The Kev. J. 11. Todd on an Ancient Irish Missal. 35 



For the same reason I omitted to transcribe the list of forty-six Irish saints, 

 which follows the prayer of St. Ambrose, as mentioned above. 



For the history of the MS. before it came into the Stowe collection the 

 reader must be referred to Dr. O'Conoe's Appendix, p. 50, from which we 

 learn only that this venerable relic of the ancient Church of Ireland was found 

 in Germany, by the late John Grace, Esq., of Nenagh, formerly an officer in the 

 German service, who unfortunately died without leaving any memorandum 

 respecting the monastery or individual from whom he procured it. 



In conclusion, I have to apologize to the Academy for laying before them 

 a paper in which I have had so often been obliged to reason from uncertain 

 data, and very imperfect materials. But the subject is one of such importance to 

 the history of the Church in Ireland, and to the history of the Missal of the 

 "Western Church, that I have ventured to submit to the Academy this very 

 unsatisfactory essay, in the hope of drawing the attention of the learned to a 

 literary relic of such inestimable value. 



POSTSCRIPT. 



I HAVE been permitted by the Council of the Eoyal Irish Academy to add 

 to the foregoing Paper a few additional remarks, in explanation or correction 

 of what has been said. 



With respect to the name written in Ogham characters, I have observed 

 (p. 17) that, if it be read directly from left to right, it is Sonid ; but if we 

 take it in the opposite direction, it reads Dings. 



I am much disposed to think the former to be the true reading, for the 

 reason there stated, because the words that follow, " Sa7ius sit qui scripserit et 

 cui scriptum est," seem plainly to allude to the name Sonid, which is probably 

 cognate with the word now written Sonadh, happy, prosperous, and rendered 

 Sanus, as being the nearest Latin word that occurred to the writer. 



The reading Dings has been suggested by Dr. Graves ; and there is no 

 doubt that Ogham names are often so written from right to left, — a practice 

 common with Irish ecclesiastics, even in the use of ordinary letters, wlien they 



