248 ROGER OF WENDOVER. [A.D . 1209. acquiesced in the king's demands, some delivering to his messengers their sons, and others their nephews and other relations in the llesh. When they at length came to William de liraiise, a man of noble blood, and demanded hostages from him, as they had done from others, Matilda, wife of the said William, with the ,-aueiness of a woman, took the reply out of his mouth, ami said to the messengers in reply, " I will not deliver up my sons to your lord, king John, because he basely murdered his nephew, Arthur, whom he ought to have taken care of honourably." Her husband on hearing her speech rebuked her, and said, "Thou hast spoken like a foolish woman against our lord the king; for if I have offended him in anything, I am and shall be ready to give satisfaction to inv lord and that without hostages, according to the decision of his court and of my fellow barons, if he will fix on a time and place for my so doing." The messengers, on their return to the king, told him what they had heard, at which he, was seriously enraged, and privily sent some knights and their followers to seize this William and his family; but he, being forewarned by his friends, (led with his wife, children, and relatives, into Ireland. In this same year the white monks, who at the commencement of the interdict had ceased their functions, afterwards, at the command of the child'abbat of their order, presumed to perform sacred duties ; but this piece of presumption coming to the notice of the supreme pontiff they were again suspended to their greater confusion. How the king of the English sent a great stun of money to his nephew Otho. A.D . 1209. King John was at Bristol at Christmas, and there he forbade the taking of birds throughout all England. After this Henry duke of Suabia came from Otho king of Germany to England to see king John, and after receiving a large, sum of money for the said Otbo's use ho returned home again. In this year too, by the intercession of Stephen archbishop of Canterbury, the indulgence of performing ditine duties once in the week was granted to the conventual churches in England ; but the white monks were debarred from this indulgence, because, although they had at the commencement of the interdict abstained therefrom, they bad