Custer weekly chronicle. [volume] (Custer City, S.D.) 1890-1931, 1908-04-25
CHAPTER VII-Continued.

| was well known, even to me, coun-
| try lad. Her former husband. Charles
| Brandon, duke of Suffolk. had been not
| only the one trusted and constant
friend of King Henry VIII, but the
| kings brotherinlaw, his first wife
having been Mary, princess of England
and queen dowager of France. Late in
| his splendid and prosperous career the
| duke had married Katherine, the heir
sss OF Lord Willoughby de Eresby, and
she 1t was who stood before me, still
| young and handsome. After her hus-
| bands death she had made England
ring with her name, first by a love
match with a Lincolnshire squire, and
secondly, by her fearless and outspoken
| defense of the reformers. | did wonder
| indeed how she had come to be wan
dering in the streets at daybreak, an
object OF a chance passer's chivalry
and pity.
1T is simple enough" she said dryly
| Il am rich, / am Protestant. and /
have an enemy. When / do not like a
person, I speak out. Do not, Rich
| ard?"
You do. indeed, my dear" he an
swered. smiling.
And once / spoke out to Bishop
| Gardiner. What! Do you know about
Stephen Gardiner"
For I had started at the name, after
which l could scarcely have concealed
my knowledge II / would. So l an
| swered simply, Yes; / have seen
him" was thinking how wonderful
| this was. These people had been ut
| ter strangers to me until "A day or two
before, yet now we were all looking out
| together from the deck of "A Dutch boat
| on the low Dutch landscape, united
by one tie, the enmity of the same
man.
He is a man to be dreaded" the
duchess continued, her eyes resting on
her baby, which lay asleep on my bun
die of rugs, and | guessed what fear
II was had tanned her pride to flight.
His power in England is absolute. We
learned that it was his purpose to ar
rest me and determined to leave Eng
land. But our very household was full
of spies. and though We chose ii time
when Clarence, our steward, whom we
had long suspected of being Gardeners
chief tool, was away, Philip, his deputy,
gained a CleW to our design and
watched US. We gave him the slip
with difficulty. leaving our luggage, but
he dogged and overlook us, and the
rest you know"
| bowed. AS | gHZed at her my ad
miration, | knew, shone in my eyes.
She looked, AS she stood on the deck,
AN exile and fugitive so gay. SO bright.
so iEdomitable, that in herself she was
at once warranty and an omen of
ened her color and lOOsened here and
there a tress of her auburn hair. No
wonder Master -3ertie looked proudly
OIL his duchess.
Suddenly a thing | had clean forgot
ten flashed into my mind. and | thrust
my hand into my pocket The action
was so abrupt that it attracted their
attention, and when | pulled out a
packet-tWo paCketS-there were three
pairs of eyes upon me. The seal dangled
from one mssiVe. What have you got
there?' the duchess asked briSkly, for
she was woman and curious. DO
you carry the deeds of your property
about with you
No" | said not unwilling to make
small sensation. This touches your
grace"
Hush she cried. raising one inn
perious finger. "Trans2ressing already?
From this time forth | am Mistress
Bertram, remember. But come" she
went on. eyeing the packet with the
seal inquisitively. how does it touch
me?'
| put ii silently into her hands, and
she opened II and read ii few lines, her
husband peeping over her shoulder. AS
she read her brow darkened her eyes
grew hard. Master Bertie'S face changed
with hers, and they both peeped sud
denly at me over the edge OF the parch-
ment, suspicion and hostility in their
glances. How came you by this. young
sir?' he said slowly, after "A long pause
Have we escaped Peter to fall into
the hands of Paul."
mo, no." l cried hurriedly. I saw
that l had made greater sensat atiOn
than / had bargained for. / hastened
to tell them how | had met with Gar
diners servant at Stony Stratford. and
how l had become possessed of his Gre
do. tf,,l- 1,n,, 4
deed they laughed so loudly that the
placid Dutchmen, standing aft with
their hands in their breeChes pockets.
stared open-mouthed at us, and the
kindred cattle on the bank looked mild
ly up from the knee deep grass.
And what was the other packet ."
the duchess asked presently. is that
it in your hand"
Yes i answered, holding it up with
some reluctance. 1T seems to be a
letter addressed to Mistress Clarence"
"Clarence!" she cried. "Clarence."
resting the hand she was extending.
What! Here is our friend again, then
What is in it? You have opened it,"
No"
You have not? Then quick. open
It," she exclaimed. This, too. touches
us, l will bet a penny. Let us see at
once what it contains. Clarence in
the hip yet. the arch traitor"
But | held the pocket book back,
though my cheeks Redeemed. and |
knew | must seem foolish. They made
certain that this letter was communi-
cation to some spy. probably to Clar-
ence himself under cover of feminine
address. Perhaps it was, but II bore Il
woman'S name, and II was sealed. and,
foolish though l might be, | would not
hetraN tho wOmnn'S
No, madam" / said. confused awk.
ward, stammering. yet Withholding it
with a secret obstinaCy. Pardon me
If ! do not obey you-if do not let this
be opened. 1t may be what you say"
j added. with an effort. but it may
also contain an honest secret, and that
Il woman's."
What do you say?" cried the duch-
ess. Here are scruples!" At that her
husband smiled, and / looked in despair
from him to Mistress Anne. Would she
sympathiZe with my feelings? l found
that she had turned her back on us
and was gazing over the side. DO
you really mean," continued the duCh-
ess. tapping her foot sharply on deck
that you are not going to open that,
you foolish boy?'
Il do, with your grace's leave" l an
swered.
"Or without my grace's leave, That
is what you mean" she retorted pet
tishly, red spot on each cheek. when
people will not do what | ask. it is al
ways grace! grace. grace! But | know
them now"
dared not smile, and l would not
look up, lest my heart should fail me
and / would give her her way.
You foolish boy" she again said
and shifted. Then with toss of her
head she went away, her husband fol-
lowing her obediently.
/ feared that she was grievously Of
Tended, and 1 got up restleSsly and
went across the deck TO the rail on
which Mistress Anne was leaning,
meaning 10 say something which would
gain for NE her SNmnathN. perhaps her