she answered that she had not done it for pride but for to draw him to do sacrifyce to the idols and restore him to his father.  And then Crysant reproved her because she worshipped them as gods.  For they had been in their times evil and sinners.  And Daria answered, the philosophers called the elements by the names of men.  And Crysant said to her, if one worship the earth as a goddess, and another work and labour the earth as a churl or ploughman, to whom giveth the earth most?  It is plain that it giveth more to the ploughman than to him that worshippeth it.  And in like wise he said of the sea and of the other elements.  And then Crysant and Daria converted to him, coupled them together by the grace of the Holy Ghost, and feigned to be joined by carnal marriage, and converted many others to our Lord.  For Claudian, who had been one of their persecutors, they converted to the faith of our Lord, with his wife and children and many other knights.  And after this Crysant was enclosed in a stinking prison by the commandment of Numerian, but the stink turned anon into a right sweet odour and savour.  And Daria was brought to the bordel, but a lion that was in the amphitheatre came and kept the door of the bordel.  And then there was sent thither a man to befoul and corrupt the virgin, but anon he was taken by the lion, and the lion began to look at the virgin like as he demanded what he should do with the caitiff.  And the virgin commanded that he should do him no hurt but let him go.  And anon he was converted and ran through the city, and began to cry that Daria was a goddess.  And then hunters were sent thither to take the lion.  And they anon fell down at the feet of the virgin and were converted by her.  And then the provost commanded them to make a great fire within the entrance of the bordel, so that the lion should be brent with Daria.  And the lion considering this thing, felt dread, and roaring took leave of the virgin, and went whither he would without hurting of any body.  And when the provost had done to Crysant and Daria many diverse torments, and might not grieve them, at the last they without compassion were put in a deep pit, and earth and stones thrown on them.  And so were consecrated martyrs of Christ”.

With regard to the exact year in which the martyrdom of SS.  Chrysanthus and Daria took place, it may be mentioned that in the valuable “Vies des Saints”, Paris, 1701 (republished in 1739), where the whole legend undergoes a very critical examination, the generally received date, A.D. 284, is considered erroneous.  The reign of the emperor Numerianus (A.D. 283-284), in which it is alleged to have occurred, lasted but eight months, during which period no persecution of the Christians is recorded.  The writer in the work just quoted (Adrien Baillet) conjectures that the martyrdom of these saints took place in the reign of Valerian, and not later than the month of August, 257, “s’ il est vray que le pape Saint Etienne qui mourut alois avoit donne ordre qu’ on recueillit les actes de leur martyre”—­Les Vies des Saints, Paris, 1739, t. vii. p. 385.