Corsned
Corsned (from kur, trial, and snoed, a slice) was an ordeal among the Saxons, mentioned as early as 1015, consisted of eating barley-bread and cheese, over which prayers had been said by the priest. The eater, if guilty, was expected to be choked by the morsel. It is supposed that this ceremony was invented in the early ages of Christianity from a presumptuous use of the consecrated elements, and that the Saxon corsned was actually the sacramental bread. The custom long since fell into disuse, though traces of it still exist in certain phrases of abjuration in use among certain classes, such as "I will take the sacrament upon it," "May this morsel be my last." SEE ORDEAL.
