In 1899 Dr. C. W. Eastman read a paper before the Modern Language Association, in which he maintained that of all Scott's novels Ivanhoe served Hauff most completely as the source of his historical romance, Lichtenstein. In 1903 this claim was disputed by Dr. W. H. Carruth, who thro the same channel advanced his reasons for believing that Waverley and not Ivanhoe was the model in question. A year later Max Schuster in a monograph discussed Hauff's relation to his historical sources; and almost simultaneously the whole problem of his historical and literary dependence was treated by Max Drescher. Incisive and scholarly as these inquiries are, it has seemed to us in the light of our own studies that one phase of the matter still offered opportunity for further investigation. The evidence of Hauff's attitude toward Walter Scott is by no means meagre or indirect; and we have never been able to persuade ourselves that this specific relation has been adequately determined. In any case it is insufficient merely to ask whether Waverley or Ivanhoe was the prototype, or, as Drescher did, arbitrarily to choose only six of Scott's novels for comparison. The situation demanded rather a most careful study of all the works to which Hauff had access, and an equally careful analysis of the evidence thus obtained.

In his discussion in Laokoon of the limits of poetry Lessing declares that detailed description of bodies in space is unpoetical. He justifies his contention that progressive actions are the peculiar subject of poetry by reference (1) to the means of poetry and (2) to the practice of Homer, all of whose descriptions he affirms are progressive. Many critics have not been satisfied with Lessing's limitation of poetry to progressive actions, and have attacked his conclusions by showing (1) that his conception of the means of poetry is inadequate, (2) that Homer contains a number of descriptions of objects in space. Taking as a starting point Lessing's position in regard to these descriptions, I think it possible to explain on a psychological basis the reason for Lessing's assertion that the poet would better not attempt to describe objects in space, except by the Homeric device of substituting progression for co-existence.

With the publication of Luther's manuscripts of the Bible translations in the Weimar edition of his works, a veritable mine has been opened to the investigators of Luther's language. These manuscripts were written in the years 1523-1530; Zerbster Handschrift, 1523; Berliner Handschrift, 1523-1524; Heidelberger Handschrift, 1527-1528; Gothaer Handschrift, 1530; etc. Luther began intensive work upon his translation of the Old Testament immediately after the appearance of the revision of the New Testament, 1522. He had profited from a closer study of the earlier editions, of the sources, and of German life and language, before he entered upon his monumental work. He had also attained to a more philosophical view of life and had become more skilled in the art of translation.