father's
house in the midst of a wild tract of forest. He lived there, disguised
as a forester, for years and years, and helped to cut wood and to hunt,
and only two or three people knew the secret of his birth. He used to go
errands sometimes to the great Hall of the neighbourhood, and there he
saw Lady Anne, the beautiful daughter of Lord Wharton, and fell
desperately in love with her. One day when she was out riding he was
able to save her from the attack of an infuriated stag, and I suppose
she was very grateful, and perhaps showed her feelings too plainly, for
her father shut her up in a turret-room, and ordered her to marry
somebody whom she didn't like at all. I don't know what would have
happened, but just then Henry VII came to the throne, and one of his
first acts was to restore Sir Rowland Seton to his possessions and
dignity. Lord Wharton must have thought him an eligible suitor then, for
he was allowed to marry the Lady Anne, and take her away to his castle.
Their tomb is in Dittington Church. He was killed at the Battle of
Flodden, and one of his sons with him.

"There's a romantic story, too, about Sir Roderick Seton, who lived at
the Abbey here in the days of Charles I. He had a stone seat made, and
put just by the front door. The first person who sat on it was a lovely
girl named Katherine, and he said to her: 'Katherine, you have sat on my
seat, so you must give me three kisses as toll'. Not very long after he
went away to London, leaving his brother William to look after the
estate. Then civil war broke out, and he joined the Royalist forces, and
followed the young King Charles into exile. After the Restoration he
journeyed north, and came on foot to his old home. It was years and
years since he had left there, and nobody had had any tidings about him,
or knew whether he was alive or dead. He found his brother William, who
was now married to Katherine, sitting with her and their two children on
the stone seat by the door. He asked them for a night's lodging, and,
though they did not know who he was, they took him in and treated him
kindly. Next morning he asked his hostess to accompany him to the door,
and, pointing to the stone seat, said:

"'It is many years since I had three kisses from the dame who first sat
on it.'

"She recognized him then, and ran joyously to call the rest of the
household. His brother at once wished to hand over the keys to him, but
he would not accept them. 'I am old and c