The reason why we are not favoured with more information on their history in this country, by themselves, has already been hinted at in the first Lecture.¹ It is certain that the Jews had many valuable libraries in this country, which were taken from them before they were driven out of it, and were bestowed on the universities and monasteries. However, this consideration belongs properly to the second series of these Lectures, which shall be fully treated when that series is delivered. Dr. Jost is by no means correct when he says, “There is no trace of (Jewish) schools in England; no Rabbi of that country occupies a place in the annals of Jewish scholars; there was no time for study, and no ambition stimulated and encouraged those who were eager for the acquirement of knowledge.”² Not only is this statement at variance with Rabbi Solomon ben Virga’s, but also with his own. He himself says, with reference to the English Jews, “The learned amongst them prosecuted the medical sciences, yet more as an art; and they were, through their acquaintance with some secret means of cures, so celebrated, that the divines were interrupted in their wonderful cures,” &c.³ Indeed there are many statements in this historian’s productions, which must be received with a ♦considerable degree of caution. ¹ See pp. 7–11. ² “_Von Schulen ist keine Spur in England, daher auch nicht von Gelehrten; kein dortiger Rabbiner hat einen Platz in den Jüdischen Jahrbüchern der Gelehrten. Zum Studiren war keine Zeit, und keine Ehre lockte und stärkte den Wissbegierigen_” ――Geschichte der Israeliten, vol. vii., p. 165. ³ For the original refer to Appendix G. of Lecture II. ♦ ‘consirable’ replaced with ‘considerable’ There is, however, a current opinion amongst the modern English Jews, that especially “the sayings of the wise men of Norwich and of York are quoted in some of the additions made by the expounders of the Talmud.”¹ I must confess, I cannot vouch for the correctness of that opinion. I addressed once a letter on this subject to the editor of the “Jewish Chronicle,”² hoping to elicit from his numerous well-educated readers, information on the above. The learned editor seems to have mistaken the purport of my letter to him, and therefore gave an answer not at all to the purpose. It is the following given in a note:―― ¹ See p. 9. ² See Appendix I.