of purpose, of which it may with entire truth be said, that they were, with few exceptions, wholly inadequate in point of style, almost always inelegant, and quite frequently so rude as to border on the grotesque.
The first systematic and successful attempt to remedy a defect so remarkable, was the Lyra Catholica of Edward Caswall, M. A.; one of the zealous and accomplished men whom the present religious movement in England is continually bringing into the fold of Christ, His version (Collection, published in London, 1849) comprises all the hymns of the Roman Breviary, all the hymns and sequences of the Missal, with a selection from the Breviaries of Paris and Cluny, and from the Italian Raccolta delle Indulgenze. Of these pieces, every one is newly translated by Mr. Caswall, and probably more than half of them appear in English for the first time, from his hand.
As a whole, his version combines, in a very high degree, elegance, vigor, and poetical fire of thought and diction, with the still more important requisites of fidelity to the lofty religious spirit of his originals,
and a most exact transfusion of their Catholic faith, fervent piety, and doctrinal integrity. It is not too