Page:Aelfric's Lives of Saints Vol 1.djvu/527

 was no  mark  of  death  seen  upon  them,  neither  was  their  clothing at all  moth-eaten ;  but  both  the  very  same  clothes  which  lay  upon them were  all  sound,  and  their  holy  bodies  they  saw  all  blooming. They all  supposed  that  they  had  slept  in  the  evening,  and  soon after   in   the   morning   had   awaked   from  sleep;    and    the    same thought and  the  same  anxiety  which  was  in  their  hearts  during their night-sleep,   the  same  things   they   thought    of   when   they awoke, and  they  knew  no  other  thing  save  that  Decius  the  emperor had bidden  to  seize   them;  and  when  they  thought  thus,  being grieved, and  on  account  of  their  minds'  sadness,  they  let  fall  tears. Then they  all  looked  to  Malchus  who  was  one  of  their  companions, and he  was  also  their  steward;  and  they  then  asked  him  what  he had  heard  in  the  evening  that  people  said  about  them  in  the  town. Then he,  Malchus,  answered,  and  said  to  his  companions,  "  That which  I  said  to  you  before  in  the  evening,  that  same  I  now  say  to you,  that  men  sought  us  to-night  everywhere,  and  asked  diligently everywhere    for   us,   that  we  might    sacrifice    to    the    idols;  and Decius  the  emperor  is  even  now  considering  where  we  have  gone, or  where  he  may  seek  us  out;  now  knoweth  our  Lord  that  we  have  no  need  of  this,  that  we  should  ever  swerve  from  Him."

Then answered  Maximianus,  and   said  to  his  brethren,  "If  it shall  so  happen  that  men  find  us  here,  and  lead  us  for  God's  name to  the  emperor,  let  us  straightway  go  thither  very  readily,  and  let    us   there   stand  readily  before    him,    and  let  him    command such  punishment  as  he  may  command  us.     Let  us  not  be  at  all affrighted,  neither  let  us  ever  deny  our  former  life,  that  we  have purely  kept  up  the  praise  of  God  amongst  us  until  now,  through  the  holy   faith    of  the  Son   of  the  living  God." And they,  the brothers, cried  to  Malchus  and  said  to  him;  "  Take  now,  brother, a  sum  of  money  with  thee,  and  go  to  the  town  with  it  and  buy us  a  portion  of  bread;  and  enquire  diligently,  as  well  as  thou  canst,  what  the  emperor  may  have  commanded  concerning  us ;  and  do us  all  again  to  wit  of  that  which  thou   mayest  learn.     Buy  us, however,    more    liberally    of    bread    to-day   than    thou   boughtest yesterday,  and  bring  us  better  bread  than  thou  before  broughtest; because  the  loaves  were  very  scanty  which  came  to  us  yesterday