Samson's mother, awakened by
his shrieking, did come; and the Devil and the Dream both fled away
fruitless. On the morrow, his mother, pondering such an awful dream,
thought it were good to take him over to St. Edmund's own Shrine, and
pray with him there. See, said little Samson at sight of the
Abbey-Gate; see, mother, this is the building I dreamed of! His poor
mother dedicated him to St. Edmund,--left him there with prayers and
tears: what better could she do? The exposition of the dream, Brother
Samson used to say, was this: _Diabolus_ with outspread bat-wings
shadowed forth the pleasures of this world, _voluptates hujus saeculi_,
which were about to snatch and fly away with me, had not St. Edmund
flung his arms round me, that is to say, made me a monk of his. A
monk, accordingly, Brother Samson is; and here to this day where his
mother left him. A learned man, of devout grave nature; has studied at
Paris, has taught in the Town Schools here, and done much else; can
preach in three languages, and, like Dr. Caius, 'has had losses' in
his time. A thoughtful, firm-standing man; much loved by some, not
loved by all; his clear eyes flashing into you, in an almost
inconvenient way!

Abbot Hugo, as we said, had his own difficulties with him; Abbot Hugo
had him in prison once, to teach him what authority was, and how to
dread the fire in future. For Brother Samson, in the time of the
Antipopes, had been sent to Rome on business; and, returning
successful, was too late,--the business had all misgone in the
interim! As tours to Rome are still frequent with us English, perhaps
the reader will not grudge to look at the method of travelling thither
in those remote ages. We happily have, in small compass, a personal
narrative of it. Through the clear eyes and memory of Brother Samson
one peeps direct into the very bosom of that Twelfth Century, and
finds it rather curious. The actual _Papa_, Father, or universal
President of Christendom, as yet not grown chimerical, sat there;
think of that only! Brother Samson went to Rome as to the real
Light-fountain of this lower world; we now--!--But let us hear Brother
Samson, as to his mode of travelling:

'You know what trouble I had for that Church of Woolpit; how I was
despatched to Rome in the time of the Schism between Pope Alexander
and Octavian; and passed through Italy at that season, when all clergy
carrying letters for our Lord Pope Alexander were laid hold of, and
some were