the year of our said Lord a thousand four hundred and sixty, and to the first year of the reign of King Edward the Fourth." This additional book by Caxton consists of 33 chapters, and concludes thus ;

"And here I make an end of this little work, as nigh as I can find, after the form of the work to fore made by Ranulph, Monk of Chester. And where as there is fault, I beseech them that shall read it to correct it; for if I could have found more stories, I would have set in it more; but the substance that I can find and know, I have shortly set them in this book, to the intent that such things as have been done sith the death or end of the said book of Polychronicon should be had in remembrance, and not put in oblivion nor forgetting, praying all them that shall see this simple work, to pardon me of my simple and rude writing.

Ended second of July, xxii Edward IV. a thousand four hundred and fourscore and twain."

Fpnpsshed by Earton.”

Ames observes that in his copy the dates were written with red ink: "and so perhaps they are, adds Herbert, in the margin of all those copies that have been illuminated, or had the initials and paragraph marks added after the printing." The fact is, that " Higden charged his margins with chronological tables, in double and treble columns: these were either omitted in the copy which Caxton followed, or at least were left unprinted by him; wherefore in some of the printed copies those tables are written throughout with red ink." but whether" with his own hand" is extremely doubtful." Oldys. Biog. Britan. iii. 369.

The whole volume contains cccc xxviij folios. The signatures in Arabic figures, with eight leaves to a sheet, [like those to Godfrey De Boulogne,] extend to 54-4: besides the proheme and table C 4. In Mr. Tutet's copy of this book (See Bibl. Tutet, no. 479) there was "written on the last leaf of the index, in an old hand "Presens liber ptinet ad Willˇm Purde, empt a Will mo Caxton, Reg Imp‍ssor, vicessimo Novembris, anno regni Rg Edwardi quarti vicessimo

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secundo." "This," says Mr. Tutet, "is the only notice I have met with of Caxton's being called "King's printer." A copy of the Polychronicon is in the Bodleian library and in the British Muscum, and copies are in the collections of his Majesty, Earl Spencer, and Mr. Heber. Lord Spencer's copy is the most magnificent one I ever saw. See Bibl. Harl. vol. iii. n°. 369: Mead. p. 138-n°. 1312: West. n°. 4091: Ratcliffe, n°. 1023. (probably West's copy.) From the specimens given of this work, it will be obvious that it is one of the most curious and interesting of those printed by Caxton.*

18. THE PYLGREMAGE OF THE SOWLE; translated out of Frensche into Englisshe, with somewhat of addicions, the yere of our Lorde м.cccc and thyrteen, and endeth in the vigyle of Seynt Bartholomew. Emprynted at Westmestre by William Caxton, and fynyshed the sixth day of Juyn, in the yere of our lord M.cccc.lxxxIII. and the fyrste yere of the regne of kynge Edward the fyfth. Folio. (Type No. 4.)

"This book is entitled the PILGRIMAGE OF THE SOUL, translated * What here follows, in Herbert, for obvious reasons should be thrown out of the text. 66 THE CHRONICLES OF ENGLAND.

Another edition of the Chronicles of England, in folio, ends thus:

"Thus endeth this present book of the Cronicles of Englond, enprinted by me, William Caxton, in thabbey of Westmestre, by London, fynysshyd and accomplisshyd the viiij. day of Octobre, the yere of the incarnacyon of our Lord God м CCCC LXXXII. and in the xxii yere of the regne of kyng Edward the fourth."

"I have not seen this edition, nor met with any other account of it. Palmer mentions that there were two editions of this book, but only gives the date of that in 1480, which he has confounded with the description of Great Britain and Ireland. As I have not seen a perfect edition of that with rude types, mentioned at note x. p. 26. query, whether it be not the same with this." There is no doubt that the superficial manner in which Palmer mentions this work, p. 337, rests entirely on his own assertion. The " rude typed" edition which Herbert himself was inclined to admit as Caxton's, is only a St, Albans reprint of it. I have seen it in the Osterley library.

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out of French into English, which book is full of devout matters touching the soul, and many questions assoiled to cause a man to live the better in this world; and it containeth five books as it appeareth hereafter by chapters," &c. The first book treateth of the soul from its departure out of the body, to its being sentenced to purgatory. The second, of the soul being brought to purgatory. These two first books contain 65 chapters in regular progression. The third, of an angel shewing the soul Hell, and describing the pains thereof by the causes, in 10 chapters. The fourth, of the green tree and the dry, and by the other wonderful sights; 38 chapters. The fifth, of the soul taken out of purgatory, and led up through the heavenly spheres; with a description thereof, and of the calendar of heaven, &c. 14 chapters." Thus far Herbert.

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As Lewis, Ames, Oldys, and Herbert, have given rather a superficial account of this extraordinary production, which, perhaps, rather than Bernard's "Isle of Man,"* laid the foundation of John Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress," I shall make no apology to the reader for the following specimens of its poetry and prose. The first chapter which treats "How the soul departeth from the body," and "how the foul fiend assaileth the soul," opens thus:

"As I lay in a Saint Lawrence night sleeping in my bed, me befel a. full marvellous dream; which I shall rehearse. Methought that I had long time travelled toward the holy city of Jerusalem, and that I had made an end and fully finished my fleshly pilgrimage, so that I might no further travel upon my foot, but needs must leave behind my fleshly careyne. Then come cruel death, and smote me with his venemous dart; through which stroke, body and soul were parted asunder. And so anon I felt myself lift up into the air, seeing myself departed from my foul body which when I beheld lying all

* Consult Mr. Todd's edition of Spenser, vol. ii. cxxv. for an account of this curious book, which has recently (1803) been reprinted at Bristol in a small duodecimo volume, with a portrait of the author.