lowed, but the others remained outside,
wondering what dreadful thing would happen to the mad priest.

Before them was the dark interior of the temple with the altar at the
farther end, and the great wooden figure of the god rising above it; a
monstrous thing painted in gaudy colours, with a fierce, cruel grin on
its ugly face; and the madman was riding his war-horse in the building.

Surely the god was about to take some terrible vengeance!

A great crash resounded through the temple as the priest hurled his
sword at the wooden figure.

Some of the people ran away; others remained huddled at the door, too
terrified to move.

But nothing happened.

There was the figure of the god still grinning down upon the people as
before, without a change in its face. No thunder came down from heaven
to destroy the rash priest and his followers who had insulted the
temple.

'The gods are not able to defend themselves,' shouted the wise men.
'The gods of the English are false gods'; then rushing into the temple,
they pulled the idol from its place and dragged it out of doors, while
the people threw themselves upon the temple and pulled it to pieces.
After that they tore up the hedge that surrounded the temple; and with
the hedge and the ruins of the temple they made a bonfire whose flames
rose high in the air and were seen far and wide, while in the middle of
the fire the idol was burned to ashes.

Then the people went home, and were baptized by Paulinus.

CHAPTER III

ENGLISH AND NORMAN

In England there was an old King called Edward; a gentle pious man who
disliked the trouble of governing, and who left his brother-in-law to
rule the country while he himself spent his time in praying and in
reading good books and going to church.

Harold, Earl of Wessex, the king's brother-in-law, was one of the most
able men then living; a true Englishman, wise and honourable. The
people of England loved and trusted Harold; and as Edward had no
children to succeed to the throne, they hoped that after his death
Harold would become their king.

On the other side of the strip of sea which divides England from
France, there lived at this time a very proud and ambitious man,
William, Duke of Normandy.

William was descended from a great pirate who had come from the North,
many years before, and had compelled the King of France to give him
part of his dominions for himself and his followers to settle in. Ever
since then, this