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 1876 by the publication of a work in two volumes—‘The English Bible: an external and critical history of various English translations of Scripture; with remarks on the need of revising the English New Testament.’ In the movement for a revision of the English New Testament he was greatly interested. He was one of the original members of the New Testament revision company, and while he was able he attended the meetings very diligently. He studied carefully the passages that were discussed, and made up his mind after thorough inquiry, but seldom spoke. He was held in great esteem by the chairman, Bishop Ellicott, and many other eminent members of the company.

In 1869, along with some personal friends, he paid a visit to Egypt and the Holy Land, and was able to verify by personal observation many geographical and other points on which he had expressed his opinion in some of his books. In 1873, along with Professor Calderwood, he received a commission from the synod of the united presbyterian church to visit the United States, and convey the fraternal salutations of his church to the presbyterians of that country.

So early as 1867 symptoms of heart derangement had begun to appear, brought on, doubtless, by his great and constant labours. In 1872 these symptoms returned in an aggravated form. But it was not possible to induce him to take the rest which he required. His last illness was in 1876; and his death occurred on 3 June of that year. Numberless letters of sympathy and resolutions of public bodies attested the remarkable esteem and affection in which he was held. Eadie used to say that there were three things he was fond of—bairns, birds, and books. His collection of books was a very remarkable one, and on his death some of his friends were taking steps to procure it for the use of the church, when a liberal gentleman, Mr. Thomas Biggart of Dalry, purchased it for 2,000l., presented it to the synod, and fitted up a room in the United Presbyterian College, where it now is, under the name of the Eadie Library.



EADMER or EDMER (d. 1124?), historian, was a monk of Canterbury at the end of the eleventh and the beginning of the twelfth century, distinguished among his contemporaries for high character and literary powers. His works, the principal part of which have survived to our day, fully justify his reputation. There are few better pieces of contemporary history than his ‘Historia Novorum;’ and his biographies, especially that of Anselm, are of a higher order than most similar compositions. Nothing apparently is known of Eadmer before he emerges into notice as the close companion and friend of Archbishop Anselm. Leland and Bale have very carelessly confused him with an Eadmer who was abbot of St. Albans, and died in 980, more than a hundred years before the era of the Canterbury monk. In this error they have been followed by Pits. Nothing, indeed, can well be more absurd than Bale's account of this writer. As regards contemporary estimate, William of Malmesbury may be cited, who says that in his narrative of events he does not venture to compare himself to Eadmer, ‘who has told everything so lucidly that he seems somehow to have placed them before our very eyes. For those who wish to read the letters which passed between the pope, the king, and Anselm, the book of Eadmer will give every facility. He has so arranged the letters as to support and verify all his assertions in the most decisive way’ (De Gest. Pontiff. vol. i.). Eadmer must have been well known to Pope Urban before the end of the eleventh century, for when Anselm after his consecration desired to have some one assigned to him by the pope as his director, Eadmer was thus assigned to him; and, says William of Malmesbury, he was so completely under his guidance that, being accustomed to have him in his chamber, Anselm not only never rose without his command, but would not even change his side in bed without his permission. Selden, who edited Eadmer's main work (‘Historia Novorum’) from a manuscript in the Cotton Library in 1623, has pointed out in his preface the very high merits of this work. Especially is it distinguished by its avoidance of all trivial details and alleged miracles, which abound in most of the monkish histories. Compared with William of Malmesbury's work on the same period, in which these grotesque miracles abound, Eadmer's is vastly superior. His style is good and contains very few unclassical words. His history, after a brief mention of some of the English kings anterior to the conquest, begins practically from that date, and is continued to 1122—a work, says William of Malmesbury, ‘remarkable for its sober and pleasant style’ (De Gest. Regum). The history throughout has a special regard for ecclesiastical matters, and for the doings of the two archbishops of Canterbury (Anselm and Ralph) with whom the writer was in the closest relations. He tells us (bk. ii.) that it had been his custom from childhood to take special note of all