“E Alexandre quisiera pasar el rio a ellas, mas non pudo por ninguna guisa por que era ancho et lleno de dragones et de otras bestias fieras muy grandes.”[123]
After leaving this place and journeying a little farther amid various adventures they again come upon another land of
“mugieres muy grandes de cuerpos et las barbas tan luenguas que les alcanzaban fasta en las tetas, et las cabezas planas; et vistien pielles, et eran muy buenas cazadoras et corredoras de mont, et pora correr mont en logares de canes, traien bestias fieras enseñadas pora ello, et ensañaban se las ellas. E cuando entraron Alexandre et su huest en aquellas selvas o estas mugieres eran, et vieron ellos a ellas et ellas a ellos fuxieron ellas; et caballeros de Macedonia cuando las vieron foir cogieron empos ellas en sus caballos et alcanzaron den ya cuantas, et prisieron dellas et aduxieron las a Alexandre.
“Alexandre cuando las vió mandó las preguntar por el lenguaje de India que dixiesen como vinien a morar a aquellas selvas o morada de homne del mondo non habie. Fablaron ellas et dixieron que vivieron de caza que facien con bestias fieras et non dal, et que moraban por ende siempre en las selvas. Et salieron daquellas selvas Alexandre et su huest a los campos grandes et anchos, et fallaron alli de cabo otros varones et mugieres; et las mugieres desnuyas todas; et habien todos los cuerpos vellosos de pelos como bestias. Et era costumbre daquellos homes et daquellas mugieres de morar en aquel rio et en la tierra et asi como fue viniendo la huest et llegando les aquellas mugieres somurguieron se ellas luego en el rio; et estudieron alli una pieza Alexandre et su huest por veer si saldrien et probar ellos ende mas. Et movieron dalli et fueron yendo adelant, et fallaron otras mugieres que habien dientes como de puercos monteses et los cabellos de las cabezas tan luengos que les daban por los tobiellos, et el otro cuerpo que lo habien todo velloso de pelos como el estrucio et el camello, et en los lomiellos que habien como vaca que las colgaban alli ayuso; et el estado dellas de luengo era de doce pies.”[124]
V.—RELICS
Relics, which played an exceedingly important part in the life of the medieval Church, might consist of anything which formerly belonged to a saint or to Jesus, or anything which might serve as evidence in establishing a miracle. Every altar, upon being consecrated, should have some relics placed within it,[125] and these usually were of miracle-working power themselves. At Chartres there was a certain dress that had belonged to the Virgin, on which it was the custom to place cloth which was made up into garments for warriors, because it was believed that after being thus treated garments made from it would be invulnerable. In fact a knight wearing one of these was attacked while unarmed, and altho his enemies thought they had pierced him thru and thru he was in reality unharmed (No. 148). The bones of St. Thomas, together with a letter purporting to have been written by Jesus, were so powerful that when placed over the gate of Edessa no enemy could enter without first making peace with the city.[126] Very interesting is the case of the humble woman who went to confession and after doing penance asked for a written certificate of pardon, which after some hesitation was given. Misfortune overtook her and she was forced to beg. In one city she came upon a moneychanger and asked the loan of a small sum but he would not let her have it without security. The only security she could offer was this certificate of pardon. The moneychanger laughed at the idea, but finally promised to let her have the equivalent of its weight in gold, and putting it on his scales was astonished to find that all his gold would not balance it. This convinced him, and becoming converted he told the woman to take whatever amount she needed. (No. 305).
Such relics not only had the power to work miracles but were themselves divinely protected. One man, a peasant, laughed at the idea that a certain shoe on the altar in the church had ever belonged to the Virgin, because, he said, a shoe as old as that would not be in so good a state of preservation. To cure him of such flagrant unbelief she afflicted him in the mouth in such a manner that he could be cured only upon the application of the shoe in question (No. 61). At another time some priests, by the exhibition of relics, were collecting money to rebuild a church. In the course of their travels they entered a ship with some merchantmen. After a short while they were attacked by pirates, and in the face of danger the merchants, to secure immunity, offered gifts of money for the building of the church. When the danger was safely passed they repented of their extravagance and took back their donations, buying wool for their own use with the money. Shortly afterward a stroke of lightning set fire to their purchases, thus avenging both God and the Virgin (No. 35).
Naturally, some relics were more powerful and more sacred than others, and they varied in these respects according to the importance of the saint to whom they belonged; and seemingly were protected in a like measure. When Alfonso el Sabio left Seville for Castile he ordered the relics of the Virgin, along with those of the other saints, to be carefully put away, but when he returned ten years later he found only those of the Virgin in perfect condition; those of the other saints had decayed (No. 257).
CONCLUSION
After the foregoing investigation the fact is impressed on us more vividly than ever that the Spain of the Middle Ages was truly the mother of the Spain of today. Hers were a people with a lively imagination, but this was dominated by the two elements which have always been most marked in her history—religion and realism. And wherever these two elements enter into the development of the supernatural in the mind of man, the Spanish contribution has to be taken seriously into the account.