ROYAL DIVERSION. 1 33 



husbands, and the most excellent of friends in short, or- 

 naments to society ; much more valuable members of it, 

 indeed, than we minions of the mountains. What does 

 not this satisfy you ? do you mutiny in your punt, and 

 are you determined to reject our wholesome advice ? Well, 

 then, we admire your spirit, which soars so high above 

 your corporal capacity, and since you are so determined, 

 we will grant you our licence to sport with the stag after 

 the self- same fashion with Queen Elizabeth. 



Thus it was : When the said Queen of glorious 

 memory visited Lord Montacute at Cowdrey in Sussex, on 

 the Monday, August 17th, 1591, her Highness took horse 

 and rode into the park at eight o'clock in the morning, 

 " where was a delicate bowrie prepared, under which were 

 her Highness's musicians placed ; and a crossbow, by a 

 nymph with a sweet song, was delivered into her hands to 

 shoot at the deere ; about some thirty were put into a 

 paddock, of which number she killed three or four, and the 

 Countess of Kildare, one." * 



This is the exact thing for you, and I pray you not to 

 omit the nymph with the sweet song. 



After all, we doubt not your resolution to attack the 

 stag, or any other fierce animal, for we have had a very 

 high opinion of the courage of a well-fed man ever since 

 we heard the story that Wilkes delighted to tell of Alder- 

 man Sawbridge, which, for your satisfaction, we will 

 recount. 



The Alderman was induced to go a-hunting, a sport 

 that was novel to him ; and having some sort of indistinct 



* Nicoll's Progresses, vol. ii. 

 K 3 



