders fled to Brittany. 
 
 King Richard and our forces marched on to Exeter 
 without a blow being struck. 
 
 Buckingham was not worse than scores of other 
 conspirators in England only that he was practically 
 their leader and chief caballer, so when I learned that 
 Catesby, the coward, had contrived to have him betray- 
 ed into King Richard's hands I was somewhat sorry. 
 
 At Salisbury Buckingham was beheaded without 
 form of trial, and the populace shouted : 
 
 " Thus perish all King Richard's false friends and 
 enemies !** 
 
 We entered London in triumph once more on the 
 26th November, when King Richard restored his Great 
 Stal to the keeping of Lord Chancellor Russell. 
 
 Thus had the justice of King Richard's cause been 
 vindicated. 
 
 We hoped for quietude. 
 
 His Majesty did find the opening of the year 1484 
 serene. Not having just then any disaffection to fight, 
 he was enabled to meet the Lords and the Commons of 
 his realm on the day appointed for the assembling of 
 parliament. 
 
 To give you an idea, Sire Brains, of how energetic 
 our new king was, and with what celerity he could 
 travel, let me tell you that he made a swift progress in- 
 to Kent in the few days before the assembling of the 
 Houses. At Canterbury on the tenth of January, he 
 was at Sandwich on the i6th, and had returned to Lon- 
 don by the 22nd of that month, on which day he opened 
 parliament in person. 
 
 I was present. Sire Brains, at that opening, and I 
 
A METEOR KING. 109 
 
 remember well the custoipary oration, which was deli- 
 vered by the Bishop of Lincoln, as Chancellor. He 
 exhorted the assembly to unity, peace, temperance and 
 moderation. Allusion was made by him to the many 
 distinguished persons who had perished from evil coun- 
 sellors ; and while he spoke thus he laid especial stress 
 upon the fall of the Duke of Buckingham, holding up 
 his fate as a warning to future inciters of rebellion. 
 
 Sir William Catesby got his reward, for on the day 
 following the opening of parliament he was elected 
 Speaker, 
 things. 
 
 Did he not give a safe-guard to the wife of that 
 arch-rebel, Alexander Cheyney, and grant to her the 
 custody of her husband^s lands and all his property ? 
 
 Did he not order the oflScers and tenants settled on 
 Lady Rivers as her jointure to pay to her all their 
 rents and duties? 
 
 By my sword, he took off the sequestration he had 
 put on the lands of an out-law, that that man^s wife 
 might have the benefit. 
 
 been so easily tricked into allowing his execution ever 
 attended the king. Just one month after the death of 
 Hastings Richard signed at Reading an official instru- 
 ment by which he covenanted to protect the lady and her 
 children in all their possessions, to suffer none to do 
 them wrong, to save to them their wardships and other 
 just rights, and to assist them upon all occasions as 
 their good and gracious sovereign lord. 
 
 Listen, Sire Brains : 
 
 Permission sent he to the widowed Duchess of 
 Buckingham to come to London with her children and 
 her servants, and gave her an annuity of two hundred 
 marks. Even the perfidious Buckingham's widow ! 
 
 Still, Sire Brains, you must have read of these 
 
 To the wddow of Lord Hastings he entrusted the 
 keeping of all her castles and presented her with the 
 wardship and marriage of her son and heir. He had 
 loved Lord Hastings ; and remorse that he should have 
 
no A METEOR KING. 
 
 numerous civilities and courtesies to the ladies of his 
 political enemies, which many other kings had not done, 
 Sire Brains. 
 
 " Why should I add to their sorrows,'^ he said to 
 me one day, from his nobleness of heart. ** Griefs we 
 all have that cannot be escaped, but as the king it is my 
 duty to lessen the tribulations of my people so far as I 
 have power. These persons called enemies are also of 
 my realm. My soul doth pity them. A father does 
 not destroy his erring children, but loves them even as 
 he does his steadfast ones.'' 
 
 Although Lord Oxford was an implacable foe to 
 Richard, even to his death on earth, yet did His Majesty 
 grant to his lady a pension of one hundred pounds a 
 year during the earl's exile and hostility. 
 to the pages of history to show you. Sire Brains, that 
 some of the best laws England ever had were passed 
 during his meteoric reign. 
 
 Richard's path was one not of roses. 
 
 His son, heir-apparent, died that same year, only 
 eleven years old. King Richard grieved keenly. 
 
 Then followed the death of his beloved Oueen 
 Anne. 
 
 How base and prejudiced are mortals to accuse the 
 king of murdering her, that he might marry his niece 
 Elizabeth ! He did not do so. He loved his wife well 
 until she died, after which he felt bitterly the loss ; of 
 that I often had good evidence. 
 
 Sorrow had made a sad, sad man of Richard, but 
 through everything he went and never became morose 
 or lost his innate gentleness of heart. He showed 
 
 Richard had called his son after his beloved brother. 
 
 Next to be passed was an act stating that King 
 Richard, moved with benignity and pity and laying 
 aside the great rigor of the law, had granted his grace 
 and pardon to divers persons culpable in the recent re- 
 bellion. The leaders of the rising, however, were pro- 
 nounced rebels and traitors ; so, being convicted of high 
 treason, their estates were forfeited to the crown. 
 
A METEOR KING. iii 
 
 There is no requirement for my enumerating all 
 the acts of King Richard ; enough have been committed 
 
 Then forthwith an act was passed for the settlement 
 of the crown upon King Richard and his heirs, with a 
 recapitulation of his title. The conclusion of the bill to 
 which parliament assented was **that the high and ex- 
 cellent Prince Edward, son of our said sovereign Lord 
 King Richard the Third, be htir-apparent to succeed 
 him in the crown and royal dignity." 
 
 Acts of good nature and kindness to the female sex 
 were continually Richard's, I tell you. Sire Brains. He 
 was no unnatural hater of women. Many annuities did 
 lie settle on widows and other ladies. To one he paid 
 the arrears of a pension granted by Edward Fourth, 
 although at that time, remember, Sire Brains, it was a 
 rare act for a king to heed his forerunner's debts and 
 bounties. 
 
 To Lady Dynhani King Richard donated four tons 
 of wine every year. 
 
 You may well smack your lips, Sire Brains. 
 
 While he was Duke of Gloucester he made several 
 annual allowances, and these he confirmed when he be- 
 came king. 
 
 He settled a small annuity on the widow of a herald, 
 and a larger one on the sister of Lord Lovell. 
 
 Could these acts of kindness have been done by a 
 king of a malicious, envious and brutal disposition ? 
 
 Let me tell of a few more : 
 
 Gifts gave he to the monks of an abbey that had 
 been burned dowm, also to a merchant who had suffered 
 loss in trade. He granted protection for asking alms 
 to a man whose dwelling-house and property, with thir- 
 teen tenements, had been consumed b}^ fire, to the man's 
 utter undoing. Not only that, but the king recommend- 
 ed him as having kept a good household by which many 
 poor creatures had been refreshed. 
 
 Was His Majest}^, Sire Brains, called upon to pay 
 the debts of the Duke of Buckingham, or those of the 
 Bishop of Exeter, who pursued Richard with malignity 
 
112 
 
 A METEOR KING. 
 
 to his end ? 
 
 Great swords and battle-axes ! The king granted a 
 commission to the Hermit of the Chapel of Reculver co 
 receive alms for the re-building of the roof of that 
 structure, whic' had been ordained for the burial of 
 those who should perish by storms. 
 
 Beside all these he gave hundreds of what might 
 be called religious benefactions, not to speak of gener- 
 osity unknown to all but himself and the Greatest One. 
 
 There were instances where he granted annuities 
 for good services done to his father. 
 
 What kind of a temper, Sire Brains, do these and 
 similar actions display ? 
 
 There is nothing of your damned common, cruel, 
 crooked-backed Richard shown forth here. 
 
 Let the glasses jingle. Sire Brains. I shall be cal- 
 mer ; but is it not clear that our King Richard had 
 human sympathies, as you would call them, of an emi- 
 nent order? 
 
 But to go on : 
 
 Sore, sore, Sire Brains, as were King Richard^s sor- 
 rows, yet no trouble weighed so heavily upon him as the 
 murder of his two nephews. That he never forgot. 
 Yea, he would have abandoned the throne and crown of 
 England but that he new none lived to follow him ex- 
 cept yon weak incapable, the Eari of Richmond, Henry 
 Tudor. 
 
 Many times did I watch His Majesty ; and when 
 those fits of gloom stole over him I was torn with pain, 
 upon the heels of which came anger because there was 
 not one person whom I might slay for bringing this on 
 him, poor man. 
 
 What ! T3^rrell and Catesby ? 
 
 There burned within me that desire to hack them 
 in a million pieces ; what galled me most was that they 
 knew it, and enjoyed my emasculated wrath. Tyrrell 
 got his deserts quite soon, as you know. Sire Brains ; 
 but Cater/oy remained much honored in the land. Of- 
 ten did I try to raise a quarrel with him, that I might 
 
A METEOR KING. 113 
 
 kill him ; but he was too shrewd a coward to let himself 
 be shown a coward. 
 
 Astonished ! You are astonished, Sire Brains ? 
 
 Let me whisper to you : those were the days of 
 days. If a miscreant slapped my face back-handed or 
 otherwise affronted me, I did not run peddling to a 
 police-court. Nay, Sire Brains, I clapped my hand up- 
 on my weapon thus, and thus requited me ! 
 
 Ah, soothe thee, soothe thee. Sire Brains ; although 
 this table is not oaken, as it should be, yet shall I not 
 split it. Terrible I may look, but my instincts truly 
 are as soft as carded wool. 
 
 This divergence, I shall admit, was quite uncalled 
 for ; I but lived in retrospect. Now let me proceed : 
 
 King Richard felt bitterly the fact that Elizabeth 
 believed him guilty of the murder of her children. She 
 had had speech with His Majesty ; and how cuttingly 
 she upbraided him ! ^ 
 
 " 'Twas but a coward's deed," she said ; "and again, 
 "usurper Richard, you are a caitiff to deny it, and try to 
 throw the blame upon a nobleman slain by yourself for- 
 sooth because he knew too particularly of your cruel 
 action." 
 
 King Richard^s face was fearful to behold ; yet said 
 he not one word in self-defence. He knew that would 
 be useless. 
 
 Ye Gods ! How I did wish the Lady Grey had 
 been bom a man. 
 
 Peace, peace ; sit you quiet there. Sire Brains. 
 
 Shortly after that I made occasion to interview the 
 widowed queen, that I might disabuse her mind about 
 the murder of her sons. As well might I have saved 
 my breath ; in fact, 't were better I had never spoken, 
 for: 
 
 " Murderer of my babes," she cried, in scorn begat of 
 blinded mother's love ; "methinks also that thou wert 
 one of those foul men who took my children's lives 
 away." 
 
 " My mission was to save," I pleaded. 
 
114 
 
 A METEOR KING. 
 
 " Say not those words, adding perjury to your many 
 other crimes ; verily do I now guess that you were sent 
 there to spy that Tyrrell did well his ghastly wicked 
 work. O God, my pretty boys." 
 
 Despairing, then cried I : 
 
 *^ Blame not an atom of the crime upon King Rich- 
 ard, fair heart-torn Queen Elizabeth." 
 
 ** Nay, then, will I," retorted she ; *'he shall bear it 
 all. Nor shall I call the slayer of my children king. 
 Let him be damned and cursed forever ; aye, forever and 
 forever !" 
 
 With which rushed I from her ; for there are wo- 
 men. Sire Brains, whose conclusions once jumped to, 
 whether right or wrong, are conclusions throughout 
 eternity. Elizabeth Woodville had a subtle mind ; but 
 it had become impaired through brooding on her grief. 
 
 Ambition, alas, ambition. Sire Brains, had caused 
 all her tribulations. An ambition is not commendable, 
 except it is attained. 
 
 Indeed those times were deadly, as I think I said 
 before ; yet could I not but have pity for this wddowed 
 mother bereft so cruelly of all her brood of males. 
 Girls she had loft ; but w^hat use are girls, unless they 
 are to be our mothers ? 
 
 Better had it been for the earthly happiness of the 
 Lady Grey had she remained her life at Grafton Castle. 
 Felicity even hath a cow-herd^s wife ; the queen of Eng- 
 land's king had only torment of her spirit. 
 
 Unfortunate Elizabeth sank toward the grave ; she 
 did not live to see her namesake daughter married to 
 that vile Richmond. Soon her spirit shook its shackles 
 off, and she greeted then again her sons with the Astra- 
 gans. 
 
 I shall not dwell upon that contemptible personage, 
 Henry Earl of Richmond, any more than I can help. 
 Coward and bastard, bastard and coward, either way you 
 like ; but those were his legitimate names. Sire Brains. 
 How anyone with a soul, as you mortals call it, I say, 
 could ever have followed him I cannot understand. 
 
A METEOR KING. 115 
 
 Would that King Dick's strong arm had reached 
 him on that fatal Bosworth day ; of which more later. 
 To go on. 
 
 It was known that the Earl of Richmond was mak- 
 ing extensive preparations in Brittany to descend upon 
 the throne of England a second time. 
 
 King Richard was no coward ; he feared not the 
 bastard would-be usurper, let him come when he might. 
 
 Instant means were adopted to repel the invasion. 
 Every port was vigilantly guarded ; the southern and 
 eastern cc^asts were patrolled by armed vessels ; and 
 mandates were issued calling upon every man possess- 
 ing landed property to join the royal standard. 
 
 Transmission of messages was accelerated remark- 
 ably by the king. He had horsemen stationed twenty 
 miles apart, so that a letter could be delivered at a dis- 
 tance of over two hundred miles in forty-eight hours. 
 
 I had again become a strong favorite with His 
 Majesty, and was near him well-nigh all the time. I 
 was present and saw that he received the intelligence 
 wdth joy when he was at length told ty his emissaries 
 that the Earl of Richmond, with the permission of King 
 Charles of France, had raised an army of three thousand 
 adventurers, most of them Normans, and that a fleet was 
 lying in the mouth of the river Seine to transport them 
 to England. 
 
 King Richard acted with his customary shrewd 
 quickness. He took a central position at Nottingham, 
 whence he marched forth proudly on Tuesday the six- 
 teenth of August, 1485, at the head of twelve thousand 
 men. 
 
 So went we forward ; and on the evening of the same 
 dav we entered Leicester. 
 
 Usurper Richmond had landed at Milford with his 
 adventurers on the sixth of August, and had marched 
 through the northern districts of Wales, where were a 
 people in the interests of the Stanleys, upon whom the 
 EarPs chief reliance was placed. 
 
 Notwithstanding that fact, Richmond's army did 
 
ii6 A METEOR KING. 
 
 not increase raucli. He had only four thousand men 
 when he entered Shrewsbury. Thence he advanced by 
 Newport, Stafford, Tamworth and Atherstone toward 
 our force, maintaining meanwhile a secret correspon- 
 dence with the perfidious Stanleys. 
 
 Yea, unfortunately, on their support depended the 
 unworthy cause of Henry Tudor. 
 
 At last, on Sunday, the 21st of August, the two 
 armies encamped on Redraoor plain, one mile from the 
 market town of Bos worth. We were in sight of each 
 other. 
 
 How deplorable was King Richard's return to those 
 vile ** Benevolences" which he had revoked in the fore- 
 part of his reign ! Yet money was required for war. 
 Men even in your days. Sire Brains, take remarkable 
 steps to "raise the wind.'* 
 
 I knew that on the morrow we should see one of 
 the most desperate fights on record. If Lord Stanley 
 and his brother. Sir William Stanley, held true to Rich- 
 ard , the day would be ours. 
 
 Yes, yes ; there we were ; the crown was going to 
 be fiercely combatted for, and thus I summed the situ- 
 ation up : Richard was the better versed in arms ; Henry 
 was the better served. Richard was brave as a lion ; 
 Henry was a blanked coward. 
 
 Our men lay well. 
 
 Henry's camp ran in a straight line, about three 
 hundred yards from a brook he had crossed, toward Am- 
 beame Hill, sometimes within the wood and again on 
 the meadows at the west called White-Moors. His was 
 a magnificent looking force ; but we were the men to 
 fight! 
 
 Now do I come to that fateful 22nd of August. 
 
 On the morning of that day our armies were drawn 
 up in battle array. Lord Stanley and his brother had 
 their men in an intermediate position, from which they 
 could easily fall in with either party. 
 
 Every man in our ranks looked resolved to win 
 and live — or fight to the death. The archers had their 
 
 ■■■ 
 
A METEOR KING. 117 
 
 fingers itching at their bowstrings ; and the spear-men 
 grasped their weapons and were stem. 
 
 But there was delay. 
 
 By-and-bye, up rode furiously to King Richard Sir 
 Robert Dymoke, wrath personified, though he gave not 
 vent to anger before His Majesty. 
 
 "My Sovereign Lord the King/* he cried, "the Earl 
 of Northumberland hath withdrawn his large force to 
 a neutral distance ; I fear me he with Stanley hath 
 traitorous intentions toward Your Majesty." 
 
 King Richard considered for a moment. 
 
 "I shall go forth, with Your Majesty's command," 
 went on the Champion Dymoke, **to challenge bastard 
 Henry ; aye, with another traitor Lord or two at his 
 back.'* 
 
 "Nay,** said His Majesty ; "but await a short time 
 the tardy answer of Stanley.** 
 
 " Methinks,** quoth Dymoke, "that he vascillates 
 already, with a strong inclination to drop toward Henry. 
 Were it not that Your Majesty hath his son. Lord 
 Strange, a hostage, and that he fears our valor may 
 prevail even above such numbers, there would have 
 been no doubt.** 
 
 King Richard slowly nodded his head, saying: 
 
 " Aye ; so, so ; it is vain to wait** ; then, with a 
 vigor and fire in his eyes : 
 
 " Let the battle begin !** 
 
 Good Lord ! How swiftly those soldiers buckled 
 their helms ! How rapidly those archers bent their 
 bows and f rushed their feathers ! How quickly the bill- 
 men shook their bills and proved their staves ! 
 
 I felt the blood surge within me with eagerness 
 when I saw how ready all were to maul the enemy in 
 front, in spite of the terrible odds against us. Such ex- 
 periences are memorized eternally. Sire Brains. 
 
 For a minute there was a feariful pause ; then blared 
 out the trumpets with the order to advance. 
 
 With one accord our soldiers shouted : 
 
 " On for King Richard ! Down with the Rich- 
 
ii8 A METEOR KING. 
 
 mond!" 
 
 The bloody struggle had begun. 
 
 Like the roar of an avalanche, the king's archers 
 let fly their arrows ; the EarPs bowmen retorted ; and 
 for a time nothing could be heard save the rattle of the 
 barbed points against shield and helmet. Many found 
 vital openings ; men fell here and there all around ; but 
 the ranks were sharply closed, and on we moved. 
 
 When these death-dealing arrow-showers began to 
 lull, both armies were entangled, smiting each other 
 hand to hand with a vigor that produced much slaugh- 
 ter everywhere. 
 
 Gods ! I had not much time then to notice, for the 
 fight raged furiously around us. 
 
 One of the first to fall upon our side was the brave 
 Duke of Norfolk. Just for a moment his son, the Earl 
 of Surrey, bent over his dying father, then, eager to 
 give vengeance, he called to his followers and fought 
 his way into the thickest of the fray. Heavens, but he 
 did mow down those wretches ! Until finally he was 
 surrounded and taken prisoner. 
 
 Through it all came the cry : 
 
 ** Lord Stanley moves to join forces with the Earl 
 of Richmond.^' 
 
 This was a fact ; but the Earl of Northumberland 
 preferred discretion, and remained a passive spectator at 
 a distance. 
 
 Demons ! King Richard seemed super-human to 
 me at that time in his enormous activity. One of his 
 blows sufliced for any man. 
 
 Victory still trembled in the balance ; and that 
 movement on the part of Lord Stanley determined King 
 Richard on a sagacious and daring stroke for victory. 
 
 **Foliow me, ye knights who may,'' he roared ; **I 
 go to slay this Henry and end the struggle." 
 
 Off he charged at the words, with them who heard 
 thundering at his heels. In his left hand His Majesty 
 carried his spear ; but he did not use it. His trust was 
 in his right arm and his sword. 
 
A METEOR KING. 119 
 
 Sir William Brandon, standard-bearer for the Earl 
 of Richmond, was the first man to encounter us. He 
 was as if fascinated at the intrepidity of the king, and 
 could neither resist nor depart, but appeared to fall by 
 his own astonishment. Richard at one stroke cleft his 
 head, and contemptuously cast the standard down. This 
 was a red dragon upon a ground of green and white silk, 
 the ensign of Cadwallador, the last king of the Britons 
 and Henry's maternal ancestor. 
 
 Crashing along, King Richard next collided with 
 the powerful Sir John Cheney, whom he unhorsed with 
 little difficulty. 
 
 Sire Brains, were these the acts of a hunchbacked, 
 puny or decrepit fellow with a withered arm ? 
 
 Not the least attention did he pay to the warriors 
 on his right and left, except to demolish them who came 
 in his path, which he was cutting toward vile Henry. 
 That cowardly wretch was thoroughly frightened, and 
 continually moved backward, allowing his people to 
 crowd between himself and the fierce on-coming king. 
 
 Great devils! How we pounded in pell-mell behind 
 the king, tumbling the dunderheads hither and thither ! 
 
 Truly Richmond was in the utmost danger, and 
 fortune was favoring us. We were winning the battle 
 by the king's valor on our side and the consternation 
 we were creating on the other side. 
 
 Here was a critical moment ; victory was quivering 
 toward the king. So saw that other whitelivered Stan- 
 ley, Sir William ; for he instantly closed with his three 
 thousand men and nearly surrounded the king and us, 
 preventing succor from our forces. 
 
 Thus by perfidy and dint of numbers did he turn 
 the fortunes of the day against us. Had Sir William 
 deferred his help another minute the victory had been 
 ours, for verily King Richard would have slain the Earl 
 of Richmond. 
 
 Yea, and that same Henry knew it. Afterward he 
 said that Sir William had come in time to save his life, 
 but that he had stayed away long enough to endanger 
 
I20 A METEOR KING. 
 
 it. 
 
 Seeing our desperate condition, ^e fought but to 
 sell our lives most dear. King Richard had sworn that 
 he never would surrender, so we cared not to out-live 
 Kis Majesty. 
 
 One by one, after terrible combatting, they cut 
 down our party of knights, until there remained but 
 King Richard, Dymoke and myself. Our horses had 
 been slain, and we fought standing. 
 
 Brutal hordes of Richmond's horsemen strove with 
 might and main to crush us, themselves out of our 
 reach. Some we pulled from their chargers and slew. 
 
 King Richard had yet but one aim — to reach the 
 Earl of Richmond. As he ferociously parried and 
 struck he continued to press toward the place where 
 rode the earl. Back to back with the king, I struggled 
 after him, the gallant D3^moke seeming to guard us all 
 around. 
 
 Seeing the great disadvantage of our arms, as there 
 was a lull m the terrible onslaught, caused by the glut 
 of warriors' corpser and the carcases of chargers, King 
 Richard shouted : 
 
 " A horse, Dymoke ; a horse ! As you love me get 
 me a horse, 'til I pursue that caitiff Richmond. Let me 
 but come at him, I shall make two halves of him, one 
 leg to each." 
 
 " A horse, eh ?'' snarled the leader of a band of 
 hostile knights who came prancing their steeds on top 
 of us ; "here is a horse." 
 
 And he made a terrific lunge at His Majesty with 
 a spear. 
 
 Dymoke was too quick though. With a swoop of 
 his heavy sword, he smashed the spear that would have 
 slain the king, and before the attacking knight could 
 straighten himself Dymoke had seized him by the neck 
 and brought him clattering to the earth. Net one word 
 spake that insulting Sir again ; his back w^as broken. 
 
A METEOR KING. 121 
 
 Then the rush became more than we could stand. 
 I saw the king sink down, weak at last from his in- 
 numerable wounds, and at the same time my legs be- 
 came as wool. 
 
 One crushing blow upon my head and all was dark. 
 Dymoke's great sturdy figure leaping here and there, 
 whilst his sword was smiting furiously, was the last 
 scene before my vanishing sight. 
 
 When my consciousness returned I raised my head 
 to see where lay the king. He was gone ; but Dymoke 
 rested on the ground close by, his sword still in his 
 grasp, and he surrounded by a ring of cloven-skulled 
 warriors. 
 
 Not far away, I heard a noisy tumult and a cheer- 
 ing for "King Henry." Inwardly I cursed him. Then 
 came they riding past, and, horrors incarnate, what did 
 I see? 
 
 There was the nude body of his Noble Majesty 
 Iling Richard cast athwart a horse, which was being led 
 behind the Earl of Richmond. 
 I groaned in spirit. 
 
 Thus went they "triumphantly" to Leicester. 
 King Richard verily was dead ; realizing that, I fell 
 back myself and cast off my earthly shell ; which I had 
 no sooner done than I began to live eternally with that 
 gallant Richard and those brave warriors for whom and 
 beside whom I had fought. 
 
 We hovered over that ghoulish cavalcade, all wrath 
 now strangely gone, pitying mortals who could take 
 delight or satisfaction from an exhibition of that kind. 
 They had but the casing of the spirit-part ; we had the 
 true being, our Richard. 
 
 Aye, repugnance arose within the Earth people's 
 minds against the usurping Tudor who had ordered and 
 was countenancing the display of horridness. 
 
 To the town hall of Leicester went the sanguinary 
 cortege and there the body of the king was hideously 
 exposed for two days. For all Henry cared there it 
 might have stayed ; but some of the better elements 
 
122 A METEOR KING. 
 
 among the men of those days, the Grey Friars, took it 
 up and buried it in their own church, without ceremony. 
 Service they held, but anything more would have drawn 
 down upon them the vindictive anger of the ruling 
 power. 
 
 Thus was King Richard foully undone by four 
 English noblemen — the two Stanleys, Shrewsbury and 
 Northumberland — ^who should have been, and were pro- 
 fessedly, his devoted adherents. Enemies Richard had 
 feared not ; but this successful plot was concocted by 
 false friends. 
 
 Many more troths, historic and spiritic, might I 
 tell you. Sire Brains but this was the main desire — that 
 you should learn of Richard Third as he was. I have 
 put you upon the right trail of thought, so shall I say : 
 
 "Good night" 
 
 There was no tramping of feet at the departure of 
 Astragus, as there had been at his entry : he simply 
 rose to his full height, saluted his host and became in- 
 visible to that mortal. 
 
 Mr. Brains dropped his arms upon the table, his 
 forehead upon his arms, and — thought.