s a brisk, lively child, or no?"

"He's what a Prince suld be," stiffly said Agnes.

Percy gave her up as impracticable, and reported to his colleagues at
White Webbs that the Duke could not be compassed.

"Comes the Prince, then, to the Parliament?" asked Catesby.

Percy and Winter agreed that on this head rumour was assuming a negative
aspect.

"Then must we have our horses beyond the water," said Catesby, "and more
horses and company to surprise the Prince, and let the Duke alone."

The King returned from Royston on the 31st of October. The next
morning, Salisbury requested a private audience, and in the Long Gallery
of Whitehall Palace, laid before his Majesty the mysterious letter. The
astute Salisbury, and also the Lord Chamberlain, had already fathomed
the meaning of the "terrible blow," and the means by which it was to be
effected; but the former would scarcely have been a Cecil had he not
also read his royal master. His Majesty must have the matter so
communicated to him that he should be able to believe that his own
supernatural sagacity had solved a mystery impenetrable to the
commonplace brains of the Lords of the Council. It might be reasonably
anticipated that such a warning should be no mystery to the son of Lord
Darnley--that his thoughts would fly rapidly to that house in the Kirk
o' Field, where his own father had received his death-blow, and had not
seen who hurt him. That the one word "Gunpowder!" should drop from
white, stern lips was to be expected. But do people ever do what is
expected of them by others? In this case, at any rate, nothing half so
dramatic took place.

"His Majesty made a short reply,"--which it may be was then thought
such, but which now would assuredly be set down as long, wordy, and
sententious.

"The incertainty of the writer, and the generality of the
advertisement," began the royal orator, "besides the small likelihood of
any such conspiracy on the general body of any realm, gives me less
cause to apprehend it as a thing certain to be put in execution.
Considering that all conspiracies commonly distinguish of men and
persons, yet seeing the words do rather seem (as far as they are to be
regarded) to presage danger to the whole Court of Parliament (over whom
my care is greater than over mine own life), and because the words
describe such a form of doing as can be no otherwise interpreted than by
some stratagem of fire and powder,--I wish that there may be spec