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xxvi Library: the Librarian with the courtesy for which he is remarkable refused me the further use of it.'

In the Preface, which deals with the question of the genuineness of the Epistles, Boyle explicitly stated—or his tutors said for him—that there was great doubt about the authorship of the Epistles: but he adopted Temple's estimate of their literary value, and paraphrased his paragraph about them from the Essay upon Ancient and Modern Learning. A large number of copies of the book were distributed in Christ Church, according to Aldrich's custom, as a New Year's gift. Bentley did not see the book until January 26th, when copies were already in the hands of the booksellers. He wrote at once in terms of great civility to Boyle, and explained the circumstances under which he had withdrawn the MS. Boyle replied that he had written according to what he had heard from Bennet, that he should be much concerned if it proved that he had been misled, and that Bentley 'might do himself right' in what method he pleased.

Here, for the time, the matter rested.