, and that their
incumbents were bound to sign Ptolemaic articles. In
that case, with every respect for the efforts of
persons thus hampered to attain and expound the truth,
I think men of common sense would go elsewhere to learn
astronomy. Zeller's _Vortraege und Abhandlungen_ were
published and came into my hands a quarter of a century
ago. The writer's rank, as a theologian to begin with,
and subsequently as a historian of Greek philosophy, is
of the highest. Among these essays are two--_Das
Urchirstenthum_ and _Die Tuebinger historische
Schule_--which are likely to be of more use to those
who wish to know the real state of the case than all
that the official "apologists," with their one eye on
truth and the other on the tenets of their sect, have
written. For the opinion of a scientific theologian
about theologians of this stamp see pp. 225 and 227 of
the _Vortraege_.

[67] I suppose this is what Dr. Wace is thinking about when
he says that I allege that there "is no visible escape"
from the supposition of an _Ur-Marcus_ (p. 367). That a
"theologian of repute" should confound an indisputable
fact with one of the modes of explaining that fact is
not so singular as those who are unaccustomed to the
ways of theologians might imagine.

[68] Any examiner whose duty it has been to examine into a
case of "copying" will be particularly well prepared to
appreciate the force of the case stated in that most
excellent little book, _The Common Tradition of the
Synoptic Gospels_, by Dr. Abbott and Mr. Rushbrooke
(Macmillan, 1884). To those who have not passed through
such painful experiences I may recommend the brief
discussion of the genuineness of the "Casket Letters"
in my friend Mr. Skelton's interesting book, _Maitland
of Lethington_. The second edition of Holtzmann's
_Lehrbuch_, published in 1886, gives a remarkably fair
and full account of the present results of criticism.
At p. 366 he writes that the present burning question
is whether the "relatively primitive narrative and the
root of the other synoptic texts is contained in
Matthew