"Chronicle of Affonso Henriques," whence it was taken by the
Portuguese historical writer, Alexandre Herculano, to be included
in his "Lendas e Narrativas." If it is to be relegated to the
Limbo of the ben trovato, at least I esteem it to afford us a
precious glimpse of the naive spirit of the age in which it is
set, and find in that my justification for including it.

The next to require apology is "His Insolence of Buckingham," but
only in so far as the incident of the diamond studs is concerned.
The remainder of the narrative, the character of Buckingham, the
details of his embassy to Paris, and the particulars of his
audacious courtship of Anne of Austria, rest upon unassailable
evidence. I would have omitted the very apocryphal incident of
the studs, but that I considered it of peculiar interest as
revealing the source of the main theme of one of the most famous
historical romances ever written--"The Three Musketeers." I give
the story as related by La Rochefoucauld in his "Memoirs," whence
Alexandre Dumas culled it that he might turn it to such excellent
romantic account. In La Rochefoucauld's narrative it is the
painter Gerbier who, in a far less heroic manner, plays the part
assigned by Dumas to d'Artagnan, and it is the Countess of
Carlisle who carries out the political theft which Dumas
attributes to Milady. For the rest, I do not invite you to attach
undue credit to it, which is not, however, to say that I account
it wholly false.

In the case of "The _Hermosa Fembra_" I confess to having
blended together into one single narrative two historical
episodes closely connected in time and place. Susan's daughter
was, in fact, herself the betrayer of her father, and it was in