were over, and he could remain quietly at home, where he was not
without frequent guests.

The most regular of his visitors was the prior of the monastery at
Bramber, which had been founded by the piety of one of Wulf's
ancestors. The prior had, though Wulf was ignorant of it, received
a letter from Earl Harold asking him to befriend Wulf, to encourage
him to keep up the studies he had followed at Waltham, and to see
that he did not fall into the drinking habit so common among the
Saxons. The priest was well fitted for the mission. He was by no
means a strict disciplinarian, but the monastery had the reputation
of being one of the best managed in Sussex, and among the monks
were many of good blood. He was passionately fond of art, and
encouraged its exercise among the monks, so that the illuminated
missals of Bramber were highly prized, and added largely to the
revenues of the monastery.

The prior had been one of the monks at Waltham, and owed his elevation
to the influence of Earl Harold with the late thane of Steyning.
He was well taught in all the learning of the day, and having been
for a time at Westminster, knew more of court life than the majority
of the priors of isolated monasteries, and could suit his conversation
to his hearer. Harold had said in his letter, "The lad has good
parts. He is somewhat full of mischief, and has got into a scrape
here by a quarrel with a Norman page, and by failing somewhat in
the respect due to William of London, who took his compatriot's
part with too much zeal. But Wulf is shrewd, and benefited greatly
by his stay at Waltham, and both for the lad's own sake and for my
friendship with the good thane, his father, I would fain that he
grew up not only a sturdy Englishman, as to which I have no manner