CONTENTS THE DIALOGUES OF GREGORY THE GREAT CHAPTER I The three Anglo-Saxon manuscripts, and the edition - The Benedictine editors and their Introduction - The Greek version - Greek bishops of Rome - Latin titles in Greek - Gibbon on the Dialogues - Gregory and his deacon Peter - Bede on the Dialogues - Date of the Dialogues - Dr. Dudden on the Dialogues - Miraculous stories - Augustine's letter on miracles in England, and Gregory's reply - Lanfranc and St. Aldhelm - The Pope and St. Edward the Confessor - Arabic, Old French, and Old Icelandic versions of the Dialogues - An English version dedicated to Anne of Denmark in 1608 Pages 31-39 CHAPTER II Alfred's version prepared by Bishop Werferth - Alfred's own Preface - Gregory's own Preface, in Werferth's version, in the original Latin, and in Elizabethan English - Commencement of the dialogue between Gregory and Peter - Of the abbat jEquitius and a nun who ate a devil - Of the clerk Constantine who burned water in his lamps - Discussion thereon - Of a certain man named Martirius, who made a cross on a baking cake Pages 40-48 CHAPTER III Of a parish priest, Severus, who went on pruning his vines while a parishioner died, but rescued him from the evil spirits - Discussion thereon - The Second Book of the Dialogues begins. It is entirely on the marvels of the holy Benedict - List of ten of his miracles, from "How he made a broken sieve whole" to "How a loaf was poisoned and carried off by a crow" - How he revived a boy crushed to death - Another raising of the dead - Of the monks that ate outside the monastery - Of a monk who hid a flask of wine - The plans for a new abbey given by vision - Discussion thereon - Of nuns absolved after death - Discussion thereon Pages 49-56 CHAPTER IV Of the visit of a certain deacon named Servandus to Benedict ; Gregory's Latin, Professor Earle's translation of Alfred's version, and the translation for Anne of Denmark - Discussion thereon - Silence advised, to repair their powers of talking - Book II ends - Paulinus of Nola - Of John, bishop of Rome, and a lady's horse he had ridden - A miracle of Agapetus, pontifex Pages 57-64 CHAPTER V Of a church of the Arlans, and a hog running about in it, and other marvels - Of Redemptus, a bishop who had a vision of the end of the world - Peter asks for evidences of the immortality of the soul - Gregory consents to give them, though so busy, in a Fourth Book - Of the old wife of a priest - Of a little sister called Musa - Of the soul of Paschasius the deacon - Of one who died shortly after a promise (in a vision) of long life - Does burial in a church profit the soul ? - Of a nun of ungracious temper, whose body, buried in a church, was found partly burned - The burial of Valerianus, an old man of wanton life - What is there that can profit the souls of the departed ? - The monk Justus, who sinfully concealed money - A prisoner whose bolts fell off - The mariner Baraca Pages 65-74 THE SEVEN BOOKS OF OROSIUS AGAINST THE PAGANS CHAPTER I The purpose of Orosius's History - The de Civitate Dei - Trogus Pompeius and Justinus - St. Augustine's commission to Orosius - The Christians blamed for the miseries of Rome - The miseries were greater before Christianity - Geography to make History graphic - Ralegh's History of the World - Personality of Orosius - His dialogue with Augustine - Dante and Orosius - Dr. Bos worth's edition of the Geography and History of Orosius - The Anglo-Saxon manuscripts - The Early English Texts Society's edition Pages 75-83 CHAPTER II Alfred's handling of Orosius's Geography - His quadrilateral of water boundaries - His account of the peoples near the Baltic - The voyages of Ohthere and Wulfstan - The Murman Coast - The Esthonians - Britain and Ireland Pages 84-94 CHAPTER III Orosius's History - The miseries of the early races - The Flood - Chronology - Alfred's omissions - Ninus, Semiramis, apples of Sodom - Alfred and Joseph, Deucalion, the Danaids, Busiris - Endless wickednesses - The dominance of women, Amazons, Marpesia, Lampeto, etc. - Slavery - Alfred's Will Pages 95-104 CHAPTER IV What a Roman Triumph was, and the Senate - The Fabian gens - Alexander the Great - Alfred's account of Hannibal - Orosius's account of Hannibal Pages 105-114 CHAPTER V Good times for andenl Rome were bad times for others - The destruction of Carthage - Malmstone - St. Aldhelm and Malmesbury - Alfred's misunderstandings of Orosius Pages 115-119 CHAPTER VI Britain in Orosius and in Alfred - The coming of the Prince of Peace - Pilate and Tiberius - Caligula, Claudius, St. Peter at Rome - Titus and the Saxon Chronicle - Dante - The Roman army in Germany - Arius - Alfred charged with understating the misdeeds of Germanic tribes - Rome taken by the Gauls - Mildness of Alaric - The basilicas of St. Peter and St. Paul - Rhadagaisus - The De Civitatc Dei and the sack of Rome - Orosius's dedication to Augustine Pages 120-129 THE PASTORAL CARE OF GREGORY THE GREAT CHAPTER I The Anglo-Saxon manuscripts - Early English Text Society's edition - The excised leaf - A third manuscript - Copies prepared for Anglo-Saxon bishops - The Latin text and Canon Bramley's translation - A Greek translation lost - The covering letter - The recent dearth of learned clergy - Alfred's reason for translating books into Anglo-Saxon - A copy to each See, with an aestel - Alfred's poetic outburst of proem - The Dream of the Holy Rood Pages 131-138 CHAPTER II A Table of Contents - Gregory's Preface - Mr. Sweet's linguistic principle of translation - Monosyllables - Alfred's rendering of the first four chapters in full, on the manner of man a ruler should be Pages 139-147 CHAPTER III Alfred and Canon Bramley side by side - Further chapters as given by Alfred - Dr. Giles's objection to continuing his translation of the Pastoral Care - Moses and the Tabernacle - The temptations of a confessor Pages 148-154 CHAPTER IV That vices pretend to be virtues - The prologue to the Third Book - How a man should teach different persons differently - The parable of the harp - David and the harp - Nathan and David - The surgeon and the lancet - Masters, servants, and slaves - The foolish and the wise - The modest and the shameless Pages 155-162 CHAPTER V Sowers of dissension - Peacemakers - Leaving light sins alone lest worse be committed - Deep things not to be taught to the feeble - The simile of the cock at some length Pages 163-169 CHAPTER VI How the preacher must not be puffed up - The Epilogue - Misunderstanding of "my reproof" - Alfred's charming Epilogue - Read as poetry by Professor Earle Pages 170-176 BEDE'S ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY OF THE ENGLISH RACE CHAPTER I The manuscripts - Quotation from one MS. in 1450 - Alfred's authorship - Duplications of words and phrases in the Anglo-Saxon version of Bede Pages 177-183 CHAPTER II Connexion of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle with Alfred's version of Bede's Ecclesiastical History - The genealogies of the West Saxon kings - Description of Britain in the Chronicle and the History - Ireland not described in the Chronicle - The British Isles in Orosius - The Bretwaldas Pages 184-193 CHAPTER III Alfred's treatment of Bede's Preface - His version of the questions of Augustine and the answers of Gregory - The income of a diocese - Alfred's last will and testament in this connexion - The principle of a National Church, as free to make its own customs - Boethius on this point - The consecration of the first English bishops - A serious difference of reading - The bishops of the British and the Gallican churches Pages 194-203 CHAPTER IV Alfred's omission of Gregory's arrangement of a southern and a northern province - And of the treatment of the idol temples of the pagan English - Apparent change of mind of Gregory on this point - Alfred's omission of Bede's account of Gregory's writings - And of the obstinate attitude of the Irish bishops - And of local and personal touches - And of King Edwin's personal pomp Pages 204-210 CHAPTER V Alfred's suppression of the Scotic controversy - His full praise of the work of the Scotic clergy - Omission of the account of a Columbite monastery, and of Ecgbert's life in Ireland - Alfred's account of Aidan and of Fursey's vision - Alfred's omission of the Easter controversy - And of Bede's panegyric on the Scotic clergy - And of Adamnans visit to Aldfrith Pages 2 11-223 CHAPTER VI Omission of Bede's summary of Adamnan's book on the Holy Places - And of the letter of Naitan, King of the Piets, and Ceolfrith's reply - Some of Alfred's omissions due to the existence of a first and a second contemporary edition of Bede's History - -Bede iv. 14, a later insertion in the story of Wilfrith in Sussex - The expulsion of Bishop Acca of Hexham - The miracle of the sick boy Pages 224-235 CHAPTER VII Differences in the earliest Latin texts - Insertion of iv. 32, probably by Bede - Bede's suppressions, Alchfrith and Wilfrith - The Council at Nidd - Wilfrith's vision - His dedication of churches - Selsey and Chichester Pages 236-242 CHAPTER VIII Willibrord and the Frisian mission - The Heawalds - Consecration of Swithberht in Mercia and Willibrord at Rome - Heirship of ecclesiastical property - Willibrord's Calendar Pages 243-253 CHAPTER IX Drythelm's Vision - The Revelation of St. Peter - The Vision of a sinful layman - The Vision of a sinful monk - Alfred's version of the story of Cedmon Pages 254-262 BOETHIUS ON THE CONSOLATION OF PHILOSOPHY CHAPTER I INTRODUCTORY The personal history of Boethius - Dante's description of him - Sir Henry Slingsby's Legacy to his Son - The scheme of the Consolation - Metres and Proses - Earlier examples of this method - Translations into Early, Middle, Shakespearean, and Modem English - Theological treatises of Boethius - Definitions of a National Church by Boethius and Gregory the Great - Boethius the first of the schoolmen. Pages 263-271 CHAPTER II THE ANGLO-SAXON VERSION The Anglo-Saxon version of the De Consolations - Two manuscripts - A prose and a poetic rendering of the Metres in Anglo-Saxon - Alfred's love of vernacular song - Was he the author of the Lays ? - The many insertions of explanatory and additional matter - Masterful boldness of editing - Editing of Alfred's Boethius by Mr. Fox and Dr. Sedgefield. Pages 272 - 276 CHAPTER III OTHER TRANSLATORS Other translators - Chancer - The Romannt of the Rose - Chaucer's middle period, 1372-1386 - The name Boece - Chaucer's glosses - Queen Elizabeth's Englishing - Early English Texts edition - The Queen's many translations - The speed of Her work. Pages 277-283 CHAPTER IV BOOK I, METRES 1-6 AND PROSES 1-5 Mournful song of Boethius - Philosophy enters - Her appearance - She drives out the Muses of Poesy - She sings a song of sympathy - And proceeds to comfort him - Dante and Beatrice - Another song opens his eyes and his melancholy passes away - A noble song in praise of a man firm under trouble follows - Philosophy bids Boethius tell her the causes of his trouble - He does so, and then bursts into song addressed to the builder of the universe - She argues his case, and proposes to apply gentle treatment. Pages 284-297 CHAPTER V ALFRED'S PRELUDE, INTRODUCTION, AND FIRST SIX METRES AND FIVE PROSES Alfred's version of the Metres and Proses in Chapter iv - His own Prelude and historical Introduction, in prose and verse - Metre i. 1 in verse - His skilful compression of the remaining parts of Chapter iv. Pages]298-304 CHAPTER VI PROSE I. 6 - PROSE II. 5 Philosophy tests the state of mind of Boethius - Applies a soothing remedy - The Lay - Philosophy applies a bracing tonic - Fickleness of Fortune - Riches - Riches ask questions - The splendour of the former position of Boethius - Causes for rejoicing which he still has - Boethius and Alfred on the affection of a wife - Man's truest course for safety of tenure, ii. m. 4 - Alfred's prose version of this Metre - The Metres and the Lays. Pages 305-315 CHAPTER VII METRE II. 5 - METRE II. 7 The good old times - Metre ii. 5 in English verse - Prose ii. 6, the desire for power and dignities - Prose ii. 7, fame and glory - The shortness of a lifetime ; of ten thousand years compared with eternity - Alfred's view of earthly power - Metre ii. 7 in English verse - Alfred and Way land the Smith - The origin of the Volundr Saga - Other examples in England - Wayland Smith's cave. Pages 316-325 CHAPTER VIII PROSE III. 1 - METRE III. 9 The search for True Happiness - Metre iii. i - The Supreme Good - False happiness - Supposed pleasures - Metre iii. 7 - Prose iii. 8 - Five elements of True Happiness - Metre iii. 9. Pages 326-330 CHAPTER IX METRE III. 9 Plato's Timaus - The schools of France in Alfred's time - Metre iii. 9 in the Latin - In English verse - Dr. Jowett's translation of the Timaus - The creation of the universe - In the form of a globe, without feet or hands - The creation of souls, with sensations - Transmigration oi souls - The creation of man by the younger gods - The four elements in the universe - Extracts from the notes of Remigius on this part of the De Consolations - Alfred's prose rendering of this Metre, preferable to Plato and Remigius. Pages 331-344 CHAPTER X PROSE III. 1 a - METRE IV. 3 Alfred's use of the stories of classical mythology - The Giants - The Highest Good - Parables - Orpheus and the loss of Eurydice - His successes in the infernal regions - -Cerberus, Charon, the Parcae, etc. - The king of hell's folk and his award - The moral of the story - Man, becoming evil, ceases to be a man - King Aulixes (Ulysses) and his thegns - Circe and her enchantments - Inversion of the moral of the fable. Pages 345-354 CHAPTER XI METRE IV. 2 - METRE IV. 7 Metre iv. 2, Kings stripped of their pomp - In modern English - In Alfred's prose expansion - In the largely expanded Lay - The Prose founded on it - Prose iv. 6, good and ill fortune - Six principal heads - God disposes every thing and guides all for good - Professor Earle's rendering of Alfred's simile of the wheel (iv. p. 6) - Prose iv. 7, that all fortune is good fortune - Dialogue between Philosophy and the Mind - Alfred's long addition. Pages 355-366 CHAPTER XII PROSE V. 1 TO THE END Prose v. 1, chance and providence - Alfred's explanatory example - Boethius confesses that fortune hath rule and in order flows - Prose v. 2, have we then any free will ? - Alfred's editing - His full rendering of this Prose - His simple style - Metre v. 2, Homer - In the Latin, in English verse, in Alfred's prose - Prose v. 3, why are bad men free to do evil ? - Alfred's rendering of the answer - Why punish the bad, if it is foreknown that they will do evil ? - Metre v. 3, contradiction between two truths - Prose v. 4, can a man change what he is destined to do ? - We are not forced to do good, nor prevented doing evil - Prose v. 5, Alfred's version - Living creatures of many organizations, from sheil-fish to angels - Their Sense, Imagination, Thought - Metre v. 5, the upward look - In the Latin and all the versions - Prose v. 6, Boethiuses summary in full - Alfred's last four words. Pages 367-381 Appendix Pages 383-390

Description of Alfred's translations, with selected passages in modern English

The blooms of the soliloquies of St. Augustine.--The dialogues of Gregory the Great.--The seven books of Orosius against the pagans.--The pastoral care of Gregory the Great.--Bede's Ecclesiastical history of the English race.--Boethius on the Consolation of philosophy

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