ance.

_Koepke_, in his 'Anfaenge des Koenigthums bei den Gothen' (Berlin,
1859), has condensed into a small compass a large amount of useful
disquisition on Cassiodorus and his copyist Jordanes. The relation
between these two writers was also elaborately discussed by _von
Sybel_ in his thesis 'De Fontibus Libri Jordanis' (Berlin, 1838), and
by _Schirren_, in his monograph 'De Ratione quae inter Jordanem et
Cassiodorum intercedat' (Dorpat, 1885). The latter, though upon the
whole a creditable performance, is disfigured by one or two strange
blunders, and not improved by some displays of irrelevant learning.

_Von Schubert_, in his 'Unterwerfung der Alamannen unter die Franken'
(Strassburg, 1884), throws some useful light on the question of the
date of the early letters in the 'Variae;' and _Binding_, in his
'Geschichte des Burgundisch-Romanischen Koenigreichs' (Leipzig, 1868),
discusses the relations between Theodoric and the Sovereigns of Gaul,
as disclosed by the same collection of letters, in a manner which I
must admit to be forcible, though I do not accept all his conclusions.

_Mommsen_, in his paper 'Die Chronik des Cassiodorus Senator' (Vol.
viii. of the 'Abhandlungen der Koeniglich Saechsischen Gesellschaft der
Wissenschaften;' Leipzig, 1861), has said all that is to be said
concerning the unfortunate 'Chronicon' of Cassiodorus, which he
handles with merciless severity.

To say that _Ebert_, in his 'Allgemeine Geschichte der Litteratur des
Mittelalters im Abendlande' (Leipzig, 1874), and _Wattenbach_, in his
'Deutschlands Geschichtsquellen im Mittelalter,' tell us with fullness
and accuracy just what the student ought to wish to know concerning
Cassiodorus as an author, is only to say that they are Ebert and
Wattenbach. Every one who has had occasion to refer to these two books
knows their merits.

Passing from German literature, I regret that I am prevented by
ignorance of the Dutch language from forming an opinion as to the work
of _Thijm_ ('Iets over M.A. Cassiodorus en zijne eeuw;' Amsterdam,
1857), which is frequently quoted by my German authorities.

_Gibbon_ of course quotes from the 'Variae,' and though he did not
know them intimately, he has with his usual sagacity apprehended the
true character of the book and of its author. But the best account of
the 'Various Letters' in English, as far as I know, is unfortunately
entombed in the pages of a periodical, being an article by Dean
_Church_, contr