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INTRODUCTION.
THE English legend of the 3 Kings must have been very popular: many MSS. are still extant, many more are lost, as those interlinking the several versions. The existing MSS. can be divided into 3 groups: 1. MS. Royal, 18 A X, fol. 87, and Cott. Vespas., E. XVI, a literal copy of the former, though written by a northmidland scribe. 2. MS. Cambr. Univ. Libr., Ee IV, 2; Cott. Titus A XXV, and Douce 301; MS. at Bedford (written in 1442); Patrik Papers 43; Cambr. Kk 1, 3; Ashm. 59. 3. MS. Harl. 1704. Of these, MS. Vesp. is incomplete at the end (it ends, fol. 69, with "mete to," = Royal, p. 153, 24); Douce wants the first and the last, and several other leaves; Harl. 3 leaves, in Chapters 26, 32, and at the end; in MS. Cambr. Ee the first page is unreadable from blackness. Nearly all these MSS. belong to the 15th century. Besides, there exist several old prints, by W. de Worde: London, 1499? (date om.), 1511 (title: The thre Kynges of Coleyne, Imprynted MCCCCCXI), 1526 (Imprynted at London in Fletestrete at the sygne of the sonne by Wynkyn de Worde, The yere of our lorde god MCCCCCI and XXVI), 1530 (Colophon: This was brought unto me in englysshe of an olde translacyon rugh and rude, and requyred to amend it, I thought lesse labour to wryte newe the whole. I beseche you take all unto the best and praye for the olde wretched brother of Syon Rycharde Whytforde), and an edition without date (Emprynted at Westmester by Wynkyn de Worde). [The Brit. Mus. has only the ed. of 1499, an imperfect copy of which is in the Bodl. It is based on the text of MS. Cambr., showing the same omissions, but it alters freely. A copy of the 2nd ed. is extant in Cambr., Public libr.]
None of the existing MSS. contains the original text: they are all transcripts, and more or less corrupted. The 2nd group