『天路歴程』邦訳史(二)

The second translation of Bunyan\u27s Pilgrims Progress appeared in 1883, but who the translator was is not very clear, just as in the case of the first. The title page says it was "translated by Rev. W.F. White," (who was a distinguished Baptist missionary), but many passages in the book are done in such a traditional ornate style - a style after Bakin, an influential novelist several decades before - that it is hardly conceivable any talented foreigner at that time could manage to do it. There are also some hints and evidences leading us to conjecture that the real translator was not White, but most probably Kaiseki Matsumura, a well-known Christian leader of the period. On its first appearance the translation incurred sharp criticism from two eminent men at that time. One is Masahisa Uemura, a great Christian leader, and the other Shoyo Tsubouchi, a noted scholar-novelist. Both of them disapproved of its style as too ornate and unsuitable to such a work as The Pilgrims Progress. The writer of this paper is going to examine the translation, and bring to light some more features of the book. We must not be blind to the fact that, in spite of these failings, it was readable enough, and went through no less than six versions by the time another new translation appeared in 1904. It is also to be noted that this is the first translation from the original English version. One feature of the book is its illustrations. The first edition has twelve of them whose people and costumes are all after the manner of older Japan, and are not in harmony with the story of Christian\u27s journey. They were severely criticized by Uemura, and perhaps because of this, the second edition has an entirely new series of fourteen illustrations in more or less modernized style. They are reproduced here in smaller size, and may be of some interest in that they reflect their age