Volume 1

A history of inventions and discoveries / By John Beckmann ... Translated from the German, by William Johnston.

  • Beckmann, Johann, 1739-1811.
Date:
1797
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: A history of inventions and discoveries / By John Beckmann ... Translated from the German, by William Johnston. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    22/510 (page 4)
    ftru&ed many mercantile people in this art, which bad becn long pra&ifed in other countries, though in England it was then undoubtedly new. One may readily believe, that Mr. Anderfon was not ignorant of the difference between tbe method of book-keeping by fingle, and that by double-entry ; bnt be produces nothing to induce us to believe that Peele taught the latter, and not the former; fqr what he fays of debit and credit is of no im- portance, as it may be applied alfo to the method by fingle-entry. Of this Peele no mention is made in Ames’ Typographical antiquities; but in that vvork * therc is an account of a flili older treatife of book-keep- ing, entitled A briefe inflrußten and manner hew to keepe bcckes cf accompts, after tbe Gr der of debit or and creditor, and as well for proper accompts, par- tible, &c. by three bookes, narrte, d tb: memoriall, Journal!, and leager. New ly augmentsd and fet fortb by John Mellis fchole maifter. London 1588. i2mo. Mellis, in his preface, fays that he is only the re-publifher of that treatife, which was before publilhed at London in 1543 by a fchoolmafter named Hugh Oldcaftle. From the above title, and particularly from the three accompt books mentioned in it, I am inclined to believe that this work contained the true principles of book-keep- ing by double-entry. The oldeft German work on book-keeping by 1 * P. 410. double-