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His religious feelings prompted him from his childhood to be a frequent visitor at sacred places, for the purposes of giving alms and offering prayer. Now Alfred was afflicted with a disease which had troubled him from infancy, and he often desired that ' he might be released from this affliction. So once, while he was hunting in Cornwall, near Liskeard, he observed near at hand a village church. He dismounted and went into it. A Cornish saint, called St. Gueyrr, had been buried there; and it was supposed that he possessed powers of healing. Alfred, hoping that he might obtain some relief from his sickness, knelt before the shrine in silent prayer to God, asking that his sufferings might be relieved. After his devotions, he left the church and resumed his journey. No immediate relief followed; but, after a short interval, his complaint entirely ceased for many years, only to be followed by a worse malady, which lasted till his death.

CHAPTER IV.

SCHOOLS AND SCHOLARS IN ALFRED'S DAYS.

WE have not such full particulars of the childhood and youth of Alfred as we could desire; but we can add to our knowledge of him some information on the general training of English children. Bede tells us that their period of infancy ended with the seventh year, and that the first year of their child

hood began with the eighth. The childish occupations were mostly muscular exercises, hence leaping, running, and wrestling were their favourite sports. The power of the parent over his child was limited; and, owing to the spread of Christianity, a father was forbidden to sell his son, or make him a slave, without the child's consent. But at the age of fifteen a boy, if he so chose, might make himself a monk.

The general instructors of the people were the clergy; but, for the benefit of the youth of the land, there were very few schools. The great and noble of the land did not value knowledge, hence Alfred's brothers did not attempt to gain the power of reading, which he was anxious to acquire. Even kings state in their charters that they signed with the cross, because they could not write.

The schools of the English were somewhat similar to our old grammar schools. Before Alfred's time English was not taught in them. The elementary books were written in Latin, and the master, in the first instance, translated and explained them, while the pupil's task was to commit them to memory. At the same time the scholars were exercised in reading and chanting in Latin. As the boys made themselves masters of grammar, they were taught Latin dialogues, so that they might be able to converse in that language,

The mode of learning was chiefly by catechisms; and most of the works on grammar and science were written in the form of question and answer, so that they might be easier to learn and to understand.

The pupils in the schools and monasteries went through a severe course of religious service; and the rod was liberally used in all schools.

to read some of them.

Among the forms of instruction were Arithmetical problems, some of which are still used, after the lapse of one thousand years. It will be interesting Here is one : "The swallow once invited the snail to dinner: he lived just one league from the spot, and the snail travelled at the rate of only one inch a day: how long would it be before he dined?" Another question is as follows: "An old man met a child. 'Good day, my son,' said he, 'may you live as long as you have lived, and as much more, and thrice as much as all this, and if God give you one year in addition to the others, you will be a century old.' What was the

lad's age?" The questions appear to be curious

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The other sciences were also the subject of questions intended to test the knowledge of the person questioned. These dialogues are sometimes Scriptural, often scientific, and frequently of a legendary character. To the question, “Where is a man's mind?" the answer is, "In the head, and it comes out at his mouth." Another question is: "Tell me where the soul of man is when his body sleeps?" and the answer runs: "I tell thee it is in three places, in the brain, or in the blood."

heart, or in the

Our forefathers had very little knowledge of natural history, for one of these old books informs us, "There are in the world fifty-two species of birds

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thirty-four kinds of snakes, and thirty-six kinds of fishes." Some of the questions were of a curious character. "How is man placed?" is answered by, "Like a candle in the wind." "What is the forehead?" is followed by the reply, "The image of the mind." Here are three more such questions and answers: "What is the sky?" "A rolling sphere." What is man ? A painter of the earth.”

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“What

are herbs?" "The friends of the physicians, and the praise of cooks."

From the same book we take the following definition of a ship: "A ship is a wandering house, a traveller that leaves no footsteps, a neighbour of the sand." Some of the questions are more of the nature of riddles, of which our forefathers were very fond. Here is one selected from a number, "What is that, from which if you take the head, it becomes higher?" The answer follows, "Go to your bed, and there you will find it." will find it." There is a joke here, as it is not the bed, but the head, which is raised higher, when removed from the bed.

Many of the English youths were educated in the monasteries, and we have an interesting description of the employment of the boys there. One of these, in answer to the question, "What have you done today?" says, "Many things. When I heard the knell, I rose from my bed and went to church, and sang the song for before-day with the brethren, and afterwards of All Saints, and, at the dawn of day, the song of praise. After these, I said the first and seventh psalms with the litany and first mass. Afterwards, before noon, we did the mass for the

day, and after this, at mid-day, we sang, and ate, and drank, and slept, and again we rose and sang the noon, and now we are here before thee, ready to hear what thou shalt say to us."

It will thus be seen how largely religion entered into the life of the English youth, and there is no doubt that Alfred passed many of his days in the manner just described. Perhaps he also heard such good advice as this, which was addressed by a great teacher of those days to his scholars: "Learn. Be docile. Lose not the day in idle things. The passing hour, like the wave, never returns again. Let your early years flourish with the study of the virtues, that your age may shine with great honours. Use these happy days. Learn, while young, the art of eloquence. ... Acquire the conduct and manners, so beautiful in youth, and your name will become celebrated through the world. But as I wish you not to be sluggish, so neither be proud."

of his character.

We should like to know more about the tutors of Alfred; but we can surmise that Swithun, Bishop of Winchester, had much to do with the formation Swithun had a great reputation for learning, and had been the instructor of Ethelwulf, Alfred's father. Swithun appears to have been the chosen companion of the king's private hours; and there are some grounds for believing that Ethelwulf entrusted Alfred to the charge of Swithun when the little prince went to Rome. As Swithun did not die till 862, he had sufficient opportunities to impress Alfred with a love of the Church and its services.

Swithun was a great benefactor to Winchester,

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