Those who have impartially followed the development of comparative philology in the last twenty years will be aware of the great progress it has made in this interval. In both the scope and the nature of its work it has shown all the elasticity and creative vigour of a science that is still young in spite of its seventy years. That its diverse and scattered details need to be once again brought together under one systematic arrangement will hardly be doubted by any competent judge. The first edition of Schleicher's excellent 'Compendium' appeared in 1861, and was since twice published in a revised form by the author, the second time shortly before his death. When it was edited finally in 1876 with very few changes indeed, the two editors were already of opinion that it required complete remodelling. Thus l feel sure that the 'Elements', the first volume of which is now before the reader, meets a real need (from the introduction of 1888 edition).

Contents: Definition of the science of the Indg. languages - Differentiation of dialects (The Aryan branch - The Armenian branch - The Greek branch - The Albanian branch - The Italic branch - The Keltic branch - The Germanic branch - The Baltic-Slavonic branch) - Phonology - The sounds of the indg. primitive language - History of the separate Prim. Indg. Sounds (vowels as sonants, vowels as consonants, nasals, liquids, ablaut, explosives, spirants) - Other combinatory sound changes - Accentuation.

This re-edition has been published as no. 02 in the LINCOM Classica (LCLAS) series (originally published 1888, London: Trübner & Co).