FIFTH DAY. 153 



of Him " who turned the hard rock into 

 a standing water, and the flint stone into 

 a springing well : " here, in after-ages, when 

 priestcraft was all potent, the sick man re- 

 sorted and drank of the stream, which a new 

 faith had hallowed and adopted. 



J. I can imagine all. These luxuriant 

 thorns, whose branches shade it from the 

 sun, and whose roots are nourished by the 

 spring, are of great age. 



S. Yes, I remember them these thirty- 

 five years and more, and they appear un- 

 altered : it is very difficult to ascertain the 

 age of such trees. These are my especial 

 favourites, for, as I have before observed, 

 they are beautiful even in winter. I do 

 not marvel that they were cherished by 

 our Saxon forefathers, or that in these 

 days, when land is cleared of underwood, 

 immunity is granted to " hollies and 

 thorns. 1 ' 



J. I remember that Asser, in his Life 



