cavalier has to say.--Speak
out, man, and a murrain to thee," he added, apart to Le Balafre.

But that blunt soldier, though he could make a shift to express
himself intelligibly enough to King Louis, to whose familiarity he was
habituated, yet found himself incapable of enunciating his resolution
before so splendid an assembly as that before which he then stood; and
after having turned his shoulder to the princes, and preluded with
a hoarse chuckling laugh, and two or three tremendous contortions
of countenance, he was only able to pronounce the words, "Saunders
Souplejaw"--and then stuck fast.

"May it please your Majesty and your Grace," said Crawford, "I must
speak for my countryman and old comrade. You shall understand that he
has had it prophesied to him by a seer in his own land, that the fortune
of his house is to be made by marriage; but as he is, like myself,
something the worse for the wear--loves the wine house better than a
lady's summer parlour, and, in short, having some barrack tastes
and likings, which would make greatness in his own person rather
an encumbrance to him, he hath acted by my advice, and resigns the
pretentions acquired' by the fate of slaying William de la Marck, to him
by whom the Wild Boar was actually brought to bay, who is his maternal
nephew."

"I will vouch for that youth's services and prudence," said King Louis,
overjoyed to see that fate had thrown so gallant a prize to one over
whom he had some influence. "Without his prudence and vigilance, we had
been ruined. It was he who made us aware of the night sally."

"I, then," said Charles, "owe him some reparation for doubting his
veracity."

"And I can attest his gallantry as a man at arms," said Dunois.

"But," interrupted Crevecoeur, "though the uncle be a Scottish
gentillatre, that makes not the nephew necessarily so."

"He is of the House of Durward," said Crawford, "descended from that
Allan Durward who was High Steward of Scotland."

"Nay, if it be young Durward," said Crevecoeur, "I say no more.--Fortune
has declared herself on his side too plainly for me to struggle farther
with her humoursome ladyship--but it is strange, from lord to horseboy,
how wonderfully these Scots stick by each other."

"Highlander shoulder to shoulder," answered Lord Crawford, laughing at
the mortification of the proud Burgundian.

"We have yet to inquire," said Charles thoughtfully, "what the fair
lady's sentiments may be towards this