In Doublet and Hose - A Story for Girls

Lucy Foster Madison

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• Publié par: vuwyar
• Publié le: 08 décembre 2010
• Nombre de lectures: 33
• Langue: English

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The Project Gutenberg EBook of In Doublet and Hose, by Lucy Foster Madison
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Title: In Doublet and Hose
A Story for Girls
Author: Lucy Foster Madison
Illustrator: Clyde O. Deland
Release Date: February 9, 2009 [EBook #28037]
Language: English
Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK IN DOUBLET AND HOSE ***
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Transcriber’s Notes:
Archaic and variable spelling, as well as punctuation, has been preserved as printed
except as indicated in the text by a dotted line under the change. Hover the mouse over
the word and the original text will appear. A list of these changes can be found here.
The following words were found in both hyphenated and unhyphenated forms in the
original text and both forms have been retained: hunting party (hunting-party) lifetime (life-
time); also, the obsolete spelling of Shakespeare (Shakspeare) was retained.
Illustrations have been moved where necessary so that they are not in the middle of a
paragraph.
There is one footnote and it has been placed at the end of the chapter in which it appears.Copyright 1904 by The Penn Publishing Company
In Doublet and Hose
“METHINKS THE MAID WILL SERVE OUR PURPOSE
WELL”
3Contents
CHAPTER PAGE
I A Question of Skill 7
II The Soldier Guest 17
III The Page’s Dress 27
IV Anthony Babington 37V On the Road to Stafford 48
VI A Glimpse of Mary 56
VII Francis to the Front 66
VIII The Delivery of the Letters 75
IX The Coming of Elizabeth 90
X The Queen Takes Offense 101
XI At the Queen’s Command 111
XII The Favor of Princes 121
XIII A Familiar Face and a Challenge 137
XIV A Strange Duel 149
XV The Strange Weakness of Francis Stafford 160
XVI What Came of an Offer of Friendship 171
XVII What Francis Overheard 182
4XVIII An Adventure 192
XIX A Shelter from the Storm 203
XX Francis Finds a Helper 213
XXI An Unlooked for Reception 223
XXII As It Fell Out 229
XXIII In the Tower of London 238
XXIV A Friend in Need 250
XXV A Great Sorrow Befalls Francis 260
XXVI A Fellow Prisoner 272
XXVII The Escape 284
XXVIII The Three Volunteers 297
XXIX A Britomarte of the Armada 304
XXX Pardon And Happiness 321
Illustrations
PAGE
“Methinks the Maid will Serve our Purpose Well!” frontispiece
Queen Mary’s Wit Grasped the Situation 77
Elizabeth Extended her Hand Graciously 107
The Two were Deep in the Mysteries of Fencing 156
She Gave a Faint Gasp 190
“I Will Not Tell, Sir Francis” 248
“Pull, Pull for Your Life!” 318
7IN DOUBLET AND HOSECHAPTER I
A QUESTION OF SKILL
It was June, and the peaceful stillness of a summer’s day hung over an
ancient wood which lay in the heart of the New Forest near the village of
Lyndhurst. The wood was a part of a large demesne which had at one time
been bordered by hedges of yew and holly, but these, having been untrimmed
for years, had grown into great bushes which in many places were choked up
by underwood and brambles.
The forest stretched in every direction. Wood after wood rose before the eye,
masses of color, the birches hung with softest green, the oak boughs breaking
into amber and olive made doubly bright by the dark gloom of the firs. Wide-
8branched oaks were intermingled with beeches and copsewood of various
descriptions so closely in some places as to intercept the sunshine. In others
the trees receded from each other, forming wide vistas that gave glimpses of
other recesses of sylvan solitude.
Down the long sunlit glades the gold belted bees sounded their humming
horns through every flowery town of the weald. Gauze-winged dragon-flies
darted hither and thither while butterflies of every hue sailed by on wings of
sheeny bronze. In the bracken wild roses rioted in the richest profusion; the
foxglove blazed like pillars of fire through the shadowy underwood and the
woodbine flaunted its tall head proudly among the leaves. A gentle breeze
rustled the fern, and breathed upon the quaking grass, setting its beautiful
spikelets in motion until they seemed like fairy bells rung by elfin fingers. The
flutter and hum of the wild things served but to intensify the stillness of the
wood.
All at once the deep bass notes of a hound broke upon the air. Louder and
louder grew the baying, and soon from out of the purplish shade of the trees
9there dashed a large greyhound followed by a laughing, panting maiden.
“Content thee, Echo,” she cried flinging herself upon the sward under a wide-
spreading oak. “I have breath to follow thee no more. Rest until our good
cousin joins us.”
The dog obediently stretched himself by her side, and once more quiet
reigned in the wold. Presently the maiden sat up with an impatient movement.
“He tarries long,” she said throwing a mass of auburn curls from a broad, low
brow. “Marry! I fear that we have done but an ill turn to the good Hugh.”
As she spoke the form of an elderly man emerged from the trees and
approached her slowly. He was withered and thin and though but fifty years of
age seemed much older. His doublet and hose were of some dark stuff and his
short cloak was surmounted by a huge ruff, the edges of which almost joined
the brim of the small, high, cone-shaped hat which partly concealed his gray
hair.
“By the mass, Francis! methinks that thou dost grow more unmannerly each
10day. Thou art as unthinking as the butterfly, else thou wouldst not have
burdened my fore-wearied flesh with thy bow.”
“In sooth, it was but a poor return for thy kindness to leave thee my bow,”
observed the girl as she hastened to relieve him of the crossbow that he held.
“Thy pardon, Master Hugh. I was intent upon the race and thought not of it. It
was a good dash, I promise you.”
“Ay! I make no doubt of it,” grumbled the old man seating himself. “But ’twere“Ay! I make no doubt of it,” grumbled the old man seating himself. “But ’twere
meeter for a maiden to embroider, or to play the virginals than to shoot the bow
or run with the hounds as thou dost.”
“Said I not my Latin well this morning, cousin?” queried Francis. “Doth not my
lady mother instruct me in the tent and cross-stitch each day? Besides doth not
even the Queen’s Majesty disport herself with the bow? ’Tis the fashion, good
my master.”
“Ay! ‘Dum vitant stulti vitia, in contraria currunt,’”[A] spoke the old man sharply.
11“Be not angry, cousin, I did but ill in running from thee.”
“Marry! let it pass, but I mislike such sturdiness, Francis. Thou hast led me a
sorry chase and we are far from the Hall. If I mistake not, we are even now in
Sanborne Park and that, thou knowest, is trespass.”
“Nay, cousin; not unless we kill some of the red deer with which it abounds,
and that we have not done—yet,” spoke the maiden demurely.
“The thought of such a thing should not be entertained by the daughter of Lord
William Stafford. Thou durst not think it, Francis.”
“Durst not?” laughed Francis teasingly. “Should one stray in our path I will
show thee what I durst.”
“Boast not, girl. It bespeaks ill for thy breeding. Thou art too prone to vaunt thy
skill in shooting. Not so was that flower of womanhood, the Lady Jane Grey.
Once,” and the tutor spoke warmly for this was a favorite theme, “once it was
my good hap to pass some time at Broadgate, her father’s seat in
Leicestershire, and never have I seen her like for love of learning. Greek,
12Latin, French and Italian spoke she as well as her own tongue. Some
knowledge had she also of Hebrew, Chaldee and Arabic. She loved not such
idle sport as the chase. Would that thou wert like her.”
“Out upon thee for so evil a wish,” chided Francis, but there was a merry
twinkle in her eye that softened the harshness of her tone. “Wouldst have me
beheaded? Yet it may be that I am such a dullard that thou dost wish that I
should meet with a like fate.”
“Nay, child! Thou knowest better.” The face of the old man softened
involuntarily as he gazed into the laughing countenance of the girl before him.
Her head was crowned by a mass of red gold hair which, guiltless of crisping
or curling pins, fell in ringlets over her shoulders; her complexion was of
creamy fairness; her features regular, her eyes dark and luminous; her whole
expression full of winsomeness; but there was a sparkle in the dark eyes now
so full of mischief, and a set to the rich red lips that spoke volumes for the spirit
of Mistress Francis Stafford.
“I would only that thy desire for learning was like to that of the Lady Jane’s,”
13went on the tutor. “Yet I do not dislike thy courage, and