148 THE HISTORY OE THE ORDER OE [book i.

of laws, which I hope will be a benefit to this king-dom; and mean to base them on Norman freedom,and recommend them as Avell as ever I can toposterity by depositing the writing in what is ageneral object of veneration to all Christians—theHoly Sepulchre. But much finer is the way ourfriend has taken, by inscribing the same great truthsnot on paper or parchment, or even brass or marble,but on the immortal minds of generations of men—and uniting them into one civilised body; of not anation or race, but of all the nations and races ofour human kind. Whenever that comes to beimitated, it will be but imitation; but the firstidea is wholly his own, and infinitely grand. Tobe of utility to men (under God, whose instru-ment he is) has been indeed his primitive scope;but I do not know that he could ever have effectedit in any other way than this he has chosen; whichlinks so appositely with these times and will withrecenter too. Could any but sovereigns and Nor-mans have possibly executed it?

“ To create a corps of volunteers of the bravestwarriors for the defence of the Holy Sepulchre andthis kingdom—a permanent crusade—and exercisehospitality on its widest scale towards the pilgrimsof all ranks and nations—are the measures proposed,and assuredly there is sublimity in the thought.