Page:Historical Works of Venerable Bede vol. 2.djvu/264

 192 you will be relieved from your present labour, and be able to follow it." As soon as Hunred was awake, he related the vision which he had seen, and immediately sent some of his companions to the shore, which was not far off, to search for the book which they had lost. Now, at this time, they had reached the place called the White House, or more commonly, Huvitern. They went, accordingly, down to the sea, which they found had ebbed much farther than usual; and when they had gone three miles or more, they found the Holy Volume of the Gospels, with its gold gems and all its outward splendour, as well as its letters, and leaves, and all its inward beauty, so sound and perfect, that it looked as if it had not been touched by the water. At this event, their minds, hitherto anxious, were filled by no slight joy; and Hunred, whom I mentioned before, felt no doubt that all the rest would come true also. Wherefore he went and saw the bridle, as he had been told, hanging on a tree; and then looking on all sides round him, he saw a horse, of a chestnut colour, a little farther off, though it was impossible to say how or whence he could have come into such a desert place. As soon as the man held up the bridle, the horse ran up to him and offered himself to be bridled. Hunred led him off to his companions, who now were the more encouraged to toil in the cause of the holy saint's body, inasmuch as they saw that his aid would never fail them. Therefore they harnessed the horse to the cart, on which was placed the corpse in a chest, and followed it fearlessly everywhere, as they knew that they now had a horse provided for them by God. Moreover, the book aforesaid is still kept to this day in the church, which has been thought worthy to contain the body of the holy saint; and, as I said before, it bears no mark of having been injured by the sea-water. This was no doubt brought about by the merits of St. Cuthbert himself, and of the authors of the book, namely, Bishop