Vernon Parish Democrat. (Leesville, La.) 1917-193?, 1920-09-30
Tomb of Prior Rahere.

! hSIAtG W
TF THERE is one building more
| than another in London which
has suffered through the vicissi-
tudes Of time it is the church Of
/ st. Bartholomew the Great in Smith
field If there is one charitable in
stitution which through long centuries
has ministered to the needs of the suf-
fering poor it is st. Bartholomew
hospital, hard by, writes Ernest Fl.
Ram in the Boston Transcript
Church and hospital are insepara-
BILE in their history and associations.
They stand together today close to the
great meat market of the metropolis,
where in ancient times, on the
''smooth-field' (Smithfeld), tOurna-
ments were held, where the dagger of
WalWorth struck down Jack Cade,
and where martyrs passed through
the gate of fire" for conscience sake,
the while the cruel and implacable
heads of the church looked on at their
sufferings.
The history Of the hospital has just
been told in two sumptuous volumes
by Sir Norman Moore, one of its most
famous physicians, and this must be
our excuse for rediscovering one of
the most fascinating corners of an
Client London.
Rahere's Divine Vision.
It is Of the church that one must
speak first if we are to have q clear
cut understanding of all that is con-
veyed by the magic word "Barts."
For the noble charity Of which Sir
Norman Moore discourses so eloquent
ly was originally only part of the
larger scheme of the immense church
of st, Bartholomew the Great, with
its college Of canons Of the Order of
st. Augustine, popularity known as the
Black Canons from the color of their
distinctive hood.
Carry your mind back to the days
when Henry ruled England. At
tendant on his court was a favorite
named Rahere, who, touched with the
religious enthusiasm of the day, deter
mined on a pilgrimage to Rome, by
this act Of penitence hoping to obtain
complete forgiveness of his sins. At
ter much toll he reached the city and
duly bewailed his sins; but before
long he fell sick, and feeling that his
end was nigh he vowed that should
he recover he would build a hospital
for the healing Of the poor.
One night on his way home, he
dreamed that he found himself on the
edge of a deep and dreadful pit, into
which he feared to fall, when suddenly
st. Bartholomew appeared to him and
promised that if he would build a
church in Smithfield he should have
help. Rohere promised, and when he
awoke he felt that this was indeed
divine vision, and that he must obey
the behest of the blessed saint. So
when, after much trouble, he obtained
from the king a grant of land in
Smithfield he set to work to carry out
the two-fold task of piety, to build
hospital for the poor and nearby
church.
Thus arose the hospital of st. Bar
tholomew and the church. OF the lat
ter, Rahere became the first prior;
but which was completed first cannot
be decided, though it appears that but
a short space of time separated the
two. This was in the year 1923, and
ever since, for nearly 800 years, the
hospital has continued to carry out
the objects of its founder.
Beautiful Tomb of the Founder.
When Rahere died in 1143 he was
buried on the north side of the sanctu-
airy, the customary position for a
founder, and his grave and tomb have
been preserved to this day. The beau
tiful tomb is probably the oldest in
England, for it has endured undese-
Grated for eight centuries.
Bit by bit the great church was
completed. It drew immense revenues
from the three days fair held at the
Feast of st. Bartholomew, the charter
for which Rahere had obtained ten
years before his death, and to this
/ festival Of trade came merchants from
Flanders and Italy. clothiers from
parts Of England, showmen from ev-
erywhere In time it outlived its use
fitness and became notorious as an
annual saturnalia, until it was abol-
Ished in 1855.
It is in the church, however, that
our interest centers-a generous &c
clesiastical pile whose very magnif-
cance would have saved it from any
hand less destructive than that Of
Henry VIM. The king pulled down
the nave. and only the bases Of some
Of the columns are to be found in the
church yard today. he built up a
! western wall to make the choir serve