”

His Majesty started violently.  “The _King_!” he cried.  “_What_ king,
good sir?”

“What king, indeed! (God-a-mercy, what aileth the boy?)  Sith we have
but one, ’tis not difficult to answer--his most sacred Majesty King
Edward the Sixth--whom God preserve!  Yea, and a dear and gracious
little urchin is he, too; and whether he be mad or no--and they say he
mendeth daily--his praises are on all men’s lips; and all bless him,
likewise, and offer prayers that he may be spared to reign long in
England; for he began humanely with saving the old Duke of Norfolk’s
life, and now is he bent on destroying the cruellest of the laws that
harry and oppress the people.