In almost every monastery there was at least one especially expert scribe who was selected partly because of his scholarship, and partly because of his skill in penmanship. Outside of the time set apart for religious exercises the scribe devoted almost his whole time to the work of copying and multiplying books. At a time when there were no printed books we can easily imagine the important part played by the scribe in the educational life of the monastery. Not only did the scribes produce the necessary books for class use, but by their indefatigable industry they preserved those valuable relics of the past—a large mass of historical records and numerous specimens of the literature of ancient times. To copy a book was considered a highly meritorious work, especially if it were a part of the Scriptures, or any other book on sacred or devotional subjects.[292] The scribe was therefore highly honoured. The Brehon Laws prescribed the same penalty for the murder of a scribe as for that of an abbot or bishop and, as we pointed out,[293] the Annals in recording the death of a man otherwise learned or eminent whether bishop, abbot, priest, or lay professor considered it an enhancement of his dignity to add that he was an excellent scribe, _scribhneoir tocchaidhe_. The _Four Masters_ record the obits of 61 eminent scribes before the year 900 A.D. of whom 40 lived between 700 and 800 A.D. One has only to glance at some of the MSS. that have come down to us to realise what excellent penmen these ancient scribes were. Such skill could only be acquired after years of careful training. As will be shown later the scribe was an accomplished artist as well as an expert penman. IRISH SCRIPT: