meet me with confidence, and gather any grains of truth they can, even where they cannot yield full assent. The problems of Hebrew literature are complex; herein partly lies their fascination; herein also is a call for mutual tolerance on the part of all who approach them. There is nothing to regret in this complexity; in searching for the solution of these problems, we gain an ever fresh insight into facts and ideas which will never lose their significance. My second request is, that the Appendix, which, short as it is, contains something for different classes of readers, may not be neglected as only an Appendix.
I would add that the 'much-desired aid' in the critical use of the Septuagint referred to on p. 114 has already to a large extent been given by Gustav Bickell's essay (see p. 296), which I have now been able to examine. His early treatise (1862) is at length happily supplemented and corrected. We shall know still more when P. Ciasca has completed the publication of the fragments of the Sahidic version. It is clear however that each omission in the pre-Hexaplar Septuagint text (represented by this version) must be judged upon its own merits, nor can I estimate the value of the text of the Septuagint quite as highly as some critics.
it is hoped that the present work may be followed by a volume on the Psalms, the Lamentations, and the Song of Songs.
