V.

BOOK its own station apart, and though each is mingled with the other, so that none of them can exist without the other, yet they are not perceptible within the rest. Thus water and earth are very difficult to be seen, or to be comprehended by unwise men, in fire, and yet they are therewith commingled. So is also the fire in stones and water very difficult to be perceived; but it is there.

"THOU bindest fire with very indissoluble chains, that it may not go to its own station, which is the mightiest fire that exists above us, lest it should abandon the earth, and all other creatures should be destroyed from extreme cold in case it should wholly depart.

"THOU hast most wonderfully and firmly established the earth, so that it halts on no side, and no earthly thing falls from it; but all earth-like things it holds, that they cannot leave it. Nor is it easier to them to fall off downwards than upwards.

"THOU also stirrest the threefold soul in accordant limbs, so that there is no less of that soul in the least finger than in all the body. By this I know that the soul is threefold, because foreign writers say that it hath three natures. One of these natures, is that it desires; another, that it becomes angry; the third, that it is rational. Two of these natures animals possess the same as men : one is desire, the other is anger. But man alone has reason, no other creature has it. Hence he hath excelled all earthly creatures in thought and understanding; because reason shall govern both desire and wrath. It is the distinguishing virtue of the soul.

"THOU hast so made the soul that she should always revolve upon herself as all this sky turneth, or as a wheel rolls round, inquiring about her Creator or herself, or about the creatures on the earth. When she inquireth about her Creator she rises above herself; when she searches into herself, then she is within herself; and she becomes below herself when she loves earthly things, and wonders at them.

"THOU, O LORD! wilt grant the soul a dwelling in the heavens 85, and wilt endow it there with worthy gifts, to every one according to their deserts. Thou wilt make it to shine

85 Boetius adds: "Thou with like causes conveyest souls and inferior life, and adapting the sublime beings to lighter chariots, thou sowest them in heaven and in earth, and by a benign law maketh them, converging, to be brought back to thee like the flame of a torch." Boet. lib. iii. met. 9.

very bright, and yet with brightness very various; some more CHAP. splendidly, some less bright, as the stars are, each according

to his earning.

"THOU, O LORD! gatherest the heaven-like souls, and the earth-like bodies; and Thou minglest them in this world so that they come hither from Thee, and to Thee again from hence aspire. Thou hast filled the earth with animals of various kinds, and then sowed it with different seeds of trees and herbs.

"Grant now, O LORD 86, to our minds that they may ascend to Thee from the difficulties of this world; that from the occupations here they may come to Thee. With the opened eyes of our mind may we behold the noble fountain of all good! THOU ART THIS. Give us then a healthy sight to our understanding, that we may fasten it upon THEE. Drive away this mist that now hangs before our mental vision, and enlighten our eyes with Thy light. For THOU art the brightness of the true light. Thou art the soft rest of the just. Thou causest them to see it. Thou art the beginning of all things, and their end. Thou supportest all things without fatigue. Thou art the path and the leader, and the place to which the path conducts us. All men tend to THEE." 87

II.

ONE of the most curious part of Alfred's Boe- Alfred's tius is his metaphysical reasoning. metaphysics.

WHEN he comes to the fifth book, he leaves off translating his author, and indulges his own meditations on chance, free will, the Divine prescience, providence, the perceptions of animals; on the dif ference betwixt human reason and the understanding of angels; and on the Divine nature.

86 This, which is the best part of the metrum of Boetius, is literally thus: "Grant my mind, O Father! to ascend to thine august seat. Grant it to survey the source of good; grant it, with the attained light, to fix the visible eyes of its intellect on thee. Cast off the clouds and weight of this terrestrial mass, and shine on it in thy splendor; for THOU art serenity; thou art rest to the pious. To behold thee is our end, O origin, supporter, leader, path, and termination!" Ibid.

87 Alfred, p. 77-80. May we not say, without exaggeration, that Alfred has improved upon his original?

BOOK

V.

On chance,

THAT an Anglo-Saxon, when his whole nation was so illiterate, and both public and private affairs so disturbed, should attend at all to metaphysical studies is extraordinary; but that Alfred, the king whose life was so embarrassed by disease and warlike tumult, should have had either leisure or inclination to cultivate them, and should have reasoned upon them with so much concise good sense as the following extracts will show that he did, is not the least surprising circumstance in his character. But a sagacious judgment attended him in every thing that he attempted.

How clearly has Alfred apprehended, and with what congenial enlargement and philosophy of mind has he in his own way stated and condensed the reasoning, more diffused and not so clear, of Boetius, on chance. The sentence in italics is rather implied than expressed, in Boetius. 88 —

"It is nought when men say that any thing happens by chance, because every thing comes from some other things or causes, therefore it has not happened from chance; but if it came not from any thing, then it would have occurred from chance.'

"Then,' said I, whence first came the name?' Then, quoth he, My darling, Aristotle mentioned it in the book that is called Fisica.' Then said I, how does he explain it ?" He answered, Men said formerly, when any thing happened to them unexpectedly, that this was by chance. As if any one should now dig the earth, and find there a treasure of gold, and should then say that this happened by chance. But yet, I know that if the digger had not dug into the earth, and no man before had hidden the gold there, he would by no means have found it. Therefore it was not found by chance.'" 89

COULD any reasoner have put this philosophical doctrine more correctly or concisely?

88 See Boet. lib. v. prosa. 1.

89 Alfred,

p.

139.

II.

In the fifth book, we have Alfred's thoughts on CHA P. the liberty of human actions. They are founded on the suggestions of Boetius 90; but he not only selects from his original what he liked on this subject, and compressed what he found diffused, into a small and expressive compass, but he states it so much in his own manner, as to show that he had well considered the subject, and has given us his genuine sentiments upon it. —

freedom or any

On the

the will.

"I would ask thee, whether we have any power, what we should do, or what we should not do? or does freedom of the Divine preordination or fate compel us to that which we wish?

"Then, said he, We have much power. There is no rational creature which has not freedom. He that hath reason may judge and discriminate what he should will, and what he should shun; and every man hath this freedom, that he knows what he should will and what he should not will. All rational creatures have a like freedom. Angels have right judgments, and good will, and all that they desire they obtain very easily, because they wish nothing wrong. But no creature hath freedom and reason, except angels and men. Men have always freedom; and the more of it as they lead their minds towards divine things. But they have less freedom when they incline their minds near to this world's wealth and honours. They have no freedom, when they themselves subject their own wills to the vices; but, so soon as they turn away their mind from good, they are blinded with unwiseness.'

191

ALL the good sense of this much-agitated discussion seems to be condensed in these clear and forcible passages.

ALFRED, instead of translating the subsequent observations of Boetius, has inserted the following questions, and their answers from his own mind. The answer contains an illustration, that strongly shows his own high-mindedness as a king, in loving to have free men in his court.

90 In his fifth book.

VOL. II.

F

91 Alfred, p. 140.

BOOK

V.

Why men have freedom of will.

"I said, "I am sometimes very much disturbed.' Quoth he, •At what?' I answered:

"It is at this which thou sayest, that God gives to every one freedom to do evil, as well as good, whichsoever he will; and thou sayest also, that God knoweth every thing before it happens; and thou also sayest, that nothing happens, but that God wills, or consents to it: and thou sayest that it shall all go as he has appointed. Now, I wonder at this: why he should consent that evil men should have freedom that they may do evil, as well as good, whichsoever they will, when he knew before that they would do evil.

·

"Then quoth he, I may very easily answer thee this remark. How would it now look to you, if there were any very powerful king, and he had no freemen in all his kingdom, but that all were slaves?'

"Then said I, It would not be thought by me right, nor also reasonable, if servile men only should attend upon him.' "Then quoth he, It would be more unnatural, if God, in all his kingdom, had no free creature under his power. Therefore he made two rational creatures free; angels and men. He gave them the great gift of freedom. Hence they could do evil as well as good, whichsoever they would. He gave this very fixed gift, and a very fixed law with that gift to every man unto his end, The freedom is, that man may do what he will; and the law is, that he will render to every man according to his works, either in this world or in the future one; good or evil, whichsoever he doeth. Men may obtain through this freedom whatsoever they will; but they cannot escape death, though they may by good conduct hinder it, so that it shall come later. Indeed, they may defer it to old age, if they do not want good will for good works.'

"Then said I, Thou hast well removed that doubt.'" 92

THIS Solution of the difficulty proposed, shows that Alfred was the true king of an English people. He felt from his own great heart, that the Divine Sovereign must prefer to govern freemen rather than slaves; because such were his own sentiments as a king. The force of his answer rested on this noble feeling. If it be derogatory to

22 Alfred, p. 141, 142.