Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1922-02-15
THE BIBLE STILL BEST sEIlLER.
Some Interesting Facts Concerning
PublicatfOIl ,of Sacred Book.

despite somewhat depressing indus
trial conditions Of the last year, the
output Of Holy Writ during that
timo exceeded by 3S0,579 the num-
Der Of those sold and given away the
year before.
Bibles, Testaments and portions
of each, together with those espe-
cially prepared for the blind in q
total OF about 4,206,3S0 were sent
to near and Tar countries Of the
world within the twelve months just
past.
After a report from the society,
which for more than one hundred
years has manufactured its own BIZ
bles, | visited the old-fashioned red
brick Bible House, which creates a
small world Of its own in the trian-
giles Of Astor Place. l waited for the
Rev. Gilbert S. Darlington, in what
appeared to DO an interesting old IL
brary, where walls were lined from
floor to ceiling with rows Of books.
inspection proved that all Of the
books were Scriptures, and no two
were of the same language or issue.
Many Languages.
The Rev. NJ. Darlington said they
represent, to some degree, the scope
OF the socicty's work. ale continued:
I'VE have published Bibles in this
house in siStycight languages and
in six systems OF embossed type for
the blind. The books on the shelves
represent three hundred and thirty
three different tongues and dialects.
'Some Of the most curious Of
these in which our volumes have
heen issued are varieties Of Indian
peech--Choctaw, Dakota, Mohawk,
and SO on. They also have been
printed in Arabic, Hawaiian, Ice
landic, Bulu, Ebon, Gilbert Islands,
Japanese, kurdish, Nez Perces, Pom
ape, Syrian (ancient and modern),
Quechua (both of Ecuador and Bo-
livia), Zapotec and Zulu, besides all
the more usual languages and iia-
lects you can think Of.
MANY are printed in Yiddish and
in ancient Hebrew. .~rWe also issue a
Volgate Bible Tin Latin,) which Is
the standard Roman Catholic ver-
sion. :.
1T Is not true that we are to stop
publishing. We will go on a. before
excepting that The actual work OF
ting is 20 be done outside Of the
Bible House"
hle explained ,hat IN 1915 4 good
bible paper could be purchased for
a little more than four cents
pound. In 1920 the price went UP to
five or six times that amount, and
now 1t is nearly one hundred per
cent higher. Other elements ncres-
eary for book-making are similarly
high, ne said. With the demand for
Scriptures steadily increasing, how
ever, it is expected that IT,, output
Of last year will be doubled IN 1922.
SSVcnty-SolE MllllOn l'flntcu.
REV. Mr.. Darlington said that
since the presses were set up in the
Bible blouse in 1853, it was estimat-
ed that a total Of about 76,0OO,7S6
bibles have been issued there. This
averages something like eight vol
umes minute for every eight-hour
working day. 1t is interesting to
Mote that, until 1920, the greatest
number Of Bibles were printed in
1Gnglish--to the number Of 745,520.
Spanish Bibles were second, there
being 15l, SOS printed. Portuguese
followed He then added
"In 1920 this society, which is a
enterprise, and run prin-
on contributions, issued g.
S25,40l books. That would mean
seven volumes for every minute Of
the year. Average annual issues for
the last ten years have been over g.
900, 1000. Some OF these were sold,
but most were given to persons un-
able to pay.
"We estimate that thc American
Bible Society, in all its branches.
put out a total of il,729,3lO vol
umes Of Scriptures, 25,000,000 Of
which were whole Bibles. for the $50
years Of the societys existence,
through and including the year
1920.
'Recalling that the Bible was the
first book printed, and that it has
been printed in an cver-incrcasing