h lasted down to the
Renaissance in general use; for they formed the background of
educational resources, and from them we can estimate the standards of
teaching attained in the late fifteenth century. First the
_Catholicon_, compiled by John Balbi, a Dominican of Genoa, and
completed on 7 March 1286; a work of such importance to the age we are
considering that it was printed at Mainz as early as 1460, and there
were many editions later. Badius' at Paris, 1506, for instance, was
reprinted in 1510, 1511, 1514. In his preface Balbi announces that his
dictionary is to be on the alphabetical principle; and, what is even
more surprising to us, he goes on to explain at great length what the
alphabetical principle is. Thus: 'I am going to treat of amo and bibo.
I shall take amo before bibo, because a is the first letter in amo and
b is the first letter in bibo; and a is before b in the alphabet.
Again I have to treat of abeo and adeo. I shall take abeo before adeo,
because b is the second letter in abeo and d is the second letter in
adeo; and b is before d in the alphabet.' And so he goes on: amatus
will be treated before amor, imprudens before impudens, iusticia
before iustus, polisintheton before polissenus--the two last being
from the Greek. 'But note', he continues, 'that in polissenus, s is
the fifth letter and also the sixth, because s is repeated there. A
repetition is therefore equivalent to a double letter; and thus this
arrangement will show when l, m, n, r, s or indeed any other letter is
to be doubled. And in order that the reader may find quickly what he
seeks, whenever the first or second letter of a word is changed, we
shall mark it with azure blue.' His preface ends with an appeal. 'This
arrangement I have worked out with great labour; yet not I, but the
grace of God with me. I entreat you therefore, reader, do not contemn
my work as something rude and barbarous.'

The most striking feature of the dictionary is its etymology. Almost
every word is supplied with a derivation, often very far-fetched. Thus
glisco is derived from 'glykis, quod est dulcis; que enim dulcia sunt
desiderare solemus': gliscere therefore is equivalent to desiderare,
crescere, pinguescere and several other words. After this we are not
surprised at the following account of a dormouse. 'Glis a glisco:
quoddam genus murium quod multum dormit. Et dicitur sic quod sompnus
facit glires pingues et crescere.' Here is another piece of natural
hist