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"Verum usque in presentem diem multa garriunt inter se Canonici de abscondito quodam istius Abbatis Thome thesauro, quem sepe, quanquam adhuc incassum, quesiverunt Steinfeldenses. Ipsum enim Thomam adhuc florida in etate existentem ingentem auri massam circa monasterium defodisse perhibent; de quo multoties interrogatus ubi esset, cum risu respondere solitus erat: ‘Job, Johannes, et Zacharias vel vobis vel posteris indicabunt'; idemque aliquando adiicere se inventuris minime invisurum. Inter alia huius Abbatis opera, hoc memoria precipue dignum iudico quod fenestram magnam in orientali parte ale australis in ecclesia sua imaginibus optime in vitro depictis impleverit: id quod et ipsius effigies et insignia ibidem posita demonstrant. Domum quoque Abbatialem fere totam restauravit: puteo in atrio ipsius effosso et lapidibus marmoreis pulchre celatis exornato. Decessit autem, morte aliquantulum subitanea perculsus, etatis sue anno lxxiido, incarnationis vero Dominice mdxxixo."
"I suppose I shall have to translate this," said the antiquary to himself, as he finished copying the above lines from that rather rare and exceedingly diffuse book, the Sertum Steinfeldense Norbertinum.5 "Well, it may as well be done first as last," and accordingly the following rendering was very quickly produced: