ne, of
Margan, of Meiros, of Waverley, etc.; some of which are anonymous
compilations, whilst others have the name of an author, or rather
transcriber; for very few aspired to the character of authors or
original historians. Thomas Wikes, a canon of Oseney, who
compiled a Latin chronicle of English affairs from the Conquest
to the year 1304, tells us expressly, that he did this, not
because he could add much to the histories of Bede, William of
Newburgh, and Matthew Paris, but "propter minores, quibus non
suppetit copia librorum." (25) Before the invention of printing,
it was necessary that numerous copies of historical works should
be transcribed, for the instruction of those who had not access
to libraries. The transcribers frequently added something of
their own, and abridged or omitted what they thought less
interesting. Hence the endless variety of interpolators and
deflorators of English history. William of Malmsbury, indeed,
deserves to be selected from all his competitors for the
superiority of his genius; but he is occasionally inaccurate, and
negligent of dates and other minor circumstances; insomuch that
his modern translator has corrected some mistakes, and supplied
the deficiencies in his chronology, by a reference to the "Saxon
Chronicle". Henry of Huntingdon, when he is not transcribing
Bede, or translating the "Saxon Annals", may be placed on the
same shelf with Geoffrey of Monmouth.

As I have now brought the reader to the period when our
"Chronicle" terminates, I shall dismiss without much ceremony the
succeeding writers, who have partly borrowed from this source;
Simon of Durham, who transcribes Florence of Worcester, the two
priors of Hexham, Gervase, Hoveden, Bromton, Stubbes, the two
Matthews, of Paris and Westminster, and many others, considering
that sufficient has been said to convince those who may not have
leisure or opportunity to examine the matter themselves, that
however numerous are the Latin historians of English affairs,
almost everything original and authentic, and essentially
conducive to a correct knowledge of our general history, to the
period above mentioned, may be traced to the "Saxon Annals".

It is now time to examine, who were probably the writers of these
"Annals". I say probably, because we have very little more than
rational conjecture to guide us.

The period antecedent to the times of Bede, except where passages
were afterwards inserted, was perhaps little el