r, all
the comforts and conveniences of life, and enjoyed herself with her
four Maries very much. Of course she knew nothing, and thought
nothing of the schemes and plans of the great governments for having
her married, when she grew up, to the young English prince, who was
then a little boy of about her own age, nor of the angry disputes in
Scotland to which this subject gave rise. It did give rise to very
serious disputes. Mary's mother did not like the plan at all. As she
was herself a French lady and a Catholic, she did not wish to have
her daughter marry a prince who was of the English royal family, and
a Protestant. All the Catholics in Scotland took her side. At length
the Earl of Arran, who was the regent, changed to that side; and
finally the government, being thus brought over, gave notice to King
Henry VIII. that the plan must be given up, as they had concluded, on
the whole, that Mary should not marry his son.

King Henry was very much incensed. He declared that Mary _should_
marry his son, and he raised an army and sent it into Scotland to
make war upon the Scotch again, and compel them to consent to the
execution of the plan. He was at this time beginning to be sick, but
his sickness, instead of softening his temper, only made him the more
ferocious and cruel. He turned against his best friends. He grew
worse, and was evidently about to die; but he was so irritable and
angry that for a long time no one dared to tell him of his
approaching dissolution, and he lay restless, and wretched, and
agitated with political animosities upon his dying bed. At length
some one ventured to tell him that his end was near. When he found
that he must die, he resigned himself to his fate. He sent for an
archbishop to come and see him, but he was speechless when the
prelate came, and soon afterward expired.

The English government, however, after his death, adhered to his plan
of compelling the Scotch to make Mary the wife of his son. They sent
an army into Scotland. A great battle was fought, and the Scotch were
defeated. The battle was fought at a place not far from Edinburgh,
and near the sea. It was so near the sea that the English fired upon
the Scotch army from their ships, and thus assisted their troops upon
the shore. The armies had remained several days near each other
before coming to battle, and during all this time the city of
Edinburgh was in a state of great anxiety and suspense, as they
expected that their c