Page:Aelfric's Lives of Saints Vol 1.djvu/457

 and bring  my  bones  within  the  church;

for to  him  it  is  vouchsafed  that  in  his  time

I  should    be    made    known    to    men.'     And    the    smith    said   to him;

' Oh,  sir,  Eadsige  will  not  believe  my  words.'

Then said  the  bishop  again;    '  Let  him  go  to  my  grave,

and draw  up  out  of  the  coffin  a  ring;

and if  the  ring  yield  at  the  first  tug,

then shall  he  know  for  a  truth  that  I  have  sent  thee  to  him.

If the  ring  will  not  come  up  at  his  unaided  tug,

then shall  he  in  no-wise  believe  thy  saying.

Say to  him  also  afterwards,  that  he  himself  amend

his deeds  and  conduct  according  to  his  Lord's  will,

and hasten  with  single  mind  to  the  eternal  life.

Say eke  to  all  men  that  so  soon  as  they

open my  grave,  they  shall  there  find

so valuable  a  hoard,  that  their  precious  gold

shall be  nothing  worth,  compared  with  the  aforesaid  treasures.'

The holy  Swithhun  then  vanished  from  the  smith's  [sight],

and the  smith  durst  not  tell  this  vision  to  any  man,

not wishing  to  be  looked  upon  as  an  untruthful  messenger.

So then  the  holy  man  spoke  to  him  again,

and yet  a  third  time,  and  severely  reproved  him,

because he  would  not  actively  obey  his  commands.

Then however  at  last  the  smith  went  to  his  burial-place,

and took  hold,  though  fearfully,  of  a  ring,

and cried  to  God,  saying  these  words;

'O Lord  God,  maker  of  all  creatures,

grant to  me,  a  sinful  man,  that  I  may  pull  up  this  ring

out of  this  lid,  if  he  lieth  here  within,

who thrice  spake  unto  me  in  a  dream.'