Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-12-01

them with her hands those who knew her
best felt sure, and maids and pages crept
out of her reach as hunters stand off from
wounded boar. But at the point where
her voice gave out and she Whirled to dc
one or perhaps. both of these, her eyes fell
on the house door, and her expression
| changed from rage to amaZement and
from amaZement to horror. Catching Ran
dalins arm in fear, not anger, she began
o gasp over and over: again the name OF
reboen the nurse.
Those whose glance had not followed
| .lerS, thought her mad and Shrank farthefi
out the eyes of thosel who saw what she
| did reflected her look. In the doorway the
British woman was standing, wagging hel
head in time to a silly quavernS song thai
| she was singing with lips SO distorted as tt
| be almost unrecogniZable. Her once fiorG
| face was ashen gray, and now as she quit
ted the door post and came toward them
she reeled in her walk, stumbling over
stones and cropping blindly with her huge
bony hands. But still she kept on singing
with twisted lips that strove to shipper
| and once she tried to sway her ungainly
| body into an uncouth dancing step that
| brought her floundering to her knees.
"A devil has possession of her., ElfgiVa
| shrieked Take her out of my sight, OF
] shall go mad. Take her away-take hel
/ away Shrieking in widest terror she
! fled before her, and for moment the gar
i den seemed given over to a grotesque game
! of blind-man's buff as women and boys
! scattered with renewed screaming at each
! approach of the CHASTITY face. 1t did not
! stop until two soldiers who had been made
| keepers of the Wretched creature came run
| ming out of the house and led hen away.
| Then it was Thorkefs sardOnic voice that
brought the Lady of Northampton back to
herself. Now, is this how you take the
| sight of your own handiwork? Or Is il
| because you regret that the king is not
| in this plight? One mouthful, and no more
has she had of the blood of the coiled
| snake"
/
at him, and with a dawnng comprehension
| came back her interrupted fury. 1.-The
I colled snake, she repeated slowly
and after that, in a rush of words, Then
| treated her? But what does it concern you
| that sent snake? Where saw you 1t!
| HOW knew you it had blood?" Without
| waiting for an answer she turned upon the
| marshal. her lids contracted into narrow
| Sits behind which her eyes ragged like
prisoned animals. 1T Is you who are to
| blame for this! You who miscarried my
| message. You have betrayed me. and
tell you" Hysterical tears broke her
voice, but she apeced it together with her
temper and went on telling him all the bit
| ter things she could think of, while he
stood before her in the grim silence of one
who has long foreseen the sdisagreeabe
| aspects of his undertaking and made UP
| his mind to endurance.
! When she stopped for breath he said,
steadily. I declare with truth that you
cannot dislike what have done much more
| than I, Lady of Northampton. I hope 1t
| will be an excuse with you, asst is a COM
fort to me, that instead Of fetching you
| into trouble"
Tllorkel took the words from his lips, and
no longer with sinister elaboration, but
with ferocity that showed itself in the
gathering swiftness Of Ms speech. "Trou-
ble-yes! By the hammer of Thor I think
you deserve to have trouble! Had any of
your witches brew done harm to the king
| can tell You that you would not have
lived much longer. What! Are the plans
of men to be upset by your baby face, and