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ROGER OF WENDOVER Flowers of history. The history of England from the descent of the saxons to A.D. 1235. vol.1

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ROGER OF WENDOVER
Flowers of history. The history of England from the descent of the saxons to A.D. 1235. vol.1
page 187



drop from her hand, and turning pale in the face, began to cry, and exclaimed, " I shall hear of some heavy calamity to-day, for my plough is come to-day to the last furrow ;" and no sooner had she so said, than there entered a messenger with doleful tidings. On her inquiring why he came, he replied, " I have to inform you that your son and all his family have been suddenly crushed to death." Struck with this sorrowful news, the woman immediately became very ill and took to her bed ; and sensible that the disease was creeping on to her vitals, she sent a letter for her yet surviving children, the one a monk and the other a nun. On their arrival she addressed them with sobs after this manner, "M y children, it has been my miserable fate, that I have all my life given myself to devilish practices, having been the sink of every vice, and the teacher of all manner of impurities. Yet, in the midst of my wickednesses, I placed my hope for the salvation of my perishing soul in your religion, trusting that you would be my defence against my adversaries, my guardians against my cruel foes. Now, therefore, that I am come to the end of my life, I beseech you by these breasts which have nourished you, that you do your endeavours to alleviate my torments. As soon as I am dead, sew me up in a deerskin, and then place me in a stone coffin, fastening well the lid with iron and lead, and binding it round with three very strong iron chains ; after which, procure fifty ecclesiastics to sing psalms, and as many priests to celebrate masses for three days, that so the fierce attacks of my enemies may be repelled; and then, if I shall lie in security for three nights, on the fourth day bury me under ground." They did as she had directed ; but, alas ! neither prayers, nor tears, nor chains availed anything; for on the first two nights, while the quires were singing around the corpse, the devils came and burst open the church door, which was fastened with a huge bar, and broke with ease the chains that were about the extremities of the coffin ; but the middle one was too strong for them, and remained entire. But on the third night, about cock-crowing, the whole of the monastery seemed to be shaken from its foundation by the noise of the approaching demons. One of the devils, who was more terrible in look and taller of stature than the rest, with a violent onset shivered the church-doors to fragments ; the clergy and laity became


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