mentioning poems belonging to the Geste de Guillaume, such as the poem of Ermoldus Nigellus, and the Liber de miraculis Sancti Jacobi. An attempt was made to show that the geste had reached a considerable development by the middle of the eleventh century, a development, in fact, much more complete than has generally been supposed. In the opinion of the reader, the geste possessed at the close of the eleventh century a more harmoniously rounded ensemble than at any subsequent period. It may perhaps be said that the geste bent and broke under its own weight. In the ruin of its fall, many poems, some of them doubtless of no small merit, were lost. In general, however, the finest passages of the lost epics were preserved in one form or another. This point was insisted on as of importance, and as likely to decrease our regret over the loss of so many poems.

The author instead of reading his paper in full, gave an oral synopsis of its leading points.

On the announcement of the next paper, a motion was made and carried that for the purpose of giving more time for discussion, papers contributed by members not present should not be read in extenso, but that only an outline of them should be given.

5. "The Germanic suffix -ar-ja." By Professor Julius Goebel, of Leland Stanford Jr. University. [Printed in Publications, xv, 321 f.]

This paper was presented, in the author's absence, by Dr. H. B. Almstedt, of the University of Chicago.

The Association then adjourned for luncheon which was served in the Library.

THIRD SESSION, DECEMBER 28.

The Association reassembled at 2.30

p. m.

The President appointed the following committees:

To audit the Treasurer's account: Professors H. A. Vance and C. C. Ferrell.

To nominate officers for the coming year: Professors Charles Bundy Wilson, C. W. Pearson, J. S. Nollen, A. R. Hohlfeld, and W. L. Weber,

The reading of papers was then resumed.

6. "Notes on the Alfredian version of Bede's Ecclesiastical History of the English People." By Professor Frederick Klaeber, of the University of Minnesota.

For nearly one hundred and seventy years the Old English Bede had been suffered to remain buried in Smith's unwieldly folio edition of 1722. Even now, when by the new editions of Miller and Schipper the material for research has been placed at the service of students with gratifying completeness, this uncommonly interesting prose text is still far from being adequately investigated. How much uncertainty yet prevails regarding the mere textual interpretation, is evidenced by nearly all text books which contain specimens from the Bede. We need above all a more thorough examination of linguistic details.

It is no longer necessary to prove the existence of Anglian features in the text. But the nature and the extent of the dialectal element should be ascertained more precisely. A careful comparison of the MSS. confirms in general Dr. Miller's conclusions as to the Anglian original. Especially instructive are those cases in which the discrepancies between the different MSS., notably obvious scribal blunders, enable us to settle the archetypal reading beyond the possibility of doubt. Numerous Anglian forms and Anglian words are thus established as unquestionably original.

The lexical study sheds further light on the peculiar position of the Bede and on the stratification of the Old English vocabulary in general. Of words demanding our primary attention the following main groups are to be noted: (1) awag λeyóμeva, some of them of a suspiciously problematical character. (2) Distinctly Anglian vocables, inclusive of such as are found only in poetical texts. The list produced by Miller and added to, incidentally, by some other scholars is to be greatly enlarged. (3) Non-West Saxon words-to use a general name-among which many terms occurring in "mixed" texts are to be classed. (4) Words employed with unusual meanings. We may add, (5) Nouns having different genders or declensions in the different MSS., e. g., èðel, bend, gif(u). Also (6) Remarkable phrases, in particular some suggestive of Old English poetry.

On the other hand, our text abounds with "unnatural words" (Sweet), mostly derivatives and compounds modeled closely after Latin patterns. A number of them can scarcely be said to form a genuine part of the Old English vocabulary. Still, we must beware of condemning these coinages indiscriminately as illegitimate. The necessity of finding equivalents for certain Latin terms heavily taxed the inventiveness of the Anglo-Saxon scholar. At the same time, the vehicle of Old English prose was still in its formative stage, and the genius of the language imposed hardly any limits on the inherited principle of forming compounds. We admit, however, that the inordinate use, e. g., of the derivative suffix -nis, marks, in fact, a

weakness; and furthermore, the forcing of a specific Latin (or Greek) meaning on a formation reproducing the foreign word with accuracy just so far as its etymology is concerned, e. g., untodāled (= individuus), rihtwuldriende (orthodoxus).

In connection with the analysis of the language, and with reference to Dr. Pearce's paper on the subject (see Public. of the Mod. Lang. Assoc., Vol. viii, Proceedings for 1892, pp. vi ff.), the question of the authorship is briefly touched. Though all of Dr. Pearce's arguments cannot be endorsed, the theory of joint authorship appears indeed the only one that explains the undeniable inequalities of workmanship, of style, of spirit. But in order to reconcile the latter with the very noteworthy fact of surprising agreement, as to minor matters, in portions widely separated and of a widely different character, we have to assume that there was a guiding spirit, perhaps a correcting hand and a model which was emulated with varying degrees of success. Whether the royal author himself had any immediate share in the task of translating or not, we may properly continue to call the Bede an Alfredian work. It was through the great King's active initiative and helpful inspiration that the great and beautiful work of the Father of English learning was placed within the reach of his English people.

The need of closer textual study is illustrated by an emendation in the Caedmon Story (Iv, 24).

This paper was read in synopsis by Professor C. F. McClumpha.

7. "The grammatical gender of English loanwords in German." By Professor Charles Bundy Wilson, of the University of Iowa. [To appear in Americana Germanica, Vol. III.]

This paper was discussed by Professors C. W. Pearson, J. T. Hatfield, A. R. Hohlfeld, Raymond Weeks, and Drs. W. W. Florer and E. E. Severy.

8. "The dramatic function of the confidante in the tragedies of Corneille and Racine." By Dr. Herman S. Piatt, of the University of Illinois.

Remarks were offered by Professors C. F. McClumpha, T. A. Jenkins, Raymond Weeks, C. C. Ferrell, J. S. Nollen, F. A. Blackburn, E. E. Brandon, Dr. W. H. Kirk, and the author.

Professor T. A. Jenkins read the report of a committee of the Modern Language Association on the subject of international correspondence, which at the desire of the committee was brought to the attention of the members of the Central Division,

In the evening a reception was tendered to the members and others in attendance by the Faculty of Vanderbilt University in the parlors of Wesley Hall.

FOURTH SESSION, DECEMBER 29.

The Association met at 9.45 a. m. In the absence of the President and the Vice-Presidents, Professor J. S. Nollen took the chair. The reports of committees, according to the regular order was postponed, and the reading of papers resumed.

9. "The direct influence of the American Revolution upon German poetry." By Professor J. T. Hatfield, and Miss Elfrieda Hochbaum, of Northwestern University, Evanston,

Ill.

At the time of the American Revolution a.spirit was abroad in Germany which manifested itself in literature by attacks upon tyrants and by a general enthusiasm for freedom. Thus a way was prepared for American ideals, which were eagerly greeted and loudly praised by the poets of the time. For some time America, as a country, had been well known to the Germans. The American movement was looked up to as the highest expression of the general desire for liberty, and as largely the cause of this desire, as testified to by Goethe.

It is evident from the journals of the time that the entire progress of the war was watched with sympathetic and intelligent attention, both for its own sake and still more because of its probable effect in regenerating European politics.

The sale of German mercenaries to England was felt to be a degradation, and was frequently assailed in poetry.

The American Revolution found its warmest sympathizers among the poets of Germany. Especially enthusiastic were the members of the Göttingen group. F. L. Stolberg, in his fragmentary poem Die Zukunft, gave fullest expression of his sympathy for the American cause. Klopstock, Schubart, Klinger, Voss, and many other poets praise the cause of American

liberty, and mention it with enthusiasm. Not only the cause but its leaders, such as Franklin and Washington, received high tributes. American ideals and institutions were contrasted with those prevalent in France, to the great advantage of the former.

10. "The Italian Sonnet in English." By Dr. E. E. Severy, of the Bowen Academic School, Nashville, Tenn. Remarks upon this paper were offered by Professor C. F. McClumpha.

11. "Some points of similarity between Hauff's Lichtenstein and Scott's Ivanhoe." By Dr. Clarence W. Eastman, of the University of Iowa. [To be published in Americana Germanica.]

The paper was discussed by Professors J. T. Hatfield and F. A. Blackburn.

12. "The English Gerund." By Professor W. L. Weber, of Emory College, Oxford, Ga.

The student of Modern English syntax meets with not fewer than three distinct functions performed by the verbal forms in -ing. These uses are known as the participle, the verbal noun, and (as in the sentence, 'In rolling stones he lost his balance') what is variously known as infinitive, infinitive in -ing, verbal noun, and gerund.

The name gerund to describe one of the parts of the English verb has been used by grammarians from Aelfric to Sweet. In this paper the word gerund is used specifically to mean the verbal derivative in -ing having functions both of noun and of verb in that it may be qualified by an adverb and have an object in the case which a verb would require. The fact that the distinctive characteristic of the gerund is, as Schöll tells us in Wöllflin's Archiv, 11, 203, its active nature (gerundium being nothing else than a synonym for aktivum) should make us hesitate to apply the name to such constructions as bread to eat, hard to bear, etc. To the gerundial infinitive or, as Sweet prefers to say, to the supine, are given over gerundial constructions of forms not in -ing.

As the gerund appears before the day of Wiclif and of Chaucer only in translator's English, examination of the English that came from the translator's pen may serve to solve the problem of gerund-origin.

In the Vulgate, the translator found the last clause of Ps. 119, 9, in custodiendo sermones tuos; the Vespasian Psalter has it in haldinge word Sin. The Canterbury Psalter makes use of the infinitive to gloss the Latin gerund: on to gehaeldenne word pine. The first translation-the Earliest