[10] 



speeches, since I will pretend I have come from here 

 [England]." 



Apparently matters were soon satisfactorily arranged ; 

 for, from this time, Bracciolini commenced to prepare 

 for his forgery. He made good use of the library of 

 Cardinal Beaufort, and searched everywhere for old 

 writers from whom he could gather information respect- 

 ing the old Roman empire; and, finally, made arrange- 

 ments for quitting England. In a letter to Niccoli, 

 dated London, July lyth, 1420, he says that he has 

 ' skimmed over Aristotle during the spring of the year, 

 not for the purpose of studying him then, but reading 

 and seeing what there was in each of his works." He 

 had found that sort of " perusal not wholly unprofitable, 

 as he had learnt something every day, superficially though 

 it might be, from understanding Aristotle in his own 

 language, where he found him in the words of transla- 

 tors either incomprehensible or nonsensical." It was 

 arranged between the three friends that Bracciolini should 

 repair at once to Italy, where consultations could be 

 held frequently, "to deliberate fully what was best to 

 be done f so, after vainly attempting to dispose of his 

 living, Bracciolini finally departed for France, en route for 

 Italy. Before doing so, however, he wrote to Niccoli, 

 expressing his fear that the forgery he had undertaken 

 was too great a toil for him, but declaring his intention 

 to proceed at all hazards. He says : " I want you to 

 have no distrust ; give me the leisure and the time for 

 writing that history, and I will do something you will 

 approve. My heart is in the work, though I question 



my powers I have not for four years devoted any 



attention to literature, nor read a single book that can 

 be considered well written as you may judge from these 

 letters of mine, which are not what they used to be ; but 

 I shall soon get back into my old manner. When I reflect 

 on the merits of the ancient writers of history, I recoil 

 with fear from the undertaking, though, when I consider 

 what are writers of the present day, I recover some con- 

 fidence in the hope that, if I strive with all my might, I 

 shall be inferior to few of them." A few days afterwards 

 he wrote his last letter from England to Niccoli on June 

 25th, 1422, still expressing fear about the ultimate result, 



