a company of varlets, who
pretended to be scholars, shuffled themselves in, and did act much
villany in the university by thieving, whoring, quarrelling, &c. They
lived under no discipline, neither had they tutors; but only for
fashion's sake would sometimes thrust themselves into the schools at
ordinary lectures, and when they went to perform any mischief, then
would they be accounted scholars, that so they might free themselves
from the jurisdiction of the burghers." p. 206. If we allow three
varlets to one scholar, the university will still have been very fully
frequented by the latter.

[830] Tiraboschi, t. iv. p. 47. Azarius, about the middle of the
fourteenth century, says the number was about 13,000 in his time.
Muratori, Script. Rer. Ital. t. xvi. p. 325.

[831] Villaret, Hist. de France, t. xvi. p. 341. This may perhaps
require to be taken with allowance. But Paris owes a great part of its
buildings on the southern bank of the Seine to the university. The
students are said to have been about 12,000 before 1480. Crevier, t. iv.
p. 410.

[832] Tiraboschi, t. iv. p. 43 and 46.

[833] The earliest authentic mention of Cambridge as a place of
learning, if I mistake not, is in Matthew Paris, who informs us, that in
1209, John having caused three clerks of Oxford to be hanged on
suspicion of murder, the whole body of scholars left that city, and
emigrated, some to Cambridge, some to Reading, in order to carry on
their studies (p. 191, edit. 1684). But it may be conjectured with some
probability, that they were led to a town so distant as Cambridge by the
previous establishment of academical instruction in that place. The
incorporation of Cambridge is in 1231 (15 Hen. III.), so that there is
no great difference in the legal antiquity of our two universities.

[834] Crevier, Hist. de l'Universite de Paris, t. ii. p. 216; t. iii. p.
140.

[835] Pfeffel, Abrege Chronologique de l'Hist. de l'Allemagne, p. 550,
607.

[836] Rymer, t. vi. p. 292.

[837] Crevier, t. ii. p. 398.

[838] Crevier and Villaret, passim.

[839] Brucker, Hist. Crit. Philosophiae, t. iii. p. 678.

[840] Id. Ibid. Tiraboschi conceives that the translations of Aristotle
made by command of Frederic II. were directly from the Greek, t. iv. p.
145; and censures Brucker for the contrary opinion. Buhle, however
(Hist. de la Philosophie Moderne, t. i. p. 696), appears to agree with
Brucker. It is almost certain that versions were made from the A