France to be ratified by the respective queens. Queen Elizabeth's
forces and the French forces were then both, as the treaty provided,
immediately withdrawn. The dispute, too, between the Protestants and the
Catholics in Scotland was also settled, though it is not necessary for
our purpose in this narrative to explain particularly in what way.

There was one point, however, in the stipulations of this treaty which
is of essential importance in this narrative, and that is, that it was
agreed that Mary should relinquish all claims whatever to the English
crown so long as Elizabeth lived. This, in fact, was the essential point
in the whole transaction. Mary, it is true, was not present to agree to
it; but the commissioners agreed to it in her name, and it was
stipulated that Mary should solemnly ratify the treaty as soon as it
could be sent to her.

But Mary would not ratify it--at least so far as this last article was
concerned. She said that she had no intention of doing any thing to
molest Elizabeth in her possession of the throne, but that as to
herself, whatever rights might legally and justly belong to her, she
could not consent to sign them away. The other articles of the treaty
had, however, in the mean time, brought the war to a close, and both the
French and English armies were withdrawn. Neither party had any
inclination to renew the conflict; but yet, so far as the great question
between Mary and Elizabeth was concerned, the difficulty was as far from
being settled as ever. In fact, it was in a worse position than before;
for, in addition to her other grounds of complaint against Mary,
Elizabeth now charged her with dishonorably refusing to be bound by a
compact which had been solemnly made in her name, by agents whom she had
fully authorized to make it.

It was about this time that Mary's husband, the King of France, died,
and, after enduring various trials and troubles in France, Mary
concluded to return to her own realm. She sent to Elizabeth to get a
safe-conduct--a sort of permission allowing her to pass unmolested
through the English seas. Elizabeth refused to grant it unless Mary
would first ratify the treaty of Edinburgh. This Mary would not do, but
undertook, rather, to get home without the permission. Elizabeth sent
ships to intercept her; but Mary's little squadron, when they approached
the shore, were hidden by a fog, and so she got safe to land. After this
there was _quiet_ between Mary and Eliz