the life of william carey-第51节

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ean　artists。　　These　have　cast　for　us　two　or　three　founts　of　Bengali；　and　we　are　now　employing　them　in　casting　a　fount　on　a　construction　which　bids　fair　to　diminish　the　expense　of　paper；　and　the　size　of　the　book　at　least　one…fourth；　without　affecting　the　legibility　of　the　character。　　Of　the　Devanagari　character　we　have　also　cast　an　entire　new　fount；　which　is　esteemed　the　most　beautiful　of　the　kind　in　India。　　It　consists　of　nearly　1000　different　combinations　of　characters；　so　that　the　expense　of　cutting　the　patterns　only　amounted　to　1500　rupees；　exclusive　of　metal　and　casting。

〃In　the　Orissa　we　have　been　compelled　also　to　cast　a　new　fount　of　types；　as　none　before　existed　in　that　character。　　The　fount　consists　of　about　300　separate　combinations；　and　the　whole　expense　of　cutting　and　casting　has　amounted　to　at　least　1000　rupees。　　The　character；　though　distinct；　is　of　a　moderate　size；　and　will　comprise　the　whole　New　Testament　in　about　700　pages　octavo；　which　is　about　a　fourth　less　than　the　Bengali。　　Although　in　the　Mahratta　country　the　Devanagari　character　is　well　known　to　men　of　education；　yet　a　character　is　current　among　the　men　of　business　which　is　much　smaller；　and　varies　considerably　in　form　from　the　Nagari；　though　the　number　and　power　of　the　letters　nearly　correspond。　　We　have　cast　a　fount　in　this　character；　in　which　we　have　begun　to　print　the　Mahratta　New　Testament；　as　well　as　a　Mahratta　dictionary。　　This　character　is　moderate　in　size；　distinct　and　beautiful。　　It　will　comprise　the　New　Testament　in　perhaps　a　less　number　of　pages　than　the　Orissa。　　The　expense　of　casting；　etc。；　has　been　much　the　same。　We　stand　in　need　of　three　more　founts；　one　in　the　Burman；　another　in　the　Telinga　and　Kernata；　and　a　third　in　the　Seek's　character。　These；　with　the　Chinese　characters；　will　enable　us　to　go　through　the　work。　　An　excellent　and　extensive　fount　of　Persian　we　received　from　you；　dear　brethren；　last　year。〃

Panchanan's　apprentice；　Monohur；　continued　to　make　elegant　founts　of　type　in　all　Eastern　languages　for　the　mission　and　for　sale　to　others　for　more　than　forty　years；　becoming　a　benefactor　not　only　to　literature　but　to　Christian　civilisation　to　an　extent　of　which　he　was　unconscious；　for　he　remained　a　Hindoo　of　the　blacksmith　caste。　In　1839；　when　he　first　went　to　India　as　a　young　missionary；　the　Rev。　James　Kennedy17　saw　him；　as　the　present　writer　has　often　since　seen　his　successor；　cutting　the　matrices　or　casting　the　type　for　the　Bibles；　while　he　squatted　below　his　favourite　idol；　under　the　auspices　of　which　alone　he　would　work。　　Serampore　continued　down　till　1860　to　be　the　principal　Oriental　typefoundry　of　the　East。18

Hardly　less　service　did　the　mission　come　to　render　to　the　manufacture　of　paper　in　course　of　time；　giving　the　name　of　Serampore　to　a　variety　known　all　over　India。　　At　first　Carey　was　compelled　to　print　his　Bengali　Testament　on　a　dingy；　porous；　rough　substance　called　Patna　paper。　　Then　he　began　to　depend　on　supplies　from　England；　which　in　those　days　reached　the　press　at　irregular　times；　often　impeding　the　work；　and　was　most　costly。　　This　was　not　all。　Native　paper；　whether　mill　or　hand…made；　being　sized　with　rice　paste；　attracted　the　bookworm　and　white　ant；　so　that　the　first　sheets　of　a　work　which　lingered　in　the　press　were　sometimes　devoured　by　these　insects　before　the　last　sheets　were　printed　off。　　Carey　used　to　preserve　his　most　valuable　manuscripts　by　writing　on　arsenicated　paper；　which　became　of　a　hideous　yellow　colour；　though　it　is　to　this　alone　we　owe　the　preservation　in　the　library　of　Serampore　College　of　five　colossal　volumes　of　his　polyglot　dictionary　prepared　for　the　Bible　translation　work。　　Many　and　long　were　the　experiments　of　the　missionaries　to　solve　the　paper　difficulty；　ending　in　the　erection　of　a　tread…mill　on　which　relays　of　forty　natives　reduced　the　raw　material　in　the　paper…engine；　until　one　was　accidentally　killed。

The　enterprise　of　Mr。　William　Jones；　who　first　worked　the　Raneegunj　coal…field；　suggested　the　remedy　in　the　employment　of　a　steam…engine。　　One　of　twelve…horse　power　was　ordered　from　Messrs。　Thwaites　and　Rothwell　of　Bolton。　　This　was　the　first　ever　erected　in　India；　and　it　was　a　purely　missionary　locomotive。　　The　〃machine　of　fire；〃　as　they　called　it；　brought　crowds　of　natives　to　the　mission；　whose　curiosity　tried　the　patience　of　the　engineman　imported　to　work　it；　while　many　a　European　who　had　never　seen　machinery　driven　by　steam　came　to　study　and　to　copy　it。　　The　date　was　the　27th　of　March　1820；　when　〃the　engine　went　in　reality　this　day。〃　　From　that　time　till　1865　Serampore　became　the　one　source　of　supply　for　local　as　distinguished　from　imported　and　purely　native　hand…made　paper。　　Even　the　cartridges　of　Mutiny　notoriety　in　1857　were　from　this　factory；　though　it　had　long　ceased　to　be　connected　with　the　mission。

Dr。　Carey　thus　took　stock　of　the　translating　enterprise　in　a　letter　to　Dr。　Ryland：

〃22nd　January　1808。Last　year　may　be　reckoned　among　the　most　important　which　this　mission　has　seennot　for　the　numbers　converted　among　the　natives；　for　they　have　been　fewer　than　in　some　preceding　years；　but　for　the　gracious　care　which　God　has　exercised　towards　us。　We　have　been　enabled　to　carry　on　the　translation　and　printing　of　the　Word　of　God　in　several　languages。　　The　printing　is　now　going　on　in　six　and　the　translation　into　six　more。　　The　Bengali　is　all　printed　except　from　Judges　vii。　to　the　end　of　Esther；　Sanskrit　New　Testament　to　Acts　xxvii。；　Orissa　to　John　xxi。；　Mahratta；　second　edition；　to　the　end　of　Matthew；　Hindostani　（new　version）　to　Mark　v。；　and　Matthew　is　begun　in　Goojarati。　　The　translation　is　nearly　carried　on　to　the　end　of　John　in　Chinese；　Telinga　Kurnata；　and　the　language　of　the　Seeks。　　It　is　carried　on　to　a　pretty　large　extent　in　Persian　and　begun　in　Burman。　　The　whole　Bible　was　printed　in　Malay　at　Batavia　some　years　ago。　　The　whole　is　printed　in　Tamil；　and　the　Syrian　Bishop　at　Travancore　is　now　superintending　a　translation　from　Syriac　into　Malayala。　　I　learnt　this　week　that　the　language　of　Kashmeer　is　a　distinct　language。

〃I　have　this　day　been　to　visit　the　most　learned　Hindoo　now　living；　he　speaks　only　Sanskrit；　is　more　than　eighty　years　old；　is　acquainted　with　the　writings　and　has　studied　the　sentiments　of　all　their　schools　of　philosophy　（usually　called　the　Darshunas　of　the　Veda）。　　He　tells　me　that　this　is　the　sixteenth　time　that　he　has　travelled　from　Rameshwaram　to　Harhu　（viz。　from　the　extreme　cape　of　the　Peninsula　to　Benares）。　　He　was；　he　says；　near　Madras　when　the　English　first　took　possession　of　it。　　This　man　has　given　his　opinion　against　the　burning　of　women。〃

Four　years　later；　in　another　letter　to　Ryland；　he　takes　us　into　his　confidence　more　fully；　showing　us　not　only　his　sacred　workshop；　but　ingenuously　revealing　his　own　humility　and　self…sacrifice：〃10th　December　1811。I　have　of　late　been　much　impressed　with　the　vast　importance　of　laying　a　foundation　for　Biblical　criticism　in　the　East；　by　preparing　grammars　of　the　different　languages　into　which　we　have　translated　or　may　translate　the　Bible。　　Without　some　such　step；　they　who　follow　us　will　have　to　wade　through　the　same　labour　that　I　have；　in　order　to　stand　merely　upon　the　same　ground　that　I　now　stand　upon。　　If；　however；　elementary　books　are　provided；　the　labour　will　be　greatly　contracted；　and　a　person　will　be　able　in　a　short　time　to　acquire　that　which　has　cost　me　years　of　study　and　toil。

〃The　necessity　which　lies　upon　me　of　acquiring　so　many　languages；　obliges　me　to　study　and　write　out　the　grammar　of　each　of　them；　and　to　attend　closely　to　their　irregularities　and　peculiarities。　　I　have　therefore　already　published　grammars　of　three　of　them；　namely；　the　Sanskrit；　the　Bengali；　and　the　Mahratta。　　To　these　I　have　resolved　to　add　grammars　of　the　Telinga；　Kurnata；　Orissa；　Punjabi；　Kashmeeri；　Goojarati；　Nepalese；　and　Assam　languages。　　Two　of　these　are　now　in　the　press；　and　I　hope　to　have　two　or　three　more　of　them　out　by　the　end　of　the　next　year。

〃This　may　not　only　be　useful　in　the　way　I　have　stated；　but　may　serve　to　furnish　an　answer　to　a　question　which　has　been　more　than　once　repeated；　'How　can　these　men　translate　into　so　great　a　number　of　languages？'　　Few　people　know　what　may　be　done　till　they　try；　and　persevere　in　what　they　undertake。

〃I　am　now　printing　a　dictionary　of　the　Bengali；　which　will　be　pretty　large；　for　I　have　got　to　page　256；　quarto；　and　am　not　near　through　the　first　letter。　　That　letter；　however；　begins　more　words　than　any　two　others。

〃To　secure　the　gradual　perfection　of　the　translations；　I　have　also　in　my　mind；　and　indeed　have　been　long　collecting　materials　for；　An　Universal　Dictionary　of　the　Oriental　languages　derived　from　the　Sanskrit。　　I　mean　to　take　the　Sanskrit；　of　course；　as　the　groundwork；　and　to　give　the　different　acceptations　of　every　word；　with　examples　of　their　application；　in　the　manner　of　Johnson；　and　then　to　give　the　synonyms　in　the　different　languages　derived　from　the　Sanskrit；　with　the　Hebrew　and　Greek　terms　answering　thereto；　always　putting　the　word　derived　from　the　Sanskrit　term　first；　and　then　those　derived　from　other　sources。　　I　intend　always　to　give　the　etymology　of　the　Sanskrit　term；　so　that　that　of　the　terms　deduced　from　it　in　the　cognate　languages　will　be　evident。　　This　work　will　be　g