" The benison of our Lady of Walsingham rest upon yon ;" and with great strides conducted them deeper and deeper into the wood, till they came to a hunter's lodge, which, though much in ruins, gave signs of having been recently repaired, with some view to the rank and comfort of those who were to occupy it. The prince made light of the trifling inconveniences to which they were subjected, remarking, " A soldier has little choice of resting-place." But poor Eva, wearied almost to death from the unaccustomed fatigues of the day, now that the stimulus of excitement was over, had leisure to think of her own situation ; and scarcely able to restrain her tears, crept silently to her couch of fern, and beneath the russet covering, soon slept from very exhaustion. The prince and the monk meanwhile conferred apart, in low tone3, concerting measures for present and future security. " Gloucester is with us," said the priest, "and Sir Eoger de Mortimer has a party of picked men on the road to Evesham. My band have charge of every ford and pass between this and Hereford. The scouts report that Leices-ter's men are much wasted by their long residence on the "Welsh frontier, and my jolly fellows are this night engaged in breaking down the bridges across the Severn. For we churchmen have a fancy, that baptism is necessary to wash away the* sins of rebels." " I fear not all the rites of the Church can absolve the black-hearted traitor," returned Edward, with great asper-ity. " But proceed with thy news." "The country is beset with Leicester's spies," continued the monk, " else had I been less guarded in my communica-tions with thee. Bands of men are daily mustering in every direction, making the high-roads unsafe for honest travellers like myself." " Thou wilt join our forces with the brethren of thy chap-ter," suggested the prince. " Our chapter are somewhat too much tinctured with heresy to hail the ascendency of the odious De Montforts," replied the monk ; " thou mayst, therefore, depend upon 374 HEROINES OF THE CRUSADES.