uth, life or death.

Dame Alice called her, and in a rambling, maundering way, charged her
with loitering and gadding with the young men; and Margaret saw by her
colour and by her eyes that some strange thing had happened to her.
Margaret had, perhaps, some intuition; for was not her heart very tender
towards a certain young barrister by name Roper whom her father doubted
as yet, because of his Lutheran inclinations. By and by she discovered
that she needed Aldonza to comb out her long dark hair, and ere long,
she had heard all the tale of the youth cured by the girl's father, and
all his gifts, and how Aldonza deemed him too great and too good for
her, (poor Giles!) though she knew she should never do more than look up
to him with love and gratitude from afar. And she never so much as
dreamt that he would cast an eye on her save in kindness. Oh yes, she
knew what he had taught the daw to say, but then she was a child, she
durst not deem it more. And Margaret More was more kind and eager than
worldly wise, and she encouraged Aldonza to watch and wait, promised
protection from all enforced suits and suitors, and gave assurances of
shelter as her own attendant as long as the girl should need it.

Master Headley, with some sighing and groaning, applied himself to write
to the mother at Salisbury what had become of her son; but he had only
spent one evening over the trying task, when just as the supper bell was
ringing, with Master Hope and his wife as guests, there were horses'
feet in the court, and Master Tiptoff appeared, with a servant on
another horse, which carried besides a figure in camlet, on a pillion.
No sooner was this same figure lifted from her steed and set down on the
steps, while the master of the house and his daughter came out to greet
her, than she began, "Master Alderman Headley, I am here to know what
you have done with my poor son!"

"Alack, good cousin!"

"Alack me no alacks," she interrupted, holding up her riding rod. "I'll
have no dissembling, there hath been enough of that, Giles Headley.
Thou hast sold him, soul and body, to one of yon cruel, bloodthirsty
plundering, burning captains, that the poor child may be slain and
murthered! Is this the fair promises you made to his father--wiling him
away from his poor mother, a widow, with talking of teaching him the
craft, and giving him your daughter! My son, Tiptoff here, told me the
spousal was delayed and delayed, and he doubted whether