PUBLISHING SOCIETIES.
A large amount of important information is to be found in the publications
of the numerous Societies formed for the purpose of supplying to their
subscribers valuable works which are but little likely to find publishers.
These publications have in a large number of instances added to our
knowledge of history and literature considerably. The Societies have much
increased of late years, but no record of the publications is easily to be
obtained, since the full account given in Bohn's Supplement to Lowndes's
_Bibliographer's Manual_.
The earliest of Publishing Societies was the _Dilettanti
Society_, instituted in London in 1734, which issued some
fine illustrated volumes of classical travel. A long period
of time elapsed without any societies of a similar character
being formed.
_The Roxburghe Club_ formed in the year 1812 in
commemoration of the sale of the magnificent library of John
third Duke of Roxburghe (died March 19, 1804). It was
chiefly intended as a Social Club, and a long list of
bibliographical toasts was run through at the banquets. The
publications were not at first of any great literary value,
although some of them were curious and interesting. After a
time competent editors were employed, and some important
works produced. Sir Frederick Madden's editions of "Havelok
the Dane" was issued in 1828, of the Romance of "William and
the Werwolf" in 1832, and of the old English version of
"Gesta Romanorum" in 1838. The valuable "Manners and
Household Expenses of England in the Thirteenth and
Fifteenth Centuries," edited by T. Hudson Turner, was
presented to the Club by Beriah Botfield in 1841; Payne
Collier's edition of the "Household Books of John Duke of
Norfolk, and Thomas Earl of Surrey, 1481-1490," was issued
in 1844, and his "Five Old Plays illustrative of the Early
Progress of the English Drama" in 1851; the Rev. Joseph
Stevenson's edition of "The Owl and the Nightingale, a Poem
of the Twelfth Century," was issued in 1838, and his edition
of "The Ayenbite of Inwyt" in 1855; John Gough Nichols's
edition of the "Literary Remains of King Edward the Sixth"
appeared in 1857 and 1858 (2 vols.), and Dr. Furnivall's
edition of Henry Lonelich's "Seynt Graal" in 1863-1864.
Several years elapsed before the second great Printing Club
was founded. In 1823 _The Bannatyne Club_ was started in
Edinburgh, chiefly by Sir Walter Scott, for the purpose of
printing works illustrative of the History, Antiquities and
Literature of Scotland. It derives its names from George
Bannatyne (born Feb. 22, 1545, died 1607). A long series of
books have been issued by the Club to its members, many of
which are of great interest. The Catalogue of the Abbotsford
Library was presented in 1839 to the members "by Major Sir
Walter Scott, Bart., as a slight return for their liberality
and kindness in agreeing to continue to that Library the
various valuable works printed under their superintendence."
In the same year appeared Sir Frederick Madden's edition of
_Sir Gawayne_. Bishop Gawin Douglas's "Palace of Honour" was
printed in 1827, and his translation of Virgil's "Æneid" in
1839 (2 vols.). The Club was closed in 1867.
_The Maitland Club_, which derived its name from Sir Richard
Maitland of Lethington (born in 1496, died March 20, 1586),
was instituted in Glasgow in 1828. A volume containing "The
Burgh Records of the City of Glasgow, 1573 to 1581," was
presented to the Club in 1832-34; the Poems of Drummond of
Hawthornden in 1832; Robert Wodrow's "Collection upon the
Lives of the Reformers and most eminent Ministers of the
Church of Scotland" in 1834-45 (2 vols.). Dauncey's Ancient
Scottish Melodies in 1838. Sir Bevis of Hamtoun in the same
year, the Metrical Romance of Lancelot du Lak in 1839;
Wodrow's Analecta, or Materials for a History of Remarkable
Providences, in 1842-3 (4 vols.). Henry Laing's Descriptive
Catalogue of Ancient Seals, in 1850. The Club was closed in
1859.
_The Abbotsford Club_ was founded in honour of Sir Walter
Scott in 1834, by Mr. W.B.D.D. Turnbull. The first book
(issued in 1835) was a volume of "Ancient Mysteries from the
Digby MS."; "Arthur and Merlin, a Metrical Romance," was
printed in 1838; "Romances of Sir Guy of Warwick and Rembrun
his Son," in 1840; "The Legend of St. Katherine of
Alexandra," in 1841; "Sir Degaree, a Metrical Romance of the
end of the nineteenth century," in 1849. The Club was closed
in 1866.
These Printing Clubs were select in their constitution, and
the books being printed for the members in small numbers,
they are difficult to obtain and their price is high.
With the foundation of the Camden Society an entirely new
system was adopted, and the general body of book lovers,
poor as well as rich, were appealed to with great success,
and valuable books were supplied to the subscribers at a
price which would have been impossible without such means.
The Camden Society is entitled to this honour on account of
the general interest of its publications, but the Surtees
Society was actually the first to inaugurate the new system.
The subscription fixed was double that which the founders of
the Camden Society adopted, but it was, perhaps, a bolder
step to start a Society, appealing to a somewhat restricted
public with a two guinea subscription, than to appeal to the
whole reading public with a subscription of one pound.
Before saying more of the Surtees and Camden Societies, it
will be necessary to mention some other printing clubs which
preceded them.
_The Oriental Translation Fund_ was established in 1828,
with the object of publishing Translations from Eastern MSS.
into the languages of Europe. When the issue of books was
discontinued, the stock of such books as remained was sold
off, and many of these can still be obtained at a cheap
rate.
_The Iona Club_ was instituted in 1833, for the purpose of
investigating the History, Antiquities, and early Literature
of the Highlands and Islands of Scotland, but little has
been done in the way of publication. The first book was
"Collectanea de Rebus Albanicis," and the second,
"Transactions of the Club," vol. i. in 4 parts. A second
volume was announced, but never appeared.
_The Surtees Society_ was founded at Durham in 1834 for the
publication of inedited Manuscripts, illustrative of the
moral, the intellectual, the religious, and the social
condition of those parts of England and Scotland included on
the East, between the Humber and the Frith of Forth, and on
the west, between the Mersey and the Clyde, a region which
constituted the ancient kingdom of Northumberland. The
Society is named after Robert Surtees, of Mainforth, author
of the "History of the County Palatine of Durham." Although
founded more than fifty years ago, the Society is still
flourishing, and carried on with the same vigour as of old.
The series of publications is a long one, and contains a
large number of most important works. The second book issued
was "Wills and Inventories, illustrative of the History,
Manners, Language, Statistics, etc., of the Northern
Counties of England, from the Eleventh Century downwards"
(Part 2 was issued in 1860); the third, "The Towneley
Mysteries or Miracle Plays"; the fourth, "Testamenta
Eboracensia: Wills illustrative of the History, Manners,
Language, Statistics, etc., of the Province of York, from
1300" (vol. 1). The second volume of this series was issued
in 1855. "Anglo-Saxon and Early English Psalter" was issued
in 1843-44 (2 vols.); "The Durham Household Book; or, the
Accounts of the Bursar of the Monastery of Durham, from 1530
to 1534," in 1844.
_The Camden Society_, instituted in 1838, has issued to its
subscribers a large number of books of the greatest interest
on historical and literary subjects. The set of publications
is so well known that it is not necessary to enumerate
titles here. Among the most valuable are the several volumes
devoted to the correspondence of certain old families, such
as the "Plumpton Correspondence" (1839), "Egerton Papers"
(1840), "Rutland Papers" (1842), and "Savile Correspondence"
(1858). The Romances and Chronicles must also be mentioned,
and the remarkable edition of the oldest English Dictionary,
"Promptorium Parvulorum," which was fully and learnedly
edited by the late Mr. Albert Way. A second series was
commenced in 1871, which is still continued.
The same year which saw the foundation of the Camden Society
also gave birth to _The English Historical Society_. Sixteen
works of considerable value were issued, but the greatest of
these is the grand "Codex Diplomaticus Ævi Saxonici" of the
late J. Mitchell Kemble (1845-48).
_The Spalding Club_, named after John Spalding, Commissary
Clerk of Aberdeen, and founded at Aberdeen in 1839 for the
printing of the Historical, Ecclesiastical, Genealogical,
Topographical, and Literary Remains of the North-Eastern
Counties of Scotland, was formed on the model of the
exclusive clubs; but being affected by the more democratic
constitution of the later printing societies, its
subscription was fixed at one guinea. Amongst the most
interesting of the Club's publications are the "Sculptured
Stones of Scotland" (1856), "Barbour's Brus" (1856), and
the "Fasti Aberdonensis: Selections from the Records of the
University and King's College of Aberdeen from 1494 to 1854"
(1854).
The year 1840 saw the foundation of three very important
Societies, viz. the Parker, the Percy, and the Shakespeare.
_The Parker Society_ took its name from the famous
Archbishop of Canterbury, Martin Parker, and its objects
were (1) the reprinting, without abridgment, alteration or
omission, of the best works of the Fathers and early Writers
of the Reformed English Church published in the period
between the accession of Edward VI. and Queen Elizabeth; (2)
the printing of such works of other writers of the Sixteenth
Century as may appear desirable (including under both
classes some of the early English Translations of the
Foreign Reformers), and (3) the printing of some MSS. of the
same authors hitherto unpublished. The Society was an
enormous success, and at one time the list contained seven
thousand members; but owing to the multitude of copies
printed, and the somewhat dry character of the books
themselves, many of them can now be obtained at a
ridiculously small sum, the price of a complete set usually
averaging little more than a shilling a volume. When the
series was completed, a valuable General Index to the whole
was compiled by Mr. Henry Gough, 1855.
_The Percy Society_ took its name from Bishop Percy, author
of the "Reliques of Ancient English Poetry" (born 1729, died
1811), and was founded for the purpose of bringing to light
important but obscure specimens of Ballad Poetry, or Works
illustrative of that department of Literature. The Society
was dissolved in 1853, but during the thirteen years of its
existence it produced a singularly interesting series of
publications. The number of separate works registered in
Bohn's Appendix to Lowndes's Bibliographer's Manual is 94,
besides "Quippes for Upstart Newfangled Gentlewomen by
Stephen Gosson," which was suppressed, and "Rhyming Satire
on the Pride and Vices of Women Now-a-days, by Charles
Bansley," 1540, which was reprinted in 1841, but not issued.
The set is much sought after, and fetches a good price.
_The Shakespeare Society_ was founded in 1840, to print
books illustrative of Shakespeare and of the literature of
his time, and a very valuable collection of works was issued
to the subscribers during the term of its existence. It was
dissolved in 1853, and the remaining stock was made up into
volumes and sold off. There was much for the Society still
to do; but the controversy arising out of the discovery of
the forgeries connected with John Payne Collier's name made
it difficult for the Shakespearians to work together with
harmony.
In this same year the _Musical Antiquarian Society_ was
founded, and during the seven years of its existence it
issued books of Madrigals, Operas, Songs, Anthems, etc., by
early English composers.
In the following year (1841), the _Motett Society_ was
founded for the publication of Ancient Church Music. Five
parts only, edited by Dr. Rimbault, were issued.
In 1841 the _Society for the Publication of Oriental Texts_
was founded, and a series of works in Syriac, Arabic,
Sanscrit, and Persian was distributed to the subscribers
until 1851, when the Society was dissolved.
_The Wodrow Society_ was instituted in Edinburgh in 1841,
for the publication of the early writers of the Reformed
Church of Scotland, and named after the Rev. Robert Wodrow.
Among its publications are, "Autobiography and Diary of
James Melvill," "Correspondence of the Rev. R. Wodrow" (3
vols.), "History of the Reformation in Scotland, by John
Knox" (2 vols.). The Society was dissolved in 1848.
_The Ælfric Society_ was founded in 1842 for the publication
of those Anglo-Saxon and other literary monuments, both
civil and ecclesiastical, tending to illustrate the early
state of England. The publications, which were not numerous,
were edited by Benjamin Thorpe and J.M. Kemble, and the
Society was discontinued in 1856.
_The Chetham Society_, founded at Manchester in 1843, for
the publication of Historical and Literary remains connected
with the Palatine Counties of Lancaster and Chester, was
named after Humphrey Chetham (born 1580, died 1653). The
Society, which still flourishes, has now produced a very
long series of important works, and the volumes, which are
not often met with, keep up their price well.
_The Sydenham Society_ for reprinting Standard English Works
in Medical Literature, and for the Translation of Foreign
Authors, with notes, was founded in 1843. After printing a
number of important works, the Society was dissolved in
1858, and was succeeded by _The New Sydenham Society_.
_The Spottiswoode Society_ was founded at Edinburgh in 1843,
for the revival and publication of the acknowledged works of
the Bishops, Clergy, and Laity of the Episcopal Church of
Scotland, and rare, authentic, and curious MSS., Pamphlets
and other Works illustrative of the Civil and Ecclesiastical
State of Scotland. It takes its name from John Spottiswoode,
the first duly consecrated Scottish Archbishop after the
Reformation (born 1566, died 1639.) The late Mr. Hill Burton
gives an amusing account of the foundation of this Society
in his delightful _Book-Hunter_. He writes: "When it was
proposed to establish an institution for reprinting the
works of the fathers of the Episcopal Church in Scotland, it
was naturally deemed that no more worthy or characteristic
name could be attached to it than that of the venerable
prelate, who by his learning and virtues had so long adorned
the Episcopal Chair of Moray and Ross [Robert Jolly], and
who had shown a special interest in the department of
literature to which the institution was to be devoted. Hence
it came to pass that, through a perfectly natural process,
the Association for the purpose of reprinting the works of
certain old divines was to be ushered into the world by the
style and title of the JOLLY CLUB. There happened to be
amongst those concerned, however, certain persons so
corrupted with the wisdom of this world, as to apprehend
that the miscellaneous public might fail to trace this
designation to its true origin, and might indeed totally
mistake the nature and object of the institution,
attributing to it aims neither consistent with the ascetic
life of the departed prelate, nor with the pious and
intellectual object of its founders. The counsels of these
worldly-minded persons prevailed. The Jolly Club was never
instituted,--at least as an association for the reprinting
of old books of divinity,--though I am not prepared to say
that institutions, more than one so designed may not exist
for other purposes. The object, however, was not entirely
abandoned. A body of gentlemen united themselves together
under the name of another Scottish prelate, whose fate had
been more distinguished, if not more fortunate, and the
Spottiswoode Society was established. Here, it will be
observed, there was a passing to the opposite extreme, and
so intense seems to have been the anxiety to escape from all
excuse for indecorous jokes or taint of joviality, that the
word Club, wisely adopted by other bodies of the same kind,
was abandoned, and this one called itself a Society." The
publications were discontinued about 1851.
_The Calvin Translation Society_ was established at
Edinburgh in 1843, and its work was completed in 1855, by
the publication of twenty-two Commentaries, etc., of the
great reformer in fifty-two volumes.
_The Ray Society_ was founded in 1844 for the publication of
works on Natural History (Zoology and Botany), and a large
number of valuable books, fully illustrated, have been
produced, many of them translations from foreign works. Many
of the later publications are more elaborately coloured than
the earlier ones.
_The Wernerian Club_ was instituted in 1844 for the
republication of standard works of Scientific Authors of old
date.
_The Handel Society_ was founded at London in 1844, for the
purpose of printing the Works of Handel in full score.
Sixteen volumes were issued, and in 1858 the Society was
dissolved, the German Handel Society resuming the
publication.
_The Hanserd Knollys Society_ was instituted in 1845 for the
publication of the works of early English and other Baptist
writers, and one of these was an edition of Bunyan's Pilgrim
Progress from the text of the first edition. The Society was
dissolved about 1851.
_The Caxton Society_ was instituted in 1845 for the
publication of Chronicles and other writings hitherto
unpublished, illustrative of the history and miscellaneous
literature of the middle ages. This Society was formed on a
somewhat original basis. The members were to pay no annual
subscription, but they engaged to purchase one copy of all
books published by the Society. The expense of printing and
publishing to be defrayed out of the proceeds of the sale,
and the money remaining over to be paid to the editors.
_The Cavendish Society_ was instituted in 1846 for the
promotion of Chemical Science by the translation and
publication of valuable works and papers on Chemistry not
likely to be undertaken by ordinary publishers. During its
last years the Society existed for the publication of
Gmelin's voluminous "Handbook of Chemistry," and when this
work was completed, with a general Index, the Society ceased
to exist.
_The Ecclesiastical History Society_ was instituted in 1846,
and one of its early publications was the first volume of
Wood's "Athenæ Oxoniensis," edited by Dr. Bliss, but this
only contained the life of Anthony Wood himself. The Society
was dissolved in 1854, after publishing the Book of Common
Prayer according to a MS. in the Rolls Office, Dublin (3
vols.), and sundry other works.
_The Hakluyt Society_, named after Richard Hakluyt (born
1553, died 1616), was founded at the end of 1846 for the
purpose of printing the most rare and valuable Voyages,
Travels and Geographical Records, from an early period of
exploratory enterprise to the circumnavigation of Dampier.
The first two volumes ("Sir Richard Hawkins's Voyage into
the South Sea, 1593," and "Select Letters of Columbus") were
issued in 1847, and the Society still flourishes. Between
1847 and 1885 the Society has presented to its members an
important series of books of travel, at the rate of about
two volumes a year for an annual subscription of one guinea.
_The Palæontographical Society_ was founded in 1847 for the
purpose of figuring and describing a stratigraphical series
of British Fossils. The annual volumes consist of portions
of works by the most eminent palæontologists, and these
works are completed as soon as circumstances allow, but
several of them are still incomplete.
_The Arundel Society_ is so important an institution that it
cannot be passed over in silence, although, as the
publications chiefly consist of engravings,
chromolithographs, etc., it scarcely comes within the scope
of this chapter. The Society takes its name from Thomas
Howard Earl of Arundel, in the reigns of James I. and
Charles I., who has been styled the "Father of _vertu_ in
England." It was founded in 1849, and its purpose is to
diffuse more widely, by means of suitable publications, a
knowledge both of the history and true principles of
Painting, Sculpture, and the higher forms of ornamental
design, to call attention to such masterpieces of the arts
as are unduly neglected, and to secure some transcript or
memorial of those which are perishing from ill-treatment or
decay. The publications of the Society have been very
successful, and many of them cannot now be obtained.
Most of the societies above described have appealed to a
large public, and endeavoured to obtain a large amount of
public support; but in 1853 was formed an exclusive society,
with somewhat the same objects as the Roxburghe Club. _The
Philobiblon Society_ was instituted chiefly through the
endeavours of Mr. R. Monckton Milnes (the late Lord
Houghton) and the late Mons. Sylvain Van de Weyer. The
number of members was at first fixed at thirty-five, but was
raised in 1857 to forty, including the patron and honorary
secretaries. The publications consist chiefly of a series of
Bibliographical and Historical Miscellanies, contributed by
the members, which fill several volumes. Besides these there
are "The Expedition to the Isle of Rhe by Lord Herbert of
Cherbury," edited and presented to the members by the Earl
of Powis; "Inventaire de tous les meubles du Cardinal
Mazarin," edited and presented by H.R.H. the Duke d'Aumale;
"Memoires de la Cour d'Espagne sous la regne de Charles II.,
1678-82," edited and presented by William Stirling
(afterwards Sir William Stirling Maxwell); "The Biography
and Bibliography of Shakespeare," compiled and presented by
Henry G. Bohn; "Analyse des Travaux de la Société des
Philobiblon de Londres," par Octave Delepierre.
_The Ossianic Society_ was instituted at Dublin in 1853 for
the preservation and publication of manuscripts in the Irish
Language, illustrative of the Fenian period of Irish
history, etc., with literal translations and notes.
_The Warton Club_ was instituted in 1854 and issued four
volumes, after which it was dissolved.
_The Manx Society_ was instituted at Douglas, Isle of Man,
in 1858, for the publication of National Documents of the
Isle of Man.
All the Societies mentioned above are registered in Henry Bohn's Appendix
to Lowndes's Bibliographer's Manual, and lists of the publications up to
1864 are there given. Most of them are also described in Hume's "Learned
Societies and Printing Clubs of the United Kingdom" (1853). Since,
however, the publication of these two books, a considerable number of
important Printing Societies have been formed, and of these a list is not
readily obtainable, except by direct application to the respective
Secretaries.
The newly printed General Catalogue of the British Museum in the Reading
Room however contains a full list of the publications of the various
Societies under the heading of _Academies_.
The foundation of the _Early English Text Society_ in 1864
caused a renewed interest to be taken in the publications of
the Printing Clubs. The origin of the Society was in this
wise. When the Philological Society undertook the formation
of a great English Dictionary, the want of printed copies of
some of the chief monuments of the language was keenly
felt. Mr. F.J. Furnivall, with his usual energy, determined
to supply the want, and induced the Council of the
Philological Society to produce some valuable texts. It was
found, however, that these publications exhausted much of
the funds of the Society, which was required for the
printing of the papers read at the ordinary meetings, so
that it became necessary to discontinue them. Mr. Furnivall,
then, in conjunction with certain members of the
Philological Society, founded the Early English Text
Society. The Society possessed the inestimable advantage of
having among its founders Mr. Richard Morris (afterwards the
Rev. Dr. Morris), who entered with fervour into the scheme,
and produced a large amount of magnificent work for the
Society. Dr. Furnivall put the objects of the Society
forward very tersely when he said that none of us should
rest "till Englishmen shall be able to say of their early
literature what the Germans can now say with pride of
theirs--'every word of it is printed, and every word of it
is glossed.'"
The Society prospered, and in 1867 an Extra Series was
started, in which were included books that had already been
printed, but were difficult to obtain from their rarity and
price.
One hundred and twenty-six volumes have been issued between
1864 and 1884, eighty-two volumes of the Original Series and
forty-four of the Extra Series, and there can be no doubt
that the publications of the Society have had an immense
influence in fostering the study of the English language.
The prefaces and glossaries given with each work contain an
amount of valuable information not elsewhere to be obtained.
These books throw light upon the growth of the language, and
place within the reach of a large number of readers works of
great interest in the literature of the country. The
greatest work undertaken by the Society is the remarkable
edition of "William's Vision of Piers the Plowman," which
Prof. Skeat has produced with an expenditure of great labour
during nearly twenty years. The last part, containing
elaborate notes and glossary, was issued in 1884.
The subjects treated of are very various. There is a fair
sprinkling of Romances, which will always be amongst the
most interesting of a Society's publications. Manners and
Customs are largely illustrated in a fair proportion of the
Texts, as also are questions of Social and Political
History. Perhaps the least interesting to the general reader
are the Theological Texts, which are numerous, but the
writers of these were thoroughly imbued with the spirit of
their times, and although they are apt to be prosy, they are
pretty sure to introduce some quaint bits which compensate
for a considerable amount of dulness. These books help us to
form a correct idea of the beliefs of our forefathers, and
to disabuse our minds of many mistaken views which we have
learnt from more popular but less accurate sources.
_The Ballad Society_ grew out of the publication, by special
subscription, of Bishop Percy's Folio Manuscript, edited by
F.J. Furnivall and J.W. Hales. This was issued in connection
with the Early English Text Society (but not as one of its
Texts), through the energy of Mr. Furnivall, who had many
difficulties to overcome before he was able to get
permission to print the manuscript, which had been very
faithfully guarded from the eyes of critics. He had to pay
for the privilege, and in the end the old volume was sold to
the nation, and it now reposes among the treasures of the
British Museum. When this useful work was completed, Mr.
Furnivall was anxious to follow it by a reprint of all the
known collections of Ballads, such as the Roxburghe,
Bagford, Rawlinson, Douce, etc., and for this purpose he
started the Ballad Society in 1868. He himself edited some
particularly interesting "Ballads from Manuscripts," and an
elaborate account of Captain Cox's Ballads and Books in a
new edition of Robert Laneham's Letter on the Entertainment
at Kenilworth in 1575. The veteran Ballad illustrator, Mr.
William Chappell, undertook to edit the "Roxburghe Ballads,"
and produced nine parts, when the Rev. J.W. Ebsworth took
the work off his hands. Mr. Ebsworth had previously
reproduced the "Bagford Ballads," and he is now the
editor-in-chief of the Society. The following is a short
list of the publications of the Society: Nos. 1, 2, 3, 10,
"Ballads from Manuscripts"; Nos. 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 12, 13, 18,
19. "The Roxburghe Ballads," edited by Wm. Chappell; No. 7,
"Captain Cox, his Ballads and Books"; No. 11, "Love Poems
and Humourous Ones"; Nos. 14, 15, 16, 17, "The Bagford
Ballads." No. 20, "The Amanda Group of Bagford Ballads;"
Nos. 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, "The Roxburghe Ballads," edited
by the Rev. J.W. Ebsworth. No. 26 completes the fifth volume
of the "Roxburghe Ballads." There are two more volumes to
come, and then Mr. Ebsworth will undertake "The Civil War
and Protectorate Ballads." Much of the work on these volumes
is done, and they only await an increase in the subscription
list. It is to be hoped that when the good work done by the
Ballad Society is better known, the editor will not be kept
back in his useful course by the want of funds for printing.
Mr. Ebsworth's thorough work is too well known to need
praise here, but it may be noted that his volumes contain a
remarkable amount of illustration of the manners of the time
not to be obtained elsewhere. The value of this is the more
apparent by the system of arrangement in marked periods
which the editor has adopted.
_The Chaucer Society_ was founded in 1868 by Mr. Furnivall,
"to do honour to Chaucer, and to let the lovers and students
of him see how far the best unprinted Manuscripts of his
Works differed from the printed texts." For the Canterbury
Tales, Mr. Furnivall has printed the six best unprinted MSS.
in two forms--(1) in large oblong parts, giving the parallel
texts; (2) in octavo, each text separately. The six
manuscripts chosen are--The Ellesmere; The Lansdowne (Brit.
Mus.); The Hengwrt; The Corpus, Oxford; The Cambridge
(University Library); The Petworth. Dr. Furnivall has now
added Harleian 7334 to complete the series. The Society's
publications are issued in two series, of which the first
contains the different Texts of Chaucer's Works, and the
second such originals of and essays on these as can be
procured, with other illustrative treatises and
Supplementary Tales.
_The Spenser Society_ was founded at Manchester in 1867 for
the publication of well-printed editions of old English
authors in limited numbers. The chief publication issued to
subscribers was a reprint, in three volumes folio, of the
works of John Taylor, the Water-poet, from the original
folio. The other publications are in small quarto, and among
them are the works of John Taylor not included in the folio,
the works of Wither, etc.
_The Roxburghe Library_ was a subscription series, commenced
by Mr. W. Carew Hazlitt in 1868, with the same objects as a
publishing society. It was discontinued in 1870. The
following is a list of the publications:--"Romance of Paris
and Vienne"; "William Browne's Complete Works," 2 vols.;
"Inedited Tracts of the 16th and 17th Centuries
(1579-1618)"; "The English Drama and Stage under the Tudor
and Stuart Princes, 1543-1664"; "George Gascoigne's Complete
Poems," 2 vols.; "Thomas Carew's Poems."
_The Harleian Society_ was founded in 1869. Their chief
publication has been the late Colonel Chester's
magnificently edited Registers of Westminster Abbey. Other
Registers published are those of St. Peter's, Cornhill; St.
Dionis Backchurch; St. Mary Aldermary; St. Thomas the
Apostle; St. Michael, Cornhill; St. Antholin, Budge Lane;
and St. John the Baptist, on Wallbrook. Of the other
publications there are Visitations of Bedfordshire,
Cheshire, Cornwall, Cumberland, Devon, Essex,
Leicestershire, London 1568, 1633, Nottingham, Oxford,
Rutland, Somersetshire, Warwickshire, and Yorkshire, and Le
Neve's Catalogue of Knights.
_The Hunterian Club_ was founded at Glasgow in 1871, and
named after the Hunterian Library in the University. Among
the publications of the Club are a Series of Tracts by
Thomas Lodge and Samuel Rowlands; the Poetical Works of
Alexander Craig; Poetical Works of Patrick Hannay; Sir T.
Overburie's Vision by Richard Niccols, 1616. The printing of
the famous Bannatyne Manuscript, compiled by George
Bannatyne, 1568, was commenced by the Society in 1873, and
the seventh part, which completed this invaluable collection
of Scottish Poetry, was issued in 1881.
_The Folk Lore Society_ was founded by the late Mr. W.J.
Thoms (inventor of the term Folk Lore) in 1878, and during
the seven years of its existence it has done much valuable
work, chiefly through the energetic direction of Mr. G.L.
Gomme, the Hon. Sec. (now Director). The object of the
Society is stated to be "the preservation and publication of
Popular Traditions, Legendary Ballads, Local Proverbial
Sayings, Superstitions and Old Customs (British and
Foreign), and all subjects relating to them." The principal
publication of the Society, the _Folk Lore Record_, now the
_Folk Lore Journal_, was at first issued in volumes, and
afterwards in monthly numbers. It is now a quarterly. The
other publications are:--Henderson's Folk-Lore of the
Northern Counties of England and the Borders, a new edition;
Aubrey's Remaines of Gentilisme and Judaisme; Gregor's Notes
on the Folk-Lore of the North-east of Scotland; Comparetti's
Book of Sindibad and Pedroso's Portuguese Folk Tales;
Black's Folk Medicine; Callaway's Religious System of the
Amazulu.
The year 1873 saw the formation of several publishing
Societies.
_The New Shakspere Society_ was founded by Dr. F.J.
Furnivall, for the reading of papers, which have been
published in a Series of Transactions, and also for the
publication of collations of the Quarto Plays, and works
illustrating the great Dramatist's times. Among the latter
works are Harrison's Description of England, Stubbes's
Anatomie of Abuses, Dr. Ingleby's Shakespeare's Centurie of
Prayse, etc.
_The English Dialect Society_ was founded at Cambridge by
the Rev. Professor Skeat. Its objects are stated to be (1)
to bring together all those who have made a study of any of
the Provincial Dialects of England, or who are interested in
the subject of Provincial English; (2) to combine the
labours of collectors of Provincial English words by
providing a common centre to which they may be sent, so as
to gather material for a general record of all such words;
(3) to publish (subject to proper revision) such collections
of Provincial English words that exist at present only in
manuscript; as well as to reprint such Glossaries of
provincial words as are not generally accessible, or are
inserted in books of which the main part relates to other
subjects; and (4) to supply references to sources of
information which may be of material assistance to
word-collectors, students, and all who have a general or
particular interest in the subject. The publications are
arranged under the following Series: A, Bibliographical; B,
Reprinted Glossaries; C, Original Glossaries; D,
Miscellaneous. In 1875 the Society was transferred to
Manchester, and Mr. J.H. Nodal became Honorary Secretary.
_The Palæographical Society_ was formed for the purpose of
reproducing Specimens of Manuscripts, and it has produced a
Series of Facsimiles of Ancient Manuscripts, edited by E.A.
Bond and E.M. Thompson, Part 1 being issued in 1873.
At the end of the year 1877 _The Index Society_ was founded
for the purpose of producing (1) Indexes of Standard Works;
(2) Subject Indexes of Science, Literature and Art; and (3)
a General Reference Index. The publications were commenced
in 1878, and the First Annual Meeting was held in March,
1879, the Earl of Carnarvon being the first President. The
first publication was "What is an Index?" by H.B. Wheatley.
Among the important books issued by the Society may be
mentioned Solly's "Index of Hereditary Titles of Honour";
Daydon Jackson's "Guide to the Literature of Botany" and
"Literature of Vegetable Technology," and Rye's "Index of
Norfolk Topography."
The _Society for the Promotion of Hellenic Studies_ was
founded in 1879 for the following objects: (1) To advance
the study of the Greek language, literature, and art, and to
illustrate the history of the Greek race in the ancient,
Byzantine, and Neo-Hellenic periods, by the publication of
memoirs and inedited documents or monuments in a Journal to
be issued periodically. (2) To collect drawings, facsimiles,
transcripts, plans, and photographs of Greek inscriptions,
MSS., works of art, ancient sites and remains, and with this
view to invite travellers to communicate to the Society
notes or sketches of archæological and topographical
interest. (3) To organise means by which members of the
Society may have increased facilities for visiting ancient
sites and pursuing archæological researches in countries
which, at any time, have been the sites of Hellenic
civilization. Five volumes of the _Journal_ have been
issued.
_The Topographical Society of London_ was formed in 1880.
The Inaugural Meeting was held at the Mansion House, and the
first Annual Meeting at Drapers' Hall on Feb. 3, 1882, with
the Lord Mayor (Sir John Whitaker Ellis), President, in the
chair. The following reproductions have been issued to
subscribers:--Van der Wyngaerde's View of London, ab. 1550,
7 sheets; Braun & Hogenberg's Plan of London, 1 sheet;
Visscher's View of London, 4 sheets.
_The Browning Society_ was founded by Dr. Furnivall in
1881, and besides papers read at the meetings, the Society
has issued Dr. Furnivall's "Bibliography of Browning."
_The Wyclif Society_ was founded also by Dr. Furnivall in
1882, for the publication of the complete works of the great
Reformer.
_The Pipe Roll Society_ was established in 1883, and in 1885
the first three volumes of its publications have been issued
to the members. These are--Vol. 1, Pipe Rolls, 5 Hen. II.;
Vol. 2, 6 Hen. II.; Vol. 3, Introduction.
_The Oxford Historical Society_ was formed in 1884, and four
handsome volumes have been issued for that year and 1885.
These are--1, "Register of the University of Oxford" (vol.
1, 1449-63, 1505-71), edited by the Rev. C.W. Boase; 2,
"Remarks and Collections of Thomas Hearne" (vol. 1, July 4,
1705-March 19, 1707), edited by C.E. Doble, M.A. Both these
volumes are supplied with temporary Indexes. 3, "The Early
History of Oxford, 727-1100," by James Parker; 4, "Memories
of Merton College," by the Hon. George C. Brodrick; 5,
"Collectanea." First Series. Edited by C.R.L. Fletcher.
_The Middlesex County Record Society_ was formed in 1885
"for the purpose of publishing the more interesting portions
of the old County Records of Middlesex, which have lately
been arranged and calendared by order of the Justices."
Nothing has been published as yet, but Mr. Cordy Jeaffreson
is engaged upon the first two volumes, one of which will be
issued shortly.
The Rev. Dr. A.B. Grosart has himself printed by
subscription more works of our Old Writers than many a
Society, and therefore it is necessary to mention his
labours here, although a complete list of them cannot be
given. The chief series are: "The Fuller Worthies Library,"
39 volumes; "The Chertsey Worthies Library," 14 vols. 4to.,
and "The Huth Library."