soldiers! King's men!" a cry which they had repeatedly used in the course of the day, and which is said to have been customary on a battle-field after a victory. On the way to the palace they found a French servant of the Archdeacon of Sens lamenting the Archbishop, and cruelly wounded him as they passed. They hastily searched the palace, breaking open desks, presses, chests, and other *repositories, and carrying off plate, money, jewels, vestments, and other valuable articles. T. C. ROBERTSON: Life of Thomas Becket. ab-so-lute-ly, positively; without re- | in-flict-ed, gave; bestowed. servation. ab-solve', set free; release; forgive. pave-ment, a stone floor. ac-com-pa-nied, gone with; at-pro-tec-tion, defence; safety. a-nath-e-ma, a curse. [tended. car-pen-ter, one who works in timber. re-pos-i-to-ries, places for storing things. sev-ered, laid open. sus-pend-ed, deprived of office for a tran-sept, portion of a church at right hau-berk, a shirt of mail, formed of ves-per, evening. 1 The Knights.-The four knights who had sworn to put the Archbishop to death-Fitzurse, Tracy, Morville, and Le Breton. 2 Have been ordered.—Becket believed that the knights had been ex | pressly sent by the king to put him to death. This belief was very general in the Church at the time, and afterwards. In 1174 Henry did penance for the murder at Becket's shrine, in order to conciliate the Church. 4.--CŒUR DE LION AT HIS FATHER'S BIER. [Henry II. died in 1189, at Chinon, in France. During the later years of his reign he had been much troubled by the quarrels of his sons with one another and with himself. In 1174, his eldest son, Prince Henry, demanded the crown; and two other sons, Richard and Geoffrey, also took arms against him in France. In 1187, Richard rebelled a second time, and he was at war with his father at the time of the death of the latter. When he heard of this event he was overwhelmed with remorse and grief.] Banners of battle o'er him hung, And warriors slept beneath, And light, as noon's broad light, was flung On the settled face of death. 3. 4. 5. A strong and ruddy glare; Though dimmed at times by the censer's breath,2 As if each deeply furrowed trace The marble floor was swept By many a long dark 'stole, As the kneeling priests round him that slept Sang mass for the parted soul; And solemn were the strains they poured With the cross above, and the crown and sword, There was heard a heavy clang As of 'steel-girt men the tread, And the tombs and the hollow pavement rang With a sounding thrill of dread; And the holy chant was hushed a while, A gleam of arms, up the sweeping aisle, With a mail-clad leader came. He came with haughty look, An eagle glance and clear; But his proud heart through his breastplate shook, When he stood beside the bier! He stood there still, with drooping brow, And clasped hands o'er it raised; For his father lay before him low- 6. And silently he strove 7. 8. 9. 10. With the workings in his breast; Than steel can keep 'suppressed! And his tears broke forth at last like rain;- For his face was seen by his warrior-train, And he 'recked not that they saw. 11. 12. I bore thee down, high heart! at last To kneel and say, 'Forgive!' "Thou wert the noblest king On royal throne e'er seen; And thou didst wear,3 in knightly ring, And thou didst prove, where spears are proved, Oh, ever the 'renowned and loved Thou wert-and there thou art! "Thou, that my boyhood's guide How will that still, sad face of thine, MRS. HEMANS. re-nowned', famed. re-pent-ant, showing sorrow. fur-rowed, marked with wrinkles ire, anger. mien, bearing; carriage. rud-dy, red. 5.-RICHARD I. IN PALESTINE. [Richard I. succeeded his father Henry II. Richard's ambition was not to rule England, but to gain renown in Palestine by fighting against the Saracens, the enemies of the Cross. It was the era of the Crusades. The First Crusade (1096-99) had been so far successful; but the second (1147) had been a complete failure, and the object of Richard of England, who was associated with Philip Augustus of France, and the Emperor Frederic Barbarossa, was to wipe out that disgrace. The French were the first to arrive in Palestine, and they were engaged in the siege of Acre when the English joined them.] 1. The English army arrived in time to partake in the glory of the siege of Acre or Ptolemais,1 which had been attacked for above two years by the united force of all the Christians in Palestine, and had been defended by the utmost efforts of Saladin2 and the Saracens. 1191 The remains of the German army, conducted by the A.D. Emperor Frederic, and the separate bodies of adventurers who continually poured in from the West, had enabled the King of Jerusalem3 to form this important 'enterprise; but Saladin, having thrown a strong garrison into the place under the command of Caracos, his own master in the art of war, and molesting the besiegers with continual attacks and 'sallies, had 'protracted the success of the enterprise, and wasted the force of his enemies. 2. The arrival of Philip and Richard inspired new life into the Christians; and these princes, acting by concert, and sharing the honour and danger of every action, gave hopes of a final victory over the infidels. They agreed on this plan of operations: when the French monarch attacked the town, the English guarded the trenches. Next day, when the English prince conducted the assault, the French succeeded him in providing for the safety of the 'assailants. The emulation between those rival kings and rival nations produced extraordinary acts of valour: Richard in particular, animated with a more 'precipitate courage than Philip, and more agreeable to the romantic spirit of that age, drew to himself the general attention, and acquired a (632) 5 |