297 Harl. Miscell., Lond., 1745, 4to, iii, 277. The full title and description of this curious tract is as follows:—“The London Printer, his Lamentation; or the Press oppressed, or over-pressed. September 1660. Quarto, containing 8 pages. In this sheet of Paper is contained, first, a short account of Printing in general, as its Usefulness, where and by whom invented; and then a Declaration of its Esteem and Promotion in England by the several Kings and Queens since its first Arrival in this Nation; together with the Methods taken by the Crown for its better Regulation and Government till the year 1640; when, says the Author, this Trade, Art and Mystery was prostituted to every vile Purpose both in Church and State; where he bitterly inveighs against Christopher Barker, John Bill, Thomas Newcomb, John Field and Henry Hills as Interlopers, and, under the King’s Patent, were the only instruments of inflaming the People against the King and his Friends, etc.”
298 Mores makes a serious mistake in calling this founder Arthur Nicholas.
299 In the British Museum Catalogue of Early English Books to 1640, the name of John Grismand appears as publisher of twenty-four books between 1597 and 1636. It is probable that the earlier of these, at any rate, were issued by the father of our founder. The name of one Thomas Wright also occurs as a publisher in 1610.
300 Harl. MS. 5910, pt. i, p. 148.
301 Moxon, in his account of the Customs of the Chapel (Mechanick Exercises, ii, 363), gives a full description of this yearly Feast, which, he says, “is made by Four Stewards, viz., two Masters and two Journey-men; which Stewards, with the Collection of half a Crown apiece of every Guest, defray the Charges of the whole Feast.” The List of Stewards, above referred to, contains, among others, the names of nearly all the seventeenth century letter-founders. Seventy feasts were held between 1621 and 1681, the first few probably being half-yearly. Three or four Stewards officiated at each. The names of the founders occurring in the list are as follows, the figures appended to each indicating the number of the feast at which each served his stewardship, with the approximate date:
- (24) Thomas Wright (1635).
- (26) Arthur Nichols (1637).
- (31) Alexander Fifield (1642).
- (42) Nicholas Nichols (1653).
- (61) James Grover (1672).
- (63) Thomas Grover (1674).
- (64) Joseph Leigh (Lee?) (1675).
- (66) Godfrey Head (1677).
- (67) Thos. Goring (1678).
- (69) Robert Andrews (1680).
302 Arber’s Transcripts, iii, 363–8.
303 Calendar of State Papers, Domestic, 1649, pp. 362, 523. Among the entries of admission to Merchant Taylors’ School occurs: “Johannes Grismond, filius unicus Johannes Grismond, Typographi, natus Londini, in parœciâ de Giles, Cripplegate, Aprilis 1, 1647: an. agens 8. Admissus est Aprilis 3, 1654.”
304 Domestic, 1637–8. Vol. 376, Nos. 13 and 14.
306 Dissertation, p. 40.
307 The first project of a Polyglot Bible is due to Aldus Manutius, who, probably between 1498 and 1501, issued a specimen-page containing the first fifteen verses of Genesis, in collateral columns of Hebrew, Greek and Latin. The typographical execution is admirable. A facsimile is shown in Renouard’s Annales de l’Imprimerie des Aldes, 2nd and 3rd editions.
308 It was begun in 1502; completed in 1517, but not published till 1522.
309 In addition to the four great Bibles, the following polyglot versions had also appeared before 1657:—
1516. Psalter in Hebrew, Arabic, Chaldee, Greek and Latin, published by Porrus at Genoa.
1518. Psalter in Hebrew, Greek, Latin and Ethiopic, published by Potken at Cologne.
1546. Pentateuch in Hebrew, Chaldee, Persian and Arabic, published at Constantinople (but all in Hebrew type).
1547. Pentateuch in Hebrew, Spanish and modern Greek, published at Constantinople.
1586. Bible in Hebrew, Greek and Latin (two versions), published at Heidelberg.
1596. Bible in Greek, Latin and German, published by Wolder at Hamburg.
1599. Bible (portions) in Hebrew, Chaldee, Greek, Latin, German, Sclavonic, etc., published by Hutterus at Nuremberg.
310 These Proposals were printed by R. Norton for Timothy Garthwaite at the lesser North Gate of St. Paul’s Church, London, 1652.
311 It is described by the Rev. H. J. Todd in his Memoirs of the Life and Writings of the Right Rev. Brian Walton, D.D. London, 2 vols., 8vo, 1821. Mr. Todd’s work contains much valuable information respecting the Polyglot.
312 Among the MSS. in Sydney College is a letter written by Abraham Wheelock to the Vice-Chancellor of Cambridge, dated Jan. 5, 1652, in which, referring to the specimen, he says: “When the sheete, here sent, was printed off, I corrected at least 80 errata in it. It as yet serves to show what letters Mr. Flesher, an eminent printer, my friend and printer of my booke, hath” (Todd’s Memoirs, i, 56). James Flesher, son (?) of Miles Flesher (one of the twelve Star Chamber printers named in the Act of 1637), entered into a bond of £300 to the Stationers’ Company in 1649, and held the office of City printer in 1657. His name occurs in the list of the Brotherly Meeting of Printers as Steward at the 42nd Feast. In 1664 he served, together with Roycroft, on the jury at the trial of John Twyn; see ante, p. 132.
313 Walton’s Polyglot is supposed to be the second book printed by subscription in England. In 1617, Minsheu’s Dictionary in Eleven Languages was published by subscription, the names of those who took a copy of the work being printed. Minsheu’s venture, however, turned out a failure. In Dr. Walton’s case this mode of publication was, owing to the energy of the promoter and the number of his friends, successful. The subscription was £10 per copy, or £50 for six copies. The estimated cost of the first volume was £1,500, and of succeeding volumes £1,200 each. Towards this, £9,000 was subscribed four months before the first volume was put to press.
314 Parr’s Life and Letters of Usher. Lond., 1686, fol., p. 590. Dr. Walton received the Protector’s permission to import the paper for his work, duty free.
315 Origine de l’Imprimerie de Paris. Paris, 1694, 4to, p. 59.
316 Discours Historique sur les principales editions des Bibles Polyglottes. Paris, 1713, 12mo, p. 209.
317 This useful little tract was reprinted with improvements in the following year, entitled: “Introductio ad lectionem linguarum Orientalium, Hebraicæ, Chaldaicæ, Samaritanæ, Syriacæ, Arabicæ, Persicæ, Æthiopicæ, Armenæ, Coptæ . . . in usum tyronum . . . præcipuè eorum qui sumptus ad Biblia Polyglotta (jam sub prelo) imprimenda contulerunt. Londini. Imprimebat Tho. Roycroft, 1655. 18mo.” Republished at Deventer in 1658. The Armenian and Coptic alphabets were cut in wood, and reappeared in the Prolegomena of the Polyglot.
318 “The latter part,” says Bowyer, “is much more incorrectly printed than the former, probably owing to the editor’s absence from the press, or to his being over-fatigued by the work. The Hebrew text suffered much in several places by the rapidity of the publication.”
319 Rev. Mr. Twells, author of Life of Dr. Pocock.
320 Biblia Sacra Polyglotta, complectentia Textus Originales, Hebraicum cum Pentateucho Samaritano, Chaldaicum, Græcum; Versionumque antiquarum, Samaritanæ Græcæ LXX Interpr. Chaldaicæ, Syriacæ, Arabicæ, Æthiopicæ, Persicæ, Vulg. Lat. Quicquid comparari poterat. Cum Textuum et Versionum Orientalium Translationibus Latinis . . . Omnia eo ordine disposita, ut Textus cum Versionibus uno intuitu conferri possint. Cum Apparatu, etc. etc. . . . Edidit Brianus Waltonus, S.T.D. Londini. Imprimebat Thomas Roycroft, 1657. 6 vols., fol.
321 One of the compositors employed on the work was Ichabod Dawks (grandfather to Wm. Bowyer), of whose son and his curious script type, see The Tatler, No. 178, etc.
323 In some cases a few of the matrices have undergone renovation in the hands of their successive owners.
324 “The Æthiopic of the Congregation,” i.e., of the Propaganda at Rome, “is not to be compared with ours. And Ludolphus, whose abode was at Gotha, sent his Lexicon to be published at London, where it was printed by Mr. Roycroft upon the type of the English Polyglot” (Mores, p. 12).
325 “The elegant face of the Samaritan is justly attributed by Cellarius to the English, for it was first used in our Polyglot. It differs widely from the type used by Scaliger in his Emend. Temp., and by Leusden at the end of his Scholæ Syriacæ, and from another used in an encomiastic of Abr. Ecchelensis upon F. Kircher, which type belonged to the Congregation at Rome; and which was afterwards more neatly cut by Voskens” (ibid., p. 13).
326 In his “loyal” dedication, Walton asserts that from the outset he had intended to dedicate the work to Charles II, and that Cromwell’s patronage of the work had been offered only as the price of a public compliment for himself (Todd, i, 82 et seq.).
327 “The first view of this dedication,” he says, “will prove it to have been printed with different and inferior types, the hasty produce of a courteous after thought” (Introd. Classics, i, 27).
328 “Thomas Roycroft died August 10, 1677. In 1675 he was master of the Stationers’ Company, and in 1677 he gave to them two silver mugs, weight 27 ozs. 3 dwts. In the rear of the altar at St. Bartholemew’s the Great is this epitaph:—‘M.S. Hic juxta situs est Thomas Roycroft, armiger, linguis Orientalibus Typographus Regius, placidissimis moribus et antiquâ probitate ac fide memorandus, quorum gratiâ optimi civis famam jure merito adeptus est. Militiæ civicæ Vicetribunus. Nec minus apud exteros notus ob libros elegantissimis suis typis editos, inter quos sanctissimum illud Bibliorum Polyglottorum, opus quam maxime eminet. Obiit die 10 Augusti, ann. Reparatæ Sal. MDCLXXVII, postquam LVI ætatis suæ annum implevisset. Parenti optimè merito, Samuel Roycroft, filius unicus, hoc monumentum pie posuit.’”
329 Lexicon Heptaglotton, Hebraicum, Chaldaicum, Syriacum, Samaritanum, Æthiopicum, Arabicum, conjunctim; et Persicum separatim, etc., etc. Authore Edmundo Castello, S.T.D., etc. Londini, Imprimebat Thomas Roycroft, L.L. Orientalium Typographus Regius, 1669. Two vols., fol.
330 State Papers, Domestic, 1665. Vol. 142, No. 174.
331 State Papers, Domestic, 1667. Ent. Book 23, p. 337.
332 In the List of Stewards of the Brotherly Meeting of printers referred to p. 166, Nicholas Nicholls’ name occurs with James Flesher’s as a Steward at the 42nd Feast.
333 Dissertation, p. 46.