In her did beauty, youth, and bounty dwell, A virgin port and features feminine; Far better than my feeble tongue can tell, Did meek-eyed wisdom in her features shine; She seemed perfay, a thing almost divine. JAMES I. OF SCOTLAND. Antwerp was then in the zenith of its commercial glory, and to a traveller like Sir Patrick Gray, who had never seen a larger city than the little Edinburgh of James II. clustering on its rocky ridge, surrounded by forests of oak and pathless hills, the great Flemish town, in the splendour of its mercantile prosperity, with a population of more than two hundred thousand souls, presented a scene of varying wonders, amid which he was almost disposed to forget his embassy, and to linger for a time. Nor was this desire lessened, when Maître Baudoin, a garrulous little Frenchman, who was keeper of the hostelry at which he lodged--the "Grille of St. Laurence"--informed him that, "by recent rains, all the roads between the Scheldt and Maese were impassable; that the sluices of several of the barrier fortresses had given way; that the rivers had overflowed their banks; and that the Peel Morass, which lies between Brabant and Gueldreland, was, for the time, an actual sea. Moreover," he added, "it is but a few days until the 15th of the month, when the Feast of the Assumption will be held in the cathedral of our Lady of Antwerp, with a splendour never before witnessed in the city; people are arriving from all quarters, and Monseigneur l'Evêque de Mechlin has found a young lady of great beauty and high rank, to appear as our patroness in the procession." "Though this may be no inducement to a lover, it may be one to a storm-stayed traveller," replied Gray; "but who is this lady, Maître Baudoin?" "Ah--who indeed, messire!" replied the hosteller shrugging his shoulders; "who indeed!" "What--is she the Princess Mary of Gueldres?" "Pardieu! no one can tell who the lady may be, save herself and Monseigneur l'Evêque; it is always kept secret." "Why--how?" "You see, messire, secrecy and mystery enhance the charm of her appearance. It is very droll." "And she is sure to be beautiful?" "Superbe, messire!" While the master of the hostel ran on thus, and then proceeded to enumerate all the great personages, such as Monseigneur the prince of Ravenstein, MM. the marquises of Berg and Anvers, the count of Nassau, and others who were sure to be present with their ladies, esquires, and men-at-arms, Gray mentally resolved to tarry for a day or two and witness the spectacle, prior to which he could see all the marvels of this great Flemish capital.