The immense number of hymn-books for congregational use, published with or without musical notation, which have appeared since the time of the Reformation, is almost overwhelming to the student, and rather increases than facilitates the labour of selecting the most noteworthy examples for a work like that in question. Here, however, valuable assistance might be obtained by a careful reference to certain works on hymnology by C. von Winterfeld, G. von Tucher, Hoffmann von Fallersleben, P. Wackernagel, and others. Although congregational singing has been especially cultivated since the time of the Reformation, it is not foreign to the Roman Catholic Church; indeed, a very interesting collection might be made of old songs with the music occasionally performed by Roman Catholic congregations. With their spiritual songs and hymns in Latin, which were composed during the Middle Ages, they had sacred songs in their vernacular language dating from a period anterior to the Reformation. After having flourished, especially in Germany during the seventeenth century, the congregational singing of the Roman Catholic Church fell gradually more and more into disuse until the present century, when attempts to revive it have been made in some of the dioceses. The oldest known Roman Catholic hymn-book in German dates from the year 1517, and was compiled by Michael Vehe. It contains seventy-four tunes, some of which were especially composed for the book; the others were old and well-known tunes. However, the most comprehensive of the old collections of sacred songs for popular use dates from the year 1625, and was compiled by the Abbot David Gregorius Corner. Among the books of this description subsequently published are several which contain songs in the German language intended to be sung by the people at the principal church festivals, in processions, pilgrimages, and also at Holy Mass. On the last-mentioned occasion a hymn was sometimes introduced after the Transubstantiation. It was also not unusual on high festivals for the priest to sing in Latin, and the people to respond in German. The musical student would do well to acquaint himself with the modern publications of Roman Catholic songs, as for instance, 'Cantica Spiritualia,' Augsburg, 1825; 'Kirchen und religiˆse Lieder aus dem 12 ten bis 15 ten Jahrhundert,' by J. Kehrein, Paderborn, 1853; the sacred songs collected by Freiherr von Ditfurth, Leipzig, 1855, and others.