ory. 'Irundo ab aer dicitur: quia non residens sed in aere capiens
cibos edat, quasi in aere edens.' There is simplicity in the
following: 'Nix a nubes, quia a nube venit.' Again: 'Ouis ab offero
vel obluo: quia antiquitus in inicio non tauri sed oues in sacrificio
mactarentur. Priscianus vero dicit quod descendit a Greco ... oys.'
Besides his philology the good Dominican was also a theologian; and
when he comes to the words upon which his world was built, he cannot
dismiss them as lightly as the snow. So Antichristus has two columns,
that is to say a folio page: confiteor 11/2, conscientia 21/4, ordo 21/2,
virgo two columns.

Much light is thrown on Balbi's work by the dictionary of his
predecessor, Huguitio of Pisa, Bishop of Ferrara (d. 1210). The title
of this, _Liber deriuationum_, indicates its character. Instead of the
alphabetical principle the words are arranged according to their
etymology; all that are assigned to a given root being grouped
together. This made it necessary, or at any rate desirable, to find a
derivation for every word; and with ingenuity to aid this was done as
far as possible. Besides derivatives even compounds came under the
simple root; and in consequence it must have been extremely difficult
to find a word unless one already knew a good deal about it. It is no
wonder that the book was never printed; although it occurs frequently
in the catalogues of mediaeval libraries.

A few examples will suffice. Under capio are found capax, captiuus,
capillus, caput with all its derivatives, anceps, praeceps,
principium, caper, capus, caupo, cippus, scipio, <s>ceptrum; and even
cassis and catena. Similarly under nubo come nubes, nebula, nebulo,
nix, niger, nimpha, limpha, limpidus. With such a book as one's only
support it was clearly of the highest importance to be good at
etymology; with ouis, for instance, not to be troubled by Priscian's
fanciful derivation from the Greek, but to know that it came from
offero, and was therefore to be found under fero; or again to look for
hirundo under aer. Nor need we be surprised at the strange derivations
upon which arguments were sometimes founded: that Sprenger, the
inquisitor, could explain femina 'quia minorem habet et seruat fidem';
or the preacher over whom Erasmus' Folly makes merry, find authority
for burning heretics in the Apostle's command 'Haereticum deuita'.

We are now in a position to understand Balbi's performance in the
_Catholicon_. From th