urse--Cyrilla--was his
accomplice and companion in this adventure, and for this she has
received her due meed of honor in the legends which have attached to the
life of the great founder. As an example of these legends, and as an
illustration of their historic value, we will notice one story. One day,
Cyrilla accidentally broke a stone sieve which she had borrowed for the
purpose of making the youthful saint some bread. Compassionating her
distress, Benedict placed the two pieces in position and then prayed
over them. To the great joy of Cyrilla and the no small wonderment of
the rustics, they became firmly cemented together and the sieve was
again made whole. This marvellous utensil was hung over the church door,
where it remained for many years an irrefutable proof of the power of
monastic holiness.

Later on, Saint Benedict established twelve monasteries in the
neighborhood, at last settling at Monte Casino, not far from the place
where his sister, Saint Scholastica, also presided over a colony of
religious women. Here were formulated and adopted the regulations which
for so many years governed these religious recluses, both male and
female. Three virtues comprised the whole of the Benedictine discipline:
celibate seclusion, extended to the cultivation of silence as far as the
exigences of the convent would permit; humility to the very last degree;
and obedience to superiors even--so said the law--when impossibilities
were commanded. The effect designed was to concentrate the entire
thought of the recluse upon himself. Yet, idleness on the part of its
subjects was far from the purpose of this discipline. All the waking
hours--which were by far the greater part of the time--of these nuns
were devoted to the worship of God, reading, and manual labor. Besides
the essential work of their own household, the nuns occupied themselves
in spinning, weaving, and manufacturing clothing, which was distributed
in charity; thus their time was not wholly spent in vain. They also wove
and embroidered the beautiful tapestries and hangings which ornamented
the churches, and, in course of time, developed a textile art which was
one of the glories of the Middle Ages. With the time at their disposal,
it is no wonder that the ancient convents could exhibit histories of the
Creation, done in stitchwork. In imitation of the Psalmist, seven times
a day the nuns met in their chapel for prayer and praise. Sloth was not
possible with them; for