foreigners were, in their eyes, alone to blame. They were regarded as encouraged in their supercilious manners by the Queen; and poor Mary, on the very evening of her greatest triumph, was viewed, by those who were loudest in their loyalty, with distrust. For some time the irksome sensibility of Cornylees was overwhelmed by the interest which the approach of the papistical dignitaries, with the Bishop of Glasgow at their head, excited. He was not exactly of the reformed Church; in truth, he had very little partiality for any sect of clergy at all; but the air of the Reformation had been breathed upon him, and he saw that by the demolition of the pride of the ancient clergy, the consequence of the stated gentry, as they were called, would be augmented; and therefore it might be said that he was in some measure a partisan of the Reformation : he regarded the Romish dignitaries on this occasion as assuming a degree of consideration in the state to which they were not entitled, and this served to irritate his peevishness, already sufficiently offended. The condition into which he had been cast by the dryness of Southennan, and the more marked and sudden estrangement of Rizzio, ill qualified him to look with indifference on the veneration paid to the clerical procession by the servants and officers of the Palace. They compelled him to stand aside while the Bishop of Glasgow and the dignitaries of his company were ushered on towards the chamber where they were to be admitted into the presence of the Queen, and with others of the same humour he thought this preference great derogation, insomuch that he even complained aloud of it; nor were there wanting around him echoes to his discontent. Scarcely had the ecclesiastical pageant passed on, when the magistrates of the city were announced. They were all godly men of the Reformation, but it happened that on entering the portal they had been stopped by the guards for a short time, merely to prevent a pressure until the churchmen had ascended the stairs, a circumstance which vexed one and all of them. They thought it was a slight intentionally cast upon the city in their persons, and were in consequence indignant. They all spoke loudly against the audacity of the Papists, and past Bailie Brown did not scruple to observe, that it was a shame they should be permitted to show their faces in a protestant The Dean of Guild gently admonished him to speak low, for he should recollect that the Queen herself was known to be of a papistical nature. court. At this seditious crisis a flourish of trumpets announced the approach of Her Majesty. The doors of the presence-chamwere thrown open, and Mary, attended by her ladies, the most beautiful daughters of the land, came forward, led by her then favourite brother, the Prior of St. Andrews, who for the occasion, as it was thought, appeared in a secular garb. In the train of Her Majesty several of the old and most esteemed counsellors and nobles of her mother, the late Regent, came forward. Whether this was by accident or command, they consisted nearly in equal numbers of the professors of the reformed and old religion. But it was soon discovered and whispered through the throng, that there was one more of the papists than of the reformed gentry. This, however, was not very clear to those who, like Cornylees, were still at a distance from the door of the presence-chamber; Southennan, however, who was considerably farther advanced, saw that it was so, and saw also with the same uneasiness, arising from another cause, that the gentlemen in her Majesty's suite were, with the exception of the great officers of state and those ancient nobles who could have no meaner place, all her French courtiers; and that Chatelard in a conspicuous manner attached himself with an unbecoming freedom to Adelaide. This particular circumstance induced him to hang back, and to allow the greater part of the crowd to pass on to her Majesty before him. It thus came to pass that he was again brought beside Cornylees, whose dire dissatisfaction at all he heard and witnessed could with difficulty be restrained from being loudly expressed. In the mean time Mary was receiving, with her best graciousness, the heartless homage of the crowd, until the head of the ecclesiastical procession reached the door of the presence-chamber, when a sudden pause took place in the ceremonial. The lords and attendants immediately around the Queen, retired behind her, and left Her Majesty prominently in the fore-ground--a profound silence pervaded all the assembled throng the expectation of some extraordinary incident was visible in every countenance. The Queen alone appeared unchanged and self-possessed. After a short hesitating pause, the Bishop of Glasgow stepped forward, followed by the other prelates and dignitaries who attended him. Mary looked calmly on them as they approached; and when the Bishop was come before her, she gracefully held out her hand, which he kissed, kneeling at the same time. Before he had well recovered his erect position, she stepped a little aside to indicate that his homage was performed, and she again presented her hand, in the same manner, to the Abbot of Kilwinning, next in order. In this manner, without any particular demonstration of preference, she received the Roman clergy. Immediately after them, almost as it were in their train, a party of the reformed clergy followed. At their head was old Mr. Allison, whom she had so distinguished in the morning, and recollecting his mild. pale, and thoughtful countenance, as well as the personal compliment he had paid to herself, she forgot at the moment the invidious eyes which were then upon her, and smiled with particular graciousness as the old man drew near. The incident attracted universal attention, and the happiest auguries were drawn from it by the protestants. Immediately, however, behind Mr. Allison, came the dark and austere Dr. Glossar, who also had not been forgotten in her recollection of the morning audience; and, unfortunately, she received him coldly and proudly, and withheld from him the wonted condescension of her hand. It were needless to descant upon this circumstance. Mr. Allison, though much respected by the multitude, was too meek and temperate in his doctrines and demeanour to be held in any vehement esteem: while Dr. Glossar, a stern, uncompromising, and ambitious zealot, was regarded with awe and veneration. Few of the reformed clergy were, indeed, in the enjoyment of greater reverence; and none exacted a more implicit compliance with his opinions. The effect, therefore, of the marked distinction between the Queen's reception of him and his more amiable though less venerated colleague, was noticed by all present, and audible murmurs of dissatisfaction circled around the apartments. It was thus by yielding to the momentary impulses of her feelings, and forgetting the severe impartiality which royalty prescribes, that the ill-fated Mary disappointed the hopes and loosened the attachment of her subjects, even while design and dissimulation were far from her thoughts. L CHAPTER XXXIX. "But not a courtier (Although they wear their faces to the bent CYMBELINE. SOME time elapsed before the two orders of the clergy had passed the presence, and a short pause ensued before the magistrates of Edinburgh reached the Queen. They partook of the disappointment which her cool reception of Dr. Glossar had occasioned but as they were men of good sense in the main, though marked by their citizenship with some peculiarities, they approached her in a calm and respectful manner, and she made one step forwards to receive them. It happened, however, that in this motion her hand carelessly threw forwards the train of her robe, in such a manner that it entangled the Provost's feet, and nearly threw him down. The accident was trivial in itself, but it bred some ludicrous confusion, and the gay and youthful Mary could not stifle her risibility. Although every one near her saw that it was purely an accident, yet those who were at a distance attributed the mirth of the Queen to some feeling of ridicule for the magistrates, and, in consequence, such want of decorum was loudly condemned she was not, however, even then without partizans, inspired by her rank and her beauty. These instantly stood for her defence, and aggravated the resentment that was felt for the supposed disrespect practised towards the Provost. Saving this little mischance, nothing of any particular moment afterward interrupted the course of the reception, till the well-garnished Laird of Cornylees came forward. During his passage through the crowd, he had been particularly careful of his velvet clothes; but just as he was advancing to the Queen, the slashes in his doublet caught hold of the hilt of a bystander's sword, and when he bent forward, which he did, not being much accustomed to such ceremony, somewhat rashly, the hilt tore the doublet, and precipitated him on the floor: this was beyond the power of court eti quette or formality to control. A general laugh ensued: and the Queen herself made no effort to restrain her amusement. The Laird scrambled up in a fury, and hastily, as he rushed out of the room, shook the gentleman by the collar, who had been the innocent cause of his disaster. It happened to be the Count Dufroy, whose equanimity was not disturbed by the assault. On the contrary, the Count was as much diverted as the rest. It however had the effect of causing the Queen to break off the Reception while there were still a few gentlemen to come forward-among others Southennan; but Mary, with her characteristic quick-sightedness, saw, among those who had lingered, several whom she would have been pleased to have received; and in consequence, in retiring from the presence-chamber, she ordered Dufroy to bring in such of them to supper as he thought deserving, by their quality or breeding, of the distinction. It thus happened that Southennan was invited, and placed in a position to observe the conduct of Chatelard, of whom rivalry had made him suspicious. But he valued the honour, chiefly, on account of the opportunity it afforded him of addressing himself to Adelaide. Between the Reception and the supper, some time of necessity elapsed, during which, the Count Dufroy having special duties to perform, Southennan was left among the other invited guests, to pass the interval in the gallery, where many of the crowd still remained. As he was lounging carelessly among them, he happened to pass near the door, when he felt himself suddenly jerked by his cloak, and on turning round discovered his boy among a crowd of other servants, who who were waiting on the landing-place and stairs for their masters. Southennan was displeased with the familiarity of Hughoc, and roughly inquired what he wanted. "I hae," said the boy, rising on his tip-toes, and whispering, "a dreadfu' something to tell, and ye maun come down the stair and out to the court, for its a thing o'. awfu' instancy." All the tidings which Hughoc had brought to him, from the time of their arrival the preceding evening were of an extraordinary kind, although not, perhaps, of that importance which the boy attached to them. This had the effect of inducing him to yield more complacently to the request than he would, probably, otherwise, have done. VOL. I.-12 |