66 An Early Vernacular Service. 



" Have mercy uppon me oo god. 

 After thy grat mercy. 



Remember, etc. [i.e., antiphon repeated.^ 

 And acordyng to the multitude of the mercys. 

 Do awey my wyckydnes. 



Eemember, etcet. 

 Glory be to the father and to the sun. and to the holy goost. 

 As hyt was yn the begynning so now and ever and yn the 

 world off worlds so be hytt. 



By the wyche. [i.e., last half of antijphon.y 



Here it is natural to ask what grounds there are for giving so 

 early a date to the manuscript in question, especially as on the 

 authority of Foxe, Bishop Latimer is said to have given an antiphon 

 almost precisely similar to be used in his diocese at the sprinkling 

 of holy water. The words as given by Foxe are as follows : — 



" Remember your promise in Baptism, 

 Christ, his mercy and bloodshedding 

 By whose most holy sprinkling 

 of all your sins you have free pardoning." 



There is less rhythm about these words than in the MS. before 

 you ; and there is an attempt to make the second and fourth lines 

 rhyme. This perhaps would show that the rhyming version is the 

 later ; and there is very strong evidence in the testimony of experts, 

 which is that the manuscript at latest must date about the time 

 that Bishop Latimer was born. It cannot be much later than 1470. 

 First then I would say a few words on the date, and then try to 

 account for the words having become known to Latimer. 



The breviary, on a spare page of which it is written, is a magni- 

 ficent volume. I was allowed, some ten or twelve years ago, to take 

 the volume to the British Museum, in order to obtain the opinion 

 of the authorities there on the date of the aspersio of which I am 

 speaking. The learned were kind enough to produce all the MS. 

 service books at the Museum of the same date, but none could 

 compare with the Salisbury book. The pages are nearly 20 inches 

 long by 144 wide. There are two columns on each page (the 

 print is about half the size of the original). The book is 5 J inches 

 thick. The illuminated capitals are magnificent; but strangely 



