MEMOIR OF JOHN ADAM Late Missionary at Calcutta

John Adam

Published by J. Cross, London, 1833

About this Item

A monument erected at St. Johns Church, Calcutta reads, "To the memory of JOHN ADAM, eldest son of the right honorable, William Adam, Lord Chief Commissioner of the jury court in Scotland. He arrived in Bengal in 1796 and passed through the highest offices in the civil service of the East India Company. Placed in the supreme council in 1819, he was again appointed to that station when the usual term of holding it had expired. From January to August 1823 he acted as Governor-General of India. Bad health compelled him to embark for England in March 1825. But he died on the 4th of June in the 47th year of his age, and his remains were committed to the ocean." This copy of John Adam's memoir is an association copy, inscribed by John Adam's mother, Katherine Adam to the Rev. James Hill, who was one of her son's closest friends in India, and who had written the letter to her describing her son's death, which is printed in the book. The book would appear to have been compiled by Katherine Adam after her son's death. A hard copy original of this book is very hard to find. At the time of this listing no copies were listed in WorldCat. Inscribed on the front endapers is the following, "To the Reverend James Hill, my dear friend! Accept this tribute of love and gratitude from the mother of John Adam, your late dear friend, who fell in an honourable career of Holy usefulness, with his armour on - his weapons burnished in his hands - his face to the foe - at his pass - in his Master's service, and is now crowned with victory, being before the throne and before the lamb, with the palm in his hand, Sept. 21, 1841, Katherine Adam". An additional inscription reads, "To dear Edith, in memory of her Grandfather James Hill, Page 287." Page 287, as referenced, reads "Owing to the unusuall long delay in the arrival of vessels, we were kept in ignorance for many weeks of any details of the last hours of our departed Missionary. In the month of December, the following beautiful letter from the Rev. J. Hill brough sweet and delighful testimony to his high character, and a soothing counteractive of the agonizing representations of the effects of physical Disorder, in the evidence of the serenity and confidence of a mind stayed on God." The text of the letter describing John Adam's death and the doctor's attempts to save him then follows. The letter describes the use of a lancet and leeches to bleed him and the shaving of his head and the application of a "blister" at the back. The doctor described the seat of the disorder as the brain, occasioned, by exposure to the sun. The book is an account of John Adam's childhood, studies, religious affiliation and his acitivites as a missionary in India. The book describes living conditions in India at the time. Green cloth-covered boards. Frontis is a portrait of John Adam. Foxing of pages around edges and on endpapers. Note tipped into book reads" The profit arising from the sale of this work will be devoted to the cause of Missions". Front gutter is partly worn through to front of book, but binding is secure. Some light creases to a few pages. Paste-down title block on spine is partially worn. Boards have some wear around edges and some scuffing. Some loss at top and bottom of spine. All in all, a good to very good copy of a very hard to find book, with interesting and historic provenance. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. 404 pp.

Seller Inventory # 7075

Bibliographic Details

• Title: MEMOIR OF JOHN ADAM Late Missionary at Calcutta
• Publisher: J. Cross, London
• Publication Date: 1833
• Binding: Hard Cover
• Edition: First Edition.
• Condition: Very Good