A.D. 1032.] SALE OF THE CliOI'S. red coin ed at tlie land of promise from Baladin for fifty-two thousand bezants, with the understanding that those saints should in his extreme necessity assist him by their intercessions in gaining God's favour. These said relics had been collected by the Sara cens throughout all Judea and Galilee at the time of the capture of the Holy Land and the revered cross, and were placed in four ivory chests, each of which was so heavy that four men could scarcely carry it. Hut these circumstance's have been more fully related amongst the events in the reign of the said king Richard. Of lite sale of the crops of the lioman clergy. In the same year the corn of the Roman clergy throughout almost all Kngland was carried ofi' and sold by some men who were unknown, on good terms and for the benefit of many ; this audacious business they commenced at Raster, and carried it through without any opposition. They were liberal in bestowing alms on the needy who came to them, and sometimes they threw money amongst the poor. The Roman clergy lay concealed in the convents, not daring to murmur at the injuries inflicted on them, for they preferred losing all their property to being condemned to death. The agents in this audacious proceeding were aliout eighty in number, and sometimes fewer ; and their chief was one William, surnamed Wither, whose instructions they obeyed in every thing. Soon afterwards however, these proceedings came to the knowledge of the supreme pontiff, who was highly incensed, and sent a severe letter to the king of England, reproaching him for allowing such robberies to be perpetrated on the ecclesiastics in his kingdom, [laying no respect to the oath which he had taken at the time of hie coronation, not only to maintain peace towards the church, but also to observe strict justice towards the clergy as well as the laity. In the same letter too, he strictly ordered the king, under penalty of excommunication and interdict, to cause a diligent search for the authors of this violence, and to punish the guilty ones severely, in order that by punishing them, he might strike fear and dread into others, lie also sent letters to lVtcr bishep of Winchester, and the abbat of St Edmund's, ordering them to make a strict search in the southern parts of England, and to denounce all whom they could find guilty of this offence, as excommunicated, until they should come to Rome to be ah solved by the apostolic see. In the same way in the north el England he entrusted the same inquisition to the archbishop of York, the bishop of Durham, and dolili, a canon of York and a 1 Ionian by birth, and ordered them to send those guilty of this violence to Rome to lie absolved, notwithstanding any appeal. Of the inquisition matte in the matter of the aforesttttl n.hltery. Λιι inquisition was therefore instituted concerning this robbery by the king; the bishops and the above-mentioned agents, and by means of examinations upon oath and the production ot witnesses,