Page:History of England (Froude) Vol 10.djvu/196

176 REIGN OF ELIZABETH. [CH. 58. time to return to Sir Henry Killigrew and his moment- ous mission to Scotland. In the spring and summer of 1572, the alliance between England and France, the abandonment of Mary Stuart's interests by Charles and Catherine, and their apparent intention of taking up the cause of European liberty, had broken the spirits of the defenders of Edinburgh Castle. Fair words were occasionally sent to them from Paris to keep up their spirits, but more substantial help had long ceased to reach them. The country people no longer supplied them with food, and they were too weak to foray. The suspension of arms at the beginning of August gave them a respite ; but Maitland, in entire despondency, informed Mary Stuart that un- less they received assistance they could not renew the struggle. ' Her cause would not perish as long as they could keep the Castle ; ' but they had nothing left to pay their soldiers with, and he thought her best course would be to submit to Elizabeth, ' who if she now made good offers, would show her more favour than she did when she had more friends/ 1 The catastrophe of the 24th of August appeared at first to complete the prostration which already had gone so far. Grange was a sincere Protestant his brother James Kirkaldy, who was in Paris at the time on a mission to the Court, narrowly escaped murder, and was horror-struck by the scenes which he witnessed 1 Maitland to the Queen of Scots, August 10 (decipher) ; MSS. Scot- tend.