Page:Writings of Saint Patrick, Apostle of Ireland.djvu/17

Rh perused by all Christians with both pleasure and profit.

In the present edition we have divided the 'remains' of Patrick into two divisions; the first containing the writings which are probably genuine, the second a few remains of interest which are of doubtful genuineness, but which are, notwithstanding, of considerable interest, and not generally known.

The genuine writings are three in number, namely, Patrick's Hymn, his Confession, and his Epistle to Coroticus. The doubtful remains are (1) the Dicta Patricii, contained in folio 9, a 1, of the Book of Armagh. Their rustic Latinity is some evidence in their favour, though not absolutely conclusive. (2) The Proverbs of Patrick are also of doubtful authorship. There are some strong points in their favour, but it is impossible now to test the statement of the monk Jocelin that they were translated from Irish into Latin. (3) The interview of Patrick with the daughters of King Loegaire, if not certainly a Patrician document, possesses marks of high antiquity. (4) Patrick's Vision of Ireland's Future stands in such marked contrast with the fables in which it is imbedded that it is worth preserving, though not likely to have been authentic. (5) We have added to this edition the remarkable Confession found at Angers, but probably belonging originally to Tours, to which we have appended introductory remarks.

There are other works ascribed to Patrick which, however, have been shown to be spurious