Page:Will of King Alfred.djvu/15

xi. The Additional Notes have been supplied by the kindness of a friend. They refer to points of minute, but it is hoped not either useless or unimportant criticism. Inquiries connected with the import and power of words must be microscopic, or they will be unavailing.

On the whole, it is hoped that this unpretending re-publication may contribute something to the furtherance of an important and interesting pursuit. The archaisms of a language cannot but be objects of anxious research to all who would understand its peculiar qualities; nor will it be practicable for any student to make himself master of its character and capabilities, who shall have neglected the investigation of its original dialects. And there will be found in the result much to repay, with usurious interest, the labour of acquisition. There is one branch of our antique literature, rich both in expression and in intellectual power, that is to be approached only through this avenue. Langland, Chaucer, Wycliff, cannot be fairly estimated, nor, indeed, satisfactorily comprehended, but by readers who have secured a competent acquaintance with the Anglo-Saxon idiom. Were it not for the risk of lapsing into protracted dissertation, reference might be made to the value of these studies to all who would trace