King Henry sat in a great chair with a pillow under each arm, and one behind his head resting on the lofty chair-back. He was unwell, uncomfortable, irritable. In a large wicker-work cage at the further end of the room was a porcupine. It had been sent him as a present by the King of Denmark. Henry Beauclerk was fond of strange animals, and the princes that desired his favor humored him by forwarding such beasts and birds as they considered to be rare and quaint.