A Short Biographical Dictionary of English Literature
by
John W. Cousin
Part 2 out of 13
BIRD, ROBERT MONTGOMERY (1803-1854).--Novelist, an American physician,
wrote three tragedies, _The Gladiator_, _Oraloosa_, and _The Broker of
Bogota_, and several novels, including _Calavar_, _The Infidel_, _The
Hawks of Hawk Hollow_, _Peter Pilgrim_, and _Nick of the Woods_, in the
first two of which he gives graphic and accurate details and descriptions
of Mexican history.
BISHOP, SAMUEL (1731-1795).--Poet, _b._ in London, and _ed._ at Merchant
Taylor's School and Oxf., took orders and became Headmaster of Merchant
Taylor's School. His poems on miscellaneous subjects fill two quarto
vols., the best of them are those to his wife and _dau._ He also _pub._
essays.
BLACK, WILLIAM (1841-1898).--Novelist. After studying as a landscape
painter, he took to journalism in Glasgow. In 1864 he went to London, and
soon after _pub._ his first novel, _James Merle_, which made no
impression. In the Austro-Prussian War he acted as a war correspondent.
Thereafter he began afresh to write fiction, and was more successful; the
publication of _A Daughter of Heth_ (1871) at once established his
popularity. He reached his highwater-mark in _A Princess of Thule_
(1873). Many other books were added before his death in 1898, among which
may be mentioned _In Silk Attire_ (1869), _The Strange Adventures of a
Phaeton_ (1872), _Macleod of Dare_ (1878), _White Wings_ (1880), _Shandon
Bells_ (1882), _Yolande_ (1883), _Judith Shakespeare_ (1884), _White
Heather_ (1886), _Stand Fast Craig-Royston!_ (1890), _Green Pastures and
Piccadilly_, _Three Feathers_, _Wild Eelin_ (1898).
BLACKIE, JOHN STUART (1809-1895).--Scholar and man of letters, _b._ in
Glasgow, and _ed._ at the Universities of Aberdeen and Edin., after which
he travelled and studied in Germany and Italy. Returning to Scotland he
was, in 1834, admitted to the Scottish Bar, but did not practise. His
first work was his translation of _Faust_ (1834), which won the
approbation of Carlyle. From 1841-52 B. was Prof. of Humanity (Latin) in
Aberdeen, and from 1852-82, when he retired, of Greek in Edinburgh. His
literary activity was incessant, his works consisting of translations of
_AEschylus_ and of the _Iliad_, various books of poetry, including _Lays
and Legends of Ancient Greece_, and treatises on religious,
philosophical, and political subjects, among which may be mentioned
_Self-Culture_ (1873), _Horae Hellenicae_, and a life of Burns. He was an
enthusiastic champion of Scottish nationality. Possessed of great
conversational powers and general versatility, his picturesque
eccentricity made him one of the most notable members of Scottish
society. It was owing to his efforts that a Chair of Celtic Language and
Literature was established in Edinburgh University.
BLACKLOCK, THOMAS (1721-1791).--Poet, _b._ near Annan of humble
parentage, lost his sight by smallpox when 6 months old. He began to
write poetry at the age of 12, and studied for the Church. He was
appointed Minister of Kirkcudbright, but was objected to by the
parishioners on account of his blindness, and gave up the presentation on
receiving an annuity. He then retired to Edinburgh, where he took pupils.
He _pub._ some miscellaneous poems, which are now forgotten, and is
chiefly remembered for having written a letter to Burns, which had the
effect of dissuading him from going to the West Indies. He was made D.D.
in 1767.
BLACKMORE, SIR RICHARD (_c._ 1650, _d._ 1729).--Poet, one of the Court
Physicians to William III. and Anne, wrote several very long and
well-intentioned, but dull and tedious, poems, which, though praised by
Addison and Johnson, are now utterly forgotten. They include _Prince
Arthur_, _Creation_, _Redemption_, _Alfred_. As may be imagined, they
were the subject of derision by the profaner wits of the day. B. was a
successful physician and an excellent man.
BLACKMORE, RICHARD DODDRIDGE (1825-1900).--Novelist and poet, _b._ at
Longworth, Berks, _ed._ at Tiverton School and Oxf., practised for a
short time as a lawyer but, owing to his health, gave this up, and took
to market-gardening and literature at Teddington. His first _pub._ was
_Poems by Melanter_ (1853), followed by _Epullia_ (1855), _The Bugle of
the Black Sea_ (1855), etc.; but he soon found that fiction, not poetry,
was his true vocation. Beginning with _Clara Vaughan_ in 1864, he
produced fifteen novels, all of more than average, and two or three of
outstanding merit. Of these much the best in the opinion of the public,
though not of the author, is _Lorna Doone_ (1869), the two which rank
next to it being _The Maid of Sker_ (1872) (the author's favourite) and
_Springhaven_ (1887). Others are _Cradock Nowell_ (1866), _Alice
Lorraine_ (1875), _Cripps the Carrier_ (1876), _Mary Anerley_ (1880), and
_Christowell_ (1882). One of the most striking features of B.'s writings
is his marvellous eye for, and sympathy with, Nature. He may be said to
have done for Devonshire what Scott did for the Highlands. He has been
described as "proud, shy, reticent, strong-willed, sweet-tempered, and
self-centred."
BLACKSTONE, SIR WILLIAM (1723-1780).--Legal Writer, posthumous _s._ of a
silk mercer in London, was _ed._ at Charterhouse School and Oxf., and
entered the Middle Temple in 1741. His great work is his _Commentaries on
the Laws of England_, in 4 vols. (1765-1769), which still remains the
best general history of the subject. It had an extraordinary success, and
is said to have brought the author L14,000. B. was not a man of original
mind, nor was he a profound lawyer; but he wrote an excellent style,
clear and dignified, which brings his great work within the category of
general literature. He had also a turn for neat and polished verse, of
which he gave proof in _The Lawyer's Farewell to his Muse_.
BLAIR, HUGH (1718-1800).--Divine, and man of letters, _b._ and _ed._ at
Edin. After being minister at Collessie in Fife, he was translated to
Edinburgh, where he filled various pulpits, latterly that of the High
Church. In 1759 he commenced a series of lectures on composition, and
soon after the Chair of Rhetoric and Belles Lettres was founded, to which
he was appointed. His _Lectures_ were _pub._ on his resignation of the
chair in 1783. His chief fame, however, rests upon his _Sermons_, in 4
vols., which had an extraordinary popularity, and obtained for him a
pension of L200. Time has not sustained the opinion of his
contemporaries: they have been described as feeble in thought though
elegant in style, and even as "a bucket of warm water." B. was amiable,
kind to young authors, and remarkable for a harmless, but rather
ridiculous vanity and simplicity.
BLAIR, ROBERT (1699-1746).--Poet, _b._ at Edin., where his _f._ was a
clergyman, became minister of Athelstaneford, Haddingtonshire. His sole
work was _The Grave_, a poem in blank verse extending to 767 lines of
very various merit, in some passages rising to great sublimity, and in
others sinking to commonplace. It was illustrated by William Blake
(_q.v._) B.'s _s._, Robert, was a very distinguished Scottish judge and
Lord President of the Court of Session; and his successor in his
ministerial charge was Home, the author of _Douglas_.
BLAKE, WILLIAM (1757-1827).--Poet and painter, _b._ in London, was from
earliest youth a seer of visions and a dreamer of dreams, seeing "Ezekiel
sitting under a green bough," and "a tree full of angels at Peckham," and
such he remained to the end of his days. His teeming imagination sought
expression both in verse and in drawing, and in his 14th year he was
apprenticed to James Basire, an eminent engraver, and thereafter studied
at the Royal Academy. Among his chief artistic works were illustrations
for Young's _Night Thoughts_, Blair's _Grave_, "Spiritual Portraits," and
his finest work, "Inventions to the Book of Job," all distinguished by
originality and imagination. In literature his _Songs of Innocence_
appeared in 1789, _Songs of Experience_ in 1794. These books were
literally made by Blake and his heaven-provided wife; poems and designs
alike being engraved on copper by B. and bound by Mrs. B. In like fashion
were produced his mystical books, _The Book of Thel_ (1789), _The
Marriage of Heaven and Hell_ (1790), _The Gates of Paradise_, _Visions of
the Daughters of Albion_, _Europe_, _The Book of Urizen_ (1794), _The
Book of Los_ and _The Book of Ahania_ (1795). His last books were
_Jerusalem_ and _Milton_. His earlier and shorter pieces, _e.g._ "The
Chimney-Sweeper," "Holy Thursday," "The Lamb," "The Sun-flower," "The
Tiger," etc., have an exquisite simplicity arising from directness and
intensity of feeling--sometimes tender, sometimes sublime--always
individual. Latterly he lost himself in clouds of mysticism. A truly
pious and loving soul, neglected and misunderstood by the world, but
appreciated by an elect few, he led a cheerful and contented life of
poverty illumined by visions and celestial inspirations.
BLAMIRE, SUSANNA (1747-1794).--Poetess, was of good Cumberland family,
and received the sobriquet of "The Muse of Cumberland." Her poems, which
were not collected until 1842, depict Cumbrian life and manners with
truth and vivacity. She also wrote some fine songs in the Scottish
dialect, including "Ye shall walk in Silk Attire," and "What ails this
Heart o' Mine."
BLESSINGTON, MARGARET (POWER), COUNTESS of (1789-1849).--Married as her
second husband the 1st Earl of B., with whom she travelled much on the
Continent, where she met Lord Byron, her _Conversations_ with whom she
_pub._ in 1834. This is the only one of her books which has any value.
The others were slight works on Travel, such as _The Idler in Italy_,
annuals, and novels. She became bankrupt and went to Paris, where she
lived under the protection of the Count d'Orsay.
BLIND HARRY or HENRY THE MINSTREL (_fl._ 1470-1492).--Is spoken of by
John Major in his _History of Scotland_ as a wandering minstrel, skilled
in the composition of rhymes in the Scottish tongue, who "fabricated" a
book about William Wallace, and gained his living by reciting it to his
own accompaniment on the harp at the houses of the nobles. Harry claims
that it was founded on a Latin _Life of Wallace_ written by Wallace's
chaplain, John Blair, but the chief sources seem to have been
traditionary. Harry is often considered inferior to Barbour as a poet,
and has little of his moral elevation, but he surpasses him in graphic
power, vividness of description, and variety of incident. He occasionally
shows the influence of Chaucer, and is said to have known Latin and
French.
BLIND, MATHILDE (1841-1896).--Poetess, _b._ at Mannheim, but settled in
London about 1849, and _pub._ several books of poetry, _The Prophecy of
St. Oran_ (1881), _The Heather on Fire_ (1886), _Songs and Sonnets_
(1893), _Birds of Passage_ (1895), etc. She also translated Strauss's
_Old Faith and New_, and other works, and wrote Lives of George Eliot and
Madame Roland. Her own name was Cohen, but she adopted that of her
stepfather, Karl Blind.
BLOOMFIELD, ROBERT (1766-1823).--Poet, _b._ at Honington in Suffolk, lost
his _f._ when he was a year old, and received the rudiments of education
from his mother, who kept the village school. While still a boy he went
to London, and worked as a shoemaker under an elder brother, enduring
extreme poverty. His first and chief poem, _The Farmer's Boy_, was
composed in a room where half a dozen other men were at work, and the
finished lines he carried in his head until there was time to write them
down. The manuscript, after passing through various hands, fell into
those of Capel Lofft, a Suffolk squire of literary tastes, by whose
exertions it was _pub._ with illustrations by Bewick in 1800. It had a
signal success, 26,000 copies having been sold in three years. The Duke
of Grafton obtained for him an appointment in the Seal Office, and when,
through ill-health, he was obliged to resign this, allowed him a pension
of 1s. a day. Other works were _Rural Tales_ (1804), _Wild Flowers_
(1806), _The Banks of the Wye_ (1811), and _May Day with the Muses_
(1817). An attempt to carry on business as a bookseller failed, his
health gave way, his reason was threatened, and he _d._ in great poverty
at Shefford in 1823. B.'s poetry is smooth, correct, and characterised by
taste and good feeling, but lacks fire and energy. Of amiable and simple
character, he was lacking in self-reliance.
BODENHAM, JOHN (_fl._ 1600).--Anthologist, is stated to have been the ed.
of some of the Elizabethan anthologies, viz., _Politeuphuia_ (_Wits'
Commonwealth_) (1597), _Wits' Theater_ (1598), _Belvidere, or the Garden
of the Muses_ (1600), and _England's Helicon_ (1600). Mr. Bullen says
that B. did not himself ed. any of the Elizabethan miscellanies
attributed to him by bibliographers: but that he projected their
publication, and he befriended the editors.
BOECE, or BOETHIUS, HECTOR (1465?-1536).--Historian, probably _b._ at
Dundee, and _ed._ there and at Paris, where he was a regent or professor,
1492 to 1498. While there he made the acquaintance of Erasmus. Returning
to Scotland he co-operated with Elphinstone, Bishop of Aberdeen, in
founding the univ. there of which he was the first Principal. His
literary fame rests on two works, his _Lives of the Bishops of Mortlach
and Aberdeen_, in which his friend Elphinstone figures prominently, and
his _History of Scotland_ to the accession of James III. These works
were, of course, composed in Latin, but the _History_ was translated into
Scottish prose by John Bellenden, 1530 to 1533, and into English for
Hollinshed's _Chronicle_. The only predecessor of the work was the
compendium of Major, and as it was written in a flowing and pleasing
style it became very popular, and led to ecclesiastical preferment and
Royal favour. B. shared in the credulity of his age, but the charge of
inventing his authorities formerly brought against him has been shown to
be, to some extent at any rate, unfounded.
BOKER, GEORGE HENRY (1823-90).--Poet, was in the American Diplomatic
Service. Among his dramas, generally tragedies, are _Anne Boleyn_, _The
Betrothed_, and _Francesca da Rimini_, and among his books of poetry,
_Street Lyrics_, _Koenigsmark_, and _The Book of the Dead_. His dramas
combine poetic merit with adaptability for acting.
BOLINGBROKE, HENRY ST. JOHN, 1ST VISCOUNT (1678-1751).--Statesman and
philosopher, _s._ of Sir Henry St. J., _b._ at Battersea, and _ed._ at
Eton and perhaps Oxf., was during his youth noted chiefly for
dissipation, but entering Parliament in 1701 as a supporter of Harley,
soon made himself a name by his eloquence and talent. He held office as
War and Foreign Sec. successively, became a peer in 1712, intrigued
successfully against Harley, and formed an administration during the last
days of Queen Anne, with the intention of bringing back the Stuarts,
which was frustrated by the Queen's death. On the arrival of George I.
and the accession to power of the Whigs, B. was impeached, and his name
erased from the Roll of Peers. He went to France, and became Sec. of
State to the Pretender James, who, however, dismissed him in 1716, after
which he devoted himself to philosophy and literature. In 1723 he was
pardoned and returned to England, and an act was passed in 1725 restoring
his forfeited estates, but still excluding him from the House of Lords.
He thereupon retired to his house, Dawley, near Uxbridge, where he
enjoyed the society of Swift and Pope, on the latter of whom he exerted a
strong influence. After some ineffectual efforts to regain a position in
political life, he returned to France in 1735, where he remained for 7
years, and wrote most of his chief works.
B. was a man of brilliant and versatile talents, but selfish, insincere,
and intriguing, defects of character which led to his political ruin. His
writings, once so much admired, reflect his character in their glittering
artificiality, and his pretensions to the reputation of a philosopher
have long been exploded; the chief of them are _Reflections upon Exile_,
_Letters on the Study of History_ (in which he attacked Christianity),
_Letters on the Spirit of Patriotism_, and _Idea of a Patriot King_. He
left his MSS. to David Mallet (_q.v._), who _pub._ a complete ed. of his
works in 5 vols. (1753-54).
BONAR, HORATIUS (1808-1889).--Divine and poet, _s._ of James B.,
Solicitor of Exise for Scotland, _b._ and _ed._ in Edin., entered the
Ministry of the Church of Scotland, and was settled at Kelso. He joined
the Free Church at the Disruption in 1843, and in 1867 was translated to
Edin. In 1853 he was made D.D. of Aberdeen. He was a voluminous and
highly popular author, and in addition to many books and tracts wrote a
number of hymns, many of which, _e.g._, "I heard the voice of Jesus say,"
are known all over the English-speaking world. A selection of these was
_pub._ as _Hymns of Faith and Hope_ (3 series). His last vol. of poetry
was _My Old Letters_.
BOORDE, or BORDE, ANDREW (1490?-1549).--Traveller, _b._ near Cuckfield,
Sussex, was brought up as a Carthusian, and held ecclesiastical
appointments, then practised medicine at various places, including
Glasgow, and was employed in various capacities by T. Cromwell. He
travelled widely, going as far as Jerusalem, and wrote descriptions of
the countries he had visited. His _Dyetary_ is the first English book of
domestic medicine. The _Boke of the Introduction of Knowledge_ describes
his journeys on the Continent. Other works are _The Boke of Berdes_
(Beards), _Handbook of Europe_, and _Itinerary of England_.
BORROW, GEORGE (1803-1881).--Philologist and miscellaneous author, and
traveller, _b._ at East Dereham, Norfolk, _s._ of a recruiting officer,
had a somewhat wandering childhood. He received most of his education in
Edin., and showed a peculiar talent for acquiring languages. After being
for a short time in the office of a solicitor in Norwich, he travelled
widely on the Continent and in the East, acquainting himself with the
people and languages of the various countries he visited. He specially
attached himself to the Gipsies, with whose language he became so
familiar as to _pub._ a dictionary of it. His learning was shown by his
publishing at St. Petersburg _Targum_, a work containing translations
from 30 languages. B. became a travelling agent of the Bible Society, and
his book, _The Bible in Spain_ (1843), giving an account of his
remarkable adventures in that country, made his literary reputation. It
was followed by _Lavengro_ (1851), and its sequel, _Romany Rye_ (1857),
and _Wild Wales_ (1862), which, though works of originality and extreme
interest, and now perhaps his most popular books, were received with less
public favour. The two first give a highly coloured picture of his own
story. He translated the New Testament into Manchu. In his latter years
he settled at Oulton Broad, Norfolk, where he _d._ B. was a man of
striking appearance and great vigour and originality of character and
mind. His writings hold a unique place in English literature.
BOSTON, THOMAS (1677-1732).--Scottish divine, was successively
schoolmaster at Glencairn, and minister of Simprin in Berwickshire, and
Ettrick in Selkirkshire. In addition to his best-known work, _The
Fourfold State_, one of the religious classics of Scotland, he wrote an
original little book, _The Crook in the Lot_, and a learned treatise on
the Hebrew points. He also took a leading part in the Courts of the
Church in what was known as the "Marrow Controversy," regarding the
merits of an English work, _The Marrow of Modern Divinity_, which he
defended against the attacks of the "Moderate" party in the Church. B.,
if unduly introspective, was a man of singular piety and amiability. His
autobiography is an interesting record of Scottish life, full of
sincerity and tenderness, and not devoid of humorous touches, intentional
and otherwise.
BOSWELL, SIR ALEXANDER (1775-1822).--Antiquary and song writer, _s._ of
James B., of Auchinleck, Johnson's biographer, was interested in old
Scottish authors, some of whose works he reprinted at his private press.
He wrote some popular Scotch songs, of which _Jenny's Bawbee_ and _Jenny
dang the Weaver_ are the best known. B. _d._ in a duel with Mr. Stuart of
Dunearn.
BOSWELL, JAMES (1740-1795).--Biographer, _s._ of Alexander B. of
Auchinleck, Ayrshire, one of the judges of the Supreme Courts of
Scotland, was _ed._ at the High School and Univ. of Edin., and practised
as an advocate. He travelled much on the Continent and visited Corsica,
where he became acquainted with the patriot General Paoli. Fortunately
for posterity he was in 1763 introduced to Dr. Johnson, and formed an
acquaintance with him which soon ripened into friendship, and had as its
ultimate fruit the immortal _Life_. He was also the author of several
works of more or less interest, including an _Account of Corsica_ (1768),
and _Journal of Tour to the Hebrides_ (in the company of Johnson) (1786).
Vain and foolish in an exceptional degree, and by no means free from more
serious faults, B. has yet produced the greatest biography in the
language. _The Life of Samuel Johnson, LL.D._ appeared in 1791, and at
once commanded an admiration which has suffered no diminution since. But
by this time a cloud had fallen upon the author. He had lost his
excellent wife, his health had given way, the intemperance to which he
had always been subject had mastered him, and he _d._ four years after
the appearance of his great work. B. was called to the English as well as
to the Scottish Bar, but his various foibles prevented his reaching any
great success, and he had also vainly endeavoured to enter on a political
career. The question has often been raised how a man with the
characteristics of B. could have produced so unique a work, and has been
discussed at length by Macaulay and by Carlyle, the former paradoxically
arguing that his supreme folly and meanness themselves formed his
greatest qualifications; the latter, with far deeper insight, that
beneath these there lay the possession of an eye to discern excellence
and a heart to appreciate it, intense powers of accurate observation and
a considerable dramatic faculty. His letters to William Temple were
discovered at Boulogne, and _pub._ 1857.
BOUCICAULT, DION (1820-90).--Actor and dramatist, _b._ in Dublin and
_ed._ in London, joined Macready while still young, and made his first
appearance upon the stage with Benj. Webster at Bristol. Soon afterwards
he began to write plays, occasionally in conjunction, of which the first,
_London Assurance_ (1841) had an immediate success. He was an excellent
actor, especially in pathetic parts. His plays are for the most part
adaptations, but are often very ingenious in construction, and have had
great popularity. Among the best known are _The Colleen Bawn_,
_Arrah-na-Pogue_, _Faust and Marguerite_, and _The Shaughraun_. B. _d._
in America.
BOWDLER, THOMAS (1754-1825).--Editor of _The Family Shakespeare_, _b._
near Bath, _s._ of a gentleman of independent fortune, studied medicine
at St. Andrews and at Edin., where he took his degree in 1776, but did
not practise, devoting himself instead to the cause of prison reform. In
1818 he _pub._ his _Family Shakespeare_ in 10 vols., "in which nothing is
added to the original text, but those words and expressions are omitted
which cannot with propriety be read aloud in a family." The work had
considerable success, 4 editions having been _pub._ before 1824, and
others in 1831, 1853, and 1861. It was, however, subjected to some
criticism and ridicule, and gave rise to the expression "bowdlerise,"
always used in an opprobrious sense. On the other hand, Mr. Swinburne has
said, "More nauseous and foolish cant was never chattered than that which
would deride the memory or depreciate the merits of B. No man ever did
better service to Shakespeare than the man who made it possible to put
him into the hands of intelligent and imaginative children." B.
subsequently essayed a similar enterprise in regard to Gibbon, which,
however, was not so successful.
BOWER, ARCHIBALD (1686-1766).--Historian, _b._ at Dundee, and _ed._ at
the Scots Coll., Douay, became a Jesuit, but afterwards joined the Church
of England, and again became a Jesuit. He wrote a _History of Rome_
(1735-44), a _History of the Popes_ (1748-66). These works are
ill-proportioned and inaccurate. His whole life appears to have been a
very discreditable one.
BOWER, or BOWMAKER, WALTER (_d._ 1449).--Was Abbot of Inchcolm, and
continued and enlarged Fordun's _Scotichronicon_.
BOWLES, WILLIAM LISLE (1762-1850).--Poet and antiquary, _b._ at King's
Sutton, Northamptonshire, of which his _f._ was vicar, and _ed._ at
Winchester and Oxf., was for the most of his life Vicar of Bremhill,
Wilts, and became Prebendary and Canon Residentiary of Salisbury. His
first work, _pub._ in 1789, was a little vol. containing 14 sonnets,
which was received with extraordinary favour, not only by the general
public, but by such men as Coleridge and Wordsworth. It may be regarded
as the harbinger of the reaction against the school of Pope, in which
these poets were soon to bear so great a part. B. _pub._ several other
poems of much greater length, of which the best are _The Spirit of
Discovery_ (1805), and _The Missionary of the Andes_ (1815), and he also
enjoyed considerable reputation as an antiquary, his principal work in
that department being _Hermes Britannicus_ (1828). In 1807 he _pub._ a
_Life of Pope_, in the preface to which he expressed some views on poetry
which resulted in a rather fierce controversy with Byron, Campbell, and
others. He also wrote a _Life of Bishop Ken_. B. was an amiable,
absent-minded, and rather eccentric man. His poems are characterised by
refinement of feeling, tenderness, and pensive thought, but are deficient
in power and passion.
Other works are _Coombe Ellen and St. Michael's Mount_ (1798), _The
Battle of the Nile_ (1799), _The Sorrows of Switzerland_ (1801), _St.
John in Patmos_ (1833), etc.
BOWRING, SIR JOHN (1792-1872).--Linguist, writer, and traveller, was _b._
at Exeter. His talent for acquiring languages enabled him at last to say
that he knew 200, and could speak 100. He was appointed editor of the
_Westminster Review_ in 1824; travelled in various countries with the
view of reporting on their commercial position; was an M.P. 1835-37 and
1841-49, and held various appointments in China. His chief literary work
was the translation of the folk-songs of most European nations, and he
also wrote original poems and hymns, and works on political and economic
subjects. B. was knighted in 1854. He was the literary executor of Jeremy
Bentham (_q.v._).
BOYD, ANDREW KENNEDY HUTCHISON (1825-1899).--Miscellaneous writer, _s._
of Rev. Dr. B. of Glasgow, was originally intended for the English Bar,
but entered the Church of Scotland, and was minister latterly at St.
Andrews, wrote in _Fraser's Magazine_ a series of light, chirping
articles subsequently collected as the _Recreations of a Country Parson_,
also several books of reminiscences, etc., written in a pleasant chatty
style, and some sermons. He was D.D. and LL.D.
BOYD, ZACHARY (1585-1653).--Divine, belonged to the family of B. of
Pinkhill, Ayrshire, was _ed._ at Glasgow and at Saumur. He translated
many parts of Scripture into uncouth verse. Among his works are _The
Garden of Zion_ and _Zion's Flowers_.
BOYLE, THE HON. ROBERT (1627-1691).--Natural Philosopher and chemist, 7th
_s._ of the 1st Earl of Cork, was _b._ at Lismore, Co. Waterford, and
_ed._ at Eton and by private tutors, after which he pursued his studies
on the Continent. On his return to England he devoted himself to the
study of science, especially natural philosophy and chemistry. He was one
of the founders of the Royal Society, and, by his experiments and
observations added to existing knowledge, especially in regard to
pneumatics. He at the same time devoted much study to theology; so much
indeed that he was strongly urged by Lord Clarendon to enter the Church.
Thinking, however, that he could serve the cause of religion better as a
layman, he declined this advice. As a director of the East India Co. he
did much for the propagation of Christianity in the East, and for the
dissemination of the Bible. He also founded the "Boyle Lectures" in
defence of Christianity. He declined the offer of a peerage. B. was a man
of great intellectual acuteness, and remarkable for his conversational
powers. Among his writings are _Origin of Forms and Qualities_,
_Experiments touching Colour_, _Hydrostatical Paradoxes_, and
_Observations on Cold_; in theology, _Seraphic Love_. His complete works
were _pub._ in 5 vols. in 1744.
BRADLEY, EDWARD (1827-1889).--Novelist, was a clergyman. He wrote under
the name of "Cuthbert Bede" a few novels and tales, _Fairy Fables_
(1858), _Glencraggan_ (1861), _Fotheringhay_ (1885), etc.; but his most
popular book was _Verdant Green, an Oxford Freshman_, which had great
vogue.
BRADWARDINE, THOMAS (1290?-1349).--Theologian, was at Oxf., where he
became Prof. of Divinity and Chancellor, and afterwards Chaplain to
Edward III., whom he attended in his French wars. He was twice elected
Archbishop of Canterbury by the monks, and on the second occasion
accepted, but _d._ of the plague within 40 days. He wrote on geometry,
but his great work was _De Causa Dei_ (on the Cause of God against
Pelagius), in which he treated theology mathematically, and which earned
for him from the Pope the title of the Profound Doctor.
BRAITHWAITE, or BRATHWAITE, RICHARD (1588-1673).--Poet, _b._ near Kendal,
and _ed._ at Oxf., is believed to have served with the Royalist army in
the Civil War. He was the author of many works of very unequal merit, of
which the best known is _Drunken Barnaby's Four Journeys_, which records
his pilgrimages through England in rhymed Latin (said by Southey to be
the best of modern times), and doggerel English verse. _The English
Gentleman_ (1631) and _English Gentlewoman_ are in a much more decorous
strain. Other works are _The Golden Fleece_ (1611) (poems), _The Poet's
Willow_, _A Strappado for the Devil_ (a satire), and _Art Asleepe,
Husband?_
BRAMSTON, JAMES (_c._ 1694-1744).--Satirist, _ed._ at Westminster School
and Oxf., took orders and was latterly Vicar of Hastings. His poems are
_The Art of Politics_ (1729), in imitation of Horace, and _The Man of
Taste_ (1733), in imitation of Pope. He also parodied Phillips's
_Splendid Shilling_ in _The Crooked Sixpence_. His verses have some
liveliness.
BRAY, ANNA ELIZA (1790-1883).--Novelist, _dau._ of Mr. J. Kempe, was
married first to C.A. Stothard, _s._ of the famous R.A., and himself an
artist, and secondly to the Rev. E.A. Bray. She wrote about a dozen
novels, chiefly historical, and _The Borders of the Tamar and Tavy_
(1836), an account of the traditions and superstitions of the
neighbourhood of Tavistock in the form of letters to Southey, of whom she
was a great friend. This is probably the most valuable of her writings.
Among her works are _Branded_, _Good St. Louis and his Times_,
_Trelawney_, and _White Hoods_.
BRETON, NICHOLAS (1545-1626).--Poet and novelist. Little is known of his
life. He was the _s._ of William B., a London merchant, was perhaps at
Oxf., and was a rather prolific author of considerable versatility and
gift. Among his poetical works are _A Floorish upon Fancie, Pasquil's
Mad-cappe_ (1626), _The Soul's Heavenly Exercise_, and _The Passionate
Shepherd_. In prose he wrote _Wit's Trenchmour_, _The Wil of Wit_ (1599),
_A Mad World, my Masters_, _Adventures of Two Excellent Princes_,
_Grimello's Fortunes_ (1604), _Strange News out of Divers Countries_
(1622), etc. His mother married E. Gascoigne, the poet (_q.v._). His
lyrics are pure and fresh, and his romances, though full of conceits, are
pleasant reading, remarkably free from grossness.
BREWSTER, SIR DAVID (1781-1868).--Man of science and writer, _b._ at
Jedburgh, originally intended to enter the Church, of which, after a
distinguished course at the Univ. of Edin., he became a licentiate.
Circumstances, however, led him to devote himself to science, of which he
was one of the most brilliant ornaments of his day, especially in the
department of optics, in which he made many discoveries. He maintained
his habits of investigation and composition to the very end of his long
life, during which he received almost every kind of honorary distinction
open to a man of science. He also made many important contributions to
literature, including a _Life of Newton_ (1831), _The Martyrs of Science_
(1841), _More Worlds than One_ (1854), and _Letters on Natural Magic_
addressed to Sir W. Scott, and he also edited, in addition to various
scientific journals, _The Edinburgh Encyclopaedia_ (1807-29). He likewise
held the offices successively of Principal of the United Coll. of St.
Salvator and St. Leonard, St. Andrews (1838), and of the Univ. of Edin.
(1859). He was knighted in 1831. Of high-strung and nervous temperament,
he was somewhat irritable in matters of controversy; but he was
repeatedly subjected to serious provocation. He was a man of highly
honourable and fervently religious character.
BROKE, or BROOKE, ARTHUR (_d._ 1563).--Translator, was the author of _The
Tragicall Historie of Romeus and Juliett_, from which Shakespeare
probably took the story of his _Romeo and Juliet_. Though indirectly
translated, through a French version, from the Italian of Bandello, it is
so much altered and amplified as almost to rank as an original work. The
only fact known regarding him is his death by shipwreck when crossing to
France.
BROME, RICHARD (_d._ 1652?).--Dramatist, the servant and friend of Ben
Jonson, produced upwards of 20 plays, some in conjunction with Dekker and
others. Among them are _A Fault in Friendship_, _Late Lancashire Witches_
(with Heywood and Dekker), _A Jovial Crew_ (1652), _The Northern Lass_
(1632), _The Antipodes_ (1646), _City Wit_ (1653), _Court Beggar_ (1653),
etc. He had no original genius, but knew stage-craft well.
BRONTE, CHARLOTTE (1816-1855).--Novelist, _dau._ of the Rev. Patrick B.,
a clergyman of Irish descent and of eccentric habits who embittered the
lives of his children by his peculiar theories of education. Brought up
in a small parsonage close to the graveyard of a bleak, windswept village
on the Yorkshire moors, and left motherless in early childhood, she was
"the motherly friend and guardian of her younger sisters," of whom two,
Emily and Anne, shared, but in a less degree, her talents. After various
efforts as schoolmistresses and governesses, the sisters took to
literature and _pub._ a vol. of poems under the names of Currer, Ellis,
and Acton Bell, which, however, fell flat. Charlotte then wrote her first
novel, _The Professor_, which did not appear until after her death, and
began _Jane Eyre_, which, appearing in 1847, took the public by storm. It
was followed by _Shirley_ in 1849, and _Villette_ in 1852. In 1854 she
was married to her father's curate, the Rev. A. Nicholls, but after a
short though happy married life she _d._ in 1855. EMILY B.
(1818-1848).--a woman of remarkable force of character, reserved and
taciturn, _pub._ in 1848 _Wuthering Heights_, a powerful, but somewhat
unpleasing, novel, and some striking poems; and ANNE (1820-1849), was the
authoress of _The Tenant of Wildfell Hall_ and _Agnes Grey_ (1848). She
had not the intellectual force of her sisters. The novels of Charlotte
especially created a strong impression from the first, and the _pub._ of
_Jane Eyre_ gave rise to much curiosity and speculation as to its
authorship. Their strength and originality have retained for them a high
place in English fiction which is likely to prove permanent. There is a
biography of Charlotte by Mrs. Gaskell (_q.v._).
Complete ed. of the works of Charlotte B. have been issued by Mrs.
Humphrey Ward (7 vols. 1899-1900), and by Sir W.R. Nicoll, LL.D. (1903).
_Note on Charlotte Bronte_, A.C. Swinburne, 1877. A short _Life_ in Great
Writers Series by A. Birrell.
BROOKE, FULKE GREVILLE, LORD (1554-1628).--Poet and statesman, _b._ at
Beauchamp Court, Warwickshire, and _ed._ at Shrewsbury and Camb., was a
Privy Councillor, and held various important offices of state, including
that of Chancellor of the Exchequer (1614-21). In the latter year he was
created a peer. He was murdered by a servant. His works, which were
chiefly _pub._ after his death, consist of tragedies and sonnets, and
poems on political and moral subjects, including _Caelica_ (109 sonnets).
He also wrote a Life of Sir P. Sidney, whose friend he was. His style is
grave and sententious. He is buried in the church at Warwick, and the
inscription on his tomb, written by himself, is a compendious biography.
It runs: "Fulke Greville, servant to Queen Elizabeth, counsellor to King
James, friend to Sir Philip Sidney."
BROOKE, HENRY (1703-1783).--Novelist and dramatist, _b._ in Ireland, _s._
of a clergyman, studied law, but embraced literature as a career. He
wrote poems, dramas, and novels; but the only work which has kept its
place is _The Fool of Quality_ (5 vols. 1766-70), which was a favourite
book with John Wesley. His now forgotten poem, _Universal Beauty_ (1735)
was admired by Pope. His _dau._, CHARLOTTE, the only survivor of 22
children, tended him to his last days of decay, and was herself a writer,
her principal work being _Reliques of Irish Poetry_ (1789). She _d._
1793.
BROOKS, CHARLES WILLIAM SHIRLEY (1816-1874).--Journalist and novelist,
_b._ in London, began life in a solicitor's office. He early, however,
took to literature, and contributed to various periodicals. In 1851 he
joined the staff of _Punch_, to which he contributed "Essence of
Parliament," and on the death of Mark Lemon (_q.v._) he succeeded him as
editor. He _pub._ a few novels, including _Aspen Court_ and _The Gordian
Knot_.
BROOKS, MARIA (GOWAN) (1795?-1845).--American poetess, was early _m._ to
a merchant, who lost his money, and left her a young widow, after which
she wrote highly romantic and impassioned poetry. Her chief work,
_Zophiel or The Bride of Swen_, was finished under the auspices of
Southey, who called her "Maria del Occidente," and regarded her as "the
most impassioned and imaginative of all poetesses," but time has not
sustained this verdict.
BROOME, WILLIAM (1689-1745).--Poet and translator, _b._ at Haslington,
Cheshire, and _ed._ at Eton and Camb., entered the Church, and held
various incumbencies. He translated the _Iliad_ in prose along with
others, and was employed by Pope, whom he excelled as a Greek scholar, in
translating the _Odyssey_, of which he Englished the 8th, 11th, 12th,
16th, 18th, and 23rd books, catching the style of his master so exactly
as almost to defy identification, and thus annoying him so as to earn a
niche in _The Dunciad_. He _pub._ verses of his own of very moderate
poetical merit.
BROUGHAM AND VAUX, HENRY, 1ST LORD (1778-1868).--_S._ of Henry B. of
Brougham Hall, Westmoreland, _b._ in Edin., and _ed._ at the High School
and Univ. there, where he distinguished himself chiefly in mathematics.
He chose a legal career, and was called to the Scottish Bar in 1800, and
to the English Bar in 1808. His chief forensic display was his defence of
Queen Caroline in 1822. In 1810 he entered Parliament, where his
versatility and eloquence soon raised him to a foremost place. The
questions on which he chiefly exerted himself were the slave trade,
commercial, legal, and parliamentary reform, and education, and in all of
these he rendered signal service. When, in 1830, the Whigs, with whom he
had always acted, attained power, B. was made Lord Chancellor; but his
arrogance, selfishness, and indiscretion rendered him a dangerous and
unreliable colleague, and he was never again admitted to office. He
turned fiercely against his former political associates, but continued
his efforts on behalf of reform in various directions. He was one of the
founders of London Univ. and of the Society for the Diffusion of Useful
Knowledge. In literature he has a place as one of the original projectors
of and most voluminous contributors to _The Edinburgh Review_, and as the
author of a prodigious number of treatises on science, philosophy, and
history, including _Dialogues on Instinct_, Lives of Statesmen,
Philosophers, and Men of Science of the Time of George III., Natural
Theology, etc., his last work being an autobiography written in his 84th
year, and _pub._ 1871. His writings were far too numerous and far too
diverse in subject to be of permanent value. His fame now rests chiefly
on his services to political and specially to legal reform, and to the
diffusion of useful literature, which are his lasting monuments.
BROUGHTON, JOHN CAM HOBHOUSE, 1ST LORD (1786-1869).--Eldest _s._ of Sir
Benjamin H., _b._ at Redland near Bristol, _ed._ at Westminster School
and at Camb., where he became intimate with Byron, and accompanied him in
his journeys in the Peninsula, Greece, and Turkey, and acted as his "best
man." In 1816 he was with him after his separation from his wife, and
contributed notes to the fourth canto of _Childe Harold_, which was
dedicated to him. On his return he threw himself into politics with great
energy as an advanced Radical, and wrote various pamphlets, for one of
which he was in 1819 imprisoned in Newgate. In the following year he
entered Parliament, sitting for Westminster. After the attainment of
power by the Whigs he held various offices, including those of Sec. at
War, Chief Sec. for Ireland, and Pres. of the Board of Control. He _pub._
_Journey through Albania_ (1813), _Historical Illustrations of the Fourth
Canto of Childe Harold_ (1818), and _Recollections of a Long Life_
(1865), for private circulation, and he left in MS. _Diaries,
Correspondence, and Memoranda, etc., not to be opened till 1900_,
extracts from which were _pub._ by his _dau._, Lady Dorchester, also
under the title of _Recollections from a Long Life_ (1909).
BROWN, CHARLES BROCKDEN (1771-1810).--Novelist, _b._ in Philadelphia,
belonged to a Quaker family, became a lawyer, but exchanged law for
literature, and has the distinction of being the first American to adopt
a purely literary career. He wrote several novels, including _Wieland_
(1798), _Ormond_ (1799), _Arthur Mervyn_ (1800-1), and his last, _Jane
Talbot_ (1801). With a good deal of crudeness and sentimentality he has
occasional power, but dwells too much on the horrible and repulsive, the
result, perhaps, of the morbidity produced by the ill-health from which
he all his life suffered.
BROWN, GEORGE DOUGLAS (1869-1902).--Novelist, wrote _The House with the
Green Shutters_, which gives a strongly outlined picture of the harder
and less genial aspects of Scottish life and character. It may be
regarded as a useful supplement and corrective to the more roseate
presentations of the kail-yard school of J.M. Barrie and "Ian Maclaren."
It made a considerable impression. The author _d._ almost immediately
after its publication. There is an ed. with a memoir by Mr. Andrew Lang.
BROWN, DR. JOHN (1810-1882).--Physician and essayist, _s._ of John B.,
D.D., a distinguished dissenting minister in Edin. _B._ at Biggar, he was
_ed._ at the High School and Univ. of Edin., where practically the whole
of his uneventful life was spent as a physician, and where he was revered
and beloved in no common degree, and he was the cherished friend of many
of his most distinguished contemporaries, including Thackeray. He wrote
comparatively little; but all he did write is good, some of it perfect,
of its kind. His essays, among which are _Rab and his Friends_, _Pet
Marjorie_, _Our Dogs_, _Minchmoor_, and _The Enterkine_, were collected
along with papers on art, and medical history and biography, in _Horae
Subsecivae_ (Leisure Hours), 3 vols. In the mingling of tenderness and
delicate humour he has much in common with Lamb; in his insight into
dog-nature he is unique. His later years were clouded with occasional
fits of depression.
BROWN, THOMAS (1778-1820).--Metaphysician, _s._ of the Rev. Samuel B.,
minister of Kirkinabreck, practised for some time as a physician in
Edin., but his tastes and talents lying in the direction of literature
and philosophy, he devoted himself to the cultivation of these, and
succeeded Dugald Stewart as Professor of Moral Philosophy in the Univ. of
Edin., in which position he had remarkable popularity as a lecturer. His
main contribution to literature is his _Lectures_, _pub._ after his
death. B. was a man of attractive character and considerable talents, but
as a philosopher he is now largely superseded. He also wrote poetry,
which, though graceful, lacked force, and is now forgotten.
BROWN, THOMAS EDWARD (1830-1897).--Poet, _b._ at Douglas, Isle of Man,
_s._ of a clergyman, and _ed._ there and at Oxf., entered the Church and
held various scholastic appointments, including a mastership at Clifton.
His later years were spent in his native island. He had a true lyrical
gift, and much of his poetry was written in Manx dialect. His poems
include _Fo'c'sle Yarns_ (1881), _The Doctor_ (1887), _The Manx Witch_
(1889), and _Old John_ (1893). He was also an admirable letter-writer,
and 2 vols. of his letters have been _pub._
BROWN, TOM (1663-1704).--Satirist, was _ed._ at Oxf., and there composed
the famous epigram on Dr. Fell. He was for a few years schoolmaster at
Kingston-on-Thames, but owing to his irregularities lost the appointment,
and went to London, where he wrote satires, epigrams, and miscellaneous
pieces, generally coarse and scurrilous.
BROWNE, CHARLES FARRAR (1834-1867).--Humorist (Artemus Ward), _b._ in
Maine, U.S., worked as a compositor and reporter, and became a highly
popular humorous writer, his books being _Artemus Ward his Book_, _A.W.
His Panorama_, _A.W. among the Mormons_, and _A.W. in England_.
BROWNE, ISAAC HAWKINS (1705-1760).--Is remembered as the author of some
clever imitations of contemporary poets on the theme of _A Pipe of
Tobacco_, somewhat analogous to the _Rejected Addresses_ of a later day.
He also wrote a Latin poem on the immortality of the soul. B., who was a
country gentleman and barrister, had great conversational powers. He was
a friend of Dr. Johnson.
BROWNE, SIR THOMAS (1605-1682).--Physician and miscellaneous and
metaphysical writer, _s._ of a London merchant, was _ed._ at Winchester
and Oxf., after which he studied medicine at various Continental univs.,
including Leyden, where he _grad._ He ultimately settled and practised at
Norwich. His first and perhaps best known work, _Religio Medici_ (the
Religion of a Physician) was _pub._ in 1642. Other books are _Pseudodoxia
Epidemica: Enquiries into Vulgar Errors_ (1646), _Hydriotaphia, or
Urn-burial_ (1658); and _The Garden of Cyrus_ in the same year. After his
death were _pub._ his _Letter to a Friend_ and _Christian Morals_. B. is
one of the most original writers in the English language. Though by no
means free from credulity, and dealing largely with trivial subjects of
inquiry, the freshness and ingenuity of his mind invest everything he
touches with interest; while on more important subjects his style, if
frequently rugged and pedantic, often rises to the highest pitch of grave
and stately eloquence. In the Civil War he sided with the King's party,
and was knighted in 1671 on the occasion of a Royal visit to Norwich. In
character he was simple, cheerful, and retiring. He has had a profound if
indirect influence on succeeding literature, mainly by impressing
master-minds such as Lamb, Coleridge, and Carlyle.
There is an ed. of B.'s works by S. Wilkin (4 vols., 1835-6), _Religio
Medici_ by Dr. Greenhill, 1881. _Life_ by Gosse in Men of Letters Series,
1903.
BROWNE, WILLIAM (1590?-1645?).--Poet, _b._ at Tavistock, _ed._ at Oxf.,
after which he entered the Inner Temple. His poems, which are mainly
descriptive, are rich and flowing, and true to the phenomena of nature,
but deficient in interest. Influenced by Spenser, he in turn had an
influence upon such poets as Milton and Keats. His chief works were
_Britannia's Pastorals_ (1613), and _The Shepheard's Pipe_ (1614).
BROWNING, ELIZABETH BARRETT (1806-1861).--Poetess, was the _dau._ of
Edward Barrett Moulton Barrett, who assumed the last name on succeeding
to the estates of his grandfather in Jamaica. She was _b._ at Coxhoe
Hall, Durham, but spent her youth at Hope End, near Great Malvern. While
still a child she showed her gift, and her _f._ _pub._ 50 copies of a
juvenile epic, on the Battle of Marathon. She was _ed._ at home, but owed
her profound knowledge of Greek and much mental stimulus to her early
friendship with the blind scholar, Hugh Stuart Boyd, who was a neighbour.
At the age of 15 she met with an injury to her spine which confined her
to a recumbent position for several years, and from the effects of which
she never fully recovered. In 1826 she _pub._ anonymously _An Essay on
Mind and Other Poems_. Shortly afterwards the abolition of slavery, of
which he had been a disinterested supporter, considerably reduced Mr.
B.'s means: he accordingly disposed of his estate and removed with his
family first to Sidmouth and afterwards to London. At the former Miss B.
wrote _Prometheus Bound_ (1835). After her removal to London she fell
into delicate health, her lungs being threatened. This did not, however,
interfere with her literary labours, and she contributed to various
periodicals _The Romaunt of Margaret_, _The Romaunt of the Page_, _The
Poet's Vow_, and other pieces. In 1838 appeared _The Seraphim and Other
Poems_ (including "Cowper's Grave.") Shortly thereafter the death, by
drowning, of her favourite brother gave a serious shock to her already
fragile health, and for a time she hovered between life and death.
Eventually, however, she regained strength, and meanwhile her fame was
growing. The _pub._ about 1841 of _The Cry of the Children_ gave it a
great impulse, and about the same time she contributed some critical
papers in prose to R.H. Horne's _New Spirit of the Age_. In 1844 she
_pub._ two vols. of _Poems_, which comprised "The Drama of Exile,"
"Vision of Poets," and "Lady Geraldine's Courtship." In 1845 she met for
the first time her future husband, Robert Browning (_q.v._). Their
courtship and marriage, owing to her delicate health and the
extraordinary objections entertained by Mr. B. to the marriage of any of
his children, were carried out under somewhat peculiar and romantic
circumstances. After a private marriage and a secret departure from her
home, she accompanied her husband to Italy, which became her home almost
continuously until her death, and with the political aspirations of which
she and her husband both thoroughly identified themselves. The union
proved one of unalloyed happiness to both, though it was never forgiven
by Mr. Barrett. In her new circumstances her strength greatly increased.
Her husband and she settled in Florence, and there she wrote _Casa Guidi
Windows_ (1851)--by many considered her strongest work--under the
inspiration of the Tuscan struggle for liberty. _Aurora Leigh_, her
largest, and perhaps the most popular of her longer poems, appeared in
1856. In 1850 _The Sonnets from the Portuguese_--the history of her own
love-story, thinly disguised by its title--had appeared. In 1860 she
issued a _coll._ ed. of her poems under the title, _Poems before
Congress_. Soon thereafter her health underwent a change for the worse;
she gradually lost strength, and _d._ on June 29, 1861. She is generally
considered the greatest of English poetesses. Her works are full of
tender and delicate, but also of strong and deep, thought. Her own
sufferings, combined with her moral and intellectual strength, made her
the champion of the suffering and oppressed wherever she found them. Her
gift was essentially lyrical, though much of her work was not so in form.
Her weak points are the lack of compression, an occasional somewhat
obtrusive mannerism, and frequent failure both in metre and rhyme. Though
not nearly the equal of her husband in force of intellect and the higher
qualities of the poet, her works had, as might be expected on a
comparison of their respective subjects and styles, a much earlier and
wider acceptance with the general public. Mrs. B. was a woman of singular
nobility and charm, and though not beautiful, was remarkably attractive.
Miss Mitford (_q.v._) thus describes her as a young woman: "A slight,
delicate figure, with a shower of dark curls falling on each side of a
most expressive face; large, tender eyes, richly fringed by dark
eyelashes, and a smile like a sunbeam."
_Life_ by J.H. Ingram (1889); _Letters of R. Browning and E.B. Browning_
(1889). _Coll._ ed. of her works, _see_ above.
BROWNING, ROBERT (1812-1889).--Poet, only _s._ of Robert B., a man of
fine intellect and equally fine character, who held a position in the
Bank of England, was _b._ in Camberwell. His mother, to whom he was
ardently attached, was the _dau._ of a German shipowner who had settled
in Dundee, and was alike intellectually and morally worthy of his
affection. The only other member of the family was a younger sister, also
highly gifted, who was the sympathetic companion of his later years. In
his childhood he was distinguished by his love of poetry and natural
history. At 12 he had written a book of poetry which he destroyed when he
could not find a publisher. After being at one or two private schools,
and showing an insuperable dislike to school life, he was _ed._ by a
tutor, and thereafter studied Greek at Univ. Coll., London. Through his
mother he inherited some musical talent, and composed settings, for
various songs. His first _pub._ was _Pauline_, which appeared anonymously
in 1833, but attracted little attention. In 1834 he paid his first visit
to Italy, in which so much of his future life was to be passed. The
publication of _Paracelsus_ in 1835, though the poem had no general
popularity, gained the notice of Carlyle, Wordsworth, and other men of
letters, and gave him a reputation as a poet of distinguished promise.
Two years later his drama of _Stratford_ was performed by his friend
Macready and Helen Faucit, and in 1840 the most difficult and obscure of
his works, _Sordello_, appeared; but, except with a select few, did
little to increase his reputation. It was followed by _Bells and
Pomegranates_ (containing _Pippa Passes_) (1841), _A Blot in the
'Scutcheon_ (drama) (1843), _Luria_ and _A Soul's Tragedy_ (1846). In
this year he married Miss Elizabeth Barrett (_q.v._), the poetess, a
union of ideal happiness. Thereafter his home until his wife's death in
1861 was in Italy, chiefly at Florence. In 1850 he wrote _Christmas Eve
and Easter Day_, and in 1855 appeared _Men and Women_. After the death of
Mrs. Browning he returned to England, paying, however, frequent visits to
Italy. Settling in London he published successively _Dramatis Personae_
(1864), _The Ring and the Book_ (1868-69), his greatest work,
_Balaustion's Adventure_, and _Prince Hohenstiel-Schwangau_ (1871),
_Fifine at the Fair_ (1872), _Red Cotton Night-cap Country_ (1873), _The
Inn Album_ (1875), _Pacchiarotto_ (1876), translation of _Agamemnon_
(1879), _La Saisiaz_, etc. (1878), _Dramatic Idylls_ (1879 and 1880),
_Asolando_ (1889) appeared on the day of his death. To the great majority
of readers, probably, B. is best known by some of his short poems, such
as, to name a few, "Rabbi Ben Ezra," "How they brought the good News to
Aix," "Evelyn Hope," "The Pied Piper of Hammelin," "A Grammarian's
Funeral," "A Death in the Desert." It was long before England recognised
that in B. she had received one of the greatest of her poets, and the
causes of this lie on the surface. His subjects were often recondite and
lay beyond the ken and sympathy of the great bulk of readers; and owing,
partly to the subtle links connecting the ideas and partly to his often
extremely condensed and rugged expression, the treatment of them was not
seldom difficult and obscure. Consequently for long he appealed to a
somewhat narrow circle. As time went on, however, and work after work was
added, the circle widened, and the marvellous depth and variety of
thought and intensity of feeling told with increasing force. Societies
began to be formed for the study of the poet's work. Critics became more
and more appreciative, and he at last reaped the harvest of admiration
and honour which was his due. Many distinctions came to him. He was made
LL.D. of Edin., a life Governor of London Univ., and had the offer of the
Lord Rectorship of Glasgow. He _d._ in the house of his son at Venice,
and was buried in Westminster Abbey. The keynote of his teaching is a
wise and noble optimism. His poems were collected in 2 vols. in 1896.
Some vols. of his correspondence with Mrs. B. were also _pub._
Uniform ed. of Works (17 vols. 1888-90); Furnivall's _Browning
Bibliography_ (1883), _Lives_ by Mrs. Sutherland Orr (1891); Gosse
(1890); Dowden (1904), G.K. Chesterton (English Men of Letters), etc.;
_Poetry of Robert Browning_ by Stopford Brooke, 1902, etc.
SUMMARY.--_B._ 1812, _pub._ _Paracelsus_ 1835, _Sordello_ 1840, _Bells
and Pomegranates_ 1841, _m._ to E.B.B. 1846, lives chiefly in Italy till
her _d._, 1861, when he returned to England and continued to write until
his _d._, _pub._ _Dramatis Personae_, _Ring and Book_ 1868-9, _Asolando_
1889, _d._ 1889.
BRUCE, JAMES (1730-1794).--Traveller, was _b._ at the family seat of
Kinnaird, Perthshire, and _ed._ at Harrow. After various travels in
Europe he set out in 1768 on his expedition to Abyssinia, and in 1770
reached the source of the Blue Nile. He returned to England in 1774, and
in 1790 _pub._ his _Travels_ in 5 quarto vols. His notorious vanity, the
singular adventures he related, and the generally embellished character
which he imparted to his narrative excited some degree of scepticism, and
he was subjected to a good deal of satire, to which, though much annoyed,
he did not reply. It is, however, generally allowed that he had shown
great daring, perseverance, and zeal in his explorations, and that he
made a real addition to the geographical knowledge of his day.
BRUCE, MICHAEL (1746-1767).--Poet, _s._ of a poor weaver at Kinnesswood,
Kinross-shire, as a child herded cattle, but received a good education,
including 4 sessions at the Univ. of Edin., and for a short time kept a
school. His longest poem, _Loch Leven_, shows the influence of Thomson.
His best is his _Elegy_. His promising career was cut short by
consumption in 1767. The authorship of the beautiful _Ode to the Cuckoo_
beginning "Hail, beauteous stranger of the grove" is contested, some
authorities claiming it for B. and others for the Rev. John Logan
(_q.v._), who ed. B.'s works, adding some of his own, and who claimed the
_Ode_ as his.
BRUNTON, MARY (BALFOUR) (1778-1818).--Novelist, _dau._ of Col. Balfour of
Elwick, and _m._ to the Rev. Dr. Brunton, Prof. of Oriental Languages in
the Univ. of Edin., was the authoress of two novels, _Self-Control_
(1811) and _Discipline_ (1814), which were popular in their day.
BRYANT, JACOB (1715-1804).--Scholar, _ed._ at Eton and Camb., wrote
learnedly, but paradoxically, on mythological and Homeric subjects. His
chief works were _A New System or Analysis of Ancient Mythology_
(1774-76), _Observations on the Plain of Troy_ (1795), and _Dissertation
concerning the Wars of Troy_ (1796). In the last two he endeavoured to
show that the existence of Troy and the Greek expedition were fabulous.
Though so sceptical on these points he was an implicit believer in the
authenticity of the Rowley authorship of Chatterton's fabrications. He
also wrote on theological subjects.
BRYANT, WILLIAM CULLEN (1794-1878).--Poet, was _b._ at Cummington,
Massachusetts, the _s._ of a doctor. His ancestors on both sides came
over in the _Mayflower_. His first poem was _Thanatopsis_ (1817), which
was greeted as the best poem produced in America up to that time. After
being a lawyer for some time he was induced to exchange law for
journalism, and acted as ed. of various periodicals. Among his best known
poems are _Lines to a Water-fowl_, _The Rivulet_, _The West Wind_, _The
Forest Hymn_, _The Fringed Gentian_, etc. His muse is tender and graceful,
pervaded by a contemplative melancholy, and a love of solitude and the
silence of the woods. Though he was brought up to admire Pope, and in his
early youth imitated him, he was one of the first American poets to throw
off his influence. He had a high sense of duty, was a prominent and
patriotic citizen, and enjoyed the esteem and even the reverence of his
fellow-countrymen. B. also produced a blank-verse translation of the
_Iliad_ and the _Odyssey_.
BRYDGES, SIR SAMUEL EGERTON (1762-1837).--Bibliographer and genealogist,
_ed._ at Camb., was called to the Bar in 1787. He wrote some novels and
poems, now forgotten, but rendered valuable service by his
bibliographical publications, _Censura Literaria, Titles and Opinions of
Old English Books_ (10 vols. 1805-9), his editions of E. Phillips's
_Theatrum Poetarum Anglicanorum_ (1800) Collin's _Peerage of England_
(1812), and of many rare Elizabethan authors. He was made a baronet in
1814. He _d._ at Geneva.
BUCHANAN, GEORGE (1506-1582).--Historian and scholar _b._ at Killearn,
Stirlingshire, of poor parents, was sent in 1519, with the help of an
uncle, to the Univ. of Paris, where he first came in contact with the two
great influences of the age, the Renaissance and the Reformation. His
uncle having died, he had to leave Paris, and after seeing some military
service, returned to Scotland, and in 1524 went to St. Andrews, where he
studied under John Major (_q.v._). Two years later he found means to
return to Paris, where he graduated at the Scots Coll. in 1528, and
taught grammar in the Coll. of St. Barbe. Returning to Scotland in 1536
with a great reputation for learning he was made by James V. tutor to one
of his illegitimate sons, and incited by him to satirise the vices of the
clergy, which he did in two Latin poems, _Somnium_ and _Franciscanus_.
This stirred the wrath of the ecclesiastical powers to such a heat that,
the King withholding his protection, he was obliged in 1539 to save
himself by flight first to England and then to France, where he remained
until 1547 teaching Latin at Bordeaux and Paris. In the latter year he
was invited to become a prof. at Coimbra, where he was imprisoned by the
Inquisition as a heretic from 1549-51, and wrote the greater part of his
magnificent translation of the Psalms into Latin verse, which has never
been excelled by any modern. He returned to England in 1552, but soon
re-crossed to France and taught in the Coll. of Boncourt. In 1561 he came
back to his native country, where he remained for the rest of his life.
Hitherto, though a supporter of the new learning and a merciless exposer
of the vices of the clergy, he had remained in the ancient faith, but he
now openly joined the ranks of the Reformers. He held the Principalship
of St. Leonard's Coll., St. Andrews, was a supporter of the party of the
Regent Moray, produced in 1571 his famous _Detectio Mariae Reginae_, a
scathing exposure of the Queen's relations to Darnley and the
circumstances leading up to his death, was tutor, 1570-78, to James VI.,
whom he brought up with great strictness, and to whom he imparted the
learning of which the King was afterwards so vain. His chief remaining
works were _De Jure Regni apud Scotos_ (1579), against absolutism, and
his _History of Scotland_, which was _pub._ immediately before his death.
Though he had borne so great a part in the affairs of his country, and
was the first scholar of his age, he _d._ so poor that he left no funds
to meet the expenses of his interment. His literary masterpiece is his
_History_, which is remarkable for the power and richness of its style.
Its matter, however, gave so much offence that a proclamation was issued
calling in all copies of it, as well as of the _De Jure Regni_, that they
might be purged of the "offensive and extraordinary matters" which they
contained. B. holds his great and unique place in literature not so much
for his own writings as for his strong and lasting influence on
subsequent writers.
BUCHANAN, ROBERT (1841-1901).--Poet and novelist, _b._ at Caverswall,
Staffordshire, the _s._ of a Scottish schoolmaster and socialist, and
_ed._ at Glasgow, was the friend of David Gray (_q.v._), and with him
went to London in search of fame, but had a long period of
discouragement. His first work, a collection of poems, _Undertones_
(1863), had, however, some success, and was followed by _Idylls of
Inverburn_ (1865), _London Poems_ (1866), and others, which gave him a
growing reputation, and raised high hopes of his future. Thereafter he
took up prose fiction and the drama, not always with success, and got
into trouble owing to some drastic criticism of his contemporaries,
culminating in his famous article on the _Fleshly School of Poetry_,
which appeared in the _Contemporary Review_ (Oct. 1871), and evoked
replies from Rossetti (_The Stealthy School of Criticism_), and Swinburne
(_Under the Microscope_). Among his novels are _A Child of Nature_
(1879), _God and the Man_ (1881), and among his dramas _A Nine Days'
Queen_, _A Madcap Prince_, and _Alone in London_. His latest poems, _The
Outcast_ and _The Wandering Jew_, were directed against certain aspects
of Christianity. B. was unfortunate in his latter years; a speculation
turned out ruinously; he had to sell his copyrights, and he sustained a
paralytic seizure, from the effects of which he _d._ in a few months. He
ultimately admitted that his criticism of Rossetti was unjustifiable.
BUCKINGHAM, GEORGE VILLIERS, 2ND DUKE of (1628-1687).--Dramatist, _s._ of
the 1st Duke, who was in 1628 assassinated by Felton. His life was full
of adventure and change of fortune. The Restoration gave him back his
already twice lost estates, which he again squandered by a life of wild
extravagance and profligacy at Court. He was a member of the "Cabal" and
intrigued against Clarendon. He wrote pamphlets, lampoons, and plays, but
his chief contribution to literature was _The Rehearsal_, a comedy, in
which he satirised the heroic drama of Dryden and others. It is believed
that S. Butler had a hand in it. Dryden had his revenge in his picture of
B. as _Zimri_ in _Absalom and Achitophel_.
BUCKINGHAM AND NORMANBY, JOHN SHEFFIELD, 1ST DUKE of (1648-1721).--_S._
of the 2nd Earl of Mulgrave, served in his youth as a soldier under
Prince Rupert and Turenne, and is also said to have made love to the
Princess, afterwards Queen, Anne. He was a Privy Councillor under James
II., William and Mary, and Anne, with the last of whom he remained a
favourite. His magnificent mansion was purchased and pulled down to make
way for Buckingham Palace. He wrote _An Account of the Revolution_, _An
Essay on Satire_, and _An Essay on Poetry_. He also remodelled
Shakespeare's _Julius Caesar_.
BUCKINGHAM, JAMES SILK (1786-1855).--Journalist and traveller, wrote many
books of travel, both on the Old and New World. He established, and for a
year or two ed., _The Athenaeum_, and produced many pamphlets on political
and social subjects.
BUCKLAND, FRANCIS TREVELYAN (1826-80).--Naturalist, _b._ and _ed._ at
Oxf., where his _f._ was Dean of Christchurch. He studied medicine and
was assistant-surgeon in the Life Guards. An enthusiastic lover of
natural history, he wrote largely upon it, among his works being
_Curiosities of Natural History_ (4 vols. 1857-72), _Log Book of a
Fisherman and Zoologist_ (1876), _Natural History of British Fishes_
(1881). He also founded and ed. _Land and Water_. He was for a time
Inspector of Salmon Fisheries, and served on various commissions. Though
observant, he was not always strictly scientific in his methods and modes
of expression, and he was a strong opponent of Darwin.
BUCKLE, HENRY THOMAS (1821-1862).--Historical writer, _s._ of a wealthy
shipowner in London, was _b._ at Lee in Kent. Though never at a univ. and
little at school, he received a high degree of education privately, and
inheriting an ample fortune and a large library, he devoted himself to
travel and study, with the view of preparing for a great work which he
had projected, _The History of Civilisation in England_. As an
introduction to this he entered upon the consideration of the state of
civilisation in various other countries, but this he had scarcely
completed when his death took place at Damascus in 1862. The first vol.
was _pub._ in 1857, and the second in 1861. In these the results of a
vast amount of reading are shown; but they are not free from one-sided
views and generalisations resting on insufficient data. He has, however,
the credit of having contributed a new idea of history and the method of
writing it. The completed work was to have extended to 14 vols. B. was
one of the greatest chess-players in Europe.
BUDGELL, EUSTACE (1686-1737).--Miscellaneous writer, _ed._ at Oxf., was a
cousin of Addison, who took him to Ireland and got him appointed to a
lucrative office, which, however, he was foolish enough to throw away by
lampooning the Viceroy. He assisted A. in the _Spectator_, of which he
wrote 37 numbers signed X. In these he imitates A.'s style with some
success. B., who was vain and vindictive, fell on evil days, lost a
fortune in the South Sea Bubble, was accused of forging a will, and
committed suicide by throwing himself out of a boat at London Bridge.
BULL, GEORGE (1634-1710).--Theologian, _b._ at Wells, _ed._ at Tiverton
and Oxf., took orders, was ordained by an ejected bishop in 1658, and
received the living of Suddington near Bristol. He was a strong Royalist,
and was privy to a scheme for bringing back the Royal family. After the
Restoration he obtained further preferment, and became in 1704 Bishop of
St. David's at an age when his strength had become unequal to any very
active discharge of the duties of his see. He has a high place among
Anglican theologians, and as a defender of the doctrine of the Trinity
was held in high esteem even by Continental Romanist controversialists.
Among his works are _Harmonia Apostolica_ (1669-70) in which he
endeavoured to reconcile alleged discrepancies between the teaching of
St. Paul and St. James on the relation between faith and works, in which
he assigned to the latter the higher authority, _Defensio Fidei Nicaenae_
(1685) and _Corruptions of the Church of Rome_.
BULWER, E.L., (_see_ LYTTON.)
BUNYAN, JOHN (1628-1688).--_B._ at Elstow, near Bedford, the _s._ of a
poor tinker, was _ed._ at a free school, after which he worked at his
father's trade. At 17 he was drafted as a soldier in the Civil War, and
served for two years at Newport Pagnell. At 19 he _m._ a pious young
woman, whose only dowry appears to have been two books, the _Plain Man's
Pathway to Heaven_ and the _Practice of Piety_, by which he was
influenced towards a religious life. In his autobiographical book, _Grace
Abounding_, B. describes himself as having led an abandoned life in his
youth; but there appears to be no evidence that he was, outwardly at any
rate, worse than the average of his neighbours: the only serious fault
which he specifies is profanity, others being dancing and bell-ringing.
The overwhelming power of his imagination led him to contemplate acts of
impiety and profanity, and to a vivid realisation of the dangers these
involved. In particular he was harassed by a curiosity in regard to the
"unpardonable sin," and a prepossession that he had already committed it.
He continually heard voices urging him to "sell Christ," and was tortured
by fearful visions. After severe spiritual conflicts he escaped from this
condition, and became an enthusiastic and assured believer. In 1657 he
joined the Baptist Church, began to preach, and in 1660 was committed to
Bedford Jail, at first for three months, but on his refusing to conform,
or to desist from preaching, his confinement was extended with little
interval for a period of nearly 12 years, not always, however, very
rigorous. He supported his family (wife and four children, including a
blind girl) by making tagged laces, and devoted all the time he could
spare from this to studying his few books and writing. During this period
he wrote among other things, _The Holy City_ and _Grace Abounding_. Under
the Declaration of Indulgence he was released in 1672, and became a
licensed preacher. In 1675 the Declaration was cancelled, and he was,
under the Conventicle Act, again imprisoned for six months, during which
he wrote the first part of _The Pilgrim's Progress_, which appeared in
1678, and to which considerable additions were made in subsequent
editions. It was followed by the _Life and Death of Mr. Badman_ (1680),
_The Holy War_ (1682), and the second part of _The Pilgrim's Progress_
(1684). B. was now widely known as a popular preacher and author, and
exercised a wide influence. In 1688 he set out on a journey to mediate
between a father and son, in which he was successful. On the return
journey he was drenched with rain, caught a chill and _d._ in London on
August 31. He is buried in Bunhill Fields. B. has the distinction of
having written, in _The Pilgrim's Progress_, probably the most widely
read book in the English language, and one which has been translated into
more tongues than any book except the Bible. The charm of the work, which
makes it the joy of old and young, learned and ignorant, and of readers
of all possible schools of thought and theology, lies in the interest of
a story in which the intense imagination of the writer makes characters,
incidents, and scenes alike live in that of his readers as things
actually known and remembered by themselves, in its touches of tenderness
and quaint humour, its bursts of heart-moving eloquence, and its pure,
nervous, idiomatic English, Macaulay has said, "Every reader knows the
straight and narrow path as well as he knows a road on which he has been
backwards and forwards a hundred times," and he adds that "In England
during the latter half of the seventeenth century there were only two
minds which possessed the imaginative faculty in a very eminent degree.
One of these minds produced the _Paradise Lost_, the other _The Pilgrim's
Progress_." B. wrote about 60 books and tracts, of which _The Holy War_
ranks next to _The Pilgrim's Progress_ in popularity, while _Grace
Abounding_ is one of the most interesting pieces of biography in
existence.
There are numerous Lives, the most complete being that by Dr. John Brown
of Bedford (1885 new 1888): others are Southey's (1830), on which
Macaulay's _Essay_ is based, Offor (1862), Froude (1880). On _The
Pilgrim's Progress, The People of the Pilgrimage_, by J. Kerr Bain, D.D.
BURCKHARDT, JOHN LEWIS (1784-1817).--Traveller, _b._ at Lausanne and
_ed._ in Germany, came to England in 1806 and wrote his books of travel
in English. He travelled widely in Africa and in Syria, and the adjoining
countries, became a great oriental scholar, and, disguising himself, made
the pilgrimage to Mecca, and obtained access to places not open to
Christians. He wrote accounts of his travels, and a book on Arabic
proverbs. He _d._ of dysentery at Cairo when about to start on a new
journey into the interior of Africa.
BURKE, EDMUND (1729-1797).--Statesman, orator, and political philosopher,
was the _s._ of an attorney in Dublin, where he was _b._ His _f._ was a
Protestant, but his mother, whose maiden name was Nagle, was a Roman
Catholic. He received his early _ed._ at a Quaker school at Ballitore,
and in 1743 proceeded to Trinity Coll., Dublin, where he graduated in
1748. His _f._ wished him to study for the law, and with this object he,
in 1750, went to London and entered the Middle Temple. He, however,
disliked law and spent more time in literary pursuits than in legal
study. In 1756 his first _pub._ work appeared, _A Vindication of Natural
Society_, a satire on the views of Bolingbroke, but so close was the
imitation of that writer's style, and so grave the irony, that its point
as a satire was largely missed. In the same year he _pub._ his famous
treatise _On the Sublime and Beautiful_, which attracted universal
attention, and three years later (1759) he projected with Dodsley the
publisher _The Annual Register_, for which he continued to write the
yearly Survey of Events until 1788. About the same time he was introduced
to W.G. Hamilton (known as Single-speech H.) then about to go to Ireland
as Chief Sec., and accompanied him in the capacity of private sec., in
which he remained for three years. In 1765 he became private sec. to the
Marquis of Rockingham, the Whig statesman, then Prime Minister, who
became his fast friend until his death. At the same time he entered
Parliament as member for Wendover, and began his brilliant career as an
orator and philosophic statesman. The first great subject in which he
interested himself was the controversy with the American colonies, which
soon developed into war and ultimate separation, and in 1769 he _pub._,
in reply to G. Grenville, his pamphlet on _The Present State of the
Nation_. In the same year he purchased the small estate of Gregories near
Beaconsfield. His speeches and writings had now made him famous, and
among other effects had brought about the suggestion that he was the
author of the _Letters of Junius_. It was also about this time that he
became one of the circle which, including Goldsmith, Garrick, etc., had
Johnson for its central luminary. In 1770 appeared _Thoughts on the
Causes of the Present Discontent_, directed against the growth of the
Royal power on the one hand, and of faction on the other. In 1774 he was
elected member for Bristol, and continued so until 1780, when differences
with his constituency on the questions of Irish trade and Catholic
emancipation led to his resignation, after which he sat for Malton until
his final retirement from public life. Under the administration of Lord
North (1770-1782) the American war went on from bad to worse, and it was
in part owing to the splendid oratorical efforts of B. that it was at
last brought to an end. To this period belong two of his most brilliant
performances, his speech on _Conciliation with America_ (1775), and his
_Letter to the Sheriffs of Bristol_ (1777). The fall of North led to
Rockingham being recalled to power, which, however, he held for a few
months only, dying in the end of 1782, during which period B. held the
office of Paymaster of the Forces, and was made a Privy Councillor.
Thereafter he committed the great error of his political life in
supporting Fox in his coalition with North, one of the most flagitious,
as it was to those concerned in it, one of the most fatal, political acts
in our parliamentary history. Under this unhappy combination he continued
to hold during its brief existence the office of Paymaster, and
distinguished himself in connection with Fox's India Bill. The coalition
fell in 1783, and was succeeded by the long administration of Pitt, which
lasted until 1801. B. was accordingly for the remainder of his political
life in opposition. In 1785 he made his great speech on _The Nabob of
Arcot's Debts_, and in the next year (1786) he moved for papers in regard
to the Indian government of Warren Hastings, the consequence of which was
the impeachment of that statesman, which, beginning in 1787, lasted until
1794, and of which B. was the leading promoter. Meanwhile, the events in
France were in progress which led to the Revolution, and culminated in
the death of the King and Queen. By these B. was profoundly moved, and
his _Reflections on the French Revolution_ (1790) electrified England,
and even Europe. Its success was enormous. The same events and the
differences which arose regarding them in the Whig party led to its break
up, to the rupture of B's friendship with Fox, and to his _Appeal from
the New to the Old Whigs_. In 1794 a terrible blow fell upon him in the
loss of his son Richard, to whom he was tenderly attached, and in whom he
saw signs of promise, which were not patent to others, and which in fact
appear to have been non-existent. In the same year the Hastings trial
came to an end. B. felt that his work was done and indeed that he was
worn out; and he took leave of Parliament. The King, whose favour he had
gained by his attitude on the French Revolution, wished to make him Lord
Beaconsfield, but the death of his son had deprived such an honour of all
its attractions, and the only reward he would accept was a pension of
L2500. Even this modest reward for services so transcendent was attacked
by the Duke of Bedford, to whom B. made a crushing reply in the _Letter
to a Noble Lord_ (1796). His last _pub._ was the _Letter on a Regicide
Peace_ (1796), called forth by negotiations for peace with France. When
it appeared the author was dead.
B. was one of the greatest political thinkers whom England has produced,
and all his writings, like his speeches, are characterised by the welding
together of knowledge, thought, and feeling. Unlike most orators he is
more successful as a writer than as a speaker. He rose too far above the
heads of his audience, which the continued splendour of his declamation,
his inordinate copiousness, and his excessive vehemence, often passing
into fury, at length wearied, and even disgusted: but in his writings are
found some of the grandest examples of a fervid and richly elaborated
eloquence. Though he was never admitted to the Cabinet, he guided and
influenced largely the policy of his party, while by his efforts in the
direction of economy and order in administration at home, and on behalf
of kindly and just government in India, as well as by his contributions
to political philosophy, he laid his country and indeed the world under
lasting obligations.
There are _Lives_ by Prior (1824 and 1854); J. Morley (1867), and various
ed. of his works have appeared. _Select Works_ by Payne (3 vols.
1874-78).
SUMMARY.--_B._ 1729, _ed._ Trinity Coll., Dublin, enters Middle Temple
1750, _pub._ treatise _On the Sublime and Beautiful_ 1756, became friend
of Rockingham 1765, enters Parliament and engages in American
controversy, _pub._ speech on _Conciliation with America_ 1775, Paymaster
of Forces and P.C. 1782, joined coalition of Fox and North 1782, leads in
prosecution of W. Hastings 1787-94, _pub._ _Reflections on French
Revolution_ 1790 and breaks with Fox party, _pub._ _Letter on a Regicide
Peace_ 1796, _d._ 1797.
BURNET, GILBERT (1643-1715).--Theologian and historian, s. of a Royalist
and Episcopalian lawyer, who became a judge, and of the sister of
Johnston of Warristoun, a leader of the Covenanters, was _b._ in Edin.,
and _ed._ at Aberdeen and at Amsterdam, where he studied Hebrew under a
Rabbi. Returning to Scotland, he was successively Episcopal minister at
Saltoun and Prof. of Divinity in Glasgow (1669), and was then offered,
but declined, a Scotch bishopric. His energetic and bustling character
led him to take an active part in the controversies of the time, and he
endeavoured to bring about a reconciliation between Episcopacy and
Presbytery. Going to London he was in some favour with Charles II., from
whom he received various preferments. His literary reputation was greatly
enhanced by the publication in 1679 of the first vol. of his _History of
the Reformation of the Church of England_, for which he received the
thanks of Parliament, and which was completed by other two vols., in 1682
and 1714. On account of a letter of reproof which he ventured to write to
the King, he lost favour at Court, and the policy pursued by James II.
being very repugnant to him, he betook himself in 1687 to Holland, where
he became one of the advisers of the Prince of Orange. Returning to
England at the Revolution, he was made Bishop of Salisbury, which office
he adorned by liberal views and a zealous discharge of duty. The work by
which his fame is chiefly sustained, his _History of my Own Times_, was,
by his direction, not to be _pub._ until 6 years after his death. It
appeared in 1723. It gives a sketch of the history of the Civil Wars and
Commonwealth, and a detailed account of the immediately succeeding period
down to 1713. While not free from egotism and some party feeling, it is
written with a sincere desire for accuracy and fairness, and it has
largely the authority of an eye-witness. The style, if somewhat lacking
in dignity, is lively and picturesque. Among his other writings are a
_History of the Dukes of Hamilton_, and an _Exposition of the 39
Articles_.
His principal works have been repeatedly printed. Clarendon Press ed. of
_My Own Times_ by Routh (1823 and 1833).
BURNET, THOMAS (1635?-1715).--Theologian and writer on cosmogony, was
_b._ at Croft near Darlington, and _ed._ at Camb., and became Master of
Charterhouse and Clerk of the Closet to William III. His literary fame
rests on his _Telluris Theoria Sacra, or Sacred Theory of the Earth_,
_pub._ about 1692, first in Latin and afterwards in English, a work
which, in absence of all scientific knowledge of the earth's structure,
was necessarily a mere speculative cosmogony. It is written, however,
with much eloquence. Some of the views expressed in another work,
_Archaeolgiae Philosophicae_, were, however, so unacceptable to contemporary
theologians that he had to resign his post at Court.
BURNS, ROBERT (1759-1796).--Poet, was _b._ near Ayr, the _s._ of William
Burness or Burns, a small farmer, and a man of considerable force of
character and self-culture. His youth was passed in poverty, hardship,
and a degree of severe manual labour which left its traces in a premature
stoop and weakened constitution. He had little regular schooling, and got
much of what education he had from his father, who taught his children
reading, writing, arithmetic, geography, and history, and also wrote for
them "A Manual of Christian Belief." With all his ability and character,
however, the elder B. was consistently unfortunate, and migrated with his
large family from farm to farm without ever being able to improve his
circumstances. In 1781 Robert went to Irvine to become a flax-dresser,
but, as the result of a New Year carousal of the workmen, including
himself, the shop took fire and was burned to the ground. This venture
accordingly came to an end. In 1784 the _f._ died, and B. with his
brother Gilbert made an ineffectual struggle to keep on the farm; failing
in which they removed to Mossgiel, where they maintained an uphill fight
for 4 years. Meanwhile, his love affair with Jean Armour had passed
through its first stage, and the troubles in connection therewith,
combined with the want of success in farming, led him to think of going
to Jamaica as bookkeeper on a plantation. From this he was dissuaded by a
letter from Dr. Thomas Blacklock (_q.v._), and at the suggestion of his
brother _pub._ his poems. This first ed. was brought out at Kilmarnock in
June 1786, and contained much of his best work, including "The Twa Dogs,"
"The Address to the Deil," "Hallowe'en," "The Cottar's Saturday Night,"
"The Mouse," "The Daisy," etc., many of which had been written at
Mossgiel. Copies of this ed. are now extremely scarce, and as much as
L550 has been paid for one. The success of the work was immediate, the
poet's name rang over all Scotland, and he was induced to go to Edin. to
superintend the issue of a new ed. There he was received as an equal by
the brilliant circle of men of letters which the city then
boasted--Dugald Stewart, Robertson, Blair, etc., and was a guest at
aristocratic tables, where he bore himself with unaffected dignity. Here
also Scott, then a boy of 15, saw him and describes him as of "manners
rustic, not clownish. His countenance ... more massive than it looks in
any of the portraits ... a strong expression of shrewdness in his
lineaments; the eye alone indicated the poetical character and
temperament. It was large, and of a dark cast, and literally glowed when
he spoke with feeling or interest." The results of this visit outside of
its immediate and practical object, included some life-long friendships,
among which were those with Lord Glencairn and Mrs. Dunlop. The new ed.
brought him L400. About this time the episode of Highland Mary occurred.
On his return to Ayrshire he renewed his relations with Jean Armour, whom
he ultimately married, took the farm of Ellisland near Dumfries, having
meanwhile taken lessons in the duties of an exciseman, as a line to fall
back upon should farming again prove unsuccessful. At Ellisland his
society was cultivated by the local gentry. And this, together with
literature and his duties in the excise, to which he had been appointed
in 1789, proved too much of a distraction to admit of success on the
farm, which in 1791 he gave up. Meanwhile he was writing at his best, and
in 1790 had produced _Tam o' Shanter_. About this time he was offered and
declined an appointment in London on the staff of the _Star_ newspaper,
and refused to become a candidate for a newly-created Chair of
Agriculture in the Univ. of Edin., although influential friends offered
to support his claims. After giving up his farm he removed to Dumfries.
It was at this time that, being requested to furnish words for _The
Melodies of Scotland_, he responded by contributing over 100 songs, on
which perhaps his claim to immortality chiefly rests, and which placed
him in the front rank of lyric poets. His worldly prospects were now
perhaps better than they had ever been; but he was entering upon the last
and darkest period of his career. He had become soured, and moreover had
alienated many of his best friends by too freely expressing sympathy
with the French Revolution, and the then unpopular advocates of reform at
home. His health began to give way; he became prematurely old, and fell
into fits of despondency; and the habits of intemperance, to which he had
always been more or less addicted, grew upon him. He _d._ on July 21,
1797.
The genius of B. is marked by spontaneity, directness, and sincerity, and
his variety is marvellous, ranging from the tender intensity of some of
his lyrics through the rollicking humour and blazing wit of _Tam o'
Shanter_ to the blistering satire of _Holy Willie's Prayer_ and _The Holy
Fair_. His life is a tragedy, and his character full of flaws. But he
fought at tremendous odds, and as Carlyle in his great Essay says,
"Granted the ship comes into harbour with shrouds and tackle damaged, the
pilot is blameworthy ... but to know _how_ blameworthy, tell us first
whether his voyage has been round the Globe or only to Ramsgate and the
Isle of Dogs."
The books about Burns, his life and writings, are innumerable. Among the
Lives are those by Currie (1800); Allan Cunningham (1834); J.G. Lockhart
(1828), on which is based Carlyle's memorable _Essay_ (which _see_).
Among the famous ed. of the _Poems_ may be mentioned the first
(Kilmarnock 1786), Edin. (1787), and the _Centenary_ (1896), by W.E.
Henley and T.F. Henderson.
SUMMARY.--_B._ 1759, flax-dresser at Irvine 1781, farms at Mossgiel, has
love affair with Jean Armour, _pub._ first ed. of poems 1786, visits
Edin. 1786, goes to Ellisland, became exciseman 1789, _pub._ songs, _c._
1791, _d._ 1797.
BURTON, JOHN HILL (1809-1881).--Historian, was _b._ and _ed._ at
Aberdeen, was in 1831 called to the Bar, but had little practice, and in
1854 was appointed Sec. to the Prison Board of Scotland, and in 1877 a
Commissioner of Prisons. He became at an early period of his life a
contributor to _Blackwood's Magazine_ and other periodicals, and in 1846
_pub._ a life of Hume, which attracted considerable attention, and was
followed by Lives of Lord Lovat and Lord President Forbes. He began his
career as an historian by the publication in 1853 of _History of Scotland
from the Revolution to the Extinction of the last Jacobite Insurrection_,
to which he added (1867-70) _History of Scotland from Agricola's Invasion
to the Revolution_, in 7 vols., thus completing a continuous narrative.
Subsequently he _pub._ a _History of the Reign of Queen Anne_ (1880).
Other works of a lighter kind were _The Book-Hunter_ (1862), and _The
Scot Abroad_ (1864). B.'s historical works display much research and a
spirit of candour and honesty, and have picturesque and spirited
passages, but the style is unequal, and frequently lacks dignity. On the
whole, however, his is regarded as the most generally trustworthy and
valuable history of Scotland at present existing.
BURTON, SIR RICHARD FRANCIS (1821-1890).--Explorer and scholar, _s._ of
an officer in the army, was _b._ at Barham House, Herts, and after a
somewhat desultory education abroad as well as at home, entered upon a
life of travel, adventure, and military and civil service in almost every
quarter of the world, including India, Africa, the nearer East, and North
and South America, in the course of which he mastered 35 languages. As an
official his masterful ways and spirit of adventure frequently brought
him into collision with superior powers, by whom he not seldom considered
himself ill-used. He was the author of upwards of 50 books on a great
variety of subjects, including travels, novels, and translations, among
which are _Personal Narrative of a Journey to Mecca_ (1855), _First
Footprints in East Africa_ (1856), _Lake Regions of Equatorial Africa_
(1860), _The Nile Basin_, a translation and life of Camoens, an
absolutely literal translation of the _Arabian Nights_, with notes and
commentaries, of which his accomplished wife _pub._ an expurgated
edition. Lady B., who was the companion of his travels after 1861, also
wrote books on Syria, Arabia, and other eastern countries, as well as a
life of her husband, a number of whose manuscripts she destroyed.
BURTON, ROBERT (1577-1640).--Miscellaneous writer, _b._ at Lindley,
Leicestershire, and _ed._ at Oxf., took orders, and became Vicar of St.
Thomas, Oxf., 1616, and Rector of Segrave, Leicestershire, 1630. Subject
to depression of spirits, he wrote as an antidote the singular book which
has given him fame. _The Anatomy of Melancholy_, in which he appears
under the name of _Democritus Junior_, was _pub._ in 1621, and had great
popularity. In the words of Warton, "The author's variety of learning,
his quotations from rare and curious books, his pedantry sparkling with
rude wit and shapeless elegance ... have rendered it a repertory of
amusement and information." It has also proved a store-house from which
later authors have not scrupled to draw without acknowledgment. It was a
favourite book of Dr. Johnson. B. was a mathematician and dabbled in
astrology. When not under depression he was an amusing companion, "very
merry, facete, and juvenile," and a person of "great honesty, plain
dealing, and charity."
The best ed. is that of Rev. A.R. Shilleto, with introduction by A.H.
Bullen (3 vols. 1893).
BURY, LADY CHARLOTTE (1775-1861).--Novelist, _dau._ of the 5th Duke of
Argyll, and _m._ first to Col. J. Campbell, and second to Rev. E.J. Bury,
wrote a number of novels--_Flirtation_, _Separation_, _The Divorced_,
etc., but is chiefly remembered in connection with a _Diary illustrative
of the Times of George IV._ (1838), a somewhat scandalous work generally,
and probably correctly, ascribed to her. She also wrote some poems and
two devotional works. She held for some time an appointment in the
household of the Princess of Wales.
BURY, RICHARD DE (1281-1345).--_S._ of Sir Richard Aungerville, _b._ at
Bury St. Edmunds, studied at Oxf., and was a Benedictine monk, became
tutor to Edward III. when Prince of Wales, and Bishop of Durham, and held
many offices of State. He was a patron of learning, and one of the first
English collectors of books, and he wrote his work, _Philobiblon_, in
praise of books, and founded a library at Durham.
BUTLER, JOSEPH (1692-1752).--Theologian, _b._ at Wantage, _s._ of a
Presbyterian linen-draper, was destined for the ministry of that Church,
but in 1714 he decided to enter the Church of England, and went to Oxf.
After holding various other preferments he became rector of the rich
living of Stanhope, Bishop of Bristol (1738), and Bishop of Durham
(1750), and was said to have refused the Primacy. In 1726 he _pub._
_Fifteen Sermons_, and in 1736 _The Analogy of Religion_. These two books
are among the most powerful and original contributions to ethics and
theology which have ever been made. They depend for their effect entirely
upon the force of their reasoning, for they have no graces of style. B.
was an excellent man, and a diligent and conscientious churchman. Though
indifferent to general literature, he had some taste in the fine arts,
especially architecture. B.'s works were ed. by W.E. Gladstone (2 vols.
1896), and there are Lives by Bishop W. Fitzgerald, Spooner (1902), and
others, _see_ also _History of English Thought in 18th Century_, by
Leslie Stephen.
BUTLER, SAMUEL (1612-1680).--Satirist, was the _s._ of a Worcestershire
farmer. In early youth he was page to the Countess of Kent, and
thereafter clerk to various Puritan justices, some of whom are believed
to have suggested characters in _Hudibras_. After the Restoration he
became Sec. to the Lord Pres. of Wales, and about the same time _m._ a
Mrs. Herbert, a widow with a jointure, which, however, was lost. In 1663
the first part of _Hudibras_ was _pub._, and the other two in 1664 and
1668 respectively. This work, which is to a certain extent modelled on
_Don Quixote_, stands at the head of the satirical literature of England,
and for wit and compressed thought has few rivals in any language. It is
directed against the Puritans, and while it holds up to ridicule the
extravagancies into which many of the party ran, it entirely fails to do
justice to their virtues and their services to liberty, civil and
religious. Many of its brilliant couplets have passed into the proverbial
commonplaces of the language, and few who use them have any idea of their
source. Butler, notwithstanding the popularity of his work, was neglected
by the Court, and _d._ in poverty.
Ed. of B.'s works have been issued by Bell (3 vols., 1813), and Johnson
(2 vols., 1893).
BUTLER, SAMUEL (1825-1902).--Miscellaneous writer, _ed._ at Shrewsbury
and Camb., wrote two satirical books, _Erewhon_ (nowhere) (1872), and
_Erewhon Revisited_ (1901). He translated the _Iliad_ and _Odyssey_ in
prose, and mooted the theory that the latter was written by a woman.
Other works were _The Fair Haven_, _Life and Habit_, _The Way of all
Flesh_ (a novel) (1903), etc., and some sonnets. He also wrote on the
Sonnets of Shakespeare.
BYRON, GEORGE GORDON, 6TH LORD BYRON (1788-1824).--Poet, was _b._ in
London, the _s._ of Captain John B. and of Catherine Gordon, heiress of
Gight, Aberdeenshire, his second wife, whom he _m._ for her money and,
after squandering it, deserted. He was also the grand-nephew of the 5th,
known as the "wicked" Lord B. From his birth he suffered from a
malformation of the feet, causing a slight lameness, which was a cause of
lifelong misery to him, aggravated by the knowledge that with proper care
it might have been cured. After the departure of his _f._ his mother went
to Aberdeen, where she lived on a small salvage from her fortune. She was
a capricious woman of violent temper, with no fitness for guiding her
volcanic son, and altogether the circumstances of his early life explain,
if they do not excuse, the spirit of revolt which was his lifelong
characteristic. In 1794, on the death of a cousin, he became
heir-presumptive to the title and embarrassed estates of the family, to
which, on the death of his great-uncle in 1798, he succeeded. In 1801 he
was sent to Harrow, where he remained until 1805, when he proceeded to
Trinity Coll., Camb., where he read much history and fiction, lived
extravagantly, and got into debt. Some early verses which he had _pub._
in 1806 were suppressed. They were followed in 1807 by _Hours of
Idleness_, which was savagely attacked in the _Edinburgh Review_. In
reply he sent forth _English Bards and Scotch Reviewers_ (1800), which
created considerable stir and shortly went through 5 ed. Meanwhile, he
had settled at Newstead Abbey, the family seat, where with some of his
cronies he was believed to have indulged in wild and extravagant orgies,
the accounts of which, however, were probably greatly exaggerated. In
1809 he left England, and passing through Spain, went to Greece. During
his absence, which extended over two years, he wrote the first two cantos
of _Childe Harold_, which were _pub._ after his return in 1812, and were
received with acclamation. In his own words, "he awoke one morning and
found himself famous." He followed up his success with some short poems,
_The Corsair_, _Lara_, etc. About the same time began his intimacy with
his future biographer, Thomas Moore (_q.v._), and about 1815 he married
Anne Isabella Milbanke, who had refused him in the previous year, a union
which, owing to the total incompatibility of the parties, and serious
provocations on the part of B., proved unhappy, and was in 1816 dissolved
by a formal deed of separation. The only fruit of it was a _dau._,
Augusta Ada. After this break-up of his domestic life, followed as it was
by the severe censure of society, and by pressure on the part of his
creditors, which led to the sale of his library, B. again left England,
as it turned out, for ever, and, passing through Belgium and up the
Rhine, went to Geneva, afterwards travelling with Shelley through
Switzerland, when he wrote the third canto of _Childe Harold_. He
wintered in Venice, where he formed a connection with Jane Clairmont, the
_dau._ of W. Godwin's second wife (_q.v._). In 1817 he was in Rome,
whence returning to Venice he wrote the fourth canto of _Childe Harold_.
In the same year he sold his ancestral seat of Newstead, and about the
same time _pub._ _Manfred_, _Cain_, and _The Deformed Transformed_. The
first five cantos of _Don Juan_ were written between 1818 and 1820,
during which period he made the acquaintance of the Countess Guiccioli,
whom he persuaded to leave her husband. It was about this time that he
received a visit from Moore, to whom he confided his MS. autobiography,
which Moore, in the exercise of the discretion left to him, burned in
1824. His next move was to Ravenna, where he wrote much, chiefly dramas,
including _Marino Faliero_. In 1821-22 he finished _Don Juan_ at Pisa,
and in the same year he joined with Leigh Hunt in starting a short-lived
newspaper, _The Liberal_, in the first number of which appeared _The
Vision of Judgment_. His last Italian home was Genoa, where he was still
accompanied by the Countess, and where he lived until 1823, when he
offered himself as an ally to the Greek insurgents. In July of that year
he started for Greece, spent some months in Cephalonia waiting for the
Greeks to form some definite plans. In January, 1824, he landed at
Missolonghi, but caught a malarial fever, of which he _d._ on April 19,
1824.
The final position of B. in English literature is probably not yet
settled. It is at present undoubtedly lower than it was in his own
generation. Yet his energy, passion, and power of vivid and
richly-coloured description, together with the interest attaching to his
wayward and unhappy career, must always make him loom large in the
assembly of English writers. He exercised a marked influence on
Continental literature, and his reputation as poet is higher in some
foreign countries than in his own.
Among ed. of the works of B. may be mentioned Murray's (13 vols.
1898-1904). Moore's _Life_ (1830), Lady Blessington's _Conversations with
Lord Byron_ (1834, new, 1894).
SUMMARY.--_B._ 1788, spent childhood in Aberdeen, _ed._ Harrow and Camb.,
_pub._ _English Bards etc._, 1809, _Childe Harold_ first two cantos 1812,
married 1815, separated 1816, owing to this and financial difficulties
leaves England, meets Shelley, _pub._ third canto of _Childe Harold_
1816, fourth canto 1817, writes _Don Juan_ cantos 1-4 1818-20, lives at
various places in Italy 1816-24 with Countess Guiccioli, finished _Don
Juan_ 1822, goes to Greece 1823 to assist insurgents, _d._ 1824.
BYRON, HENRY JAMES (1834-1884).--Dramatist, _b._ at Manchester, entered
the Middle Temple, but soon took to writing for the stage, and produced
many popular burlesques and extravaganzas. He also wrote for periodicals,
and was the first editor of _Fun_. Among his best dramatic pieces are
_Cyril's Success_ (1868), _Our Boys_ (1875), and _The Upper Crust_.
CAEDMON (_d._ 1680).--The first English poet of whom we have any
knowledge. Originally employed as cowherd at the Abbey of Whitby, he
became a singer when somewhat advanced in life. The story of how the gift
of song came to him is given by Bede, how having fallen asleep in the
stable he dreamed that one came to him desiring a song, and on his asking
"What shall I sing?" replied "Sing to me of the beginning of created
things." Therefore he began to sing and, on awaking, remembered his song
and added to it. Thereafter he told what had befallen him to the bailiff
who was over him, who repeated the tale to the Abbess Hilda. She having
called together certain learned and pious persons, C. was brought before
them, told his story, and recited his verses. A part of Scripture was
read to him, which he was asked to turn into verse; and this being done
he was received into the Abbey where, for the rest of his life, he lived
as a monk, and continued to make his holy songs. Much that was formerly
attributed to C. is now held to be of later date. All that is known to be
his is a Northumbrian version of Bede's Latin paraphrases of C.'s first
song: although by some the authorship of "The Dream of the Holy Rood,"
and of a fragment on "The Temptation and Fall of Man" is claimed for him.
_English Literature from Beginning to Norman Conquest_, Stopford Brooke
(1898), and _History of Early English Literature_, by the same (1892).
CAIRD, EDWARD (1835-1908).--Philosopher, younger brother of John C.
(_q.v._), was _b._ at Greenock, and _ed._ at Glasgow and Oxf., where he
became Fellow and Tutor of Merton Coll. In 1866 he was appointed to the
Chair of Moral Philosophy at Glasgow, which he held until 1893, when he
became Master of Balliol Coll., from which he retired in 1907. He has
written _Critical Philosophy of Kant_ (1877), _Hegel_ (1883), _Evolution
of Religion_, _Social Philosophy and Religion of Comte_ (1885),
_Evolution of Theology in the Greek Philosophers_ (1904).
CAIRD, JOHN (1820-1898).--Theologian, _b._, at Greenock, and _ed._ at
Glasgow, entered the Church of Scotland, of which he became one of the
most eloquent preachers. After being a minister in the country and in
Edinburgh, he was translated to Glasgow, becoming in 1862 Prof. of
Divinity in the Univ. of that city, and in 1873 Principal. A sermon on
_Religion in Common Life_, preached before Queen Victoria, made him known
throughout the Protestant world. He wrote an _Introduction to the
Philosophy of Religion_ (1880), and a vol. on _Spinoza_ (1888).
CALAMY, EDMUND (1600-1666).--Puritan Divine, _b._ in London, and _ed._ at
Camb., was one of the principal authors of a famous controversial work
bearing the title _Smectymnuus_, made up of the initials of the various
writers, and _pub._ in 1641 in reply to Bishop Hall's _Divine Right of
Episcopacy_. His other chief work is _The Godly Man's Ark_. A
Presbyterian, he was a supporter of monarchy, and favoured the
Restoration, after which he was offered, but declined, the see of
Coventry and Lichfield. He was a member of the Savoy Conference. The
passing of the Act of Uniformity led to his retiring from ministerial
work. He is said to have _d._ of melancholy caused by the great fire of
London.
CALDERWOOD, DAVID (1575-1650).--Scottish Church historian, belonged to a
good family, and about 1604 became minister of Crailing, Roxburghshire.
Opposing the designs of James VI. for setting up Episcopacy, he was
imprisoned 1617, and afterwards had to betake himself to Holland, where
his controversial work, _Altare Damascenum_, against Episcopacy, was
_pub._ In 1625 he returned to Scotland, and began his great work, _The
Historie of the Kirk of Scotland_, which was _pub._ in an abridged form
(1646). The complete work was printed (1841-49) for the Woodrow Society.
C. became minister of Pencaitland, East Lothian, about 1640, and was one
of those appointed to draw up _The Directory for Public Worship in
Scotland_.
CALVERLEY, CHARLES STUART (1831-1884).--Poet and translator, _s._ of the
Rev. H. Blayds (who assumed the name of Calverley), was _ed._ at Harrow,
Oxf., and Camb. He was called to the Bar in 1865, and appeared to have a
brilliant career before him, when a fall on the ice in 1866 changed him
from a distinguished athlete to a life-long invalid. Brilliant as a
scholar, a musician, and a talker, he is perhaps best known as one of the
greatest of parodists. He _pub._ _Verses and Translations_ (1862), and
_Fly-leaves_ (1872). He also translated _Theocritus_ (1869).
CAMDEN, WILLIAM (1551-1623).--Antiquary and historian, _b._ in London,
and _ed._ at Christ's Hospital, St. Paul's School, and Oxf., was in 1575
appointed Second Master in Westminster School, and Head Master in 1593,
and spent his vacations in travelling over England collecting antiquarian
information. His great work, _Britannia_, was _pub._ in 1586, and at once
brought him fame both at home and abroad. It is a work of vast labour and
erudition, written in elegant Latin. In 1597 C. was made Clarencieux
King-at-Arms which, setting him free from his academic duties, enabled
him to devote more time to his antiquarian and historical labours. His
other principal works are _Annals of the Reign of Elizabeth_ (printed
1615-1623), _Monuments and Inscriptions in Westminster Abbey_ (1600), and
a _coll._ of _Ancient English Historians_. He was buried in Westminster
Abbey. The Camden Society for historical research, founded in 1838, is
named after him.
CAMPBELL, GEORGE (1719-1796).--Theologian and philosopher, was a minister
of the Church of Scotland at Aberdeen, and Principal and Prof. of
Divinity in Marischal Coll. there. His _Dissertation on Miracles_ (1763),
in answer to Hume, was in its day considered a masterly argument, and was
admitted to be so by Hume himself. His other principal works were _The
Philosophy of Rhetoric_ (1776), which is still a standard work, and _A
Translation of the Four Gospels with Notes_.
CAMPBELL, JOHN, 1ST LORD CAMPBELL (1779-1861).--Lawyer and biographer,
_s._ of the minister of Cupar-Fife, had a highly successful career as a
lawyer, and held the offices successively of Solicitor and
Attorney-General, Lord Chancellor of Ireland, Lord Chief Justice, and
Lord Chancellor. His contributions to literature were _Lives of the
Chancellors_ and _Lives of the Chief Justices_. These works, though
deficient in research and accuracy, often unfair in judgments of
character, and loose and diffuse in style, are interesting and full of
information.
CAMPBELL, JOHN FRANCIS (1822-1885).--Celtic scholar, _ed._ at Eton and
Edin., was afterwards Sec. to the Lighthouse Commission. He was an
authority on Celtic folk-lore, and _pub._ _Popular Tales of the West
Highlands_ (4 vols., 1860-62), and various Gaelic texts.
CAMPBELL, LEWIS (1830-1908).--Scholar, _s._ of a naval officer, _ed._ at
Edin., Glasgow, and Oxf., took orders, and was Vicar of Milford, Hants,
until 1863, when he was appointed Prof. of Greek at St. Andrews. He
brought out ed. of Sophocles and other works on the Greek classics, and
in conjunction with E. Abbott _The Life and Letters of Prof. Jowett_
(_q.v._), with whom he had collaborated in editing the _Republic of
Plato_. He also ed. the poems of Thomas Campbell, to whom he was related.
CAMPBELL, THOMAS (1777-1844).--Poet, was the youngest _s._ of Alexander
C., a merchant in Glasgow, where he was _b._ After leaving the Univ. of
that city, where he gained some distinction by his translations from the
Greek, and acting for some time as a tutor, he went to Edin. to study
law, in which, however, he did not make much progress, but gained fame by
producing in 1799, at the age of 21, his principal poem, _The Pleasures
of Hope_. In spite of some of the faults of youth, the vigour of thought
and description, and power of versification displayed in the poem, as
well as its noble feeling for liberty, made it a marvellous performance
for so young a man. His other larger poems are _Gertrude of Wyoming_
(1809), _O'Connor's Child_, and _Theodric_ (1824). It is not, however,
for these that he will be chiefly remembered, but for his patriotic and
war lyrics, _Ye Mariners of England_, _Hohenlinden_, and _The Battle of
the Baltic_, which are imperishable. C. was also distinguished as a
critic, and his _Specimens of the British Poets_ (1819) is prefaced by an
essay which is an important contribution to criticism. C. resided in
London from 1803 until the year of his death, which took place at
Boulogne, whither he had repaired in search of health. In addition to the
works mentioned he wrote various compilations, including _Annals of Great
Britain_, covering part of the reign of George III. In 1805 he received a
Government pension, and he was Lord Rector of Glasgow Univ. 1826-29. He
is buried in Westminster Abbey.
_Life and Letters_, Beattie (1840); Poems, _Aldine_ ed. (1875, new,
1890).
CAMPION, THOMAS (_c._ 1575-1620).--Poet and musician, _b._ at Witham,
Essex, and _ed._ at Camb., and on the Continent, studied law at Gray's
Inn, but discarding it, practised medicine in London. He wrote masques,
and many fine lyrics remarkable for their metrical beauty, of which
"Cherry Ripe" and "Lesbia" are well known. He also wrote _Epigrams_ in
Latin, and _Observations on the Arte of Poesie_ (1602). He composed the
music for most of his songs.
CANNING, GEORGE (1770-1827).--Statesman, was _b._ in London, the _s._ of
a lawyer. He lost his _f._ while still an infant, and was brought up by
an uncle, who sent him to Eton and Oxf. In 1793 he entered Parliament as
a supporter of Pitt, and soon became one of the most brilliant debaters
in the House. After filling various offices, including that of Foreign
Sec., with striking ability, he was in 1827 appointed Prime Minister, but
_d._, deeply mourned by the nation, a few months later. He has a place in
literature as the leading spirit in the _Anti-Jacobin_, a paper started
during the French Revolution, in support of the English Constitution, and
which, with Gifford for ed., had many of the most eminent men of the day
as contributors. C. wrote the _Needy Knife-grinder_, _The Loves of the
Triangles_, parts II. and III., a parody on E. Darwin's _Loves of the
Plants_, _The Progress of Man_, etc. His _coll._ _Poems_ were _pub._
1823.
CAPGRAVE, JOHN (1393-1464).--Historian and theologian, _b._ at Lynn,
became an Augustinian Friar, and at length Provincial of the Order in
England. He studied probably at Camb., visited Rome, and was a client of
Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester, whose life he wrote. He was the author of
numerous theological and historical works, some of which are of
considerable importance, including in Latin, _Nova Legenda Angliae_, _De
Illustribus Henricis_: lives of German Emperors, English Kings, etc., of
the name of Henry, and in English, monotonous and dull, lives of St.
Gilbert and St. Katharine, and a _Chronicle_ reaching to 1417.
CAREW, RICHARD (1555-1620).--Translator and antiquary, a county gentleman
of Cornwall, _ed._ at Oxf., made a translation of the first five cantos
of Tasso's _Jerusalem Delivered_ (1594), more correct than that of
Fairfax. Other works were _A Survey of Cornwall_ (1602), and an _Epistle
concerning the Excellencies of the English Tongue_ (1605).
CAREW, THOMAS (1594?-1639).--Poet, _s._ of Sir Matthew C., was _ed._ at
Oxf., entered the Middle Temple, and was one of the first and best of the
courtly poets who wrote gracefully on light themes of Court life and
gallantry. C.'s poems have often much beauty and even tenderness. His
chief work is _Coelum Britannicum_. He lived the easy and careless life
of a courtier of the day, but is said to have _d._ in a repentant frame.
His poems, consisting chiefly of short lyrics, were _coll._ and _pub._
after his death. One of the most beautiful and best known of his songs is
that beginning "He that loves a rosy cheek."
CAREY, HENRY (_d._ 1743).--Dramatist and song-writer, was believed to be
an illegitimate _s._ of George Savile, Marquis of Halifax. He wrote
innumerable burlesques, farces, songs, etc., often with his own music,
including _Chrononhotonthologos_ (1734), a burlesque on the mouthing
plays of the day, and _The Dragon of Wantley_ (1744?). His poem, _Namby
Pamby_, in ridicule of Ambrose Phillips (_q.v._), added a word to the
language, and his _Sally in our Alley_ is one of our best-known songs.
_God Save the King_ was also claimed for him, but apparently without
reason.
CARLETON, WILLIAM (1794-1869).--Novelist, _s._ of a poor Irish cottar,
_b._ and brought up among the Irish peasantry, acquired an insight into
their ideas and feelings which has never been equalled. His finest work
is in his short stories, collected under the title of _Traits and Stories
of the Irish Peasantry_, of which two series were _pub._ in 1830 and 1832
respectively. He also wrote several longer novels, of which the best is
_Fardorougha the Miser_ (1837), a work of great power. Others are _The
Misfortunes of Barny Branagan_ (1841), _Valentine M'Clutchy_ (1845),
_Rody the Rover_ (1847), _The Squanders of Castle Squander_ (1854), and
_The Evil Eye_. C. received a pension of L200 from Government.
CARLYLE, ALEXANDER (1722-1805).--Autobiographer, _s._ of the Minister of
Cummertrees, Dumfriesshire, was _ed._ at Edin. and Leyden, and entering
the Church became Minister of Inveresk, and was associated with Principal
Robertson as an ecclesiastical leader. He was a man of great ability,
shrewdness, and culture, and the friend of most of the eminent literary
men in Scotland of his day. He left an autobiography in MS., which was
ed. by Hill Burton, and _pub._ in 1860, and which is one of the most
interesting contemporary accounts of his time. His stately appearance
gained for him the name of "Jupiter" C.
CARLYLE, THOMAS (1795-1881).--Historian and essayist, was _b._ at
Ecclefechan in Dumfriesshire. His _f._, James C., was a stonemason, a
man of intellect and strong character, and his mother was, as he said,
"of the fairest descent, that of the pious, the just, and the wise." His
earliest education was received at the parish school of Ecclefechan (the
Entepfuhl of _Sartor Resartus_). Thence he went to the Grammar School of
Annan, and in 1809 to the Univ. of Edin., the 90 miles to which he
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