mournful reverie. Then one of the ladies of her court, breaking through
the circle which had formed round the queen, approached her, ill at ease,
and asked her of what she was thinking so sadly. "Ah! madam," Elizabeth
replied impatiently, "do you not know that Mary Stuart has given birth to
a son, while I am but a barren stock, who will die without offspring?"

Yet Elizabeth was too good a politician, in spite of her liability to be
carried away by a first impulse, to compromise herself by a longer
display of her grief. The ball was not discontinued on that account, and
the interrupted quadrille was resumed and finished.

The next day, Melville had his audience. Elizabeth received him to
perfection, assuring him of all the pleasure that the news he brought had
caused her, and which, she said, had cured her of a complaint from which
she had suffered for a fortnight. Melville replied that his mistress had
hastened to acquaint her with her joy, knowing that she had no better
friend; but he added that this joy had nearly cost Mary her life, so
grievous had been her confinement. As he was returning to this point for
the third time, with the object of still further increasing the queen of
England's dislike to marriage--

"Be easy, Melville," Elizabeth answered him; "you need not insist upon
it. I shall never marry; my kingdom takes the place of a husband for me,
and my subjects are my children. When I am dead, I wish graven on my
tombstone: 'Here lies Elizabeth, who reigned so many years, and who died
a virgin.'"

Melville availed himself of this opportunity to remind Elizabeth of the
desire she had shown to see Mary, three or four years before; but
Elizabeth said, besides her country's affairs, which necessitated her