attack even the person of the king, this they were unwilling to do, hut they injured his adherents by plunder, and spoiling, and fire, and every means which during the whole of the summer and winter that the war lasted. The same year, on the twenty-third of March, there was a terrible thunder-storm, which was followed by such an inundation of rain lasting the whole summer, that it everywhere broke up the preserves, and fish ponds, and mill streams, throughout nearly the whole of England, and tore up the mills from their foundations. And in the arable lands, and fertile orchards, and other places, which were quite unusual, springs burst forth, and streams ran in all directions, producing small fishes; the mill streams, though unused to it, becoming adapted to support them. The same year, on the eighth of April, about the first hour of the day, four spurious suns appeared in heaven, besides the real one, marked with some circles which intersected them in a marvellous manner, in the district which lies beyond the borders of Herefordshire and Worcestershire ; and this prodigy was followed by a great slaughter on the confines of Wales, in the country which lies on the borders, and by lamentable conflagrations in Ireland. This year Warin Basset died at the siege and in the About the same time, the election of Master John Blund was annulled at Borne, for the bishop of Winchester had written on his behalf to the lord the emperor, begging him to condescend to assist the said John, and to procure that he might receive his promotion without any of the hindrances to which others who had been elected to the same dignity had been exposed. But the pope, who did not love the emperor with sincerity of heart, did not grant his request, but alleging a fictitious pretext for annulling his election, he made a violent objection to the said John, because he had obtained two benefices to which cure of souls was annexed without any dispensation, which, as he stated, were a sufficient reason for annulling his election, and so the friendship and request of the bishop of Winchester did him more harm than good. About the same time, Edmond of Abingdon was elected archbishop. About the same time, earl Richard, perceiving that he was destitute of allies, formed a confederacy with Leoline, and the other nobles of that country,