25th of April,
1215, not merely the prince, but the man who was to be the most worthy
representative and the most devoted slave of that religious and moral
passion which had inspired the crusades. Louis IX., though born to the
purple, a powerful king, a valiant warrior, a splendid knight, and an
object of reverence to all those who at a distance observed his life, and
of affection to all those who approached his person, was neither biassed
nor intoxicated by any such human glories and delights; neither in his
thoughts nor in his conduct did they ever occupy the foremost place;
before all and above all he wished to be, and was indeed, a Christian,
a true Christian, guided and governed by the idea and the resolve of
defending the Christian faith and fulfilling the Christian law. Had he
been born in the most lowly condition, as the world holds, or, as
religion, the most commanding; had he been obscure, needy, a priest, a
monk, or a hermit, he could not have been more constantly and more
zealously filled with the desire of living as a faithful servant of Jesus
Christ, and of insuring, by pious obedience to God here, the salvation of
his soul hereafter. This is the peculiar and original characteristic of
St. Louis, and a fact rare and probably unique in the history of kings.
(He was canonized on the 11th of August, 1297; and during twenty-four
years nine successive popes had prosecuted the customary inquiries as to
his faith and life.)

It is said that the Christian enthusiasm of St. Louis had its source in
the strict education he received from Queen Blanche, his mother. That is
overstepping the limits of that education and of her influence. Queen
Blanche, though a firm believer and steadfastly pious, was a stranger to
enthusiasm, and too discreet and too politic to make it the dominating
principle of her son's life any more than of her own. The truth of the
matter is that, by her watchfulness and her exactitude in morals, she
helped to impress upon her son the great Christian lesson of hatred for
sin and habitual concern for the eternal salvation of his soul. "Madame
used to say of me," Louis was constantly repeating, "that if I were sick
unto death, and could not be cured save by acting in such wise that I
should sin mortally, she would let me die rather than that I should anger
my Creator to my damnation."

[Illustration: ST. LOUIS ADMINISTERING JUSTICE----46]

In the first years of his government, when he had