that he was not expected to express his gratitude, the poet kissed the volume with great reverence, pressed it to his heart, and retired from the royal presence with repeated obeisances, not less delighted at the success of his suit, than flattered by so signal a testimony of her Majesty's favour and condescension. After a prolonged conference, in which he had every reason to believe that he had completely re-instated himself in the Queen's favour, Essex also withdrew, descending the terraces, and crossing towards a postern gate of the park. In this route he most unfortunately encountered the fair Mrs. Bridges, one of the maids of honor, with whom he had long been suspected of being deeply in love, and who on his account had already been exposed to the wrath, and even the blows of her royal mistress. Imagining collec in his Bibliographical Decameron, and known among tors as Queen Elizabeth's Prayer Book. Through the friend ship of Mr. Freeling (from a copy in his possession) the Proprietors are enabled to present an admirable facsimile of one leaf. The extract, is part of a prayer by the celebrated John Fox, author of the Book of Martyrs. Dr. Dibdin says, "I wish I knew more of the private history of this elegant volume at all events if you feel disposed to loosen your purse strings, purchase one of the earlier editions of it, on account of the superior sharpness or truth of the outline." The Doctor adds that the first edition is dated 1569, the second 1578, the third 1581, the fourth 1590, and the fifth 1608. himself to be screened from observation, the enamoured Earl accosted her in such terms of fervent and high-flown gallantry as were then in vogue among the courtiers, and placing a small collar of chrystals around her neck, which he declared that he had brought from Ireland expressly for her wearing, he would have detained her still longer in dalliance, had not his Innamorata hurried away, urging the necessity of resuming her attendance upon the Queen. Although her Majesty had been so embowered in the arbour as not to be visible to Essex, she had unluckily been following him with her eyes, through a treacherous loop-hole of the leaves, and with a rageenvenomed heart had witnessed the whole transaction. It was not without a considerable struggle that she could prevent an immediate explosion of her fury and assume a forced composure of look and voice as she exclaimed to the approaching offender, "So, mistress! you can find time to wait upon us when you have finished your amorous foolery with the Lord Deputy. If there be neither treason nor immodesty in the avowal, we would fain know what passages passed between you." "So please your majesty," faultered the confused and blushing maid of honor, "we did but exchange a friendly greeting; I tore myself away so soon as civility might warrant, and hastened. "Ay, with such haste," interposed the Queen, "that you have left your partlet all awry.” "Nothing would dissuade his lordship,” resumed Mistress Bridges, blushing still deeper, as she adjusted her ruff, "but he must needs place this Irish carcanet around my neck." At this confession Elizabeth could restrain herself no longer. Quick as lightning she bestowed upon her trembling rival a violent box on the ear, tore the collar from her neck, dashed it to the ground, and exclaimed with a look, and voice that sufficiently declared her to be the daughter of Henry the Eighth: "God's death! thou hussy, thou wanton! thou gill-flirt! thou flaunting young cockatrice! is our court and presence to be contaminated and insulted by such doings as these? Begone! and let me never again see thy shameless face: what! did I send this traitorous and temerarious youth to Ireland to collect carcanets for his concubines, instead of putting chains around the rebel Tyrone. By the throne of heaven! he shall dearly rue it. I am no Queen to be thus saucily entreated." The terrified maid of honor shrunk away to conceal her disgrace; Elizabeth arose and walked hastily towards the mansion, but having had a few minutes to collect herself, and feeling probably that she had betrayed rather more violence than became her sex and station, she turned towards her attendants, and in a tone of assumed moderation exclaimed, "For ourself, ladies, this matter touches us not; the disloyal minion and the frontless minx would have been forgotten in silent scorn, but that we will neither suffer our public service to be neglected, nor the decency of our court to be violated. "For the latter, let the name of this flirting puppet be scratched from the list of our maids; and touching this misproved and disobedient Lord Deputy, who has dared to desert his post, and return from Ireland in open defiance of our orders, we will see that he be straightway humbled; where is our secretary? let him join us forthwith in the council room." That same evening the Earl was committed a prisoner to his chamber, and after much delay and numerous vacillations, occasioned by the miserable perplexity of the Queen's mind, as she fluctuated between severity and returning tenderness, she at length publicly disgraced him, and deprived him of all his great offices and emoluments. Always haughty and ungovernable, and rendered alike desperate in fortune and in mind by these indignities, the ill-fated Earl was driven to those frantic and well known projects of rebellion which shortly afterwards conducted him to the scaffold. Here be woods as green As any, air likewise as fresh and sweet As where smooth Zephyrus plays on the fleet A VALLEY green and interlaced with flowers, |