A Strange Manuscript Found in a Copper Cylinder

by James De Mille

Overview

Venture into an alternate reality with James De Mille's "A Strange Manuscript Found in a Copper Cylinder," a captivating blend of science fiction, adventure, and utopian satire. This rediscovered gem of lost world fiction tells a thrilling tale unearthed from the depths of the unknown.

De Mille masterfully crafts a narrative that explores the boundaries of imagination, blending action and adventure with thought-provoking social commentary. "A Strange Manuscript Found in a Copper Cylinder" remains a compelling read for those fascinated by classic science fiction and the allure of uncharted territories. Explore a world unlike any other in this timeless work of adventure fiction. Perfect for readers seeking a unique journey into the realms of fantasy and the enduring power of the human spirit.

This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it.

This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work.

Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781023092555
Publisher:	Anson Street Press
Publication date:	03/28/2025
Pages:	196
Product dimensions:	6.14(w) x 9.21(h) x 0.50(d)

About the Author

James De Mille (1833-1880) was a Canadian novelist and professor. Born in Saint John, New Brunswick, De Mille was the son of a merchant. As a young man, he traveled to Europe with his brother before returning to North America to pursue his Master of Arts degree at Brown University. Upon graduating in 1854, he married Anne Pryor and found employment at Acadia Universityas a Classics professor. In 1865, he was appointed professor of English and rhetoric at Dalhousie Universityin Nova Scotia. Over the next fifteen years, he wrote over a dozen novels and short story collections, many of which were intended for a young adult audience. His most popular work, A Strange Manuscript Found in a Copper Cylinder (1888), was published posthumously as a serial in Harper’s Weekly, in which many of De Mille’s earlier works had appeared during his lifetime. Although his career was cut short by his death at the age of 46, De Mille is considered a pioneering practitioner of the Lost World genre of science fiction.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements
Introduction
James De Mille: A Brief Chronology
A Note on the Text
A Kosekin Glossary

A Strange Manuscript Found in a Copper Cylinder

Appendix A: Antarctic Exploration
Antarctica Exploration Timeline

1. From James Cook and Tobias Furneaux, A Voyage Towards the South Pole and Round the World (1777)
1. Book 1, Chapters 2-3, January 1773
2. Book 2, Chapter 6, January 1774
2. From Charles Wilkes, Synopsis of the Cruise of the .S. Exploring Expedition During the Years 1838-1842 (1842)
3. From Captain Sir James Clark Ross, A Voyage of Discovery in the Southern and Antarctic Regions (During the Years 1839-43) (1847)
1. Volume 1, Chapter VII, 10 January 1841
2. Volume 1, Chapter VII, 27 January 1841
3. Volume 1, Chapter VIII, 28 January 1841

Appendix B: Nineteenth-Century Geology and Paleontology

1. From Richard Owen, Geology and the Inhabitants of the Ancient World (1854)
1. Pterodactyle
2. Iguanodon
3. Hylaeosaurus
4. Megalosaurus
5. Teleosaurus
6. Enaliosauria (Ichthyosaurus and Plesiosaurus)
7. Labyrinthodon
2. From Louis Figuier, The World Before the Deluge (1866)
1. “whale of the saurians”
2. Ideal Landscapes
3. Coal Period Vegetation: From Louis Figuier, The World Before the Deluge (1866)
4. From Elijah H. Burritt, Atlas Designed to Illustrate the Geography of the Heavens (1845)

Appendix C: Savages and Cannibals

1. From James Cook, A Voyage Towards the South Pole and Round the World (1777)
1. Volume 1, Book 2, Chapter 5, November 1773, Queen Charlotte’s Sound, New Zealand
2. Volume 2, Book 3, Chapter 5, August 1774, Vanuatu Archipelago
2. From Charles Darwin, Journal of Researches into the Geology and Natural History of the Various Countries Visited by H.M.S. Beagle (1846)

Appendix D: Historical Mythology: Caves and Troglodytes

1. From Plato, The Republic of Plato (c. 380 BCE): The Allegory of the Cave
2. From Penny Cyclopaedia of the Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge (1843)
3. From Thomas Hodgkin, “On the Ancient Inhabitants of the Canary Islands” (1848)

Appendix E: Scientific Romance and Lost Worlds

1. From John Cleves Symmes Jr., Symzonia; Voyage of Discovery (1820)
2. From Edgar Allan Poe, “The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym” (1838)
1. Preface
2. A History of Antarctic Exploration
3. From Edward Bulwer Lytton, The Coming Race: or The New Utopia (1871)
1. Orientalism
2. Gender
4. From Jules Verne, A Journey into the Interior of the Earth (1877)
5. From Samuel Butler, Erewhon or Over the Range (1880)
6. From Jonathan Swift, Travels into Several Remote Nations of the World, in Four Parts. By Lemuel Gulliver (1726)

Appendix F: Reviews

1. New York Times, 21 May 1888
2. Brooklyn Daily Eagle, 3 June 1888
3. The Week, July 1888
4. The Athenaeum, 15 December 1888

Works Cited and Recommended Reading

Editorial Reviews

Daniel Burgoyne’s Broadview edition of A Strange Manuscript Found in a Copper Cylinder is a refreshing, re-energised insight into an old classic. It is both scholarly and accessible, bringing important scholarship, key graphics, and of course the work itself, into fresh perspective. What I especially value is the way the volume will appeal to both general readers and critics, and the way that more recent scholarship on the novel has been updated and synthesized to produce new understandings of this unusual Canadian phenomenon.” — Gerry Turcotte, President, St. Mary’s University College, Calgary, Alberta

From the Publisher

"Daniel Burgoyne's Broadview edition of A Strange Manuscript Found in a Copper Cylinder is a refreshing, re-energised insight into an old classic. It is both scholarly and accessible, bringing important scholarship, key graphics, and of course the work itself, into fresh perspective. What I especially value is the way the volume will appeal to both general readers and critics, and the way that more recent scholarship on the novel has been updated and synthesized to produce new understandings of this unusual Canadian phenomenon."

Gerry Turcotte