The wife of William de Flavy, who was of a noble family, caused her husband's throat to be cut by his barber while he was shaving him; but as he did not cut the throat quite through, she seized the same razor, and completed it,--which was an extraordinary circumstance, as she had had a fine son by him. In excuse for this her strange conduct, it must be said, that he was harsh and rough in his behaviour to her, and kept women of bad fame in the house, with whom he lay, to the neglect of his wife, who was young and handsome: he had also imprisoned her father, and kept him so long in confinement that he died in prison. On the 15th of June, in this year, an extraordinary event happened at the palace at Paris, during the pleading of a cause between the bishop of Angers and a rich burgher of that town. The bishop had accused him of heresy and usury, and maintained that he had said, in the presence of many persons of honour, that he did not believe there was a God, a devil, a paradise, or a hell. It happened, that while the bishop's advocate was repeating the above words, as having been said by the burgher, the hall they were pleading in shook very much, and a large stone fell down in the midst, but without hurting any one. However, all the persons present were exceedingly frightened, and left the hall, as the cause had been deferred to the next day: but when the pleading recommenced, the room shook as before,--and one of the beams slipt out of the mortise, and sunk two feet, without falling entirely down, which caused so great an alarm, lest the whole roof should fall and crush them, that they ran out in such haste that some left behind them their caps, others their hoods and shoes; and there were no more pleadings held in this chamber until it had been completely repaired and strengthened! FOOTNOTES: [Footnote 33: The battle of Hexham.] CHAP. XXVIII. THE KING OF FRANCE COMES TO HÊDIN A SECOND TIME.--WHAT PASSED AT THE MEETING BETWEEN HIM AND THE DUKE OF BURGUNDY.--THE DEATH OF POPE PIUS II. The king of France came again to Amiens in the month of June in this year, and went thence to St Pol, where he met the duke of Burgundy. After the count had grandly feasted them, they went together to Hêdin, where the duke entertained them nobly. During their stay at Hêdin, an ambassador arrived from king Edward, to whom the duke gave a handsome reception.