ing and she his consort. This was
what she meant when she had called herself a queen. With such falsehoods
had Jensen stuffed the ears of the man and his wife, snaring them to
their fate. As I had loved her once, so I pitied her now. She had shared
in a great crime, but it would be hard to shape a greater penalty for
her sin.

By the time that the parson had finished his story we who were listening
to him felt dismal, and we looked at each other grimly.

'What is the first thing to be done?' Lancelot said softly, more to
himself than as really asking any advice upon the matter from us.

'Fire a volley upon those devils when they draw near, and so rid the
earth of them,' I suggested.

Lancelot shook his head.

'They are under the protection of a flag of truce----' he began, when I
interrupted him hotly.

'What right,' I raged at him, 'what right have such devils to the
consideration of honourable warfare and of honourable men?'

Lancelot sighed.

'None whatever; but that does not change us from being honourable men
and from carrying on our contest according to the rules of honourable
warfare. They are devils, ruffians, what you will, but we--we are
gentlemen, and we have passed our word. We cannot go back from that.'

I know very well that I blushed a fiery red, from rage against our enemy
and shame at Lancelot's reproof. But I said nothing, and Mr. Ebrow
spoke.

'Mr. Amber,' he said, clasping Lancelot's hand as he spoke, 'you are in
the right, in the very right, as a Christian soldier and a Christian
gentleman. Their hour will come without our anticipating it.' And then
he wrung my hand warmly, in token that he understood my feelings too,
and did not overmuch blame me.

'One thing at least is certain,' said Lancelot. 'You must not return to
the mercies of those villains.'

Mr. Ebrow drew himself stiffly up. He was wet and weary, and the ugly
cut on his forehead did not add to the charm of his rugged face, but
just at that moment he seemed handsome.

'Mr. Amber,' he said, 'I passed my word to those men that I would return
after I had given you their message, and I will keep my word.'

'But,' said Lancelot, 'they will kill you!'

'It is possible,' said the man of God calmly. 'It is very probable. But
I have in my mind the conduct of the Roman Regulus. Should I, who am a
minister of Christ, be less nice in my honour than a Pagan?'

'Nay, but if we were to restrain you by force?' asked Lancelot.

'Mr.