figure. In the midst of this general calamity, when everybody thought our misfortunes irretrievable, and our case desperate, we were thrown into the furnace together, and (as it often happens with cities rising out of a fire) appeared with greater beauty and luster than we could ever boast of before. "What has happened to me since this change of sex which you now see, I shall take some other opportunity to relate. In the meantime, I shall only repeat two adventures, as being very extraordinary, and neither of them having ever happened to me above once in my life. The first was, my being in a poet's pocket, who was so taken with the brightness and novelty of my appearance, that it gave occasion to the finest burlesque poem in the British language, entitled from me, "The Splendid Shilling." The second adventure, which I must not omit, happened to me in the year 1703, when I was given away in charity to a blind man; but indeed this was by mistake, the person who gave me having heedlessly thrown me into the hat among a pennyworth of farthings. paradox: something seemingly absurd, yet true in fact. Sir Francis Drake: a celebrated English sailor and explorer in the time of Queen Elizabeth. ingot: a mass of metal cast in a mold. sack: a kind of sweet wine.. nonconformist: one who did not agree to the laws of the Church of England. Templar: a student of law at the Temple near the Thames. ordinary a dining-place. Westminster Hall: a structure adjoining the houses of Parliament on the west, forming part of the ancient palace of Westminster. The first English parliaments were held in this hall, and it was also used at the coronation of the king. Civil Wars: the war in England between the royal party, under Charles I, and the Roundheads or people's party, under Oliver Cromwell. made one man sure: had enlisted him. squirred: threw away with a jerk. Oliver Cromwell: Lord Protector of England after the execution of Charles I. king's return: the return of Charles II in 1660 after the abdication of Richard Cromwell. cavalier: a follower of the royal family. break: become bankrupt. change of sex: the coin now bore the king's head. The Splendid Shilling: a poem by John Philips. 68. BOOT AND SADDLE By Robert Browning I OOT, saddle, to horse, and away! BOOT, Rescue my castle before the hot day CHORUS. Boot, saddle, to horse, and away! II Ride past the suburbs, asleep as you'd say; III Forty miles off, like a roebuck at bay, Flouts Castle Brancepeth the Roundheads' array: Who laughs, "Good fellows ere this, by my fay, CHORUS. "Boot, saddle, to horse, and away!" IV 66 Who? My wife Gertrude; that, honest and gay, Nay! CHORUS. "Boot, saddle, to horse, and away י ! boot and saddle: the first trumpet call for mounted drill. gallants gay gentlemen; here it means the followers of the king, Charles I. flouts: disdains; Castle Brancepeth (which belongs to the singer as in stanza one) is the subject. Roundheads the soldiers of the Parliament. by my fay: by my faith. My wife Gertrude: This was at first the name of the poem. Notice how the whole situation is gradually unfolded in stanza after stanza. 66 69. RALEIGH'S CLOAK By Sir Walter Scott THE following selection is from "Kenilworth," one of the Waverley Novels," the scene of which is laid in the time of Elizabeth. Among the characters introduced is Sir Walter Raleigh, who is said to have attracted the queen's notice by the gallant act here related. THE HE royal barge, manned with the queen's watermen richly attired in the regal liveries, and having the banner of England displayed, lay at the great stairs which ascended from the river. The yeomen of the guard, the tallest and most handsome men whom England could produce, guarded the passage from the palace gate to the riverside, and all seemed in readiness for the queen's coming forth, although the day was yet so early. Walter Raleigh caused the boat to be pulled toward a landing-place at some distance from the principal one, which it would not, at that moment, have been thought respectful to approach, and jumped on shore, followed, though with reluctance, by his cautious and timid companions. As they approached the gate of the palace, one of the sergeant porters told them they could not at present enter, as her Majesty was in the act of coming forth. Nay, I told you as much before," said Blount; 66 do, I pray you, my dear Walter, let us take boat and return." "Not till I see the queen come forth," returned the youth, composedly. "Thou art mad, stark mad!" answered Blount. "And thou," said Walter, "art turned coward of the sudden. Thou wouldst blink and go back to shun the frown of a fair lady!" At this moment the gates opened, and ushers began to issue forth in array, preceded and flanked by the band of gentlemen pensioners. After these came the queen, amid a crowd of lords and ladies. The young cavalier we have so often mentioned had probably never yet approached so near the person of his sovereign, and he pressed forward as far as the line of warders permitted, in order to avail himself of the present opportunity. Unbonneting, he fixed his eager gaze on the queen's approach, with a mixture of respectful curiosity, and modest yet ardent admiration, which suited so well with his fine features, that the warders, struck with his rich attire and noble countenance, suffered him to approach the ground over which the queen was to pass somewhat closer than was permitted to ordinary spectators. The night had been rainy, and, just where the young gentleman stood, a little pool of muddy water interrupted the queen's passage. As she hesitated to pass on, the |