The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1899-09-14
SIXTEENTH CENTURY BIBLE


Discovered In Paper Stock ut the II ogers
Mills I'm south Manchester Forty Years
Ago.
Henry e. Rogers of South Manches-
ter, one of the oldest paper manufac-
turers in New England, is the owner Of
a sixteenth century Bible, that has had
miraculous escapes during the last fifty
years of its history. Mr.. Rogers was
| the originator of the process for trans
| forming printed matter, old books,
| newspapers and manuscripts, fugitive
letters and everything of that nature,
| into stock for paper making. The pro-
| cess revoutionized the making of
white paper and for twenty years Mr.
| Rogers controlled it exclusively.
There was wild race in the Con-
necticut valley back in 1850 and IL
abouts to get rid of old papers and
books that had filled garrets and attics
AOh bfc VI hAii w soSllNl tt'iDllo. l'oNhp VI
incalculable value and interest were
| ignorantly sacrificed The great Brin-
| ley library had been culled from sim
| liar collections, old garrets having been
| ransacked far and near by the famous
collector in getting his books together
Thousands of volumes escaped the
Brinley drag nets, only to be thrown at
last into paper stock. The books came
to the Rogers paper mills in Manches-
ter with the cover torn from them as
a general thing. In cases where the
covers We're left the orders were TO
throw the books aside temporarily, I'M
til they could be stripped, the outsides
of books not being of the least value
In the paper stock 1t was in conse-
quence of these orders in the mill that
the sixteenth century Bible now owned
by Mr. Rogers was saved 1t was re-
ceived in the mill in an accumulation
of papers and books in 1857 One of the
men engaged in the work threw it
aside to be stripped of the covers. Mr..
Rogers in passing through the Sorting
rooms some days afterwards saw the
volume and took it up with the object
of examining ii.
A moments look disclosed its anti
guilty and interest.
The text of the Bible is in Latin, and
1t was published in 1873, cum licentia
SUNNI Pont, ct privilegio Regis" The
authority for its issue was from the
supreme pontiff and the King. 1t is in
The srpnara1 form Of ha
which was first published near the end
of the fifteenth century, and known as
the Poor Mans Bible" on account of
its size and the fact that it was in
tended for, scholars. who could not buy
folio. In 1905 it became the property
of one Nicolai whose name is still legl- |
BILE on the first leaf of the book. In
1857 it passed into the hands of a schol- |
ar, Jacob, whose signature is also leei- |
BILE. In 1927 another owner by the name
of Mallet had his signature placed on
the fly leaf. A part of this owners |
name has been Worn from the page
There is a fourth signature which APP
pears twice in the book, the first time |
on the original page Of the Old Tesla
ment and the second time at the begin
ming of the new. The autograph is that |
of e. S. Golpin. The apocrapha is in |
Guided in the volume. There are more
than 1900 pages in the book, the Old |
and New Testaments and the Apocry-
pha comprising 1,2l4 of the number
There are 400 illustrations throughout
the work. The text and designs are
preserved, making the book
one of singular interest as relic Of
three centuries.
In addition to this ancient volume of
the Scriptures Mr.. Rogers has num-
Der O.!
RARE WORKS IN LATIN
That have been saved in the same way
In which the Bible was rescued from
paper stock The Oldest work in the
series is Vita Quintiliani published in
1927 by Jehan Petit. There is also a
work Of great beauty from a typo
graphical point of view, which was
printed at Antwerp in 1857, giving illu-
minated reproductions of Roman med
lllions from julius Caesar to the Mid
lie Ages There are 1875 of these his
oric medallions in the series. One Of
he most striking works from the prin-
er's view is of late date, coming
lON II W Luz 1t Is II ueSCIlDllDll Oh |
plants belonging to Great Britain and
America and appears under the title:
Curiosa Par Abrahumum
The publisher was Fran
isVus keggelaer, There are Pa full
,age illustrations in the work On the
irst imprinted page as if showing the
riginal ownership Is inscribed: "Mu-
cum Britanicum" 1t is half suspected
hat the book may have been taken
rom the British Museum.
ELIHU BURRITT RELICS.
The old manuscripts and letters +
which Mr.. Rogers possesses include
hree of the noted lectures delivered by ,
Ilhu Burritt 1.-The learned blacksmith"
nd four letters in his handwriting /,
hat have never been published dieclos-
ne the love romance in the life of the ,
reat peace advocate. The letters :
,ere written in 1855, three of them in =
where the idol of Burritts ,
cart lived, and the remaining one
rom New Britain, in this State, after :
he authors return to the United States =
he letters reveal a most interesting /
base in the life of Burritt The lee
ures of which the manuscripts are .
reserved, being in exactly the same I
hape in which Burritt left them, are