Stagirius was a young monk to whom St. Chrysostom addressed three
books, and of whom those books give an account. They will be found in
the first volume of the Benedictine edition of St. Chrysostom’s works.
NOTE [4], PAGE 51.
_That wayside inn we left to-day._
Those who have been long familiar with the English Lake Country will
find no difficulty in recalling, from the description in the text, the
roadside inn at Wythburn, on the descent from Dunmail Raise towards
Keswick; its sedentary landlord of thirty years ago; and the passage
over the Wythburn Fells to Watendlath.
NOTE [5], PAGE 59.
_Sohrab and Rustum._
The story of Sohrab and Rustum is told in Sir John Malcolm’s “History
of Persia,” as follows:--
“The young Sohrab was the fruit of one of Rustum’s early amours. He
had left his mother, and sought fame under the banners of Afrasiab,
whose armies he commanded; and soon obtained a renown beyond that
of all contemporary heroes but his father. He had carried death and
dismay into the ranks of the Persians, and had terrified the boldest
warriors of that country, before Rustum encountered him, which at last
that hero resolved to do under a feigned name. They met three times.
The first time, they parted by mutual consent, though Sohrab had the
advantage; the second, the youth obtained a victory, but granted
life to his unknown father; the third was fatal to Sohrab, who, when
writhing in the pangs of death, warned his conqueror to shun the
vengeance that is inspired by parental woes, and bade him dread the
rage of the mighty Rustum, who must soon learn that he had slain his
son Sohrab. These words, we are told, were as death to the aged hero;
and when he recovered from a trance, he called in despair for proofs
of what Sohrab had said. The afflicted and dying youth tore open his
mail, and showed his father a seal which his mother had placed on his
arm when she discovered to him the secret of his birth, and bade him
seek his father. The sight of his own signet rendered Rustum quite
frantic: he cursed himself, attempting to put an end to his existence,
and was only prevented by the efforts of his expiring son. After
Sohrab’s death, he burned his tents and all his goods, and carried
the corpse to Seistan, where it was interred; the army of Turan was,
agreeably to the last request of Sohrab, permitted to cross the Oxus
unmolested. To reconcile us to the improbability of this tale, we are
informed that Rustum could have no idea his son was in existence. The
mother of Sohrab had written to him her child was a daughter, fearing
to lose her darling infant if she revealed the truth; and Rustum, as
before stated, fought under a feigned name, an usage not uncommon in
the chivalrous combats of those days.”
NOTE [6], PAGE 94.
_Balder Dead._
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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