ee, ladies."

"Yet," said Mary Livingstone, "methinks the daring insolence of the man
ought not to go altogether unpunished, madam. If he has chosen to
misconstrue, it can be no fault of yours."

"Perhaps not," replied Mary. "As a queen, I certainly ought to give him
up to the laws; but as a woman I cannot. Yet shall he not go unpunished.
He shall be forthwith banished from our court and kingdom. To-morrow I
shall cause it to be intimated to him that he leave our court instantly,
and Scotland within four-and-twenty hours thereafter, on pain of our
highest displeasure, and peril of disclosure of his crime."

Having thus spoken, and having obtained a promise of secresy regarding
Chatelard's offence from her two attendants, Mary retired for the night,
not however, quite assured that she was pursuing the right course for
her own reputation, in thus screening the guilt of the poet; but
nevertheless determined, at all risks, to save him, in this instance at
least, from the consequence of his indiscretion. On the following
morning, the queen despatched a note to Chatelard, to the purpose which
we have represented her as expressing on the preceding night, and, in
obedience to the command it contained, he instantly left the palace, but
in a state of indescribable mental agitation and distraction; for in the
determination expressed by the queen he saw at once an end to all his
wild hopes, and more unendurable still, an assurance that he had wholly
mistaken the feelings with which Mary regarded him. We have said that
Chatelard obeyed one of the injunctions of the queen--that was, to leave
the palace instantly. He did so; but whether he conformed to the other
the sequel will show.

Two days after the occurrences just related, Mary set out for St.
Andrew's; taking the route of the Queensferry, and sleeping the first
night at Dunfermline, and the second at Burntisland. On the evening of
her arrival at the latter place, the queen, fatigued by her journey,
which had been prolonged by hunting and hawking, retired early to her
apartment. Here she had not been many minutes, when the door was thrown
suddenly open, and Chatelard entered.

"What! again, Chatelard!" exclaimed Mary, with the utmost indignation
and astonishment. "What means this, sir? How have you dared to intrude
yourself again into my apartment?"

Without making any reply to this salutation, Chatelard threw himself on
his knees before the queen, and, seizing the skirt o