rhaps mention it to your father, and it were best that it were known
to none."

The girls were silent for a minute.

"Sir," the elder said, after exchanging a word or two with her sister,
"we would ask a boon of you. The successes in a war are not always on
one side. My sister and I will think often of one who has so greatly
befriended us; and were you, by any accident of war, to fall into the
Welsh hands, and should evil befall you, it would be a deep grief to
us. We pray you then, sir, to accept this little gold necklet. Its
value is small, indeed, but it was given to me when a child by my
father. My name and his are engraved on the clasp. Should you, at any
time of stress, send this to my father; right sure am I that, on
recognizing it, he would treat as dear friends those who have done so
much for his daughters. I pray you to accept it, and to wear it always
round your neck or wrist; and if it should never prove useful to you,
it will at least recall us to your thoughts."

"I cannot be so churlish, lady, as to refuse your token so offered; and
though I hope that it will not be needful to use it as you say--for,
indeed, I expect to return very shortly to my lord in Northumberland--it
will be a pleasant remembrance of the service that a good fortune has
enabled me to render, to two fair maidens. Be assured that I shall ever
keep your necklet, for the sake of the givers.

"And now, farewell! We must be back at our post, for the captain of the
guard will be going his round, and we might be missed."

"We shall never forget you, sir. May the blessing of God fall on you,
for your kind deed!"

"May all good fortune attend you!" Oswald answered; and then, with
Roger, he made his way back to his post; while the girls hurried on,
and entered the forest.

Chapter 11: Bad News.

"This has been a strange adventure, Roger."

"A very strange one, master. Lord Grey would tear his hair, if he knew
that those two pretty birds had been hiding in the cage all day, and he
never knew it. However, I see not that it can do us harm. Nay, more,
there is a probability that it may even benefit us, for if it should
happen, by ill fortune, we should ever fall into the hands of the
Welsh, and they should abstain from cutting our throats then and there,
perchance these young ladies would repay the service we have rendered
them, by taking us under their protection."

"It may be so, indeed, Roger, though I hope that I shall never he