of dazzling picture which would by and bye be
found to move and live.

The lawyer congratulated them, and they smiled back and thanked him.

"If you will put me to shore at London Bridge," said Mr. Herries--"I
have a little business I might do there--that is, if you will be going
so far."

Chris looked at his father, whose arm he was holding.

"We must take her with us," he said. "She has earned it."

Sir James nodded, dreamily, and turned to the boat.

"To the London Bridge Stairs first," he said.

* * * * *

There was a kind of piquant joy in their hearts as they crept up past
the Tower, and saw its mighty walls and guns across the water. He was
there, but it was not for long. They would see him that day, and
to-morrow--to-morrow at the latest, they would all leave it together.

There were a hundred plans in the old man's mind, as he leaned gently
forward and back to the motion of the boat and stared at the bright
water. Ralph and he should live at Overfield again; his son would surely
be changed by all that had come to him, and above all by his own
response to the demands of loyalty. They should learn to understand one
another better now--better than ever before. The hateful life lay behind
them of distrust and contempt; Ralph would come back to his old self,
and be again as he had been ten years back before he had been dazzled
and drugged by the man who was to die next day. Then he thought of that
man, and half-pitied him even then; those strong walls held nothing but
terror for him--terror and despair; the scaffold was already going up on
Tower Hill--and as the old man thought of it he leaned forward and tried
to see over the wharf and under the trees where the rising ground lay;
but there was nothing to be seen--the foliage hid it.

Chris, also silent beside him, was full of thoughts. He would go abroad
now, he knew, with Margaret, as they had intended. The King's order was
the last sign of God's intention for him. He would place Margaret with
her own sisters at Bruges, and then himself go on to Dom Anthony and
take up the life again. He knew he would meet some of his old brethren
in Religion--Dom Anthony had written to say that three or four had
already joined him at Cluny; the Prior--he knew--had turned his back for
ever on the monastic life, and had been put into a prebendal stall at
Lincoln.

And meanwhile he would have the joy of knowing that Ralph was free of
his h