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95 Läsebok. N:o 77 — 78.
died. He died in the year nine hundred and one; but long
ago as that is, his fame, and the love and gratitude with
which his subjects regarded him, are freshly remembered to
the present hour. In the next reign, which was the reign of
Edward, surnamed the Elder, who was chosen in council to
succeed, a nephew of King Alfred troubled the country by
trying to obtain the throne. The Danes in the East of
England took part with this usurper (perhaps because they had
honoured his uncle so much, and honoured him for his
uncle’s sake), and there was hard fighting; but, the king,
with the assistance of his sister, gained the day, and reigned
in peace for four and twenty years. He gradually extended
his power over the whole of England, and so the seven
kingdoms were united into one.
When England thus became one kingdom, ruled over by
one Saxon king, the Saxons had been settled in the country
more than four hundred and fifty years. Great changes had
taken place in its customs during that time. The Saxons
were still greedy eaters and great drinkers, and their feasts
were often of a noisy and drunken kind; but many new
comforts, and even elegancies had become known, and were fast
increasing. Hangings for the walls of rooms, where, in these
modern days, we paste up paper, are known to have been
sometimes made of silk, ornamented with birds and flowers
in needlework. Tables and chairs were curiously carved in
different woods; were sometimes decorated with gold or silver;
sometimes even made of those precious metals. Knives and
spoons were used at table; golden ornaments were worn —
with silk and cloth, and golden tissues and embroideries ;
dishes were made of gold and silver, brass and bone. There
were varieties of drinking-horns, bedsteads, musical
instruments. A harp was passed round, at a feast, like the
drinking-bowl, from guest to guest; and each one usually sang or
played when his turn came. The weapons of the Saxons were
stoutly made, and among them was a terrible iron hammer
that gave deadly blows, and was long remembered. The
Saxons themselves were a handsome people. The men were
proud of their long fair hair, parted on the forehead, their
ample beards, their fresh complexions, and clear eyes. The
beauty of the Saxon women filled all England with a new
delight and grace.
I have more to tell of the Saxons yet, but I stop to
say this now, because, under the Great Alfred, all the best
points of the English-Saxon character were first encouraged,
and in him first shown. It has been the greatest character
among the nations of the earth. Wherever the descendants
of the Saxon race have gone, have sailed, or otherwise made
their way, even to the remotest regions of the world, they
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