hair by which he
stood, staggering back as though he had received a mortal wound.

"No, no, no!" he said, his voice gulping with misery and horror.--"No,
no! Kill me, if you will--I but cannot fight you. Oh, my God, my God!"
he gasped scarcely above a whisper. "Unnatural-unnatural!" He said no
more, for, upon the instant, four men entered the room. They were of
Cromwell's Ironsides. Young Enderby looked round swiftly, ready to
fight, but he saw at once that he was trapped. The old man also laid his
hand upon his sword, but he saw that the case was hopeless. He dropped
into his chair and leaned his head upon his hands.

......................

Two months went by. The battle of Dunbar was fought, and Charles had
lost it. Among the prisoners was Garrett Enderby, who had escaped from
his captors on the way from Enderby House to London, and had joined
the Scottish army. He was now upon trial for his life. Cromwell's anger
against him was violent. The other prisoners of war were treated as
such, and were merely confined to prison, but young Enderby was charged
with blasphemy and sedition, and with assaulting one of Cromwell's
officers--for on the very day that young Enderby made the assault,
Cromwell's foreign commission for John Enderby was on its way to
Lincolnshire.

Of the four men who had captured Garrett Enderby at Enderby House, three
had been killed in battle, and the other had deserted. The father was
thus the chief witness against his son. He was recalled from Portugal
where he had been engaged upon Cromwell's business.

The young man's judges leaned forward expectantly as John Enderby took
his place. The Protector himself sat among them.

"What is your name, sir?" asked Cromwell. "John Enderby, your Highness."

"It hath been said that you hold a title given you by the man of sin."

"I have never taken a title from any man, your Highness."

A look of satisfaction crossed the gloomy and puritanical faces of the
officers of the court-martial. Other questions were put, and then came
the vital points. To the first of these, as to whether young Enderby had
uttered malignant and seditious libels against the Protector, the old
man would answer nothing.

"What speech hath ever been between my son and myself," he said, "is
between my son and myself only." A start of anger travelled round the
circle of the court-martial. Young Enderby watched his father curiously
and sullenly.

"Duty to country comes befo