ce more towards his native
country. But at that period bad passions were not so easily effaced;
besides, the accusers of Vauthier were now doubly interested in
keeping him at a distance. The Lord of Yvetot, hearing how matters
stood, to make sure of a favourable reception, proceeded, in the first
instance, to Rome, where he made a friend of Pope Agapet, who sent him
with letters to Clotaire, in the capacity of an envoy. Under the
shield of so sacred a function, Vauthier had no hesitation in
repairing to Soissons, and presenting himself before the king; yet, to
be still more secure, he chose for that occasion the solemnities of
Good Friday--the anniversary of the great day of Christian mercy.
Clotaire was at the high altar of the cathedral, celebrating the
holiest rites of the church before a crucifix veiled in mourning, when
Vauthier made his presence known. Throwing himself on his knees in
humble supplication, he presented the letters of the sovereign
pontiff, and implored pardon, if he had been guilty, by the merits of
Him who, on the same day, had so freely shed his blood for the
salvation of all mankind. The ferocious and implacable king recognised
the suppliant, and, without regard to the sanctity of either the place
or the day, drew his sword, and, with one blow, struck the unfortunate
chamberlain dead on the stone pavement, at the very steps of the
altar.

Violent passions have, generally speaking, rapid revulsions. Scarcely
was Vauthier's body cold, when the king repented his hasty deed. The
clergy read to him the letters from Pope Agapet, which attested the
innocence of his former favourite; and they represented to him, that
he had committed the grossest description of sacrilege, the sin from
which the sovereign pontiff alone could absolve. In a short time the
barbarous Clotaire passed from a state of rabid fury to one of the
most abject despair, so that he required little persuasion from the
clergy ere he sent a messenger to Rome, bearing rich presents, to beg
for absolution from the pope. The messenger arrived at Rome just as
Agapet was at the point of death; yet the business being urgent, and
the presents valuable, he was ushered into the sick-chamber of the
dying head of the Christian church. Supported by attendants, the pope
proceeded to pronounce, in a feeble voice, the penitential discipline
of Clotaire. He said that the king could not expect pardon unless he
gave the highest possible satisfaction to th