Mr. George went into the bedroom, to look at the tapestry. Two sides of
the room were hung with it.

"It looks like a carpet hung on the walls," said Waldron.

"Yes," said Mr. George; "a richly embroidered carpet."

The figures on the tapestry consisted of groups of horsemen, elegantly
equipped and caparisoned. The horses were prancing about in a very
spirited manner. The whole work looked very dingy, and the colors were
very much faded; but it was evident that it must have been very splendid
in its day.

After looking at the tapestry, and at the various articles of quaint and
queer old furniture in this room, the company followed the attendant
into another apartment.

"This," said he, "is the room where Lord Darnley, Ruthven, and the rest,
held their consultation and formed their plans for the murder of Rizzio;
and _there_ is the door leading to the private stairway where they went
up. You cannot go up that way now, but you will see where they came out
above when you go up into Queen Mary's apartments."

"Let us go now," said Waldron.

"Well," said Mr. George, "and then we can come into these rooms again
when we come down."

So Mr. George and the boys walked back, through Lord Darnley's rooms, to
the place where they came in. Here they saw that the same broad flight
of stone stairs, by which they had come up from the court below,
continued to ascend to the upper stories. There was a painted
inscription on a board there, too, saying, "To Queen Mary's apartments,"
with a hand pointing up the staircase. So they knew that that was the
way they must go.

As they went up, both Rollo and Waldron asked Mr. George to explain to
them something about the murder, so that they might know a little what
they were going to see.

"Well," said Mr. George, "I will. Let us sit down here, and I will tell
you as much as I can tell in five minutes. Really to understand the
whole affair, you would have to read as much as you could read in a
week. And I assure you it is an exceedingly interesting and entertaining
story.

"Darnley, you know, was the queen's husband. Her first husband was the
young Prince of France; but he died before Queen Mary came home. So that
when she came home she was a widow; very young, and exceedingly
beautiful. There is a very beautiful painting of her, I am told, in the
castle."

"Let us go and see it," said Waldron.

"To-morrow," said Mr. George.

"After Queen Mary had been in Scotland some lit