Page:History of the Franks.djvu/211

THE SEVENTH BOOK 179 sides of meat, and many other things, was completely cleaned out and nothing but the bare walls remained. Because of this he regarded me with great suspicion although I was running faithfully on his errands, and he kept promising that if he ever regained the king's favor he would take vengeance on me for what he suffered. But God, to whom the secrets of the heart are revealed, knows that I helped him disinterestedly as far as I could. And al- though in former times he had laid many traps for me in order to get St. Martin's property, still there was a reason why I should forget them, namely because I had taken his son from the holy font. But I believe it was the greatest drawback to the unlucky man that he showed no respect for the holy bishop. For he often engaged in violence within the very portico that is close to the saint's feet, and was continually occupied with drunkenness and vanities ; and when a priest refused to give him wine, since he was plainly drunk already, he crushed him down on a bench and beat him with his fists and with other blows, so that he seemed to be almost dying; and perhaps he would have died if the cupping- glasses of the physicians had not helped him. Now because of his fear of the king he had his lodging in the audience chamber of the holy church. And when the priest who kept the door keys had closed the other doors and gone, girls went in with the rest of his attendants by the door of the audience chamber and looked at the paintings on the walls and fingered the ornaments of the holy tomb, which was a wicked crime in the eyes of the religious. And when the priest learned of this he drove nails in the door and fitted bars within. And after dinner when he was drunk he noticed this, and as we were singing in the church on account of the service at nightfall, he entered in a rage and began to attack me with abuse and curses, reviling me, among other things, because I wished to keep him away from the holy bishops' tomb cover. But I was amazed that such madness should possess the man and tried to calm him with soothing words. But as I could not overcome his rage by gentle words I decided to be silent. And finding that 1 would say nothing he turned to the priest and overwhelmed him with abuse. For he assailed both him and me with vile language and various insults. But when we saw that he was so to speak possessed by a demon, we went out of the holy church and ended