se notes had gradually
accumulated on the margin of his copy of Cassiodorus, an author who
had been a favourite of his from youth, and whom he had often quoted
in his forensic speeches.

[Footnote 185: p. 492.]

The edition of Nivellius, which is evidently prepared with a view to
aid the historical rather than the theological study of the writings
of Cassiodorus, contains also the Gothic history of Jordanus (sic),
the 'Edictum Theoderici,' the letter of Sidonius describing the Court
of Theodoric II _the Visigoth_ (453-466), and the Panegyric of
Ennodius on Theodoric the Great. The letter of Sidonius is evidently
inserted owing to a confusion between the two Theodorics; and this
error has led many later commentators astray. But the reprint of the
'Edictum Theoderici' is of great interest and value, because the MS.
from which it was taken has since disappeared, and none other is known
to be in existence. A letter is prefixed to the 'Edictum,' written by
Pierre Pithou to Edouard Mole, Dec. 31, 1578, and describing his
reasons for sending this document to the publisher who was printing
the works of Cassiodorus. At the same time, 'that the West might not
have cause to envy the East,' he sent a MS. of the 'Leges
Wisigothorum,' with illustrative extracts from Isidore and Procopius,
which is printed at the end of Nivellius' edition.

I express no opinion about the text of this edition; but it possesses
the advantage of an Index to the 'Variae' only, which will be found at
the end of the Panegyric of Ennodius. Garet's Index, which is in
itself not so full, has the additional disadvantage of being muddled
up with the utterly alien matter of the Tripartite History.

In 1588 appeared an edition in 4to. of the works of Cassiodorus (still
excluding the Tripartite History and the Biblical Commentaries),
published at Paris by Marc Orry. This was republished in 1600 in two
volumes 12mo.

The 'Variae' and 'Chronicon' only, in 12mo. were published at Lyons by
Jacques Chouet in 1595, and again by Pierre and Jacques Chouet at
Geneva in 1609, and by their successors in 1650. These editions
contain the notes of Pierre Brosse, Jurisconsult, as well as those of
Fornerius.

[Sidenote: Edition of Garet.]

In 1679 appeared, in two volumes folio, the great Rouen edition by
Francois Jean Garet (of the Congregation of S. Maur), which has ever
since been the standard edition of the works of Cassiodorus. Garet
speaks of collating several MSS.