Stray Thoughts About Books.

had only one missal , and sometimes the same copy of the Bible and Book of Offices served more than one religious house . Private individuals seldom possessed any books at all . Even as late as 1471 , when Louis NI . borrowed the works of Easis from the Library of Physicians , at Paris , he was compelled to leave a large quantity of plateand procure the signature of a

noble-, man as a p ledge for ifcs security . When our Henry V . died , several books he had borrowed were 011 I 3 ' restored after the claims of the owners had been carefully investigated . The donation of a hook to a monastery was considered an offering of such consequence and value as to insure a remission of the sins of the donorwhile

, terrible anathemata were fulminated against those who alienated a book belonging to a religious house . When a book was purchased , persons of high standing witnessed the contract , and when it was bequeathed , restrictions and limitations usually accompanied the donation . Our own country has experienced many serious

drawbacks and impediments to the progress of letters , some of which have been sustained in common ivith the rest of Europe , but others have been peculiarly restricted to Great Britain . Whatever learning the Druids may have possessed they strictly kept to themselves , for the mass of the Britons were in a state of utter and

complete ignorance . At the period ofthe invasion of the Romans , the civilising effects of the example of their conquerors and of the Christian reli gion introduced by them soon became apparent . When necessity compelled the Romans to concentrate their strength , and abandon their colonies , many of the most learned Britons accompanied them . The priests they left behind neglected the schools , gave way to dissolute habits , and actively promulgated all manner of heresies . The

incursions of the Picts and Scots , and the destruction by them of all monuments and institutions of letters , only made this state of things "confusion worse confounded , " and what little glimmering of learning yet remained was confined to Wales and Caledonia . The Saxons destroyed wherever they conquered all traces ;" of Christianity ; and it was not until their partial

conversion in the seventh century that tranquillity and order began to be established . After this period , intercourse with Rome , and the schools established at Canterbury , began to have visible effects . Ireland about this period enjoyed a reputation for the proficiency of her scholarsespeciallin ecclesiastical

, y knowledge . The exertions of Alfred to . promote the study of literature among his subjects have endeared him to all posterity as one of the greatest benefactors of his country . His invitations to the learned of all countries , establishment of schools , honours conferred on the learned , his translations and disseminations of

various work's , his compulsory system of education for the children of the hi gher classes , gave such an impulse to learning that , whereas , when he began to reign , he scarce could find a priest capable of reading the service in his natii-e tongue , or translating the most rudimentary sentence iu Latin , at his death the clergy had *

become a learned body . The internal discordsand factional disputes , and the renewed incursions of the Danes , which succeeded , prevented the influence of this great man becoming permanent , and this country participated in the miseries of the " iron " age , as the ' tenth century was termed .

After the Danes had secured predominance , they relaxed in their persecutions of learning , and even established schools and restored Oxford , which , founded by Alfred , had been burned during the commotions . " \ V illiam the Conqueror encouraged learning by con-

Stray Thoughts About Books.

ferring the highest posts and honours on men of talent and ability . One hundred monasteries were founded between 1066 and 1216 ; and a library was considered to be so essential an appendage , that " a convent without a ,. library is like a castle without its armoury , " became a proverb . The Abbey of Croylandonly twenty-nine

, years after the Conquest , contained 900 ^ volumes . Mistaken religious zeal has led to the destruction of many ancient manuscripts . When the early Christians obtained possession of the Pagan temples , to which collections of books were frequently attached , they too often ' condemned these treasures to the same destruction that ,

attended the idols . At the dissolution of monasteries by Henry VIII ., a red letter or a diagram was sufficient , to condemn a book as Popish and diabolical ; the costl y covers were frequently torn off and carried away , while their more valuable contents were thrown aside as worthless . A portion of the magnificent library

presented by Humphrey , Duke of Gloucester , to the university of Oxford , was destroyed in the reign of Edward VI ., as the ornaments and illuminations of some of the splendid copies it contained were supposed to . resemble Popish missals and mass-hooks . The Puritans also subsequently destroyed all the ancient classics , and all manuscripts supposed to relate to the Catholic religion , that fell in their way .

Architecture And Archæology.

ARCHITECTURE AND ARCH ? OLOGY .

ON THE EEVIVAL OE STYLES * It will , I think , readily he granted , though the proposition , is by no mopms a mere truism , that , if we are to have good architecture in England , we must have a good national style ; and ifc will also be granted that ifc is not necessary for such a stle to have oriinated entirely at home ; for b

y g y discarding all that can be traced to foreign sources , we shall leave ourselves very feiv materials on ivhich we can work . The questions wo have to consider are those : — - "Have we at present any style of our own ? " "Aro ive likely to work out a new style from our own resources and from the materials we can command ? " "Ought wo to endeavour rather to revive some ancient style ? and , if so , in which of

those before us are ive most likely to bo successful ? " I assume , of course , that we are desirous of establishing a style applicable to all our purposes , capable of combinations of the highest beauty aud grandeur , and opening a sufficient field to the genius of the architect as well as to thafc of the sculptor , painter , and other artists who may contribute to the perfection of his work .

I am not suro whether we are not apt to draw too nice a distinction betiveen building and architecture , and to take away from the province of the latter such works as our ordinary dwelling-houses , cottages , street fronts , and the like , unless they claim a title to it by adopting the most prominent features of some ancient or Mediceval stylo . But , in truthever } ' structure is architectural ivhich shows that

, thought , care , and skill have been bestowed upon ifcs appearance . A very small amount of ornamental detail , if it be well designed , or well chosen , and well applied , will often be sufficient to represent , as ifc were , a more elaborate system ; while a careful stud )' of forms and proportions , oven if there bo no ornament whatever , according to the common acceptation of tho word ive a building a hih lace

, may g gp among architectural compositions ; and , therefore , I said it was no truism to assume a good national style to bo necessary , if wo ivould have good national architecture . Por a building may bo architecturally good and yet have no feature ivhich marks it as decidedly belonging to some recognised style , or the adoption of which would originate a now stylo . But ,