FOOTNOTES:

Such was bibliomania five hundred years ago! and does not the reader behold in it the very type and personification of its existence now? does he not see in Richard de Bury the prototype of a much honored and agreeable bibliophile of our own time? Nor has the renowned "Maister Dibdin" described his book-hunting tours with more enthusiasm or delight; with what a thrill of rapture would that worthy doctor have explored those monastic treasures which De Bury found hid inlocis tenebrosis, antique Bibles, rare Fathers, rich Classics or gems of monkish lore, enough to fire the brain of the most lymphatic bibliophile, were within the grasp of the industrious and eager Richard de Bury—that old "Amator Librorum," like his imitators of the present day, cared not whither he went to collect his books—dust and dirt were no barriers to him; at every nook and corner where a stationer's stall[201]appeared, hewould doubtless tarry in defiance of the cold winds or scorching sun, exploring the ancient tomes reposing there. Nor did he neglect the houses of the country rectors; and even the humble habitations of the rustics were diligently ransacked to increase his collections, and from these sources he gleaned many rude but pleasing volumes, perhaps full of old popular poetry! or the wild Romances of Chivalry which enlivened the halls and cots of our forefathers in Gothic days.

We must not overlook the fact that this Treatise on the Love of Books was written as an accompaniment to a noble and generous gift. Many of the parchment volumes which De Bury had collected in his "perilous embassies," he gave, with the spirit of a true lover of learning, to the Durham College at Oxford, for the use of the Students of his Church. I cannot but regret that the names of these books,of which he had made a catalogue,[202]have not been preserved; perhaps the document may yet be discovered among the vast collections of manuscripts in the Oxonian libraries; but the book, being written for this purpose, the author thought it consistent that full directions should be given for the preservation and regulation of the library, and we find the last chapter devoted to this matter; but we must not close the Philobiblon without noticing his admonitions to the students, some of whom he upbraids for the carelessness and disrespect which they manifest in perusing books. "Let there," says he, with all the veneration of a passionate booklover, "be a modest decorum in opening and closing of volumes, that they may neither be unclasped with precipitous haste, nor thrown aside after inspection without being duly closed."[203]Loving and venerating a book as De Bury did, it was agony to see a volume suffering under the indignities of the ignorant or thoughtless student whom he thus keenly satirizes: "You will perhaps see a stiffnecked youth lounging sluggishly in his study, while the frost pinches him in winter time; oppressed with cold his watery nose drops, nor does he take the trouble to wipe it with his handkerchief till it has moistened the book beneath it with its vile dew;" nor is he "ashamed to eat fruit and cheese over an open book, or to transfer his empty cup from side to side; he reclines his elbow on the volume, turns down the leaves, and puts bits of straw to denote the place he is reading; he stuffs the book with leaves and flowers, and so pollutes it with filth and dust." With this our extracts from the Philobiblon must close; enough has been said and transcribed to place the Lord Chancellor of the puissant King Edward III. among the foremost of the bibliomaniacs of the past, and to show how valuable were his efforts to literature and learning; indeed, like Petrarch in Italy was Richard De Bury inEngland: both enthusiastic collectors and preservers of ancient manuscripts, and both pioneers of that revival of European literature which soon afterwards followed. In the fourteenth century we cannot imagine a more useful or more essential person than the bibliomaniac, for that surely was the harvest day for the gathering in of that food on which the mind of future generations were to subsist. And who reaped so laboriously or gleaned so carefully as those two illustrious scholars?

Richard de Bury was no unsocial bookworm; for whilst he loved to seek the intercourse of the learned dead, he was far from being regardless of the living. Next to his clasped vellum tomes, nothing afforded him so much delight as an erudite disputation with his chaplains, who were mostly men of acknowledged learning and talent; among them were "Thomas Bradwardyn, afterwards Archbishop of Canterbury; and Richard Fitz-Raufe, afterwards Archbishop of Armagh; Walter Burley, John Maudyt, Robert Holcote, Richard of Kilwington, all Doctors in Theology,omnes Doctores in Theologia; Richard Benworth, afterwards Bishop of London, and Walter Segraffe, afterwards Bishop of Chester;"[204]with these congenial spirits Richard de Bury held long and pleasing conversations, doubtless full of old bookwisdom and quaint Gothic lore, derived from still quainter volumes; and after meals I dare say they discussed the choice volume which had been read during their repast, as was the pious custom of those old days, and which was not neglected by De Bury, for "his mannerwas at dinner and supper time to have some good booke read unto him."[205]

And now in bidding farewell to the illustrious Aungraville—for little more is known of his biography—let me not forget to pay a passing tribute of respect to his private character, which is right worthy of a cherished remembrance, and derives its principal lustre from the eminent degree in which he was endowed with the greatest of Christian virtues, and which, when practised with sincerity, covereth a multitude of sins; his charity, indeed, forms a delightful trait in the character of that great man; every week he distributed food to the poor; eight quarters of wheatocto quarteria frumenti, and the fragments from his own table comforted the indigent of his church; and always when he journeyed from Newcastle to Durham, he distributed twelve marks in relieving the distresses of the poor; from Durham to Stockton eight marks; and from the same place to his palace at Aukeland five marks; and and when he rode from Durham to Middleham he gave away one hundred shillings.[206]Living in troublous times, we do not find his name coupled with any great achievement in the political sphere; his talents were not the most propitious for a statesman among the fierce barons of the fourteenth century; his spirit loved converse with the departed great, and shone more to advantage in the quite closet of the bibliomaniac, or in fulfilling the benevolent duties of a bishop. Yet he was successful in all that the ambition of a statesman could desire,the friend and confidant of his king; holding the highest offices in the state compatible with his ecclesiastical position, with wealth in abundance, and blessed with the friendship of the learned and the good, we find little in his earthly career to darken the current of his existence, or to disturb the last hours of a life of near three score years. He died lamented, honored, and esteemed, at Aukeland palace, on the fourteenth of April, in the year 1345, in the fifty-eighth year of his age, and was buried with all due solemnity before the altar of the blessed Mary Magdalene, at the south angle of the church of Durham. His bones are now mingled with the dust and gone, but his memory is engraven on tablets of life; the hearts of all bibliomaniacs love and esteem his name for the many virtues with which it was adorned, and delight to chat with his choice old spirit in the Philobiblon, so congenial to their bookish souls. No doubt the illustrious example of Richard de Bury tended materially to spread far and wide the spirit of bibliomania. It certainly operated powerfully on the monks of Durham, who not only by transcribing, but at the cost of considerable sums of money, greatly increased their library. A catalogue of the collection, taken some forty years after the death of De Bury, is preserved to this day at Durham, and shows how considerably they augmented it during a space of two hundred years, or from the time when the former list was written. If the bibliomaniac can obtain a sight of this ancient catalogue, he will dwell over it with astonishment and delight—immaculate volumes of Scripture—fathers andclassics bespeak its richness and extent, and Robert of Langchester, the librarian who wrote it, with pious preference places first on the list the magnificent Bible which bishop Hugo gave them many years before. This rare biblical treasure, then the pride and glory of the collection, is now in the Durham Library; but to look upon that fair manuscript will make the blood run cold—barbarous desecration has been committed by some bibliopegistical hand; the splendid illuminations so rich and spirited, which adorned the beauteous tomes, dazzled an ignorant mind, who cut them out and robbed it of half its interest and value.

From near 600 volumes which the list enumerates, I cannot refrain from naming two or three. I have searched over its biblical department in vain to discover mention of the celebrated "Saint Cuthbert's Gospels." It is surprising they should have forgotten so rich a gem, for although four copies of the Gospels appear, not one of them answers to its description; two are specified as "non glos;" it could not have been either of those, another, the most interesting of the whole, is recorded as the venerable Bede's own copy! What bibliophile can look unmoved upon those time-honored pages, without indeed all the warmth of his booklove kindling forth into a very frenzy of rapture and veneration! So fairly written, and so accurately transcribed, it is one of the most precious of the many gems which now crowd the shelves of the Durham Library, and is well worth a pilgrimage to view it.[207]But this cannot be St. Cuthbert's Gospels,and the remaining copy is mentioned as "Quarteur Evangelum," fol. ii. "se levantem;" now I have looked at the splendid volume in the British Museum, to see if the catchword answered to this description, but it does not; so it cannot be this, which I might have imagined without the trouble of a research, for if it was, they surely would not have forgotten to mention its celebrated coopertoria.

Passing a splendid array of Scriptures whole and in parts, for there was no paucity of sacred volumes in that old monkish library, and fathers, doctors of the Church, schoolmen, lives of saints, chronicles, profane writers, philosophical and logical treatises, medical works, grammars, and books of devotion, we are particularly struck with the appearance of so many fine classical authors. Works of Virgil (including the Æneid), Pompeius Trogus, Claudius, Juvenal, Terence, Ovid, Prudentius, Quintilian, Cicero, Bœthius, and a host of others are in abundance, and form a catalogue rendered doubly exciting to the bibliophile by the insertion of an occasional note, which tells of its antiquity,[208]rarity, or value. In some of the volumes a curious inscription was inserted, thundering a curse upon any who would dare to pilfer it from the library, and for so sacrilegious a crime, calling down upon them the maledictions of Saints Maria, Oswald, Cuthbert, and Benedict.[209]A volumecontaining the lives of St. Cuthbert, St. Oswald, and St. Aydani, is described as "Liber speciales et preciosus cum signaculo deaurato."

Thomas Langley, who was chancellor of England and bishop of Durham in the year 1406, collected many choice books, and left some of them to the library of Durham church; among them a copy of Lyra's Commentaries stands conspicuous; he also bequeathed a number of volumes to many of his private friends.

There are few monastic libraries whose progress we can trace with so much satisfaction as the one now under consideration, for we have another catalogue compiled during the librarianship of John Tyshbourne, in the year 1416,[210]in which many errors appearing in the former ones are carefully corrected; books which subsequent to that time had been lost or stolen are here accounted for; many had been sent to the students at Oxford, and others have notes appended, implying to whom the volume had been lent; thus to a "Flores Bernardi," occurs "Prior debit, I Kempe Episcopi Londoni." It is, next to Monk Henry's of Canterbury, one of the best of all the monkish catalogues I have seen; not so much for its extent, as that here and there it fully partakes of the character of a catalogueraisonné; for terse sentences are affixed to some of the more remarkable volumes, briefly descriptive of their value; a circumstance seldom observable in these early attempts at bibliography.

In taking leave of Durham library, need I saythat the bibliomaniacs who flourished there in the olden time, not only collected their books with so much industry, but knew well how to use them too. The reader is doubtless aware how many learned men dwelled in monkish time within those ancient walls; and if he is inquisitive about such things has often enjoyed a few hours of pleasant chat over the historic pages of Symeon of Durham,[211]Turgot and Wessington,[212]and has often heard of brothers Lawrence,[213]Reginald,[214]and Bolton; but although unheeded now, many a monkish bookworm, glorying in the strict observance of Christian humility, and so unknown to fame, lies buried beneath that splendid edifice, as many monuments and funeral tablets testify and speak in high favor of the great men of Durham. If the reader should perchance to wander near that place, his eye will be attracted by many of these memorials of the dead; and a few hours spent in exploring them will serve to gain many additional facts to his antiquarian lore, and perhaps even something better too. For I know not a more suitable place, as far as outward circumstances are concerned, than an old sanctuary of God to prepare the mind and lead it to think of death and immortality. We read the names of great men long gone; of wealthy worldlings, whose fortunes have long been spent; of ambitious statesmen and doughty warriors, whose glory is fast fading as their costly mausoleums crumble in the hands of time, and whose stone tablets, green with the lichens' hue, manifest how futile it is to hope to gain immortality from stone, or purchase fame by the cold marble trophies of pompous grief; not that on their glassy surface the truth is always faithfully mirrored forth, even when the thoughts of holy men composed the eulogy; the tombs of old knew as well how to lie as now, and even ascetic monks could become too warm in their praises of departed worth; for whilst they blamed the great man living, with Christian charity they thought only of his virtues when they had nothing but his body left, and murmured long prayers, said tedious masses, and kept midnight vigils for his soul. For had he not shown his love to God by his munificence to His Church on earth?Benedicite, saith the monks.

Footer

FOOTNOTES:[153]Bede's Eccles. Hist., B. iii. c. xvi.[154]Bede, B. iv. c. xxvii.[155]Marked Nero, D. iv. in the Cottonian collection.[156]The illuminations are engraved in Strutt'sHorda.[157]There is prologue to the Canons and Prefaces of St. Jerome and Eusebius, and also a beautiful calendar written in compartments, elaborately finished in an architectural style.[158]He also transcribed the Durham Ritual, recently printed by the Surtee Society; when Alfred wrote this volume he was with bishop Alfsige, p. 185, 8vo.Lond.1840.[159]For an account of this rare gem of Saxon art, seeSelden Præf. ad. Hist. Angl.p. 25.Marshall Observat. in Vers. Sax. Evang., 491.Dibdin's Decameron, p.lii.Smith's Bibl. Cotton. Hist. et Synop., p. 33.[160]Simeon of Durham translated by Stevens, p. 87.[161]Simeon of Durham, by Stevens.[162]Ep. viii.[163]Tertia Quinquagina Augustini, marked B. ii. 14.[164]Surtee publications, vol. i. p. 117.[165]This catalogue is preserved at Durham, in the library of the Dean and Chapter, marked B. iv. 24. It is printed in the Surtee publications, vol. i. p. 1.[166]"King Stephen was vncle vnto him."—Godwin's Cat. of Bishops, 511.[167]He died in 1195.—Godwin, p. 735. He gave them also another Bible in two volumes; a list of the whole is printed in the Surtee publications, vol. i. p. 118.[168]Surtee's Hist, of Durham, vol. i. p. xxxii. "He was wonderfull rich, not onely in ready money but in lands also, and temporall revenues. For he might dispend yeerely 5000 marks."—Godwin's Cat. Eng. Bish.4to. 1601, p. 520.[169]Robert de Graystane's ap. Wharton's Angl. Sacr. p. 748, tom. i.—Hutchinson's Durham, vol. i. p. 244.[170]Surtee publ. vol. i. p. 121.[171]Raine's North Durham, p. 85.[172]Surtee public. vol. 1. p. 39-40.[173]Ibid., vol. i. p. 41.[174]Chambre Contin. Hist. Dunelm. apud Wharton Angliæ Sacra, tom. i. p. 765.[175]Lord Campbell's Lives of the Lord Chancellors, vol. i. p. 219.[176]Absconditus est in Campanili fratrum minorum.—Chambre ap. Wharton, tom. i. p. 765.[177]In one of his letters Petrarch speaks of De Bury asVirum ardentis ingenii, Pet. ep. 1-3.[178]Epist. Seniles, lib. xvi. ep. 1.[179]Foscolo's Essays on Petrarch, p. 151.[180]Foscolo's Essays on Petrarch, p. 156. Famil. ep. lxxii.[181]Hortatio ad Nicol. Laurent Petrar., Op. vol. i. p. 596.[182]Apud Wharton Ang. Sac.tom. i. p. 765.[183]Ibid.[184]MS. Harleian, No. 3224, fo. 89, b.[185]There are two MSS. of the Philobiblon in the British Museum, which I quote in giving my Latin Extracts. The first is in the Cotton collection, marked Appendix iv. fol. 103. At the end are these lines,Ric. de Aungervile cognominato de Bury, Dunelm. Episc. Philobiblon completum in Manerio de Auckland, d. 24 Jan. 1344, fol. 119, b. The other is in the Harleian Collection, No. 3224, both are in fine preservation. The first printed edition appeared at Cologne, 1473, in 4to., without pagination, signatures, or catchwords, with 48 leaves, 26 lines on a full page; for some time, on account of its excessive rarity, which kept it from the eyes of book-lovers, bibliographers confused it with the second edition printed by John and Conrad Hüst, at Spires, in 1483, 4to. which, like the first, is without pagination, signatures, or catchwords, but it has only 39 pages, with 31 lines on a full page. Two editions were printed in 1500, 4to. at Paris, but I have only seen one of them. A fifth edition was printed at Oxford by T. J(ames), 4to. 1599. In 1614 it was published by Goldastus in 8vo. at Frankfort, with aPhilologicarium Epistolarum Centuria una. Another edition of this same book was printed in 1674, 8vo. at Leipsic, and a still better edition appeared in 1703 by Schmidt, in 4to. The Philobiblon has recently been translated by Inglis, 8vo.Lond.1834, with much accuracy and spirit, and I have in many cases availed myself of this edition, though I do not always exactly follow it.[186]"Greges et Vellera, Fruges et honea, Porri et Olera, Potus et Patera rectiones sunt hodie et studio monachorum."—MS. Harl. 2324, fol. 79, a; MS. Cot. ap. iv. fo. 108, a.[187]Wharton Ang. Sac., tom. i. p. 766, he is calledRicardus Fitz-Rause postomodum Archiepiscopus Armachanus.[188]Scarcely.[189]Translated by Trevisa, MS. Harleian, No. 1900, fol. 11, b.[190]The original isgrandis et nobilis libraria.[191]Chaplain.[192]Could not.[193]Profitable.[194]Philobiblon, transl. by Inglis, p. 56.[195]"Curiam deinde vero Rem. publicam Regni sui Cacellarii, viz.: est ac Thesaurii fugeremur officiis, patescebat nobis aditus faciles regal favoris intuitu, ad libros latebras libere perscruta tandas amoris quippe nostri fama volatitis jam ubiqs. percreluit tam qs. libroset maxime veterumferabatur cupidite las vestere posse vero quemlibet nostrum per quaternos facilius quam per pecuniam adipisa favorem."—MS. Harl. fo. 85, a. MS. Cott. 110, b.[196]MS. Cottonian Claudius, E. iv. fol. 203, b.Warton's Hist. of Poetry, Dissert. ii.; andHallam'sMiddle Ages, vol. ii. p. 611. Both notice this circumstance as a proof of the scarcity of books in De Bury's time.[197]Ibid.Among the MSS. in the Royal Library, there is a copy of John of Salisbury'sEntenticuswhich contains the following note, "Hunc librum fecit dominus Symon abbas S. Albani, quem postea venditum dominoRicardode Bury. Episcope Dunelmensi emit Michael abbas S. Albani ab executoribus prædicti episcopi,a. d.1345." Marked 13 D. iv. 3. The same abbot expended a large sum in buying books for the library, but we shall speak more of Michael de Wentmore by and bye.[198]"Sed revera libros non libras maluimus, Codicesque plus quam florenos, ac pampletos exiguos incrussatis prœtulimus palafridis."—MS. Harl. fo. 86, a. MS. Cott. fo. 111, a.[199]Inglis's Translation, p. 53.[200]Inglis's Translation, p. 58.[201]The Stationers or Booksellers carried on their business on open Stalls.—Hallam, Lit. Europe, vol. i. p. 339. It is pleasing to think that the same temptations which allure the bookworm now, in his perambulations, can claim such great antiquity, and that through so many centuries, bibliophiles and bibliopoles remain unaltered in their habits and singularities; but alas! this worthy relic of the middle ages I fear is passing into oblivion. Plate-glass fronts and bulky expensive catalogues form the bookseller's pride in these days of speed and progress, and offer more splendid temptations to the collector, but sad obstacles to the hungry student and black-letter bargain hunters.[202]Philob.xix.[203]Inglis, p. 96. "In primis quidam circa claudenda et apienda volumina, sit matura modestia; ut nec præcipiti festinatione solvantur, nec inspectione finita, sina clausura debita dimittantur."MS. Harl.fol. 103.[204]Chambre ap. Wharton, tom. i. p. 766.[205]Godwin Cat. of Bish. 525.[206]Chambre ap. Wharton, tom. i. p. 766.[207]It is marked A, ii. 16, and described in the old MS. catalogue asDe manus Bedæ, ii. fol.Baptizatus.[208]The attractive words "Est vetus Liber" often occur.[209]From a volume of Thomas Aquinas, the following is transcribed: "Lib. Sti. Cuthberti de Dunelm, ex procuratione fratis Roberti de Graystane quem qui aliena verit maledictionem Sanctorum Mariæ, Oswaldi, Cuthberti et Benedicti incurrat." SeeSurtee publications, vol. i. p. 35, where other instances are given.[210]Surtee publ. vol. i. p. 85.[211]He wrote The Chronicle of Durham Monastery in 1130.[212]His book on the Rights and Privileges of Durham Church is in the Cottonian Library, markedVitellius, A, 9.[213]Lawrence was elected prior in 1149, "a man of singular prudence and learning, as the many books he writ manifest."Dugdale's Monast.vol. 1. p. 230.[214]Wrote the Life and Miracles of St. Cuthbert, the original book is in the Durham Library.

[153]Bede's Eccles. Hist., B. iii. c. xvi.

[154]Bede, B. iv. c. xxvii.

[155]Marked Nero, D. iv. in the Cottonian collection.

[156]The illuminations are engraved in Strutt'sHorda.

[157]There is prologue to the Canons and Prefaces of St. Jerome and Eusebius, and also a beautiful calendar written in compartments, elaborately finished in an architectural style.

[158]He also transcribed the Durham Ritual, recently printed by the Surtee Society; when Alfred wrote this volume he was with bishop Alfsige, p. 185, 8vo.Lond.1840.

[159]For an account of this rare gem of Saxon art, seeSelden Præf. ad. Hist. Angl.p. 25.Marshall Observat. in Vers. Sax. Evang., 491.Dibdin's Decameron, p.lii.Smith's Bibl. Cotton. Hist. et Synop., p. 33.

[160]Simeon of Durham translated by Stevens, p. 87.

[161]Simeon of Durham, by Stevens.

[162]Ep. viii.

[163]Tertia Quinquagina Augustini, marked B. ii. 14.

[164]Surtee publications, vol. i. p. 117.

[165]This catalogue is preserved at Durham, in the library of the Dean and Chapter, marked B. iv. 24. It is printed in the Surtee publications, vol. i. p. 1.

[166]"King Stephen was vncle vnto him."—Godwin's Cat. of Bishops, 511.

[167]He died in 1195.—Godwin, p. 735. He gave them also another Bible in two volumes; a list of the whole is printed in the Surtee publications, vol. i. p. 118.

[168]Surtee's Hist, of Durham, vol. i. p. xxxii. "He was wonderfull rich, not onely in ready money but in lands also, and temporall revenues. For he might dispend yeerely 5000 marks."—Godwin's Cat. Eng. Bish.4to. 1601, p. 520.

[169]Robert de Graystane's ap. Wharton's Angl. Sacr. p. 748, tom. i.—Hutchinson's Durham, vol. i. p. 244.

[170]Surtee publ. vol. i. p. 121.

[171]Raine's North Durham, p. 85.

[172]Surtee public. vol. 1. p. 39-40.

[173]Ibid., vol. i. p. 41.

[174]Chambre Contin. Hist. Dunelm. apud Wharton Angliæ Sacra, tom. i. p. 765.

[175]Lord Campbell's Lives of the Lord Chancellors, vol. i. p. 219.

[176]Absconditus est in Campanili fratrum minorum.—Chambre ap. Wharton, tom. i. p. 765.

[177]In one of his letters Petrarch speaks of De Bury asVirum ardentis ingenii, Pet. ep. 1-3.

[178]Epist. Seniles, lib. xvi. ep. 1.

[179]Foscolo's Essays on Petrarch, p. 151.

[180]Foscolo's Essays on Petrarch, p. 156. Famil. ep. lxxii.

[181]Hortatio ad Nicol. Laurent Petrar., Op. vol. i. p. 596.

[182]Apud Wharton Ang. Sac.tom. i. p. 765.

[183]Ibid.

[184]MS. Harleian, No. 3224, fo. 89, b.

[185]There are two MSS. of the Philobiblon in the British Museum, which I quote in giving my Latin Extracts. The first is in the Cotton collection, marked Appendix iv. fol. 103. At the end are these lines,Ric. de Aungervile cognominato de Bury, Dunelm. Episc. Philobiblon completum in Manerio de Auckland, d. 24 Jan. 1344, fol. 119, b. The other is in the Harleian Collection, No. 3224, both are in fine preservation. The first printed edition appeared at Cologne, 1473, in 4to., without pagination, signatures, or catchwords, with 48 leaves, 26 lines on a full page; for some time, on account of its excessive rarity, which kept it from the eyes of book-lovers, bibliographers confused it with the second edition printed by John and Conrad Hüst, at Spires, in 1483, 4to. which, like the first, is without pagination, signatures, or catchwords, but it has only 39 pages, with 31 lines on a full page. Two editions were printed in 1500, 4to. at Paris, but I have only seen one of them. A fifth edition was printed at Oxford by T. J(ames), 4to. 1599. In 1614 it was published by Goldastus in 8vo. at Frankfort, with aPhilologicarium Epistolarum Centuria una. Another edition of this same book was printed in 1674, 8vo. at Leipsic, and a still better edition appeared in 1703 by Schmidt, in 4to. The Philobiblon has recently been translated by Inglis, 8vo.Lond.1834, with much accuracy and spirit, and I have in many cases availed myself of this edition, though I do not always exactly follow it.

[186]"Greges et Vellera, Fruges et honea, Porri et Olera, Potus et Patera rectiones sunt hodie et studio monachorum."—MS. Harl. 2324, fol. 79, a; MS. Cot. ap. iv. fo. 108, a.

[187]Wharton Ang. Sac., tom. i. p. 766, he is calledRicardus Fitz-Rause postomodum Archiepiscopus Armachanus.

[188]Scarcely.

[189]Translated by Trevisa, MS. Harleian, No. 1900, fol. 11, b.

[190]The original isgrandis et nobilis libraria.

[191]Chaplain.

[192]Could not.

[193]Profitable.

[194]Philobiblon, transl. by Inglis, p. 56.

[195]"Curiam deinde vero Rem. publicam Regni sui Cacellarii, viz.: est ac Thesaurii fugeremur officiis, patescebat nobis aditus faciles regal favoris intuitu, ad libros latebras libere perscruta tandas amoris quippe nostri fama volatitis jam ubiqs. percreluit tam qs. libroset maxime veterumferabatur cupidite las vestere posse vero quemlibet nostrum per quaternos facilius quam per pecuniam adipisa favorem."—MS. Harl. fo. 85, a. MS. Cott. 110, b.

[196]MS. Cottonian Claudius, E. iv. fol. 203, b.Warton's Hist. of Poetry, Dissert. ii.; andHallam'sMiddle Ages, vol. ii. p. 611. Both notice this circumstance as a proof of the scarcity of books in De Bury's time.

[197]Ibid.Among the MSS. in the Royal Library, there is a copy of John of Salisbury'sEntenticuswhich contains the following note, "Hunc librum fecit dominus Symon abbas S. Albani, quem postea venditum dominoRicardode Bury. Episcope Dunelmensi emit Michael abbas S. Albani ab executoribus prædicti episcopi,a. d.1345." Marked 13 D. iv. 3. The same abbot expended a large sum in buying books for the library, but we shall speak more of Michael de Wentmore by and bye.

[198]"Sed revera libros non libras maluimus, Codicesque plus quam florenos, ac pampletos exiguos incrussatis prœtulimus palafridis."—MS. Harl. fo. 86, a. MS. Cott. fo. 111, a.

[199]Inglis's Translation, p. 53.

[200]Inglis's Translation, p. 58.

[201]The Stationers or Booksellers carried on their business on open Stalls.—Hallam, Lit. Europe, vol. i. p. 339. It is pleasing to think that the same temptations which allure the bookworm now, in his perambulations, can claim such great antiquity, and that through so many centuries, bibliophiles and bibliopoles remain unaltered in their habits and singularities; but alas! this worthy relic of the middle ages I fear is passing into oblivion. Plate-glass fronts and bulky expensive catalogues form the bookseller's pride in these days of speed and progress, and offer more splendid temptations to the collector, but sad obstacles to the hungry student and black-letter bargain hunters.

[202]Philob.xix.

[203]Inglis, p. 96. "In primis quidam circa claudenda et apienda volumina, sit matura modestia; ut nec præcipiti festinatione solvantur, nec inspectione finita, sina clausura debita dimittantur."MS. Harl.fol. 103.

[204]Chambre ap. Wharton, tom. i. p. 766.

[205]Godwin Cat. of Bish. 525.

[206]Chambre ap. Wharton, tom. i. p. 766.

[207]It is marked A, ii. 16, and described in the old MS. catalogue asDe manus Bedæ, ii. fol.Baptizatus.

[208]The attractive words "Est vetus Liber" often occur.

[209]From a volume of Thomas Aquinas, the following is transcribed: "Lib. Sti. Cuthberti de Dunelm, ex procuratione fratis Roberti de Graystane quem qui aliena verit maledictionem Sanctorum Mariæ, Oswaldi, Cuthberti et Benedicti incurrat." SeeSurtee publications, vol. i. p. 35, where other instances are given.

[210]Surtee publ. vol. i. p. 85.

[211]He wrote The Chronicle of Durham Monastery in 1130.

[212]His book on the Rights and Privileges of Durham Church is in the Cottonian Library, markedVitellius, A, 9.

[213]Lawrence was elected prior in 1149, "a man of singular prudence and learning, as the many books he writ manifest."Dugdale's Monast.vol. 1. p. 230.

[214]Wrote the Life and Miracles of St. Cuthbert, the original book is in the Durham Library.

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Croyland Monastery.—Its Library increased by Egebric.—Destroyed by Fire.—Peterborough.—Destroyed by the Danes.—Benedict and his books.—Anecdotes of Collectors.—Catalogue of the Library of the Abbey of Peterborough.—Leicester Library, etc.

Thelow marshy fens of Lincolnshire are particularly rich in monastic remains; but none prove so attractive to the antiquary as the ruins of the splendid abbey of Croyland. The pen of Ingulphus has made the affairs of that old monastery familiar to us; he has told us of its prospering and its misfortunes, and we may learn moreover from the pages of the monk how many wise and virtuous men, of Saxon and Norman days, were connected with this ancient fabric, receiving education there, or devoting their lives to piety within its walls. It was here that Guthlac, a Saxon warrior, disgusted with the world, sought solitudeand repose; and for ten long years he led a hermit's life in that damp and marshy fen; in prayer and fasting, working miracles, and leading hearts to God, he spent his lonely days, all which was rewarded by a happy and peaceful death, and a sanctifying of his corporeal remains—for many wondrous miracles were wrought by those holy relics.Croyland abbey was founded on the site of Guthlac's hermitage, by Ethelred, king of Mercia. Many years before, when he was striving for the crown of that kingdom, his cousin, Crobrid, who then enjoyed it, pursued him with unremitting enmity; and worn out, spiritless and exhausted, the royal wanderer sought refuge in the hermit's cell. The holy man comforted him with every assurance of success; and prophesied that he would soon obtain his rights without battle or without bloodshed;[215]in return for these brighter prospects, and these kind wishes, Ethelred promised to found a monastery on that very spot in honor of God and St. Guthlac, which promise he faithfully fulfilled in the year 716, and "thus the wooden oratory was followed by a church of stone." Succeeding benefactors endowed, and succeeding abbots enriched it with their learning; and as years rolled by so it grew and flourished till it became great in wealth and powerful in its influence. But a gloomy day approached—the Danes destroyed that noble structure, devastating it by fire, and besmearing its holy altars with the blood of its hapless inmates. But zealous piety and monkish perseverance again restored it, with new and additional lustre; andbesides adding to the splendor of the edifice, augmented its internal comforts by forming a library of considerable importance and value. We may judge how dearly they valued aBibliothecain those old days by the contribution of one benevolent book-lover—Egebric, the second abbot of that name, a man whom Ingulphus says was "far more devoted to sacred learning and to the perusal of books than skilled in secular matters,"[216]gladdened the hearts of the monks with a handsome library, consisting of forty original volumes in various branches of learning, and more than one hundred volumes of different tracts and histories,[217]besides eighteen books for the use of the divine offices of the church. Honor to the monk who, in the land of dearth, could amass so bountiful a provision for the intellect to feed upon; and who encouraged our early literature—when feeble and trembling by the renewed attacks of rapacious invaders—by such fostering care.

helow marshy fens of Lincolnshire are particularly rich in monastic remains; but none prove so attractive to the antiquary as the ruins of the splendid abbey of Croyland. The pen of Ingulphus has made the affairs of that old monastery familiar to us; he has told us of its prospering and its misfortunes, and we may learn moreover from the pages of the monk how many wise and virtuous men, of Saxon and Norman days, were connected with this ancient fabric, receiving education there, or devoting their lives to piety within its walls. It was here that Guthlac, a Saxon warrior, disgusted with the world, sought solitudeand repose; and for ten long years he led a hermit's life in that damp and marshy fen; in prayer and fasting, working miracles, and leading hearts to God, he spent his lonely days, all which was rewarded by a happy and peaceful death, and a sanctifying of his corporeal remains—for many wondrous miracles were wrought by those holy relics.

Croyland abbey was founded on the site of Guthlac's hermitage, by Ethelred, king of Mercia. Many years before, when he was striving for the crown of that kingdom, his cousin, Crobrid, who then enjoyed it, pursued him with unremitting enmity; and worn out, spiritless and exhausted, the royal wanderer sought refuge in the hermit's cell. The holy man comforted him with every assurance of success; and prophesied that he would soon obtain his rights without battle or without bloodshed;[215]in return for these brighter prospects, and these kind wishes, Ethelred promised to found a monastery on that very spot in honor of God and St. Guthlac, which promise he faithfully fulfilled in the year 716, and "thus the wooden oratory was followed by a church of stone." Succeeding benefactors endowed, and succeeding abbots enriched it with their learning; and as years rolled by so it grew and flourished till it became great in wealth and powerful in its influence. But a gloomy day approached—the Danes destroyed that noble structure, devastating it by fire, and besmearing its holy altars with the blood of its hapless inmates. But zealous piety and monkish perseverance again restored it, with new and additional lustre; andbesides adding to the splendor of the edifice, augmented its internal comforts by forming a library of considerable importance and value. We may judge how dearly they valued aBibliothecain those old days by the contribution of one benevolent book-lover—Egebric, the second abbot of that name, a man whom Ingulphus says was "far more devoted to sacred learning and to the perusal of books than skilled in secular matters,"[216]gladdened the hearts of the monks with a handsome library, consisting of forty original volumes in various branches of learning, and more than one hundred volumes of different tracts and histories,[217]besides eighteen books for the use of the divine offices of the church. Honor to the monk who, in the land of dearth, could amass so bountiful a provision for the intellect to feed upon; and who encouraged our early literature—when feeble and trembling by the renewed attacks of rapacious invaders—by such fostering care.

In the eleventh century Croyland monastery was doomed to fresh misfortunes; a calamitous fire, accidental in its origin, laid the fine monastery in a heap of ruins, and scattered its library in blackened ashes to the winds.[218]A sad and irreparable loss was that to the Norman monks and to the students of Saxon history in modern times; for besides four hundred Saxon charters, deeds, etc., many of the highest historical interest and value beautifully illuminated in gold (aureis pictures) and written in Saxon characters,[219]the whole of the choice and ample library was burnt, containing seven hundred volumes, besides the books of divine offices—the Antiphons and Grailes. I will not agonize the bibliophile by expatiating further on the sad work of destruction; but is he not somewhat surprised that in those bookless days seven hundred volumes should have been amassed together, besides a lot of church books and Saxon times?

Ingulphus, who has so graphically described the destruction of Croyland monastery by the Danes in 870, has also given the particulars of their proceedings at the monastery of Peterborough, anciently calledMedeshamstede, to which they immediately afterwards bent their steps. The monks, on hearing of their approach, took the precaution to guard the monastery by all the means in their power; but the quiet habits of monastic life were ill suited to inspire them with a warlike spirit, and after a feeble resistance, their cruel enemies (whom the monks speak of in no gentle terms, as the reader may imagine), soon effected an entrance; in the contest however Tulla, the brother of Hulda, the Danish leader, was slain by a stone thrown by one of the monks from the walls; this tended to kindle the fury of the besiegers, andso exasperated Hulda that it is said he killed with his own hand the whole of the poor defenceless monks, including their venerable abbot. The sacred edifice, completely in their hands, was soon laid waste; they broke down the altars, destroyed the monuments, and—much will the bibliophile deplore it—set fire to their immense library "ingens bibliotheca," maliciously tearing into pieces all their valuable and numerous charters, evidences, and writings. The monastery, says the historian, continued burning for fifteen days.[220]This seat of Saxon learning was left buried in its ruins for near one hundred years, when Athelwold, bishop of Winchester, in the year 966, restored it; but in the course of time, after a century of peaceful repose, fresh troubles sprang up. When Turoldus, a Norman, who had been appointed by William the Conqueror, was abbot, the Danes again paid them a visit of destruction. Hareward de Wake having joined a Danish force, proceeded to the town of Peterborough; fortunately the monks obtained some intelligence of their coming, which gave Turoldus time to repair to Stamford with his retinue. Taurus, the Sacrist, also managed to get away, carrying with him some of their treasures, and among them a text of the Gospels, which he conveyed to his superior at Stamford, and by that means preserved them. On the arrival of the Danes, the remaining monks were prepared to offer a somewhat stern resistance, but without effect; for setting fire to the buildings, the Danes entered through the flames and smoke, and pillaged the monastery of all itsvaluable contents; and that which they could not carry away, they destroyed: not even sparing the shrines of holy saints, or the miracle-working dust contained therein. The monks possessed a great cross of a most costly nature, which the invaders endeavored to take away, but could not on account of its weight and size; however, they broke off the gold crown from the head of the crucifix, and the footstool under its feet, which was made of pure gold and gems; they also carried away two golden biers, on which the monks carried the relics of their saints; with nine silver ones. There was certainly no monachal poverty here, for their wealth must have been profuse; besides the above treasures, they took twelve crosses, made of gold and silver; they also went up to the tower and took away a table of large size and value, which the monks had hid there, trusting it might escape their search; it was a splendid affair, made of gold and silver and precious stones, and was usually placed before the altar. But besides all this, they robbed them of that which those poor monkish bibliophiles loved more than all. Their library, which they had collected with much care, and which contained many volumes, was carried away, "with many other precious things, the like of which were not to be found in all England."[221]The abbot and those monks who fortunately escaped, afterwards returned, sad and sorrowful no doubt; but trusting in their Divine Master and patron Saint, they ultimately succeeded in making their old house habitable again, and well fortified it with a strong wall,so that formerly it used to be remarked that this building looked more like a military establishment than a house of God.

Eminently productive was the monastery of Peterborough in Saxon bibliomaniacs. Its ancient annals prove how enthusiastically they collected and transcribed books. There were few indeed of its abbots who did not help in some way or other to increase their library. Kenulfus, who was abbot in the year 992, was a learned and eloquent student in divine and secular learning. He much improved his monastery, and greatly added to its literary treasures.[222]But the benefactors of this place are too numerous to be minutely specified here. Hugo Candidus tells us, that Kinfernus, Archbishop of York, in 1056, gave them many valuable ornaments; and among them a fine copy of the Gospels, beautifully adorned with gold. This puts us in mind of Leofricus, a monk of the abbey, who was made abbot in the year 1057. He is said to have been related to the royal family, a circumstance which may account for his great riches. He was a sad pluralist, and held at one time no less than five monasteries, viz. Burton, Coventy, Croyland, Thorney, and Peterborough.[223]He gave to the church of Peterborough many and valuable utensils of gold, silver, and precious stones, and a copy of the Gospels bound in gold.[224]

But in all lights, whether regarded as an author or a bibliophile, great indeed was Benedict, formerly prior of Canterbury, and secretary to Thomas à Becket,[225]of whom it is supposed he wrote a life. He was made abbot of Peterborough in the year 1177; he compiled a history of Henry II. and king Richard I.;[226]he is spoken of in the highest terms of praise by Robert Swapham for his profound wisdom and great erudition in secular matters.[227]There can be no doubt of his book-loving passion; for during the time he was abbot he transcribed himself, and ordered others to transcribe, a great number of books. Swapham has preserved a catalogue of them, which is so interesting that I have transcribed it entire. The list is entitled:

Sixty volumes! perhaps containing near 100 separate works, and all added to the library in the time of one abbot; surely this is enough to controvert the opinion that the monks cared nothing for books or learning, and let not the Justin, Seneca, Martial, Terence, and Claudian escape the eye of the reader, those monkish bookworms did care a little, it would appear, for classical literature. But what will he say to the fine Bibles that crown and adorn the list? The two complete copies of theVetus et Novum Testamentum, and the many glossed portions of the sacred writ, reflect honor upon the Christian monk, and placed him conspicuously among the bible students of the middle ages; proving too, that while he could esteem the wisdom of Seneca, and the vivacity of Terence, and feel a deep interest in the secular history of his own times, he did not lose sight of the fountain of all knowledge, but gave to the Bible his first care, and the most prominent place on his library shelf. Besides the books which the abbots collected for the monastery, they often possessed a private selection for their own use; there are instances in which these collections were of great extent; some of which we shall notice, but generally speaking they seldom numbered many volumes. Thus Robert of Lyndeshye, who was abbot of Peterborough in 1214, only possessed six volumes, which were suchas he constantly required for reference or devotion; they consisted of a Numerale Majestri W. de Montibus cum alliis rebus; Tropi Majestri Petri cum diversis summis; Sententiæ Petri Pretanensis; Psalterium Glossatum; Aurora; Psalterium;[229]Historiale. These were books continually in requisition, and which he possessed to save the trouble of constantly referring to the library. His successor, abbot Holdernesse, possessed also twelve volumes,[230]and Walter of St. Edmundsbury Abbot, in 1233, had eighteen books, and among them a fine copy of the Bible for his private study. Robert of Sutton in 1262, also abbot of Peterborough, possessed a similar number, containing a copy of the Liber Naturalium Anstotelis; and his successor, Richard of London, among ten books which formed his private library, had the Consolation of Philosophy, a great favorite in the monasteries. In the year 1295 William of Wodeforde, collected twenty volumes, but less than that number constituted the library of Adam de Botheby, who was abbot of Peterborough many years afterwards, but among them I notice a Seneca, with thirty-six others contained in the same volume.[231]

Abbot Godfrey, elected in the year 1299, was a great benefactor to the church, as we learn from Walter de Whytlesse, who gives a long list of donations made by him; among a vast quantity of valuables, "he gave to the churchtwo Bibles, one of which was written in France," with about twentyother volumes. In the war which occurred during his abbacy, between John Baliol of Scotland and Edward I. of England, the Scots applied to the pope for his aid and council; his holiness deemed it his province to interfere, and directed letters to the king of England, asserting that the kingdom of Scotland appertained to the Church of Rome; in these letters he attempt to prove that it was opposed to justice, and, what he deemed of still greater importance, to the interests of the holy see, that the king of England should not have dominion over the kingdom of Scotland. The pope's messengers on this occasion were received by abbot Godfrey; Walter says that "He honorably received two cardinals at Peterborough with their retinues, who were sent by the pope to make peace between the English and the Scotch, and besides cheerfully entertaining them with food and drink, gave them divers presents; to one of the cardinals, named Gaucelin, he gave a certain psalter, beautifully written in letters of gold and purple, and marvellously illuminated,literis aureis et assuris scriptum et mirabiliter luminatum.[232]I give this anecdote to show how splendidly the monks inscribed those volumes designed for the service of the holy church. I ought to have mentioned before that Wulstan, archbishop of York, gave many rare and precious ornaments to Peterborough, nor should I omit a curious little book anecdote related of him. He was born at Jceritune in Warwickshire, and was sent by his parents to Evesham, and afterwards to Peterborough, where he gave great indications oflearning. His schoolmaster, who was an Anglo-Saxon named Erventus, was a clever calligraphist, and is said to have been highly proficient in the art of illuminating; he instructed Wulstan in these accomplishments, who wrote under his direction a sacramentary and a psalter, and illuminated the capitals with many pictures painted in gold and colors; they were executed with so much taste that his master presented the sacramentary to Canute, and the psalter to his queen."[233]

From these few facts relative to Peterborough Monastery, the reader will readily perceive how earnestly books were collected by the monks there, and will be somewhat prepared to learn that a catalogue of 1,680 volumes is preserved, which formerly constituted the library of that fraternity of bibliophiles. This fine old catalogue, printed by Gunton in his history of the abbey, covers fifty folio pages; it presents a faithful mirror of the literature of its day, and speaks well for the bibliomanical spirit of the monks of Peterborough. Volumes of patristic eloquence and pious erudition crowd the list; chronicles, poetry, and philosophical treatises are mingled with the titles of an abundant collection of classic works, full of the lore of the ancient world. Although the names may be similar to those which I have extracted from other catalogues, I must not omit to give a few of them; I find works of—

But although they possessed these fine authors and many others equally choice, I am not able to say much for the biblical department of their library, I should have anticipated a goodly store of the Holy Scriptures, but in these necessary volumes they were unusually poor. But I suspect the catalogue to have been compiled during the fifteenth century, and I fear too, that in that age the monks were growing careless of Scripture reading, or at least relaxing somewhat in the diligence of their studies; perhaps they devoured the attractive pages of Ovid, and loved to read his amorous tales more than became the holiness of their priestly calling.[234]At any rate we may observe a marked change as regards the prevalence of the Bible in monastic libraries between the twelfth and the fifteenth century. It is true we often find them in those of the later age; but sometimes they are entirely without, and frequently only in detached portions.[235]I may illustrate this by a reference to the library of the Abbey of St. Mary de la Pré at Leicester, which gloried in a collection of 600 volumes, of the choicest and almost venerable writers. It was written in the year 1477, by William Chartye,[236]prior of the abbey, and an old defective and worn out Bible,Biblie defect et usit, with some detached portions, was all that fine library contained of the Sacred Writ. The bibledefect et usitspeaks volumes to the praise of the ancient monks of that house, for it was by their constant reading and study, that it had become so thumbed and worn; but it stamps with disgrace the affluent monks of the fifteenth century, who, while they could afford to buy, in the year 1470,[237]some thirty volumes with a Seneca, Ovid, Claudian, Macrobius, Æsop, etc., among them, and who found time to transcribe twice as many more, thought not of restoring their bible tomes, or adding one book of the Holy Scripture to their crowded shelves. But alas! monachal piety was waxing cool and indifferent then, and it is rare to find the honorable title of anAmator Scripturarumaffixed to a monkish name in the latter part of the fifteenth century.

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