Henceforward, the manual of 1859 was not only incomplete, it had also been demonstrated to be incorrect. In 1869, therefore, a much larger volume was published by Rev. W. R. Brownlow and myself, founded upon the new discoveries. This also was favourably received by the public; the first English edition was soon exhausted, and translations were made both in France and Germany. A second and enlarged edition is now in course of preparation, which will embody the most interesting and important parts of De Rossi’s third volume, which has only just appeared. Meanwhile, however, there is need of a short manual, which shall be a safe guide to those who only desire to become acquainted with the leading features of the subject, according to the present condition of our knowledge of it; and with this view I have compiled the following pages, at a time when ill health has necessitated the suspension of more arduous labours. They do not pretend to give a complete account either of the past history or present condition of the Catacombs, but merely a correct outline of the whole, so that those who would pursue the study further shall, at least, have nothing to unlearn. I have called the volume “A visit to the Roman Catacombs,” because it describes the principal objects of interest which are to be seen in the visit now usually paid by educated travellers to the Catacomb of St. Callixtus. To this, however, I have prefixed half a dozen chapters, which make, in fact, three-fourths of the whole work, and in which I have condensed the information which every visitor ought to have before he descends into these subterranean crypts. Unless he has some general idea of what the Catacombs really are, how they came to be made, when and how they were used, and what they contain, he will derive but little pleasure or profit from what he sees in them. I hope, therefore, that this volume will not only be a valuable guide to those who are able to visit the Catacombs, but also a useful introduction to the whole subject for all classes. Those who desire to study it more profoundly must have recourse to De Rossi’s learned volumes, or to the English abridgment of them. ST. DOMINIC’S, STONE, _September 1877_.