sin of greed followed there. And they say, the vulture ceased to tear the liver of King Tityus, whom before he punished in that way. And all the torments of the people of hell stopped while he harped before the king. When he had played a long, long time, the king of hell spoke and said: Let us give his wife to this man, for he has won her by his harping. Then he bade him to be sure not to look behind him after he was gone thence; and he said that if he did look behind he should lose his wife. But love can be restrained with great difficulty or not at all. Alas and alack! Orpheus took his wife with him until he came to the boundary of light and darkness. And his wife followed him. But when he was come forth into the light, he looked back toward his wife; and immediately she was lost to him. 10. A JOURNEY THROUGH THE HEAVENS (36) When Wisdom had uttered this speech, he began to sing, and said: I have wings so swift that I can fly above the high roof of heaven. But if only I could give wings to thy mind so that thou couldst fly with me, then mightest thou survey all earthly things. If thou wert able to fly above the sky, thou couldst see the clouds beneath thee, and fly above the fire which is between the sky and the air; and thou couldst journey with the sun among the planets, and then come to the firmament, and at last to that cold star which we call the star of Saturn. It is all of ice; it wanders above the other stars, higher than any other. When thou art carried beyond that, then thou wilt be above the moving sky, and wilt leave behind the highest heaven. After that thou canst have thy portion of the true light. There reigns one king; He has dominion over all other kings; He directs the bridle and the rein of the whole circuit of heaven and earth; He alone is judge, steadfast and glorious; He guides the swift chariot of all creation. But if ever thou comest along that way, and to the place which now thou hast forgotten, thou wilt say: "This is my true home; from this I first came, and here I was born; here will I now remain; never will I go hence." Yet I know if ever it happens that thou wilt or must again explore the darkness of this world, thou wilt see that unrighteous kings and all the haughty rich are very powerless and very poor wretches, even those very ones whom this unfortunate people now fears most sorely.' 11. THE EXAMPLE OF THE FAMOUS MEN OF YORE (40) Hearken, ye wise men, hearken! Walk ye all in the way which ye are taught by the illustrious examples of good men and ambitious ones who were before you. Ah, ye lazy and slothful, why are ye so unprofitable and indolent? Why will ye not inquire after the wise men and the ambitious, what they were who came before you? And when ye have learned their ways, why will ye not follow them as ye best may? For they strove after honor in this world, and labored for good report with good deeds, and set a good example for those who came after. Therefore because of their good deeds they dwell now above the stars in joy everlasting. 12. THE NATURE OF THE DEITY (42) Therefore we should with all our might inquire after God, that we may know what He is. Although it may not be in our power to know what He is, yet we ought to attempt it, according to the measure of understanding which He gives us. . . . That alone is certainly present to ... us which exists at this time; but to Him all is present-that which was before, and that which now is, and that which shall be hereafter; all is present to Him. His abundance does not wax, nor on the other hand does it ever wane. He never recollects, for He has never forgotten. He seeks nothing nor inquires, for He knows all. He seeks nothing, for He has lost nothing. He follows after no creature, for none can fly from Him; nor does He fear anything, for there is none more powerful, nor even any equal. He is ever giving, and in nothing grows less. He is ever almighty, for He always wills the good and never any evil. He has need of nothing. He is ever watching, and never sleeps. He is ever equally gracious. He is ever eternal, for there was never a time when He was not, nor will there ever be. He is ever free, nor is He constrained to any work. By His divine power He is everywhere present. His greatness no man can measure; yet this is not to be understood corporally, but spiritually, like wisdom and righteousness, which He Himself is. But why are ye then proud, or why do ye exalt yourselves against such lofty power? Ye can do nought against Him, for the Eternal and the Almighty sits ever on the throne of His power. Thence He can see all, and He requites each with perfect justice, according to his deeds.1 Therefore it is not in vain that we hope in God, for He changes not as we do. But pray to Him humbly, for He is very gracious and merciful. Lift up your hearts to Him with your hands, and pray for that which is right and needful, for He will not refuse you. Hate evil, and flee from it as ye best may; love virtue, and follow after it. Ye have great need always to do well, for all that ye do is done before the eternal and almighty God; He sees it all, and He requites all. 1 A parallel is Rom. 2. 6. 13. ALFRED'S CONCLUDING PRAYER 1 O Lord, Almighty God, Creator and Ruler of all things, I beseech Thee by Thy great mercy, and by the sign of Thy holy cross, and by the virginity of Saint Mary, and by the obedience of Saint Michael, and by the love of all Thy holy saints, and by their merits, that Thou wilt guide me better than I have deserved from Thee; direct me according to Thy will, and according to my soul's need, better than I myself can; establish my mind according to Thy will, and according to my soul's need; strengthen me against the temptations of the devil, put far from me foul lust and all unrighteousness, and shield me from mine enemies, seen and unseen; and teach me to do Thy will, that I may inwardly love Thee above all things with a pure mind and a pure body; for Thou art my Creator and my Redeemer, my Help, my Comfort, my Trust, and my Hope. To Thee be praise and glory now and for ever, world without end. Amen. ELIZABETH DEERING HANSCOM SELECTIONS FROM ST. AUGUSTINE'S The first two books of this work are based upon the unfinished Soliloquies of St. Augustine (354-430), perhaps the greatest of the Latin Fathers, author of the Confessions and of The City of God (not to be confused with the Apostle of the Anglo-Saxons,' for whom see pp. 17–22). This, the latest of Alfred's translations, is also the freest, Book 3 (here given entire) being well-nigh original. It is, however, 6 1 There is some doubt as to the relation of this prayer to what precedes. It is written in a hand resembling that of the main text' (Sedgefield's ed., p. xv). based upon various passages in other works of St. Augustine, such as the De Videndo Deo, as well as upon parts of Gregory's Dialogues and Jerome's Vulgate. Alfred calls the passages translated from the Soliloquies flowers' or blossoms.' Some doubt has been cast upon the Alfredian authorship of this translation, owing to the late and corrupt dialect of the unique MS. in which it has been preserved; however, the vocabulary and general method of rendering—not to mention its ascription to King Alfred by William of Malmesbury in the twelfth century seem sufficient reasons for accepting it as a genuine production of the king's. Particularly striking is its similarity to the Boethius. The standard edition of the work is Hargrove's (New York, 1902); his complete translation (New York, 1904) may also be consulted. 1. ALFRED'S PREFACE I then gathered for myself staves, and stud-shafts, and cross-beams, and helves for each of the tools that I could work with; and bow-timbers and bolt-timbers for every work that I could perform as many as I could carry of the comeliest trees. Nor came I home with a burden, for it pleased me not to bring all the wood home, even if I could bear it. In each tree I saw something that I needed at home; therefore I exhort every one who is able, and has many wains, to direct his steps to the selfsame wood where I cut the stud-shafts. Let him there obtain more for himself, and load his wains with fair twigs, so that he may wind many a neat wall, and erect many a rare house, and build a fair enclosure, and therein dwell in joy and comfort both winter and summer, in such manner as I have not yet done. But He who taught me, and to whom the wood was pleasing, hath power to make me dwell more comfortably both in this transitory cottage by the road while I am on this world-pilgrimage, and also in the everlasting home which He hath promised us through Saint Augustine and |