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and conventional views which William Silence had never regarded with respect, and towards which he now found himself in an attitude of hopeless antagonism.

Petre listened to his friend's story with evident interest. When Silence had concluded, he thought for a moment. Then, rising from his seat, and striking the table so violently that the parrot dropped from his perch in fright, he said: "If I mistake not, I can help you in this matter with somewhat better than good advice. I have of late received letters from my kinsman, Sir John Perrott, now Lord Deputy of Ireland, in which he bids me tell him if I know of any young gentleman of parts, who is willing to adventure for that country-but stay, I will fetch the letter itself."

Opening a worm-eaten cabinet of the blackest oak, Petre pulled out a miscellaneous assortment of articles-jesses for hawks, couples, leashes, capes, collars and trashes for hounds; with tavern bills, and other such-like unconsidered trifles.

"As you know of old, Master Silence, my coffers are not of the well-ordered sort, but all will come right at last-nay, here is the letter; my kinsman writes: And now of the happy and blessed turn the Queen's affaires have taken in this Ilande. The Irishrie, being by continual warres so wasted that scarce anie of them-' nay, this concerns the wars, but you are a man of peace; stay, here it is:

Moreover, the lande of this islande is for the most part held by no tenure of lawful origin, but by a certain lewde custom to which the barbarous inhabitants give the name of Tanistry, wherein is much that is contrary to the lawes both of God and man, and to the nature and eternall fitness of things in regard to the tenure of lande. And I am informed by those of my council who are skilled in such matters that the rightful title of the Queen Her most excellent Majestie to good store of the lande of this islande might be peaceably established by the labours of cunninge and paynful lawyers, whereby it might be purged of the unlawful usages & salvage customs by which it is now overlayd and defiled, to the dishonour of God, and the great losse of the Queen Her Majesty. Wherefore if you can send to me any younge man of

gentyl birth and good repute, learned in the lawe & with special skille in the matter of tenures, escheats, and forfeiture, I will ensure him profitable employement herein, and such a degree of favour and countenance as may gain for him faire recompense in this worlde, as well as the assurance of partaking in such good workes as may tend to his eternall welfare.

"Now, Master Silence, what say you to the prospect thus held out to you?"

"I like it well, Master Petre, and I heartily thank you. What especially moves me is the hope thereby held out to me of being forthwith enabled to maintain a wife. For being but of late admitted to the degree of an utter barrister

"I take you," said Petre, "you have learned already to set more store on the bird in the hand than on two in the bush. But come, let us join the Lady Katherine in her bower. If I mistake not she will further your suit, and if I help you to a living, why, she may help you to a wife."

When the matter was opened to Katherine, she entered into the project with all the energy of her nature. The plan of campaign was soon arranged. It was, as might have been expected from its authors, short, sharp, and decisive. There were to be no tedious long-drawn wooings, no parleyings with old Will Squele, no negotiations with Master Shallow. William Silence was to ask Anne, fair and straight, to marry him forthwith and go with him to Ireland, to seek their fortune under the patronage of the Lord Deputy bespoken on their behalf by Master Petre.

The sports which had been arranged for the following days lent themselves readily to the development of the plan.

On Monday, Petre flew his hawks on Cotswold, and Will Squele with his daughter Anne were to be of the company, and on the following day all had been bidden to hunt the deer with greyhound and cross-bow in the Justice's park. This hunt had been in fact designed by the Justice so that Abraham Slender might have an opportunity of advancing

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his suit to Anne Squele in the seclusion of the stand or ambush from which they would shoot the driven deer. This much was shrewdly suspected by Silence, and he imparted his suspicions to his friend.

""Twere rare sport," said Petre, "to upset their schemes. You know the old saw, there's no such sport as sport by sport o'erthrown.'1 Can you prevail with John Hunt that he may put Mistress Anne in some sequestered stand of which Abraham Slender wots not, and so carry it off with the Justice that it may be believed that he did it in error?" "I know not whether I may prevail with John Hunt," said Silence, "but I know of somewhat that will."

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Then," said Petre, "put money in thy purse, use it and spare not. It may be that in lieu of a buck you slay a hart. And now, my Kate, let's to the court and view the hawks. Here, take thy hood like a noble falcon as thou art. None but an eyess may weather unhooded. Come, let's to the hawks. They are of the best, though I say it that should not."

MASTER PETRE'S hawks were, in truth, worthy of his commendation, and since our diarist has thought it worth while to bestow upon them a large share of his tediousness, we of the nineteenth century who cannot hope to see them in the flesh may find a few minutes spent in his company to be not altogether wasted, if we are enabled thereby to realise in some degree the favourite sport of our ancestors and to apprehend allusions which might otherwise have escaped us.

When Silence had passed with his host from the hall into the courtyard they found there an arrival. This was a young man mounted on a stout Galloway nag and bearing with him a newly taken and untrained hawk. Petre immediately recognised the stranger who had accompanied Clement Perkes to yesterday's assembly, by whose gentle bearing and superiority to his surroundings Petre had been more strongly impressed than were the untravelled and unsophisticated natives of Gloucestershire. His errand was soon explained. Clement Perkes had captured a fine young hawk, and he begged Master Petre to accept it at his hands. It would seem that the worthy yeoman conceived himself to be under some obligation to his powerful neigh

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bour. It may be that Petre in his blunt honest way had counteracted the influence bespoken by Davy on behalf of that arrant knave, William Visor of Woncot. This, however, is mere conjecture. The diary contains no notice of the suit of Visor against Perkes. I wish it were otherwise. A day would have been well spent at quarter sessions in hearing Justice Shallow give the charge,' and in enjoying the humours of constables and third-boroughs, as the headboroughs were commonly called, third, or fourth or fifth borough' as Christopher Sly has it-Dogberry, Verges, Elbow, or Dull; all would have afforded matter for the diarist's pen. But we must take things as we find them. I only know that Petre graciously accepted Clement Perkes's gift, and courteously invited the stranger, when he had committed the hawk to the falconer's care, to accompany the party on their visit to the hawks.

To such chance encounters the world owes more than it suspects.

The afternoon was fine, and the hawks had been taken from the hawk-house or mews where they were confined at night and during the moulting season. They stood 'weathering' in the open courtyard, attached by long leathern thongs to upright cylindrical pieces of wood, known as blocks. Around the legs of each bird there constantly remained fastened jesses'; narrow strips of soft leather, with small flat silver rings called 'varvels,' through which passed the leash or line by which the hawk was held in hand by the falconer in the field or attached to perch or block.

1 Common forms' of charges to be delivered at quarter sessions, very useful to Justices lacking in knowledge or invention, are given in Lambarde's Eirenarcha, a Treatise on the Office of Justices of Peace, already referred to, and published in 1581. Dogberry's charge to the watch was a reminiscence of what he had heard with admiration from the lips of the Justices at quarter sessions. 2 Tam. of Shrew, Ind. i. 13. Hence the expression 'mew up' or 'mew' in the sense of 'confine.' Tam. of Shrew, i. 1. 87. 188; K. John, iv. 2. 57; Mids. N. Dr. i. 1. 71; Rich. III. i. 1. 38. 132; Ibid. 3. 139; Rom. and Jul. iii. 4. 11.

Othello, iii. 3. 261.