£200
8vo, pp. xi, [i], 429, [1]. Contemporary calf, spine divided by raised bands between gilt rules, red morocco label. Some light toning and spotting. Binding just a touch rubbed and scratched. Ownership inscription of Henry Whitmore to flyleaf.
The scarcer second edition of this collection of sermons by Beilby Porteus (1731-1809), then Bishop of Chester, later of London. ESTC locates six copies in the UK and a similar number outside. Porteus was one of 19 children; his parents were both born in the colony of Virginia, though by the time of his birth they had moved to York. Following study at Cambridge he earned early praise as well as a lasting reputation for his sermons, also becoming 'a leading figure in the effort to get abolition through both houses of parliament' (ODNB). One of the sermons in this volume concerns the improvement of the lot of 'Negroe-slaves in the British islands'.
