row
every obstacle in the way, as, we may be sure, will Philip of France,
Richard's deadly enemy. And now about yourself, Sir Cuthbert; tell me
what has befallen you since we last met."

Cuthbert related the adventures which had befallen him, and heard those
of Sir Baldwin.

"You have not, I suppose," the latter remarked, "as yet seen Prince
John?"

"No," Cuthbert replied, "I thought it better to come down to ask you to
advise me on the position of affairs before I attempted to see him."

"You did well," Sir Baldwin said. "When I arrived, I found that the
proper officials had, according to King Richard's instructions, draw up
the patent conferring upon you the lands and title of Earl of Evesham,
before leaving Acre, and had received the king's signature to it. This
was attested by several of the nobles who were with us and who returned
safely to England. Prince John, however, declared that he should not
give any heed to the document; that King Richard's power over this realm
had ceased before he made it; and that he should bestow the earldom upon
whomsoever he chose. As a matter of fact, it has been given to Sir
Rudolph Fleming, a Norman knight and a creature of the prince. The king
has also, I hear, promised to him the hand of the young Lady Margaret,
when she shall become of marriageable age. At present she is placed in a
convent in Worcester. The abbess is, I believe, a friend of the late
earl, and the girl had been with her for some time previously. Indeed
she went there, I think, when her father left England. This lady was
ordered to give up her charge to the guardianship of Sir Rudolph; but
she refused to do so, saying that it would not be convenable for a young
lady to be under the guardianship of a bachelor knight having no lady at
the head of his establishment, and that therefore she should retain her,
in spite of the orders of the prince. Prince John, I hear, flew into a
fury at this; but he did not dare to provoke the anger of the whole of
the clergy by ordering the convent to be violated. And indeed, not only
would the clergy have been indignant, but many of the great nobles would
also have taken their part, for there can be no doubt that the
contention of the abbess was reasonable; and there is among all the
friends of King Richard a very strong feeling of anger at your having
been deprived of the earldom. This, however, has so far not found much
vent in words, for as it was uncertain whether you would