THEREGIONOFTHEMA
CRONESFORMEDANAL
LIANCEWITHTHEM.AS
T HEPLEDGEOFTHEIR
FAITHTHEBARBARIANS
GAVEASPEAR.

The Greeks, especially in the earliest times, divided their compositions
into verses, or such short portions of sentences as we mark by a comma,
each verse occupying a line; and the number of these verses is often set
down at the beginning or end of a book. The numbers of the verses were
sometimes placed in the margin.

Much intricacy and difficulty attends the subject of ancient
punctuation; nor could any satisfactory account of the rules and
exceptions that have been gathered from existing MSS. be given, which
should subserve the intention of this work. Generally speaking, though
with frequent exceptions, the most ancient books have no separation of
words, or punctuation of any kind; others have a separation of words,
but no punctuation; in some, every word is separated from the following
one by a point. In manuscripts of later date are found a regular
punctuation, and marks of accentuation. These circumstances enter into
the estimate when the antiquity of a book is under inquiry; but the
rules to be observed in considering them cannot be otherwise than
recondite and intricate.

Few ancient books are altogether destitute of decorations; and many are
splendidly adorned with pictorial ornaments. These consist either of
flowery initials, grotesque cyphers, portraits, or even historical
compositions. Sometimes diagrams, explanatory of the subjects mentioned