As the preceding speech differs in some points from the copy of it already printed, it may be necessary to state, that it has been faithfully transcribed from No. 6798 of the Harleian MSS. in the British Museum, the orthography alone being corrected. It is there stated to have been "Gathered by on yt heard itt, and was commanded to utter itt to ye whole army ye next day, to send itt gathered to ye queen herself."

During the summer of 1577, a Polish ambassador sent to Queen Elizabeth, then in the sixty-fourth year of her age, to complain of an invasion of neutral rights. Speed, the ablest of our chroniclers, gives at length her extempore Latin reply to the harangue of the ambassador, adding, in his quaint but expressive phrase, that she, "Thus lion-like rising, daunted the male pert orator no less with her stately port and majestical deporture, than with the tartness of her princely checks; and turning to the train of her attendants, thus said, ''s death, my lords, I have been informed this day to scour up my old Latin, that hath lain so long in rusting!"

In a volume of the Harleian MSS. No. 6798, there is a copy of this celebrated speech as delivered in Latin, with an English translation by Harry Capel. It is as follows:

"The answer of the queene, to the orator of the Kinge of Polonia, the 25th day of July, 1597.

Oh, how I was beguiled! I expected an ambassador, but you have brought me a complaint. I understand by my letters you were an ambassador, but I

have founde you an heraulde. I never in my life hearde such an orator. I cannot but admire so great and so strange boldnesse in an open assembly, and I can hardly be induced to believe, that your kinge himselfe, if he had hither arrived unto our presence, woulde ever entertained such wordes, so rudely attired into his mouthe; otherwise if this your oration cancell itselfe within the limits of his commandement, (whereof I am halfe afrayde) must needes impute it unto this, that sith your prince's head is not as yet seasoned with grey haires, as also chalenging the right of his governement, not by any lawfull descent, but by a favourable election, and as yet but lately invested with the Polonian diademe, he cannot fathome the hidden mystery of managinge these state matters with other princes so perfectly as either his predecessors have to us performed, or those that are afterwarde themselves to be inthroned in his kingdome may peradventure observe. And to approache a little nearer unto you, you seeme to have tossed many volumes, yet scarcely with your forefinger to have touched any treatises of kings; but rather to be a very raw scholar in juginge of princes' behaviour, nay even in that, which your mother Nature or the accustomed law of all nations might have taught you, that when princes are up in armes, it is no point of injustice, for the one to arrest the other, his warlike compliments, not regardinge then the place from whence they came, and to carry a provident eye, least peradventure they might returne to his owne damage. This is I say that same law of nature and of all nations. Whereas you make intention of the new aliance, contracted with the house of Austria; wherein

you secure to repose great confidence; you are not ignorant that out of that stocke some have sprange out, which would have disrobed your kinge of all kingly authority. As to the rest to which this place and tyme seem to deny an answere, because they are many in number, and those also severally to be examined, you shall attende, the determination of certayne of my counsell assigned by mee for the same purpose. In the meane tyme content yourself, and trouble me no more."

MARGARET LAMBRUN.

The death of Mary Queen of Scots so affected one of her retinue, that he died soon after of grief, leaving his widow, Margaret Lambrun, who became so infuriated in consequence, that she resolved to revenge the death of both upon the person of Queen Elizabeth. To accomplish her purpose, she dressed herself as a man, assumed the name of Anthony Spark, and attended at the court of Elizabeth with a pair of pistols, with one of which she intended to kill the queen, and with the other to shoot herself, should she be discovered. One day, as she was pushing through the crowd in order to get to her majesty, she accidentally dropped one of her pistols. This being observed by one of the guards, she was immediately seized. The queen interfered, and desired to examine the culprit. She accordingly demanded her name; to which Margaret, with undaunted resolution, replied, "Madam, though I appear before you in this garb, yet I am a woman. My name is Margaret Lambrun. I was several years in the service of Mary, a queen whom

you have unjustly put to death, and thereby deprived me of the best of husbands, who could not survive that bloody catastrophe of his innocent mistress. His memory is hardly more dear to me than that of my injured queen; and regardless of consequences, I determined to revenge their death upon you. Many, but fruitless, were the attempts made to divert me from my purpose. I found myself constrained to prove by experience the truth of the maxim, that neither reason nor force can hinder a woman from vengeance, when she is impelled to it by love."

'You

Highly as the queen had cause to resent this speech, she heard it with coolness and moderation. are persuaded, then," said her majesty, "that in this step you have done nothing but what your duty required. What think you is my duty to you?" "Is that question put in the character of a queen, or that of a judge?" inquired Margaret, with the same intrepid firmness. Elizabeth professed to her it was in that of a queen. "Then," continued Lambrun, "it is your majesty's duty to grant me a pardon." "But what security," demanded the queen, "can you give me, that you will not make the like attempt upon some future occasion ?" "A favour ceases to be one, madam," replied Margaret, "when it is yielded under such restraints; in doing so your majesty would act against me as a judge."

Elizabeth, turning to her courtiers, exclaimed, “I have been a queen thirty-years; I never had such a lecture read to me before." She then immediately granted an unconditional pardon to Margaret Lambrun, though in opposition to the advice of her council.

SIR NICHOLAS THROCKMORTON.

One of the earliest and most pleasing triumphs of the trial by jury in this country, was displayed in the case of Sir Nicholas Throckmorton, accused of high treason in 1554. He was indicted for being concerned in Wyatt's rebellion, and was brought to trial before Lord Chief Justice Bromley, and a special commission of privy councellors, judges, and crown lawyers. He had been in close confinement for fifty-eight days, without any of his friends being allowed access to him, or any assistance of counsel, which was never then permitted. Sir Nicholas was no lawyer by profession; yet under all these disadvantages he made a defence not only distinguished for its plain good sense and strong reasoning, but imcomparably more learned as a legal argument, than any thing that was urged against him by the united knowledge of the bench and bar. In every question of law that occurred, he baffled the whole host of lawyers opposed to him; and the judges got at last so irritated, that they made an attempt to put him to silence, by refusing to order certain statutes which he called for to be read. To their astonishment, however, he repeated them with perfect accuracy, after complaining indignantly, that instead of law, they gave him "only the form and image of law." When he had finished, the chief justice exclaimed with surprise," why do not you of the queen's learned counsel answer him? Methinks, Throckmorton, you need not have the statutes, for you have them perfectly." When the judges quoted cases against him, he retorted others in which these had been condemned as erroneous; till Sergeant Stanford, on the part of the