been necessary to ascertain their real indications. Among the variations in other matters, the editor has exercised his judgment
in selecting what seemed to be the most probable readings. And where it seemed a pity to omit additional particulars that were curious or interesting, though depending on doubtful or exceptional authority, these have been interpolated into the translation within brackets.
A translation however thus formed requires what the French call " justificative pieces," that the editor's authority for everything may be traced, and that he may not be thought to have developed a new Odoric out of his " moral consciousness." It seemed therefore indispensable to print a Latin text with notes of the collations made.
I had wished to print this text from the copy of Henry of Glatz, the only type of the four already discriminated which never has been printed in full ; and a transcript of the Paris MS. (No. 10 above), which was understood to be of this type, was commissioned. By some mistake, or for some unexplained reason, the transcript was made from the other Paris MS. (No. 9 above), and I have therefore been obliged to print this as my Latin text ; for the Farsetti MS. in St. Mark's (No. 26) is not correct enough for the purpose, and there were stronger reasons against using the Arundel MS. (No. 2), the only other one available to me which is not already in print. It did not suit the object to print an Italian text only, or the St. Mark's MS. (Italian No. 1 above) would have been unexceptionable.
To the Latin text, however, I have added the Italian of the Florence Palatine MS. In introducing this version, I feel tempted to borrow a formula from a late venerable personage, who presented a newly married lady to his friends as selected "not for her looks, as they saw, but because she was good." The MS. is indeed in the basest style, and has neither looks nor goodness to recommend it. But it is eminently curious, as containing so many remarkable passages which appear in no other copy of Odoric, and when one is trying to dispose of Odoric once for all it seems worthy of print. The most notable passages in which the Minor Ramusian deviates from this, as well
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