09 psalms,--which were mainly allotted to the night services,
i.e. to those which were afterwards called Mattins,--and the rest which
were mainly allotted to the Evening Service (Vespers). We suppose that
the division, mentioned in the {43} Preface, "into seven portions"
refers to those 109 Psalms.

Of these 109, 18 were used at other Services, leaving 91 for Mattins,
viz. 19 on Sunday and 12 each for the week days. The Ambrosian
arrangement of them was for a fortnight.

The Greek Church divides the whole Book into 20 portions and takes
them, two portions at Mattins and one at Vespers, beginning on Saturday
night, omitting Sunday Vespers, and taking, on Friday, the 19th, 20th
and 18th portions.

Thus we see that a weekly singing of the Book of Psalms is derived from
a very ancient time, when the division of the Eastern and Western
Churches of Europe had not occurred.

The Sarum order, which we suppose was that which is referred to in the
Preface as having been "corrupted" by omissions, had the 109 Psalms
allotted to Mattins, as above described. For Vespers, there were five
each day from cx.-cxlvii., omitting the 118th and 119th, 134th, 143rd
and, as explained below[3], reckoning the 147th as two. All these were
taken in order as they stand in the Bible. Those which were left out
were allotted to other Services, as, for instance, iv. to Compline,
lxiii. to Lauds, &c., &c. Psalm cxix. was to be said through every
day, 32 verses at Prime, and 48 verses each, at Terce, Sext and None.

{44}

Lauds was the great Praise Service of the day, and had a very beautiful
arrangement of its Psalms which always ended with one of the O.T. hymns
followed by Psalms cxlviii.-cl. The O.T. hymns on the seven days of
the week were _Benedicite_: Isaiah xii.: Isaiah xxxviii. 10-20: 1 Sam.
ii. 1-10: Exodus xv. 1-19: Hab. iii.: Deut. xxxii. 1-43.

The beauty of many of these arrangements is undeniable: but they were
rather intricate; and in practice they broke down.

Our revisers retained the underlying principles. By spreading the
course over 30 days they made it possible to use it all. They retained
the 95th Psalm as the first Psalm of every day; and also the principle
of having two daily Services at which Psalms occupied an important
place.

There are Special Psalms for six days in the year--the four great
Festivals, Christmas, Easter, Ascension, and Whitsun Day, and the two
great prayer-days, Ash-Wednesday and Good Friday.