24 



THE GREAT LEVEL OF THE FENS. 



TAUT I. 



of a heap of turf ;" and what with worship and what with 

 work, Guthlac gradually converted the little island into 

 a green oasis amidst the waste. 1 As his fame spread 

 abroad, other worshippers and labourers gathered around 

 him, and Croyland soon became the most flourishing of 

 all the islands in the Fens. At first the soil was so 

 rotten and boggy, that a pole might be thrust down 

 into it for thirty feet ; but by digging and embank- 

 ment, by tillage and culture, the land was converted 

 into a garden of plenty. On the site of Guthlac' s 

 wooden oratory a new and stately stone structure 

 was built on oak and alder piles driven deep into the 

 bog, and the abbey of Croyland became the resort 

 of pilgrims from far and near. A village and then a 

 town sprang up causeways and embankments were 

 extended farther into the Fens drains and sluices were 

 dug to let off water from the standing pools more land 

 was reclaimed and tilled until the monastery grew 

 richer and richer, and increasing numbers of people 

 resorted to Croyland for purposes of devotion, employ- 

 ment, and subsistence. Other islands near at hand were 

 gradually subdued in like manner, to which the Croy- 



1 The horrors first encountered by 

 Guthlac in his desolate island are 

 graphically described in the following 

 metaphorical account, contained hi the 

 Life of the Saint in the Cottonian 

 Library. Not long after his landing, 

 the legend says, " St. Guthlac, 

 being awake in the night time, be- 

 twixt his hours of prayer, as he was 

 accustomed, of a sudden he discerned 

 his cell to be full of black troops of 

 unclean spirits, which crept in under 

 the door, as also at chinks and holes ; 

 and, coming in both out of the sky 

 and from the earth, filled the air, as 

 it were, with dark clouds. In their 

 looks they were cruel, and of form 

 terrible, having great heads, long 

 necks, lean faces, pale countenances, ill- 

 favoured beards, rough ears, wrinkled 

 foreheads, fierce eyes, stinking mouths, 

 teeth like horses, spitting fire out of 



their throats, crooked jaws, broad lips, 

 loud voices, burnt hair, great cheeks, 

 high breasts, rugged thighs, bunched 

 knees, bended legs, swohi ankles, pre- 

 posterous feet, open mouths, and 

 hoarse cries; who with such mighty 

 shrieks were heard to roar, that they 

 filled almost the whole distance I ruin 

 heaven with their bellowing noises; 

 and by and by rushing into the house, 

 first bound the holy man, then drew 

 him out of his cell, and cast him over- 

 head and ears into the dirty fen; and, 

 having so done, carried him through 

 the most rough and troublesome parts 

 thereof, drawing him amongst bram- 

 bles and briars for the tearing of his 

 limbs." It would appear from this 

 graphic report as if the horrid stag- 

 nancy of the fens had afflicted the 

 saint with an intolerable nightmare. 



