Los Angeles herald., 1906-01-21
QueeD Elizabetb's Gloves aDd Rings

she regarded it as an evil portent.
She did indeed die soon afterward; but 1t
a ring had anything to do with her death,
which is not probable-it is far more likely
to have been another of her jewels.
When Mary Stuart, the unfortunate Queer
OF Scots, was in prison. she sent valuable
diamond ring TO the jealous kinswoman who
signed her death warrant. Ihls EllzaDeth
wore TO the day of her death.
AS she approached her own end, the slght
of the sad memento must have recalled bitter
memories. She was not capable of remorse,
but it must have made her think. &C.,
There was another ring which did un-
doubtedly cause the vain old woman great
deal of grief and misery, and possibly may
have fastened her death This was the lam,
Gus sardonyx ring, with the cameo head oil
the Queen, which she gave to her favonte,
Earl Essex.
We all know the story of the handsome
young nobleman who, gifted with marvellous
grace of mind and person, fell at last vletlm
to the intrigues of his enemies, his own lnuis-
oretion and-shall we say it?-the jealous
petuance of his sovereign.
He was her relative, a sort of second COUSIN,
and | think she loved him, in her way--ca-
pricious always, one day naughty and distant,
the next, when he was i'll, condescending
enough to go in person to see him and give
him broth with her own hands.
At last he committed the political ohense
that sent him a prisoner to the Tower, where
he was condemned to die The death war
rant was brought to Elizabeth to sign. She
did sign it. Then, at the thought OF that hand
some face being marred by the bloody AK,
she countermanded it. Finally she signed 1t
again, angry and impatient because the earl
failed to send the ring which she had gwen
him in youth promising him that If the time
ever came when she should turn against MN,
she would forgive him, even at the last mo-
ment if she received the ring back from MN.
The ring never came, and the gay young
noble-he was scarcely thirty four, the hand
soonest and the knightest of all her cavaliers
was led to his doom.
She thought he had not sent the ring. But
he had. Life was sweet to him, as it is to
every man who has wife, honor, happiness,
and he had dropped the precious ring from
his prison window to a boy, whom he bade
bear it to Lady Scrope, his cousin.
The lad made a mistake, and carried it in;
stead to that lady's sister, the Countess OF
Nottingham, whose husband was poor Essex's
deadly foe. She gave it to the cruel earl, who
retained it. so that while the miserable Queen
was pacing the floor, looking till the last mo-
ment for the token that was to earn her for
giveness, it lay in the possession OF his wick
cd rival.
Later she heard the story from the lips OF
the diving countess. But it was too late; The
bright young head had fallen, and from that
time she never knew a happy moment.
The deathbed confession of the Countess OF
Nottingham gave a rude shock to the fast
ebbng sands of the sorrowstrlcken Queen
She was now nearly seventy. She had sur
vived her old friends and ministers; she was
without resources in herself; she knew that
she was surrounded with venal, interested
men. who only waited till the last gasp had
left her frail. careworn. wrinkled body, to
crowd about her successor. She telt this with
all the bitterness of a vain, jealous, lmpotent
woman; but she made no sign. 1t is sad
dreary story The picture of the forlorn old
woman, lying on her palace floor, with her
| e ;,,h har, tp seek
ing no support from religion, no consolation
from affection, friendless, helpless, hopeless
comfortless, and thus gradually wasting into
death, is such a lesson on the nothingness Of
power and the mscaculations of selfishness
that history affords not one more terrible and
impressive.
There was ring associated with the death
of Elizabeth, long afterward known in court
traditions as the "blue ring" 1t was a sap
phire, and had been confded to Lady Scropt
| bv King james of Scotland, to be Forwarded
as token to announce the decease of the
Queen,
All the time the miserable Queen lay dyins
this venal spy of the Stuart bent over her
watching with lynx-ke eyes every breath ant
motion and word of Englands proud sovereign
When she was altogether dead, Lady Scrop,
ran to a window and gave intelligence Of th
fact by silently dropping the blue ring to hel
brother, Sir Robert Carey, who was lurking
beneath, and who galloped with all speed
J taking a fresh horse at every stopping-plact
on the route, to bear the token to James al
Edinburgh.
Carey reached Holyrood the following night
Just after the King had retired
lie arose. however, when the messenger gave
him the ring. dressed himself and started al
once for London to claim the crown, which a
rev days afterwards was put upon his head
AND so ends the story of Queen Elizabeth
and her rings.