In pursuance of the plan adopted for an edition of the West-Saxon Gospels and followed in the recent publication, in this series, of the first and fourth Gospels, the text of the Gospel of St. Mark with all the variant readings of the manuscripts is, for the present, as in the case of the Gospel of St. Matthew, herewith put forth without Notes and Glossary. The plan provides for first making accessible in this form the entire text of the Version; thereafter such apparatus as may be demanded will be added in due time. It can hardly be denied that inferences may be drawn from the history of the study of the Version that point clearly to hindrances that would have been removed by a convenient and trustworthy edition of the text.
This edition follows the Corpus manuscript with exactness, all deviations from it being indicated by italics, which, when supplying omissions, are bracketed. The corrected or rejected readings of this copy are, of course, recorded among the variant readings. In each instance of deviation, therefore, it can be seen at a glance just what has been changed, and just what the other copies may contain in support of the change. But the translator's method can be apprehended only by reading the Version with the Vulgate in hand; and the Vulgate (with its variant readings) will also show the limits observed by the editor in venturing upon emendations of the text.
I am indebted to Mr. Robert Lee Ramsay, Fellow in the Johns Hopkins University (1904–5), for the efficient manner in which he has kindly assisted me in reading the proofs of this volume.
J. W. B.
Baltimore, March, 1905.
