How to Make an Index

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ference, either to Hippocrates, who was the great anatomiser of the human body, or to th

li, Literary

Thus, in the seventeenth century, Joseph Glanville, writing in his Vanity of Dogmatizing, says: "Methinks 'tis a pitiful piece of knowledge that can be learnt from an index, and a poor ambition to be rich in the inventory of another's treasure." Dr. Watts alluded to those whose "learning

Index, by which the whole book is governed and turned, like fishes by the tail. For to enter the palace of Learning at the great gate, requires an expense of time and forms; therefore men of much haste and little ceremony are content to get in by the back-door. For, the Arts are all in a flying march, and therefore more easily subdued by attacking them in the rear...

y are termed impedimenta. Without this a large author is but a labyrinth without a clue to direct the reader therein. I confess there is a lazy kind of learning which is only indical, when scholars (like adders which only bite the horses' heels) nibble but at the tables, which are calces librorum,

eless lumber. In this case his object is only to know where he can find the information when he wants it. Indexes are of the greatest help to these men, and for their purposes the indexes ought to be well made. But it is needless to labour this point, for has not Johnson, in his clear and virile language,

tances, be arranged in the order of the book, like a table of contents, or it may be classified or chronological; but the index to a book such as we

in sending certain volumes to his friend Lucilius, accompanied them with notes of particular passages, so that he "who only aimed at the useful might be spared the trouble of examining them entire." Cicero used the word

Michel's Ayenbite of Inwyt (1340) there is a very full table w

ime to take this step. Alphabetical indexes of names are to be found in some old manuscript books, but it may be said that the gene

is time arrangement in alphabetical order was by no means considered indi

"inventory," "register," "summary," "syllabus." In time it beat all its compani

given in Liddell and Scott's Lexicon, is, "A register, or list." The late Sir T. Duffus Hardy, in some observations on the derivation of the word "Pye-Book," remarks that the earliest use he had noted of pye i

ord "syllabus." Index was not generally acknowledged as

"two Tables in the ende of this booke"; but the tables themselves, which were compiled by Abraham Fleming, being lists of the Latin and French words, are headed "Index." Between these two tables, in the edition of 1580, is "an Abecedarie, Index or Table" of Proverbs. The word "index" is not included i

as frequently differentiated from the analytical table: for instance, Dugdale's Warwickshire contains an "Index of Towns and Places," and a "Table of men's names and matters of most note"; and Scobell's Acts and Ordinances of Parliament (1640-1656), published 1658, has "An Alphabetical Table of the most material contents of the whole book," preceded by "An Index of the general titles comprized in the ensuing Table." There

t was the custom to derive our words from the Latin accusative. The Italian word indice was from the accusative, and this word was used by Ben Jonson when he wrote, "too much talking is ever the indice of a fool" (Discoveries, ed. 1

"index" as

sping guiltie to

prove the inde

Epistle, l

t the beginning of a book rather than as an alphab

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action: for

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d III.,

ural-"indexes"-instead of "indices," which even now some writers insist on using. No word can be considered as thoroughly naturalised that is allowed to take the plural form of the language from which it is

dorn. John Florio's translation of Montaigne's Essays contains "An Index or Table directing to many of the principal matters and personages mentioned in this Booke,"

etter tha

to some

ikes, Docible, Capable of Military Order, of Affections, of Justice, o

and Book

table as Conference-

tures have

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Usefulnesse of Experimental Natural Philosophy (Oxford, 1663). This book is divided into two parts, and at the end of eac

Vergil in Anglic? Histori? (1556), has what may fairly be called a good index-thirty-seven pages. This may be taken as a starting-point as to date; and we may ask for earlier example

der the title of Histrio-Mastix (1633), which is absolutely unreadable by reason of the vast mass of authorities gathered from every century and ever

which all the attacks upon a calling that received the sanction of the Court were arranged in a convenient form for reference. Attorney-General Noy found that the author himself had forged the weapons which he (the prosecutor) could use in the attack. This is proved

, f. the folioes from pag. 513 to 545 (which exceeded the Printer's computation), m. the marginall notes: if you fi

one-sided in their accusations that it is wo

asure, infamous, unlawfull and that as well in Princes, N

inventors of Tragedies-his

ughed-a puritan-dishonoured an

when men go to plays

stage plays and dancing. Have stage

stage pla

ten in theater by a

ter of a theater among the Jews

pture and God's name in Playes-his Statutes mak

m to act or frequent Pl

ge plays. All the Roman ac

okes see

s infam

sts and most despera

st and lewdest persons

nting unl

rs and others, the Devil's templ

God's judgements on th

alled so....-Christ, his prophets, apostles, the Fathers and Primitive christians Puritans as men now judged

ble nickname of Chri

verturned b

ladies were specially attracted to the stage. Prynne's book was published six weeks before Henrietta Maria acted in

State Trials, vol.

eake publikely on a stage perchance in man's apparell and cut haire here proved sinfull and abominable in the presence o

. Jo. Pory wrote to Sir Thomas Puckering on September 20th, 1632: "That which the Queen's Majesty, some of her ladies and all her maides of honour are now practicin

ar Chamber, for publishing a Booke (a little before the Queene's acting of her play) of the unlawfullness of Plaies wherein in the Table of his Booke and his brief additions

Maria to presume that these words refer to her, and he adds that the supposition reminds him of Victor Hugo's sarcasm respecting Napoleon II

n respecting the stage in his own day, which we should have welcomed; but, inste

rom facts. Such indexes required a special skill in the indexer, who was usually the original author. There is

ould add an index rerum, that when the reader recollects any incident, he may easily find it, which at present he cannot do, unless he knows in which volume it is told; for Clarissa is not a performance to be read with eagerness

a considerable length. In September, 1753, Johnson again wrote to Richardson suggesting the propriety of making an index to his three works, but he added: "While I am writing an obj

entitled, A Collection of the moral and instructive Sentiments, Maxims, Cautions, and Reflexions co

k of indexing, and in the early part of his career had filled up his leisure hours by compiling indexes for the booksellers and writing prefaces and dedications. At the end of his "collect

ays he wrote: "I intend to make an index to it." Two years later he is grateful that the work of indexing another book is to be done for him; writing to Millar (December 18th, 1

lliam Strahan, edited by G. Bir

task. He told Dr. Goodhart, apropos of the Hunterian Museum Catalogues, Colleg

t's Life

it would not be fair to introduce it with the work of the bad indexer, as

ils. The musician who consults the work will be surprised at this unexpected development of these two famous authors' powers, but will be disappointed on referring to the numbers cited to find that they are reports of some

dds: "After many years of constant use of the catalogue, th