The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1868-11-04
THE SHEPHERD GIRL OF NAN
TERRE. e.'u

! become as much like Romans themselves as
they could accomplish; they had Latin names,
spoke the Latin Stongue, all their person.
! ages of higher rank were enrolled as Rom
an citizens, their chief cities were colonies
where the laws were administered by mag
istrates in the Roman fashion, and the hous-
es, dress, and amusements were the same as
| those of Italy. The greater part of the towns
had been converted to Christianity, though
some Paganism still lurked in the more re-
| mote villages and mountainous districts.
1t was upon these civilized Gauls that the
| terrible attacks came from the wild nations
| who poured out of the centre and east of
Europe. The Franks came over the Rhine
and its dependent rivers, and made furious
| attacks upon the peaceful plains, where the
| Gauls had long lived in security, and reports
were everywhere heard of villages harried
by wild horsemen, with short double-head-
| ed battle axes, and horrible short pike,
covered with iron and with several large
hooks, like gigantic artificial minnow, and
like it fastened to long rope, so that the
prey which it had grappled might be pulled
up to the owner. Walled cities usually stopp-
ed them, but every farm OF villa outside was
stripped of Its valuables, set on fire, the cat
tle driven off, and the more healthy inhabi-
tants seized for slaves.
1t was during this state of things that
girl was born to wealthy peasant at the
village now called Nanterre, about two miles
from Lutetia, which was already prosper
GUS city, though not as yet so entirely the
capital as it was destined to become under
the name of Paris. She was christened by
an old Gallo name, probably Gwenfrewi, or
White Stream, in Latin Genovefa, but she
is best known by the late French form of
Genevieve. When she was about seven
years old, two celebrated bishops passed
through the village, Germanus, of Auxerre,
and Lupus, of Troyes, who had been invit-
ed to Britain to dispute the false doctrine of
Pelagius. All the inhabitants fiocked into
the church to see them, pray with them and
receive their blessing; and here the sweet
childish devotion of Genevieve so struck
Germonus, that he called her to him, talked
to her, made her sit beside him at the feast,
gave her his especial blessing, and present
ed her with copper medal with cross en-
craven upon it. From that time the little
maiden always deemed herself especially
consecrated to the service of Heaven, but
she still remained at home, daily keeping
her fathers sheep, and spinning their wool
as she sat under the trees watching them,
but always with heart full of prayer.
After this st. Germanus proceeded TO
Britain, and there encouraged his converts
to meet the heather PIcts at Macs Garmon,
in Flintshire, where the exulting shout of
the white-robed catechumens turned to
flight the wild superstitious savages of the
north-and the Hallelujah victory was gam
ed without drop of bloodshed. He never
lost sight of GenevieYe, the little maid
whom he had so early distinguished for her
pIety.
After she lost her parents she went to 1--we
with her godmother, and continued the same
simple habits, leading life of sincere de-
votion and strict self-denial, constant prayer
| and much charity to her poorer neighbors.
In the year 451 the whole of Gaul was in
the most dreadful state of terror at the ad-
vance of Attila, the savage chief of the
Huns, who came from the banks of the
Danube with host of savages of hideous
features, SCARED and disfgured to render
| them more frightful. The old enemies, the
| Goths and the Franks, seemed like friends
| compared with these formidable beings,
| whose cruelties were said to be intolerable,
and of whom every exaggerated story was
told that could add TO the horrors of the
miserable people who lay in their path
Tidings came that this "Scourge of God,"
Attila called himself, had passed the Rhine,
| destroyed Tongres and Metz, and was in
full march for Paris. The whole country
utmost terror. Every one seized their most
valuable possessions and would have fed;
| but Geneyieve placed herself on the only
bridge across the Seine, and argued with
them, assuring them, in a strain that was
afterwards thought of as prophetic, that, if
| they would pray, repent, and defend in
| stead of abandoning their homes, God wo'd
protecG them. They were at first almost
ready to stone her for thus withstanding
| their panic, but just then a priest arrived
from AuXerTe, with present for GenevieVe
from st. Germanus, and they were thus re-
minded of the high estimation in which he
held her; they became ashamed of their vio-
lence, and she led tn m back to pray and
to arm themselves. In a few days they
heard that Attila had paused to beseige Or
leans, and that Aetius, the Roman general
hurTying from Italy, had united his troops
with those of the Goths and Franks, and
given Attila so terrible a defeat at Chalons
that the Huns were fairly driven out of
Gaul. And here it must be mentioned that
when the next year, 452, Attila with his
murderous host came down into Italy, and
after horrible devastation of all the northern
provinces, come to the gates of Rome, no
one dared to meet him but one venerable
Bishop, Leo, the Pope, who, when his
flock were in transports of despair, went
forth only accompanied by one magistrate,
to meet the invader, and endeavor to turn
his Wratl> 4s'de. The savage Huns were
strr"k With by the fearless majesty of
the unarmed old man, They conducted
him safely to Attila, who listened to him
with respect, and promised not to lead his
people into Rome, provided tribute should
be paid to him, He then retreated, and, to
the joy of all Europe, died on his way back
to his native dominions.
But with the Huns the danger and suffer-
ing of Europe did not end. The happy |
state described in the Prophets as ''dwelling |
safely, with none to make them afraid" |
was utterly unknown in Europe throughout
the long breakup of the Roman Empire;
and in few more years the Franks were
overruning the banks of the Seine, and actu-
ally venturing to lay siege to the Roman
walls of Paris itself. The fortihcations were