But the Epigraph has time-indications which are closer and more definite. There are features which, besides telling of the lapse of time, do also in some sense indicate the point of time; features in virtue of which this Legend may be said to suggest proximately its own date. The two words ‘MEC HEHT’ are archaic forms, the one of which is never, and the other rarely, found in the prose of the tenth century; indeed they were both archaic in the ninth. MEC had given place to ME, and (though less absolutely) HEHT to HÊT; but the older forms were still at the service of the poet, and Epigraphy has some share in poetic privilege. Indeed it would seem that in the time of Alfred MEC was consciously used as an archaic curiosity. There is a gold ring which I take to be contemporaneous with our Jewel, and it bears an English inscription in which MEC occurs twice. It will be described below[6]. It would be too much to say that the forms MEC HEHT convey a definite date, but they certainly fit well with the time of Alfred, and (but for that vague licence of Epigraphy) they might even be said to suggest the ninth century as the latest probable date of a work with which they are identified. It is worthy of notice that HEHT occurs in another piece of Alfred’s inditing, which I will introduce here not only for the sake of the old reduplicative verb, but also because the passage is germane to the argument, and imports an illustration of a comprehensive kind. The king prefixed to his version of Gregory’s _Pastoral Care_ a preface in prose and a prologue in verse. The prose preface was about the main purpose of his work; the poetical prologue dealt with literary matters, the authority of his text, the history of his copy, the manner of his own literary operation. It is this poetical and literary Prologue which I here quote: Þis ærendgewrit This Epistle Agustinus Augustine ofer sealtne sæ over salt sea suan brohte brought from the south ieg-buendum, to us island-dwellers, swa hit ær fore just as it erst adihtode indited had been drihtnes cempa by Christ’s doughty champion Rome papa. the pontiff of Rome. Ryhtspell monig Much rightful discourse Gregorius gleawmôd did Gregory’s glowing wit gind wôd give forth apace ðurh sefan snyttro, with skilful soul, searoðonca hord. a hoard of studious thought.