STORY TWO--The Rocking-Stone: A Chronicle of the Times of the Wars of
the Roses.
Two of the most powerful nobles of England, the Duke of Somerset and the
Earl of Warwick, were one fine summer's day, in the year of our Lord
1449, walking together in the Temple Gardens, on the banks of the
Thames. Their conversations were on affairs of state. Ere long they
expressed decided differences of opinion. Their tempers warmed up; the
dispute ran high. They appealed to the nobles and gentlemen attending
on them, but all drew back. They had long been rivals, each seeking for
power and influence. Warwick possessed immense popularity both with the
soldiery and populace. He is since well known in history as the
Kingmaker. He was not a man to brook opposition.
"It is well that we should know our foes from our friends," he
exclaimed, plucking as he spoke a white rose from a bush which grew
near. "Let all who claim to be my friends wear henceforth the white
rose in their helms or caps."
"And I, too, wish to know who are my friends and who my foes," said the
Duke of Somerset, walking on rapidly till he reached a red rose-tree
which he saw in the distance. "I shall expect all those who love me, or
the cause I espouse, to wear this flower of blushing hue."
Several knights and gentlemen hurried after the duke, and imitated his
example in placing red roses in their caps. The earl watched the
proceedings of his rival with a smile.
"My challenge is quickly accepted," he observed, turning to those who
surrounded him. "But am I to stand alone? Have I no friends who wish
to show that they are ready to espouse my cause?"
"Ten thousand swords would be ready to leap from their scabbards the
moment you summon them," answered a sturdy knight, Sir Herbert de
Beauville. "I, for one, am ready to risk castle, and lands, and jewels,
and life itself, in your service; and as a pledge of my sincerity, I
place this white rose in my helm, and, so help me Heaven, may I ever be
true to it and to you while life remains!"
The rest of the party, following the knight's example, pledged
themselves to the earl, and placed white roses in their helms or caps.
It was curious to see the two parties, as they henceforth walked apart
with the insignia they had so hastily assumed prominently displayed,
eyeing each other with glances indicative, it might be, of that fearful
struggle which was so soon to commence, and to devastate the fair land
of England and deluge it with blood. Some of those present turned
traitors to the cause they had espoused, and others more than once
changed sides, but amply did Sir Herbert de Beauville fulfil the pledge
he had given on that occasion. He was one of those men who consider
that black is black, and white is white, and so, having passed his word
that he would wear the white rose and support the house of York, he
fought on, amid all its changing fortunes, till he had lost the larger
portion of his once ample possessions. His ancestral castle of
Beauville, in the north of England, in a sadly dilapidated condition,
with its park and a few hundred acres of land, was at length all that
remained to him. In the fatal fight on Bosworth Field, holding himself
bravely, as was his wont, he was desperately wounded. He would have
fallen from his horse had not he been supported by his faithful
servitor, Roger Bertrand, who led him from the fight to a retired spot
near a brook, where he could attend to his gaping wounds, and stanch the
life-blood flowing from his veins. In vain, however, the brave squire
exerted all his skill. It was too clear to him that his beloved
master's hours were numbered. The knight also was well aware that his
last blow had been struck for the cause he had so long espoused, and
that he should soon be numbered with the dead. He committed, therefore,
his wife and young son, who was named after him, to Roger's care.
"Mark you, Roger, watch over the boy as a precious jewel. Remember his
noble blood and parentage, bring him up as becomes both, and above all
things, when he comes to man's estate, take care that he finds a bride
befitting him, and does not wed beneath him. I fear me much that I do
not leave him as rich a heritage as I received, but should quiet times
ever come back to this realm of England, with your careful nursing, it
may once more be made as profitable as of yore. You know my wishes,
good Roger; I can speak no more. Especially in that one point of
marriage guide the boy aright. Lift me up. How goes the fight? Let me
behold the white rose of York once more triumphant. See--see--they
charge forward! No--alas! they turn and fly. Then welcome death!" The
old knight, pressing Roger's hand, uttered the word, "Remember," and
fell back and died.
The brave serving-man, rising to his feet, stood over the dead body of
his master with drawn sword, to protect it from spoliation, and
ultimately succeeded in bearing it off from the field, so as to give it
honoured sepulture in the precincts of the neighbouring church. The
priests were desirous to keep the knight's armour in pawn, that masses
might be said for the repose of his soul.
"Thanks, reverend and worthy gentlemen," answered Roger, quietly. "But
my dear master was as hearty a prayer as he was a fighter, and methinks
if he's failed while he lived to make his peace with Heaven, nothing
that you or any other can say will aid him now that he is gone, and
knows more about the matter than you and all the world besides put
together."
"What rank heresy is this you are speaking?" exclaimed the priest. "The
prayers of the Church not of use to the dead, do you say? This savours
strongly of the abominable tenets of Wycliffe. Why, you must belong to
the abominable sect of the Lollards, Master Roger."
"Nay, but I was only speaking in the case of my good master," answered
the latter, in his quiet tone. "I said that he was a hearty prayer; and
what is the use of a man's praying if his prayers are not to be heard?
But if my master's prayers were heard--and I am sure they were--then
there is no further need of any one praying for him. I am a true son of
Holy Mother Church. I know nothing of Master Wycliffe, and conclude
that he has been dead no small number of years."
The priest, not accustomed in those days to controversy, had nothing to
say in reply to Roger's remarks, though, still suspecting him strongly
to be a Lollard, he would have liked to entrap him, and have the power
to bring down punishment on his head. Honest Roger, however, not aware
of the feelings of animosity he had excited, frankly wished the irate
ecclesiastic farewell, and with the arms and armour of his late master,
all that remained of him, took his departure for the now mourning castle
of Beauville.
It is not necessary to describe the grief of the Lady Beauville, nor of
the young Herbert, who was of an age to feel deeply the loss he had
suffered. As may have been suspected, Roger Bertram was a Lollard, as
was also the mistress of the castle, though they had found it necessary
to conceal their opinions. Young Herbert was accordingly brought up in
the principles of Wycliffe, a copy of whose New Testament was one of the
most prized possessions of his mother. It was her chief delight to
instruct her son in the glorious truths it contained. Alas! however,
the shock she received on hearing of the death of her beloved lord, and
the complete overthrow of the cause for which he had so long striven and
fought, was so great, that from that time she sank gradually, and ere
long followed her husband to the grave.
Roger Bertram thoroughly carried out his promise to his master. Young
Herbert de Beauville grew up into a noble-looking youth, who, though he
did not possess any large amount of book-learning, was the leader in all
the manly exercises of the period. He was brave and open-hearted, of a
kind and generous disposition, and had ever proved himself affectionate
and obedient to the guardian placed over him. He had, however, a
determined will of his own, and Roger discovered that, if he wished to
retain his influence over his ward, he must not pull the reins of
authority too tightly.
As Herbert increased in years this became more and more evident,
especially when the youth mixed in the world, and there were not wanting
those who urged him to assert his own independence, and who hinted that,
now he had grown nearly to man's estate, it was no longer incumbent on
him to obey implicitly one who had merely been placed in authority to
watch over him while he was a boy. Good Roger Bertram, though he was
able conscientiously to do his duty with regard to watching over his
young charge, found that it was a difficult matter to restore a fallen
house, and to bring long-neglected lands again into cultivation. The
old retainers and tenants who once cultivated the fields had been
carried off by their feudal lord to the wars, and their bones lay
bleaching on many a battle-field. The lands could not be let, and no
money was therefore forthcoming to restore the dilapidated castle fast
crumbling to pieces. It had never been restored since the last siege
laid to it by the Lancastrians. At that time a large portion of the
walls had been battered by cannon, then only recently introduced, and
another part had been undermined: the enemy, indeed, were on the point
of forcing an entrance, when it was relieved by the appearance of the
Yorkist party. Roger's hope, therefore, was that as soon as his young
lord was of age he would retrieve his fortunes by a wealthy marriage.
Unfortunately there would, he knew, be much difficulty in finding a
bride for him among the fallen Yorkist families, us greedy King Henry
took good care to confiscate all the property he could from any excuse
lay hands on. Roger was also himself much attached to the principles of
the Lollards, and he wished, if possible, that the young Herbert should
marry into a family which held them. There were many families at that
time who read Wycliffe's Bible and Chaucer's "Canterbury Tales"--more,
indeed, than are generally supposed. The English, as a nation, never
bowed the neck very readily to Rome, and even in the darkest days there
were some who put no faith in her assumptions and pretensions. The more
enlightened had also ere this discovered what a clog to the prosperity
and progress of the country existed in the many thousands of lazy and
idle monks and friars, and other members of what were called religious
orders. Still it may be considered that the lower classes generally,
and many of the upper, were ignorant in the extreme, and believed in all
those gross superstitions which have ever been the direct result of the
teaching of the Church of Rome, where no counteracting influences are at
work. As Roger did not himself possess much book-learning, he was
compelled to leave young Herbert under the instruction of Father Mathew,
the curate of the parish, to whom Sir Herbert had confided the charge of
his education. Not that the knight had any great esteem for the
learning of the father, but simply that he knew of no one else under
whom he could place his son.
Father Mathew was not a learned man, but he had cleverness enough to
conceal his ignorance, and Sir Herbert, who, though a brave soldier, was
no clerk, was not likely to find it out. If the truth must be said, the
curate was himself fonder of hawk and hound than of his books, and it
was whispered that if a fat pullet came in his way, even on a fast day,
he did not always turn aside from the temptation. He could, however, do
more than many of his brethren, for he could not only read his breviary,
but write a neat hand and copy manuscripts with precision--an art he had
learned in the cloister, and which was still the chief mode of
multiplying books; for printing had only been introduced into England
about twenty years before. Such was Father Mathew; in the main, with
all his faults, an honest man. Roger, who had more shrewdness than his
late lord, was not altogether satisfied with him, but he consoled
himself with the thought that his young charge might have had a worse
preceptor when he saw him growing into a fine handsome young man, with
many noble and generous qualities, though certainly more addicted to
field sports and athletic exercises than to the study of any of those
branches of knowledge by which he might restore the fallen fortunes of
his house.
Meantime, Roger was not unmindful of his purpose to secure a rich wife
for his young lord. He looked about in every direction, far and near;
but the only damsel he could hear of at all likely to prove suitable was
the Lady Barbara, the only child of the stout Baron Fitz Osbert. She
was said to be fair to look on, and pious and good, and possessed of all
the accomplishments which distinguished well-brought-up young ladies in
those days. There were difficulties to be overcome, however. Herbert
had not seen her, and might not be willing to wed her when he did. Her
father, the baron, had been a stout Lancastrian, and, although the rival
houses of York and Lancaster were now united under Tudor rule, he was
very likely to be prejudiced against the son of an old opponent. While
the honest Roger was travelling about the country and troubling himself
greatly in search of the desired heiress, an event occurred which seemed
likely to bring his schemes to naught. Herbert was one day returning
from hawking--the quarry having led him a long distance from home--when,
as he was passing through a wood of some extent, he heard a cry and loud
shouts for help. Urging on his steed over the green sward, he saw two
persons on horseback endeavouring to escape from three armed men on
foot. That the latter were robbers he had little doubt--Cornishmen,
from Lord Audley's wild troops, after the fight at Blackheath. One of
the persons on horseback was a country damsel, and, from the panniers
between which she sat, it appeared she had been to dispose of the
produce of her farm at market; the other was a serving-man, or
farm-servant, apparently, for he also had a number of baskets slung
about his horse. He had a bow at his back and a trusty sword by his
side, with which he might, if necessary, defend his young mistress.
These ideas passed through Herbert's mind the moment the scene appeared
before him. The serving-man had drawn his sword, and was endeavouring
to keep the robbers at bay. The robbers, however, seemed to be laughing
at his efforts, and while one of them was keeping him in play, the other
two had run round on either side, and were on the point of seizing the
reins of the damsel's pony, when Herbert appeared. He dashed forward,
and, with the impetuosity of youth, without asking any questions, cut
down one of the robbers, and was about to treat the other in the same
way when he made his escape between the trees. The serving-man had in
the meantime given a good account of the robber who had attacked him,
who lay wounded and, to all appearance, dying on the ground. He had,
however, first contrived to give honest Rolfe a severe cut on the arm
and another on the side, which would probably have compelled him to
yield to the attacks of the other ruffians had not young Herbert de
Beauville come to his assistance. The damsel had wonderfully maintained
her self-possession during the events which have been described; but
when Herbert reached her, and, taking her hand, assured her that all
danger was past, her pale cheeks and quivering lips told him that she
could not longer contain her feelings. He helped her to dismount, and
placing her on the trunk of a fallen tree, endeavoured to calm her
spirits, while Rolfe limped off to fill a bowl, which he had just
purchased in the market, with water from a neighbouring brook. This
revived the damsel, and, as soon as she was able to speak, after
thanking Herbert for the service he had rendered her, she told him that
her name was Gertrude Alwyn, and that she lived with her father, stout
John Alwyn, a yeoman, on his farm nearly a league off.
"Then I must offer my services to escort you to your home, sweet
Mistress Gertrude," said Herbert, in as courteous a tone as he would
have used towards a princess. "I can take no denial, as it is
unbefitting that you should continue your journey alone. Mayhap some
other robbers may meet you, or you may be beset by some other danger."
Whatever might have been the fears of the damsel, she was not unwilling
that so handsome and courteous a young man should escort her homewards.
Not till honest Rolfe had come up to hold her reins while she again
mounted, did she and Herbert discover how badly he had been hurt by the
robber who had attacked him. He made light of his wounds to save his
young mistress pain, but she refused to proceed till they were bound up,
and some further time was lost in this operation. Herbert rode by the
side of Gertrude, conversing with her as he went. He thought that he
had never seen so fair a damsel, so gentle and so lovable, while she was
certain that she had never met so kind and courteous and noble a youth.
It was late when they reached Donington Farm. Master Alwyn, the owner,
did not seem much surprised to see his daughter escorted by so gay a
cavalier as young Herbert de Beauville. Having thanked him warmly for
the protection he had afforded to his daughter, and her deliverance from
the danger which had overtaken her, with much courtesy he invited him to
remain to supper, which meal was even then being placed on the table.
Young Herbert was not unwilling to accept the invitation, seeing that
already his heart, or fancy, or whatever organ or sense by which young
men are moved, had already been captivated by the bright eyes and sweet
face of the fair Gertrude. There was a bright moon about to shine, and
he had no tender mother or loving sisters who would be anxious at his
non-appearance at the usual hour. Gertrude did not omit to tell her
mother of the hurts Rolfe had received. On hearing this, the dame, with
alacrity, examined them, dressing them with much skill, of the
possession of which she was not a little proud.
After this, three demure damsels and seven stout labouring men came into
the hall, and took their seats at the table. They then ate in silence
the messes which Mrs Alwyn served out to them. Master Alwyn, meantime,
kept up a very pleasant conversation with his guest. He was evidently
far superior in attainments to men generally of his position in life,
for he could both read and write, and knew something of what was going
forward in the world. In appearance he was not, however, superior to
other yeomen or well-to-do farmers; and his dame, though evidently a
notable thrifty housewife, was not above her class in manners or in
information. As Herbert looked from one to the other, and then
exchanged a few sentences with their daughter, he wondered how so fair a
creature could have sprung from so rough a stock. He sat on, unwilling
to leave the society of so charming a being, till at length he had no
excuse for lingering longer.
As he rode homeward, with his hawk sleeping on his shoulder, and his
hounds by his side, his thoughts were so completely occupied with the
fair Gertrude, that he reached the castle gates almost before he was
aware of it. Good Roger was away on the errand which has been spoken
of, and Father Mathew had never been wont to chide his pupil very
severely. Now that he had come to man's estate, he wisely abstained
altogether from doing so. Herbert was therefore accustomed frankly to
tell him all that occurred. He accordingly described how he had met the
damsel and her servant, and saved them from robbers.
"You have acted bravely, my son, and you deem the damsel fair to look
on?" said Father Mathew.
The last words were uttered quite in an indifferent tone, as if the
matter were of very little consequence.
"Oh yes; the damsel is perfectly beautiful," exclaimed the youth,
enthusiastically. "I have never seen one I could so devotedly love and
adore."
The priest gave way to a low laugh, and remarked:
"Perchance the next time you see her she may not appear so charming, and
still less so the following. Methinks, too, that she is not such a one
as the young lord of Beauville ought to wed."
"I have heard of noble knights wedding with maidens of low degree, whose
beauty and rare excellence made them fit to take their place among the
highest in the land. Such is the damsel of whom I speak. It would be a
grievous pity to let so charming a rose bloom unseen, or to allow her to
mate with some rough thistle or thorn unworthy of her."
The priest laughed outright.
"Certes, the charms of the damsel have made you poetical, my esteemed
pupil," he remarked. "I must go forth to see this rare piece of
perfection. I wonder whether I shall esteem her as you do."
Now, although Herbert had a great regard for his reverend tutor, he did
not altogether desire to have him become acquainted with the damsel, and
he at once, therefore, began to repent that he had praised her in such
glowing terms. He scorned, however, to retract anything that he had
said, yet he determined to try and prevent Father Mathew from visiting
Donington Farm till he had secured, as he hoped to do, the affections of
its fair inmate. It was not till late at night that the priest and his
pupil retired to their beds. At an early hour the next morning the
young lord of Beauville was on his way to Donington to inquire if
Mistress Gertrude had recovered from the effects of the fright to which
she had been subjected. He also persuaded himself that he was anxious
to learn how it fared with sturdy Rolfe.
He went well armed in case he should meet any of the band of robbers
whose comrades he had so roughly handled. On reaching Donington, he saw
Father Mathew's grey mare at the gate. The father must have left the
castle by break of day, and have ridden pretty fast to get there before
him. Herbert met him coming out.
"Ah, my son, you said not that you were coming here to-day," he remarked
quietly. "However, I am not surprised. The damsel is truly fair to
look on, and calculated to win a young man's heart. But beware, I say--
beware. Now go in and pay your visit and inquire after her health, and
say all the foolish things you proposed saying, and then come out again.
I will wait for you, and we will ride back to Beauville together."
This was not at all according to Herbert's intentions, yet he could not
help himself without positively refusing to comply with the father's
wishes. He found the dame and her fair daughter within. There was some
constraint in their manner at first, but the latter was evidently
pleased to see him. He thought her not less lovely than on the previous
evening. The visit, however, was not such as he had anticipated. In
vain he tried to learn what Father Mathew had been saying about him. At
last he was obliged to take his leave and join the latter, who had been
walking his horse up and down, waiting for him. The young man had
learned wisdom.
"I will be even with him," he thought to himself. "I will let him
suppose that he is right, and that on a second visit I have not found
the damsel as charming as I at first described her."
He carried out his plan, but whether or not Father Mathew was deceived
he could not tell; for the wary priest made no reply to his remarks by
which he could judge what was passing in his mind. When Roger returned,
Herbert took good care to say nothing to him about fair Mistress
Gertrude, and, somewhat to his surprise, Father Mathew was equally
reserved on the subject.
It was curious, however, that from that time forward his hounds or his
hawks always led him in the direction of Donington, and, though he
brought home less game than formerly, he never grumbled at his ill-luck.
Perhaps both Roger and Father Mathew were watching him, but, if so, he
was not aware of it, and was perfectly well satisfied with the course he
was taking. He found that Mistress Gertrude was not over strictly
brought up, and that her parents did not object to her mixing with other
young people, and enjoying the spoils and pastimes suitable to their
age. At all festivals and merry-makings Herbert became her constant
attendant. He cared not if any one remarked that he demeaned himself by
associating as he did with a yeoman's family. Master Alwyn did not
object to his consorting with his daughter, and therefore no one else
had any business to find fault with him. He engaged warmly with other
young men of his age in the various athletic sports then generally
practised. It was his delight to excel in them, and whenever he won a
prize, as he often did, he was wont to bring it and place it at the feet
of the fair Gertrude. He did so with a right noble air, and it was
often remarked that she received these attentions with a grace which not
the first lady in the land could surpass. He was not without rivals who
desired to gain the chief place in her affections; not that she gave
them any encouragement, for her heart was already entirely surrendered
to Herbert.
Among the many devices employed by that money-loving monarch, Henry the
Seventh, was that of confiscating the property of any of his nobles or
other wealthy persons who gave him cause of offence by rebelling or
intriguing with his enemies. Not far off resided a certain Master John
Fisher, once a wealthy merchant in London, who had in an evil hour for
himself purchased one of these estates, lately belonging to a Lord
Nevile, of ancient lineage, much beloved in the country. Master Fisher
was a worthy honest man, and would have proved a greater benefactor to
the people among whom he came to reside than he had afterwards the power
of being, had not the king looked on his hordes as a mine of wealth from
which it was his royal privilege to extract whatever he might require.
The merchant had several sons, who naturally desired to live like the
young lords and gentlemen around them. One of them, Thomas Fisher, had
set his eyes on Mistress Gertrude. He had more fortune than his
brothers, money having been bequeathed to him by an uncle, also a
merchant. His personal appearance was in his favour, and, altogether,
he might have been considered a very good match for the yeoman's
daughter. Master Fisher, his father, however, did not approve of it,
and desired that he should wed into some noble family, which would give
him a better standing in the country than he could otherwise obtain.
Thomas, however, was of an obstinate disposition, and would by no means
give her up. Wherever there was a prospect of meeting her there he was
always to be found, though he had to confess that of late she certainly
had given him very little encouragement.
There was in the neighbourhood of Beauville Castle a large open common,
in the centre of which were certain Druidical remains--huge blocks of
stone, some like pillars standing upright, and others placed on a pivot
over another by means the knowledge of which appears afterwards to have
been lost. One of these stones, the largest in the group, was so placed
that the slightest touch would set it vibrating. It was generally
believed, however, that this could only be done by the good and
virtuous, and that any one not deserving that character, though they
might shake it ever so violently, could not move it. Here, from near
and far, it had been the custom of the youths and lasses to assemble on
festivals and holidays to amuse themselves with the games and sports
then in vogue. Archers came to exhibit their skill. Quintains were set
up, at which young men delighted to run, with lance in rest, either on
foot or on horseback. Here were practised hurling the bar, casting the
lance, running races, and other similar active sports; while on May-day
a pole was set up, round which the morris-dancers assembled, and the
Lord of Misrule held his court. People of position in the county did
not disdain to come to these merry meetings. One fine afternoon, on the
1st of May, 1493, a large number of persons of all ranks and ages were
assembled in the neighbourhood--of the rocking-stone. The still wealthy
merchant, Master Fisher, and the yeoman, Master Alwyn, and Herbert's
faithful guardian, Roger Bertram, and several knights and justices with
their families, and Father Mathew, and other priests and curates, and
not a few monks and friars, who had come with the spirit of pickpockets
of the present day to try what they could filch from the pouches of the
merry-makers.
After the gay assemblage had got somewhat weary of the ordinary sports,
a number of persons repaired to the rocking-stone, where they amused
themselves by daring each other to give evidence of their virtuous lives
by setting the stone rocking. Several had gone forward, when the stone
was clearly seen to vibrate. At length the names of several damsels
were called out, and, among others, Mistress Gertrude Alwyn was summoned
to go forward and move the stone. There might have been a slight blush
on her cheek at appearing before so many people on such an undertaking;
but yet, with a slight laugh and a smile on her lips, she advanced
towards the stone. There was a perfect silence among the crowd of
spectators as she touched the stone. It did not move. Again and again
she touched it, with all the force she could exert. The stone remained
as immovable as if part of the mass on which it rested. There was a
general groan uttered by the crowd, an evidence of their full belief in
the truth of the legend, while, at the same moment, a piercing cry was
heard, and the unhappy damsel was seen to fall fainting to the ground.
Dame Alwyn ran forward to raise her daughter, followed by young Herbert
de Beauville, who declared aloud that, for his part, he believed the
stone might sometimes rock and sometimes cease to rock, but that this
had nothing to do with the virtue or want of that quality in those who
touched it. There was a cry of "Heretic Lollard" from among the crowd,
but Herbert silenced it by declaring that he would slit the tongue and
break the head of any one who uttered it, or a word against the fair
fame of Mistress Gertrude Alwyn. The poor girl was mounted on a pillion
behind her father and conveyed back to Donington, weeping bitterly. A
number of persons collected round the stone, and soon afterwards, on
being touched by chance, it was seen to rock as before.
Herbert remained some time behind the Alwyn family, stalking about with
his hand on the hilt of his sword, evidently longing for an encounter
with some one; but as no person present seemed disposed just then to
beard him, he at length mounted his horse and rode after his friends.
Again and again he assured Master Alwyn, and his dame, and sweet
Mistress Gertrude of his disbelief in the knowledge of the stone of the
character of those who touched it, and that he would not credit a word
against her fair fame should the cardinal, or bishop, or the Pope
himself utter it. Gertrude thanked him with tears in her eyes, but
begged him to return home and talk the matter over with Master Roger
before he took any steps to vindicate her character, which he told her
that he was resolved to do. His worthy guardian did not look on the
matter in the light he did. He confessed that he did not believe that
Mistress Gertrude was of light character, but that if the world did so,
it was nearly as bad, and that she was not a fit bride for him. Herbert
did not see the matter in this light, and argued the point with great
vehemence, and declared that nothing should prevent him from vindicating
her character by marrying her forthwith.
In this same year a claimant to the throne of England appeared in the
person of a handsome youth, who pretended to be Richard Duke of York,
second son of Edward the Fourth. He had married the Lady Catherine
Gordon, a cousin of the King of Scotland, who espoused his cause. No
sooner did he appear in arms than Herbert, faithful to the traditions of
his family, prepared to join him. He had no retainers, no money, only
his own good sword and ardent young heart. Roger was now too old to
bear him company, much as he wished it. He would, indeed, have
dissuaded his young master from the enterprise, on the ground that the
Houses of York and Lancaster were already united, and that, after all,
the new claimant to the crown might be only a pretender, as was
asserted, and not the true prince; but then he thought that absence
might cure him of his love for Gertrude, and that mixing in courtly
society might make him desirous of wedding with the fair Lady Barbara
Fitz Osbert. Roger was, however, far too wise to hint anything of the
sort, and with inward satisfaction he saw him go to bid farewell to
pretty Mistress Gertrude, hoping that the young people might never meet
again. Herbert, however, had no such thoughts in his mind. Again and
again he repeated his promise to Gertrude that he would remain faithful
to her, and that, come weal or come woe, he would return, if alive, and
marry her. The world might say what it dared--might traduce and scorn
her, but he would believe her true. He spoke with so much earnestness
that she believed him, and pledged her own word to be faithful to him in
return.
Not till Herbert had paid this farewell visit to Mistress Gertrude did
the wily Father Mathew attempt to cast any slur on her character, or to
dissuade his pupil from his intended marriage. He left nothing unsaid
which he thought could produce that result. Every insinuation he dared
make he whispered into Herbert's ear. Roger also was not slow to
support the curate's remarks, while at the same time he warmly praised
the charms of the Lady Barbara Fitz Osbert, the heiress of the castle of
Hardingham and its broad domains. Herbert listened, pained in mind, and
moved, but not convinced. "Should she be fake, there is no virtue or
faith in womankind, and I would as lief throw away my life in the first
battle in which I am engaged as live." Many young men have thought the
same thing, and changed their mind.
No sooner had Herbert taken his departure than Father Mathew, who had
got into the confidence of Master Thomas Fisher, urged him to press his
suit. Old Master Fisher had become very much averse to it, on account
of the reports which were current; but Thomas asserted that he
disbelieved them, and that, in spite of all that might be said against
Mistress Gertrude, he was resolved to marry her.
Years rolled on; news came of the expedition of the Scotch king and the
supposed prince into England, and of its failure. After that nothing
more was heard of the unfortunate husband of the Lady Catherine Gordon
or of young Sir Herbert de Beauville, who had been knighted by the King
of Scotland.
Meantime a visitor had come to Donington. He was evidently a man of
superior birth. He was frequently seen in the company of Mistress
Gertrude, and various were the surmises about him. Both Master Alwyn
and his dame paid him the greatest respect. He was somewhat advanced in
life, though still strong and active. His bronzed complexion, and more
than one scar visible on his cheek, showed that he had been engaged in
war in southern climes. He did not appear to seek concealment, but at
the same time not a word did he let drop which could allow people to
guess who he was. At length one day a dozen men-at-arms and several
knights, with two led horses, appeared at Donington, and the stranger
and Mistress Gertrude were seen to mount and ride away after an
affectionate farewell of Master Alwyn and his dame. No people were more
puzzled than Roger Bertram and Father Mathew. They remained at
Beauville, holding the castle for Sir Herbert, though it seemed very
doubtful whether he would ever return. One day a wandering minstrel
came to the neighbouring hamlet. He approached a house, the bush hung
over the door of which showed that entertainment for man and beast was
to be obtained in the establishment. The minstrel took his seat in the
public room, and quickly entered into conversation with those around
him. His object seemed to be to obtain information about the persons in
the neighbourhood. Among others he asked after Master Alwyn and his
dame. They were living as before in the old house, and enjoying good
health and strength.
"They had a daughter," observed the minstrel, in a calm voice.
"Oh, the hussy!--she long since went away with a gay knight, who came
with a band to carry her off, and no one knows what has become of her,"
answered his loquacious informant.
"It is false!" exclaimed the minstrel, starting up. Then, suddenly
checking himself, he added: "I mean, such reports as these often get
about without due foundation."
However, he could not calm the agitation this information caused him,
and, having paid his reckoning and slung the harp he carried over his
shoulder, he left the house. He took his way towards Beauville. Father
Mathew was standing at the entrance as he approached the old castle.
"Go thy way--go thy way; we want no vagrants here. We have enough of
our own starving poor to feed without yielding to the rapacity of
strangers," cried the father, eyeing him askance.
The minstrel humbly turned aside, and, not far off, met old Roger
Bertram. He was about to avoid him, when Roger, eyeing him narrowly,
hobbled forward, for he could not run, and, taking him in his arms,
exclaimed:
"My son--my own boy--my young master--and art thou really come back
sound in limb and health? Thrice happy is this day."
The minstrel was no other than Sir Herbert de Beauville. He seemed too
much broken in spirits even to laugh at the way Father Mathew had
treated him. He had escaped, not without difficulty, after the defeat
of the pretended Richard of York, who, acknowledging himself as Perkin
Warbeck, had surrendered to the King. Herbert had now only one object
on earth for which he desired to live--to establish the fair fame of
Mistress Gertrude Alwyn; and he had resolved, he said, to trace out the
author of the calumnies he had heard against her, or, if he could not do
that, to punish every one who had been known to utter them.
It appeared that her disappointed suitor, Master Thomas Fisher, had been
heard to repeat the evil reports concerning her. Here, then, was an
object on whom he could wreak his vengeance. Master Fisher had, by
means of the wealth which had fallen to him, been able to purchase a
title and honours of the mercenary king, and he now gave himself all the
airs of an old noble. When, therefore, Sir Herbert challenged him to
mortal combat on account of words uttered against the fair fame of a
damsel undeserving of such reproach, he was compelled to accept the
challenge. Space does not permit a description of the combat. The
newly-made baron was overthrown, and as Sir Herbert stood over him with
his drawn sword, he confessed that he had himself, in revenge, inserted
a small pebble in a hole under the rocking-stone, by which it became
fixed and incapable of moving. On this Sir Herbert granted him his
life, on condition that he should repeat the statement whenever he
should so require him to do. He had it also made out in writing and
duly attested, and, with this document in his hand, he set out to visit
Master Alwyn and his dame. His heart sank within him when he learned
from them that Mistress Gertrude was not their daughter, but the only
child of the Earl of Fitz-Stephen, who had, by the sacrifice of a
portion of his patrimony, which had gone into the king's coffers, lately
regained the remainder. His spirits, however, rose again when they
encouraged him to hasten forthwith to, the earl's castle and to try his
fortune with the lady, showing her the document he had brought with him.
He followed their advice; the Lady Gertrude received him in a way to
satisfy his utmost hopes, and presented him to her father as the only
person she would ever marry. They were accordingly wedded, and by
living in privacy till the death of Henry, Sir Herbert escaped being
implicated in the attempts made by the pretended Richard of York to gain
the English crown.