The Religious Tract Society, usually abbreviated RTS, was founded in 1799 and primarily aimed to produce and distribute affordable religious tracts to promote evangelical Christianity among Britain’s working classes during the 19th century. Many of these books are still interesting today as they deal with travel and exploration. Here below two examples; an early and a late 19th century one.
1) Missionary Records. Sandwich Islands.
Author: Anonymous
Year: 1839
Edition: First edition
Publisher: London; The Religious Tract Society
Printed by John Hill, Black Horse Court, Fleet Street. Contemporary binding of 3/4 calf over marbled boards, 12mo, half title, title, pp. xii, (1), 1 (map), 356. Complete with the map of the Sandwich Islands. One table within the text. The spine divided into five compartments by four raised bands, gilt, with the titles in the second and fourth compartments.
The binding rubbed and the corners bumped. A handwritten remark on the front pastedown, a stamp on the second ffep and a different stamp on the title page. No other library marks. The first page of the main text with some offsetting from the map and some foxing, the rest of the text very clean. Page 179 misnumbered 779.
An often overlooked, yet important book on Hawaii, describing effects of the first intercourse between white men and natives, description of the geographical and physical pecularities of Hawaii and the other islands, physical character and number of the islanders, natural history, discovery of the island by James Cook, impressions produced by the event on the minds of Captain Cook and his companians, the arrival of the king of the islands and his visit to captain Cook’s ship, the death of Cook and subsequent intercourse between the natives and foreigners. The start of the Christening of the island population, the arrival of the first missionaries from America, the structure of the goverment of the islands, description of the gods worshipped by the natives, former island wars, arms and weapons, establishment of schools, the first newspaper in the Sandwich Islands, etc., etc.
A rare, interesting and important book with only one auction record in ABPC (Swann, 1979) and another one in RBH.
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2) Our journey to Sinai
Author: Bensly, Mrs. R.L.
Year: 1896
Edition: First edition
Publisher: Oxford, The Religious Tract Society
Bensly, Mrs. R.L. (Agnes Dorothee Bensly von Blumberg). Subtitled: A visit to the convent of St. Catarina.
First edition, 8vo, pp. 174, 16 (publisher’s ads). Original blue boards with decorated endpapers.
After the discovery of an early and important palimpsest*, containing a Syriac text of the four gospels, in Saint Catharine’s Monastery by Mrs. Lewis and Mrs. Gibson, Mr. Bensly visited the same convent in the company of his wife and a few others, amongst which Mrs. Gibson. After their return to England this book was written by Mrs. Bensly.
Original blue cloth with gilt still bright both on spine and boards. Some light wear to the corners and the head of the spine as well as some very minor rubbing to the boards. Small bookseller’s ticket of Goulden & Curry, Royal Library, Tunbridge Wells at the lower inner corner of the front pastedown. Interior very clean, illustrated with 14 b/w photographs about Egypt and the Sinai desert, some of which are full page with a blank reverse side, while others are in the text.
* Palimpsest: A manuscript on parchment or papyrus, which has been eraded respectively washed and which has been reused, usually containing a part of the New Testament. The later (newer) text often, but not always, is of less interest to us.
References:
R.L. Bensly, J. Rendel Harris, F.C. Burkitt, The Four Gospels in Syriac transcribed from the Sinaitic Palimpsest with an introduction by A.S. Lewis. Cambridge 1894; Cambridge University Press. xlvi, [2], 318 pp., 1 : front. (facsims.)
F.C. Burkitt, Evangelion da-Mepharreshe: the Curetonian version of the four Gospels, with the readings of the Sinai palimpsest and the early Syriac patristic evidence edited, collected and arranged (with literal translations of text and variants), 2 vol. University Press: Cambridge, 1904. xix + 556; vii + 322pp.
A.S. Lewis, The Old Syriac Gospels or Evangelion Da‑Mepharreshê; being the text of the Sinai or Syro-Antiochene Palimpsest, including the latest Additions and Emendations, with the Variants of the Curetonian Text, Corroborations from many other MSS., and a list of Quotations from Ancient Authors. London 1910; Williams & Norgate, lxxviii + v + 334pp.
Biblio: Weber I, 988.
The S.P.C.K., the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge already was founded back in 1698 and is considered to be the oldest Anglican Mission organisation in the world. Throughout its existence it published many books, like the ones here below.
1) Mauritius; or The Isle of France: being an account of the island, its history, geography, products and inhabitants.
Author: Flemyng, Rev. Francis P.
Year: 1862
Edition: First edition
Publisher: London, S.P.C.K.
No date, but April 1862 to preface; 16mo, xiv, 15-256, iv (ads), foldout map, dated 1862 plus frontis, protected by tissue guard, 3 other fullpage plates and 14 smaller engravings. Complete.
Original blue cloth with black border and gilt decorated spine; royal blue endpapers. An account of the Colony and Island of Mauritius, which has in part been compiled from old and voluminous works, such as Baron Grant’s account, Montgomery Martin’s and other valuable and authentic sources, the remainder being the result of observations made by the author when military chaplain in 1854. The illustrations are partly selected from a portfolio of sketches made at the same time. Overall in very good condition with little wear to head and tail of spine and lightly bumped corners, top edges darkened, gilt a little rubbed on a small part of the lower spine, covers a bit soiled, very light wear to extremities, “SCPK.62.2” written in top margin of frontis, small note on ffep (Tousaint D561 [= bibliographical note]), but overall very clean inside.
Mauritius is situated in the Indian Ocean, East of Madagascar. It was discovered in 1505 by the Portuguese explorer Pedro Mascarenhas, who did not claim the island on behalf of the Portuguese throne. Almost a century later, in 1598, it was claimed by Jacob van Neck on behalf of the Republic of the United Netherlands. He named it Mauritius in honor of prince Maurits, stadtholder of Holland. Nothing changed until it was occupied by the VOC (Dutch East-India Company) in 1638 and the still important sugar-culture was implemented. When the VOC lost its interest, in 1712 the French, allready present, officially took possession of the island and named it ‘Ile de France’. When the British conquered the island in 1810 they named it Mauritius again. The island became independent in 1968 as a member of the Common Wealth. Despite the fact that is has been a British colony for almost 160 years, nowadays French still is the common language being spoken at the island.
Note: It seems reasonable to assume that Rev. Francis P. Flemyng is the same as Rev. Francis Fleming, author of several books on South Africa, however, we are not absolutely sure about this (Henze only mentions Fleming and his titles on South Africa).
Although we cannot find any references in the bibliographies available to us, the book is in the 1902 “Catalogue of books on Africa” published by antiquarian book dealer Francis Edwards (Part II, Madagascar, no. 131). Here as year of publication we can find 1860, however, the preface of this copy is dated 1862, as is the map, while no reference is made to any earlier publication. Also the copy in the British Library is dated 1862 and marked as a first edition, so most probably the date in the Francis Edwards catalogue is incorrect.
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2) Papua – A handbook to its history, inhabitants, physical features, and resources, etc.
Author: Pritchard, W. Charles & R. Fleming Jones
Year: 1911
Edition: First edition
Publisher: London; S.P.C.K.
Publishers red cloth, 16mo, pp. 96, 16 (ads). ‘Papua’ in gilt on the spine, full title in black on frontboard. With a black linemarker someone has written ‘Dr. R.F. Jones’ on the spine, which name has faded. Another name plus date written in ink on the title page and an occasional dog ear.
Decorated endpapers, illustrated with a frontispiece map and 8 b/w photographs h.t.
A useful book, compiled from goverment documents by Rev. Charles Pritchard and with a medical appendix by R.F. Jones, M.D., medical officer at Samarai, Papua. Written primarily to serve as a reliable handbook for people considering to settle there and for those interested in the country.
Rare.
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