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 provides for a variety of tastes. Some texts offer a purely linguistic interest; others can best be studied in connexion with the Middle-English works derived from them. Typical examples of the latter kind are the History of the Holy Rood tree by the late Professor Napier (E.E.T.S. No. 103, 1894) and the Northern Passion by Miss Foster (see above). In his book on Gawain and the Green Knight Professor Kittredge has recently shown how much a practised and subtle critic can extract from the comparative study of these early texts.

A comprehensive 'Grammar' of Anglo-Norman is another desideratum. The work of Menger contains a useful collection of facts, but lays no claim to completeness or critical treatment. Tanquerey's study of the evolution of the verb in Anglo-Norman is more exhaustive. It is a praiseworthy attempt to solve a most intricate problem. Although some of the conclusions may have to be revised in the light of fuller knowledge, a great part of the work will prove of permanent value. The comparative study of Middle-English and Anglo-Norman philology has already yielded interesting results, but there is ample room for