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O tNE important phase of medical history is that treating the development of the printed medical book. There are several fragmentary accounts recorded in the literature describing the main books in important collections, but, as far as the present writer is aware, no attempt has been made to bring together a descriptive account of the significant books printed during the several centuries. Sir William Osler, in the address that serves as an introduction to his remarkable contribution to the study of medical incunabula, discusses in some detail the medical books printed before 1481. Since I923, when Osler's contribution was published, many important medical incunabula have come to light, and it was thought advisable to take notice of these books and also to incorporate into this study the significant medical books published from 1481 until the close of the fifteenth century. Without important check lists and indexes to aid the student of medical history such bibliographic studies as this one would be most inadequate. The writer is much indebted to Dr. Arnold Klebs for the use of his painstakingly made check list containing more than 8So editions of medical books published in the fifteenth century.2 Dr. Klebs's check list forms the basis for our study, although it has been necessary from time to time to refer to other sources. Special mention should be made of the following useful tools

N THE September, I920, issue of the Library the distinguished English bibliographer, Alfred W. Pollard, published a most interesting paper entitled "The division of rare English books between England and the United States." In the intervening score of years noteworthy changes have taken place in the holdings of English incunabula in American libraries. Most significant of all has been the gradual transference of great collections of books from private hands into permanent institutions, particularly the Morgan, Huntington, Folger, and Chapin libraries. At the same time the flow of books from the English market to America has by no means diminished. While the dangers of a destructive war still threaten the treasures of the great English libraries, it seems most opportune to point out the important position held at present by American libraries in regard to the earliest English books. By the appearance of the second American "Census of incunabula," the task of the present compilations has been greatly facilitated. With the possible exception of Spanish incunabula, it is likely that America owns a proportionately greater number of books printed in the fifteenth century in England than of those produced by any other country in that same century. The number of editions listed by E. Gordon Duff in his Fifteenth-century English books' amounts tO 431, to which total at least 3 other books since discovered2 must be added. Of this number, no less than i52 editions are found in America, and these are represented by *some 442 copies.3 Thus, of all the books printed in England and

T HOMAS WRIGHT, in his edition of Nigel Wireker's Speculum Stultorum for the Rolls Series (No. 59), used three MSS, which he called A, B, and C, and one printed edition, P. With the incunabula of this work I hope to deal at another time; for the present I am concerned only with the MSS, and the readings of P need not trouble us at the moment.1 A is Harleian 2422, a thirteenth-century MS., containing only this work and lacking the last 350 lines or so, i.e., about eight leaves. It has the prose preface, and is well equipped with paragraph headings. B is Arundel 23, a fifteenth-century MS. in a beautiful Italian Renaissance hand recalling the best style of the twelfth century. It likewise has lost several leaves, the gap covering pp. 41-59 of Wright's edition, nearly 440 lines, and it ends in the middle of a page, 36 lines too soon ('condicione sui'), with 'Explicit Burnellus' following. The initial letters of paragraphs are in blue, but there are no headings, except in the passage describing the different religious orders (Wr., pp. 82 ff.). C is a fourteenth-century MS. of the Cotton collection, Titus A xx, and a sad contrast to the foregoing, so far as appearance and legibility are concerned. Except for the prose preface, which is altogether lacking, the poem is complete. It is bound up with a great many others, including five poems attributed to Walter Map, and as many chiefly patriotic, by Robert Baston, and some Goliardic verse; towards the end of the collection comes a work entitled 'De Norfolciensium moribus, seu descripcio Norfolcie per monachum quendam Petroburgensem,' followed by 'Descripcionis illius impugnacio,' which may throw some light on its provenance (see p. 440 below).

S OME weeks ago a member of the Wesleyan University faculty asked how our holdings of incunabula compared with those of other colleges and universities in the United States. Offhand, this question looked easy to answer. But the admirable Census of fifteenth century books owned in America, compiled by the Committee of the Bibliographical Society of America, while advising which libraries have specific titles, does not tabulate quantitatively the holdings of the libraries it covers. The beautifully printed Chicago check list' does give the information desired for the Chicago area-but only for that area and as of ten years ago. Both Minerva and Index generalis have an item in their questionnaires asking for information as to holdings of incunabula; but answers to this item prove, upon investigation, to be exceedingly fragmentary for libraries in the United States. Numerous other bibliographical sources were searched-all without success. At first view one publication from a most unexpected source C6rdoba, Argentina2 2seemed likely to be helpful. But on more careful analysis it proved disappointing. It omitted entirely two of the three libraries in the United States with the largest holdings, as well as many smaller ones; it reported two libraries as having over one hundred volumes each which, on direct inquiry, reported themselves as having none; and its data admittedly came in large part from the