s. "Your
holiness!--father!--in the king's name we yield!"

"You are all cowards and traitors! Let him do what he will, I cannot yield."

"Then, my lord king, I must proceed," said Odo. "You have not only acted
wickedly in this matter, but you have misgoverned the people committed
to your charge, and broken every clause of your coronation oath. First,
you have not given the Church of God peace, or preserved her from
molestation, but have yourself ravaged her lands, and even slain her
servants with the sword; one, specially honoured of God, you sought to
slay, sending that wicked man, who has been called by fire to his
judgment, to execute your impious will."

"That holy fox Dunstan! Would Redwald had slain him!" muttered Edwy.

"Secondly," continued Odo, not heeding the interruption, "so far from
preventing thefts and fraud in all manner of men, you have maintained
notorious oppressors amongst your officers, and in your own person you
have broken the oath; for did you not even rob your aged grandmother,
and consume her substance in riotous living?"

"What could the old woman do with it all?"

"Thirdly, you have not maintained justice in your judicial proceedings,
but have spent all your time, like Rehoboam of old, with the young and
giddy, and in chastising your people with scorpions."

"Would I had a scorpion to chastise you! This is unbearable.

"My lords and counsellors, have you not a word to say for me?"

"Alas!" said Athelwold, "it is all too true; but give up Elgiva now, and
all will be well!"

"It will be at least the beginning of reformation," said Odo.

"And the end, I suppose," said Edwy, "will be that I shall shave my head
like a monk, banquet sumptuously upon herbs and water, spend
three-fourths of the day singing psalms through my nose, wear a hair
shirt, look as starved as a weasel, and at last, after sundry combats
with the devil, pinch his nose, and go off to heaven in all the odour of
sanctity. Go and preach all this to Edgar; I am not fool enough to
listen to it. You have got him to be your obedient slave and vassal; you
have bought him, body and soul, and the price has been Mercia, and now
you want to add Wessex. Well, I wish you joy of him, and him of you all;
for my part, if I could do it, I would restore the worship of Odin and
Thor, and offer you priests as bloody sacrifices to him: I would!"

"Peace, my lord and king! peace! this is horrible." said Athelwold.

"Horrible!" said anot