ABOUT ST. DUNSTAN.

39

about him, when a notorious robber, named Leolf, whom he had banished from the kingdom, had the audacity to come into the hall, and take a seat at the table.

4. The king ordered him to leave the room, but Leolf refused to obey. Enraged at this fresh insult, the king sprang from his seat, and, seizing him by the hair, threw him down. The robber, upon this, drew his dagger, and stabbed the king to the heart. Thus died this hopeful young prince, when he was only twenty-four years old, in the year 948.

5. Edmund left two little sons, named Edwy and Edgar, but they were so young that Edred, his brother, was acknowledged as king. At the commencement of his reign the Danes again rebelled, but were speedily subdued. He took effectual means to prevent their disturbing the peace of the kingdom.

6. He no longer allowed them to be governed by a prince of their own race, but placed an English governor over them. English troops were fixed in all the principal towns.

7. Edred would have led, on the whole, a quiet life, if he had not suffered himself to be governed by an ambitious priest called St. Dunstan. He was an Englishman, of noble family, who was educated for the church. To acquire a character for sanctity, he secluded himself from the world. He had a cell made, so small that he could neither stand upright in it, nor stretch out his limbs when he lay down.

8. Here he employed himself perpetually, either in devotion, or in making useful and ingenious things of iron and brass. Many foolish stories are told of the temptations to which he was subjected. He fancied that the devil, assuming a human shape, made him frequent visits.

9. One day, as he was busily at work, the devil popped his head into the window, and asked him to make something for him. St. Dunstan, soon finding out who it was, seized him by the nose with a pair of red-hot tongs, and held him there, whilst he bellowed most lustily.

10. These, and a thousand other stories equally ridiculous, were seriously told, and implicitly believed by the people, and gained for Dunstan the reputation which he desired. He now appeared in the world again, and soon gained such an influence over Edred, that the king consulted him not only about matters of religion, but entrusted to him the management of the affairs of state.

Edmund's death. 5. Who succeeded Edmund? 6. What means did he adopt to keep the Danes in subjection? 7. Who was Dunstan? What did he do to acquire a reputa tion? 8, 9. What ridiculous stories are related of him? 10. What was the consequence of these stories?

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THE MONKS.

CHAPTER XVIII.

About the Monks, and the Secular Clergy.—Story of Edwy and Elgiva. -How St. Dunstan gained a great influence with the people.

1. STILL further to increase his power and influence, Dunstan resolved to make an innovation in the church, as it existed in England. The change had already been made in other countries. This was by the introduction of a new order of clergy, called monks.

2. These secluded themselves entirely from the world, and lived in monasteries. They were bound by a vow to live according to a certain system or rule. By this they were required to remain unmarried, to be content with coarse fare, and hard beds. They were also bound to yield implicit obedience, in all things, to the head of the monastery, who was called the Abbot, or the Superior.

3. The old clergy were called Seculars; and between the two bodies a furious contest at once arose, which agitated the whole kingdom, and finally produced a civil war. The secular clergy were very numerous and rich, and possessed of all the offices in the church; but Dunstan wielded all the power of the king, who had become indolent, and helpless from ill health, and permitted him to do whatever he pleased.

4. Edred died in 955. Edwy, the oldest son of Edmund, then succeeded to the throne. He was not above sixteen years old. He was possessed of virtues and abilities which would have made him a great favorite with the people, had he not, unhappily, engaged in the religious disputes, and taken part with the secular priests, in opposition to the monks.

5. An act of Edwy's was, by the cruelty and hard-heartedness of St. Dunstan, made the means of destroying not only the happiness, but also the life of that prince. Edwy had a beautiful cousin, Elgiva, whom he loved very dearly, and whom he married.

6. St. Dunstan, and Odo, another churchman completely under his control, declared it to be sinful for a man to marry his cousin, and did all they could to disturb their happiness. The king now called upon Dunstan to give an account of the money which he had received as treasurer of the kingdom. Being unable to do this, Dunstan was banished from the country.

7. Though absent, he was not idle. He excited Edgar, who was still a boy, to raise a rebellion against his brother, and as soon as he had assembled an army, joined him in person. Meanwhile, Odo contrived to seize on the poor queen, cruelly burned her face with hot irons, in order to destroy her beauty, and then had her carried to Ireland, where she was kept a prisoner.

XVIII.-1. What change did St. Dunstan make in the church? 2. What is said of the monks? By whom were they governed? 3. What were the old clergy called? What is said of the two parties? 4. When did Edred die? Who succeeded him? What of Edwy? 5. What did Edwy do? 6. What did Dunstan declare? Why was he banished from the country? 7. What did Dunstan do? What became of Elgiva? 8. What of

EDGAR THE PEACEABLE.

41

8. The people regarded Dunstan as a saint, and their superstitious reverence was kept up by pretended messages from heaven. Crucifixes, altars, and even horses, were said to have been gifted with the power of speech, in order to harangue in his favor.

9. By the assistance of these pretended miracles, which were fully believed by the people, the monks prevailed. Edwy was deprived of the larger part of his dominions. To complete his afflictions, his beloved Elgiva, having escaped from Ireland, got as far as Gloucester, on her way to join him; there she was discovered by her savage persecutors who put her to death. Edwy died of a broken heart, in 959.

CHAPTER XIX.

Edgar the Peaceable.—Reign and Death of Edward the Martyr.

1. EDGAR, the next king, was only sixteen years old when he became sole sovereign of the whole kingdom, of a large portion of which his rebellious arms had before made him master. He was completely governed by St. Dunstan, and other meddling monks, who, in return, wrote the history of his life, and praised him as the best king that ever lived.

2. It is difficult to tell how much of their praise he deserved. They represent him not only as a great statesman, and a man of great abilities, but also as a saint and a man of great virtue. We know that he has no claims to the latter character, but that he was a consummate hypocrite, who, whilst he was falsely charging thè secular clergy with various wickednesses, was himself guilty of the most enormous crimes.

3. He seems, however, to have been an active prince, and to have governed his kingdom with wisdom. Many good laws were made by him, and justice was so well administered, that travellers had no longer any fear of robbers. We are also told, as a proof of his power, that having occasion to pass by water from one place to another, he was rowed in his barge by eight tributary princes.

4. It also appears certain that he attended diligently to the naval affairs of his kingdom; he had so large a fleet, that the Danes never rentured to molest him. To make his sailors expert, he kept his ships constantly sailing round the island.

5. Whilst he was totally regardless of his own morals, he was very careful about those of his subjects. Instead of setting them a good example, he endeavored to promote religion by laws. Amongst

the feelings of the people? What artifices were used to excite their feelings? 9. Which party prevailed? What became of Elgiva? When did Edwy die?

XIX.-1. Who succeeded Edwy? By whom was Edgar governed? 2. What of the character of Edgar? 3. What of the state of the kingdom? What instance of his power? 4. What of the navy? 5. What law did he make? 6. What tribute did he

42

REIGN AND DEATH OF EDWARD.-A. D. 975.

others, he ordained that every Sunday should be strictly observed, and should begin at three o'clock on Saturday afternoon, and end at sunrise on Monday.

6. Wales, and a great part of England, were at this time infested by wolves. To get rid of them, Edgar commanded that instead of the annual tribute in money and cattle, which the Welsh kings were bound to pay him, they should bring three hundred wolves' heads yearly. This plan succeeded so well that in three years the whole race was nearly exterminated.

7. After having reigned seventeen years, Edgar died in 975. His reign was so free from wars and tumults, that he obtained the title of Edgar the Peaceable. He left two sons, Edward, the son of his first wife, and Ethelred, whose mother, Elfrida, was yet living.

8. Elfrida was ambitious that her son should be king, instead of his half-brother; but the influence of that bustling priest, Dunstan, placed the crown on the head of Edward. This poor young man behaved kindly and gently to everybody, and very liberally to his ambitious step-mother; but this did not prevent her from contriving his death.

9. One day, when he was hunting near Corfe Castle, in Dorsetshire, where Elfrida lived, he rode up to the castle, entirely alone, and unsuspicious of ill, to make the queen a passing visit. Elfrida received him with much pretended kindness, and, as he declined dismounting, she presented him with a cup of wine.

10. While he was drinking, she stabbed him in the back. Edward, finding himself wounded, put spurs to his horse, and galloped off, but, becoming weak from loss of blood, he fell from his horse, and was dragged by the stirrup till he was dead.

11. As Elfrida was the head of the party opposed to the monks, they chose to consider Edward as having fallen in the cause of re ligion, and styled him Edward the Martyr. They affirmed, and the superstitious people readily believed, that many miracles were performed at his tomb.

CHAPTER XX.

Ethelred II. succeeds to the throne.--About Penance.

1. ETHELRED was only ten years old when the wickedness of his mother thus raised him to the throne. Being of an amiable disposition, he was much affected by the death of his brother, and shed many tears. This looked like a reproach to his mother, who became very angry; nothing else being at hand, she seized a large wax candle and beat the poor boy almost to death.

require of Wales? Why? 7. When did he die? What sons did he leave? 8. Who succeeded him? 9, 10. Relate the particulars of his death. 11. What was he surnamed? XX.--1. How did Ethelred bear his brother's death? 2. What did his mother do?

ABOUT PENANCE.-A. D. 975.

43

2. It is said that Ethelred never forgot this beating, and that to the day of his death he could not bear the sight of a wax candle! Though his wicked mother had now obtained the object of her ambition, she was, as we may well believe, anything but happy.

3. At that time, as, indeed, in our own day, when any one had committed an offence, he was taught to believe that, in addition to repentance and to efforts to repair the harm he had done, he might also, with advantage to himself, do penance, as it was called.

4. To do penance was often to go barefoot, or to sleep on a hard board. The Saxons were very fond of bathing in warm water, but had a great aversion to bathing in cold water One of the most common penances required of those who had been guilty of great sins was to abstain from the warm bath; or, if they had been particularly enormous, to substitute cold water for warm. 5. Other penances were much more severe. One sinner would be required to fast; another to make a long and fatiguing journey; another to beat himself, or submit to be beaten with thongs, upon the bare flesh; another to wear a hair shirt next the skin; and so

on.

And

6. It was believed by great numbers of people then, and it is believed by great numbers now, that the prayers of holy men, monks and priests, must be more efficacious than their own. in order to obtain these prayers, it was natural for them to build monasteries, found churches, and to give land upon which to erect them.

7. But this in time became an evil, or, at any rate, was believed to be one. Laws were therefore passed forbidding any person to make gifts of land to the Church, and these remained in force for many years.

8. Elfrida founded monasteries, performed penances, and did all the priests required, but none of these things could calm the upbraidings of her own conscience, or restore her peace of mind. Ât last she retired to a monastery, where she passed the remainder of her life in fasting and prayer.

What of his mother? 3. What did people believe in respect to penance? 4. What are some instances of penance? 5. What of severer penances? 6. What of the prayers of holy men? What was done in consequence? 7. What laws were passed in reference to this? 8. What further of Elfrida?