for his wife, and had by her a son whom he called Edmund. This year also, the monastery of Petrock, in Cornwall, was plundered by Danish pirates, who committed many ravages in Devonshire and Cornwall. A.D. 982. Three ships of pirates landed in the province of Dorsetshire, laid waste the whole island of Portland, and then fled away to their ships. A.D. 983. A contention arose between king Ethelred and the bishop of Rochester ; but on what account is uncertain. Wherefore the king commenced a siege of the city of Rochester, and prepared to subdue it, but the blessed Dunstan enjoined the king to desist from his enterprise, lest he should provoke Andrew, the patron of that city ; but the king would not abandon the siege for the admonition of the blessed man, till he had received a hundred pounds from the bishop. The holy Dunstan, marvelling at the covetousness of the king, sent the following message to him by his followers. " Because you have preferred silver to God, money to an apostle, and covetousness to me, the evils which the Lord has spoken shall come violently upon you, but these things will not happen during my lifetime." But immediately after the death of the blessed man, as he had himself predicted, the Danes infested all the harbours of the kingdom ; and as no one knew where they could be encountered, it was determined by wise men that those who could not be conquered by iron, must be conquered by silver. Therefore ten thousand pounds were paid, and satisfied the avarice of the Danes, that the prophecy of the blessed Dunstan might be fulfilled. A.D. 984. John was appointed to the see of Rome, and occupied the Roman chair nine months ; when he was succeeded by another John, who filled it nine years. In this year also, Otho the Third obtained the empire of the Romans, and reigned nineteen years. And although these three Othos reigned by natural family succession, yet it was established subsequently that the emperor should be elected by the officials of the empire, who are seven ; to wit, first of all, these three chancellors, the bishop of Mayence, chancellor of Germany ; the bishop of Treves, chancellor of Gaul; the bishop of Cologne, chancellor of Italy ; the marquis of Brandenburgh, the chamberlain ; the palatine, the steward, the duke of Saxony, the sword-bearer, and the king of Bohemia the cupbearer. From which arrangement came these verses :