beard or not,) does not satisfy me as to his precise stature.
Eginhard declares that he was in height seven times the length
of his own foot, which we have every reason to believe was not
very small, at least if he bore any resemblance to his mother,
who was known by the name of "Bertha with the long foot."

Gifted with a frame, the corporeal energies of which required little or
no relaxation, and which, consequently, never clogged and hampered his
intellect by fatigue, Charlemagne could devote an immense portion of his
time to business, and, without taking more than a very small portion of
sleep, could dedicate the clear thoughts of an untired mind to the
regulation of his kingdom, even while other men were buried in repose.
He was accustomed, we are told, to wake spontaneously, and rise from his
bed four or five times in the course of each night; and so great was his
economy of moments, that the brief space he employed in putting on the
simple garments with which he was usually clothed, was also occupied in
hearing the reports of his Count of the Palace, or the pleadings of
various causes, which he decided at those times with as much clear
wisdom as if listening to them on the judgment seat.

Some lighter exercise of the mind was nevertheless necessary even to
him; but this was principally taken during his repasts, when he caused
various works to be read to him, which did not require the severe
attention that he was obliged to bestow on judicial investigations. The
subject of these readings was, in general, the history of past times,
and works, upon theology, amongst which the writings of St. Augustin are
said to have afforded him the greatest pleasure.

By the constant employment of moments which would otherwise have been
wasted to the intellect, an extraordinary mass of business was easily