Page 5 Advertisements Column 4

Press, Volume LXVIII, Issue 14308, 20 March 1912, Page 5

Why The New encyclopaedia Britannica Is Published By The Universiry oT Cambridge.

The English University of Cambridge now owns the copyright of the Encyclopaedia Britannica, arid publishes the new (11th) edition. The publishing department of the University is now offering the complete work in New Zealand at the minimum price, shortly to be increased, In doing so, it is carrying on the great educational work of Cambridge, known and respected all over the world. Many readers will be glad to learn how this intimate association has arisen between the most renowned and authoritative of all encyclopaedias and the equally famous University • which has now become its permanent home. The first ten editions of the Encyclopaedia Britannica were produced b} T various publishing firms as private ventures. But when it had been decided that the 11th edition should be prepared on such novel lines as to throw all its predecessors into the shade, it was felt that the right place for such a work-was one of the great Universities, which unite the prestige of old traditions with up-to-date thoroughness in teaching. Cambridge, as the headquarters of 'scientific research iii Great Britain, was obviously the proper sponsor for a work presenting the latest conclusions of research in all fields of knowledge. The University authorities felt that, in publishing the new Encyclopaedia Britannica, and in making themselves responsible for, its accuracy and thoroughness, they were extending their educational work to reach a world-wide audience. The Widening Scope of University Work. The pre-eminence of the annual Oxford and Cambridge boat-race in the world of sport is a type of the leadership of those Universities in many departments of Anglo-Saxon life. The Cambridge schools of science and history have long been among' the foremost in advancing knowledge, alike of the present and the past. The publication of the new. Encyclopaedia Britannica by the University of Cambridge is a natural step in the evolution. of the University as an educational institution and a home of research. The medieval University of Cambridge began its labours in the 13th century as an institution mainly for. the instruction of the clergy. The Revival of Learning, the Renaissance and the Reformation widened its sphere of intellectual work and influence. The 19th century saw the abolition of the tests which formerly shut the gates of the ancient English. Universities against many classes. The early establishment in Cambridge of special colleges for women was another sign of expanding activities. About the same time the University Extension movement, first advocated at Cambridge in 1871, on the ground that the ancient Universities were not mere clusters of private establishments, but national institutions, led to a wider conception of the possibilities of utilising their intellectual *■ resources for the general diffusion of knowledge and culture ; and the system of local examinations brought the University into close contact with secondary education throughout' England. But the public to which the University could thus appeal, though wider, than that of the college lecture-rooms, was still unduly limited. It remained for Cambridge to bring its hoarded .nowledge into contact with the great Anglo : "Saxon race in the lominions beyond the seas. Some effort of this nature haji been made at the sister University of Oxford when Mr. Rhodes established his wide-reaching system of scholarships. The University of Cambridge realised that it could best enter into direct relations with the whole English-speaking world through the medium of its publishing department—the Cambridge University Press, • which is governed by a board of 14 members of the University Senate, known as the Syndics of,the Press. The present time seemed appropriate for an.effort towards thus signally extendingthe intellectual and educational influence of the University. To that end the University of Cambridge undertook the publication of the Encyclopaedia Britannica—and now issues the new (11th) edition of that world-famous work. The Advancement of Learning. The late Mr. S. H, Butcher,- President of the' British Academy and M.P.- for the University of Cambridge, in his last public utterance clearly summed up the reasons which led the University thus to appeal to the whole English-speaking world. .The-University jhe said, had "acted on the principle which was laid down by Bentley as long ago as 1b93, that the Cambridge " University Press must, make the advancement of learning its object. It is that which has induced Cambridge to become the • owner of this Encyclopaedia; henceforth it acquires the copyright and the control of the Encyclopaedia Britannica. ... I gather from what I hear of the new edition that it is from cover to cover a new book. It is not now any longer a mere record .of the past, but it is even to some extent an anticipation of future discovery. It gives not only an insight into the past, but it gives also a foresight of the future, the spread of progressiveness, and a display of the enlargement of all the boundaries of knowledge. Surely that is a splendid result to achieve, and asplendid hope to have opened up." ' Prompt Application is Imperative. Remember that the present offer of the work in New Zealand at the minimum price is only valid for prompt applicants. When the new Encyclopaedia Britannica was approaching publication last year, it was offered at the lowest possible price to English subscribers in advance of publication. Over a million volumes were sold before the price was advanced, as it is now in Great Britain. This offer was not announced at the time in New Zealand, where there is undoubtedly a large number of purchasers for the best possible library of reference and the finest educational instrument ever forged. The Cambridge University Press has therefore shipped a limited number of copies to this country for sale at the minimum price. These are now in process of delivery to the first applicants. As soon as they arc exhausted the price will be increased. Immediate application should be made for particulars, which will be sent post free, together with a Prospectus and 56 Specimen Pages of the work, on receipt of the following coupon. j To THE CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY PRESS, 2 Harris Street, Wellington. P.O. Box 14_. I Please send mc, gratis and post free, the illustrated prospectw I specimen pages and prices of the new Encyclopaedia Britannica, * : j , Name I I Address... ; I , Cp. 3. .'....... ;.., •- : >