Mr. George had thought that Waldron would not succeed in obtaining any satisfactory information from the guide in respect to the circumstances of Queen Mary's escape; for, generally, the guides who show these old places in England and Scotland know little more than a certain lesson, which they have learned by rote. But the guides who show the Castle of Loch Leven seem to me exceptions to this rule. I have visited the place two or three times, at intervals of many years, and the guides who have conducted me to the spot have always been very intelligent and well-informed young men, and have seemed to possess a very clear and comprehensive understanding of the events of Queen Mary's life. At any rate, the guide in this instance gave Waldron and Rollo a very good account of the escape; separating in his narrative, in a very discriminating manner, those things which are known, on good historical evidence, to be true, from those which rest only on the authority of traditionary legends. He gave his account, too, in a very gentle tone of voice, and with a Scotch accent, which seemed so appropriate to the place and to the occasion that it imparted to his conversation a peculiar charm. "The country was divided in those days," said he, "and some of the nobles were for the poor queen, and some were against her. The owner of this castle was Lady Douglass, and she was against her; and so they sent Mary here, for Lady Douglass to keep her safely, while they arranged a new government. "But she made her escape by this window, which I will show ye." So saying, the guide led the way up two or three old, time-worn, and dilapidated steps, into the hexagonal tower. The tower was small--being, apparently, not more than twelve feet diameter within. The floors, except the lower one, and also the roof, were entirely gone, so that as soon as you entered you could look up to the sky. The walls were very thick, so that there was room, not only for deep fireplaces, but also for closets and for a staircase, in them. You could see the openings for these closets, and also various loopholes and windows, at different heights. The top of the wall was all broken away, and so were the sills of the windows; and little tufts of grass and of wall flowers were to be seen, here and there, growing out of clefts and crevices. There were also rows of small square holes to be seen, at different heights, where the ends of the timbers had been inserted, to form the floors of the several stories. "This was the window where she is supposed to have got out," said the guide. So saying, he pointed to a large opening in the wall, on the outer side, where there had once, evidently, been a window. The boys went to the place, and looked out. They saw beneath the window a smooth, green lawn, with the young trees which had been planted growing luxuriantly upon it. "I suppose," said Mr. George, "that before the lake was lowered the water came up close under the window."