Page:History of England (Froude) Vol 9.djvu/124

tio REIGN OF ELIZABETH. [CH. 53. been sitting at the window-side knitting of a work, and after the board was covered, she rose and went to the fire- side, and, making haste to have the work finished, would not lay it away, but worked of it the time she was warming of herself. She looked for one of her servants, which indeed were all gone to fetch up her meat, and, seeing none of her own folk there, called me to hold her work, who was looking at my Lord Scrope and Sir Francis Knowles playing of chess. I went, thinking I had deserved no blame, and that it should not have become me to have refused to do it, my Lady Scrope standing there, and many gentlemen in the chamber, that saw she spake not to me. I think Sir Francis saw not nor heard when she called of me. But when he had played his mate, he, seeing me standing by the Queen holding of her work, called my captain to him and asked him if I watched. He answered,, sometimes. Then he gave him commandment that I should watch no more, and said the Queen would make me a fool.' 1 How full of life is the description ! The castle hall, the winter day, the servants bringing up the dinner, the game at chess, and Maimouna, with her soft eyes and skeins of worsted, binding the hands and heart of her captive knight. Two years later the poor youth was under the knife of the executioner at Tyburn. And such as Norton was, were a thousand more who hung about Bolton, Wingfield, Tutbury, wherever Mary 1 Confession of Christofer Norton, April, 1570: MSS. Domestic, Rolls House.