Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1894-09-11

the daughter Of Lord Seton. the premier
baron OF Scotland. Mary Seton's dcvo
ton TO her royal mistress was neveI
furnished by any suspicion OF treacher,
or light behavior. when the other maids
were unable to keep up with the queen
hurried marches. the faithful Seton wa'
still With her; when the Queen was
| prisoner TO her rebelious lords. Mais
| Seton and Lady Sempili were Of her SIDE
and In her prison at Lochleven II was
Mary Seton. who. being about the same
age and height, changed clothes with the
Queen and remained behind to personals
her. and keep her flight from being ais
covered.
Sir Francis Kno.lys. writing from Car
lysle after the Queens flight thither,
says: Mistress Mary Seton, being Loru
Seton's daughter. u come hither' 30
that now here are six waiting women
although none OF reputation but Mistress
Mary Seton. who is praised by TINS queen
to be the finest busker that IL 10 De
seen In any country. Every o'her
day she hath a new device OF head Dress
ing without any cost. and yet-setteth iofti'
woman gayly WELL
Queen Mary was very partial 10 'he
Setons. Seton Castle. twelve miles from
Edinburgh. was favortc ride with her'
There she took refuge after her escape
from Holyrood. and there she went after
Darnly's death. 1t was to Lord seton
house at West Niddry that she "en'
after her escape from Lochleven. ana ~
was to him that Willie Douglas carried
the handkerchief with Its charcoal mes
sage at the time OF the first attempt 10
escape.
George. Lord Seton. brothor to Mary
Seton. was grandmother OF the queen =
household, and 20 faithful In service tnat
she offered him an earldom. Upon his
declining II she wrote for MIN 'hesc
lines In Latin and French:
Stunt comites. ducesque alii sunt demique
reyes: 1t,
Sethoni dominum sit salts esse MINI.
II descomptes. des roys. des uucsi
aims!
C'est assez pour moy d'estre seigneur De
Seton.
THE HEROINE.
"ITn Dieu, un Foy. I'm Roy un 10y
the legend inscribed In various portions OF
Seton Castle, may be taken as faithiui
exponent of the sentiments oil the Setons
of that day. Sir Walter Scott has taken
many liberties with historical truth In
'"rhe Abbot" but none greater than that
OF substituting Catherine Seton for Mary,
and making her the heroine Of romance
with the page who brought about the es-
cape Mistress Seton, however. was IN
reality the heroine Of n romance quite
ms stirring as that depicted In his pages.
She was beloved by Andrew Beton. who
IN 1870 came to take the place of his older
brother. John. Laird OF Criech. as master
OF the captive Queens household.
Mary Seton was then over 30. ana
would not listen to his suit. AFTER serV-
Co.
Beton wrote to his brother in France.
the Archbishop OF Glasgow. begging mn,
to ask Queen Mary's intercession The
Queen had soft heart where love AFFAIRS
were concerned. and at once endeavored
10 soften the obdu-ate beauty's heart,
but she declared that Andrew Beton, be-
ing a younger son. was no fttiEg match
for her She added TO this that she had
made a vow of celbacy, but upon the
Queens persuasion was finally induced
10 agree that If absolution from this vow
could be obtained she might listen to her
lovers suit The Queen dispatched Mas
ter Beton to France to obtain the re-
ouisite dissolution from his brother. His
mission was successful, but success came
too late. Like the knight in the old bal
lad:
Hame never cam he.
He died on the homeward journey In
1911.
Mary Seton remained seven years longer
with the Queen. following her from one
nrison TO the other. At Chatsworth her
health became so impaired that she was
forced ~ bid adieu TO her mistress, and
re.ire6 10 n convent at Rheims, where
she remained until her death. Inc de-
fections In the ranks of the Queens
Naries had been continually replaced;
there were at one time younger Beton
and a younger Livingston, and Mile. Rau-
lay. Marie Courceles. and Mary Bruce
were also faithful maids. besides various
others of less note. No account would be
complete without some mention of the
devoted Jane Kennedy and Elizabeth
Curle. who were with the Queen twenty
wears. attending her even to the scaffold.
Jane Kennedy had been with the
Queen at Lochleven. and. having been
locked in after the Queens escape to the
boat. sprang from the window into the
lake and swan until she overlook her
Majesty. 1t was she who bound the
Queens eyes with the god-fringed hand
kerchief on the scaffold and struggled
with the eXecutoner for possession OF
the Queens gold pomander, chain, ana
rosary" which had been given her by
Mary for the Countess Of Arundel
Jane was also the iltitiht va -
I'pon Beton's death he had been succeed
ed by Sir Andrew Melville. who. ike
Beton. fell in love with one Of the Queens
naids. Unlike him. however, he sue
ceeded in winning the lady's heart
though the faithful Jane would not de-
sert her mistress to marry him. After
the Queens DEATH however she rewarded
his devotions with her hand in marriage
but her happy welded life was doomed
TO be short King James. in recognition
of her faithfulness to his mother, APP
pointed her one of the ladies who were
10 meet his Queen, Anne of Denmark,
upon her arrival in 1883. Lady Melville
set out In an open boat to cross the
treacherous Firth Of Forth from Burnt
Island to Le!th, in the terrible storm
which came near wrecking the King ana
his brde-for causing which several 20
called witches upon their own confession,
were subsequently executed-her boat was
run down By large bark, and the ne
rome. who had so bravely breasted the
waters of Lochleven, was drowned.
Elizabeth Curle stood, with Jane Ken
nedy. on the scaffold with the Queen, and
she it was who received her Matesty's
last kiss; this she held as so great an
event in her life that IL was recorded on
her tombstone in the Scottish church OF
ST. Andrew. in Antwerp.
VIRGINIA DARE.