λῦσαι, ἀποκόψαι &c.), the elliptic employment of transitive verbs being common in Greek nautical language as in English (compare ἄραντες in xxvii 13, cited above). The general sense then is merely 'and loosing from thence', that is, from Syracuse, where there had been a stay of three days. On the other hand the run from Syracuse to Rhegium could never be described as circuitous (περιελθόντες), unless the ship were thrown out of her course by contrary winds, a circumstance not likely to be noticed by means of an obscure implication (cf. xxvii 4, 7, 8); while scribes, to whom this geographical difficulty was not likely to suggest itself, would be tempted by the superficial smoothness of περιελθόντες.
D. 305—307. Binary uncial combinations containing Β and א respectively
305. We come next to the variations in which א and Β stand on different sides. The first step towards dealing successfully with the problems which here arise is to examine the internal character of the readings attested by the two series of binary groups formed by א and by Β combined with each other primary Greek MS. Now every such binary group containing Β is found by this process to offer a large proportion of readings which on the closest scrutiny have the ring of genuineness, while it is difficult to find any readings so attested which look suspicious after full consideration. Such groups are in the Gospels BL, BC, BT, ΒΞ, BD, AB, BZ, Β 33, in St Mark ΒΔ; in the Acts AB, BC, BD, BE2, Β 61; in the Catholic Epistles AB, BC, BP2; in the Pauline Epistles AB, BC, BM2, (BP2) Β 17, Β 67**. These readings are in fact for most of the groups, especially those belonging to the Gospels, hardly of less uniformly good character than the readings of אB. Once more, their character is not found appreciably different whether
