ot angered with us for such like small gear.
But I count our Lady heard me, sith Father Dominic was pleased to
absolve me at last."

"Will you give me leave to say a thing, Mistress Maude?"

"I pray you so do, Master Calverley."

"Then if the same hap should chance unto you again, I counsel you to
travail [trouble] yourself neither with Father Dominic nor our Lady, but
to go straight to our Lord Himself. Maybe He were pleased to absolve
you something sooner than Father Dominic. Look you, the priest died not
to atone God for your sins, neither our Lady did not. And if it be, as
men do say, that commonly the mother is more fond [foolishly indulgent]
unto the child than any other, by reason she hath known more travail and
pain [labour] with him, then surely in like manner He that hath borne
death for our sins shall be more readier to assoil them than he that no
did."

These were bold words to speak in the year of grace 1385. But the
Queen's squire, John Calverley, was one of those advanced Lollards of
whom there were very few, and his son had learned of him. Even Wycliffe
himself would scarcely have dared to venture so far as this, until the
latter years of his life. It takes long to convince men that no lesser
advocate is needed between them and the one Mediator with God. And
where they are taught that "Mary is the human side of Jesus," the result
generally is that they lose sight of the humanity of Jesus altogether.

It was not, therefore, unnatural that Maude's answer should have
been,--"But, Master Calverley! so saying you should have no need of our
Lady." She expected Hugh to reply by an indignant denial; and it
astounded her no little to hear him quietly accept the unheard-of
alternative.

"Do you as you list, Mistress Maude," he answered. "For me, I am
content with our Lord."

"Well-a-day! methought all pity [piety] lay in worship of our Lady!"
said Maude, in that peculiar constrained tone which implies that the
speaker feels himself the infinitely distant superior of his antagonist.

"Mistress," was Hugh's answer, "I never said that I was content without
our Lord. I lack an advocate, to the full as well as any; but Saint
Paul saith that `oo [one] God and a mediatour is of God and of men, a
man, Christ Jesu.' And methinks he should be a sorry mediator that
lacked an advocate himself."

Avice had lifted her head, and had fixed her eyes intently on Hugh. She
had said nothing more; she was learni