THE LEGEND OF ST. CATHERINE

have

" leaden knots and

ii

"

then her snow-white angles ; in six colours : her body appears

nude body appears white, her face green ; red the flowing stream of blood ; black the open wounds ; blue the stripes caused by the whip ; golden the plaits of her hair. All these colours of course have a mystical significance. When Catherine is decapitated, milk, as symbol of her purity, flows from her body. Less known than the legend of St. Catherine, but certainly equally valuable, is the Bohemian legend of St. Dorothy. The martyrdom of that saint has been a favourite subject for the painters and poets of many In our time Mr. Swinburne has made it the countries. Several Bohemian versions subject of a beautiful poem. of the legend have been preserved. The most interesting of them, though probably not one of the oldest, is the version contained in the manuscript of St. Vitus. It is The written in short and somewhat irregular rhymes. mediaeval mystical idea of the marriage between Christ and female saints appears here even more prominently than in the legend of St. Catherine. Dorothy, who is of royal blood, refuses to marry the cruel heathen King The Fabricius and to renounce the Christian faith. poem begins with a short invocation of St. Dorothy : — "I^orofhy, O maiden fair, The Holy Church celebrates thy festival, For thou wast a maiden choice. One chosen by God.

Thy virtues, beauty, and purity

No

one can describe;

Adorned by these Thou wast wedded to Christ. Rejoicing now with thy husband. Help us in our misery Lead us to eternal bliss."

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