Griffith, John. Life of Capt. James Wilson, containing an Account of his Residence in India; His Conversion to Christianity; His Missionary Voyage to the South Seas, and his peaceful Death; Abridged from the Memoir by Rev. John Griffith. Philadelphia: Presbyterian Board of Publication, 1840. [9660]
Calf spine, gilt title, black cloth boards, 6 1/4 x 3 3/4 inches, 138 pp., light foxing, tight. 3 pp. publisher's catalogue at end. Very good. Hardcover.
"The perils through which Captain Wilson passed, the sufferings he endured and his remarkable conversion all tend to impart intense interest in this narrative." - Descriptive Catalogue of the Publications of the Presbyterian Board of Publication and Sabbath-School Work (1888), p. 99.
The life story and missionary account of the captain of the ship Duff, the first missionary ship sent to the South Sea islands, in 1796.
James Wilson (1760-1814), English soldier, explorer, and later in life, a missionary. After his retirement from active service he was converted to evangelical Christianity, and took interest in the proposed missionary expedition to the South Seas. Encouraged by Thomas Haweis, he volunteered and commanded the ship Duff to convey a team of missionaries to Tahiti, Tonga, and the Marquesas islands. He discovered several previously unknown (or uncertain) islands during his voyages.