[Footnote 95:  Quem vidistis, Pastores?  Dicite, Annunciate nobis. 
    In terris quis apparuit?  Dicite quidnam vidistis?  Et annunciate
    Christi nativitatem.—­H. 219.] {247}

Another instance is seen in that beautiful song ascribed to Prudentius and used on the day of Holy Innocents: 

  “Hail! ye flowers of Martyrs.” [Salvete flores martyrum.  H. 249.]

It is of the same character with other songs, said to be from the same pen, in which the town of Bethlehem is addressed, and even the Cross.

  “O Thou of mighty cities.” [O sola magnarum urbium.  H. 306.]
  “Bend thy boughs, thou lofty tree....”
      [Flecte ramos arbor alta, &c.  Aut. 344.]
  “Worthy wast thou alone
  To bear the victim of the world.”

Thus, on the feast of the exaltation of the Cross, this anthem is sung,—­“O blessed Cross, who wast alone worthy to bear the King of the heavens and the Lord.” [O crux benedicta, quae sola fuisti digna portare Regem coelorum et Dominum.  Alleluia.  A. 345.] Though unhappily, in an anthem on St. Andrew’s day, this apostrophe becomes painful and distressing, in which not only is the cross thus apostrophised, but it is prayed to, as though it had ears to hear, and a mind to understand, and power to act,—­“Hail, precious Cross! do thou receive the disciple of Him who hung upon thee, my master, Christ.” [Salve, crux pretiosa suscipe discipulum ejus, qui pependit in te, magister meus Christus.  A. 547.] The Church of Rome, in this instance, gives us a vivid example of the ease with which exclamations and apostrophes are made the ground-work of invocations.  In the legend of the day similar, though not the same, words form a part of the salutation, which St. Andrew is there said to have addressed {248} to the cross of wood prepared for his own martyrdom, and then bodily before his eyes.  There are many such addresses to the Cross, in various parts of the Roman ritual. (See A. 344.)

In such apostrophes the whole of the Song of the Three Children abounds; and we meet with many such in the early writers.

III.  The third stage supplies instances of prayer to God, imploring him to allow the supplication of his saints to be offered for us.  Of this we find examples in the Collects for St. Andrew’s Eve and Anniversary, for the feast of St. Anthony, and various others.

“We beseech thee, Almighty God, that he whose feast we are about to celebrate may implore thy aid for us,” &c. [Quaesumus omnipotens Deus, ut beatus Andreas Apostolus cujus praevenimus festivitatem, tuum pro nobis imploret auxilium.  A. 545.]

“That he may be for us a perpetual intercessor.” [Ut apud te sit pro nobis perpetuus intercessor.  A. 551.]

“We beseech thee, O Lord, let the intercession of the blessed Anthony the Abbot commend us, that what we cannot effect by our own merits, we may obtain by his patronage [Ejus patrocinio assequamur.  H. 490.]:  through the Lord.”