press her tears; "would he, indeed, serve him? O pardon me, my dearest madam, for eagerly catching at the very shadow of a hope which might alleviate my father's fate -could nothing be affected by means of Sir Sigismund's affinity to Lord Henry Fitzroy, who is the brother of that sovereign from whose asperity his sufferings flow?" “Oh, my love,” returned Lady Blunt, "were the voice of Lord Fitzroy employed in his cause, it would but fan the flame which now threatens him; implacable is the hatred which exists between the royal Mary and her father's son." Eleonora sighed, and their conversation was interrupted by the entrance of a servant, who came to inform Lady Blunt that the Father Ignatius would attend on the following morning, at six o'clock, for the performance of mass. They shortly after retired to rest, and Eleonora passed a night of greater composure than she had yet done since her separation from her parents. c 2 CHAP CHAP. II. "Then, oh, you blessed ministers above! The moment ELEONORA was awakened on the following morning by tones of the softest music stealing upon her senses. Gillian entered her chamber, she inquired of her whether she could inform her from whence they proceeded, and found that they issued from the chapel of the castle, where mass was then performing, and that its celebration was attended by various instruments of music. Whilst Whilst Gillian was assisting her mistress in dressing, "Pray, my Lady," she said, "have you never seen the chapel since you have been here?" Eleonora replied in the negative. "Dear-a-me, my Lady! well, I wonder you have not had the curiosity to take a peep at it," returned Gillian ; "there are such delightful pictures in it! there's one that gives an inscription, as I may say, of the punishments of the wicked hereafter, that is done so beautifully, it is enough to frighten one out of one's seven senses to look at it; and another, that they tell me is the death-bed of a sinner, with a countenance so charmingly miserable, that it perpetrates to one's very heart. If you have a mind to go and take a look now whilst service is performing, I know the way into a gallery over one end of the chapel, where we can get a peep." heart. If "On no account," replied Eleonora ; "I will not hazard interrupting any one in in those devotions in which I do not myself think it right to join." "O sure there could be no harm in a peep," answered Gillian; "A cat may look at a king,' as the proverb says; and we should only take an artificial glance at the place, and those that are in it." Eleonora was steady in refusing to comply with her attendant's persuasions; but added, "That as she had never had an opportunity of beholding a chapel devoted to the Roman Catholic religion, she should like very much to take a view of it when the service was ended, and the household of the castle had retired from it;" and directed Gillian to give her notice when this was the case. Gillian was punctual in conveying her the information; and, conducted by her, Eleonora entered the chapel through a door under the gallery: the beauty of the place infinitely exceeded what she had expected to behold; it was a striking speci men men of simple and elegant taste-the floor was of chequered marble, the roof and sides of a light grey stone, the latter intersected at equal distances with religious paintings, surrounded by mosaic borders of the most exquisite workmanship; the furniture of the altar, the seats, the chairs, and the cushions to kneel upon, were of a dark blue velvet, ornamented with silver fringe the effect of the whole was peculiarly attractive and pleasing. Eleonora advanced towards the altar; above it was suspended between a double row of silver branches, in which wax tapers were burning, a painting which claimed alike her admiration and her sympathy -it represented the Saviour of the world, crowned with thorns, and submitting with the meekest resignation to the insults of the unfeeling and unbelieving populace; it brought to the mind of the observer recollections which claim equally the gratitude of the Catholic and the Protestant heart-the painter had handled his subject |