soon at the head of a large army. The invaders had built towns where London, Colchester, and

St. Alban's now stand. These she burnt, and she slew as many of the Romans as she could find.

BOOK II.

B

A general who came out against her she defeated.

When the news of what was going on reached Mona the governor hastened back. After he came up with the forces of Boadicea there was a great battle. The Britons fought bravely, but in the end they were beaten, and the queen took poison, choosing rather to die than to fall into the hands of the victors. This was in the year 61.

In the year 78 Julius Agricola became governor. He was a brave soldier, a skilful general, a wise ruler, and a good man. He made himself master of the whole of what we now call England and Wales, and of the southern part of what we now call Scotland. He built a "chain of forts between the Firth of Forth and the Firth of Clyde. When he had conquered all the tribes on one side of it he took his troops to the other side, and gained a great victory over the tribes dwelling there.

But he did something far better than win battles -he tried to make the Britons wiser and happier than he found them. He had the sons of the chiefs taught the Latin language and learning; he did what he could to civilize the people.

The Romans kept, for about three and a quarter centuries after his time, the country they had subdued. During the last hundred and fifty years of this period 'barbarians from beyond the Rhine and the Danube had been attacking different parts of the empire. At last they threatened Rome itself; and in 410 all the soldiers in Britain were

called home to defend the mother city. The Britons were thus left to themselves once more.

They had never become thoroughly Roman, as the people had in some parts of the empire. The Gauls, for instance, ceased to use their own language, and came to use only Latin; but the Welsh of the present day still speak the tongue which their British forefathers spoke.

Still, though the Romans did not quite make the islanders Roman, they wrought many great changes. They built fine houses of brick and stone; they 'founded many towns, and surrounded them with strong walls; they made good roads across the country; and they left a civilized people where they found barbarians.

A great change, too, had taken place in religion. When the Romans first came Jesus Christ was not born; when they gave up the country, the faith He taught had nearly driven out heathenism from all parts of the empire. So the Britons were, when the Romans left them, not only civilized but Christian.

1 Century, a hundred years. 2 A.D. These two letters stand for "Anno Domini," Latin for "In the year of the Lord." 3 Mona is the Latin form of the Welsh Mōn. 4 rising, fighting against one's rulers, rebellion. 5 chain of forts, a number of forts in a line, and at no great distance apart. period, time. 7 barbarians, uncivilized people. 8 empire, the lands under the government founded, built.

of an emperor.

9

6

WHILE the forefathers of the Welsh were faring in the way of which you have been reading, the forefathers of the English were still living in their old home in the north-west of Germany. There were three tribes of them,—the Angles, the Saxons, and the Jutes. The Angles dwelt in the district now called Sleswick, the Jutes in the 1 peninsula named after them Jutland, and the Saxons around the mouth of the River Elbe. When we want to speak of them altogether, we call them the English.

They were only three of a large number of tribes that inhabited the lands north of the Rhine. These tribes were of the same blood and spoke the same language. The descendants of those who came to Britain are the English of to-day, while the descendants of those who stayed in their old homes are the Germans.

2

The English were very big and strong, with eyes fierce and blue. They had 3 ruddy hair, which the freemen allowed to grow long, but which the slaves were forced to keep cropped. They took no pride in dress, though they were comfortably clad. They had close-fitting garments of wool or linen girt around them with a belt. Over their shoulders they wore cloaks fastened by clasps. They were

armed with spears and swords, mostly of iron, and with a gaily-coloured shield. The chief men had also coats of mail and helmets.

4

The houses were built of rough timber, and each stood in its own plot of ground. All the members of a family dwelt in the same village; there were no towns. The chief employment of the English was farming, but at those seasons of the year when there was nothing to do upon the farms they used to sail away from their own country to plunder other lands. Bands of Saxons had in this way troubled Britain long before the Romans left.

The English had no kings, and though some were reckoned of nobler birth than others, all the freemen had equal rights. It was by these freemen that all the business of the tribe was managed. Once or twice a year they held a great meeting to make laws, do justice, appoint magistrates, and settle all their other affairs. To this assembly the freemen always came armed. When they were set and silent some one would stand up to speak; if they agreed with what he said they clashed their spears and shields together; if they disagreed they made a murmuring sound.

5

Each village and district was placed under the care of an elderman, who settled disputes and punished wrong-doers. The most common punishment was a fine. Even when a man had done murder he had only to pay a fixed sum of money to the relatives of the murdered person.

When the English went to war they chose a