“But I have not explained all the coat of arms to her yet,” said he; “and when I have done I will give her one of the engravings to keep that she may remember what I have told her.” Agnes thanked him, and he continued. “The arms of the Archbishop of Treves exhibit a red cross on a white field, in remembrance of the fiery cross which is said to have fallen from Heaven into the middle of the city of Treves, a representation of which, in stone, still adorns the market-place; and the arms of Cologne are a black cross on a white field, in commemoration of the first Archbishop of Cologne having come from the East, a black cross being borne by the Eastern priesthood. This finishes the arms of the spiritual lords.” “That is, the archbishops,” said Agnes. “Right; but I am sorry I cannot explain the others so fully: the arms of Brandenburg have a red eagle on a white field; those of Saxony two crossed swords on a black and white ground; those of the Palatinate a red lion on a golden field; and those of Bavaria chequers of blue and white.” “What do the two flags mean?” “They are the banners of Germany, and they are black, red, and golden yellow. The red was first adopted by the immediate successors of Charlemagne, whose body-guards were clad in that colour; the black was added by the House of Saxony, when it attained imperial honours, the family colours of Saxony being black and white; and the golden yellow alludes to the Swabian emperors, whose dynasty has been called the golden age of the German empire.” The old gentleman here concluded, and Mr. Merton complimented him on the knowledge he possessed of the subject. “I am interested in it,” said he, “because I am a native of Germany, though I have now lived a long time in England. It is more than thirty years since I saw my native land; but still my heart warms whenever I hear anything relating to the scenes of my youth.” “We can sympathize with you,” said Mr. Merton, “for Agnes has an uncle and two aunts in Poland, who no doubt feel the same when they hear anything of Great Britain.” They were now interrupted by the arrival of the steam-boat at Southampton, or “Souton,” as the sailors called it, and getting a porter to carry their luggage they proceeded directly to the terminus of the railway. A train was just going off; so they took their places and in about three hours reached London. Another half hour carried them to Bayswater, where they found Aunt Jane waiting for them; and when she heard Agnes recount the various things she had seen, she felt, like her little niece, that it was difficult to believe so much could possibly have happened in so short a space of time. THE END. LONDON: PRINTED by S. & J. BENTLEY, WILSON, and FLEY, Bangor House, Shoe Lane. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ =New and Interesting Works=,