had happened. Strange to say,
the Pope had had a similar dream. A grand procession of the whole
clergy, in which the Pope walked himself, attended by crowds of
people, went to the above-mentioned mount, and having discovered the
snow-covered spot, the Pope laid the foundation of a magnificent
church there, long known as Saint Mary in the Snow.

_St. Blase_, who suffered martyrdom by decapitation in the year 289,
after having been cruelly whipped and scourged, wrought numerous
miracles of an extraordinary nature. Shortly before his decease, he
prayed that whosoever sought his help in consequence of disease in the
throat, or any sickness, he might have the assistance desired. After
this, all who implored the aid of the saint were heard and healed. In
his lifetime he saved from death a devout widow's son, who, without
his assistance, would have been choked by a fish bone. Even the wild
beasts of the field were under the saint's control. A wolf that had
carried away a poor person's pig, was forced by the holy man to bring
back another animal of equal value. In honour of St. Blase, candles
were offered to him, which, through the very act of devotion, were
rendered holy, and became serviceable for all pious uses.

_St. Agatha_ performed many miracles. Quintianus, the governor of
Catania, smitten with her beauty and extraordinary accomplishments,
endeavoured to gain her affections, but was unsuccessful. Consequently
his love turned into inveterate hatred, which ended in the fair Agatha
being scourged and cast into a loathsome prison. The Pagan ruler
commanded her to sacrifice to heathen deities, but she adhered to her
Christian principles in spite of his wrath, which found vent in
burning her with hot irons and cutting off her breasts. To manifest
the displeasure of heaven, the walls of her prison were thrown down by
some unseen power, and two of the governor's servants were deprived of
life in a mysterious manner when torturing her. Her enemy had intended
other and more fearful cruelties, but, in answer to her earnest
prayers, death stepped in and relieved her from every trouble. In
Catania a church was built and dedicated to St. Agatha, and her sacred
veil, which she had often used to conceal her lovely features from the
lustful Quintianus, was placed in it, to protect that city from the
eruptions of Mount AEtna, and the earthquakes so frequent in Sicily.
This valuable relic was long preserved by those who believed in its