of thorns; their negligence in attending the exercise of their
function; their mixing with the laity in the pleasures of gaming,
hunting, dancing, and singing; and their openly living with
concubines, by which it is commonly supposed he meant their wives. He
then turned himself to Dunstan, the primate; and in the name of King
Edred, whom he supposed to look down from heaven with indignation
against all those enormities, he thus addressed him: "It is you,
Dunstan, by whose advice I founded monasteries, built churches, and
expended my treasure in the support of religion and religious houses.
You were my counsellor and assistant in all my schemes: you were the
director of my conscience: to you I was obedient in all things. When
did you call for supplies which I refused you? Was my assistance ever
wanting to the poor? Did I deny support and establishments to the
clergy and the convents? Did I not hearken to your instructions, who
told me that these charities were, of all others, the most grateful to
my Maker, and fixed a perpetual fund for the support of religion? And
are all our pious endeavours now frustrated by the dissolute lives of
the priests? Not that I throw any blame on you; you have reasoned,
besought, inculcated, inveighed; but it now behoves you to use sharper
and more vigorous remedies; and conjoining your spiritual authority
with the civil power, to purge effectually the temple of God from
thieves and intruders [k]." It is easy to imagine that this harangue
had the desired effect; and that, when the king and prelates thus
concurred with the popular prejudices, it was not long before the
monks prevailed, and established their new discipline in almost all
the convents.
[FN [i] Gervase, p. 1646. Brompton, p. 864. Flor. Wigorn. p. 606.
Chron. Abb. St. Petri de Burgo, p 27, 28. [k] Abbas Rieval. p. 360,
361. Spell. Conc. p. 476, 477, 478]

We may remark, that the declamations against the secular clergy are,
both here and in all the historians, conveyed in general terms; and as
that order of men are commonly restrained by the decency of their
character, it is difficult to believe that the complaints against
their dissolute manners could be so universally just as is pretended.
It is more probable that the monks paid court to the populace by an
affected austerity of life; and representing the most innocent
liberties, taken by the other clergy, as great and unpardonable
enormities, thereby prepared the wa