Tutte le Opere di Dante Alighieri, nuovamente rivedute nel testo. Da Dr. E. MOORE. (Oxford: Nella Stamperia dell' Università, 1894.) IN the production of this beautiful work, the scrupulous and conscientious editorship of Dr. Moore has been worthily supported by the taste and judgment of the University printer and the binder. For many a day we have seen nothing more exquisite in appearance than the dainty bijou edition in three volumes which a purchaser has the option of procuring. The single volume edition does not please us so much its double columns weary the eye, and constantly remind the reader of the necessity for compression which existed. But no such feeling disturbs the peruser of any one of the three miniature volumes; albeit the compression of matter in them is simply marvellous. Glancing from them at the four bulky quartos of Zatta, one begins almost to doubt the assertion that they do in fact comprise, in as it were a nutshell, all Dante's works. Yet so it is. Indeed, the utmost catholicity of inclusion has been practised. Everything that has been attributed to the great author, with the exception of the undoubtedly spurious Italian Epistle to Giovanni da Polenta, is here presented to us. All the Epistles, with the above exception; the whole Canzoniere; the Credo and the Seven Penitential Psalms; even the Quæstio de Aqua et Terra, of which no manuscript exists, and which was for the first time published by Padre Moncetti in 1508, as Dante's alleged work it is true, but avowedly as corrected passim and brought up to date by the reverend editor-all these, we say, however doubtful the authorship of many of them, are set forth in extenso. We think that Dr. Moore has exercised a wise discretion in omitting none, and in declining to mix in the strife which has for some years been waged in Italy and Germany upon the question of the authenticity of the various Opere Minori. Not, A brief synopsis of the sources from which he tells us that his text has been collected will be of interest to our readers. And first and foremost, as was a foregone conclusion, he has based that of the Divina Commedia upon Dr. Witte's renowned edition of 1862. however, that he has followed it servilely. On the contrary-and the reflection is an ample justification for the compilation of a fresh text -he reminds us of Witte's own admission that he had in some instances adopted a reading from one or other of his four collated codici, of which he was far from satisfied that it was the right one. He further points out that in the thirty odd years which have elapsed since Witte's publication, an immense number of additional variants have been discovered by Dantophilists; and says that he has made frequent use of such of these as he has himself discussed in his wellknown work on The Textual Criticism of the Divina Commedia, of which, we may observe in passing, we gave a Short Notice at the time of its publication. Witte's text has also been followed in the Vita Nuova and the De Monarchia; that of Fraticelli in the Epistles, the Quæstio, and the Minor Poems; his, also, in the De Vulgari Eloquio, but with corrections supplied from the recently published codice of Grenoble, and with a revised punctuation; his, again, in the Canzoniere, but retouched, and with variations by Mr. York Powell in the order of the compositions. Dante's remaining work, the Convito, has evidently given Dr. Moore a greater amount of trouble than any of the others. The text has been entirely revised and reconstructed out of the 'pretto garbuglio' of the perversions of amanuenses and the unbridled licence of the conjectures of editors, such as e.g. Giuliani and the Milanese. Even Witte himself does not escape censure for his emendations. In setting himself to evolve order out of this chaos, Dr. Moore has, in the first place, had recourse to a scrutinous collation of the only two codici of the Convito which exist in England. One of these, which belongs to himself, bears a date which is either 1463 or 1493-probably the latter-and was originally the property of one Pier Antonio Buonaparte. Dr. Moore thinks it is of a different family to the other codice, which is in the Canonici collection in the Bodleian. It is frequently in accord with the excellent codice Riccardiano so praised by Fraticelli, also with the Kirkup codice cited by Witte, and by Nannucci in marginal notes written by him to the first two books in a copy of the Convito in the Taylorian Library at Oxford. The frequent but unimportant variations in it of the order of the words in the ordinary text are attributed by Dr. Moore to the caprice of the amanuensis. It appears, in fact, to be a careless copy from a good original type. The codice in the Bodleian, which is undated, but probably earlier in time than Dr. Moore's, keeps closer to the ordinary text. Dr. Moore has also availed himself of the readings of other codici of the greatest authority, furnished by the critical notes of former editors, as Giuliani and Fraticelli; and, lastly, of the new and old Centuria Correctionum of Witte, and the Saggio of the Milanese editors. Knowing as we do his judicious critical faculty, we can readily accept his assurance that he has carefully avoided arbitrary conjectures and capricious alterations; yet that with few exceptions he has generally found it possible to arrive at a satisfactory meaning with very trifling aid from conjectures warranted by a line. by line comparison of the texts of two or three codici, choosing one here and another there; and by a slight change in the order of the words. Not, however, that he has been able to clear up some passages of enormous difficulty in construction and of roughness in expression; defects which are in no way inconsistent with their authenticity, inasmuch as Dante more than once in the Convito excuses himself at great length for having written it in the vulgar tongue instead of in the Latin, whose greater power to express mental conceptions he frankly acknowledges. A distinguishing mark is appended to the few passages where Dr. Moore has been driven to use conjecture pure and simple. It will be seen from the foregoing observations that the reputation of The Oxford Dante must in great measure depend upon the estimate formed by Dantophilists of the restored text of the Convito. We have not had time to study this, and can therefore do no more 1 Dr. Moore's felicitous expression in his Italian Preface. It may be fairly expressed in English by a pretty muddle.' than express our conviction that when put to the proof it will not be found wanting. The time which we have had at our disposal has been employed in looking at many crucial passages in the text of the Divina Commedia. Here, as was to be expected, we do not always find ourselves in agreement with Dr. Moore's choice of this or that reading, or with his punctuation in some instances of disputed punteggiatura. But the old saw, 'quot homines tot sententiæ,' is nowhere more applicable than to the different views of Dantophilists upon such subjects. Generally speaking, however, the text thoroughly commends itself to us. We feel bound, on the other hand, to mention one exception. Pace Dr. Moore, and Scartazzini whom he has followed, we are not to be persuaded that Dante perpetrated the line, Purg. xxx. 73, as here printed : 'Guardaci ben, ben sem, ben sem Beatrice !' If we had no other reasons for this opinion than Scartazzini's own admission that the repetition of 'ben sem' is cacophonous, and Dionisi's criticism that the recurrence of the letter 'e' seven times in eight syllables is enough to condemn the reading, we should still hold it. Scartazzini calls in aid Di Costanzo's comment that Dante's description of Beatrice in line 70 as speaking 'regalmente ' leads the reader to expect her to speak of herself in the plural number, after the manner of sovereigns. But as well might it be contended that St. Francis of Assisi, of whom we read in Par. xi. 91, 92, that he ' regalmente sua dura intenzione Ad Innocenzio aperse,' introduced himself to the Pope after the same fashion : 'Guardaci ben; ben sem, ben sem Francesco!' Such a royal style as this is as much out of keeping with the character of Beatrice as it would be with that of 'Il poverel di Dio.' And, so far as regards Beatrice, let us also remember Dante's pathetic comparison, a few lines further on (Purg. xxx. 79, 80), of her manner to him to that of a stern mother to a son. Mothers do not style themselves 'we' in chiding their children. The common reading of line 73, viz.: 'Guardami ben, ben son, ben son Beatrice!' is, on the other hand, the simple and natural expression of her who, when she descended into Limbo on her mission to Virgil, had told him 'Io son Beatrice, che ti faccio andare.' Inf. ii. 70. Had she been puffed up with so-called queenly importance, we surely should have looked for its display towards a poor spirit in Limbo, rather than towards him who was to be her honoured companion through the heavens. So far, however, from thus treating Dante de haut en bas, we find her, even after they had risen together into the Heaven of the Fixed Stars, by which time her loveliness had become infinitely more transcendent,' encouraging him to look upon her afresh, in words almost identical with those now under discussion: 'Apri gli occhi, e riguarda qual son io? Par. xxiii. 46. Not 'quali sem noi,' though she was then close to 'Il trono che i suoi merti le sortiro.' Par. xxxi. 69. We could say much more, but what has been said may suffice to justify us in remaining anti-' Sem '-ites in this matter. 'Guardaci ben, ben sem, ben sem Beatrice,' The line, is unworthy alike of utterance by her 'angelica voce,' and of finding a place in sua favella.' 6 In conclusion, this notice would be very incomplete if it omitted a well-deserved tribute of admiration to the copious and lucid index of Mr. Paget Toynbee, Dei Nomi Propri e delle Cose Notabili contenute nelle Opere di Dante, which is appended to the work. No pains have been spared in making this a thorough guide to the student, through all Dante's allusions to persons, events, and matters of importance, wheresoever they occur, whether in prose or in poetry, in the Italian or in the Latin compositions. It is in many respects a concordance of the subject-matter as well as an index. Witness the compendious references given under such titles as Chiesa, Dio, Imperatore, Sole, Virgilio, in which we find noted every varied equivalent for the title word which Dante has anywhere employed. Mr. Toynbee has also followed a happy inspiration in grouping under the title 'Il' Dante's frequent description of persons by means of that article followed by a word of designation: e.g. Il Cantor, Il Notaro,' ' Il Pescatore. A similar arrangement is followed under such titles as Colui, Quegli, Quei, Quel, Quella, Quelli, Quello, Sette, and Terra. E.g. under 'Quegli ch' usurpa in terra il loco mio 'we find ' Bonifazio,' and at once learn who is referred to. Proper names identical but belonging to different persons are printed repeatedly, each reprint being appropriated to one such person. The same treatment is applied to different persons described by one same avocation.2 A very simple notation enables the reader to see at a glance whether a place or person is mentioned by name or by mere description; whether in a case where there is more than one mention of them they are or are not mentioned throughout by name or sometimes by description; and whether, in cases of mere description, the identity of the thing or 1 She says of herself to Dante : 'La bellezza mia.. per le scale 2 See, for instance, the title 'Nocchiere,' as to which we venture to suggest that there is an omission. Is not‘Il celestial Nocchiero' (Purg. ii. 43) equally deserving of record as the infernal 'Nocchieri,' Charon and Flegias? person referred to is or is not a matter of conjecture. Lastly, there is an abundance of useful cross-references. This index is in short a most worthy complement to the text, to which it is the unerring key. It very materially strengthens the obligation under which The Oxford Dante has laid all Dantophilists. Clerical Life and Work. A collection of Sermons with an Essay. By H. P. LIDDON, D.D., D.C.L., LL.D., late Canon and Chancellor of St. Paul's. (London: Longmans, Green and Co., 1894.) THE Essay and all but two of the Sermons which this valuable book contains have already been separately published, and are probably well known to many of our readers. Not a few of those who possess them will be glad to have them in a collected form. And it is not merely a matter of convenience that the Essay and the Sermons should be included in this one volume. They are closely connected by a line of thought, and it is mentioned in the Advertisement' at the beginning that 'Dr. Liddon himself collected and arranged most of the Sermons, and chose the title under which they are now reprinted. It will be seen that they express the ideal of the clerical life that was before his mind from the earliest days of his ministry.' From this point of view, regarding the various parts of the volume as the expression, under differing circumstances, of one definite principle of life and work,' it will be recognized as fitting that the Essay The Priest in his Inner Life' should be placed first. This Essay was published originally in two parts in the periodical The Ecclesiastic and Theologian for October 1856 and January 1857. It was afterwards included in a collection of articles called The Spirit of the Church. In 1869 it was reprinted and published, still anonymously, in a separate form. It has long been generally known to have been Dr. Liddon's work, and copies of it, printed since his death, have borne his name on the title-page. It is not too much to say that there must be many clergymen to whom this Essay has given an entirely new conception of the clerical life. Combining as it does a spiritual depth which under any circumstances would be remarkable, and which is the more to be wondered at when it is remembered that it was written at a time when the author had been a Priest for three years only, with accurate knowledge of theological truth and devotional methods, filled with the most earnest purpose and expressed with balance and vigour, it is well calculated both to strike the attention of any thoughtful mind and to mark permanently those who will think about it. That it should be recognized by many who have the work of the training of candidates for Holy Orders as one of their most useful instruments which they wish to see in the hands of all who are under their care, is only what a study of the Essay would lead us to expect. It is, perhaps, less necessary now than it was in 1856 that the mere facts of the obligation of the recitation of the daily Office and |