friend and foe was indifferent where his advantage grew; he spared no man's death whose life withstood his purpose.

He slew, with his own hands, King Henry VI., being a prisoner in the Tower." With the honorable name of More we leave this unproductive period, in which there was no great growth of any kind, but which was the planting-time, when seeds were sown that were soon to germinate and bloom and astonish the world.

The times remind us of the dark saying in the Bible, "Out of the eater came forth meat; out of the strong came sweetness." The art of printing had so increased the number of books, that public libraries began to be collected, and, what is better, to be used.

The universities enlarged their borders, new colleges were added to Cambridge and Oxford; new foundations laid.

The note of preparation betokened a great advent; the scene was fully prepared, and the actors would not be wanting.
Upon the death of Henry VIII., in 1547, Edward VI., his son by Jane Seymour, ascended the throne, and during his minority a protector was appointed in the person of his mother's brother, the Earl of Hertford, afterward Duke of Somerset.