The members of the Philological Society threw themselves eagerly into the plan proposed for supplying these deficiencies, and an army of volunteers set about the systematic examination of the whole body of English literature. At length a dictionary was projected (in place of the supplement first suggested, which it was realized would be much larger than the works it was designed to supplement), and Mr. Herbert Coleridge was appointed editor. Fresh volunteers were enlisted, and the work made progress. But it could hardly have taken shape without the tireless industry and indomitable courage of the next editor, Dr. Furnivall, who saw, but did not shrink from, the immense preparatory labours yet to be faced. Furnivall realized that an English Dictionary could not be made until the roots of the language could be examined in the mass of our early literature, which was then hardly known; and to provide this essential he founded in 1864 the _Early English Text Society_—the long list of whose publications, still growing, may be read in the Clarendon Press Catalogue. But even the enthusiasm of a Furnivall did not avail to prevent a growing sense of despondency, when the work seemed to lengthen out indefinitely with no promise of performance. No private publisher could be found to undertake a work so vast. It was decided to invite the co-operation of the Clarendon Press. The Philological Society and Dr. James Murray, who had thrown himself into the work with an energy equal to Furnivall’s own, and was by acclamation designated as editor, entered into negotiations with the Delegates of the Press, and an agreement was signed. It is fortunate that the magnitude of human undertakings is seldom perceived by those who engage upon them. Coleridge had intimated that it would be time to begin the Dictionary when a hundred thousand quotations had been pigeon-holed. The efforts of Furnivall and Murray brought the total to three and a half million quotations, selected by thirteen hundred readers from the works of five thousand authors. The work of accumulation has gone on for forty years since, and to-day the Dictionary contains about one and three-quarter million _printed_ quotations, selected from a greatly larger number. Dr. Murray himself agreed with the Delegates for a work of between 6,000 and 7,000 pages. The total will exceed 15,000. He expected to complete the book in ten years with a small staff. To-day, thirty-five years after printing began, the work, to which Murray himself contributed more than 7,000 pages, is being carried on by three editors with twelve assistants; and the end is not yet.