ENGLISH CATHOLIC MYSTICISM IN THE LATE 18TH CENTURY. 12mo. [15 x 8.8 cm]. xii pp, (4), 244 pp, (4) pp publisher’s catalogue. Bound in 19th century midnight blue calf, gilt; all edges marbled. An excellent copy, clean and fresh. Very rare sole edition of this example of daily literature for English Catholics during the latter half of the 18th century, offering reflections on spiritual perfection for this marginalized population. Clinton’s musings continue a long tradition of orthodox mysticism perhaps best exemplified during this period by Richard Challoner’s English abridgement of The Life of the Holy Mother St. Teresa (1757). Of added interest is the catalogue of 47 publications sold by the Catholic bookseller J. Marmaduke, found on four pages bound at the rear. In our experience, catalogues of such literature often include titles or editions which have failed to survive into the present day. The history of Catholic persecution in England extended well into the 19th century, making the survival of English-printed Catholic literature during that period uncommon. The Gordon Riots in 1780 protested increasing liberalization towards Catholics, and it was not until the passing of the Roman Catholic Relief Act in 1829 that many basic rights were finally guaranteed. Gillow tells us that Father Alexander Mackenzie was “born in Scotland, March 23, 1730, entered the English novitiate, S. J., under the alias of Clinton, which he retained through life, defended all the theses in theology, and in 1756 came to the mission in London. There he signalised himself for energetic zeal and charity to the poor, and more especially by his attention to the Catholic prisoners in the metropolis, for he was Newgate missioner for many years…”; Clinton published a handful of titles and died in Ireland in 1800. ESTC shows a single copy of the present work in US libraries (St Louis University), but OCLC adds Woodstock Theological Center (DC) and Minnesota. * ESTC T160338; Gillow, Catholics IV, pp. 388-389; and cf Mullet (ed.), English Catholicism, 1680-1830 (2006), p. 101.