lected and forged without any reason all that their imaginations
could fancy in any way, could have omitted subjects pertaining to the Old
Testament?

The only reply I can give to this query is, that they looked with contempt
on those subjects, from which they did not anticipate any considerable
gain.

Still they have not entirely despised them, for they pretend to have the
bones of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, in the church of _St Maria supra
Minervam_, at Rome. They also boast of possessing, at St John of the
Lateran, the ark of alliance, with Aaron's rod, though the same rod is
also at the Holy Chapel in Paris, whilst some pieces of it are preserved
at Salvatierra. Moreover, at Bordeaux they maintain that St Martial's rod,
which is exhibited in the church of St Severin, is no other than that of
Aaron. It seems, indeed, that they would wish with this rod to perform
another miracle; formerly it was turned into a serpent, whereas now they
would convert it into three different rods! It is very likely that they
may have other relics of objects mentioned in the Old Testament, but the
few we have here alluded to show that they have treated them much in the
same style as those belonging to Christian times.

I now beg to remind my readers of what I mentioned at the beginning of
this work, that I have had no commissioners for visiting the numerous
churches of the different countries enumerated by me, nor must my
description be taken for a register or inventory of all that can be
discovered respecting relics. I have mentioned about half-a-dozen towns in
Germany, but three in Spain I think, about fifteen in Italy, and between
thirty and forty in France, and even of these few examples I have not
related all that I might concerning them. Now, let us only imagine what a
mass might be raised out of all the relics which are to be seen in
Christendom, if they were collected and arranged together in proper order.
I speak, however, only of those countries which we know and frequent; for
it is most important to observe that all the relics belonging to Christ
and the apostles which are displayed in the west are also to be seen in
Greece, Asia, and all other countries where Christian Churches are in
existence. Now, what are we to say when the Eastern Christians assert
their claims?

If we contradict them, alleging on our part that the body of such a saint
was brought to Europe by merchants, that of another by monks, that of a
third by a