§ 9. In this strait they were at length relieved, both in mind and body, by the aid of their pious patron himself; for the Lord is the refuge of the poor, a very present help in trouble. One of them, Hunred, saw the saint in a vision, and was told by him, that, when the tide was out, they should search for the book, which as we have already stated, had fallen into the sea, and, perhaps, if God took compassion on them, they might find it, though they could not presume to hope so. For the loss of this book had caused them the greatest anguish of mind. Moreover, he spake these words to him: “As soon as you rise, take a bridle, which you will see hanging on a tree, and hold it up before a horse which you will see not far off, and he will come to you immediately: put on the bridle, and he will draw for you the carriage in which my body is placed, and so you will be relieved from your present labour, and be able to follow it.” As soon as Hunred was awake, he related the vision which he had seen, and immediately sent some of his companions to the shore, which was not far off, to search for the book which they had lost. Now, at this time, they had reached the placed called the White House, or more commonly, Huvitern. They went, accordingly, down to the sea, which they found had ebbed much farther than usual; and when they had gone three miles or more, they found the holy Volume of the Gospels, with its gold gems and all its outward splendour, as well as its letters, and leaves, and all its inward beauty, so sound and perfect, that it looked as if it had not been touched by the water. At this event, their minds, hitherto anxious, were filled by no slight joy; and Hunred, whom I mentioned before, felt no doubt that all the rest would come true also. Wherefore he went and saw the bridle, as he had been told, hanging on a tree; and then looking on all sides round him, he saw a horse, of a chestnut colour, a little farther off, though it was impossible to say how or whence he could have come into such a desert place. As soon as the man held up the bridle, the horse ran up to him and offered himself to be bridled. Hunred led him off to his companions, who now were the more encouraged to toil in the cause of the holy saint’s body, inasmuch as they saw that his aid would never fail them. Therefore they harnessed the horse to the cart, on which was placed the corpse in a chest, and followed it fearlessly everywhere, as they knew that they now had a horse provided for them by God. Moreover, the book aforesaid is still kept to this day in the church, which has been thought worthy to contain the body of the holy saint; and, as I said before, it bears no mark of having been injured by the sea-water. This was no doubt brought about by the merits of St. Cuthbert himself, and of the authors of the book, namely, Bishop Eadfrid of blessed memory, who wrote it with his own hand in honour of the blessed Cuthbert, and his successor, the venerable Æthilwald, who had caused it to be adorned with gold and jewels; also of the hermit Bilfrid, whose skill in workmanship equalling the intentions of the designer, had executed the splendid work, for he was one of the first artists of his day. These three, burning with zeal towards God’s beloved confessor and bishop, left this as a memorial of their devotion towards him to all posterity.