acing pedigrees or going on crusade, cutting our way
through virgin forests or filling herbaceous borders in our mind, or we
may even descend into the pyramid of Cheops.

Our book-hunter has a friend whose hobby takes the form of tracing the
parentage and posterity of men who lived long years ago. They are mostly
unknown to fame, and their names are only to be found in ancient peerages
and suchlike books. Whether they were good or bad, religious or wicked,
useful to their country or indifferent, handsome or ugly, is immaterial
to him. In some cases they founded families that have endured, in others
they perished with all their kindred within a century of the Norman
Conquest. But to our genealogist they are very living people. He is
intimately acquainted with the most of them, no less than with their
wives and children, their fathers and grandfathers, their uncles and
their aunts. As to the personal characteristics of Reginald Fitz-Ranulf
lord of Bosham Castle in Com. Ebor, or his deeds or memorable actions
(if, indeed, he ever perpetrated any) this student is unable to enlighten
us. But that his wife was called Gunnora and that she was a daughter and
co-heir of Richard de Tourville, he is quite positive. Apparently they
had two sons, Fulk and Waleran, but our friend is strongly of opinion
that Hamon FitzReginald (who had a moiety of the manor of Worthleys and
was co-parcener with Payn FitzGeoffrey lord of Buncombe) was really a son
of Reginald by a former wife.

The memory of this eager student is little short of marvellous. He can
remember not only names and marriages, but at least several of the
families which owned any manor that you like to mention. He would
certainly have put to the blush Pierre d'Hozier, the great French
genealogist whose memory was so wonderful that it was said he must surely
have been present at all the marriages and baptisms in Christendom!

The library of this genealogist is a most interesting room. Many of the
books necessary for his researches are of folio size and must be ready to
hand; so they are ranged round the apartment at the level of one's waist.
On entering the room one is struck by this belt of massive volumes, the
more so when their owner takes them up casually and turns to page after
page without ever troubling to refer to the index.

An evening spent with him is quite exciting. He asks the book-hunter's
assistance over a knotty point. Several huge sheets of paper are laid
upo