For his services there, and at a previous royal victory, over Waller in July, Sir John was, on October 24th of the same year, created Baron of Rochdale, and so became the first Peer of the family.

Everybody looked forward to an eminent future for the potent partisan and millionaire, the first of thatnow not uncommonhierarchy that replace the feudal barons in modern social forces.

"I will, and leave the baron to you;" said Amy, with a stifled laugh.

For some ten years before that battle the Barons of England had been restless under the yoke of the central government, the Crown, which stood not for them but for us all.

Presently from my port-hole I saw a shore-boat approaching, and recognized in it the Baron with a well-dressed stranger.

Soon after, in a private meeting of some principal barons at London, he showed them a copy of Henry I.'s charter, which, he said, he had happily found in a monastery; and he exhorted them to insist on the renewal and observance of it: the barons swore, that they would sooner lose their lives than depart from so reasonable a demand

Having awakened the anger of the king, Thomas next alienated the whole party of the barons by pressing his demands for the recovery of lands belonging to his see.

He penetrated into the interior of the country, took possession of Chartres, and appeared before Paris, where Charles the Bald, intrenched at St. Denis, was deliberating with his prelates and barons as to how he might resist the Northmen or treat with them.

It was ordained, that all the privileges and immunities above- mentioned, granted to the barons against the king, should be extended by the barons to their inferior vassals.

He was detained on the continent by a misunderstanding, which broke out between him and the King of France, and which was occasioned by inroads made into Normandy by some French barons on the frontiers.

Wholesale massacres were committed throughout the country, until at last the conscience of Europe rose up against these cruel butcheries, and the court itself removed the sanguinary Baron from the scene of his inhuman exploits.

Next year he summoned all the barons of his realm to attend him on this foreign expedition, and collected ships from all the sea-ports; but meeting with opposition from some of his ministers, and abandoning his design, he dismissed both fleet and army, and then renewed his exclamations against the barons for deserting him.

But to-day the source and seat of power has passed from crowned heads and barons into another social stratum.

Those who are thus selected, are placed for some time under the care of some of the wives of the great barons about the court, who are directed to report whether they do not snore in their sleep, and if they are not offensive in smell or behaviour.

Henry at once appealed to the "customs" of the kingdom, which forbade such sentence on the king's barons without the royal consent, and Thomas had to withdraw his excommunication.

But little could the first explorer know that the criminal clutch of Greed was soon to seize these mighty forests, guard them from the human race with bayonets, hangman's ropes and legal statutes; and use them, robber-baron like, to exact unimaginable tribute from the men and women of the world who need them.

Single combats are fought now as then, and the flavor of victory is quite as sweet to the pallid man back of a roll-top desk as to the swart, bristling baron behind his vizored helmet.

The great cotton lords are feudal barons under another name.

There was no military discipline among them: they knew nothing of tactics or strategy; they fought pell-mell in groups, as in the contests of barons among themselves.

The Norman barons after the Conquest, the Spanish conquerors in Mexico and Peru, the Englishmen of the days of Clive and Hastings in India, are all examples of that thorough concentration of strength which must arise in the conflicts of races.