committee to import twenty thousand copies of the Bible. During the agitation of this subject Mr. Aitken was encouraged to issue an edition of the New Testament, which appeared from his press in Philadelphia in 1777. A copy preserved in the Lenox Library, New York, enables us to see how humble this effort was, for the book is but a small duodecimo. The title-page is as follows:

THE NEW

TESTAMENT

OF OUR LORD AND SAVIOUR JESUS CHRIST;

Newly Translated out of the Original Greek ;
And with the former Translations

DILIGENTLY COMPARED AND REVISED.

Appointed to be read in Churches.

PHILADELPHIA :

PRINTED AND SOLD BY

R. AITKEN,

Printer and Bookseller,

Front Street.

1777.

Spectamur agendo.

These last words form a motto and are placed in a scroll. The letters of the imprint are supported by two children, and the crest is a bird with an olive-branch in its mouth. On the back of the title-page are the words, "The Order of the Books of the New Testament with their Names, and the Numbers of their Chapters." The printed matter of the text runs from page to page 353, and there are no headings. On the verso of page 353 are these words: "Books Printed and Sold at R. Aitken's Printing Office opposite the London Coffee-House FrontStreet."

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Second and third editions of the New Testament appeared in 1778 and 1779, and fourth and fifth in 1780 and 1781. Encouraged by the reception which had been given the publication of the New Testament, Mr. Aitken announced his purpose of printing an edition of the entire Bible, and in 1781 presented a petition to Congress, seeking support and sanction. His petition was referred to a committee consisting of Messrs. Duane, McKean, and Witherspoon.

They reported in 1782 that they had watched with interest the work of Mr. Aitken, and recommended, in order that a safe opinion might be obtained of the correctness with which his Bible had been prepared for publication, that it should be submitted to the two chaplains of Congress for their examination. The chaplains were the Rev. William White, D.D., afterward the Bishop of Pennsylvania, and the Rev. George Duffield, D.D. September 10, 1782, they reported to the committee as follows:

66

Agreeably to your desire we have paid attention to Mr. Robert Aitken's impression of the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testament. Having selected and examined a variety of passages throughout the work, we are of the opinion that it is executed with great accuracy as to the sense, and with as few grammatical and typographical errors as could be expected in an undertaking of such magnitude. Being ourselves witnesses of the demand for this invaluable book, we rejoice in the present prospect of a supply, hoping that it will prove as advan

tageous as it is honorable to the gentleman who has exerted himself to furnish it at the evident risk of his private fortune.”

In agreement with this recommendation Congress in 1782 "Resolved, that the United States, in Congress assembled, highly approve the pious and laudable undertaking of Mr. Aitken as subservient to the interests of religion as well as an instance of the progress of arts in this country; and being satisfied from the above report of his care and accuracy in the execution of the work, they recommend this edition of the Bible to the inhabitants of the United States, and hereby authorize him to publish this recommendation in the manner he shall think proper."

Mr. Aitken's Bible was issued from his press in Philadelphia in 1782. It was usually bound in two volumes, though in some cases copies have been found that are bound in one volume. It is in size a small duodecimo, printed in brevier type. The whole page measures 6 inches long by 3 inches wide. The printed paper is 55

inches long and 31 inches wide. The title-page

reads

THE

HOLY BIBLE,

CONTAINING THE OLD AND NEW
TESTAMENTS:

NEWLY TRANSLATED OUT OF THE

ORIGINAL TONGUES,

AND WITH THE FORMER

TRANSLATIONS

DILIGENTLY COMPARED AND REVISED.

PHILADELPHIA:

PRINTED AND SOLD BY R. AITKEN, AT POPE'S Head, Three doors above the Coffee House, in Market Street. MDCCLXXXII.

The title-page also contains the State arms of Pennsylvania, which consist of an escutcheon with representations of ship, plough, and sheaves of wheat. The crest is an eagle, and the supporters, rampant horses. The motto is “Virtue, Liberty, and Independence." The back of the title-page is blank. Then follow the "Resolutions of Congress," occupying one and