Page:The reign of William Rufus and the accession of Henry the First.djvu/374

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the bishops of England were bidden by royal order to come together at the appointed day for the dedication of the church of Lincoln. A vast crowd of men of all ranks came to Lincoln; the course of the story suggests that the King himself was there; all the bishops came, save one only. Robert of Hereford, the friend of Wulfstan, the Lotharingian skilled in the lore of the stars, knew by his science that the rite would not take place in the lifetime of Remigius. He therefore deemed it needless to travel to Lincoln for nothing. His skill was not deceived; three days before the appointed time Remigius died. The dedication of the church was delayed; it was done in the days of his successor, some years later. Meanwhile Remigius himself won the honours of a saint in local esteem, and wonders of healing were wrought at his tomb for the benefit of not a few of divers tongues and even of divers creeds. multis ditaverat possessionibus, procuravit ut ea magnifice consummaretur."]*