ou--your breath thaws our ruff. What have you to ask of us?"

"Permission," said the unfortunate Earl humbly, "to travel to Cumnor
Place."

"To fetch home your bride belike?--Why, ay--that is but right, for, as
we have heard, she is indifferently cared for there. But, my lord, you
go not in person; we have counted upon passing certain days in this
Castle of Kenilworth, and it were slight courtesy to leave us without a
landlord during our residence here. Under your favour, we cannot think
to incur such disgrace in the eyes of our subjects. Tressilian shall
go to Cumnor Place instead of you, and with him some gentleman who hath
been sworn of our chamber, lest my Lord of Leicester should be again
jealous of his old rival.--Whom wouldst thou have to be in commission
with thee, Tressilian?"

Tressilian, with humble deference, suggested the name of Raleigh.

"Why, ay," said the Queen; "so God ha' me, thou hast made a good choice.
He is a young knight besides, and to deliver a lady from prison is
an appropriate first adventure.--Cumnor Place is little better than a
prison, you are to know, my lords and ladies. Besides, there are certain
faitours there whom we would willingly have in safe keeping. You will
furnish them, Master Secretary, with the warrant necessary to secure the
bodies of Richard Varney and the foreign Alasco, dead or alive. Take
a sufficient force with you, gentlemen--bring the lady here in all
honour--lose no time, and God be with you!"

They bowed, and left the presence,

Who shall describe how the rest of that day was spent at Kenilworth?
The Queen, who seemed to have remained there for the sole purpose of
mortifying and taunting the Earl of Leicester, showed herself as skilful
in that female art of vengeance, as she was in the science of wisely
governing her people. The train of state soon caught the signal, and as
he walked among his own splendid preparations, the Lord of Kenilworth,
in his own Castle, already experienced the lot of a disgraced courtier,
in the slight regard and cold manners of alienated friends, and the
ill-concealed triumph of avowed and open enemies. Sussex, from his
natural military frankness of disposition, Burleigh and Walsingham, from
their penetrating and prospective sagacity, and some of the ladies, from
the compassion of their sex, were the only persons in the crowded court
who retained towards him the countenance they had borne in the morning.

So much had Leicester been