What is the historical background of “Rudimental Divine Science”?

Rudiments and Rules of Divine Science was published in November 1887. Advertisements, such as the one appearing in the November 1887 issue of The Christian Science Journal, proclaimed that the booklet would answer “many questions in regard to the Science of Christian Healing.”¹ Eddy decided to change the title in late 1891. However, the first edition to appear with the present title was apparently not published until 1893. Nevertheless, the original questions and answers in the 1887 edition vary only slightly from today’s edition. Incidentally, Rev. James H. Wiggin, a one-time editor of Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, assisted in the editing of the booklet, but only for the first version of 1887. A Journal advertisement of 1906 described Rudimental Divine Science as “an interesting and valuable book, containing a brief and concise statement of Divine Science, alias Christian Science, in the form of questions and answers. It is a very succinct statement of Christian Science.”²