p. 197 | Mutilation of History by V. Hull

International Tract and Missionary Society · Oakland, California · Mar 27, 1884

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 10, No. 13.

Mutilation of History.

By V. Hull

I LEARNED when I was a lad that the Armenian Church were Sabbath observers, and I felt a desire to get hold of their history. I bought a copy of “Christian Researches in Asia,” by Claudius Buchanan, LL.D., as I understood his work contained that fact. The volume which I bought was published by the “American Tract Society.” I read and reread, but read in vain, so far as the fact in which I was especially interested was concerned. I was loth to believe that great Society would be guilty of garbling history. I looked upon such an offense as altogether beneath ordinary candor and truthfulness, and began to think I might have been misled as to facts; in the meantime I heard of an old volume, some ten or fifteen miles away, and thought I would get that, so I went, and found the book badly worn and still worse smoked. I had to pay nearly twice as much for the old one as I paid for the one which I bought of the American Tract Society. Here is what the author says: “The Armenians in Hindostan are our (British) own subjects; they acknowledge our Government in India as they do that of Sophi, in Persia, and they are entitled to our regard. They have preserved the Bible in its purity, and their doctrines are, so far as the author knows, the doctrines of the Bible. Besides, they maintain the solemn observance of Christian worship throughout our empire on the seventh day, and they have as many spires pointing to heaven as we ourselves have among the Hindoos.” My advice to the American Tract Society is that they publish a tract on moral honesty. I consider it a very grave offense to mutilate history. I make the above quotation for the benefit of any who have not the work, and yet desire the information. The book I have was published by C. Bowles, Nortonville, V. T., A. D. 1813.

As my work is well-nigh done on earth, should any of our institutions of learning desire the volume I have, and will inform me, I will forward it to their order.—V. Hull, in Sabbath Recorder.