Some “strays” from what seems to have been a collection of Selwyn-related books have come our way in recent months (2015). Amongst them, this tiny leather-bound Greek Testament was thought to have belonged to William Evans, a colleague of Selwyn at Eton, who accompanied the Bishop to New Zealand in 1841.
Inscribed To W. Evans, with the Xtian regards and best wishes of “T.P.” Hay, October 2nd, 1846.
Evans was to be a candidate for ordination in the fledgling New Zealand Church. Evans’ service was sadly short: the Bishop nursed him through typhoid fever, which proved to be terminal. He died and was buried in Wellington in early October 1842. Which date leads to a puzzle over ownership. Did the book belong to another W Evans, and if so, how did the book come to be in this collection? Was the volume sent to New Zealand, the donor not knowing that Evans had died?
