Page:History of England (Froude) Vol 7.djvu/406

 386 REIGN OF ELIZABETH. [CH. 44. inside the presence chamber was the bedroom ; and be- yond the bedroom a small cabinet or boudoir not more than twelve feet square, containing a sofa, a table, and two or three chairs. Here after the labours of the day the Queen gave her little supper parties. Darnley's rooms were immediately below, connected with the bed- room by a narrow spiral staircase, which opened close to the little door leading into the cabinet. ' Knowing the King's character, and that he would have a lusty princess afterwards in his arms/ the con- spirators required his subscription to another bond, by which he declared that all that was done ' was his own device and intention ; ' and then after an early supper together, Huthven, though so ill that he could hardly stand, with his brother George Douglas, Ker of Faldon- side, and one other, followed Darnley to his room, and thence with hushed breath and stealthy steps they ascended the winding stairs. A tapestry curtain hung before the cabinet. Leaving his companions in the bedroom, Darnley raised it and entered. Supper was on the table ; the Queen was sit- ting on the sofa, Rizzio in a chair opposite to her, and Murray's loose sister, the Countess of Argyle, on one side. Arthur Erskine the equerry, Lord Robert Stuart, and the Queen's French physician were in attendance standing. Darnley placed himself on the sofa at his wife's side. She asked him if he had supped. He muttered some- thing, threw his arm round her waist, and kissed her. As she shrank from him half surprised, the curtain was