It was very well for him to threaten to carry the matter before
the King, but it was years since royal Edward had heard the name
of Loring, and Nigel knew that the memory of princes was a short
one. Besides, the Church was the ruling power in the palace as
well as in the cottage, and it was only for very good cause that a
King could be expected to cross the purposes of so high a prelate
as the Abbot of Waverley, as long as they came within the scope of
the law. Where then was he to look for help? With the simple and
practical piety of the age, he prayed for the aid of his own
particular saints: of Saint Paul, whose adventures by land and
sea had always endeared him; of Saint George, who had gained much
honorable advancement from the Dragon; and of Saint Thomas, who
was a gentleman of coat-armor, who would understand and help a
person of gentle blood. Then, much comforted by his naive orisons
he enjoyed the sleep of youth and health until the entrance of the
lay brother with the bread and small beer, which served as
breakfast, in the morning.
The Abbey court sat in the chapter-house at the canonical hour of
tierce, which was nine in the forenoon. At all times the function
was a solemn one, even when the culprit might be a villain who was
taken poaching on the Abbey estate, or a chapman who had given
false measure from his biased scales.
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