322
NOTES AND QUERIES. [io s. XL APRIL 21 im
We learn from ' Les Petits Bollandistes '
that in the apocryphal ' Gospel of Nico-
demus ' the good thief bears the name of
Dismas, and the bad thief that of Gestas.
In Bede's ' Collectanea ' they are named
Matha and loca ; and in a life of Christ
written in the seventh century, and printed
by the Elzevirs in 1639, they are called
Lustin and Vissimus. But the common
tradition, especially in Germany, bestows
on them the names of Dismas and Gestas.
The good thief is always represented as
suffering on the right hand of the Saviour.
It was St. Anselm in one of his meditations
who first related the following beautiful
story, not as a fact, but as a legend well
known in his day :
" Dismas lived in a forest on the way to Egypt when Mary, bearing with her the infant Jesus, and fleeing from Herod's wrath, was making her way thither. He was a murderer, and son of the chief of a band of malefactors. Now one day when in ambush he saw coming an old man, a young woman, and a little child, and judging with rea&on that they could not offer any resistance, he went towards them with his comrades, intending to ill-treat them ; but he was straightway so ravished by the supernatural grace that adorned the face or Jesus that, instead of doing them any harm, he gave them hospitality in the cave where he dwelt, and got ready all that they required. Mary was pleased to see the caresses and attentions which this robber lavished on her beloved son. She thanked him with her whole heart, and assured him that he would be rewarded before his death. The Holy Virgin's promise was fulfilled later. Dismas was crucifieoT with the Redeemer of the world, and obtained in his last moments grace to repent of his sins ; and having publicly confessed the divinity of Christ when the Apostles had taken flight, he had the happiness of receiving the first fruits of the Redemption, and of entering soon after with Jesus Christ into the possession of the kingdom of heaven."
After all that has been said, there seems no reason why we should hesitate in giving the name of Dismas to the good thief, the more so as it has been adopted by the Catholic Church, and is commemorated on 26 March every year (see ' Catholic Direc- tory,' 1909, p. 10). JOHN T. CURRY.
TENNYSON BIBLIOGRAPHY.
IN the extensive ' Bibliography of Tenny-
son,' of which Mr. Thomas J. Wise has
recently (1908) issued the first volume,
there are presented detailed collations and
descriptions of the first eight editions of
the ' Poems,' which appeared between 1842
and 1853. The remaining editions from the
ninth to the twenty-fourth are simply
indicated (p. 97) by their dates, from 1853
to 1872. Of these I am unable to verify the
date 1857 for the eleventh edition, and 1861
for the fourteenth. My own copy of th&
eleventh edition is dated 1856 (Moxon's
List of Books prefixed to the volume is
dated September, 1856). The only copy of
the fourteenth edition that I have seen
bore the date 1862. I should like to ascer-
tain whether copies with the dates assigned
by Mr. Wise really exist, or whether those-
dates are misprints.
Mr. Wise has laboured so long and so> zealously upon this ' Bibliography ' that it would be manifestly unfair to call attention to a few errors and omissions here and there without at the same time expressing gratitude for such a comprehensive and wholly admirable piece of scholarship. The following additional items, that properly belong to the first volume, are communicated in the hope that they may be included in an addendum or postscript to the second volume of this most useful work.
On p. 348, after No. 87 add J. Holt Schooling's article in Strand, viii. 599-608 (1894), which reproduces in facsimile several important letters from Tennyson to Pal- grave, Gladstone, and others.
On p. 349, after No. 90 add Francesco- Chimenti's ' Larghi Orizzonti ' (Bari, 1897), which contains (p. 103) a letter from Tenny- son to Chimenti, dated 1891.
Preceding p. 357, No. 92, add Clara D. Maclean's article in Independent, 1. 1389-92' (1898), which prints an undated letter to Dr. Allan.
After p. 358, No. 93, belongs the interest- ing Tennyson letter to H. H. Atkinson in 1873. It was printed in Century Mag., lix. 956-7 (1900). Immediately after this should appear a reference to Century Mag., Ixiii. 722-37 (1902), where W. G. McCabe printed two notes from Tennyson in 1888-9.
After p. 358, No. 94, add Charles R. Graves 's ' Life and Letters of Sir George Grove ' (London, 1903), which prints two notes and a letter from Tennyson to Grove in 1869, 1872, and 1880.
Finally, after p. 359, No. 96, add C. B. Fallen's ' The Meaning of the Idylls of the King ' (New York, 1904), which reproduces in facsimile a note from Tennyson to the author in 1885.
On p. 333 Mr. Wise remarks that Mr. Swinburne's ' Disgust,' written as a parody of Tennyson's ' Despair,' has not been re- printed. It may be found on pp. 93-7 of T. B. Mosher's reprint of ' The Heptalogia ' (Portland, Me., 1898).
JOHN Louis HANEY.
Central High School, Philadelphia.
