402 REIGN OF ELIZABETH. [CH. 60. will not touch the principals, she must, of course, spare the accessories and instruments. She will not even allow the removal of the Scottish Queen to a place of more security/ x She continued to smile upon her false and fair-seeming courtiers. She kept her irritation, and seemingly her suspicions, for those who had never enter- tained an unfaithful thought towards her, 2 and she punished the Shrewsburies only by a sarcastic letter on the entertainment which they extended to Leicester when the favourite was sent down on a sanatory visit to the baths. 3 1 "Walsingham to Leicester, March 8 : MSS. MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 2 Burghley, for instance, went over to Buxton when Shrewsbury was there with bis charge. Eliza- beth 'sharply reproved him, charg- ing him earnestly with favouring the Queen of Scots.' Burghley to Shrewsbury, December 24, 1575 : LODGE, vol. ii. 3 This letter is one of the most curious specimens of Elizabeth's composition : Right trusty, ' Being given to understand from our cousin, the Earl of Leicester, how honourably he was lately received and used by you, our cousin the Countess at Chatsworth, and how his diet is by you both discharged at Buxton, we should do him great wrong holding him in that place in ^ur favour in which we do, in case we should not let you understand in tiow thankful sort we accept the same at your hands vrhich we do not acknowledge to be done unto him but to our own self ; and there- fore do mean to take upon us the debt and to acknowledge you both as our creditors so as you can be con- tent to accept us for debtor, where- in is the danger unless you cut off some part of the large allowance of diet you give him, lest otherwise the debt thereby may grow to be so great as we shall not be able to discharge the same, and so become bankrupt. And therefore we think it for the saving of our credit meet to pre- scribe unto you a proportion of diet which we mean in no case you shall exceed, and that is to allow him by the day for his meat two ounces of flesh, referring the quality to your- selves, so as you exceed not the quantity, and for his drink the twentieth part of a pint of wine to comfort his stomach, and as much of St Anne's sacred water as he listeth to drink. On festival days, as is meet
