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D D D Coloured covers/ Couverture de couleur Covers damaged/ Couverture endommagte Covers restored and/or laminated/ Couverture restauree et/ou pellicula □ Cover title Le titre de missing/ couverture manque n n Coloured maps/ Cartes giographiques en couleur Coloured ink (i.e. other than blue or black)/ Encre de couleur (i.e. autre que bleue ou noire) Coloured plates and/or illustrations/ Planches et/ou illustrations en couleur Bound with other material/ Relie avec d'autres documents Tight binding may cause shadows or distortion along interior margin/ La reliure serree p d'imeges nicessaire. Las diagrammas suivants iliustrent la mAthoda. 1 2 3 1 2 3 4 5 6 22X THE ANGEL OF THE COVENANT THE ANGEL OF THE COVENANT TRUE HISXOBV «- ' INCLUDING THE STRANGE TKUE msTORV OK „,s SISTER, THE .ADV CATHERINE CRAHAM ; H.s rRIENOSHXP WITH CERTAI. CENT.EWOMEK J AKO THE WHOLE TUTH or HIS ALLIANCE WITH THE SCOTTISH COVENANT, WRITTEN BV A B IN THE VEAR O. GOO, l66,, AND .HE SECOND OP THE RESTORATION or MONARCHY IN THIS KINGDOM. NOW riRST GIVEN TO THE WORLD BY J. MACLAREN COBBAN Author of "The King of Andaman," "The Red Sultan." Etc. TORONTO NEWS COMPANY, TORONTO. Copyright 1898 BY R. F. FENNO & COMPANY The Angel 0/ the JOonvenant THE ANGEL OF THE COVEI^ANT. 1":: h;vel::;ZaainrT.'r' "^''' *■"»' «"- «' ol great men a^d hZn "'" P"''™^ """^ "<="<'«« play-actors who now beffin to show ,^,'^^''"^^7^^^^ the Thus it is with me. And tho'l l l'''''^' '^""^- -tina, tiio 1 have scnvod -nni- a i;<-<.i enjoy tepnvilego of e,„p.oy„e„t uu 'rt t^^d and of intitnatc communion with him bofh «f """""""'J .o.d M,.ty to t^t":?;:^t:f jsr: tit: JNoble Marquis hath provoked me to nnf r.., 7 before me; heoaose tL signalTubHc'Tnd'' ,;?; C' done to h„ memory hath set on many of the new gene"- 9 10 The Angel of the Covenant. tion to wonder and admire in their light-minded ignor.ance why my late lord marqnis sliould be thus distinguished — ho the mere memory of whom stirs my chill blood like the call of a trii nipct. Of ttimes of late have I been tempted to cry aloud in rage and bitterness : — " How the memory of the great and good lastcth but a little while, and that of the base and wicked flourisheth green and strong ! " With tears in my heart I cry within mo to the scoffing youngsters, whose crackling jests servo for wit in these days : — " Ye knew not my dear lord, my patron and friend ; the beauty of his person, the courtesy of his manners, the generosity of his temper, the nobleness of his soul, and the wit and sprightf ulness of his speech ; as well these as his uncon- querable skill and activity in the field of war ! He was the adored of the poor ; and the most detested and feared by his enemies of the Kirk and the Estates ! He was admired and reverenced by all gentlemen of his close acquaintance, and beloved by all ladies who had ever seen him or heard him speak I And to mo he was the dearest friend and patron, and the noblest and most princely person in all the world ! Be it mine, then " (I have said to myself), " to raise this monument of praise to his memory, from whom I derive my sole conception of a true Patriot, and a god- like Hero! '^ And thus I take up my pen at the beginning. THE ANGEL OE THE COVENANT. CHAPTER I. THE THIRD OF NOVEMBER, 1G29. It 80 fell out in Aberdeen that Tuesday the third of November of the year of God 1629 was a day of exceeding hard and bitter frost, but no snow. It had been freezing for some long while, and the rude Boreas had been blow- ing shrewd, and snell, and biting on the cheek, with the sting of ice. The seniors stayed by the ingle-side, except when necessary business drew them away, but we juniors were briskened by the dry and caller cold into a lustier sense of life and pricked into a more diabolic activity. I was seventeen going eighteen years of age, and I ought therefore to have known better, the rather that I had just begun the solemn study of Divinity n Marischal College, but I played truant from class that Jay, and leaving my lodging in the Gallowgate early, I prevailed on my cousin. Mistress Magdalen Keith (who was thirteen years old), to keep me company alone to try the new skates we had gotten from Holland. I had heard that the Den Burn was frozen thick, and thither we proceeded. My cousin and her mother, the Lady Balgownie, were then biding in the house of the Earl Marischal, for a reason which you shall hear anon. And since the mansion of the Earl Mar- ischal is, and ever hath been, in the Castlegate of New Aberdeen, opposite the Court House, to pass thence di- rectly without the town to the Den Burn where it flowed IX 12 The Angel of the Covenant. under tho steep, birkon slope of the Corbie iriiugh it was necessary to proceed by way of the Nether Kirk Gate* and its Port,* by tho Town Hospital, or Poor House, and thro' the yard of the great kirk of St. Nicholas. Being somewhat impatient to try my new toys I tramped on with all speed, while my blithesome Mistress Magdalen tripped and frisked by my side like a lambkin,— yea, and looked the same in her white furry hood and tippet. The ground rang hard as granite under our heels, the wind blew cold and stinging on my ears (Magdalen's were happed up), and tho low winter sun shining over the Torry hills so bleak and bare made the hoar-frost on grass and tree- branch glister like dust of diamonds. We were thus hurry- ing thro' the kirk-yard of St. Nicholas, being urged to greater speed by already hearing from the Den Burn be- low the dirl of the curling-stones on the ice and the whirr of the town-loons sliding in a row,— we were thus hasten- ing on, I say, when a strange, humorsome, and entreating voice fell on my ear. " Ilooly and fairly, bairns ! Bide a wee ! What's the hurry ? The ice is nae like het kail : it winna spoil for waiting ! " I stopped and looked around, with a pang of resentful fear at my heart lest my truanting had been discovered, and lest I was bidden by some one in authority to halt and return with words of jeering. *' Dinna be fleyed, dawties," the words went on. "Fni just a silly, poor man, that would harm neither bairn nor beast." And the voice sang,— " O, wow ! quo' he, were I as free As first when I saw this countree, How blithe and merry wad I be, And I wad never think lang ! * In old Scots, gaU means street, and port means gate m the English sense. The Third of November, 1629. 13 But I'm slintted up, bairns, and I'm, wow ! just perished wi' cauld and hunger I" *'0h I " cried Mistress Magdalen, ^'it's Fool Wattle I 1 ken his voice ! " "Ay, it just is, bairn : Fule Wattio, or Daft Wattie — but nao so daft but that he'd rather bo by a warm in'rlo wi'a cnpo' swats* in his hand, than in a gousty kfrk steeple on a frosty day ! " ** Where are ye ?" I cried aloud. "Saul o'me, laddie," came the answer, "I'm nearer heaven than maist that come here ; I'm higher up in the house o' the Lord than the minister or the bishop ever was I m thinking ; but I'm o' David's opinion : * I'd rather be a doorkeeper' ; for, if I was a doorkeeper, I'd just lift the sneck and out I'd snip. Let mo out, laddie, winna ye ? I m the wrang man here." Now bo it known to you that the great Kirk of .St Nicholas IS built in manner of a cross (it was built before the Reformation, you may make sure), and from the joint of the cross riseth the great tower with its steeple, so I pushed nearer at the re-entering angles of the walls the better to see what I might. And craning my neckband looking up at the louver window, or shuttered opening thro which the sound of the bells doth come, I certainly descried thrust between two of the wooden laths a beckon- ing hand and arm. My cousin saw as soon as I. "See, Alec !" she cried in that sweet, sprightful voice which always moved me and laid hold of me like the music of small silver bells. '' That's him ! His loof's thro' the louver ! Oh, the poor silly man, he is just a prisoner in a Castle of Gloom beckoning on help to a bonny knight and his fair ladye riding by ! Oh, let him out. Alec !" I looked in her face and found the melting luster of her beautiful eyes, added to the sweet urgency of her voice, to 14 The Angel of the Covenant. be infinitely moving ; but I stuck still, and shook my head ; yea, I believe I blushed ;— and that because I knew I was afraid to do her bidding. " Not let the poor silly man out. Alec ? " And her eyes sparkled with amazement. "I dare not, Magdalen,^' I said. "And wnat for no. Alec Burnet ?" she demanded ; her wee wild wilful temper rising, like a sudden gust of storm on a Highland loch. "Gin ye were older, Magdalen Keith," said I, "ye would ken that the man must have been shut up there by the Kirk Session." " Lord sakes, bairns, nae so high anent Kirks and Ses- sions ! " said the voice from the tower. " Frosty air car- ries claiks like a bird. Hark to the roar o' the sea : ye may ken by that. But, kind sir, by your courtesie, gi'e me a word. The Session put me here : what for should I deceive ye ? They put me in the jougs* on the Lord's Day, for the forenoon and afternoon diets — the wonder is they didna nail my lugs to the post— and syne they clapped me up here in the cauld and gousty tower ! They shoved me in here on the Sabbath night, and now it's Tysday. " "What for?" I called. " Guid kens ! Wlifeht ye ! E'en just because I winna clout my auld cloak wi' the new claith o' the Kirk ; to be plain wi' ye, being but bairns, because I will aye sing the auld sangs to the auld tunes, instead o' the new godly sangs they ha'e fitted on to them. But let me out, bairns, and I'se tell ye a' about it." " For sure. Alec," said my cousin, " we ought to let the poor man out ! The Minister and the kirk are just terrible giants and warlocks to put a poor, silly man in that iron joug and syne up there in that ghostly tower, for nothing ava' but that he sings bonny sweet songs ? " * Jougs=a,n iron collar, or yoke, fastened to the wall of the church. lier (t . The Third of November, 1629. 15 ''Ifs not the Kirk,- said I, correcting her, because I could truly say nothing : ^'it's the Session/* - And what do I care wha it is ! - cried my cousin. " I Hate Ilk ane o them,— Minister and all ! And Til tell mv uncle, the Earl Marischal ! " ^ " The Earl will flyte at ye," said I. " He will not ! " said she, altogether angry " The Earl," said I, who was better acquaint with the power of tfie Kirk than she, -kens well er^^igh that the Sfn 'ZyZ::^ '^^' ^^ ''' ^'^^^^ ^^ ^^' - ''^^ «^-p^^ BuZ^n "^'" """' r '^'' ''''^' '' ^^d y^ '^y that. Alec Burnet because ye're a cowardy-cowardy-costard I Ye're feared to let the fool man out, and ye're feared-I ken now !— because ye're to be a minister yourselM" no"f niT T ^'Z'V " ^ "''^' '^""^ *" *^^ ^^^«k : for I had sion r.t r"' ..' " ' "r''''' •• ^ "^y^^^^ ^^d no propen- sion that way, tho' my family wished it. -And to show o^lto'T ^^^^.^^-'" -^ ^' ''I-ill e'en lot thet:: out, tho the Session may pnt me in the jougs for it cateT " ''""''''" "^ "^^^-'^^ "^'^^'^ me exfommunl' " They will no,-will they ? "said she. " I care na if they do ! " said I, become utterly reckless and prepared to hazard all the terrors of the Kirk thf "d.hoT^ y«""gand witliout forethought, I had let all this debate go by without ever considering how the ZTlllZTX 'V"^'^'- ' ^^™^^ like apaLt but I stood still and gaped in speculation before the stou enough to leave the key in the lock, and I was unwise ring to find if by any chance it were undone. Yet the rrsorLHritht: '- "-"'' ''- '-'-^ — ^-^ i6 The Angel of the Covenant. te Now, my callant," he cried, " what's a' this steer about ? Let that door a-be ! " " I will ha' this door open/' said I, "and the silly poor man out." ^ " Oh, ye will, will ye, my bonny bit o' worm's meat ! And wha may ye be to mak siccan a demand ? " I had a mind at first to say who I was, and who my cousin was, to impress the bedral, but I concluded it was better not to be known, (tho', if I had but considered enough, the feather I wore in my bonnet sliowed I was of gentle birth) ; so I said, '-'it is no matter wha I may be." " Is it no, my birky ? The minister'll ha'e a say to that. Come ye wi' me ! " He advanced at me with threatening ; but I straddled across the slab-step of the door, and dared him with the ashen cudgel I carried, saying, " If ye lay hand on me, ye'll get such a clout that ye'll no think long for another ! " He eyed me, and turned off in haste muttering he would get the minister and the elders, the provost and the bailies, and I know not whom, to take note of me. I i)er- ceived that if I were to do anytliing I must do it quickly. Tho' I have ever been ill to rouse, once roused I have ever been, like a Highland stot, ill to guide and stiff to turn aside. I was then in that mood of headstrong obstination. I turned my eye on my cousin, and the sight of her bonny person standing slim aud straight as a rush, with hands clenched, and wide eyes flashing in expectation, set me crazy with desire to distinguish myself before her. In the tower, not far from the door, was a wide grating of timber lattice-work, something more than my height from the ground. Resolved to enter the tower by some means I leaped at the lattice, but missed the sill and scraped my fingers, already tingling with tlie cold. *' At it again, my bairn," cried the prisoner. " Saul o' me ! but here's a braw collieshangie I n> The Third of November, 1629. 17 I leaped again, and hung. I drew myself np (hoping that Magdalen was admiring my strength), rammed at the lattice, and in a trice was on the floor within, which, I found, was something higher than the ground without. ' I groped for the stairs and climbed them with care, for their inner side was unfenced. At the top of the stairs I came upon another door, but by good fortune the key was in «ie lock. Within was the poor, foolish prisoner of the Kirk, and I drew him away by the sleeve withouten a word but "Mind the stairs.'' *' Mind them yourseF, my maister," quoth he " for ye hae mair need. Fm so muckle i' the woods or by the dyke-side i' the mirk that I ha'e the een 0' a baudrons * or a howlet." In an instant or two thereafter I had given him a leg up to the hole from the which I had driven the lattice work, and was cramming him thro' ; for he was a fellow of great bulk. When we both stood upon the frozen ground without I noted that some men were standing aloof, watchful but not caring to be concerned in the affair. I had no fear of them ; for even then I knew enough to understand that the high-handed doings of the Kirk were not approven by the heart of the multitude, which IS ever more inclined to see the world move with ease and jollity, than to be swinging into either the one extreme or the other. I saw approval and admiration dancing in the bright eyes of my cousin, and I smiled carelessly as I dusted my doublet with my hand. Fool Wattle shook himself, settled the straps of his gaberlunyie wallets upon his broad shoulders, and pulled his broad bonnet down upon his head. "My service to ye, kind sir, for your courtesie,'' quoth he, grinning at mo. " And wha may ye be, kind sir,-for 1 will be fam to think aye upon your :aiae ? " *Batidron8—a cat. i8 The Angel of the Covenant. ■it! .'- S "My name's Alexander Burnet/' said I. " His father," put in my cousin, tossing her head like the high and proud young thing that she was, — '^his father," quoth she, " is Sir William Burnet of Esk and our uncle is the Earl Marischal." "The bonnie yearl Keith o' Dunottar ? I ken him and his house brawly. My service to ye, my bonnie mistress," said he, whipping off his bonnet, and becking low with his sly, humorsome eyes miling on her. She bent her bonny head to him in a sweetly stately fashion all her own. *' My name," quoth she, " is Mis- tress Magdalen Keith." So saying she swept a glance on the man to see the effect she made on him, and with the most perfect air of what we call coquetry she drew softly sidewise away, as if, for all the world, she would draw the patched and creeshie gaberlunyie after her. I avow I speak only the truth in so saying : for long ere then she had practised her airs and graces upon every knave of her father's and her uncle's household and every huckster or wabster on the causeway. " Oh, my bonny wee leddy," said the gaberlunyie man, with a brisk cock of his eye, "but ye'Il ha'e mony a bro- ken heart o' man trailing at your tailie yet. So I'll e'en tak' a kiss at your bonnie han' afore I be ower late : first come, first served." " Haste ye, sirs ! " cried one of those who looked on, running towards us. " Are ye wud that ye bide here ? Awa* wi' ye to the Burn wi' your iron sliders, and we'll tell whaever comes back wi' the bedral that ye've gane into the town by the Over Kirk Gate ! " "Ay," said Wattie, " I'd as lief be stepping as standing still. Come your ways, Mr. Burnet ; the Kirk's nae mowse to meddle wi' ! Eun, sir, run ! " I set out walking at a good pace, but I would not ran. The Third of November, 1629. 19 —with Magdalen's eye on me. '^'11 run for naebody," said I,^'' Kirk, nor minister, nor ruling elder." " See to that I " cried the gaberlunyie, striding before me. " What a grand thing it is to ha'e spunk * ! I ha'e nae spunk Wow ! - quoth he, cocking his eye at the prison he had left. "But yon was a cauldrife, gousty dwelling-place. Nae light, nae company, and nae a drap to drink !-nae company ava' ! - he said and shivered, but the wraiths 0' the dead-big and little, great and sma-men and women and weans-rising up frae their streekit graves a-below the Kirk lioor, and fuffing up the tower, and by my lug, like the reek o^ a lum '" He turned and gripped my arm, and said with a scared face ' ' I could smell them, man ! " Quickly he turned about again, and shook his nieve at the Kirk. « Ay," quoth he « I was putten there for my sins! And what was theV- think ye ? And he turned again to me. " Maistlins 1 m mair sensible nor the minister himseF, but they ca'd me a feigned f fool ! What think ye o' that ? And some gate or other they made it oxyt proper contumaciam; cause I aye smg ranting, roaring sangs, and aye will ! iliat was what for I was contumaced." " What kind o' sangs were ye punished for .? " I hazarded the question, because I was in a very curious mind '^Ow," quoth he, with a sly, considering eye on me, naething but Ba-lu-la-lu and John, come kiss me now. ^' Ye'd better tell me," said I with the air of one having authority, " because, ye see, Wattie, Fm nae bairn • Fm near a man : Fll be eighteen next Januar'." " Weel," quoth he, making his voice low, " Fll no say I didna sing nows and nans Corn Rigs are honnie, ! and ffey, sirs, hasna Jenny got Joel, and siclike ! What think ye ?— Ah, but ye ken, I daursay, wi' your College learand * Spunk— courage, f Pronounce ' ' fainyed. " 20 The Angel of the Covenant. the like ; they've stolen my anld tunes to fit to their new- shanchled godly sangs, till the sound o' them scunners me ! I canna win ower't ! . . . Now, here's the Burn/' said he, ''Ye gang your ways and I gang mines, my dawties. A word i' your lug, Mr. Burnet ; ca' canny and keep your e'e twirling ; ye ha'e no seen the last o'this collieshangie : the Kirk has a langer arm and sharper claws than the Yearl Marischal. I trow we'll meet again." And, with more suppleness than I could have thought he possessed, he spread across the ice of the Burn, and so into the hanging birken shaw of the Corbie Haugh, beyond which was the open country. So Mistress Magdalen Keith and I went about our skating and appeared to forget this affair of Fool Wattie, the gaber- lunyie man ; but all the while Fear sat on my heart like a watchful nesting bird. It was not alone the knowledge that I was playing truant from College and that I had flouted and broken in upon the awful authority of the Kirk, but the imagination of the unknown consequences to fol- low that thus affected me. We skated up the frozen burn as far as the House of the Spa Well, and the dwelling and pleasure garden in the Dutch mode which the painter Jameson, our Scottish Vandyck, had made for himself there in lordly wise, and down again as far as the Bow Bridge where the curlers were plying their curling stones. Up and down we span (to the admiration and envy of the slidin,^ loons), and wrought ourselves into a fine glow of warmth, I instructing my young cousin and holding her by the hand. Swiftly the short winter's day drew in ; for in our Northern latitude at that season of the year the light doth become darkness by three in the afternoon. My cousin grew fatigued and hungry, and kept urging me, saying " let us win hame now. Alec ; " but I was inwardly resolved not to venture back thro' the town until the in- stant before the Ports were closed. I I The Third of November, 1629. 21 " Bide a wee, Magdalen/^ I said, therefore,—'^ till the end 0' the bonspiel.'' * She was commonly tyrannical with me, but she could be submissive enough when it was agreeable to her ; and so she bode with me patiently,— the rather, I conceive, that while we skimmed lightly around to keep ourselves in heat, she was sensible that the eyes of the disengaged curlers followed her gracile movements. Of a sudden she snatched my attention from the curling. " Oh, look, Alec ! " she cried, '' Look ye ! " I looked where her eyes were turned, and this is what I saw :— On the top of the steep brae descending from the country to the Bow Brig was a small company of horse- men with the pale radiance of the setting sun streaming thro' their ranks, and interplaying with the horse's legs. The strange illumination lasted but an instant, for the cavalcade slowly descended the brae to the Brig. AVe went nearer the bridge and saw them plainly as they came on. They were six in all, two gentlemen in front and four servants in livery following. " Oh, Alec," cried my cousin. " Is he no gallant ?— is he no splendid ?— is he no bonny ?" It was plain whom she meant,— the one of the two cava- liers, who controlled a stately white horse and rode with a smgular grace : a slightly made youth, of something near my own age, but with an easy air of command, and of an elegance beyond compare. He wore a gray riding suit, gray riding gauntlets, and a gray beaver hat with white feathers ; his abundant, wavy hair, of the color of ripe corn, fell upon a collar of otter fur. But his eye troubled me ; as he rode by it lighted softly on me and my cousin while we stood gazing, and then I felt myself ignorant and rude and rustical by comparison with him, whose lucid Bonspiel—a, match at Curling. i I 22 The Angel of the Covenant. and joyful gaze spake to me, as an angel's might, of calm, of confidence, and of gladness. " Oh, wha can he be ? " cried my cousin, aflame with ex- citement. I answered, with something of envy and sulkiness, I doubt, '' A young lord from Court, I daresay, witli his master of horse at his elbow, and his lackeys at bis tail." "I wish to be ta'en home. Alec,'* said she, with a de- cision which Avas not to be gainsaid. '' It is time.'' I thought it well that we should pass ourselves into the town in the rear of the attention the distinguished caval- cade was certain to arouse ; and so we unstrapped our skates and followed the horsemen Avith all speed. " I think," said my cousin, " he will be a knight-errant ; or perchance a prince of faery ; Avhat think ye. Alec ?" I said nothing at all, good or bad ; but my fear of what was to come brooded more heavily on my heart than ever. I The Golden Youth. 23 CHAPTER II THE GOLDEff YOUTH 60 to come at the lower entrv ff « f '^""'•'"•"''s Hill, Port ; for I had a Xtanoe tl 1" """' *''" ^'"P-R"'' the more public Net rS A P T T' *° ''»" '«" by Ship-RowPort on t he^ ofn , ^^^ "'^^^'^ «"»'«>« however, we were haU wly .p te sTp ''^ *'" ""O' cade trotted on out ol 0^812 ' ^''I>-^<"'y the caval- by the running out of the .^ T" ^"'"^ ""''"S '""'''"•<«i sounding clatter of horse L^""^- ""''™"'''' "' "'^ held on up the Ship-Rri.l.ro'H " ,"''""™^- ^^« Row into Castle Gaie, I wonder Wtl" ^^'"' f "'""'"^^ strangers would lodge in the f ^ n ""'" ''''^"'er the Kow, or nearer by Z own,J-^''^'' "" '^'^ «™«' When weapproach'edtLXlMaSlf '"T""'"'- I observed with surprise r™,I „*"''""^' ^ house, however, , light) that the party of h^!^ """'" ^'"^ '^"■'^™* "e! gate. ^ ^ "^ horsemen was halted before the quoth;l:t wlph";"^ " ':f ■^. '» "<' «« gnest .. Now," who he is --ken what Je is ^" v, t""' " "' -» t- is,-fairy prince or lord - " '"^ ^ ''™ *'"' ^l '""" he g pen omed my ,/,,,,, ,^ ^,-^^.^^^ ^^ ^^^^.^ t-M V, .1. 24 The Angel of the Covenant. home, and I said I would now go to my lodging. My cousin urged me to go in with her— had I not many a time boi'ore gore to dinner uninvited ? — but I refused ; she pressed me, but still 1 refused ; yet still she urged me till I was ashamed and almost angry, partly because I was dourly shy, and she would demand reasons I could not give, partly because she did not of herself understand that I might fear to meet the Earl then lest he might have heard of my ploy in the kirk-yard, and partly because I was exceeding jealous of her extravagant interest in the elegant unknown. So I turned away to pass to my lodging. As I turned I caught the eyes of two of the rod-clad mounted lackeys dwelling on me in such a mode as made me believe that they had been passing the time of day concerning me, and I felt myself ready to quarrel with them. I gripped my cudgel and glared. The nearer of the two gave me a cap and then set to walloping himself with his free hand, say- ing, " It's perishing cauld to be riding a day like this, sir." ** It is that," said I. '" And we lap on * at skreigh o'day," said the man. " Did you so ? " said I. " "We ha'e owerta'en saxteen good lang miles ayont the Brig 0' Dee, sir, and the Lord kens what for we ha'e skelped so far in sic weather." **Ye would ha' been in a bonny plight," said I, now letting my anger go and holding my curiosity, for I had a mind to know who the hard-riding cavalier might be,— *'if a bluffert 0' snaw had come on when ye were taking to the hills." " Guidsakes, ay," said the man. *' But my lord, young tho' he be, sir, is no be dauntoned by snaw or spate. Do ye ken, sir," he asked, stooping to my ear, '' if he'll be putting up here the night *Lap OH— leaped on, mounted. The Golden Youth. » I I .msworcltlmt I di,l „.,t kno,., but that it was more een, I set off on the instant, lost "my lord" (what- ew nnght bo 1„, name) should oomo out and flid mo I went to my lodging in the (lallowgato, and ate mv . nmor m something of ,. son.- tenuKT. M^, my d!n .e"! ahould have settled myself by candle-light to nV book/ b„ I sennneml at the sight of them. I took in my Innd and opened -<7-/«*,;,V„<,-<,«., of Mr. WiUU.. sZhlA wlneh my fatter had given me, hnt I revolted agai the flvs p,o„s and godly phrases that met my eye, ,vf, ile I felt that I waa desperately wicked in so doing I shn to book, and vowed to myself with stiff detetminat <^" that come what wonld I must abjure the ministry. ' What had overtaken me ? It were hard to say ; bnt I coneerve jnst sneh an unheaval of nature and sex ,s doth se,.e every youth when his voiee hath broken and ,e be^ Cometh aware of himself as a man. It may appearthat my knowledge of myself was something sudden f b, sncl knowledge must come e'en as it will, to some as a smooH and easy opening out, like the unfolding of a bud or the gradual emptying of a pocket, and to otters like a thnn! der-clap and with riving doors, like as when Peter's prison was set ,^en by the angel. To say that I was in loverith my beautiful and sprightful young cousin would be mo e than I was tten aware of, but certain it is that, while the prank of tte morning in releasing the silly, poo man from his confinement in the kirk-tower had stangely e"cUed me and set me off my balance, the seeing of the elegant unknown on the heels of that and the complete mode in that I scarce knew who or wliat I w s, nor what I wonfd w.sh to be-except that witt such yeasty tlioughts as Ceo m my mind and such fancies as I perceived were n my 26 Tlie Angel of the Covenant. hi cousin's I could nut, jnth. any self-regard, th k of being a minister. And all tlvat before I was eighteen. It is ex- ceeding hard to believe wheji a man is at cool and reason- able middle age that the giddy heats and swellings of nature come so early and seem of such consequence I Completely ignorant that events were themselves con- spiring to drive me into extreme repulsion from the Kirk, I flung *' Mr. William Stniiher's Meditations " into a cor- ner, refused to do any reading for the Divinity Classes next day, and set myself out my finest stand of clothes. I would go to my Earl MarischaFs house and see if the unknown lord were installed as a guest, and I was resolved jhat t* I could not be as eleganc as he, I should yet be as elegant as my wardrobe would permit. Be iig well known to the janitor and to all tho servitors of my lord Marischal, I had no manner of difficulty in pass- ing my lord's gate, nor in learning (to my considerable relief) that the Earl had ridden to the Bishop's in Old Aberdeen and would not return until the next day. Din- ner was ended, and I found my cousin the I^ady Balgownie, Magdalen's mother, in the parlor set apart for her privy use. It was a liandsome wainscoted room with comfort- able plenishing of rod curtains, and with a glowing fire of peats in an iron basket on the hearth, — the smell of which is in my nostrils even now, drawing my heart to the North. In the light of the fire and of two candles on the table at her elbow sat the unfortunate Lady Balgownie, clad in deep mourning ; for she was a widow, tho' scarce thirty years old. She was n, very comely and stately dame, and withal of a resolute u I .nipple spirit, as you shall hear in due course. Near h:-... «,h.ir, <>\i a lower seat, was the young stranger lordjUiv,> i/i a most elegant doublet of blue, passemented with 3ii .'>!', while lus abundant golden hair fell upon a rich lace collar ; and close to him stood my Mistress Magdalen^ waiting with an open book in her 1, The Golden Youth. ,7 hand, ana considering l.im wliilo I,o talited. On tl,o otl,..r 8do of ho ftro m,t one wl>„m I recognized as tho Provos 1,0 IWn and n,y heart endured for an in.tant a Z, of cold d^cd f„,. ,„y ,,™„k 0, tuo forenoon was oyer bo- foro mo, and 1 conceived tho Provost „u,8t be tl,ere at tho Wliile Ilingered nnoertain in tho curtain of the door Maudim claimed tho young lord's attention, advanced W :rto;*Ard h "''1 "™ *° """ " i"""" *° ^^ pomtod And he read m a good, dear voice, as follow- eth -" Upon hs auinrn kmr is a cnnnmg kelm of brZ 0/ Lmnnos Only a lad w he, in the morning of life m, heart u.et on the Joys of Mars~on v,ar aldth lasZf steel ^n luttle. And his ^nesting is for the splendors ff h^yh renown. Surely some god impels him, ihathll ■wreak justwe on the unjust:' ai. ne may "That is enough," said Maudlin. Ho ceased ind sm,hngly turned on her bis Incont gaze. " T aV ' u"" sa,d she, w.th the solemnity and a surety of a prophetes's iho young lord's blood mantled high in his cheek, a, iT; augbed joyously. All laugbod, save Maudlin, and wh they laughed 1 stopped forward. "Uomo away, cousin Aloe !" said Lady Ealgownie as soon as she set eves on nm f.- tt "'g^^waie, as end f Oh fW' 1 -^^^''^ y*"'' ^^^ a* <^l»e hinder "^ d^i ' ^"^ ^^^ ^' • ^^'^^ ^^^' *« your lodg- n n e ttnfoV' T-'; ' '"^'^' ^^^^^ yeVe busked ^e m nae gallant comphment to me, for that's not your wav • and It canno be in compliment to the bairn Magda'len tS • It must e'en be in compliment to you, my lord ' ar'^' she mnrlo a« obeisan- - ^ ^ ^ > y ^^va , an- ant that would have set the old court^'oTiroIyrood House^ 'oung neighboi I had no knowledge, cousin/' I answered in' stiff 28 The Angei of the Covenant. offence, " that a stranger was of your company ; at the least, cousin, I had no surety/' " Hark to the precision o' him ! " hxughed slie ; for she ahvays liked well to flout the seriousness of my behavior. " Well might ye ken him for a student o' Divinity by the hair-fine distinctions he draws ! Come cousin," she ral- lied with me, " I downa abide ye to be stiff with me. He is of a sweeter disposition than he appears, my lord, or than he kens himsel', tho' he be as jealous of his friends as the Grand Turk of his women. I hope, my lord, you will like him well and take him to your friendship. Step forth. Alec Burnet, and give a leal hand to my young guest, the Earl of Montrose." Great heavens ! what a raw, routing creature is the lad of the North at that age ! We bowed and gave hands each to the other, and looked hard at each other ; but on the in- stant I felt, tho' I had never before conceived myself rude and ill-mannered, — I felt I must seem like a cow-boy by contrast with the comely and exquisite youth before me, who was as complete master of himself as if he were of full age and had seen the court and the Avorld. How all comes back to me ! My own shy, proudful, brusk manner, and my tough, hard person, nurtured (and half -cured, if I so say, in the harsh, salt Boreal blasts of that iron coast ; and Ms delicate, but absolutely virile demeanor, and his supple, slim, well-knit form, bred and exercised in the fragrant air of the bonny, mellow straths and braes of the shire of Perth, — as I well knew so soon as I had heard his name ', my fierce, watchful eye, like that of a wild colt ; and Ids full, lively, gray-blue orb, radiant with the fire of wit and friendliness ; — these, as we faced each the other, must have seemed to the onlookers contrasts worthy of remark, tho' I gave no thought to them at the time. It is only when you are old that you think how ill youth is to curb and guide and control with the snaffle ; it is only The Golden Youth. when you are old that yon perceive win, . t i, ^^ humous sliame wl,at a <,,■„«„ " '««'<'fss post- you wcreiuohll^sy,,: ',;■';""',' ""," "■"-''«1 cub tlmtyou tliiuk how eomci; "d .^ '■ *'"'" •"" "o "^ toneh o( kindliness andk Lhn ''"V;7»'"?"'onld be the that you folt on instlnet w ?' ,"'" ^'""'P"^ "'"''^nd trust, the hand ifZll:^"'-:''^ *™'"'^'''P -1 ' out reproaeh. Woe i it Ti Ti"""" ^'="'- ""'^ '"th- «.d the greatest is turned t^ dustT ^""'' ''"^ g™''. "I am of all things pleased tn i,„ the high magnanimous no Mflne,5h'""?°^ '^'^^S' asi(afairyhad(IeftIvnZl!J 7 "?"'' ''"'^ '^'"'Ped, well-opened, joyl evf a„^?,'"'' '"™,'^^^' ")' *he lucid " I ha' heard Z » T, '"""'"'' '"•"ad hrow. of the kind « all IcoHd' "' ''™'"^^'" » =°»e thing I looked a r; " Jo X thJ '" "^''r" ' '"^'' ">^ ™or! wretched inferiority """ ^ ""^ "»« of my -y r:s Lr:i;i::^tr"^ -i- ^«^™ ^o yie.d ^m jealous eyes, noted ttZT ' "'! ^ ""* '"'>> both my 8he sat hor down on a low stooT nt , ?* ''^°''«' "'"' most bewitching adorlZ t' '"'"' '"^ ="™t "d comely and chaining l2 Bal J' •'""'" """S"-^ «>« taken up with him as wot.^ T^" ""« ^''omod as much quick eye noted m;gT™!ok"°''"', ' '""" ""' '-' was „„ ti,„. ,^. . / f """ 'ooka ; nor do I doubt that it account she set me stirring. ff^ . — -•' ""c oeu me s Cousin Alec," she said, - he inessenger forme. My lord Mont: a dear good lad and play "ose's own riding horse is ffi 30 The Angel of the Covenant. to have a drink of warm ale and a bannock before he is bedded ; go to Rorie and spoir if the bonnie creature's supper be ready/' I did her bidding, and returned to say that Eorie would bring it on the instant. But before I could deliver my message, I noted that my young lord of Montrose was stroking and clapping the hand of Magdalen in a way that angered me full sore, while her mother was saying softly : " And that truly is the sole reason why ye have ridden in haste from Morphie ? — to get your picture done by George Jameson ? That will be a ply of honor to him, and a double ply to our town of Bon-Accord. Will it no, Provost?" " It will be that, my lady/' quoth the Provost ; " a three-ply honor, indeed." " For sure. Lady Balgownie," said the young Earl, in all palpable seriousness, *^ rather will the honor be mine if our great painter shall be willing to lay aside the head of the Lord of Lorn — the whilk I have heard he hath in hand — to take my poor picture. '' *' Guidsakes ! " cried my lady. '' The head of Lord Lorn in hand ? But not in a charger, by my certy ? " " No the now, my lady," roared the Provost, relishing the grim jape. ** But it may come ! — it may come ! "* *'Ah!" sighed my lady, '* That's the common serving o' the heads o' Scotland's best ! Wae's me ! " And that was the very first I heard of my Lord Lorn. " If your lordship," said the Provost, " will entrust me to advertise Geordie Jameson, I will e'en do sae mysel', afore the night be thro'; for I am far ben in his confi- dence : I downa but say so." " I give ye my thanks, Provost," said my lord Montrose, ''and I will take it kind in you to advertise him of my business. It will be well also. Provost, to tell Master * It hath come. — A. B. n If a The Golden Youth. 31 Jameson the reason of my haste." He stopped, and looked first on the mother and then on the daughter ,vith .'n mgen,ous smde and a blush suffusing his clear-pale Provost "'"' """" "'^ """ ^'' ""y '"'''•" "'"''"i «'° The young earl was about to make his reply fwhich I was cunons to hear) when Lady Balgownie caught sight says Rone ? I gave my answer, and she eontinned : O i Alec, just one other wee bit errand before ye sit yon down: fetch my phial of salts to smell to; my wench Jessock will find it." •' "™'"» So my lady kept me stirring, and I began to hare a sus- p.c.on,t wasdoneof set purpose to turn me ortof the conTersation. I was both curious and jealous, and riven mor1S:d m:V"'"'' I '"""^ -^^'P'^ ol^ended Id mortified. My offence and mortification were sharpened by notmg when I returned a new excitement in my Lady Balgown,e and the Provost, and other-guess looks upon Magdalen It was not, I believe, so much my being shut out from the confidence which had been in progrefs bu rather the thought, from the manner of their look L o„ me and on Magdalen (who had now withdrawn herTand from the earl's)-it was that struck me with anger Ere more was said there entered Eoric to inform the young Earl that the ale and the bannock were rear and to make question what should be done with the^ Give them to me," said the Earl, rising from his place. After a longsome ride," he explained to my ady, loot f^ ft!^' "'' '""" '™ ^"J'"" '™" "^ o-" hand : he Again my Lady of Balgownie turned to me, "Cousin Alec," quoth she," I am keeping y„u on the st/r, but wiU 32 The Angel of the Covenant. i ye not kindly and cousinly be my lord's squire to the stables." " There is no need, Mr Burnet," quoth he ; but I said I would go, and I went ; for I had some foolish, angry stuff on my mind which I was resolved to vent. "It's a braAV bouvrage, my lord," said Rorie, as he handed over the cogue of warm ale, ''that I wouldna sneeze at mysel' on a cauld night, whatever a naig may do." "Your name is Rorie, as I am gi'en to understand," quoth my lord. " Well, my naig also has a name to him, and it is Bucephalus or Bucei : and he will sneeze at good liquor no more than you would, Rorie." And with that soft rebuke to the chief stableman my lord came on with the cogue of ale in his hand and the barley-meal bannock for a lid, and I led with the lantern. My lord's horse knew his voice and whinnied at the sound of it, and still more — yea, even as if he would speak — when his master clapped and caressed him. And in truth he was a beautiful creature, — of a most elegant shape, and all white without a dark hair. I looked in some surprise for the other horses, but said nothing, being in that kind of temper. *-My beasts, all but Bucer" said he, answering my look, "are put up at a change-house with my loons : I could not lead them all to hack and manger at my lord Marischal's, without warning." "E'en so, my lord," said I— and no more. " This fellow," said he, pulling the horse's ear, " ought to have gone too, but he and I cannot bide far apart or for long. I love my Bucephalus as Alexander of Macedon }oved his. Do you not admire the gesta of Alexander, Mr Burnet?" " I do, my lord — vastly," said 1, and no more. While he spake he was feeding his horse with pieces of The Golden Youth. 3, the great wheel of bmmock, and langhing at the eveature's r„?er of r 1 ''' "' "" '™'""S ^"S""' f-' »"« ' ttr;o7a',To'a!;r "^'"^' '" "-^ ""'™ *^^'^ '- ''^'- "No, ,10, my lad,"hu,gl,e,l mylord, i.ushingthe tliirstv .mmie away : '■ broad fir^t, browst after : that's the aw of Alexander of Maccdou." I noticed he w,« co, s der ,1 B^r^-tared!^'"^"^^- "-^«-"-we„,Mr^ "Well enough, my lord," I answered. There was then silenee betwixt us until the bannock was a^l eaten and the ale drunk. Then my lord turned ioZ flou ish oi t,"!?' 7"'^"' ""'^"^' ^"' -'th a beckoning flour sh of he hand and an unwonted sparkle of the eye which startled me. ■' " Alexander Burnet," said ho, "it seemeth to me that you are something wanting in civility. It may be the manner of the nature of you, but that I am loth to'jaW hi If ; "'i '"''" ^''t^'^"""" I -nay." And with that iie swept me a bow. for f h77f 'k' ^ ^""'^^ '^^ ^^* ^^^^ ^^^^ ^^ ^ ^r^^th ; conduct! ' ^°''''''''' '^ ""^''^^ ^"^ ^''' S^^«^ «f J My lord of Montrose," said I, - 1 must na use a sword V I t'' "' "^ ""^^^"^^ ^^^^ *h^^ I ^vill meet you wUh a sword. In the meantime, my lord, will you shak' full7'?J'f *5?^ ""^"^ ^'' ^^^^^*^"he answered cheer- lully _, but not here, nor in these weeds. The morn's morning on the links, or where you will-you must ken all the ground better than I : and early, Mr. Burnet, be- * Shake a fall =. have a wrestling bout. 9i 34 The Angel of the Covenant. cause I have a hantle of things to do the i.iorn, and I must be away again the day after : for I'm to be wedded this day week. Firstly, I have to go to Mr. Jameson to get my picture painted for a wedding-gift from my uncle of Morpliio ; then " ''To be wed, my lord? — in a week ?'* I cried, seized with a sudden ftmazcment, and seeing on the instant how absurd and rash my jealousies had been, and how more than clownish and currish my conduct. " Then I have demeaned me like an ass, my lord, like a sulky, bick- ering brute, — and I truly ask your pardon ! I'll neither clink steel with you nor shake a fa' except it may be in friendship." My lord looked *wildered with my outburst. *' 1 hardly take ye, Mr. Burnet/' said he ; ''but I may, if ye will be plainer." "Truly, my lord," said I, feeling more and more the absurdity and awkwardness of the cleft into which I had thrust myself, " it is nothing, — believe me, — fient a thing ! But, if you must ken, — why, you see, my lord. Mistress Magdalen Keith is my jo, and you, my lord, were freer with her than I could abide." " Is that so ? But, Alec Burnet," he exclaimed, as if he were a full-grown man, " Slie's nae mair than a bairn — and she is your cousin ! " " She is a second cousin, my lord," vsaid I, " and for the matter of her being a bairn, my lord, the lady you are going to marry downa be ane-and- twenty, unless she may chance to be aulder nor your lordship." I was something taken with my reply, and I smiled a little, while I added : " 'Tis all of no matter now, since you are to be a bridegroom in a week.'* My lord stood as if wistful for an instant, then — " Tell me, Alec Burnet," said he, " do I look very young ? Whatten age do you take me for ? " The Golden Youth. 3^ _ -My own age, my lord,-or,- said I, determined to be civil and accommodate since I had hitlierto been so rude and brusk, -i)erehance sometliing aulder " A "^^t''' ^\''f!i^ ^''' "seventeen lam, like yourseP. And I am glad at that, for now we can be friends." And house ''"'' '''^^' """' '''^ '" ^' ^'^^^^^"^^ "^<^^ t^>« I longed to ask him how old was his ehosen bride, and did not dare : I merely hung the questions up in my mind 36 The Angel of the Covenant. CHAPTER III iff a ]^%f t ': MY LADY BALGOWNIE SINGS A BALLAD, AND AN ILL OMEN IS NOTED When we re-entered Lady Balgownie's privy apartment thus linked like lovers, her quick eye took in the meaning of our intimate neighborhood, and became alive with pleasure. " That," quoth she, " is what I've been hoping to light- en my een wi' ! But what has my lord done. Alec, to turn your sourness to sweet again ? It is a complete and perfect miracle ! " '* It is a miracle, then," said my lord, "wrought by Mr. Burnet on himself." *'I am a miracle of learning, cousin," said I, laughing, — "of learning the truth." " Just hark ye to him ! " said she. At that my lord laughed too, and with our eyes we ex- changed the assurance that we should keep " the truth " to ourselves. "Do not seek to buffle me with your strokes of boys' wit," quoth my cousin ; "for ye are but boys the both, with not a hair to the face of the fane or the t'other ! " "I like boys best," quoth my Mistress Magdalen. " "What for do men wear a stobby bunch of hair beneath their nose and another bunch on their chin ? " " There is nae hope for me, then, my bonnie mistress," said the Provost, laying his hand on his beard. " May-be ye might gar it be cut," said Magdalen with a smile of kindness ; for she could not but ply with her Lady Balgownie Sings a Ballad. 37 wUo,.^ even a b™Uy, .ia-a,od ge„Ue,„an UUe «i. tl.en been forty or Lr • .n , I '^ '"'t ■!''" ■""'' ''"^ Andrew Elmsli I.ndbec,; a r ir ' '' P^-'"™™ Sir Biugnlar occasion to romlm' her """""'■ •■""' ^''"^'^ "^"^ Iivr.ys;ir"?^:;:'fi^;f^^^^f^'-"ie, ^th prompt and And if 8l>e do, by t e ime , - " '^ "^ "'''"'"«• boys again. Come 1 dt et^^ir-a.Tt,^ ° '"",f"'," '» yonr mistress Magdalen oL-Zt" tlv "■■"."" '■"""" was evident lie took her wordTfor . v ™™'' '"'^ '' '' ye bo going. Sir Andrew T" said she ''"""""• " *'^- burgJof onr CitT'of r; A° f "" "'^ '^'""J'"» <" » nooS ."' ^ Bon-Aocord at three of the after- lord." "" '"'''" "^ '^^"' Sir Andrew," answered my A:JtVreltSerer -"'"^ "^^^ "--" doubt." ^ '"" ''''*«' '"='"■'1 of, I dowua "No, Sir Andrew," o.claimcd Lady Balgownie, " but n I \ 38 The Angel of the Covenant. that's clash wi' a Highland vengeance ! At the Kirk, say ye ? Tell mo about it." And Sir Andrew told, while Magdalen and I exch nged fearful glances, and 1 waited with as brave a heart as I could summon for Sir Andrew's eye to light upon me and his words to denounce. He told what had happened, from the view of a Provost and a Kirk-elder, and not till then had I guessed that I had done such awful crimes as he put names to. '' And who did all that ye say, Sir Andrew ?" asked my cousin. " Guidsakes, but the Kirk-Session and the Pres- bytery will be unco mad ! " **They are that ! " said Sir Andrew. ''And the loon has been already proclaimed by the town-drummer, and may yet be put to the horn, or even excommunicate ! It was anawfu' thing to intromit wi' the Judgment 0' the Kirk !" " And wha is the loon. Provost ? " " That the bedral doth not ken. But he was nae rap- scallion town's loon : he had a gentle feather in his bonnet, and there was a bonnie bit lassie in his company ! " You may conceive hoAV I looked and how I felt. I was too young to practise any feigning that could be worth the trying, so I but stood silent and bare to observation, altho' 1 hope 1 was undismayed. I looked for the Pro- vost's shrewd eye to turn upon me and convict me, but instead, it was the eye of my cousin Balgownie that found me out. It lighted on me, and then flashed from me on her daughter. I perceived she had no doubt that I was the culprit. " Weel, Sir Andrew," said she, ''they may by now have laid hands on the young rebel and ravager. Will ye not come back and sup, and by that time ye may have gotten another mouthful o' news to hearten us." Sir Andrew thanked her, and said he would return if he should have anything to tell, and if he were not detained say M Lady Balgownie Sings a Ballad. 39 by Mr. Ooorgo Jameson ; „,„I «„ 1,0 wont l,i.s >vhv -.nd r mine is the bonnio lass tl„ t wt ft tJrot "'"''"- ."r"' "' godly work !_b,-e.king into 1 Ki k \t lotr > "'' m,sdo»oa„ant, and you a student o-w:- 'J"'!. '" '~^° » •icd" zr :i ^::.'trr r£'or'" rr earthly. " Alec would not ha' nn,f """""S ifihadnabid,i.„:tiL":;tt'*r:nL::.r'-^ for n pta ?' ' '"' ""' ""'■"' "''" "'» ^'^ will tak' that ^ JThc Kirk I" cracked out her daughter with a spit of guide the'Sirk: IT^Dl ]'"'"'"»"• ""'"'■ "»' ■'" -"' wi- Alec ?" ''° ^°" '""' <« ye h"' done " Oil, mother ! " cripd «]i« ^^ wru x j. about the Kirk ^ « ^^^^* ^'^^ ^^^^^ ^^« trouble in tl. steeple just like your X«n i ''"' """ '"'''' "' ''IheKirkdaurna!'' it :i«:™:;:™/heT:r:? !^':V"'f" ^^'"" " '■■-'^^ power as n.any°a « tllf n " AlcTlua l^CS 'S "" ""> wo:i?r^rpurcrt,;:irs*i-" -^-'""^ "'""' ''♦ wri 1'!'" ''"' "™ '"'"-^•-««. ^>" ^0 would Wyte_blttn,e. j Downa-eannot. I ; I 40 Tlic Angel of the Covenant. of a surety bo nuulo some gate to un.lergo tlio Yoke of Discipline Ho woul.l bo stunnumcnl bofon> ho Sossum to be admouished, and if he .Hd not Hi.bnut hnuHel rood kens," broke out Lady l^algowuio, -wluit would be le end ' He mi-bt be exconununicate and gi en owei into the hands and power of Sawtan hinisel', ay even, hke my lord Erroll, shut up in hold for his better experience -Would they daurtliat?" Magdalen made direct do- mand of my lord Montrose, turning her shining eyes upon him in a fashion of surprise and wonder. -Of a trntii, Mistress Magdalen," answered he smdmg, "I downa toll. The Kirk liath never troubled me, but what it liviglit do if I set free a gaberlunyie, as Aloo Burnet hath done": 1 have not taken thought on. It might pei- cliance do all my lady your mother hath said. " I hate the Kirk ! " cried she. - For ever and ever will I hate the Kirk ! It is an evil, stupid cruel Kirk -Whisht, my bairn!" said her mother. "If your toncrue wag that gate-(and tak' tent that sticks and stones ha'elu<^s)-yewill bring the Presbytery upon us with a summons to compear for railing and blasphemy against the Kirk 0' God ! And God he knoweth we have had the wind upon the face o' us long enow ! " - mother," said her daughter, flingmg herself prone upon the deer-skin spread in the firelight and propping her chin on her two little hands, while her eyes showed she was endeavoring furiously to think, ^I ^^I-^^^^^^ at the sense of it. The King can punish folk because he is the King, and earls and lords-like my uncle the Lord Marischal and my Lord Montrose, when he is a grown man -can punish, too, because they are great and noble after the King ; but Doctor Maule and the other ministers, what for can they punish folk-and for naething t( Ye your bairu; speiring ! Doctor Maule quoth her mother, " with and the rest are the Kirk, Lady Balgownic Sings a Ballad. 41 and the Kirk l.atli been appointed hy (Jod toshoplierd His fo k-or 11,8 flook-for both aro one. Is „u that so. Aloe r ' I mudo no answer ; for I was painfully entering into a knowledge of ti.e standing of the Kirk because of its acute relation to myself. ^ "It is goy ill rcW up,' minnic," ,,„oth Mas,l„lcn. frown- mgm hought "Ilavena tlio King and his LorcU been apponited by God ?" " l^^"';f^;;f' '^y baim,- answered her mother with pa- tience. -The King is the King by right Divine,-that is tosay by appointment of God,-and his Lords hold place and authority by grace of the King." -Well - urged Magdalen, -what for did God appoint en:ughr' ''"" ''^ ^''^ ^^"^ ^"^ ^-^'' - - The King and his Lords, Mistress Magdalen/' put in my Lord Montrose, - are appointed to rule the body, and the Kirk to rule the soul. Isnathat the way of it, aL ^- - 1 downa tell," said L ^ , . -And was the Kirk ruling the gaberlunyie's soul - quoth my quick Mistress Magdalen, -when they put his body in he jougs and shut it up in the steeple ? Wasna tliat^meddlmg with the business of the King and hi; -It is merely possible. Mistress Magdalen,- said my lord smiling,J^to come at the soul thro' the body, „nW SIC time as the body is dead and the soul ilietl f" rth bare,^to^be waft up by angels, or to be claught down by her fyl ^"' ^'" "' "' ' " '''' ''''^' ^^"^ ^'^'^-^^ -^ serious r faith, not I, Magdalen I" quoth 1 It). -I am most ^Very ill arranged. 1 '' 42 The Angel of the Covenant. 'MVell, nobody hath redd it up to me yet," she com- phiined. " Ikit I wonder that God hath made so great a mislaking. God downa ha' been minding what He was about when Doctor Maule was made His minister ! " " Bairn !— bairn !" cried my lady, feigning to stop her ^ ears. " This is worse and worse ! " " Bide, minnie," said her daughter. " Hka body kens that the King and his Lords are noble, and lovely, and gallant gentlemen, but Doctor Maule !— fogs, mother, even a lassie like me can but laugh at him ! " " He is counted a worth} minister, bairn, and a most gracious and gifted preacher ! " " Oug ! " pouted Magdalen in disgust. ''His mammy, you ken weel, mother, was a fish-wife on the Green ; he doth slobber like a witless bairn in the pulpit ; hesqueezeth my arm when we meet— he doth, mother !— and calls me his bonny doo, and seeks to kiss me,— oug ! And he hath no tales nor ballads of ferlies, and warlocks, and knights and damsels, and fair, sweet things. Naething but preach- ings and catechisms. Sure am I, minnie, he is far mair fule than the gaberlunyie man ! " *'Dear heart!" cried her mother. ''Where got ye they perilous heathenish notions ? I warrant from that papistical auld wife Elspet Gordon : the Gordons are all papists at heart, whatever they may profess ! " That was a two-edged and reflexive rebuke ; for she was a Gordon herself. So she wisely ceased. " But let us ha' done with such clavers : they deave me, and mak' my head sore ! " Whereat she took her lute from the table, and fingered the 8^"'ings. I cannot but recall and set down these particular ques- tionings of my young cousin, for they were the beginning of all the revolt of my heart and judgment. The Master himself hath said: — " Thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes." I I Lady Balgownie Sings a Ballad. 43 And truly hero was but a child tho' nf •, ,„it „ 1 • ■ bright and quicic, boyond tho LT^Ll f^'™' ..ot sophisticate with p totrra'nd t' d^"""" ''■" '™' with a clear, chiidli Jju.g^I^t e^^rZ marrow ot that discord of the liody rolitic„7whi h e e -But whaVs to be done about Alec, mother P" d. manded my little mistress, sitting up - irh'fn \ it to the Kirk ?" ^ ^ ^^® *^ be left " bairn, I downa tell ? But T f1n,i).f i . , bi^^fn'?" A, 1 1 XI aoubt he must dree his fa.'' And she thrummed her lute. Oh alack!'' cried iAIaffdalon <^ U fi. ;-r;„ Would ,™ uot ha™ lot w tho\::::;,. -:4» <^nn.,'f ffT„^ X 1 ''^ "^"''^ ^ "urst of bovisb Tdi gat";*™ ^rtir;t:'s^^^^^^^ "'^^ ^«™^' But, Lady lialgoii'o,, .mZ my lo^d M-SCfr n ' to got Alec Buruet free of punishmonl" '"'"" "" ""^ • I hat will he no ! " answered Lady Balgownie " Th» - Tf ;/ ^ f ? ' '^' '^^ moreanent it ?" said I at H.t 'If the Kirk do punish me, I will go throMvifcb if ^ then shut my books of Divinity for ever and Ini ' '^f Gilderoy and his broken men/'* ^ ''^''' ^^^^^ ''Not Gilderoy, whose hands are as red as his head ^h. sorning, wasting, blood-shedding cateran t-!not S for sure, Alee Burnetr' said ?iy lord, wiS^^^^^^^^^ Gilderoy was a noted Highland bandit. ^ ^ I":*' I ii 44 The Angel of the Covenant. winning smile. ''Wherefore mcake yourself an outlaw, and run the hazard of a tow about your craig ? Are there not Gustavus his brave files in Germany, or the honorable Scottish Guard of the King of France ? A Scotsman of birth and courage can take service with fane or t'other of them, and see the world forbye." " Will tjou go to Germany or France, my lord ? " I asked earnestly. *'I am the head of my house, and the chief of the Grahams/' said he, with that gracious, modest, and withal self-possessing air which made his presence so winning. " And I owe it to my King and country to bide at home and serve them in all they may require of me in the way of honor." (Still my lady thrummed her lute, looking absently at my lord, and from him to me.) "You would have let loose the gaberlunyie yoursel', mother," said my pertinacious little mistress, " if you had kenned, as did ws, that he was shut up truly for nothing save singing the old songs that you love. He mak's ballats like yoti, minnie, hirasel' ; and he said he would make a song on me. " '*I hope and pray, bairn, he may no do that ; for it foredooms ye, like kecking in a glass, to sore mischance ! Woe's me ! I had a song made on mo*ere I was your age, and lo, here am I lamenting my doleful and traitorous bereavement of husband and son ! " And with that Lady Balgownie fell to crying with melting sobs and tears, in- somuch that we were all like to follow her example ; for well we all knew the cause of her broken grief. " 0, mother dear," pleaded her daughter, going to hor and hanging about her, ''sing to us yon ballat ye ha' marie ! " Here I set down what I know of the tragic event which inspired as well the ballat as the grief and dul^ of my Lady Lady Balgownie Sings a Ballad. 45 Balgownie, and I set it down the more fullv th,Mf .u King or Kirk-faZlTto'^u r h' tlef r: "V"'"^^ land. Feuds betwoon fT,.^, ^^'^ ^^^^ of Eng- and treaohero^t.'Tn,?:rarb:E]":'' "'""' "^ '^ am writing, there had LIT ! ''"' """ »' ''hich I ™y Lord^Cgownfo anT hif "T ''"' ^'"'^ ''^''™- concerning tho%2:nlMngir;fe'T ''"I, ''^"^-» betwixt them. The dirr* ! , "^'''"" *'"»* fl»"«l Meldrnm prevail^" Z" Xdta, '° '"^ ^"1 ^^^ submit himself, the rather "?{/*'^''J'''lgownie would not to carry his leg!, v 0™"* aTer," h' TT ^^^^^ hand. In a rage mv Lord R,i ^ ^"^ ""'* "gorous of the household, a"d rode t'h "t? T"""^" "'^ "■- Meldrnm lands. Meld „m TtLl.T "f ""'"^ ">" pose, rede to meet him S 1, party o? V °* '''' ""' tho .eqnel there was a sharp and'blo^dy e„ imrn'ot"' ? >ng snndry slain on both sides Af tnr „ k , ' ? ™"'- mediation of the Marauis of w ,?""'" *hile, thro' the tho Gordon naL a ree„-il ^^^ ^ ""^ "'''''"' f-"™"^ «' the two lords, ami' a forma ?•" ""^ '^""'"^ '"''>™cn agreed on, in\v^t,: bTJ^^TZ Z .'ir "' """ they shook hands on it in H mTv'f!! !, t^"' P'""'' «»'' fond ceased, bnt the bitter niti /^ -^''"^ *''" °P«» «iclo at least. Some tood 'm « "■'""""'' "" *>>« «"» the September of™ s'v ery ye 1? "T^t ^'l '™"> '« "ow writing) BalgownieanVu 'son ;/ •'? """"' ' "■" -chanced to ride home f mm „ ^^^^ ""stress's brother company. They rorL ™T ™'"'""l''°"«<' >n Meldrnn.'s 'vhe,> they noZd tM";„tir '°"™"'''y ™« '■>«'' begged Balgownie andt^rt^r^; ^ -1^™: t..at they might eat andX;;\:;~ :e courtesies ik ill ; 46 The Angel of the Covenant. with his lady. My Lord Balgownio who tho' an iracund was (as I conceive) a frank and h)yal gentleman, suspect- ing nothing, readily agreed ; so he and his ate a morsel, and drank a stoup, and exchanged courtesies, and then went forth to get to horse again. With his hand on his saddle-how, and his foot (so to say) in the stirrup, he was yet talking and daffing like a f roe, light-hearted gentleman with My Lord and Lady ^leldrum, when Meldrum said : " The night draws in, and the river doth lie between you and home ; pray hide and sup and bed yc for the night, and in the early morn you may go on your way ; " and my Lady Meldrum urged her persuasions on the back of her Lord's. So my Lord Balgownie and his son turned in to thcD) again, and supped merrily and abode the night. They were bedded in an upper chamber in a flanking tower. At midnight when deep sleep and silence seemed to reign, a cry arose Ihat, the tower was on fire— as in truth it was, with a lowe ^hat roared in the strong, round edifice as in a chimney. The stairs were furiously burning, so that there was no escape for the guests that way, and they were seen at the windows clinging and tearing at the iron staun- chions which confined them, while Meldrum and his wife stood on the ground without, plaining the piteous case of their guests, but rendering no help, nor provoking none. And so Balgownie and his son were burfied in the fire, and the Lady Balgownie and her daughter were left without a man of their family. It was found that the fire had begun in a room at the base of the tower, where wood for firing was wont to be kept, and there appeared to be proof that the fire had been made by human hands in two divers places. In truth, it was widely bruited that my Lady Meldrum herself had been seen to go thither with a Ian- thorn when the whole house was bedded, and scarce a soul was found to doubt it, for she was well known for a jery fierce and malignant woman, spite of her beauty and her Lady Balgownie Sings a Ballad. 47 ' Reared rood House to purge ^^i^7 ^:;tJt":!!,T''y: was not yet. ""'l'"eity— but the end Meanwliile, in the middle of her ..rief ™ t j „ gowme had made a ballat of hi, hi ^ ' ^ ^"""'^ ^'''- nowsang to the musie ,t ,1 ^Hh? f '' "'"'"" '''> daugl,ter, my Lord Montrose and me """^ °'^'' a^p..a_ney that mo.s me"r^ "I weary Sit and waefu' gang! Balgownie ! O Balgownie I In kn-k or ha' I'm thinking lang: Itakandrnak'mymournfu'ing On the traitor's wife, and the traitor's wran^ Done to my Lord o Balgownie ! " ^ These lines at that mn^msmo^'pcl n« f. ^ the doleful appe-irance ^f !. \ ^ ^''^'^ ^^ ^^^s than trembling lips fo d Iri Z^ZT 'T^'' "'^^^ ^-• eyes were swin^ming in grTef Th'^iT '",' "^^^^ ««ft n^oans that she hast sfn ft tlltt ' "."'^'^ ^^^ ^^^- to avenge his father, .as m^^ movtl """ ^^ " "At bed and board I am aye my lane! Balgownie I O Balgownie I Nae son'to "' T '-"^" ^ ^^^ "-« •'- me son to speak, nae son to stand I Nae son to draw the good brown brand In name o' my Lord o' Balgownie ! » Its effect on n.y Lord Montrose was astounding to me ti ii if I 11 48 The Angel of the Covenant. then, tho' I knew later how his conduct was in perfect keeping with his quick and sprightful character of honor and gallantry. '' Cousin," I said, somewhat bruskly, tho' I was in a tremble of rage and resolution, " diuna ye greet ! Bide a wee, and ye shall have a man to your side ! "—mean- ing myself when I should be one-and-twenty. " Dear lady,'* said my Lord Montrose, dropping on his knee, '' accept my service ! I am not yet of full age, nor am I in ail things my own master, but command me such as I am and I obey. Never must it be said that a Scots lady in dule and sorrow gaed unchampioned ! " And with that he pressed liis lips to her white hand in a glow of devotion, while Magdalen looked on with a sin- gularly wise look of approval. " My dear lord,'' answered my lady, smiling with pleas- ure thro' her tears,— a smile fresh and bright as April sun- shine,— '' thou art a very knight of the auld romaunts. And truly thou art a bonny knight and winsome !" Upon that she stroked his head, and suddenly stooped and kissed him warmly upon the cheek. My lord blushed red, and rose to his feet, as being something deranged and put out in his lofty imaginings ; whereat my Lady Balgow- nie bore herself with less warmth and more sadness. '' My humble thanks to your lordship," said she, '' and to you. Cousin Alec," she added. " And here I make oath," quoth she, rising with a spark of fire flashing from her dewy eyes, " that if I have not Justice done me by the time ye arc five-and-twenty I v/ill summon ye both— you, my lord, and you, Alec" (and she gave a hand to each)— "' to move in my cause in what sort may seem best ! " " Five-and-twenty," says I, *'is a long while." ''Scots justice," says my cousin, ** is like Ars longa ; -'tis like a Hieland stot,— ill to catch, and little on his ribs when ye catch him." Lady Balgownie Sings a Ballad. 49 '\t\^ "I'Y """^ ^ ^' "^ "^^ paction, too, mother ^ » quoth Magdalen. '' Ifc jg not kiiul f n i. ^otier ." M,r 1-.,,! IT "^ "^^ ^*^'^^e me out.'' rose's arms were crossed as if ih.rr I ^' him. ^^^ ^'^^^<^ ^ound before Good forfond it ha' no me, „i„. . " w! '"''' "T''™""' ' agaiu and..fs„™ed her I^l \a^fg S-T™ "f t™ it tt ^" '""' ""'' "^ ^-'^ M^e, »d "C;: Alec there are not unfriends ! " ^ " We are friends/' quoth my lord "I am thinking of the times to be, mv lord • nn^ T bod, sXa^t!;:::.!:-;!^^^^^^ --;; r -' misdoubt, sirs-that what ,vith a youl kL^th.M comes the h.itrh-dtt\LTowtr":^' ^-^ ^- wi h": W thaTstl7''"'r','"^ '""■^ -»^' •"" begged tobeheldexeusedfromsittinratT;. f,^''^'.''' board that evening, beean.eTeh a Lletf af ^To" ' ."^rM^rJ^^rSn^^r"'---^^^^^^^^^ touching the inbreakfngTt ho Eirr„m vM "^"''^ "And ha'o thev ta'J t,.; ,1. ...?' ^'- ^A*"!"^- ie the mbreak= mg,Jessock?" asked Lady Balgownie. lioth, na, my lady," quoth the ^ * Sowens-a simple supper dish wench. '< winter. But they 50 The Angel of the Covenant. will afore the night he out. Sir Andrew's Jock says he's ane o' tlie collegianers." ** But how ken they that, Jessock ? " '' Ow, my lady, it is thought sae, and they'll put it to the proof afore morning ; for they're chapping at the lodg- ing of ilka college lad that wasna at his books the day. At that I was in a considerable taking of perplexity and alarm. ^^ " They're drawing the net about ye. Alec,' quoth my cousin when the maid was gone ; *' but it needs na that ye be ta'en this night and kept from your warm bed. Ye maun bide and sleep ye here the night, let the morn bring where it may." And ye may believe that I agreed with exceeding good- will. For Youth, Lusty Juventns, is ever ready to slip into any opening of release from the trouble or the peril of the occasion. »i fi ti ,1 A Night and a Day with Montrose. 51 CIUPTER IV A SIGHT AKD A d^^ „.„„ MOHTKOSE , After ..,z i:Czri:Xa toiT ': •'™'- shii) as prescribed l)v thp KM- , • '"S""""' 'or wor- chal his'ohaplain wi « ef Wtk^'Ihe TT'f"^ ^''™- Castlo, I was set to perform the ImJT^ "' '^""°"" Divinity. I reada ,«„tl .J^""' ^"""g » stndent of £ook ./i-.il'f. andC^T * ' PfT-^f™'" tl'e Kirk's I should wi? thr'oul ri h ^ r'^'' • '* ™^ "'» ■'«' *»« after « all set oHo bed and th' """^'™"»"- T'-re- and rare pleasure ■ whioh'.Hn . uT " "'°" ^'"S"''"' waste of bo/hld.' " ™'''' '"*"'' "■" "'^ »"' "1 the It was the wont of mv lord Mnnf^^^^ i i in the room with him Ls „'■ W H m Fo^rer^'^''^ gogue, or his purse-bearer, Muste JoZ L^mbv ' r t ^l'''," now accompanied him on He ,•„ T i^ambye (who had M attendant • bu H at „ . ! ™!^^' """""^ other faith- Lis bed-feUow'as 1 is "o ' ? ^^^"'^ "" '" *" "' '''^" ' ".ight talk on:%';;\rrwrTe:;r;:ar "t ? a,:;r t:: - : tz ::f r ^ir ■—- ^-- -«h utter and aba^elfraS^ suc.i giowmg madness in its proo-ress fhof if , n if the matter and the word, \nZ I , '^""''^"^ '^^^^ ^^ X'.-ot known him r::rrrrrt°Cr;e'an^d' u ?■■ i fi 52 The Angel o£ the Covenant. noble name. I should for certain ^^^^^ f-^<^^^l^ as a prince among youths, since he tar su i-asscd n,js and all other whom I knew in ga.cty and sweetness ot d^ position, in pregnant and witty speech. Not only so .hut rnuiekly discovered that in his heart dwelt no gross de. nor base ambition hut all honor and "'Sf "'.'"7^'' J, " in his spirit burned a soaring flame of ce es .al fare wh h tucheland kindled me even then, as «- I've »f »/ seraph cleansed the heart, and msp.rcd the hps ot ^tetaltd oi the hazard in which I stood o, the anger of the Kirk, and in most friendly wise he proposed and 1 ; ce ri"^-eed, that on the morrow I^l^""^,^; '^f---^" felf in one of his servitor's livenes to the ^^l « '.t I ».gh be in his company and escape the gled-eyo of the Kirk, ana thaUr after I Ihonld ride away with him and remam on ken 11 my act was forgotten. That being accounted done I felt that a weight was lifted ofl me, and 1 rose to totto top of my lord Montrose's bent. He aaked me con- cerning the Gaberlunyie I had freed. ^^ " Was he a Blue-gown ? a Kmg-s Bedesman ? -No," I answered, "he is just a fool body, and more rosiie than fool, I'm thinking." Upon that he recited from Master Dunbar's verses, which I did not then know :— "To Jock fool, my follie free Lego post corpus sepultum In faith I am mair fool than he, Licet ostendi bonum vultum. «' Of corn and cattle, gold and fee, Ipse hahet valde multum, And yet he bleirs my Lordis^e'e, Fingendo eum fore stultmn." I continued his beginning with nonsensical «^s«« '° «>« same sort, and still more nonsensical Latin, I who had nevo. A Night and a Day with Montrose. 53 more „o„.,ensio.l timn „,i„„r T ,' "„,,!"' "'"' "" to clink i„ altornation with laugZ- a, . 'T" ™""""«1 ing, as if the eup of warm white wh,„ '' ■""«""- before hecUing U be n 7 l! 7,':''- ' J" '"'"™"'^ Itippooroiie,_i,ntiloi,rfollv„ , ''" ^te" «' Joh„La»b;ewhoh;'I,:t;fer^^^^^^^^ and a night taper in hk hand. ""^^^^^-^'"P °^ ^^^ head " JVn John, nn/' answered his lord with a hno-h .* w better win to deep P TWII , f'"" ^""^ '""'^'''P ''Anon. jo,./a;,„„ ^r ;^t:;''"^?,r?r°T-'' sliort to ware a good third nf ;/ , ''' '^ '»» Lambye retired, murmur ^/t^^a his wf"^'" ^"'"^ laddie, and ill to guide "^ ""^ " *'"»' be::ef ::sre'': tf:z\^' '"i' "^ -- - »« ?-- with tl,e h»t eV CSftlrrt 7" T"'P"-I""''<' am sue bestirred now "il^ t , ; ^ 'lit l'" 17" ' ' saddle B„oephah,s, and ride ov r th hSi ™d7 "^ ""^ find adventure." "" '" """ay to "Into tlio land of faery," siiid I. "No, Alec," quoth he, "the -iftn.,! f„; my liidng more than faery I wou 1 t / T^'^ '"'^""^ heroic ventures, in Jordan andT , ^'''"" <'"'^«''™'-s, of Prcter John ; and ll^tou^rttd: wUhme' A^ and share my glory and renown - ' "^^^^^ Ah, my dear sweet lord, how my heart doth burn and •til 54 The Angel of the Covenant. melt within mo to recall these gentle unci active imagin- ings of his golden youth, and how he uttered them, and I welcomed them, with no prevision nor forecasting of the shortness of his life, nor of tiie heroic and dazzling ventures ho would endeavor and achieve ! And how every gate then his nimble and soaring ambition turned ! And how ho put me to shame— a shame which yet I accepted with grati- tude !— by his knowledge of the polite literature of our own tongue, so much larger than mine, while yet his knowledge of Greek and Latin authors was equally great ! ''Have ye r^vad the romance of Arf/cnis, Alec?" ho asked. ** The moving and tragical talc of the loves of Argenis and Poliarchus ?" I answered that I had not, nor so much as knew there was such a book. '' And certes. Alec, you will not ken the stage-plays of Master William Shakespeare, for stage-plays are banned by the Kirk." Although I secretly loved and reverenced him for hia wicked knowledge of Will Shakespeare, I answred that it would go desperately against my conscience to read stage- plays ;— poor fool that I was ! 'ado assure you. Alec," he said earnestly, 'Uhat the loss is yours. And, for certain, in stage-plays as in Ga- berlunyie sangs the Kirk overrules over nmcli. Hearken to this," said he. And I heard for the first time the son lading harmony of Shakespeare's wise and mighty line Avhich I now love only more than the less various numbers of the puritan Milton. ''Is it not brave ? " said he ; " and would ye not fain be a poet. Alec ? " To which I, '' If I maun choose, I had liefer be a per- former of great deeds than a describer of them." With that my lord agreed on the instant, and so we fell to comparing our opinions and admirations of sundry A Night and a Day with Montrose. 55 hk iovo for t),o Enrfish S . \ -^ / r;-''. ""'-' "' ""=»'' «^ Nupior, ,vho w„» of tirwp,>'''''l '"•"'!'«■•. "'» lonl him tho volnmos fro, Lo 1,, ^^ ^ """^"' ''^"' '"■""«'" 1.0 styled (I can woH ontte V PT"'^-"'"' -''"'" man and perfect kuigh"^ ', '^^: " 'T^ ™"'l>loto gontle- Furthcrmorc I made o^T r hf ",°"""^'"^ ""'""'«»■" timacy of those houyi^wl, ^' ""^ ""' '»'""=<'"' in- eontc,„ph.ti«n of tho;c r'w* rt,"'"' 'J"'" ■" "» person is given to tho sayiZa' j', ,"."^ "'"'" "^ » dovont and women, and how in Scolud? ''','?' ■'" '"'""^ ""=" . w.. ever playing their adm r d la Ll Thr^''""^^ '^ wide world. ' °" '"« stage of th? We did talk also of the love of nv on that matter I found him 1? ,,"■ '"' "'^"^^^ «". but when I pressed him wTtlr re „ " ""^ 1"'" "'"' «°^. ""d exceeding affection tlward M, r ''xr''''"''"- ''^ '""i ™ the daughter of the Xf of Cl f" ^f '"^" ^"™^S"-' marry in a week, he would !, ^""^'"''^ ^''om l>e was to "My tutors a„'dcur",,re\?''' T"^"'' '""'- should marry, and I thiU, J ,°«'" " P""'"'" «>at I family, and the only on to „ , V"" "'^ "'^"'i <" the . therefore, ye see, aIc ""slid? f.^f /""'^'-'^ ""mo, and prudent in „e to m. r; c. rlv 1^ ""', "," '" '"^^ -" ensured betimes that ray Sh 's / '",'' *"" " "'"y ''^ from the lauu, and tha^e ,™ 1 0/ n ^, ''"'" "<" ""^^'^ 3l.all not die and rot wm the 2 "i""" "^ M<"'trose ti.o Scripture saith. B .^ M 7- ?' ""^ ''^ked, as a most fair and adorable crealnr "' "'' *'"»"'^'"'^° '« that rcould "not;^ su'rHr/ I" ""'"" """ «° ""^'-hed meant his own Mistress Magdl:"X™" ""-" '" M ') The Angel of the Covenant. that I fell on sleep ^v.tU ^ '>;''7j;»^^toh attend as God had ever had More; '"-^ / 'f, °X;„„a world seen.ed seldom giTCS to man, ™'\" ^ ... .j „£ „ dreary dawn into turned about Iron, the '™' f;,^°";„,de alive with the the morning sunshine of hope ™^ ^ ^^^ i ,,^,0 been singing of birds and the b»;" "^^^ ™'^'^ ^.^th foolish and ttafs full coneermng »"' """JS^^f ' readers shall «n- sorious, of that -g"''"*'!,!^ captive from the first derstand (if they may) hov ^ "'f '^V^l^^iove and rever- hy my dear lord, and h^;"* ''^^X of women,! began ence, more ^^ S-"*^'*" ^en ions ->d soaring mind to love that ha™»'"f ' "|°^° ^portioned body, dwelling in that bcantrful and .dpi ^^.^^ ^^.^^^^ Next morning ^""""'/f; JX ,rray of one of my and frosty) behold me, digh m tt^ a y^^.^ ^^.^ ^.^^^ ^ lord Montrose's servitors, »"^ '^'^f ^ t,,,t seemed of watchful eye cast over nvy h «Wor ^.J^^^^ ^ ^^^^ ^^^^ the Kirk. First, we rode "'»*'<' ^^^ then away straps and buckles to «>/ \°f ^^f^; 'tue Port there (a down the Over Kirk Gate and out y .^ ^^^^ ,,y ,ve wore destined to ™\ "^ \„4 ,„ by the Black- other guise), and «P *^ Scho',1 1 ^^.rfooking the friars to WooUnan IM wlierc a J^ ^^^^ ^^^^^,^ Spa Well and the Den Burn V j^„„,o„,the pup.l and pleasure-gardcn of Master O ^^^^^^^^ ^_^^ ^^^^ of the famous paintei 1 cter i ^^^^^ j,,„ rade of Sir Anthony Vandyek I d dn ^^^^^^ ^^.^ greatness of our Scottish V^^^l^^^^^ lord I saw in fpacions P-»«"?-7,;" ^""S t boyish ignorance,- George 3-'"^<'^°'''-'''f'^^,^iln Scot body, who was , mere oasy-nalured, ■'•"'j *™;,,„ioU I wondered at, mighty humble with my loid , ^,^ gigt„s A Night and a Day with Montrose. 57 Napier of Merchiston, and liad the names of many Scots lords and gentlemen at his tongue's tip. He spoke, too with exceeding pride of his master Rubens being then at the Court of our King Charles as Ambassador from the King of Spain. George Jameson speedily got to work upon the panel he had made ready^ I have often been asked by painters abroad, both in France and the Low Countries, concern- ing the method of this man who from his origins was counted by them a master, and whose quickness and grace of execution were famed. But I was too young then and too incurious about such things to observe how he wrought, and I can merely remember that he did all with a brush In truth, however, I gave more attention to the sitter than to the painter ; for I was held by my lord's fixed attempt to keep a good countenance ai Jameson's pawky jests and at the mirth which I was free to indulcre being behind the painter's back ; the which may be re'- marked in the portrait of my lord which still hangs in Kinnaird Castle. It is a joy I shall hug to my heart as long as I live, that the demure look wh^h seems i^ady break into mirth at a touch and which shall thus be fixed from the picture on untold generations was truly provoked by me ana was bent on me with love and nnderLndhi' In wo hours or thereabout the first and only sitting was at an end, for it was (I have since understood) I as ef Jameson's freqnency thus to paint from one sight oh nbject. So we mounted again and rode past the Lo 1 (whence came the rush and shrill clamor of many W sbding^^and by the SpitaltoOld Aberdeen, wh^se coUre and cathedra towers hailed us across the Wn sti bfe! fields. Word must have been sent from the New Town of the coming of my lord ; for when he rode down the street at the head of us, as gay and noble a cavaHelas e'e was seen, the people ran this way and that to ge a look - f^^™' : \ W^ 1 i m ! :;| ^^■a 1 ' ' K ^^^ ii M 58 The Angel of the Covenant. at him, the college bolls rang out a merry peal, and the collegianers in their tattered red gowns poured forth with a rude clatter and with mad shouts of " A Graham ! A Graham ! Montrose! Montrose!^' I was as proudly stirred as if the ovation were my own, and I rode with a high head, until we came to the Bishop's door, whom my lord was come to visit. There I saw supporting the kindly and aged Bishop Patrick Forbes my relation the Earl Marischal, and I hid my head as close as I might. My lord went within to eat morsel of bread and to taste a cup of claret wine, while he exchanged greeting with the old and learned Bishop (who had been his father s friend) and with the Earl Marischal, and I remained with- out in company of the servitors, exceeding glad to escape thus the eye of my lord Marischal. But when on their outcoming again I perceived it was the intention of both the aged Bishop and my lord Marischal to accompany Mont?ose back to the New Town I was in a great taking lest I should be discovered. " Have you named me to Marischal ? " I whispered my lord Montrose as he passed me to his horse. '' Never a name to ye," he answered. So I was somewhat ""comforted, tho' my pleasure in riding at my lord Montrose's tail was at an end. One private word*'more Montrose bestowed upon me ere we rode ofE, and little I guessed it would be the last for years. At either side of the Bishop's gate was a company of bedesmen and beg<^ars and other wandering fold who clamored for alms from " the bonnie Yearl o' Montrose." The earl, who was ever free-handed, ordered his purse-bearer to distribute so large a sum of pounds Scots that the worthy Master Lambye drew a face an ell long. '' May be," quoth my lord dipping his head to whisper in my ear, ''your Gaberlunyie standeth among them." It warmed my heart to know that it was the thought of A Night and a Day with Montrose. 59 aTdtggat "" " "''""''"'' ^^™'-°- ^° '""^ "^^-men At the gate of the King's College we made a hMf t receive the salute, of the professors who w" lul'ted o nc ,n our company to the end that they might toTes ent at the making of my lord Montrose a bume s of the royal burgh of Bon Aceord. My lord again caiS Mast of tt'bofir ""'1 """ "°™^"' "'^ "-'- f-- tl>"i4 >g of the bells,* and so we rode away a largely increased eon, pany and entered by the Gallowgate Port n Hie city where were all the Kirk l.^lls ringing so merrily! and tt tC";rr!o^':::i:r";"^-''"^^ ancwofdilcovery. ' ""^ ''"'*''* '" '''^l' ^ ^'""'i tl,fV°""!\i'" """, ^ *""" ""«-"• '""> tl'o eeremony in he Court House which made my lord Moutrose a burL^ m the presence of the City Fathers, the professors o?S Coheges., and sundry gentlemen and ladies, among which last sat notable my lady Balgownie and my Mistress mII dalen. As an attendant on my lord I was nrivillTd TT e,,W f»^' ^T" '""■*'' " ^•■'"» »'1<'™«« Charged w th eulogy of the noble -stock of Graham .n.H „f ^'Seawith uZoaZ "Then r '"'f^r '"''''''' '"'^ " '«-' 'o^- Elmslie flth /, V ""'"' "'•''"'"^ l"-°™>*t. Sir Andrew ilmslie, flashed h.s obseryation from my cousin to myself I saw recognition of me mount hi, face, and I knew bv f^ gnm sm,le of him that my secret was in his hoU ' this purpose. " '°'*y"''"' »'"""W (Scots) for 'fr ii 60 The Angel of the Covenant. Would Sir Andrew betray me, or would he not ?— that was the question that fille« my attention for some while, during which the swearing of my lord as a faithful burgess was being accomplished. Thereafter people moved from their places to be made known to my lord, and much talk was toward among the company concerning the growing troubles of the King with his English Parliament ! I heard such words as Tonnag- and Poundage, Privilege of Parliament-men, Papistry and Arminianism, and sue?, names as Laud and Montague, Selden and Eliot bandied to and fro, understanding little and caring not at all about them,— tho' truly I wished later, when the fire had broken out and raged of which these were the first whiffs of reek, I wished then I had given heed and had understood. The one piece of talk that seized and held my attention was concerning the quandary into which both the King's Council and his Judges seemed plunged by the demand of some imprisoned Parliament-men for Corpus Habeas,^ which I took to be legal words of exorcism or release from prison. If I were taken and shut up, I wondered if the utterance of the magic words would cause my bolts to be shot back and my prison-door to be set open. I became aware that Sir Andrew's gled-eye was upon me, and I stepped nearer to my Lord Montrose, whom I heard debate with the tough old Sir James Simpson, not matters of state policy (of which, in all likelihood, he had then considered as little as I), but hawking and archery and the best fashion of catching salmon with a hook. And imme- diately thereafter (it being then wellnigh dark) dinner was announced and the company remaining therefor began to pass to the banqueting-room. I knew the room well, for of all the Halls and Chambers of the Court House I admired it the best. It was arched and groined, with wealth of wood carving and oak-panelings, and all these T saw, as the throng moved on to the open doors, were hung with flags A Night and a Day with IMontrose. 6i b»....e,.s of AboA^ar^f ,^r on : :r^"'^ ^^^^^^ Lord Montrose pass on amid the throL 1 1^ . , " "^ to H>e feast, and I ,vas slowly Mwf-f.i" ""f 'S^T sudden I discovered myself cut off f^ »"« w,,,„ „, ^ by t.ose,eants .it,, LlLt a^d^Ir^ fntu ^^er in the name o' the Provosf- nn.i n -i '^" i"'^^^- Kin„<'saidthefirstserjea::rcM4t":hS,:f.,";:^: Alexander Burnet, student o' Divinity ,', ^"^"^^'^ ^^ ^« '' I am Alexander Burnet ■' saiV] t l< w^ l, with me ? - ^ "^ ^- ^^^^^^ e your will " In the name and on alledffeance * o' f hn tt- i . o land,- said the second, on mv of W «i 1 1 ^^' '^ ^'^*- Burnet, ye're my prLnr^Co^ t'^^J ^"^^T^- and mak' nae wark/' ^'^^ ^ ^^^'^ ^^e. There was no use making », ^^ wark " fnv T closedabout by these men as if a moX'box Id 21^^ away and the last I saw then of my dear W ll T 1 was his ffolden h^nd o.. i , " ^^^ friend iwKlertirtlbanneronLr"" ^"^ *'" "^"'^ »" »'»<^ parts of thoTow 1 :", ^ --taken to the back Tolbooth^andtberelwI's '' Ir ''T ^"'"'^ "' '"^» the crnel and tyrannic: rn^'„Vh\tk""'^' "''' '"'» • . 3 62 The Angel of the Covenant. ! OIIAl'TEK V IN THE rOWEB OF THE KIRK THAT those who read may Inlly understand the issue of this trouble in which I was caught it is neoessa-, y that 1 e down these things following, altho' I comprehended hem not myself in an, f lucss until I had arrived a nature age and had seen something of other ways of life Ind religto. I set them down mainly for the cnl.gh ment of the English friends among whom I now dwell ami who spite of some information in the Mercurin. PoUhcus and the MercnHns AuUcus during the "y-past trouble are much in the dark concerning the powers of the Kirk of Scotland When I have touched these matters m casual til have Ln incredulity painted on the faces of my friends, who would not cont.adict me, but who plainly took my sayings for the venial extravagances of an exiled tw"y exile be self-appointed) and afflicted man ; but I dare aver, now, here, in calm writing, and as ^ the pres- enee of God, that of all tyrannies I have ever read or heard of or seen, whether civil or ecclesiastical, the tyranny of the Keformod Kirk of Scotland has been from is begin- ning and is up till now, the most constant, ?>-"'d'»g. "■"i intolerable,-and all in the name of the religion o tha g ntle and divine Galilean which should be so sweet and fomfortable to all poor souls ! In this England which I hJe learned to love so dearly, the Church since the ^ formation has ever been subordinate to the State and the Civil power, not even Noll Cromwell himself permitting ,t to be otherwise. But in Scotland the Reformation being 1 In the Power of the Kirk. 63 fiercer (as most persons, actions, and passions Scottish are fiercer than English), and fludinga royal and civil gover" men that was httle other than anarchy, ti,e Kirk IZZ mto her arms all the powers she conld claw, even su h a^ had belonged to the overthrown Roman Ki k, and mor^ She made herself mistress of the action, the ecling a , d thefaith of every so.,1 from the King downwards, and the finalarb. terandpnnisherofall mis.soeming,mis- hinkint and m.s.domg in the individnal and in the^nation Th™ she was f nlly as arrogant as Rome in hor claims on men's mmd, and bod.cs and a thonsand times more p^h,. more petulant and more low, and infinitely more abs"ri and .ndecent, in the assertion of her claims. Th Chnrch of Rome hath one Pope for hor whole world ; bnt the K rk of Scotland hath planted a Pope-and commonly an gnorant, rude, and fanatical Pope-i„ every parish with the Kirk Session for Inquisition. The astonished stranger might well demand and inquire why a free people hath ondured snch galling carkil?!! gmd.ng tyranny To him I thus make answer .Sor the stojen frL the eSltrfo^f "^^ S^SZ '■f:t thii vt"~^^^ into the hands and T)o\ver of the opvil "+^.1 ! and to be so rej^uted and lieU^^^^^^^^ Lord Jesns " Tf i^.a • ^ ^ *^^^* ^"^<^^ the master mthf J ^ ^^^^o/nmunicate were a servant, no f ( ■ 1 il 1 •:|I i ' J i ^^ ' 1 &ik wB It I^H ? B ■1' , 64 The Angel of the Covenant. even dearest lovers durst not offer liim the offices of friend- ship nor the commonest courtesy of mankuid. An ex- communicato might have neither hmd nor rank, nor gold nor fee ; he might be dealt with and entreated as his enemies should list ; he was not only the heir through Adam, but was passed by the Kirk into the immediate pos- session, of death and eternal damnation without remedy. Such is and hath been our Kirk of Scotland ; and if any- thing I have ever known of the late Lord Protector, Oliver Cromwell, should tempt me to accord him my warm ad- miration and applause, it would be the dear knowledge that for ten years he set his iron heel on the stiff, proud neck of that most cruel and tyrannical Kirk. With this much preface, let me recount what befell when I had been haled into the hands of the Kirk. I lay all that night in a stinking dog-hole, overrun with rats. I snatched bits of slumber ; but I was cold and wretched, and my heart was bitter within me, for that 1 believed I was clean forgotten by my friends, or else surely I had seen the kindly face of some one of them. Why had my cousin, the Lady Balgownie, and my Mistress Magdalen made no inquiry concerning me ? And why, O why, had my dear friend, the young Earl of Montrose, 80 utterly abandoned me ? That last was the keenest griti of all and for the time it cankered all my thoughts of bod and man. I had been suddenly caught away out of his immediate company, to whom I had of a sudden given all the warm love and homage of youth, and I was to have ridden off with him the very next day ; and he had tor- saken me as if I had never knowu him ! I do not propose to dwell on the miseries of that time, the rather that I have striven to forget them, and have in a large measure succeeded. I was given the bread and water of affliction by my jailer, but no word of wliat was to be done with me. The day was wearing late when \. In the Power of the Kirk. 65 was visited by the Provost, Sir Andrew Elmslie, who was accompanied by the Earl Marischal, and followed bv a servant bearing my clothes to exchange for the Montrose livery I wore. ^ - Here's a braw pliskie ye have gotten yourself caught m Alec/ said the Earl, -ro begin at'your age with defying the Kirk-and you a student o' Divinity I-Certes Ihe King l' '"'^'''^ '''^^ ^"*'"'^ ^'"' ''^'^ ^" P^"^ ''^^^ I was too much filled with anger to permit myself to speak, -tho I can believe I said within myself, - To the De'il wi' your Divinity ! " -The Earl- said Sir Andrew, sent word to me in the morning that you were tint,* and it's ta'en me till now addie to find out where you was. For wha wad ha' tL'^TolLlhT^''''^ ^'' "'' '"'' ""^ ^'" ^^^"^^"' ^^^'"^^ i^ - Liar ! - I thought. - Fine ye kenned where I was r " And I do not doubt that he saw in my countenance that I could with satisfaction have stuck a dirk in his wame " Hath my lord Montrose gane ? " I asked -Ay he's gane,'' was all the Earl gave me in answer • nor did I learn till much later how my Lord Montrose had sought for me up and down when I was not found at my odging in the Gallowgate, had delayed his departure till the latent hour possible, and had only gone at the :.st on he assurance of the Earl Marischal that I must have taken it into my head to run home (being that kind of maggoty youth) or to my uncle. Sir Thomas Burnet of ■ •fj'^'r '^™'/ """^'^ ^"^^^^^ "^^<^ ^y lord had left me without word or thought, and I experienced bitter humilia- tion and desolation of spirit, which made me (such was my temper) all the more contrary and obstinate in my -«oln. * Tint, lost. T i i 66 The Angel of the Covenant. tion not to submit to the Kirk. I dcmanacd of Sir Andrew that I should bo at once released or brought to an accusa- tion. ,1 CI- A 1 « And tiiat ye shall, on the instant," quoth Sn- Andrew, - tho' neither allcdgeance nor dittay will mend your case, my lad." .... , He informed me that the Presbytery was sitting, and demanded of me whether I would give my parole to accom- pany him and the Earl Marischal peaceably, or must he summon guards. I answered I would go without guards. It was two of the clock when I appeared before the Presbytery in the Session House of the Greyfriars Kirk I had been hardening my heart all the way thither and the siaht of the I^Ioderator, Dr. Maule, and the salvage eye and the big, loose mouth of him confirmed me in my obstination. I answered to my name when it was called by the clerk, and to the libeled summons read out 1 made instant reply :-that I had in very truth set free the Gaber- lunyie man, and in so doing had committed damage to certain property of the Kirk, videlicet, a kind of latticed window, which I would willingly bear the cost of restoring, but that I would not confess to having d-ne wrong in setting free a wretched human creature unjustly impris- oned At that the Moderator fired up and demanded it i did not know that the Kirk had acted conform to the powers arranged by divers Acts of General Assembly, and confirmed by Parliament. " It is a pity," I stubbornly replied, "that such power was ever bestowed on so great abusers of it, who punish and put in hold a witless man for singing an auld sang or twa. At that a hush as of amazement fell upon the Pres- ^lieModeratnr rose with a glowing eye, and fell upon me with loud speech, shaking fist, and dribbling mouth. - Look ye, sirrah, do ye think ye have come here to In tlic Power of the Kirk. 67 f..co . Ye impellent, fm.se loon ! Well do I ken the na«gl,t,no» of tl,v heart, m.d the bra.onne.,s of thy v L ' Ye are of he mal,g,„»,t, prelntieal sort! Ye tWnkthe' B,8hoi, w, „i,ha„a ye in y„„, Mty ohstination ; but 1 M,op w.lUlaur .ntronnt wi' the dcereet 0' the .Cion" AVhat .s bound by the Kirk on earth is bound by the G,: .n Heaven ; and .f the eensuro o' the Presbytery fa' n on yc ye w, 1 cry out, '0 Jiraid Hill eoverme ! Gramphus hue n,e ! Humble yer.el", ye stiff-neeked r.iekom aTd ntreat pan on of God His ministers for your rank no- leiice and blasphemy ! " ^" But I continued dour and o)>durate, and maintained that I had done nothing that needed pardon - An evil spirit from the bottomless pit liath entered mtoj. loon/' oned he. ^^ I ean see it \n his eon Let Half an liour by the clock did he wrestle in prayer with that evil spirit, treating it now with bitter reproach Ind and to and fro and shaking me over Hell, that I mi^ht smell (as he phrased it) the reek of the livi. g and eS Death in my nostrils. When he discovered tfter th /! ercise that the evil spirit in me was not mTct d nay d te denounced me as a ''stubborn upholder of sin .mllTi . a reprobate blasphemer of the Kirk whil] i. t? "''^^ eiiaste Bride of Christ -md 'm , 7 \ ^'^'P^^'^^^d severest judgment of ihoKiV ^ ^'^^ '^''''''' '^ ^^'^ CO— Lt^u^thl^^^ neck would most surely bring upon me At that I held my tongue, tho' with difficulty • for Fx communication rose before me with nameless LroTs r" was bidden to be removed thit thp Pr- i liberate .hat should be <^ ^::t'':^l:'^ ^] Uae out ! " he cried. ^^ ^ Mi;: I II The Angel of the Covenant. "Yc'rc like KiiLviiitn, a ciiko unturned," said tho Mclonaor, ,vhe- I w,« bronght I' f^,-'- stone- .an on the one side and po.ndge-raw on the other! «u xc Bort yo ! The intorun censure of th« Presbytery is tba yon, Alexander J>nrnet, student o( l.ivhuty, be whan- with a ralmar to bring you to a true frame of confession of vour fault. , . . i ^ I gave no time for anything more to bo said or done^ The hot blood sung in my ears, and I snatched the Btaf! from the limp hand of the betheraUvho stood ^^J^J^^' ^ -Neither man nor minister shall whip me! I mod and with a swift rap this way and that on the ham s put out to stop me, I was forth of tli. place and into the Bi-oad- Rate before astonishment released my persecutors for action. I sped along the Clallowgate to my lodging, flew upstairs and barred myself in, and sat down panting with rage and rebellion. ., ,, , ^ .,, To be brief, I stood siege there until the next day, with- out bite or sup, save a drink of water from a stoup that was in my room, the Presbytery setting guard on the stairs and conceiving they entreated me with leniency and pa- tience in not breaking in my door. The Earl Manschal himself came and parleyed with me through the door, which I would open to none, but I refused all submission to the will of the Kirk ; whereupon he went away in dud- geon, saying he would send for my father to me. When it was quite dark I lit my taper and sat down to read,- anything, you may rest assured, but Struther s Meditations or other the productions of ministers of the Kirk. 1 kept all the while a watchful eye on my window, which was ac- cessible with a ladder from the garden, altho' the outer gorden-wall ran steeply down to the King's Meadow. 1 slept and woke with a cooler head, but with as stubborn a resolution not to submit. I looked from my window upon the red wintry sun rising over the dolorous sea which In the Power of the Kirk. 60 broolej thro' the frostv nJr ul-o „ -i 1 , eoUior. for the Rrcnt Oust™ 'T ^T""'""""" '" ™'»« « soldier, tl,o' Cy no melr^'rr: / V"' *^'IP»o<'Sli for l.oa.1 thr,.t fronf the ;„://,: :'<;'^ ^'■"«".' With „,y romantic tales of k2l ts "Td f TJ^" "^"'""^ '««^« captives, and enacti";' o h rsetf'l of' """ ^'""'^ ""^^ " What for do ye not throw, 7 ™" 1"""' '» *hem. to ham np the vhers !.e bri'g/r •"■ """^ »' ^"-o ^ind, JLrf^d rrerrj^rr '° «'^ ^-^- most garden wall to tL M Zf .tt la 7 *"; '™''- long tow to reach them. I pronoL tl 1; . , ''"'' " ^"^ brought might contriv-e to !! '^T, '^ *''" '''"■™it they into the garden. "'™""'''' "^ '■■<"» «>e Meadow "Oiri?" '-'''•^'"' '"'"™ '""■y"'"' 'Sheets, Alee '- -.rfed -oium , -prisoners aye make tows that gat- " "^ A wmdow was opened below me. '^ I 'I ha enae tearing 0' good twal-hundred sheets in 1 if If iM ii j hi ll 'l LjiC 70 The Angel of the Covenant. this house !^' cried the worthy mistress of the dwelling. *' Let the man rax me the basket, and I shall contrive that Master Burnet gets it, natheless his siege." The servant clorab the steep slope from the Meadow and scrambled over the garden wall, and the good-wife went down to him. Ho looked up to me with a beck : much to my wonder I recognized the gaberlunyie, tho' his beard was now shaven close and he wore the Earl Marischal s livery with the Keith badge on his sleeve. *' Good hot vivers,^' quoth he, ''will put spunk into ye, laird." *' And is that yon ?" I said. " Ay, deed is%" said he ;— '' just mysel', Wattie Find- later : wha other wad it be— wi' a wanion to me ! " " But I thought," said I, '' ye were off and away for I'ear o' the Kirk." , , ,. " Hoot, ay, so I was. But I heard the kecklmg o the Kirk frae as far afE as the Bass o' Innerurie ; the auld hen has hatched a cockerel that winna tak' his paiks : * and so here I am. And gifl-gaff is fair play.f Gi'e the word, and I'll ha'e ye awa' out-by afore they can say Dojiald GoWDBT t I replied that I did not see how my case would be bene- fited by my running ''out-by" with him, and that for the time being I would stay where I was. '' 0, Alec," cried my Lady Balgownie, who doubtless guessed the sense of our parley, '' it's sore against my grain to counsel ye to submit yoursel', but 1 doubt ye're ower young to defy the Kirk ; and it's nae so lang since ye were kindly acquaint wi' the palmar ; and ye shouldna mind it." To that I hotly answered I would rather be excommuni- cate than whipped. )ntrived with a long stick to pass up to * Strokes of chastisement. The good-wife f Mutual service. In the Power of the Kirk. my hand from her window the has Wnf • and my visitors passed away '^ '''''''' ' ^ ^^^^ ^'n ; It would be a while after twelve hon,-. il. . tapped at my door. I demanrlM . ^""^ '^^^ ««« - Bishop Patrick Forbes 'taVth ™ *'"''• surprised and dismayed me'thall tn '''''''''' ""^''^^ «« or do. . I desire a word of eo„Ll with" "'''^^ ^^ ^'^^ contmued the Bishop: ^' oJnZTiT ^^''' ""^ '^"''' and smiled on me in hnZ.l ^^ ?»"«<• my shoulder his presentment was more „7°? ""Ti "!"'^ ^ «'°»ght prelate. ^ "' " 8™^ »" soUier than of a "blt'ifi: brtoThrTe' in":' »"", ^ "-^ -^ ''ead, looked np again. He wJk d ?„ tf • ''r""' ' " ""<• ^ "Yeha'e abonny look o t hete " hT "' T'"* ^- sat down, saying :-« ye'ro th!! . ? "'""'' ''''*> ""d are ye no ? ^Th! second on t"' I",''"'"'" ^"»<'*' for the Kirk ' " ' " ' ^'"^ J a^ intending shoulder again. ' thereupon he patted my *' Ye're sore," said h(^ - <( . flesh be unshipped "c^mo IZZT^'' *'"''^°" gether, you and „,e. J ke„ theT^in / .1 ' ""'""' *»" tery had to bring it to me vo ,„! * •(/''" ' *'"' ^^^y- hour this morning. JJe T Z.T^ " ""' * ">em for an wonder wherefore, being B„ofrt T''''""''- ' ^''= ^o" ofl^hand wanting debatl^' B,T ItZ^!^''*'"' -«- both ^fr. Burnet, yon and uuon are caught in a like difficultv jTJ V r twem what is rie-ht in lo "^"^^3^- ^ "a^e to ch light in law and expedient in fact me loose be- ye ha 'e 72 The Angel of the Covenant. to choose between pleasing yonrsel' and teerer oftendrng the Kirk. Tiie opportunity is g.ven to "« "o'^ tog^her -to you as a son, and to me as a father ot the Kirk,-ol h uig a breach in the Kirk and of assnapng ammos, .e - - 1 opportunity the like of which does not come dka day . I speak, Mr. Burnet as one gentleman to another. " I L na for the Kirk ! " I answered hotly and brnskly. "^'ramtSy'atihat, Mr. Bnrnct." said he with great gentleness ; " for ^^^^'^^^ ^:^ :X^ this poor, brangled bcotluiul. i^ii^ jiu>v x i se vant of the Kirk, tho' an overseer in ,t to ane who yet iTope, when this is overpast, will himself enter >ts ser- vice ; for more and more it has n.-ed of the service of brave and honest men, who will be neither trme-servers of the King nor ignorant and noisy bigots. .' Like them that punished the Gaberlunyie and con- demned me," said I without thinking. , , , , , "They are good men," quoth the Bishop, " hut alack ! good men are no aye wise, nor even reasonablc-no more nor brave lads are aye prndent and foreseeing. But to the Ctter mv son. I love the Kirk, because it represents ? m 'am my country the religion of Christ, and 1 kew.se learning and philosophy ; the Kirk may --3; "^"^ with an uncertain and wavering hand, but it bears the ghfc, wanting which, this would bo a land of darkness and cruelty, and barbarism. Do ye see that ? Jhat, my son is why I lo'e the Kirk, and why I ha'e striven for eleven years in this place with such strength and prudence as God hath given me to encourage true religion and piety and learning.-tho' some are ill to guide,-ill to guide I Zltun, ;;, this, my son, in hopes ye may think be ter 0' the Kirk, and your relations wi he.', and because I would ha'e you be, Mr. Burnet, a co-worker with me for peace and concord in the Kirk. Ye w.11 understand, In the Power of the Kirk. 73 thongh my liking would ha' been to use mv episcopal an I,onty and pardon yon altogether, that yet Jor h« sake of the peace o he K.rk and for the avoidance of all rnp- ture and scandal wi' the Presbytery of this town I took a middle course, and made mysel' caution for ye. The Pre, bytery lets you off the whipping, but only or • he conditions that you stand in the jougsonthe Urd'sDay and areslmt np with bread and w..ter in the steeple for the ilka days" the week. These I promised to prevail on yo to suW to, else I myself would take your place " I know not when I heard that whether I was more as- tonished or angry. Great Heavens ! What rontiu. purblind animals we arc when young. How involved are wc m onr preconceptions and conceits, so that we feel merely what is in rude contact with us, and see the affair of the world around us as of no more account than the motes whirling m our sunbeam ! Breathes there a man rf middle age who is not moved with chagrin when he look back on certain occasions in his youth, and is not com pellod to say,-" There-then-I might have play d the man and I played thcfool instead,-bccausel dicnot know I did notsee,-beeause Iwas ignorant .and self-centered '"' I w.as not aware till some ye.irs later that I was th^n caught m a movement which would shake my country II™ an earthquake and riveit in twain. I knew [hat the™ „ a vehement and forward party (represented for me by er am ministers) which hated and raged against the a iH^rUy of Bishops and which w.as all for a ret„t-„ to the most Xro gant days of the Heformed Kirk, before the re-insti X" of Bishoprics by King James and the Five Art 1 o Perth ;-I knew that as a matter of knowledge b„ not !, a matter of understanding to be applied. Bishop Patrl" had m most gentle and courteous wise set it si fficientlv before me; but yet I did not understand that I ZoZ{^ npon to play a notable part with credit to mys Uanl t^ 74 The Angel of the Covenant. Ill I' the party of learning and reasonableness : I was aware merely of my own absurd and burning pride, and I heard only in the ears of my fancy the flouts and jibes of my fellow-collegianers if I yielded. Tlierefore— to my shame I confess it !— I refused to submit myself to the improved mercies of the Tresbytery conveyed by the gentle Bishop. 'MVell, my son," suid he, "I blame ye not. In all likelihood i would have said the same in my youth ; for youth is so blinded wi' the heats o' nature it donna see to the end. For me, I wouJd sooner shed my heart's blood than add fuel to the ungracious rising fiame in the Kirk ; but I will not persuade you out of reason. Ye sha]^ br* think it ove:- — ye have the day and the morn for tha'^^ — and if ye win on the better side o't send me word, or bring it, for y' are free to come and go. There shall be no compulsion ; and ye understand the situation I have set before ye." But the good Bishop was mistaken ; I did not understand. And so he went, and I was left in my foolish pride and obstination. I was free to come and go, but I had no mind to atii ut. I sat at my books, and looked from my window ; the Earl Marischal and my father (who had been sent for) came and strove to shake my resolution, and my Lady Balgownie and Mistress Magualen came to support it ; and thus that day and the nexo passed. None of us, and, as was reported, none in the town, believed for an instant that if I failed the Bishop would assume my place ; and Dr. Maule (I heard) was filled with a malicious joy, declaring that if I did not compear to submit myself on the Lord's Day I should be excommunicated instanter. These things were told me by my visitors, and I maintained I would hasmrd excommunication and would take myself off to the Alle- mand wars with the Marquis of Hamilton. Why did I not remove myself, being thus free to stir ? 1 J u b I a 1 h h k] In the Power of the Kirk. 7^ It were hard to tell why, but stir I did not ,• and tlio^ mv resolution not to yield appeared as stout as a bulwark it was in truth as shifting and as wavering as a flame Thus the Sabbath morning dawned with a white face and fine snow drifting and sifting thro' the air, so tluit I said to myself, -I cannot away to the wars to-day nor to- morrow, for all will be storm-stead.- I went not out to the morning diet of the Kirk, but still stuck obstinately to my lodging and heard the bells begin their solemn sum- mons to all and sundry. I thus sat waiting for I knew not what in no very comfortable frame, when I heard a foot on the stairs and Mistress Magdalen burst in on me, her white hood made whiter still with snow. - Oh, Alec- she cried, " the Bishop !-the good Bishop ! -he IS m the jougs ! All the folks are staring at him r And-oh !-I maun greet ! '> And down she sat and wept.* Amazement held me speechless for an instant What for," she burst out, -do ye stan' there like a tawpie ?-a stock or a stane or a graven image ? How dull a th ng ! Naebody ! And he hath done it ; and the snow Bistaf 'Sh b 7.'"'J ?'^ ^'^ ^^^d' ^--y^ -oble wZ /^^^'^^^^Il^vehim!- And again she wept. While she talked, a cleansing, refining flame had leapt up in me consuming.all my stubbornness. I seized mv bonnet and fled down the stair, choking the fierce sobs as I ran-out of the Gallowgate, down the Over Kirk Gate and so by the School Hill into the kirkyard of St. Mchot' There by he great South door was the good BishopTth his white locks bare and the iron collar'of the ^ou^.l'^ - Oh, my good lord ! - I cried, throwing myself on mv knees m the snow and kissing his hand an'd weepbg on7 How could they-cruel, rude that they are !-put the rusty collar upon you ! " . »!« . puL tnq ! M iE'i iJ 76 The Angel of the Covenant. " I thank God/' said the Bishop, putting his hand on my head, ** that I am prouder of wearinj^i this collar for your sake, my son, than if His Majesty had put on me the collar of the Garter." " Forgive me, sir,'^ I cried, ** forgive my stubbornnyss. I yield me to the Kirk ; ye maun wear thui. collar so longer ; it is for me to wear it ! " I heard a loud " hum/' and turning I saw Dr. Maule in a red fuming hea':, and behind him certain of my own people. Dr. Maule began io suy that he doubted whether the culprit could be exchan|r,;e3 at rhat hour, but there rose so loud a murmur of disapproval froui the crowd of on- lookers that he desisted, the ravbei- that the Bishop lightly dismissed the matter thus : — ''Bear ye one another's burdens is a godly command. I have borne Mr. Burnet's for a quarter of an hour and he will bear mine the rest of the day. That is '^ut fair giff- gaff ; foi T am a^d and Mr. Burnet is young. Fcrget not, my friends/' said he, raising his head and ^'r»'ninghis mild eye on the throng, " that the future of oui dear country is in the hands o" the young ; therefore entreat them gently as ye would entreat young colts that ye wish to run well ; bear with them and guide them, and break them not." At that the betheral came to unlock the collar. Before I was myself put into the jougs I stooped again and kissed his hand. " Bless thee, my son," said he. " Thou hast a stiff temper but a stout heart. Better is he, my son, that ruleth his spirit than he that taketh a city. The Lord God Al- mighty have thee in His keeping, and make thee a chosen instrument for the good of this land." That he said, doubtless thinking of my preparation for the ministi'y. Again in my ecstas}- * stooped to kiss his hand, before my head should be fixe ..gainst the wall, and Dr. Maule (to whom I was not wont to give more than the In the Power of the Kirk. 77 stiffe.t obeisance) turned off in a rage, murmuring that i:::;:^::^ "' "-"^^ '-'"""''' ^'^'^"«''>' -<'^<'»'- When I was fixed into the Jongs the Bishop embraced ??< ■ " ' S^r "^"f ''*^' ^^'^ »"™«'' "i'h the King ot lungs ' He then led the way into the Kirk, and so I was ..ft alone ; and the snow softly settled on me, like a iieavei' ly benediction. 78 The Angel of the Covenant. 1 1; ■ m CHAPTER VI. OF MY IMPRISONMENT IN THE KIRK STEEPLE, AND WHAT FOLLOWED. It re joiceth me to know that from that date the vehement and froward Kirk party in Aberdeen waned for some years, and the Bishop's party-tho party of learning, hberty, and reasonableness— waxed in regard and influence. As for myself, meditation in the dark and cold of the Kirk steeple put me more and more out of love with the Kirk and her ways, the rather that my father (who had never loved me and who was inclined to the vehement party) took that fitting conjuncture for telling me I might do as I would : he was done with me. I therefore abandoned all thought of becoming a minister, and resolved that I would on my release at the week's end visit my uncle, Sir Thomas Burnet of Leys, and take counsel with him who had been ever kind to me : I did think of going to my friend the Earl of Montrose, but his manner of leaving (of which I had not yet learned the truth) made me doubtful that he was weary of me. I should have been a miserable creature while my watch- ing endured if I had had no more sufficient diet than the bread and water of the Kirk. But early on the Monday morning, the ground being white with snow and the great hush of its softness in the air, I heard a voice as aforetime in my lodging in the Gallowgate. *' Alec ! Alec Burnet ! " I looked forth as well as was possible between the laths Imprisonment in the Kirk Steeple. 79 of the vvindy lonvre-shuttcr that soi-ved mo for window and I saw Magdalen standing in the .snow in tho orin^' of a man whom I gnossed to be ffattio Kndlafnr fh?. 7 ^l;7d°- LKi '"'"'' «"•»"«•> »-• w- 1 1 ■'''■ Ilaiidoiit-by theliivver I'lirrJ "«.,^ ^.i • "*^"^- Q • • I.- , "'y^^^^^'iua, ctime the voice of Watffp Seeing in his hand such u how as bovs -ire wnn^f i ! birds withal, and divining hi. mZolIVlT f ""' the Wes or laths of ^: ^inZ^'ll^^^^ ^ tuck I put out my hand and drew it from the ood nd found that a string was tied to its tail. I pull d onlhe string and came upon the knot of a cord T In .1 f and felt there was something hea^ 7L 0].^ " "^' iiooly and fairly, laird ^" oallfwi Wnff as gent,, as a snckin^' dove (as tr^'^xcl^" ^TsIlT spo.aro h.ath it). " Talc' caro o' the boss ' " * Then :™ iTtti;:;;,;„raX:f ^zT-'r-' ^ ..ea.. bigness thaA„;\7rbVtwr I™ tT ltd r:f r;::;;eiv::r^t:r "-r ''^^ *-- ^ enough to admit the ^IH " .fchll'',; T T "'/?'""« ^d r etetre ^^ ^'^^^^ -^ ^ They waved to me and I waved to f hpm . o ^ * Boss==an earthenwaie bottle. 8o The Angel of the c .*nt. \\ ll ■'''li window and throw to the starving; birds, aad the water I mixed some part of with my inndicum of claret wme. I was thus in far better case than are most prisoners. Yet at six of the clock on Saturday (at which hour the Sabbath Eve was counted to begin) I received my x^.^^ with delight, and blithely and gladsomely I hied me to the Earl Marischul's. Witli a heart filled to bursting with gratitude and love to those who had stood my friends I re- turned warmly the kind embrace of my Lady Balgownie. « Well, Alec," snid she ; '' and I'll bud ye a pound that ye're fient a hair the worse, but in the skin of your mind." ''And that is so very sore, cousin," said I, '' that i can never suffer the Kirk again. I have to thank Magdalen that I am in so good a case." . j. , Then, upon the impulse, 1 took my little mistrdsss sweet lily face between my Lands, saying, *' Ye have been most wonderful good to me, Mngdalen, my dear." I was moved to kiss her, but a something that rose to the surface of her liquid look and another something tint rose withm myself forbade me, and I forbore. Thus early, and of a sudden, do the instincts of attraction and alarm, .f pursuit and flight, make themselves .^mifcoL in juuth and maiden. She stood off a step, erect anc^ a' gaze like a young fawn. , A J " But ye were a prisoner !" she exclaimed. ''And so, to be sure, I was good to ye. Alec ! " And then I thoughtfully hung my hea.l ul -;as sad ; for I understood that her bounding and c .rix ^' kind- ness had been (^one, not tome in my own particular person, but to a poor prisoner of her imagination. "Oh, you twa!" laughed her mother, *' wi' your romaunts and your fantasies ! " Next morning, being the Sabbath, I set off through, ihe f ,9 vvi vour Imprisonment in the Kirk Steeple. 8i snow to visit the goorl Bishop of Old Aberdeen and to take counsel with him touching my intentions. I sat in the Cathedral Church of Old Machar and listened to a wise and tender discourse from his lips, and afterwards ho took mo into his house to dine with him : which counicnance given to me, when it was noised abroad , was reckoned by the vehe- ment and froward party in the Now Town for a new offense in the Bishop. He tried to dissuade me from abandoning the ministry, but finding me fir.- Tor stubborn) he ceased, and gave me good and kindly counsel touch- mo; the condu 't of my life if I should go to the wars- for he had borne arms himself in his youth. Also he wrote a letter to my uncle. Sir Thomas Burnet, setting ^rth the whole matter ; and whenever that was done he bade me adien. and I saw his kind face no more. For a year or two th -after, he was stricken with a paralysis'in the right side, .o that he had to learn to sign his name with ius left hand, nd ho died some little while later when I was absent in . rai.ce and some years before the great sf arm of faction arose t- 'iake the Kirk and the country _ I set no store by the order of Bishops, as the greater part in England now do ; nor can 1 regard either Episcopacy or Presbytery-nor, for that matter, any fashion or order of Church administration-the one as mon> certainly ap- pointed of Crod than the other : for sure, no office what- soever availeth aught more than a robe or a gown availeth • the man that filleth it is all. And certain I am that such a man as was Bishop Patrick Forbes will justify any order and any office in the eyes and to the consciences of all reasonable men. Next day, therefore, I traveled a-horsebaok the fifteen heavy miles of Deeside snow that lay between Aberdeei, and x. ratncs-, the sta tely castle of the Laird of J^eys There I was kindly r^ oeived, and hospitably eater tained for about the s^ace of three ye'an. My uncle, Sir Thomas Burnet \ M i / ■ 1 1' I I h ., * H ,■(-! .-.i t 'ill ii H •1 ■ T. i i 82 The Angel of the Covenant. ;,« I J. i.j, was a man of excellont and liberal parts, and Avliilo I my- self browsed at will in his largo and v u'ious bibliothek, he instructed mo in fence, in tho iiuine(je, in vcnery and nf^riculturo, and, by frequent conversation, in pliilosophy and the observation of Nature ; for he was a liuge admirer of tlie wi'itiugs of my Lord V'erulam. In all things he was more to me than my own father had been, whom I had to thank for little other than the begetting of me. I made some little return for all such kindly entertainment by instructing my younger cousins in the i^atin Grammar be- tween whiles, and by writing letters to my uncle's dictate. So the time passed now wisely, now gaily, now merrily, and ever with incredible swiftness, until I was of age to claim of my father tho second son's portion (left me by my mother), and so set myself forth in the world. During all this while I had but a glimpse now and then of my Mistress Magdalen and her mother, for my Lady Balgownie had left the Earl Marischal's house and was at her own castle of Balgownie in Buchan ; and during all the while I had seen my Lord Montrose not at all. lie had written to me a letter early in the time, with inquiry touching the issue of my brulyie with the Kirk, and with the information that he was himself established with his wife in the house of his father-in-law at Kiunaird, and would continue there until his coming of age. I replied to that letter something meagerly and stiffly, I doubt, for I was still sore at his leaving me in Aberdeen without a word — and so, to my loss then and my grief in the future, I re- ceived no more letters from him. I yet might have met him face to face, for he had ever been a frequent and wel- come visitor at the houses and castles of the North Country in the fine summer weather, but about that time a great grief and shame fell upon him and all his family, which caused that he kept himself close and altogether aloof from company. Imprisonment in the Kirk Steeple. 83 It would bo more agrocablo to mo to pretermit all mention of that matter of shame and grief, but it con- oerns so intimately what is to ensue in T„y narrative that I must set it down, with whatsoever brevity and resor- vation. Tliis it is. While I was yet at the Castlo of Crathes with my unclo it was whispered wide, and by deffroos it spread into open gossip that Sir John Colquhoun of Luss on Loch Lomond, who had married an elder sister of the Earl of Montrose, had removed himself out of knowledffo with a younger sister of the earl, the Lady Katherino Graham. What subtle and enticing demeanors and speeches the Laird of Luss had used to make the lady forget her noble condition and the maiden to put oif her natural reluctance, or what devilish sorceries, philters or charmed and intoxicate jewels-for such means of ensnar- ing and befooling the love of a woman are still orpdited by the superstitious many-all these things were matter of wonder and amazement. But that which boiled up the general indignation to its hottest was that Sir John Co quhoun had demeaned himself as a traitor and a breaker of trust ; for the Lady Katherine had lived ever since the death of her father in Sir John his house and under Sir John his care. Some while after the public knowledge of this crime and fugitation Sir John Colquhoun of Luss ' was excommunicate by the Kirk (tho' by all appearance he was fled out of her reach and censure) and by His Ma- jesty s aw officers he was put to the horn at the Market Cross of Edinburgh and the pier and shore of Leith,-that IS to say, three blasts of a horn were made, according to wont, and It was proclaimed that he was a rebel and out- law and that his goods and gear were forfeit to His Ma- jesty. \vhai immediately ensued thereon I cannot tell for It was just then I was leaving the country ;-as I shall ( I m 1 a III Hi ■■■\ :!:■ >i i 84 The Angel of the Covenant. At the back-end of the year 1G32, at the very time when all men had learned Avith grief that Gustavus Adolphus had ended his glorious career on the field of Liitzen, there came also word to us in the north that George Lord Gor- don, eldest son of the Marquis of Huntley, was at Strath- bogie enrolling gentlemen to serve in the Scots Gens d'armes of France. Lord Gordon had been for some years Captain of that ancient body-guard of the French Kings, and he had (it appeared) received a summons from the great Cardinal Richelieu to repair to Paris with what new gentlemen he could muster, to attend Louis the Thn-teenth in his war against the Emperor and the Catholic League ; for Richelieu had then revived his alliance with the Swed- ish Chancellor Oxenstiern. My uncle (tho' no Catholic) was a close and partial friend of the house of Gordon, and I looking forward to my coming of age with January, a'nd eager like any colt for the field of action, prevailed on him to commend me to his lordship's regard, albeit the regiment almost to a man was recruited from Catholic families. My uncle did that, and more. He conducted me himself to Bogie Castle, and entreated for me the favors of my lord. And so, with little more ado, behold me enrolled a gentleman of the Scottish Guard, and sworn to " observe and keep the whole musters, duly prepared vith a man and two horses, armed at all pieces, with a case of pistols, at such places and times as the Captain or commissary shall give warrant and direction, and also to be ready to go to France or elsewhere, upon forty days advertisement so to do." Conceive, then, how I counted the days, and counted them again, until that day should dawn when I could say :—« Now I am one-and-twenty ! " How I fenced to perfeo+. mysfilf in the use of tne white weapon, and how I rode to trv fit horses, -and still courted the days ; how I agitated my mind anent whet man I .nould take with me ; Imprisonment in the Kirk Steeple. 85 how I imagined the figure I should cut in the splendid red white and green 01 the Scottish Guard; and how won- dered what «,y Mistress Magdalen would thinK oVmo "n my new cond,t,on,-and still I counted the d,™" 1" i^rirat"::?; ^ri: e';::i.tto"tt"r' ^" r-" rzro/isxjfrcrr^^^^ IT 1 i . '»iitf.r Doay in Aberdeen, and forthwi'fli sallied out to spend part of it in cr^^r \t ^ ^^rtiiwitii Scott,sh G„ J l.d^'alread ' ZTLX^ZT^':: pad for, and carried away. I bought a o^e of pisti h sdver mounts and a most elegant Flambe^g rlmV with ong r.u.Ilons, wide^„., a'ane, and a flat sheU gZd .y buyrn;'m;r;i^, aXt Of*' ""^ '^"'^"-'" "And now " ,uoth he, "ye'll be a st.Jliard fellow wi' your spurs rmging on the eausey and your yard of c!u iron at your hip ! " " youi yaia of cold l-iord ! what vain and swelling conf denco fill, <, „„ gentleman n-hen he first grips weapon of hi ^ f And yet how that power of lite and death toi d o J tl ness and true piety in the vonfl, if i,„ 1, 7 SiinUe- stufl ! For the clferi Ihi/o i f """^' "' P''"?""' person and the sigli to |em uT^r"'""'" '"°"""» « hiin to be'consLtTar a^inr;: oht;^ demeanor begetteth in him a sobriety and gen itv^ temper, which while it will give no ■•iisnlt „f f- of Divinity who had paced that causeway thre ieyearsbefoiv ■ I 4 ■' Hi ' i, I Wi| 86 The Angel of the Covenant. And yet that student of Divinity had been I even as the proud young Gentleman of the Scottish Guard was I also ! To consider closely the folds of the heart ^f a man is as bewildering as to read intimately the features of the face of a woman I j H f u 1 A.. Of the Revelation of Love. 87 0HA1"J'J.;e VII. OP TH. EEy.tATIO^ OP .OVK BBPORE I BODE TO XHB WARS. lea™ n>y drill, and th n '0 „ .dT c ..7' T^'^'" my last preparations and to .a; my, e.f Arcirl fa™ t,.at w^trtt ir^rrd^tMirs D^'"-^ so moolced bv realitv in^ ^,. *"^' '"'">' '""sion Ijeing fulfilment. But L; "010?' T ''"P'''<'-'^ '•''""■g i" a fair way of oomi g C IXTTI T'""' *° '^^ '" of beauty and doligft arthri m "t 'he 2 r'^ "'"" now. I rode down fmrv. t i marrow even . ing been be-^iglTd 1 „'""i''rr " ""■"""""«' <■- tious to soft thougl r r™t, f T" *"' "" J"-°Pi- vineyards, I wondeSi , J " ^'•""^ *'«' «" '"er • with'its g een fl uTand 1 "■ "f "''^"'^ *■"•" D--undia.g pulse I S/ ^'^ ' "' upon a way that l.r n,-- ", C^'J ^""-^^ "^'• clothes the lower . the m Tp"*"*^ *'^" came upon the Hi.r / 7 ""^ ^'"'^- Pratentiy, 1 which c:,:;' , ,;. ,r- u' ,: if • r "'--^ '^"" **> a.:;.":;"':i e^s sr;i r:::t:f -r each utterance of her name was swe^^ 1 ''' ^^^^^ Bat there came no ansve 1 T" 'rT f ' '"'•^^^^• the forest before I w ^ .V ' "^ ^ ^'"^^ ^^^ ^««" ^'i traoniff aisles. w]i^,.„ <-i,„ i.... „ ,7 . "■"''■"' "^'^^waxic, lar- orer the vaulted dead, so deep and light was the fioor of ^oa«s i^^ .: ^:""V ^:.;' e^- -■"■"■'•:t^ ■\n ■^*^ **: ■^.■■ ■ v ■T'^^" i.S-^Lr, i ^ '«<•?"" 'f •V.i"S$ y ■ ''^ ■•. * ■* .; * ' . M :J: |i :r: «1 Li \ i 1 t; k 90 The Angel of the Covenant. and needles and decaying wood. I stood still, and called again. " Maudlin ! Maudlin Keith ! " A "Hush!" came down the aisles upon me, like the whisper of the Spirit of the wootl. I turned to the uirt where the souri aeemed bred in more particular sort, and walked softly on. Then a vision appeared before me which both abashed and attracted me, which gave me a surpassing thrill as well of fear as of delight. I had not seen Mag- dalen for more than a year by-past, and now methought a very goddess of the woods, a queen among the Sylvan folk stood before me,— Diana herself for shape and bearing. What she were I cannot now tell, except that it was some- thing softly green, and that it was obedient to her form. She whom I remembered a girl was become a woman— but a woman so virginal, so slim and erect, and withal so clear of eye and brow that I think I should then have been scarce amazed if she had spurned the earth and soared aloft into the empyrean. Could this be she ? the child whom I had led by the hand, and carried in my arms ? This wonder of wonders, for whom my heart and my flesh cried out, as the Psalmist sayeth his cried for the living God ? Doubtless, it was idolatry ; yet it was true that she was then to me as the living God ; and such bliss had I in the sight of her, as Adam had when he awoke from his deep sleep to behold the First Woman. As I gazed, with all my wonder and desire, I doubt not, in my eyes, her look changed, vivify- ing my fainting heart and making me divine ; for I con- ceived that in some sense she approved me, as I did her. We began to exchange words, but the words were nothing. "And what for,'^ asked," have you come thus far among the trees ? '* "Hush! "she whispered, finger on lip.— Her gentle hand was laid lightly on my arm, and her touch stole the Of the Revelation of Love. gj power of motion, and filled me with flre,_a fire like th».f of he Ifoly B„sh which bnrned b„t did not eensume in.^^;:!r.t:-;;^-'^^''^''»--°"'wa.riim- ofth?fittdt''fr""ttft""f"'''^''="'*^*°PP-« of Ztn 1 r' t'""^ *" ^^"' '^^y^^^f ^^^ ^ little swelling of «ie ground by which she had her station. ^ Oh, no! she cried, and put out her hand ajrain fn hinder me. " Not thero r rpi ,. . , , '"^"^ ^S^^^ to I had not dared t e'Toh he^rr ^ ^1,1^ ^r ' SjtTernr J::- ''-^' *">■ --^'-•^ - -^ " That !'' said I. '' Is it i' fnifii v^* a i t i , , the mound without eonJd ering ' for .U ' ^h'' Z r, ?';r r.*''" ='°^^-™" «' 'h«' littte hand ' °"«" ^.^^ I «»,* :t ,s/' said she, with a mere aecent of hesita- " It may be, and it must be— if you think it ;. . tu 2; battle fought here once," Si, b bblinV ,ike ^ ^.ot w.th searoe knowledge or eontrelof what Isa d • for , i'^"»' ^^"j Maudlin —how how Imw ^ i. -e g..own - " And I thrilled with del]; ^yTa IZ still let me possess her hand. ' 'J^ Oh, Alec ! " she said in gentle reproach. nf wi! '"'''™'r'""'^ ^' **'" «° Posaossod with the thou<.ht of what was m my heart that I speko net to its .'Zt tallTthi!:k";r '™"^™" "™ '-'^'"" «'•« •""^'^ f«ir and tall, I thmk, than was over the lady-love of the greatest f :f 92 The Angel of the Covenant. knight ! " Heaving so said, I greatly dared, and kissed the hand I held. Upon that she softly withdrew it, and looked upon it, and upon me, and upon it again, as in an entrancement of wonder and delight, which put me in heart to take it it again. Then I felt myself as well conqueror as captive. For, in place of one, she gave me both her hands ; her eyes became pools of liquid light, and her countenance of a melting sweetness, wherefrom it was hard to refrain. " Truly,'' said she, " am I not ill-favored and raw- boned like Jessock ? " (meaning my lady's waiting-woman). " You are peerless, Maudlin ! " said I, beside myself. And so grown more confident, I kissed both her hands and would not let them go. At that an alarming shudder of delicious joy rushed thro' her, and from her to me, and so back to her again. To this urgency of delight I yielded on the instant, and pressed my lips closer and closer to her sweet-smelling hair. *' Oh, what is this ? " she murmured, while she reclaimed her hands from mo, I allowing it, and hanging bewildered, and abashed by my own audacity. '' Shall we not be returning ? " said she. ** Ye came forth to find me. Maudlin ?" said I humbly. " Ay, Alec. And ye have found me instead. Shall we not go back now ? " But it seemed to me that, once let slip, such bliss might never find me more. *' Xot yet. Maudlin ! Not yet, for sure ! " I pleaded. Then on a sudden thought :— ''I wish to take ye to the top of the Hill, and seat ye in the Queen's Chair." "0 yes. Alec!" she said. ''Let us go!" And she glided away (a very Dian) and I followed, doubting that I had offended. " Y'are not elbow. angry at me ?" 1 murmured at her -4 i Of the Revelation of ^ove. \ 93 ^°'' "nswer she but tnrnod her head -in.I^n j , her shouluor. Yet it was eno , h t """ """"■ Iil« let pass a warm labori ^S amn'.r''""'^''"'^'' with fire i„ their dark-blue d^e, h sL 7"' ^""^" say, nor had I. I was content ut „« ''"' ■'" 7"' '° a divme new emotion ; for it seemed "° ™= '"^t in that sueh brusic boldness as ltd f "!''P"««'"S«t'™ge warded with such an^.nL ' """" '*'"'"« ^e re- tendernessand oyinZ ' /r'^''''^ "" "^"'""'""g »' fleeted in mc bic^Mo'^t cTed^!': -'-"-lings re- and strength. ^ "^'^''''''"'g surprise, confidence \io mounted our henoto o«,i i way that icd tow^ds t't p' Xl I^^T''^ "^^"^ Spoke to eve and linn.i /i f ^*^^^ ^" »i^^"ce,but eye Anon the g2;;ijritraj':rr ^t -i"- 'anglod ;ool' or,;elt '^ it Hm of T' ''" '""»"" »<• mountain, but for stiffness of cli^i f" « ""t a great any I have known. Nertl« rn i"*^ ',' " "' '"'*""" "^ feted by ail the windfth^teX'''^::?^ *?%^"^- ■oned seat, called the Queen's 01,..^/ T''^ '^'^- I know not. There I ,ea M M '^ ,'"'-'™™ what Queen the wind that was bio vtg frf^l,!'" "1 *"« '"" "'* ot abroad and around ns unon , L , T'' ™'' ''o l°°l'«d ing Dee, the round 1 .'mT of 1 1 Z1 ™'l!^ °' '"^ '"''- nahen opposite, with ircap a"d~:'r, "' •'" ''''"'''- and away far up the vallevL r T ' ''ngenngsnow, Winding the eyl w ul 'hd, wtTr^T. """ ""^ '"''' »"" wind rnshed about us hke a th n" J '?'> ^"-J *<' ^^^l' chilled «s to the marrow 1 tool Iff th*"'?"',""" ""'"l^'^ fo;nn.y boulder, and happVdtabfutt:'""' ""' ''""^ ■LJOSt know. Alfin. whof T - ... -' wicked, I wonder ^""' '*''' tiiinking of Y L it, I was aware fron. her tone that she had descended . a ' n i . ■' I 8 i i if; 94 The Angel of the Covenant. lower, a more ordinary range of feeling ; and I sought to descend with lier. " Well and what is it, Maadlin ? " I asked. "I am thinking," said she, ''of One who was taken up unto an exceeding high mountain and shown all the king- doms of the world." ** And to whom," continued I, '' it was said, ' All these things will I give thee if thou wilt fall down and worship mo'!" " And I wonder, Alec— is it wicked, think you ?— which of us two is the tempter ?" *'Nay, I know not," I answered with a shudder ; for the awful solemnity of the scene she had called up struck upon mo ominously. I could not but complete the reference and said :—" It is written, ' Thou sluilt worship the Lord thy God, and Him only shalt t', - serve." Then suddenly changing my mood, I exclai)iuja :-- But I have seated you there' as my queen ; and, sitiou you are queen, I must kneel and kiss your feet. "Nay," said she, quickly withdrawing the foot I was about to kiss, that is done to none but the Pope o' Rome ! and what would the Kirk say, if it knew ! "she added with a laugh of silvern harmony. " But, since I am queen, I may give ye an invite to share my seat, and your ain cloak." I took her invite and so we sat for a little while wrapped in the same cloak, uttering each to other little foolish things, like a pair of birds upon a bough. And yet nothing was said of my way-going : for present, past, and future were crowded together into the new joy of that brief space. But that night there came to Crathes the two young Gordons of Ardlogie, Adam, the apparent, and his merry long-legged brother Nathaniel. Adam was a gentleman of the Gardes Ecossais and had been in France before, and Nathaniel was come to see the last of him at the Ford of n Of the Revelation of Love. 95 Deo on the morrow, when tho wholo troop of us should ride away to the South. Nathaniel (of whom moi- anon) was then a lusty man of five or six and twenty, and had the reputation in all the country-side of being a mighty favorite with the women. Well, so it was that, while fl company waited tlie announcement of supper, and I stoou in talk with Adam Gordon, and Nathaniel was apart kughing in the company of my lady Balgownio, I heard JNathaniel exclaim : - Saul o' me ! - he cried in his full, frank voice. - But heres a fair sight for weary een !" (Ho himself had a wondrous quick, and melting eye, which, for swift changes through all meanings from gravity to mirth was more notable than any other eye I have overseen in man's head.) 1 turned and saw my mistress enter, and her great beauty smote me speechless and afraid. The rose of perfect health was on her cheek ; she wore a most becoming gown of silken yellow stuff, and she had stuck a full-blown daffodil among the dark red curls behind her ear, and a bunch of sweet violets at her white bosom. She gave me a full, free glance of her bright fair eyes before she^ame to a st p to receive Nathaniel's greeting who bowed low before her and spoke as one confident i.i Lis experience of women. My bonnie mistress,- said he,_and his bright eye shone on her, -your coming is like a cordial. The sight hirep"" '"''" *'' '"^^^'"' "^^ ^' ^^« -PP- -d -Nane of your joukery-pawkery, Nathaniel," laughed my lady. -The bairn's weel enough, but she'll do iU to heed your fleeching." _ Nevertheless, I saw, with a rising rage of grief and jealousy, that Magdalen delighted herself with these gaudy eompLments and hanging on her another's arm plied Kath.^,el w.th her lures of eye and tongue, in such wfse that .he man was palpably ensnared. She demeaned her- IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) fe I /- (/. I/.. 1.0 I.I 1^ lilM I !^ Ilia ;? lis iiiiiM IL25 i 1.4 1.6 Sciences Corporation 33 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, NY. 14580 (716) 872-4503 '^ ,\ N> "% V 4^^ v^^' ^#% &J li hi' iM if 96 The Angel of the Covenant. self in like manner at table, insomuch tliat my rage of jealousy and grief consumed me. My uncle, Sir Thomas, and Adam Gordon talked soberly of the King's coming to Edinburgh to be crowned, of Eichelieu's craft and strength, and of the prospects of his war with the Emperor. But all the while Nathaniel, who sat between the two ladies, talked and laughed in a soft voice with Magdalen. Anon the ladies left us, and Nathaniel turned with a smile to me : " You seem nae gladsome, Mr. Burnet, at your waygoing ; and in truth I dinna wonder,— for were I on the march, I should be wae at leaving a bonny mistress behind." '' And yet," said I fiercely, for I was beside myself with rage, " ye have only kenned her an hour, Mr. Gordon ; but a gentleman of your brave commerce with the ladies can advance far in an hour." He lifted his brows and looked at me. "An hour?" quoth he, as puzzled. " 0," he laughed, " blaws the wind frae that airt ? My dear lad," said he, laying a hand on my arm, "be not distressed. I pledge the honor of a gay Gordon your priority of claim shall be regarded there. But, saul o' me, man ! it is her mither I'm at—FiUa pul- chra, mater pulchrior. Think ye that Nat Gordon wad ha'e ony earnest intent o' daffing with a bairn when a woman is by ? " This I have told that ye might understand the mood of mingled love, despair, and doubt in which I was preparing to say my adieu. Nathaniel's assurance somewhat relieved and cheered me, but I could not resume my former ex- uberant ecstasy of confidence and passion. I loved Mag- dalen, and I believed she loved me ; but I had not ex- pressly asked her, nor sought to bind her to me, because I knew that I was tlien scarce a fit match for her, being but the cadet of a poorish branch of our house. I looked for- ward to winning my spurs, and, it might be, a marshal's rage of Thomas, )mmg to trength, 3r. Bnt 3 ladies, i with a irnet, at )r were I mistress self with Gordon ; le ladies hour ? " the wind hand on of a gay d there. 'ilia ptd- don wad when a mood of ireparing b relieved irmer ex- ed Mag- net ex- because I >eing but oked for- narshal's Of the Revelation of Love. 97 baton ; for that last rank and distinction, tho* great, had been won by Scotsmen not a few in the High German wars. So I rode away on the morrow, with a tear in my eye and hope and doubt contending in my breast. I was now free to fight and win myself renown and gear, and mv mistress was free to find herself another lover if she would ror--(let me here set it down)-in my late meditations on all this I have concluded that, while the greater num- ber of women may be so simple and faithful that for the renewal of the delicious sensation of love tliey can turn only to him who first provoked it, certes, others there be, neither simple nor faithful in that sense, but more origina- tive and venturesome, who delight in attempting any man for that end. They hope, it may be, that each several man will excite a different passion, or, being hunters by nature, and having rejoiced once in the ensnarement of one man by the charming craft of their beauty and their havior, they cannot rest from seeing every man subdued thereby. m ; 98 The Angel of the Covenant. CHAPTER VIII. OF A LETTER FROM MAGDALEN, AND A STRANGE MEETING IN PARIS. My purpose in writing these memoirs is not concerned with my stay in France, nor with what I saw and did there, until the very end, which came in somewhat singular wise, as you shall hear. During my three years' service with the Scottish Guards I had received several letters from both my mistress Mag- dalen and her mother my lady Balgownie, in which (with other matters) I had information concerning the subtle craft and persistency with which my lady sought ven- geance of the Meldrums for their destruction of her hus- band and son. In the summer of 1G36, being then in Paris after our campaigns in Lorraine anf o Spanish Netherlands, there came to me this letter h Magdalen, which made manifest that all had come to a head, and which I still cherish :— , f % ti Mon Cousin :— I did forbear these four months to write unto you till I should know what would be the end, when I might have done it for good and all. But I fear now that may take some time, and I resolve to give you an accomptof all these proceedings on the instant, the rather, dear cousin, that we have an urgent need of help. '' My mother then (as you did hear) was for a long time by.past exceeding thick with Nathaniel Gordon and some other of the gay Gordons hereabout. In truth, though I told you not, Alec, Nathaniel seemed to me so far ben Of a Letter from Magdalen. 99 with ray mother tliat I did fully expect to hear ho was to be my stepfather. And no wonder of that ; for (as you well know) the lady Balgownie is yet young and gay and of a handsome shape enough. But, though my mother per- mits me to say many things to her, she will not permit a word on that ; and now I see that she is the wiser, for she hath used Nathaniel more than he her, and he is now liker to be a tassel at the end of a rope, and to wag at a widdie, than to be a marrow to my motlier. Be that as it may, it came to pass at Yule that Nathaniel and some others, light horsemen of the Gordons, made a raid and a foray in the night on the Meldrum lands, the moon being at the full, frost in the air, and a sifting of snow on the ground. They burned Meldrum's ricks and barns, and summoned him to come out and taste the fire as he hud made others taste it Meldrum, however, came not out, but, being a prudent man tied to his wife, he bode within, and girned sore (I warrant) to see his gear burn. They drave his cattle and owsen, and spread themselves over his lands, harrying his tenants and driving their beasts, to the number of three or four hundred with about fifty horses. But the thing is this :— when all was done they drove the cattle here, rowting and roaring, and themselves— the Gordons, I mean— made them at home in the castle, eating and drinking for some days with manly freedom, so that it results my mother is accused of being acquaint and complice with the whole business, and even of inciting Nathaniel and the Gordons to the raid to avenge the terrible burning of six years agone. My mother, however, denies both complicity and connection, and, in excuse of permitting the Gordons then to occupy the castle and make themselves at home, pleads being affrighted and overborne ; for what could a peace- able woman do in opposoment of a bourach of brusk and boisterous men ?— all which she declares with such an air of being innocent, that even I would almost believe her f 1 100 The Angel of the Covenant. did I not know better ; — even this, that Nathaniel and the rest rode home from here on their raid, and were enter- tained by my mother before their way-going. " Thus it was, cousin. That night, being in bed and a light sleeper, I was wakened by the hearty gnawing of a mousie within the wainscot. I rose to make it forbear. Being up, I thought I heard sounds in the courtyard with- out. I went to my window, and looked forth into the moonlight. Guess now, cousin, if I could believe my eyes when they told me that I saw the courtyard filled with silent men and horses. But what I could truly believe was that my mother was there, with her faithful serving- woman, Jessock, pouring out wine and ale for the cava- liers. Whilst I looked with astonishment, dear cousin, guess what happened next ! Without sound of pipe or lute my dear, daft, amazing mother, at a word from Na- thaniel, set skipping like a maukin, and with a cushion brought her by Jessock, she danced the cushion dance, the cushion on her shoulder, and Nathaniel footing it fore- ninst her, his hand on his hip. To tell you the truth. Alec, I longed to go down to them, or at the least to open the window and cry :—' Well done, minnie ! ' But I did neither : I was in a bed-gov/r, and I doubted my minnie would not have been pleased ; for howsoever she may be daft herself, she will ever have me sober and serious-—! think, indeed, for the grace of comparison. " Now what think you next ? Could you believe my minnie to be so deep and subtle ? When I told her what I had seen, she but said— as bold as any brass — ' Whisht, bairn ! Ye was dreaming ! Ye are in the way, and at the maiden age, of dreaming ferlies ! It is just of a piece,' says she, 'with your hearing drums beat and trumpets call on the Langleat muir ! For guid sake, bairn, say nothing about it ! For, what with your uncanny seeing and hearing, folk will be for calling you a witch ! ' '' Of a Letter from Magdalen. jqi (Strange word of omen n " Unf ,i„ . . as Gospel tliat I dirll.L i ' ^"^ ™""»' " '« '■'"o cts call o„ ^ts „M, , ™"" ''''" """'"=' ••""' '"""P- tl.om also « ug^f ;;T'f /"■? .1'-^ "»™ '-ar.l wise in tl ese thiL, 1 ! ' '''"* "'" "" »"« tho desired sirenee I faiaTLr^biur; ''"" "^ ";''"'^' I feared that trouble might "me of ^^ "' "'""'^^' ' ^""^ "or ifth^-K-i 'r-''"-^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ swer cliargcs of treason nnri ^f i, • "^ *^ ^^- Gordons, i^ theirt id ';;;; ord Mefd™?" M^"' tf (can yo„ believe, eonsin, she hath 't^Z^.^^.T^X not rise to see the Sherifl l.nf ,.i„ a , . ,''™"-) would word, and tumbled outtroso ,vhoblV\'*™* *»''" per with me and Nathr^uel deelarL l" Td .T"^ '"P" to make, for she had been starred rthedaf ''"^ "^'"'^ da.JLSrrii;:r[r:r,r^?:;r "'■^— ^ armed force from the Mircmil nf rr \f ^''^'^' ""'^^ ^"^ ^, and arrested Hathl^ii^rir Jt^l^r ^ (t quis, who IS, as you know, the lord nf fi,. • • , ^^^^^ now, dear eonsin, here is m;:if;i;:--t:thf: i! } •|: i !j(!'l*tt 102 The Angel of the Covenant. MO.-C, and preparing to sot out for f """ft";"-?-;; as summoned before the Court °' J"»f ^'"f; „J/°J^ her for my poor minnie hath uo other friend nea her .- Nathaniel I'in disgraeewith his ehief -» -»1- J'— ; the old Earl Marisohal is dead, as you have heard, and we haye no Mend in Edinburgh. What vvill beeome o us S you wore here ! I pray God, dear eous.n, tins ette marfind you ere long, which it will, I doubt not, if you continue in Par^. ^^^^ ^^^^^.^^ ^^^^^^^ ^^„^.„_ ' Magdalen. You may hardly conceiye what a sweet gush of longing anIgmSe that 'letter proyoked in my heart ;-grat,tiule b caui my dear mistress had in her extremity nrned to me TdTonging, aboye all, for in the letter I could almos hearCr speak !.t my ear; and her narrat.ye of the daft spbr ol my lady Balgownie and the Gordons called up Smmar seeLs in the bleak and ^tte. l^Jorth. In .« I could smell the wind sweeping down from the » oori"n« heler, and could smell, too, *" halesome scent of he ancient fir-woods on Deesidc, and the reek of the burning nea slanging in the air,-till my soul was sick with desire of my VI folk. Doubtless, they were ruder and less : asonarthan those among whom I dwelt ; but hey were my own, and likewise were they to my thinking truer and tende c ; for, (let me confess it), upon the first prodigious l^ng or my French friends, because of their politeness and ?a ety fteir pretty courage and comradeship, there had srervened in'^aie a kind of disgust and abhorrence of "ir systematic beastliness in their amourets and their common lack of honor and kindness in their amours,- atck wh oh caused me the greater revolt that they seemed nofawlre of it. More over, I hadiiot thriven in France, no hid any of our Scottish Gens d'armes ; for, though we -4 I )mpear 10 with lier : — arrest, and we of us ? is letter if you LEN. longing atitude, .irned to i almost the daft ailed up memory noorland ,t of the burning ith desire and less chey were truer and rodigious politeness lip, there ^rrence of and their imours, — ey seemed n France, :hough we Of a Letter from Magdalen. 103 though m the campaigns we had made we were ever well to the fore, and took wounds and deaths not a 10^11'. ns, ye the worthy rewards came not our way. "^^h IS that we were King Charles's whipninir-bov. ^..0// ..eswithout intention, then dia wr^^'L^X^" I was thus discontented, and thus sick (or home for bonnd of the hea/t and :!' ^^^^Z^tZ to our Captain, Lord Gordon, and ask for W ^ Somme, you may bethink you that our Pnnfn- r 7 ceive it consorted not with he h-- '7^^^^ ask for leave Ypf T I . ""^ ^"^ "° ^^ '^s to beenst«il"^„n''„lirorKnrChfH''~' "'"'"' '""» it was notorious thaf, ,.Hl"ont fis tllvT"""'-'' """ across the Sfcriif^ nf ihl q . ^^^^ transmission lord Gordon ^ ^ ""»"'™^ "' «'^ P^'er for my -Ztwho w'^rCr"""^' ^"" ■"-■" ^'''" -'^ *»e rt i II ' ^■rj 104 The Angel of the Covenant. " Friend," quoth I, " am I wnndoriug in my wita, or art thou?" *' Sir, by your favor, neither, perchance. For, sir, the hand of God has fallen, and the ^larquis of Huntly is dead in Scotland, and now ho who was my lord Gordon is the Marquis." So it proved : the self-same messenger who had brought me my letter from Magdalen had also brought an express from Scotland concerning the death of the Marquis of Huntly ; and thus my way was made plain :— the new Marquis must home with speed to take up his succession, and there was no objection made that I should return also. His lordship's two sons, the lord Gordon and the lord Aboyne, would remain behind with the Scottish Guards, and the Lord Gray, who hact been lieutenant, would in all likelihood be captain. Now note by what singular turns Providence brings his ends about ! I left the hotel of the new Marquis of Huntly in high feather, and swung along the causey as if it were the Broadgate of Aberdeen. It was decreed that I should not retnrn to Scotland in the new Marquis his company, and so it was put into my mind that, instead of marching straight to my lodging to set my affairs in order, I should turn aside for a while to see the last of some acquaintance of both our Guards and the musketeers of the King whom I was wont to meet at the Royal Academy of Arms near the Louvre and the newly built Palais-Cardinal. It was plainly an afternoon of activity in the King's Academy ; for I could hear abundaiit sound of the fleuret, and many a sharp " Ha-ha ! " and stamp of the foot be- fore I entered. I passed down the side of the great hall towards the end, where the on-lookers and the rosters commonly sat. As I ncared that end, I observed in one of the bays or recesses two gentlemen seated in much en- grossment over a game of chess. They engaged my eye M' bs, or art , sir, the [iintly is ordon is brougbt . express irquis of ■the new ccession, urn also, the lord Guards, aid in all •rings his )fUuntly if it were I should iompany, marching I should laintance ng whom rms near lie King's \Qfleuret, foot be- ;reat hall le resters 3d in one much en- d my eye Of a Letter from Magdalen. dunng something more than an instant : for on fho recognized the swart face and thick nose o tk V '"? de Turenne, who, tliough yet very voun. f"""*^ pointed to as a -iHtary co^miLxnde^oflh ntst^m/ ^'^ l>rom,se, and in the fair face and aub uTh of h "' memory wistfullv sontrbf t^ a- '''*""'" ^^'"i of the other But I /.ssed „„ fo tl r thoV ruiJIo? ''^'"»'"»'--- ant of the King'a Muskotoor/a; a a^gt S"™ „Vr*°"," discretion and valor, wlm l,o,l „,. *> Y'""™"" "i proved ".y Wend in an affi, oV W ZlZ "T'""" '"""' taincd to no mean rink T,T '"'' "'""^ "'" yonn« K,-„, IJrs^^k:rt eiX' r^T?: *-" and I l„„k I loveil him tlie liettor for tint tile r ' as well in character as in conduct boi, ! ike theT"? than any other Frenchman I know ^''"' " Bien !" cried he, "hero is Monsieur D'Esaue ■ " f„ that was the name I was conmioi.ly known bv«l: Frcnchfrieiuls: Ibeingal^irnet of iT ..,, "f, "^ ;- truly ; for truth is ll virt, Mo^t r I '^7 '"" learned Maistre d'armes here "-indie" t It eP^' "" of the Masters of the Acadomv*!";"';^, 1 o^"' ,''' 'T or read, or (Ireaniorl tl,.>t ; ' "»""■>' os ho has hoard, people who ;: t- 1 k" z;:"rf ^ r ! ^'™»»- devils. Is that tr„,. if ? ' ""'' '''"> '^S'" ''ko Le Porche 1 at „ yearr™ r-'- '^ '""'™ ^^»'^'- England, and never saw I L^L . i: h ai^r"; """"""^ who fought in /„;,« " -^ ' "^ ''"'"'' °^ ""y men, ,< "^ reione, to bo on service abroad ! " 1 was on a priyy mission, sir," said D'Artagnan ing 1 -s hX^ ""--"' ^"- ^ " ^--od Le Prohe, lift. 1 ■ 1 :',| ' h >. 111 fr i I ;, li io6 The Angel of the Covenant. "Yes, sir, privy aii(T perilous," quotli D'Art.'ignan. We all hung siloiit. Thu two were loth to give or taico offense ; for botli were swordsmen of redoubtable merit. In the i)ause D'Artagnan turucd him again to mo. " Now mon brave, pronounce." ''Maistre Lo Percho ia right," said I ; ** and you also are right. Monsieur D'Artagnan." " Bah ! In the name of reason ! " cried he, " how may tluit be ? " " Because, Monsieur D'Artagnan," quoth I, " you con- found things that differ. England is not Scotland, and it is in my native country of Scotland those people dwell that Maistre Le Percho hath heard of. Tlicy are wild thieves of tlie mountains ; and soon I shall have a sight of them again, for home I go with all possible despatch." Then was there a chorus of inquiry concerning the rea- sons of such desertion of my comrades, upon which clamor broke in the voice of Le Perche. *« And these mountaineers in petticoats, sir, — what aro their weapons ? " I described their weapons, — as sword and buckler, and what not ; and, chancing to declare that the Highlander when without his buckler put the basket-hilt of his long broad-sword to a somewhat novel purpose of defense or guard, I was culled upon by all to show the method. I got me one of the sticks with basket-hilt which were used in some of the exercises of the Academy, and I stepped forth into the floor. '•'Thus," said I, putting myself on guard with (as it were) a hanging blade, and my hand high,— about as high as my chin, " the attack of the Highlander being by cut rather than by thrust, I view my basket-hilt as my best defense. That is to say," I continued, playing my hilt up and down, to this side and to that, the blade still hang- ing, '' if a cut is made I seek to parry it neither with the : I I an. We or tiiko lo merit. *'No\v you also how may you con- d, and it )lo dwell are wild ) a sight jspatch." the rea- >n w^hich what are kler, and ghlander his long Bfense or ithod. I revQ used '. stepped ith (as it it as high g by cut my best ly hilt up ;ill hang- with the I f Of a Letter from Magdalen. 107 fort nor with the feeble of my blade, but with my hilt • and hen I deliver a cut, whieli hath all tlie morefo eet lit the blade was not stayed with the mrrv" A '1 t suited the action to tlio word. ^ ' "~ ""^ '° ^ "Hal" oricd Monsieur D'Artaminn <* ^i i. strange play witli the sword ' To ''""'^'^ A 11 1, , - Mwoui I jjct us see its is«tno f " A.»l ho ca Icl for a similar foncing-stick to mine But at the mstant a clear voice broke in, which stirred mo Iiko a su-.Uon memory •-- stiried ''What? A Claymore! A Claymore!" ^^ in n,y memory for 'h- J^e'!;,! tf ":,,■- gu,a ^.cots tongue at need, I dare aveV' he ;dderand . " Can it be," I oriei,1,L'^, nt^itt ddllt'Tf'"". ■ng with the rough twang of o..r AbordoSieTl T^, n:y lord of Montroso addreasoa me » " For an instant he- was smitten with surprise, fttay. said he, considering me "T «„. i . Then art-ha! thou art Alon u . , "^•"""mher I them all, which wi so re ^ tbi:» w1 '"" '^''™ gentleman of the Scottish Guard that thel "J'T" n ■ii ! I :f':\' :i i' . io8 The Angel of the Covenant. shrewd observes on my conduct of the business. When we were done, said my lord to me — " You are of tlie Scots Gens d'armes, I percei,ve, Mr. Burnet. You will visit me, and let us talk of old times in the North Countree ? I am but arrived in Paris from my travels yestereen." *'My time is short, my lord/' said I, — ''in truth well- nigh abridged to nothing. To-morrow I set forth for home with the Marquis of Iluntly." " Ah," said he, " I have heard that the Lord Gordon's father is dead. And so you return with him ? " " But not," said I, '' for the same reason. You mind on my cousin, the lady Balgownie, my lord ? She is un- der a charge of treason : therefore, I go home." " In truth is it so with her ? Then I," said he, smiling, " ought to keep you company ; for, if my memory deceiv- eth mo not, I engaged me to be her knight." '' Memory serveth you well, my lord," said I. *' Then, will ye no sup with me the night, and let us hae a crousy crack ?" said my lord, smiling and using our familiar Scots speech. " Alas, my lord ! " said I. " I grieve that it is out of my ability. I am under engagement to sup with my friend. Monsieur D'Artagnan, and twa-three comrades." I turned and explained to D'Artagnan my mention of his name ; who bowed to Montrose, and with the friendli- ness of a Frenchman, frank and modest, and engaging withal, made proposal : — *' If Monsieur le Comte will do us the honor of Joining our poor company, I will engage that he shall have at least a bottle of good wine." " I accept your courtesy with pleasure, sir," said my lord Montrose, " tho' I am loth to break in upon the fare- wells of friends, lint Mr. Burnet and 1 were boys to- gether, and I will endeavor not to be a mar-mirth." . When ei,ve, Mr. old times iris from nth Avell- forth for Gordon's oil mind tie is un- smiling, y deceiv- Of a Letter from Magdalen. 109 Thus with his friendliness my lord raised mn ; conceit and in my liking of him. " ""^ ^"•^^ " The lord de Montrose " smVi n'A,.^ we had parted from „ y krd is a v!^™" t" ""t'/''^" he not ? tic liath tl,^ i!Z^' "^ S'*"" "oWo.-is .i.onM go ^lld a™ iv/t™' -«^ »™ 'or friend you arrive I ^ ® ' "'"' '''''"•'= *" «i">«W finally id let us Lsing our 8 out of >vith my •ades.^' ntion of friendli- Jiigaging f joining at least said my the fare- boys to- )} no The Angel of the Covenant. M i I : a •/ 1 I- I, if i I IN CHAPTER IX. OF THE FIGHT AT THE CARMES DESCHAUSSES. It was wearing late. I had but time to betake me. to tny lodging to make arrangement for my way-going on the morrow, to direct my lackey to pack my valise, and to see to the horses and equipments, and then I set out to find my lord Montrose and conduct him to " The Three Leop- ards," where the farewell repast had been ordered. "The Three Ijeopards" was at the corner of a new street opening on the Quai des Grands Augnstins, not far from the i'alace of the Luxembourg, and thither we passed by way of the Pont Neuf. We proceeded a-foot, and thus had opportunity of putting each in possession of the coii- dition and circumstance of the other,— at least in so far as was becoming on either side. I heard for the first time the true manner of my lord's leaving Aberdeen seven years before, when I was in the claught of the Kirk, and I told of the reasons which made me one of the Scottish Guard, of the wonderful beauty and sprightfulness of Magdalen and the letter I had but that day received from her (the which I promised to give him to read whenever we were set down), and of the grave trouble in which her mother was caught ; and in return my lord told me that he had been traveling for three years in France and Italy (ever since the grief and shame, I thought within myself, of the disappearance of the lady Katherine, his sister), and that he was now on his way home, and had tarried in Paris on family atfjiirs. In all this he made no mention of hi^ sister, the lady Katherine, nor, to be sure, did I. le. to tny on the 1(1 to see ; to find 2G Leop- ordered. !W street 'ar from lassed by ,nd thus tlie con- in so far irst time vren years tid I told :i Guard, d^agdalen her (the ' we were V mother t he had ;uly (ever ilf, of the and that Paris on hi§ sister, Fight at the Games DeschaussJs. x„ the repart had been e,ft S L a « ^ « ""''""' "' Oar,h du Co,ys,_Adam Gordo „fr^,®™"°"'™ <" »'"■ brother), Geofg^ Gordr ofG^^lf ,^1 aT " ^""T^^ younger, of Drum. ThouW. wel'.' , t'""'""''"- 1"">«> Ovith the oxcoption of A am GoS ■" ""' "''="' ""^"^ skirmish witli the Spa mtrfsawf ?"' '*" ™ ''"'^'J »' ^ to bo tight-locked frfcurandtl 7" """''^ '""'■■) """ of troubles that « e vet to ^ ! *'* "' ™ «>'^ "W"-! bemting the Wrb.foolVCrfor^t t tTIr tagne, was a cook of adniir-ihlo 1 7 ^^ ^"^ ^^^'i" But Monsieur D'Artl^llt ^ a yXrha^ " mio mmd. The excellent r ■, M / ' "" ^''''"o- chargeforeatingina2tJarrf .T'' '""'''' ^ l^'sher guan had arranged that we shoulTsft" i''"?."' " "^''^ enough ; for, tho' the floor was hnt f ; ' ""' ^<'" was fine, and the riass am! In "'"'^'"^' *" "^POT trouble came of ii,^^^^^^^^ ^^^"'^"^- «"' -methrrinrrfodZ'^h" T''"- «'^ ^'^ - men talking loudly whom',l°"' ""''•^'' ''^^ g^°«e- I judged to 1 SorotfiXT, th'°r.? "f *'""^ *^'^''* aaw the gentlemen, both at ';M.:rd fi'n '" "''"'"'■ ^ thinking to myself for an instlt t t / ''' "'''' ^ ""' ing that tlie R-enoh had can.d ,'"" ""' '°'- ""th- in tho past "wine sack," wheT '"""™' »-""-yn.en Montrose sat with tretl.tt o r^^nlrl? "-"'^ his back to the bulk of he nn ■ "'' "' *'"^ *'*''^' ^'th iil ^ ■■{ i i'* 112 The Angel of the Covenant. a countenance exceeding pale and with an eye of glass, but with the hair of his auburn locks bristling forth with greater fulness, as it were, of plumage. When the two gentlemen were fairly seated, my lord rose trom his place with knit brow and eye exceeding bright and ^'""'^ Gentlemen," said he, " pardon me that I desert your company for a moment ! " .11/1 We were all smitten silent with his tragic look, and watched his progress to the table where sat the two stal- liard strangers. AVith his left hand on his dudgeon hilt he stepped to that one of the two whose face I could see, _a larcre man, somewhat too fleshy, with a full, flushed countenance, a fuzzy red moustache, and big eyes disposed to be goggled. To this man, I say, stepped Montrose, slim, not tall, but admirably knit, and terrible and beautiful as an ancrel-and spoke a word which we did not hear. The man rai'^sedhisbig eyes and gazed, and as he gazed the red went out of his visage, and left it the color of dirt. " Ha ! James !" cried he in a full, soft voice and shot out his hand, as on an impulse of friendship. _ Montrose put his right hand behind him, and with a slicrht movement of his dagger motioned the proffered hand away. At that insult given by one gentleman to another, everyone who saw glanced swiftly where his sword hung, so that if need were he might grip it without loss of time ; for the night was warm, and we had dotted our portes-epee and undone our tunics. 'a desire a word with you, sir," said Montrose, speaking in English with a clear voice, -in some more removed place." , - 'Tor certain, .James," said the other, now red again , « without doubt, and when ye will." And then I knew from his speech that he was a Scot. *' Now," said Montrose. t Fight at the Carmes Deschausses. 113 " In truth, tlie sooner the better,- qnotli the other, and La Montagnc, the host, wlio ever kept a vigilant eye on the qnarrelsomonoss of guests, fluttered forward at that and bowing low, hoped that milords would not disturb ht house by f,ght,ng. Montrose merely made answer by dt '"Ir milorf". '-^^ t'' ™,f '"'^'' *" » P"^y ^ham'ber _ Ah, milord, said La Montague, bowing still and wnnging his hands, " know yon not that the duello is for- bidden both by the King and his Eminence the Cardinal If I permit it, I shall bo ruined ' " no'll^-r tffV"?'' ■ " '"'' "^ '"'" '^"Sri'y- " This is no affair of duello, I assure you. Have I a sword ? Has So my Lord Montrose and the other wero conducted from our sight. Yet, on that account, the minds of us who waited were all the more racked with curiosity and doubt,_as also, wo discovered on the instant, was he whom Montrose's accompanier had left. He rose and came over to us. ly Sc^^'r"""'^' "'' ''' ^'^"'"^^ "^' '' ^'^ -^y «f y« kind- "Scots are we all,- answered I, being nearest to him ^^save^th:s gentleman --signifying D'Aftagnan-^^ who'^ "Then, gentlemen," said he, - that, I dare aver was as odd a happening as anyyou or I ever saw. Who 1 ^ ElelH'^'"^^'^ '""' '''' '-' '' "^^ -"^^-^^^ - ;;rm thinking sir,- I said, - that we downa tell,- 1, said he at once, - am Sir Gilbert Murray and mv companion is Sir John Colquhoun.- ^' ^ Of Luss ? - I asked Of Luss,- quoth he. 8 f.^ ■,l ■ ■ M (If I 114 The Angel of the Covenant. " Then/' said I, smiting the table, " weary fa' the hour he encountered him who has gone hence with him ! Ye will understand, Sir Gilbert, I doubt not, when I tell ye that the other is James Graham, the Earl of Montrose ! - Heaven be gracious ! " exclaimed Sir Gilbert. " Ay. I heard him say, ' James.' " ^ ,,-. " Ye ken the matter," said I to my comrades : it was vulgar property in the North when I came away." "Ay, we ken," answered the Gordons, and proceeded to confide the tale to D'Artagnan. _ ^^ *' Had we no better intromit ourselves upon them r said Sir Gilbert to me. *' If the peace be broken, it will be a scandal of a very ugly kind to be taken across the Straits ; and on the back of Lady Purbeck's busmess it will incense the Cardinal against both English and Scots, and God he knoweth, we desire not the latter for any sake " " i doubt," said I, '' that my Lord Montrose will thank no man to intromit with him,-and as for the Cardinal, what hath he to do in the matter ?-why should my Lord Montrose consider him?" " Man ! I wonder at ye ! " said Sir Gilbert. If the Car- dinal should send on a report of the business to King Charles, a bonny reception the Earl of Montrose will ha'e when he gangs to Cou ' I " » , . a I was set back; surli! T.nsiderations of state ana policy were new to i e. -I do not conceive, -..id at length, " that my Lord Montrose intends any violence ; but he is young, and I doubt not, hath hot blood ; therefore will I go with you to the door of the chamber where they are,— but no farther if the peace be not broken ; and that I will do solely out of the regard I bear to my Lord Montrose." So I arose to accompany him, when Monsieur D Arta- gnan plucked the sleeve of my doublet. Fight at the Carmes Deschausses. 115 "Be wary!" said he in my ear. "Ho i, a creature and missary of tlio Cardinal : often have 1 seen him ■ With these words of warning in my head I went with S.r Gdbert Murray to the room whore my lord and the other vero m oonteronoe, gladly condueted thither by mine host Wo were so p aeod that we were compelled to' hoar IZl was said withm the room. I w,.s ashamed, bnt there wi no avoidance of it, unless we departed altogether away. "James, hear me ! "-Those were the words that came to my oar "I think the Devil himsol' entered n and took complete possession of me." "The Devil or God," said my lord's voico, "we blame either whenever, as the Scripture saith, we aro led away"? our own lusts and enticed ! " '' "Ah James," said the other, "yo are of that happy disposition the Devil cannot appeal powerfully 3 James, James Ye know not the grLous'agony i 'cost I How I cried with groaning and tears unto the Lord God to whom all things are possible, to deliver me ! I implored o7mvselfinr„™Tf "*'"""'"' P'""^"'^ -'' --'"1 of myself into such deep waters ! But He saw fit, in His holy wil, not to hear my strong cry and prayer, but L rath r to deliver me over to Satan to be tried and proven and empted,_and to fail, James, and fall into the burn" ing damnation of Hell ! James, it was awful --awful-" ^ These are but foolish words," said my lord, " with the which ye beat the air, and in your heart ye know thev that of all honorable men. your conduct has been of the basest and most dishonorable !" "It hath, James ! It hath ! I confess it to you, as I have confessed it before God ! " " It hath been wanting excuse ; for ye cannot say the woman tempted you, since she was but a bairn when she :/i llti .'! Ill': i 1 , i ■ - ' ■ ii6 The Angel of the Covenant. entered your house, confiding in your brotherly protec- tion!" '' All, James ! James ! Like yourself, she was ower bonny ! " " Faugh ! Ye would make the gorge rise in any honor- able gentleman ! llow is't I did not know ye ? How could I ever have loved ye ! But I did love ye, and God be my witness, the great love I bore ye when I was a callant takes the pith from my arm when I ought to smite you and cut you off as the only scab and blotch mine ancient and honorable house hath ever known ! " " Smite me, James ! Kill me ! Your dudgeon is handy ! And wi' righ": good will would I surrender a mad, tem- pestuous life ! " **Ye know I cannot! . . . So let us have done! . . . I leave your heinous fault to be Judged by God, and the memory of you will ever make strong my resolution to carry along fidelity and honor to the grave !— There is but one thing ; where is she ? That I must and shall know ! " To all that Sir Gilbert, I saw, listened with a greedy ear : I stood and heard as if perforce, transfixed with shame. " We should not have heard this," said I, coming to my- self. ** Let us make ourselves known." " Whisht, man ! " said Sir Gilbert in my ear. " The Earl hath a fine gift of speech, but. Lord ! Sir John maketh no brave show ! Let's hear whaur he saith she is." But that I would not have. " My lord ! " said I, knocking at the door. " My lord Montrose!" He opened. *' Forgive the intrusion upon you of Sir Gilbert Murray and myself—" I got no further ; for upon mention of his name Sir Gilbert broke in. *' Gude e'en to ye, my lord. I knew not at first who ye ■were, or I should have duly rendered my salutations. I have hoped, my lord, to facilitate an understanding be- twixt yourself and Sir John there." ^ Fight at the Sir John sat lialf- armes Deschausses •sprawled ou a table 117 ith an arm tended >.. .ulky „e hor l,p sl.ot ont. Was the man k.^vlor I. poo.,tc I a.,koa ,„,,elf a, I l„„kea at l,i,n. Ct „° m„u» y e,t ,or, as I now know, but in truth a duo admix- tuie both as S,,ot8 oharaotcrJ.asso often n,ado manS st under the .nnucnco and discipline of the Kirk. And in fine, he approved himself one of not a tow of my country men. w.th ,,hon. h,st and religion dwell on the fr end Ist" terms tho one playing in the lap of the other. rhere ,s no need for any facilitation. Sir Gilbert" quoth my lord. <. for all is done: Sir Joh r and I „nd 'r stand each tho other entirely " unaer- Gil'berV- 'll ltd 7 tT"' '"" "''" """»'" -l™"' Sir uilbert . fo, I and Sir John maun rido north the ni-^ht • we lave despatches to carry from tho lord Scudamoro:' ' far at hi will .^"''""'f"'y}°<-■■' -^-t Ws brows, and looked at Sir Gilbert, meditated my arm and turned An instant tway. an instant, and then took two thereafter Sir Gilbert Mur: •ay reap- I Hi ^■t ^^^^p ' ir , ^^^1 J ■■■■■■ ■ I , ' '■ ^H t' ■■ • ' ■ : j; . : 1 ii8 The Angel of the Covenant. pcared in the salle-a-mun(/er with Sir John, and almost im- modiately departed with sahitations to our company. In the meanv-hilo we had been tallying witli each other. My lord liad asked mc would I not delay my departure for some part of a day and travel in his company instead of in the Marquis of Huntly's. Willingly 1 agreed (for never was there man like him, by whom all young men were so suddenly and completely taken in the sdken bonds of love and homage), and tlien ho spoke of going early in the morning to the Convent of the Carmelites at &t. Germain, for what purpose I guessed readily enough. I was unccrtain-I knew St. Germain-but I knew no Carmelite Convent there. I appealed to D'Artagnan who knew every building tliat contained a jnpo7i for ten nules round Paris; was there a Carmelite Convent at St. Ger- main ? Certainly-there was not, said he. Then a sus- picion dawned in my lord his eyes and mine. Had Sir John Colquhoun lied ? And if ho had, for what reason but this,-that he did not wish my lord to find her whom lie sought ? My Lord Montrose was ever quick to decide and to act. , , „ . *'Sir " said he to D'Artagnan, "you must know Pans better than I, and I beg you will aid me with your counsel. It will suffice for an honorable gentleman to know '' Pardon, my lord," interrupted D'Artagnan, "I desire to know no more than at present I comprehend :-my lord and the gentleman who has gone are both exceedingly interested in a lady whose whereabouts my lord extracted from the other gentleman. It now doth appear that the gentleman lied ; nor doth it surprise me, for the Jema- yem of the gentleman did not inspire me with faith The question, then, my lord :-Where is the lady ? Doth the gentleman intend to prevene my lord and find her himself (( It is likely/' quoth my lord. Fight at the Carmes Deschaiisses. 119 ''And wherefore," I broke in, -are Sir Oilhnrf Ar and he on this side tlie river if (L ' '^.'^/''^bert Murray Northwards on their lb:::age ;-' "" " '"^^ ^^ '^ ^^^ 'Tereluinee," said I)' \rf'Krn..M "t: The moon was np and near tho full .,,„i n,„ , cvomng air was made gracions and hell^'om: by « e IZ round and come in at the other side%rom«.abvt,T we were approaching, to the end thatTe ach'a d'us eiammation. So, keeping by tl,e sliadow of the wall wl riraU:\:k:7b7s:;roorofth::^rr^> th«e dark flgnres tiVste^T^^i''; rt' ^LZl :ln^.^w;fl:fc^aid:;:lr'^"'^'-''™^-^^ in. Sir Oiibert M^;, '^^rZ^^:^ the coach. '""^^ ™ '"'"'g -""^i^oUi to ^^^^^■u taim \^'' ^^^HH fin \l\ ^^^^^^^Bl 1 ^I! i ' ^^^^^^^Bfi J ■ llliVP' ' ^^^^^^^Hj i : f.*;Ji; ^^^^^B f ■■; t( ^^^^R:' t ^■^^^^^^B ^^^^B i ^^^H , ^^^B' ^^P: ■■MMaHft ' ^^m : The Angel oi the Covenant. 120 -Stay!" cric.l my M stopping forth. "You have ifckyecl mo false, Sir JoU'"^ : you hiivo hod to me . '^^Travo I, .hum. y " saia Sir John softly, hut clapp.ng his hand to the hilt of lus rapien - How «o^ / J'^^y -^ would cMulure a lumtle from ye, James, hut m.t the he. Sir (aihert htid a haml on his companion s arm : doubt- less having a cool head, he took account that we were thr^e to tw^, and, moreover, that onr f r.ends had con.e up and now kept the heads of the horses with a vigilant eje on the coachman and the lackey, and therefore he spoke ''""Iffr.n ill thing," said he, 'Ho interrupt gentlemen who arc in haste to he gone about business of State,-in our particular, Scottish State, my lord." - Saii-dieu r said D'Artagnan with a laugh. Both Sir Murray often transact Scottish business in the carnage of my lord Cardinal do Uichelieu?" For lus quick eye had made out the armor-bearings on the coach. » Sir! "quoth Sir Gilbert with a frown, -I conceive that a gentleman who is outside the question should not sneak till he is spoken to." D'Arta?nan received tl.is riposte witl> u bow an.! a .n.ilo, and ren.ained watchful. Sir (iilbort eontmuod, "l desire to say ti.at we are in sucl. haste that, or >ny part my Lord iMontrose, it the Uidy prefers to go with you, Amm, so be it ! Take iior, and let ns g<. ' "Montrose!" cxclaiu.ed the lady, flutt-r, ng forward and then halting with a backward look ul Sir Je.in, like a 'creature tied by fascination of the basilisk. " James !_my v„ther '-is it yon ? Oh, how come you here ? Aiic ^;;: shrank as she would shrivel like a leaf in the heat ol ;'\^ -re iiHl. y with " You hear, sir ? " said my lord to Sir Jolm. Let It be understood that all had passed sonuicklv rom tlie beginning that 8ir John had sc-irco Z • T speech till now. Suddenly his 1 t ^L Ld':;';^; \^ wore changed. His nether lip shot nnf Tl '^ while he swayed his he^d an i J ' '.f ^'' ^^""^^ ^^ rhythmic to his words:-!! '"' ''''^' '" '""^^"^^'^ "I have dared the wrath of Cod for Invn .f buramg ,„t of Hell ! And shall I pern, U ,u, t i ' mc now? ... No ! By God ' •""";*'■")/>» iorsako -.Cho srlr^r^ l "f ' '" •"•'"'' nulo. and .ado at my lord Mont::' " '""" "" "°"- Jl:lr "" ™'"" ""' '"' ■' ^- ™^ '-1 -- token at s::^:it this^^'rr ^""' ^""■^",3™ sh„„id e.. John. "Guard !-„r I ■„n{J;Z'' ™ ' ' *=™^^ '»«'' -y4p:;riro-;er] r^e:-7;s "'^ of His Eminence's coach." ^ ^ *^'^ "'® "Nay, then, have at you ' " nriprl «i,v n.-iu i. [f„fi'-''»-".-'".e„i;htu,^,tt a.;; :r to clhtsLiao a •irac.'jRs.s. in=.j,..,(- i„.,. . ^ ^ "pi«d,suiG I heard that, and icciess, insolent loon ! filled with the clash and no more ; for thencef Guard ! " '^ my ears were nis]) of our rapiers. Luss was a :: "H 1 m-i it I P ! i ' 122 The Angel of the Covenant. vigorous bUae, and ho was, I f ™^;™:;„^t;oCtt '•"" V" f ""of b:S:>r;;'S U^ t^ ^. he. ana less the '^'ivan ages of tan„ - > =^^^ ^,^^^^ ^,„t I ,„3 about finally ovevcoming m "PP^^'J^t reach. Sut and strength, and the --^J^'^^IVIm J'^o skilled, L-'.rai:i:"r:ui"t:s<^otopa„y.ithonta "'';tnoI.-asstiUhotlye„gaged,footstepsandvoicesmade themselves heavd a little ,vay OS ^^.^ ^^^ '< Help ! Help ! Heie ! 10 rao out than Si. Gilbert Murray. But "7°°- ,''^^ ' , ,' Opposite, be- 1,0 fell to U'Avtof »«^7;,^; .^^Me linger in recovery i„g something ^''''"f";!*'™^ Sudden as the intent, after I had parried ^ ^ml^ ^^^t J ^^^^^ ^^^^^^^ ,,, Sittifrre!::^^^^^^^^^^ thelady Katheme ^^ ^^^^,3, ,t the heads of tJfrs.' "Wrarediscove/edl Here be guards com- 'i.is;;TCL."saidB.«^^^ He caught up the cloak and ha ol ^i « l^^r^ J^ r^-'lTThflldT H "ty, n.y'lord,_you and the sake of the ^y begone ^^'^^-^^^.the guards these," pointing^ to the bodies, of the Cardinal." ractised Br, were biid less t I was . posses- Joy that 10 doubt s height h. But skilled, ithout a ces made 3ried out out than »osite, be- recovery he intent, ching the ier passed ■ned once, aped from heads of ards com- f mit me ! " ■t Murray, ire needed —you and ittle !— For L) dispose of ) the guards Sir Gilbert, whom I havf„ov!r let until t^" n.ght, and inordinar hayings it would be th' TV honoraMegentlenaantosondtokr;!! X'r°^^ Alec, I find here a knot of difficultv • q,v p -il t ' ing to the credible evidence ^^^f.^n^^^^^^ D'Artagnan is in the pay and service of H.r ^f'^'"' " That minds me, my lord " Slid T ^r+i ^o- ^ spake of being on business' foT^ . w ^'' ^'^^''^ Scudamore.* But whv 1 n n 1 ^ '""^ ^'""^ "^^ ^^rd lordScndamorebtlltl^^^^^^^^^^ ^- the these grounds of suspicion .vh.l J 'f : '"^'"^ "" gentleman do with the e pweif » . ,1 "" ''°™™'"'^ the cloak in ail laithoLXt/,' "" '"'* '"* "It secmeth to me, my lord " siid T "i ii, and prudent to set eyes at the least on tl * ™"''''" /'ourt{;::fti;^:-ttZ--f- «. ^«»«»," and the oZ "| f^f / f/'"^"'"''"^' r^or.l Lorn « i^,„„„<;.. Tht y,s!^ / Z'"™'': "'" whom the lettiiK p,,., . '" «^'J™''o from information en rght-";"'^^^ '^^ s-e that gave *TheEn.if A / ' "'"''^ ^"^^^ *'^^' device ihe EnglLsh Ambassador at the French Court. i '!\ 126 The Angel of the Covenant. ol the groat Cavdinal. Then ^yo vocallod that, .vhatever might be i.rououucod against the Marqum of Hamilton (alfd wo did not forgot that Lord Kcay I'f l"'««gW *»!"=- cnsation against him of professing a right to the bcottish crown), it was certain that the Lord Lorn was genorally rneuted far hen in confidence and favor with our King. Yet was lie under some suspicion of Ins peoi^ or t lie reason following. His father, the Earl of Argyll, had become a Padst whom the King had therefore comm,vnded to divest hfm el of his great power and wealth and had elothed "th hisso'n. the Lord of Lorn. It was said tha themipon ton had provoked and tempted his father with ilolencc to rail against the King's doing, msomuch that the o d ea was h.:nished the kingdom, and so was set he- yo^d a 1 hope of restoration, the which was counted a cruel Ind crafty design for the sontoefleet. These things I had heard in the household of my lord Huntly who was married "sister of the Lord I^rn, and I called them to m.nd for mv lord Montrose his informations. "And yet," said my lord, who was never prone to suspicion of any man, "these m*y be documents of mno- ""CaTwf honorably examine Into what they contain?" '""Nay," said my lord, "I will not play the spy and in- former -and I would not willingly think ill of eithe Hamilton or Lorn. The seal and the superscriptions tel me enough to set me on my guard with these men, and let *'so'thTi;tters were restored to their place within the linin? of the cloak which I stitched up again as securely !l piiUe. Then both cloak and h.at were ^^one into a ticket with an inscription on a strip ot paper- io hii GUbert Murray"—"' '"J '"'^^'^ ^^ody-servant was forth- with sent to the Palais-Cardinai with instructions to leave i Of a Cloak Lining. 127 the packet in the hands of the porter to give to Sir Gilbert whenever he should appear. It had been already concluded between us that we should leave Pans whenever the gates were opened, and I there- fore bade my lord adieu for some hours, and departed to my own lodgings. I turned aside to inquire for Adam Gordon and found him in bed. I learned from hiui that he and his comrades, and Monsieur D'Artagnan, having eft the pursuit behind, had abandoned the coach to the two servants leaving them still bound, and had returned to Pans in all haste by way of the Clos de Lilas and the Luxembourg. What should be the final outcome of the adventure we could not guess : but Adam turned him to sleep again, like a good soldier, and, begging him to con- vey word to the Marquis of Huntly's people that I would not travel with them, I went my way. It was still dark, though the cool breath of dawn was in the air when I rode to my lord Montrose his door, fol- lowed by my man, likewise mounted and bearing my travel- ing valise In a very few minutes thereafter we rode out of Pans by the barrier of St. Denis, a company of five horsemen, including my lord, his faithful body-servant and kmsman Harry Graham, who had been with him on all his travels, and a slim young page, who was truly, as you Gralfam''' "'^ ^°''^'' I'^claimed sister, the lady Katherine Our immediate desire was to get well out of France, with- out stay or question : for we knew how long and supnle was the Cardhial's arm, and we feared that, wlfen our Sn! ZlHf" '"^ r '^ ''''' ^^i^^overed, he might take swift oad to Dieppe thinking that port less likely to be watched toi us ban either Boulogne or Calais: and therefore also wemade what haste we could all through the summer's Id to such good purpose that near midnight, having M;. day HHi ' . I- 5fti 128 The Angel of the Covenant. avoided the ancient and beautiful city of Rouen, wo entered Gournay, and next mo.ning sot forward again through that sweet land of applc-trces which once belonged to the Eng- lish, or rather the Norman, kings. About noon we arrived at Dieppe, and found a ship sailing for Newhaven. Wo took passage with her, but, being chased by a privateer of Dunkirk, wo were driven out of our course, and after three days made Portsmouth, whence we took horse for London. Then, riding at our ease over the breezy downs of Hamp- shire and Surrey, our attention forsook what lay behind and sped forward to what might stir ahead. In my con- verse with my lord T had already conceived the highest admiration of his parts, so that I looked with confidence to see him figure greatly in the councils of our King and country, though I did not (nor could not) guess his pre- eminence in the art of war, in which afterwards he excelled so brilliantly. As well by understanding and wit as by person and bearing he was like to be distinguished in the court of a prince so serious-minded as was Charles : for my lord was more serious that is the wont of his age, and he had small inclination to talk of matters of love or gallantry, whether because of his sister's dishonor, I know not, or be- cause of his own early marriage, in which I judged from his utter silence about it that he was indifferent. And, in truth, my lord had almost as high an ambition for him- self, as I for him : the Earls of Montrose had ever been to the fore both in the field and at the Council-board, and though my lord's father had led somewhat of a retired life after the death of his countess, yet before that he had been active in affairs of state, and his father (my lord's grand- father, that is to say) had been first Treasurer, then Chan- cellor, and finally Viceroy of Scotland when King James succeeded to the English crown. Tliere was thns no honor in the service of king and country to which my lord might not in reason aspire. I Of a Cloak Lining. j^q gontlem.n's ston,! of clotlies T I P<"'^_«n'outl, to a wore still set talking in tl e~ ° "'.."'''I'^''' ' ^''•J' '■'"1 plaee ,vaa invaded b^ anoLy c" e '^ '' "'' "T' "'"'" "'^ we learned later) wlfo worericwi^P T''™''" ''"^'""'' ("» floet nnder the Earl olNo i? ^ f "i- ™°n«' to join the I'ud been got toge I or bf tl e T ' ™''r'''" ''°^' ''''''<''> money. lo avol m irl!'^ ™ft,r"'"""^"' °' ^'"1'- Lady Katherine retreated o^l.. "^"'"""^'iou the lord and I eseapod i tT t t JZt''T-' ""' "'^ was drenehed 4ith the see^t'of roTjs ""' '" "' "'"''' choosing friends and advis^-,™d ,!,?,'' f" ! ?'!"* "' ;. churelnnan, the Arehbisho , L „d "v L Tf ' "' :;ri:'s::kf:sstb^^^^ r.ll in the North as I'is i „ t " ''<>" '1"1'P<«"-' l>e will have wanrestf.,1 gooi^irAl^e whf:!^^^ ^1 ^^ '?"«'> g»™shed, and use the sa.no broon. 1^1™ ^ fe ^o of Chnrchmen n c vil aff-iir., ;, ,, , , , "•'" our Seottish folk--a^,d tl , rT ?' "^""''""' S""''' ™d tave never borne i kindly ^^ vet"' '" n'"" '"='"^^- g i^iuuiy , and yet—would mortal man I I' t:. ! i U^ I ..V I =n I! Ii ' '■': ■■''■"> I tv\ pi ' "f ! ' ' i 1 1 ' ! 1 ( 1' mM ii: 130 The Angel of the Covenant. believe it ?-tlic King hath swamped the okl Trivy Coun- cil of Scotland with an overflux of Churchmen_:-the Chancellor of Scotland, who hitherto had been either a peer (like my grandfather) or a law lord (like cankered old Kinuoul) is the Archbishop of St. Andrews, and with him sit seven bishops !-seven !-no less ! Guess then, Alec, how the Scottish lords bear that on the back ot the tithe business which is as old as our acquaintance. Ihou knowest,-or, being not a lord, it may be thou dost not know,-that the King, thinking that the Scottish lords m their division of the spoils of the old Roman Kirk, had too well observed the Scriptural rule - To him that hath shall be given " in his good will and pleasure decree that the tithes, which the lords had levied since the days of John Knox' should be surrendered for the support of the Kirk and the Parish Schools. It was well and wisely done,— thouc-h it hath tolerably abridged my revenue,-but you may think that most of the lords did not love the Surrender nor the Commutation. Moreover, to make things still worse, a new Service Book is to be enforced m the Kirk. That again is Laud his doing, and it may be his undoing too • for, as I hear, it is like to stir up the whole hornet s nest of the malcontent and factious within the Kirk.' '' But my lord,'' said I, '' surely it is a seemly thing that public iirayers should be uniform and should therefore be set down and arranged in a book. Why should every man or minister make his own prayers rather than his own psalms or verses ? It is not every one hath the gift of words, much less of impassioned and lofty speech, or poesy, for public use." "It is true, Alec," said he. . . ^. , ^ - , '* Why then, should the malcontents of the Kirk object so bitterly to forms of prayer carefully written by holy and thouErhtful men and printed in a book ? '' . ^^ . in public affairs the wise (( My good Alec," said he. i Ml Of a Cloak Lining. 131 governor does not ask : why sliould ? but :-why doth ^ No man inquiretli :_« why should not every horse b^ rulden with the same bit and the same hokl of the rein ^' Ilka man that rideth doth well ken that mouths differ _ some being hard and grim, others being tender and de- bonair So Alec, let us not ask 'why should?' but I ^1^: J''"" "'"' '''''' ^'^ -^> IconceWe, hat pointed these things out to the King, we who are young and courageous and not wanting understanding-we will go to him and become his friends : and when we are the friends of his confidence, wo shall say :--' Kin:-\ |: lis! : J"^-' ! , ■ : \U1 : 1 ;:r, liiikiii 132 The Angel ot tlic Covenant. heart of a firo : bnt I must needs give tl.o suvfaco or top of my attenti.™ to ot}.or tlm.ga : those are l.ght flames that but s!,<,w the tire still harnoth at the <=<";• J '■">■' Alec." said he, smiliag on mo nl his manner ..t uflection, ^ I think then art very Scottish ■ M,o„ canst g.ve hee. to bnt one thing at a time : thou art not " """'"'f ', ■.'"l^ ''' ; bnt a silent, glowu,gi.eat." And he laughed hghtly at "'"TtVlLyouare right, my lord," said 1, not earmg over much for his comparison. " Bnt I beseech you, I continued, "lot me speak ot your sister. 1°° ""J^ ; ' can sec that even her gentleman's hvery is an «l'l"'l '■•™^ to her. When think yon she may be arrayed accoiding to her sex and conditions ? '^ For certain not until wo reach the North, to winch we shall haste after a brief sojourn in London. And even m the North I shall he at a loss how to )>estow her, pooi lamb t for thou knowest the temper of our Kirk and people, and how she will be denounced and harried if she be k^wn. Gracious heavens! Is it not monstrous tha the woman's name who has erred through ignomnce should be blasted for ever, and the man's crime, which is by far the ""t In the morning betimes my lord Montrose donned his hrav^st stand of clothes, and rodo across the river to Hamp only b, his faithfu attendant and humble relation, Harry Graham ; for I and my man abode at the inn to watch over the safety of the Lady Kathorine for" mtlf wt!.*^r """ *° ""' ' '''"' "-" "'""^ -d tor a little while there was constraint, because she was by he folk of the house as but my comrade. I do nofmean nt,: h 7r '" '"f" '''" ^""^ ""^ »wkwardness,-fX wei b„ th',r«" '" ''T ^"^ S^""" P--» "--^l'™ well,_bnt that there was between us a lively and Unsline aHalirr f "1°' f *""' "" ^"^ *'- '» -"'■•! ke laughter for dissolving constraint, and this is how the angh came m. Seeing that we intended to eontrnue i.! good of the house. But the buxom wench who acted ., drawer brought two pints, one in either hand " ..".,"! f''\y'"'^^'»^0T," she said on my setting forth that you could never mean a pint for a morning betwL ■ . M- :■■!' 134 The Angel of the Covenant. two gentlemen, but a pint apiece. I warrant the other gentleman can take off his pint as well as your honor or all he is younger and shyer and hath never a beard to yet And shelve the pretty young ^-^Ipn whose ook she clearly preferred before mine, a killing glance oi her beau. ycL, at which I broke into laughter and my com panion blushed scarlet. But worse came of that. Never blush, sir," said the impudent wench - for I warrant a smooth face is sweeter for a lady to kiss ; and Idare swea that when you do grow a beard on your lip it will not bo a b dger" t'ail." Ld wi.h that evident flout at the stiffish brush I wore she took herself off, and once outside the door set a-singing in a very sweet voice :— •« ' Come, live with nie, and be my love I ' " " I crave your pardon for my laughter, madam," said I, " but in truth I could not hold it." -r , ir .v, '' English freedom, Mr. Burnet," said the Lady Kath- erine, smiling in a fashion like her brother's, " doth miss little of Scottish rudeness ; but I love the sound of tho English speech, do not you ? " ^, .. -In truth I do," I answered. - It is softer than ours, like their ale. I could wish, for your sake, that 1 had called for wine instead of this." - It matters not," said she wearily. - Since I suppose I must seem to drink, I can sip one thing as well as an- other. But what is the song she sings ? " _ -I have heard it," said I, " but know it not. I only know the answer to it written by my lord's favorite, Sir Walter Raleigh." '* Yes ; that I know also," quoth she,— " A honey tongue, a heart of gall, ' Is fancy's spring, but sorrow's fall 1 ' " And with that she turned her away to the window that looked upon the street. •; 1 '■ other or, for ) wot." s looks 01 her y com- ' Never rrant a swear . not bo stiffish ido the ' said I, y Kath- oth miss . of tho in ours, it I had suppose 11 as an- . I only orite. Sir Of a Cloak LininfT. 135 I dow that What cov Id I say? My heart was ,„„„« for hor rose a.,Srmerey!" she whispered. "I believed that ""^^^^Zy were but wounded,;; said I. "But 't 'trailbert « itaalL, and looking out ov^rsh^ideXflLi/evisageofSirJohnCol^^^^^^^^ clean-shaven and disguised as ;,f;™[ ^^^^ ^„^ent, " They have entered the inn, saiditnoneii and turned to the door. much A Famous Scene at Court. 137 Lucked rieudly yr later d both there- )ve and ice one g down y drew ly com- id I, "I iyesT' see with- ved that . '* But •king out (Iquhoun, moment, CHAPTER XI. OF A FAMOUS SCENE AT COURT. Out on the stair-head I leaned over the baluster and listened. I heard Sir Gilbert Murray inquire of the same damsel who had brought us the ale if there were not a party of five,— two gentlemen, two servants, and a page, —just in from France, friends of his, he said. The maiden answered in all simplicity, that there was no such party of French folk in the inn : tlie only company of five was one of three gentlemen and two valets, come from London, she believed to visit the Court at Hampton. '' Here," quoth she, '^ is one of the varlets, your honor: he may tell you if his masters be the friends vou seek." -^ " No varlet am I, JS-ance, my lass," I heard my man say,—'* but the son of an honorable burgess and a man- at-arms," "Aha, Jocky," said Sir Gilbert, '' there is no mistake about the Scots pride of ye." " Ye can tak' your 'Jocky '* back, sir," said the rascal, "and your 'Scots pride' too." " Guidsakes ! D'ye think I'd rob a kindly countryman ? Na, na ! " And witli a laugh Sir Gilbert and his compan- ion tramped out of tlie inn, and, returning into the chamber, I saw them go hastily down the street. Tlien up came my loon, as well pleased with himself as f.ucifer. '■a made a canny guess at him," he crowed, "and he found he could get naething out o' me !" " He got all he needed, ye born sumph," I cried in a (( Ii*l' ^ i ;i^:: 1 138 The Angel of the Covenant. rage, '' whenever you open your ass's mouth and brayed inli Doric as tliick and tell-tale jis a eoguc of brose !" '' Aweel, laird/' said he, something put out, '' gin I had had him in a close o' the Gallow-gate o' Aberdeen or o'the Canongate o' Edinburgh instead o' in a change-house in a foreign country, I'd have dowped my whinger into the wame o' him ! " " And a fine mending of your mistake that would have been ! " quoth I. -i^'a " End or mend is a' ane ; and at the least, laird, said he, " it would ha' been to me a grand satisfaction, for I'll be'called varlet by no man, nor Jocky, as lang as I've a whinger to my belt and a nieve to put it in ! " " Get out of my sight ! " I cried. But ere he had passed from the room I had recalled him on a sudden thought. I bade him haste over the bridge, and wait near the head of it for the return of my Lord Montrose from Hampton, to warn him of what had passed, so that (if bethought it well) he might return to the inn less openly than ho had gone. Whilst I was yet talking, however there came the clatter of horses' iron on the causeway, and Lady Katherine peeped from the window. "Here is James!" said she. " With his horse in a lather !— and his face set and pale." An instant thereafter Montrose entered the room, and my loon gaped at his changed look. " Out wi' ye ! " said I, and he departed. Montrose stood silent, and never could I have believed that one of so gentle and generous a temper could have become so transfigured by anger. "What is't, my lord?" I asked. "Have you seen oudit. ? For I thought he might have encountered the two knights who had just left the inn. " Seen, Alec ! " he exclaimed. " I have seen ower much ; . . I have seen Hamilton : 1 have seen the Court ! 1 A Famous Scene at Court. 139 I have seen little Will Murray of the JJed-Chamber drunk, though it was scarce the third hour of the day ; I have seen tlio King; and I have seen myself insulted by him \" '* By the King, my lord ?" I asked. ''By the King ;— who other? To be coldly given a hand to kiss, with never a word, and then to be ignored and iorgot while His Majesty doth turn aside merely to jest with the Queen's favorite, that flickering sowk Jermyn, and the likes of him, and the whole Court looketh on with mocking and watchful eyes !— call ye not that insult. Alec ? " " Certes, my lord, I do !— Insults to the quick ! " I answered, hot with rage myself at his treatment. *' But wherefore ? " " Wherefore ? — I know not ! " '' Oh, James," cried his sister, " I hope not for my wretched sake." '' For thy sake, dear heart ? " said he, his face softening, while he put an embracing arm about her. " I hope not, for the love of that favor I would still hold for the King \ . . . But thus ends. Alec, our hope of service \ The King hath no need of us, neither here nor in the North ! There are enow of Scots about the Court, and by all accompt it is our bare, brangled country that hath need of us. The King will make of our Scotland an English province, and a royal hunting-ground ; and it behoves us, Alec, to hasten home to our tykes ! Thou shalt hear all anon." ''Something has chanced in your absence, my lord," said I, ''which may show another reason for haste." And I told him of the sudden appearance and disappearance of Sir Gilbert Murray and Sir John Colquhoun. Nothing was more noteworthy in my lord from the earliest than his swiftness of decision when most men would deliberate and debate between two opinions. W« ib. i ' ■ i . i r i.i ■! ' IH,:;: ; I'M I i 140 The Angel of the Covenant. agreed that a collision, or even a meeting, with the two ill-omened knights was on all counts to be avoided ; we opined that Sir Gilbert had yet to deliver the Kicliolieu letter to the Marquis of Hamilton (in secret probably) and that thereafter he would ride to tlie North to deliver the other to the lord Lorn, taking in all probability the western road, for that it was the nearest and the least over-run. Therefore my lord chose the eastern road to the North, and resolved to set out on the instant. In a little while a bargain was made with the keeper of the Inn for five horses, with a guide, at the head of the Loudon road in half an hour. Harry Graham and my man wended them to the rendez-vous to receive the horses, and when each of us had eaten a sop of bread in wine, my lord, his sister, and I set out by the back-gate of the Inn, lest the front should be observed. Within the time we were safe mounted, and pricking along the London road, past the south side of Richmond Park (about which the King was then a-building the high and costly brick wall), over Wimbledon Common, and so by Olapham and Southwark over London Bridge into London City. On the way my lord told me in strict particular concern- ing his strange reception at Court, which I now set down so that you may clearly comprehend what doth follow. Wlien my lord entered the Royal Presence-Chamber, he encountered with the Marquis of Hamilton, who used him witli great kindness and confidence as a follow-Seot, and inquired concerning his travel and his purposes now he was returned. My lord (as I could guess, knowing his frank and friendly disposition) opened himself pretty freely to Hamilton, who offered to do him such service as he could compass with the King ; but (taking my lord by the button) he declared with sorrow that the King was so enamored of the EngHah, and did so slight and abate all 1 I A Famous Scene at Court. 141 things and persons Scottish that he doubted Montrose wo,,Id make httle way in royal favor, despite higl" b rth and the grea services of l,is forebears and of his good brother the lord Napier. He added that, notwithstrd mg his being so far ben witli t],e King, ho had him^e^f f brook indignities, and to pnt by inntlw and TaU ^ whieh tho K„,g had a nnnd to rednce i„ all things to the form of a provmce. Upon that, he repaired to the Kinl dance After some while little Will Murray* came to usher h.m mto the presence,-dr„nk, my lord sa d mo t mamfestly drunk, and (as was his wont in that conditTon pretematnrally solemn. Then ensued the singula a„d insultmg reception which my lord described. Ihe Kin^ sat m a wmdow-embrasure, dressed for tho hunt, and pattmg a favonte spaniel. lie gave the Earl a quick look when lus name was called, but never another, nor a word but only his hand to kiss. ' "And the hand," exclaimed the angry earl, whose sense of odor was exceedingly acute, "smdt of th; do! t ' stoml b nl-'' ?" f 't"""" ™^ eivon, and Montrose stood back alongst with the gossiping, fleering nobles burning with rage. He heard the Kkg's troubles wS "itTb: the'T'T,"', 'r'''"" "^'^"'-'1 '->-™ y hop that Char es would carry out his threat and do in of En";;„d T ™ T ^'°"'""" """^ ""^ "' «'^ South of England-transmute so savage and intractable a country into a chase for doer to range .anc' -^-oeks to harbor in. ^ Scomi',?'!'.'"^ ''"*'" ™'' Montrose to them, "a made; iXuf Ztr'"'*"' --W'"*-''''^ . and he was presently r I ' -'' m f ii „ '5: ; i 1 • i I y { i'sr: '[ s 14^ The Angel of the Covenant. permit. j ,j „j „„ger as was he. "i«^'»7'''"^"tc :«il vitU cave and wondc- : eave -It was pity, my loul, ,^^'' ' ^^^ ^orcl with Hamilton say of mo ^yho knom me not ? "That, my lord," said I, " I downa tell. ,, -1 «..rir.-f1 "I'll not believe it. 1 nave nu _-: h- sLiui othe. r » -t;s^/rr, 7nd stiff against all things and persons Sc^.h. LX'raf in! oxter, it! bettor he should have ««ch an "- rIoZ re-nl" mr;,ara o. ^^^:X't in yonr airt, Alee," he langhed. m '"t be n"^^ . ■ii': A Famous Scene at Court. 143 faces are set to the Nortli : our dear North is riidc. Alec, but I think it is leal and kindly. Now waft ye a kiss on this South wind to the charming Mistress Magdalen Keith, and let us follow it with what speed we may." We rested a while at an hostel, to eat and drink, and pro- vide ourselves with horses for the first stage of the journey northward. By three of the afternoon wo were mounted again, and rodo away out of Loudon town. It was a gray day, so that we were not overborne with heat, and made such progress that we were in the forest between Enfield Chase and AValtham Cross soon after five of the clock. There we came upon a little wayside Inn (hardly better than an ale-house indeed), where we lighted down (the rather that the Lady Katherine was something weary with the long ride) in order tliat we might refresh ourselves with a draught of ale and our horses with a mouthful of hay. It is the same inn, I conceive as Master Izaak Walton in his " Compleat Angler," names Catch-her-hy-the-way, and then as now, I doubt not, it was a haunt of beggars. At the least, when we lighted down there was a company of some dozen sun-burnt and weather-stained rapscallions on the grass beneath the trees, debating on the contents of their wallets and loudly fleering each at other. There were sundry women of the company, and when it was perceived that we were halted for a rest, one of them— a bold, black- eyed wench with a loose bodice— came to us with the wood- en clap-dish in her hand, and with a honeyed smile desired the wherewithal for her comrades to drink our honors' health. Our contribution so pleased her that she offered to sing us a song, and I chronicle this and what followed, because we got then the first evidence of the depth to which religious difference and animosities had penetrated m England, when even careless and homeless bcffffars took note of them. *^ Calling to her a man-companion to bear her out ou hig n 'I I 4 i >. <- i; ) I ! 1: i! 1 ^ \ ;!"' ; 1 .'t 1 ,■ ,1 ■:\ i 144 The Angel of the Covenant. hazel pipe, she sang that song which hath this for burthen ! " Bright shines the sun ; play, beggars, play t Here's scraps enough to serve the day I " in the singing whereof tlie whole crew joined with lusty good-will. Then, having by that tasted of the ale which our alms had bought, another sturdy mumper stepped forth, and, making us a sweeping courtesy with his dirty bat, said it was plain we were gentle cavaliers, and therefore he would give us another kind of ditty which was fire-new. With that he sang us in good rollicking voice, a song which hath since been sung to distraction :— «' Come, lead out the lasses and let's have a dance I The Bishops allow us to skip our fill. Well knowing that no one's the more in advance On the road to Heaven for standing still. And should we be for a Maypole driven, Some long, lank saint of aspect fell. With his pockets on earth, and his nose in Heaven, Will do for a Maypole just as well." We thanked him for his verse, which set us thinking, and presently thereafter we leaped on again, and rode forward. At our on-louping we did chance to look back, and we saw about a quarter of a mile ofP two horsemen pricking down the forest-way. My lord and I looked each on the other, aud the same question was in our eyes ;-Conld these two by any chance be following us ? But we said no word, and so we put the suspicion bye. We arrived while it was yet daylight at the town ot Ware. We designed to stay the night ; we had however but settled ourselved at the inn (which, I think, is called " The George ") when wo got a shock of surprise. ^^ e were about to sit to supper, when a singular agitation and trembling as of sickness seized upon the Lady Katherine. .1 this for eaven, iking, and e forward, and we saw king down the other, L these two no word, lie town of id however k, is called , We were tation and Katherine. ith lusty Ae which 3ed forth, iirty hat, therefore 1 1 i ; •- fire-new. >ng which ce I € ,nce 1 A Famous Scene at Court. 145 Pala as a wraith, she fixea ner eyes in gashly-wise upon her brother. '' James," she cried, " He's here ! I ken he is. I have the sense in all my soul, in all the marrow of my bonus that he is!" My lord and I gazed on her, silent and wondering ; but on the instant we apprehended her meaning. Heavy boots and spurred sounded on the stairs (for we were by ourselves in an upper room) and a thick, soft voice, which, onco heard, there was no mistaking, spoke aloud :—'' Ah, hero maun be the chamber ! " Then a knock upon the panel of the door, and, " James, are ye there ? " " James," whispered my lord's sister in a terrible agony, " do not render me up to him ! " " Ila'e no fear, dear heart ! " said he. lustanter my lord and I were on our feet. We hurried the Lady Katherine into the inner chamber, and wliile my lord said, '' Enter ! " I took my rapier from the nail. The door fell open, and there stumbled in Sir John Colquhoun, to all appearance drunk, and behind him came Sir Gilbert Murray. '* Wherefore," asked my lord, *'is this unseemly intro- mission ?" '' Wliere is she, James ? " said Sir John in his soft voice. " My bonnie Kate ! . . . Covers for three, -.nd three chairs ! . . . She is liere ! . . . James, be kind ! Wanting her I cannot live ! " *' Then," said my lord, " ye maun e'en die ! And that would be the most honorable thing ye now can do ! " " James, that is not kind to say ! But I love ye, James, and I forgive ye ! " And with tliat he turned aside and seemed to weep, impatiently flicking off a tear with his finger. My lord addressed himself to Sir Gilbert Murray, who stood barkening with an earnest and judging attent. 10 ik a I • I . ;|i li- iiil.' 146 The Angel of the Covenant. "Sir Gilbert, is it your purpose to put a qimrrel upon us ? It is plain ye have discovered our route from King- ston and followed us. Why ? " "Pure friendliness and ac^ miration, my lord," answered Sir Gilbert. ** Bah ! " said my lord. *' In perfect sooth, my lord. Ye may think I cherish enmity for that thrust the French gentleman dealt me : Tm not of your unfriends, whosoever may bo ;— never a touch of enmity have I : troth I deserved to get my weasand slit for letting myself be caught in such a brnlyie ; and I ought now to be keeping my bed and supping skink. But I doubt our Scots wames are made of leather. Na, na, my lord, dinna mistrust a kindly Scot, that wishes ye •well, and that has conceived an admiration of your courage and your faculties. I've heard all anent your compearance in the Royal presence, my lord. There's naething other debated among the gentlemen at Court but the mighty high snuff and dudgeon ye gaed aff wi' ; and I am in fair hopes, my lord, ye will join yoursel' to our party." " And whatten party is that. Sir Gilbert ? " demands my lord very grandly. "The party, my lord, that has set itsel' to watch over and to keep a guard on the ancient liberties of our Scot- land, whilk the King and his thrawart councilors are con- triving against," " This is neither the place, nor this the occasion. Sir Gilbert, to debate a matter of so mickle moment," said my lord. " And, to be plain with ye, I take it ill that you should have suffered your comrade to break in upon ua.' and m " My lord, grief drives him ! He would not be withheld : so I e'en came with him ! " Grief ! " exclaimed my lord. " The grief that bides bottle." A Famous Scene at Court. 147 "At the bottom, James/' said Sir John, turning with a deprecating smile to exercise his wit, « as Truth is at the bottom of a well : Ye're right, James ; but yeVe wrong too. See." He drew his rapier and balanced it across his finger : it was as steady as it had lain alongst the table. "He is like a foy creature : I fear for his wirs ! " Sir Gilbert sought to whisper in my lord's ear. "Enough, sir," said my lord. - This last word let mo speak .—Your companion's life hath been proclaimed for- feit for his crime, and yet he hath hazarded back to this country, and, I conceive, he doth intend to ride north with you to Scotland. Now if he intromit upon me or mine again, either in this country or in the North, or do show his face to me again, I call God to witness I will proclaim his person and let him meet his penalty." "James," said Sir John, turning again, "that is a hard saying ! " "It is my last," said my lord. " Y'_ are a hard man, James ! And yet, James, with the Lord is plenteous redemption and forgiveness I He is a gentleman, James ! " "Better wait till He and you meet, Sir John, before vou say that ! " Sir Gilbert said, with a sharp look and a grim smile to my lord. " Hoch !" quoth Sir John, tossing his head, while he still balanced his rapier on his finger. " The Lord kens well the feelings and failings of a gentleman ; He was ane Himsel when He was on the earth ! It is no Him I'm feared for ; it is the Other Aue ! " "I protest. Sir Gilbert," said my lord after an amazed pause at Sir John's fatuity, - that if ye remove not with your companion on the instant I'll denounce him to the people of this town, and there will be an end of his journey ! " f«" 11 li « 1 ■ »^^ :t- • 1. 1 ' ■ ^ hr i; J' ^^1 148 The Angel of the Covenant. " Oomo, Sir John," said the other. *' My lord Montrose' we shall moot in the North." My lord made answer with a more bow, and the two passed from the room. Sir John, after an api)caling look from his odd, pathetic, eod-lishcyc, ramming his rapier buck into its sheath and dropping his chin on his breast. " These two," said I, " appear as meek and harmless as bleating sheep, and yet I doubt them worse than I would two ravening wolves." «* We must hazard no other encounter, said my lord. And so we planned that in the very early morn, when the jolly cock should crow, we would recross the river out of Ware as if to go back as we had come, and that we would then wheel sharply to our right, and ride westward thro' Hertford to St. Albans, and so come upon the Watlmg Street, the other great highway to the North. And thus we did, and we saw Sir Gilbert Murray and Sir John Col- quhoun no more during our journey. The nearer we got to Scotland, the longer lasted the day- li^rht, so that we made more miles every day ; and the hfgher and wieder beat my heart, I promise ye, and the keener grew my expectation of meeting with my dear Mis- tress and my wonder of what she was now like and with what eyes she would look on me, after our three years of ^'ln"a''fortnight or thereby we rode " nto Edinburgh by the West Port, in the shadow of the Casile-rock. After Paris, and even London, 1 am free to confess that our ancient Scottish capital, tlie gray, turbulent old cita'^el of the North, albeit tall, dark, and of an immensive majesty, ap- peared unutterably barbarous and foul. As we rode up to the High Street, our horses were immerded in the offal and the ejecta of a sew (ag it seemed) and the swine that grubbed and grouted in the vennel grunted against their knees, and made them plunge and shy. ontroso tlio two ug look (iurbaclc b. ■mlcss as I would ny lord, vlien the or out of re would ird thro' Watling \.nd thus olm Col- tho day- and the and the dear Mis- and with J years of gl^ ly the ter Paris, r ancient el of the ijesty, ap- B rode up 1 the oflal wine that linst their (( Woh A Famous Scene at Court. seen filth abroad, Alec/' smiled my lord certe. Urn ^, the Stable Augean, and would the Knight Hori'dlcs himself." 149 mylord, *'but tax the wit of At the Market Cross Above it flew lazily and silently back and was an exceeding liigh gibbet. forth divers oorbics ,.„u „p„„ a .lop.m.Icl two malefactors, the one » man of pml.g.ous stature with a flaming red Lad On ."T..ry ,vo ,^re told they were the newly hanged Gilder^v and aceomj,ln.o of hi,. So hero was the end of that d° perato robber and ravisher, Patrick MacGregor " the" SVo'ir^"-"'-^ "'« "-' -'— ^d *j But for t!-.e grace of Bishop Patrick Forbes " siid mv lord, drolling on the desire to join Gildorov', h i . I I had uttered wlien wo were fnlTL \^ ^'''''^ '"'^"^^ the medal. Your thief i. ihn 7 V . ^^^''''' ^''^^ «^ Alas Alee/' said ho. " Ye have hii mo there ' yon IB the head of my nnclo, tho wanchancy Eart'oi Oowrie, my mother's own brother ! 'Twas Id b traitor, and contrived asrai.wt K-; V , ''" ^^ » know ...t 1 This, howe:fr:i toJThatTst ''b' w' ' been there for si.x-and-thir y yearr'- ^'tr't'"^ *"" father's, which hath been tboje foV J; '* ' °"'°'' '' ^'' The Knthvens are an iHtlrrea folkT'-'"" ^""^ '"-«- ' -2S::;^::^cSe;te^t-:i^^-'--^ : I ; 1 I ( ISO The Angel of the Covenant. Ill *f„: ,1 : 1 ji, si CHAPTER XII -THE ROSE THAT THE ^yORM HATH TOUCHED " MY lord Montrose had no town house When he visited street, or he naa reLuiv i , which is but 1 +v,« T nvd Nanier, at Merchiston (jastie, wuiv." S TpTk s w"o should trip acvos. our way pas. ■ , from the Parliament House, but my cousin of Bal- ing fy"-" *he iar M^gaden, and her waitmg-.ng.d ird aUeudTlby two m'ou of the town-.uard, armed ''''XBalgowuie." I called, though my eyes had .lighted and dwelt upon Magdalen, my pulse beating and aligi«eu aim .,,'„„ At the same instant, with a rushing like a mill-iac ^ At t^ie ^^^ ^^^^_ ^^^ £ ^ 4-v,o v^npk of her reniembrauco. *'TMercy - 'T s Aloe !" cried Magdalen, who was grown faivefthl'l could have conceived : so fair that I scarce The Rose that the Worm hath Touched. 151 dared look on her for the dazzling light and glow that seemed to beam and eradiate from her eyes and her per- son. *' It is ! 'Tis Alec Burnet ! " ^* And," said my lady Balgownie, letting her gaze dwell rather on my distinguished companion, and smiling with parted lips so that she showed her even teeth (of which she was ever proud), " surely this maun be my lord Mon- trose ? " ''The same, my lady/' quoth my lord, smiling and doffing his white-plumed hat. *a am happy in being so well remembered/' *'! am no likely to forget ye, my lord though ye ha' got a bit beard to your lip. But the more likely was I to ken ye that I heard ye were coming : Sir Gilbert Murray hath told me he passed ye on the road." Then were we set back with jalousing what more Sir Gilbert might have said, and more set back still when my lady demanded : — " And who is the young gentleman of your company, my lord?" ^ ^' My lord replied that he was a kinsman who had accom- panied him on his travels, and so put off any introduction for the nonce. But the greatest embarrassment came treading on the heels of that. As we stood, we were some- what incommoded and stared at by the young advocates and others coming forth of the Parliament House ; for it was late in the afternoon. My lady, therefore, begged us to enter her lodging which was at hand. We pleaded that we were dusty and travel-stained, and that if she would permit us to go to our lodging first we would visit her anon. " But surely my cousin Alec will lodge with me : for I sore want a man in the house ! Yo see," said she, indicat- ing her guards, ''that I am a prisoner, albeit I am per- mitted my own lodging." irfi. 152 The Angel of the Covenant. And she urged us till we were ashamed, and till refusal was impossible, I being all the readier to go that I thought I might thus have an earlier occasion of saluting Maudlin. So we dismounted there and then-my lord and I and his silent and shrinking kinswoman-and surrendered our horses to our two men to be stabled as they knew. We entered the close, and climbed the dark stairs, preceded by my cousin and her guards. On the stairs I, who came last saw my lord put a sustaining arm about his sister and whisper her words of cheer and encouragement. When we were entered a long, low, dark room on the sixth or seventh floor, my cousin turned, and bade us welcome Maudlin's bright eye never leaving us, ^^^^^-J ^^.^^^^.^^^ ^^^ to note-favoring my lord Montrose more than it favored ""^"My lodging is something circumscribed," said my cousin, -and ill to win at, but so is ^y revenue,-as ye maun ken, my lord, since the king took to himsel our *^ Mv'iord and I cried out at our first glance through the window ; for there, almost even with us and as it were looking into the room, were the two bleached Gowrie skulls, set on the Tolbooth spikes. My lord said that, be- fore we had met her we had been noting them, and he ex- poned whose they were. - Ay " said she, " it hath aye been so, and doubtless aye will be : Scotland's best and bravest have aye been either hanged or headed \" i j>„ Then there came a sudden, sharp cry from my lord s sister who was sheltering behind him : and tuniing to look on her we saw that in taking off her man's hat (which she could not help doing without incivility) she had mad- vertently let fall her hair : she wore it, no in short ring- lets after the French fashion of the Court, but m natural * Teindis=iithea. The Rose that the Worm hath Touched. 153 length and imdulant abundance, and now it fell about her m a dark veil. - Oh ! " she cried in a pang of bewildering shame, and shrank against the wall. I myself was as much pierced and penetrated with con- fusion as If I had been caught in flagrante delicto : and my lord was first red and then pale. But he was master of himself and ere my lady Balgownie and Magdalen could recover from their amazement he made a stop towards them and spoke with the sweetest demeanor of earnest- XI Gob • -Permit me/' said he, -to beg Mistress Magdalen to withdraw for an instant.'' Magdalen met his eyes with wide-looking wonder, and tb-..^ wherefore I knew not-a blinding blush swept over h.. .il 3 a rosy dawn, and bending her head, she passed from the room. At the first there was manifest a twinkle of merriment and mischief in my lady Balgownie's look but when she saw that my lord continued pale and earnest she became completely serious too. There was a moment's silence, in which I pitied my lord from the bottom of my heart Then with sweet affection and gentle courtesy he did take the hand of his sister and led her from tl; wall a step nearer my cousin. "My lady Balgownie," said he merely, without either Sam" " ''P^'^''*^^"' ''*^"« ^« ^^ -«ter, Katherine ^ My lord and I both fixed our gaze on Lady Balgownie in shrewd expectation-not to say, fear-of what she might sayordo; and the lady Katherine stood downcast, with her hair about her and her hand holding by her brother's • for well she knew that Lady Balgownie must be acquaint with her story. We watched the quick procession of feel- mg on my cousin's fair face-through wonder and doubt, to perfect pity and love-as she first threw up her hands i1 I 154 The Angel ol the Covenant. and then stretched them forth, hasting towards the Lady ''f M;';ooHLTr:S-she,and tooUthe m-starred and ehrinkLglady to her breast who lay th- f-* ^^-^f 1; " Mv dear cousin ! " I broke out, spite of myself, it is like you! But this meeting was not contrived. "Whislit, Alec !" said she. And still embracing and stroking the Ladv Katherine, " My poor, poor lamb ! "DefrladyBalgownie . . . sheneverknew her mother : said my lord! . . . "Thou dost make oe thy debtor for ''"Eh, my dear lord," said she, "why so many words ? I am but a poor auld wife, that hath lost man and son, and hThath af muckle need of the Lord's pity and mercy ^ Lv saint 1 "... And she shed a brave tear. " Guid- es '" she .claimed, " this isfoolish work -But I am glad that it has come my gait! . . . Bless thy bonny, w„ Ze mv lord : but I think that thou hast a true r^hSorof women, and it is not ilka man hath My lord blushed as coyly as any maid, and my cousin just laughed back at him, insomuch that poor Lady ■K'ltherine was tempted to smile, too. "^t^Z awa'with ye," said my cousin ,-" awa' for a whiley to your lodging, and when ye ha' washed yon and lofled your riding gear, come ye back and wait upon us at supP«- Your sister, my lord, shall bide with me,- te she maun be weary, dear heart,-and she maun ex- change this man's wear for something better becoming a """"Shfit it please ye, Lady Balgownie," exclaimed Lady Katherine *' Thou and thou art plentitude." "let me do that Shalt, dear heart," said my cousin. " Magdalen much of a height, the' thou'rt lacking of her 1 Lady sd and lough. '' it is ig and b!" ther:" )tor for w^ords ? on, and lercy as ''' Guid- ut I am bonny, ; a true m hath • cousin )r Lady a* for a you and upon us h me, — laun ex- coming a aed Lady Magdalen ing of her The Rose that the Worm hath Touched. 155 ''But -Mistress Magdalen !'• exclaimed the poor ladv my own gown is in James's portmanty " -We downa bide for that, my dear,- said Lady Bal- gownie Lady Katherine gknced in a flutter of doubt from Lady Balgownie to her brother. '^ujaj "Anont Mistress Magdalen's being made aoqnaint with th s, dear Lady Balgownie/' put in my lord,-" hath vonr ladyship taken thought of the difflculiy »" ^ " Trust me for that, my lord," said she. Then in a low vo,ce:_" Magdalen knows nothing, nor shal sre hiaT from me more than is strictly necessar,-tho' she ha ha nack of nosmg out things for hersel'. I allow. But I'U answer for Magdalen's discretion and loyalty : she hath the keenest remembrance of your coming to Aberdeen even years syne, and I dare swear she wfll be leal anS tae to the Lady Katherine for her brother's sake," Shall I confess that, at these words, I did feel a bop-l,! Wnge of doubt and Jealousy P It is true tha I d fl ™t for;" r" " "" '"'"' " '"'''*'^'' ^"^ ' « So we departed, my lord and I, with the promise of return to sup and to take counsel with my cousin c™ rn ng her own affa.rs and ours. As we went forth from ; "r lodgmg we saw how heedfully she was warded Tj Z Privy Council. In a little ante-chariber, or close( II the outer door of her apartment were seated th tto armel to Imder both mcoming and outgoing. We thm .h. u tT h °u " 'Cd '^'" *"r "' "-'^ -'"-.ai^ wt n tnenour. They demurred somewhat, and demanded nnr names, on the hearing whereof-in pIrt.cullTy tdC they became of a more accommodating habit JNow, said I, as we descended the stairs, -these 156 The Angel of the Covenant. n m ■>' knaves will be able to say and to admire that we entered in three men and came out two, of whom the young lord Montrose was one." "Peste!" said he, something troubled. "I had not considered that ! How comes it. Alec, that you contrive to note these nugatories ? " *' From no fixed iiitent, my lord," said I, " but from an usage in grain. As I have told you, I aye carry a suspect- f ul eye. I am of those that would hold ilka man an arrant rogue till he prove himself a common fool." "That," said he, '' I do not believe. Alec, and I would not hear your enemy say so. But, certes, it doth trouble me to think a man must pace so heedfully through life. I fear I ci a never tak' tent to my gait, with eyes afore and behind, to see what I step on and to make sure that my next footprint shall be of the same pattern as my last, or diverse, as it may be ! " « Therefore, my lord," said I, " it is well that you should have a heedful follower, who might remind you nows and thens that vestigia nulla retrorsum." " Alec," he laughed, ** I think thou hast missed thy vocation : thou shouldst have been a minister. But preach no more I prithee." "I will not, my lord," said I. ''But you apprehend that we should come forth of my cousin's to-nigh. Jiree men." *'True, Alec ; we should that." Then my lord adverted to the notable and enthralling beauty of Magdalen, and condoled with me on my having had no opportunity for privy communion with her now even for the exchange of a cousinly kiss. "The hindrance, I doubt, Alec," said he, "was the sudden upspringing of this trouble of me and mine." I begged him to say no more of that. But he would insist with warmth that I had been a true and prudent friend The Rose that the Worm hath Touched. 157 throughout this venture, and that, as for my cousiu of Bal gowme, she had clomeaned her likoun a,.gel from heaven for .t was h,s way ever to magnify an h„ndred-fo d th^ little services done him by his friends and to make nought of his vastly greater benefits to them ^ My lord's servitor and kinsman, Harry Graham had H it'nlt'f '" T"" '"■ ™y '"0 h^' old odging If It might be so : and we found him and my man afva^f mg us at the door. The house was one of the smX fairer or a more diversified aad glatome a s^ot in aTl mv' andXit^^rrton^untrVr "' '.r™^^' sp«t and yet the ,uiekest srsH^gl^Lr ''''"''' wonted rooms were e'mr,^v T' " """"'^ "''" ^s was fined so fuTof rmU'v"" and '"'" ^^'^ "^^^^^ bodeful purso of her 22tTl^ * . Pronounced with a ward, such things as h^d ^^f ^ "'""«'' *'™«^ ^''■•'= *»- was "sticket" by Ihn t ^''\""''' ^"'■''™'" I^™^" and that, in all llke^t ^ f ^'^ '^^ '""'^ ^'^ '^'ory), »v-'W"a'rarb;'di:r,:r^ now!]:"^^r ™°" '"'^' °^^^-' "" the Waveriey Station ilfil I ^:'ft!:)!ll!-^ir 158 The Angel of the Covenant. got for his cheer, knowing his love of flowers : and with that she left us to ourselves. We fell to talk of our designs and expects, now that we were home. My lord was downcast. Once my cousin of Balgownie's case was brought to an accommodation— to aid the which, he declared, he was bound both in honor and gratitude— he must seek his family ; but that he could not do till he had bestowed the Lady Katherme somewliere, and how or where to bestow her he was as much at a stand as ever. ** Whiles, Alec," said he, " I am tempted sore to thmk she were better dead ! For what is there foreninst her, poor bairn, but death in life ? She is barely three-and- twenty, and yet she must live the rest of her days dissem- bled, nnkenned, innomhiate, unwed ! I declare before God I would myself rather die than accept all these ! But women have aye the greater patience ! " It came on me in a clap of comprehension, and as with a fiaught of lightning, I did perceive, as I had not done before, the enormity and hideousness of the punishment and the penance to which the poor lady was thus con- demned for being practised upon by a villain while she was yet little more than a child. I recalled the intoxicat- ing scene I had had with Magdalen in the Deeside woods when she was just of such an age as the Lady Katherine had been when misled : I thought in a flash what might have chanced had I been wicked enough and skilled enough in evil : and my heart did swell with pity and wrath. '' Good God ! " I cried. ''It is a bitter, cruel world ! The poor lady hath done no more than doth many a man twenty time er, and yet he doth remain an honorable, gentleman, with his fault unregarded, and with courtesy favor, and advancement for his portion ! Great Heaven ! Wherefore should the weaker vessel be thus condemned to utter shame and f orgetf ulness ? '* The Rose that the Worm hath Touched. 159 "It is so agreed. Alec," said my lord sadly, " and to contest ,tw„ald be to beat our heads against stne walls I -the dead, msensato wall of baith Kirk and Ha' - " She erred, I'll allow," I arirued • " I„,t hJ ' r, ^ . who doth not P She is not marfei^'^eithe ' in tealt? person nor of mmd, nor of heart, I dare swear. SI eLth erred, but why should she not hope that an ho oraWe gentleman m.ght rejoice to wed and wear her lor his " Wear her !" exclaimed my lord. '< Look ! Here is a bowl of roses, and here among them a bud, the whUk I place where you may readily note it. No, ohool vou one, which you would desire to wear publicly in yoTr ear and afterward set in water to increase." ' I looked them over, and smelt them, and in fin. „i, not the one he had placed to be note" """'^ " Wherefore not that one ? " he asked. " It hath as fa. a hue, as sweet a smell, and as admirable a favor L „ " WTt ^"'P'^"''" I answered," it is not perfect • a worm hath been at it : that leaf is spoiled " ' " ^""l snpposing," he continued, " I carnVd t),„ 1. . ™„„d^a whole company, which rose wouirbrch:::.'';^ " ^or^eo," s,ys I" that which the worm hath touched." ro,., K ' -71 '"'' '" '™S "« "'''■•« i« •'"•oice of oth^r w be left Its lone. It may be smelt to, it may be praised, .t may be pitied, but it will not be dwsen, so long I said ir T '° "'""" ^'«"' y- -» »s;erod "^ I said nothnig for an instant. Then :-" Were I not taken wit Maudlin, and in a fi^hion bound tol; _" "' other rr'choTse' ? ■^'''' *"^ ""'' " '" '»^ ^ '■>- '» - " Truly," said I, " should Maudlin fail me or I weary ■ ?' i6o The Angel of the Covenant. of her, then with a glad heart woukl I wed the Lady Katlieriue, if she would deigu to have mo ! " " Then, Alec Burnet," said my lord, with a flash of his brave eye and n gush of color to his cheek, and laying a warm, friendly hand on mine, *' ye would be a braver gentle- man than the feck o' them that draw sword to face a press of steel ! But I opine tliat ye have not considered all that wearing such a rose would muau for ye." ■ S'- After Supper, We arc Waylaid. I6i CHAPTER XIII. AFTER SUl'Plill, WB AUK WAYLAID. My mind was still possessed witi, the thonght of "the rose that the worm hath touched" when we returned to Znr., f "'f '"*'» ■<"•«»« : but it vanished like I v^nff of eloud when I set eyes on the Lady Katherine There w,« an euhvening glow of r.snrgent lite i„ her prei sentment and a l.ghtsome kindness on her brow, thewhie . w.th the busk and bravery of one of Magdalen's gwns made her look exceeding handsome. My cousin and Maid"! also were glinting with sprightfnlness, as with summer lightnmg and .t was plain that all three were frelhTom .eh a debauch of confidential talk .as ladies love. Tl>e flr " thmg sa,d, when we had entered, struck my lord and me mute for an instant with astonishment " We have made bode and bargain, and ye maun asree " sa.d my Lady Balgownie, coming to ns'and layinfhl hand on my lord's arm. "It's to be sum.ner all o"e year for she w,ll bide with me and Maudlin for ever and a day or as long as she will." ^' My lord glanced swiftly at hissister andMistress Maud to, who hung aloof and arm in arm, smilinglll other's eyes over something said '• There's little of a frem'd* look a'tween them" said my eousm ; " and if they will chide, 'twill be with ti sweet measure of marria/e-anger t.,- te- rness rows t : that's where the/ are ^[th it." *°"-''°''' "^ '"'"- • Frem'd-strange, unfamiliar. f Marrow-mate. ill ilA !» 162 The Angel of the Covenant. *' But Mistress Magclulon," said my lord in a low voice, —** doth she know ?" ^^ " All that kytlioHi good for hor— and more.' ''Is that well, or prudent, Lady Iklgownio ? " *'Saveusmy h-rd !— both weel and prudent! What she had not l)oon told she'd have ta'en by the tail ; for she hath a way with her that gate, and she is no bairn now. Moreover," Kathorino declared she could not in honor hold speech with Maudlin, without slie kenned a'. BiU they'll never let all the world hear what is atween thorn.'' My lord accepted that with a bow, but said :— " It is a pity— for Magdalen." '< Bless thy young heart and head, my lord ! " said my cousin. ** Think ye that ignorance is the virtue of an angel, in a maiden ? Ignorance may be proper in an angel but it doth not become a woman. Your ignorant woman is fit only to bo a stukey * saint,-the Kirk forgi'e me for saying sac ! " " Wherefore the Kirk, cousin ? " I broke m. She tossed the answer at me with her pretty hand :— ''Because, cousin, the Kirk is taking the armed-chair and the table-head in Scotland, and God is set down at the by- board." ''Well, Lady Balgownie," said my lord, "ye are her mother " " That I have assurance of," laughed she. " I am meaning," said my lord, smiling and bowing in his stately fashion, " if ye are content that she should know, it is not for James Graham to say ye nay." My lady smiled, and looked with point at me, and then 80 did my lord ; whereupon I blushed. " I had forgotten Alec," said my lord. "1 have no parle in the ploy," said I ; "and if I had any I would e'en hold my whisht." * Stucco, After Supper, Wc are Waylaid. 163 I saw that she would npoak alone with my lord and T parted from them I hrl mo +1 "'y ^oia, ana I always sor,othCa,t , , , »' l"'" T'"''- """• ''^'"« mothorflfon'otaryho^rt' """"''"'^' "y Maudlin's to mo jostingly^ot J,^,^ <;^:t- ^' TT' was ■„ all Scotla„cl-a iZ.a ali'„ra^a";, u . 'a'oV: look iT''' T "1' ,'" «"" " ""'S-- - to tana lovo! Wk I stooped and kissod the lily Uni. The lX Ka I^nno was turning to leave us together, " ' Nay ; bide ye," said Maudlin ■< Al,.n' «„ i have hours enow to deave the n ^'"^ «"'! >»•> will V.oth n.y eousirie^ gl oyeT'lf;™ ^r"'"' ,^'"" ' ' been wont; and I w,., iny^AeaTyflZ'^ts porting eompany of another of her sermlle f ,?''" rrs:rrtt!k;--td"'i"^ ».othatyedi.e.s.vordf„;ho;.tI^:;i"Sr;iri:S^ * Misleared-ill mannered. 1^ :>vu fM \ 164 The Angel of the Covenant. cavalier ye've been all the long road liitlier frae bonnie France." " Speak not of that/' Lady Katherine pleaded. ''But necessity is upon me ! " said Maudlin, growing warmer, and dazzling me with the brightness of lier beauty. " I have more than common pride in your manhood, cousin Alec ; and we both adore and love a so gallant cava- lier ; — do we no, Katherine ? " '* We do," said Lady Katherine softly ; and she looked aside and changed color. *' It delights me to ken that you approve me, — fair ladies," said I, scarce knowing Avhat to say. For the truth is I was greatly lifted up by my cousin's words, and set in a whirl by her looks, at the same time that I was deep in doubt that this was no lovers' greeting, and that Maudlin was better mistress of herself— her starry eyes, her taking tongue— than sht had been when last we met on the banks of Dee. In sooth, I was in despair when I looked on her ; for I had left a child and I found a woman, and I perceived that she Avas farther removed from me than she had ever been. I was but a poor, rude soldier, with neither purse for my hand nor prospect for my eyes, and she, though she had but little fortune to her name, was of so queenly a beauty, and of so rare a spirit that her out-look and dominion were no narrower than mankind. As I saw her that night, so she appeared not many months > later, when our Scottish world was turned upside down, and men spoke of her as " The Angel of the Covenant." For, when that eloquent young preacher, Mr. George Gillespie, made his famous discourse on the Covenant and described its " Angel " as one that *'looketh forth as the morning, fair as the moon, clear as the sun, and terrible as an arm\ with banners," it was noted that his frenzied eye rolled ever where she sat in the front of the gallery. So the .'ick-name clave to her, and the lightnings of that :n After Supper, We are Waylaid. ,65 or Wink ,.;» here*! ""' ""'* *'»"' '^^■- """'h As I saw her that night with Larlv Tr.fi, • barely taller; but set apart from tha^fa^'f^'""!' *' ™' taller far,_snch wm th% »ff.T . ? '*"^'o™ she seemed noss of boVlike flowt " sLfu/; ""'^t^'"^ ^^^'='- liair she wore ia the Kwl , ^''""'- H«'' dark-red in abundant oZZlZlTl:':!:' f ""'' ''™«"'^ of was discovered bv t,,r„7 !""'"''■"=«« "hore- curious fall of itee^ H r „T"^ "' ""^ «°™ ''"'> its think, bnt like the brown porof "'" ^"' '""™' ^ ilected the shifting light™ the he! " T'' ''■"^ «° ™- to tell their eolor Toflelfb J"' "'''"' ™« hard intenderness,n:;J^S\Tn:tSS;;;r'"^^ ^xrh™r.::;:rniTr^^^^^^^^^^ not fall sick ^ith desl *'' t""'"'"' ""f ™«ld endure and mouth wastoolarge,he lip oofullh rf ^"^ "^'" "^^ that one sweet ea? of her »,",! ',^ "'"'' '"^ ""»''' *nd other ; but to n>e she w arrgSo'^lvT",''''" "'^ and divine para.^on •_„,^ t^ IT . ■>^' *" ^^'e P<=rfoet hor sake, in^of iT'ltl * y"' "^ ""'<"««»" f»' Atsupper was rehSHrLa '7^:' "f """ '''^'>'- Iiadbeen summoned ,„ 1 ^!, . ^'go^mo s case. She Oonnoil, as aTsTthe M Sfof t?™ /'" ^°'* "' «^-^' ■nissnoss in withhoSl" r .""''^ *" """^^ '''^ ''- and sorniuo- as tW I, f , '''"' "'^"'^ *'■<>"' ''aiding alone and bitteri/intltllilr rT7" P'-^-g her y I" tilt iligh Court of Justiciary. " He ~^?tSr"-ttf LTL^T' " ^'^""' " i» 'he old -n w,.„ ,.ave set'^orth t^a^: "» ol'lil^Elir^ '""'^ '""'^ I "\ il in..! '1 is 1 i66 The Angel of the Covenant. and the bishops of the Secret Council," she lamented-and all the while Maudlin, listening to her mother continued to glance at my lord to see how he took it ; and as he took it, so did she, or gravely or with smiles-- he and they were the death of the douce, placable auld Marquis^ and they will be the death of me, I sore misdoubt How-' Guidsakes ! They warded him, the poor auld lord, m the Castle, pending the oncoming of the trial-e^en as they warded me and Maudlin in an ill-smelling, ill-breedmg den of the Tolbooth— till the Marquis and me both fell mto a dwalming sickness and petitioned for relief. Me they let come hither, guarded night and day by twa lousy limmers of soldiers aye hungering and thirsting for my substance, mair than saints f-r righteousness ; but my lord Huntly they demitted to confinement in the Abbey. He lay there till he sickened for his death ; but never an inch would he yield him to Meldrum his clavers or the insistence of the bishops. Syne they let him go to the comfort of his am lodging in the Canongate, and thank them for naething ! He prayed them that he might go home to die, and they set him forth on a caution of 20,000 merks to appear for iudgment when called upon. But he had a higher call, and escaped their hand to God's righteous judgment ! On his road hame in a wand-liUer, resting in the house of a cantv burgess of Dundee, he slumbered off in his dear lady's arms into the presence of his Maker, to answer for his being a Papist,-if the guid Lord fashes to take note of siccan a thing ! But he's the better afl ; for Meldrum took an aitl upon the Book he'd break both the Marquis his estate and mines, with fines and compensations for the loss of his gear ! the Marquis, says he, might be " cock o the North " but ho shouldna craw on his midden ; and, as for +hat betch o' Balffownie, he'd humble her till she should com'e begging to his door for a lick of his parridge- spurtle ! " After Supper, We are Waylaid. 167 " Never Tear mother V said Maudlin, with a swift flush of resentment which I oonld not choose but admire, hav„ i regard to the attent she bestowed on my lord. - Meldrum shall dree h,s weird ! Patience a wee ; and he shaH™,^ h,s msnlt, and learn that if ye ha™ nao son left to my father's name, ye have a daughter ! " ^ •• Tut, bairn I " cried her mother, in careless rainfv "Feared for Meldrum? I fear neither ZZTm. drum ! I care na what k, , .y say nor do, but what the Bishops may adjudge!" "uui, me " And what of the Gordons in all this, cousin ? " I anked "Are none of them ta'en?" 'a-Kea. " Ta'en 1 "quoth she. " What for shodd they be ta'en » Ye onnatak' the breeks off of a Highlandman nor th; wool off of a sow, nor can yo get fines and compensation from siccan dyvours* as the Gordon lads. Eh'" she sighed. I sore misdoubt Nat Gordon may keep warm for himsel yon bed in the heather of Clashenrca Xr" that sormng limmcr ont-by there "-meaning Gilderov — " was wont to lie ! " * wiiueroy lord ^twf'V^' ""' """«' '"'Jy'^^lgo^'nie/'saidmy lord. "Wherefore say ye 'the Bishops' whenever vou mean the Privy Council ? " 'eucver j ou ...rp^'^^f'".?" '">™™'l p-omptly, "the Bishops are the Council. Nine of them there are " ;; f f" ""3y so many as nine now ? " exclaimed my lord • "And the Arehbishop_hc sits as Chancellor-mrk'; om And hey lovetheir ncwdignity so weel that ilead of being athame wi' their prayer-books, und their rochet/ and their surplices, tkey'ro aye to the foro here in 1; Council-Chamber, whaever be not I Wherefrom it doth come, my lord, that the business of both KirkTnd K tg' dm IS in their hands, like a stock of cards, and they shuffle them up and down, and deal the play as they wiu!'^ *Z>2/uoMrs=bankrupt debtors. \ -. 1 j, ! ■ i .!■ : ■ \ ^ I : m . ii^ ■i^^i I i- ■ ' ^1 I- ii ^ i '■' '^' \ i ( 1 '' 1. 1 1 i'f ! 1' i* ' 1' 1.1 i i' f \% ' "I i 1 1 i , . i t.'j ' 1 I,; Jill ■ i i68 The Angel of the Covenant. " Yo'U bo riglit in 'liat," quotli my lord grayely per- pending' "And ttero's groat talk l>old, I danrsay, of "irmyTri I'wo'ro snattcring and swimming over head and oa"f in talk !-and nao woudor !" sa.d she, w>th something like a tuff of anger. " For the moanmg mns boplain to the blind and to the doaf . We're ea'mg back al tl ot dwo ha'ooomesincothodaysof Knox and Mdv.ne First our teinds* were riped frae «a to mak muokle Spends for the Bishops. Now Law and Jufco are pu ntc the Bishops' hands as well as Keligion. And the next wm io the Bishops will have thoir lands baek ; and tho>r abboTS, and their priories, ancl ■<' ' ■ ; lave o t. '■The King is iU-adviaed," said Montrose, and no """haood, and I think he mann be, my lord!'' said Lady Balgo'wnie gravely. " ^f r'^S™ " sl'sho' I doubt na it will na lorg bo let a-be Sjno, ^aid sh. with one of her unexpected touches of merriment, there Z be naething for me but to lick Meldrum's pamdge- Tpttle But if the Bisho tak' the land, should they no Slid the Abbey, my lord > J they do tha', of *e.r courtesy and their kenned grace to women-iolk they may Trant sLlter to a poor auld wife that is weary of men and IcT t world! the whilk is but a byko o stmgmg wasps! So, to get tho hand in, I think wo three shall turn nuns str.aiglitway." I saw that the mention of "nuns "rasped on tho raw memory of the Lady Katherine ; and to divert the matter Ha d--" I'm suspoctful, cousin, that all this dulo and al this weariness of the world is because Nathamo Gordon makes his bed in the deep heather of Clashenrea. 1 waT on her left hand, and, leaning back in her chair she gave me a look full-butt .and square, that came almost * rcinds==tithes. I ely per- irsay, of ling over she, with ing must g back all Melville ! ' muckle e are put I the next and their , and no •d!" said land, but said she, Lt, " there parridge- Id they no , of their they may i men and »f stinging bhree shall )n the raw the matter s dule and aiel Gordon la." 1 her chair, lame almost After Supper, We are Waylaid. 169 like a bnflet in the foco. "And what ken ye. my bonny CO.,™,," she asked, "„f Nathaniel Gordon " iZf flash„,g the same manner of look on her di,u,Mo. 7' said :_" I see the time 0' day - My ^l.lt , '2 I; Z been ™t,ng screeds o' tales abont her minnie* to her o ,n lra,,ee ! She's a daft bairn ! " she exclaimed. ^ Maudhn see„,ed nothing pnt out by that. " Ye forget m,nn,e"sa,d she, "that Alec had word with NathlnieJ before he gaed to Franco; ti.engh I will not tak' aUh I d,d ncc name the guileless Gordon, when I wrote bat that was completely necessar, minnie, ye'll allow, hayin. regard to the passage wo were come to " ^ " And Alee, I suppose, read in his uin passages ! Troth A eo," she laughed, "your soldiering in Prance must We g,'en yea penetration and a eomp,.eh°ension o thTwayfo women that I would not haye bclieyod ye could 1 T'your mmd to ; for sure I am that, afore ye gaod to France yo d,d na ken the t'ae end of a woman from the fotl.c '- ' ^ I saw that I bad touched a sensitiye secret. I was sorry and I essayed to allay the effect of n,y awkwardness^wS a more stinging result to myself. " Dear cousin," I s.ai,l softly, " be not bitter with me ' beg to assure ye lapproye of Nathaniel more than I^In ;; Now that is benevolent in you, cousin," quoth she ' He did seem to me," I blundered on, -a .entlman of a very proper and debonair habit, though Ch^^Z mm-e to hs fortune than the yard of 'iron 5 his halch and the pistols in his belt." "auncn, - In truth," said she, " no better match thxr, yoursel' cousin,^though /.-. pistols ha'e siller at tue Z^t^^ " In truth, so ! " said I. " Alec, my dear ," laughed my consin, - will ye never * iIfm»ite==mother. '."iA.^ "f I r 170 The Angel of the Covenant. ,ea.n that tUo ba„ia ..Oced truth i. f^^.^^^^ fL,oc yo'vc skailod* mail- than yc\o ta-ough with >o Iv I 1<™/' sl>o eontiuued, taki,,. ewixt note ol . glance ./mine a Maudlin, who waa cloe!;. concovned m rav.sl - •i smooch with Montrose, "I kon that your fu.cy « Zd f tat .anting instrn. tion y^H Bad -^^ t,p.,dl'if. ;.» a hurchoon.t Since she cam io Ed.i..ui ,h •he' »« -anv joes to her tail as she h;» hauB .0 her W-I .U of Oo .n.i; and Lords ot Session and Advo- clte'likr-to t!,e sands o- the sea,-and ye'll ha'e your wnrk '^et t'. '-'^fc tlvjiu. a' casten off. " .\v tltni scandal are ye telling o' me, mother cried Maudlin f.™ her place. " I am sure ye si-ak o me, by "rrrlX^rU^AW'said^ ve h'ld wrought a charm on the Lord Advocat.;. ^ "CatT" exelain-.xl n,y lord Montrose. "My old o-nr()ad8Words, as we hurled ourselves forward to win the entry. " Mind ! The fane in the midst that doth not fight I " sounded another voice, which made me suspectful of Sir John Colquhoun. But, hearing that, the one in our midst,— Lady Kath- erinc, to wit, who had stood trembling, with rapier un- drawn, — drew, and leaped on the ruffian who was engaging her brother, and beat him over the head and shoulders with incredible fury and rapidity, reckless of all rules of fence, «f which sh(! knew naught, poor lady ! The rascal fellow, tiius strangely encoui.tered, gave back ; and my lord, with a tut )f the wrist, twitched the sword from his hand, and gii,e him a learned and devilish thrust in the side. And with that advantage we drave past into the entry. " In with ye, my lord !— Into the house with her ! " I whispered, and turned io help Harry Graham and my man, who wore taking a fine enjoyment in this pk} ,1 their dear own land, and deriding their oppugnants in thf choicest Scots. We had the advantage, for we three filled the mouth of the close ; but their final discomfiture came from abov< . A window was flung open over our heads, and the voice of a woman rang out in anger. ''De'il tak' ye for fauso randy limmers, waukening honest folk iiue llieir beauty sleep wi* your causey-fight- ing ! But I'se cool the courage o' ye ! . . . Gartly-lool"* * Uardy-lop — gardez I'eau, 1 ' » 1 I i 176 The Angel of the Covenant. At the sound of the E-linburgh cry when foul water is being flung forth our oppugnanta turned to flee. But 'twas too lato ! '\miorded and boliquored they stood a moment at gazo ; and must furtlicr tolerate a screech of derision from tlio woman. In the which we joined as we down the entry, and into the door held ready for us. I ' t Magdalen Amazes Me. 177 CHAPTER XIV. MAGDALEK AMAZES 5IE. It was plain that Sir John Colqnhonn, if ho were not nmsolf „, that tnljio in the High Street (but I hive littL doubt he was) at the least was its " true begetter "And therefore, ,t was numifest that ho would be at a stick fo^ no violenee, craft, nor subtlety to win at the Lady Ka h ermeagani -whether on aecount of extraordina Jlove or exeeed.ng desp.tofulness. We were all the more Lseenre agau,st h,m U,at, if we sought deliverance by denouncW his presence he might retaliate by denouncing the LadyV and though Ins life was forfeit to the law, while he^Vas' to prrmote" '" '""' ™^ "'"* '"'"='• ^^ "^ - "-"l " He mnst e'en bo tholed, * Alee," said my lord, "and It was some solace that Lady Katherine would put off her man's att.re for good and all, and depart our compaf on the morrow, and that, so long aa Lady BalgowS ' odgmg was warded by the town-guards, she might "!„! TaTthftZ'dT""'^; ?" "^"^ '^^'gownfetrr " ^ t^ "f- rr-^ ^■»- - 'y '^ ing fiery trial ; a Thus began for me a full week of burning n. week hke that of the First Chapter of Genls^s 12 Tholed=endured. when the !■: i Hi-i 178 The Angel of the Covenant. beginnings of a new wovld-totus, teres, atque rotundus- were called forth from Nothingness. Until then I was without form and void (I speak as in a parable) ; I was a , boy, as I can now perceive ; a shapeless, crude, blind m -s of desires and impulses and ambitions ; but the week passed and left me, as I think, a man, with eyesight and under- standing, a clear purpose and a destiny. And still was the sharp and fierce experiment repeated over a week of months, and that again reduplicated over a week, almost, of years. I knew not then to what end I was being fashioned no more than the raw steel beneath the hammer is aware thn.t it will come forth a tempered sword. But in fine I knew what had been done with me. And suffer a man who hath passed through much trial and testing to declare to you it is not action but passion, not doing but enduring that compacts the mind and makes its grain and quality to co- here: The hammer fashions the sword ; but 'tis the sword itself that is the pledge of peace, and not of war. ^ Lady Katherine, being taken ben at my cousin s, went not forth again ; for it was thought to be neither expedient nor safe that she should. It was, therefore, natural, I allow, that my lord Montrose should be much at Lady Ba - ffownie's lodging. Moreover, he was hastening Lady Bal- sownie's business with the Secret Council and the Court of Justiciary, and frequent consult with her was iiecessar \nd let me here tell what he accomplished for her, and be done. From his youngest my lord had been on terms of inumate friendliness with the family of the Chancellor Archbishop Spottiswoodo, who ever held a higli opinion of his character and parts. My lord's brother-in-law the learned Lord Napier, was also of the Privy Council With these two, as with Sir Thomas Hope, the Lord Advocate, his influence, despite his youth, was very great ; and he exercised it without reserve and with right good will, as ever he did in the cause of his friends. The result was, Magdalen Amazes Me. 179 to put it in brief, that Lady Balgownie was sentenced to pay to the Lord Meldrnm for his loss of gear 10,000 merks * ~(in place of the 100,000 which he claimed), which smaller sum even she privately declared she never would pav— to contmue to dwell besouth the waters of the Forth till the 25th of December of that year, and to find caution for the express fulfilment of these two articles in the sum of 30 - 000 merlLs. My lord became her cautionary in that sum and the guard was removed from her lodging ; and that was the position of her business at the end of my first week in Edinburgh. In the meanwhile— to return to more private matters— 1 contmiiod at my lord's lodging, going to and fro on oc- casion to my cousin of Balgownie's, but with less frequency than went my lord. Whenever my lord and I were at my cousm's together Maudlin would trouble me by devotino- herself entirely to him, as well by her sprightful and sparkt Img speech as by nameless graces, coquetries, and lures I can in no wise blame him ; for never did I see in him any greed of such homage. Yet he would have been more or less, than man if he had not been taken, warmed and ca- joled by the magic of person, and speech, and manner with which be was beset. In private I was exceeding cast down by my mistress's neglect, juid I would resolve to visit her no more in my lord's company ; but the very next time he went to my cousin's I would go too, compelled by the in- sane desire of supervising my mistress and my lord to- gether. And all the while I would inwardly rage like a high fire in a narrow chimney. It had got to such a pass with me at the week's end, or thereby, that I was resolved to return to my regiment in * In old Scots currency, a mer7c^-13s. 4d. Scots, or 13 l-3d. in sterling f<^nolicli monov t^no aiim^'- . a i. V 1- 1 — T , •••"'^3 ■ --'J'e shcUiny Scots^one penny sterling English and therefore twenty sliillings, or one pound Scots=ls. od. sterhng English. 1,1 1 ^If \ , : i ji I »■ 180 The Angel of the Covenant. France, and to the society of my Mends ol the Royal School of Arms -should there be no fightmg toward. "'oir sweetest and bonniest " Sl^e said t ha w ith ; parklo of mischief in her eye, looking up from the Ti hion she was stitching ; and I blushed for on my to incoming I had been great on my desire to intoxicate myself with the wild scents of my native stiath r" ; U go no farther in this salvage co"u ry than I „ t''T broke out. "lamsicko't! Sick to death ! '".Fie A ec '."quoth she. "To let the milk kind- ness f'; your ain folk and your ain country be turned r sour whey! And what for ? Because a maid is ta'en wiJthe whimsey o' another, and a better, nor ^Twas'llcwhat set back ; for I was so young and self- i:Xnd.ithal^— ^^ |i;ttusrb:ttta:r rtlie shadow of a cloud on '"^ y^ ^ oaty on Deeaide." ^^ "0 Alec are ye anoth^e^ o' them ?" ria^ «aid. u. a «,» as of lamentation o ver an apmtsm. * ' I aye thou <'kt ia was at the least you left to speak o* other thic^ but c mon havers of marrying and giving im marriage ! An* IS It, truly, to speak o' that ye cam ?'' ^'Of something tending^ that gait, Maudlin/' said I blushing high, and bending low. "My poor Alec/' said she, putting out a hand to me. ^m 1 ^ MM : MP ! i 'I m ■ Mi I*- ih :' & ■ 1*1 : il = 'iHn.- ■M Ml; 184 The Angel of the Covenant. u w '11 tnlk on it if ye ivust have it so, though I have llTJ m^l-c something bettor to speak o' ^jt^^omeUung that I thought ye were interessed m, Alec." ^„ ^ - ^ staving 1^" "" "- """«'• ""'.' f ° ^-^-f f '"'"' tl! tit 'lonse of relief ma.lc plainly manifest. '' What f he., r' I aske,l ' I wa. sore hurt and Bad- denel ; tut y^t I accepted the change ; for my matter, I ^T/;rat'Th:r,*Ale-c!" cried she with flaming eyes. letter, and she iiatn ^ ^^^.^^,^ ^^^ and she contnmed, ' ^'"^ /' ""^ „ \„. ,,,0 marked the aie —if mmelUng he not done ! And si mar ' :;mething" with demonstration oeyoandhp. Some thins vou are the man to dare and do . , ,i„ p '. "- ind what is the thing I am the man to dare and do ? ^ f EU SWohn ! " said she, with as mnch energy as it she had tool sword in hand, and her word were her deed. " '< Merly on ns, Mandlin ! " I said, something staggered. '< And wherefore me ? i ,^,,v.f ?" .1 • c ;f ^?r lohn were a man, anu not amorx.it^' ' "," ^^'-nlSntttKnoUlennnidhisdeathinwo^^^^ her whole heart and soul cry out for Magdalen Amazes Me. i8S for she is with me the feck of the day, and the hail of the night ! The terror of him rules her like a warlock's ! What maun her life wi' him ha'e been, dear soul, that the mere thought of him is like a Mediant Presence ! And yet, she saith, he was never aught than kind ! How comes it. Alec, that a man hath that dominion over a woman ? . . . What doth he do ? " I made no answer, but shook my head : I had my own thought. She went on at full flood :—'' Never should I suffer a man to have such dominion over me ! I think I should never fear any man, were he as great as a house and as black as tlie pit ! '' She flung chat forth like a challenge to all tlie Avorld, and stood defiant ! I, being all of the defied world there present, bent in humbleness before so much beauty, pride, and bravery. '' Sir John is without doubt a man to be feared for,'* said I. *' I have seen him, and heard him speak. I have crossed swords with him, and he is a furious blade, and hath the longest reach of any man I've met. But what," I asked, ''is the Lady Katherine's terror. Doth she fear he may come at her ? " " She doth ever fear his presence ! " flowed on my mis- tress, gathering' more and more excitement as she flowed. " And she hath an abiding sense of his being near ! She will cry out in the midst of the night, and wake from a dream, and cling to me, and tremble, and weep ; and when I soothe her, and ask at her what's amiss, she will murmur— here is the unco thing, Alec—' The thought of the day is the dream of the night ! ' or, ' The fault of the day is the sin of the night ! ' or other dark saying." And my mistress looked at me with questioning in her bright, brave eye. "May be," I made answer something curtly, "she but said over a lino from some poet." " Which doth mean, " O maiden, foolish and ignorant. f '11 f". 1 4m 4 it I'M ' i % nt m ^■i': ' '■ I { \Mm 1 86 The Angel of the Covenant. inquire no farther ! ' Merci, my precise ™»^'"'" ™'^ 2 sweeping me a courtesy. " It may be I am none so «t nor none so foolish ; but let that pass Do ye know Aloe," she went on, "what is the secret of Sir John^domnionover My Katherine ? Sir John m,,st ave have been a blaek magician, and h>s German vale t CartoX too,-aud there was a pair of them, m league wih alUheCvil tWngs in Earth and Air ! From very early he wou d make soft and gentle motions with his hands be ore her and so subdue her ; but in particular he had a Magu3 oTy'st^l-looking in the which, she forgot er own mmd, and was only o£ the mind of the Keeper °« «'- Cry^ti^^^^ I set that down, because, though I myself hold httle by such old wives' fables, there are still many who do hold bvthom and because the Crystal, or "mtoxicate jewel, VZ'o:i universally believed in as 'jf j>>8 »>- ^^ „f Sir John Colquhoun's dominion over the Lady Katherine, and wt even'so cited in tl.elegal document concerning he Tattlr indited by the Lord Advocate. I suppose that I permitted m,Jf something of a smile at my cousms "fX"t believe it. Alee ?" she demanded. "But it is Ladv Katherine's assurance ye doubt, not mme . ""l ttertain no kind of doubt," said I.-th-t ^^y Katherine speaketh as she doth believe ; and yet, cousin, if mav not be as I believe. . . '* "Id that, most learned and -^I'-^J--' * demanded, " do ye conceive was the sec re _of bir John -^?^:iii^^t«rre;r"tat^ —J. M. C. Magdalen Amazes Me. 187 a minister. Alec ! v anger me. Alec !— Alec, do you mean to aver tliat there 's no secret of knowledge nor wis- dom anywhere but in the Scriptures, or in the precise noddles of ministers and bishops ?" "I believe, cousin," I protested, "I said no such thing." *'Tut, Alec," said she, in a perverse heat, " I prithee contradict mo not ! I had no thought ye could be so dis- loyal to Lady Katherine as to doubt for an instant what slic saith ! " I groaned inwardly : words availed me noth- ing ; for I knew from of old that, once she had taken up a prejudice, it became in her hand a rod of steel to bela- bor you withal, or to twist fantastically, when heated in her native fire. '* She," continued my cousin, " trusts you more than any man, save perhaps my lord her brother ! Ye believe her not, and I suppose that now ye will not aid— though trembling and horror are her daily portion, and will be so long as Sir John is above ground ! 'lam ever in terror of be inr/ alone with him again !' sho said to me but this very morning. 'For then,' quoth she, '/ shall feel as one of the dead ! 1 shall he frozen liU Lot's loife I— taken like a thought in the thinking ! ' " " Maudlin, Maudlin ! " I cried. " But I will have no more words to put on that. Only this will I say :— I will undertake Sir John's business. His life is already forfeit, by both outlawry of the -King and Excommunication of the Kirk, so that any man finding him may laudably stick him, hke a stinking brock ! But, since he is a man, and not a beast, he shall have his chance. He shall be found, and then 'twill be he or me ! " '^'Ye undertake it, Alec? Oh, you are our own dear kmght ! " she cried, stretcliing me her hand, which I took and kissed, ere she was aware. '' But," said slie, '^ for an ideal knight. Alec, ye're aye a thought over precise and fractious." 11 ■ > ^i I ^! 1' ■^.ul ' ! .'l i i88 The AnRcl of the Covenant. (< Even .1 precise and fractious knight," said 1, " must wear a token, or a favor, from his hidy when ho goeth on her service. Give me that rose from your breast, xMaud- lin, and I shall wear it on my heart even beyond the with- ering , " and I held out my hand. *' 0, no, not that ! " she rapped out, snatching the roso from her bosom, and on the first impulse hiding it behind her, as if in fear my hand would grab it. At the same time an amu Ing blush fell over her like a ruddj veil. On second thought, she turned with deliberation, and stuck the flower in a book, saying :— " That is a poor thing, for a favor ; though it may serve to grace the auld dead pow of an auld dead poet. Take this. Alec." And she handed me her little dainty napkin bordered with lace. But looking on me she made a pause, and stood silent. How I seemed I know not. But this I know :— that I had consider i'.i the red rose of her blush and the red rose from her boxom, and I knew the red, red rose stuck in the book for o^^e o? the very kind set daily forth in my lord his *' What is it yon are thinking. Alec ? " she asked in a low voice. r, • XI *a am just thinking," said I, **that yon flower is the gift of the Earl of Montrose." " And if I will not deny it, is it forbidden me to accept a flower, wanting your leave. Alec ? " She stood away, in a haughty and watchful pride, the which made my heart swell within me, till I could have wept for the little hold I had upon her. All the worship and service I had rendered her were, I perceived, but us dew which the sun of Montrose had dried. "God forbid. Maudlin !" said I. ^'I have neither right nor desire to control or limit you. But it grieves me to think ye should be making pain and trouble for yourself." Magdalen Amazes Me. 12 the rose 189 "By taking a bit rose from a guUant gentleman ?"she demanded of mo lightly. '\ % t^\k")g any gift from a gentleman who is already wed, Maudlin ! " I answered. " Oh, whatten a work about nothing ! It shall offend you no more ! " she cried. And she took the rose and with seeming violence rent it and flung the poor vitals of it on the table. -And do ye think. Maudlin," I br. out, - that that Will make an end ? Do ye think I have no eyes, nor no senses ? Do ye think that the thought of ybu hath been mea and drink, and wine, to me these years by-past, and yet that Idowna tell, wanting such tokens as yon rose how your heart turns, my dear ? With sorrow and pain I^have been telling myself this week by-gone that it turneth not to me !--Nottome ! Have I said a single privy word with ye till the now since my home-coming ? Have I had a single salute but a kiss at your hand yon first day with somebody by ? Is it not plain to me that all your nature and desire turn to my lord ? And what can that mean for you, my dear, but pain and dule ? Will ye not be warned KatL'ri'neP ^^°'' ^'''' ""^ *^'' ^''"'^ unfortunate Lady "Whisht, Alec !- she cried, rooting her foot firm, and flaming up into the veriest whiteness of indignation. Will ye be tor evening my lord Montrose with a ma-i- cianer like Colquhoun .? " ^ "I will not,- said I, -and that you should well know There is noi.o in the wide world I so worship and so love as my lord ; nor do I know any man of a finer temper of honor But will ye not think, my dear, what temptation It would be, even for an archangel if he had human blood m h,s veins, to see your beauty daily, to touch your hand, and to hear your tongue ? " -Mercy me \" she said, crossing her hands upon her m ^. IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) 1.0 1^ no ■6 3 2.2 I.I f.^* 1^ urn 11:25 ill 1.4 1.6 A" QC Sdfflices Corporation & ^ /. A t// :/. ^ ■i>^ iV N> ^^<6 V o^ 23 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, N.Y. 14580 (716) 872-4503 '%^..^ '^"^' 1%<^ ^ ^"4^. ,■, " How well you must have watched, dear Alec ! she said in a bitter voice. -' But Twill hear no more on that \" she flashed forth, with the defiance of a naked sword. ** And I will tell you this !— that I worship my lord of Montrose, and adore ! For me there is no fit man in the world beside ! What do I care for his poor, weak, puling countess, who is a weariness and a woe to him I " " Hath he said so ? " I asked. " Said so ! Y'are dull ! " she cried. " What need for him to say so ? Do I not perceive it ? Who but I should ? I know his whole heart ! I know his thought of her, and his thought of me, though he hath said no word of either me or her ! Wherefore did they wed him to her when he was but a collegianer ? What for did they not bide till he was a man, and I a woman ? I would have aided him to be as great as he is beautiful and good ! Even now I would serve him on my knees ! I would be his page or his valet to be with him ! " She panted so, and was so wrought to an ecstasy with the utterance of this flood of feeling that I feared for her. My concern for myself fell from me like a cloak, in my pity that she should thus lay bare her dearest secrets with- out reck or heed. « Maudlin, my dear," I said, "calm ye, and have a care of what ye say. I have heard enough, my dear." « Ye shall now hear all ! " she said, pressing the one Magdalen Amazes Me. 191 hand to her bosom, and leaning the otlicr on the table. " Ye think I speak in frenzy or fantasy : I know full well what I say ! Ye think I proclaim my shame : on the con- trar, I proclaim my glory ! I so worship and adore him, that what another might connt for shame I would hold as the sweetest honor ! . . . But ye need not fear or doubt for me ! " ''It is not oftens, I think," said I, "that we court shame prepense. Maudlin : we fall into it of a sudden, without intent, as a bairn doth fall into the fire. The thing is to keep away from the fire.'' " Y'are but a poor, thick-witted, addle-pated preacher. Alec !— with your ' bairns ' and your ' fire ! ' she said, shaking her head at me. '' I might signify to ye that there is a fire that inspires and refines as well as burns, but I would rather tell you flat that you are ignorant of a woman's heart, and how in it— perversely it may be— what seemeth wrong doth become in truth the bonniest right. I think naught of myself, but I would sooner die forever than that the good name of my lord should be sullied with one tache, or that his fame to come should be hindered ! " Something in distress for my own burned-up hopes and desires, and something in awe of such an ecstasy of love, I turned me away to depart, saying :—'' God be your helper. Maudlin, my dear : I feel I have no part in this." " Alec ! " she called in a sharp note of arrest. I stopped me and turned again. She stood with eyes downcast. "Ye will say no word of all this to my lord," she said in something of a pleading voice. " He hath never uttered a thing of the kind to me," " But yon rose ! " I exclaimed. " He never gave it me," she said in a voice that dragged the secret up by the roots. *' He let it drop in the Par- liament House the day and I " Then I was assured how passing my knowledge her love i I li 192 The Angel of the Covenant. must be ; and in a great gush of pity I stepped to her and took her hands. - Is it even so with you, my poor Maud- lin?" I said. To my amazement she fell on my breast sobbmg. Be, kind to me, Alec," she pleaded, - and be patient. '^ I love you too. Alec,— in another way." "My dear, my dear !" I cried, almost beside myself, but not daring to embrace her. " This is m^ore than I can bear ! I must go away !— away to France ! " " Oh no. Alec," she cried. '' No, no ! Do not forsake me t I may need you !-nced your help ! I know not how —but I may ! And his sister !— Ye have forgotten her ! Give me your word. Alec ! " , .. t» ^ i ^ " I give you my word. Maudlin," I groaned. But let me go now! Lot me depart, and think of it ! " So saying I broke from her, and forth of her chamber and the house. Meeting with the Knight of Luss. 193 CHAPTER XV. A STRANGE MEETING WITH THE KNIGHT OF LUSS I DEPARTED forth of my cousin's lodging, scarce know- ing whither I went or how. Anon I came to myself set down in the back part of James Brown's wine shop in the Canongate, with a chopin of red wine at my nieve, and the dark bulk of a stalliard fellow stuck between me and the light. I conceive I had been looking out upon the sunshine that filled the piece of green back-yard, and that my sight was dazed, for when I looked up I failed to make out tiie viznomy of the man. Or, it may be that my senses were so drenched with wine that I hi>d no more than tho lightest floating attent to bestow upon him. But you will understand that I was not drunk ; I was merely dulled ; for all men will consent that grief is an insurpassable hindrance to the true effect of wine. I was admiring who this might be, gone wanting his dinner at the hour of dining— was he also nursing a bitter grief in his deep bosom ?— the bosom which, I laughed within me to note, was barred brown and yellow, like a bumble-bee's— I was tlms admiring when his hand was laid on mine. It was a large, white, soft hand, with smooth nails, clean and trim. It was a hand uncommon at the end of any man's arm, and the sudden thought came to me that I had seen it before. The soft voice when he spoke gave me a cer- tainty of my knowledge. " She hath been unkind, hath she no ? " were his words. " I'm sorry for ye, Mr. Burnet." *' Is that you, Sir John ?" says I, something at a back- ri 194 The Angel of the Covenant. set to find the Knight of Luss standing over me, and bear- ing, I must suppose, my mark still upon urn I turned my hand over, and grippod his, as if in thankfuhiess or his civility, but more truly, you may make sure, that i micrht have the hold of him if he did meditate treachery. - 'Deed, and it is, Mr. Burnet," says he, giving a warm squeeze to my hand, sitting plump upon a stool, and look- ing with the unco, fish eyes of him into mnie. '' 1 won- der, Mr. Burnet, that ye're an unfriend to me, because, man, I like you, and it would bo meat and drink to ken ve for a friend." I was sore put to it to make a decent answer. I took my eyes from him and would have taken my hand, but he still kept it. „ "Well, Sir John," says I, " ye ken there are reasons. -Reasons!" quoth he. "I ken that fine. But rea- sons are for fools : wise men go by their feelmgs. I put me on vour mercy, Mr. Burnet,-the mercy of a fellow- feeling." Ye ken now the damnable dolor of love. Do yc no ? "''says he, squeezing my hand. *' There's no denying that I do. Sir John," say I, with a straight look. 'a-Io-ho'" cries he, with another squeeze of my hand. - Do ve opine that I havena kenned it too ? Not kenned it V Lord be gracious ! " He flung off his hat with the one hand, and took the other from mine to set its fingers fluttering above his head and breast, the whiles he declared in his soft voice,— ^ . -, • ivr -'Tis here!-and there !—burning,-burnmg, Mi. Burnet ' Ho-ho ! and 'tis beginning to burn, Mr. Burnet, in YOU. Burn, Mr. Burnet, is a good word! I m an older lad nor you-ay, ye may note, as I see ye do, thut the color is going from the hah- on my temples ! Ho- ho' my lad, the heat of Love is a rare bleacher! Yom hair, Mr. Burnet, is a good honest straw or hay color,- Meeting with the Knight of Luss. 195 hay, rather/' says he, consideriug it close, '^md so not easy to bleach, for the reason that it is well bleached al- ready, but the heats o' love '11 make it white for ye mv lad, and the pains o' love '11 work and Avonimle in the in side of ye like a knot 0' adders ! The joys 0' love, say they ! Ilo-ho ! they speak that dinna ken." 1 heard him in silent amazement and doubt -Well now, Mr. Burnet," ho said, changing his hum- mmg and thrilling tone to a soothing, - tell me your trou- ble. But no ; ye needna, I ken its haill circumfery and diameter. I ken it round about and thro' and thro' We understand the fane the t'other, Mr. Burnet." Again he gripped my hand, as in a passion of friendship, and again he changed his tone, and said, - Let us ha'e a chopin of red wine together. Love and wine and roses go together t " -lied wine and red roses," I rapped out, remembering the single red rose in Maudlin's possession and the bowl of red roses in my lord's. - Even so," quoth he. - Are ye a lover o' the Canticles Solomon, Mr. Burnet ? Ye get a fine brewis of love and wme and roses there, Mr. Burnet. The Kirk pro testeth It doth signify her love unto Christ," quoth he softly ^behind his hand. - Ho-ho ! the Kirk's no blate to ak a that hot, hot love and red, red wine and roses to iiersel ; but we ken mair than believe it for Cospel But our wine, Mr. Burnet,"-he broke off on a sudde'n, and eyed my cup. He took it in his hand. -A pewter tas- tTste " "" "^ "" ^'''' " '^''^^' ^^^' '"^^" ^ ^"^ -I doubt James Brown hath no better tasse," quoth I SSilveror glass, Mr. Burnet," says he, -is your only proper vessel for wine when it is drawn from its continent barrel Ho-ho ! " quoth he, tapping his brow with his soft finger-tips. - 1 luive the tiling. I can untie the knot of Uhhculty. Solvitur ambuJando, Mr. Burnet : ye've been ' -■ I ?l ' 196 The Angel of the Covenant. at the college later nor me, and ye'U correct me if I am wrong. Amiriglit?" < h i,i. Ave and then continued to hearken to b.r John with a d— t ga.e. His whispering done, S,r John took *h! Zn fWliarly by the elbow and led hmi forward !<™s Mr Burnet," said he, " is my lord's chamberlam. He'irtai' ye to a privy chamber, while I go br.ng the "" nlving so said, he set oB at a quick step l..ck the way w. hX^me and I, with no doubt of his faith, went with The cfamb"rla,n le conducted me by a dim passage and to"; chambers to an inner chamber, wh.ch was quite dark. v. 1 ■„ " Bide a wee," said the chamberlam. He fumbled, and struck a spark with a fhnt and fleensh, blew some tinder into a flame and thereat 1* » candle that 8 old re"dy in a silver candlestick. That done the cham- berlain wlited on the one foot while I looked round and saw that I was in a cabmet of books. ., You are but come frae France, Mr Burnet ! sa d he • he spake with a tongue that was plamly more used to '- r;rmore— r:^ M. Ohamberlain,- "* " Nay," says he, " 'tis no guess ; 'tis the surety of eye- Meeting with the Knight of Luss. 199 "To bo siVsuid I, "you'll have aeon it on tl.o Oor- (ion gentlemen." ^ v^^i ' -Ah, to bo surcly/^says he, ^ the Cordon gentlemen will be wearing it/' ° "^"ii.n "Tho' now," says I, -they should have put on the colors of my lord of Iluntly." ^ sayl he!"' *' ^' '''''^^' "'"' *^'^ ^'^^^ ^' ^^ ^^'^' ^^'^ i«/' Even then I had no suspicion, but set the diversity of his answers to the charge of his barbaric ignorance omv meaning. And so he slipped away, and clLd he door Chamberlain," 1 'inii ij 1 V ' , * m I 200 The Angel of the Covenant. CIIAPTEU XVI. IN THE HOUSE OF LOUN. I BEAnn the latch Ml, and I tumoa mo about to con- Bidoi- the backs of the books that atood around, a silent embattled host. I keeked hero and theve, .n tins cornel- and hi that, with the aid of the candle. Although God AhniKhty hath seen fit, and the soro needs of our time bavo demanded, that I should bo a man of action, I con- ceive my native bent is to a bookish l-'V.^'t^T ?T fe never be iu a well-plcnished cabinet of books but I feel within mo a fine warmth of expectation and the next mo- ment an infinite regret that I must remain ignorant of so m ch of the poesy and tho wisdom of tho ages pressed "ke nreeions odors of flowers and herbs between the boards of goodly hooks. Such a glow and such a regret I felt wi«.- i„ me then. Drawn by a title or an author his "ame, I took from the shelves this book and that. I dipped and read, and was refreshed as if I had partook of very ambrosia the food of the gods themselves. Time passed me by u;heeld,and fofgetfulness enwrapped mo with a more exquisite sense than the cloak of sleep can give. But of all the books I opened those that he d mo bes were two set ready to hand on a small, mean table. I can Tven remember the cloth with which the table was cover d^ It was a piece of the same brown and yellow stuff I had seen so much of, and it suggested no great lu^/y - ^ gentleman that used it. But tho books were of anotl e sort They were the fit an^l. fair expression of two great mnda. The one was "The Prinoe" of the Florentine In tlic House of Lorn. 201 Machiavcl, and the other was tho " Universal History " of Agrippa l)'Aiibi,i,n,6 which was then but ten years ohl "The Prince/' I doubt, I found something tedious (iiltliouph it seemed tho best thumbed of the two), but the niirnitive of the Ifuguenot schlier and poet held mo like a pliiitre charm ; and I read on, and on, und still on about Km- Henry of Franco, and Coligny, and the (Juises, with all tho greater delight thau I was up with his French tongue. How long I continued to read I cannot riglitly tell, but I came to myself with a horrible sense of heat and oppres- sion. And then I bethought nic that I must have been there a very long while, and yet there was neither sight nor sound of the CJordons, nor of rod wine, nor of silver tussie nor glass. I became aware at the same time that there had been for some while an uplifted, rhapsodical voice sounding in mine ear,— the voice of a man as in preaching or praying. It was somewhere beyond the four walls of my cabinet, and as well to fix its place as in dis- gust of my long detention I flung me to the door. I lifted the sneck, but the door did not budge. I pushed with my kuee, but it remained fast. I leaned and shoved my con- siderable weight against it, but it continued as firm as the wall. A suspicion, which had, so to say, begun to blow round the corner of my mind, now came upon me full slap —that the door was locked and barred without ; that I was detained a prisoner. Wherefore ? I could make no gnuss. For the nonce I turned my attention again to the voice of rhapsody that still sounded somewhere near. I had taken the candle with me to the door, and so had left the backside of the room in darkness. I had seen no window nor air-hole, whose opening would relieve the oppression of the place, but now there caught my eye a gleam of light high up on that side, as wide as a sword blade. I mounted ■..■■% 'I !. I' I I I 'I \ > i If 1 |i '1 > IS i't * 202 The Angel of the Covenant. on a stool, and found a small door, the which I swung open. Then a curious and crafty contrivance was revealed. The little door was a mirror, and set in the thickness of the wall were divers other mirrors, so that, standing there and looking in the several mirrors, I could see all that passed in the chamber beyond, and with my ear inclined to the opening I could hear all that was said. At once I found whence came the voice of rhapsody. A little fair man in the black coat and white bands of a minister stood behind a table with a green cloth, upon which was an open book-a Bible, I opined, and he spoke with an amazing flow of words— lord ! what a flow, soft, and thick, and rich, and sweet, like honey from the honey- comb ! The chamber was filled with men and women, and I made no doubt that I was looking upon the crowd I had seen the back of when 1 entered the house with the Knight of Luss. Near the little fair man, tlie eloquent and rhapsodical minister, was another who arrested my re- gard, lie sat like a tired man, and he seemed wondrous thin and sickly. He was clothed in black velvet with a great plain white collar spread upon his narrow shoulders, which sloped like a bottle. On top was a most notable head. It was high and it was narrow, and the reddish brown hair fell lank and fine and thin from tlie crown upon the collar, and spread there. His forehead looked like a high, round bastion of whitest ivory. His thick curved eyebrows met (the which has ever been accounted Binister)over a long white nose, and the nose dipped over the narrowest lip and the smallest, tightest mouth ever seen on man's face. He sat for the more part with down- cast eyes, but anon he chanced to look up, and on the in- stant I jaloused who my man was. The squint of his small bright eyes declared him the lord in whose house I was. For 1 had already heard the familiar name that my lord of Lorn bore among his own clansmen—" Gillespie In the House of Lorn. 203 Gruamach/' or "Squintirg Gillespie." I considered his reflected image with close attent ; for I knew by gift of iustinct that I looked upon the picture of no common man. And by instinct on that first acquaintance I grievously misliked the meager, peaked, and attenuated face, designed— so it seemed— for all manner of subtlety, prying, and dissimulation. It had been well for me and for others had I continued fast in that opinion. But anon he dispelled it ; for he had a smooth and winning tongue and a modest and gracious carriage, that might have de- ceived the very angels in Heaven. And by what divina- tion was I or any man to know then that in two or three years he would be the lord of Argyll, who sh. d hold Kirk and State in the hollow of his hand, and aspire even to sovereignty in Scotland, and that, ere the end of all, he would be the deadly, resolute, terrified, and vindictive foe of my own dear lord of Montrose ? I did not even jalouse that at that very moment I was the captive of his hidden power. But my regard was turned from my lord of Lorn to the little fair man who was pouring out his whole heart in words of cloying sweetness of sound— my regard, I say, was turned and taken hold of by hearing mention of my native town. And thus I caught up the discourse of the little minister, which was continued thus : " These interdicted lords," (by the which I discovered later that he meant the Mshops) " do also inhibit me to speak at all in Jesus' name within this Kingdom, under the pain of rebellion. But that I have opened my mouth to you this night concerning the love of Christ is proof that, compared with the commands of my sweet Lord Jesus, I care not the twirl of a teetotum for the inhibition of these false lords who have usurped authority in His House— these men whose consciences are made of stout- ness, who ride by Christ upon foot-mantles, and rattling 1 r I < 204 The Angel of the Covenant. coaches, and rub their velvet with the princes of tlie laud in the highest seats." At that a stir like a great breath passed through the company ; and even I could apprehend that such sayings could only mean rebellion against the authority of the bishops, whom I had already heard that the temporal lords misliked as much as did the ministers. "But," continued the minister, '' hall- binks are slip- pery," and, at that use of a vulgar saying, a ripple of laughter passed over the assembly. " They," he went on, 'Hhat seek to sit on them unused will have a fearful fall. He paused, as on the heels of a great prognostication, and then he broke into another style of address : " Beloved, it is time I said fare ye well, and went on my way to my place of exile in prelatical Aberdeen. But as- sured I am in spirit by my dear Lord Jesus that it will not be for long. The time is not far hence," he cried in his voice of wonderful, thrilling music, " when Christ shall come to his own again, when he shall ride over his enemies' bellies, and shall strike through kings in the day of his wrath. At this present, the ways of our Zion mourn, her gold is become dim, her white Nazarites are black like a coal. But our Scotland's skies shall clear again, Christ shall build again the old waste places of Jacob, and our dead and dry bones, shall become an army of living men, and our Well-Beloved," he cried triumphantly, " shall yet feed among the lilita, nutil the day break and the shadows flee away. Yea, our king Josus shall mow down His eiit'- mies, and shall come from Bozra, with llis ga-monts all dyed in blood, and for our consolation shall He appear, and call his wife Ilephzibah, and his land Bculah, for he will rejoice over us and marry us, and Scotland shall say : What iiave I to do any more with idols ? Only let us be faithful to Him that can ride through hell and death upon In the House of Lorn. 205 irougli the ch sayings •ity of the ponil lords ;s are slip- L ripple of em mm seel ) heels of a ito another vent on my 1. But as- t it will not cried in his 3hrist shall bis enemies' day of his mourn, her jlack like a ;aiu, Christ )b, and our living men, , " shall yet the shadows wn Ilis eno ^a^-ments all He appear, ulah, for lie d shall say : ily let us be death upou I t f s a windle-straw, and his horse never stumble, and Ave shall be more than conquerors through Him that hath loved us. ''Finally, my beloved brethren and sisters, in the Lord," said he, changing tone again, ''I counsel you beware of the new and strange leaven of men's inventions, coming among you beside and against the Word of God, contrary to the oath of this our Scottish Kirk. I have discoursed to you of the superstition and idolatry of kneeling in the instant of receiving the Lord's Supper, and of crossing in baptism, and of the observation of men's days, without any warrant of Christ our perfect law-giver. And, beloved, countenance not the surplice, the attire of mass-priests, the attire of the priests of Baal. The abominable bowing to altars of tree is coming upon you : beware, beloved, beware. Hate and keep yourselves from idols, and forbear in any case to hear the reading of the new fatherless Service-book. It is full of gross heresies, Popish and superstitious errors, with- out warrant of Christ, tending to the overthrow of preach- ing. All ceremonies are tlie wares of that great mother of fornications, the Kirk of Home, and they are to be refused, for 1 have shown whither they lead you— even to utter damnation in the broad and burniiig lake of fire and brim- stone, whore shall be weeping and gtiashing of teeth, and never a cold drop of water to cool a burning tongue. Fol- low not, then,— follow not, I entreat you^ the prelatical pastors of the land, for the sun is gone down on them. As the Lord livoth, and as my soul livetli, they lead you from Christ and from the good old way. Yet tlic Lord will keep His lioly city, and make this withered Kirk to bud again like a voiio, and bring forth like a field blessed of the iiord. In with you, then, in with speed to your strong- holds. Be strong, and of a good courage, and the Lor'd will prosper the designs of your hearts. Beloved, I com- iiiond you to God and His keeping, and fare ye well— till the deliverance of the Lord shall come." 206 The Angel of the Covenant. I did not then know that the little fair man with slnn that Chrysostom of honey and snlphnr, w- in a: face, the ^^^^sZers:;;^^ who ™ hait^ the road of exile from Anwoth to Aberdeen. When you come to perpend that diseonrse of his, albe there may appear bnt a great display of eloquence, you will sure y flnd^atent and admirable craft of meaning and pur- pose. But ere I had perpended, it produced on me, as 1 diHlso plainly produce on the company, the true effect of doquenc' : I was moved and swayed beyond the bounds r ason, I feared for the Kirk of the land, and I detested the power of the Bishops. It mattered not that anon my warm and inflated feelings sank to naught, under the cool- L process of reason, that anon I remembered my own good Bishop Patrick Forbes of Aberdeen, and the prou, 1 perverse, and fanatical ministers with whom he must deal, indthat my understanding did rebel against the sway >e orator had won over me for the occasion ;-but that result came not then. At that moment 1 was rc>ady to ride to destruction upon one of the windle-straws o Mi. Rutherford's eloquence-to my own destruction, and the ^^'TheiVcanie a stir and a buz. among the company in the chamber. Men and women pressed around, to shake tlu) little, fair minister by the hand, many of the women even to kiss him on the cheek. ^1 i n „ - I am like Paul," said he, - parting from the brethren atEphesus. Let us pray." And he stretched his hands out over them and put up a most rapturous petition I was still standing on the stool, with my head on higli, marvelously moved and bemused, when I heard a hand a mv door. I stepped to the ground, and stood prepared foi an incomer. And m did come I liad judged to be the Lord of Lorn, look from me to the mirrored opening. lie cast a quick I 1 In the House of Lorn. 207 roiucu even " I see," quoth he, " thatye've made yourself acquainted with the windock." " I sought air, sir/' said I, *'and found a sermon,— or part thereof." " Ha'o ye been liero long then, Mr. Burnet ? " says lie, with a cheerfulness which pricked me. "Ye have my name, sir," says I, professing not to know him : "there ye have the advantage." " I'm Lorn," says he, pat. " So now we're even." " Not yet, my Lord," says I ; " I kenna what for I have been kept here some hours : I do not care to hazard the estimate, how many." "Hours, Mr. Burnet ?" says he, getting another candle from a side-table. "My computation of your waiting amounts merely to minutes : no more than would be ac- counted for by a daidling journey forth and back from this chamber to the next ; " and he indicated with a nod the room whence the company was departing. " And there's anotlier tiling, my Lord, that I kenna : I kenna wliat fori have boon locked in all the while." "Locked in ? Ye dinna say that, Mr. Burnet ! " says ho, looking at me with tlie second candle lighted in his hand : although I could not truly determine whether his eyes were fixed on me or over my shoulder at something beyond. " I found no locks to undo : I had but to raise the sncck to walk in." " Then, my Lord," says I with obstination, "the lock must have been undone ready for your coming." " It may," says he, looking at me again. " That wid- difn' * cuddy, my chamberlain, has his ain notions of security : having got ye here, he may have opined he'd best mak' ye siccar. " " And he did," said I. A<-. that my lord Lorn turned his lip in something of *Widdifu,=wortliy of the gallows. ■ i \ i ' ■X .. I f > ''Vi'\ m ib >.i 208 The Angel of the Covenant. a smile but uttered no sound of laughter : it is, in IZ^I odd thing in my observation ^f'^^ times I have seen him smile, never have I ^-^l^^^^^;, -Ye have been maist inhumanly used Mi Bui net says he. He rang a silver hand-bell. <' Ye'U be nane the waur of acup o' wine." . laoubtccl there w,« a spice o( banter mh.s vo.eean.l thit e° ne as pepper to my temper. In sneU mood 1 have "oted SrmyseH that I am disposed to be a dark, dour, ""a'll^'frank, my lord," says I, " and tellyo I came on that express errand." <« Yp did ? " says ho. , ^ ^ " To take a sitting drink," quoth I, "with the Oordon gentlemen that have come in the train oi my lord marqu,. of lluntly." , He shook his noddle as in lack of comprehension. - At the express invite," said I, - of Sir John. _ - Sir John 2cJia ? " says he, putting on a show of being "^;Sn Colquhoun,mylord,"saysI with something, I doubt, of harsh insistance, -the Kn.ght of Lnss : tl.o man thit brought mc to this house, and that wore your lordship's colors." . , .,, '. Tut," says he, as if his mind wore now illumined w, h understanding, "ye mean the gentleman that did i.mtc ye here to confer with me : a big stalliard fellow He s lindly Scot new come from France that begged ho might bo coLted among my gontlemen. Ye'U not be tellnig .,„■ von's the Knight of Luss .■"' ^ I begged to repeat he was. But I w,« so set back a bemusS I could say no more. I looked my lord Lorn j in tlie taco, with the question m my mmd, and doubtless ;° tiy tye-Was he in truth ignorant that the man was Sir John ? I , i In the House of Lorn. 209 " Wcel," says he, '* and ho may be ; for I have never that I ken set een upon the knight." " My lord," I said, " lie told mo but now that ho was hand in neive with your lordship at the College in 8t. Andrews." "He did ? " says Lorn. " That dings all. Now what for should he stick his immortal soul under the peril of a lie like that ? " '' Doubtless, to bring mo here by the lug." It was the one answer I could put tongue to. '' Plainly, my lord, I have been made a mock of, and I crave your permission to go." "Not a mock, Mr. Burnet," says he ; " for here is the >y wme. " But where, my lord, are the Gordons ?" says I. "The Gordon gentlemen," says ho, "are doubtless waiting on their lord, my good-brother. But I cannot think of your going your ways, Mr. Burnet, without drink- ing a cup with me and giving me a two-three words of converse." He poured from a silver flagon which a servino-- man had brought, into the two silver tasses, paced to the door to make sure it was closed, and then came back to sit down with me to the birling of the wine. " I kenna what to think, Mr. Burnet," says he, leaning over the table as if he would talk in confidence, " of this that you break upon me,— I mean, concerning the Knight of Luss. I shall sleep upon it : we must be menseful and discreet ; for I may presume my Lord Montrose desires no open scandal, and certes, I desire none." It was the first he had named of my Lord Montrose, and I looked up. He set himself straight, let his lip turn in that thin silent smile of his, made me a little obeisance and took up his wine-cup. " In the mean time, Mr. Burnet, I bid you drink with me to the health and fair fortune of your friend Mou- sieur D'Artagnan." 14 ■ nL 'i .'! Mi-\ 210 The Angel of the Covenant. I had raised my cup with him, but I set it down again ; what should he know of my friendship with D'Artagnan ? I cast about in my mind for a due. D'Artagnan was of Eichelieu's guard : and I recalled that one of the letters from llichelieu in the lining of Sir Gilbert Murray's cloak bore a superscription to the Lord of Lorn. I do not doubt that the sharp cross-eyes of him took note from my face how my mind twirled in speculation. He smiled, while he heard mo say, - I did not ken that your lordship was acquaint with any French friend of mine.'' "Nor am I," says he. ''My haill acquamtance with Monsieur D'Artagnan is summed in this,— that three days syne the post carried with him from this town a letter from Mr. Burnet to the aforesaid gentleman at the Palais- Cardinal in Paris." „ , , .. "And, doubtless, ye ken the content of the letter, my lord ? " says I, speaking on the spur. " Something of that, too, Mr. Burnet," says he. Then a stonnd of peril smote me. For with a sudden leap of memory I recalled that not only had I written a letter to D'Artagnan, but also had made allusion to our finding of things precious, dubious, and may be treason- ous in the lining of Sir Gilbert Murray's cloak. What posed and teased my mind was that I could not recall my precise words. Had I put my head in a cleft stick .-» And Us that stick in the hand of this lord of Lorn ? These questions rose threateningly upon me. ^ _ " As one of the Privy Council," he went on, " it is my privilege to ken more than the birds of the air can fetch and carry. "I am but on the doorstep of that kind of knowledge, my lord," said I, holding my mind together ; " and there would seem to be an unco hantle of that sort here since I left hame." Scotland, Mr. Burnet," says he, '' is in an unco wan- <( In the House of Lorn. n unco wan- 211 restful statc-what with ao tiling and another-sur- renderod teinds,* upstart bishops. Popish practises, and paper sermons." <'Imphm," says I without committal, '^ may bo so my lord." ' -But/' says he, of a sudden, - we forget our pledge to Monsieur D'Artagnan." ^ So I drank without a word, and he drank ; and then he leaned him on the tal)le and keeked at me with the damn- able cross-eyes of him. " Monsieur D'Artagnan," quoth he, " is of the Cardinal's household .'* " " He is a soldier, my lord/' says I. ''But he is near the Cardinal's person ^" "Near or far, my lord," quoth I, minding my words, he IS a stout gentleman and a crafty ; and he will o-o far ben with fortune." '^ He hearkened with shrewd interest. ''And are ve aye in mind, Mr. Burnet, to go back to France ? " ho asked. It rose in my memory that I had said as much in my etter. Ihen I remembered the promise I had made some hours agone to Maudlin, that I would stay in Scotland and undertaKe as the Lady Katherine's champion-and at that niy wound gushed afresh, and my mind wavered to and fro Ike a flame. I made answer that I could not truly tell tlien whether I would go or stay. ''Despite the whimsies of the lassies,-the whilk I allow, are deeply potent at your age, -my counsel, Mr. i^urnet, is to stay ; and I conceive my counsel to be some- thing worth." I hearkened under the cross-fire ofTs eyes ; and I will allow that both his words and his looks took hold on my mind. I was admiring how he should guess or know that I had been touched by the whimsey of * Teinds=tithes. '1 m 1 f * 'vHBi fi'^ ' Nli PI ^ ,:.: 1 ! I 212 The Angel of the Covenant. a lass, when liiB speech carmul mo oil" on u new maiter. - Y( 're a sohlu-r, Mr. Burnet, and if I do not nusread tlie sit wonld l,e tin.e eno ,.1 t« »ay -yea" or "nay." 1 l,a,l it i„ „,„ „,i„a .Zj m,ght ovor-»tay n,y wuloomo, an,I I ™s on ,,0 t ' r.n>« to take n,y h-ave, when over the bal,blc '"f t ,Ik l..ch In>d .-on ,nned all the while in the next oil b r there sonn.led eloar the voioe of my Lord Montrose, which went o my heart withastonnd of both pain and glLn s ami ho„ I knew how I loved him. I lifted n.ylrows „' Z i^r'o, r' ■''"'""' r"' "'^"y- '» the'shnttor d "Very like," says he. -I did not ken,- quoth I, - that you, my lord connted Montrose among your friends " ^ ' ^ '""^"^ counted ;; What for no?'' says he': « .ve're allJock Tamson's yorolf/' ' ^'"' '''''' '''• ^""^^^' '-^ -« for 214 The Angel of the Covenant. ■I- iU'. CIIAPTEH XVII. AMONG CONSPIRATORS. WHEN I entered the other chamber, I was something put onrby the exchunation of my lord Montrose, after he had given good-o'cu to my lord of Lorn. - Alec Burnet ! " he cried, in a voice of raillery. '; What s this o't •'' Playing truant all the day, and so reducing your ga; ou^in of Balgownie to the bone, with imagination of the oire perils you must be fallen in ! -I have raxed my tether, I allow," said I. found my permit of leave under my shoe, as the French soldier '"^^''I'dll not ken," said my lord Lorn, with his thin, neat smile, - that I was cracking a lady's string in getting Mr Burnet to my house. But I'd ha' conceived he was stou Enough and well enough furnished with iron to^givo an account of any peril wherein he might be caught. T^^wo'uf my having been brought ^lero anda the sight of my harsh and dour countenance-for doubtk . t was harsh and dour-my lord Montrose appeaj.d troubled and bemused. " I did but jest," ,^tid he-tlut andno niore-and flecked his sleeve with the gloves ho ^tl my t'l trn made me known to the rest of the company, some I --dozen gentWn who had h..u^ei^ to the ahove pas.a,.., .l.^an evident cunosity Ih^.^ ,, .,v '„„, - .,.>;. predestined to be better ac- all men with Wiu^u' -. preat_Li- quaint-some for gooc others fcr ovil. They were my Tds Loudoun, Kother, and Balmerino, and my young loul. Among Conspirators. 215 Kin^'horn, * and CoIoviUc of Culross. It is notable tlmt the number of us was divided eveidy by a^^o, the three fiist- nurned lords with my lord of Lorn making the one siile all of the mature years of somewhat under forty, and the two others with my lord Montrose and myself makin- the second, all four lii'lo n.nr.. than boys; for, though our years were three or four and twenty, wo men of the North hko all else tlmt doth grow there, ripen late. Musing oii these thin,^H in tho clear and sober midtimo of life and thmkmg on tho woful and tragical differences that anon arose between us and these elder lords, I opine that wo are more to l)o excused than they. They were men near twice our age, and moreover were tried hands in all manner of politic dealing ; so that it was but natural wo should put in them the trust of youth, and take them for honest men till they should approve themselves to be knaves "I presume we may speak before Mr. Burnet?" said tho lord Loudoun, looking hard at me as if he would reckon up my value. "What for no V said Lorn. - He doth como of the right stock, and will prove himself of the right spirit I warrant you." ^ ' They resumed their talk, into which I put no word for some while. But I hearkened heedfully to all ; and the discourse of Mr. Samuel Rutherford aiding mo, I soon understood what the conference would be about Tho iu-rument w is addressed to the young lords, but chiefly to n/;- lord Montrose ; for it was plain that the other two (who hud been intimate with Montrose at College) were in clined to think as he thought. The most active spokes- man was the lord Loudoun, who was a kinsman of Lorn's He was an unrestful man, tall and thin, with a high acridity of voice and carriage. Anotlior kind of person altogether was my lord Hothe., who rendered the greatest * Ancestor of the Earls of Strathmore. ■}\V' ' I ■ ; r. !1 : !l J 0' •. i-^:i I f f* 2I< The Angel of the Covenant. iiid to his crony Loiuloim argument. He was in bearing up the weight of the and sprightful as a school-boy, fis gay and spng with much hint of the school-boy in his slim, active body his smoo ,th face, and his open light-blue eye am in drollery like any inerry-andrew's Avhich Of my Lord Balmer ;,i not ,n«oh. HobM.f«.-«.omore,av ino I in less on the sill of the open w of the ¥ ■t, list- a. uu.. >.indo;v, and looked away over . r. f thP H'irth and the hills of Stirling, beyond the the shores of the 1^ irtli ana beautiful a which the sun was ^^^^^^I'^^f ' f (.^^^^^^^^ in scene as mortal eye ever beheld on God s ^-^' J hta to be "-'^'^X'^^l^'^^'Zlv^o.^ of his age and In '^°"t™^\, *'* f j';';' 1 house, my lord of Lorn. faction, was the master "^ ^ j^ heedfnUy ho Mainly he sat silent by the table Di ^^^^^ marked all that P--f/^^ ^„," „^^' Xe elotfi and of ^;Se-i:nrllS tfe pemts of the arga. "T "°"'":lrof th!i o vn miabie temper but because only on account ot their ow (x gathered anon of tlieir love of my 1»"I»"*™"' ™u ,, tports as at his none seemed o noble, nor ^^_^^ ^^^ ^^^^^ Montrose. Ihio tno inn, ^^ ^^^^ heart it warmed me to lie seat of my be ^^^ ^^^^^ behavior and his speech ;-how ^'' ^^ ^|i„ g„,, „,ith „errybutiK,tgrotes,ue frieumyb^^^^^^ r.:^t::;r"--"-:dorLpieasii.^ Among Conspirators. 217 Furthermore, I did observe that, while my lord Montrose was dight in the most elegant and picked array of silk and lace, and my lord Lorn sat rich in his sad-colored velvet and fine plain linen, the other three elder lords looked faded, like roses whose season of bloom is past and whose leaves are ready to drop. And I would have you note that well ; for their decayed splendor spoke to mo presently of the secret of the whole business they were going about to accomplish. In such a raveled hank of these' Scottish troubles which were just in the beginning, the great hold for comprehension is to get their method by the end, so that still as you pull the thread may come. The rich, yet faded, doublets of these lords did not contain the whole history of the troubles ; but they did furnish so to say, the frontispiece and preface, and from them you must begin to understand. These three lords had been to Court ; they had striven among the factions (for never had there been such a time as that for faction, Scottish and other, at the King's Court) ; and they had returned disappointed and bare. They, poor and proud Scots lords, had ruffled and swaggered it with the richest of the lords of England, and they had come out of the contest broken in fortune and iu temper. Being rogues in grain, of active understanding, and plausible speech, they contrived to aggravate the itch which the action of the King and Laud had provoked in the Scottish Kirk and State, in the hopes that when the trouble, slight enough at first, had become a grave dis- temper they should be summoned as physicians, Lo their own profit in power and purse. AVith no more religion in them than there is in a crab-tree cudgel, they made com- mon cause with the fanatical ministers and the foolish women whose fears for the purity of the Reformed religion were truly sincere ; and in all ways they did contrive to augment these fears. I do not profess that I attained to all that knowledge of them on the instant, for in truth I •Mi i • M |:i;r :.!i I f! :•! 14 !;, J ! •» 218 The Angel of the Covenant. ,vas haml in ucivc with tlu.o ; tor l'''';™ "' "''J^^f ,, 1 i,.,f ., kind ot iniignilicciioe wliicli prayed tlmt no dor, but a, k nd ot g ^^^^ j^^^,,^.^ pmitiimcd for some years to be, an 0111^111^ > J Zt m a. g I thought it a satisfaction to note h.s :-h.s tafo prov ked a singular douht ; when first h.o turned his !; son you surprise came that you should have over sup- rcdhJVinted ; but, '-soon you had resolved y™.^^^ that he did notsquint, his eyes crossed and fell, tlie which 1 lold tohe a parable in little of the lord's influence npon "This is how the talk ran when I canght up with it :- ' n„." aid Loudoun , " I'll do aught in reason to accom. modatc myself to the King's desire ; but when he calleth me to srcornplcte surrender of mine ancient temds* I :",nt tLLtSn reason : 'twould push me to thebnnkof *'^!r^1n':rso"badasthatr' quoth Montrose J'l t.„ Wo suffered in estate ; but I suffer gladly ; for I ho d rthZ-tUat the tei.ds were at the first the prop- ertv of the Kirk, and that the Kmg doth but fulfil t desi.m of onr own Reformers in reclaiming them for the BU8t°enanco of ministers and schoolmasters " For the sustonance ye mean, James, put in Eothcs, "Of bishops and clerks." ,,^^^ ^^^,„^ doth remain that the Kin.'s intent is for the good of Ko- 1 i| ligion and Education »» Tithes Among Coiispinitor 219 md shared i I declare id doublets rd of Lorn ided spleii- 3d that no lord Loru's rtrus, and he yet at that 3 this : — his turned his 7e ever sup- ved yourself the which I uence upon with it : — lou to accom- 1 he callcth tit teinds* I » the brink of ontrose. " I ;ladly ; for I irst the prop- 3ut fulfil the ihem for the ut in Rothes, ., "the truth e good of Re- "Tis ah easy matter," quoth Loudoun, " for you, Mont- rose, aiul for Lol-n there, to he careless (Jullios in this matter ; for tlu; hinds of the twain of ye ure remote and little cumbered with uuld Kirk eliurires " Jiy my troth," said Kothes, stepping round Ivoud oun to say his word, ''our Fife is as thicjk planted with kirk- steeples as with kail-runts ! " And Lorn there," said Loudoi hath Lorn uiiure, saui i^ouuoun, " hath none obedient red-shanks to tliink o'. " "The heart knoweth his own bitterness," quoth Lorn, wagging liis head. " Ila, Avohio," laughed Rothes, " behold how bitter as gall it is to bo contered and bearded— not that Lorn hath many hairs to his chin— by a bisliop, a mere Galloway nag, too, in tlie Privy Council !" " What ? " questioned Montrose. " Is this a jest ? " " A jest, quo' he ! " cried Rotlies, making a wry mouth. " A bitter jest Lorn found it, as ye've heard." " This it was," said Loudoun, coming to a stop in his pacing back and forth. And he told how at a certain kirk in Galloway, while the congregation were taking the Com- munion on their knees, a gentleman of tlio Galloway Gor- dons, and fellow-tutor, or guardian, with Lord Lome to the Viscount Kenmure, boldly broke in with the company that to take the Communion kneeling was plain idolatry and papistry ; and the which interruption the Bishop, by virtue of the authority of the High Commissioners and of the new Book of Canons, did take the gentleman, faul him to his trial, and lay him in jail for some weeks' space ; and how, when the lord Lorn raised debate on the matter in the Privy Council, the Bishop did there and then, on some point, give him the lie. '' The lie ?" cried my lord Montrose, wheeling about to Lorn, " What said you then when thus given the lie in face of the haill Council ? " I : i 2 20 The Angel of the Covenant. The lord Lorn looked up, and his eyes glittered,— and crossed. '' 'Twas not tor the likes of uie," said he witli smooth! but malicious speech, " to bandy Avorfs witl. a man like yon,— with, for aught 1 ken, a mason to his father and a scullion to his mother." *' Had the thing happened," laughed Eothes, 'Mvithm cry of the Castle of Inverara, Lorn, I warrant ye, would iust ha' beckoned a finger to his red shanks, and ni the twinkling of an eye they'd have had the Bishop hanging out like a tossel at the Castle port." ^ _ " But Lorn uttered ae word, both canny and true, said Loudoun, with plain flattery. '''As the insult is to the lords,' " quoth he, '''so the quarrel is for the lords, and not for me.' " "Maist true," said Rothes, " politic, beyond all cavd. For ye shall see it will be a huuder times waur in the end for the bishops that Lorn hath put his quarrel on the backs of all the lords and not ta'cn it on himsel'. Agree with thine adversary quicUy, whiles thou art in the way with him is good scripture and fine sense, and the bishop was a Jock-fule no to tak' it for his counsel." " Enough of the bishops," quoth Lorn. "A true word!" laughed Eothes. "We have had enough of the bishops indeed ! " "If the nobles and gentlemen of Scotland, said Lou- doun " endure these insolencies of the bishops, it will follow soon that we must speir a bishop his leave for even wind and water." . . .^ „ ^^ « By your favor, maist holy and reverend father, said Rothes clasping his slim hands and addressing Loudoun with mock humility, as if he were a bishop, " of all the mtrimo7iium domittcd to me by my Leslie forebears grant me ae sma' place o' rest and retirement, whaur Natures needs may be eased wanting offence to your holmess. The Kincr hath granted ye my teinds, tak' my tithes also ; Among Conspirators. e have had r% 221 ho hath gi'enyorny cloak, and doubtless yc will also need my coat ; bnt, O niun of God, I pray thoo leave mo a sark to hai) my imrdios and to hide tlio sliamo o' my nakedness ' " '• Cease your havers, Jock," said lord Loudoun, wavin- hnn mto sdenco, and beginning to inwind a fine, KmI sounding screed about tlie danger to their order for the growing power of the bishops, lie ended with this, as if he were addressing a set assembly. - 1 protest to ye that the Kirk and State of Scotland shall never have security of their own again till the bishops are torn up crop and root. Jla est: sicproljo! Perqef Ur(je! Pumjp.l Expurga!" When Loudoun had ended his pedantic string of Latin imperatives, my lord Montrose made quick reply '' The bishops are too much with us ; that needs amendment • there I am with you ; " und he set his palm (after a fashion of his) open on the table. "Amendment ?" growled Balmcrino from the window '' Complete reform : an ax laid at their tree-root." My lord keeked over his shoulder to him, and then went on, '^To pull them up, however, root and crop may mean the uprooting of more than they. Mark ye, I care not for bishops this way or that. But we should take wise counsel first, and after that quick action." ''Therefore it is, my lord Montrose," said Lorn, getting on his feet, - that we have invited you, our young Ulysses " "Ulysses, my lord ?" said Montrose, with a smile and a blush that might beseem a maid. <' Wherefore Ulysses ? '' "Have ye not wandered the earth these several v(ars by- pust, collogued with kings and wise men, baffled sirens, and now returned hamo to your patient Penelope ?" " Ah, by my troth," cried Rothes. - where is Penelope V " "A\here should she bo," said Balmcrino from the win- dow, "but minding her loom, or casting pearls of barley i)etorc the cocks and hens at her father's yett ? " At i'ii I ■ t 1,1 ) I * ) I 2 22 The Angel of the Covenant. At that my lord imllcd his brows a little but took the jestit^g sweetly, and said with a toss of his head -If I be Ulysses, then there should be waiting for me at hame a great bow to draw." , , i n "Ha," said llotlies and Loudoun, earelessly togethci, **and doubtless there is." , . .. i i. -There is," said Lorn with emphasis: -a long bow, a strong bow, a bow that no other ean draw to the arrow s ^'''- Then James Graham's the lad to draw it," said young Kinghorn : - he was first bowman of his time m St An- drews— /rt6'i7eiJrmcc;>6\" ,,-,.,, • n -And twice," said Colyile of Culross, -did ho win the silver arrow at the butts. Whereupon all laughed, my lord Montrose as merrily as '"''^^''BuU me no iutts. Colvile," said Rothes : - we speak "- ZHhSk ye, Rothes," quoth Colvile, - that I have been so long from college that I forget what metaphor m ? -Nay, nay," laughed Rothes ; -for lean see the Latm of alma mater still wet upon your lips." _ - 1 conceive," said Lorn, in his smooth, flattering voice -that it was Montrose and his bow that the godly Samuel Rutherford had in mind the night when he said. It is easy to set an arrow right before the string is drawn bu when the arrow is sped in the air the bowman hath lost his command of it." . -True," said Montrose, -and to the very point, my lord In this business that ye set before me, mind well, sirs,'before ye draw the arrow to the head that ye ken what your aim would be." . At that the elder lords cast each an eye on the other, as if they would say, - Is he there with us ? " - Ken, James ? " said Rothes, familiarly joggmg him b) I ■i- I 1 Among Conspirators. 223 by the elbow, as if in some impaticiioo. " Wo ken tint fine." '" Well/' said Montrose, "it is more than I yet ken." "Let mo enlighten ye," said Loudoun, prompt to nnder- take a new screed of exposition. " What for should ye darken counsel with more words, John ?" quoth Balmerino, twisting round from the win- dow. "Our liberties in Kirk and State," said he, fixing his eye on Montrose, " are so damnably in peril that out- aim is to restore all things as they were before the Articles of Perth ; and the question we speir at you, James Graham of Montrose, is this :— arc ye with us ?— You that bear the long bow, the strong bow "—(but said that with a kind of ironical twang)—" will ye shoot at our mark ?" " I thank ye for your plainness, Balmerino," said my lord Montrose ; " but I have a desire to be better informed and better resolved about the haill matter ere I commit me and my bow to a course of such moment." And he smiled. The elder lords looked each upon the other, and seemed, 1 thought, something huffed and put out. "It grieves me," said he, with his notable princely dignity, "to seem to halt between two opinions, since ye have thought me worthy to be joined close with you in counsel. But," said he, after musing an instant, "have ye nsed all modes of representation to His Majesty ?" "Used and exhausted,'" answered Balmerino with promptitude, as if he were impatient to be done with the matter. " But His Majesty's ears are blocked up by men who so straitly beleaguer him for their own profit that the truth cannot approach him." " Hoot, James," put in Rothes, "by all accounts your own reception by the King should have learned ye a shorter gate to remedy for offence than thro' the Court." " Ay, there it is," declared Montrose, with the manner of one lifting a lid from a boiling pot to let the vapor ■^r ,f',i ■ 1 ^HH ;l . ^- \:ii^ 224 The Angel of the Covenant. lice. ''I will not have it sui.l, as doubtless it would, be, 'Moutroso hath so mi.s^ht an opinion of hinistai" that oonceiving ho had lu'on uniuindsonu>ly tivatcd by the Kin- ho wont homo to Scotland in hot hasto and stniightway joined hinisolf to tho malcontent lords of that country/" *' *SVnV// " quoth Lorn in his smoothest accent. " What, Mr. Burnet, is the admirable motto of your Earls Alaris- chal: "77/(7/ sail? W/int sai/ then? Lvt them, say." I^[y lord :Montrose I commeml that to you as wise counsel." ]\[y lord considered him, and stood a space in mute debate. " Is supper ready. Lorn ?" asked lialmerino, as if weary of the whole business. " Bide a woe," said Lorn, rebuking his impatience with a swift glance. Then came a remarkable question from my lord Mont- rose, which was, I think, not over-wise, but which was the direct birth of his free and honest nature. " Will ye tell me this ?"— and ho looked round upon the company letting his glance linger a moment on Lorn. '* Have ye any pact with tho Cardinal of llichclieu ?" Lorn took it upon him to make reply. ''I was in a doubt whether ye'd name that first or we. Ye ken some- thing o't?" <' I ken," my lord answered straight, *' that some pieces of correspondence have passed between the Cardinal and you and my lord of ILimilton ? " ** Hamilton?" cried they all in astonishment ; and '< Hamilton ! " also cried my lord Lorn, but he looked down his long nose. " Are ye assured of that ? " ''Most perfectly," answered my lord.^^ ''And Mr. Burnet there shares the assurance witli me." " That is true," said I, " perfectly true." I then became the observed of all, while Lorn, with a Among Conspirators. 225 cuiiny smile, doohirod, - I koii all ulmul, Mr. linrnot II(. wfulcth .lo(HHT tlmn any i,i M,nt kind of Fnmv.h tniflic • for lie liiith a correspondent (0 Jii.s luiinser in (,ho (.•ardinal's lionse." At tiiat Miy ]<,rd Afontrose opened hisbri-ht eyen a little wider on me, bnt said never a word. And J also like a simipl,, heedless of peril, and something prond, too', of mv new importance in that noble and politic company, kept my month shut ; which increased my reputation for craft Lord ! how a simple loon may be misjudged, even out of Ins very simplicity and silence ! From that night-(altho' Iknew It not for a long while)-I stood in the view of these over-subtle lords as one of the subtlest and most secret of conspirators ! I ! There was some further talk, freely uttered, of the Cardinal s affection to Scotland, because of the Ancient League between us and the French, and of his counsel that we should stand by our ancient liberties with hope of aid from him in case of need,-and then a servitor an-' nounced that supper was ready. We were bidden into .mother chamber; and it was while we sat at supper there t la an astonishing event fell out. Well do I remember hat my lord Kothes, having begun to sit well in to his wine had uttered a friendly ],ope that he and I-whom he called -a proper, politic lad^'-might be better acquaint, and that he had just replenished his neighbor of Loudoun's cup from the vinogar-flask, saying blasphemously, - When hewas athirst they gave him vinegar with gall to drink " -It was then that a serving-man entered with the word that a gentlewoman desired to speak with mv lord Montrose. "A gentlewoman?'' cried Rothes. '^lave her in James ! Lo,_this is the Sir Galahad virtue of the Graham that ladies fair and fain must needs pursue the tail of him to the houses of his friends." I ^': 11; 11 vt^t '.. :^il 226 The Angel of the Covenant. My lord rose with a gathered frown, but had time to say no word, when a voice I well knew sounded from the door : " Gude-e'en to ye, my lords,— and to you, my sweet and constant cousin." . And tlicro stood curtseying to the company my fan- cousin of Balgownio with the hood tossed back from her head. *; ■'' .{'' ' 1; ■|l I i ''^ 1 'i|(, ' ;''i!i^*iii i ! ii i-1 The Trick of the Knight of Liiss. 227 CHAPTER XVIII. THE TRICK OF THE KKIGIIT OF LUSS. " Begoi) ! " cried Rotlies, slapping his hand on the table. ^' If It s no our gay gossip, Kate Gordon o' Balgownie, da/t •Ah is her wont ! " '' And, by the Pupe," quoth she, " if it's no my ne'er- (lo-weel crony, Jock Leslie o' Rothes, drunk as is his wont ! " At that all did laugh. "But wherefore *by the Pape,' your ladyship?" de- manded Loudoun. " Wcel, honest John," quoth she, "since ye will aye bo speirin', because I wouldna, like your friend Jock, tak' the name o' the Lord in vain ; but for the Pape 'tis no great matter." " I opine, your ladyship," said the master of the house, " that ye ha'e come seeking for something ? " " Troth, aye, and I ha'e found it," quoth she, " tho' I havena your lordship's gift o' looking twa gates for the Sabbath." It was a palpable sting ; but Lorn took it civilly enoucrli "And may I presume, your ladyship," said he, " to sp^eir what ye seek and have found ? " " Faith," she answered, " I just came forth like Saul the son of Kish, seeking my father's asses, and lo, I ha'e found them." And she swept the company a fine curtsey. There was plainly naught to be made of her ; fm- if my lords could bite with their jibes, she could scratch. I entertained tho opinion— and so, I am content, did they. '•r life'' i' ,1. :/ ! |f|j!ii|'|i.;! ^^■, L -, : ^^■'1 ' : 1 s IL. : ^':^l 1 1 -J 1 1 ■ i i' 228 The Angel of the Covenant. —that, altUo' she put a liglit faco upon it, her business there was serious. Slio Avas, however, ch-arly rcsohea not to cleoUire it, and I swiftly eoncUuh'd tliat it was intended for my car or my h)r(rs or for both. In that mind 1 turned mo to begone from the company. ''And now, cousin," said 1, '* ye'U be needing a convoy hame." ''Ay, Alec," quoth she ; "ane or twa of the cuddies I ha'c found." And her eye passed from me to my lord Montrose, who made her a gracious obeisance and said he claimed to be one of the asses she had need of. My lords, however, would not hear but that they should first drink their service to her in a cup of wine ; the which they did, all yet standing. She took it gaily, drinking off her own tassie, and whispering me, as I took it from her hand, " Haste ye '. " *'To tell truth, my lords," said she, doubtless deeming it necessary to give some better account of her intrusion, " I came to the house seeking my kinsmen, the Gordons." " They are up the stairs," said my lord Lorn. " But how," quoth she, " could I jalouse that they would be aboon my lord Lorn ? and sae I blundered in here." Thus, thanking Lorn and the company for their " civility," she swept another curtsey, and passed from the chamber ; and with an adieu my lord Montrose and 1 were ' on her heels. Without we found her woman, Jessock, with a lantern, who lighted us down the stairs. "Well, what's this o't, my lady?" quoth my lord, as soon as Lorn's door was shut and our feet were going down. * "She's gone, James!" answered my cousm. '^ Keft awa' ! and not a man to hinder ! " And with that she cast a glance at me. "Gone? Katherine, ye mean?" cried my lord. ng ii convoy s, The Trick of the Knighl of Liiss. 229 " E'en 80/' my cousin miido answer. " 'J^ho poor lamb » -haushod forth again by that wolf in sheen's clothin'**- 3\Ltl,cr he be fatrel or justified. But our concern now is about P "^^ bI^'L," my lord demanded of a^sndden, " did Sir -ifH7de'i^'r'r:ara:i;..a.iuno..de *:* .^^itmU: co":Z" said I . " lor I had engaged my- ^".^.Kow;;"'- L. " 'tis Vind in you Al«. to,seelc to . "°"' ^, j,,„ „_i(, 1 . but let me tell my tale, relieve me «£ « "^'^t , ^ ^^^^ ^^^^ ^^^^.^^ .^^ ,,, ^"" ''Vwith hrotusin,' NathanielGordon (who had converse with her co , ^^^^ ^ „( secretly come south to -n^^* '"' '^ ;„ eompany «"""j;\"'l"l';hernft was «ien that Sir John went r?' *:t £ do r wM* was warded only by Jessock, tirling at her """'.V,' , ,^^^^„„.jg He made inquiry for since the departure of the to^'^S""™;- ' j Mr. Bnruot. Maudlin, sayinghe ^^^^^l^^^ 'rirent. ''^^r'^::itiiLr>rl"::ra:di:;ikandhis while. Ana lus wn^ ,^^^j j^^^j rU;;-^rw^llTf il^ir h^ml^^^^^^^ to% weak woman-body?" . ^^^^^ •Polecat. The Trick of the Knight of Luss. 231 It was to heai tliat the poor lamb was eono but tl.A i„ staut before and to see Maudlin distraught vi'gie S„" I jan to your lodging, James, .>d so' followfd yL t By dark and ni-known closes and yenncls Jessoek had eon conducfng us the while, and now we were arrived at the land near the top of which my cousin kept her I„dg Mg. In haste and panting silence wo clomb the staif which surely was the longest and hardest that ever mas^S laul a trowe to. Jessoek's underling opened the door to us • and w>th,n we discovered Maudlin pacing back and forth, wnngmg her hands and weeping with pafsion. Her curls were all tossed like flames about her face, and her eyes were swollen with tears. "0," she stood and cried to us, " what for was I made s,lly a thing as a woman ? Or, being a woman what for was I not learned to use a sword ? Cif I hacUven had We put hnrricd questions to her r-ffhat did he ? and what said he ? Her answers did demonstrate how till strange man had moved her. "At the first." said she, "he won upon me; for he hearkened to me with a soft inclination, L if I »;re ve ' uoots and Havers ! And when I continued to trv to keep h,m off with argument he said that for tl e ime ^ was nutter here and was resolved to bo obeyed, and le tent us unco e'en upon me. ' Katherine,' sL ,e • win gow.thme; and yon may come, too,-if yewil ' On f^e mstant I said I would go to be with my fe 'Vkeu h changed with a frown and said 'fiJ n, *t. . others. I urged reasons why I should go ; whereupon he . 'i':i?i: I! ij ■1 1 1 & j^ yi . 1 232 The Angel of the Covenant. said he had hoard enough of my 'sweot babble.' That r„«ml me • whereupon ho cried, ■ 0-ho, my bourne lass, Ss but ae gate wftl> the likes of you !' And, ere I was * wa.v lie had me rowed in his arms, and had bouijd mo w. h ; n e k owcr my head, and laid me down upon the eouch Ld all the while Kathorino, my poor dear, stood hke Lot's tife. 0, how. ean a horrid villain have sueh ho d Lou r woman ? H," she cried, with a stamp, " I could ba' been a man !— but for an mstant ! Amlagain she wept, as much out of bitter vexation, as '" My"Jo';a stood white and silent. He and I looked upon .nob other and there was not a doubt betwixt us that fe r Jot mu ; be pursued, and the Lady Katherine again saved hom the potent and malign spell which he practised Ion her. I spake and claimed it as my right and privilege to pursue alon , backing my claim with reasons wherefore m/Lord should not stir out of Edinburgh with me,-but hp would allow none. "™ie is my sister," said he, " and I lovo her Poor, dear heart, I =annot credit that it is with her wi 1 she . so s av sh ; subject to him. He is possessed of the most c^^tive Lfluences of the Pit I hope that Go , lu mercy, will yet break the mechaut spell, and it is for iiic "itrutt-- ^- 1 --\*» — "ft OTa^cd her to convince my lord that the pursuit of Sir John was for me alone. She astonished me with an answer that was like a stab. , , , ^ ..1, «ti,;. "Speak not to me. Alec!" she broke forth. "Tl, would not have been had ye kept your word of promise! My lord must go ! " . , I bowed m V head, and turned me away with a sore sore snot in my heart, and with anger and grief in my Toat! while my lord declared that, in any case, he bad e.' That imie lass, , ere I was d me with ihe couch, stood like such hohl , <*I could 3xation, as oked upon us that Sir srine again e practised id privilege 3 wherefore li me, — but lier. Poor, r will she is of the most God, in his it is for mc Maudlin and irsuit of Sir th an answer fth. " This of promise! with a sore, grief in my case, he had The Trick of the Knight of Luss. 233 settled his business for leaving Edinburgh the next day, and that an hour or two earlier would make no differ -Excepting, James," quotli my cousin of JJalgownie, " that our farewells maun be tlie shorter." From lier quick eye I caught a glint wi'iich set me think- mg she had made some guess of the buff that ]iad arisen betwixt Maudlin and me. And so, with heavy hearts and sore, my lord and I took our leave ; for precious time must still be spent before we could be upon the road We consented tliat it would not be prudent in me to appear beyond the city in my uniform of the Scottish regiment of France. Therefore 1 went with my lord to his lodging to borrow a doublet of less remark That being done, while my lord made dispositions for his return home to his castle of Kincardine in Strathearn, I was off hot-foot to find my man and my horse, and to visit the ports with the question for their warders if they had seen such and such a company pass thro, I could lay hands neither upon my horse nor upon my m.ui ; nor could I hear aught either at the AYest Port or at tlio Nether-Bow of any man hke Sir John or of any company like his I went back with that report to my lord. We took counsel together, and in a little while were resolved what we would do. Suffice it that anon we were together on the reedy shore of the Nor' Loch * and in the shadow of the Castle Rock (tor there are more ways than the Ports of leaving the town) and there we groped and stumbled to seek, and bv good hap to find, trace of Sir John. For, altho' we had no knid of surety whither he would go, we did stoutly surmise it would be to his own old westland haunts about Loch Lomond,-and that for two reasons : first, because ho was like to have a hankering for his ancient home, and ulZ^r '^" ^"''''' ^'"""' ''"'''^' ""^ "^^ ^^^^^^1^3^ Station I .i . wr i 4' 1 j : 1 I - 1. ' i i 234 The Angel of the Covenant. next, he would conceive himself more secure there, in case my lorO. Montrose should choose to publish his con- tumacious presence in the country and set the agents of Kirk and State upon the scent of him, outlawed and ex- communicate as he was. There was a ferry near by, across the loch to the Lang Dykes,* whither the Edinburgli rufflers were wont to pass to satisfy affairs of honor ; and coming to the place wo found the boat, and the boatman asleep therein. '' Ho, my man," said I, waking him, '' have ye seen a buirdly gentleman hereabout within an hour or mair ?— a gentleman with a lady in his company ?" *' There was a muckle chiel," growled the man in answer, " cam' here an hour syne, in a burabee doublet : Ye'll no be meaning him ? " *' T.\m very man ! " said I. '' And a li< ly was with him ? " questioned my lord. " Troth, and there was, sir,'' said the man, sitting up on tl«e spur of my lord's quick, earnest tone. '' W)iere went he ? " I demanded. *' He was for gi'eing me a hantle siller to row him o'er the bit kch," growled he, as if the proposal had been an insult, " And ye put by his siller ?" quoth my lord. ^' What for should I do that ? " said the man. " Because," said my lord with severity, " he was plainly a man to be withstood and turned back to be warded in the Castle or the Tolbooth." " What's that o't, sir ?" said the man in manifest fear. " Weel, I'll no say but I had my doubts whenever I saw him nosing up on the other side wi' half-a-dozen red- shanks ! '" Now," said my lord, '' the son of your father had best * The Lang Dykes were where Princes Street and George Street now run. :i.m iro there, in lish his con- iie agents of iwed and ex- jar by, across ! Edinburgh honor ; and the boatman ive ye seen a or mair ? — the man in bee doublet : my lord. ,n, sitting up I row him o'er had been an rd. I an. he was plainly be warded in manifest fear, lenever I saw f-a-dozen red- 'ather had best set and George The Trick of the Knight of Luss. 235 be supple and get his oars out, and no put his craig in further peril/* *' If it be the Lord's will, sir," said the man, " I'll die on a good cauff * bed ; but, whether or no, on the braid 0' my back." While the boatman was getting ready, my lord and I took counsel together ; and then by consent I entered the ferry-boat to explore the Lang Dykes, and my lord went on by the shore of the loch to receive the servants and the horses as soon as they won thro' the Nether Bow. *Chatf. f I it 1 1! < I '•5 rr ^ i it: Id A ''\ J, mU^Ld^ i. 236 The Angel of the Covenant. CHAPTER XIX. THE GABERLUNYIE AND THi: SHOT FROM THE SHAW. As I lay among the yellow wliius of the Lang Dykes, waiting for my lord, the day began to stir. The light from behind the Calton Hill breathed and fluttered thro' the serene and quiet sky ; an early lark sprang aloft and broke the silence with his streaming song ; and I could see plainly over the ripening fields of bearded barley. You must know that from the Lang Dykes the ground on the north runs steeply down for a moment towards the shore of the Firth, and the fishing-town of Newhaven ; therefore I stood up- right to overlook the land, and to spy if there were any creature moving therein. I looked long and shrewdly ; but I saw no human being in the field of my vision. My eye searched the parks and open lanes and paths, but found only here and there some kine or nowt * rising to graze, as is their wont at the first show of dawn. Standing thus, with my gaze cast far abroad, I was hit as with a musket shot to hear a voice from under my nose. " Lie doun, man. 'Tis nae waukin' f time yet. It may be for cocks and hens, but nae for twa-lcggcd cattle like you and mo ! " Spying thro' a bunch of whins, in the midst of which he lay warm in a faded, moss-colored gown, was a big, bearded knave. On the instant I put him to question :— How long had he lain there ?— and had he seen aught of such and such a company ? ^'Cattle, t Waking. HE SHAW. h The Gabcrlunyie. 237 " ' O saw ye my faither, or saw ye my mithor ? ' » lilted the knave. " ' O saw ye ray dearie, Eppie M'Cann ? • She's down in the yaird ' She's kissin' the laird, ' She winna come hame to her ain gudeman.' That's like to be the tale/' he went on ; " and ye're a waiikrife,* wilful lad that maim ha'o the hearing o't— the speiring o't and the hearing o't. Weel, weel," he said, yawning, and sitting up, " ' Hey, now the day daws, the jolly cock craws' . . . *J3nt * The lassie thought it daw, when she sent her love awa,' And it was but a blink o' the mune. ' Blink ? ' quo' ye. " Blink ower the burn, sweet Bettie." "Man," said he, peering up at me, '' never stand when ye can sit, and never sit when ye can lie." I had been fumbling at my memory to win at the knave's identity, and now the look upon his face gave the key. I had known but one man with that look, that harsh north- ern twang, and that mode of using catches of song in his speech. " Wattie Findlater,'' said I, « what the mischief do ye here ?— besouth the Forth ? " He stood up, and gazed on me. '' I maun tak' ye into avisafidum," quoth he ; and then he reckoned me over ;-~ " a lean slab o' a chiel, wi' a gude lang neb, and a beard on the lip like a tod's tail ; the siller brooch 0' our French regiment in his hat, pistols wi' siller butts at his belt, and a good lang ell o' cauld steel at his hip—" *' Forty inches," quoth I, clapping my hand to the hilt of it. (( Imphm I " said he, and added- * Wakeful. boots and siller spurs ;■* I 1 11^ i ft 1 i^iKii M 238 The Angel of the Covenant. to them." Then, looking about on a sudden, " Whaur's your nag ?" .■,,•,- i " 'Tis on the road," said I, with a smile for hisperplex- ' ^''^ Sac's Death," quoth he, pat. '* Weel, laird, Fm bu- gowk'd ! I downa put a name to ye." *' Do yo mind," said I, "on being warded in a kirk- steeple seven years gone ? " " Whatten steeple ?" said he. 'Tor I ha'e been ac- quaint wi' mony a kirk-steeple, and heard the ghaists 0' the dead whinner by my lug." *« Aberdeen," quoth I. , ,^ , *' Gosh be here ! " he cried. " But now I ha^e ye ! Ye re that deevil's buckie o' a Burnet lad that let me out, and that wouldna taV your paiks f rae the Kirk-Session ? " *< The same," quoth I. ^ " Hech, gosh be here ! But ' sae merry as we twa ha c been ' ! " said he, running on with his catches of song. *' Ay, yon was the time when * Gilderoy was a bonny boy ' ' Now he's a stinking tossel at the end o' a tow ! Hech, the Lord gi'e us grace to die in a bed or in a caller dyke-side ! — tho', by a' hearing, there's mony a chiel living in Scot- land tiie day will wet the heather wi' the best blood 111 his body ! Ye're a sodger, laird ? " I wondered where he should have heard of coming trouble. I could not, however, dally with that. '' I'm a sodcrer," said I. *'But ye do all the speirmg, Wattio. And then I put to him my former question : had he scon any company there ? His answer put me in good sort : lie had seen, I had no manner of doubt. Sir John and the Lady Katherine and the half-dozen clansmen ; they had but two ragged nags among them, and they had gone for- ward towards the village of Dean, the lady upon one of the nags, looking '' gey wae." *'Greetin'?"Iasked. t. n, " Whaur's r his perplex- iaird, I'm bu- id in a kirk- ha'e been ac- he ghaists o' a*e ye ! Ye'ro , me out, and Session ? " IS we twa ha'c chos of song. a bonny boy ' I sv ! llech, the llcr dyke-side ! iving in Scot- ist blood in his ird of coming that. ''I'm a iring, Wattio." L : had he scon Q good sort : lie John and the men ; they had y had gone for- ur>on one of the The Gaberliinyie. 239 "Na/* he made answer ; <' but as she had come out 0' a dwalm."* And at that my heart swelled within me, in wonder and compassion. '' Wha's yon ? " said ho, twisting about at the soft blend of lioofs on the road. In a whirl of dust there galloped up a cavalcade, iu whose front I made out the elegant form of my lord Mont- rose. When he drew rein I made known to him the wan- dering gaberlunyie. " I heard of you, Wattie,'' said my lord, " seven years syne,— is it seven ? To my mind it must be seventy ! " The oreeshie knave becked full low. " To a silly, poor man of a gaberlunyie seven years are nae mair than 'may- be seven weeks to your lordship : they ha'e so little in them,— like the seven lean twel'months o' King Pharaoh.^' My lord smiled upon him, looking in the early dawn bright and keen as steel ; and the gaberlunyie was plainly taiien captive by tlie cliarm and condescension of him. " Hath he seen aught ? " asked my lord of me. Whereupon the gaberlunyie with ready words told him all. Then my lord and I took counsel what we should do, and the wanderer lent an attentive ear. Tliis we finally concluded should be our course :-My lord's servants who had come from Strathearn to convoy him home should re- turn thither by Queensferry,-all save Harry Graham, my lord s Ultimate, who had been at his elbow these three years by-past ; my lad remaining undiscovered, the gab- erlunyie should join our company, the rather that he was acquaint with every road and by-way in broad Scotland • and thus the four of us should ride forward with all speed by way of Dean. ^ - Can ye ride ? - asked my lord, smiling on Wattie. Can I sup brose, my lord ? Can I strip a Finnan * A faint. lllri' ! i l1^ 240 The Angel of the Covenant. haddock to the bane, lugs and a' ? Can I drink a cup 0' '''- AU^these tilings/' said my brd ; " will come in due course; but first for the riding." ^' And, Wattie," quoth I (and I had near spoded the whole neootinM by saying it),- mind there'll be gold ai.d fee at the hinder end." . An angry, dour look came upon his knavish visago,-a. Ihadclappedaninsulton him. " Nano that, laml There's to be naeniffer* o' siller and service atween me and you, or nae a stump do I stir ! If I gang, I gang for ^""l^ad^hhn have it his own way. So my load's sen-ants parted from us there and passed down towards the Firtl, some riding and some a-foot, and we foin: mounted an rode westward,-while the rose of dawn blossomed behiua the Calton and Holyrood. The grim old city on our le t lay along its native ridge like a great black beast with its big head on the Castle Crag, and the fresh morning light marked its tall gables and pinnacles,^ and the Ust^c towers with clearness. It was a taking sight, and it livetl. in my memory now, with doubt and threatening even as then ; for never did I love Edinburgh as do its indwellers, nor never had I cause. „. -r 1 n It seemed not open to dispute that Sir John would con- duct his company with all speed westward ; and we c at- tered down to the Dean Bridge and up at a gidlop on the other side, and away over the open country. We counted that Sir John must be some good ten miles ahead ot 11s : so we rode and we rode to overtake, and my lord bemgtk best horseman of all, riding with a deep seat and a long stirrup, and bearing himself as one with his beas . As we rode we engaged in some pieces of talk. My lor asked what answer I would make to Loin's proposal, and * Exchange. 11 come in tliie The Gabcrlunyie. 241 I declared I would put it by : after what had happened that night I could not serve Lorn with confidence or satisfaction : I held him in mislike and suspicion. ' I do not love Lorn," said he ; *' but I will not judge him on so small a plea ; nor can I believe him so subtle an underground plotter as you would make him. Alec." I made answer, as to that time would show ; but I was re- solved not to serve such a man nor to live in touch with him. Thereupon my lord rejoiced me and made me his dubtor by assuring me ho was glad of it ; for ho hoped I would attach myself to his fortunes, liow soon he saw his way more plainly. And then, lifting the lid for an instant, he let me see what ingenuous and honorable desires were seething in his mind. Since he had come home to Scotland, he averred, the knowledge had come to him that men wore more and more occupied with hateful faction and oblique courses, that even those who seemed most honest- ly moved with love of their country were truly working for their own advancement and emolument, and to the prejudice of King and State. " I pray God," said he, '' that you and I, Alec, may not be tempted to be such as they, but that we may ever keep trutli and honor as jewels on our breast." "Amen '; " said L He was resolved, he said, to wait a while for the revela- tion of the present unrest among all sorts. If then he could serve at home with honor he would ; if not, he would fare forth, and take service abroad, and I should go with him. Meanwhile it was his purpose to bide at his castle of Kincardine till Yule to take count of his affairs. " And for the Yule-tide," said he, ''ye will all come to me— you, I mean, and your cousin Balgownie and Maudlin, for they will then be free to leave Edinburgh— and wc will hold high wassail and debate heroic ventures. Alec ! " I regarded for a moment with haggard doubt the pros- I5J Wn^ i i^H^^^^B fLWI^^^^H \ f a^l 1 > ^^^^H - ■r il^^^^^^^Kk '^^^I^H^^^^I '^v d^S^^^^^^^^I ^ fflS^^^^^^^^^^^I ^■1 W ' 111 ""'"in Ui, 242 The Angel of the Covenant. pect of seeing MaiuUin and my lord together in the great- est of his houses ; but I quickly put that by, and asked what was to bo done with the hidy Katiierine when we hud again snatclicd her from Sir John his possession, like u brand from the burning. " I can but think/' he made answer, " that she mnst go home with me,— unconfessed, for her own safety's sake." He had barely said that, when— clearly do I remember the words and the sudden change— a shot rang forth from a birken shaw on the steep brae-side by which we were riding at a foot-pace. ** I am hit ! " said my lord in a quiet voice, and drew rein. ^ - m « I see him ! " cried the gaberlunyie, and flung himself from his beast. He was more lightly clad and accoutercil than any other of our company, and with his goun kilted Tip in his belt and his stout legs bare he was in the shaw and up the brae with the agility of a cat. Behind the whiff of blue reek that hung in the trees at a certain spot I myself caught the whisk of a tartan plaid and the look of a red head like a ball of fire. " 'Tis a MacFarlane/' quoth my lord, whose eye was quicker and had more knowledge than mine : " I ken the tartan : the MacFarlanes are neighbors to Sir John !" Calling to the gaberlunyie, who was unarmed save with a cudgel, to beware the man, fur he must wear sword, I scrambled up the brae also, leaving Harry Graham to wait upon my lord. At the top of the brae the country was open moorland for some distance. Out of breath, I paused an instant to see the clansman skirting far ahead. Anon the gaberlunyie came to a halt, too ; for pursuit was hope- less, the pursued being swift as Asahel, fleet of foot as a wild roc. It was somewhat gained, however, to note the airt, or direction, he took. We returned to my lord, lie sat by the way-side, she must go oty's sake." I rcmeinbtr jr forth froni icli we were ;e, and drew lung himself d accoutercd 5 goun kilted 1 in the sliaw Behind the I certain si)ot and the look lose eye was : ''I ken tlio r John!" ned save with vcar sw ord, I :aham to wait ! country was 3ath, I paused ihead. Anon suit was hope- et of foot as a :!r. to note the ^ 243 was undone, The Gabcrlunyie. tended by his faithful Harry. His doublet and his shirt, showing a skin as white and as smooth as a maid's. There was no blood, but a discolored spot over an upi)er rib. JUit it was manifest that hi^ life was then with- in an ace of ending ; for the buckle of the sword-belt luid caught the ball and turned it olf ; but the impact had been such that the buckle was bruised out of recognition and the rib, we feared, was broken. My lord was all for mounting, and going forward. " My dear lord," said I, " it will never do ! By God's meroy, y'are not smitten to the heart, and lying dead in your blood ! " Still he protested that his merciful deliver- ance gave all the better reason wherefore he should ride forward to fulfil his pious intention ; whereupon I declared that, if need were, I would hinder him by force. ''Ye ken me well, my lord," said I, ''for an obstinate stot. Wattie here doth assure us that Linlithgow is but two- three miles away. Harry will lead you gently thither and seek you out a surgeon. That is my counsel : and if there be no other way for it, I'll take your bridk u.yself. " And Harry Graham broke in to say that wliut I counseled was the only proper course. "Doubtless you are wise, Alec, with all your obstina- tion," quoth my lord, smiling on me. " But, at the least, take Harry with you. The two of you cannot even your- selves with Sir John and his company." Harry said never a word, tho' I knew what gate his de- sire lay ; but upspoko the gabcrlunyie, " Ilech, my lord, never ye fash ! I'm the marrow o' half-a-dozen red-shanks,' —in craft, if nae in strength." yi doubt, Alt V said my lord, lying back white with pam upon the soft green grass—" I doubt ye maun e'en do as ve will," the way-side, Piiii 244 The Angel of the Covenant. CHAPTER XX THE ENCOUNTER AT THE INN THUS it came to pass, after all said and done and I went forward without my lord. During a little while our roaOs „ tho amo • for the course taken by the clansman m rmlt a" eminod me to follow the byroad wh.ch turned the end of the birken shaw. Anon we came to a cCge-houscor inn, from the «- chimney o^^wh.chbh reek was creeping up into ''""^f ™S "g t'^^- |;™ <,,nnroached a woman stood at the door, looking forth ami ZdiuTl or eyes with her hand. We lighted down ; or we tl been some three hours on the -ad and^ne^« bite nor snp had passed our lips since the night befo . We 'got from the woman (whose man was gone a-flcM) somfsour milk and barley-bannocks, and while we re- fr"hed ourselves with these we tried to win at any news the good-wife might have of those whom we sought. 11. lalSunyie proved the best in gaining her confidence, ami fn the end wo made out that our chase had halted there u * Tto ^'ood-wife, a young and comely creature was as sh, J wild La stalled heifer ; but in the end «he called j course enough to come tons with something in her hand. She gSnced from my lord to me, as in doubt wh.d. s louU address and put the question -™ J-^/;; lord Montrose ? That was soon answered ; ^"^ «he to * over a bit of slate, saying it had been left for tlie T * I V- the ladv who was in the company of the Montrose bj tne i.i"y " "" TT„mi the n ece muckle gentleman with the unco e'en. Upon the piec mt. The Encounter at the Inn. 245 lone, and I went 5 while our roads the clansman in ! by-road which on we came to a ey of which blue ng tree. As we ooking forth and ghted down ; for •oad, and neither the night before, was gone a-ficld) md while we re- 3 win at any news we sought. The er confidence, and bad halted there a 'eature, was as shy end she called up thingin her hand. I doubt which she -was one of us the d; and she handed 1 left for the lord company of " the " Upon the piece of slate were scratched with a pin these words -.—From here ive take the road to Loch Lomond.— Katherine." That put us in good heart concerning our enterprise, which liad till tlien been something in doubt, altlio' we liurdly allowed it even in onr minds ; and we were in the better heart tliat the lady Katherine was plainly on our side, and reposed her faith in us. Gathering from further speech with the woman that Sir John was little more than an hour in advance, I left my lord to ride gently forward to Linlithgow, promising to seek him there when my ad- venture was accomplished ; and I and the other Gaber- lunyie mounted and pricked forward in good refreshment and hope. Being but two against the donghty Sir John and liis half-dozen sauvage clansmen we did not think to prevail over him by force ; we therefore gave our minds to devise some crafty mode of circumventing Sir John and delivering the lady. And then I discovered how sly and fruitful in re- source was the cannie Wattie in carrying on his trade of gaberlunyie ; the which he had need to be, on account of the ill will, the ill looks, the ill words, and the frequent ill treatment of the Kirk. With some debate we resolved that thus and thus should we behave,— as you shall hear. AVerode thro' the growing heat of the day, until noon, making inquiry for those whom we pursued at every place where we were like to get news. The folk laughed to see a gaberlunyie mounted, with his gown kilted up under his belt and his wallets whacking at his hurdles. '' Hech, sirs ! " roared the good-wives, with their hands on their hips. '' See at the carle ! "Is't a race for siller ye ride, gudeman ?" " Ka," he would make answer, drawing rein the while "but to dance at a lordly wedding in the west country] whaur'll be lang-kale and pottage, and bannocks 0' barley- meal, and plenish o' good salt herring, to relish a cogue 0' m''\ i: 1-, ! I ' i ', 246 The Angel of the Covenant. good ale. Ha'e ye seen the blithesome bridal pass this fo'd^'atailo/sax John Highlandmen ? " They would answer readily enough, according to their knowledge; Td then we wouUI ride on, while he -uhl *^^^^^ and sing a piece of the song, well known to the vulgar . " Fy, let us a' to tl-e bridal, For there'll be lilting there ; For Jock's to be married to Maggie, The lass wi' the gowden hair." Anon the rude hills ot the Lennox country stood up in thfsky • and we pushed on faster, lest Sir John m.ght evade u among their glens. Towards noon we spied a considerable viUage before us, and we began to ride war, y ; to iToneeived that the longsomeness of the journey the h°at of the day, and his nearness to safety m.gh all ha tempted the Knight of Luss to make another halt. When we were yet some half-mile off we dismovmted and dm Tnto ahttle wood that was there, still making towards the vnLe Having won as near as we dared go with our To^fs we tied tLm to a tree, gathered them an armfid eacT of barley-stalks from a field on the margin of the wood and so left them to eat in silence. "And now, laird," quoth the gaberlunyie, " I maun '^'^li::i^:^'^^^ooU ... my hose Prom a wallet he took a dye of brown stuff to stain my legs, my hand and my face withal, until I was as dark of een,- p eto'n L any'Egyptian. For my feet he S-- ™- J-' of brogues of deer-skin ; from my hat he took its feather its brooch, and its loop, and turned its ^-f ™ '» ' seemliness of a toad-stool; over an eye he drew a black cCt upon my doublet he hung a ragged jerkm ; an. I nVnTv rTiddle he wound a cord for a belt. He wishd t trtoTeavtmy sword with my boots in the keeping of the horses ; but that I would not do. The Encounter at the Inn. 247 ■ what peril we may be in, de- "Who knows," said I '' spite our craft ? " "WoelIaW,"8aul he, looking with admiration on hia handiwork, "far ha'o I traveled and mony forlics ha'e I seen, but never saw I a mair viUainous mumper eome out 'J^:tZi^y'^ ""~" '""■"' - -y S»« 'or. We were agreed that we should skirt by tho back or tbo we found Sir John or not, we might, without suspicion pass out agam at the eastern end and win to our"s w^^behind the houses and ™.m Zl^::: ^^ ■' Yon looks like the change-house," said the gaberlunvic pomtmg to the building at the our end of the ZIH' "And, pra.se the Lord ! there's never a Kirk nor - steeni; be seen ! There'll be neither minister nor session to v us by the lugs, and I can fiddle the Kedshanks aff their fet "' For he carried a small tuck of a fiddle within his gow ' bo we passed warily alone- imnncr fi ^. b"*^"- ..atth^ farther I, o^tl^Xge 'l [^1:1^: any brass we traveled down the street, I leading Inmby ho arm ,a-e as ,f he were brind,-in thepretensetf which had a practised art. With my heart beating high "n aer my doublet and ragged jerkin, and my one c a eve Mi-ily twirling for whatsoever miolit 1™, I ,l,„ffl ^ poking onrway thro' the ordure and re I wit" at tt street was cumbered. Fierce curs yapped at IT ill women came to their doors to look am/j^^yVand th b t:' foo bairns stood in wonder and fear, thumb in mo„ h" o.Jytofloe„n the lightest start, i b„. m gooT ^ me to us with a handful of meal, and we must n od, hah to receive her alms. With practised hand the gaber t li" ii «' « *i ' ! 248 lunyie have k The Angel of the Covenant. opened to lier his aeal- i( wallet, whining, till I could aXed him for his humility and hypocrisy courtesy to a man, Gracins, gude-wife, for your •wha's blind !— blind ! ' silly, poor „e H look ot groat sovcvity, the goo«-witc what tho Book says ?-'Oif the blind leac Bending on me a said, "Ycken^^ the blind ' -.fvoca " T pontrived to make - Saving your presence, mistress, 1 contiiv , << T onn KPe fine with the one e e. "■rrchy '" quoth 1. "Aad ,e look a sturdy clnol '"shfwlnld detain us to make pitiful inqiiiry how n,y r.f cfarino- eves we came to tlie mn. il >vc , ^i , of ^t*""' ">"' , yf^ discovered on the instant that house of t '""'""f ■ " g.„ John there was like to be Z^-'Ci:^ r: e^i'laow eanie a high-pitehc. Se voiees, uttering the Gaelic speech \Ve passed oSy n at th open door, lest .ve might be denied • men were fixed upon us. ii^vii- ^ ti,p cr.iber- u- Tnl.n imv Ladv Katherine was there. i-ie g.iuer or of childrei. _ ^ ^ ^^ ^.urmured the gaberlunyie in greet- IIow' ing. ived to make The Encounter at the Inn. 24^ "The gentlemen/' said I, ''seem to be clansmen." " That is just what she will be," said one, striving with our Lowland speech. *' Ho, then," quoth the gaberlunyie ; C7im ardshinjew 9 " —essaying a greeting in Gaelic. It was received with murmurs of cold approval. ''I'm a silly, poor man," quoth he,— "and blind !— blind !— Sirs," he broke out with a cheerful voice, "will ye ha'e a spring on the fiddle?" He had his instrument forth of his bosom on the instant ; and at the sight of it and the souad of his fingers trying' the strings, the doubtful looks of the clansmen were trans*^ lilted into plain smiles and jollity. The fiddle being tuned, he drew his bow and struck up a lively air, which set all the brogues a-beating in time on the earthen floor. And then an effect we had not counted on occurred : we were blocked into the room by the people of the house crowd- ing to the door. But that, I was quick to note, was big with opportunity for me. If I could only push out, I might seek the lady Katherine and Sir John without ques- tion or hindrance. When the gaberlunyie had arrived at his second air and had set the clansmen skipping, I made an excuse of nature for pushing forth of the place. I turned me towards the back of the house, and came upon the bottom of a stair. I judged from the set of the build- ing that there could not be two rooms of entertainment below ; so, with a swift glance to assure me that the faces of those crowding at the door of the dancing were all turned inwards, I passed up the stairs, noiseless in my deer- skin shoon. One door stood open : there was none within. On my other hand, where the door was shut, I caught fj. sound of splashing water. The light shone in a key-hole of great capacity. I set my eye there, and I saw the Knight of Luss, with his doublet off, and in his stocking feet, stooping over a bashi of water, and washing his teeth \':"i hi } f\ III i!' '' 250 The Angel of the Covenant. ■*i 1 i= fl„rr,>,- • I have ever since noted that the like of M™ is fi^: n itunoss. I stood np and took a long oath Tho chamber I had peered into was too smaU for Itier-play ; moreover. Sir John was at that momen for rapier p y , .^^ ^^,j_ ^„^ g^,,. ,t ::r thela 1 • anTthen witl>out more ado IlHted the Zck and stepped in. Sir John was erect on the mstaut, triithin Xc! I eonCnded fhat the lady Katherino '"''^"o-ho ! " said he, " Yo're there,-are ye ? " He reached ont at a hon- -haf ted dudgeon that lay on the table where also was a pewter pot of the remains of a me'-Ind at the same instant he let fly a kick whi 1 to ; missed catching me where no man can endnre to he kkkcd and stand npright. In a rage I leaped on him, td had him by the throat. He staggered under my at- toek buthewas of far greater bnlk than I, and strong fi \ Iho' soft of flesh. He recovered him, with the irtig^ned and stood rooted like a tree The struggle then was tor the bare weapon. Before I had becom a wo dlan, I had been a wrestler, and when a mere sta lad I could shake a fall with any roan. So, twining my ,nnnlebarcle- about him, I never loosed my right hand from srip of Ws thrapple, and strove with my left to render now Xs his armed hand, while he with the other clawed IwTn at my throat. But I continued head down pushmg at Cwind I have ever had fingers and a wnst of steol •tis 10 credit in me, but a gift of natnre-and, strive a JTe might! ho could not sh.ake me oS. I".tho;aprome moS when neither could aught more against the other nrthouX mo that it would be a fine end of the ploy . I could ifave his thrapple in my teeth, as c.rce I had he«d ; Hthland chieftain had dealt with his enemy. With notble turn of my leg, however, I tumbled him upon the if ill ■a The Encounter at the Inn. 251 table, and his head cracked upon the pewter pot. Then his arms fell slack, and the dudgeon clattered on the floor ; and with the cord from my middle I bound him where he lay. " If he's choked, he's choked," said I to myself, as I looked upon him. I turned me quickly away, with a twittering of my strained thews, and great compunction of heart ; for the man had a singular attraction for me, despite— it may be, in truth, because of — his monstrous wickedness. I opened ttie inner door ; and there was the lady Katherine standing in expectation with hands clasped. " Ye ken me,— who I am, dear lady ? " said I, whipping the black clout from my eye (my hat was already gone). I was astonished by her extraordinary demonstration of gladness. Her countenance was transfigured with a rare smile. "Ken you?" said she, with her hands prettily put forth. " I kenned ye would come, Mr. Burnet. I have been hearkening for you, and looking for you all the day. Hath not Maudlin named you our own true knight ? " " Had I been your true knight," said I, shaking my head, *' ye would not now be here. But," I added, '' precious lime doth run to waste. "We must away." She cast a fearful glance beyond me at the form of Sir John laid upon the table. She went corpse-white, and leaned up against the door-jam. '^s he dead?" quoth she. " Not dead, for sure," said I. " And he may revive on tl instant." At that trembling seized her limbs, and I was in a taking lest we should not win away. I had thought to get her out by the back-window, or by the back-door, to run alone and unobserved for the wood, where I and the gaberlunyie would presently join her. But it seemed now plain that . I i i i M !1 '■'«■' W -O w ,* . i t 252 The Angel of the Covenant. she had no more strength for action unaided than a dish- cloth. Moreover, there earne thro' the troubled sough n. mine ears sounds of shutting and whispering from below whieh warned me that the stairs might be bosc . I stepped to the door upon the stair-head and peeped. It wuh too true : the bottom of the stairs was blocked with whisper- ing women, of whom one eaught sight of me and drew back ixMxmazement. I seized my sword and prepared o. trouble. I hooked it in my belt again and drew it I tore off the ragged jerkin which the gaberlunyie had hung over me, and appeared in a doublet mere heseeming a gentleman and I took my hat in my left hand for defense e.t I migh be assailed by the half-dozen claymores below. I hearkened an instant : the strains of the fiddle still continued ; so it seemed certain the discovery had not yet spread to the ''^""om;, dear lady," said I. ;;For Heaven's sake, be brave and strong, or we are lost ! " '' I will. Alec !— I will ! " said she. She slipped to my side, flinging a glance of terror a Sir John as she passed. And then I essayed the descent I thoucrht I must seem passing calm of countenance ; buttlie gab dunyie did inform me later that I looked exceeding Lee and grim. None can tell, till he has seen it, how .n Tnarmed or unskilled crowd may be daunted by the Woo.ly bold, and resolute demeanor of a single man. When 1 descended with my sword out and the lady at my heels, the women-folk fell away with loud squawks MVattie," I roared, "out wi' ye !-and shut the red- '^'The'sl!und of the fiddle ceased, and the dancing ; and out came the gaberlunyie, blind no longer. But thro 1 domtherefqueeze/atthe same time he wh^ seemed t Chi f of the red-shank band. When he spied me and took hi tl e kind of man I might be he whipped out his sword, ren's sake, be The Encounter at the Inn. 253 aud, with a loud ory of <' Sussonuoli tliiof ! " lio nuido furi- ously at mo,— wliilo Wuttio slammed the doorof the ciium- ber and hung on to tlio snock, JiotwlLliHtanding tho ham- moring of tlioso shut within and tho thrust of a claymoro thro' a soam wliich mado tho blood How from his arm. " Down him, my lord I—down him, my lord ! " criodho craftily to mo, to impress the bewildered folk of the house with my condition. ''And run, guidwife, and got ano o' the naigs out for my lady ! " Tho clansman who attacked me was strong, but liia sword-play was wild and merely swinging, so that in a pass or two I struck him in the wind and ho lay flat. It chanced tliat tho goodman of the house and his two-threo hinds had come in from tho fields for their noonday broso ; and there he now stood straddling across the passage with a rusty broadsword in his hand, while iiis young men stood behind armed with pitchforks. They were uncertain what to do, but they put on faces of terrible resolution. " Whatten bruilyie * is this,'' said he, « that ye raise in a quiet house ?'* " Hearken to me, gudeman," said I, '' and hearken weel, for I have no time to gi'e ye many words. This lady hatli been reft awa' from her friends by the gentleman up tho stau's with the aid of the randy limmers in there. I have come and delivered her from the hands of tho spoiler—" '' Is he dead ?" asked the gudeman with a scared face. "Near hand it, I'se warrant," quoth the gaberlunyie still holding at the sneck of the door, ''for my lord there is iiae mowso when he comes to handle an unfriend." " I wish I could be sure, my lord," said tho gudeman, "that ye tell the truth." I' The lady will assure ye," said I, " that I do." "It is true," said she, in answer to the questioning look of the goodman,— ''quite true." * Quarrel. 254 The Angel of the Covenant. .. 1 wi.l.," Buid tbo man, " that I coul.l be sicc.r. Will Till tr: o^dt;;- tUao .1.^^ knaves yo ha'o lot ,uto '"VwlZ" said ho, in a burst of sploou-"! .ish the ''Ts::,ruj;lm be."<,uoth the gaborUu^yic "-owor soon! ifa' bo l«o. Xhoy'ro naothiug but tbo orra sora,- inffsui) of the broken band o'Gildcroy. ?'yo dinna tell me that!" exolaimed ho goodma,,. « Od I'so tak' order .-i' them.-Brawly that my lord. ?■ Bravly that !" echoed his friends. For these region, had suflorod much at the hands of Gilderoy and h« mon. "Weel," said the gaberiunyie, "now that ye're re solved, g;deman, just eomo and hand the sneek for yonr- spV for I maun awa' wi' my lord. So without more ado they lot ns pass. As we wont, there sounded a roav of rage from above. " Morcv on us ! " cried the goodman. What s yon . .' It'sthe gentleman waukin'," 8»d Wattle. And forth we passed. 111 i' -1 i i I The Place of Peace. 255 — "I wish the the orra scrap- . As we Avont, CHAPTER XXI. THE PLACE OP PEACE. In the yard without one of the ragged ponies of the clans- ; 4"d ye'Il mind, my lady/' said she, as we placed the lady Ka henne on the back of the boast, ^^ that the gVde man and me did a' to help and naething to hinder^our way-gomg ?" J^""' " Never never shall I forget ! " said the grateful lady I gave the goodw.fe some pieeea of money which she read, ly took, and away we ran at the hardest pace to vluch we could urge the nag. AVhen the house wa^ Men by the trees we plunged into the wood, and s^ wiftal expedition we were at our own waiting horses Behold us, then, in the space of some minutes a i re counted (and me re-booted) and pricking as a I a 1" could urge our beasts over the road we fad com . We eemcd 1 prudent, in ease we were pursued in our tn n to leave the road and pass away to the north, and so work our course nearer Stirling. We took to the bent witlan he more security that the gaberlunyie professed WmseU »:irth"eianr"i',rT:i' »"-"-»-''' -•'^ ^bbit bf row in the land. Lulled then in a happy confidence with he gaberlunyie pacing on ahead, the My Katl erfne and wtju more at ease in her cnmnnv,^r -li^->» • •»«■ - = » with all my heart I pitied her condition ; and compi' >m IS a stronger prop to confidence than b™. slTZi .' m i I . ' « i inm ^1 ^ 256 The Angel of the Covenant. como that we had prown homely with each other. To open with, sho ..kod if my lord, 1 or brother, were angry a^her th^t he had stayed behind. I told her how my brd had been shot at on the way, and how he had turned aside to Linlithgow, where we were to meet him ^Ye seem not over-troubled at his plight, Aloo," said sho » To tell truth, dear lady," said I, " I am not. I wouM think shame to confess so much if ^ -^^^^^ J^f. ^^^ ,^ be in peril of his life or of a great sickness. But I think no such thing ; and therefore in my heart I rejoice that something snatched him out of this adventure. ''Ye think," quoth she with deep sadness, Uhat it would not beseem the dignity of the Earl of Montrose himself to seek and save his wicked, wandering sister . "Nay; not so. I think, indeed, that it would not beseem my lord Montrose to be skelping over the country in company with a nameless soldier and a crees hie gabor- LyiT.' But I am truly glad that he is out of it for to reason that it hath been left to me, as I prayed it migh be! to deliver you, dear lady,-to me who swore yesterday to be your knight and champion." «* Ye swore it yesterday ?" quoth she. " To Maudlin," said I. A softness as of joy came upon her coun enance, u she spoke in a voice of sadness,-a voice which hriUcc t to tt marrow. '' Oh, Alec Burnet !-Alec Bui.iet Wherefore do ye tell me that ? Alas, and alas ! Do jc no ken that I am a lost soul?" On my countenanco amazement must have plainly sat ; for she added, Cj Tfind it in you to wonder at it ?-'tis true !-ower true ! And she bent her bonny head and wept full sore. A urv of rage swelled my breast, so that I could have butst" tears myself. -' Come, dear lady," said I at length ; ^Uh s will not do. This is to consider too curiously to tempt the madness of despair ; to deny the mercy and The Place of Peace. 257 lovo of God ! " And more to the samo purpose. I called to tho gaburlunyio to conio back and sing us ono of hia D.illuds ; for ho had a pleasant voice. ** Wo are wuo/' ,-iiiil I. "Sing ns a hlitiiesomo song." What, then, did tho knave sing— having shrewdly noted the lady's still wet cheeks— but tho doubtful piece— " O gin my love were yon red rose, That grows upon tlie c;astle-wa', And I mysel' a drap o' dew Into her botinie breast to fa'. " That did not accord with my seriousness nor wit.^ tho lady Kiitherino's distress, altho' she took it sweetly, as was her wont with all things; I therefore did request the knave to cease from his singing. " What ails ye at the sang, laird ? " quoth he. « Gosh be Ihu'o ! Atween the likes o^ you and the Kirk, ilka bird in tlio bush '11 be put to the horn and excotnmunicate ! Only tiie laverock '11 escape that can ri^e in the lift abune ye a' ! " " Your light songs are not for all seasons, Wattio/' saidT '^'Liyht! quo' ye! 'Od, a mum-bud jot in a Ilieland mist Ls naetlung to your seriousness, laird !" And with that he rode forward again in something of a huff "Ye need not be fashed for me, Alec," said the lady Katlicrine. - But y'are wae ; and I think I ialouse the Ciuise. May I speak of it, Alec ? " "Speak on, as yo will," said I. "'Tis Maudlin," said she ;— whereto I made no answer " Yelightlyyourself overmuch with her, Alec," she said "Shall I now learn yon how to pay court to her " To what end .? " I broke out. - Wherefore should I continue to knock at the door of a heart that is already taken up ? " '' " Is that indeed so?" " I have her own assurance," said I. 17 •«'' % ,t i,'?'* 258 The Angel of the Covenant. " I had feared as much/^ said she with sadness. " You will keep it secret," said I. - 1 will," said she,-adding, '' I would fain see ye con- tent and heartsome, Alec ; altho' what they call Love is nothing, I do believe, but bitter Original Sm ! " '' And what," said I, ** would man or woman be with- out Sin, dear lady ? " " Angels," quoth she. '' Angels," said I, something impatiently, " are but a weariful kind of celestial fowl ; and I cannot^ believe that this world was ever created for such as they." *' Oh, Alec," said she in reproach, as if I had wounded her " not Paradise ?— not the Garden of Eden ? " "'in my inmost mind," said I, " I have no reasonable assurance that there ever was any such place,— save .n the imagination of dreamers." « Alec Burnet !" she cried, infinitely troubled. *. How can ye !- -how daur ye !— say siccan a thing ? " '' I know not," said I. " I know naught. I am a man of doubts and suspicions. At this moment I am assured of nothing, but that I would give a knight's-yea, a king's -ransom to see the lady Katherine Graham m happy case ''Dear Alec Burnet," said she, - your good-will is very sweet to me ! But I have grown more and more to believe that if ever Katherine Graham shall be in happy case again, it will be thro' forgetting altogether her poor, sinful self. And how should she forget, Ale. ?-how shall she forget?" , „ , I could say no word ; for my heart was full, and my throat. And for some sp.ce we rode forward in silence. Then, as the day wore on wanting any halloo ot pursuit, and we thus ^:d talk at our case and m^^ our eyes rather turned inwards than outward upon the weary summer world, of a sudron we made the discovery ot believe that The Place of Peace. 259 that we had been wandering and were lost. Wchad trusted ourselves confidently to the gaberlunyie's knowledge of the land ; and he could not toll us where we were. He was a dour carle, alive with mischief and spleen when he was centered ; so I took up with the doubt then, and I have it still, that, because I had crossed himinhissinginc. he had wantonly led us and himself astray ; for never did it matter to him where he traveled, so long as there was a dyke-side away from the wind to lie down in at dark. We were come npon an open heath-land, where tracks were of little account. We therefore, after some debate, turned our backs fair to the westering sun and held away eastward our cluef concern being to find some place of rest and refresh ment, of which our beasts stood as much in need as we The gaberlunyie made amends for his errant guidance bv gathering brummles* and blae-berries to stay our huno-er At length when it was wearing late in the ai^ernoon^we came upon some fields of barley and oats, and anon we espied set against a towzled clump of trees a thatched cot tage, which looked brown and homely, yea, even golden and glorious m the sun. With what regard would I have gazed then npon the little house, if it had been revealed to me that it would be for long-how long !-the home of tho Lady Katherine ! Wlien we rode up to the yett of the little farm-place it told much of its peace that the hairy sheep-dog uttered no sound of threatening, but wagged himself in an extravacrant show of friendliness. Anon there came forth the man of the house, a buirdly fellow of mid-age in a broad bonnet. He coked shrewdly upon us, but kindly ; and, when I set lortli how we had lost our way traveling in from the west and desired refreshment and rest, he did invite us to light down With a hospitality most hearty and unrestrained. '^ "Come in by, sirs," said he, ''come in by. It's little * Bramble-berries. i 'I "'i fli •i!;i ' '■ 1 iin ''1: ^■Ei m' HhI ■1 4 ^^t' t ^ ' . m ' ,un r, 1 ! I ■f i ii_ 260 The Angel of the Covenant. we ha'e to do v,i', but, na' the less, we're a' bat stewavas Tthe Lord's bountith, whether we serve tor a penny i« or a pound. And I'm aye thinking that some day ate on, like Abraham, I n.ay entertain an angel unawares Seeing his eye run from me to the gaberlnny.e and ln,g« on the lady Katherine, I said, '< It an angel .s of our con.. mnv, gudeman, it is slie." .,^-4.1 • 1 ^ - No angel am I/' quoth she on the instant, with a quick flush of blood to her cheek, - but a wetiriful woman - The maist weariful o' us a'," quoth the man, " bear^ but the tail-end 0' a cross that He carries the head an,! body o'. But come in, sirs." He called a long-legged loon to lead away our beasts and fodder them and then he con- ducted us to his door thro' a pleasant small garden of flowers there the bees hummed in the sunshine He turned 0. the threshold and said, - May peace be wi' ye m this house. Then he halted and looked on us :-- It would be a bonny thing gif we was a' o' the household o' faith. I said nothing, nor did the lady Kathenne-for it was a most unusual greeting-but up spoke the gaberlunyie :- ** We're a' that, gudeman." The goodman turned a shrewd look upon him, said «' Iniphm ! " and passed in. « ,i „ _, When we stood within on the earthern floor of the cool kitchen (or '' but the house," as we say in the north) con- ccive my astonisliment when my eye, roving from a clean . table laid with cheese and bannocks and milk and honey, lighted upon a little man u black apparel, a little to nTan, who rose from a stool under the window with a book in his hand. At the sight of him, the influence of tlie eloquent discourse I had overheard the night before stirred in me again. ,. o^rely " I cried— thinking nothing of prudence or im- prudmice-- Surely I am^not mista'en in thinking I see Mr. Samuel Rutherford ?" k upon him, said The Place of Peace. 261 " Ye ken me ? - said Mr. Rutherford, with a smile of clear pleasure, while our host and my companions looked on ni mere wonder. - Weel, ye ha'e the advantage." lord W "'''"'"'''"'" "^'^^ '^^" "^^ ^---^-y -Ye were there ?'^ said he. "My lord Lorn is a good friend to Christ-I would He had mair friends amor^. the lords and gentlemen o' our poor Scotland !-My lord Lorn IS vahant for the faith, and he did invite me to his house say a word m season for the encouragement of the faith- ful m the good way. I was there just in the by-goin^ e'en as I am here now wi> my dear brother in the Lord, John Erown. Ye heard me, then ? " edifie?'''"^ ^''' '^'^ ^' "^""^ ''''' profoundly moved and -Weel - broke in the goodman of the house, "the Lord hath sent ye here in good time to be edified again • for I ha e called the word round that we a' meet the minister m the den the night." . '7\lli f!u^ ^"°^. ''''^ ''°^'^"" *^ "^°'" ^^'^ ^^r. Kuther- ford, that the action of the Bishop in sending me forth of my am parish to banishment hath set me in the way of serving better the cause of my sweet lord Jesus. Every- where that I pass there is a stirring among the dry bones, and there flock together crowds of my countrymen, hun- gry for the savory and pure word of truth, and the sweet milk of Jesus his love ! " The goodwifo, a comely but worn woman, entered and conducted he lady Katherine to her chamber ; and the goodman told us there was but one other chamber, which he called ^^ the Prophet's Chamber," because it was oc- cupied by the minister, and that he could offer myself and the gaborlnnyie for bed only some clean straw in a loft, he minister made offer to surrender the chamber to me • but I would not hear of it, declaring that nothing could il ' 262 The Angel of the Covenant. 1)0 sweeter to sleep in, especially for Ji swidicu-, than abun- dance of clean straw. Anon, when the goodviCe had ro- tiirned with the lady Katherine, we all sat down to supper, after a long and rhapsoilical grace from the minister,— tlie which, I will confess, l heard grudgingly, for 1 was ravening with hunger. I noted with some wonder that at the door, in the declining suu, there sat a row of bairns with cogies of brose in their laps. " Ye ha'e many bairns, gudeman," said the lady Katli- erine, who was clearly in homely sort with the kind and simple household. '' Thirteen o' them, mistress, great and sma'," 'in^w-red the goodman. " ' Happy is the man,' the Psalmi.^t bays, * that hath his quiver full o' them.' " " They are the arrows of the Lord," quoth the minister ; —while the goodwife said nothing, but smiled in the sweet benignity of ti mother. *' Yo go to Aberdeen, Mr. Eutherford ?'' said I auon. " I go by compulsion," said he. ** 'Tis not an ill-faured place, sir," said I, '* however it be misleared* 'tis my own native town : I an. n jlicw to Sir Thomas Burnet. Ye will, doubtless, encounter him, if ye have not by now." '' I ken Sir Thomas," said he, considering me close. "He's a worthy gentleman, albeit he is something taken up with the wisdom of this world,— the wliilk is foolish- ness with Christ. For the worst of Christ, even His dial!, is better than the world's corn." "And that's a grand gospel truth!" exclaimed the goodman. " As for Aberdeen," said the minister, " it will give mc but a borrowed fireside, but doubtless it will cast as nincli heat as mine own ; what will stick in my throat will be my dumb Sabbaths." * Ill-bred. The Place of Peace. 263 jxclaimed the Super c„,lo.l wo l.a.l .„otlu,r lon^^ ,.,,,,, t,,, ^ -^^ ^ heard with nioro putio„co thnn I hud wmtcnl for thoformor to puss It was in trt.th, a very .ooci graoo, dovout and doqucnt and a ht crown and thunks.nvin. for a whole- some a.id sufhcont supper. J hud noted, from si^nn fannhar to mo in the huiy Kuthorino,-us tho brightness of her eyes and tho frequent parting of her lips^-Lhat soinowJiafc of consequonco was working in her mind • I guessed moiH)over, that it concerned tho minister ; for she }u,arkenod most lieedfuUy to all tho sounds of J.is sweet and gracious voice It was, therefore, witJiout astonish- mcnt that I heard her, when wo rose from table, ask Mr. Ivutherford for tlio favor of some siieecli. ''Now," whispered tho goodmun to mo, as wo passed tl.ro the door, 'Mio'll be dauting her ower wi> the lovo Christ, lie hatli a wonderful gate o' winning souls t " I answered tliat I believed ho had ; and then, while'ho went to tho byre, I passed round the house, and camo upon the gaborlunyio rocking tho youngest buira and singing m a soft, sweet voice, while the goodwife sat silent, with the joy of motherhood on her countenance. I do confess that, great us was my admiration of tlic elonuenco of Mr. Eutherford, tho gaborlunyie's simple song wa in! finitely more taking to my mind and more moving to my sense han all the minister's ecstatical sayings. He sang th.t JMoo-Ioo of our common folk which confesseth so grea teudornoss and lovo in the midst of tho harshest poorcitn — as thus : — " And hee and ba-birdie, And hee and ba-lamb, And hee and ba-birdie, My bonnie wee lamb I Hee-o. wee-o, what would T do wi' you' Black's the life that I lead wi' you ; Ower n)ony o' you, little for to gie you ; Hee-o, wee-o, what would I do wi' you ? " 19 Tf^wijr [1 !:' :# i 'J ; 264 The Angel of the Covenant. The gabcrhinyic still sang, and the toars ^vcre streaming down the chocks of the mother, when au angry voice broke i,i__the voice of the goodman. *'Gi'o o^yor! lla'o done! Whattm worldly, carnal trash is yon, guid-wifc, that yo let him sing to the bairn ? " , ^ • ■ -- *' Trash, gndcman ?" cried the gabcrlunyie. ^^- i ou a Scotsman and say that ? iMtm, I wonder at yo ! " '^ Arc tliero .uie godly ballats cr,ongh that ye can sin - Ay, gudcmau," quotli tho guberlniyyio with glee, biu ficntan7o' thorn wanting .u dr stown frac my ballats ! What wonder is't then ^hut nn auld lilter and maker hkc mo should think on the tho auld words to the auld tunes ? Tie had him tlu>ro ; but the goodman was essaying to utter himself again, when a voice came from the window behii^'l us,— the honoy-swoot voicso of the minister. -My dear and worthy brother, quarrel him not. There's mony an auld Scots sang come: little short o the grace of Gud . And yon Ba-loo-loo minds me on the peace- ful day when I was a wee, weak bairn in my mither's lap Puir mither I And ye mind that Paul at Athens thought it no shame to make a quote from ane of the heathen ^"^The mother gave him a look of thankfulness -and I thought within myself, -There speaks in the mmistor tlio lover of divine poesy, and over-crows the mere man relio-ion ! " The goodman yielded sweetly enough ; but conceive ho turned away with a doubt in his mind tha. raul at Athens had been somewhat free with his quotes In a little while we all took the way to the Den, which was a natural hollow some h-^^^-mile behind the house, sparsely grown with birken trc ^ . id thorn bushes. 1 u. I was astonished to discover u concourse of men . lit. vcro streaming gry voice broko worldly, carnal n sing to tlio nyie. '' You a tye!" at ye can sinj.^, LS, and spiritiui: with glee, ** but rae my ballats ! and maker like lie auld tunes ? " was essaying to 'om the window minister, irrel him not. ittle short o' tlio me on the peacc- my mither's lap. Athens thought of the heathen kfulness ; and I the minister the lie mere man of y enough ; but I II his mind that ,vith his quotes. ) the Pen, which 3hind the house, u bushes. Tht ; irse of men jv The Place of Peace. 265 5?^ V omen, old ..r.,1 young, to tlie number of five or six Inmdrcd ;w.pt m by .l-iui Brown from all the country roundabout.' ^^sno .«( raveled a-horseback, but the majority, the poorer sor , nud eome a-foot, from so rcunoto a dintanee as twenty rnilos ;-and all were sitting patiently in expecta- tion of the banished minister. The hollow was like a cogue, ov ) owl, and the folk were as the dry meal pressed up against Its sides, waiting for the water and the hand to .tir >t mio brose. At the bottom of the hollow were i.o-thn3e ministers, notable in their black cloaks and wliite Geneva bands. To them descended Mr. Rutherford and was greeted with effusion of joy ; for he was openl^ named as a -leader and prophet in Israel," and as a Wit- ness for the Truth, and like to be a martyr : they called it J ruth, but they did merely mean the opinions on Theology and Church Government entertained by Presbyte- nans, divers and sundry, of the Kirk of Scotland. Well might jesting Tilate in his day demand, -What is inith ?' Mr. Kutherford got soon to work with his discourse • and early I began to doul,t that its best-winged sliaftJ were shot forth at the heart of the Lady Katherine, who sat with me against the rim of the bowl. "Daur I put ye a question, dear lady ?" said I She gave me leave with a look. - Have ye confessed yourself to the minister?" I asked. "No, Alec," said she, with eyes downcast; -as yet I have but disclosed to him my name." "'Tis enough for him," said I. He had declared his text to bo from Canticles—- And Ills banner over me was love ; " and his theme was the all- onquering, all-subduing, and all-protecting love of Christ. 1 cannot rehearse to you his extraordinary and eloquent discourse ; and, in all likelihood, it would prove intoler- ably tedious to you if I could. But I must relate some- \ : tLiM Am i: 266 The Angel of the Covenant. thing of it, because of the proaigious issuorf it did miicli to provoke. He spoke of the iiifinite and etcnuil love of Christ which doth donumd love in return, even as cartlily love doth du-. sire and need love for complement ; and he dwelt on Wxv hindrances to love which to the true lover serve hut a.^ constables or as whips to drive the soul to the blessed love of Christ. I recall some of his notable sayings, as^^that *' Sin is God's Serjeant to bring us in ward to Christ,** and " Sin to the elect soul is but a foretaste of Hell to scunner and terrify/' and again, " Ilellfuls of sins cannot separate us from the love of Christ." Tie described the tenderness and compassion of Christ's love, till he had the whole assembly quaking with sobs. And then of a sudden he changed. *' Beware," he cried in a clear voice like a clarion, "how ye dally with sin and all the works of the flesh and try to be off and on witli this great love ; because of these things the wrath of God comd^h upon the children of disobedience : how sweet so- ever they may seem for the present, yet the end of these courses is the eternal wrath of God, and utter darkness and desolation, where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth ! Oh, the terrible wrath of God !" Thereupon lie set himself to describe the terrors of Hell, as one who had known them and had escaped with his flesh singed, till a great horror and shuddering passed upon the throng, and the hair of their skin stood up. Then he himself wept, and cried aloud in despair of the condition of those who should reject the so great love of Christ and the eternal salvation waiting to be taken up. - Wo is me," he lu- mented, *' that I cannot get my royal, dreadful, mighty and glorious Prince of the kings of the earth set regally on high ! Sirs, ve may help me, and pity me in this, and bow your knees to Him and soften your stubborn hearts to His will ! " And he took occasion to declare how he The Place of Peace. ivare/' he cried 267 had b'onthreo clays before the High Commission of tlie Uishops of UUlowuy, -accused of treason," as lie put it preached against my King" ; and how lie hud been put out of his ministry, and silenced witii the threat of out- lawry if he exercised his ministerial function -But " said lie, -I defy tiie Bishops, and all who back them 1 yea, even up to the Prince of the Powers of the air hi'm- self ! I may not speak under the roof of a kirk to ve but no created creature shall hinder me from speaking for mv sweet lord Jesus under the lift of His own heaven ! And I cry to ye now, ^Dear hearts, dear brothers and sisters of tins poor Scottish land, put your hand in Christ's and trust him, dyvour * sinners that ye are ! Hang no longer back from the richness of the love and salvation of Christ r Ho every one that tUrsteth come ye to the waters f '-0 ' to dnnk -yea more, to be snattering and swimming in the flood of Christ's love ! . . . A searching season is coming upon us !-I tell yo, a dry wind, but neither to fan nor to cleanse, but to se].arato and burn up, is coming upon thxs land, because those who are in high places will again go a-whoring with Popery ! Now who will be on the Lord s side, in tliis on-coming storm and trial ?-who on the side of my sweet Lord Jesus, the Prince of Peace v '> riien arose a great and solemn cry, - We will ? We will!" after which the assembly broke into prayer' and tears. Those who were doubtful of their salvation plumped upon their knees and besought God to give them assurance thereof, while those, like our host, John Brown wlio had no doubt, urged them to -pray,-pray," and as- surance would come. Thro^ all this my dear lady Kath- enne sat and wept in silent agony, and I could say never a word to her; for, tho' I misliked the influence of that kind of ecstatical preaching, there .. .kl be no doubt that til ere was. * Bankrupt. 268 The Allied of tlic Covenant. Anon iihynin w:is Htruck np. to an iiiii*;, . Iialliid tntic. in wliu'U tho j^ubcrlunyio v\on lustily jomi'd : lie know nn\. tho wonis, l)nt ho know tho uir ; mul that wsi.h enough fur him. Hy thatiinio it luul prowTi quite djirk ; and s.», after hU'SHint^s and farowolls ropoatod ovor and ovor af,^•lin, the assonibly arose to disperse. They went by ooin;u " .1 coui)h^s, in lino agrecnent and harmony, and faded away over the hmd. haitini-:; and setllin<,' down at intervals (;is wo eouUl hear) liko .1 tlii;ht of ]»irds. and taking np again thoir ocstatieal talc oi prayor and praisti. A (dioaon com- pany of ministers and others returned with us to tiio house of dohn Urown, v.'horo they sat down to u communion of spiritnal oxiiorionce and hoi)0, wliilc thi. hidy Kathoriiu! sat apart with tho good wife. After a litth> while 1 wiui- dorcd ont into tliodark, swoot-smolling garden, and thnv did muse. The gaborhmyic had gone to ii's straw bod : 1 was alone, anil 1 felt lonosonu\, and desolate. ''Why," I demanded of myself, "am 1 not as those are? Why do not my thoughts, iVdings, tlesiros, and hopes sprhig in unison with these men's, who are stirriid to tlHiir depths for the freedom of onr Scottish Kirk and Stale? Lady Kathorine plainly is satistiid witii their c()mi)aii\ : why am not 1 ? "' And J was sad ; for surely it i.:i)st e»er can r pain n il grief to a nuin at a time of stress and trouble for his conn- try if lie cannot see eye to eye and ihr.\\ thought for thought with the mass of his countrymen, he they right or wrong. Out came Ur. Kutherford anon, aiui looking about saw me and came to me. " Mr. Burnet," said ho on the in- stant, -'it rcjoineth my heart to believe tl;, -ur shepherd Jesus hath taken to His arms another wau' iw vmb." ^^ "You me:pi the lady that I have led to this house ? " said I. '' Whootlicr?" said he. *' You ken her name ?— h-r condition ? " The I Mace of iVacc. 2O9 " Porf(!cUy," 1,0 aii,s\v(!r(!(l. "Mr. IiNt,li(.rr„nl," H.-ii.l I. ufl,(T a pjuiHo, - J conroivo you aro a iiinn .>f honor " " Suoli wor.lH„f ill.! w.H-l.l, Mr. Hiirnoh," Haid l.o, « l„ivo for mo n.) nM'UMii.^r. [ ,i„^ ,i„ „„,vr„,,j,^ nvrynui „f .Jchmh CIiriHl,. Hut I l<(.n what yn would ho at. Tho dear, mis- led hidy hath ^nvou mo lior conndoiMJo ; and novor Hhall . it ho hotrayo.l. M,.. H„n.ot," ho aM -- I cannot wear my soul upon my sloovo, -al ho I havo no Mamo for thoso wh., mv.m to mo to wear It so. And, liowovo. it ho with othors, tho intimaci.,H of my soul witii (Jo.l arc is donr un.l socrct as would ho my ufTootious and oommuni, -s with a wifo,— if [ had one- 1 cmnothahWoalmuttl^ ,. .r d ,hato thom with any man. And 1 desire no oonfo.ssor, oil - of tlio Kirk of Jiom.- or of tho Ki.-k of Soothin.l. No , u will for;rivo mo if 1 put pur (juostion hy." ^ iW lookod uj.on mo cirnc.iJy fo,. ^ moment, ,md then Haymg, - Mr. Hurnot, I holiovoyou aro not fur from tho Km^^dom of (Jo«l ; In.t, hoWaro of .pirit.uil nrido/' ho tiiriiod art and been wrapped for an instant in the oblivious cloak of slee]) when 1 ^v;ls awaked by the gab»>rlunyie, who told nu( that tlio sun \v:i« up. He was in haste to take the bent again ; for, said lie, *' It's grand andgraeious company we're in, laird," (nieim-^ ing the ministers) " but it's neither halesomo nor blitlio- somc for a silly, puir man like me. 1 maun awa' amang the Leasts and tho birds." When T descended from the loft I found tho lady Katherine walking in the garden ; and in a very brief space I had all she had to tell workinj; in my mind. " Alec," said she, and she laid her hand in my arm as if I were her brother, and led mo down the garden-path, ''this is a letter for James," she placed it in my hiiiid : *' I am not for tho road with yo. Here I ha\e found the rest I have sought for, and here I stay." " What mean ye, dear lady ? " said I. " I'll Just tell ye, Alee," she made answer ; *'and if ye do not see on tho instant what I would be at, you'll imisc it over, and then ye'll apprehend. It has troubled me that I could see no way but to return Avi' you, to be a burden and a cumber cither to your sweet cousin or to my ain dear brother. I love this place, and I love these godly people, and here I will stay hid. Alec, and be a weary burden to none." " But this place," quoth I,—'' it is not seemly for a lady of your condition." '' My condition. Alec," said slie, " is merely that of 11 sinful woman, who lays hor sins upon the Lord. Ucrc, Alec," she went on with rapid speech— '* do not quarrel me, I pray— here I have found peace ; here I have found my Lord, my Savior ; His banner over mo. is Love :-I not seemly for :i The Place of Peace. 271 I'avo no toMjjuo yet to utter these tlm.<^s. But here f urn roHolvod to bido. Ve ken well. Ale<.. that I .li,| .Uvsiro to (mtor u convent : I eoneeive this to he lu^tter. Hero [ Hhull 1.0 .'..t oir frmn the world ; and here I c-an ,lev.,te n.ys(-lf r... prayer and «ood works ; for I ran aid the ,|ear g^l- uifo to hear the heavy hnnlen of her lionse and bairns " I<-neeived that it was, at the Imst, neither h foolish nor a solhsh resolution she had formed. "And " 1 said ''do the goo;^=»- Indy," sa.d I, - it is not for n.e to say ' „ay ' to nnytlnng y, nvay propone. Jiut.'^ 1 added, wliile a stound of sadness and desolatio.i passed tliro' my heart, -will vo not he lonesome ?-will ye not dwine and pi„o for a weel- kenned face, an! to have naught to do with Lorn's service. But soon I found, however, that I was entangled more than I knew in Lorn's web, and that it was no easy matter to break forth from it. inch of huff: Maudlin Among the Conspirators. 277 When I had sat down in the lodging of my cousin of Balgowuie, and appeased both lier and Maudlin with my story of Lady Katlierine, her yielding to the influence of Mr. Samuel Rutherford, and her resolve to abide in the remote Place of Peace-when I bad related these thin-s and won them into a more cheerful frame by telling of the security and satisfaction in which siie would dwell and t.he plan I had contrived with the gaberlnnrie for '- ter course by writing, then I did describe my m;etin- olthe Btreec with my lord of Lorn, and the invhe he rMii||„iil me t© go t;. It night to my lord Balmerm/s. -Bur, I think/^ said I, - that in piac of ..^^-.- ^^ such company I will go to my bed ; for : ui^ it. and sleep-hungry." ^ •veary Oh. ye must go, Alec ! ^ said irith a i^^cia earnestness which well-nigh dissipated mw aeniKe of • '• Ye'll be in better case, Alec/" said my eonsin ^ me, "when ye ha'e eaten and drunken.- And ir. she arose and went out r.o command mme victua " Then in haste, and almost without pan^e, Ma^ me to go. fiddling the while with a ' n o ^,., - in her lap, and behaving with a mana..- so swU^irtiAr andhumble tliat, I think. I wa« m mcM'e iesix^mte^TS love han ever. -Ye must m^t let di^ Akc," sitae fc. dared, " any occasion to staiiucJ well ^rith the lords ami. gentlemen of your own co««firy,— you that are hen a mm- niless soldier." ' "I may be. Maudlin,- said I, -_in truth J am-a penmless soldier, but, for all that, I'll do naught that dotki not consort with my honor." "And shall 1, Alec, ask ye to do aught to soil your honor ^ Would it put a tache upon your honor to make a stand for the ancien.t ln.w8 and liberties of Scotland ?" It gave me pause to hear her thus seriously lay tongue to matters of triple policy : and then I learned, bv pointed *v" 4 »3'-»t >.«-'.^ i/. m f !i I I 278 The Angel of the Covenant. speiring, that she and hor mother had been bidden the night before, and had gone, to an assert bly of dames at the lodging of the lady Pitsligo, the sister of the Earl Marischal, and by consequence a marriage relation of rny lady Balgownio, and a blood relation of myself, whoso mother was a Keith. The lady Pitsligo and sundry other noble ladies were heart and soul with the purpose of Bal- merino and the other malcontent lord ; and the assembly had banded themselves into an alliance to aid that purpose, Maudlin and her mother being of the number. Tlio while she told me these things, she kept her eyes averted from me, and still fiddled with the hank of silk. I moved my stool nearer to her, and did propone that I should hold the hank while she wound the silk. "That," said I, "will be more sociable; and it will keep me awake.'' She cast a quick glance on me, as to judge if I had an underhand purpose ; but I showed her a free and careless countenance, and she gave me the hank. As she began to wind I told her of the proposal of my lord Lorn, and of my resolve not to accept it, but to devote myself to my lord Montrose. Then it was as if I could feel a thrill of joyful response pass by the silken thread from her to me. " That is well. Alec," said she, " and wise ; for he is the one lord who must come to be head of this business, albeit Lorn designs that place for himself. But we know. Alec, — we know, — that there is but the one to stand in the fore- front with credit and honor." She said that with sucli a swell of feeling as flushed high over face and neck ; and I, poor fool, was filled with a kind of joy — a joy Avhereof the heart was sadness— -that she should join me with herself in the knowledge. "But for that end," she added, "m must be liand in nieve with Lorn and the rest." " 1 am hardly far enough ben," said I, " to be hand in nieve with any of them." Maudlin Among the Conspirators. 279 -And what for. Alec, are ye not yet of thoir inner con- fidence? she asked. -'Deed, Mandlin, there's few of that kind " -1 should think sluune, Alec," said she, winding her ball with some furv " if T a\a ««<■ n . ^ , / J^ •^^ "^ ^'^^ ^o<^on the instant win to the front of any business I sot foot in ' " "I do not doubt it," said I lightly. ^^But, as for me and this business, Fm just by the door-clieck yet, keeking '' Do ye mean that y'are feared to venture farther ben ^ " -Something of that," I said ; -though at times in the back and orth of their talk I scarce knew where to d m or out. oouuu, "Bat they wish you in ?» said Maudlin, stopping and looking on me m slirewd doubt. "Oh, they wish me in," said I. - B„t '.._i ^j^^ed on the last words of my lord Montrose eoncerning the matter — 1 need bettor assurance of the businoss " Then out spirted a stream oi: resolute opinion • "Take aTd":- ^'"' *'"' ''' *'" "^"^^ "' »" «-^« '■•'-ty "ThaVs my sticker," quoth I: '< I'm none so clear yet that tlicy are truly m peril." ^ "Do ye want the rule of proud Bishops and Popish shows back again ? " ^ -I may be blind. Maudlin ; but I see neither the one ii^r the other. On the contrar I mind on my good Bishop ana a tyrannical and raging Presbytery." "I mind on them, too ; but things are changed, as ye sliould ken. We have the proud Bishops, as my Minnie and me ha e been learnt to our hurt ; and with the Bishops and tlieir rochets and surplices, and their Canons and ' rayerbooks wo are like to ' - break in on ve Popish shows. Do not af U V . "'''' ^^'''' : ^""^ ""^ °"* '^^^^^ "^y «^y ^lo^v I'm at it. Ye re over- considerate, let mo tell yo ; but I should '^5,'■ as, H^^KmmM mam 28o The Angel of the Covenant. think ye'd understand that it's the business of every lord and gentleman in Scotland to make very sure that never again shall bishop or priest have the upper hand of him in Kirk or state ; and, tho' ye may not see much of that yet, ye should mind there's a good text about avoiding tho very beginnings of evil. Well 1 know that, were I a man, never stoled priest should have precedence of me ! " " Again I mind on my trouble of seven years agone," said I " and that I have been the three years by-past in France, and I think I have reason to mislike and fear the black-gowned minister, as much as, or more than, the stoled priest. To tell truth. Maudlin, I do not like this party's having so much trock with the ministers." ''Alec, ye're a gowk ! Do ye not see the business can come to no head without them, whether ye like it or no ?" " Then let the business go hang," said I. " Alec," said she, again letting her white hand fly in a fury of winding, " ye're guileless of politic craft. Ye see no farther than the end of your neb ; and that's neither a long nor a straight road, Alec. My lords llothes and Loudoun, I can believe, have no more love for the black gowns than ye ha'e, but they are resolved to win through v/ith their business ; wherefore, like wise men, they do not scruple to use what instruments are necessary and ready to the hand. They will use the ministers, because the business cannot be done wanting them ; but ye will see how they will put down the ministers when the business is through ! Is not that proper statecraft ? " " Ye talk already. Maudlin," said I, " as if ye weredoop in the counsels of these lords." ** I but draw a plain inference. Alec. Ye think I have no head for statecraft ? Have I no ! ... 0, if I luul been our poor Queen Mary," she said, letting her hands rest in her lap and looking forth over my head, ''cousin Elizabeth of England should never have befooled me, Maudlin Among the Conspirators. 281 ami garrod me greet, aud lay my head do^- a to be cut (JiJ- • -It is ower bonny ahead to be cut off,- said her mother Z heading ?' ''""' '' ^'' ""'''''' ""'' ^^"^ ^' ^^^^"^^ "Bonniness, minuie,- said her daughter, -will never keep the head on the shoulders ; else Queen Mary would have seen cousin Elizabeth into her grave, and have ridden to London town to gar all the English lords bend low with a sough and a sigh like rashes at the owercome of the wind/ I ''^lAu''' ^.f'""' ^"'^ ^'^^^'"* *'^^^' Maudlin, and brought them aH out in their blacks and their whites, had ye been queen,- said her mother; -for ye ha'e a rare spunk o yonr ain : I'll uphold ye in that " " Neither beauty nor spunk availeth much, minnie," said Maudlin, flashing on her mother a smile of understanding. aM love; -naught availeth but sense and craft ;-and these, said she, turning to me, - I'm better dowered with than ye may think. Cousin Alec." "0, my bonny cousin,- said I, - 1 never made doubt but ye had a fine parcel of both. But is't by sense or by tS SlT-"'^^ "^ ''-'' ""''''' -'' ^-^-- -^ "By sense cousin," said she. -By what you collegi- aners call, I believe, the art of Logics. I judge them by tTiel i'l /'''• J'""' ^' ^'''''''''' ^ "^y '^^^^i^' that the lemds * are the root of all this ? If ,je have depend ou t my lords Rothes and Loudoun have not ; for I'm told they are near broken by the Surrender. Think ye they can love the ministers for being the richer by it ? Now what would T do if I were in their place in thi business ? thtir help to dmg down the bishops and tear up the Prayer- * Titlies. u. 1:1 I ■ f . iTl .A« . .. Utam A'. MM r "'""'^ 1 L I'l i ! r <' t J Mi; 282 The Ani^el of the Covenant. book, and syno, when Bishop and Prayer-book were gone, and the King had seen we weie all of one mind,— like the brethren in the Psalm, dwelling together in unity,— I'd prevail on him to put the toinds as they were ten years agone,— and so Td ha'e the ministers under my thunm, And I'd say to them, ' Back now to your kirks and your manses, and let us ha' no more routing and roaring, nor intermeddling with things that are not in your province ' ! " "But would they go ?" ''Would they no' ? You forgot I have then the teinds in my purse to give or to withhold.*' '' And ye opine," said I, " that that is the view of my lords Kothes and Loudoun ? " " I would swear that is the truth of it," she declared. " And what other should it be ? " " Well," said I,— and I was ready to rise from my stool, the hank being finished,—" I wish they be not deceived in the issue. 'Tis ae thing tf len.pt a flock of crows on to ploughed land ; 'tis anothv v t-> ;hoo them off again." " And now. Alec, m.y dear/' said my cousin Balgownie, " there's naething but cauld I- ail in Aberdeen, but there's warm broth in tke other chamber. So awa wi' ye." " 0, it'll be a grand business. Alec ! " cried Maudlin, clasping her hands with a fantasy that amazed me. " And I must be in the thick o't ! I will be in the thick o't ! For, 0, Alec " and she rose and threw out her white arms—" I must do !—do !—ov I shall die ! And, Alec, my dear, you must come into this, too ! " She flashed her lustrous eyes upon me, till I could not endure the light and the heat of them,— while her mother looked shrewdly from the one to the other of us. Then she flashed upon her mother.—" Help me to prevail on him, minnie ! , . . I am a proud queen, I know, and I think I'm not feared for aught, but I would like a trusty man by me ! And Alec is trusty, is he no ? " She again appealed to her en the toinds Maudlin Among the Conspirators. 283 nothor, who smiled liko a statue, and slowly put „„ « white hand o put a curl by, a, she would say, " What's th.. o t now f "-but who yet said never a word. With tho Iieart-Ieap of tlie giddy gambler who is rashly od on from pomt to point, who hath thrown his main and ,08t, but who IS tempted again by an alluring ha.„rd I considered m a wild whirl that, if I plunged int: this bu'si- nc.s with her, and stayed elose by her side, I might oome out ofit thowmner; and, though my heart was drunt enly surging this way and that, I answered with outward show of soberness :_" I „;„ „ot say. Maudlin, but ha ye ha e manifested insight and grasp ; and I may cleek b with you, stark and steady, when I have turned the though iZ B:iZr„:t" '"'' ""''^ '-^'' ™ ^-'-'i^'^"' - Oh, Alec- she said, - how much grander and deare- A 7VV:T. '^, '' ^^ "^^^ "^^ - over-considera eT , And she blushed when she had said it. IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) fe / C <;^ ^ #. # fc 1.0 I.I l^|2£ |2.5 2.2 IL25 II 1.4 m 1.6 o^ Photographic Sciences Coipordtion 23 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, N.Y. 14580 (716) 873-4503 ^^^^ <^ fc 1 ' 11 1 III 1 B " rif i ' I !:: 1 1 i , < ' 284 The Angel of the Covenant. CHAPTER XXIII. WITH MY LORD AT KIISOARDINE CASTLE. It had been my design, so soon as I had emptied my story of the lady Katherine into the waiting ears of my cousin and Maudlin, to skelp away northward to my na- tive Deeside. On my soUtary ride from Linlithgow I had first planned a letter to my excellent uncle. Sir Thomas, and then I had abandoned the notion of a letter, because I should arrive at its heels, or, perchance, at its toes, and I had indulged in pleasant dreams of the black game and the brown that must then be growing strong on the wing among the heather of Fare and Drum, of the red deer among the misty mountains, of the salmon in the deep, cold pools of Dee. But these fair dreams vanished in my new heat for Maudlin and my pledge that I would stand in with her and the Rothes-Loudoun faction against tlie bishops and the new order of Public AVorsliip ; for to that I had come after my night at the lord Balmerino's. Moreover, my cousin of Balgownie had been condemned (as you will remember) by the Privy Council to coutiinic besouth the Forth until Yule ; and I thought it well (as she also did) that she should have during her enforced stay in Edinburgh the countenance of a man of her Ivindrod, I was at a stick, however, for means of living in Edin- burgh, being, as Maudlin frankly declared, a penniless soldier. I accepted my bed in the little fore-chamber of my cousin's lodging ; but I could not quarter my great appe- tite upon her slender provision, nor conld I accept either angel or rose-noble from her who had so few of the sort. STE CASTLE. With My Lord at Kincardine Castle. 285 Nei«.er conld I make appeal to the bounty of my nnole Thorny ; for he also, albeit he was as generZ Tthe co,.tess It tho I thmk some shame of the business-! ac copied certain payment from the band of malcontent lord^ to remam m Edinburgh (while they depa ed to b country place, for a season), and kee'p o^en ;« and e" for expected events coming to bloom The new Servicr Book had been looked for during some months ; butTt iad" wrt:x^tL^ptttgti:d;btTn "^^^^^^ But the money given me by mv lordq nf +lio -fo.r -aroe enough to cover all nfy nldt-the I^^'lSal" w- largely pa.d to me in the coinage of promise the : d'ti^k "VrZ' "" '""i--^ vendors of";tt™ Zn '"" '■'"'""» I ''i' "Poa another mode of gott,ng mo money, the which was honest enougr altho' It hardly accorded with my condition of-entleman 7 ' my wearing of the brave uniform cttCslZ^ o^Z I had taken Lorn's advice, and resumed it), and rem mv k^wn acquamtanee with my lords Mont L andl™ and the other lesser lords I was a marked man in town ami soon I passed for an authority on all milit-, v ,(? ' on campaigns and leaguers, and 0' s "hoi l „ L !!;he :r-;on-tto?rp=^^^^^^^^ «f •' PMio of tobacco (of which I had become a rartakl^I :it. ;-i ;| ii'^ i I 286 The Angel of the Covenant. saw on a certain day that I might turn ray reputation to comfortable account. And I did. I set going a school of fence in the Potter's Row, near by the situation on which was then a-building the Hospital of Sir George Ileriot. I was thus set down in Edinburgh until Yule, in the company of my merry cousin of Balgownie and Maudlin, who now carried herself more seriously than she had been wont. She seemed at first to regard it as a thing settled and sealed that, since she had avowed to me her devotion to my lord Montrose, I must have retired all pretension to her hand. She therefore, assumed with me a demeanor of mere cool and unreserved friendliness, as that were the condition agreed upon. I bore that humbly and made no sign ; and then, the mildness and tameness of such a condition weary- ing her unrestf ul spirit, she returned to her truer habit of lure and coquetry. She would play about me as if I were a stock of wood, now bending warmly over me till I would be well-nigh melted in my own fire, and now flash- ing on me her beauty, or gently laving me with her con- fidence, till I felt as I were lashed with a wh *' And how much of this. Maudlin, thiiii. I can en- dure ? " I demanded on one occasion. '' As well might I be a martyr at the stake ! " " But what is wrong. Alec ? " quoth she, with the open eye of a simple bird. " Your conduct, mistress," said I, " your handling of me, as if I were not flesh and blood, nor had no marrow to my bones ! — as if I were not a man ! — as if I were a mere graven image of wood or stone 1 '* " I had thought, Alec," said she, drawing off a demure pace in a most maddening way, " that we were cousins, and so might kythe us. the clearlier * to one another. But if ye think. Alec " ** I think nothing. Maudlin," I broke in ; ** but I feel ■ . * Show ourselves the more plainly. she, with the open With My Lord at Kincardine Castle. 287 that your cousinly kindness and confidence are more than man born ol a woman may endure '" And then I would fling forth, and return only to bed me m the httle fore-ehamber. And th„s it ™ that I became a devotee of Virginian weed. Iloaring th- to tcvoied pulse, I toolc to smoking it; and, flndinn- it trnlv of a soothing and paeifle effect, I continued bouSd to tl nseo the herb ol which my lord Montrose could never smell the burning without a painful sense of nausea Tnd th. I^was led to a singular discovery, whiehTennrta"^ Jtr::d^— dtrn::k-n;",tsr"^"- of the smoker as of tlie mere rrillanf 1. 1 , ' ""'"^ his loves. ^ '"^^^^ *^ ^" ^^^^ changing "And," said I, - I wish nane o' your Mundnna„« .> ,u monopolists; but an honest, aronJiepifee,^^^^^^^^^^ ''^ Thereupon, there was hinrlp.! f^ „ rackets, bL „„. „ -; S:eV:nd~;rh ^k-efl C rtthL /ft ?,• ^""'' "'formation had come from tourt that, after the K„ig and Archbishop Laud had Z 288 The Angel of the Covenant. '? t£ 'I 1 1« ;i turned from Oxford in August, where they had been mag- nificciitly entertained in the Colleges with feasting aiul stage plays, the new Prayer and Service Book for Scotliuul had been put in hand, and shortly would be promulgated. That, then, I thought, which I hold in my hand must be a leaf from the book with which we looked to make sucli a stir. Instauter I wrote to my lord Ilothes, in Fife, and en- closed him the paper, which was so new that the smell of the tobacco had not drowned the smell of the printer's ink. That done, I considered that the paper, after all, might bo but a casual leaf from the now English Prayer-book, wliieli had wandered not. So, to make sure, I sent my man for tobacco from the same shop. There came another such leaf as mine, though with nothing more to show its origins. I was at a stick. I might have gone to the shop and de- manded to see all such leaves ; but I had been instructed to do nothing to turn the lantern of public note upon my doing. But unawares I had my doubt resolved. It would be the next day, while I sat smoking and perpending that there entered, passing the door of my chamber, my lady Balgownie's woman Jessock, bearing in her hand sundry small packets wrapped in printed paper. A thought came to me, and I stepped forth to her. '* Jessock, my woman," said I, "what ha'e ye in hand?" " 'Od, Mr. Alec," said she in a fluff, ** what should it be but a wee pickle mace, and cinnamon, and all-spice to my lady's kitchen." " My meaning, Jessock," said I, " is, what's the paper's? Let me look at them when you have ta'en out the bit spiceries." Straightway she brought back the papers to me, tarrying to see what I made of them ; for she was of those who can neither read nor write. •what ha'e ye in With My Lord at Kincardine Castle. 389 ^^^' Neither troasoa nor horning, I hope, Mr. Alec V said ''If I'm not misfcu'on, Jossock *' ^-mM r «^^ thins there that will nn.ke n, e "no" than f ""T Plot '" Anrl u-if], fi ^ T ^"^" '^ f'lnipowdcr 1 lot And ^vlth that I exclaimed at the first naper tl.ut oauglit my eye wiiicli was nothin-^ loss th-m n In thus '.-The Book of (hwmn,, P \ title-page, tke use of tke Ckurck f ZZ "^'uT' TT'^'' hj Rohert Young, PrintJrTho^^''^^^^ ^''"'^'^ There could be no doubt then thif fl,o .o^ «.o bag at last. Clearly the B^k ^Lp^pa ij^^'-'^^' hcation the on-coming vear t Tn +i.« * / ^ lorpub- eovory, 1 explained itfo'l ssock She^or '' "^ '^" with heat. • ^^^ *^°^ «^y meaning "And is yon/' quoth she, angrily reo-^rdJncr fi ..pside down, - what the Bishops are tol^ the papers Piinistrv wV ? ^n i i ^ ., ''"^1'^ ^'^ to lead us back to .>Hcsts in white goIsrol^nanVeirriCotr"^" ro^vod across the Firth Within Ho ' . \^'''''' ^"^ hth delivered the Bishops into om-Lal"" '" "'"'■' Later, we made diseovory that at a eertain point the ,„ "Clart defile, clog. 290 The Angel of the Covenant. hi ' M i \ If 1 1 ii printing liad been stopped and the sheets rejected, because my lord Archbishop of Canterbury desired to rcamend some cmendatioii — a kind of industry he was groat in — and tlial I had lighted on the loaves, becunsc the careful printer luul sold the rejected sheets, whereas ho should have burnt them. But the instant effect of the discovery was that in a fortnight all the lords and ministers of the faction were gathering into Edinburgh, like flights of homing crows. Thus they prevented the King's letter commanding the Service-Book, which his Counsellors had hoped would iiiitl Edinburgh empty of all but Sundry Bishops and Ofliciars of the Privy Council, and thus they were all prepared for the Act of Privy Council in December authorizing tlio Book. The effect of so large a show of hostile heads and mouths at the Public Proclamation of the Act was a post- ponement of the appearance and use of the Book for sev- eral months. It was but a few days after the Proclamation of the Service-Book at the Market-Cross, by sound of trumpet and tuck of drum, that my lady Balgownie was free to travel north. By the day of freedom my merry cousin had her own and Maudlin's portmanties packed in prep- aration for gay and gallant doings in Kincardine Castle ; and forth the three of us set on the appointed day in brave fettle, with servants and pack-horses, to make the journey to Strathearn. On the road. Maudlin held some talk with me, to remind me of my promise of aid to her in setting Montrose at the head of our faction. I accepted tlie re- minder ; but declared that I conceived neither her effort to that end, nor mine, would be truly needed, — for I had seen and heard how high Rothes and Loudoun and the rest esteemed the value of Montrose's cohesion with them, if it could be compassed. His repute was great, by hearsay, among all sorts, both for wit and ingyne ; he was blessed with a singular dignity and grace of bearing, and a notable With My Lord at Kincardine Castle. 29, beauty of person; l,o was allowed the el,i,.r „f .. peers who would follow whither he e,!. f, ^"""« Lead of all tho Omhams of IWI 1 ' ''° """ ""•• 0-. stark and foarC „ j :n„t;r.;,: 'IT '' "'""'"■ "And," said I to Mandlin ''K.t f'f "•»<>"■ may be others, who ken a 1 th f n":"' ^"'"^""■'' "'"l Castle to win il lo^, I::;,:!'!":!' " '" "' "' ^"'"''"'"» which licdwelt. Th [;' ,!h! fl ^, "" Pnneely splendor in the Earl of Jlo^tro nKv , ,f ' "" """ ' '^''^ "•"'y ««« juimcrose playing the part of a sroat l.,i-ri 71 was set down in his own castle «mi,i 1 ■ "° vironed by a feudal eonrt Zl ?! ™ """ P'=''P'<'' ™- »na with state There we^r .f ?"" "'"'' »^^«™'>='= tlK honorable client of tie ho'^^Jn' '^ ''"''^ '"«'' '^«"™' Graham of Clavei/e ^sl '^b . ''f/r'"'-^'^ ^^'"'i™ of Braco, and otlerkni»hf,bf '„*''"■'*'''' ^'^ J"''" Britain Ll of Nova io i T'" ' '^"""'"^ "^ Great Contle^en „,''tL':,::e o^ e nu^f 'tT' r""' '"" a.Kl accompanied for the more >n rt bl M '?' " '""'■ «i''''™' »J «i'- Oil- I'ad been more eomramZ "'■" "^ "1""'' """^ *'"»■<' Mo,,troseth»i;rw "oT T'f --i -■"' -y lord 'Lowed his sinister visa™;:!; wtde '"""' "^ ""■"''™ '''--V-^nnaird .i;::^™;--^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Great-gmndfather of Viscount Dundee. i i i 11 \rr'- I -■ ' ) tff H 1 i Si r.'> 292 The Angel of the Covenant. Lady of Bnico, played hostess ; uiid she proved sonietliiiig of ii drugoji, her wutelifiihiess mul her s[)ite being in j^cii. erous meiisiiro turned ui)()n my eoiisin of IJulgownie iiiid upon Maudlin, whom she hud never before seen, and wheiii, I conceive, she sus])ccteil of secret incuntiit ions und witch- eries in the lonely burtisene tower where they hxiged ; be- cause she knew my lord went often there privily (drawn, doubtless, by their encliantmcnts), and because, also, slic saw the art magic which they triumphantly practised upmi all the gontlemen in the open concourse of the hall. It was a memorable season : to be recalled now among the odors and delights of youth ; to be accounted with the rose-leaves and the love-tokens of lusty Juventate, though it gave me not a little distaste and pain at the time : all the more memorable that it was the last outshining of Peace for us all. As it was the first occasion of my seeing my lord play the prince in his own hall, so it stands forth as the last I saw of him before he stepped down into ilio dust and melly of strife and ciulcavor. With that came to a period his golden youth, with its fret of dream and de- sire. Up till then he had but showed the gilt scabbard. But thereafter he nourished the bright irresistible steel which the brave scabbard had held. Though my lord was no glutton, but ever of a most hardy temper, yet he was of tlie lordliest generosity, and his provision was most bountiful for the delectation of his ' guests. Day after day were the long tables in the great oaken-raftered dining-hall displayed with beef and nnitloii and capons, together with wealth of wild meat, as venison and goose, hare and capercailyie, plover, woodcock and ptarmigan ; while there were also fresh-water flukes from Perth, trout from the Iluthven stream in the glen below the castle, and in due season salmon from the Tay. Manchets of white bread reposed by every serviette, and ready to each hand stood tankards of Easter Ale and chopius of claret. t irresistible steel Will. My Lord at Kincardine Castle. ^93 ol" England I Ii„t wl.on T '^'''''"" ^'''^'^ ^^'"o ,.io..t/a,„ong a',":>:'r„v::; roiX'^'n '™ -^ ^™""' ii. H..gland, or in Franco, ..hire i/' ,, """■ '"™ aca.rscd internecine Iron b 03 I 1,'" , ^' ";""' "'"'« my native country In.th I , ,„: ' aT H iT ""';""■" """ a licrcer tomncr it J,,H, =„ii- , ^ """"<-'■■ »'"' of ..otter eo„.pC tn /tw^rTo'!';"'"™/-';""""'' Scottish hind or laborer mi^r,!. f I ' "'"'" "^"'y Ins ,.ioee of roast or sX to .1 L" '? •'?■""" '■"™ '""» now be content if ho soo that 1 7^ """""■' '""""«' 'vlnle every lord ami To, ' ""'" '" ""^ *"»''' """l, good a tabL u co^ d bTCX. t f/''^" '""■" """ "' for the „.oro part, sit r Hh 1:.^^?' "7 '":"'' mntton and hide a <,onv =t , ^ '" *'''' ™"='^s of And all thishatt be > doucTh.: ';■"' t""'"''"' ''™''""- ^0 littod harder on Id^ 'l^Z ^^ trbefot'- ° ""'"' "^^ .i-rilXti;^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ >I.ile, besides the gue'ta who e.amf 7^^'^ '.""^ "" *"« stayed till the end tl„.„ <=™ie at the beginning, and visitors fL tl h'ree , ! T " -""""S "'"^ »'"'"ig tide of wayoleomjSl^ent L^TLr:';:;'".*""'" ''""^' "^ «■'.* be. or a string of hal^e 'of It::,""?!';:' ' " lord's steward milled u i„..„* ' """riowi. 1 doubt my «compts of the nttrv tb! > V™ he came to note the tl.e alo'eellar a,:d' h Tin'elt fo?th"'° '"''' '^'''-• fc latter alone-red wh, T ' '"'"""consumption of -konedbypTn'eh^i""" ""' *'"'^'"»"' '>-- "-" more prevailed exceeding gaiety, but withal no gross ll 1' ' 1 \v i 1 ^ I ! I 294 The Angel of the Covenant. indulgonco ; for tny lord liiul a bearing? and a conduct wliicli forbade that witlioiit Ids uttering a word. During day- light (except wlicn a miow-Htorm awirled in the heavens, tia once and agaiji it did)— the company was scattered, ridinj^, hnnthig, or hawking, or curling on the ice ; but, when darkness descended, we were all assembled in the statcily reeeption-hall where glowed two central ilros of peat iuid resinous llr, the smoke and vapors of which escaited by two great fumerols of louvre-work in the groined roof, 'riicro, I dare aver, the firea shone al)road,— and glistened baok from swords and targes on the walls,— upon as fair ladies and as gallant and stately gentlemen as ever were seen oiil of a royal court ; albeit the most taking and handsoiirj persons were my lord and my mistress Maudlin, who bliizcd amidst the others, and rose neighborly above them likellic two central fires. Wo all held converse, gay or serious, before and after supper, and my lord's pipers played springs, and wo masqued and danced in innocent mirth. For, re- member, the stern and gloomy regiment of the Kirk was then sunk to its silliest, and men, having, for the more part, but short memories of what is oppressive and painful, had forgotten the past tyranny of Presbyteries, and guessed not with what devilish ire the ministers would descend ou all the joy and the amenity of life, once they were para- mount again. The two-three ministers who frequented our company (of whom the most notable was Robert Murray, minister, or provost, of Methven, and uncle of the little infamous Will Murray of the King's Bed-chamber) looked on with a disapproval which they durst not express with any force ; but none marked them, save, perchance, my sly and subtle lord of Rothes. I remember that after one of our merry-makings he took my lord Montrose to task,- gcntly, for ha was no bigot, but pure time-server. '^ ''James," said he the next morning, when a few of our company debated affairs in the comparative privacy of my Will. My f,orcl at Ki„carclinc Casllc. ,<„ " AimI ia policy Jo H ,' " """-"'J'^i-oil KioKo. a,ko y Ion,. ^' '"' "'° '''"''^™' "'•'"'> i" a chief ? -' in;ir;™:;:'''''"'''°'''''"™''"y'-i London,,, ,,,,tu„g " Wo ca„ dolittloin this h, .fet .C;! 'n' """' wo are „a,v embarked on—." ' ' ''"""•'''' " "''ioli " r an, not yet embarked," c,„otI, my lord Wo can do ttio " «.iirl li„n ■ with a smile, " w, hot, tt " '' ^^'-'K-'i'lo W^ protest do nothing to gX 1 ,,, yT" ■''V"'' '"' ^'"' "^""'d «.;3 ploys o/da,,ei,:;i/„;:;Ti;;'!r''' '^- »itb yo,,^ bright and picro^n^ I'T, .""'"'' """''"'"oo'no quarry. "^ ^ ^' '""= "">»" <" » '"Icon sighting his "And so, James, do I " «ow7 t?^^ i , yielding mood, "kt .hariSd ;:;.:'■;;: "■■ »'/'■<' do not." ""m you . I he ministers betjer ov" "" "^ '"'•"' " *"^ '»™'='- ">-* e'en think " But if yon wish to gain them, James > " onoth Rnti "I will not belie myself," flashed ont mvlord «t '■ any man— no, not even— I s»v if „:*,, ^ ' *°S'>m Ood Almighty Himseli » ^ "" ™verenco-not even J^thes lookodat Loudonn.and together they shook their m i: I -:.i n I {I < 'I ^Ul 296 The Angel of the Covenant. ** That kind of lionor to your own opinion," said Rothes, " may be a bravv pagan and a stoical virtue, James. But the Reformed Kirk of Scotland will not count that to you for righteousness. They will bid you rather dissemble your prcpensions " ''Even if I cocker them in secret," quoth my lord, with a palpable hit at Rothes. " By any means," continued Rothes, "to avoid causing offence to weak brethr'^n." <' And will weak brethren be less weak if I am bound and restrained ? 'Twere better to counsel them, to bo strong, than to put veto on my liberty to do such things as I conceive to be without offense against the law of God." ''It is a command of God," put in Loudoun, " toavoul doing or saying sucli things as may cause the brethren offense." "Is it so?" " Paul says " " I have yet to learn," flashed out my lord, now grown something quick, " that Paul set down nothing but Divine Wisdom, perfect and entire." " But Paul was divinely inspired,'* quoth Loudoun in his dry, hard, pedantic manner, which did ever irritate like a rasp. " May be so," said my lord. " But yet God hath made me, Scottish James Graham, even as he made Ebrew Paul ; and he hath made me so that the final touchstones for me of all truth must be my reason and understanding. Thus I am, and so help me God, I can be no other." " For mercy' sake ! " cried Rothes, flinging up his slim white hands. " Keep that kind of thing locked in your breast ! James, man, in the view of both Kirks that's rank heresy ! " " Rank and notorious ! " quoth Loudoun, with a glum in, " to avoid tlic brethren With My Lord at Kincardine Castle. .97 ".:r s"^ ""■'' ■"' »-' -'-' - « 'or other t„.„„3 " But ye will allow, James " s-nVl T?^fi of the onny „„„ ,/olding 'n.o <'? If',.;"" ™« «"» ."g:-'All tJ,i„g8 arc lariul, b J all I „ ^ ^°°'* '">'- haid I not well," q„oth Eotlic ' th.,V „„ -m • James, by (ailii.g to bo politic " ^ "'" ""''' - i^f ::'^:y S';:;f' '-^ "-■"' - ^ '-^^y oh.™ee to «„ in which wo were all fn l.! T f *^'''* business, i-=i;Tr:r:i-;;t;t£^^^ l'»rty, despite their belief in 1,^1'* of nf'"'" '° ""^"' i' may be, because of it : for he 11^ ^^' "' "''^'''' tn.st in the transparently hones 1^ '■'"" ""' """'^ oivM kidney ; and I tl,i„V ""'"''"•*" "'^n '" one of their canny BotL's tto "ribVli^ pt^iJinU'":, '^ •""" VMi \ i ii ■ " t 298 The Angel of the Covenant. CHAPTER XXIV. A- "\^: 'r'l 1 I ' if Ij mMLaI ..i MY LORD DECLARETII HIMSELF. It was something Uitcr tlian that piece of talk I have set down that our secret company— I mean my lord and ray two cousins and me — were met according to our almost daily wont in the bartiseno tower where the ladies lodged. It was a wild midnight, and the four of us sat warm in the round room with a great lire of coals in the chimney, while the wind howled in and out the battlements and about the windows, and roared like a spate in the wooded glen be- low. It was a zest to the intercourse held there that my lord was always at his brightest and sprightliest in that company. He was that niglit as gay and as abandoned us a schoolboy, and Maudlin and her motlicr kept him to it. They talked somewhat of the Lady Katherinc, and how she fared in her "Place of Peace" ; for a wild niglit always minded them of her, and her dread of black spirits and mechant inlluences. " Poor Katherine," quoth my lord. " I think shehatli the Cowrie gloom." Tlius tiiey talked in gentle converse ; l)ut as for mo, I was tilled with bitterness ; for, however well or light- somely I strove to think of it, I couid not make my bitter sweet when I saw Maudlin and my lord together: 1 grudged every kind look she bent on him. "I think, my lord," said my cousin of Balgownie, cast- ing a sudden glance on mo, " that you must prepare another Masque, to occupy our sweet cousin Alec, who ap- pears in the right masquing mood." ink she liatli << My Lord Declarcth Himself. 299 Ila," quoth my lord, "tlmt minds mo that there is a ..pnutcd Ataquo oomo to n.o from London, in itu od Uun.. It hath no author', name, but it is ;ro„Rir „ mo.. ™oct and musical and learned verso. Hast seoL it? "I have my lord," I made answer : "i„ your book cabmot. But ,ve can never sot that forth. There is bu one man of our acquaintance who could enact tl part of Comus ; and ho is not here " ^ K:Sron:L7" '""""'''"°'" -"^ -'■ ■■ "y -an the "Who other?" said I. "Alec" quoth my cousin with solemnity, -ye should ZiZ:^'^'' ""'''' Wha names theUmt;::^ " God forefend ! " cried my lord. "Why not clinic „p a .^mqao yoursel' my lord " " asM my merry cousin, while Maudlin bit 'upon hor AiUm,''"'".,'""'"" '■■■""'' ""'l I ''"« ''««! you and A cc tc 0' the verses you turned that flrst night you lay at Aberdeen seven years agone." J^u lay "Jigging nonsense ! " quoth my lord "Fie, my dear lord/> said my cousin, shaking a finger That IS to opj)eyn my judgment. Ye forget Tint I c ,n make a j,g or ballad myseP." And of late I haVs some bonny verses o' your ain/' ^ ^ na o seen "llaveyerj, my lady ?" But my eyes were held by Maudlin, who was covered n 1 sudden confusion ; and my heart was filled CIth a go oi suspicion that my lord had now got so far as to address love-odea tn hor ^ "^^ ^^ ^^ Wliv, then," he said liglitly, '^ AL. SOS together again, and see what will said notiiing : I could not trust cc and I will clink come of it." I my. fi Miis(|iin of * T/if loves tif .U'- ijcin's and roliavrlnis' ; iiiid yoii, IMislrcsH Mjiiidlin, wi'l •MUict tlio part of l.lio bountiful, politi(i Ai'(j<'iiis, and Alic hoiv will 1)0 I'oh'ftrrfnts.*' " Niiy," siiiil I, l(>tlin^ out it spirt of spleen. " none hiil my lord Montrose can litly play ro/iarr/nis.'" " Do you mean that, AN^'?" ho demanded, lixin^nKi mo his bright '^aw. Then Maudlin, quiek. donblU'ss. to nolo my conditio)! and put olT an outhronk, and resolute also togniBp an.illu'r Olid whie.li she saw within her rea(^h, bIiowihI luM'st'if lidtii kindly and politie. "Will it not be well, my lord," quoth slip, smiliiifij ujion him, " io let the placiriL!^ of the charaeters bide till I lie Mjisque be written ? And by your leave I will pfo further, my lord, and say : — Will it not be well to make a postjioiu'- ment of the writing till the gathering storm ho overpast ?" "The storm? " (pieriod my loril, with u turn of his head to tlio window. *' 1 mean, my lord.*' continued Maudlin, warming, with hor words, ami showing a lino rose of oxeitenuMit on licr I'hoek, "the troubles that threaten tho Kirk and State of our own Seotland. My lord, my lonl," she brake out, looking earnestly on him and clasping her hands in licr lap, *' why hang yo longer off from putting out a liiuul when Scotland waits your help ? The (Jraham should lie in the front ! Oh, 1 ken well the history of your house. my lord ! Have 1 not road in Buchanan how the (IraliaDi has ever most valiantly dofeiidod his country against lier notable enemies and unfriends — Koman and Saxon, Dane and Norman — defended her with blood and fortune tliroujili hundreds of years ? And did not the first Karl die at hi king's side at fatal Flodden — and his son, your great-giiiil- sire, my lord, did he not likewise at Pinkie? And your lordjhip's guidsiro — did ho not rule all Scotland for the My l-ord Dccl.irclli Himself. 301 ih. vvaUn or Ku^Uuur/'^ -"" m, n.ia(,o M.iH " 'TlH tr..(. " said I,,.. ,.„.Hi,|.n„K l-'i" w..||. - F,.,^ (]n. O.V-U.V, fair ,„i.sl,,«„." • ^ " ''™' ""'• '"«l'"-.y "M,Ht "An.! will y„, ,„j, |,„,|," ,|„,„„,„|,,| „| . , :-£;:; ;;;;'r:;:':;\;- -'"-:-.; '• rn,l,«l ,.,,,1 r,„ tru„ ,. ,,,,„ ,,„,,„ of Salvation, ,„y .loar lo I m ,0,1 ,,y oo„„,„ of |,,.iK,»„,i„. .. r„ it „„t A^, V ' ov:riuai:tt ,,;!;;;;!" ''"'"'^ '"'■'' ^''' '•'''" '"^^-'-iui "Yoan,ov„r fo,.,„„»i,l,„.i„«, Al,,,!" Ma,„lli„ fl„„„„t ;tru„Mr"o ""■';'"" "•"»'"-•'■» 'i-<^W' win ;:, "" . 01,, f I „or„ only „ man for ,. twolvom.nul, t " »lH'isni«! to Iior ■'■„„1 ' '"7"""<»' _ 8i»"'">'> ^h-dd^r- damn»bl„„.d deadly c^^t "yet I r:r" ">.""""« " csaary it would boeomo tl It I s| „,d i I!n ?'"'" ''°'' ''^"• their foundation. Yo will IJ , T"^ '"' ''"'""' ^^<"» «.y lord's part, .,:, Tot f.a 1" S td Zf^'^I^T, '"' he l.aJ a groat dostiny in fron of Zn, n J ''"^ ''"''^ ;..-i„g,,i„. ,.„d „„ nu.,tror X U ^^-i^-y fcluig, d,d subsist in concord I will not soi fl ? " bi.t they did sosubsist, and the one for .1 *,° f^P'"'" ! an outbreak of the other II , '""g while stayed *o,.-A,g into tl, b -of t ''0 H> ':Y " """'-P" ••«■ turned for m-mv ,1 v, , /, ''^"''' """'g'^' «■•« bullion, till iVoirced th t 1!'°.°"'""'^ ''°"° "^ ™«'- hot beneath is frot^Hmtr" '; ' ^"^ ''f '"« *■>" g™""-! 'hat vent the flame .o^ , """'" " ''"'"' ""<' ""•««g'' HI the swemnrso 1 fl ?'"''' """ ""> ''^^ '">™d »mosuehwse°it ™ w,^'"' i" ""^ ''■•°™^'' "• In »a fro in Z , 'no Lt Vr""V'" r"' '^ W.™o_„„ the image of mT-oM and^ 'l?™; f"""'? ^^».w.th despite. But withal I saM no ttrf L i !»<. tl.0 q„,ek sense that a word spoken would be '.deed k -^ m .-L ■ i i ■ y ' ' 1 "1 I •■'■( 310 The Angel of the Covenant. irrovociiblo, (^leaving u liolo into the volciino which would forthwith belch forth licath uiul (Icvjistation. Ihit after that occasion when I iieard that my lord ]nu\ written vorsos which Lady lialgownie liad seen, and wlum I on the instant leaped to the conclnsion that they miisL be lovc-sonnots to Mandlin, my eye and my thon<^lit hnriit, over more wildly npon all the tokens T could note of (lie joy and contidence between them. 1 drew myself savai];('ly apart, and fondly wondered and admired hy all my wor- ships might not provoke such flowering in return. As if Lovo must be the answer to tlie nice conduct of desin\. iind doth not rather spring up like the wiirm summer wiiul. no num being able lo tell whence it cometh nor wliitiuii it goeth ! 1 had com])assion on myself, almost to tears, not for the pain that I endured, but for the vexation aiul unrest on which my miiul was tossed ; because I could arrive at no issue nor conclusion this way or that, I strove to convince myself that, since my mistress's whole heart was set upon my lord, I liad best abandon all hope of hor. But I strove to no purpose ; for no sooner was my thou<,dit turned that way than burning inuiges of their tender eon- lidences swept ui)on me like scorching vapors, till I was in a hell of delirium. So, in this whirl of unreason, my fire grew ever more maddening and more irre})ressll)lo :~ insomuch that on a certain night I dreamed a hideous dream — why this dream rather than another my reader may explain as well as I. In a dusky, smoky light, as of a pinc-torcli, Sir John Colquhoun stood before me in something of the guiso of Satan. 1 was in nowise surprised to see him, but looking up from the table Avhere (nu^thought) I sat and wrote at something, I greeted him. *' I liavc been seeking you,"J said, " this many a day." "Have ye so?" quoth he, in Sir John's soft voieo. though I knew him for the Devil, lie sat upon a s tool. I :■■.) A Terrible Temptation. 1 • 311 and crossinir ono ]o •,'«"'' '•■»■' <|noto text, life a„a L„ it " t^ " ^ ™ - ""S ^'" ?^™ "> -ok „,y f^ i I 312 The Angel of the Covenant. for by all nilos of conduct my brother ]\Ioutroso is in the same creel witli me." In a sudden glow of heat T found myself, without more arguimuit, entirely of his o])inion. I said no word, hut 1 h)oked upon him, and he looked upon me so that I shrank back and shuddered. Kor someliow (metliought) ho con- veyed his meaning to me without speeeh. " In good sooth," he appeared to say anon, though the words truly seemed to soak into me from the eireumiluciit air, " it would be more to your benefit that he ratlicr than I should die. She likes yo well enough to be content to marry ye Averc he gone." " I doubt," said I, *' I'm but a poor match ; " but (me- thouglit) I was wondrously moved and tempted by liis meaning, which I conceived and felt in advance of aiiy- tliing said. *M3y no means," quotli he lightly, "Twenty thousand English pounds is the price. That ye can ha'e, and be Earl of Montrose in his place into the bargain ; if ye will agree wi' mo." The promise was monstrously absurd, but it appeared not so then ; for the stuff of dreams nuiy fly off most wan- tonly from the likelihood of fact, and yet seem most feas- ible to the dreamer. *' I ha'e a bonny conceit o' myself," said I, " but I doubt I could ill i)lay my lord's part ; for methought the promise was held out that I would be Earl of Montrose in my lord's room and the change not be known. '* My lord l\Iontrose," I said, " is the most princely of men. And I love and esteem him more than I can tell." On that gusli of warm praise my heart, methought, rose superior to tlie temptation besetting it. Then Sir John Konmed to be of a sudden grown more plausible and portentous. " llo-ho !" says he. ''Bide a wcG ! It'll be another tale when the pains 0' hell lia'e ilk 1 !l: A Terrible Temptation. gotten hold o' the wamoo'yor Yo'II.oni • ^^ " What ! " I cried. " Knt^v ,„ „ dear Saint of Go,l » (;. t,, . ^ " "«""' "'° ™™t. -'i'ing. .- 1 were 1 : z;:::'!?;' °! ^'«"™" -» •■"T» to „,c to know that I Inc t ,' ' '"''" J<*^ "' Horrific thing. Yet !,;„ ^"""""^ "'« "'^oone bound to allo^w tl o 'wt ^hZt "'"?• ^'"•""'^' ^ ™« «;-« there a. „,ig„ weTpto r;!' rtr "''''"^°™ the vapors and flames and „oak If r : "™" =« viowcd with an eye of fan 1 " "'''' "'"' ^hon men and beasts jfor/amSH "'""• '*™'S° ^""P™ °* t«.lo that dreanls are ZZ" "^ "'""•"" "' "'" "'"'"- Dreams arise ; thev do not d, , T'""^' ''■"■» «"'!• otaflre,orthoval o ' Tn' "^ •™ "'" ™*" raJ.,nor.aret,,eX,l:r,y:;:ir-'"-''-- «.o luai, there stood the dev il KX.Zf'f """ "''""" him at the fire ? II„ I,.,,, , „ ,*>'': °' I""'^. warming l."l; ho was close sh von T,; °"''""' ^»P "P™ '"^ Josait. Several .entr 'st^ trnTt^/'l- ""' ■Snoraut-and admiring not a 1^1! ?' '''"'"'^ «tenger might be. As for m„ ''/ ''"-'!''» "'« P^ist ga^ed. I recalled my dream Tnd "'^ ''"''P^'' •''"'l ,^»<'"'»-amo npon me! :ndT:id"m: Ttt """" "-^ li«k came old Sir William Graham of ri '='°?'"'P°" "'^ my lord r,„rn at his elbow. Claverhouso, with Jlii!" cried the wlilf^o "i;;,. \xrni- -^' '"oking npon s! ' thn ■ etd' ,"'""'' '" """P ^"» . iio iiad boon guardian, or L , ;, t> Ill 314 The Antfcl of the Covenant. t . It; J I if I M IP I'vl ■ |i .ml if I J III I >IH - ' :' ' curator, of Montrose and his sisters. *' I lia'c been sook- ing you this moiiy a day ! '' And lio (!hi|)i)cd liia hand to his dudgeon liilt. " Have ye so ? " said Sir Jolin, looking upon the did man as lie know him not, while it smote mo eliill liko a waft from a ghostly wing that these were the opening words of my dream. *' 'I'hen, sir, Ave are well met." " Weel met, in sooth ! " quoth old Sir William. '' Thou traitor to thy eharge ! Thou foul, incestuous beast ! Conio forth, and I'll make gift to thee of a blade to defend thy forfeit mediant life ! " At that Sir John was mute. A look of wonder passed upon his fish-visage, and he cast a glance around, as lie would say, *' What maggot doth wriggle in the old man's noddle ? " But at the high words sundry gentlemen of the Graluinis made haste into the hall. Foremost Avas a lad, the grandson and doted favorite of the old Sir William. *' What's tliis o't. Grandad ? " quoth the youth. " llath tlio man in the papist gown angered thee ? Wha is ho ? " '' Wha is he, boy ? " said the angry old Knight. " lie is a traitor knave, outlawed by the King, and excommuni- cate by the Kirk ! lie hath putten a tache upon the Grahams, whilk blood cannot atone ; and his life is forfeit to whomsoever can take it ! ' Tis Sir John Colquhouii, boy ! " ** Begod ! And it is Sir John !" cried then some '^f tlie Grahams, pressing forward with lowering broAvs while other some ran forth for their Aveapons. Then up spake my nimble-Avitted lord of Lorn. "Sir William ! Sir William ! " quoth he. " Here is some strange mis-likeness ! This gentleman is in my confidential service : his name is Andrew Blackader : in yon frock he passeth as Father Blackader, because he hath but come from France on our business and from our own King's of Lorn. '' Sir A Tcrribl Court : in both Jesuit's ir-'irl) ^ Temptation. If niiartorK Jio hath freest intoi nn ^"'""- "^''t', MOW, ' ho '!"'"'"«• <*<>»• NirWiWium to tl ■oourso iu i;ho Ki went oil without ull your lord's frioiid, Mr. I iru.st "i.'i Word, your 8ir Joii " ''I I*;iriH,;!.s I '■'•'"•t '^i' Ksk, who huth I, OWillnr o I ere is iiown known Mr. niiickjuhir in I (ItK^ljife this ffcMtl 'i'.'i''"''''*'"''' ••^>'<1 vvIjo also hnth '^'iliiihurL^h I was struck ii ^'iium to 1)0 ''' Hliu jiow doth 1 10 I a ( spiirk of iiu'iiuco in 1 l"'"'^Jary. Il,i,l Lorn si "s cross-eye, I think 1 si '(>wn to ine a ikl donounced Sir J(,hn, and let hi,,, f.,ii i .' *"^'^' the wrathful Grahau s. ]/. , iT" ''" ''''''' '' swcotasmilk; and as for S ir 1 t "^ "' ^''^^l ^^'"^ as 1-v he stood st fa Jrft,.' ^ ^"'"'^ '^^ '-tadnure tln-oatenin.. with W 1^ i ? ^'\i^^-^«^""^'« o'' «o mueh was forfeitlo bo h Kirk "^ ^^^'^ ;1 ^"'^ '^^-^ •• '-^ ^'fe slaylum with ainJolt^^^^^^^^ l^araneeassum;iJtrt;^,^r::,-toallap. Moreover, 1 ,Ii,i oonooivo tl,.,t f , "*" '''''•■=''•<'• .lo.oou J,i,„, „„. 1„ m' ''• '^ '"■•'; ""'■'■ «x,».„tio„ wore „f i • , "'" ^ '"ado answer iJiiiu . f^ ri,i , of a certainty, is the M,- Rl-.,.?^ i '^'^^'^ ^""^ — " That, M. w,s a ki,i;i orw.fttf;: """^''"■■•"■■J^l.ip told nol'nl;'" "■'"■>"""' ^"™' ""'-- M- liurnet h»tl, p,,- .. My licdanition gavo the G,ai„„„s na,„o • ti simply rustical goi.tlomeii wl,„ ,li, ,\' '"^ ''"''o w«nl8 migl,t bo trnn Z\ \ "' ™"»"'"- "«' my a™, that, what;vo;. fh ' ImoT r''"t 't"^"""'' m«ldliug with a client of til' "■""" '"' '''"le »i...t h.:™ g„„e a::;\:\,::': :™:! ,;'^;^f^;;; ^^t .1 l^iit Sir Jol cliunorcd in a, 'ippearunco in in wi yon head ever ■greenient) company of liis chamberlains «^^ J^im ! " and others ;^ ="i "ot my lord Montrose made 3i6 Tlic AiiL^cl of tlic Covenant. i:i'- , in- n m " Lords 1111(1 gentle ruMi," cjillcd tlio loud luslior ut Mic door, "the most, nohio tlio K:irl o' iMoiilroso." With !i (lash here; and there his quick eye apprehended the situation. The (Jrahanis had fallen baek a pace dn seeing their lord, and tlu>re was left none between him jiiid Sir John, near to whom on the one side was Lorn in (In. plain attitude of keeper of the peace, while I stood oil' on the other. A bright Hush i)assed upon my lord's cjcnr countenance, but, ere he could say word, liorji made lia.sto to speak. *' My lord Montrose," says he, us ceremonious as yon please, *'hcre hath been some small piece of troul)Ie tliro' mis-kenning. This Mr. lilackader, a gentlenum in my confidence, who conceives it prudent to wear the api);u'<'l of a Jesuit, hath been taken by the gentlemen of your lordship's house for a notorious unfriend of the (Ini- hams." *"Tis ill done, my lord Lorn," answered my lord, witli quick, keen words, ''to bring the man into this house ! I like not the Jesuit frock ! 'Tis the act of unfriend to flaunt it here ! " The pale Lorn went very white, and seemed troubled; but it was not at sucdi a moment he lacked courage and readiness. " My dear lord," quoth he, in his smoothest voice, ''misjudge me not. T neither brought, nor did in- vite, Mr. Blackader here, lie took it ui)on him to bring me a message which he ought to have consigned to 8ir Gilbert Murray. He came to mc in the early morn ; and I conceived he was gone again, when entering here I found him." " Ye will pardon, my lord," said Montrose, "my quick temper. But, ye will allow, that who doth employ eniis- saiies. in Jesuit garb, layeth himself open to misprision." That he said vvith notable j)oiut, and my lord Lorn niaia- no answer, save a wag of his head. " And now, sir," A Terrible Temptation. 317 qnoth my Ion], tun.in. , ool.l look upon Sir John ^^f will bo vve I thon,^ht on if you romovoyour ob,.oxi pre L'lico and sliow it Jioro no more " ^''^^ous pros- My Una Mctroso, «a„l hv. in u voice that claimed con s.IonU,on a,ul con.pussion (t do verily believe i t J^ Z^ hini grout deli-],t to play a i,erilons .n.•^ ,./if ^ the st"i ."Hi clrink, a,Kl lot I.inTj "'''""'"'"'• ""•' We still sat at breakfast when word 'was b™„.l,t -that tho .an i„ tho book-cabinot IZaZ'tZ ^vitli a Strange s ckness • inri fi.ui i , utKen instant with Wn onhi; ™ rT 7 ! *""' "" ''"' ou 1118 ai m. J£e returned not ; and the 3i8 The Angel of the Covenant. company cast about for exijlication, tossing questions on this side and on that :— Who was tlic man ? What niys. tcry cnwrai)pcd Jiim ? Wluit liad lie fallen sick of? Was it like to bo a contagious pest ? Would lie die ? h had been (said tluiy) a wet harvest, and a green Yule ; and a "green Yule makes a fat kirkyard." Such was tlio dismal talk and foreboding. It was an inclement diiy. White mists trailed about the Strath and filled the glon of Ruthven ; and none avus much disposed to go out of doors ; but rather all were inclined to linger within and cherish the mystery which had entered the castle, and toll creeping tales of warlocks and wraiths, of premonitions and second sights. The mystery was made the more portent- ous by the mute and glum demeanor of the elder Ura- hams who had known Sir John well, and who (I am con- vinced) had cast away all doubt concerning the man in the Jesuit frock. They whispered together, gathered in corners, planning, I doubt not, modes of circumventino' their lord's expressed design of leaving the punishment of Sir John in the hand of the Judge of all. As I have con- fessed to you, I am of a doubtful and suspicious temper ; and not only did I conceive that the Graham gentleman were plotting the death of Sir John, but also I had strong doubts that the Knight of Luss was making a pretence, or (as we used to say in the North) ableflume, of illness either thro' fear of falling into the hands of the Grahams if he ven- tured forth of the castle, or with some wild hope of seeing the lady Katherine,— whom he, doubtless, supposed housed with her brother. Maudlin made me mad. Iler mother gaily passed the time in company with sundry gentlemen who paid court to her ; but Maudlin hung around in a kind of green find bitter sickness. She was civil to me, when I sought her conversation,—" civil as an orange," as Will Shakespeare hath it, — but she was Avholly pre-occupied with the A Terrible Temptation. 319 thought and image of my I„nl. Tl.at was ,,I„i„ . fov slm ever urne.l ean,o«tIy to tJ.o ,I„or ; .,u| to JnlLtl new step .Irew l.er ,,„ickest heed. As So. ,„e, J h t out »ml ,„, mgmg „„d wunrestfnl, with . bunm,: ie e f,."" »..cs. Wi,en, after a loo-long while, my lord did et , ? U.0 .1 n|r.,„a ,«„ of Mandliu's c„„nte„anee ,„ade me ell' «.gh tlHul. sl.ame of her, and drave n,e forth in ,aT,rv of passion wlncli I could scarce control. But vid! (I day drew its horrid, weary lengtl> to,., f ,' ™d , t d: ,inr,"{isko(iniy l()r,l,add ycs()ii<,dit to attack my life?" 321 os])ondoncy I surrou- lams. roasiu*,' Sir John, " huv ■J)evil ry, man . "answured the knight. O-lio, Jiimes, ye keiii la lio Mere devilry ! w many devils I give entert nient to in this mad, breaking heart ! ]I iieard o' tho man among the tombs, seek iiin- '^ yo never "g J' t and find- mg.iono? Ihat s hke me, and like him 1 think I ha I » lioiBwl 8CV011 spirits iiiiiir wiek,.,l tl,„„ „,ysoV I My loi-,1 t,ii-„«l sadly awiiy ; u,„l .Si^ j„i,„ ,;,„3 ,„, j^^^ by Ins (.raha,,, ca,,t„,.s to bo sliiU „,,. As for „io, I could not bear to look „,y lo,,! in the face, and I bc^od that I niight bo taken back to my bod. lS„t tbe en.l vo may well s,,>-n.,so, was not yot. How mv fi.rioiis jca|! JHisy Niight its vciit I ciiniiot now recall altlio' I can ktevc tbat my behavior did more provoke challcgc than »n» wai-e of J.'or I have heard abiiiid.mtly in my time Uiat, when evil teinper rnleth „,e, tho ex,,ressio,i of my CO.,,, tenance doth become exceeding gri.i,, s,iuvage, and «,1 y, and I have no good word to throw to ma,; nor I could not rest in my bed ; but was ever tossed and burned upon my internal fire. Therefore I rose despite lZ7f: ^r\ "'""' '' '""^ Hbitterpleasurein'tho mrt of them) and went to await breakfast in the great ■111 Glooming alone in the corner, I presently over- ard some talk of the singularity of the night's evn. Locxphea ion offered luul neither sides nor bottom was declared to contain the facts. Mr Burnet and he . mn^rmetat my lord Montrose's door : was not tha un strange ^ And wherefore had my lord moved his od so near the bartiseno tower ?-And what for had Mi tress Maudlin Keith shot forth so promptly ? Molve Whence had she shot forth ? There was a questionT And fl ft f- i JiJ. 'El f li 11' "'• h , r I ii m 322 The Angel of the Covenant. then, with laugh, was pictured a jealous knave with gloomy brow and gleaming knife stealing thro' the dark. . . , Of a sudden, I was in the midst of the gossips, who wcreull young men. Somehow thus the dialogue sprang and splrtod. " Yo speak of mo," I said : grimly enougli, 1 warrant. "Nay," came the light answer, "we speak 0' my lord Montrose and the bonnio Mistress ^Maudlin." " I forbid ye," says I, " to lay tongue to her name ! " *' Ilcy ? Are yo her keeper, Mr. Burnet of Esk ? " "lam." " Her lover, may-be, too ? " " That, too ! " " Wi' a reversionary interest in her marriage ?" I smote the speaker on the mouth with the back of my hand. " That," cried I, "' from him that means to be her man !'» There sprang an instant hubbub. Our swords were out, and neighbors were hanging on to either to hold us from fighting on the spot. . . . The next I can recall was tliat my lord Montrose laid a hand on my shoulder and said :— " Come with me. Alec ! " I went ; but the storm of feeling in me was such that by then I might have fought and killed my man — so murder- ous was my thought, and so distant seemed the word that had provoked it. I gave a glance at my sword : there was neither wet nor stain upon it. . . . Somewhere on my way from the hall with my lord the pale face and the cold gleaming eye of Maudlin looked out on me. " Thank ye, cousin," said she, " for your defence of my honor ! But ye might have spared me that last ! " She was scarce angry, only cold ; and women, wlien they cease to be warm, are colder than the deadliest Scythian blast, I said no word ; but something — some string of strenuousnes — seemed then to snap in my heart, while my head continued as hot and light as ever. A Terrible Temptation. 3.3 ,i Ji""' ™'" '-' " »■"» "- bogi„„i„,,„,„„r being friend,, F;.H..,™,nott,,isnig,.™vea,™ .ik"fLt:h;gi'.^';^:' "r^'.''-;:'« -^- -' forth. Vo wore nearef ciS t, . " ' :;",1.' " ';;'"' ™' "^ - - " AIc'C, do you mean ^'> tt^ *. upon mo in ai.ement. " " '''^'''''^' ^"^^^ ^^P^^ yn>at, and nothing else, and notl.inL^ less ^ Ami lord !-niy lord-if yo will nof hVl,f r1 " ^^' "'^ ^'■Hl by killing you thou! f f ""' ^ '^""^^ ^ "^"^^ greater than I can bear '- ^ ^'"* "!'"" ^'^^ i« ''««.lHn .. Ami the'otber , ; J oa !p ', ' "' fT "f nat ,vay n,:Vne.' "ill ""l' m , iirr '°"" " ' '^• li»ve k-nom, me better .vantin.. L 1^ W "''' ^° "''"'" •mdotliirx. oi' so totul,.,- 7 »7 Words are but the ''%, but, mv lord," said T '^ do T „^f i H'«. ana abhor the„seonv;,,/rBrit.tL7J m ti I . r! if J I: il' I i , i i; .,'• :m h 324 The Angel of the Covenant. dwell with the fires that consume me and the fears tliat haunt ! 'Tis better to be resolved even of the worst ! " '' Ye mean, Alec — ye push me to the point— have I de- bauched mistress Maudlin ? " And he set himself to pace back and forth like myself. "I might question your right to bring me to that point. But that were the end.'' " My lord/* said I, " were you unwed, and were 1 yet as foolishly and madly affectioncd to Maudlin as I am, I would gladly resign all to you as by far the better muii- so great, my lord, are the love and homage and admiration that I bear you ! Believe me !— believe me, my dear lord 1 — there is none other that I so hold in love and honor I But " He raised his hand and waved me silent :— " 'Tis all said. Alec. And now let me be clear. I am no tempter or betrayer of maidens. Even if I had propension that way, I think that the sad case of my poor sister, your friend, would be enough to hold it in check. But I have in me 110 such propension." " The temptation, my lord," said I, "is ever lurking like liquid fire in our members. And are not women of like passions with men ? " " I think they are not," said he ; " and I conceive 1 speak with a fuller experience than yours, Alec : bethink ye that I am a Benedick of seven years' standing. Men from the earliest are commonly libidinous : women seldom. ' Hence so many grievous errors. A man is ever inclined to judge a maiden's thoughts by his own,— even as he judges God's. If a maiden doth show herself kindly alTec- tioned, a man conceives it is with exactly such conscious intent as would be his, were he inclined to her. For tlie more part, he is utterly and entirely wrong. Alec. Tin' maiden's inclination may signify mere softness, or tlie yeasty uprising of nature of which she knoweth not the sense, or kindness, or the picturing to herself of an image A Terrible Temptation. mail IS sensible." •^emauu of which a Alec, she is better even than Poly y" „ T™'?' more part, refuse to read her or ;AT , ™' ^°'' *''« purblind. And, to come A,oc „ 7 "°'' "'"^ ''='"' have so much Iiti,,„ fr,.' ', """ P°"" "' "'is-I ; I '^'"ff*""'!' maiden as snob tbnt T i • already a husband-think it wore a nit„ f! 7 I-l)cmg untimely the peculiar savor and Si t"T ""^•"""^ condition. That ■■< n,v „■ j ,^ "' "•" maidenly serve. Alec ?" ^ """^ "" ""^ »»"<"•• Will thai "Ye have told me your m\n^ m,ri^ j • dom," said I, something LcTo'uSvf' 'T^ °' ™- begniled me of much'^ormy heat aid ,""^ ''^ '""J paden me this, my dear lonf ,!t "'',/'<'-"" ' "but- w.;auf w, »4ar:et'°:^srhir^^ -■'<' iugand gyrins in the „„T r *' " '''"'' "''■'d fly- C.»yc b!J he'r h^l!t h re r Zl' ^ '™' "'» «ight'? Ye must e'en bide'your fate f thc^b ^hV/ "' "" ' brast, praise God for the blessino- Tf t , *^ "'^°"'' :^^:Tthray-ry-?---^^^^^^^ ■Ti;3rJ:uM^S:S^----and *' t-es me, she inspirl:^r:;;Se "btta' i* ■ ; ' i il i ! i ^ ir« il ■I \ t. p. 1 i i lL J L 326 The Angel of the Covenant. am ready to servo you as friend, and ply her with reasons why she should turn her thoughts to you ? " '' Full well I understand, my lord," said I ; " but not for a world of thoughts from her would I have you do that. Moreover, it would avail nothing,— as I think you must ken, my lord." ' " Then, Alec," says he, of a sudden, " there is but this:— your love hath now become a bodily ailment. Be advised. Go for awhile to your uncle. Sir Thomas." "I think," said I, "a plentiful letting of blood might clear me of my fever." ** Your blood is too kindly and precious, Alec, to run to waste. Moreover, I claim a right to it : *tis mine hence- forward. And, Alec Burnet, I count yon of my household, — as secretar, or what ye will. Meanwhib, take your body and your blood to your native strath : its sweet air will take the fever from both." " My lord, my lord," said I, " ye subdue me to yourself. I think I have been a worm and no man ! But if ye will give me your hand, in spite of all, and still call me friend, I am yours." He gave me his hand — my dear lord ! I bent over it, and I am not ashamed to say I wet it with my tears. " God be gracious to us ! " he mused. "How a parti- tion thin as paper divides us from all the madness of tlie Furies ! " *' I think, my lord," said I, " I am not well." " Kest ye here," said he, " for the nonce ; and I will send you victual and drink." ** There is one thing, my lord," said I, "that doth yet trouble me." ' * And what is that. Alec ? " says he. " My dear lord," raid I, " — wanting more words,— must not Sir John go free ? " *' He shall," was his answer. " It was my purpose." The Triumpli of Maudlin. 327 of blood might , " that doth yet ro words,— must my purpose. CHAPTER XXVI. THE TRIUMPH OF MAUDLIlf. in the sole company of 1 7f ^"'^^"^ "orthward carolled their tlliest "^' "" '""' "'"^^^'' ""d uncle's hon/e Th e °™u;m1r*" "'»^'-»%»' -7 ing now and again of 'tiioffitf """"'^ T "' ''^»^- try, but not once «eei,„r *i T/ "^ *^'"''™ <=<»"'- dmm, and wal act!? ^g^vlg a„:;" 1 "/'^"^M^'- afreah appeal to the Prify CouncH ""'' """''' '""• ---.?:trgi^nTrKi:^%t«t"i:ir '■1 m w Il"^f« M r i' , S' wi' ; ' ■ .- i J ■ ! 1 j,,^.. , 1 i^: f: ■1 ■ 1; 328 The Angel of the Covenant. betimes that the first reading was dehiycd by the King's Warrant until the end of July. That did not please tho active and plotting heads of the faction, who must atill keep the tire burning and the pot boiling, and the public nose to the reek. Papers were printed, and carried from hand to hand, denouncing the New Book as naught but the Mass in English, brought in by tho craft and violence' of the Bishops for the overthrow of the Reformed religion. These papers reached even our prelatical Aberdeen, but only to be scoffed at,— despite their support by the godly and eloquent Mr. Rutherford. Then I was called south by my lord Montrose to go with him to Edinburgh. *' Hast heard. Alec," asked my lord, when I joined him at his place of Mugdock in Strathblane, *' how our Mis- tress Maudlin and your merry cousin her mother are to the fore in this Edinburgh stir ? Maudlin in especial, as 1 hear, is a very apostle, bringing in to the party all sorts, from crecshie market-wives to doubtful ministers." 1 made answer that I had heard nothing of all that. " I am none so sure," added my lord, ''that I care for that gaitc of establishing a righteous cause." *' I doubt, my lord," said I, " that ye're but a Gallic in the business." " May be 30," says he. " Yet, my lord," says I, '' when was any cause won by the over-scrupulous ? It's aye ' in for a penny, in for a pound,' — and for all the change a pound may bring." Our road from Strathblane lay thro' the village where I had delivered the lady Katherine from the Knight of Luss. So my lord and 1 left our servants to go forward, and turned aside to visit the lady in her Place of Peace. We found her in good case, aiding the goodwife in her house- liold tasks with the sweetest cheerfulness and humility. She thanked us for our visit, but begged that it miglit not be repeated : tho seeing us troubled her mind, and our The Triumph of Maudlin. but a Gallio iu 1>»<1 fi-om I,i„, • li'L r ", ""-'" '•"^'"'■"'I «I'o l.ud 'iko the othc «; 1 btn tr' ;■? '''^ '••"«»'• -w^*' gaborlunjic. °" ''™"S'" ''X U>o hand of tho anil Sn'o'Vo'torVr ' "'"™"'^"-^' "'''™™' "-«y. fayonrpart to take C1,H^ ^^ TV""' ""■««"«■ J' -xiyc will lind Jr,,„ „;1 ," ".'^ ''••"^ '■" ""x lifo; :--yi-o.„.o.od.ede^!";-l^;;:,;:::7i™j " Yc look older. Moo " r.,,\7 d.^ i »" .."« nwo o,„»o,.;, .;,:;d r'd 'i :,Sn,- "■> vr sayniff of it she blushed '"•"' ''^*^ *he n":i,'"^;Ziir' ""'"' ""*- '" "-'"-' "»»* boo„ «•« looping it tri, ,,'';''''' ''"""" '" "■^■. .-""l «he «l«'fe She l,a,ST r TT'"'*^" °'"^ '"''o^"- -nu,,o,,„t,aLVL';:;;-iXLr;:""' ►'•f 'M:%t i" r ■'■ li. i i ' ! m M : 1 ,..; 1 r 330 The Angel of the Covenant. So we said farewell, and went on our road towards Edin- burgh. About the hour of leaving work in the fields, be- fore we had rejoiiied our company, we came upon a crowd in the midst of the village. It was market-day, we dis- covered ; and there were gathered together farmers, and farmers' wives, and rustical and market folk of all sorts. In the midst was a leather-lunged man in black,— a min- ister, to all appearance, but in all likelihood a mere journey- man, of whom many in those days sprang into the offices of the true parochin pastors. As we came up he was read- ing from his Bible, roaring forth the first < 'lapter of Eze- kiel. We halted on the skirt of the crowd to hearken ; and I think our mounted presence inspired the preaclier to rant the more fervently and sweat the more profusely. He pinned his discourse to the 16th verse and what follows, concerning the wheel in the middle of a wheel ; and he declared, satis phrase, that the wheel was Antichrist, and the middle wheel the Bishops. " For here," says he, " is a wheel within a wheel. Even so the Bishops are within Antichrist. Then the wheels are, says my text, lifted up ; even so, beloved, the Bishops are lifted up ;— lifted up upon coaches with four wheels, just as Satan lifted up Christ to the pinnacle of the Temple ; but God will take the hammer of the Kirk in his own hand, and knock down those proud prelates, and break all their coaches and their wheels in pieces, beloved, and lay them on their backs, so that they shall never rise again ; for the prophet saith here that when they went, they went upon their four sides, and they returned not when they went. Beloved, that you may see is very plain sense. For, tho' they may go out with their read prayers and their paper sermons to persecute God's own godly people, yet they shall return, falling upon their broad sides, and get such a fall that they shall never be able to stand or return to persecute the godly with their new papistical Service-Book, so long The Triumph of Maudhn. 331 as they go upon their four sides, and are lifted up upon four-wheeled coaches/' ^ ^ lie raved thus for some while ; and the people near bv ns doclared they had never heard so rare a tong"e in ^ gracious minister's head. At the end ho cried ?< T J pray " and forthwith drave into an ei^ r^' «.,^ t ^ po t,ons, of which one concerned ns closely. ^ " erea iats. We kenna what may be in their mi,„i „i, . Bishops and their going back to Popery Tut ibtr. ken Lord I-Thou dost ken ! Touch their hearts Lord touch their hearts ; and learn them. Lord that tW fi.^ may wear feathered hats now^-wiMoopJ tu"Z bellowed, as that were an added sin,-- there'll be nTfl ! ered hats in Hell ! " ^^ ^^ ^^^*^i- When the man was done, my lord, moved oddly with the Ignorant fellow's entire assurance, put him a questtn "I have no great opinion of Bishops myself ''sZ'hp "but It might confirm my opinion, friend? heirwh!: are^your especial arguments against them.'' ""^"^ answe'-^Z^/'^ "^'"^ '" argument," came the ready Sifi^i^r;^-?;^— -^^^^ inditeth a good thing ' !«„. fLf ! 1 ' ^^ ^'^^^'^ «ops P^Por wiJwiiiXtr 3:^:1"^^'"^' a p„ ^ -^^ I'resently he lamented to me fhn« • 'Poor, poor Scottish sheep ' " sar^ hp *^ ,•/ me tJius .— new kind o' shepherd ' '' ^ * ^ ^'^ '^ ^"^ « ^^ ^' "^« ««:" ^f^^nSy^t -t -ra-r- -H S •>? '■•■:rj 332 The Angel of the Covenant. " Dear saint ! " I said to myself with an extraordinary gnsh of warm feeling. "And shall I not remember thee ? " The letter I was sadly touched to discover to be a kindly, but rhapsodical, exhortation, in the manner of Mr. Samuel Rutherford, to make my calling and election sure. Yet some sentences of it moved me strangely, — partly from what they showed me of herself, partly from the kindness and concern they expressed for me. " The summer days are just at hand," said she, " when there's but a drowsy blink and the night is gone. But, for the long day, and the high sun, and the fair garden, and the King's groat city up above these visible heavens, when there will be no night at all, but only his royal and glorious presence driv- ing sorrow and pain away ! " And again she said, *' I hear that Christ and Satan are now drawing two parties " (as if that tussle were not ever in our midst !) "and that Clirlst is coming out with his white banner of Love, which lie hangeth over the heads of his soldiers, while the otlier Captain, the foul Satan, standeth forth with a great purple flag, and crieth, ' The World, the World, the World, Ease, Honor, and a whole skin, and a soft couch ! ' my dear friend, I pray ye be not of those who stand idly by, and leave Christ to fend for himself ! Ye are a soldier. Alec Burnet, and I trow a good one ; and it will be black shame to you if you are not found on the side of Christ and his people." I will not, nor I cannot recite all that letter ; but, will I nill I, whatever my thought of the inmost worth of the cause, I plunged me deeper head over ears with tlie pro- testing faction for the sake of that lonely saint, the lady Katherine. For, when I saw Maudlin again, I was able to look upon her with equanimity. That for a time, at least. The while it is true, as the writer of Canticles saith, that *' Jealousy is cruel as the Grave," it is also true that *'many waters cannot quench Love." My Jealousy was The Triumph of Maudlin. 33, power that Maudlin had alrcjy 1„ pi ' ' "T ""f » her pa. along tl,o Lnekenbooths, a d L w"IL» Market Cross. She bore herself like a „LT~Jia. regal seemhness o( condescension and f amH X I , everywhere she was greeted with becks and mi e»' . enrtseya and acclamations. "^°' ""'^ " Bles.s the bonny face o' hi^r t" „„•„,! "SI.0 hath a bonniL a^d a better hrdo^r-f ■*-,"'"• ethor^ " than ony man o' the hail huToh" ' """" ™- • Ye seem, Mandlin," said I to her afterward " t„ 1„ »% canght the likingof the common fo.:rh;w it::;: Jlla, Alee," said she, "and yo thought I had no state- .1.;^^^^^^^^^ "I»^^"'o..S'.tyo had more craft " And it is not alone common folk " siirl «hn . .. ^i , b.g«cr fish than they daigling at my taH " """"' Her great trinmplis were not vet • hut in fi. j cade essay and proof of her str'eng'th and ^Zlt7' ^1 i.er as witH maKSf ^Thf rtl^STr arty had „ot been slow to avail themselves of uctnll •ndMnd strong snasives for that wWclt citdle ""f »' »„, to cloud and persuade his mot rlnahlrre"! li I. 334 The Angel of the Covenant. it !i j*ii And they nil i)iiicl (iourfc to her. I liavo scon ray lord Loudoun, when she sat gaily in the midst of an adorhig company, stand over against her, stiff and stately as llic ramrod of a musket, and flatter her with crahbed conceits to his own exceeding niorriment ; I liave seen, too, the sly Rothes hang over her, insinuating his confidence witli tlio slim and delicate hand of which he was wantonly proiul, and Cassilis (commonly called " the Solemn Earl ") and Eglinton (known as *' Gray-steel") I have seen unbend bo- fore her like jointed jumping-jacks, while the cross-eyed Lorn stood watchful and smiling, thinking his own thoughts and saying never a word. They all conspired to hold her as a fellow in their paction, and to prime her with reasons, persuasions, and instances with which she might ply and bring in to the party the young advocates and min- isters who hung about her, now near and now far, like humble wayfarers about a warm hearth, who crowd up to the blaze when their betters are not by, and fall discreetly off when they appear. Of her conquests among the ministers in those days her most notable — the one which chiefly provoked the admira- tion of the lords — was the bringing in of a certain cele- brated Mr. David Lamb. Ho was a tall, well-favored man, of keen and eager aspect, of considerable learning and public knowledge, and he was the most adroit and reason- able oppugnant of the policy of our party in the Kirk. He was of those who favored the New Service Book (and, spite of all that hath been said to the contrary, there were many such among the ministers, whether from free conviction or hopes of preferment I will not determine) and ho had eloquently commended it in a sermon preached in a synod held in Edinburgh before the Bishop. I suppose he was therefore well reported of at Court ; for in a little while it was said that he was dcsignctl successor to the aged ana blind Bishop of Solway ; and his hope of the Bishopric i.i't? l; > >( the Bishopric Tlie Triimipli of Maudlin. 3,5 « ti.ou«l,t »,, cortoi,, ,.,,,1 ,„„„,„! „„ „„„^ '. At th„tt,mo my lady HHl«„wnio luul l,og„n toko^onon "'7'- ""'',''';'• l°''«i"« -v.« .i center of ,lLlt„ "ti„° ^tZ tiiithcr, nor by whom bro, 'm In ' '"'"' "'""" 'J vYiium urougnt, i cuiiiiot now recall • h,u when onco ho hud como Iio camo n^..,'.. '\. ' thj mot., that dre. Ui^Z"^:^^ uL^^r ^^ M ow.fcel„,g for a „>a„ eanght in tI,o lures of i wo J™ Itil:.'"'"'"'^ fronr the oariiost i„ hi, private r.' pitmu schism ! Tins one side puts idolatry, ,,„„orv snnor *t.on m thmgs which are innocent of tb s'c Zlt^^Z ha not smccrely; for the persons I can see to ho f™o conversant w.tli these thmgs and have appeared to ap- "Asliow?" saidl. 'ir'^'J' V r' '""'™ '0 "" *hat for many years bv P^ttho Engbsh Liturgy hath been read in the ciand" royal of Ilolyrood Uouso, and elsewhere bv , ,^?, ? '^ • " whites ? and what complaint hath Tc're'b on " tn" *S„nd an, -]— ^^^ ^^ .^B„t th« new book," said I, "appears to be atther " Th,,t i deny qnoth he. " It is but a new edition ,.nrt "There I grant ye," said he, " is lack of wisdom. It •( if . '; ►' H' ■ - ' it ' 'a 1 I I 1 r i . ] m ' 33^> The Angel of the Covenant. is pliiin tluit a llamo of oppoHitioii liath boon raised, innl to ooMunand and ooininaiid uf^aiii upon solo authority, without craving tlio advicu of any who aro horo Jiud win, 800 aiul know — that 1 ^n'ant yo, is noitlior oxpodient Hdr Bafo." Now that view scomod to mo most roasonablc. lint, he hold and lunir tho samo man within a month thoroafLcr I IIo no longer spoko of Sunday but of tho Sabl)ath, like the rest of our comi)any, ami lie was oihorwiso changed in ac- cordan(!o therewith ; and tho change was wrought hy Maudlin with whom ho often had private conference. Ono conference in particular 1 recall, at the which I chanced to bo present. I had gone to find lier mother, and I found Miuullin alone, overcome with tho heat of tho summer aftornooii. I sat, exchanging a slack word or two with \\vv, when mi- nouncement was made of Mr. David Lamb. Ife was riuui- ifestly in a condition of high-screwed intention, as if liu wore come with a word in his mouth and \s ith hope; in liis lieart. The room was sli.ided, and ho glanced aroiiiid. lie paid no heed to mo ; but he could not long miss tlie radiant presence of Maudlin. ()loth((l in some a[)pin'('l of frothy white, which was scarce fastv'uod at the neck, slie reclineci loosely in a great chair, with one small sli])|H>ml foot thrust out, wanttmly lifting her skirt. She seomod like Venus sporting in the foam of the sea, and the minister when he bent over her hand a}>peared like a groat lean tit^li paying court to her. It was plain he was like to be cuiiglit by tho white hand ho held. At that prime moment in w;.. nshered another of Maudlin's admirers, — one of her "lads," as the serving maids called them, — another minister, but young, and thick and gross as porridge, with a fine, bouml- ing conceit of himself. *•' Eh, Mistress Maudlin!'' he cried, mopping at him- self with h' napkin, and cocking aside-long eye of disap- The Triumpli of Maudlin. 337 I. KraiKl noHoi, „• u «,„,oi, I U:u~ ,,„u,,i i)„t .^ ", d,u ™. v.mt„r„ l,c.f„r„ ,„y |,„.,| u„t i„ t„ ^.„ '"'V'"' ' "Whoroforc not'-'" fiiinni vi.,,, ir i. , . s.,d, „,Knt „,. doubtful wi,„ti.o,. »h„ .sp„k„ i„ ir;:it "Oh ay," Mid Mr. Lan.l,, " I'll hoarkou shully if tho ,,T, ,?, ,,' '"■ "'"1 "I'Piramds upou puncr'" •Doubtless," saul .Mr. U„,b .s„u,ethiug taruf "' v„„r S,»nt ,a too rare and voh.i,o to b„ ,„ nLl L loC "%toxt. Mistress Maudlin Mr T.-unh i "."-turning with a bob .„ hi,s'ho d toi o,;,dri"''.?T ;*•...„ and forty-four, < Whopo their .or", dijtino '"J tlio (ire IS not f|ucnched ' " "' l:i^,;:^;"nu:':i^:i^r-:^""^^--- (^„,, " — ^ » ""< Himnior s day/' II.C hotter IIoII is shown tho better, M.audlin t " cried «» «lous young Evangelist with a dou btf ul ,00k at tl '11 I'' -,! i'i :1!'! 338 The Angel of the Covenant. kii'ii H 't- iiM ' ti; 4l silent Lamb who drummed his knee with his finger- tips. "But, surely, James," said Maudlin mildly, and it seemed still a question whether she was jibing, " there would be more comfort in hearkening to so hot a dis- course in the winter." He waved the objection off as not seriously urged, and went on, "I propone, first, to ask and answer the question, * Wlialten kind of wor-rtn is yon that dieth not?'" *' Yea, James," quoth Maudlin, sitting up as with acute attention to the subject. ''And next, for certain, ye will ask and answer the question, ' Whatten hind of fin is yon that is not quenched 9 ' I mind a silly gaberlunyie — ye ken him. Alec — when I was a lassie in Aberdeen that declared the fire maun be peat ; for there's no otlier so hard to put out, and he had seen a moss that had burned constantly, and burned for a year ; down to the roots of the earth, and no water could quench it." " Maudlin," quoth the young man with a familiarity which gave me offense, " I could wish ye were a thought mair serious-minded." *' But I am," said she, " most serious-minded, James, Just think," she continued, mimicking to his nose his tone of prophetic zeal, *' 0' a sea o* burning peat as great as the ocean that lies atween this and Denmark "< Mercy ! If ye were casten into that, James, ye'd frizzle up on the instant like a nail-paring that ye drop into the fire ! " James at that turned palpably pale and shuddered through all his continent of flesh. ''Maudlin, woman," said he, something fiercely, "Ij doubt ye're inclined the day to sport with sacred sub- jects." " Sport ? Me, James ? Never ! " she made answer. He shot a jealous bolt from his eye at Mr. Lamb whom I I The Triumph of MaudHn. 339 .at"1^rT'""l°* P™™'''"« *•"= '"'^""'"ion to sport 'L.ke John Knox to Q„eon Mary I „onld say, ' Woman beware of paltermg with the Trnth ! ' I will p ,t osZu And till the air bo cooler," q„oth she. " Yes James do. There may be a ehange betwixt now and t ; mo^'s h"";ornTnZ?MrDtriib'--^^'— ■>• ^''- "I regret, my young friend, " said he, drily "that T .vena been able to taste the quality of your d'iscourse r cs ot the Kirk I would remind ye that the power of At that James went out glowerins but dnmh o^j if Umb turned him again to'the radifit MaudTn ' "' "" "Doye blame me ?« he asked. "Blame ye Mr. Lam'.! -she said, shedding the full effulgence of her eyes upon him. ^ ''I could not hear him and abstain from rebuke evpn if he were your dearest friend." '^ " The which he is not, " she laughed. "Forgive the question, my dear lady,_but whv thpn admit him to your familiar presence .''You can no! f or «' moment even him with your own self for s nseTnd uX standing ; and as for manners i '» Maudlin rose from her reclination and leaned toward, admi ted him now and let him bide a little while ? Tha i? r,«— "^h« raised her forefinger to mark her ^l^^ir^ ,.,hed and glowed af her vrhemen tTk7to HV ^ ""'f ^ ''' ^^' ^^^^ «^ ^'^y^^S ass that 's iiKe to take your place in the Kirk ! " l.'..^e 340 The Angel of the Covenant. (( My place in the Kirk ! " he said, his eyes blinking and opening in the extravagance of his wonder. " How mean ye, mistress?" " I mean plain truth, Mr. Lamb," said she : '' that for one of your learned kind that's with us there's a score like him, and that in the day of our victory it will be the qmk to the victors : I believe there's good authority for that in some of your Latin books. " '' Ay," he said courteously, ** vae vidis, and so forth. But ye count on victory ? " *' What other ?" quoth she, in leaping triumph of voice. '' What other, indeed, " said he, " with a prophetess like you at the head ? " " Oh, Mr. Lamb, " said she, with a look of enveloping kindness that must have made the man burn to the roots of his being, *' I'm but a humble handmaiden." " Ye're nane so humble, my dear lady," said he ; and then with a confidential poise of the head and lifting of the eyebrow, " It's but a poor business, ye ken." " On the other side, ye mean ? It is that. And, surely, Mr. Lamb, ye will no longer linger there. I can see noth- ing but ruin for ye if do, and, oh, but that would grieve me to the bone." "And if ruin come, my dear lady," quoth he bravely enough, *'it will find only me at hame." But he was clearly beginning to halt in opinion, and he cast a yearn- ing look on her. " There is surely the sorrow of your friends to be thought on, " quoth she softly, casting down her eyes and smoothing her gown on her knee, ** and the loss to Scot- land and the Kirk of your service. A man like yon ranting, roaring, lad is of use to pull down, but it needs a man of | sense and learning to build up." *' My dear lady," said he, as in an access of thankful feeling laying an earnest hand on hers which rested on tlie j tis, and so forth. The Triumph of Maudhn. a™ of her great chair. ^^,e think too kindly of n.y ^ "How much more kindly would I thinV nf ^i. rr t n ''■''» '^'^-- ^-hoI rc^r r .f ye thmk. And proper reasons for yourself i" ^ ' he a, , If I may tal k with you of this again " Oil, pray, lef - said she. I'n" ""^r ' ^ "■•"~-»™»' "bw't this time " .™a LiriT:\:;r """' -"•^^ - -'" '- '''- ^ poSat;„:rattrt'ot-:!.s^^^^^^^ till he had passed beyond theXor '^°' ""' '"" He was barely gone, when in stepped mv lord B„f>. ^«.«Ma„dUnwithdefere„ee!Ld^':^^^^^^^^^^ oJiSLi"?;;;:^':rth'"'f^^'-'; \r'^' «^-- "By no means," quoth s "Tisklv ' af T ''°'''" '"o»sly fomented, ™^i-r— L^lf ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ ^- -" f en wasagroat loft, aecording to wont weTn: p' "'""• e"""'-!'' »'• "'otown, and lifted up' irtho T' T" '''''"" »' reading-desk wereihe Ar-M , ''™' ''^ "'" '-'"'i'" »»d sides sundry krds ' ff "' '"'"P' """* '^"<'" '''^''ops, be- wlulothobodyandaik: '"Z,?T''" """ "' «-»»"> "efolk, and X ; ':' ::;; « f^ -;.* -Mes and gen! «' "- same. Thfre tr Xti :"i;r r ""^T" amoriff whom wpro co.-^ ^ i. ^"^ "^<^ markets, «l»tl.cB.lTan wide vie ;.r""'^" '"^" '" -°'»»' .Maudlin and V* t °' "" """l^'osMon : for. while '«' «. m I t'^e' m °d^%Tf 'T™"' '° '"^ ?'"-» "^OP' pew. bo little did some of us look for anything 344 The Angel of the Covenarit. like riot, but only for a form of protest, tluit my lord Montrose was not even present, having gone with his good- brother, the lord Napier, to tlio Chapel at Holyrood. There was a waiting hush of silence when Pr. Ilamia, the Dean, entered the reading-desk in his white surplice, but so soon as he opened the New Book to read therefrom, bofore ever he had got a word out, there nprose sueli a clamor of outcries, curses, clappi'ig of hands and stamp- ing of feet, that he stopped, taken with astonishnicnt. There was some cessation, and he turned l\is eyes again to the book a A began :— ** \\7u'ii the wicked man " But no word further was heard. The cries and noises were renewed and redoubled, and now and again there leaped up from the sea of clamor a clearer or louder tongue than others. The devouter sex, as it was the more excited in all this business, so it was the more vociferous. " The Mass ! The Mass ! The Mass ! " shrilled incess- antly a whole chorus of gentlewomen, while the baser sort yelled such scurrilous things as it is better I should not re- peat, among other sayings counseling the Dean to ,<,nvo his surplice to his wife for a smock. The Dean sou,, do persist with his reading ; and still one saying and another rang out al)0ve the din. '' Awr; wi' the priests of Baal ! Awa' wi' them ! " *'To Hell wi' the Popish Book !" '"Up wi't, Ailie, Ailie,— Up wi't, Ailie now !'" cried some others, reciting a common street-catch of Hie time. The Bishop of Edinburgh (who was to be the preacher) ascended the pulpit above the Dean and tried to assiiugo the tumult. But his uprising was only like a sign for an ontburst of greater fury. To stay it he pu t forth his liauds as in benediction. '' See to the Popish tricks o' him ! " raved a voice. Of the Famous Riot in the Kirk. 345 on ! rwuH Hu.,1 8l,o WHS a woman nunu.l (J(3(ldo,s who In. sat on ho stoo of ponanco for fornicuLion some S, l' two before Twus only by the rca.ly-hund of a hy ZZ that tlie Bisliop was saved from that stool. ^ Ihere was a roar of sport from the baser sort ; and then stools flew thick, and even Bibles and shoes in the ev^ S::Xl^;i^;''^!;;^^ womancrym, out, as she stoo;i;.d yo In feel .^ V.> '' '' """" '''''''' ^^- ^-- ''ora o' G'od Seeing the utter impossibility of pursuing the service «u,s,the aged Archbisl.op of HL Andrew.^ being X Chancellor and so renresenting the King's power, Le in Ins p ace and beckoned the Provost and bailies with their guard down rom their gallery. They came, and the guards with their halberds and musketoons drove the grcuu3r rabblement out of the Kirk and shut the doors In all that the passivity of the lords both of Council .-uui nZr-y ^ l>e --arked ; it was as if they said to the pu-lates, - Ye, with your ignorant counsel to the Kin«r have provoked this : let us see how ye will (p^dl ^"t " The baser and more noisy sort being extruded, the Dean rocceded with his reading, but yet all was distraction ; fo the ejected throng maintained such a threatening roar thundered so on the doors, and so smashed the window^ TelLird '^''"'' "'''*' ''''^^'"^ ""^''^^ ^''' '"^tter could It was then my own share in all that came in ;-and a ridiculous share it was. When the congregation had been thinned and quieted I chanced to glance aside, and my heart eaped to see the face of Sir John Colquhoun, not as I had last seen it above the Jesuit's frock of Father Blackader, but above a woman^s gown and wrapped in a humble woman 3 head-gear. lu my preoccupation with the sight «>j 346 The Angel of the Covenant. of liim, I may havo ubsciitly said ** Amen ! '" .vith otlicrs wlieii the Dean luid liiiished some prayer ; but, whatever was tlie sound or word I uttered, instanter there started up a woman — to all seemiiiLj a gcutlewouuui — before nie, crying, " Traitor, wilt thou say Mass A.mens at my lug ! " With that, ere I was aAvare, she dealt me a box on tlie side of the head with her half-closed Bible. *^ Ye mistake, nuidam," said I, though my head sang with the blow. ** I did but groan in travail of soul !" She muttered something of an excuse, and turned again to read in her Bible, stopping her ears with her fingers so that she might not hear the Dean at his prayers. Looking about again I saw no Sir John. When the service had been hasted through, and the Bishop had preached a little sermon from the text "Ye were as sheep going astray ; but are now returned unto the Shepherd and Bishop of your souls " — (" Say Presbyter, ye bleached limmer ! " broke in a randy voice) — and when the congre- gation rose to disperse, I took station near the great doors, and waited there noting every out-goer, till Maudlin and her mother came, when I went forth with them, some- thing reluctantly. When we were gone out into the street the uproar and striving and the rude press and obscene abuse were so great that I could say no word of having re- marked Sir John in the throng : I could but convoy them with all speed to their lodging. We heard afterward that the Bishop had been waited for by the rabblemc t, and, on the way to his lodging in the Canongate, had been so environed and cursed and jostled and defiled with kennel-filth thrown at him, that with the greatest difficulty he reached and climbed his fore- stairs, and that, the door at the top being shut, he was de- layed there, and was so plucked and tugged at he was like to have fallen to the danger of his neck, had not the Earl of Of the Famous Ki„t i„ the Kirk 347 »lH,Itorc.l under tl,cX„..o-st,ur» from tl,„ ), -.at «„ ' ^.^ »gnn.tmg and »q„„,di„,, ^hut one of the crowd who In Sross wit was moved to exclaim ■ ' «."i«>"-nea, and tot'r" -mlS. '"''''' ''''"" connted ,t an odd tiling that, with the sight of Sir o.»»ghtoUheKirHorstrav™:t/B: llTaiMV;:;^ tl.aiithe Ki k. Messinr'l " TZ^TZ f rilU: J messagefrom he-knew-whom. " A word iu my „!?' nd letters m my poueh," qnoth he. «But, troolv a d hir ly, sirs : bide till we're np the stairs. " ^ When he was set down, he handed forth a letter to mv nsm and another to Mandlin. And while they real and h Gaberhmyio ate, I plied him with questionVconeern mg the condition of the lady Kather^ne, to which he TSr """" ''""^'' ""'' " ^-' »<• bonnyf Bonny her tear ''"rid '*""'.\"'^ ™"''°' ^"""^ ^'- ""-l ^-d ner letter. God grant her jov and peaee it tho hn,-i -1, or te world hath bronght her noneV xt can rtd It, Alec : there's a word for you." ■:-| :ll 348 The Angel of the Covenant. ' f i, i It 1! ! Ml i ill -I ■a-li: I'l ■ .1 li' ' iu'- '■it I ■1*1' r|| "1 ■ '• i. ;■ *■» ^^J 1 ;, My cousin litid withdriiwii to the window to wij)o ]u<\- oyc8, and I Inul sot niy.stdf with wonder to tho roiulinir when Mtuidlin criod out. "Oil, my (h'lirest ! " siiid nhv,, " Oh, Avould I couM wjp,. uwiiy all that and niakoyoii hapjiy ! IJut shu is over lliink. ing of us too much and of Jiorsolf not at all ! Oh, it is a bitter, bleak world ! If 1 had the power, 1 would blast i(, and ?iim, with lightning I" With that she lied to her own chamber, and I turiuMl again to the letter in my lumd. 1 read that she tliaiikoil us all for our exceeding kindness (naming me, in partimliu) but that she was resolved jio longer to cause lier frioiuls damage and trouble with her maliferous presence (tliat in answer to some urgency of tho ladies that she would return to them) ; she had found, she repeated, a rcsting-])lii(c (better than a convent) with creatures so simple and rare that the other world seemed to them more real than this, and that they would bo in no wise surprised if Christ him- self came to their door in the niglit and prayed to bo let in, she desired to romair. alone where she was, but slio would come on a hint tluit we truly needed lier, anyone of us. Finally, she prayed that I would be a true soldier of Jesus Christ, and fight under his white banner of Love and Charity, in the fierce and fiery troubles which, she heard, were about to break in storm upon the land. How had she heard ? I wondered. I folded the letter, and handed it back to my cousin, After the extraordinary, and shameful riot in the Kirk, it caused me a deep feeling of sadness and foreboding. Mv cousin looked at me. I shook my head to her : I hud no word of good cheer to utter. ** And now. Wattle," said she, swinging round upon tlie Gaberlunyie, " I'm going to write ye a letter to take hack to her. But ye're no to say ye saw us in any way put out. There was no greeting [crying], mind ; but a kind o' cheer- to her : I hud uo Of the Fatuous Riot in the Kirk. ^^,, light an., oclatfon ! '■ ' ""' ^•"" "" " '""" ^""l' '»'• I llavo r,»d of I„l„ 0,„ ,|,.lo„t„),lo work of tliut ^.„M .nglcr I»,.ak Walton, ,.n,I ln.v,Mnarv.>l„d h w r, ,,S 1 Ilia nunblos and lUhiuirH unt nn «,.». • i ■ ''"'^'*"^" "" .soon, of tl.o politic St m, ™, „ ; 'l v'" ; T" " ■■"""'" wLilo. It „„o,„« as tl,o«o2 ,! wto blr's l" ' T' "'" on 11,0 soa of tlio nation's lifn «lT , , " """"" .ieoiun its poaoofuf :i^ « ' :7',X .T' T"1 .«teo„vo.owitha,ir;r:;r;oX^^^^^^^ misnderstandiniranduncharifthln I . , ^ '''^^' ^^ AtkI vnf t V uncnaritablencss, hatred and crueltv v life I !m n Z " • . '''r^^ "^"' '" "^^ ^^'^'^^^ ti,n of *Haar — sea-fog. • •I , I ft ii( ' 350 Tlu- An^c'l (»1 the Covcnanl. Clin l)(* ; u private lilierty wliicli no man nlioiild liarter away for ih^ ljir_u;(\sl, im'SH of the miomI. savory ^)o^(a^«^ Ilowsoovor those thinj^H he, while wo were (^anj^'ht inld tho ra^;o of reli^'ioii and the fury of faction, Liidy Katlicrim. remote from all led a hhuneless life with I lie simple folk slu^ had liijfhted n|)on rare enoii^^'h at any tinu', ("xet'cdim; rare then in [inhlie plaees — who ever hrealJied the divine uir of (Miarity -('iiarity whi(di snlTereth lon^ and is kind, wliiidi thinketh no evil, whi(d« ri^joieeth not in iiii(|iiilv but rejoieeth in the truth. Wo heard of thoH(^ folk at in- torvals from I^ady Katherino in tho lett(>rs which she sent by tho Inmd of tho wantlerin;; ;;aherlunyie ; and we kiunv tliat tho dear saint — (for saint shoprovod, though luirnuiru! bo not counted in tho (jalendar of any (Jhurcli) — pruycil for us throuf^hont all tho toil and trouble, civil and re- ligious, that ci\suod. Wo know that she j)rayed for tlu' triumpli of lier brother (for how could lie fail to ho in tlie riglit), and of us wliom sho called iior friends, and for the confusion of our enemies ; and 1 think tluit thoknowloilirc of such single-minded devotion stayed our si)irit« mid strengthened our going in tho hazardous way of truth and freedom, honor and justice. And wo needed every sincere j)rayer that wo might be kept in the right way. For, what with the furious lioiit of fooling, tho violent and absurd arguments, and tho utter confusion of tongues which prevailed after tho unscoirily riots of that twenty-third of July, a plain man might be excused if, with the best intentions, ho knew not where or how ho stood. Uothes and the rest, who sat at tlio head of tlic factinn, were in some surprise at the fierceness and extent of ik Of the V ""•'••••^ l^'i'>l ill llic Kirk. I'oiKlii^'nili,,,, »vlii,.|i ||„,i,. |j,j,,. „ .^5' '"'"• ""•^<' l'"l'«'ful mu.MOMts (iM-y |,H,| '••' Ii'kI i' !-.u.o;: :::;;:; st;;v-:';i^tt/:rHX ^r .in.Ior tl,o t„! rli' . ^"«".""""-.""=""'-'>". -"KM town from Hond l:X '^''^ Town Council ..« .. «, considering of that when the rubbl inir ,„ a potiUon ;t-unfst t},( WHsinHOHHion in the Tolbooth "emunt brake in upon i ^!l 352 The Angel of the Covenant. r 4 Ji i ■' 'k Hi q) them, crying, " The Book we will never have ! " and with their clamor and fierce threats, compelled the magistrates to give promise that petition should be made against the book in the name of the town. "I mean to be obeyed," were the reported words of the King when he heard of all that. But it was ill takiii" order with the business when his own servants had no heart in what he sent them down to do in Scotland, and when his own hands were trammeled up with his similar Eng- lish troubles. For the time, then, the matter of the Book was let slide, but he demanded the punishment of the leaders in the tumults (a thing which was never done, nor even attempted) and the orderii^'g forth of Edinburgh of all but in-dwellers upon pain of outlawry, the which was meant to dissipate the party which I have called "ours." Further, as a punishment to the town of riots the sittings of the Privy Council and the Court of Session were removed first to Linlithgow and afterward to Stirling. "When the letters enjoining these things arrived in Edin- burgh a third fierce riot befell. Johnston of Warristoun, craftiest and most ambitious of lawyers, was in the town and got secret word of the coming of the letters. Instunter he set his clerks to work and sent forth alarms to all the I party and all the petitioners who had gone to their homes, j not looking for so spec ly an answer to their prayers. lu i the late afternoon of an October day, when the bitter east j wind from the Firth tore up Pligh Street and drenched i people with the stinging rain it bore, with blare of trumpet j and tuck of drum the substance of these orders was pro- claimed xorm the Market Cross, in the hearing and pres- ence of all Edinburgh packed around the Cross and piled up on t ...e steep way to the Castle. Next day all was r^ xi • -^ '^'^ "^^ ^^'t« 356 The Angel of the Covenant. ''Ah, now," cried my consin, much moved, *' there 'Speaks the heroical and gallant cavalier of peven years agone, who swore to support the cause of the widow and the orphan ! " " Dear lady," said he, '* I am still for that same cause ! " Whereat Maudlin's bosom heaved and sucli a light came into lier eyes as she could not endure should be seen ; so she turned her away. Thus spoke my dear lord, who ever touched a deeper fount of issue in me than any otli^r rv; : did, man or woman. His words made my heart well as ",'ith tears of joy, and I could not choose but obey his call. He had made his choice at last, and on the instant, wi*^hout another thought to diis side or that, he was ready to ride forth, a later paladin of old romance. And I would have you note that henceforward he acted and spoke, and strove and suffered, less in fulfilment of this principle or that, religious o political, than in flowering fulfilment of himself, of that ra . nature of heroical idea and endeavor Avith which God had so richly dowered him. Anon he flourished forth his intention that I should be his particular secretary, with a considerable stipend, in all relating to the business ia which we were to act together. I was no such fool as not to" know that my lord's proposal was truly meant as but a kindness to myself who was one of our poorest Scottish gentlemen. I protested to that effect, but he urged me till I was ashamed to hold off so long ; and so I yielded. For, sure, it is scarce a whit less ungracious not to accept a benefit than to refuse one. The Signing of the Covenant. 357 CHAPTER XXVIII. THE SmmNQ OF THE COVElfAKT. 'TwAs OR the 15th Of November icm T^- ^ ., date,-that a notable Convention of Jbr^' ""'^^ "^^ at the lord J3aImerino'« fl .! ^^'^^ ™ ^^^Id the attachment of ^Tl^^^^^^^^^^^ ^^^^-^^tion of o-o. Before the /on ventio^t s t^^^^^T^ noblemen and cerfnin lnri;«. ^ i »"Fptr, at winch only wore r.j consintS 'd ^ "Vt O^r^ ?"=!' "'"^' bended) wae meant to bo Md .rndor c "Z " """'" but the throng i„ the street, XuZZ^^, t:'^^"' Hi... Street ^X^X::^,:- ^^^ ^i *^ Hound I had for Sbor ! "T^."'™' ' """ »«" wbo had eon,e to t Contr" t ''Z *? .r""''^ !bro' the darkness, whieh Z tr^m rk ert Si '"•™ iiisf reelf nf +]i« a • t , ^ '""^"■^'-'^ lor tne streaL iA™ at the first bntlJr "T^' '"^'"^^ ™« hardly s«pt do™. "''"='' Srew plainer and louder as it "Montrose! Montm^P T ivr j. 0«r lady and Montrl ! " '™"' "'"' "" '""y ' JonKlr;fnt?"'' ™^''^'«'"'-"-y -r. "What's J^Wd him, and deseribed whom they meant by "our r. It' I 358 The Anacl of the Covenant. **Imphin!" s^aid Lo. "It sounds unco Popish; Init they'll be thinkhig a h;mtlc o' them baiflv 1 " The coach, amid the roar of the crowd—" M.cntrosc ! Montrose ! "—and the b-vwling of Mie link-boys to cleiir the way, clattered into position before us. Montrose stepped forth, most gallantly apparelled, md with his luu, in his hand aided Maudlin and her mothe- to alight. An] so they pn. sed into the house, while the miuister cfavod to get a ^ otter sight of them. "And yon,' Buys he, when they were disappeared,— "yon's the bv;iTiie yi.'drl o' Montrose ?" with the twirl of a (juestion at. the end. ' " I ha'e heard great things o' liim. They do aver in the westlands," he further said witli a grin, " that whenever the Bishops heard he was putting hin hand to this plough they just fair sliook in tiioir buckled shoon, and let fall their clasped Service-Boobs for very fear. . . . Weel, he's a braw hid ; but he looks only a lad. Aiblins he has an aulc. ead on his young shoulders." " As auld as need be," I answered. " He'll gi'e a good account o' what he puts his hand to, I'll warrant ye." "Ye think that?" says he, considerhig me somewhat more closely, as one having authority, or, at the least, in- formations.' " And the lady," he asked ; "' wha's she ? " " She," I made answer, " is a great worker in this busi- ness." " Oh, I ken that," says the minister. " My meaning is what's her kindred ? " " She is a cousin o' the Earl Marischal." " Oh, that," says he, eyeing the brooch in my }iat. " Let me see, I was trying to mind if the yearl c" " ontro?o be married." "He is," I /• wered. " lie is ? Aua yen's the cousin of tb»^ l.iirl Marischal, Weel, she's gey, gey bonny ; and I ho|'^ Jiey ha'e baitli tho grace o' God in their hearts." The Signing of tl,e Covenant. „« When tiio coaolios .in,l n,„ mo down the CauonXto 1 'f ■" "'^ ''^"'"■' ^ ^««-i , I iingorod to make sure 1 1? «?'"*■' "' •'"'"'='' "■•<"'»''^- "- oompan, I ^ I : :"„ .^tdl ' 'T""""'™'' '" w.ter the lord Balmorino's. ^ '''^"'""'J "> I chaiicod to sit next to Afi- n ■ , t Ho ™ in a mood out!L^'"'"f-''"'>- Toor Lamb ! ■"ont. lie was in-p& I thi T « "' ""'' '"""""'ont- plcto apostacy from tlie other lirt h ' ''''"' ""^ '"■' '^'»"- .nto the inmost counsels of t e p rl T' ""t ^"' '"'''"' i»s tongue still even when other, ,?/' • °'"'''' "»' ''"" tat kept going in » low v"i" 1 °" '" ""' "' '■'l'«»king, aon and speeeh of those XtookT""";:'"^ "'"'" "»= P«'- , " % lord Montrose/ "a- ,'; 'fa ^ r/'"" ^. I suppose. Ho hath, I hear ,om» ■ u "leaking yet will set forth.-fonnd it I [^ ^*'' ?""*« """on he '-vek Weel, he fa a ta.'ZTI' '", ''" '"'""' "' »" "- ™ yon minister that's giv",!rtre' ""™'"'- ' •™'' '' ^ I would compare him to tl o Iw r "'" ™"™torial greeting rnddy,-going forth to slay the h 7 " """^ «<> Goliath of Gath what time fe d fled H "^ ""'' '"°'°""g ■"S"od Ah,"hera„„„.f ,"'■""'«'''"'<' liv- "»«'■■» . . . Imphm - °" '. . r'' "'""'^ *• K»bert accommodate temper- bnt \ IT^J" "' '""• '''■'"'"'g and ««'3 over fat, ma^o' g^ng t™d If V"™/"'"""'- yc need for a lang pun / m t I ' '" " '"'■"' ''orso wrcobesaid-wasave vkr„i, "J,^ '"'"'^oW-it need »'"^««ty of the simple 2. " ' '^''"^ ^"^ "'^ ^'^ Plo 'ko"^5a?d'riii!;"et:::r '■^''"""<' ^-"-"or .«-aa.d reverend 1o2 r: r,",:^i;!';''^," --^ "«- ".' >'» bright and gracious con, 1 "'» appearance "^g of the sun. It ?a^^ Zn T"°'/' « " '^orc the was given to hm. to make the chief ' 'ill ' I 360 The Angel of the Covenant. motion of the meeting,— to ombotly the new idea ho hud imported into the party of a wider and more complete rep- resentation of all classes in the country. The Commis- sioners who were hastily chosen the month before to act and speak for the malcontents should be replaced by a carefully appointed body, to consist of not fewer than six noblemen, two gentlemen from each shire, one burgess from each borough, and one minister from each presby- tery : that Avas the formal proposal which Montrose read from a paper, and he was about to speak thereunto, when there came a loud, commanding interruption from some person near by the door. " In the name of the King, I challenge the lawfulness of these proceedings, as tending to the displacement of the King's authority." At that there was a great stir. Most rose in their places and looked toward the door, I of the number. Was the challenger an invited guest, or an intruder ? I saw a tall, stately man in a stiff beard and a ruff, and with a lofty port. Who is he ? I asked of my neighbor, and was an- swered, '* my lord Traquair, the High Treasurer : ho rep- resents the King." Then was some not very orderly fence of debate, of which my lord being on his feet took the greater share on the one side, altho' all were jumping and quivering with desire to have a say. My lord took Traquair very hotly upon his calling the assembly '* rebellious malcontents"; but he finally put the T -easurer down with a declaration drawn from Sir Thomas Hope, the King's Advocate, that, from of old, it had been the right of Scottish lords, gentle- men, and citizens to meet freely either to choose Com- missioners to Parliament, or to Convention of Estates. '-'• for any jmhlic htsiiicss. Thqn my lord, to finish, declared that he for his part, and he conceived all his friends around, were entirely sub- Tl'c Signing of the Covenant. 361 Kin«L »>';::];::,,'';:,:; ,r"''7'» "^,;""* "- iibortic. of «cot„u„l ,n, , "L"^, ^^^ ".'" '"-™' % w,. ,novo,l togn,.t':j„,,. ' :' ; ", 'I '?""■ sonic of t],o cWof mi„i,stcrs bcin., V ■ ""' ''"""' the ,,a,„og of thoso TO„„,-„f,.,l , l""l"'">- to Uvko sUyos and s,™r,l« «„ threatening i ,; Tr "" "" withdrew. Tlicn tl,n l,„ • """'"''t I nU|Uim- wise y David L.nb':re:::r^un:i"^^^ -^^ ^' tho^Prosbytory of Edinburgh " '^^1'^^"'^^^^ ^^ represent The last I remember of Ihat assembly of tbn F.n n November, the fjimo nf vui.; i \^ "^ nitecnth King's Co u-t i ,0 bl : ' i"'""";' '^ ""•« "^«" '" tl'o withthecxeiLrno of tl!n '■ " """''""'■ ''"""< other ,.. thoy dZodtL^ff ?""'"' "''" '■""• "> "--'^ mo,t blessed men.o^ "It .■;,'"'', '" " "'"'™'""' "> o..e of the ministers wasnOToit"'?""'' "'' ''"' ""■' "^^ U»thes and some o,.J CZ'^Lai^TZ^^ "'' "^''^ upon tliem the reformation of their ncrson, V, "''^'"^ l»; exercise of piety in their fam 1 2' i;:)? '''"/''*''",■ sobcriittentiontilltlicmiiihfnv'.i i ' ""'' ""'i Y-l Uotbes (a scand'li: t : I 'thrZ ^f' ""^" '"^ clicek and -vinkcd Ids ovn f„ *i Iv. ' '""*'""' '" ''« I^B HI ''- -^(^^Hi ■■ '" ^'i'°P'' "''•'"l" H'"* he proudly took on him fall responsibility for the Prayer Book. ' uT^Z til Iraye>- , ,>oki,ialo„gpa,,ag,, rather like at, ', el and tem,,erato V ologian than like a king,las flo i..arrel between , and his people were now or^ver 1 a,l ceii, merely the question of the Prayer Book a^ f th ITayer lio,.k had not been used likea wedge to ™en It greater and tougher matters, and as if the'm thu made T™ "" '-°'™ - «"If into which the Pray r Book C •Irupjicd clean out of sight ! ■' ""^ Why do I dwell on these public matter. ? Why ' e, copt that when I recall them, now that I am mWdle-Tr; ■■"'■ g.ven to reflection, I am overcome with TprofcZd ^n« yea, even, wrath, to think that the King w nevei (I am persuaded) intended harm to mortal creature "CluiJ and unscrupulous faetin.,, who knew how (o'wo;k '» tW.r own enas all that was fiercest, cruellestrJd Zst Iri-r ■ < i i. te ♦ -^. -' * i :*;. ■ -f 'Mil 364 The An^cl of the Covenant. suporstitious iu • !io proud, (lorco, and rcli-jious Scottish nation ! The most throiitoniii^' part of tho Proclairmtion was (he ond, as if tho King liad gatlioml prido and heat with Ui,. writing. His kingly authority, ho said, had boon mur!, impairiMl by thoao petitions and supjjlieations, and l>y lln, riots atten(hint on their eonception (tlio which, witliout doubt, was true enough), and lie doc^Uired that all con- cerned therein weru open to *' hifjh rmsiire, hotU in Ihrir persons, and their fortunes ; " he commanded them uguiii to their homes, and to the discontinuance of their inoot- ings ; if they disobeyed— then, all the. extreme penallirs of treason ! Certes, that was a proper kingly strain to sound, but utterly and flagrantly unwise, if the King were not prepared to march an army to coerce the disobedient ; and that he could not do, because liis hands were full to over- flowing of his English troubles. Conceive the effect of that Jovian thunderbolt upon oiir Scottish lords in opposition, who had inherited from tlioir forebears the memory of but alight and easy-fitting allcgi- ance and subjection to the King. How often have"! heard the Covenant denounced in England as the most monstrous and treasonable birth of Time ! To so mis- name it is to flaunt ignorance of the bind of its nativity. In turbulent Scotland, where even now the nobles liave individual feudal power far beyond any possessed for lch- turies by their brethren of England, and wliere half [W country is held by barbarous clans at perpetual feid with each other and with their Lowland neighbors, a ''Jkuid," or Covenant, for mutual aid and protection was aoiiimon device among the nobles and gentry when great jioril threatened their property and their life ; and two or three Bands, or Covenants, there had been -^nce the Reforma- tion, for the uttter destruction and rooting out of Pop- ery. Such a Covenant was now prepared, and it avouM Tlic- Signing „f t|,e Covenant. 365 ...y lord Mo„uo.:r :Lt^^ r';:"' r"''-"- ■> "».« >.«.l^ of th„"Va y Cit;';! "7/7'l™o, tl,„ old cmk. ' ^ "-" ""^ I"-»'I"<=tioi, for politic When throucrh nil Ii-mrio u i of ...any Acts of IVIi„„,e„t " mI " I f'T '"'""°° Ihworhl.mlnnnhi ,hrl„r„ Jl,„ .""•■'"' ^ '"Ms, and «^.« ana re.ol,Z'TaJ",,^:''' r7 '"'"" '''"^'^ ™ ^nvdnndaUovH'd bifho A.. y'^'"^^-' • • • till they U .///.« (/»,/«■?•" There „■.,, LI I Z "X ""'h"mn, ;"»ko "the civil „h,,s a, J Ze Ki':if * l^""' "'"'.after rehearsal of muel, ^rV "" ' "'"' dearest e..,phasis, ■•« ,"21 ,?•'' ■°"' """'"> "'O «" «to to the mutnaJ dcfZ'JZi^l , "^ "'" ''"'O"""'' II .'-*• ^ff If. .^^ '» li '"' '"">»"' !f the number A e ' !T ' '"' 'if """"■°^'' ''«'■"« l..ig..cd with them It :' "T "'« «"»'l«'"o„, ana i'---, »top„in, upo^t^nro":; ;;:::. ;?;::r''? -- lis all into the small isli,,,,! .,."'""'*"''■'' 'wverod ovoi' , ».Kl the Covenant ';''t:Vf:*''",l,f,:'™''>'-'^''^'<' nearly eight o'elock, the consta ' tr „„ V ""'"*""""' "'" mmtol am Kirk the ,C, 7 TJ^' '™"'P"" thcpavo- l*rn.en,anathettrrhft:rerf^^^^^^^^^^ »t the table the solemn calling of r Y 1 younger, right hand and then ti:e: r tl J;"/ ht^ar" f' ";" mg softly over all Uto fi,. "^ ^""'' '^"^ sound- riters ef 11^^* 'the h„m"„r;'"^, "' ''''"'' ^'^ "- voices. When a 1 pre ' „t 1 , ""^""'' °' "•»"'« -t ™ carried awaT , "°""°i'' ""^ P™"'""^ P""-"'- llomo. "^ '""' '"""''3', and we departed hS^^ iit?:?,' sfiit'to' tifr T""'""' - I eauLig tJiitJ or ; they were wondrous orderly hnf Ti |fr.s nmiinff forth did tlip'lJi.. +-ii ^, "^"''■^'^^^^ otncr minis- '"."■a/intotiJt^:-;rHrx;;:irc^^^^^^^ 368 The Angel of the Covenant. ing around excited preachers, who explained the signing,' of the Covenant as an act of penitence toward God, and at the same time of reconciliation with Ilim. "Tliis,"! myself heard one cry, ''this is the day of grace to Jacob ! The v/ays of Zion have mourned ; and the hand of the Lord hath been heavy upon us. But wr have risen up to put away the unclean thing from union;' us, so that the multiplied evils of our land may ccaso ; and the Lord hath been gracious and hath put it into tlic hearts of many nobles and gentlemen, and into our hearts also whom the Lord hath set as unworthy shepherds ovw His sheep, to make " Covenant with the Lord our (lod, a) Covenant of healing, a Covenant of repentance and righto ous resolve, a Covenant of promise. We h.'ive put oiiri hand to it, and we will not draw back ; pnd the morn's morning ye will put your hands to it, also, and you, ray dear birds and bairns " — addressing the wives and cliil- (Jreu^ — '< and it will be a Covenant for us and for our chil- dren for ever ; and we will be a nation bound togetlicriaj the service of the Lord, and we shall dwell like bi't.'thnii| in the land, and verily we shall be fed ! " That was the note tliat sounded ere the night was doiiej all through Edinburgh. If there is a chord of human M| ing that thrills more readily than another in Scottisli, breasts it is the chord of brotherhood, so that a "kindljj Scot" hath ever been a word among us — and that cliordj was now struck to the most m<»ving issues of frenzy. Next day it was plain to all. From early morn, siieij multitudes assembled to put their hand to the (.'ovonaiitj that the Kirk could never hold them. The precious pareli| ment was, therefore, brought out and laid on a flat tomli'l stone for a table. It was first read aloud by Warristoi though few could hear it or understand ; but its poiuBO religion or j)olicy were as nought to them ; they ioukr':.«j on trust ; the admirable and glorious thing was that ^ The Signing of the Covenant. 369 Scotsmen were repentant and reconciled brothers fexcent ing outrageous Bishops and the few who heWw f^f^ Itwassnchan amazing manifestation and overflow .f t.gh.wought Ming as, I am persuaded, the vor d hath not seen smce Israel took tho Covenant in fl,„ -,7 »t the bidding of Mosos ! ^°'-"™' "> tbo wilderness It was not oontemplated at the first, I think that women should sign ; but they did, and eh Idren also ll --.nld t.^^ h.cnt prayer ; men and women embraeed andl LTd It tier, seareoly knowing what they did ; andwive sl^ed tter children to their bosoms. Sehool-bairns who S t„.e came forward, led by a parent, and subserild them idves ; and even bairns in arms had tbei,^ tn I . puled to put down their names bytir'ml' " """'^ .Jci i~ti^'::;fc z r. '"'''' '^'- -^"'■ U ".0 black cragt.r:iX; :rLt^rthe'rr,'' Sloomcd down upon the scene " *^'''"' And that had come of the proposal of my lord Montrose «..t, as the commons were iepresentcd among "o rim «»s.oners, so all of them shouhl be adr.ittedto b T" bnption of the Covenant > ""•■■""ed to the sub- |- the crowd and st^p up tj the "stot!" bX,^ h tnces before them all, and with clasped hStn™ Hi I p. ■'i 370 The Angel of the Covenant. streaming eyes he prayed, and then, still kneeling, took a pen to sign. But he dipped the pen not into the ink-horn but into some drops of blood he had drawn on his wrist. A great horror, and shame, and pity seized me : I could not endure to look on him : and I turned and fled awuv. Tri I Resume Military Occupat ion. 371 i< '4 CHAPTER XXIX. I REIUME MILITAEY or*— tj * -rrrv^T rnu, '^' ^^^ ^"^^T SOME GAY its feet we. of i,,,n .^..^ ^I 4 .— . -::,:^„ti 'f Wie, I have ai.oove.e.t - feJe a. . w-I^ZT™! as the graw. mm i imei The CovenaiK had so«ked the ^"-iri^i r f i^ i. . of the public, that copies of it ^^^TS^'^Zt .onbents were solicited th. wix^le c«^y^^ ^^^ compelled with eour and ^teM J^^S^X; ings. Ana what more - ,j iHwT ^"f^f^^ since the Co.en«^. .,« ....: W the ..'"^""- '' "^''^ tested bond c^ t..ti.3nality and b;Gtherhoo, , ^"^ the man be, m tJi* common view, who «hould race . Those who would understarul tLe m.^e thanordhT a^L J^ ! acquaintance with our Scottish peoples ^^2J^at, he who runs may read the history' of :he ^^I that spring the country was engaged in the signing the Covenant. The only considerable body of 7Z2 ^^fnsed to subscribe were the Marquis of Wn^ and h'S Gordons, and fchfi nphr n..,,o;^p-„M, .. ^^^^'j ana deen loci h^^ u. v '"'^•^^'^^^^ '-"^^J «J w^a Aner- c", led bv Its colleges ; and bijth thi- Oordoiw ^nA Aoerdeen suffered wof uly therefor e.e all wasTnT ! Ml ih ^§1 l'< 'h''; n )] s! It 372 The Angel of the Covenant. It is not possible to communicate to the apprclionsion the feeling of fervor which prevaded all sorts. They ap- peared to have found a new religion ; insomuch that they began to be called '* Covenanters," rather than either Protestants or Christians ; and, like a new religion, the ** Covenant " began to gather upon it superstitions and miracles. Men and women — women, in more particular- began to see visions and to hear voices from heaven,* and miracles were reported, — I will allow, from afar off. Por example, I remember how men and Avomen heard with trembling and awe of a gentlewoman on the shore of Fife who, on refusing the Covenant, Avas turned into a pillar of salt, like Lot's wife. I never met a person who had seen that pillar ; but yet the fable Avas generally believed. And there was a Mistress Mitchelson, daughter of a minister, who fell into trances, in which she spake strange things, to the exceeding edification of the devout who 'gathered about her couch for to hear. So much worth was attached to her utteraiice that her words were solemnly taken down by such as were skilled in Brachygraphy, or Shorthand, f An old lord of the other party Avho flouted her visions and her revelations came near to be stoned in the street by her admirers. Some one had said to him that on a certain oc- casion Mistress Mitchelson " glorioush/ spoke. " GowkecUij, I ye mean," said the old lord, and turned away. That was all ; but it Avas enough. In all this winning of subscribents to the Covenant (though not in these superstitions) none Avcre more forward and active than my lord Montrose and Maudlin. Tie carried a copy of the parchment through the country of Perth, * The diary of Sir Thomas Hope, the Lord Advocate, written at the time is filled with su^-h trivial things, of the extrenitst absurdity. — J. M. C. t Is not thiM very much like tlie Spiritualism of modern days; —J. M. C. t (>owkedly=foolishly. I Resume Military Occupation. 373 »ml bronght in his Gralmm, to s,g„, an.l many more • while sl,o abode st,ll ,„ Edinburgh, and to the same end t'ro".t : be ^i:,""' Aid ' ""• ^■^'':'°""-T charm of" 2 roboh ,l:,^ «° ^'C'*-'''!']'"! of the comn.on folk lo„a] or, orapait, tlioy wore greeted and hailed bv all with almost royal acclamations. So hio-1, ,'-""''*" ™"'i gracious and gallant MonLsc m I 'ed i'"tt 7 f e.U,nation that when, at the end of tilt „ ^ Zd"! wth am) rode mto E.linbnrgh from his expidUi™ to Aberdeen it was like the entry of the Dnke Jr. ^ . Paris, as told by Agripna D'A„I„o ?- , '" '"'" "ViveGnisoi" ,, tf " Auhigne, when men cried Kor!"-!so men d'7on '^ r nh™ the'l^^f "^'™ '" ;:Montrosel Montrose!" ^ ^;^;^^:::::--!;Z And with Jlandlin it was mnch the same. She .™ then t™-and-twenty years of .age, and at the fullest ™dnw «chant„.g bloom of maidenhood, when th Id cxp c liiT'b :sr'iVisrh"''i 'r '""" -■" »" -■-' » ; ™ "^^^^- -^* was then she beffan to be rnllprl ^^ rpi :l L the Covenant/' and to malntai:, like "^Le f ac„„.,tant adormg court, in which wastlie strangcs Z; .»»., of the lords'oflho ( ov ^t -.IT ^'l T'" Icrlikc bees to a honey-pot [ 1, w "'' "''"•" ™l «..V-If of my infa^L :„ f„ 1 r -Tt Cld !" I' """'"' ^^«"-; tide in a river, which se::,'.; ' tT fit 'n wTa .ay and now tins, but yet ever Hows on the sel. ""* .;rf'S,i:::^t.;!=-:-^~- ^1 ^H|,i 1 ^^^H^ 1 1 ■■K'm era 374 The An^cl of the Covenant. i :ft distant witli me, aiul more distant still ; and somotliin;,' despiteful, I thought, siueo my lord had taken uie fartlior ben into his confidence and regard. Then thebringiiii^Mii of my lord Montrose to the party had brought him and her much together again, and it was plain to me that inmiml, if not in body, she was completely his ; but I was resolved to keep the lid close shut upon my jealousy, and to tluit end I refrained as much as possible from their company, which was all the easier that I had taken a h)dging of my own over the wine-shop of James Brown, where I was ever certain of abundance of cheerful company. I was poor,— in truth, one of the poorest Scots gentlemen that trod tlic causeway of the High Street, or hung about the Parliament close, with rai)iers to their sides and feathers to their hats, — I had no occupation worth calling such and I was a fool, — In view of Maudlin's unshaken attachment to Mont- rose and the cloud of wealthy and titled suitors who fluttered about her, I was a fool to hope against hope that I should ever be more to her than I was. These things I I often dolefully told myself as I sat in my lonely chanil)er. Why, 1 asked, did I not return to the one occupation 1 had ever had, and take up again the happy piece of life I had dropped ! Why, except that I was tethered where I was by promises to stay and tied now also by my hand sot to the Covenant. But I continued from week to week to believe that all would speedily be arranged, and Scotland return to peace and dullness ; and then, I concoivjd, I would depart and rejoin my admirable friend Montieur D'Artagnan — (he also, I remembered, cherished regret for a lost love : a Frenchman's regret) — and help to fight the battles of France and the Cardinal, and at the end bccoino a Marshal and Peer of th<> Kingdom, as more than one of my compatriots had done. T-r\ fviif/h ^o '^esrsonj^ont wjih T tb"t. T t.b. '.p.k T s.noiud have cut the string that tied me by the hand, and jumpea r tb.irsk T shoiiM laud, and juiaped I Resume Military Occupation. 375 my engagements, Imd not mv f,..,™ i,„ l«"tca for. private uh.rm Tl ; ...^ T' """f ^^ "" ""■ ;''"■■'""'« fore of too thu „ : ;:::'';"' "'^^o l'«m n,y estimation. Hk fitl,,',- , i '''•"''I'l"''""! f- i"to „i. .o»t„.„„ :!;:j;:';:i;;; ;r •,;:":;, ;■" - for some years eniovn.] i.;. ^ ^ ,. ^ tiLics, ns Jie liml -^ J V^'^ "'« ostiites. from wliiV.i, 1 i i vailed on the Kino- to fi.,.. ^ i . V^'^'" ^^'"tJii lie luul pro- -»• turned Catfie '^ 7 1 tU t^^'T """" h™- "" Edinburgh again as the E of Ir^ nT''' ''" ■''" "> .ctivoly as when he l,,ad been Wnc U '""'-"^"^S as .weot and plausible with my or^^ t . , • '"", '"'""^'"S .»k;n so high a step of hinT^wS 'tl' ", i;!'." ;'„ f ^P»- as I have declared timo nn,i • ^ -^ ' ""^ I.— who, p«.r-oted t,n:tVe':;rt^- 2 - : ;'^^^^^^^^^^ M^shut „ h":' ^bX atr rXstr^^ "'■» Br««^ and gossiped with n.c in his c::ps: "^ " '"""' -.0 Cettrt ;:;/.' 'iTr'i:-:r """ "'-■■'™- «" »,astorL"will not "; .TLTI ^'''osi'io "-meaning his «>1 - IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) 1.0 I.I 2.2 40 US u< 1 u IL25 i 1.4 2.0 1.6 Va m ^> J^ ''^jS Hiotographic Sciences Coiporalion %^ \ «-q iV <^ 23 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, N.Y. 14580 (716) 872-4 S03 ^:v^ ''(^j^ ''>!'*' ^ ^ f/i ^. '^ 378 The Angel of the Covenant. !»■ enough, as much for need of some activity spiced with danger as from any sense of fealty to my Covenant oath. Thus early and astutely, I would have you note, did the Covenant leaders prepare for a bloody arbitrament of tlieir quarrel with the King. It was no great thing ; but it stood for much more than it was. With some score or two of tall fellows I set a watch about the approaches to the Castle night and day. In the afternoon of the first day came my lord Traquair with a tail of armed servants (for he dare not venture on the street without) trailing up the steep way from the High Street. A file of my men barred liis progress with crossed pikes, ere he came to ^"he platform below the Castle gate. " What meaneth this ?" quoth he. ** So please ye, my lord," said I stepping forth. ** I am to let no one whatsoever pass nearer the Castle than this." " And who are you, sir ? " he demanded, looking me over very loftily. " I am a soldier," said I, " under instructions." " From whom ? " ** From those who have taken an oath to stand by the ancient laws and liberties of Scotland." " Then the King's castle is besieged ? " " Not precisely so, my lord," said I. '* I am to let any come out that will, but none go in. Therefore, in some sort, I am aiding to keep the Castle for the King, against such as may be his enemies." A twinkle of merriment came in his eye, and he lauglied, I doffed him my hat. '' You are of the Scots Guard of France ? " said he, looking on my dress. "1 am, so please ye.' ' Do ye return soon ? • *- Not while my country hath need of mo." " H'm. Then yo think it will come to fighting V ,th to stand by the I Resume Military Occupation. 379 " God forbid, my lord ! " "H'm,"8aidhe ao-aiii • nnrl c,r> + i down tho hill. ' '" '""^'1 ^nd went away removed the a™s a!:,' t A^V rth"' r "!'' ™" shore road to the ceHars of T™'"/™"' "'« ship by the , my particular dutytt to ,*';eC:Kr\h'"*''f'"- '" ...aintained a watch, lest deepir/ear ' iflTf "','"" waked and an attempt be made tl T . ''"^ ''<"'" Early in J„„e the 1^^', n T'''" ""^ ^"^t'"- state, and in tolcen 4e r„ vai c f''T " ""'"^ "' «'•'»' ^».|h stopped short at'^the"^;!, r'^;:„:1:^'Tl'""- remain on the side of he K' \ .T''" '"'"' '''"'''° '» of these was the ^no„is of K ^.'i" , *'" ''"^''"P'' Chief of the Scots G„a,^ ITe, / rt; '^f :'""-^,^-n head oon.e to the Mar,„isatc when l^X^X^ '"''^t Ills father, who had been a lioniani.t 1 „ , t '''''' l-rought „p in the faith of tl Si n "'"f ^"^'^ tones, in the company of th pri^Lc r "^ ^ -^ ^^ »^of young „an!i,tol - th ' r^^ ^'^^''^j « -'K audiio had an intimate affection for e.ch 1 T ?," then came he to e-ivo Trnrr^'if i • ^^' ^o"*^^ bought a fine sw ;; er r t ™n Tf T t"T™' ^-^ '- Sciitlemcn behind hm,wiro aid th^.T T ^"'^ "'to tr ^rr", ""' * ""'"-''- ' «"e ^^""^■ of 1 e C rant"';::^" ,7"'"' """ "'^ C-»i-o„ers l»t they ome „t r "^ !?"'' *" '''"'•^"' "'«"• >"-">»«=. tboy ma'd c'ct^t, :r!? '^ ^^P-'^ -boat him, and '"■•^t bo blown „; by a:otr On ;id:r;, :' fr ftorofore desired that ho wonld oore'to^'dl'n gh' 1 1 1 1 1 P i \ ^ fE lii III i* .„+ +k ^^^'^''^r P^Per iously declined it then, saW he ;o:W W^^^^^ "^^■ down at Holyrood. ^ ^ ^''^' ^" ^^«" '^^ rnl^'i ^fl '^^^' "^^ ^'''^''" '^'^ he to my lord Mont rose and the three other leading noblemen of tho rw I And so he and the lords (who truly were as UHU r,i ' with a sermon as he) prided forward~^^^^^^^^ ..! K-S '. 'M fi .!■' Ill 1 1 ii I: i 1 t i i , ■■' ! 1 J 1 i fifliii ]j i 382 The Angel of the Covenant. All the way to Holyroodhouse wore swarms of people, some dour and crying *'No Popery! ... No Bishops!" and others of a merrier mood, who cried among otlior things, " First comes Hamilton, and syne the New i\[ooii,'' absurdly drolling upon the popular rhyme for the fixing; of Lent, which begins, '' First comes Candlemas ; " — and stilltheir constant cry, ''Montrose ! Montrose! Up Avi'r, Montrose ! " On nearing Ilolyrood we of the Coveiifint rode forward and lined the way to give tlie Marquis a re- spectful reception. When he lighted down, a number of ministers crowded forward making low becks and bowings. " Vos estis sal teri-ae,*" said he, smiliiig on them, and so passed on. " What said he ? " asked one minister of another. "What? Ila'e ye tint your bit o' College Latin?" replied a voice (it was Nathaniel Gordon's again). "He said that ye mar the kail with salt herring ; " alluding to a Scottish proverb about spoiling a dish with over-salting. " NathanieL" cried I, " the jest is both salt and fishy." " Ye have ray name, sir,'' he answered, gazing on me, ''but I have na yours." I laughed, the sight and sound of Nathaniel had ever a cheering effect on me. " Bide," he cried, holding up a finger, ** I should ken your nicher,f lad." "It's Alec Burnet of Esk," cried George Gordon of Gight, coming up when he saw Nathaniel engaged in speech with some one : Gight, you will remember, was one of our company in Paris who helped in the rescue of tlie Lady Katherine. "Fegs ! and so it is !" cried Nathaniel. " The cousin of my queen of hearts ! " " Who spied ye somewheres the other day," quoth I, "and is now angry because ye looked the other way." " That did I not," he protested ; " I am free to swear !" * " Ye are the Salt of the earth." f Nicher = neigh. I Resume Military Occupation. 383 "Sir," said Nathimiolchccrfullv "i of yo that's man : if a snrTrtM f ' "''P'"' '" ^o part loolcing her when it loZtuWhZ" '■""'""' ""'' °«- to let your een litrht on 1 ^^ ^ ""' '"^ "' J"""- '-oart ty yonr soul, or ^ol ^'h ;;r-'' ""' """ """^"^ ^ --- istl'r il'l;l""° "' "'° "■-— isod . " cried th. nain- "HeTo:eo,tLstT;/.r-";.-'"T'^''''---o>. >ioBisliops " Andmanvoftv, • ■ .' ^o Popery tWy, led the cry. ^ "* *""= '"'"'«''=■■«' "'"amed with fore did I see such a flooV nf .^''"";"'<''- " Never bo- he cried, when a tail fot T^T'''''"" ' S"-"" »' "e ! " «todragir.f?rti:j.::''"^ '"" '"^ "'-^«' -^ ^r^rrr^oft^nS rr'-"^»" - tered by a very few mo^l'r o 11: Ttir f" ""'- liorscman to admiration ■,„.} ^"- J^at'ianiel was a rein his horse's "e;Xd 2°^ '""" "^ *>™ "* "- cleared a sufficient space ^11^^ T.""'' """ '•"I »»dldid the like. Nathanel ' "l"^, "'">'So Gordon "Where can we go (raet™, in' '™ '"=■"* '» '"«• Mclt ? " * ^° '""" ""» rabblement, and ha'o a .I'tl: ^''"•'"«''- "-'■" -- the next observe he I took the two Gordons to my chamber over the wine- h':ii 384 The Angel of the Covenant. shop, and ordered up a pint of claret, a Scots' pint, (which is to an Englisli as a giant is to a man) and in a twinklinff wo were blowing clouds of tobatico smoke and cnickiiii; after the manner of old comrades. I learned that IS'iitli- aniel was now second Master of Horse to the Marquis of Iluntly, and that Giglit was homo from France because his father was dead and ho had entered upon his patrimony. How it came out I do not recall, but they found that 1 was on the side of the Covenant. "What is this Covenant ?" asked Nathaniel ; and I can well enough remember that the argument I delivered was less clear and warm than it would have been a quarter of a year before, or even a quarter of an hour. " But," said he, " ye used to be death on the ministers : I mind some- thing of a fine splore ye had wi* some o^ them in Aberdeen." I answered that his memory was right, but that we now had the whip-hand of them. He shook his head, and opined that the look of things that day did not encourage him to believe so ; and I could not gainsay him. ** Never trust them, man," said he. " A Mass-priest to shrive ye and see ye under the sod and gi'e ye the pass- word througli Purgatory is a handy creature to have about, but yon black ministers : — they mak' life a burden, and can do nothing for ye at the end. Corbies they are, that aye pick at the een and the heart of ye ! " It would bo of no avail to enter into theological strife with the gay Gordon. I contented myself with saying thai though I had no love for the ministers, I conceived tliat Scotsmen long ago resolved to have them in place of mass- priests. *' Weel," said he, " I kenna. But a sword by my side, a lass in my oxter, and a tass o' claret wi' a fere * :— that's the life for me. And I'm thinking your Covenant is like 800U to gi'e the first some occupation ; and occupation for * Fere, or fiere==a comrade. ^loots' pint, (which uul in 51 twinkliiu' )ke and crack in ir irned that Katli- the Marquis of France because his m liis patrimony, y found that 1 was hanicl ; and I can it I delivered was )eon a quarter of a ir. *^But," said irs : I mind sonic- lemin Aberdeen." but that we now ok his head, and iid not encourage ay him. " Never riest to shrive ye pass- word tlirougli out, butyonbhick i can do nothing at aye pick at the theological strife i with saying that. , I conceived that Q in place of mass- I Resume Military Occ„pati«„. ,«, the first brinp-M ^?^> i-;.> n . lon« bcf„r„ King ,Tami, cr" j , " '""!"'' ■^"•"'""' ""'co ■>"b i« ti.e off-sonso." ^"'"■'' ""■"" " fe'""'"!''.!.! • H '*ia i ) nil iTWBWJ wllffwi 3cS6 The Allied of the Covenant. ■0 i ' CnAPTEU XXX. MAUDLINT AND HAMII/rON. In" his halting part of peace-maker the Marquis of Hamilton, in the King's name, hold a grand reception at the ancient palace of llolyrood. No one yet knew to what degree he had freedom of hand to make concession for the appeasement of the diiferenccs between the King and us, but all knew that his mother, daughter of the stout old earl of Glencairn, Avas one of the staunchcst of our party, and her presence at the side of her son to rccoive the guests was counted by many to augur well for a com- posure of the quarrel. All the Covenanters, therefore, who came to his invitation — and many came — were of cheerful mood. I had not seen the dowager-marchioness at all before, nor her son closely ; and 1 found her a very terrible old dame, tall and straight, grim and wrinkled, with vory heavy lids to her eyes like a lizard's, and with an ebony staff in her hand, while her son appeared to me hardly more engaging. He, too, was tall and stately enough, but with a melancholic, and despondent look. lie was dressed all in black (he had lately lost his wife) and on his dark close-cropped head was a black callot-cap. The Marquis received his guests with a weary and dis- engaged air, which his mother reproved now and again with some impatience and disdain (I could see all from a window-embrasure where I had placed myself), as if lie were still in tutelage, and to be ruled by her. Of a sud- den a light awoke in his eye, and his form became animate Maudlin aiKl MainiKon. »-it.li life. An •i,„„.„., i • . . " ^ ~ ^".■ll. or «■„„ lii<„ij, t •* - '.'• '•"Ij'ot soon in u,,, o('^l.all«„.. to nin,„ conn ';:;;'''''''■■■ »!''-■''- more snbcl„o,l I,V|,t w,„ „" , ' "' """''»"■ "''"^o «■■« tl,„n tl,o j,,"„. ;,; '"„;"^""^'l '« "it„.viouto «««■, I note,! that in l.or bo o,,, ■,;,""■ ^"^ '^''" «""" slic wore rooW on mo a a,Jnt7jT """"■"«"; ""J there "-M".bIicly,,o„hrol c' ,; n T'T """ *''" '^"""'J Xo other lady proaent wore to./^^" '"^'j' '" '"^ Jord. liiTOaly jewels wore hor I,,!!, '^"' Je»'ols only, ,vl,ilo ».».-cl,ioness know ,ny ,a,y I : i;^'";,- 'J'''<" ''-".Sor- »gn,„ an.ilo, following n,,„n tfj, 1 , ^''"^'"' '""• '"''h "Ye're looking wool k" ) ! "f'^-ff^l conrtosie.. 'I"'"a grow younger, my buirn.- «^'o, '' but ye "I have na tlio soprnf /.' ,' p%«lnp/^ said my spW; .rc?.::^^;' ^^'"^'!' ^'^- yonr I courtesy. '^ ^^'"'"'^ swooping anothor At that tlie Marquis smllnri . ^• t ««,.3«„,,o,,aaL;;ral„;;outi: '""■'^"' -"- I^*..;tJa, gei:?;iTo;::::;"^/j'-'' ■•« -- '» , "hat," said tlio Mnrr,,,,-. ' -i- CWenanter ? Sure a r^ r '"^''''S' " " «°«'™ a»d a ''r'r'-two in'oo;S,^;^<' ««"^'l,at„,.y with the leade.^ Tlie night was .advanced when mv 1 , ,, poarcd in tho conmanv nt ti ? f ""^ Montrose an- I r.i„.,say„, th 'Zos , : -■* Rothes, L„„d„,.^, »t that time tho innercll» ' '""'^o" ''"Mtituted »"-l.od to the ore:';"'" 'ohCjIf-;'"'" "°''''"' "t,ng his eye around to seek the M ""^ '"'■''' "" «n.ed something surprised t„fl ,,'''"" "' "™iHon, 't M-dlin. Ho stel /: ' T-'"' ?"'' '""' "^^ s«luted him freely. I could nf If ""' '"""^™'-' »'' "■■'"■■y 3ag of subjection which flt "° ° "'"" *''» i"™'- '"''s check, and I conceive it flT' °'" "P™ Ma»d- l«I good eyes in his head n't dit't"' '5'""'"™' «*» ;i»te'l it too, as he mus We :„ ted tT' "\ ' '""'' '"'™ tacss of my lord MontrooeC? " """""te friend- ' ooneeive also th^ if; , f ,~ *» M«dli„. And P»teuttopricka man «' o ji '"V'"*'""" « "'ore tl'jn to see that she favors anotit ""'" '' " ''»'»''■' « "Sit my lady Bulgov,^; an n,„ , "^T "' "" ""c town, "cral such visits. Moreover 7 ^"' ""' «"■«' of ;;>o tl.e business betwccT 1 fkCg Z if r""^" '"'^'' » 111 hung uncertain and TT«^,-u ^ ^'^ Covenanters t^^e more hearing of the opfnb'oT^^^^^^ ""^^"^ -^^ opinions of those around, my lord m [HjB^; 1 ,^B 1 l' ffl |HHK i 1 it .to. I ■' ; iff, 1 id •! , i 1 390 The Angel of the Covenant. ^ Ml ' 1 (I- t IHP 1 1 1 'f^j '.:!' ; i F. '« LiL 1 i i ■1 liii J ij Montrose gave a great feast in his new lodging in tlio Canongate in compliment to the King's Commissioner. When the supper was over and the lords still sat at the wine — (I was not present, but it was told to me) — they began to call toasts to each other, the rather that they might keep off burning matters of debate. The King and the Queen were heartily pledged, and the Prince of Wales — now our Restored Sovereign, but then a mere child of seven or eight. Thereafter Hamilton himself, and the host ; and compliments flew like singing-birds. Of ii sudden, the Marquis, who was become more exuberant than his wont called the health of " the fairest flower of the North, Mistress Majidlin Keith." " Commonly known," added Eothes, " as the Angel of the Covenant." Upon that Hamilton sat down in a frown, and said no more. But his toast caused much comment, both of a loose and a serious kind ; and the likelihood was freely de- bated by many in private (though not in my hearing) of Maudlin becoming Marchioness, and carrying to Court a copy of the Covenant in her bosom for the King to sign, and so for the liealing of all our differences : that from those who looked not deep, nor saw that our differences grew daily wider and struck more profoundly. To nie the most notable and anxious outcome of the toast was that my dear lord Montrose (though he never said word to me of the matter) began to observe the Marquis of Hamil- ton with a more fixed and jealous regard. It was not many days later that there came the notable scene between Montrose and Hamilton which affected us all with a new uneasiness. The Marquis ever since his coming sounde.l this way and that whether the Covenan- ters for the sake of peace Avould not surrender and annul the Covenant : and finding' that an impossible hope lie had next tried whether they would not add an explana- Maudlin and Hamilton. tibn to the Cov^noTif fi,.,*. •<--,. Montrose was ready to -ranf „,,t , ?' ^ '"** "^ ^""^ noss of mere words bu on T 1 "'""'""' "'"' <''"■»'"««- fonting that to a.-pc'.d n'^ritw'; ".r 'T" """'" ^""™- imply what it manifestly M , "ft "!;"""""" '"" ""' that document, he yielde in^ to h "' "■"•'" ^'"""y came the King's Doclarafin i t °l>""ou. Then heralds at the Ls7thTlCr ' * ™ I'^'-imed by would not be p Jsod »e i n T"' ""'' "'" ■'*""'™ ««* ^y that time (lo fattTeri ^vit;:^ r!:' -y, ""' speech were fixed thof f?,n,r ^ ': "'^^ '"^" s minds und religion at all, but ty fo ^ w s 7, ""'" "\ "'" '^'"S'^ «cmbly and Parliament • and to 7l', ft™'""' ™ ''^ ^s- was read pat upon tl^e nrf , ''"°'"' » I'™to8tation The protertatiorp"u tof r:''"'\°' "■» '«"«'» word, whom the King's DechratioTi ]7 "^""^ ^""^i'' by it had been prfe a m d "a jtl- 7' ""/""'""''''^ '""""' the nobles o the CotIu , * • ^'"' ^"mmittee) of ministers, waited upoTC'crunHlT"' "" '"" »■• ""•»« Declaration was no'^^atisftottTrP t ° •"''™'°"' "''■" «■« King and his Scottish s M^ot ° d fo' T"' ''''"°°" *''" demand for a freely elected IV. f V ■'"" ™ "'"""^ "'«>• o..t Bishops, that i'to art Vn'fCltf """'^ ^"■"'■ "The Council," said Ilamntoni '"'""'• "■■;t they do, and will an^^^tl ^ ^^^^^^^^^^ " ''"ow ena^r:i:;rw*"Vi:f -^ "■- ■»'»'-- o^i. cov. and waited irt";e,ongai::r:'1"^ '<"■■' ^-'-Je the Council sat : it waf i Tl ^ , "'"'""'" "■">«■« wondered to see tl cm come ! /"'■■""" "' ""'>'-°'«'- I 'till more to see them o iZ d i , irr'Tr"".™"''"^"" overtook the lords and dr , ^ "t ' '':""""' '''"> him T.nf n,, „ , , ,, "^"^^^ ^'"0 a Wind ^lim put an arm about the Rothes (] le was taller than eit] necks of my lords Montr or) ; h IS 1 saw ose and ^v•ords I licard not. ■il — ,lj|f w^H MB^ftil 1 ifM VK\ Mil ■ 392 The Angel of the Covenant. for I stood afar off by the door, but they were told me immediately after by my lord, and they were these : — " I spoke to you (said he) before those Lords of the Council as the King's Commissioner, but now, there being none here but ourselves, I speak to you as a kindly Scot. If ye go on Avith courage and resolution, you will carry what you please ; but if ye faint and give ground in the least, ye are undone ! — undotiel — Verbum sat sapieniibus." * With that he left them, and returned to the Council. The effect of these words was all the more astonishing and staggering that the lords (Argyll in more particular) had had. but just received private advices from Court that the king was making most strenuous preparations to subdue us with an army and a fleet, of which in all likelihood Hamilton had knowledge. That night my lord gave a supper. "When all the com- pany were gone he drew me to hi^ cabinet of books with the word that he desired some speech with me. " Ye mind. Alec," said he, " that we talked of Hamilton when we rode from London two years ago ? " *' Completely,'' said I. '' What said I then of Hamilton ? " I reminded him that, in recounting to me what had passed at Hampton, he had declared his belief that the Marquis of Hamilton was a frank, kind, and honorable gentleman, the which I had ventured to doubt. " I did say that then, and now I am disposed to doubt, with you. Which of the two h jth changed : Hamilton or merely my regard of him ? " " Not Hamilton, for sure, my lord," said I, wondering what he Avas coming at : " no man changeth his nature so quickly, if mortal man ever changeth his nature at all." " Heresy, Alec ; beware, or else the ministers will bo upon you." * A word is enough to wise men. Maudlin and Hamilton. Ana Ifamilton's qnonni. f^ i ."g than to bo too p.o4t L ml^.:':^'"""" "^ '" '™«'- w Ja:;"r :tr;ri'™:rt ^, '"''-■ « - "'« mistrust seized him To m Lt " f^' '' "' ""' "'"^ « rcmodo, painful,, soard™; ,"13 1 f. ""'/"'■™' self and not in the other the .^aln „1 m ° 'T'' '" ''™- susprcion. I said nothing an 1 T^ , "'o ondrawing of "la^k jou who call f;;,',, f '"'"'I'^'^- saiahowithasmilo, "ifitha hi!,; ?.''?"''' """■' A'""." namilton may by thi, b L , '1 f /'"' '" '" ^'""- """'I that TI,e univer^b S~^ denunciation and cludlonle If hr,r? ^ *''" P^hlic before) was that Ila Uo>> It \'^"^^^'"^y «"ne years .Scotland ; for ho .^Xf^^^'^ "" "'""-e ot It hath indeed," said J << T> . ' that it would chime vrell with hr. "^ """" '" """""ton of the Covenant to n Ik o elves'"" '".""^'-S" - -<1 when our strength wa,re„';f- *'',■'/' "'^ ^"'K- force of his people at our he-."'' ' """"" "'"' "" 'ho "TJiat," granted mv lord wJf), --.i i. the ordinar and base wly otsu": L' r:"'"' " ^""'' "" And also, my lord " siirl T .. , couragement Hamilton may hold f ""^ p""" ""' '''"■" »" divided again from En"hn, '■'"'"" ^ '' ■'*''°th.ud ■ikoly to favor his desji^s ^Irold " "™' '" '''" ^'''^''"■"' " True," said ho. "Moreover," said L "wo know ^^.t- u . be ™ght underground lo tt Im:^^^^ ^^'^^^ "^^^ tL.terally-Who sees few (things) .soon judges. 393 1 I ''..r 394 The Angel of the Covenant. ^ :: i |-, m B . ■ 3 r W^^t^Wm if ''I * n^» iili "' True {igiiiii," 8ui(l lio, " Argyll's motliod doth seoiii too covered over uiid crooked. But now. Alec, methinks, Avo have doubted enough for tlie night : to doubt seems ever to draw a cloud upon my spirit. Let ns keep our eyes open, and look hcedfuUy to our going, but let us say no word of all this. I would not willingly stir up the plot of our differences and show them more than they seem ; nor would I willingly hinder or intromit with what may appear to our dear mistress Maudlin a happy prospect." '* Maudlin ? " cried I, my mind leaping with a new lively suspicion. " Ye think, my lord, there is aught of truth in the gossip wo hear ?" " I doubt there is," said he, rising to his feet, and pacing back and forth. " Fortune is nothing to Hamilton, and she is the most beautiful, charming and sprightful lady in all broad Scotladd ; and o, man is never so much inclined to take to himself a wife as a month or two after ho had lost one. Moreover, our Maudlin is ambitious of greatness and power ; and in truth she would make a line figure at Court and in policy." He turned him to the open window, and looked forth into the soft, sleeping twilight that lay upon the parks and spaces that spread on to the Firth. I noted a shade of sadness upon his fair, sweet countenance, and my heart went out to him with the free pity and love of a brother. " My dear lord," said I, ** I think ye mistake. I am assured — I cannot tell you how " — I was thinking of tlic confession ]\Iaudlin had made to me two years before — *•' there is but one man Maudlin would marry, and he is not marriagable." He turned to me quickly, and a wonderful softness of light shone in his face. " I think. Alec," said he, " y' are the most leal and true friend man ever had ; and I Avill not affect to be ignorant of Avhat ye would be at. But, if it be as you say, it doth ?, but let us vsuv Maudlin and Hamilton. 395 My prognosticiitioinirovod to be vvoll-iii,lo.„l t , ■"•JO tdi t„ th. e„a ti,i«,„,ato,. „, jt:: Si,„t ,r »l'l™>Kl. It .,ntici,,utcs somowhut „f ti„„, w " ™uU got „o further witl. the CVvenaute llanmo ,r eliiml lie must return to tlio KU.rr f i^'iiHiicon Uc- passed Maudlin never told; but thefe bo no doubt t Its sense and tendencv. When tl,» M ■ his ooaeh ho ,v. seen t^o ^Xa.- J^.^Xt had appeared since his first entry to Prlini. T ^''''''/'^ Ihe Lord help us !" said she. " I doubt tl,,,v'. end of the Marquis's favor to the Covenan ' " A ", " more would she say than that. '^''™'''™' • ^'"1 "o IVhen he returned about a month later the change in pos.t,on w,. apparent, ile eomplained th: irTt l" nucrv.u tiic Lovenanters liad m-irlo nan ^p i • • tl.c former visit to in-otond Ld nois .bt 7 ttTr "" l..oved the Covenant-mueh tohisd::;f;i t^, i'^;;f- -ana he pubhshed a deelaration of non-annrov 1 r'= opt himself apart from friendly intereZse™ th tv of the party, he denied himself even to hi, mnVh ^ f my lady Bal,ownio and Maudlin ho n:;';:^" gat ' """ M 1 1 fful softness of 396 The Angel of the Covenant. CHAPTER XXXI. ^^H I -I i 4 1 i THE BEGINNINGS OF EVIL. 'TwAS during the month's absence of Hamilton at Court that certain things happened, whose tendency was to re- veal to my lord (and to me also) how little he now was at one— if he ever had been— with the multitude of those who maintained the Covenant,— at one either in notion, in un- derstanding, or in purpose. More and more it became manifest that his thoughts were not their thoughts, nor his ways their ways. And then also began to grow clcar,to all men of apprehension the difference between my lord and that other protagonist, the Earl of Argyll, who (I am con- vinced) was thus early mining the reputation and inllucnce of my lord with the party ; for, while my dear lord ever was himself, and could be no other, Argyll was all things to all men : with the ministers he was favorably devout in their own way, with the burgesses he judiciously mingled the claims of God and of Mammon, and among the noljles he stoutly upheld the ancient privileges of their order. And all with the notable purpose of controlling, ere all was said and done, the conduct of the party, and molding its destiny, and the destiny of our country. The first instructive happening of that season— so far as I can recall — was the outcome of the reappearance in the south of the godly Mr. Samuel Rutlierford : so far Iiud we won in a short while, and so completely lapsed already was the power of the Bishops that he had left his place of" exile without let or question, and was on his way back to his parish in Galloway, Privily he made himself known to The Beginning of Evil. 397 hn,ety taken wi^Ws^w 1^( 7 t,;.""' 7 T'" '"^ "They are well-nigh eve„rirAT'°"r«° r"^""^ = lord to me, " with th? divine ^f oTli?; ^.'wT'^f ""^ made known that he wn„iH „ oipoosy ! Well, it was certain afternoon «or w tT • '","'" ^"^^ "^'^ '»' » daily preachings ih;h™:Vn:;;tlftr"™u°r' of the ministers), and great numbers filld the KTrt':? hear the golden-mouthed Chrvsostom nf tb n ° To the amazement and disan„oin,m!r , """onant. .Wight of a few hesri,n„ f '"""^'™'''°"w Ki4 or cove.:^ntn- r;; ri;t;'.":?,t''"S"' course was of Sin and Salvation and E ten^t ' tL/' 'f: n,y ord gave a snpper, to whieh was bS , ^ "e^ {;:« d""Tt:'ikfeirr ';r"™'"'-'» --^ ^t »...■ so by degr a fved a "2 t^'T v I-*"" 1"^'^' the afternoon. Then one ™;,"""' I*"' « discourse of i^lers,insomef„lI of temncr tool" " "' ^°'°'"''"" •"''"- ««ssity of "preach ,g:rthetimr"^:i > ':':'''" "" «";Uhe freedom and 4cfpli„e „f tlTe' k';;! '"" ^"™"™' ,;fr^inX::oi::--|.-^ take leave to call yon a sinful silence t" ^ '"' ^ »,i„!,h"' """' ™ """'"■^' "'»^-' -'«"oo," quoth »i*"am:tntl7ttr''.f't''''^°''™^ " Who preachrtHpte t'rs T^ "'' ■'°'""'' "l-'"- ■'^Zi:^^^^::^--^^^^^'^^^'^^ voice. 'Ihen/' said Mr. Rutherforrl afMi ^i .»-ingofsadness,.Mfy:r;retl^r;{;;:i:'S ill I : 1! ini ii ^y'lHI I'-l B 1' it' III /t' J'i^H \ ;': ( !'■ i > * (' t ■' ! () ■■ ; ^ '■'■'■•I I ■ ^ 'I h' iJi' hi i' ^i. 398 The Angel of the Covenant. may well allow oiio poor brother, who kens himself a mis- crablc sinner, to j)reach up Josiis Christ and llim eruci- lied ! " That answer was so unlookcd for that there was silciico for a breathing-space. Then my lord brake forth witli joy on his countenance, " I thank ye for that word, Mr. Eutherford. It has garred mo griie to note how so many ministers arc now more ta'en up with the temporalities than with the spiritualities of the occasion. To my poor mind that promiseth ill for the future of the Kirk." The ministers sat silent in a dark huff at the corroborated rebuke ; — when Argyll, having subtly caught their temper, put in his word. ** We ha'e excellent Scripture authority, Montrose, for the firm belief that there is a time for all things : there is as well a time for the temporal as for the spiritual ; and 1 agree Avith the brethren in opinion that now is the time for giving heed to the temporal." Ai that there was a quick gust of agreement among the brethren. " The excellence of your authority, Argyll," quoth mj lord, leaping in mind at the argument, "is something doubtful. And I take leave to think there are things that there is no true time for at all ; — for instance, the excessive concern of Kirkmen in temporal affairs." *' But," quoth Argyll, drawing my lord on, " ye will not oppugn the Authority of the Word of God ? " " Not oppugn ; no," answered my lord. '* 1 am merely in some doubt regarding the best Word." " All Scripture is inspired of God," said one of tlie ministers. '' Just that," said my lord. " But some more, some less. Some parts are, to say so, worth gold for inspiration, some worth only silver, and others are no more worth j thfin a copper penny ; of which last sort I conceive arc t!) words of the weariful King Ecclesiastes whose authoiitj The Bcgijiiiing of Evil. 't I coiicuivc arc the j ;e8 whose authority I 399 Lf UocI thatVo would giv " ; ,„o , ,r'°"' "' "" ^^'"•" ''Mr,'said my lord „ith a touch of he. "it, f „ vcmoro: thoro ai-o pieces of Hebrew Wrt/i /,"'" '''" Iwld to be tlie Word of r,n,I .,f ii ! i '"" ' '■""'"" n.f. give that ! " ind he sl^, '« ™' '°'' *''"" ' >™"W Tl,at pronouncomeu se r T ""' *'""»^' There were sundrrJ,^ "o „ '\"."'f "^ 'V '''""■ l.,Ue was a lordf and rg"^t „ . ™u7lr'' '''"■ ^ |kw,«the most acclaimed of l,er Ion » *'^'^, "<""«■" fept their tongues behiud their tl""*'" ' ''^ ™ ""'^ U seu,.«ttir.g, tht:\; -stLtnrttlirs: '- ^■ith no corn between/' mill-stones MVith all my heart! -said my lord. Fore as followeth. ^"^^itude of active Covenanters I have not declared, but nevertheless it i<, ir^n fi . Joint of attraction between mv ZT ' ^^'^^ ^"^ h delight in debatirgTatZs o/thTo "' "'.^ """ ^^"^- h was exercise geneirenm'r!/ ^ 5^ ''''! ''^^^^^"• ^^ -re agreeable t^lj^tr^^^^^^^^ l^ ^ 7 |W a c n,,,,,^ of thought and of sp^'C "" I It fell upon a certain evening that a servmfc of ^T . N came to mv lodcrino- w,vi, seriant of Mont- N I wait r him nf ' r'"'"^'' ^^'""^ "^3^ ^«rd :-, wait on him at once : he had somewhat to show i'^S i- V 'i 400 The Angel of the Covenant. mc. I set forth on the instant, and found him phingcul deep in a book. " Hero, Alec/' he cried, *' is the most delectable audi awaking book I have ever read ! " ' * What may it be, my lord ? " said I. " A new roniaiifoj or a book of poesy ? — though the time is not fruitful ij either." " No, Alec," said he, " it is more to your taste : it \i\ book of controversial theology." ** Ah," I cried, sniffing enjoyment. " It hath been sent to my good-brother, the lord NapierJ by his friend ]jord Falkland, and he not caring for it hatij passed it to me. It is written by William Chillingwortli,' a friend of Falkland, and it is called, you observe, ' 'M Religion of rrofe.statits/ I would ride ten thousand milej to talk with this man ! Listen to his words." Well do I remember the passage my lord burst out witlij It was that famous one which I have now by heart :— '' 7/,iJ presumptuous imposinfj of the sense of men -upon general words of God, and layimj them upon men's rm sciences together, under the equal penalty of death and diii\ nation ; this vain conceit that we can speak of the thuul of God better than in the words of God, this deifyinij (A own interpretations and tyrannous enforcing thorn i/pn. others; this restraining of the Word of God from (kt latitude and generality, and tlie understandings of m\ from that liberty wherein (Jhrist and the Apostles left ih\ — is and hath been, the only fountain of all the svhixm\ the Church, and that ichicli makes them immortal; m common incendiary of Christendom, and tliat winch im i?ito pieces, not the coat, but the bowels and the mcmhmk Christ!" I could have wept for joy to think there was a niiiiuu?! ■jyherc who could write like that, and for sadness tliati} * Who afterwards became Dean Chillingworth. to your tasto : it i^a The Beginning of Evil. ^^j like was not to be fnnnri ;v, Jominaton of l)i.rnt«i i> •. "-'"""" "y the oppressive 'reasoning soctart:) 1 ,:''''"'' '""^ "■"''""«' -<■""- hillingwortl,. ^ """ *^°"''-"» ""dmeovoi-thatbookof M, eating merely a morse o b'rea 'a dlV""" "'" 1/ wme. The twiligl.t doscende.l 1 , ''""'""« » «ip «"l »till the reading w nt o r f'"'"' ""'™1'-'"'" "«' -Iro^sy servants, ^nd st Ml 'e .f^ "' T" '"■""«'" "' .Mnight sounded irom o cLt 1" ,"'■"'• "" '""«""«' ""*t-"ndtill our h id'l t "'° t°l' «f H'e High l^nlMvo ceased oad^ ',:!/'■"'"'- "i"' ^oat. It ■' ™-o young anatXX'ttTZ 7 Tr"^' 'f^ «) bnt because our voice t„ """"^ '""'^ ""o" ..tnal accord, with sea™ , ,® ""J ""'• '^'"'»' ^y "t forth, and bribi ,1 the T ?"''"" '» «■"' "> »« 'M "« "-ougb, cimt f7J f ^';' ''•■'"°"g'"° Port h..t to look- V ZtTt and ,?."'■' "'•"' <" ^'•">"'^ »or distracted land '"" ^^^ '"" "«^ »ver our We walked as in a trnmo nr 'f« travelling tor;rEn,^„s™he f ^he'^^r '■ Hinary an eflectt Became re"'/'" '""'^ ^^ »" K not of stran magic) that \rphets in the 0!| Testament against the forn.ai doctrine and practise oft ' priesthood.' » /enant. J lofty windows nm •th and ;.v')ar liigluT ccovered our voicoj iid. A\u\ tlu'iifroin less minds, provoke tmosphore after wilij irce imagined. The ; and from tlielow. r'mg, Jind tlit^ whitej (se — us if they were] :ind daring thought?, 'ed, as if in nuuiiic; ' tried to put a gloijj the one. of God ?^' asked tlie ritten down ? Plan ;carce understood ai ' they scarce uiuler] 3rd with entire corj annot have set down it The Ikginniiig of Evil. Everyone must seek tlin T,.„,i. , , ■ tecirc,,mscnb«Uutl"ol .1, '"' '""^'f- "",1 not »f "■I'.'tover rank or W 1 Tir"'''^'"""' "' "■'"""™'' '»•". 'lotl. «tudy in the librao^ Wm t Z""""'?, ''"•" ''"" "'■■" '»"; »na none m„st cm 7. 1 ,?;'''' '''""'''''"«''- lialh found." ' mcUier to accept wliat lie « Je3t'l;:,i"t't''if",„!;:':r;' f ?'"''" ">»' -» 'ho himself, and He hatl nev ^ ' ' '"' "" '''""I' « Ood ?lored." ' ""<"■ '"=«»->'or will be-fully e... .*.lo it lieth warm within ml w, ^ ' '"''"'•' "" "'" Scripture ?_< The Won f r • ^*^'"" '' "'« "ayiuR of and in thy heart.' " "^ ^"^ " "'="'' "'»"' i" % motTth, "And we are in Cod, and Oo,l in us " "And what if the irreat fmt), i .nw existent save in us, and in T^,' °'' " "°»'''«-« Wh made and filled wit , 1" '• 'f T'""^ '"'™ "« •)■ ? " I'fe-with Himself, that is to JeS b"o"d1m a^rbroT'™^? ""■■ ""'•- -" o" tlTonghus.i"' ^ ''™''''" ''8l"« of Ilim shining »«'gi"a^L!!;;rtt;\r^^^^^^^ *'r^' J .■ ' > fc:ound "gLr ''' '""^ ^"""^' »''. was in its origin C:':tSfaL%;:;:t.:d 7a tr :-■ -«- —„ «eout.aftora,,ause "thnl^ ~,''^ '"" ^'^'''" h« Bchevc me, I would 2: „,v ' ^l l"" ""' ""•'''^^tand ? to...h of sadness, "is'^LotoTtl ';"•''■" '"^ '"'<''"'• *"ha turn her whole regard to J "''Pf' ^^'-'^ «"•* »ouId frankly, to know 1 r ro Jd fat, "JT^''' ' -^""'^^^ " sibly sweet and predou?" "^ '" ■"" '^ "'«^P''^»- "My dear lord," I cried in „ "wliy shoald ray bitter Z!' P^'""" "' «<'»-donial, «.o flesh, and mike XeTeo'Xrt'irL' ' ""' ""^"^ m mind and spirit ' " " ^""'^ "^ "stress ^_^';Tis a., very sad, very hard, and very contrary - " said !.:"[;;::;;''""' '^'''''' ''^'--p'-->.o hath refused -% G:dieip°;::7orTr:''""^ " "" «"' «-'-•• ««gl.t of as lie L'u/rri S.i;y B^" "T '" •^° ;i;-„''e aU the more hard Z J^ZZ^^^^ l.itil«3 day. " '" "'" ""'^y wangling of the "»r.uvwritteninof;i ot d"' TTr, "'^^ '"''''«'" *^-orcd monnt, to nnZ'-I'::^''^''!:?'^''^,^ ™wi»i,s and cruel roli-rion "'?™3sed with a sup- T>.at same day, or the „«t, my lord Montrose (and I lis m valk..,l C,'/;':'''f ''''';.''■?• ivIiilowoweroaiTiTOl-if II,.. „ ""''"'"■ '" ■' I'tHo 1«™1,, ,vl,o smiled .d„ T "' "'" '""''•*'■'• "f tl.o bid ™ «:« w::^^''^.^;'::' '"' ""■'!' ""■•■""■« '» "- «ot back by id/ki,y '^ hi /;i""'"r''-^"""'"""« Session." ' "'' *''"' 18 the .act of the "Thon," said my l„„i, " „.e will soo tho S„. ■ many as can bo got togetliei- " 'Sossmn, or as While w,aiting my lord refused to outer th. ■ ■ , , "liHiso, but passed to and fro win, t mmistor's Jigriation. Certain nf t 1 W'^'ont, ,n silence and i„. together, but lo "''':,,'""''''' "'•■•<' '"■""«'■' «l>oedily W performed tl ^rlnd j:'".'''''^ the blaeksmith thai i"g 1.0 had done it .-H :^'i, ',7™';"" .'^ -' ^'^ -y- ^.^-;;;n^:^::/:;::;';;:::jtt,,^'-"f'.'-,f, that 1,0 would bo oxcon,,,,,,,? . , ' "" " "■'« 'ik«>y ■onl dem.a„dod by w u™ , Tl" V^ '''■"''^'"'•>'- % "■-■l,ands to this j:,;^ t ^^-."f /'" «?-'- '.aJl."t "-.inaberneot'yea:-:;""""' "^ '"'■^' "-'-•'' ''»I "i^in-ing the slack rule of thn 7^;.k minister, adding thoi ho look d I n '^''- ^"'^'^ *^'« ^'ovenant, for thcpowcr of Ki^l r ''''^'^'^^-S ot the vived. ^ ' °* ^"^ discipliue to be re- ('■'if i' i ■-'!; ■ii, I ini f!1 n ! 408 The Angel of the Covenant. ''And think yo," demanded my lord, " that we have made and si^^nod the Covenant to bring back tiie harslicst and cruelest days of the Kirk ? If any have, I huvo not ! " 'Phon the minister opined tliat the pnnishment of ihv woman was neitlier harsli nor cruel, sinee the penalty (or- dained in Leviticus was death. " Leviticus ! Leviticus ! " broke forth my lord. " What have we to do with Leviticus ? Are avc barbarous, and bloody-minded Hebrews ? Is the religion of tliis land of Scotland Judaism or Christianity ? Ye profess to have Christ for Master ! What did lie with the woman in similar case ? Did He not bid her go her way uncon- demned ? And who are ye who would pretend to be greater and more righteous than He ? " Before his wrath all shrank terrified, for when in great wrath (which was seldom) he was a most scorching pro- digy of heat. Even the ministers grew pale and crept within themselves,— all except Henderson, who ever showed himself a man both of courage, and of liberal and ,-.. T •-..-J ^iiiper. " So please ye, my lord," said he, "be pacified. I am a man old enough to remember that Act of Botarie, of 1G03 ; and I conceive the Session hath exceeded its right by inflicting this punishment : that should be the act of the Presbytery.* Let this matter be referred to the Pres- bytery, and we shall hear its decision on our return. Meanwhile let the Session be enjoined to restore the woman to her home." ''And you, sir," said my lord to the minister, "had better come with me, and point out the woman's dwelling, Heavens ! " he cried, when the woman moaned and sighed upon moving again. '' What a monstrous, inhuman thini' * The Session is the court of the Parish, and the Presbytery tk court of a district, or number of Parishes. LK 1 i ,i!! The Beginning of Evil. 409 to drive a womun fortli tJiim ? l^ni- 1. .1 «";r.j">i.o ,u,„ „„„, , si;;; ■ «^; :f ™n::;f » -;•"<• fi s won]'^ r n,;, I ^i" ".0 »"d timonH,H eyes „f 11,^ ch f , '" '-"""'"'"'K. >'il.l. l^.go till a l.„vol ,.t tl,o ml : „ ; "'?;,""" "^ ","' -'- the extent of the ,,,„„■,„• ' l.ero we learnt nmtl.er "'" ' ""'"" ''^'"S with uu' uged nuMiste/,.,,, se'z •'< N . ;:;:""■;', -^ "- '-">'"-»,' ■■ature? No. no won,.,,, "" '^'""''''-■''S""f »'"■ "mnniou ...on.stn.n.dr^lTJ';';;:"'- '"■'"" '" '"■"" ^•'■' '-'" ^^ JAswell,„„,ora,"»aiai,.M.ea»onwiththeH.,i.i. - !j;:tti::;r„^::r .':^ t "- 'nr "^™ '"» Wm through a,nl thro t, T, """''^ ''"™ ™""™ old dame, rhesuflo ™ flw'lr "'™f ,''™ *" "'» ir:rircf sr 5,? ■»'■» '-^^^ -X7trgro:';s.:::;\:r"^ ;^^^^ -"'■ -" g"c my lord, nor me f„rw!° "''"'''"■■" "<'^='-f»- '--.■o.i..e.e;ttSor;z::",-:- 410 The Angel of the Covenant. Cant maintained that the Kirk needed no*- only to bo purged of abuses and novations (alluding to the Bishops, tlie book of Canons, and the Prayer-book), but also to have her lapsed powers of discipline restored ; while Henderson, calmer and more judicious, Avould ever add ''so far us agreeable to the "Word of God." That piqued my lord into saying that our Scottish Kirk seemed to find the Word of God more fully in the Old than in the New Testament. But the passage I best remember was this : — "It becomes plain to me," said my lord, **that our people prefer Moses to Christ." "Well," said Henderson, "our people have something of a rude and barbarous temper still ; they must be led the gentler way by degrees." *'Ay, Master Henderson," said my lord, sadly shaking his head, "but who will lead them ? To my observation, the shepherds are even more violently set towards Moses than the poor ignorant sheep !" Henderson urged that patience, policy, and time would work wonders ; and so the matter dropped. But arrived in Aberdeen we had fresh evidence that the arrogance, impatience and vindictiveness of our covenant- ing ministers were growing at an overweening rate. We entered the city on a Friday (by that very way I had seen my lord Montrose come nine years before), and, as then, we betook us to the house of the Earl Marischal. There we met with certain lords and gentlemen of the North who had already taken the Covenant, — the Lord Couper, the Master of Forbes, my uncle Sir Thomas Burnet of Leys, and some more. We were no sooner set down than the doctors and pro- fessors of the colleges, and the greater number of the minis- ters of both the old and new town, who carried on the praoions, learned, and liberal tradition of my dear Bishop Patrick Forbes, did send to the ministers of our company The Beginning of Evil. c have something ey must be led the Next any our ministers so, 1,.,M ' , '" ^■'"'""""' *'"' »«• «sb„tu poor tl, , " I°d ' ' %'"."-™'' ■■<>'%. '•'I'ioh satisfy ".olcruod 3'octo td , ' """"■" ^'"■'"' '» '■«i.-o that ,,„i„it» si,„, M'bo i r H''''"':r' " '"■"' » from wliich thoy mi„ht a,i;i,.f , " "'" "'>■'" J"y , did not won a„o ho> " 1 " . " ""' ''"l''^ t''^' "'cy riglitnoss or loyalty of tW ^ ye' convinced of tl,e »iniators in .omo dtd° on n bl w"",?,' ^'""' """ "" 'l»t thoy bad been r fu a m h t '7,"^''""' "'^ ''"™ .liets of tho Kirks thov ™ I, 1' ,' "'"' '"''"""' the ~.therinthooi-Xrof^^^^^^^^^ .™t oonvontfon of LI ,0 o ,n , ' """ """«»• » fc covenanting miniitetc^^^n 1 iT I T" '"' '» '-- ^I.oiy Ifcudcrson spoke first, V'i2 t d ? n "'""' "'" ^"■•''• Covenant ; next came Dickson wit l„ ''"'"' °' ""> »" ";o.-o came Cant, who w^ , i LtraTrV""''""" o»niity, and wlio was sunoorM it ,''*''" '" ""^ *oroftbeyo.mgEari E tl .^'^^ """«°' "=« withgreat vel,enrence-< C "„ '• „"" """■'""''= '-^' terly tlie inhabitants thereof W ^ ' ^r™' ' """^ ^ "'" '■«lp«ftheLord,toth elnof^rT" "^"""° ""' '""'^ •""".-. ye will > nderstand t T'"'' *''" '"'s'"^' mini*4 took occa on ^ T"."' ^^'"''"'"' '^'"i the "p-". the pride":; ;:: L' i';T,f xr i ''' ""? '"'"^'^ 'im avail them when the T„°J "'"^ ^ ' '" "'■""'' '™»'<1 Gideon to out thmn off . 'T''' '"'"' "'« ^'™«' «' cut them oil bceanse they had not p„t their 412 The Angel of the Covenant. hand to His glorious work, even the Covenant, for to tluit many had now come : — to speak of tlie Covenant m divinely inspired. He raved and stamped ; he banged the rail and cursed his opponents freely with the curses of iln: Lord ; and I doubt not ho moved the baser sort, who love a man that gives their silly souls a rousing shake. " Mercy ! " whispered my lady lialgownio to me (slie and Maudlin sat with us). "'Doth the man mean to let loose the dogs of war ?" When Cant was done there was much Jeering and de- rision from the outer borders of the crowd, and from those who lined the roofs around. Then, to my surprise, up started my old enemy and oppressor, Mr. ]\Iaule, who had been newly brought in to the Covenant. He, likewise attacked the learned and obstinate professors. "This kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting," was his text, and the implication that those who declined the Covenant were possessed by devils. He demanded a day of Fast and Prayer for the deprecation of the wrath of God against the city which *' most temerariously refused the Covenant of the Lord." He ranged and raged baek and forth of his subject, — which, truly, was on one sub- ject, but a wild patchwork of many. The loose moutli of him frothed, and he wiped the froth away, and went pant- ing and raging on again like a mad dog. I can recall clearly but one thing he said. In instance of the power of faithful prayer he cried, while he danced up and down and shook his nieves over the throng: — ** Ye mind on Elijah," he cried in blatant triumpli, as if he conceived himself Elijah risen from the dead, "aud the wonder he did ? What did he do ? By the power of prayer he locked up the windows of Heaven and carried tlie keys in his pouch for three years and six months ! " While he continued, there was more derision from those beyond than ever ; and as he finished there came from the The Beginning of Evil. 413 ncigliborly roof of tJio luinl of Pitforlrlol^ n i 1 " Oorbio ! '> and . clead crow ill or ^."^ ''^ '^ ministers. That was tl.oZhtl sol """"T- ''^' I10.1SO. "'" '^^"•ni'i'iy "t I'itfoiUlcls At length all ,v„s do>,c, and my soul was sink A. „ -1-y was departing I „,„poL to ^Eltof Molt! fa2'fgat;"^ '"■''" ""^ ^' "'''-''•" - '" this in. '; i ■Mi 'I :l!r ■', ',] 'i 1 ■ 1 'ft •;■. it' liL'fii i 414 The Angel of the Covenant. CHAPTER XXXII. THE UP-UISIXG OF AllGYLL. ai Our success in Aberdeen was small. Besides those who were Covenanters before we came, we brouglit in oidv some base mechanic men and a troop of women (who had liad their quavering souls shaken by the noisy and intem- perate discourses of Cant and Maule) and three learned ministers, the chief of whom was the professor of mathe- matics of my old College. And these last only put tlioir hands to the Covenant with the express limitation that thereby they were not obliged to act anything against tlio King. That limitation (which was in effect what Hamil- ton had asked for, and been refused) Montrose himself drew uj) and subscrived, aiul made our three ministers do so likewise ; — all very greatly to the scandal of the party in the South when we returned thither, who then began to murmur and complain that my lord was *'gey ill to guide," and was over tender with recnsants. We spent some days in traversing the parishes of the shire, where we had more success. The Gordons, however, and those allied with them still refused our Covenant, while the Forbeses and the Frazers took it, but merely out of ancient enmity to the Gordons and for the sake of new feud with them. Then we hasted back to Edin- burgh to be in time for the return of the Marquis of Hamilton. So we stepped again into the dust and wrangling of tLat southern arena. Hamilton came early in August, and The Up-rising of Argyll. continued, off and on, till tho end of November • a„d ,1 ■! the strain between our ivirtv .,,,,1 h: """'■"^"f , nnd daily ,11 fi„ 11 -4. 1 "■'^ •""'""" ""as tried and m-ovoil t finally ,t snapped, and Ilaniilton departedwitl a swi h 1.13 robes and shook tlie dnst of our arena off hi Ihcro are but two events of that while that stand ortlt Iho fust IS a small one :-the nnroasoninntativo of tlu; no. bility, bocauso tli(» party (tho iniiiistcr.s in cspcMual) were "jfrown miccrtaiii of him, and they woidd tluis have hiin more soiimlly committed to their ptir[tos(\ With thr kno\vled a 4i8 The Angel of the Covenant. t( Mr. Moderator," says ho, " I denoinioe that oloctioii and claim it for iiiyson, tlio lord (■arnegio. The briii^r. iiiir hero of Erskiiio of Oiin is irreari,sli minister to Soutliesk for many years, put the (luestion softly by, and said to Soutliesk, 'Mjct us first hear i\lr. Erskine's Commission, my lord." The clerk at the table took up the reading again, and by some dull inadvertence he also turned over and read what was on the back of tlie Commission, with the names of Montrose and others, some of the Tables attached. It hath been well said by one wise in all politic craft, *♦ When you do a thing of doubtful regularity, give no reasons: for they will of a certainty entangle you if there be a ques- tionable issue." Montrose and his fellows had not alone done an act of questionable legality, but they had append- ed reasons, — reasons which, 1 am convinced, my lord at least intended in a,ll honesty, but which were the only be- getters of the hot disputation which ensued. The unwit- ting clerk, having recited the impriiiKdur and its signa- tures, wandered on among the reasons for maintaining llie election of Dun, — as that the meeting, at which Lord Carnegie was chosen, had not been holden under the con- ditions imposed by the Tables. At that the clerk, per- ceiving he had blundered in among parish matters, stam- mered, stuck, looked around him ami read no more. *' Read on, sir," cried Soutliesk triumphant. *' Let him read on, Mr. Moderator," said Hamilton, now 8'g''o ^'^^^^^ lively interest to mark a trip in legality. " Having begun, sir," said the Moderator to the clerk, | "you had best make an end." And the chagrined oicrk , read on, and made an end. The Up-rising of Argyll. 419 "Hnnd mo hither that Conimi.ssion " hmM ir -w w.tli a ^rieam of satisfaction on hi '.. /f'"'""»". Moii of h s vvifcM *'fl,;c. . • ., ' "'' "'*^^ "> I»o««t«- "it will go Cn^u, V ;" " 'T'"' " '""« "f '■'» i'«"i. " Mv Ior,l Ir ^" " •'"""'^>' ''''"' '■» tl""-o writ." my loril i[ttm]ltoM,"r<.|)ll,,,| M„„i... ■ , .t"i>a>;: ;:,!'"'•?.";',*"'""" -"^ -^ -"■• ^''-- wo "My dour lord," said tJ.o politic, Mod.rUor '< f , i^ ■sake of peace and co.u^ord 't^n.re w , " answer." ^^^^^ ^'^ "»i^' *^-- ^Ir. Erskine o Dun w^ "^ ^ ^''^^''-y^^-'y which oh^cted "Mr. Moderator," cried my lord ^'l will nof 1 1 1 m .pon by my lord Soulhesk t " ""^ '^'' ^^'"^^^ Thereupon the Moderator rebuked 8outhesk, sayin. it *Wyte=-fanIt, bluino. 420 The Angel of the Covenant. would be well that my lord should be permitted to finish his statement ; and Southesk held his peace. *' Yet," quoth Hamilton, '' 1 would urge my lord Southesk's question : whence did your Tables derive the right to demit instructions for elections ?" ''''And thus, n\y lord, I make answer," said Monti-osc :— *' Since we of tlie Tables were those Avho besouglit from the King, thro' the King's Commissioner, even yourself. my lord Hamilton, and who were granted, the meeting of General Assembly,— we did conceive that we held the King's authority for constituting tliis Assembly." ''King's authority, quotha !" again broke in Southesk. " And where is the ancient Privy Council ?" " By Heaven ! " cried my lord. " I will not be brow- beat by my lord Southesk,— neither here nor elsewhere I " " And by God, my lord Montrose," cried Southesk. " you shall not be master in my house, if you be master here or no ! " " By your leave, my lord Southesk," put in Hamilton, *' I am master here, in the King's name ! " Quick as a flame Montrose caught up the word. " 'Twiis on my tongue, my lord," said he, with an obeisance to Hamilton, " to say the same ! There is no master here, save the King ! " " And, in the King's name," cried Southesk, " I de- mand the annulling of yon Commission,— the whilk luitli been got by usurpation and Jesuitry ! " At that came more quick, hot words from Montrose, tlie which I cannot now recall, and more again from Soutliesk, And all men listened with astonishment, and something of | terror ; for a private quarrel was plainly looking thro' tlii> lively web of disputation. "I would to God," cried the Moderator, "that botli Commissions had been annulled rather than such unsceni!; heat had been provoked ! " The Up-rising of Argyll. ' put in Hamilton, 421 ■uo all in the same boat! Ye Tro a I *'"""'•"'<"•• "y» togothei' ! " ™ "" >«'iq>er8 and Jesuits yea. a„aaiai;vo^:™r;:,r::5;;f:™''-'-'y It IS unseemly !_n,ost unseemlv I '• ' „;,, t , rising in his place, "in anv I™-,1 t„ ' f Loudoun, i.nd to flout l!is autlmrUy"" """"'" ""^ Moderator, a^^tirov:::;;!^!''^' ""'"'-- ">- "^ "Tiiis,«3awwcr'i^trrn'-''' w»rd ! Let ,,s then sav V,,/! .™"'-'°"3'.-to flght for a "I aeeent ,, "™ ""l^' '"'onw moderator.'" ««•« modLitorl af :pt htpf" " '»'-^'--' ""^ - Aiidtef uni'bZS " "'' "•™'"""' "I--- -'-P-o - poitthitti::::'^^:;^' 'r'' -'"> "- the Assembly; and sat do vn U„ "" '' ft"'""" '» Dickson to second the pronoll Ff ,,J"™P'"» "'• David for an instant the sinkk!- fl,n' f ^^ ^'"^ '" ''" '''''■^'"I l.i» opinion that VZlltillt T'"' "'^ ""'^"^'^^ ^own the writin, orthrL'rrntn":^^^: '" ''' .hereupon my lord Montrose was „p a„ai n and T' like a consuming flame. ® ' ^ "^ '"'" "Sir," said he in the minister's fine ^Ti!„i remember, was one nf tl,„ . (D'ckson, yon will *»8te Aberdeen Lll TfT *''" ''"^ '™™"«d "Sir 'tis ume r I ' ^ ''"''' '■""Ply '"'»'*«d him)- .tth Swes"!'" r *r 'V^" '" •'"-"°" *« -' ««gligence Tn, seeka "" "' '" "" ''"*'°' "»' "» "' secketh no corners to hide in! IIWI 422 The Angel of the Covenant. / •' i And I am ready to avow the least jot of that which is i , , wrote I" I ;| |i Dickson blenched; and said no word. So with tliat i last leap of flame, the fire died down ; and Erskine of Duu was declared elect. " See ! " said I to Maudlin in the gallery ! " See to Argyll grinding his palms in secret glee ! " *'' And well he may !" said she. " I doubt this is a bad da]- for my lord's leadership of the Covenant I Why will he gird at the ministers so ? " "He cannot endure the ministers!" said I. ''Nor can 1 ! " '' But, Alec," said she, in palpable distress, " the minis- tcvs mu,^t be eudiired, or all is f oredone ! " The fatal sequel of that hot disputation came with no uncertain, nor lagging feet. In a deep disgust and des- pondency my lord continued absent from the Assembly after that day. He was displeased with himself, and dis- pleased with all ; insomuch that no argument could prevail to bring him back. *' At least," said he, ''let me bide out of it till all the members are vouched for and the Assembly is consti- tute." The constitution of the Assembly came on the third day thereafter, and swift on the heels of that came the con- summation. No sooner were they set for business, than up was brought the question of the trial before them of the Bishops. That, Hamilton declared, was a matter they must not touch : that was intromission with the King's prerogative. The Assembly maintained that they miglit, and would deal with the Bishops as subject and responsible to the General Assembly, whether they had the King's authority or no. Thereupon Hamilton, after a grave and sorrowful discourse in the which he begged all present to beware how they touched the King's prerogative iu the The Up-rising of ArgyJI. said I. ''Nor manner of the BishoTi. 1.1. ^^^ fst bj- the partial < ireSs nf ,, 'f" 'P"""^'' '■■»» the -gh And with tl at Zini fl" "^"^^ '■■°'" ^^^i^! Marqms of Hamilton gathered «nf^ at Montrose the •leimrtnre. * """" "P his robes and took his T^^^^^lZ^-i:^ »' ^- and donht fe„ " 'h^y continned to sit td I 1 ' '''"'' ''■'>■"'«" both. '■■ectdefianeoof the Kind's A«tl, >'""'''■' '™"M ""^ a «'°d.S8oIution-it„e,„j'^;j^". ■';••' y; « 'l"«y accepted P'we their defeat. Yet TZ ,' ""■'"'*' «»<' "Ut i'«', or guiding voice SoL Let' "^'"^ '"">out a »y»'g they had express instacti ^'^"' '" ^''P «»'ay, ™« ™ ">^ King ga^e the iZZwl "°""""^ <""y «« «> -oupon n,any „ore were s S U'' "°r '->'«nce ; and A.eof':'2dri^-ptr-' ArdheSitr^rt- '*!;«bemoane«. raying that they o^'i^ se ' ? 'j "'^"' '""' «™^ivl t" "Cil *as left with a! btle t- 1 "'"'"' "' "'o Privy , * a" take his mo.„Lgtt tt'fh"' '"'^'^ '''>-'' »«"^e.-o of the King.3 author tv ""' ""^ ''^' ■•«■»- I ' "are not striven '• I,« .• '""«' '0 listen flfr' . V°"""""'-""". be7 a ""«» ""Ok, mount n^utn v"".'"" "'"' "ispntatio s'^ """"-r the bette )T'h ■; r "'"' "■•» '""'^ '""^ •> ^ "a™ »ot strnon to blow the 424 The Angel of the Covenant. bellows," — with obvious reference to my lord Montrose,— " but studied to keep mutters in as soft a temper as I could ; and now I desire to make it known to you tluit I take you nil for members of a lawful Assembly, and honest countrymen, — well-consiitute and able for the purposes of an Assembly of the Kirk." Perplexity was past, and satisfaction reigned : a head and a voice were found for the Assembly's gross and eager body. And thus it was that Argyll, patient, crafty uiul subtle, winning in speech (despite his ugliness) and pro- found in design, with all qualities that make a statesman, save honesty and courage — thus he stood forth at the very nick of time, and thereafter led the forces of the Covenant whither he would. *' Take me away ! " said Maudlin. '' I cannot endure it ! " She was plainly in the extremest distress ; and I led her forth of the Assembly and home to our lodging, which was close at hand. '"^'Tis best as it is," said I, to comfort her. ''For my lord's true mind hath neither part nor lot with these » men. Then brake she forth upon me with most astonishing and scorching heat. '* I kenned how it was ! " said she. '' This is all your doing. Alec !— all ! I have striven !— God he knoweth how I have striven !— to set my lord at the head, and ye have crossed and countered me at every turn I Ye have been his mechant familiar ! Ye have squat like a toad at liis eai, and instilled, drop by drop, your evil counsel ! " *' Evil counsel ? I ? " was all I could exclaim. " 0, do I not weel ken your method ? All roads are hard, all ways are wrong, but your own ! All thoughts, opinions, feelings arc slighted, save your own ! Your m.ind ia filleJ, stnfEed to nauseous overflowing, with doubts, suspicious, jealousies of all men! Y'are jealous even of my lord!" The Up-rising of Argyll. 1 most astonishing She flashed out, like a blinding flame well now ! God fo " i( 425 t^j I kon yon you -Ji-givo me that ever I did linnnn as a loal man !-yo„, who are .0 base a tr ck of " " yo kn'o'r'^T- ; . ' • ''"""""' ^^»''''" "■ I or.-od X e Know not wliat yo sav ? " "' tii."htLrboMev!nV:t':r"' f "^ '""''^ *-""- after ? Wh r, to ' th !., ""''"'"^^ I '"'™ ^'"von ".0 kind/Z hath ,1 '?>' "r'-^l'""g"'g "-"ght of it, to make it .t v^rik r";;?'r. " ■™" '""^'^^ L t Jmpied ^m \^:;rr: ;iir.' 'r -f-^ ''^^'' spite, Alec !-poor spite ! " ^ ^ ^' '* '' P^°^ I was a bearded man ; a soldier • inrl T ,.. strong a, adamant j-yel there I ood 1 S"bTlT" accusations of the wom-in t i^ ^ ^ ^^uucea Dy the fierce .'oyoa\lo™'the3;:W„';:fpr«""«^™»-.-<™"» -'have )"«-*,. .heTe,tirJr;::7 '»g; but she was of a stron. resoht^ln 1 iT , T^" "• "Argyll hath enm« t« t°j ■'™"' ""^ she subdued 'a hav! L,7. ", , ''"^ '<"■" «' «>« front 1 " i have heard," said my lord softly , m ' i ', i >:■» I t p '1 1 1 1 426 The Angel of the Covenant. ** And yc carena ! " quoriod Ataudlin. ''Not a jot. It is become uo place for me/* ho made answer. "And ye will abandon our glorious Covenant?" she- asked. ''Not I. Neither the Covenant, nor its Angel/' ho answered, giving her a hand to sustain her. " Both I will serve in all honor till the end." " Pray leave me, my lord," said she, with difficulty : " I must rest a while : I am not well." I turned with my lord to depart, quite,— quite bewildered and broken. She called me back softly. " Alec," said she, " I crave your pardon, I have said wicked things,— lying things ! Forgive me ! I think I am mad ! But I cannot bear it !-I cannot, cannot bear it ! . . . Pray leave me, both of you, for a while ! " How My Lord's Honor was Contemned. 427 for nic," lio made 1 Covenant?" slio CHAPTEK XXXIII. HOW MY LOUa's HONOR WAS OOOTEMNED. But tlio progress of my lord's .alienation from tlio Coven- ant partj dul not cease that day. It ehaneed that X Argyll became prime mover in their Councils my lord b gan to frequent them loss, not so mneh from any ml .k ng Argyll (altho' that was beginning), us fromX fact tljat he was ocenpied with matters more attractTve _ even the military preparations which were in the makh ;« ior It was pla,n theonly issue now was war. TlTe KhJ on h.s part was constant in getting an army together and Assembly b t by making an end of the IJishops, who were completely hrust forth and excommunicate. We had lit le fear of the warlike issue ; for, while we had eer ain in formation of the unwortliiness of the King' tro^irir reds of seasoned Scots soldiers were h.ast nV oTe iZ the German wars whose training and disclplinr wo^ld atiflen out and strengthen our ownlevies. Moreover Th kd arrived in Scotland (at the express invite of hs chief 1.0 lord Kothes) Felt-Marshal Leslie, who had learnt hi: tasniess underthe great Gustavus, and who was asclabk attraming and tactic as any general of the time '^ '' If my lord Montrose had one ambition stronger than an *or-besides the serving of his country-Twas oVe " tZZZ'Tll ^"*'^"' end, while he had beenabroad! le had stnd.ed the mathematie and the militar. art, in IbJyand France (albeit he had never served ^-nZt!^ «n a stricken field) and he hadleMX'rvte'JS 1 ■ i'f ' I P Ft ^ [C f r !l. f l''^ ; 428 The Angel of the Covenant. _> '1 :l tt ■ :;:| i' i viii such men as the Vicointc de Turcnnc. now began to spread of Turenne's achievements at The fame whifli - the siege of Brisacli shed a rellected Ulster on JMontroso, for it was no fault of mine if all fighting men in Edin- burgh did not Jcnow of the friendsliip between the two. My lord Montrose was, therefore, suflioiently em- ployed, even as I was; so that, while Colonel Sandy Hamilton (who had served in the artillery of Gustavus) v/as active in Potter's Row making a kind of cannon, whieli came to be called ** Sandy's stoujjs," my lord and I were contriving a battery of defense from the Castle out of the stones of the Heriot Hospital which was then a-building, and casting trenches about the town of Leith. It was in February that my lord won first occasion to show his quality as commander. Huntly and the Gordons were still recusant of the Covenant, and secret word had come from England that Hamilton Avith ships and men was about to join Huntly and with him to sweep down upon the Lowlands and the Lothians, to bring them back to their obedience. By the TaMcs of the Covenant Mont- rose was chosen to go to the north to organize the opposi- tion of the Covenantors there :— the Forbeses and the Frazers, the Keiths and the Criehtons. He had sent word to these families to meet him at Turriff, a small market town far up in the shire of Aberdeen, and himself was at Old Montrose, getting together men and money from Angup and the Mearns, when word was brougiit that Huntly had planned the seizure of Turriff and the hind- rance of his meeting with the Forbeses and the rest. The intent of those who sent the news was to keep Montrose still ; but, on the contrar, it gave him a spur. Summon- ing two hundred horsemen of the gentry who were readiest at call, Montrose on the instant rode for the Grampians, crossed them in tiie snow, and scarce ever resting or sleep- ipg made all speed for Turriff, collecting and summoning How My Lord's Honor was Con.cmneC. 4., ", »p,.oi,.ted with buri::a:x^T."r'^"' "■"' carbines, swonis, iui£rl)„ts nu,XZ '"'f"' ■'"<''<>'. PWWs, Wo took „„ U. stronger ;sT tin"'' ,,r;jrrT"=- Jvirkyard, and set ourselves wifh n '"^ '''"^ ^^'^ very advantageously abor^hTd ^ Z^T '' 'u ''''' guessed my lord had stirred a step W ' Jir'n""""^ find himself thus forestalled he drew off ^^ ^ '""'" benng 2,000 and more -havinri ''' """^^ ""n^" to avoid a collision till^. ZJ^Iirlr'' ' ^^ '^''^ From that -Raid of Turriff - T, "'"'^^^"• my lord's command of the Vnll ?• '''*' '^'^"^^^' ^^^^^ rapidly forming. When tit. 1 ^^ ""^ ^^^"^^ ^^'- Felt-Marshal LeslieJh^Ld^Vt ^r^^^^^^^^^^^^ f^'^'^' commonlysilentasawalnut-she^I hrnl ; ""' ''^^ ™ excitement and swore ro ndlv ir . '"^^ extraordinary Ood he had lighted on ::mJ^ S /T/'^' ^^'^-^' ""t who were then with htn 1 '"^' ^^ *'^^ C«^«"- i excitement. "' demanded the cause of his "Do ye no ken what the vouno- ln,vi i. n . f oryehavenoeyeforasoldier" " ?'"^ ^^^'^« •'^ ^o ; , f'e to his chief, Kothes wit), vJl/ ' 'i ' ""^ ^^'■^^'" said , K-t his words had 41 ,7 A ' T"*. "" '"»'■«• ;f»ft vor, widely a^ th '^^ ',';';' ™™ """ plontrosc was grown somethi.l 1, "'" l«"-'3"Iiat ""'Mhad ovorheardr ai^ ',:"/"" """'«°' ' '" »»»«ters that his " more th™ orTi , " T'" """'« "'» |-»tireIyo, their ^aolion^X^lrhir, vilH P! I ii^iii^F 430 The Aiij^cl of the Covenant. : > Jii 1 ' J-, 'i show of lioiior luul estuom, that thoy set liim in tlio fore- front, us {!liic)f cotiimjuider of the army, witli Folt-Manslutl Lcslio for his Adjutant. Mo my lord straightway madelii.s military se '" '" "^"""'i » rod BI..«Uibbo„s/wlJSjffictr ''';''""''''«''"'■'''-- rtile the common so ,^"s 3,77' '''""' "•<"» ""'">"-e3, '«™ta. Those were CJhTd^'X" " '"""'' '" "'<"> k' Montrose's whimsios,?' b,,t j ' r ''"" "' "'" «°""> * the,„ and were called ^'b^^'''^ "- »"- K^:^r:^^,^;:;r,fn,A.o«enseto^^ Nness ami Clemency .nlh;; 'V*^^ ""^'^t^rs, by his hein, a slack suppo ^ tf |^r'' ""^^^^^ f d garrison behind i/Lll T"^'*' ^^^ ^^^ ^ ^ he nnnisters to cl Lb tit r^ "'^ ^ ^«"th of our ^The„,„, , *^'' ""^P^-^ P"'pits. and doave the ii ,'i !i I 432 The Angel of the Covenant. downcast city with their raviug triumphs over an enemy which fled when none pursued, and with their delectable curses upon Meroz. AVe made up for the loss of both by a peaceful Sunday at Inverury, and a constant accretion of men from the Covenanting families hostile to the Gor- dons. Through the mediation of Sir Eobert Gordon of Straloch (a wise and humane gentleman, and an excellent musician) Montrose and Huntly were brought togetbcr and came to an understanding ; and we were astonisbed to see them ride into our leaguer side by side, followed by the friends who had accompanied them to the meet- ing. There Iluntly put his hand to a paper, that, though he would not take the Covenant himself, he would hinder none of his people who might be inclined that way. and for such as were Papists (and they were many) there should be no mention of Keligion, but only a bond to maintain and defend the ancient laws and liberties of the Kingdom. To that Montrose also put his hand, with the other lords of our party who were present in the leaguer. And then Huntly and his friends mounted their horses and rode away to his castle of Strathbogie. Amazement held all who had access to my lord, excepting his Adjutant, Felt-Marshal Leslie, who, I think, cared not a jot about anything but earning his pay by a soldier's duty, and en- joying a sufficiency of sleep and of good drink and vivers. Some ventured to ask my lord whether the easement given I to Huntly and the Gordons were not a contravention of the Covenant which claimed support for " the true re- formed religion of Scotland." The reply let in a light ferj many to my lord' mind. '' And what is the reformed religion of Scotland ? Tlifl stuff uttered by those braying asses, and roaring bulls of Bashan we have left at Aberdeen ? I mind me, too, that the Covenant speaketh of a return to the purity and libeny of the Gospel : how far have they or we gone back to that.^j How My Lord's Honor was Contemned. 433 covenant.,, ...iJir'^, to t^T^ t'n!;:'-?; "^ more part) cared not a ni.il-uarin<. f t^ " *!"'' "'" «i the land or prayer-bo"ks n fh '''"'•\>'"^™ Wshops eouM not endnre'th/Gordt Z .^ r '^Sn w'"" Of tho.e r, d! and ^Xti, w '"" """■"''" ''** '» ^•'"''■J^^n- can,e was tlfe^Cd Si'™" hd. Ito ™^" ""° "■"= enemy and pnrs,>er. He exnml«, , .'''''«°™«' « »oient us in the camp. ^ '""' '""'«'^" ^«y f«ely to a>n%t tthe "vodt: tvf f t' '"''' ■"" '» "-^ «^"- 8ne ™»I'I make-I bonny I„L!" "' '"^ Arrthmotic but it would make a ;!^_HUwor:Sl:1jtn-"S:r^^e^: " A"d what the de'il is that to me ? - he cried - P grand store o^ spuilyie * and it \ *^if ,f ^^-^ut he has -J it winna^.i/e'L ^n^nT/^rmf -^^ ^°™- That was the temper of many otliers • if L r ilid not deliver ovpr Hn^fi,r • . •'' ""^^^^ • " the Covenant .p;uo w j^^^^^^^ :t:;':;V'"^^ - --^ -d '^^:^:!:^:^-:^ ^"> - ^"•>' - t«Hu„t,y wa. ueiLr inrrptn^ — u^bf ^^ 28 *®P0"- 434 The Angel of the Covenant. reversed, my lord was deaved till our arrival again in Aber- deen. He held out stoutly for some Avhile, but at length he agreed to call a council of the lords of the north and of tlie south, in which after much debate it Avas first resolved that Huntly should be called before them. Iluntly came, — upon assurance, mark ye, that he would not be detained prisoner. No sooner was he come, however (the meetino- was in that very wainscoted hall of the ancient Tolbootli where Montrose had been feasted nine years before, and where I had been seized by the officers of the Presbytery), than the Forbeses, tlie Frazers, and the Orichtons, and in more especial lord Meldrum set up a vehement clamor for his detainment. My lord Montrose's voice was over- borne. Various impossible and unreasonable propositions were made to Huntly ; as, for instance, would he pay Meldrum the money that he claimed ? — which he refused, according to expectation. " I sep. how it is, my lord Montrose," said he, " thej seek my ruin." My lord was silent and sad. " Before we further go, I think my bond signed at Inverury should be given back to me." Montrose gave it back, wanting a word. *' And now, my lord," said Huntly, once more the gay Gordon **do ye take me south with you as a captive ? or do I go as a volunteer ? " * " Make your choice, my lord," said Montrose. '' Then," quoth Huntly, smiling, '' by your leave, I will not go as a captive, but as a volunteer." And so the sad business — the most humiliating my lord had yet touched — came to an end there, beneath tlie torn banner of Bon- Accord. The company dispersed, and my lord and I walked in silence across the Castle Gate to the house of the Earl MarischaL My lord weut to his cliam- ber, and I found Maudlin and my lady Balgownio, and * As a volunteer — voluntarily. How My Lord's Honor was Contemned. 43S JNathaniel Gordon in fi,^- a window lookingf "th :n r„?TV ^^ ''""^"' «t°»1 «' ' li-'^e a eat that sol "Z ^ 211^ ^'"^' ''«"' "'"> ^S^' »'op. of I Toto :, " n„ :rf t ^^ "- " «- tho "And is he of the Covenant "",' ',' ""''"'"='' '' ™«- answered that he .Js'Thon'^ ,'"■'""'"' "«"'"• I ever done with it ! A '.d I a 2' ," ""'"' " ^ '"'™ '» free and lightsome ,ti ,^^ '"""'' '^ '■''^''y ™ore -WIappearbefor;^L'rSf"-: •""''• "'f''"'^ ^^fi^r::r;hi::f!" •--- ^Jh,.o„Myo„p..waso„he,.faee;ttthesaidno »mo. Moreo™.' bethhic vT M "^ ""'""" ">»' " ^h»" "".■.ions in the to™ »dt ^0 e tl':' ?. '""'<''"' <" l»JitwonId be a far cry for hX TshI, k"™""'""' « know yo're a braw f>gM<^V> sh 1 Hiflv fl "I'"' '^"'' »nt that showing. Discretion ,„?. ^'"'^ '^<'°''«'' " '"'h- bolter than valor." """'''™' '"=''«"'-> »o, is for the now l«t:'^i:X""™ "'"™""^""'^- '^""'^ -hat had h» take the Covenant. I roftsod T ""' ™^■"•«^'' '«to (irison in tho fS,H« ™'f "'>■ •™'l was clapped ! .Irjyli. '"""' """"'>' '" tl'e "istigatiou of Sovereign .' " wore Tr„„n„'„ ^^^^^^ "^ ■■6v, and there spoke h. 10, wh o might not be a ehal- groat 436 The Angel of the Covenant. leader in war, but who was ever a brave and gallent gentleman. That was the first imprisonment by the Covenant of a person of note ; and, so far had we gone, that none seemed set back by it. But my lord Montrose was wroth that day. Meetmg lord Lindsay of the Byres upon the street, and hearing him let drop to a passing acquaintance tliat he was about to attend a meetmg of lords at the house of Argyll, I went and told my lord. " I will go," said he, " and utter my mind." **I begin to ha'e doubts, my lord," said I, *'that the house of'' Argyll may hold peril for you. What," said I, lightly, ''if he should command you also to be warded in the Castle?" " He would not dare ! " said my lord. <' He hath obedient hands enough about him," said I, " and no scruple whatever, as I think, in his heart." « Peril or no peril," quoth my lord, putting on his sword, and taking his gloves in hand, " I go whither my injured honor drives." " Then, my lord," said I, '' peril or no peril, I go with So we went straightway to the bouse of Argyll, and were admitted. My lord demanded of the Chamberlain if there were not a meeting in progress of the Table of the nobles. Being answered that there was, he said, " I also amof tb^ Table; lead on." Thus we came to that book-cabinet whi^h I knew. The Chamberlain flung open the door, and made announcement of the Lord Montrose. There I were some half-dozen lords set there ; but when Montrose entered, they looked liker to school-boys caught by the domimis in a clandestine game,— all save Argyll himself j who made a good show of hearty greeting. it Eh ? " he cried, with a cross-eye on me, ''And mjj no peril, I go with How My Lord's Honor was Co„ten:„ed. 437 to havo deopct doubt of 4 or 1 Ar. 1 T'^f ""^ "'"' free use of onr common speech °,'°"'"^h<, ever made 1 had conceived, Arjryll " siid i,„ : " that it was my due also tn. J I """" -J^'geon, in? of our Tabic." " """"™ '"'"""tion of a meet- And to this ye'd hat? ^^".rLrV". ""''^ """"^ kenned ye were in the toL Zfl^ T"'"' '' ^ ''""J smi'." ■""' ^ heard ye were gane ^ Jhat is a lie !"I said to myself, -but I uttered no •11 the greater froTdom -!t e "r tl r - N "^ 7 ""'"" ''"' »nd upon the comna. v "!w ' ""' '"' ""> a look « S-iv „„ " „ °'"P'"'y' "lat ye are all here. " nay on, quoth Argyll blin,1 o„,i ■ . clttck on his ,deve while tL ."""™' ''''""''S his sl«' of donbt. ° ""'' ""'' """lisoomfortable "'T13 this affair of Ilunflv " «„^j.i f;i';".y lords, that ye sCiirL^riwl m'' "t t«^™ and so have put a tachc upon ^y ' "' '"""' -IttlgClr-""""'" ^"°"-^'-^' "-finding 438 The Angel of the Covenant. *'But," put in Loudoun, with a slight hiccup of a laugh, ** we cannot make a new Covenant for every new in-comer to our paction." **I opined," quoth my lord, "that the chicfest of all the lords of the north countree might have his scruples tenderly dealt with, if so he we could bring him in with us on the main business, which certcs, is the defense of the laws and liberties of the uind." ''And ye think, then," said Argyll, ''that the assertion of our ancient lleformed Religion is not a chief business of ours ? " ■ "There," quoth my lord, "I allow I am at something of a scaur, — something boggled. I had looked that our Reformed Religion was to be urged in the sense of the sweetness and purity of the Gospel. More and more I find I have misapprehended. God help us ! We arc all full cry, ministers and all, at the tail of Moses and his severities I There is scarce a man but the godly Mr. Ruther- ford to say a good, sounding word for Christ and his amenities ! " " But, my lord Montrose," said Argyll, suasively, " ours is the politic side of all that. And I would call to mind, — to you who know and love France,"— he added, laying an emphatical hand upon a tome that had been under his elbow, " that which the French Chancellor de I'llopital said to the Estates at Orleans, where they were met in 1560 to patch up a truce betwixt Papists and Huguenots : ' It is madness,' says he, ' to look for peace, repose, and friendship atween persons that are of diverse religions. " " But we in Scotland are not of diverse religions," siiid my lord, ever quick at the reply : "we have but diverse thoughts of the same religion. We are only like birds resting on diverse boughs of the same tree of Christianity. And I would call to mind,— to you, my lord Argyll, who read up those times,— another saying, I think, of you same us ! We arc all How My Lord's Honor was Contemned, 439 Kirk, nor of f .yKirk ^t .U " •" *" ™' "* ""^ l'»'°"»"» ti 'liofiS :r t:,otr .;rr "''^"'^-'"^' -> "And yot," ouoth „,y ord " l!™-"° ""■"'■ '"""■ '■ " and acted on, i"f wo are 1' ""' '"'^'"S """^"« I'fard differences; for, si ce he B ble is ir""" °'" ""'S'""^ to all men, it is idle to den v I. ! ^ " "' =•" "P"" ''""k '"ink diversely abonUirkl^dllt;:^" """ """^ -' loose rf«,/«.- ^ ""'"'"'^ ^f ^^^e Kirk with siccan a regard to mine^honor .nll'Tl T' ^^" ^^ ^^^ ^-« his son ? - ' ^""^ ^^^'^ ^^^« J^«"ds of Huntly and At that appeal the lords looked down *i • then east a glance upon ArgyU how 7 • ? '"'''''' ""^^ now commanded them. And aL V "5 '' ^"' '^'''' ^- with his eyes dropped, spealdng ;f^^ ::;^\;7-^ ^^-^ ''I opine I ,,,eak the mind of th '"'" •"" oannotwell do all that; for to tin 1i '" '"^"^^^ ^^^ good thing that we have ku<^hrH n 'I ''' '"' ^"^^ ^'^ ^ '' Af fifo „ caught tiio Cock o' the NTorfl, -'> At he expense of mine honor »- onofj! t • a rismg heat. * 'i""'^" "iJ lord, in "I conceive that in a policv nf ^Uf » "personal hono is a cnt^U w i / , ^^ Quoth Argyll, ''Ila !" said my Ion in 1 suHtf^ "'''" ^^''^ I W how to tak'e ye in ^ht ^JuH^"^' " ^''^^^ -^^ servant of the Covenant!!^? '^ "'''^'"* and a faithful f of the Covenant, quotha V cried my lord It hath come to that, then ? - ' starting .f:^! 440 The Angel of the Covenant. i: '' I . ■»'■* ;.f t iUi h,.« i it^«-»^^H n^MftW' ,j IIH ifir 1 1 '1 ^ ^^n l-ii' H J ^^IH ^"{Ri i!"- * \ "liOTl 1! M 1 t I 'r r 1 i !■ f 1 ( i ll ik lUi " I opine," said Argyll, " that we all became servants of the Covenant, when we put our hands thereto. But I was saying that, in consideration of our regard to you, my dear lord, we will anon set free the Lord Gordon, — the cockerel, — while we keep in ward the old cock, in pledge for the quiet behavior of the Gordons. lu truth, rny lord," added Argyll, with his thin, crooked smile, *'ye could have done no greater service at this time than bring in to ward that old Cock ; for 'twas high time his comb was cut." At that, my lord paced back and forth, in great heat. " I will sit with you no more ! " said he. "I will be hand in nieve no longer with men who contemn pledges, and laugh at honor ! " Then they were all in a great taking, lest he should break from them. They started from their seats, — save Argyll, — crying out, *' Eemember your oath ! — and your name to the Covenant ! " My lord stood still, as taken with a heavy sadness. '* True," said he. " Ye have me there, and hold me close. But I warn ye. Ye have set your feet in crooked ways that will bring ye to perdition. I leave ye to God'a right- eous judgment. So, fare ye well ! " With a sweep of his hat, he passed from the cabinet, and I with him. How Montrose Met the King. 441 irom the cabinet, CHAPTER XXXIV. HOW MOKTROSE MET THE KINQ. le m.un rUo King marched from York against us .mrl 00, oral Les he was sent to meet him with aS am y fit fo m ootth""'''; """""™ """'« -"' «>'Wi" ^ nnn ot l^ortJi ; and we continued to work on iL f u :p?t:-™an;^-riS taf bird?" f r™o?c tii'r^'' f™, '"' spent themso..es in tho%e2e:™:;othTr e'^ «^^^^^ rendering, yea, nrging, their sons, and wives t W 1, tands, to bo drilled by „s for soldiers ''"'■ "f«th!lM'l/ '''™ """■P''"'' S^o'^ fo'k." said he tome, 01 that they can rnn so mad overso little. Themairl; lutes them, and they flv too-ethBr „,„i •^">- maggot otlifr frr 1,; II o •' "^"Sethei, and embrace one an- Zj ^ ^""''' ■""• ^°'''^ °'™ ^•''int^. though bat yestre en over many were rioting and drinkini, „ f, T »6aud swearing, Someoall tifat hypo^ -'ictirht k,] m: 442 The Angel of the Covenant. ' i! H ij jt«l3) mad simplicity in the belief that if you are the elect of the Lord nothing you can do can make any differ. Mud simplicity ! " ho continued, — " and mad liberty ! But the Lord help them ! I doubt the ministers, and others, are preparing a yoke for their necks, that will make them groan, ere all be done ! Whither are we tending ? Are we driving, or drifting ? A year ago we had no thouglii of fighting, and here we are on the border and fringe of Civil AVar ; what shall we be at a year hence ? I grow very doubtful. Alec. But you and I are bound by our oaths to stand by the Covenant, — if so bo it is not con- travened." Through that I think ye may see, as through a glass, how my lord's mind was working. Hamilton did not land at Leith. lie put his men ashore on the islands of Inchkcith and Inchcolm to be drilled, of which, by all accounts, they were much in need ; and there he kept them stamping. The multitude made a jape of it, and said he came not, because he was c'^'^aid of his mother : for that terrible old dame liad ridden down to the shore of Leith with a horse-pistol, declaring that if her son landed she would shoot him with her own hand. The next we heard was that the friends of Huntly had swept down upon Meldrum and other northern Covenant- ers convened at Turriff, and had put them to rout, and that, thus encouraged, they liad continued their tri- umphal progress and seized Aberdeen. On the instant Montrose was a-foot and marching against them with a tolerable array. Before we arrived at Aberdeen, however, the Earl Marischal had driven out the interloping Gor- dons, who had held the city for but nine days : a Nine Days' Wonder, which our Scottish folk, after their manner of making a grim joke of anght that has ceased to be serious, called THE BARONS' REIGN. Again Mont- rose refused to give the city over to be " plundered/' and through a glass, How Montrose Met the King. 443 yet again ho earned the offeuso of ,.11 n.^ i cllocfc ..,,on it tl.e curse otUoZ '° '''"' "°"'^ Then for a week or two we wore marcl.ins n,„l eo«„tnr We narclicd fortl. „f Aberdeen after " the baron ", 7 l.«ur,„g of tbe landing of the lord Aboy c H mtl^s! \ Bon, witi, .o„ from HamiUon's »Iu/s «; fo'.rZ municat.ons, we niarobed back again Th» rl , -"■ing 0, tbat al.o, followed o„ onftraek ' VT "rifl movement c .araetcristieal of Montrose, of the kind tl so d,sconcerted ordinar and j.Iodding eommandcr we el baek aeross the Dee „pon the Earl JIarisehal's sea fort,^ ol' Dunottar near Stonehive, because our numbers were g ca ly d,m,n,shed by the malcontent retirement of n.n! .1.0 had jo,ncd us in the hope of plunder, and because wl W no mnul to be caught between two fir s. AWne and the Barons followed us, and wc offered them a f 3 in a good pos.t,on by Stonehive. It came to noth n" b, I s n™,sh ; or the clansmen who were with th °Go d„u chivalry when they heard the sound of "the n,,,!!.!^ mother," as thcy„an,ed our cannon, flecMncontin nt ' vo.y »on, who laterwereledby Montrose hrJlfT:!-:!:! The Gordons retreated and we pursued hot-foot TV ;von over the Bridge of Dee, and closed is prte and wtl the a,d of some companies of the stalliard townsmen Aberdeen, under the lead of Colonel Johnstone, put it and themselves in a line posture of defense Tbe , , swollen with rains, and therefore w Tnp,s^ab,e T ^ the bridge must be won at all costs Wbatt^eSth" gate and tower of the bridge ; and then we sough to st™ Iiem But the company of levies set on to tha work feU lack from it with loss. Then to it a^,in „. * f, « Pieces and demi-cannon to m^t^ , ^^^^^^^^^^^^ »J lord's nistanco, because I knew the ground; Ma com P 1^ fTTT ■' ■ i \ 1 i B ■ ' n |:Pl I ; -^ k ' 1 i \ 1 1 i J 1 1 . '■■'. ) '1 ' nm: the Bishops still hIf • ^^ ^^'^« " ^veury b„si- j^^^^^ J ops, still the Bisliops, and ever tlio Bis- Boing- come to sucli n hHV.i^ +i nc.U,ia„ torch .^k' m' ''"""'' '"™'™»». " >' i"'".o "-contented ,b™;;:r"'Vi" '■"'' <" *'•" »- of then, it lea., tgyn't :;::"' ;''^' ""'"'^"' '■■ of all that ealle,l themseWes noble ''™'" ^"'^"^'^ LolrsCirrr ,;";tr,^ >oM, Monfose, Kothe,, and tion; but mv lonl xvhr. i V-^ ' fearing deten- '1.0 taee of ,„au, overTe .uiL T 'f ""^ """'' »"■• thnt the more t hey tn«te t o k""' ".' "'" """'■""^'^ i«'y «uld trust tl'r Vh"e :'f■n'r"'■""'^M"- l.-l that they should, at « e al b„ t.^M ''''' P^"" »f servants. But that mv 1nv,i , , '"'""' ''^ » t™"' ■aying that a tail of a "J " " ""' ''""^ »' "^'"'". dofonte, were arm nt? /f """' *°"" "«' "ail f o ■ When we had ridden about two-thirds of ihn , . ■Berwick, and werp w<.]i ,„■ i ^"" ^^^f^ to I- M I , 446 The Angel of the Covenant. Hills fall away to the sea and where is a post-honse, I was pricking on ahead to command fresh horses for our party, when who should clatter by me at a hand-gallop, with his face set for Edinburgh, in a manner of anxiety and haste, but Sir John Colquhoun ! I drew reign for my lord to arrive. He came some horse-lengths before the rest. " Saw ye,'' said I, " who yon was ?" He had not taken note. " Sir John,'' says I. " And I make bold to guess that he carries the reason for my lord Argyll's detention in Edinburgh. For a chopin of good claret I'd ride after him and take his budget from him, — in the certainty of handling somewhat worth my while. For I have no eye for falsehood if Argyll be not iip to the neck in treason- able traffic." " Still crammed with suspicions, Alec," quoth my lord, with his constant smile for me of sweetest friendliness. ** Argyll may be a liar and a coward, but I think he can- not be a traitor." ** Liar, coward, traitor, my dear lord," said I, " 'tis all one ! " We rode thro' the town of Berwick and crossed the Tweed by the new stone Bridge ; for the King was en- camped at Bi/ks some few miles up the river on the English side. At the stout gateway on the middle of the Bridge, — the which is taken to be the division betwixt En^rland and Scotland, — we were received something jealously by a guard of King's men. At the English end of the Bridge we three friends of the deputed lords were bidden to bide for their coming again, so, while our lords went on, we turned aside to a ruckle of fishinrf-lmfcs called Tweedmoiith, where we found a change-house, or inn. There was a corner of the curtain lifted for mo upon the treacheries by which the unhappy King was begirt, and his authority ruined. At the change-house I oncountered with a drunken Scot. Ho had livrd long in London, and affected I," said I, " 'tis all How Montrose Met the King. 447 me. Nothing ruldrrt;, it" M^"" ^^ ^^'^^^^^^^P for in nieve with him jZ !^ *^''' ^^^^^ *^^" ^^ ^^^nrl to littlp w^ii AT ^^s^o^ering that he was bodv-servinf to little Will Murray of the King's Bedchamhor f u I knew no srood hut rnfi,« 4.1, ^^^acnamber, of whom fellow'8 humor and I 1 . ""'"™''' ^ '^" "' '"* ">« Without donbt 'ho took 21 "^ ^'""P>'''«»»» ■•«"dod. whilst I shamejj ;; L , im ^Lnr '^T"'"""' """ fine his wholo business and hT, ! • ''T "!" "?""<"' <»" master) of onr c ief 'or«.» r '^ "''" ^'^""'^ *'•<"» '^ brave Ld, b, a 'tigLsnk^-Td *'''"*™" ^'"^ " =^,^^-rf:rtSH^=^^^^^^^ palm "with any man. *'' "'"* """''' g''"'^'' " •' He is a friend of my master's," quoth the felloiv ■ " .,,„,i my master's purse would bo ill-lined were it n! f' '^ n..dollars and the rose-nobles of my lo d Arlvn . * ,? ye^ This very day.-wbat d'ye tlikbrS me^t: re "Tnf" r^"'""" -""'"'" " ""■"' •''« they Jay !'"^ iJ^ylrpSt!""' ' ™"""-'' "«'at'-.otelli:gsi;ta... ^eS;;st''f:ra:;:-tho:p^:'r ^?;:i:r,r' ' '" »^ea^^;r't^d7L'h;:e:rl:'i'^r"-™"'-^^^^ ! -T- ? ' ^^ '""' «°' ""'^ "^nomy ! A flah savs th nk he has the hot, hissing wame o' the De'il in him ." f»' he's no to be quenched - He'll be a friend o'^rurl™' 448 The Angel of the Covenant. ''Hardly that," says I. "But I ken him and ken his name.'* "That's mair than I ken/' quoth he, something sulkily. " Where would be the use o' my being ben in the Coven- a , if I kenned nae mair nor you ?" That I said in the hc^ 3 of piquing him on to further disclosure. "Just that, sir," says he humbly, dropping his chin. If he had more to disclose I learned no more ; for a veil was swiftly thickening about his senses. That was the whole matter, and not much at that ; but I kept it in mind. It was forenoon when the lords set forward to meet tlic King ; it was evening when they returned, Rothes with the sidelong and thrawart look of a whipped hound, while my lord wore a smile on his lips and seemed much bemused. It was too late to return to Berwick, the Bridge-gate beino- shut ; so we made shift with such entertainment as the change-house could give. We were about to sit to supper when a horseman clattered up to the door. "'Tis Will Murray," said Rothes, looking forth. He had come seeking his drunken servant, and perchance also to hear in more particular (if he might) what Imd passed between my lords and the King. He sat to supper with us ; and 'twas then I gathered that His Majesty had taken in such deep offense the refusal of Argyll and the rest to come to him that he had abandoned his purpose of holding our Scottish Assembly and Parliament in person. "'Tis pity," quoth my lord, "that Argyll made up so poor excuse for avoidance of the King." "Argyll, methinks, did wisely," said Rothes, who was in bitter and contradictory mood ; for even so he missed being quarrelled by the King, as he were a lackey." After supper, when Will Murray was gone back to the camp, with liis swaying servant on a second horse, and when Roth(;s and Lotljian, sick of compan\, had gone to their beds, I heard from my lord the meaning of Rothes tertainment as the How Montrose Met the King. 449 .«. affection :*! th! /l '.'' ''""' ''''^^° *'"^ Limself of a gentle r^ k/ ""^ 'he King had shown But, upon sonfo ' WrrC:: t^t h"'^""^ *^">^-- and rated him roundiv! • • *'*''°"''""^ «'^^«ely denied the Trd wl " T ' """l"? •»>' t™'h- Hothos "And ,U.U w/o'„T,ir" ' fiZfl'; T^"- oxceedinff worn and snrl tt. .1 '^^^' -"^ ^s AUas hi/hnrderlttln, t'— 'h ^;ir \° ^I not conceived. Alec imfM t 1 T ? ^' -^ '^'^^ E»..i.h trouMes .:; :ri ; r^;: e,TVi 'r are unruly, and break in nr^n^ 1- , ^ "^^^^ ^^^^^^ will ; an/his army-g'a leaver! rt™ ""'^ """"^ '"^^ abMement, wanting' A^t 4 'iT '::^'^'j^ wanting discipline! Before find T 1 f,. ""^ I Troubles without, and trouWes wHhin " ""' ''" ^'"«- " By your leave, my lord " sav'^" V'"' ^'^"'^'^^" ^'-^^^^ Montrose, on ' '^stant. It may be you fulfil their deep design ! « » i' ifl i; ifi: Hi>iM ■*..;■ 452 The Angel of the Covenant. " Ha ? Say you so ?" quoth his Majesty, coming again to a stop. " 'Tis but a new doubt in my mind, sire/' said my lord, casting a look at me. '' But it is plain that if they, or any, do wish to subvert the King's authority in hisanciciii kingdom of Scotland, tlie design can not be bettor servt:;l than by the King's absence from his people, nor more fatally struck at than by your Majesty's gracious appear- ance." ''By God! 'Tis true!" xflaimed the King, again pacing back and forth. " 'Tis very true ! " I noted he cast a look upon my lord as he Wf^rr surprised to hear any sort of wisdom froin his moutl^ ; and I vvondered what must have been the reports he had heard of my lord tliat sot him so in misconstruction. '' But — but," continued the Kii!-;, with that light click, or catch, of the tongue, which (I imve been told) ever marked his utterance in moments of emotion, ''Wherefore do my own Scottish people hold me so in ill-esteem ? What ha- ^ I done ? I have sought only their larger good in the matter of the tithes ; and the beautifying of their kirks and their modes of worship ; — whereof the bareness and tedium made me unutterably sad, at my time of Coronation six years agone. Six years ! — no more ! And what a raging sea of trouble hath arisen since then ! What — what do the people truly seek by their Covenants and uprisings ? " My lord made full answer, which I set down in brief, that our people had from of old a deep horror of Popery and of all things that seemed to tend that way ; tliat they loved their Kirks and their Worship, as they were, and not as beautified by the King's novations ; and as for the Bishops, the nation's temper had been wrought to so bitter a hatred of them that their author 1 oould not be en- forced, jill which my lord set forui^ with a clearnes.^, gpntleness, and plausibleuess which won my admiration. )ns : and as for the How Montrose Met the King place. n„ tt c '; ; ™ e' Z, f« "^ "now i„ hi« sore Mo worthy in either Kin^or q^,7 , "^' """ '""''e -viHi the n,ai„te„a„ee o^thonfl^"""' """"Pped abandon h. kin,,!,,-, Z.^fn^f' " ?" ""'^'' "» ^0 hh,i taken. Hi f-jthfr-r ' °''™°'' '''« Position ;^i%;'"hocon..i.eat;T:isro'nT 7? ^f""' - •I i i eared ,..-e were a-foot on tL n '^ '° '•"■"■' »"- icbato. Bat my lord would „„f. *""""' "■""'"i of "I mind me/' said my rd '< „' '™^'" "''° "• jonr Majesty's father-inJawKin/ir" ""'7^'"^ '"^^^ "' i'« not say that he opinod^he 7f 71 °' *™'«"'- "id Mass? And will your Ma 1 ^"' ^"'^ was worth a ancieui kingdom of ScnTi? f ^ '"'"'''''^'- *»' yonr sermon?" ^ "' ^~"'">d '^ worth a Presbyter^n That saying restored the Kin^ t„ "My lord Montrose " saW h. ' """'"« """x^- ;t:-u».i.akeni;yo::\l„«---^^^^^^^^^^^ »*-n^aS^^^^^^^^ '^' ".on will not »r ■»'-<>• Time-server^, the tt^" ^.t,]-^^ "Spoken like a faithful friend r- „ .^ „ iMrtdy clappiat, me on f hi T , , ''"°"' "^o King, *ed, somettinrsadly %f^'^'"^- "I wonder." f^ "1.0 would say so much of n^e t " ™ '"^ '""""' '"''"'J "God he knoweth, your Maie«tv » -j or imp.,«e, " we wlh „?£» ™^ "^ '""•''' "^ *« *» '0 I ,r faithfufrienl ■!-""'' '"'™ ™"'^'J- ; ■" '^ ye. friends! I thrnl " f'' " '''''''•'^ ' " S'^V » hand to each. I think, L ^^'d the King, "^^"'■'- X am that one wa'fn my ir"" '•■> '^'^ «^^ ^ li< '^i-' ' 41 454 The Angel of the Covenant. "And," continued my lord, *'in the part of faithful friend, your Majesty, I make bold to urge you again to show your.>>lf to your people in Edinburgh." *'I suppose it must bo true of me that they say in England, — that I am hard and stilf-necked in obstiuation, — else would I need the less persuasion." " Therefore should your Majesty," quoth my lord, " the better apprehend the temper of your Scottish people, — thu whilk is stiff-necked to a fault." " Montrose," laughed the King, '' you should be, indeed, a faithful friend ; for ye do not flatter and say I have no stiffness of neck." ' " It would ill become me," said my lord, " to contradict the King." At that winning simplicity and honest courtliness I could scarce forbear to laugh. "Montrose, Montrose," said the King smiling, "almost yon persuade me ! " " Would that I might persuade you altogether, sire ! " said my lord. " Why not, your Majesty, ride to Edin- burgh on the instant and strike astonishment into the hearts of the doubtful lords ? " "Eide now ?" said the King, with a new light in his eye,— the restored light, it may be, of boyhood. " 'Tis a tempting adventure ! " " Embrace it, your Majesty ! " cried my lord, warm with the thought. " Here are two trusty friends to ride at your hands : no more are needed I The night is fine and clear ! We cannot cross the Bridge ; but the water is low, and there is a ford ! Ere the morrow's darg begins in Edinburgh, ye may ride in at the Nether Bow port and up to the Cross, and cry ' Lo here am I, your King !— come to hear account of your trouble ! Let us sit and reason together ! ' I dare aver, your Majesty, there would be such an acclamation as was never heard in Edinburgli rd, " to contradict courtliness I could smiling, "almost How Montrose Met the King. ^^ before! There won l.i i ^^^ »i«. your M.^:xt^: :rr,T;'" -' ^'''"'™""»- -™ composure of our differed, .1 f """''' ''« «"ol. a some 0,0.^ .„,,,,. rlf,:^^;*;"*.' "n n.s still .ith ,i«Kt. I'ho King soo„;:t t ::i, ":'; "^ ^«-" ■""■ -".-"g': U3!» '" 1'"'"' °' «'y"«, " Yes. J%t "I'll go saddle our liorsos " sii.l T t i • door, " and toll Win Mm-riv' „ .,' ."^""'^' " '"'=1' '« ">o ri.Io with us." '™^' ■>"""■ *'''J«»ty. tliat you will "At tho montion of Mnrrav tl,. k- Jga.„. " Nay," said ,,„, !.„"":[,*", '^'"^ «""» '<> oarth Not too fast. y,Wm„ i^"" t;""' "" '"^ "•'• " Stay. ,«>o"gl.t of : such amove, onto!, r;," '"' ^""""=" '" I- '""pSr,-. ""^ >''- "^^o';:,;tr''"'™™■'- it woKt Si""' ^°« ^^'i-'y/' quoth „y ,0,,, . „„,_ ™oh methodint"ol di ."r:;:'' "",^r"' " '"-« « - »nd bravest wisdom." *'"''"»""«'«""«,„ highest "I think, Montrose," said tl>„ »•• ^patienee roonoeive,that,nyI <1 sZm r '"""^ '""^<'' "that such a move doth „^: '""''""' ^o urgent,— *Wo,-at the present, tell™"?''' "'"' «" '^''^^7 At that my lord made »„ h , '"","' ""'' r""-p«'J." -rf ; for I Lid e t vas sw'^l : '^"T^' "" »-<» "» I think the King also ha [some 1 ^, 7^^ ^^Wointment. "h'^lod us that he had btr^ tlnt'o, °'."''" ' '"" "^ - ->f ho would no. .'orgot t ,e pie of tX r ", ""^ ^''""' We us farewell. ^ "' '""^ ""o ''ad had, and I went forth softly to open the h^„ , "a sudden upon ^ill M rr J' e'"":^"": »<» «.» -"-e ^ engaged m j. whispered U' A 456 The Angel of the Covenant. confabulation with a man at an upper window— with Rothes, I presumed. When I appeared the talk ceased, and the window closed. *' My lord,'' said I, when the King and Will Murrn; Ixa^ ridden softly away thro' the thick dust, " this will be your undoing." " How mean ye, Alec ? " " Ere twice four-and-twe7ity hours have passed it will be the common talk of Ediil urgh that we held here a secret midnight meeting with the King." And I told him what I had seen and heard at tlio door. " And none, my dear lord," said I, "will credit but the meeting was pre- meditate." \',\i jMi ll- ' ^? WW ,, ;i L King Campbell. 457 CnAPTER XXXV. KINO ('AMPJSELL. hearty, and stiff obeiaan e wWoh Ind T""" '""^' *" ^" s^:^rj:nitS;rr°-- But tho first d.mbtfnl word . , /„rd i.eard »,»=, f whom be had good reason to tl„„k„fr o'„ T T,,""' even Mandlin herself. She an he. Z '"'"^'^'■''W.- carnest e.peetation of us wait^„ f i! '"""■ "" ^™'«' '» patiently heard my o" "f, " , '^ '"rV ''^'"''™ nature) he did mal.Luoho^WsniL;"'* <'^, ™ <" Kiug and of the Kim,'! l i '""*-''>'""i "-egard for th,. .•■ .o'nabien: s • td 2n i,' W ? ","'«^'""""S -d with an .r,utt„ able 1^0^! a^d Zl '" "^ '" '""' and in her a.oent ^ tenderness on her face ou;'e"To\re,M';?et:^ "-'""^•■"^ ^" ""^ -J "..;;<. bu. the image of him in yo,./o™ fe/fV^^ ™'^ ■"^- «-™Mle!:„'l:f,!::,:?°"''''f---re_.omethi„, ^vith a flail, and sfie what ^metaphysical But let us thresh the., sense may He iu the out we «ct to and played with the maf ter m. And in meri-y debate. so I carem W » „+ i ., . ^' '" "'^^^7 debate, carena by, at length said our sprightful lady Bal- Mi 111:1,) 1 458 The Angel of the Covenant. govvnio. ** If tlio King bo truly bonny kind, and do- botmir, — he's the man for mo. 1 could lu^vcr onduro foul nion, and ugly and squinting, — liko Loudoun and Argyll and some nuiir." *• And -will ye, my lord," said ^Maudlin, " forsake, liko my minnie, tho Covenant wo havo put our hands to, and striven for ? " *' liy your leave. Maudlin," quoth my lord, smiling on her, **but ye would seem by that to imply as much against the Covenant as its enemies have over urged ! To love the King, to respect his authority, and to seek to avoid tho humiliating of him— are these things destructive of the Covenant ? Not as I apprehend the Covenant ! And I am as resolved as ever to maintain it — though I doubt there are some would urge it to extremer ends than they or I yet see." Tluit was all then. But events moved fast, and my lord needed to be alert to keo]) liis loyalty to tlie King and at the same time his faith with the Covenant. The King came not to Edinburgh ; and so he let slip n groat opportunity for the composure of his own troubles and ours. Tho temper and deeds of the -Assembly whicli mot almost immediately, under the Earl of Traquair us Commissioner for the King, wore astonishing enough ; but tho acts of tho parliament which followed thoreuj)on were subversive of the King's authority. Tho Assembly, hav- ing ratified all tho doings of tho Glasgow Assembly, went on to pass a motion that Episcopacy was not only contriirv to tho laws and usage of Scotland, but also '' Ooulmri/ In the tvord of God." " Not considering, or not caring," said my lord Mont- rose, when debating it with us, " that for tho King to ac- cept that last would stultify him with his English subjects^ and condemn tlje existence of tlio English Church i " Also they went on to demand an ordinance compelling •1' 'a King Campbell. fast, and my lord 459 all to take the Covenant upon pain of forfoif nm r n • good, .nd their eondition J ^itCl :^ ^^^Z^^T man, most abhorrent and intolerable to a 1 elornb o" men I-as ,f the Covenant were the Word ol 'od „ oath of allegiance in one ! ^"^ ^"'^ ^''° When these proceedings of the Assembly came before the Parliament for ratilication my lord iLZ7 ! ur sd.ct,o„3, a,„l U,c regulating of preoodoncio.-riL„ mv ord Montrose made a resolute «ta„.l, decl ring-tod here were many timorous lords who a..reed) •?» f * Kmg to grant those demands would iTe auT ort tf " C|ent eonsftut ion of the Kingdom, and to strip In elf "; "If ye carry this," said my lord, "the Dnvil hi it rum ot us all, from the pnnce to the iilowman ' " Upon that the .ealots and self-seekers began o spue out their gathered spite and fear of him who h Jl Tr. h crossed their desires by his lenio. cv T e . "" 'lonouneed his opposition from th pnlnil e '"l ..pinst baeksliders and that they who utthn""" ,"1" oplow and turn again are not'fut-'t K L'Z ? .d_ iven the multitude in the street with form 0.1 s gracious bearing, generous hand, and frank a^d KUmnt earr,age had boon wont to elevate him to a prL y tat,on began to lower; some even ealling to other 2 a mandn,g how many miles to Berwiek and baek and hatten kmd of AiracaMra was neeessar to tr„ a Co " -oter mto a King's man. Ono morning -ay Torf found P.«ned w,th a rusted whittle upon the do^or of h slodging' 46o The Angel of the Covenant. a paper with the words " Invictus armis, verbis vinci- tur"* : a palpable allusion to the absiu-d opinion that he had been completely turned from the Covenant by his speech with the King ; and the better sort of people began to murmur in private company against his " more than ordinary and evil pride," that he had ever been *'ill to guide," and even loth to smite and cut off the enemies of the Covenant. But most threatening of all was something I heard myself in James Brown's wine-shop. '' Yon lord, ye'll see," I overheard, as I entered in the dusk, "will have hi^ sword taken from his side ere two months have passed: Gillspie Gruamach " (meanin;^ Argyll) '' will see to that." " Whisht, man ! " said another. " Here's his stauncli fere and henchman." The allusion plainly was to me and to Montrose. I strode to the hearth, on which I mind there burned a fire, altho' it could be no more than the hinder-end of August. I kicked a smoldering peat that had rolled forth of the mass into the back of the chimney ; and then I stood stradding all over the hearth, and looked upon the company with never a good-e'en. I have ever found that a fierce, confident, and uncivil demeanor,— accompanied with a show of well-rubbed hilt and a goodly length of rapier -forty or two-and-forty inches— and witli, may- be, a whiff of reputation for swordsmanship won abroad- hath an exceeding quieting effect upon an orra company of buffle-headed gentlemen, wanting any word said. And it was so then. But I could not hold my tongue at sight of the sumphs, and I pretended a heat I did not feel. " " Whatten lord's weapon is that you heads-of-wit are io lay hands on ?— you and your Gillespie ?" " Hoot-toot, Colonel Burnet ! " said one. " We was but debating the gossip of the tvwn." * " Uncouquered by anus, he is won by words." e. " We was but King Campbell. 461 " Twonld be more soemlv " snM T „„j t » pretended heat was anir.w7w 7™'^ ^ '°'""' "y "if the likes o' r, kit! . ?="' '" '?■'<' "' »'»- Yo„totak'anyr„twC 7"' '° '^~' ^""^ ^ail ! you and your oC^-he X iT"^ '7/ '"'"'^ '" not the fort from the feeble of a H T" ^' ^'"'°''' ■"'»*« wear one ! And " I ran „„ it f ' '""" ""'"' ^ow to another word ?or gossip , r'kf ^w°'' J' '^^ "^ S'™ ^ n.aeh would take h s ugly h Ld frim hs " IT"" ''""■ I shouldna wonder if IhJTt T- , *<'"']«nr.; , ^ ^^ ^"^ ^^7 of '« IMssiouato defense '^7 n!', *- ^''""'" '"«""""■ Ml upon the IIo ,se '"t^Tl? "\ '""° ''■»'" «""'"» «cl thoy not the le. , *;"■" ^'™ ""^'•" "'« ^»'»o- -of.re.:.':rfrht;L^;^^^^^^^^ ueyonr' if,« fivof i»,^ i.- -^ pusn tne Uovenr ': ,L l:^'r'^ intention, nor to what ruin .nr^ ...„^„;„- ..; f f ■If 464 The Angel of the Covenant. •t, i-i ware of them ! ' " And liis hand was plainly flung forth at Argyll and Loudoun, and the rest of that junto. ** Beware of their craft and suavity, their caballings and cajolements ! " When my lord sat down there came a roar of approval and admiration from the whole Parliament. Then some cried in derision for " Kothes ! " " Rothes ! " But my lord Rothes sat on, silent, pale, and trembling with rage ; and from that hour he ceased to be assiduous at the Councils of the party, and walked no more with them openly ; but whether tliat result came of my lord's scathing denunciation, or becau-e his last deadly sickness was even then in his blood,— I know not. But for the time, with the delivery of that speech, my lord's credit with the party had the appearence of being cleared and restored : the more reasonable and the more timorous took their courage in both their hands and stood by him, while his jealous and implacable enemies held off i and said nothing. Yet, of all effects, the most notable was on Maudliu, When the scene in the Parliament was happily over, I liad run in to my cousin's with great gladness to tell her of it, leaving my lord in tlie company of his good-brother, the lord Napier. I found only Maudlin (who had heard from one of her " lads " of the Parliament House that sonit great stir was toward ther(i) and I told her with enthusiasm what had passed. Since the time of the Glasgow As.seJiil)ly and the forwardness of Argyll, drooping more and inoif like a pale lily in a waterless heat, and fretting when Iih lone (I am assured) in deep despondence over tlie }»»''! I fruits of her striving for my lorn's supremacy. Butatiiiv news she freshened woiiderously, — like the same lily < 'i with water : her starry eyes sparkled, an^l she looked forrli as with a n«w v-iHion. Having told hvr ^, \ gtopped beaj to find her mother, I found her not, ai.d returned to 'i i King Campbell. 465 Mandlm I hfted tl.o latoh of the one door, aB my lord api.eai-ed at the other,-so that Mandlin heard me not my dear brave lord I" she cried and ran to him with a supple yielding of delight. The «cent stabb«l me like a bnrning knife : U revealed r, K '"" ™" '""'' "* i°y ^'l ''"P". ti-^ could a whcJe aober treat , on thegraeioias intimacy of my lori .ith Mandlin I was rtnck fast where I stood. I ^d nS withdraw wantait; some noise. I was not seen ; ^t I was visible, a beit duskily. I knew 1 sh«,ld see and h^ what ought not o be. een and heard by ,ne ; and; yet tl^ I .stuck and the longer I stayed the more im,..isible it „e came to do other than stay. My position was neitjr gentle nor honest, nor kind,-! confess ; yet-iad Z tlicre was, and there I stayed. I can sa.v no more. My lord received her witl, the two hands. 81ih h«fcrf ||..eenly, and he royal ; for the bright glow of dadne- Z. 1.1s ovation 1,1 the Parliament was still npon him. " Will ye believe, James," quoth idw mtth - thri T had not conceived ye were an orator '" "Nor am I, Maudlin," said he, «a a joyous tagh. I was but moved beyond myself." ^ " My dear lord," she murmured in infinite tenderness ^amo her to her child," ye mean,-.>y they disloyaUnd ucent lords that breathe out threateni.igs againn you ?- ,, 0'^' *'7J ?"<>«' h" %htly ; andso dismissed them key passed hand in hand to the better light of the win Ik l\rT\ ""rf ° " ''''' ''^'" y' ""^ h-M » ■lieak. I thiuk, truly, I spoke well" " 1 do not doubt i^" says she. - But I think, an I had eard you, I should have been so moved Mlth pi-ide that U have cned aloud : ' He is my lord !-my dear lord ! - He wagged his head in liumble nerrai^on - a i, ' _ |ora,- said she/' is it not given to me to knc«» yeTAnd"" tho inconsiderate and dull fools speak of vour Litj di • !i ' I I 1 mHit '^Y' '•: ■ 1 fl r{ ;^ I. r . 'f I W'hi^ -f, ill ft ' m tS |1 *.' ' t 466 The Angel of the Covenant. I not know that ye think not of yourself so highly as ye ought to think." *' I think, my dear/' said he," if I were ever in your « company, I should so swell with conceit, that " " Seek not a comparison,'' she broke in ; " but swell. Alas I,— poor I !— have no pride ! It is vanished, like tho morning dew, from me ! I droop and fade,— and pine ! " *' Since wiien ? " says he. " Since my lord," she made answer on the instant, " fell away from his supremacy,— not with me," she, cor- rected in haste, '^ but with the world." He gathered his brows in seriousness for a moment, and gazed on her while she stood against the one side of the window, with her head leaned back,— as dazzling a vision of woman, and as bewildering to the senses, as man e'er saw. She returned his tender gaze from under her half- closed lids. '* Methinks," said he, " there is neither drooping nor fading now in the flower." '' Think ye so ? " says she careless, bat showing a flame of color in her cheek. " Hath a new morning dawned then," says he, smiling, " and brought fresh dew ? " " A new morning hath dawned," says she. " Altho' it be evening ? " " And my sun shines," says she again,— '^ altho' it be evening." " And so is fulfilled the saying," quoth my lord, " 'at Even-tide there shall be light.'" At that— wherefore I know not ?— she put up the hand mv lord did not hold, turned her head, and wept. Astonish- ment plainly seized as well my lord as me. *' Dearest heart ! " he cried in an aticess of abandonment, --' Yvhat is thiso'l ? why these tears ?'' And he put his arms about her, and clapped her, and poured out words of King Campbell. lin,— "^^ altho' it be lotli my lord, " 'at 467 oll™::;;;^'"* ^"' foo.is.,-.,,oh I cannot .on,o.W 1 '^^y^n^', "^ '"'''" ^""^^ "''O' " " « for very iov > 'Tk buUhttlc shower," saysshe, smiling again ttro^ hlteJs '»d my snn shinca , '■ And so she^lotkea hin, i t , ^0 But Ihave been very sad." said she," because I concdved that you, my dear lord, did hate me for all this ? " Hate yon ? he cried. The accent was sufficient to set me pan mg and trembling where 1 stood. " ^m '-„:; bSdl" "''""' " ^° ''"" "»' "^'^'i "- 'o^ "For what, dearest heart ?" Covenrnt? ''" '""^ ""^^ "' '"""^ "-' - «' the ^^^^^j^But, dearest love why should I, or any, blame yon for "I brought many of these in to the Covenant • and I did somewhat to bring you in a!so,_did I not >" ' "And If ye did, your persuasions were sweet " sava hp And, agam, if ye did, what then ? Ye persuaded m^ .1 agamst my better sense; and I am still o'XcoZn ear heart.-altho' ye may not think so. But, to consWe; 1.0 mere prudence of it: is it not better that I sho.dd nv. been of the Covenant ? What of llnntlv 'nd old lirr «d others ? Are they in great peace anif clVrf pt"""' speech -t' r- X '"^^ '^'' "'"' " ^"-l''«" ™ergy of Sr';; I Jiiu?" '" '^"' ""= ^°™"-tl If you bifme " But I do not, dear heart ! " says he .Jl r^ll \ '"" ""''" '"^^ '''"■ " I '"» «'<=» do as ye do • '.uloed." i^^T"' '"'"•^ '" "" '"-"S^ '- '^-^ ^i-'s/so, "But, dearest." said he, laying ,.„ earnest hand on hers I l.avo ever heid, and I still do hold, that King S r i'i '* %•' I 1 I 468 The Angel of the Covenant. U ^i^hi S ., I i^i ■ i T N!) Covenant agree, and kiss each other, —even as we," and he brought lier hand to his lips, — **or as Righteousness and Peace in the Psalm." ** Then, my dear lord," said she, ** I will hold so, too. I am resolved henceforth to think in all things with you. I will be entirely and perfectly obedient in thought and word and deed. I will no longer have a mind of my own : it hath brought us no joy, nor satisfaction even." ** Dear heart," says he, laughing, '* 1 doubt so perfect an agreenient might prove something wersh." * '* Ungrateful ! " quoth she, holding his hand. " I would break thy wrist, but I cannot." " The strongest wrist I know," says my lord, " is Alec's." " Poor Alec ! " says Maudlin. I think I could have heard no more : I must have moved, or cried aloud ; but, happily, I was preserved from such folly by the door opening behind me. " Ha !" cried my lady Balgownie, on seeing me. '' Whisht ! " I whispered. She understood, and we went forward together. I lingered — altho' it agreed ill with me — to have a private word with her. I told her, in brief, that I had heard things I ought not to have heard and that it would be well if neither she nor I said aught of my beii;g where she found me. Then, as speedily as might be, I de- parted to my lodging at the wine-shop, and sat long my all-lone with a pipe of tobacco and a chopin of red wine. Love is a terrible thing to take up with, nor can it be as lightly laid down, as taken up. But I fought with the madness of it that night, and, God helping me, I fought it down, —till, finally, I told myself that I owed my lord all, and that, owing him all, I could deny him nothing, — uot even the sacrifice of my dearest affection. Thereafter, the fair and intrepid Maudlin, ** The Angel of the Covenant," showed a dark and lowering lauu to * \Versh==in!>iipid. .;■■*&., lord, ** is Alec's. King Campbell. 469 those who were turiiina fim n^ . , to the .l-tr„cti„n":rtL' u't^rC the^K "^ "T'^' period ensued, d„riu„ wl.i.h t7 . "^'"S- •^'"' " against Montrose wri., ''°™ °' threatening p-.tent,,gat,,:::d\; 'i;;rtr,"'": "«' ■"-' with a sudden clat) Tef Tk , ^' *""■"' "P"" him kd to that issue ' "" ""^ "''-^" *™' «'« """g^ that hi3idgiar»°rona°siT *,°"'^'°^'' ^-'-- - took up aStter ijintly t'4''""''"'""-' ^"-^ '- sat, he He handed r«tlettr''V''"'™''^'°'-"^^^^^^^^ Monsieur, MoZ^^Zj^Z "''?""'^" ""^ to the end. "' -^"''«<', -^ '""''o " open and looked -a not, as hith:rt di^ to^i^f^"" '" ^""' "^ '-"' I read, I laughed and II i Y'""" ^ '^""8"™- As -"• aloud. tt;rt tZ ;;' ptr"^"! r^^^^'- ^ found in tlio Gazette of P,,.- '^ ' "^rtagnan had '»Hug of th " {w?:"Tr;r/ l"^ tt ^"^ llarquisof Hnntlv a,„i L 1 ' ^'^''tland, bj the Kran eof the Ma m.isV ""f .""" ^ '""" ''^™ -'''^'' "' 'ohim (sinoeVhT " "'"T'''''''''Sged I^'ould relate ' had h d in t ' 11 ""'''' ''"" """"■> -■"" ^hare oHts in-tal^bg! ""^"' ""'" *'''" '™« '^e manner " Whv f " -J :!«;>^Kirk.flgurodi„si;;;;^;™^--;^;;;;.. ^e 1 rov or Rome or Paris ! » ^ ^* wimn Li I b'i^ Mil. m'l i I'l / '. ..I t 1 , y). 1 f' 470 The Angel of the Covenant. ** There is somewhat more, my lord," 1 said, ** which concerns yourself." And I read that D'Artagnan had inquired concerning this matter from my countryman, Monteith de Salmonett, who had told him a strange and unintelligible talc — as, in more particular, that my lord, the C' unt of Montrose (of whose household he heard I now was, and to whom he begged I would convey his very devoted sentiments) was then at quarrel with the noble Marquis of Iluntly {s'oppo- sait de tout son pouvoir) concerning a Testament, Cove- nant, Contract, or Will, and that the whole country was plunged on that account in a civil war ; — but that, since then, the lords of Huntly and Montrose had joined hands in opposition to a greater lord, tlv. Count of Argyll, Avho was come to a threatening head. *'But where," demanded T)*A T '"' """""'""' ■ •"> to do timt would clmoc a ",v „■ ; V"" ""' «"' '» ^ourt : Country : I e„n sonX\Z!tZTvr """"' ^'"'^ "'• " Wherefore, then.^C mv lor/"'r '* "' ■'"°"™''-" yon are clear about ymfr rep'lv » " ' ^ ""^""""^' "'"""' " Look on that seal/' said h» .i • wax at tho folding of the ?eLr T'"/ """ ""' ^'"'^"'^ that ?" ^ ""^ "'"'^' i wiiat do you make of " 1 kenna't," said I ci::nX"Tht:;;r tt ti-ok ', "- -^' °^ «- office, whicheanbrusklydoauoff ' f""'^ *'"'""' of wit to hide it well. The Ki,!!', Tl *"" '""'' °»' 'ho broken here in Edinbnrih^fn'f '" """ ">»"> been it hath been sealed ovef a™ "'?»"? '"'"'''""' "-ou hand. Now look upon ' ufo „ ' h '"''f '"^' »»« to opened also, and, ifVened ""eld ' ""' '' ''^"' " >"" "-" ".ylSor''^^^"''^"''-^''-""» that upon ^hix^inir'to'tttdir:"''"'^-"^"-' • • • Now," says he " thi, I ^ ^'""■' ""<• '"'"e's ? My answer to L RingZ!y ?. T""''"' '»' '»^-«- 'Wir hands also, and bfr'Iby them'" n """ "'^S" 8»n to think that I lie under th! • '"'™ """oh rea- l>«Jm.to: wherefore t, en shr,,"?'™"' "' ^'^y^^ ""d ««»P«^rfluity, and mv'se If I' m'" ^ """ "»''« " virtue of «Pe»ly vrith them ? " ° '"'™ '"•'='"' 'or dealing veil," said I. '' An^ liv^ • ,^ ^ ^^^' ^'kewise, my answer Confiscation, or plundering. « Jri IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) /. ■{< ■^l -% 1.0 I.I 11.25 2.2 1^ lii£ 2.0 M. 116 Photographic Sciences Corporation 23 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, N.Y. 14580 (716) 872-4503 \ •s^ :\ \ Cv v\ Ik ^ S' ^P"° "1 "y loi-d's protestation, sat with Argyll for ,ts sinister, veiled head, and did what t wou d ithout tlie King's authority. With one fell swelp it cleared away the ancient Government of Scotlana by ap pointment of agreat Committee of Estates to aot''lZ fuhUgood "-^ Committee,-of lords, gentlemen, and b gesses,-craftily made too dull and unwieldy to qiestion or cross the designs of the active few • for ,ri.erewt there ever a Counc 1 of an hundred that the power, 1 1 ,gh t, e mertness of the mass, did not lapse iuto^he Lnds ff he ambitious and practising /„«to who designed that it should tion of the ordinance of the year before,-that all who 474 The Angel of the Covenant. signed not the Covenant should be accounted '' Inccndia' ries, and Enemies ofthejmblic good," and what not, and that they should be " taken order with," and if necessary, '* proceeded against in all hostile manner," and that all fortified houses not held by *' friends " should be " brought in for the puhlic service."* That ordinance brought the issue of my lord's fate, and ours, rushing on precipitate. It made manifest more plainly than ever before Argyll's power and ambition, and it led to the first personal and open challenge of right and might between him and my lord Montrose. My lord's situation was become of the most trying and hazardous ; and it is little to the credit of the Scottish lords Avho thought with him (and of such there were not a few) that it should have been so. More and more nota- bly he stood forth alone, girding himself with courage for his unequal contest with Argyll, while they, intimidated more and more by the craft and power of Argyll, or drawn by his promises, slipped away from my lord's neighbo'-^'^od and countenance, and either slunk selfishly to their ? -s or humbly accrued to the faction of Argyll, careless whether King or country suffered, if they did not. I have writ the word "unequal" of the impending struggle of Montrose with Argyll. The Nvherefore of that word may not be plain to all, — as it was not at the first to D'Artagnan, who had demanded of me in a new letter that I would describe more fully and clearly how Montrose (of whom he had heard much) could be a smaller lord tluin Argyll (of whom he had heard nothing). While all men may understand that the open, generous, and valiant Mont- rose could be no match in conduct for the underground, crafty, and unscrupulous Argyll, only Scotchmen may apprehend wanting explication that he was unequal to him * Does not all this seem a singular foreshadowing of the method and progress of the French Revolution?— J. M.Q, King Campbell. ncTy' and tliat all houlcl be " hrouglit , . 475 and following fe .JJZl^l^^tXT' Ca T'''' not only a Scottish Elrl but also a ffiX>anfcht/' '7 I think, for prefoLoo)-to h'irinto sutvtf '~*""-^'''' method too ruthless, for tlie Cumr bells t thp ; T ! of their policy of aggrandizement. ^ ^^ ^^eir pursuit 'Now, by virtue of that ordinance in Pnvlinrr. , v. active ana -stanirn^C It tot' t:^;!^^^ h^ other than those against wh ch he chBrtl l^^-T" ""'"' ~. Of piact :;rdTfwS:rti:et:,ti^^^^^^^^ modeled country, while the rest were either felrfui:; 476 The Angel of the Covenant. ignorant of the instrument put into Argyll's hands. As for the multitude who had no understanding, they wore led by them misters ; and the ministers so cherished Argyll for the humility of his demeanor, the godliness of his speech, and the show of patience and docility with which he heard their interminable and rhapsodical discourses, that it was become a sin to be punished by the Presby- teries for any man to murmur a word against him. Armed with his Commission, and with a ffreat fiditinir tail of four thousand of his own clansmen, commanded by capable lieutenants of his own house, Argyll passed up through the Highlands of Perthshire, "taking order" with clans who had not so much as heard of the Covenant, and compelling their chieftains, as was afterward dis- covered, to sign bonds of fidelity and fealty to him— to his own self—" in the public good/'— until he came among the Stewarts of Atholl. There the old Earl of Atholl drew out a force to oppose him. But Argyll, who never had stomach for fighting if craft and dissimulation could be made to serve his purpose, got grips of the brave old Earl by falsehood, and sent him to prison to Edinburgh. Re- sistance being thus broken, he "took order" with, tlio Stewarts, at a great meeting in Balloch Castle, of which you shall hear more. Thence he passed on to the Braes of Angus, to " take order " with the Ogilvies against whom he nursed an ancient feud. Now it is so chanced that, a little while before, my lord was in Angus at his place of old Montrose, taking counsel with the Covenanting lords and gentlemen of the shire for the raising of men to join the army on the Borders. All they, in fear for themselves and their neighbors of Argyll's salvage and destroying Highlanders, deputed Montrose, according to the ordinance of Parliament for the rendering of hostile fortified places, to treat with Lord Ogilvy for the surrender of Airlie Castle " in the public King Campbell. 477 ho had raised to Join gZ^^IX '' *'" "S'"™'^ llion down came Amvll and !,;= ir- i , , Athole ; and ho raged fi h furv V « ''™''°™ '"■"■" IIouso of Airlie wfs aire dy ''"^^ t,: ff ^-^ "'»' '>■« greater, I conceive, tl>at he tLugT 1: 't ~e ,1 '? Ill mere despite of him. Insolent ■„„1m ""''"' ardly foe who meeteth n? e two ?'" f' "' " """" the small garrison Montro e ^T^TL la T. ''''']' and his wild Highlanders to the work rf if '■""''" (lostrnction wanting all eTcnso Thl n ''f '""=''<>n,- Airlie, the pride of Anl! >, .. , '*'"""^ "<"«« of (going abou": ht^ift r;; tfd" wi h™' """^ " "■'"- ™a in mere -^tonnes! ™ tng " ^ T::" e"*"""' and designs in wood and stone)_L rayaJd « ^''""^' growing crops of the peasant, h„ T ™™Sca the green, lie burnt their hoZ and ni- t""' ^^'''' "'""^' """i Itheinfamonsnameot helt r 'l''™,^' <'="-'"»g himself the Covenant. C'wt? ,1~« ''^ "'''"'' "^ yared; for he even passed on rPor har T ? "T"" dwelt Lady Ogilvy near he- f,- ""i""^ ^^ouso^ where homeless. AirwlIfehTas ap'ro :d\?the C " '» '°''" the Kirk as "the ,oork »/W«S" ^ommrtteeand Now it so fell ont that, while my lord was in A -«.». u „,. .J „,X :»• 3 i :" "••' - more coneerriing our seolnrlpS 1 1 ^ somewhat •^o'tle, and safcrlr'r^r^thraJr '■'-"-'- U.' I , . } H,i >. iii !•! !r I yl •f. m 478 The Angel of the Covenant. "Wherefore they faces, Wattic?" asked Maudlin at last. " Save us ! " cried he. ** I was but making a try at the look 0' a Campbell. 'Tis mair for edification thanagraeo after meat. Better be out at the cuits * than out 0' the fashion, and gleyed f e'en '11 be the only wear when we got King Campbell." " Whatten treason's that, Findlater ? " says I. " King Campbell?" " Hoot ay, laird," says he. " Whaur ha'e ye been this fortnight and mair that ye dinna ken King Campbell will shove King Charlie Stewart frae his stool at Whitsunday and stick the auld crown 0' Scotland on his ain head ? " " And whaur ha'e ye been, Wattie, to hear siccan clash?" " Clash here, clash there," says he, " I heard it wi'my ain lugs in the Castle o' Balloch. First I met some skelp- ing Ilieland lads— red-headed Campbells ilk ane o' them —and they up and says to me :— ' We're King Campbell's men,' quo' they, * wha's man are ye ? ' * I'm naebody's man,' quoth I, just for peace' sake, * but a silly poor fool 0' a Gaberlunyie.' Syne they took me to Balloch, whaur the gleyed earl was biding, and whaur 1 saw the Atholl Stew- arts standing like tame sheep, and the Campbells look- ing on like collies on their hurdles, or skipping like the same after their tails. And there was gran' feasting and dancing in the muckle ha*, man, — bannocks and vivers, and ale and usquebagh, — and the pipers piped, and tlie auld bard 0' Gillespie Gruamach himsel' gets his harp and sets a harpin', and making a gran' sang about King Campiell being King at Whitsunday : — the whilk is the very thing I tauld J ye." That he said ; but no more could bo got from him. * Ankles. f Squinting. J Told. V spoke very mueli at lurgo on the rights of snhjecits in the deposinj,' of Kings— ye ken liis soft and iindcrhiind wny— iind lie opined that King ('harles Stewart would never be got to ueoept all that hath been douo in Scotland the last year or two," "And I doubt," said my lord on the instant, " there is some truth in tliat last. 'I'he king scarce yet understaiKh'tli how far— how irrevocably far— we liave gone ; lie still hath a hope, I doubt, we may be pushed back to our first posi- tion. That cannot be. Yet to sco that is one thing, and to bo ready on account of the same to urge matters farther and dethrone the King, either in virtue or in fact, is an- other. With that 1 for one will liavo no parley— and," lie excUiimed witli heat, "as for i)utting Argyll in his place, cither in virtue or in fact, I will oppose it with the hm drop of my blood ! " *'Bnt, Lord's sake V cried Stewart wlio was somethini; of a fearful creature, *' m'c nmst be wary ; for there is no measure to the craft and cruelty of gleyed Gillespie ! '' *'0h, wo will walk warily, friend," said my lord, "till wo have moro assurance of his meaning," " And," says Mr. John, " we must keep our mouth shnt." But that was the last thing my lord could do concerning anything that lay hot at his heart. Next day or so he and I, ami some others, rode south to take up our commands under General Leslie on the Borders ; and all the way ho talked freely to me, but in the hearing of all, of the bar- barous set-back to the fair and liberal hopes with which lie and I had begun,— of setting our own in the fore-front of the nations in freedom of thought and brightness of life, in the gay arts and the great humanities, My Lord Escaped Argyll's Stroke. 481 W« lu,l barely ,u,-ivc«l ut tl.ocanip l,y Clmmhy Wood ■"- l)„„»o n,„ ,,,,i,| „,„. ,,„ty to the iieneml, il I w„ woro over ak.m l,y t|,c. |„„.s„i„« r.so„t.nont „t Ar.Ty 1 U r ^;^'a: M "", ''t' "","■ '"' "'» "™"-' "» --^ai. ,M » n . "'' """'" """-"■•that ho„l,„ul,Uta,„l f.Mth with h„ „„»wo.u At tl,„ „,,j,„i„tol ti,no laocom «'" o'l my io,.l to tl,o g„„orar» tout, whoro .,at l.c^i" t c 1,0a, of t ,0 tahio, a„,l down its sulos that part „ tit omnuttoo of Estatos ,Iop„todto bo with the .rn.y- " M. V...,U. a„,l Mar, Ki,.«h„r„ an.I CV,„p„r, a, d othlr, 1 .»m„ot rocall. I'ho old gouoral was i„'a smili.lZ craoklmg „,ood, dcspito tho soriousnoss of tho „c a«iof »." wl,on n,y lord l,a,l n.ado his „bois„,.eo to t^o "I^ a.ul d« ,„g,„s hod co,„pa„y_(l,i„ ono.nios woro giv „ to hti'ou"*"",,: T;"*'""rr:" ""■" -^^''^'y-en to*;; tl. tatiou )— lio uddrcBsed him familiarly "Now my lord Montrose," says he,- what's this o^t P le maun be a good lad and speak out and tak^ your paik^ wi h httle ado; for my kail is set on for tJve C and I downa endure to keep it waitincr - ' -If your excellence," says my lord! -will signify what I am to tell I will set about the tellincr " ^ ^ Then General Leslie looked uponagrra paper he had oforelum,and said, -' I ken mair o' the nioUh p ko thun the pen At the School in Fife I carried my lea n in^' no further than che letter ' G '-whill. 7 .., V n tho fir«f n' *r.. f > V , ^^^liJ'^ A understand s I'c fnst o Omtavus' '.UK\ o' ' amcrai; signifying I was serve w.' the fane and rise to be the tether. ^iZ s:itisfied wi^ that, and never fashed to learn m-iir T i . f tho Clerk 0' the Court had better read "his " ''"'' \^J:1^ '""^ T"^ "'"^ '^'' ^''^'''- it ^'onsisted of Artie es drawn up by the insolent Argyll himself com Plaimngof interference with his CommiSon and " ooZt 'ose,- all with particular reference to the rendering of IKli ■hI w ki'imi 482 The Angel of the Covenant. Airlio Custlo,— and on theao grounds demanding the ini- pciiclinicnt of my lord. "And now, my lord," siiys the Genond, " yo can say awa'." ** Lat me answer the llrst and chief est article," said my lord, '^as to intromittin^r with Ar^^yll's Commission " "The which," put in Lord Cassilis, "Argyll doth de- clare you, my lord Montrose, put your hand to witii others." ** Never," said my lord,— *' never would I have given Argyll and his Highlanders such wide and particular range. Last year I put my name with others to a Commission which was to empower Argyll to raise men to meet the ex- pected invasion of the west country by Wentworth and the Irish." " That Commission," said Cassilis, " is this same." " I think," said my lord with civility but resolution, "it must liave been extended since." " It was given under the hand of the General command- ing-in-chief," said Cassilis. **Eh?" cried the General, waking up from a dose. " Me, too ? Weel, we oft do mair than we ken, but it isna in my memory that I put my name to aught/' " Not tinder the hand, my lord," said the Clerk, correct- ing Cassilis, " with the consent, of the General." "Consent!" cried Leslie. "What wi' Committees here and Committees there, and fine, hair-drawn distinc- tions'twix consent and hand, 1 kenna what I'm involved in ! I maun consent to everything or nothing ! And I tell ye this :— hereafter I consent to nothing but my plain duty as general ! " " And you will consent," said my lord, smiling, " to do me justice, your Excellency." These passages 0^ debate showed that the tenor and the origin of Argyll's Commission were little known or under- stood, whensoever it had been got. ) General eommaiul- lord, smiling, " to My Lord Escaped Argyll's Stroke. 483 The Ocuornl's tcmiior was plain, ,u. soon Locamc thatof tl.o Co,„„„ttoc.. 0„ tlmt lir-t artialo ,„y l,„..l „,.» b, 00 lil, .■xouoratod, the lonln Kin,-!,,,™ a,„i (J.per Z2^Z R.VO thcr test,m„„y that „,y lor,l had not of I.i^ow motion on oro.1 into parley with I.ord Ogilvy f„.. t,," "^ donng A.,.1.0 Ca»Hc, bat only at tho roc/ost of a Cm . n,.tteo of the Covenanting gentry „f the wl.ole si ire " , Angus, who feared the ruthless temper of Arnll a, d 1,1 n.«hlanders With the exan.inatio!. on tho ol r ani js here came tho same issue. Over the seeond-the aeen a t.on of .. o„ great lenity in sparing M« .«««,y-the e was a momorablo passage of speech. "Tho emm;, ! " exelaimed n.y lord. " Are we to eonnt''' "In tho Gorman wars," qnoth the General grimly " //„ ^:mny was ilka mother's son_or daughter," he put in Si^;;:^;"^^---'^^^^"^^--^-— -^ -Ilath Argyll been in Germany ?- asked my lord with an eye of innocence ; wliereat there came a laugh. rhereafter my lord begged the (General and the (Jom- mittee to give him an act of exoneration in all those particulars. ^ of L^gyn/""' ^'' '^' ""'' "'' ''' '' '""' "'"^ "^ ^^^^ Whereupon silence and a look of heaviness and doubt descended on all tlie company. So that stroke of Argyll's failed ; but he was soon ready wi h a crafty lure of another sort. It would be while we s lU lay near Dunse on the Borders that his presumption ana insolence again became manifest. We had supped with a large number of officers, and liad talked frec]y--my lord being ever as brave a talker as he was a figliteriand While we daundered to our quarters in the late summei I ii.- 1 484 The Angel of the Covenant. twilight through the lines of tents and the booths of fragrant boughs of fir and beach which our soldiers had made for themselves, we— my lord, that is, some friends and I— continued talking. At the entrance of his tent my lord was rencountered by the lords Cassilis and Mar, who made request of a private word. '*Y'are two,'' said my lord: " I will make up my number, so please ye, with Colonel Burnet.'' "Achilles ever had his Patroclus,*' quoth hard old Cassilis. " And Ji]neas his Achates," put in my lord of Mar. "Alec Burnet," said my lord, laying his hand on me, *' is a better Patroclus than I am an Achilles, and a more trusty Achates than I am ^neas." When we were set down with a small tallow candle for light between us, the two earls opened their business, Cassilis talking. The matter proved of the most astound- ing. I cannot recall the talk, nor the subtle, flattering mode of the presentment, but it was nothing less than s proposal (which had not yet been submitted to any Com- mittee) to appoint an absolute rule of Three for all Scotland, Argyll having rule benorth the firth and river of Forth, with Montrose and Mar as a Committee to act with him. " And to bear the wyte of his sins ! " said my lord with a laugh. " My lords," he continued, in growing heat, "I mind my Latin history. When the Romans rid tliem- selves of their early kings they apj)ointed a Trmmvinifn: that's what Argyll would be at ! Ye may tell that skulk- ing fox— whose delight is to harry and oppress the in- nocent and the helpless — that I will not have part iior paction with him in any such matters ! And as for put- ting my hand to that paper ye have — I will die or I do it! To be of his Committee, forsooth ! Doth the crafty tocr * Tod=fox. My Lord Escaped Argyll's Stroke. 485 mean to flatter or to insnlf mo p a j ■iuoth ho of a s.aa:r,T^Z\Z' ZTiCl f "'" your name to it either ! " ^ '" ^"^ "Faith 'tis a (lonhtf ul business," said Mar " I f h- 1, n.y lord Cassilis, I will have no handtn it neither » ' in^r^fv^Kj^r'".^''- ^"^'°"^ -dsHhreaten. and liborfe the J^'I! """,'1*^' """ "' '"^ '"« from the armv fon 1 ' , -^ '""' ""'' ^ «°«Sht leave tion o, a,, fs^'ji::/:^^ tf h- n:\" -r™- out that the first nrono.P lln. I . ' ^'''' ^^"dsay let i^xit. lubc piopose had been to ma Icr^ AvfYT.ii n- j /or— (''according/' he said '< +^ +i ^^" ^^^^^- \ ""fej ii« saia, to the wont nf +1iq "d wlien their affairs came in hazard -^ iT ?i . . Romans thing fearfn,,, regarded tTrhd-r'etd^ir I" proposal of a Triumvirate ''"cceeaed to it the rt^eit^trrste-^^^^^^^^ ij """"^v- J-iius there came together of- Pn»«i. :i;:et::r'e:n;r"7^'°"^^^^^^^ .oMs, who^";:h\i::Zi;: rrCdT:°-. -r "' Covenant ,■„ itsjirsf «to,.L I th f d r„ "ti'o'n I? H ' authority of the Kino- o^i,. i i "^rogation of the «-, wL as iS Jo™ : te" bt;\'^™^ ^^'* »» returned to the army, le fear „, L n ''^'" '"' "poi. thorn, and the dread of bot^ h,riT 7^^"""* m their estates; and, I donbt, h° ^1^;!' 2" t"*,"' and halted between two opinions of d„7v , ?/ ^"^"^^ I myself was donbtful f™ the fi rst of tl" 'f"T'^- ;^ the grater number of them'; ^dtll* trrt™ '« the army I know my lord pressed his Bond upon te? ' ;! :3 486 The Angel of the Covenant. ri- li B 1 .1 4 1 II J 11; 11 tain lords there — (he won the names of, at the smallest compute, the lords Mar and Almond, and Kinghorn and Couper) — I sought to dampen his hope of good from such association. " I doubt, my lord," said I, " the Bond ye twine will prove but a rope of sand to bind Argyll." **What, Alec!" said he. *'Ye think they deceive me?" **Not just that," said I. ''But they will fall away when contrary pressure bears on them, and ye ken well the craft of Argyll. Have these lords stood well by you hitherto? And yet they profess to hold your opinion! They but stand to you so long as your heat holds them. They are waverers, my lord ; they are as the waves of the sea, drawn by the moon and driven of the wind and tossed." " I, then, am the moon, Alec ? " he observed with a laugh. " My dear lord," I cried, " will ye not consider your own safety somewhat ? What do we here in this army preparing for the invasion of England ? " " Ye forget, Alec," says he. " We propone merely to cross the Border In sufficient force to lay our just demands before the King, and beg him to set himself at our head and return with us for the appeasement of all our distrac- tions : I had rather have no part in the parade ; but I cannot at the present help myself ; and that ye know." I waived that, and went on. " Look around, my lord," said I, " a. d hearken." It was evening, and we sat at the opening of my lord's pavilion, which was his as a General of Division. From the neighboring tents of the men of Fife on the one side, came the mingled sounds of singing psalms, praying and reading Scripture, and from the booths of the northern men on the other rang out laughter, and now and then a e observed with a My Lord Escaped Argyll's stroke. 487 and g„„." 'o"'«-^ °" tho "holy text of pike "And yon, my lord " «.ii,i t „ • x. "Buot,aswelIveko. H,„ > ^' .P<""t"ig with my fl„™r lil^e trim : the ^are'^o "ofT' f"' '" "'"'""'«"'•'' ™- f'.ries. What a ho™ ° I'l't '' """""« "'^ '"™^ "ke My lord," I burst forth ^'v "'f "^'"^ °', "'^^^ ■"»'■•• y' are under misprision Lef ,,» '", '' '""' '""' "'««<= ! betake us to the Ki„™; '' "' '"'™ ''""'^ «th this, and oleltdTeZarat^mr ' ™ '"''" "'"^ "'^ ""-ly for they would po^„T to m! i!? "' °' ""■ "'^"■"^""'"^ ; the long last, even llnto e has I 7l '""'' ''"'"' ""' »' nanters up : they are c wl ; '? ^'^ *'"^=» Cove, be subdued by iTiTZT-T'fu' "'"' ""'^ '» cause my country more Z it / n "°' "'"'"'S'j' can be restrained a wMe-tUI the r'^^" ""^ '"^ '"«"»« and show his face amon ' „s r ^"^ "'""''• "^ ''"^ ^"L f>'l and reasonable Tttlem ,7,''' ^" ''"1"' »' " P'^aee- »"J I will not, A ec w ' H °"' r',"™ '™'^™"^'=« ; -vhon, I have joined „oai ,"?;' "'." ^'"^^'-'t -it!; '» be done. i,e n.ulU . ' 'o ^1^ " "° ""'!"' '""'»" nor donbt, of the King • and i^ H " "" ""''"king, ^««eve, aa I do, that ff he Jo ' ""■ '"™ '"'""' "'^^ « and hear, he will nndC h T'^ "'' ""^' """' 'tandoth he will give us .1 ' ''"'' '''""' '"' '""Icr- i'-f !i 1. i Vi,' it m 488 The Angel of the Covenant. hand, Argyll and his faction untimeonsly seek to over- bear all, then, here Avitli the army I am of more avail to tlio King's authority in Scotland than if I were with the King ; for I shall have my own regiments to stand by me. I think they will stand. Alec ? " '•They will stand, my lord," said I. ''They love you and will follow you at a word. My dear lord," said I finally, " ye may not be a man of policy — in truth, I think ye hardly are — but, certes, your men even now believe ye the greatest captain that hath ever lived." I said no more ; and we stayed with the army, and went on with the army. We crossed Tweed at Coldstream, and set foot on English soil, my lord being the first to enter the river and show the way. We fought with an advance party of the King's men an action of small account, and so we marched on to Newcastle. And it was whilst we lay there that Argyll essayed his second stroke to turn my lord Montrose out of liis path. Negotiations were again opened at Ripon for an accom- modation of all differences betwixt the King and the Cove- nanters ; and the King had written my lord from York a short missive, expressing hope that these negotiations would finally arrange all ; to which my lord had in duty and in brief replied, reciprocating the King's hope, but also repeating that the King's presence for a space in Scotland would be the best remede of all. There, surely, was no offense ; but see what was made of it. Those infamous and trusted Scottish Bedchamber- men of the King — the more infamous because so trusted — who for years had kept the Covenanting leaders informed of all that passed at Court and even of all that passed thro' the King's mind, by listening at doors and rifling cabinets, by stealing the King's letters and copying them, even fumbling his pockets at nights for them — these (the particular sinner on this occasion was reported to be Will My Lord Escaped Argyll's Stroke. 489 Hope, of KlnrZTnisonoTZl"' "/f."* ^'^^ho^as leading spirit. Wo hlr^ d 'oVX/V ™"'''' ™"''' friondly mouth : "And "said tl "'" " ""^ =•»'' an attompt soon to oZv'thTl ""f° ' " "'""^ '"" b" the CovoLnt, a^d Z it ZZZtZ " '"'*^"" *° So be wary, my lord - ^"^ ^°'"" ^^de. Kiri. wwe wo wo.:ti;rCi'o?it;t^r;a,r'r ''■^ face and long, dipninff no.P ih. i " ^^^^^ ^'^^^^^ hair, thepiat J^X^; ^! ^^t ^tt"^!™'' was no mistaking tliem ^oJvet,— tlicro "D'yos,o?"I,vliispcredmyIord. i SCO, iie mado answer. ^^«''adlioardnowordofAr!rvll'»' wi-ioh Ariyi, i;:rg:':: L" , ;,:" T::f -f !r''«" '° text is enough : i t w,b from f f - 1 ™''° "'° """''^ of First Sanruel,-™, ;" ^f ° ; ' r'' »' "- «» chapter ".oysaid that God if 1 t '^ arn'r.^S "f™';'-'"^ rose and his friends were I'hil stii^ !' > ,f^ '""!""- Argyll was as the arrival t "Sk™? '! "^^'^ "' upon us were eiihor «n +i, T ^ ^^^^^ ^"^"ed I were either so tlireatcnmg or so doubtful, that I I .( 490 The Angel of the Covenant. took upon me to counsel my lord not to go to the Gcncrars on Monday morning. " For/' said I, *' evil, my dear lord, is planning against you. Of that I am sure." But my lord would not hearken to my fears. To counter with Argyll he was as blithe, he declared, as to meet a dearest friend. Nor would he hear aught of my counsel that he should go armed ; for, said he, " I will not be the first to challenge violence ; and should it come to the tak- ing of my sword, I shall have by me no sword to take." Finding him fixed ih that mood — the which was accom- modate enough to his temper, but not to mine — I resolved to take my own precautious. I made ready to go all lengths for my lord's safety. Secretly I sought out on the evening of Sunday such friends of my lord as the lords Kinghorn and Couper, opened to them my fear of damage from Argyll's presence, and counseled them to come armed to the Gen- eral's levee on the morrow, but, howsoever, to come. Also I opened out the whole peril to such of the Grahams and their friends as were of the regiments from Perth and Angus, and as had influence enough to draw their com- panies after them. Some of these I arranged should be warily posted about the house where General Leslie was quartered, while the others should bide with their men, ready to march on a concerted sign that their aid was necessar. The morning was raw, dark, and cold, when my lord and I took our Avay from our lodging to the General's quarters, — my lord elegantly dight as for a bridal. It was yet early^ and tlie room for the levee was dimly lit with candled,, while there burned on the hearth a newly kindled fire of green wood. Of our own friends there were assembled the lords Oouper and Kinghorn and the young lord Boyd, be- sides two-three commoners, and ef the other sort were the lords Cassilis and Eglinton, Mar and Sutherland, andsuu- planning against My Lord Escaped Argyll's Stroke. 491 dry more Foremost of all was that fury of Arsrvll", S' sting, that my loM V^dlta' I Jh^bS '"'"'T' Montrose, an/liked n°ot he a k Z T" "«"'"'' room, fldging at his donWot, .ttrhwir: T" "" this side and on that, and shotting Ik L^'t'^? "" lord,-n,.i, he took his reso.utionVnd ^^X^C '' My lord Montrose,— mv lord Mnnfrn=« « .ing his withered head, " „Va"s tt owT "^' ^''^- -idmTlord.""" '" g»-yo«.-Exeelle„eys meanin, "Not you, my lord I-not you! Ig/ My lord read with attention, and made answer << 'Ti, copy of a letter of mines/' answer, Tis ^ fir: !: , t I flM 1 f T-' \ \ ' ^' -ti 492 The Angel of the Covenant. '' Written to wha, my lord ?— written to vvlia ? " cries the old general. *' To His Majesty, the King," said my lord on the in- stant,—'* in answer to a gracious message from him.'* '' He makes confession, ye see ! " cries the general turn- ing him to Sir Thomas Hope and the rest of that sort.— " He mako3 confession ! " " By your leave, my lord general,'* says Montrose, " I have made answer to you in friendly-wise ; but what have these gentlemen to do .vith the question ? " Hope of Kerse had opened his mouth to make hot answer, when my lord went on :— " Are we here assembled as a Council of War, or as a Court Martial, or are we,— as I conceived,— only met as friends at the General's levee ? " " I may constitute a War Council, if I will," says the General testily : " I ha'e the power. I do constitute this a Council and a Court, my lord, to put you to question.*' " Then," quoth my lord, " I opine I have an Accuser '^ Who is he?" Came a voice from the door, " I am your Accuser, my lord Montrose ! " *Twas Argyll newly entered, with two- three more of his Committee that was with the army. "I might, in good sooth," says my lord, '* decline mine Accuser. But, for the sake of peace, I will not." '' Peace ? " broke in Argyll, taking a step fartlier ben. *' What hast thou to do with peace ? Thou art he that troubletli Israel ! " And he wagged a finger at my lord. *'My lord Argyll," says Montrose calmly, " I will make use of the Prophet's answer to that same and say, ' I have not troubled Israel ; but thou and those with thee,— in that ye have forsaken the intent of our Covenant and hast followed the Baal of destructive ambitious.' ! " ',' Let us have done with this, your Excelleiico ! " cries Argyll. '-'I demand tlie arrest of the lord Montrose on the charge of Treason to the Covenant ! " ise ; but what have My Lord Escaped Argyll's Stroke. 493 high.foatI.erca conceit o his 1 ^ "' ''"''""'^ ''"'» " his bruslc demand hr^etrrrMV''"' t'«^" '' lord's friends had most nl2l?Hr' f^'^'T"' ' "'"' "'^ .-vords a d , to;:£t :;:&::;.::: " °"^ "Let be your blades, bairns/'sajs the General " I an, "U'"™'!','.' T"?- "" ""»• '"»«i — .1-1. "Ha !" says my lord, with that smile on I.i« 1;,.= 1 • , ever told mc he had a triumph in his m,„d J ''' * "f .vhile agone, my lord OeuoL, I d ^ L.e to " '"" Who IS /^e Eiiemy now ^ '" ^ "' - rt;\sroS^l-^^^^^^^^^^ - «- = -»a Hope of Kcrse too. uporhtS' ttr,: '' Since the signing of the Covenant," savs } < U h.^i. ever been hold traitorous for «t,v fn i iJ • ^^*^ ^Pondenee with the Ki,!^^ M^e^^ '""'' """ J, i^ Bl IHIJ! pi'' 111 r' 494 The Angel of the Covenant. "I thank ye. Sir Thomas," says my lord pat, "for your most learned exposition, — the King, then, is the Enemy ! My lord General," ho cries, *' I crave leave to impeach Sir Thomas Hope, of Kerse, as a traitor, — on this other Article of War ! — By your leave, Sir Thomas ! " lie stepped forth, took the copy of the Articles from tin; lawyer's hand, and read therefrom : — * If any man filiall open his mouth against the King's Majesty's po'son, or authority, or shall 2)resume to touch his sacred person, he shall he punished as a traitor ! ' " With that unlocked for riposte, all of Argyll's side were at a non plus, while the griin earl himself chawed his meager lip. The old soldier laughed. " Gae wa', my lord ! " says he. " Faigs, I'm no clear whether ye'd make a ])ettor sodger or an advocate ! " *' My lord General," says Montrose, making an obeisance, " 'tis a good saying that any stick will serve to beat a dog withal." '' Dog ? " cried Kerse. '' Whom call ye dog, my lord?" *' I crave pardon of the faithful creature, dog," says my lord, " for I bethink mo that I've slandered him. Tod* is the word," says he, with growing heat, — "a stinking tod that worketh underground, and that floelli to his hidey-holo when peril threateneth ! " " My lord General," says Argyll, in a high voice, " wo fly off the question ; and we deal in quibbles and tropes. I ha'e demanded the arrest of a traitor." *'ImplimI" says the old soldier. "But traitor's no proven ; so ye'd best let be, my lord." "Then," cries Argyll, in threatening, "I myself, in name of the Committee of Estates " He had got so far when one of his own lieutenants slipped in at the door and whispered him in the ear. His first giuister glance *Tod =« fox, call ye dog, my My Lord Escaped Argyll's Stroke. 405 was shot at me; his higli looks foil ; his face blanched »-.tl bocWy fear ; „„d I „,.,,„ „„ ,i,„.;^^ ^„^ ^^™''«d word of the preparations I had „,ade without. ThZ ir'^h;:;;,:- r "^"""-^ --"' "- -'" ™-">'^ ^- ''—I say/' quoth ho, "in name of the Commiffoo thnt- .f yo, my lord General, decline to ontertaLZ c wf cannot now be sustained." y^^^^'^^., iz Whereupon, my lord made his obeisance to the General and marehed to the door, followed by his friends Wh n an said. My lord Argyll, this is not the end - By no means, my lord," says Argyll ^J^'Our purposes will yet cross, my lord ! '' says Mont- "I doubt they will, James,- says the otiier And so my lord passed on. When I came up with ^ Argyll, he looked on me, as he had not noted me "e "Ha, Colonel Burnet," says he. -And how's a' wi' [our friend, D'Artagnan?" ^^ I . " y',^';""^V^^"^ore concerned in his welfare, my lord " ^ says I, « than he is in yours." ^ ' '' Ah " quoth he, "say ye so ? say ye so ?- And thus we passed forth. tHl.i-: ''But traitor's no w p i, I': "" 'I 1 li'r.iii^ Bi' '' 1 P r' i, ' '!•■ ! ' ! ¥('' '} aq6 The Angel of the Covenant. CHAPTER XXXVII. HOW MAUDLIN PLEADED AVITII MY LOUD. But my lord's spirit was chafed witli such ceaseless sii8- picion : chafed with liis inactivity; and chafed with tlie delays of the King. Tiio negotiations at Ripon liiing sliuk from hotli ends ; tlie King came not ; and mcanwiii!, the influence of Argyll struck deeper and wider root. My lord had tlie fiery, urgent temper of the blood-h(M',so ; and, wliile tlie army laid idle at Newcastle, he and h'n white steed (and I with him) were ever pricking o'er hill and dale, tlirougli moss and moorland— oven wlien tit, snow was thick on the ground — swimming torrents, aiil fronting with glee tlio icy bhists of tlie nortli, back ;ui! fortli between JSewcastle and Edinburgii, and liis places in Perth and Angus,— bafk and forth, and back and fortli again, rousing his friends and neighbors ajul keeping tiim awiike, and even debating with the ministers of his neigh- borhood ; while Argyll furtively noted him, and got wnnl of all his sayings and doings. 'Twas on one of these winter rides that we camo np.M a straw of adventure which showed how the wind blow. Mv lord desired to visit the abode of the admirable iioet, Drurr • ,oml of Ilawthornden ; but we were overtaken with a fierce ''^^p^. and sought shelter for an hour in a liuinblu manse ?,■■ a :,y . '« ae minister, whom we knew, received iis doubtftii^y. ':iM, with ci. Mity. My lord made naught of that, bu., cnti.ud in cheerful speech with him. The gooJ- wife, however, looked upon us with a glower, and, when ovcnant. in 31 Y LOUD. How Maudlin Pleaded with My Lord. 497 horliUHlKuul would sot a stool for my lord, sl.o rcbukod hiin with a iu)tji})k! olworvc. " Yo forgot ye'ro tlio rninistor. Aiidra," says slio. - Lot tlio young man rax a stool for himsel'." ''True gudc-wife,". says my lord with a smile, - tho young and stron^r should ovor b(, obsorvant to the old and feeble; .nd |tis not for a minister in the new times to serve, hvl to bo served." And, so saying, ho took the sharno-faeod minister by the hand and led him to the high chair, while himself took a stool at his knee. Thus did my lord strive and pant to deliver his great •?w J~; ' !?^ *•'" '^'"« *" •^"'^^•'">*^' ^^ «t«nd by him with the loyal lords who had put their names to the ^ond of Cumbernauld, and so to oonfound the traitors, and then to sot the true Constitution of Authoritv-Kincr IVlia meat, and Assombly--to tlieta.sk of inducing ordei', peace, and content anew. That was his plan ; but the Kinrr de^ hiycd It, and still delayed ; and l,efore lie did finally come I the great stroke of Argyll had fallen. First, the Bond of Cumbernauld was discovered, on this wise The young lord of Boyd (who had put his name to It) died at Newcastle of a burning fever; and in his de- lirium he uttered words which woko suspicion, and which were conveyed to Argyll ; and he, having his nose thus set to t 13 scent, soon discovered the whole matter. Mont- rose and his fellow-Bonders were called before the Com- mittec m Edinburgh. Montrose avowed and justified the Bond, and produced it ; and his fellow-lords stood by him They were _ too strong to be dealt with together by the Argyll faction ; and the matter dropped. But the Bond was publicly burnt ; and it was put about among the min- isters and the people that its purport was mo«t - d^mnabi- and treasonous." And after that, the end came^ apacel^ The Stewarts of Athole had been openly talking of treason- '■i if 498 The Angel of the Covenant. able manifestations and speeches of Argyll when at Bal. loch, and saying that my lord Montrose knew of them, and would see to them when tlie King and Parliament met. • Certain ministers heard these things and carried them to Argyll. My lord was in Edinburgh. It was the end of May, and we were thinking again of return to the army at Newcastle. I sat in the evening in my cousin of Balgownie's lodging, when in came my lord Montrose, and after gr-eting tlie ladies produced from his bosom a paper, saying :— ''I doubt. Alec, our setting out must be delayed : there hath been put in my hand that requisition." I looked on the paper, and found it to be a formal re- quest for my lord's presence the next day at a full Com- mittee of Estates to search and inquire into the origin of certain statements which were being spread abroad harm- ful to well-known members of the said Committee. We looked upon each other, and plainly saw writ the belief that the occasion had come to put us to the proof. *'My lord,'' said I, in doubt, "will ye go to this meeting ? " *'For sure, I will," was his instant answer. "It seemeth plain, my lord," said I, ''that Argyll is now set to his defense. You will be taken at a disadvan- tage. Remember yon morning at Newcastle. Ye're by your lone now here : your faithful regiments are with tlie army in England, while Edinburgh swarms with Camp- bells like an ant-hill : ye may not note them, but stamp your foot and ye will see how they will come runnim; forth." " In the words of our dear Will Shakespeare, Aleo," said my lord, witli his ingenuous smile, " ' Jam aniied sn strung in hone.^ti/ '—that I fear not Argyll nor all liis Campbells!" Then the ladies joined their pleas with mine. How Maudlin Pleaded with My Lord. 499 -Do not go my lord ! - said Maudlin, with pale face of appeal -Take horse the night, and you and Alec may be half-way to the Border by the morn : at the New- castle jeaguer ye will have your faithful soldiers at your " Run from Argyll ? - he cried. - And at the hinder-end, perchance, be called to appear before his Committee with the army. Ye cannot wish me that dishonor ! " r u-^'r ?if -^^^^ Balgownie, " if my dear Nat Gordon and his ight horsemen were but here ! But Iluntly hath t M ," ?;f ^' ""'"'^ ^^'^ ^^^^°"«' I ^^«"bt, are broken !" _ My lord, said Maudlin again, rising with all her sub- duing charm upon her, and clasping her hands to him, go not to this meeting ! Seek any reason for not going ' - Slowly he shook his head, not unmoved. - Ye will bi^eak my heart my lord ! I had not thought to tell ye, but now I will ! I ha e dreamed tliat I saw your head, the hair a mat of blood, on yon spike of the Tolbooth, where your graud-sire's was ; and I ha^e dreamed it twice ! " " Is not a third time necessar,^' said my lord gently " to make the dream of any worth ?" She turned her away and let the tears run down, saying Now do I know why our poor queen Mary was made at Uie last to greet so sore in this harsh and cruel land r ^ lien the men are not faithless and fierce, they are hard and stiff as stocks of wood ! My lord,- she said, turning again to plead, -full well-full well !-ye ken that I ha'e lived in hopes of seeing ye great and glorious in our poor ScoUand ! Now do I put the dear hope from me and set my t „pon ,ts neck as fraught with damage to you and leat 1 ! I am no^v broken and humble, my lord ! See ' I neel to you ! " And the poor distraught Maudlin knelt. He mother and I turned us away to tlio window, while my lord essayed to raise her. " Let mc kneel,- she said, - and pray you to be gone out of this country, anywhere from ' w ' 1, f; U 500 The Anccl of the Covenant. tlioso mon of deceit and cruelty ! To France ! Any- where ! " *'\Vluit!" cried tny lord, deeply moved. '* Floe, and leave Ar