Page:History of England (Froude) Vol 9.djvu/94

 8o REIGN OF ELIZABETH. [CH. 52. of the Scots at Perth, and then, if ever, she might have been tempted to consent. Leicester felt it, and came to the rescue of his friend's timidity. ' One morning ' after- wards, the Duke came unawares into the privy cham- ber ; a child was playing on a lute ; the Queen was sit- ting on the door-step, with Leicester at her feet pleading the Duke's cause. The Queen, as he told Norfolk after- wards, was on the point of yielding. Leicester rose and went away. She called the Duke into the room, and again waited for him to speak. But again he could not do it ; after a few meaningless remarks he hast- ened out of her presence, and began to think, after all, that he would let Dacres carry off the Queen of Scots. She was acute enough to understand his difficulty. There was some cause for his hesitation beyond what she or perhaps Leicester, knew, and at dinner afterwards ' her Majesty gave him a nip, bidding him take heed to his pillow.' l Yet it seemed at this moment that whatever she sus- pected, or whatever obvious objection she saw to the marriage, the pressure would be too heavy for her. In extreme perplexity she went down attended by the council to Basing House, to stay with the Marquis of Winchester, and Pembroke, who was watching the fluc- tuations of her humour from day to day, sent September. J J word on the 3rd of September to Don Guerau that she would be obliged to consent, because there was Confession of the Duke of Norfolk.