, 1863-12-12
IcooM TERRITORY SATURDAY DECEMBER 49, 1863

waiting reply, he turned to the Countess,
saying, " Is she Of thy suite, dear coz She
hath fair face, worthy the handmaiden Of
Beauty's Queen" r f,,g.
The Countess liked not his inquiries |;
but, nevertheless, was Aattercd by the COM
pliment with which he concluded and she
replied, that she was the orphan daughter
Of her fathers friend, and the worshipful
dfvfnity -uf ffiss William. The other COM
blatant now approached also; and, kneeling
in front Of the dais, raised his visor. u
aubrey" exclaimed the monarch.
/" My brother !" cried Madeline, starting
to his side.
Your brother ?" responded Sir Viii
liam. . t.
"What! my little Madeline, woman ~
replied the stranger. Bless thee, my
own sister"
"What" exclaimed the monarch, " the
paragon Of our tournament, the sister Of
bold Aubrcy! And you, too, the combat
ant against her chosen champion! Had
ye spilled blood on either side, this days
sport might have spoiled bridal But
whence come ye, Aubrey, and wheni ?"
"My liege," replied the other, having
arrived at Knaresborough on the day after
the departure Of your Majesty, / hastened
hithcr to inform your Grace that France
lies open to our arms, and our troops are
eager to embark"
In few days, Edward left Wark, leav-
ing behind him powerful garrison for the
defence of the Castle, but he had left it
desolate to poor Madeline, for he had taken
to accompany him, onhis invasion of France,
her betrothed husband and her brother.
That brother whom sho had met but three
days before, she had not seen from child
hood-nor was she certain that he lived
for he had been soldier from his boyhood,
and his life had been spent in the camp and
in foreign wars, while she had been nur-
tured under the protection Of the Countess
Of Salisbury. s9 sa s'
1t was about seven years after the events
we have alluded to had occurred, that Ed
ward, covered with all tho fame Of a con-
querOr, if not the advantages Of conquest,
returned to England. During his victories
and the din Of war, however, he had not
forgotten the beauty of his fair cousin,
whose glances had bewildered him at Wark
Castle; and now, when he returned, his ad-
miration was renewed, and she appeared as
the first favorite Of his court He had
prnxided 4 royal banquet for the mobiles and
the knights who had distinguished them.
selves during the French wars. A thou
sand lights blazed in the noble hall.-mar-
tial music pealed around--and hundreds Of
the brightest eyes in England looked love
and delight. The fairest and the noblest in
the land throngcd the assembly. Jewels
sparkled, and studded the gorgeous apparel
Of the crowd In the midst Of the hall
walked the gay and courtly monarch, with
the fair Joan Of Salisbury resting on his
arm. They spoke of their first meeting at
Wark, of the siege and the tournament, and
again they whispered, and hands were
pressed, and looks exchanged; and, while
they walked together, blue garter, decked
with gold, pearls, and precious stones, and
which, with golden buckle, had fastened
the sandal Of the fair Joan round the best
turned ancle in the hall, became loose and
entangled among her feet. The Countess
blushed and the monarch, with the easy
reimbursement and politcness Of prac-
tised gallant, stopped to fasten the unfOrtu-
nate ribbon. AS the mobiles behcld the
sovereign kneel with the foot Of the fair
Countess on his knee, hardly suppressed
smile ran through the assembly. But, OBJ
serving the smile upon the face Of his no
blcs, the monarch rose proudly, and, with
the garter in his hand, exclaimed" Honi
soit gai NAL y ptass Pr" Shame be to
him who thinks i'll Of it!' and buckling the
garter round his left knee, he added" Be
this the order of st. George land the
proudest monarchs and mostyaliant knights
in Christendom shall be proud to be hon
orcd with the emblem Of thy garter, fair
coz"
Scarce, however, was the royal banquet
CLOSED, ,when the voice Of lamentation was
heard in every house, though the mourners
went not about the streets for the living
feared to follow their dead to the sepulchre.
The angel Of death brcathed upon the land
he stretched out his wings and covered
it-at his breath the land sickened-be-
meath the shadow Of his wings the people
perishcd. The green fields became az
wilderness, and death and dcsolation reigned
in the market places. Along the streets
moved cayalcades Of the dead-the hearse
Of the noble and the car Of the citizen
and the dead bodiesof thepoor were picked
up upon the streets The churchyards
rose as hills, and fields were turned up for
the dead The husband fed from his dy-