xii THE LIFE AND LEGEND OF MICHAEL SCOT 



indebted to the kindness of Professor R. Foerster 

 of Breslau ; of Mr. W. M. Lindsay, Fellow of 

 Jesus College, Oxford, and the Eev. R. Langton 

 Douglas of New College, who have furnished me 

 with valuable notes from the libraries of that uni- 

 versity, and, not least of all, to the interest taken 

 in my work by Mr. Charles Godfrey Leland, who 

 has been good enough to read it in manuscript, 

 and to favour me with curious material and valu- 

 able suggestions. 



If the result of my studies should prove some- 

 what disappointing to the reader, I can but plead 

 the excuse with which Pliny furnishes me, it is 

 one having peculiar application to such a task as is 

 here attempted : ' Res ardua,' he says, ' vetustis novi- 

 tatem dare, novis auctoritatem, obsoletis nitorem, 

 obscuris lucem, fastiditis gratiam, dubiis fidem, 

 omnibus vero naturam, et naturae suae omnia.' 



17 VlA MONTEBELLO, 



FLORENCE, November 17 th, 1896. 



