peechless, and
without sense: for, through anxiety for his flock, and the hardships of
his solitary retreat, he had suffered more than a martyrdom. Felix, not
being able to bring him to himself, had recourse to prayer; and
discovering thereupon a bunch of grapes within reach, he squeezed some
of the juice into his mouth, which had the desired effect. The good
bishop no sooner beheld his friend Felix, but he embraced him, and
begged to be conveyed back to his church. The saint, taking him on his
shoulders, carried him to his episcopal house in the city, before day
appeared, where a pious ancient woman took care of him.[3]

Felix, with the blessing of his pastor, repaired secretly to his own
lodgings, and there kept himself concealed, praying for the church
without ceasing till peace was restored to it by the death of Decius, in
the year 251. {148} He no sooner appeared again in public, but his zeal
so exasperated the pagans that they came armed to apprehend him; but
though they met him, they knew him not; they even asked him where Felix
was, a question he did not think proper to give a direct answer to. The
persecutors going a little further, perceived their mistake, and
returned; but the saint in the mean time had stepped a little out of the
way, and crept through a hole in a ruinous old wall, which was instantly
closed up by spiders' webs. His enemies never imagining any thing could
have lately passed where they saw so close a spider's web, after a
fruitless search elsewhere, returned in the evening without their prey.
Felix finding among the ruins, between two houses, an old well half dry,
hid himself in it for six months; and received during that time
wherewithal to subsist by means of a devout Christian woman. Peace being
restored to the church by the death of the emperor, the saint quitted
his retreat, and was received in the city as an angel sent from heaven.

Soon after, St. Maximus' dying, all were unanimous for electing Felix
bishop; but he persuaded the people to make choice of Quintus, because
the older priest of the two, having been ordained seven days before him.
Quintus, when bishop, always respected St. Felix as his father, and
followed his advice in every particular. The remainder of the saint's
estate having been confiscated in the persecution, he was advised to lay
claim to it, as others had done, who thereby recovered what had been
taken from them. His answer was, that in poverty he should be the more