turning towards the right; a yellowish (sub-fulva) beard of moderate dimensions; the eyes not large but well opened, and of hazel colour; the eyebrows long, slender, and arched; the nose slightly aquiline, thin where it descends from the eyebrows, broader about the middle, and expanded at the nostrils; the lips red, full, and well shaped; the chin rather prominent; the expression, as a rule, mild; with fine hands, taper fingers, and well-shaped nails. He is represented as habited in a chestnut-coloured planeta over a dalmatic, and a narrow pall adjusted round the shoulders in the manner shown by the mosaics of the period. He held the Gospels in the right hand and a cross in the left. A square nimbus behind the head indicated that he was still living, and that the picture was a portrait.

CHAPTER III

THE YORKSHIRE SLAVE-BOYS IN THE ROMAN FORUM

WHEN Gregory returned from Constantinople, he took up his position as abbot of his monastery, and the Pope Pelagius II. made him his secretary. Jerome held the same office under Damasus, and we gather from him that the duties were rather those of a secretary of state than of a mere scribe.

Bede records the tradition of the origin of the mission to Britain. Some merchants arrived in Rome, and on a certain day exposed many things for sale in the market-place, and abundance of people rushed thither to buy. Gregory went among the rest. His route would be by the road which runs through the valley between the Cælian and the Palatine Hills, past the Arch of Constantine, by the huge ruin of the Colosseum, and so into the Forum, the focus of the city's life, still surrounded by the ruins of the temples and palaces of its earlier splendour. Here was the market for all kinds of vendibles, and slaves were included among the chattels offered for sale. A group of these attracted the abbot's attention by the peculiarity of their appearance. In contrast with the brown skins and black hair and eyes of the native population, these were of large frame, with white bodies, beautiful faces, and hair of remarkable beauty. Having viewed

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them with interest, he asked from what country they were brought, and was told from the Island of Britain, whose inhabitants were of like personal appearance. He inquired whether the people of the island were Christians, or still involved in the errors of paganism, and was informed that they were pagans. "Alas! what a pity," he said, "that the author of darkness should be possessed of such fair countenances, and that while so beautiful in outward aspect their minds should be void of inward grace." He asked again, “What was the name of the nation to which they belonged?" and was answered that they were called Angles. is good," he said, "for they have angel faces, and it becomes such to be co-heirs with the angels in heaven." "And what is the name," he proceeded, " of the province from which they come?" He was told that the natives of the province were called Deira. "It is well," he said; "De ird-withdrawn from the wrath of God, and called to the mercy of Christ." "And how is the king of the province called?" They told him his name was Ælle; and he answered, alluding to the resemblance of the name to Hallelujah, "It is fitting that the praise of God the Creator should be sung in those regions."1

The incident made a great impression upon the abbot's mind, and he conceived the idea of putting himself at the head of a band of missionaries and proceeding to the conversion of these interesting people.2

1 John the Deacon, writing in the ninth century, tells the same story in nearly the same words.

2 Gregory's biographers, John the Deacon and Paul the Deacon, differ as to the date of this incident; one says it was before Gregory went to Constantinople, and the other says after. It was probably in 586 or 587 A.D.

YORKSHIRE SLAVE-BOYS IN THE ROMAN FORUM 17

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The bishop granted his request, and Gregory started with some companions. But when he was missed, and the cause of his absence was known, the people beset the Pope in St. Peter's and clamoured for his recall. He had already gone three days' journey when the messengers overtook him. The story runs that he was reading at midday while his companions rested, when a locust alighted upon his book. called his companions' attention to it, and said, "Locusta signifies Loco Sta, Stay in this place, and portends that we shall not be allowed to continue our journey; but rise, saddle the beasts, and let us haste on our way as far as we are permitted." But while he spoke the messengers arrived to recall him, and he dutifully returned with them to the city.

seems to

Four or five years afterwards (590 A.D.), Gregory became Bishop. The early years of his pontificate were no doubt fully occupied with the pressing political dangers of the city and the manifold occupations of the See. But after six years (596 A.D.) the old design came again into his mind, and he began to look about for means of putting it into execution. A letter written in the early part of the year 596 indicate one plan which occurred to him. He had recently sent one of his priests, Candidus, to take charge of a small estate at Marseilles belonging to the See of Rome. The oversight had usually been undertaken by the Bishop of Arles, on behalf of his brother of Rome, and the Bishop of Rome had paid his brother of Arles the compliment of sending him the pall in return for his services; but Gregory had come to suspect that the returns from the estate had not been so great as they ought to have been, so he sent an

agent of his own to take charge of it. Gregory began about this time to adopt the same policy on the other distant estates of the See, because it gave him trustworthy agents of his own for the general business and interests of the See scattered in various countries. In the year 596 A.D., Gregory, in writing to Candidus, bids him, among other things, to look out for and purchase English and Saxon boys of seventeen or eighteen years of age, and send them to Rome; intending, no doubt, to have them educated and ordained and sent to preach to their fellow-countrymen.

It was a usual practice for wealthy people to have slaves carefully selected and educated for the higher duties of their households, for physician or secretary or steward, for tutor to the children, or man of letters, or singer or musician or artist. This is not the only example of slaves being trained up for the service of religion. Aidan of Northumberland used to buy the freedom of slaves, unjustly deprived of liberty, and educate them in his schools, and ordain some of them as priests. Before the end of the year, however, the bishop had adopted a speedier method and a larger plan.

Up to this time we know nothing of mission work undertaken by the Church of Rome, but we know that the conversions of the earlier centuries in the civilised countries of the world were undertaken on the apostolic model. St. Paul's work is that which is best known to us, and we remember that he was accustomed to take with him one or more companions, and to go from town to town, preaching. Many of the early missions were the solitary enterprise of a single enthusiast, as Patrick, Ninian, Birinus, Felix, in our