The Bon Homme County independent. [volume] (Tabor, S.D.) 1904-1913, 1908-07-16

AS i on my knees, my eyer
sparkling. there was Q momentary dis
turbance behind me. It was caused by
the abrupt of the subdean. He
took In part OF the situation at g glance
that is. he saw me kneeling8 before
the duke, but he could not see the
duchess OF Suffolk, the dukes figure
being interposed. AS he came forward.
the crown making way for him, be EAST
an angry glance at me and scarcely
smoothed his brow even to address the
prince. IT am glad that your highness
has not done what was reported to me.
he said hastily, his ~obeisance brief and
pe~rfunctory. II heard an uproar In the
town and was told h a this maj was
pardoned."
ut is SOL, said the duke curtlS. eye
ing the ~ecclesiastic with no great favor
III is pardoned."
only in part, 1 presume" the priest
rejoined urgently, "or. IL otherwise, /
am sure that your highness has not re-
ceived certain information with which l
can furnish you"
Furnish away. sir" quoth the duke,
yawning.
II have had letters from my lord
bishop OF Arras respecting him."
Respecting himl" exclaimed the
prince. starting n bending his brows
in surprise.
Respecting those in whose company
he travels, !" the priest answered hastily.
They are represented to me as an
gerous persons, pestilent refugees from
England and obnoxious alike to the
emperor, the prince of Spain and the
queen of England"
II wonder you do not add also to, the
king of France and the sedan OF Tur-
key growled the duke. "Pishl 1 LII
not going to be dictated to by Master
Granveille-no, nor by his master, be he
ten times emperorl Go to! 60 to,
Master Subdean! You forget yourself,
and so does your master, the bishop. I
will have you know that these people
are not what you think them. Call you
my cousin, the widow of the consort OF
the late queen OF France, an obnoxious
person? Fie, fie. You forget YOURSELF"
He moved as he stopped speaking, SO
hat the astonished churchman found
himself confronted on a sudden by the
smiling, defiant duchess. The subdean
started, and his face .ell, for seeing her
seated in the dukes presence he dis
cerned 1t once that the game was
| played out, yet he rallied himself, be-
thinking him, / fancy, that there were
many spectators. He made a last eff
fort. ''The bishop of Arras"-he began.
"Pish!' scoffed the duke, interrupt
ing him. ~ q,
THE bishop. OF Arras"-the priest re-
II would Hegwere hung with his own
tapestryH retorted the duke, with q
brutal laugh.
Heaven forbid" replied the ecclesi-
astic, his pale face reddening and his
eye darling baleful glances at me. But
he took the hint. and henceforth a no
more of the bishop. Instead, he con-
OF course, considered the danger--the
danger, / mean, of provoking ~neighbors
so powerful by shielding this lady n
making her cause your own. You will
remember, sir
IT will remember Innspruck!" roared
the duke in a rage, where the emperor
aye, and your everlasting bishop, too
fled before a handful of Professionals
like sheep before wolves. A fig for
your emperorl l never feared him
young, and Ifear him less now that he
is old and decrepit and, as men say,
mad. Let him get to his watches and
you to your prayers. II there were
not this table between us, I.wouid pull
your ears, Master Churchman!"
= a
But tell me" 1 asked Master Berthe
as / stood beside his couch an hour
later, "how did the duchess manage it2
I gathered from something you or she
said a short time back that you had no
influence with the Duke of Cloves"
MOI quite tnat, he answered. my
wife and the late Duke of Suffolk had
much to do with wedding the princes
sister to King Henry, 13-14 years back,
is IL? And so far we might have felt
confident of his protection. But the
marriage turned out i'll, or turned out
short, and Queen Anne Of Cleves was
divorced, and--well, we felt a little
less confident on that account, parti-
cularly as he has the name Of a head
strong, passionate man.
Heaven keep him In it," / said,
smiling. but you have not told me
yet what happened"
THE duchess was still asleep this
morning, fairly worn out, as you may
suppose, when a great noise awoke her.
She got up and went to Dymphna and
learned 1t was the dukes trumpets.
Then she went to the window, and
seeing few people in the streets to
welcome him inquired why this was.
Dymphna broke down at that and told
her what was happening to you, and
that you were to die at that hour. She
went out straightway, without cover
ing her head-you know how impet-
uous she is-and flung herself on her
knees in the mud before the dukes
horse as he entered. He knew her,
and the rest you can guess"