es from one side to the other,
watching for any effect his disturbance might have made. But, with the
breeding of a true man of the world, the Grand Marshal merely
observed, "Benedicite, my son!"

"Good-morning, Father," returned Sir Godfrey.

"And what would you with me?" pursued the so-called Father Anselm.
"Speak, my son."

"Well, the fact is----" the Baron began, marching forward; but he
encountered the eye of the Abbot, where shone a cold surprise at this
over-familiar fashion of speech; so he checked himself, and, in as
restrained a voice as he could command, told his story. How his
daughter had determined to meet the Dragon, and so save Wantley; how
nothing that a parent could say had influenced her intentions in the
least; and now he placed the entire matter in the hands of the Church.

"Which would have been more becoming if you had done it at the first,"
said Father Anselm, reprovingly. Then he turned to Miss Elaine, who
all this while had been looking out of the window with the utmost
indifference.

"How is this, my daughter?" he said gravely, in his deep voice.

"Oh, the dear blessed man!" whispered Mistletoe, admiringly, to
herself.

"It is as you hear, Father," said Miss Elaine, keeping her eyes away.

"And why do you think that such a peril upon your part would do away
with this Dragon?"

"Says not the legend so?" she replied.

"And what may the legend be, my daughter?"

With some surprise that so well informed a person as Father Anselm
should be ignorant of this prominent topic of the day, Sir Godfrey
here broke in and narrated the legend to him with many vigourous
comments.

"Ah, yes," said the Father, smiling gently when the story was done; "I
do now remember that some such child's tale was in the mouths of the
common folk once; but methought the nonsense was dead long since."

"The nonsense, Father!" exclaimed Elaine.

"Of a surety, my child. Dost suppose that Holy Church were so unjust
as to visit the sins of thy knightly relatives upon the head of any
weak woman, who is not in the order of creation designed for personal
conflict with men, let alone dragons?"

"Bravo, Dragon!" thought Hubert, as he listened to this wily talk of
his chief.

But the words "weak woman" had touched the pride of Miss Elaine. "I
know nothing of weak women," she said, very stately; "but I do know
that I am strong enough to meet this Dragon, and, moreover, firmly
intend to do so this very night."

"Pe