the true from the false.

He had written a famous hymn which was called "the breastplate," being
as he said the best and strongest armor he or any other Christian could
bear, since it was a confession of his faith in the Christian religion.
On many occasions, when men sought his life, it is said he chanted this
hymn and they let him pass.

Saint Patrick is said to have driven all the snakes out of Ireland into
the sea--and it is notable that there are no snakes there to-day. And
the other marvelous things he is believed to have accomplished are
manifold. He died at a ripe old age and from the day of his death to
the present one no man has been more revered in the land where he
labored,--for the name of Saint Patrick is in every Irish heart and
Saint Patrick's Day is celebrated by Irishmen in every part of the
world.

CHAPTER IV

KING ARTHUR OF BRITAIN

More than fourteen centuries ago there lived in the Island of Britain a
very wise king named Uther Pendragon. And at his court there dwelt an
enchanter of great art whose name was Merlin. Now Merlin, among his
other arts, had the power of seeing into the future, and what he could
not prevent he could often foretell; and looking forward with this art
of his, Merlin saw that after the death of King Uther there would be
war and confusion in Britain; and the only one who could save the land
would be the King's son, Arthur. But Merlin knew that the King would
not live very long, and that Arthur was too weak to govern as a
child--nay more, that unless Arthur were concealed he would be murdered
by the noblemen that sought to obtain the kingdom. So he told this to
King Uther, and they agreed to hide the child and have him reared in
secret. And for this purpose they gave him to a nobleman named Sir
Hector de Bonmaison, who was possessed of a good heart, telling him
that the child, though of noble blood, was no better than a waif whose
parents were both dead.

Everything that Merlin foresaw then came to pass. King Uther Pendragon
died, and war and confusion seized Britain. For eighteen years there
was no peace or safety in the land, and at the end of this time the
people were weary of bloodshed and sought a King who should govern them
with a strong hand.

Merlin was known to be the wisest man in the entire land, if not in all
the world, and the Archbishop of Canterbury came to him and sought
advice concerning a worthy King for Britain. And Merlin, thinking of
Art