far away in the distance my sweep of vision has taken in the coast-line of the Irish sea; whilst north, and east, and south there lay before me a mighty vista of hill and dale and rugged peak! Then, how lovely the magnificent stretch of forest too!--a rich unbroken canopy of green, many-tinted and beautiful, the oak, the ash, the elm, and many others blending their various tints in the lowlands; whilst the fir, the pine, and the mountain-ash belted the forest in the higher reaches. The fleet-footed red-deer might be seen threading their way through the tangled undergrowth, or browsing amid the boulders in the clear, keeping ever a wary eye on the stealthy hunter. Sly Reynard here abounded, and might be seen gliding warily along; and occasionally his fiercer cousin the wolf prowled in fierce loneliness; whilst ceaselessly the woods rang with the songs of her feathered denizens. Birds of rare plumage, too, and shy, such as the jay, the magpie, the thrush, the curlew, the wood-pigeon, with many specimens of the hawk family, were here; whilst the golden eagle wheeled in airy flight round the crown, or moodily perched on some boulder, while his mate patiently hatched her young in the fissures of the rocks, which, steep and high, lined the pathway of the descending waters. But on this eventful day, as the sun reared its blood-red visage above the horizon, and kissed the mountain peak into a ruddy twilight, two Saxon warriors, with broadswords by their sides and battle-axes at their girdles, rounded the peak on the side which overlooked the castle and broad fertile acres which had been comparatively cleared around it. Just the dimmest outlines of this scene were visible; but as the sun mounted higher in the heavens, and his rays swept down from the hills into the lowest valleys, the whole landscape was spread in beauty before them. The castle's noble proportions, here and there also the river's sinuous course, as it threaded in and out amongst the trees, could be seen; whilst farther down the valley the gorgeous masonry of the Abbey peeped through the tops of the trees. With rapt vision, but with very sad hearts, the pair stood together, and watched the marvellous transformation taking place before them. "Was ever man called to yield so fair a possession before, Wulfhere?" said the chieftain to his comrade. "Well, truly it is a fair spot--finer, I think, than ever I thought it before. But it may be yours again, and I may get my little patrimony also. So let us not despair." "Well, we know not what may happen, but it seems very unlikely at present. But come, we will go over the summit and consider our plan for the stronghold. It will be some time yet ere our enemies are astir, I dare say. The scouts will bring us timely word."