to geue a charge vpon this so great, and disordered a battayle: and so she, silly woeman, pour out the bowels of her innocent hart before God, more prouoketh therby the force and rage of her enemies agaynst her.MarginaliaEulalia geueth the onset, denying to sacrifice to deuils. But the godly care of her parentes, fearing least the willing minde of the Damsel, so ready to dye for Christes cause, might make her gilty of her owne death, hid her and kept her close at their house in the countrey, being a great way out of the Citty.MarginaliaEulalia kept secret by her parentes. She yet misliking that quiet life, as also detesting, to make such delay, softly stealeth out of the doores (no man knowing therof) in the night and in great hast leauing the common waye, openeth the hedge gappes, and with werye feete (god knoweth) passed through þ^e thorny & bryery places, accompanied yet w^t spirituall garde: & although darke & dreadfull was the silent night, yet had shee with her the Lord & guider of light. And as the children of Israel comming out of Egipt, had by the mightye power of God, a cloudy piller for their guide in þ^e day, & a flame of fire in the night, so had this godly virgine, traueling in this darke night, when she fleing & forsaking the place where al filthy idolatry abounded, & hastened her heauenly iourney, was not oppressed with the dreadfull darknes of the night, But yet she before the day appeared in this her speedy iourney, with her selfe considered & mused on a thousand matters, & more. In the morning betime with a bould courage she goeth vnto the tribunall or iudgement seat, & in the midst of them all with a loud voice, crying out sayde:MarginaliaEulalia disproueth the Heathen Iudge. I praye you what a shame is it for you thus rashely, and without aduisement to destroy and kill mens soules, and to throwe their bodies aliue against the rocks, and cause them to deny the omnipotent god? Would you know (O you vnfortunate) who I am? behold, I am one of the Christians:MarginaliaThe godly confession of Eulalia. an enimie to your deuilish sacrifices, I spurne your idols vnder my feete: I confesse God omnipotent with my hart and mouth. Isis, Apollo, and Venus, what are they? Maximinus himselfe, what is he? The one a thing of naught, for that they be þ^e workes of mens hands, þ^e other but a cast away bicause he worshippeth the same worke. Therfore friuolous are they both, and both not worthy to be set by. Maximinus is a Lorde of substaunce, and yet he himselfe falleth downe before a stone, and voweth the honor of hys dignitie vnto those that are much inferior to his vassals. Why then doth he oppresse so tirannically, more worthye stomacks and courages then himselfe? He must neds be a good guid, and an vpright iudge, which fedeth vpon innocent bloud: and breathing in the bodies of godly men doth rent and teare their bowels, and that more is, hath his delight in destroying and subuerting the faith.

Go to therfore thou hangman, burne, cut and mangle thou these earthly mēbers. It is an easie matter to breake a britle substance, but the inward mind shalt not thou hurt for any thing thou canst do. The pretor thē or iudge wyth these words of hers, set in a great rage, saith, hangmā take her and pull her out by the heare of her head & torment her to the vttermost. Let her feele the power of our countrey gods, and let her know what the Imperiall gouernement of a Prince is. But yet, O thou sturdy girle, faine woulde I haue thee (if it were possible) before thou dye, to reuoke this thy wickednes.MarginaliaEulalia allured with fayre persuaswasions. Behold what pleasures thou maiest enioy by the honorable house thou camest of. Thy fallen house and progenie followeth thee to death with lamentable teares, & the heauy nobility of thy kindred maketh dolfull lamētation for thee. What meanest thou, wilt thou kill thy self so younge a flower, & so neare these honorable mariages and great dowries that thou mayest enioy? Doth not the glistering and golden pompe of the bried bed moue thee? Doth not the reuerende pietie of thyne Auncitours pricke thee? whom is it not, but that this thy rashnes and weakenes sorroweth? behold here the furniture ready prepared for thy terrible death. Either shalt thou be beheaded with this sword, or else with these wild beastes shalt thou be pulled in peeces, or els þ^u being cast into the fiery flames shalbe (although lamentably bewailed of thy friends and kinsfolks) consumed to ashes. What great matter is it for thee I pray thee, to escape al this? If thou wilt but take & put with thy fingers a little salt & incense into the censers, thou shalt be deliuered from al these punishmēts. To this Eulalia made no aunswere, but being in a great furye shee spitteth in the tirauntes face, she throweth downe the Idoles, and spurneth abroad with her feete the heape of incense prepared to the censers: then without further delay, the hangmen with both their strengthes tooke her, & puld one ioynte from an other, and with the talantes of wilde beastes, scotched her sides to the hard bodes: she all this while singing and praysing God in this wise. Beholde, O Lord I will not forget thee: what a pleasure is it for them O Christ that remember thy triumphant victoryes, to at-tayne vnto these high dignities, and still calleth vpon that holy name, al stained and embrued with her owne bloude.MarginaliaEulalia singeth, and prayseth God in her tormentes. This sang she with a bold stomacke, neither lamentyngly nor yet wepingly, but being glad and mery, abandonyng from her mind all heauines and griefe, when as out of a warme fountain her mangled members with fresh bloud bathed her white and fayre skinne. Then proceede they to the last and final torment, which was not only the goring and wounding of her mangled body with the yron grat, & hurdle, and terrible harrowing of her flesh, but burned, on euery side with flaming torches her tormented brests, and sides:MarginaliaEulalia put in the fire. The end and martyrdome of Eulalia. her heare hanging about her shoulders in two parts deuided (wherewith her shamefast chastitie and virginitie was couered) reached downe to the ground: but when the cracking flame fleeth about her face, kindled by her heare, and reacheth the crowne of her head: thē she desiring swift death, opened her mouth and swalowed the flame, and so rested shee in peace.

The sayde PrudentiusMarginaliaEx Pruden. and Ado, also Equilinus adde moreouer, writinge of a white doue issuing out of her mouth at her departing, and of the fire quenched about her body, also of her body, couered miraculously wyth snow, with other things more, wherof let euery reader vse hys owne iudgement.

As ye haue heard now the Christian life and constant death of Eulalia, much worthy of praise & commendation: So no lesse commendation is worthely to be giuen to blessed Agnes,MarginaliaAgnes martyr. that constant Damsell and martir of God, who as she was in Rome of honorable parentes begotten, so lyeth she there as honorably intombed & buried. Whiche Agnes for her vnspotted & vndefiled virginitie, deserueth no greater praise and commendation, then for her willing death and martirdome. MarginaliaStraunge and vnnecessary myracles omitted.Some writers make of her a long discourse, more in my iudgement then necessary, reciting diuers & sundry straunge miracles by her done in the processe of her history, which partly for tediousnes, partly for the doubtfulnes of the author, (whom some father vpon Ambrose) and partly for the straungenes and incredibilitie therof I omit, being satisfied with that which Prudentius, brefly writeth of her, as foloweth:MarginaliaEx pruden. lib. de Coronis. Shee was (sayth hee) yong & not mariageable, when first she being dedicated to Christ, boldly resisted the wicked Edictes of the Emperor: least that through idolatry she might haue denied and forsaken the holy faith: but yet first proued by diuers and sundry pollicies to induce her to the same (as now with þ^e flattering and intising words of the Iudge, now with the threatnings of the storming executioner) stoode notwythstanding, stedfast in al couragious strength:MarginaliaAgnes constant in the confession of her fayth. and willingly offered her body to hard & painful torments, not refusing as she sayd, to suffer whatsoeuer it should be, yea though it were death it selfe. Then said the cruell tyraunt: if to suffer paine & torment, be so easie a matter and lightly regarded of thee & that thou accomptest thy life nothing woorth: yet þ^e shame of thy dedicated or vowed virginity is a thing more regarded I know, and esteemed of thee. Wherefore this is determined, that vnles thou wilt make obeisaunce to the aultar of Minerua, and aske forgiuenes of her for thy arrogancy, thou shalt be sent or abandoned to the cōmon stewes or brothel house.MarginaliaAgnes threatned to the brothelhouse. Agnes þ^e virgine, with more spirit and vehemency inueieth against both Minerua & her verginitie: the youth in sculs flocke and runne togither, and craue that they may haue Agnes their ludibrious pray: thē saith Agnes,MarginaliaAgnes bolde vpon the helpe of Christ. Christ is not so forgetfull of those that be hys, that he wil suffer violently to be taken frō them their golden and pure chastitie, neither wil he leaue them so destitute of helpe: he is alwaies at hande and ready to fight for such as are shamfast and chast virgines, neither suffereth he his giftes of holy integritie or chastitie to be polluted. Thou shalt sayth shee, willingly bathe thy sworde in my bloud if thou wilt, but thou shalt not defile my body with filthy lust for any thing thou canst doe. She had no sooner spoken these wordes, but he commaunded that she should be set naked at the corner of some streete, (whiche place at that time, such as were strumpets cōmonly vsed, the greater part of the multitude both sorrowing and shaming to see so shameles a sight, went their wayes, some turninge their heades, some hiding their faces. MarginaliaThe incontinent eyes of a young man beholding Agnes strunken out.But one amongst þ^e rest, with vncircumcised eies, beholding the Damsell, and that in such opprobrious wise: behold a flame of fire lyke vnto a flash of lightning, falleth vpō him, striketh his eies out of his head, wherupon he for dead falling to the groūd, sprauleth in the chanel durt, whose cōpanions taking him vp, & carrying him away, bewayled him as a dead man. But the virgin for this her miraculous deliuery from the danger and shame of that place, singeth prayses vnto God and Christ.

There be (saith Prudentius) that report how that shee