disappointment, but cleared into a
friendly greeting, as there advanced a tall, slender gentleman, of the
well-known fair, pink and white colouring, and yellow hair, apparelled
point device in dark green velvet, with a full delicately crimped ruff,
bowing low as he extended his hand to take that of the young lady,
exchanging at the same time a friendly greeting with his old comrade,
before leading Cis to her place.

On the whole, she was pleased. Tete-a-tetes with Humfrey were
dreadfully embarrassing, and she felt life so flat without her
nocturnal romance that she was very glad to have some one who would
care to talk to her of the Queen. In point of fact, such conversation
was prohibited. In the former days, when there had been much more
intercourse between the Earl's household and the neighbourhood, regular
cautions had been given to every member of it not to discuss the
prisoner or make any communication about her habits. The younger
generation who had grown up in the time of the closer captivity had
never been instructed in these laws, for the simple reason that they
hardly saw any one. Antony and Cicely were likewise most comfortably
isolated, for she was flanked by a young esquire, who had no eyes nor
ears save for the fair widow of sixteen whom he had just led in, and
Antony, by a fat and deaf lady, whose only interest was in tasting as
many varieties of good cheer as she could, and trying to discover how
and of what they were compounded. Knowing Mistress Cicely to be a
member of the family, she once or twice referred the question to her
across Antony, but getting very little satisfaction, she gave up the
young lady as a bad specimen of housewifery, and was forced to be
content with her own inductions.

There was plenty of time for Antony to begin with, "Are there as many
conies as ever in the chase?" and to begin on a discussion of all the
memories connected with the free days of childhood, the blackberry and
bilberry gatherings, the hide-and-seek in the rocks and heather, the
consternation when little Dick was lost, the audacious comedy with the
unsuspected spectators, and all the hundred and one recollections, less
memorable perhaps, but no less delightful to both. It was only thus
gradually that they approached their recent encounter in the Castleton
Cavern, and Antony explained how he had burnt to see his dear Queen and
mistress once again, and that his friends, Tichborne and the rest, were
ready to