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THE TOWER

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Of all the monuments in the Cathedral, perhaps none is so pathetic or teaches us so much—as that of the betrayed Gordon-"who, at all times and everywhere, gave his strength to the weak, his substance to the poor, his sympathy to the suffering, and his heart to God."

M. Delaure, in his description of the Grand Châtelet at Paris, says, "Every old building, the origin of which is buried in obscurity, is attributed to Cæsar or the Devil." I believe this applies to the Tower of London. From the more trustworthy authorities we find that the originator was William the Conqueror, and that he appointed the then Bishop of Rochester as overseer of the work. It has been in its time a palace, a prison, and a fortress; and now, in the serenity of its old age, we can look back at its history-" so full of dismal horror "— grand, but grim enough, even now, as it stands with all its bloody record of brutality, cruelty, and murder. What a terrible tale is told in the little chapel of St Peter ad Vincula, where were buried the bodies of so many once loved and honoured men and women! Macaulay says of it: "There is no sadder spot on earth than this little cemetery. Hither have been carried through successive ages, by the rude hands of gaolers, without one mourner

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FAMILIAR LONDON

following, the bleeding relics of men who had been the captains of armies, the leaders of parties, the oracles of senates, and the ornaments of Courts,"old men and women-ay, and children too-made victims to the lust and ambition of others-mangled and torn by the rack-crushed in soul and mind by long imprisonment-deserted by their friends. Small wonder that deadly fear and horror filled the hearts of those who passed through its cruel gateway. In this little chapel of St Peter is a record of some of the great ones of the earth, who were executed and lie buried there. As Stow the historian wrote, "Here lieth, before the high Altar in St Peter's Church, two dukes between two Queens,-to wit, the Duke of Somerset and the Duke of Northumberland between Queen Anne and Queen Catherine, all four beheaded." Lady Jane Grey, the Queen of nine days, also was executed in the Tower, attended by two of her ladies. "When she mounted the scaffold she said to the people standing about, 'Good people, I am come hither to die, and by a law I am condemned to the same. The fact against the Queen's highness was unlawful, and the consenting thereto by me: but touching the procurement and desire thereof by me or on my behalf, I do wash my hands there

LADY JANE GREY

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of in innocency before God, and the face of you, good Christian people, this day': and therewith she wrung her hands, wherein she had her book. Then said she: 'I pray you all, good Christian people, to bear me witness that I die a true Christian woman, and that I do look to be saved by no other means, but only by the mercy of God, in the blood of His only Son, Jesus Christ: and I confess when I did not know the word of God, I neglected the same, loved myself and the world; and therefore this plague and punishment is happily and worthily happened unto me for my sins; and yet I thank God that of His goodness He hath thus given me a time and respite to repent. And now, good people, while I am alive, I pray you assist me with your prayers.' Kneeling, she turned to Fecknam, saying, 'Shall I say this Psalm?' and he said, 'Yes.' Then said she the Psalm of 'Miserere mei Deus' in English, in most devout manner, throughout to the end; and stood up, and gave her maiden, Mistress Ellen, her gloves and handkerchief, and her book to Master Bruges. Then she untied her gown, and the hangman pressed upon her to help her off with it; but she, desiring him to let her alone, turned towards her two gentlewomen, who helped her off therewith,

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FAMILIAR LONDON

and also with her frowes, paaft, and neckerchief, giving to her a fair handkerchief to bind about her eyes. The hangman kneeled down and asked her forgiveness, which she granted most willingly. He willed her to stand upon the straw; which doing, she saw the block, and said, I pray you despatch me quickly.' Then she kneeled, saying, Will you take it off, before I lay me down?' And the hangman said, 'No, madam.' Then tied she the handkerchief about her eyes, and, feeling for the block, said, 'What shall I do? where is it? where is it?' One of the standers-by guiding her thereto, she laid her head down upon the block, and then stretched forth her body, and said, Lord, into Thy hands I commend my spirit'; and so finished her life in the year of our Lord God 1554, the 12th day of February.'

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Thank God, we have come to happier days! It seems that the early history of all great nations has been written in blood. In A Tale of Two Cities, Dickens tells the thoughts of Sydney Carton while standing at the foot of the guillotine: "I see a beautiful City and a brilliant people rising from this abyss, and, in their struggles to be truly free, in their triumphs and defeats, through long years to 1 Foxe, Acts and Monuments.

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