292 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academtj, 



evidently corrupt, and the only question is, What emendation will 

 least disturb the text? The reading of Boll., rejjutetiir occasio. Nam 

 post , . . inuen. me^ adu.^ is most likely a conjecture of Denis's, but a 

 very plausible one. Occasio might be rendered 'unfair attack.' 

 Ducange notes that it has the meaning lis iniuste intentata, as 

 well as those of damnation periculum^ discrimen. The word occurs 

 in some such sense in § oo ; and num is written for nam in § 25 in 



On the other hand, inuenerunt me, ' they found me,' is meaning- 

 less, unless we suppose that Patrick was hiding. If we could be sure 

 that here Eoll. = B, we might venture upon a transposition of the 

 words, as Dr. Gwynn has suggested to me, and read inuenerunt adu. 

 me uerhum : cf. Acts xxiv. 20, Dicant si quid inuenerunt in me ini- 

 quitatis." But the fact that E, here agrees with CF3F4 renders it 

 almost certain that B did so too; and the conjecture occasionem only 

 involves the omission of me (Boll. om. et), and gives a more satisfactory 

 close to § 26, and is commended by the allusion to Dan. vi. 5. 



P. 244, 1. 12. Memoratis supradictis. — This refers to the Seniores 

 of § 26. For supradictus cf. Ep. 3. 



P. 244, 1. 15. Male uidimus, &c. — The reading of A, audiuimiis, is 

 clearly proved to be wrong by the following line. Nudato nomine is 

 explained by the preceding sine honore\ and, as the responsum diuinum 

 is contrasted with the scrijHum — the human impeachment — it seems 

 best to refer designati to Patrick himself. But it cannot mean ' bishop 

 designate,' since he was already a bishop, see p. 243, 1. 18. We may 

 suppose that the scriptum was an accusatory document in whicli 

 Patrick was designatus by name merely, his episcopal rank and title 

 being ignored. Or, since faciem in 1. 13 is employed in a different 

 sense from that which it has in 1. 15, and as 1. 26 proves that the re- 

 sponsum was especially directed against Patrick's false friend, we may 

 take designatus as = memoratus (1. 12) and nudato nomine as meaning 

 that his name, suppressed by Patrick, was laid bare, plainly expressed, 

 in the responsum^ so that what Patrick heard was, Male uidimus faciem 

 Germani, supposing that had been the name. 



Ferguson seems to take designati as nom. pi. agreeing with nos 

 (understood), and conjectures Male audiuimus [scripto cotitra'] faciem 

 des., &c., and notes that '^contra faciem is perhaps the Irish in agaid 

 * aduersum.' " He renders, " I saw a script against me, and no name 

 Of honor written, . . . We are here Ill-styled by name stripped bare 

 of dignity." 



P. 244, 1. 20. Dediceram. — In accordance with the system of speU- 



