IX. “Robertson” Pamphlet-Indiana Reprint of Davis

Another pamphlet on prophecy, coming from a western outpost, was a tractate published in 1826 at “Lawrenceburgh, la. [Indiana], ^{57Back in 1826, “la.” was the abbreviation for Indiana, as Iowa did not become a state until 1840. The pamphlet was “printed for the [anonymous] publisher by D. Culley.” Gregg and Culley, publishers of the newspaper Indiana Palladium at Lawrenceburg. (See History of Dearborn and Ohio Counties, Indiana, p. 180.)} signed “Th. R. Robertson, Professor of the Greek, Hebrew, Natural History, and Moral Philosophy.” It is a verbatim reprint from W. C. Davis’ 1811 pamphlet. Nevertheless this publication bears witness to the extent of the keen interest in Bible prophecy in general and in the prophetic time periods of Daniel and the Apocalypse in particular, especially the terminal point of the 2300 years. ^{58This is approximately the first third of Davis’ 1811 The Millennium. The figures in the text referring to the interval between the time of publication and 1847 are revised to fit the date of this reprint. The master table is identical. The rest of the Davis treatise is omitted, leaving out the poem, the sections on the return of the Jews, the histrocal origin of the pope and the church, and Mohammed, also the discussion of the seven vilas and the career of Napoleon. (The portion reprinted is covered in sections 1-12 under Davis.) Whether “Robertson” was a pseudonym, under which the Davis pamphlet was reprinted by some admirer to increase circulation in the West, or a simple piece of printer’s piracy, or perchance a straight act of plagiarism, cannot be determined at this writing. No record of a teacher of that time named Robertson has been found, though most diligently sought. But the pamphlet was published and circulated, and extended the influence of Davis’ views.}PFF4 223.2

There is, of course, no way of knowing just how many were merely preaching orally and locally on the prophecies. And on the Western frontier printed editions vere small, and there were no large libraries where such items were preserved. But the wide geographical distribution of the American expositors who got into print indicates the far-flung interest regarding inspired prophecy, and especially the intriguing time prophecy of Daniel 8:14. These included Davis in South Carolina, with his “Robertson” reprint in Indiana, Campbell in Virginia, an anonymous writer in Pennsylvania, Wilson in Ohio, M’Corkle in Tennessee, Scott in New York, and Burwell in Canada, whose writings we have; together with others such as A. J. Krupp of Philadelphia, David McGregor of Maine, and Charles Wheeler of West Virginia, of whose names and teachings we read; and some whose writings we have not thus far found.PFF4 224.1

These, added to the large and aggressive group of British and Continental expositors (discussed in Vol. Ill) whose products had penetrated all parts of North America, show the really amazing number of pens soon attempting to discern the intent of this specific 2300-year Bible prophecy at this time. Yet this was only the faint prelude to a great chorus of voices soon to break forth in the third and fourth decades of the nineteenth century.PFF4 224.2