Page:Aelfric's Lives of Saints Vol 1.djvu/543

 same city  I  obtained  the  money,  and  have  found  it  nowhere  else ; but I  cannot  at  all  understand  how  it  has  thus  happened  to  me  696 that I  act  thus."     Then  said  the  town-reeve   to  him,  *'  Tell  me now  here  openly  in  what  city  thou  wast  born,  or  to  what  city  thou dost  belong?" Then said  he  to  him  in   answer,  "  Master,  as  I suppose  in  my  mind,  I  belong  to   no  city   so  rightly  as  to  this city,  as  it  appears  to   me.     Master,  this  is  the  city  Ephesus  in which  I  was  born  and  nurtured." Then said   again  the  town-reeve  to  Malchus,  "  If  thou  wert  born  and  nurtured  here  in  the town,  where  are  then  thy  parents  who  brought  thee  up,  and  can  recognise  thee?     Let  them  be  summoned  hither  to  the  bishop,  and let  them  come  forth  here  before  us,  that  they  may  speak  for  thee, if  they  can  answer  for  thee    in  any  wise." And   he,  Malchus, answered, and   named  the   names  of  his  parents,  what  was  the name of  this  one,  and  what  was  the  naming  of  the  other. Then the town-reeve  knew  nothing  of  the  names  which  he  there  named, but quickly  gave  him  the  lie,  and  said  to  him  tauntingly,  "  Now through  thy  false  tale   I   have  here   perceived  that  thou  art  an  exceedingly  false  man,  and  well  canst,  if  thou  shalt  have  need, find   a   false   tale." He then,  Malchus,  knew  not  what  to    say, but stood  there  and  bent  down  his  head,  and  was   so  long  still that some  men  said  who  stood  there,  "His  tale  is  in  no  respect  true,    neither    practiseth    he    other    than    a    public    deceit,    but disguiseth  himself  as    another  man,   and  thereby  concealeth  his condition,  that  he  may  at  any  rate  escape  hence  in  some  wise." And the   town-reeve,   with   these   words,   conceived    great  wrath against Malchus,   and   with   much   anger    chided    him,  and   thus asked him,  "  Thou  fool,  and  the  greatest  impostor  who  ever  was chief  in  this  city,  in  what  wise  can  we  believe  thee  and  thy  uncertain words,  so  that  we  may  be  certified  that  thou  hast  obtained  this  money  from  the  possessions  of  thy  parents?     Here  may  every man  see,  who  has  any  skill  in  the  art  of  numbers,  and  the  superscription of  these  pennies  here  showeth  it  openly  to  all  men,  that it  is  even  more  than  three  hundred  and  two  and  seventy  years  since  the  like  money  was  current  on  the  earth,  and  all  men  traded with  it;  and  that  was  soon  after  the  first  days  when  Decius  the