41. The story is, then, that after the battle of Soissons, in the division of Roman, or Gallic spoil, the king wished to have a beautifully wrought silver vase for--'himself,' I was going to write--and in my last chapter _did_ mistakenly infer that he wanted it for his better self,--his Queen. But he wanted it for neither;--it was to restore to St. Remy, that it might remain among the consecrated treasures of Rheims. That is the first point on which the popular histories do not insist, and which one of his warriors claiming equal division of treasure, chose also to ignore. The vase was asked by the King in addition to his own portion, and the Frank knights, while they rendered true obedience to their king as a leader, had not the smallest notion of allowing him what more recent kings call 'Royalties'--taxes on everything they touch. And one of these Frank knights or Counts--a little franker than the rest--and as incredulous of St. Remy's saintship as a Protestant Bishop, or Positivist Philosopher--took upon him to dispute the King's and the Church's claim, in the manner, suppose, of a Liberal opposition in the House of Commons; and disputed it with such security of support by the public opinion of the fifth century, that--the king persisting in his request--the fearless soldier dashed the vase to pieces with his war-axe, exclaiming "Thou shalt have no more than thy portion by lot." 42. It is the first clear assertion of French 'Liberte, Fraternite and Egalite,' supported, then, as now, by the destruction, which is the only possible active operation of "free" personages, on the art they cannot produce. The king did not continue the quarrel. Cowards will think that he paused in cowardice, and malicious persons, that he paused in malignity. He _did_ pause in anger assuredly; but biding its time, which the anger of a strong man always can, and burn hotter for the waiting, which is one of the chief reasons for Christians being told not to let the sun go down upon it. Precept which Christians now-a-days are perfectly ready to obey, if it is somebody else who has been injured; and indeed, the difficulty in such cases is usually to get them to think of the injury even while the Sun rises on their wrath.[18] [Footnote 18: Read Mr. Plimsoll's article on coal mines for instance.] 43. The sequel is very shocking indeed--to modern sensibility. I give it in the, if not polished, at least delicately varnished, language of the Pictorial History.