It is many years since I felt the desideratum which Mr. Edgell has brought before the public;{2} and, by way of testing the practicability of transcribing, and printing the parochial registers of the entire kingdom in a form convenient for reference, I made an alphabetical transcript of my own, which is now complete. The _modus operandi_ which I adopted was this:--1. I first transcribed, on separate slips of paper, each baptismal entry, with its date, and a reference to the page of the register, tying up the slips in the order in which the names were entered in the register; noting, as I proceeded, on _another_ paper, the number of males and females in each year. 2. The slips being thus arranged, they came in their places handy for collation with the original. I then collated each, year by year; during the process depositing the slips one by one in piles alphabetically, according to the initial letter of the surnames. 3. This done, I sorted each pile in an order as strictly alphabetical as that used in dictionaries or ordinary indices. 4. I then transcribed them into a book, in their order, collating each page as the work proceeded. 5. I then took the marriages in hand, adopting the same plan; entering each of these twice, viz. both under the husband's and the wife's name. 6. Next, the burials, on the same plan. 7. I then drew up statistical tables of the number of baptisms, marriages, and burials in each year, males and females separately where the register appeared badly kept, making notes of the fact, and adding such observations as occasionally seemed necessary. 8. I then drew up lists of vicars, transcripts of miscellaneous records of events, and other casual entries that appeared in the register.[1] I noted, as I went on, the time occupied in each of these operations. It was as follows:-- 1. The first transcripts on slips, with addition of statistical tables-- Baptisms 2004 Marriages, 420, each twice 840 Burials 1244 ____ Total 4088 ... 551/2 hours. 2. Collecting and filing alphabetically 23 ---- 3. Sorting in strict alphabetical order 131/4 ---- 4. Transcribing into book 911/2 ---- 5. Copying statistical tables into book 5 ---- Transcripts of miscellaneous entries, lists of vicars, &c. &c. 7 ---- ______ Total 1951/4 hours. My registers begin in the year 1558, and the present population of the parish is about 420, so that you have here an account of the labour necessary to complete an alphabetical transcript of the register of a rural parish of that extent in population.