Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Learning Objectives
1. Understand the importance of sampling and how results from samples can be used to provide
estimates of population characteristics such as the population mean, the population standard
deviation and / or the population proportion.
2. Know what simple random sampling is and how simple random samples are selected.
4. Understand the central limit theorem and the important role it plays in sampling.
5. Specifically know the characteristics of the sampling distribution of the sample mean ( x ) and the
sampling distribution of the sample proportion ( p ).
6. Learn about a variety of sampling methods including stratified random sampling, cluster sampling,
systematic sampling, convenience sampling and judgment sampling.
7-1
© 2013 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.
May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
Chapter 7
Solutions:
c. E and C because 8 and 0 do not apply; 5 identifies E; 7 does not apply; 5 is skipped since E is
already in the sample; 3 identifies C; 2 is not needed since the sample of size 2 is complete.
2. Using the last 3-digits of each 5-digit grouping provides the random numbers:
Numbers greater than 350 do not apply and the 147 can only be used once. Thus, the
simple random sample of four includes 22, 147, 229, and 289.
4. a. 5, 0, 5, 8
N! 10! 3, 628,800
b. = = = 120
n !( N − n)! 3!(10 − 3)! (6)(5040)
5. 283, 610, 39, 254, 568, 353, 602, 421, 638, 164
7. 108, 290, 201, 292, 322, 9, 244, 249, 226, 125, (continuing at the top of column 9) 147, and 113.
9. 102, 115, 122, 290, 447, 351, 157, 498, 55, 165, 528, 25
10. a. Finite population. A frame could be constructed obtaining a list of licensed drivers from the New
York State driver’s license bureau.
b. Infinite population. Sampling from a process. The process is the production line producing boxes of
cereal.
c. Infinite population. Sampling from a process. The process is one of generating arrivals to the Golden
Gate Bridge.
d. Finite population. A frame could be constructed by obtaining a listing of students enrolled in the
course from the professor.
e. Infinite population. Sampling from a process. The process is one of generating orders for the mail-
order firm.
7-2
© 2013 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.
May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
Sampling and Sampling Distributions
54
11. a. x = xi / n = =9
6
( xi − x ) 2
b. s=
n −1
48
s= = 31
.
6 −1
b. p = 55/150 = .3667
465
13. a. x = xi / n = = 93
5
b.
xi ( xi − x ) ( xi − x ) 2
94 +1 1
100 +7 49
85 -8 64
94 +1 1
92 -1 1
Totals 465 0 116
( xi − x ) 2 116
s= = = 5.39
n −1 4
14. a. Eighteen of the 40 funds in the sample are load funds. Our point estimate is
18
p= = .45
40
b. Six of the 40 funds in the sample are high risk funds. Our point estimate is
6
p= = .15
40
c. The below average fund ratings are low and very low. Twelve of the funds have a rating of low and
6 have a rating of very low. Our point estimate is
18
p= = .45
40
$45,500
15. a. x = xi / n = = $4,550
10
7-3
© 2013 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.
May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
Chapter 7
( xi − x )2 9, 068, 620
b. s= = = $1003.80
n −1 10 − 1
16. a. The sampled population is U. S. adults that are 50 years of age or older.
b. We would use the sample proportion for the estimate of the population proportion.
350
p= = .8216
426
c. The sample proportion for this issue is .74 and the sample size is 426.
d. We would use the sample proportion for the estimate of the population proportion.
354
p= = .8310
426
e. The inferences in parts (b) and (d) are being made about the population of U.S. adults who are age
50 or older. So, the population of U.S. adults who are age 50 or older is the target population. The
target population is the same as the sampled population. If the sampled population was restricted to
members of AARP who were 50 years of age or older, the sampled population would not be the
same as the target population. The inferences made in parts (b) and (d) would only be valid if the
population of AARP members age 50 or older was representative of the U.S. population of adults
age 50 and over.
b. 299/999 = .30
c. 291/999 = .29
d. The sampled population is all subscribers to the American Association of Individual Investors
Journal. This is also the target population for the inferences made in parts (a), (b), and (c). There is
no statistical basis for making inferences to a target population of all investors. That is not the group
from which the sample is drawn.
18. a. E ( x ) = = 200
b. x = / n = 50 / 100 = 5
d. It shows the probability distribution of all possible sample means that can be observed with random
samples of size 100. This distribution can be used to compute the probability that x is within a
specified from
E ( x ) = = 200
x = / n = 50 / 100 = 5
7-4
© 2013 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.
May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
Sampling and Sampling Distributions
x − 5
At x = 205, z = = =1 P ( z 1) = .8413
x 5
x − −5
At x = 195, z = = = −1 P ( z −1) = .1587
x 5
x− 10
At x = 210, z = = =2 P ( z 2) = .9772
x 5
x − −10
At x = 190, z = = = −2 P ( z −2) = .0228
x 5
20. x = / n
x = 25 / 50 = 3.54
x = 25 / 100 = 2.50
x = 25 / 150 = 2.04
x = 25 / 200 = 1.77
The standard error of the mean decreases as the sample size increases.
21. a. x = / n = 10 / 50 = 141
.
b. n / N = 50 / 50,000 = .001
Use x = / n = 10 / 50 = 141
.
c. n / N = 50 / 5000 = .01
Use x = / n = 10 / 50 = 141
.
7-5
© 2013 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.
May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
Chapter 7
d. n / N = 50 / 500 = .10
N −n 500 − 50 10
Use x = = = 134
.
N −1 n 500 − 1 50
Note: Only case (d) where n /N = .10 requires the use of the finite population correction factor.
x
51,800
E(x )
b. For n = 120, E ( x ) remains $51,800 and the sampling distribution of x can still be approximated
by a normal distribution. However, x is reduced to 4000 / 120 = 365.15.
c. As the sample size is increased, the standard error of the mean, x , is reduced. This appears logical
from the point of view that larger samples should tend to provide sample means that are closer to the
population mean. Thus, the variability in the sample mean, measured in terms of x , should
decrease as the sample size is increased.
4000
23. a. With a sample of size 60 x = = 516.40
60
52,300 − 51,800
At x = 52,300, z = = .97
516.40
51,300 − 51,800
At x = 51,300, z = = −.97
516.40
7-6
© 2013 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.
May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
Sampling and Sampling Distributions
4000
b. x = = 365.15
120
52,300 − 51,800
At x = 52,300, z = = 1.37
365.15
51,300 − 51,800
At x = 51,300, z = = −1.37
365.15
x = / n = 4 / 50 = .57
18.5 − 17.5
At x = 18.5, z = = 1.75 P(z ≤ 1.75) = .9599
.57
18.0 − 17.5
At x = 18.0, z = = .88 P(z ≤ .88) = .8106
.57
25. x = / n = 100 / 90 = 10.54 This value for the standard error can be used for parts (a) and (b)
below.
512 − 502
a. z= = .95 P(z ≤ .95) = .8289
10.54
492 − 502
z= = −.95 P(z < -.95) = .1711
10.54
7-7
© 2013 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.
May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
Chapter 7
525 − 515
b. z= = .95 P(z ≤ .95) = .8289
10.54
505 − 515
z= = −.95 P(z < -.95) = .1711
10.54
The probability of being within 10 of the mean on the Mathematics portion of the test is exactly the
same as the probability of being within 10 on the Critical Reading portion of the SAT. This is
because the standard error is the same in both cases. The fact that the means differ does not affect the
probability calculation.
c. x = / n = 100 / 100 = 10.0 The standard error is smaller here because the sample size is larger.
504 − 494
z= = 1.00 P(z ≤ 1.00) = .8413
10.0
484 − 494
z= = −1.00 P(z < -1.00) = .1587
10.0
The probability is larger here than it is in parts (a) and (b) because the larger sample size has made
the standard error smaller.
x − 939
26. a. z=
/ n
The z value for x - 939 = -25 is just the negative of the z value for x - 939 = 25. So we just show
the computation of z for x - 939 = 25.
25
n = 30 z= = .56 P(-.56 ≤ z ≤ .56) = .7123 - .2877 = .4246
245 / 30
25
n = 50 z= = .72 P(-.72 ≤ z ≤ .72) = .7642 - .2358 = .5284
245 / 50
25
n = 100 z= = 1.02 P(-1.02 ≤ z ≤ 1.02) = .8461 - .1539 = .6922
245 / 100
25
n = 400 z= = 2.04 P(-2.04 ≤ z ≤ 2.04) = .9793 - .0207 = .9586
245 / 400
b. A larger sample increases the probability that the sample mean will be within a specified
distance of the population mean. In the automobile insurance example, the probability of
being within 25 of ranges from .4246 for a sample of size 30 to .9586 for a sample of
size 400.
7-8
© 2013 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.
May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
Sampling and Sampling Distributions
x − 22.18 − 21.68
At x = 22.18, z = = = 1.54 P(z ≤ 1.54) = .9382
/ n .3253
At x = 21.18, z = -1.54
b. x = / n = 2.05 / 50 = .2899
x − 19.30 − 18.80
At x = 19.30, z = = = 1.72 P(z ≤ 1.72) = .9573
/ n .2899
c. In part (b) we have a higher probability of obtaining a sample mean within $.50 of the population
mean because the standard error for female graduates (.2899) is smaller than the standard error for
male graduates (.3253).
18.50 − 18.80
At x = 18.50, z = = −1.60
.1871
x = / n = 14 / 30 = 2.56
98 − 95 92 − 95
z= = 1.17 z= = −1.17
2.56 2.56
The probability the sample means will be within 3 strokes of the population mean of 95 is .7580.
c. x = / n = 14 / 45 = 2.09
7-9
© 2013 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.
May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
Chapter 7
The probability the sample means will be within 3 strokes of the population mean of 106 is .8502.
d. The probability of being within 3 strokes for female golfers is higher because the sample size is
larger.
29. = 183 = 50
x − 8
z= = = .88
/ n 50 / 30
x − 8
z= = = 1.13
/ n 50 / 50
x − 8
z= = = 1.60
/ n 50 / 100
d. None of the sample sizes in parts (a), (b), and (c) are large enough. The sample size will need to
be greater than n = 100, which was used in part (c).
30. a. n / N = 40 / 4000 = .01 < .05; therefore, the finite population correction factor is not necessary.
N −n 4000 − 40 8.2
x = = = 129
.
N −1 n 4000 − 1 40
x = / n = 130
.
Including the finite population correction factor provides only a slightly different value for x than
when the correction factor is not used.
7 - 10
© 2013 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.
May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
Sampling and Sampling Distributions
x− 2
c. z= = = 154
. P(z ≤ 1.54) = .9382
130
. 130
.
31. a. E( p ) = p = .40
p(1 − p) .40(.60)
b. p = = = .0490
n 100
32. a. E( p ) = .40
p(1 − p) .40(.60)
p = = = .0346
n 200
p− p .03
z= = = .87 P(z ≤ .87) = .8078
p .0346
p− p .05
b. z= = = 1.44 P(z ≤ 1.44) = .9251
p .0346
p(1 − p)
33. p =
n
(.55)(.45)
p = = .0497
100
(.55)(.45)
p = = .0352
200
(.55)(.45)
p = = .0222
500
7 - 11
© 2013 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.
May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
Chapter 7
(.55)(.45)
p = = .0157
1000
(.30)(.70)
34. a. p = = .0458
100
p− p .04
z= = = .87 P(z ≤ .87) = .8078
p .0458
(.30)(.70)
b. p = = .0324
200
p− p .04
z= = = 1.23 P(z ≤ 1.23) = .8907
p .0324
(.30)(.70)
c. p = = .0205
500
p− p .04
z= = = 1.95 P(z ≤ 1.95) = .9744
p .0205
(.30)(.70)
d. p = = .0145
1000
p− p .04
z= = = 2.76 P(z ≤ 2.76) = .9971
p .0145
7 - 12
© 2013 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.
May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
Sampling and Sampling Distributions
e. With a larger sample, there is a higher probability p will be within .04 of the population
proportion p.
35. a.
p(1 − p) .30(.70)
p = = = .0458
n 100
p
.30
The normal distribution is appropriate because np = 100(.30) = 30 and n(1 - p) = 100(.70) = 70 are
both greater than 5.
b. P (.20 p .40) = ?
.40 − .30
z= = 2.18 P(z ≤ 2.18) = .9854
.0458
c. P (.25 p .35) = ?
.35 − .30
z= = 1.09 P(z ≤ 1.09) = .8621
.0458
7 - 13
© 2013 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.
May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
Chapter 7
e. No, the probabilities are exactly the same. This is because p , the standard error, and the width of
the interval are the same in both cases. Notice the formula for computing the standard error. It
involves p (1 − p ) . So whenever p = 1 - p the standard error will be the same. In part (b), p = .45
and 1 – p = .55. In part (d), p = .55 and 1 – p = .45.
The probability is larger than in part (b). This is because the larger sample size has reduced the
standard error from .0352 to .0249.
E ( p ) = .12
p− p .03
b. z= = = 2.14 P(z ≤ 1.94) = .9838
p .0140
7 - 14
© 2013 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.
May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
Sampling and Sampling Distributions
p− p .015
c. z= = = 1.07 P(z ≤ 1.07) = .8577
p .0140
E( p ) = .42
p(1 − p) (.42)(.58)
p = = = .0285
n 300
p− p .03
b. z= = = 1.05 P(z ≤ 1.05) = .8531
p .0285
p− p .05
c. z= = = 1.75 P(z ≤ 1.75) = .9599
p .0285
d. The probabilities would increase. This is because the increase in the sample size makes the standard
error, p , smaller.
p− p .04
b. z= = = 1.96 P(z ≤ 1.96) = .9750
p .0204
7 - 15
© 2013 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.
May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
Chapter 7
p− p .04
d. z= = = 1.31 P(z ≤ 1.31) = .9049
.75(1 − .75) .0306
200
e. The probability of the sample proportion being within .04 of the population mean was reduced from
.9500 to .8098. So there is a gain in precision by increasing the sample size from 200 to 450. If the
extra cost of using the larger sample size is not too great, we should probably do so.
40. a. E ( p ) = .76
.79 − .76
b. z= = 1.40 P(z ≤1.40) = .9192
.0214
.79 − .76
z= = 1.92 P(z ≤ 1.92) = .9726
.0156
41. a. E( p ) = .17
.19 − .17
b. z= = 1.51 P(z ≤ 1.51) = .9345
.0133
7 - 16
© 2013 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.
May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
Sampling and Sampling Distributions
.19 − .17
z= = 2.13 P(z ≤ 2.13) = .9834
.0094
42. The random numbers corresponding to the first seven universities selected are
The third, fourth and fifth columns of Table 7.1 were needed to find 7 random numbers of 133 or
less without duplicate numbers.
Author’s note: The universities identified are: Clarkson U. (122), U. of Arizona (99), UCLA (25),
U. of Maryland (55), U. of New Hampshire (115), Florida State U. (102), Clemson U. (61).
43. a. With n = 100, we can approximate the sampling distribution with a normal distribution having
E( x ) = 8086
2500
x = = = 250
n 100
x − 200
b. z= = = .80 P(z ≤ .80) = .7881
/ n 2500 / 100
The probability that the sample mean will be within $200 of the population mean is .5762.
9000 − 8086
c. At 9000, z = = 3.66
2500 / 100
E ( x ) = 406
80
x = = = 10
n 64
7 - 17
© 2013 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.
May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
Chapter 7
x − 15
b. z= = = 1.50 P(z ≤ 1.50) = .9332
/ n 80 / 64
x − 380 − 406
c. At x = 380, z = = = −2.60
/ n 80 / 64
Yes, this is an unusually low performing group of 64 stores. The probability of a sample mean
annual sales per square foot of $380 or less is only .0047.
45. With n = 60 the central limit theorem allows us to conclude the sampling distribution is
approximately normal.
a. This means 14 x 16
16 − 15
At x = 16, z = = 1.94 P(z ≤ 1.94) = .9738
4 / 60
15.75 − 15
At x = 15.75, z = = 1.45 P(z ≤ 1.45) = .9265
4 / 60
a. x = 7400 / 60 = 955
x − 0
b. z= = =0
x 955
Note: This could have been answered easily without any calculations ; 27,175 is the expected value
of the sampling distribution of x .
x − 1000
c. z= = = 1.05 P(z ≤ 1.05) = .8531
x 955
7 - 18
© 2013 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.
May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
Sampling and Sampling Distributions
x − 1000
z= = = 1.35 P(z ≤ 1.35) = .9115
x 740
N −n
47. a. x =
N −1 n
N = 2000
2000 − 50 144
x = = 2011
.
2000 − 1 50
N = 5000
5000 − 50 144
x = = 20.26
5000 − 1 50
N = 10,000
10,000 − 50 144
x = = 20.31
10,000 − 1 50
Note: With n / N .05 for all three cases, common statistical practice would be to ignore
144
the finite population correction factor and use x = = 20.36 for each case.
50
b. N = 2000
25
z= = 1.24 P(z ≤ 1.24) = .8925
20.11
N = 5000
25
z= = 1.23 P(z ≤ 1.23) = .8907
20.26
7 - 19
© 2013 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.
May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
Chapter 7
N = 10,000
25
z= = 1.23 P(z ≤ 1.23) = .8907
20.31
All probabilities are approximately .78 indicating that a sample of size 50 will work well for all 3
firms.
500
48. a. x = = = 20
n n
b. For 25,
25
z= = 1.25 P(z ≤ 1.25) = .8944
20
x = =
n 30
0.05 0.05
x
1.9 2.1
1.9 + 2.1 = 2
=
2
The area below x = 2.1 must be 1 - .05 = .95. An area of .95 in the standard normal table shows
z = 1.645.
Thus,
2.1 − 2.0
z= = 1.645
/ 30
7 - 20
© 2013 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.
May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
Sampling and Sampling Distributions
Solve for
(.1) 30
= = .33
1.645
50. p = .28
p(1 − p) (.40)(.60)
51. p = = = .0245
n 400
P ( p .375) = ?
.375 − .40
z= = −1.02 P(z < -1.02) = .1539
.0245
7 - 21
© 2013 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.
May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
Chapter 7
b. We want P( p .45)
p− p .45 − .40
z= = = 1.99
p .0251
p(1 − p) (.15)(.85)
p = = = .0292
n 150
b. P (.12 p .18) = ?
.18 − .15
z= = 1.03 P(z ≤ 1.03) = .8485
.0292
p(1 − p) .25(.75)
54. a. p = = =.0625
n n
Solve for n
.25(.75)
n= = 48
(.0625) 2
c. P ( p .30) = ?
.30 − .25
z= = .80 P(z ≤ .80) = .7881
.0625
7 - 22
© 2013 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.
May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
Another random document with
no related content on Scribd:
That is a remarkable conclusion to a letter from a deacon in
France to the Archbishops and Bishops of all England.
The following letter is written in a slightly humbler style. It was
probably written towards the end of his life.
“To the most holy and venerable fathers the Ep. 230. a.d. 798-
Bishops Alchard [Elmham, 786-811] and Tifred 804.
[Dunwich, 798-816] Alchuin the levite sends
greeting.
“I pray your most pious goodness that you take not this letter from
so small a man to be presumptuous. It is in reliance on your regard
that I have dared to write. Christian humility should despise none,
but should receive benignantly all in the pious bosom of love. This
love I trust will abundantly show itself forth in you by the Holy Spirit,
that, as the Truth saith in the Gospel, out of your belly may be seen
to flow rivers of living water, that is, of sacred doctrine.
“It is yours to preach to all the word of God, to all to shine clear in
the house of God, that all may recognize through you the light of
truth and may be led through the pastures of perpetual beatitude.
Your mouth must be the trumpet of the God Christ, for the tongues of
your authority are the keys of heaven, having power to open and to
shut; to open to the penitent, to shut against those that resist the
truth. Wherefore make yourselves by your good lives worthy of such
excellence; knowing that assiduity in preaching is the praise of
bishops. The episcopal honour is no secular play. The Christian
bishop must exercise himself with great diligence in the commands
of God, that by example and word together he may educate a
Christian people.
“The venerable brother the abbat Lull[159] has spoken to me in
praise of your good conversation. It is on this account that I have
cared to commend myself as a suppliant to your sanctity, that you
may order some slight memorial of my name to be made throughout
your churches. Not for my own merits but for the love of Christ I have
presumed to make this earnest request. Pray grant it, as I trust in
your good piety.
“May the Lord God increase you by the grace of merits, and make
you to advance in all holiness and in preaching the word of God, my
most dear and longed-for fathers.”
We saw in the previous chapter something of the anxiety which
Alcuin felt when he marked the misdeeds of Northumbrian kings.
There was another source of anxiety which troubled him in his
thoughts of his native land, in the year 795. The old Archbishop of
York, Eanbald I (780-796) could evidently not last much longer, and
Alcuin feared that the general decadence had reached the
ecclesiastics of York, and that some improper appointment might be
secured by simoniacal methods.
To the old Archbishop himself he wrote an affectionate letter, as
follows:—
“To my lord best loved of all health eternal in Ep. 36. a.d. 795.
Christ.
“I confess myself greatly rejoiced to hear from Eanbald[160], of
your household, of the soundness of your prosperity, so greatly
desired by me. The love and faith which began long ago to dwell in
my breast will never be able to leave me. The nearer the time of
heavenly reward comes, the more careful should he be who is the
first to leave the world that he has left in the world a friend. The
sharpness of fever, and the delay of the king [Karl] in Saxony, has
prevented my coming to you as I have desired to do. May the divine
clemency grant to me to see thy face in joy before I die. If I come, I
earnestly hope that I shall find you still in that honourable place of
dignity in which you were when I left. And if some other dignity has
been preferred by you,[161] I hope that you will not by any means
allow violence to be done to the Church of Christ, and that the
brethren may be left free to elect as your successor the best man, in
the fear and by the grace of God most high. For in the sacred
canons a terrible anathema is uttered against those who do any
violence to the Church of Christ. You have always loved our
[ecclesiastical] family of York and have done them very many
kindnesses. We now need your help more than ever; and when our
time of eternal rest has come, you will have us as perpetual
intercessors in your behalf.
“May the divine clemency grant to thee prosperous and happy
days in this life, and glory eternal with His saints, my dearest lord
and father.”
Eanbald contemplated abdication in the end of 795, and Alcuin
wrote the following anxious letter to the brethren of York, on whom
the choice of a new archbishop would fall:—
“To my best-loved friends, greeting. Ep. 37. a.d. 795.
“I beg of you, by the faith of love, that you act
faithfully and wisely in the election of a pontiff, if the election must
take place before I come. Again and again I call upon you, in the
name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you by no means allow any one
to obtain the bishopric by the heresy of simony; for if that takes
place, it is the complete perdition of the race. This simoniacal heresy
is that worst of heresies which the holy Peter condemned with an
eternal anathema [Acts viii. 14, 20, seq.]. He who sells a bishopric
gains gold and loses the kingdom of God.
“Up to this time, the holy Church of York has remained untainted in
its elections. See that it be not tainted in your day. If, which be far
distant, it loses its ecclesiastical reputation, I fear that you will lose
the eternal kingdom. Judas sold the spouse, that is, Christ. And he
that sells Christ’s spouse, that is, the Church, is guilty of the same
crime; for Christ and the Church are one body, as saith the
Apostle[162]. He who sells the Church must of necessity be outside
the Church; and he who is outside the Church, where will he be but
with the devil in eternal destruction. Fear not, hate not, him who
speaks to you the truth; for to this which I say, the books sent forth
by the Holy Spirit testify. My desire is that you be without stain in the
sight of God; that you reign felicitously in this present world, and
rejoice for ever with Christ. Live and be strong and happy in Christ.”
Eanbald I did not abdicate. He died on August 10, 796, and the
electors immediately proceeded to the election, their choice falling
upon Eanbald II. The election was so hasty that Eanbald II was
consecrated five days after the Archbishop’s death.
This is Alcuin’s letter to the new Archbishop:—
“To his best-loved son in Christ, Eanbald the Ep. 72. a.d. 796.
Archbishop, his in all things devoted father Albinus
sends greeting.
“Laud and honour to the Lord God omnipotent who hath preserved
my days in prosperity, so that I can rejoice in the exaltation of my
dearest son; and have been allowed, though the lowliest servant of
the Church, to train up one of my pupils to be regarded as worthy to
become a dispenser of the mysteries of Christ and to labour in my
stead in the Church where I was nourished and instructed; and to
preside over those treasures of wisdom of which my beloved master
Helbrecht left me his heir. I must pray with all intentness the divine
clemency that he may be my survivor in this life as he was my solace
alway in the time of his obedience; not that I wish for my own death
but that I desire that his life should be prolonged. For not sons to
fathers but fathers to sons should leave an heritage.[163]
“See, my dearest son, by God’s favour you have all that man could
hope for, and more than all that our small desert dared hope for.
Now, then, act as a man and a strong man. The work of God which
is put into your hands do to the full, for the profit of your own soul
and the welfare of many souls. Let not your tongue cease from
preaching; nor your foot from going about among the flock
committed to you; nor your hand from labouring that alms be given
and the holy Church of God be everywhere exalted. Be the outward
expression of the well-being of all. In thee let there be the example of
most holy manner of life; in thee let there be the solace of the
miserable; in thee the strengthening of the doubting; in thee the
rigour of discipline; in thee the confidence of truth; in thee the hope
of every good. Let not the pomp of the world lift thee up; nor luxury of
food enervate thee; nor the vanity of vestures make thee soft; nor
the tongues of flatterers deceive thee; nor the gainsaying of
detractors disturb thee; nor troubles break thee; nor joys lift thee up.
Be not a reed shaken by the wind; be not a flower falling with the
gale; be not a tottering wall; be not a house built upon the sand; but
be the temple of the living God, built on the firm rock, whose
indweller be the very Spirit, the Paraclete.
“How many days do you suppose you have to live? Put it in your
mind at fifty years. Even that has its end; and you cannot expect to
live so long as that. Let the weakness of your body make you strong
in soul; be with the Apostle,—‘when I am weak, then am I strong.’
Let the affliction of your body be the gain of your soul. Show yourself
gentle and humble to the better; hard and rigid to the proud; all
things to all men that you may gain all. Have in your hands honey
and wormwood; let each man eat which he chooses. Let him who
would live on pious preaching have the honey; let him who needs
hard invective drink of the wormwood, but so that he may hope for
the honey of pardon to follow, if the blush and confusion of penitence
go before.”
Alcuin would have been an excellent man to have as preacher at
the consecration of a bishop.
In a letter which quickly followed, Alcuin begged Eanbald to read
frequently the above letter, and expressed the hope that if there was
anything in it which could be regarded as less than quite
affectionate, the Archbishop would feel sure that it was unintentional.
One thing, and only one, he wished to add:—
“Do not allow the nobleness of mind which I so Ep. 73. a.d. 796.
well know to be in you, and the integrity of
faithfulness which is your wont to all, by any advice of friends, by any
ambition of secular desires, to be corrupted or changed. Not every
friend is fit to be an adviser; the Scripture[164] says, Let thy friends
be many, thine adviser one only. Do not allow your goodness to be
clouded by the wickedness of others.”
In yet another letter he finds a good deal to add:—
“If there is joy over a rise, there is fear for a fall: Ep. 74. a.d. 796.
the loftier the position, the more dangerous the fall.
According to your appellation be the chief overseer not only of the
flock committed unto thee, but also of thyself, that in a few days of
labour you may earn a great reward of bliss.
“These are dangerous times in Britain. The death of kings[165] is a
signal of misery. Discord is the road to prison. The things which you
have very often heard our master Archbishop Albert predict are
hastening to come true.
“Be not covetous of gold and of silver but of gain of souls. Me
remember daily in prayers and alms, thyself always in keeping of the
commandments of God. If storms threaten on every side, steer
manfully the ship of Christ, that in time you may arrive with your
sailors at the port of prosperity. Let your tongue never be silent from
the word of holy preaching, your hand never be benumbed from
good work.
“Let not your mind become soft in adulation of princes or slow in
correction of those under you. Let not the flatteries of the world
deceive you, the transient honours uplift, the favour of the people
subvert you. Be a very firm pillar in the house of God, not a reed
shaken with the wind. Be a candle set on a candlestick, not hid
under a bushel. Be to all a way of salvation, not an artery of
perdition, that by thee very many may be corrected and saved, and
with thee may attain unto eternal life.
“Wherever you go, let the Pastoral treatise of the blessed Gregory
go with you. Read it, re-read it, very often, and see in it yourself and
your work, that you may always have before your eyes how you
ought to live, how you ought to teach. It is a mirror of a bishop’s life,
and a specific against all the wounds of the devil’s fraud.”
Late in Alcuin’s life, he became very anxious Ep. 173. a.d. 801.
about the conduct of this favourite pupil,
Archbishop Eanbald II. Five years after the election he wrote two
letters on the subject, one direct to the Archbishop, and one to two
monks whom he sent to visit and advise him. To Eanbald he writes
as to one in tribulation, the king Eardulf being set against him. “But”,
he says, “I think that a part of your tribulation arises from yourself. It
may be that you shelter the enemies of the king, or protect their
possessions. If you suffer justly, why be troubled? If unjustly, why not
call to mind the Saints? As the apostle James says[166]—‘Ye have
heard of the tribulations of Job, and have seen the end of the Lord.’”
In this letter he goes no further into detail, remarking at its close
that the Cuckoo will say more. The Cuckoo was one of his
messengers, Cuculus, whom he calls in his playful way the bird of
spring, the name being the Latin word for a cuckoo. To the Cuckoo,
then, and the presbyter Calvin, he sends a letter of instructions.
“I have heard of the tribulations of my dearest Ep. 174. a.d. 801.
son Simeon [that is, Eanbald]. You are to exhort
him to act faithfully and be not pusillanimous in trials. His
predecessors suffered such; and not they only but all the Saints.
John Baptist, we read, was slain for testifying to the truth. Let the
archbishop see to it that there is in him no cause of trial other than
his preaching the truth. I fear that he is suffering for his acquisitions
of lands, or his support of the enemies of the king. Let what he has
suffice him; let him not grasp at what belongs to others, which often
turns out to be very dangerous.
“And why is there in his following such a large number of soldiers?
He appears to keep them from pity for their condition. But it is
harmful to the inhabitants of the monasteries which receive him and
his. He has, as I hear, far more than his predecessors had. And his
soldiers have under them far more of a lower class than is
necessary. My master [Archbishop Albert] allowed none of his
followers to have more than one such under him, except the rulers of
his household, and they were only allowed two. It is imprudent
charity to help a few, and they perhaps criminals, and to harm many
and they good men. Let him not blame me for suggesting this, but
amend his conduct.”
Alcuin had in the previous year, 800, written a Ep. 149.
letter to the Cuckoo’s colleague, Calvinus, in which
he was very urgent that Eanbald II should have the best spiritual
advice. He entreats Calvinus to warn him of perils, and to strengthen
him in all good ways. In giving advice to the archbishop, he bids
Calvinus “consider sagaciously time, place, and person; at what
time, in what place, to what person, what should be said by the
archbishop; all which can be best learned in the book of the blessed
Gregory on the Pastoral Care”.
Alcuin frequently presses upon his correspondents the value of a
careful study of Pope Gregory’s treatise on Pastoral Care. It was this
book that King Alfred selected to have translated into English for the
benefit of the clergy of England. Inasmuch as Alfred was born only
fifty years after the death of Alcuin, there is no great improbability in
the idea that Alcuin’s influence in regard of this book survived to
Alfred’s time. The fact that it is chiefly on English bishops that he
urges its frequent study may point in this direction. It was, however,
not always the English bishops who received this advice.
To Arno, Bishop of Salzburg, Alcuin wrote a long Ep. 71. a.d. 796.
and very valuable letter of advice as to the manner
in which the Huns whom Karl was conquering should be brought to
the faith. He speaks strongly of the necessity of adapting the
teaching and discipline to the character of each individual, as also of
each race.
“There be some infirmities which are better treated by sweet
potions than by bitter; others better by bitter than by sweet. Whence
a teacher of the people of God, while he ought to shine clear with all
the lights of virtues in the house of God, should specially excel in the
utmost sagacity of discretion. He should know what treatment best
suits the sex, the age, the aim, even the occasion, of each person.
All which the blessed Gregory, the most lucid doctor, in his book on
the Pastoral Care has most diligently investigated, has adapted to
various persons, has driven home by examples, has made sure by
the authority of the divine scriptures. To the study of which book I
refer you, most holy prelate; beseeching you to have it very
frequently in your hands as a manual, to keep it in your heart.”
To Higbald of Lindisfarne he writes:—
“Read very often, I beseech you, the book of the Ep. 81. a.d. 797.
blessed Gregory, who brought the Gospel to us, on
the Pastoral Care, that in it you may learn the peril of the episcopal
office and may not forget the reward of him who serves the office
well. Let that book be very often in your hands, let its points be firmly
fixed in your memory, that you may know how a man should attain to
the office of a bishop, and, having attained, with what circumspection
he should guide himself, how exemplary his life should be, how
earnest his preaching. The author of the book has also given the
most discreet advice as to the different ways of dealing with persons
of different characters.”
CHAPTER X
Summary of Alcuin’s work in France.—Adoptionism, Alcuin’s seven books
against Felix and three against Elipandus.—Alcuin’s advice that a treatise of Felix
be sent to the Pope and three others.—Alcuin’s name dragged into the
controversy on Transubstantiation.—Image-worship.—The four Libri Carolini and
the Council of Frankfurt.—The bearing of the Libri Carolini on the doctrine of
Transubstantiation.