Page:English Historical Review Volume 35.djvu/311

 1920 SHORT NOTICES 303 the lessons of history. On the whole, however, it is remarkable to find, in a work specially designed to encourage Christians to-day by the spectacle of a defeated antagonist in the past, so generous an estimate of Julian's religious motives and moral character. It seems a little strange that the writer complains of the absence of an English translation of a good French book (AUard's) on the subject. A. G. The most important of all authorities for the life of St. Augustine of Hippo, Sancti Augustini Vita scripta a Possidio episcopo, has been edited with revised text, introduction, notes, and an English version by Dr. Herbert T. Weiskotten (Princeton : University Press ; London : Milford, 1919). As the only separate edition of independent value appeared so long ago as 1731, the time had arrived when an edition adequate to modern requirements should be undertaken. Dr. Weiskotten's edition constitutes a dissertation for the degree of doctor of philosophy, and as such fulfils the requirements we have learned to expect from Princeton University. If there are traces of inexperience in the work, it is never- theless one that we may hope will be followed by others as useful as this. The introduction deals with the life of Augustine and the life of Possidius, with an appreciation of the latter's work : there is also included a list of the known manuscripts of the Vita, with a more particular account of five old manuscripts of French, and five old manuscripts of Italian prove- nance, specially collated in photographs for this edition. The last part of the introduction concerns the printed editions and the text itself. The text and the translation are presented on opposite pages, the foot of which is occupied by the apparatus criticus. Figures inserted in the text refer to the notes printed at the end. These notes deal with subject-matter and Scripture references, and are adequate to the purpose, without being too long or too numerous. The book ends with indexes and a small map of the Province of Africa. It is unfortunate that the author did not add to his textual authorities at least the earlier of the St. Gall MSS, (571, saec. ix), also that he refrained from editing the Indiculus of Augustine's works, which forms an integral and very important part of Possidius's book. The translation is intended, we suppose, for those who cannot read Latin at all. Ministris (p. 112, 1. 22) should have been rendered ' deacons', not 'ministers', and plehibus (p. 124, 1. 23) 'their congregations ', not 'the people '. The spellings in the text are sometimes taken over from earlier editions : coelis (p. 42, 1. 28), renun- ciavit (p. 44, 1. 8), muhta (p. 66, 1. 22). It should have been noted that the letter of. Augustine embodied in chapter xxx is numbered 228 in the modern editions of Augustine's letters, and the variants recorded by Goldbacher in the Vienna edition of 1913 should have been given here, or at least the places where Goldbacher's text differs from Dr. Weiskotten's. Students of biblical texts and of the Latin language will find this book well worth their attention. A. S. Professor Tout's lecture on Mediaeval Forgers and Forgeries (Manchester : University Press, 1920) contains a lively sketch of a subject which lends itself to broad treatment. He illustrates it by a detailed account of the notorious fabrications of Ingulf of Crowland and Richard of Cirencester.