f S. Peter's at Rome, though
added to the basilica erected by Constantine, long after its primitive
foundation, was on the ground-floor in the angle between the nave and the
north limb of the transept, a position which may perhaps have been
selected in accordance with early usage.

I now pass to the treatment of books in the libraries of the monastic
orders. These either adopted the Rule of S. Benedict, or based their own
Rule upon its provisions. It will therefore be desirable to examine what
he said on the subject of study, and I will translate a few lines from the
48th chapter of his Rule, _Of daily manual labour_.

Idleness is the enemy of the soul; hence brethren ought, at
certain seasons, to occupy themselves with manual labour, and
again, at certain hours, with holy reading....

Between Easter and the calends of October let them apply
themselves to reading from the fourth hour till near the sixth
hour. After the sixth hour, when they rise from table, let
them rest on their beds in complete silence; or, if any one
should wish to read to himself, let him do so in such a way as
not to disturb any one else....

From the calends of October to the beginning of Lent let them
apply themselves to reading until the second hour.... During
Lent, let them apply themselves to reading from morning until
the end of the third hour ... and, in these days of Lent, let
them receive a book apiece from the library, and read it
straight through. These books are to be given out at the
beginning of Lent. It is important that one or two seniors
should be appointed to go round the monastery at the hours
when brethren are engaged in reading, in case some
ill-conditioned brother should be giving himself up to sloth
or idle talk, instead of reading steadily; so that not only is
he useless to himself, but incites others to do wrong.

"Behold! how great a matter a little fire kindleth!" These simple words,
uttered by one who in power of far-reaching influence has had no equal,
gave an impulse to study in the ages it once was the fashion to call dark
which grew with the growth of the Order--till wherever a Benedictine house
arose--or a monastery of any one of the Orders which were but off-shoots
from the Benedictine tree--books were multiplied, and a library came into
being, small indeed at first, but increasing year by year, till the
wealthier houses had g