The Every-day Book and Table Book, v. 1 (of 3): or Everlasting Calendar of Popular Amusements, Sports, Pastimes, Ceremonies, Manners, Customs and Events, Incident to Each of the Three Hundred and Sixty-five Days, in past and Present Times; Forming a Complete History of the Year, Month, and Seasons, and a Perpetual Key to the AlmanacHone, William
History
The Every-day Book and Table Book, v. 1 (of 3): or Everlasting Calendar of Popular Amusements, Sports, Pastimes, Ceremonies, Manners, Customs and Events, Incident to Each of the Three Hundred and Sixty-five Days, in past and Present Times; Forming a Complete History of the Year, Month, and Seasons, and a Perpetual Key to the Almanac
Hone, William
Days; Great Britain -- Social life and customs
An old man, would not believe St.
Patrick’s preaching. St. Patrick asked him whether he would be persuaded
by a miracle; the old man said he would, then St. Patrick prayed, laid
his hand on him, “and immediately the old man became beautiful and
young, and flourished again, as in his early youth,” and was so made to
believe. Having converted Mochna, a virtuous swineherd, while they were
conversing together, a staff from heaven fell between them, which St.
Patrick gave to Mochna for a pastoral staff, consecrated him bishop of
Edrum, “and the staff is in that church still preserved, and called the
_flying staff_.”
St. Patrick’s nephew, St. Lumanus, being desirous of taking a journey by
sea when wind and tide were against him, he hoisted the sails, trusted
in the merits of St. Patrick, and, “O, miracle till then unheard and
unknown! the ship, without any pilot, sailed against wind and stream,”
and he made a prosperous voyage. At another time, St. Patrick seeing a
hundred men unable to stir a large stone, he, alone, raised it up, and
placed it where it was wanted. He was accustomed to stop and erect a
cross at the head-stone of every christian who was buried outside of a
burial-place; one day, coming to the graves of two men newly buried, and
observing that one of the graves only had a cross over it, he stopped
his chariot, and speaking to the dead man below, asked him what religion
he had been, the dead man answered a pagan, St. Patrick inquired why
then a cross was put over _him_, the dead pagan replied, he who is
buried near me was a christian, and one of your faith coming hither
placed the cross at _my_ head; the saint stepped out of his chariot,
rectified the mistake, and went his way. One Foylge, an idolator,
strangled the driver of St. Patrick’s chariot, in his seat, wherefore
the saint cast his “holy curse” at Foylge, who pierced thereby, fell
dead into hell; but the devil entering the dead body, walked about in
it, and seemed as if he were Foylge himself, till one day St. Patrick
called at the dead man’s house, and asking the family where Foylge was,
they answered he was at home, when the saint told them of Foylge’s
death, and that Satan “had entered into his corpse and occupied it as
his own proper vessel,” then St. Patrick gave notice to the devil to
leave his lodging in Foylge’s body, which he did immediately, and Foylge
was buried. Preaching on a journey to 14,000 men, “he first fed them all
with spiritual food,” then commanding a cow to be killed, with two
stags, and a couple of boars, the people ate abundantly, the remnants
were gathered up; and “thus with the flesh of five animals, did St.
Patrick plenteously feed 14,000 men.” Once when he was preaching, by way
of a strong argument, he raised to life nineteen dead men, one of whom
had been buried for ten years. After that, St. Patrick passing over a
river one of his teeth dropped into the water, and his disciples could
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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