Show tr FW alli i y t ff T T ilk i j 4 LIONS WHELP W A story of cromwell a time BY AMELIA E BARR BARP L author of the bow nov of orange ribbon I 1 thou and the other const on the th maid of maiden lane etc coper gat 11 by dodd mead company all r gats reserved CHAPTER I 1 those unit chy stuarts they will I 1 swallow up all england s chivalry oh for one campaign with queen eli ell zabeth at its head she would send old oliver with his commonwealth to the bottomless pit and order him to tell the devil that elizabeth tudor sent him there what say you if for once we part without cromwell Crom vell between our good wills and our good nights 9 father I 1 have seen to day a fan of ostrich leathers feathers Us with galus the packman who will be here in the morning al so I 1 want some housewifery stores and some embroider embroidery sills sill s and bal lads and a book of poems written by av V one mr john milton who keeps a school in london I 1 know the man we will have none of his poems but father I 1 may have the other things you will take no nay say then a good goodnight night sir I 1 not yet I 1 will have my pay for 4 tl N the other things you shall sing to me your lute lies there come it 0 M 1 Is early in the morning lip f happily tenderly fell the musical 1 syllables to the tinkling lute and as 5 she drew to a cloe still singing she f passed smiling out of the room leav ing the door open however so that 1 4 they heard her voice growing sweetly 9 goiter and softer and further and further away until it left nothing but i the delightsome echo in their hearts our feet are bathed in may dew and our hearts are bathed in love CHAPTER II 11 doctor john verity the me anxious days went by tor for a week and there was still no word at swaffham ham harn then jane went over to de do wick hoping that the earl might rl 0 t 0 cromwell Is a L on ons a whelp A have news from his son which would at least break the voiceless tension ol 01 their tears fears but the earl was in the same state restless perplexed fully eager concerning the situation ot of the opposing armies in their mutual sorrowful conjectures they for got their political antipathies and a loving apprehends on drew them ito to gether they talked jn in low voices of pie the absent they clasped hands as they walked together through the lonely park in the autumn afternoon they alo agreed tl ti at whoever had news first should send a swift messen ger to the other no matter what the tidings should be when they parted jane kissed her friend a to ten ien of love she had not given her for a long time and matilda was so affected by this ledurn of sympathy that she covered her face with her hands and wept oh jane she said I 1 have been so lonely and as jane answered her with affectionate assurances there came into her heart a sudden anticipation or of intelligence without considers con sidera tion with no purpose of mere enczur argement she said confidently there Is some one on the N ay I 1 seem to bear them coming so they parted end and jane brought home with nith her a hope which would not be put down her face was bright and her voice so confident that her mother felt the in fluence of her spirit and anon shared it all were in deep sleep when the blast of a trumpet and the trampling of a heavily shod horse on the stones ot of the court yard awakened them jane ran to her mother mothers s room and found her at an open window she was calling aloud to the messenger Is it you doctor and the answer came swift and strong era ere the question was fairly asked it is I 1 john verity with the bless ing of god and good tidings get your horse to stable doctor tad emd we will be down lown to welcome you the next moment the house was astir from one end to the other bells were ringing lights moving hither and thither men and women running town down stairs and at the open door mn swaffham ham and jane waiting tor for the messenger it was good even to see him ana and bow much better to hear him say israel swaffham ham Is well and god hath given us a great victory now then we shall have peace doctor no use martha in crying peace peace when peace is wickedness our liberty was vas won aon by men willing to go to the battlefield for it IL johen did you hear of us lasta about the tenth of august you were then in camp near edinburgh said mrs swaffham ham to be sure having a paper war with the kirk and davil leslie it was little to cromwell s liking and no more to david leslie s both of them would rather defiance of battle than declarations from the general assembly you women would rot pot understand the setting of the battle tt it is enough that it began at tour four in the morning and that by nine 0 clock there was no longer a scotch army three thou sand of it were slain blain in the battle and many more killed in pursuit we had all their baggage and artillery besides fifteen thousand stand of arms and two to hundred colors to hang up in westminster hall and what of israel he did his tart I 1 know that said mis swaffham ham 0 he led his own troon of the solid fen men of Cambridge shire I 1 saw their blue bannai waving maving wherever To ronbert ribert carried it jane s face was rad ant and inears tears of enthusiasm filled her eyes she kissed the doctor proudly and ran to send a messenger to de wick with the tidings of dunbar are you going further doctora Doctor 7 4 asked mrs swaffham ham no martha I 1 mean to stay here until the general generals s 0 jo o ns Us me he sent a letter to london by the young lord cluny neville and he took the direct road there so wp we parted very early in the day but he calls here tor for me on nis return and we shall go back together tog ethe if so god wills to edan edinburgh burgh I 1 never heard you speak of lord cluny neville before because I 1 did not know him be fore cromwell has set his heart on the bouth auth and shows him great favor some are jealous of the boy and in make a k e a grumble that he Is so much trust ed if this young lord is taking a let ter to madame cromwell then why did not israel write to mea me oh t the he unreasonableness of v women omen can a man write when he Is in the saddle p issuing the enemy israel and lambert left immediately with nith seven regiments for edinburgh he sent you words full of love and comfort so did your sons what would you have then mrs swaffham ham put her hand on the doctor doctors s arm to stay him dmd ad she asked do you remember the flag the omen of huntingdon and ely el gave to gen cromwell just be tore fore naseby I 1 do and your israel made the speech I 1 am not likely to forget it then iou also remember that as israel was speaking the east wind rose and stretched wide out the silk slik folds so that the big tawny lion watching the red cross was blown straight above the general generals s bare head and there was a murmur of wonder and then a great shout and israel pointing to the flag and the man below it cried out behold your cartaino car tain taInt cromwell Is a lion s whelp from the prey thou art gone up my son and unto him shall the gathering of the people be I 1 was standing with mrs crom well and the girls said jane and at the shout he turned to them and little frances ran to him and be 48 gave the flagstaff into your hand doctor and then stooped and tied the child childs s tippet then mary and I 1 went closer and to us he was just the same mr cromwell that I 1 kaew knew years ago when I 1 sat eat on his knee and put my arms round his neck and he kissed me as tenderly as it if I 1 was one of hie his own little girls but tor for all that something of power and majesty clothed him like a garment and the 1 I 1 fy keople ge seny nally rally feared to touch the hem of it A lion s whelp he said proudly and while england En glands s ion 1 on has such whelps she may make md unmake kings as is best tor for her then he lit his candle and went stamping down the flagged passage that led to bia his room I 1 CHAPTER III woven of love and glory for the next three days there was a busy time at it swaffham ham harn all the neighbors were wj summoned to hear the news and a sermon from dr ver ity and he did not spare the rod in the way of his calling there were some wealthy young men present and he let them I 1 now that they ought not to be present fertl armore he told them how many miles it was to duty and to scotland this Is not a time he said for men to be on their farms or in their shops getting a little littile money thou is written on life in characters lust just as terrible as thou not it is not enough that vou do not help the enemy you shall shut your shop you shall leae leale your oxen untied yeu you shall tale your yourl musket and never nener once think in your heart who Is go gong ng to pay me for this business 7 it if you squire acton would go out and you fermor and you calthorpe and Ch armington and gamier garnier you would draw men afeei ou for many will follow if the candle be once lighted by the mouth of john ver ity a servant of the lord you have this day got another call look in ward ard and think over it then acton rose and said doctor verity I 1 will go and calthorpe and fermor followed and the doctor told them to meet him at swaffham ham mar ket het cross the follo following vAng day and I 1 will say this to you he added you are like to have the good fortune of the man hired at the eleventh hour i you will get the full penny tor for the last stroke the short service wast followed by an excellent dinner and the richly dressed men and women full ol 01 eager questions and innocent mirth filled the swaffham ham parlors and made a fair picture of hospitality sobered by great interests and great events some of the guests lingered for two and three days but dr verity would not be delayed the next morning he enrolled sixty men and then he was resolved to ride with them as far as york and if neville comes send him quickly after me he said he thought he might be four days but I 1 will give him seven and then wonder it if he keeps tryst there will be many things in london to delay him in fact neville was so long dela ela e ed that mrs swaffham ham was wa certain he had been sent back to scotland at once on mrs cromwell s order and that he would probably be with the lord general before dr verity at af er a week or more had passed all expectation pec tation of his visit died out and jane began to wonder why matilda had not been to see her As she was A as ing there was a slight stir in the passage and jane smiled at her mother it was only an illustration of the old law they had been talking of matilda because she was vas approaching them and had sent her thoughts in advance jane went to meet her friend kiss ed her and removed her hat then matilda went to mrs hant and laid her head against her breast and said I 1 have a bad headache I 1 have a bad heartache oh dear dearl oh dear it was bad news for you dearie dearle said the motherly woman you may be sure r I 1 thought of you I 1 know you did it was terrible aws n ws father has walked the floor night and day ever since I 1 hope that no one you love was hurta stephen is well as far as we know he sent one of his troopers with the news george copping a huntingdon man I 1 dare say you know hima to be continued |