The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1901-09-26

NlilS Aureus udy was ulNlQeu INTO
three parasitic first, dedicated to the
affairs of state and personal business;
the second, to religious devotions and
the pursuit of knowledge; the third
to eating, sleeping and recreation.
AS man of letters Alfred the Great
added much to the literature not only
his own, but to all time.
To Asser. his choice friend and prin-
cipal hiographer the world owes debt
of gratitude for so cleverly showing so
much of the Saxon Kings daily life
and chief characteristics. 1t was from
Asser that Alfred obtained his first les
sons in Saxon literature.
In the year SS7 Alfred. according to
this chronicler, acquired the knowledge
Of translating the Latin authors, task
in which he took delight as long as he
lived.
"Aesop's Fables" The Meditations
of st. Adams" and the Psalms of
David" were among these translations,
but Alfred's chief contributions to lit
erature was the translation of the
Consultations of Philosophy" by Seve-
rinus Bocthius. The preface to this
notable work reads as follows: king
Alfred was translator of this book, and
turned it from book Latin into Saxon
as 1t is now done. Sometimes he sent
word for word, meaning for meaning,
and yet when he had learned this book
and turned it from Latin into the Sax
on language, he afterward composed
ii in verse, as it is now done"
It has been we'll said that I'VE must
| remember that to Alfred the honor is
| due for the Christian sentiments of
| these verses, as Boethius pays such
attention TO philosophic consultations
| that he forgot the consultations of re-
| ligion."
Another noteworthy work of AL
| fred's, the translation of the "Eccles-
| iastical History of the Anglo Saxons,"
| by the venerable Bede. is likewise con-
sidered classic. This work contains
| authentic records of the Mission of
| st. Augustine, the establishment Of the
| Christian Church; and accounts from
| the time of julius Caesar to the
| eighth century.
| Schlegel says that lin Alfred's day.
| Anglo Saxon attained to so high a de-
gree of perfection that 1t possessed all
the necessary parts of complete lit
| erature."
| Alfred wrote also upon secular sub
! jects, among other things the accounts
of two voyages Of Othere, one being
a trip round the North Cape to the
White Sea. He also wrote the voyage
| OF Wulfstean to the Baltic Sea.
| One of the first uses of Alfred's
| knowledge of the Latin language was
| to translate passages of the Sacred
Scriptures, which he wrote in a book
| he called his manual and from which
he derived much comfort.
From A1fred,s Pen.
The following are a few quotations
from Alfred's pen. Paraphrasing the
| words of Boethus, he wrote: If
| there be any good in nobility mobile
BIRTH l think it is this alone-that a
necessity seems to be imposed on the
noble that they should not degenerate
from the virtue of their ancestors.
But all are equally noble. if you
will think of your beginning. Gre
alton and the Creator, and afterwards
of our own nativity, yet the right
| nobility is In the mind. Every man
| that is at all subjected to his vices for
sakes his Creator, and his first Gre
alton, and his nobility; and thence be-
comes more ignoble than if he were
1 not nobly born"
Again wrote this deep thinker: lone
| Creator is beyond any doubt, and he is
| also the Governor of Heaven and earth,
| and all creatures visible and invisible
| This is God Almighty.
This blessedness is then God. He is
the beginning and the end of every
/ SC0hB anu 1IC 10 lIiG IlS ilcSl Happiness.
| Wisdom is the highest virtue and
| He hath in him four other virtues
| prudence. moderation, courage and
| Righteousness
Therefore / direct that you do, as
l believe that you will, that you who
have leisure for the things of this
world, as often as you can impart that
wisdom which God has given you,
whenever you can impart it,
ii.
To sum up the grand characteristics
of this Ideal King" he was a siren
uous worker, a wise ruler a great
general, a civil and military reformer
and accomplished scholar devoted
husband and father. a true friend and
a consistent Christian.
He died at harrington, in Berkshire
901 A. D., at the age of 81. Five chill
dren survived him-Aethelieda, Ed
ward, Ethelgiva, Alfritha and Aethel-
weard. Edward and Alfritha WERE
carefully and literally educated in the
royal court. Aethelweard received a
sort OF public school education, chill
dren of the mobiles and children of in
feriors being instructed in writing
Saxon and Latin by the same teachers
The eldest daughter, Aethelf1eda, be-
came famous as a woman Of great in
tellectual powers and married Entered,
the Governor or Mercid. AethelWeard
became a man of letters. Alfritha mar
ried Baldwin the Bold they had son.
Araulf. from whom descended Matilda
of Flanders. wife OF William the Con-
queror.
Alfred's son Edward succeeded him
He was the first of. that noted name to
sit upon the throne of England. The
reign of Edward was strong and pros
porous.
Alfred the Greats dying injunctlons
to this son make a perfect ending to
this brief sketch of his noble life:
Thou, my dear son, set thee now
beside me, and ! will deliver thee true
instructions. My son, I feel that my
hour is coming. My countenance is
wan. My days are almost done. We
must now part. I shall to another
world and thou shalt be left alone in
all my wealth. l pray thee (for thou
art my dear child strive to be father
and lord to thy people. Be thou the
children's father and the widow
friend. Comfort thou the poor and shell
ter the weak. and with all thy might
right that which is wrong And son,
govern thyself by law; then shall the
Lord love thee, and God above all
things shall be thy reward. Call thou
upon him to advise thee in all thy
need, and so shall He help thee the
better to compass that which thou
wouldst."
Cecil Rhodes is going to erect a
monument to Maj. Allen Wilson and
his twenty-four men, who were sur