184
HISTORY OF PRINTING.
" many noble and dirers gentlemen to print the History of the Saint Great," &c.
Mr. Dibdin speaks of the populari^ of this work, even so late as the reign of Charles the lirst, in proof of which he gires the following extract, which was written in the reign of king Henry the eighth : " Roger Ascham, in "his Toyophiltu arid Schoolmaster., seTerely repro- bates this and similar ' bookes of fayned cheval- rie; wherein a man, by readinge, should be led to none other ende, but onely to manslaughter and baudrye.' He says, the whole pleasure of this work standeth ' in these two special points;' and after asking whether ' this is good stuff for wise men to laugh at, or honeste men to take pleasure in?' He concludes by saying that, ' he Knew the time when God's Bible was banished the court, and La Morte d'Arthur received into theprince's chamber!"
The above gentleman observes, that the book has a handsome margin, that the press work is exact, and that it is one of the finest specimens of Caxton's press. It consists of about 550 pages.
1485, Dec. 1. The Lyf of Charles the Great. Folio.
The preface begins with an exhortation to
§ood deeds and noble acts; and Caxton closes le work with a most pious exhortation to the memory of Edward the fourth; and also praying his readers to pardon him of the simple and rude translation, beseeching them that should they find fault to correct it; in doing which they should not only have his thanks, but also his prayers to God for them, that he may bring both them and him, after this short and transi- toiy life, to everlasting bliss, &c.
01d}-s, informs us that the scarci^ of this work has prevented its having been sufficiently des- cribed in the histories of our first printed books.
The volume is a thin folio, in double columns, which extends to m 7 in octavos, and it is con- jectured that his cypher was printed on the eighth leaf, to complete the sheet.
1485, Dec. 19. Thystory of the noble and ryght udyaunt and worthy knyght Paris and of the fayr Vyene 6rc. Folio.
The Harleian catalogue informs us, that this is *a very scarce book.' It appears that this romance has been slightly noticed by our early writers, but its author's name lies buried in ob- scurity. It is said to be of provincial growth, and to have been translated into French by Pierre de la Sippade.
Mr. Dibdin observes, that this is a small folio, printed in double columns, with capital initials, and contains e 5. a, b, c, 6ic. in octavos; d has only six leaves, and e five. The last page is generally blank. The leaves are not numbered.
In the year 1486, Caxton's press seems to have been idle; — none of his works bear this date.
1486. The oldest mandate for appointing a book-censor, with which we are acquainted, is that issued by Berthold, archbishop of Mentz, in this year, which the curious reader will not be displeased to see at full length; with the in- structions givin to the censors.
Penal Mandate, forbidding the Translatim into the Vulgar Tongue, Sre. of Greek, Latin, and other Books, without the previous tp- probation of the Doctors, ^-c.
" Berthold, by the grace of God, archbishop of the holy see of Mentz, arch-chancellor of Germany, and electoral prince of the holy Romaa empire.
" Although, by a certain divine art of printiap, abundant and easy access is obtained to boob on every science necessary to the attainment of human learning; yet we have perceived that certain men, led by the desire of vain glory or money, do abuse this art; and that what was given ibr the instruction of human life, is per- verted to purposes of mischief and calumny. For, to the dishonouring of religion, we hare seen in the hands of the vulgar certain books of the divine offices and writings* of our religioB, translated from the Latin into the Gennaii tongue. And what shall we say of the sacreil laws and canons, which though Uiey have been written in the most suitable and careiul manner, by men acquainted with law, and endowed nith the greatest skill and eloquence, yet the science itself is so intricate, that tJie utmost extent of the life of the wisest and most eloquent man is scarcely equal to it? Some volumes, on this subject, which certain rash unlearned simpletons have dared to translate into the vulgar tongue, whose translation, many persons who have seen it, and those, too, learned men, have declared to be unintelligible, in consequence of the very great misapplication and abuse of words. Or what is to be said of works on the other sciences with which they sometimes even interminele things that are false; and which, in order the more readily to find purchasers for them, tbey inscribe with false titles, and attribute to notable authors what are merely their own productions.'
" Let such translators, whether tbey do this with a good, or with a bad intention, let then, if they pay any regard to truth, say, whether the German tongue be capable of expressing that which excellent writers, both Greek and Latin, have most accurately and argumentatively written on the sublime speculations of the Christian re- ligion, and on the knowledge of things? They must acknowledge that the poverty of our idiom renders it insufficient; and that it will be ne- cessary for them to invent from their own minds, new terms for things; or, that supposing them to make use only of the old ones, they must corrupt the sense of the truth, which from the greatness of the danger attendant upon it, in the Sacred Writings, we greatly dread : for who would leave it to ignorant and unlearned men, and to the female sex into whose hands copies of the Holy Scriptures may have fallen, to find out the true meaning of them? For instance, let
- It Is probable that bj the tenns "liinoa de ilMab
ofli^s et apiclbus RUixlooU noitre," the archtabkop re. fened to the vernacular translations, not only of the Service-book* of the Romish chnrch, called the UMm OJieet, but also of the Hoh/ Scriptures; the word gpicit being generally used. In the middle ages, for vritiafs, epistles, Ik. See Du Caoge, sut <x>».
LjOOQ IC
