"
"I believe thou art right, gossip,"said Wyat in the same tone.
Rest assured I am," replied Sommers; "and I further more counsel thee
to decline this dangerous gift altogether, and to think no more of the
fair profferer, or if thou must think of her, let it be as of one beyond thy
reach. Cross not the lion's path; take a friendly hint from the jackal."
And without waiting for a reply, he darted away, and mingled with the
cavalcade in the rear.
Immediately behind Anne Boleyn's litter rode a company of henchmen
of the royal household, armed with gilt partisans. Next succeeded a
chariot covered with red cloth of gold, and drawn by four horses richly
caparisoned, containing the old Duchess of Norfolk and the old
Marchioness of Dorset. Then came the king's natural son, the Duke of
Richmond--a young man formed on the same large scale, and
distinguished by the same haughty port, and the same bluff manner, as
his royal sire. The duke's mother was the Lady Talboys, esteemed one
of the most beautiful women of the age, and who had for a long time
held the capricious monarch captive. Henry was warmly attached to
his son, showered favours without number upon him, and might have
done yet more if fate had not snatched him away at an early age.
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