Page:History of England (Froude) Vol 7.djvu/434

 4 i4 REIGN OF ELIZABETH. [CH. 45. De Silva informed Philip that the terror of the scene through which she had passed had destroyed the hope which the Queen of Scots had entertained of combining her subjects against the Queen of England. 'She had found them a people fierce, strange, and changeable; she could trust none of them ; l and she had therefore re- sponded graciously to the tone which Elizabeth assumed towards her/ In an autograph letter of passionate gra- titude Mary Stuart placed herself as it were under her sister's protection ; she told her that in tracing the history of the late conspiracy she had found that the lords had intended to imprison her for life, and if England or France came to her assistance they had meant to kill her ; she implored Elizabeth to shut her ears to the calumnies which they would spread against her, and with engaging frankness she begged that the past might be forgotten ; she had experienced too deeply the ingratitude of those by whom she was surrounded to allow herself to be tempted any more into dangerous enterprises ; for her own part she was resolved never to give offence to her good sister again ; nothing should be wanting to restore the happy relations which had once existed between them; and should she recover safely from her confinement she hoped that in the summer Elizabeth would make a pro- gress to the north, and that at last she might have an opportunity of thanking her in person for her kindness and forbearance/ 2 1 De Silva to Philip : MS. Simancas. 2 The Queen of Scots to Elizabeth, April 4 : Scotch MSS. Printed by LABANGFF, vol. vii. p. 300.