1829-Testament by B. and F. Bible Society, -Bible by ditto, pocket-size, 2d edit., Thus, including the two last at press, it appears that there have been printed for the Gaelic population, or less than a seventh of the Irish, not fewer than 239,016,-nay, only since the year 1807, above 197,500! And should we draw a comparison here, as we have just done with the Welsh Scriptures, the following will be the result : But the reader may now be disposed to look back and take in the whole supply at one view,-Welsh, Gaelic, and Irish, from the day on which the translation of the Scriptures into Welsh was enjoined, "for the soul's health of the flocks," to use the words of the bill itself, "in order that such as do not understand English may, by conferring both tongues together, the sooner attain to the knowledge of the English tongue;" or, in other words, from the year 1563, a space of two hundred and sixty-seven years, and touching upon four centuries. Then, if under the term Scriptures, we include copies of the New Testament along with the entire Bible, in each of the cases, the account will stand as follows: In every point of view the retrospect is painful. Let the relative disproportion between these three classes of British subjects be observed,-then the result will stand thus: That is, for Wales more than two copies for every three, and for the Highlands more than one for every two individuals,―for Ireland one copy to thirty-seven. After comparisons, painful and extraordinary as these must be to every reflecting mind, many affecting facts present themselves to our consideration. Thus, out of the trifling number of copies above mentioned, for an Irish population so far superior to the other two, it may be observed, that 11,000 have not yet left the press, and more especially that out of the remaining 69,188 there are no more than 5000 Bibles in the Irish character; so that if every copy were in use, this would be no more than one Bible to six hundred of the population! Here also, let it be observed, is the first edition of the Irish Scriptures, in their proper type, for 142 years; (for so long have we delayed in returning to the good common sense of 1686, and the noble example left to us by Mr Boyle ;) and here also is the first edition of the Scriptures, in one volume, Irish letter, which has ever been published for the Native Irish people! Why, a hundred and thirty years ago, when the Welsh population must have been small to what it is now, they had more than six times this number in circulation. Even if the beautiful pocket Bible were out, (as it is nearly ready,) and all in use, still this would be but as one to three hundred. I select the Scriptures in the Irish type, because it is this which the people want, and it is this to which they are enthusiastically attached. But it is in vain to dwell upon a case which certainly never had a parallel, and which certainly never will. Our business now is to roll away the reproach which belongs to such an inequality of provision. "When manna fell in the wilderness," said Dr Owen after visiting Ireland in 1649, "when manna fell in the wilderness from the hand of the Lord, every one had an equal share; I would there were not now too great an inequality in the scattering of manna, when secondarily in the hand of men; whereby some have all and others none; some sheep daily picking the choice flowers of every pasture, others wandering upon the barren mountains, without guide or food. Ah! little do the inhabitants of Goshen know, whilst they are contending about the bounds of their pasture, what darkness there is in other places of the land; how these poor souls would be glad of the crumbs that fall from our tables." Were we to include the English Scriptures, so far as the mere distribution of the Sacred Volume is concern ed, might not this language be repeated now-and with tenfold emphasis? As for any remarks which can ever be adduced, coolly accounting for all this, or referring to some peculiarities in the Irish population, Í have only to ask,-Does the party know what was the state of the Welsh population_when this distribution of Scripture began among them? I suppose not.* No; the fault as to Ireland most decidedly lies upon the more highly-favoured classes in this country. The 'golden rule' has been for ages thrown aside: We have not done to others as we should wish them to have done to us; and this is the more to be lamented, inasmuch as, since a trial has been made, there is, in fact, no part of the United Kingdom where there has been such heartstirring encouragement to disperse the Word of Life, provided that it be given in the native language and its appropriate type. It may be remarked, that we have as yet adverted only to the Scriptures, and it would certainly not be doing justice to stop here; though had Wales enjoyed no other advantage, this would have been more than sufficient to have created a difference between the two countries, such as no man can estimate. But the printing of the Sacred Writings in any language (generally among the earliest books, ever since the invention of printing) has always brought along with it a train of other blessings. At the same time, the ignorance which seems to prevail even among intelligent men, as to the prodigious superiority of Wales over every other Celtic tribe in this kingdom or the continent, suggests the necessity of concentrating in one view a very brief account of Welsh literature. The chief inducement, however, to do so in this place, is the hope that, by the force of contrast, it may excite a deeper sympathy for that other Celtic tribe just across the Channel. In the following catalogue we also insert the Scriptures for the sake of some farther particulars : 1547. Dictionary in Welsh and English by William Salesbury, 4to. 1550. Introduction teaching how to pronounce the letters, by do., two editions. 1551. Dictionary of Salesbury, reprinted by Robert Crowley. Let him only read the dedication to Salesbury's Welsh Testament of 1567, reprinted in Llewelyn's History of the Welsh Versions. 1551. A Welsh Rhetoric by Salesbury-enlarged afterwards, and again published by Henry Perry, B.D. 1567. New Testament by Salesbury,printed by Henry Denman. Welsh Grammar by Gruffwydd Roberts. This, which is the first grammar properly so called, was printed abroad, at Milan, by the author, who belonged to the University of Sienna in Tuscany. 1588. Welsh Bible in folio, translated by Drs Richard Davies -William Morgan-Wm. Hughes-Hugh BellotDavid Powell, author of the History of Wales-Edmund Prys or Price, the author of the Welsh Metrical Psalms-Richard Vaughan-and John Salisbury, Bishop of Mann. 1592. Welsh Grammar-Cambro-Britannicæ, Cymeræcæve, linguæ Institutiones et Rudimenta, &c. by John David Rhese. After studying at Oxford he went abroad, took the degree of M.D. in the University of Sienna, and having a perfect knowledge of the Italian, he was elected Moderator of the School of Pistoia, and wrote several works in Italian, which were esteemed. The first Hebrew in any quantity printed in England was in Dr Rhese's Welsh Institutiones.' 1603. Welsh Grammar by William Middleton. Welsh Metrical Psalms by Middleton, printed in London. 1620. Welsh Bible in folio, by Dr Richard Parry and Dr John Davies after-mentioned. The copy presented to James I. is now in the British Museum. 1621. Rudiments-Antiquæ Linguæ Britannicæ, by Dr Da vies, 8vo. 1630. Welsh Bible at the charge of Rowland Heylyn, Esq., and others. 1632. Dictionarium Latino-Britannicum, by Davies, in folio. Editions in 8vo and 12mo of the Rudiments, and the Dictionary by Davies, were printed in 1630, at the charge of Sir T. Middleton and Mr Heylyn. 1638. The Rudiments and Dictionary again in octavo. 1647. Welsh New Testament in 12mo, without marginal references. 1648. Welsh Metrical Psalms, 12mo, by Dr Edmund Price. 1654. Bible, superintended by the Rev. Stephen Hughes-This edition of 6000 was offered for sale at low price by the generous exertions of the memorable Thomas Gouge. Mr Hughes published besides about twenty religious books in Welsh, and some of them at his own expense. Welsh New Testament, 8vo, large type, through 1672. Welsh New Testament with Psalms in prose and verse, through Mr Gouge. 1678. Welsh Bible and Liturgy, 8vo. Out of 8000 printed, one thousand were given to the poor-bound and clasped ; it sold as low as 4s. 6d. through the exertions of Mr. Gouge. 1690. Welsh Bible, folio, printed at Oxford under Dr William Lloyd. Welsh Bible, 8vo. of ten thousand copies at least, corrected by Rev. David Jones at the charge of Marquis Wharton and private individuals. 1718. Welsh Bible, 8vo, under the eye of Rev. Moses Williams, who aided Dr Wotton in publishing the Leges Wallica. This edition was chiefly at the expense of the Society for promoting Christian Knowledge. 1727. Welsh Bible, 8vo, but without contents and references, by the same Society. Welsh Grammar, by John Gambold. The Moravian Bishop, author of 'Ignatius,' a learned man, was a Welshman, born near Haverfordwest, where also he retired and died. I imagine this to have been one of his early productions. 1728. Welsh Grammar by John Rhydderch. 1746. Welsh Bible, 8vo, by the Society for promoting Christian Knowledge. 1752. Welsh Bible, 8vo, by the same Society. These two editions, amounting to thirty thousand, cost £6000 sterling, and were all disposed of by 1768. They sold at 4s. 6d. per copy. New Testament, the same as 1672, by the same Society. The New Testament with Psalms frequently printed at Shrewsbury from this date and so forward." 1753. Welsh Grammar by Rev. Thomas Richards. 1769. Bible, 8vo, by the Society, consisting of about twenty thousand, and probably an additional number of New Testaments. 1798. Bible, 8vo, by the Society. Ten thousand were printed. New Testament, 8vo,-of two thousand copies. Such were the editions of the Welsh Scriptures and principal elementary books up to 1800; but the catalogue of books in Welsh, by Moses Williams, in 1710, included above seventy different articles. For a century past, an almanack in Welsh has been regularly published, and, for the last fifty years, various periodical works. At present there are seven magazines published monthly, and one quarterly. On Arithmetic and Mathematics there are two or three treatises in Welsh; one on Agriculture; two on Farriery, a Gazetteer and Geography of 550 pages with maps. They have Calmet's Dictionary of the Bible in Welsh, 3 vols 8vo. A translation of the History of the Jews by Josephus, and the Bible, with Matthew Henry's commentary, is now publishing in numbers. They have |