The monastery; The abbot.

400 WAVERLEY NOVELS.
tenance of the personage next to whom he had been placed in the train,
discouraged all approach to familiarity. The Baron himself did not look
more grim and inaccessible than his feudal retainer, whose grisly beard
fell over his mouth like the portcullis before the gate of a castle, as if for
the purpose of preventing the escape of any word, of which absolute necessity did not demand the utterance. The rest of the train seemed under the
same taciturn influence, and journeyed on without a word being exchanged
amongst them-more like a troop of Carthusian friars than a party of military retainers. Roland Graeme was surprised at this extremity of discipline;
for even in the household of the Knight of Avenel, though somewhat distinguished for the accuracy with which decorum was enforced, a journey was
a period of license, during which jest and song, and every thing within the
limits of becoming mirth and pastime were freely permitted. This unusual
silence was, however, so far acceptable, that it gave him time to bring any
shadow of judgment which he possessed to council on his own situation and
prospects, which would have appeared to any reasonable person in the
highest degree dangerous and perplexing.
It was quite evident that he had, through various circumstances not under
his own control, formed contradictory connexions with both the contending
factions, by whose strife the kingdom was distracted, without being properly
an adherent of either. It seemed also clear, that the same situation in the
household of the deposed Queen, to which he was now promoted by the
influence of the Regent, had been destined to him by his enthusiastic grandmother, Magdalen Graeme; for on this subject, the words which Morton had
dropped had been a ray of light; yet it was no less clear that these two
persons, the one the declared enemy, the other the enthusiastic votary, of
the Catholic religion,- the one at the head of the King's new government,
the other, who regarded that government as a criminal usurpation -must
have required and expected very different services from the individual whom
they had thus united in recommending. It required very little reflection to
foresee that these contradictory claims on his services might speedily place
him in a situation where his honour as well as his life might be endangered.
But it was not in Roland Groeme's nature to anticipate evil before it came,
or to prepare to combat difficulties before they arrived. "I will see this
beautiful and unfortunate Mary Stewart," said he, " of whom we have heard
so much, and then there will be time enough to determine whether I will be
kingsman or queensman. None of them can say I have given word or
promise to either of their factions; for they have led me up and down like
a blind Billy, without giving me any light into what I was to do. But it
was lucky that grim Douglas came into the Regent's closet this morning,
otherwise I had never got free of him without plighting my troth to do all
the Earl would have me, which seemed, after all, but foul play to the poor
imprisoned lady, to place her page as an espial on her."
Skipping thus lightly over a matter of such consequence, the thoughts of
the hare-brained boy went a wool-gathering after more agreeable topics.
Now he admired the Gothic towers of Barnbougle, rising from the seabeaten rock, and overlooking one of the most glorious landscapes in Scotland and now he began to consider what notable sport for the hounds
and the hawks must be afforded by the variegated ground over which they
travelled- and now he compared the steady and dull trot at which they
were then prosecuting their journey, with the delight of sweeping over hill
and dale in pursuit of his favourite sports. As, under the influence of these
joyous recollections, he gave his horse the spur, and made him execute a
gambade, he instantly incurred the censure of his grave neighbour, who
hinted to him to keep the pace, and move quietly and in order, unless he
wished such notice to be taken of his eccentric movements as was likely to
be very displeasing to him.
The rebuke and the restraint under which the youth now found himself,