word for word, and at one
view to be seen and read."

Second: "The New Testament in twenty-four languages," each language
written in its proper characters;

Third: "The Gospel of St. John in as many languages as there are chapters
(_i.e._ each chapter in a different language), and interpreted word for
word into Latin or English."

These were not printed books, but all in the handwriting of young Ferrar,
who at the early age of twenty-one had apparently mastered twenty-four
languages.

This brief sketch must now be brought to a close, with the hope that it
may prove interesting to some who are unable to peruse the longer
narratives on the same subject, and which are, indeed, very scarce at the
present time. Should the writer's hopes be fulfilled, it will surely be
to them, as it is to him, a matter of great satisfaction that at least a
part of the work carried on at Little Gidding should have been of such a
permanent nature that, after 250 years, the result can still be seen and
enjoyed almost in its original freshness, and can, indeed, be actually
used for its original purpose.

The workmanship of the Concordances was so excellent in every detail,
even to the paste used for their construction, that the volumes may well
last for another period of 250 years. And as we turn over their pages
and admire the method, the neatness, and the skilful design therein
exhibited, our thoughts are carried back to the days and the scenes of
their creation, and we picture to ourselves more vividly the happy and
religious family which day by day met in the great Concordance room, the
well-ordered procession wending its way to the little church at their
gate, the meals in the great hall, enlivened only by the "historical
anecdote, easy and delightful," the daily repetition of David's Psalms,
and the frequent singing to the organ, which was tuned so low as to be a
disturbance to no one, and the words of the hymn which was frequently
sung every day--

"So angels sing, and so sing we,
To God on high all glory be,
Let Him on earth His peace bestow,
And unto men His favour show."

But though our fancy naturally dwells on the younger and more active
members, we must by no means forget the mother of the family, the source
of all the virtues exhibited in her children and grandchildren.

Living to the age of seventy-nine, Mrs. Ferrar "at her dying day had no
infirmity and scarce any sign of old age upon her." "There w