Legends and Satires from Mediæval Literature

by Unknown

And then Saint Brandon purposed soon after for to seek that place by God's help, and anon began to purvey for a good ship and a strong, and victualled it for seven years. And then he took his leave of all his brethren and took twelve monks with him, but, ere they entered into the ship, they fasted forty days and lived devoutly, and each of them received the sacrament. And when Saint Brandon with his twelve monks were entered into the ship, there came other two of his monks and prayed him that they might sail with him, and then he said: "Ye may sail with me, but one of you shall go to hell ere you come again." But for all that they would go with him.

And then Saint Brandon bade the shipmen to wind up the sail, and forth they sailed in God's name, so that on the morrow they were out of sight of any land. And forty days and forty nights after they sailed plat east, and then they saw an island far from them; and they sailed thitherward as fast as they could, and they saw a great rock of stone appear above all the water; and three days they sailed about it ere they could get into the place, but at the last, by the purveyance of God, they found a little haven and there went aland every each one. And then suddenly came a fair hound, and fell down at the feet of Saint Brandon and made him good cheer in his manner. And then he bade his brethren be of good cheer, "For our Lord hath sent to us his messenger to lead us into some good place." And the hound brought them into a fair hall, where they found the tables spread, ready set full of good meat and drink. And then Saint Brandon said graces, and then he and his brethren sat down and ate and drank of such as they found, and there were beds ready for them wherein they took their rest after their long labour.

And on the morn they returned again to their ship, and sailed a long time in the sea after, ere they could find any land, till at last, by the purveyance of God, they saw far from them a full fair island, full of green pasture, wherein were the whitest and greatest sheep that ever they saw; for every sheep was as great as an ox. And soon after came to them a goodly old man, which welcomed them and made to them good cheer, and said: "This is the Island of Sheep. And here is never cold weather but ever summer, and that causeth the sheep to be so great and white: they eat of the best grass and herbs that is anywhere." And then this old man took his leave of them and bade them sail forth right east, and within short time, by God's grace, they should come into a place like paradise wherein they should keep their Eastertide.

And then they sailed forth, and came soon after to that land, but could find no haven because of little depth in some place, and in some place were great rocks. But at the last they went upon an island, weening to them that they had been safe, and made thereon a fire for to dress their dinner, but Saint Brandon abode still in the ship. When the fire was right hot and the meat nigh sodden, then this island began to move, whereof the monks were afeard, and fled anon to the ship and left the fire and meat behind them, and marvelled sore of the moving. And Saint Brandon comforted them and said that it was a great fish named Jasconye, which laboureth night and day to put his tail in his mouth but for greatness he may not.

And then anon they sailed west three days and three nights ere they saw any land, wherefore they were right heavy, but soon after, as God would, they saw a fair island full of flowers, herbs, and trees; whereof they thanked God of His good grace, and anon they went on land. And when they had gone long in this, they found a full fair well, and thereby stood a fair tree full of boughs, and on every bough sat a fair bird, and they sat so thick on the tree that unnethe any leaf of the tree might be seen. The number of them was so great and they sang so merrily that it was an heavenly noise to hear, wherefore Saint Brandon kneeled down on his knees and wept for joy, and made his prayers devoutly to our Lord God to know what these birds meant. And then anon one of these birds fled from the tree to Saint Brandon, and he with flickering of his wings made a full merry noise like a fiddle, that him seemed he heard never so joyful a melody. And then Saint Brandon commanded the bird to tell him the cause why they sat so thick on the tree and sang so merrily. And then the bird said: "Sometime we were angels in heaven. But when our master Lucifer fell down into hell for his high pride, we fell with him for our offences, some higher and some lower, after the quality of the trespass, and because our trespass is but little, therefore our Lord hath set us here, out of all pain, in full great joy and mirth, after His pleasing, here to serve Him in this tree in the best manner we can. The Sunday is a day of rest from all worldly occupation, and therefore this day all we be made as white as any snow for to praise our Lord in the best wise we may." And then this bird said to Saint Brandon: "It is twelve months passed that ye departed from your abbey, and in the seventh year hereafter ye shall see the place that ye desire to come to. And all these seven years, ye shall keep your Easter here with us every year, and in the end of the seventh year ye shall come unto the Land of Behest."

And this was on Easter Day that the bird said these words to Saint Brandon; and then this fowl flew again to his fellows that sat on the tree, and then the birds began to sing evensong so merrily that it was an heavenly noise to hear. And after supper Saint Brandon and his fellows went to bed and slept well; and on the morn they arose betimes, and then those birds began matins, prime, and hours, and all such service as Christian men use to sing. And Saint Brandon with his fellows abode there eight weeks, till Trinity Sunday was passed.

And they sailed again to the Island of Sheep, and they victualled them well, and took their leave of that old man and returned again to ship. And then the bird of the tree came again to Saint Brandon and said: "I am come to tell you that ye shall sail from hence into an island, wherein is an abbey of twenty-four monks, which is from this place many a mile, and there ye shall hold your Christmas and your Easter with us, like as I told you." And then this bird flew to his fellows again.

Then Saint Brandon and his fellows sailed forth in the ocean, and soon after fell a great tempest on them in which they were greatly troubled long time and sore for-laboured. And after that they found, by the purveyance of God, an island that was far from them, and then they full meekly prayed our Lord to send them thither in safety, but it was forty days after ere they came thither; wherefore all the monks were so weary of that trouble that they set little price by their lives, and cried continually to our Lord to have mercy on them, and bring them to that island in safety. And, by the purveyance of God, they came at the last into a little haven, but it was so strait that unnethe[32] the ship might come in; and after, they came to an anchor, and anon the monks went to land. And when they had long walked about, at the last they found two fair wells: one was fair and clear water, but the other was somewhat troubly and thick. And then they thanked our Lord fully humbly that had brought them thither in safety; and they would fain have drunken of that water, but Saint Brandon charged them they should not take without licence: "For if we abstain us awhile, our Lord will purvey for us in the best wise." And anon after came to them a fair old man with hoar hair, and welcomed them full meekly and kissed Saint Brandon, and led them by many a fair well till they came to a fair abbey, where they were received with great honour and solemn procession with twenty-four monks all in royal copes of cloth of gold, and a royal cross was before them. And then the abbot welcomed Saint Brandon and his fellowship, and kissed them full meekly, and took Saint Brandon by the hand and led him with his monks into a fair hall, and set them down arow upon the bench, and the abbot of the place washed all their feet with fair water of the well that they saw before, and after, he led them into a fraitour[33] and there set them among his convent. And anon there came one, by the purveyance of God, which served them well of meat and drink, for every monk had set before him a fair white loaf and white roots and herbs which were right delicious, but they wist not what roots they were. And they drank of the water of the fair clear well which they saw before when they came first aland, which Saint Brandon forbade them.

And then the abbot came and cheered Saint Brandon and his monks and bade them eat and drink for charity: "For every day our Lord sendeth a goodly old man that covereth this table and setteth our meat and drink tofore us, but we know not how it cometh, ne we ordain never no meat ne drink for us, and yet we have been eighty years here, and ever our Lord, worshipped may He be, feedeth us. We be twenty-four monks in number, and every ferial[34] day of the week He sendeth to us twelve loaves, and every Sunday and feast day twenty-four loaves, and the bread that we leave at dinner we eat at supper. And now at your coming our Lord hath sent unto us forty-eight loaves, for to make you and us merry together as brethren. And always twelve of us go to dinner while other twelve keep the quire, and thus have we done these eighty years, for so long have we dwelled in this abbey. We came hither out of the abbey of Saint Patrick in Ireland, and thus as ye see our Lord hath purveyed for us, but none of us knoweth how it cometh but God alone to whom be given honour and laud, world without end. Here in this land is ever fair weather, and none of us hath ever been sick sith we came hither. And when we go to mass or to any other service of our Lord in the church, anon seven tapers of wax be set in the quire and be lighted at every time without man's hand, and so burn day and night at every hour of service, and never waste ne minish as long as we have been here, which is eighty years."

Then Saint Brandon went to the church with the abbot of the place, and there they said evensong together full devoutly, and then Saint Brandon looked upward towards the crucifix and saw our Lord hanging on the cross, which was made of fine crystal and curiously wrought. And in the quire were twenty-four seats for twenty-four monks, and the seven tapers burning, and the abbot's seat was made in the midst of the quire. Then Saint Brandon demanded of the abbot how long they had kept that silence, that none of them spake to other, and he said: "This twenty-four years we spake never one to another." And then Saint Brandon wept for joy of their holy conversation. And then Saint Brandon desired of the abbot that he and his monks might dwell there still with him. To whom the abbot said: "Sir, that may ye not do in no wise, for our Lord hath shewed to you in what manner ye shall be guided till the seven years be fulfilled, and after that term thou shalt with thy monks return into Ireland in safety, but one of the two monks that came last to you shall dwell in the Island of Ankers,[35] and that other shall go quick to hell."