the great St. Julian here, thou wouldst receive more praise, more gratitude, and eloquence of tongue, than I, his vassal, have the gift to shew. Now to your treasurer, lady, may it please you, that I may be conducted forthwith! and by to-morrow's dawn, we will leave your battlements with mighty thanks."

It shall be ordered so," cried the Lady Margaret, with a most gracious smile; and handing over the order to Sir Walter, he beheld, with involuntary disgust and surprize, the name of Cardinal Benvolio, as lord also of the vast treasury in the Castle of St. Clair; and of whom, it was now necessary that he should obtain an audience, e'er his mission could be finally completed.

"The pious priest is then your treasurer, lady, as well as your confessor!" uttered Sir Walter, while a flash of crimson, for a moment, mounted to the before sallow cheek of great Albino's wife. "By my sword and buckler, the worthy gentleman hath a mighty trust; body and soul were too much for one agent to take charge of, and in one cause, holily and wisely too: and worldly matters do sometimes call us from heavenly duties, lady. But the pious priest, Benvolio, can study all these, not like unto other men; and, had he been a statesman, by my sword and buckler, he had been a pious priest still."

Nay, now thou speakest slightingly of the holy father," uttered Margaret, with ill concealed displeasure lowering o'er her haughty brow: "he is the great Albino's friend! and as such I prize him."

"And for great Albino's lady, the holy father hath a friendship of some years growth: it is no wonder then that the pious man, having evinced such strong

fidelity to his most virtuous lady, should be invested with such high authority and affairs of office, as surprize the state, and much offends the mighty Emperor Josephus; with whom the cardinal is no favourite! nay, start not, lady, I speak truly! The emperor disapproves the influence that Benvolio hath lately obtained in the castle of St. Clair, and much fears that he hath asserted it unworthily, and somewhat to the disadvantage of the vast possessions and the rich treasures left you by your late gallant lord. In the court of Vienna, there are rumours spread abroad that much tend to discredit the seeming integrity of this holy virtuous Look to it, lady, and so farewell! Beware of treachery, even under the specious form of sanctity and religion; it sometimes conceals a smiling hypocrite, and a fawning courtier.

man.

"When the serpent of old approached the lovely Eve, for the wily purposes that he intended, and to seduce--to charm her mind from heaven, he came not, lady, in the form of evil; nor used he language that could aught alarm her chaste and delicate apprehensions. Had he done so, he well knew, she ne'er had sinned, nor the tempting apple ne'er been tasted; and, therefore, borrowed he the gentleness of virtue; and she, by virtue caught, fell into error, and became the victim of his deception. Was it not so, lady? Even so may not the great Margaret be seduced, and so fall? Beware, then, of the tempter, who, in the person of the cardinal, may assail thee; and thou, the wife of the great Albino, and the mother of the beauteous Augustina, may,--gods! let not the winds hear the dark tale, nor mountains listen to the echo, that would breathe a murmur against the bright fame of great Albino's wife!"

"Fool! dolt! madman!" vociferated Margaret, now enraged beyond the power of endurance or concealment; " and would the winds or mountains trouble themselves, (since thou makest winds and mountains so intelligent with mortal intercourse, and mortal things) about the fame thou speakest of, that concerneth man or woman!---not that I care for the rumour spread abroad about the holy father; or that it e'er can stagger my great resolves, which no change in him shall ever know, till I find better cause than that which thou pretendest, to do him wrong in mine estimation. For the vast

treasures which my lord hath left me, what doth that concern the state? since to the state I owe nothing, but to my great lord it is beholden much. All this I know, and do not fear the tongue of envious slander, that, belike, would bereave a poor widow of her just rights and privileges, could their malice or their rancour prevail, or do aught to change my purpose with Benvolio. But I will not be so dictated to, and I will be mistress of mine own estates, left me by my dear lord, to do that which best I please in my own domains. Were my son Fernando living, thou wouldst not dare to wag thy tongue in such rude and noisy insolence against his mother. Begone, therefore, and leave my battlements by to-morrow's dawn, and take the supplies for which thou hast paid the monies: but, mark me, Sir Walter De Ruthen, another hour shouldst thou linger here---thou, or thy vassals---thou shalt dearly pay for this thy great presumption, which much I thank St. Julian for."

'Lady, it is not to St. Julian thou shalt owe my vengeance," cried Sir Walter." Since thou hast so fear

lessly braved my counsel, which meant so well to serve thee, since thou art alike deaf to the voice of reason, or that which would give thee warning of the evil which is now pending o'er thy head,—I leave thee to thy fate, and to the pious counsels of thy ghostly confessor. Farewell, lady! in some adverse hour, perchance, we meet again; then shalt thou know thy friends from thy foes, and repent thee of a woman's falling weakness,the two greatest that can befal her in human existence, -passion and vanity! To them I leave you so, save you, gentle dame, farewell!"

So saying, and seizing the written order, for which he had paid the monies of St. Julian, for the supplies, lest, in a moment of frenzied rage, it might be countermanded by the now infuriated and indignant Lady Margaret, he attended Sir Orville Faulkner to the door; not deigning to bestow another glance on her whom he had left, notwithstanding the intrepid boldness of her character, overwhelmed with the tide of her furious and malignant passions. There were reasons most potent, however, for concealing them in the presence of the youthful page, as well as to hide them from the knowledge of her vassals. It was necessary, therefore, to adopt a seeming air of courteous civility towards St. Julian's page, which, at another time, her proud heart would have disdained. Besides, there were also reasons why Benvolio was not to be made acquainted with the nature of the sentiments of Sir Walter De Ruthen, or what the state alleged against his holy zeal. There were political reasons for all this to be hush'd up in silence, at least till the daughter of Albino had taken the holy vows, and entered the convent

of Mariette Mouline; turning, therefore, towards her page, with constrained complacency, she exclaimed,-"Faulkner, conduct Sir Walter de Ruthen to the great seal of the treasury, there to have access to the holy father, Benvolio; then see that he hath the provisions and ammunition he will have liberty to take from the stores of the garrison, well bestowed, ere he depart the towers of St. Clair; with cattle well caparisoned, to help him on his journey hence; and see that my bidding be obeyed with the nicest exactness and dispatch. So, save you, gallant soldier! and all imaginable success attend you to the camp of thy great and mighty master."

Sir Walter bowed his head in silence, which, as the indignant lady waved her hand for him to leave her presence, had more contempt in it than courtesy; and till he reached the place appointed for the meeting with the crafty priest, not a word was exchanged between him and the youthful page, although they had much to talk of.

They passed through the long winding passages and gothic chambers, till they reached that suite of apartments which were appropriated to the use and pleasure of the holy father, in profound silence; fearful that if they exchanged but a whisper with each other, that it would be heard and reported to the Lady Margaret by her watchful spies, who were placed in secret ambush, and lurked in every corner of the castle of St. Clair. At length, they reached the entrance of the cardinal's apartment, before which a sentinel walked on duty; and, ere they could enter there, demanded to know their business, and to give him the pass-word, before he could allow them to enter the postern-gate: