Israelites under the Philistines; "there was neither sword nor spear found in the hand of any of the people."2 Added to this, they had about this time been compelled to send out of the country a great portion of their young men to fight for several pretenders to the empire, who were set up by the soldiers in Britain, and seized upon some of the provinces beyond sea. Most of these young men never returned. One party of them settled in that part of France which has since received from them the name of Brittany, or Bretagne, where the country people still speak a language like the Welch; and this settlement, as we shall see, afterwards became a place of refuge to the distressed Christians of Britain.

Rome was taken by Alaric, king of the Goths, A.D. 409; but as he died shortly after his victory, and his forces were broken up, the empire was not utterly ruined. The Romans still sent troops into Britain till the year 426, and assisted the natives to build again the wall of the Emperor Severus, which extended across from the mouth of the Tyne to that of the Esk, beyond Newcastle and Carlisle, as a protection against the Picts and Scots. No sooner, however, had they departed, than these enemies from the North broke through the wall, which the Britons were unable to defend, and continued their bloody inroads; and at the same time the sea-coast being left unguarded, the Saxons from Germany crossed over, and carried off spoil from the nearest shores.

So that when Germain with his companions visited Britain, though the Saxons had as yet made no fixed conquests in the country, there was much danger and alarm; and it seems that the Britons now

21 Sam. xiii. 22.

began to draw off and strengthen themselves in the mountainous parts of Wales, as well as in Cumberland, Westmoreland, and Cornwall, to which the rest of them, who preserved their independence, afterwards retired. It was in Flintshire, near the town of Mold, where the Britons were assembled, and Germain was sent for to encourage them by his presence and exhortations. An army of Saxons had joined with the Picts, and had crossed the river Dee, when by a stratagem of Germain they were surrounded by the Britons, and defeated with great loss. The battle was fought at Easter, when many of the young soldiers had been newly baptised; and from the shout which they raised as they hurled the rocks suddenly down upon the heads of the invaders, it was called long afterwards the Hallelujah victory.3

It seems to have been at this period that St. Germain, who again visited Britain a few years later, advised the Britons to found monasteries, as places to preserve religion and useful learning in troubled times. While the Roman empire lasted, the emperors, from the time of Constantine, had taken pains to establish schools in the principal towns of the provinces; and they gave an allowance from the state to the teachers of grammar and other branches of learning, more especially to the teachers of the art of speaking; which, while books were only to be multiplied by writing, was of much more importance than it is now. For people were then obliged to learn, by listening to public readers or reciters, what they may now learn from books. At these schools the principal teachers were Christian clergymen.

3 This battle is supposed by Archbishop Usher to have been fought at Maes-Garmon (i. e. "the field of Germain") in Flintshire.

C

So that when Julian the apostate became emperor, who had renounced Christianity, he took great pains to drive out the Christian teachers from these schools: "If they are not content," he said, "with what the old authors say of the mighty gods, let them go to the churches of the Galileans" (so he used to call the Christians), "and expound Matthew and Luke there." This has always been the practice of unbelieving governors, to separate true religion from education. As Julian died in the third year of his reign, his attempt had but little success; but the bishops of the Christian Church saw the danger, and began to provide against it.

At this time, St. Ambrose was bishop of Milan, and St. Martin bishop of Tours in France, whose name is in our calendar, and to whom many of our old churches are dedicated. These bishops began to promote the building of monasteries in Italy and France, as places of education, where the will of the reigning prince might not prevent Christian youths from being taught the principles of their religion. And as they were both men of rank and fortune before they were chosen to preside over those bishoprics, they employed much of their wealth in this good work. As the troubles of the Roman empire increased, the monasteries in the western parts increased. They were now wanted, both to supply the loss of the Roman schools, and as houses of refuge, which some of the rude nations who had heard of Christianity might be willing to respect. For some of the Goths had, before the fall of the Roman empire, received the knowledge of Christ, and their bishop, Ulphilas, had taught them the use of letters, and translated the Scriptures into their language, about A.D. 365, in the lifetime of St. Martin and St. Ambrose.

It was, therefore, according to their example, that St. Germain recommended the Britons to found monasteries. He brought with him at his second visit two eminent Christian teachers, Dubricius and Iltutus: the first was elected bishop of Llandaff'; the second had a college of pupils at a place called from him Llanyltad, or "St. Iltad's," in Glamorganshire. Both were of great service to the distressed Britons. A more famous place of education was that which St. Germain seems to have founded in North Wales, the monastery of Bangor-Iscoed, near Malpas and Wrexham, on the Dee; the remains of which were still visible, after the lapse of a thousand years, a short time before the Reformation. memory of St. Germain, and of the benefits he did to the British or Welch Church, is preserved in the name of Llanarmon, "St. Germain's," in Denbighshire, and the town named after him in Cornwall, which was afterwards for a short time under the Saxons made a bishop's see. He died on a visit to Italy, A.D. 448, the year before the Saxons first established themselves in Britain.

The

At the time of the departure of the Romans lived FASTIDIUS, bishop, as it is supposed, of London, who is the only Christian teacher among the ancient Britons of whom any doctrinal treatise yet remains. He has left a short treatise on the character of a Christian life, addressed to a pious widow named Fatalis ; in which, after modestly excusing his own want of knowledge and little skill, and begging her to "accept his household bread, since he cannot offer her the finest flour," he shews, with very plain and good arguments, that Christians are called to imitate Him whom they worship; that without a life of piety and uprightness, it is vain to presume on the mercy of God, or to boast of the name of Christian; that it was always the rule of God's deal

ings with mankind to love righteousness and hate iniquity.

"It is the will of God," says he, "that his people should be holy, and apart from all stain of unrighteousness; so righteous, so merciful, so pure, so unspotted by the world, so single-hearted, that the heathen should find no fault in them, but say with wonder, Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, and the people whom He hath chosen for his own inheritance.

Our

"We read in the evangelist that one came to our Saviour, and asked him what he should do to gain eternal life. The answer he received was, • If thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments.' Lord did not say, Keep faith only. For if faith is all that is required, it is overmuch to say that the commandments must be kept. But far be it from me that I should suppose my Lord to have taught any thing overmuch. Let this be said only by those

whose sins have numbered them with the children of perdition.

"Let no man then deceive or mislead his brother: except a man is righteous, he hath not life; except he keep the commandments of Christ, he hath no part with him. A Christian is one who shews mercy to all; who is provoked by no wrong; who suffers not the poor in this world to be oppressed; who relieves the wretched, succours the needy; who mourns with mourners, and feels the pain of another as his own; who is moved to tears by the sight of another's tears; whose house is open to all; whose table is spread for all the poor; whose good deeds all men know; whose wrongful dealing no man feels; who serves God day and night, and ever meditates upon his precepts; who is made poor to the world, that he may be rich towards God; who is content to be inglorious among men, that he may appear glorious