dragged him through the streets with contumely; and he looked round, seeking some one whom he knew, but not a face in all the crowd was familiar to him. And being brought before the bishop, the truth was disclosed to the great amazement of all. The bishop, the The bishop, the governor, and the principal inhabitants of the city, followed him to the entrance of the cavern, where the other six youths were found. Their faces had the freshness of roses, and the brightness of a holy light was around them. Theodosius himself, being informed of this great wonder, hastened to the cavern, and one of the sleepers said to him, "Believe in us, O Emperor! for we have been raised before the Day of Judgment, in order that thou mightest trust in the resurrection of the dead!" And having said this, they bowed their heads and gave up their spirits to God. They had slept in their cavern for 196 years. Gibbon, in quoting this poetical fable, observes that the tradition may be traced to within half a century of the supposed miracle. About the end of the sixth century, it was translated from the Syriac into the Latin, and was spread over the whole of Western Christendom. Nor was it confined to the Christian world. Mahomet has introduced it as a divine revelation into the Koran. It has penetrated into Abyssinia. It has been found in Scandinavia: in fact, in the remotest regions of the Old World, this singular tradition, in one form or another, appears to have been known and accepted. In The Seven Sleepers of Ephesus, extended in their cave side by side, occur perpetually in the miniatures, ancient sculpture, and stained glass of the thirteeneh and fourteenth century. Thus they are represented in the frieze of the Chapel of Edward the Confessor at Westminster. general the name of each is written over his head. They carry palms as martyrs. I have never seen them with any other attributes, but in the German "Iconographie" it is said that "in an old representation," not otherwise described as to age or locality, the seven sleepers are thus individualised; -John and Constantine bear each a club, Maximian has a knotted club, Malchus and Marcian have axes, Serapion a torch, and Dionysius a large nail. What these attributes may signify, whether alluding to the trades they exercised, or the kind of martyrdom to which they were condemned, but did not suffer, is not explained; and I have never met with any effigies thus discriminated. The Latin Martyrs. THE FOUR GREAT VIRGINS OF THE LATIN CHURCH. ST. CECILIA, VIRGIN AND MARTYR. Fr. Sainte Cécile. The name in Italian, German, and Spanish is the same as in English and Latin. Patroness of music and musicians. Nov. 22. A.D. 280. ST. CECILIA and St. Catherine present themselves before the fancy as the muses of Christian poetic art; the former presiding over music and song, the latter over literature and philosophy. In their character of patron saints, we might therefore expect to find them oftener combined in the same picture; for the appropriate difference of expression in each the grave, intellectual, contemplative dignity of St. Catherine, and the rapt inspiration of St. Cecilia - present the most beautiful contrast that a painter could desire. It is, however, but seldom that we find them together: when grouped with other saints, St. Cecilia is generally in companionship with St. Agnes, and St. Catherine with St. Barbara or Mary Magdalene. To understand this apparent anomaly we must bear in mind that while the Greek patronesses, St. Catherine, St. Euphemia, St. Barbara, St. Margaret, are renowned throughout all Christendom, the FOUR GREAT Virgins of the LATIN CHURCH (for such is their proper designation), St. Cecilia, St. Agnes, St. Agatha, and St. Lucia, are almost entirely confined to Western Art, and fall naturally into companionship. Of these, the two first were Roman, and the two last Sicilian, martyrs. The beautiful legend of St. Cecilia is one of the most ancient handed down to us by the early Church. The veneration paid to her can be traced back to the third century, in which she is supposed to have lived; and there can be little doubt that the main incidents of her life and martyrdom are founded in fact, though mixed up with the usual amount of marvels, parables and precepts, poetry and allegory, not the less attractive and profitable for edification in times when men listened and believed with the undoubting faith of children. In this as in other instances, I shall make no attempt to separate historic truth from poetic fiction, but give the legend according to the ancient version, on which the painters founded their representations. "St. Cecilia was a noble Roman lady, who lived in the reign of the Emperor Alexander Severus. Her parents, who secretly professed Christianity, brought her up in their own faith, and from her earliest childhood she was remarkable for her enthusiastic piety: she carried night and day a copy of the Gospel concealed within the folds of her robe; and she made a secret but solemn vow to preserve her chastity, devoting herself to heavenly things, and shunning the pleasures and vanities of the world. As she excelled in music, she turned her good gift to the glory of God, and composed hymns, which she sang herself with such ravishing sweetness that even the angels descended from heaven to listen to her, or to join their voices with hers. She played on all instruments, but none sufficed to breathe forth that flood of harmony with which her whole soul was filled; therefore she invented the organ, consecrating it to the service of God. "When she was about sixteen, her parents married her to a young Roman, virtuous, rich, and of noble birth, named Valerian. He was, however, still in the darkness of the old religion. Cecilia, in obedience to her parents, accepted of the husband they had ordained for her; but beneath her bridal robes she put on a coarse garment of penance, and, as she walked to the temple, renewed her vow of chastity, praying to God that she might have strength to keep it: - and it so fell out; for, by her fervent eloquence, she not only persuaded her husband Valerian to respect her vow, but converted him to the true faith. She told him that she had a guardian angel who watched over her night and day, and would suffer no earthly lover to approach her, - 1 v. Chaucer; Nonnes Tale." "I have an angel which thus loveth me — That with great love, whether I wake or sleep, who has given an almost literal version of the old legend in the "Second 6 And when Valerian desired to see this angel, she sent him to seek the aged St. Urban, who, being persecuted by the heathen, had sought refuge in the catacombs. After listening to the instruction of that holy man, the conversion of Valerian was perfected, and he was baptized. Returning then to his wife, he heard, as he entered, the most enchanting music; and, on reaching her chamber, beheld an angel, who was standing near her, and who held in his hand two crowns of roses gathered in Paradise, immortal in their freshness and perfume, but invisible to the eyes of unbelievers. With these he encircled the brows of Cecilia and Valerian, as they knelt before him; and he said to Valerian, 'Because thou hast followed the chaste counsel of thy wife, and hast believed her words, ask what thou wilt, it shall be granted to thee.' And Valerian replied, I have a brother named Tiburtius, whom I love as my own. soul; grant that his eyes also may be opened to the truth.' And the angel replied with a celestial smile, Thy request, O Valerian, is pleasing to God, and ye shall both ascend to His presence, bearing the palm of martyrdom.' And the angel, having spoken these words, vanished. Soon afterwards Tiburtius entered the chamber, and perceiving the fragrance of the celestial roses, but not seeing them, and knowing that it was not the season for flowers, he was astonished. Then Cecilia, turning to him, explained to him the doctrines of the Gospel, and set before him all that Christ had done for us; contrasting his divine. mission, and all he had done and suffered for men, with the gross worship of idols, made of wood and stone; and she spoke with such a convincing fervour, such a heaven-inspired eloquence, that Tiburtius yielded at once, and hastened to Urban to be baptized and strengthened in the faith. And all three went about doing good, giving alms, and encouraging those who were put to death for Christ's sake, whose bodies. they buried honourably. "Now there was in those days a wicked prefect of Rome, named Almachius, who governed in the emperor's absence; and he sent for Cecilia and her husband and brother, and commanded them to desist from the practices of Christian charity. And they said, 'How can we desist from that which is our duty, for fear of anything that man can do unto us?' The two brothers were then thrown into a dungeon, and committed to the charge of a centurion named Maximus, whom they converted, and all three, refusing to join in the sacrifice to Jupiter, were put to death. And Cecilia, having washed their bodies with her tears, and wrapped them in her robes, buried them together in the cemetery of Calixtus. Then the wicked Almachius, covetous of the wealth which Cecilia had inherited, sent for her, and commanded her to sacrifice to the gods, threatening her with horrible tortures in case of refusal; she only smiled in scorn: and those who stood by wept to see one so young and so beautiful persisting in what they termed obstinacy and rashness, and entreated her to yield; but she refused, and by her eloquent appeal so touched their hearts, that forty persons declared themselves Christians, and ready to die with her. Then Almachius, struck with terror and rage, exclaimed, What art thou, woman?' and she answered, 'I am a Roman of noble race.' He said, 'I ask of thy religion?' and she said, Thou blind one, thou art already answered!' Almachius, more and more enraged, commanded that they should carry her back to her own house, and fill her bath with boiling water, and cast her into it; but it had no more effect on her body than if she had bathed in a fresh spring. Then Almachius sent an executioner to put her to death with the sword; but his hand trembled, so that after having given her three wounds in the neck and breast, he went his way, leaving her bleeding and half dead. She lived, however, for the space of three days, which she spent in prayers and exhortations to the converts, distributing to the poor all she possessed; and she called to her St. Urban, and desired that her house, in which she then lay dying, should be converted into a place of worship for the Christians. Thus, full of faith and charity, and singing with her sweet voice praises and hymns to the last moment, she died at the end of three days. The Christians embalmed her body, and she was buried by Urban in the same cemetery with her husband." According to her wish, the house of Cecilia was consecrated as a church, the chamber in which she suffered martyrdom being regarded as a spot of peculiar sanctity. There is mention of a council held in the church of St. Cecilia by Pope Symmachus, in the year 500. Afterwards, in the troubles and invasions of the barbarians, this ancient church fell into ruin, and was rebuilt by Pope Paschal I. in the ninth |