Publishers’ Circular (1880-1890), 1st February 1884, Edition 1 of 1, Page 124

THE CLARENDON PRESS . 3 ST O "W READ Y . Part I . A—ANT ( pp . xvi , 352 ) . Price 12 s . 6 d . A NEW ENGLISH DICTIONARY , ON HISTORICAL PRINCIPLES : Founded mainly on the Materials collected by the Philological Society . EDITED BY JAMES Jl . H . MURRAY , LL . D . PRESIDENT OF THE PHILOLOGICAL SOCIETY ; WITH THE ASSISTANCE OF MANY SCHOLARS AND MEN OF SCIENCE . fTlHE object of the New English Dictionary is to present , as concisely as possible , J- the history of every word , and of all the different uses of every word in the written language , not omitting those which are now obsolete . In order to ensure complete accuracy and thoroughness , it has been judged desirable , instead of adopting the traditional and often erroneous instances contained in existing dictionaries , to make an entirely fresh selection of representative extracts from the original works themselves . To gather together this fresh and trustworthy material—in other words , to lay a secure and adequate foundation for the fabric of English lexicography—has been the task of five-and-twenty years , and of more than 1 , 300 readers , working under the superintendence of the London Philological Society . Over 5 , 000 of the chief English writers of all ages , and at least four times as many separate works , ha . ve been laid under contribution ; and some idea of the bulk of the material which j the Editor has drawn upon may be formed from the fact that more than 3 , 000 , 000 distinct quotations , each complete in itself , have been placed at his disposal , of which | about a third part will be finally included in the Dictionary . Every passage is furnished , with a precise date and reference for the purpose of verification , as shown in the specimen words printed on the opposite page . Nor has the principle of co-operation been confined to the collection of the raw material . The Editor , though even the minutest details of the work have p assed under his eye , has freely availed himself of the services of students of English , of other branches of knowledge bearing thereon , in all parts of the world . The Ne ^ Dictionary , therefore , will represent in a condensed form the accumulated knowledg e of very many of the first scholars of our time ; and will , if the expectations of its promoters are realised , be found in all respects abreast of the actual state of science-The Editor has sought to give such results only as are beyond dispute , avoiding allow rash each speculation word , as and far all as dogmatism possible , to on tell doubtful its own points story , . by His careful object selection has been of the * ° j I-. / ifl ^ H

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