holy plan, a superiority in all the arts of civil life. When christianity was first preached in the Kingdom of Sussex, that country was reduced to the utmost distress by a drought, which had continued for three years. The inhabitants, destitute of any means of support, frequently united in bodies, and plunging off the cliffs, were either dashed to pieces on the rocks or drowned in the waves. They were quite ignorant of fishing, and this probably arose from a remnant of Druidical superstition which forbad the use of food so procured. In this extremity, St. Wilfred, a companion of Augustine and their first christian teacher, collecting nets, plunged into the sea at the head of his attendants, and having first procured sustenance for their famishing bodies, he soon disposed their minds to receive his spiritual instructions.

St. Augustine, aided by the persuasions of Berta, the spouse of Ethelbert, soon effected the conversion of that monarch, and thus opened the way for the general introduction of christianity. Berta was a most useful instrument in the spread of the new religion; her zeal and her virtue were both abundant; and it is a pleasing reflection, that in a great measure, we owe, what is regarded as the best gift of heaven, to woman, the fairest and most perfect of heaven's created beings; for, not only was christianity introduced into Kent by the influence of Berta, but it owed its success in the other kingdoms of the Heptarchy* principally to the exertions and the examples of queens and princesses.

As a last effort in support of paganism, Ethelbert, after the manner of Pharoah, King of Egypt, desired to try the power of his vain gods against that of the lord of hosts, the king of kings. The monarch, accompanied by his earldomen and priests, and by the missionaries, repaired to the temple of Odin, the God of war, and the chief of Saxon divinities. This was a huge edifice of unhewn stone, standing alone upon a wide plain, and adorned with offerings befitting such a god,-the shields, and spears, and clubs of departed warriors, and all the horrid spoils of savage warfare, the scalps, and heads, and limbs of slaughtered enemies. At one end of the building, concealed by a curtain, stood the altar of the god, and upon it was placed the wooden statue of Odin, gigantic, and frightful in its form and decorations. Its grotesque face expressed the viler passions with demoniac energy; it breathed wild revenge and maddening fury; gaunt

*The Saxon dominions in Britain were divided into seven Kingdoms, know by the general name of the Heptarchy. They were finally reduced and blended into one power by Egbert, the first king of England.

locks, bedaubed with human gore, hung below its shoulders; in one hand it grasped the fleshless skull of some celebrated enemy of the Saxons, slain in war, and in the other an uplifted club, with which it appeared to be threatening some indescribable monster prostrate at its feet: its body was painted a fiery red, and its countenance black striped with yellow. As the curtain was withdrawn, the monarch and the people prostrated themselves before this hideous object. The chief priest stood before the altar, and with furious gestures, frantic with passion, invoked the god to show himself, to assert his power, and to sustain his tottering dominion. A moment of awful silence succeeded, and a fearful voice issued from the idol, proclaiming "Beware all people! for terrible is the rage of Odin: those to whom he deals out his wrath shall never behold Valhalla, or see the bright eyed maids who attend upon the valiant, or drain the rich mead from the skulls of slain warriors: dark Nifflheim* shall be their doomed abode, and the accursed shall feed upon their vitals. Far away those who would dispute my dominion! I am the lord of gods, and the victor in battle: all must bow to me." Concluding, the club descended on the prostrate figure, which it appeared was intended to represent the christian religion, and it sent forth cries denoting pain and distress. The people, who had remained prostrate, rose, and shouted at the manifestation of their god, deeming Odin's victory secure. The king turned to Augustine, his countenance expressive of mingled pity and satisfaction. The saint, horrorstruck as he was at the daring impiety of the proceeding, could scarce refrain from smiling at the gross delusion practised on the ignorant multitude; he stepped towards the monarch, and bowing reverently, begged permission to approach the altar of the god. This, after some hesitation, was conceded, and the saint and his companions surrounded the idol, and before any one was aware of their intention, hurled it from its pedestal down to the earth. Cries of rage and execration arose simultaneously from all parts of the building, and the bold missionaries would probably have atoned with their lives for the outrage on the god, had they not completed their work by pulling the figure to pieces, and exhibiting to the astonished multitude a priest concealed within it. The effect of this was electrical; instantaneous silence prevailed; rage passed away as the wind; and in an instant the people cast off those chains of superstition, which had bound them and their ancestors for a long series of ages.

* Valhalla and Nifflheim: the former the heaven and the latter the hell of northern mythology, of which the worship of Odin was a part.

St. Augustine knelt on the lately terrible, but now despised, idol, and gave heaven his fervent thanks for the victory gained, and with that impassioned fervour, which deep-rooted faith inspires, called on the true and only God to stretch out his arm to aid his servants, and to confirm the impression they had made. Suddenly, darkness overspread the sky; the lightnings flashed and the thunder rolled; the trembling building betokened the presence of Almighty Power, the God of all appearing in his ministers, the elements. Augustine and his companions bowed themselves to the earth. After a time, stillness again reigned around, but the impression produced on the humbled pagans was too powerful to be effaced, and following Augustine from the place of sin and delusion, they were baptized, first the king and his chiefs, and then the whole of the people of the neighbourhood; forsaking their former ways and in future trusting only to that God, who alone is powerful to aid. Rapture filled the heart of the holy Berta, and a brighter day dawned upon Britain.

Having effected the conversion of Ethelbert, Augustine and his companions separated, and went to different divisions of the Island. The saint himself journeyed northward, but keeping within the dominions of Ethelbert, which extended as far as the river Humber, and the county of Yorkshire. They were all treated with great respect by the people, being under the immediate protection of the King, and multitudes were daily converted, the preaching of the good men and the miracles which they wrought, convincing the most obdurate of the truth of their religion.

It must not be deemed from this that they had no dangers or privations to undergo: these always await the introducers of a new faith. The interior of Britain, at the time of which we speak, was very thinly populated; the wayfarer had immense forests to traverse, and often wandered leagues without seeing a human habitation; nor was our country, as at present, free from dangerous animals, wolves and bears abounding in great numbers, and, moreover, various small bands of the native Britains, scorning subjection to the Saxon conquerers, led a wandering and predatory life, and from constant persecution and pursuit, they had become terribly cruel and vindictive. It was the fate of the saint, during his journey northward, to be benighted in an immense forest upon the borders of Essex and Suffolk; fires were lighted by his attendants, and after imploring the protection of Heaven, they laid themselves down beneath the shelter of the trees to repose for the night. They had not

slept long when their faithful watch-dogs aroused them, and starting up, they beheld several half-naked savages, armed with huge clubs, standing around the fires, which made them look yet more savage, attentively surveying the sleepers. This would have alarmed most men, but the saint, conscious of Almighty protection, viewed them without trepidation. As soon as they beheld the Saxon attendants, deadly looks glanced from their eyes, and with fearful menaces, they prepared to avenge on these unoffending individuals, the wrongs they had endured from their countrymen. Their clubs were raised, and they stood ready to spring upon their victims. The saint, dauntless as a true christian hero, stood forth, and with uplifted hands and holy fervour, implored Heaven to protect the lives of his companions, and to turn away the murderous intentions of their enemies. The Britons paused, and Augustine seized the opportunity to speak of the enormity of the crime they meditated, and to tell them of the glad-tidings of peace. These wild children of nature were awed by the impressive manner and the fervent zeal of the saint, and softening towards those whom a few minutes previously they could have sacrificed without remorse, they contented themselves with despoiling the party of all they possessed, and leading them away prisoners. They were conducted by the Britons to their place of concealment, which was deeper in the forest, and the way which led thither a maze, almost impossible for those unacquainted with it, to follow. Arrived at their destination, they perceived several huts, constructed, after the earliest fashion of the Britons, of wicker, or basket work, the interstices sometimes filled up with clay, but oftener left open to the effects of the weather, their roofs being strewed with rushes, Great art had been shown in the selection of this place, its situation prevented it from being seen on any side, and rendered surprise next to impossible. The captives were conducted to what appeared to be the principal hut, but differing from the others only in size. Here they were introduced to an aged man, whom, from the veneration shown him, they immediately recognised to be the chief of the tribe. The old man had a sort of prophet air; his snowy locks hung down to his shoulders, shading his furrowed countenance, which appeared dignified and calm, but less from the absence of passion than its decay, for traces yet lingered of a spirit, stern, stubborn, and haughty. The skin of some wild animal, depending from his shoulders, formed his only garb, and a staff supported the worn-out frame of one, who had been mighty in his younger day. The old man's eye sparkled as he beheld

the Saxon prisoners; the calmness of his countenance gave way to bitter rage, and fury adding strength to his feeble voice, he exclaimed-

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'My sons, and why took ye this trouble? Saxon heads are all ye need bring to me: and yet, 'twas well done. Hated race! I shall once more be able to feast these aged eyes on your torments; it shall gloat my soul to do by you as you have done by thousands of the wretched Britons; like yours my breast is now steeled to pity; the fire shall have your bodies, and the shouts of the oppressed shall be the only echo to the groans of the oppressors.'

The old man stopped from exhaustion, and Augustine, ever ready in good works, approached him : "Alas!" cried he, "tottering age and fierce revenge are but ill consorted. Aged man, turn to mercy

"Mercy!" shouted the old man, "talk not to me of mercy; or, if mercy it must be, it shall be the same which the Saxons awarded to mine and me-the mercy of death, or of a fate far worse than death. He whom you now behold thus, was once wealthy and happy: the invader came, and despoiled me of my possessions. This I could have forgotten, but this satisfied him not; myself, my wife, my children, were doomed to perish in the flames of our dwelling: they did so perish, but I escapedescaped to be hunted through life as a wild beast! and a wild beast I have been: I have lived but for vengeance, and the few days which yet remain to me shall be devoted to the same end."

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'Beware, old man!" rejoined the saint.-"Listen to the words of wisdom; the Lord of all suffered more than you, yet He forgave His enemies, and died His cruel death in peace even with His executioners."

"Ha! what spoke you of?"—and the old man's voice assumed a different tone, and in a moment his countenance lost its savage expression.

"I spoke of the Son of God; the Saviour of the world,"

continued the saint.

"Powers of heaven! and do I hear aright? Listen to me, holy man, for now I recognize in you the Saint, the fame of whose miracles has reached even our wild home. In my happier days, I heard of your faith, and the teachings of a gentle mother had almost persuaded me to become a christian, when the Saxons came, and even that privilege was denied: but your words come to me as a sweet vision of by-gone bliss; again I view my childhood's home-again I attend to the mild instructions of