A Short Biographical Dictionary of English Literature
by
John W. Cousin
Part 9 out of 13
then successively schoolmaster at Sevenoaks, and Clerk of the Ordnance,
in which position his intromissions appear to have been of more advantage
to himself than to the public service. He was the author of _The Palace
of Pleasure_ (1566), largely consisting of translations from Boccaccio,
Bandello, and other Italian writers, and also from the classics. It
formed a quarry in which many dramatists, including Shakespeare, found
the plots for their plays.
PALEY, WILLIAM (1743-1805).--Theologian, _s._ of a minor canon of
Peterborough, where he was _b._, went at 15 as a sizar to Christ's Coll.,
Camb., where he was Senior Wrangler, and became a Fellow and Tutor of
his coll. Taking orders in 1767 he held many benefices, and rose to be
Archdeacon of Carlisle, and Sub-Dean of Lincoln. P., who holds one of the
highest places among English theologians, was the author of four
important works--_Principles of Moral and Political Philosophy_ (1785),
_Horae Paulinae_, his most original, but least popular, book (1790), _View
of the Evidences of Christianity_ (1794), and _Natural Theology_ (1802).
Though now to a large extent superseded, these works had an immense
popularity and influence in their day, and are characterised by singular
clearness of expression and power of apt illustration. The system of
morals inculcated by P. is Utilitarian, modified by theological ideas.
His view of the "divine right of Kings" as on a level with "the divine
right of constables" was unpleasing to George III., notwithstanding which
his ecclesiastical career was eminently successful. His manners were
plain and kindly.
PALGRAVE, SIR FRANCIS (1788-1861).--Historian, _s._ of Meyer Cohen, a
Jewish stockbroker, but at his marriage in 1823, having previously become
a Christian, assumed his mother-in-law's name of Palgrave. He studied
law, and was called to the Bar in 1827. From 1838 until his death in 1861
he was Deputy Keeper of the Records, and in that capacity arranged a vast
mass of hitherto inaccessible documents, and ed. many of them for the
Record Commission. His historical works include a _History of England in
Anglo-Saxon Times_ (1831), _Rise and Progress of the English
Commonwealth_ (1832), and _History of Normandy and England_ (4 vols.,
1851-64), _pub._ posthumously. He was knighted in 1832. His works are of
great value in throwing light upon the history and condition of mediaeval
England.
PALGRAVE, FRANCIS TURNER (1824-1897).--Poet and critic, _s._ of the
above, _ed._ at Oxf., was for many years connected with the Education
Department, of which he rose to be Assistant Sec.; and from 1886-95 he
was Prof. of Poetry at Oxf. He wrote several vols. of poetry, including
_Visions of England_ (1881), and _Amenophis_ (1892), which, though
graceful and exhibiting much poetic feeling, were the work rather of a
man of culture than of a poet. His great contribution to literature was
his anthology, _The Golden Treasury of Songs and Lyrics_ (1864), selected
with marvellous insight and judgment. A second series showed these
qualities in a less degree. He also _pub._ an anthology of sacred poetry.
PALTOCK, ROBERT (1697-1767).--Novelist, was an attorney, and wrote _The
Life and Adventures of Peter Wilkins, a Cornish Man_ (1751), admired by
Scott, Coleridge, and Lamb. It is somewhat on the same plan as _Robinson
Crusoe_, the special feature being the _gawry_, or flying woman, whom the
hero discovered on his island, and married. The description of
Nosmnbdsgrutt, the country of the flying people, is a dull imitation of
Swift, and much else in the book is tedious.
PARDOE, JULIA (1806-1862).--Novelist and miscellaneous writer, _b._ at
Beverley, showed an early bias towards literature, and became a
voluminous and versatile writer, producing in addition to her lively and
well-written novels many books of travel, and others dealing with
historical subjects. She was a keen observer, and her Oriental travels
had given her an accurate and deep knowledge of the peoples and manners
of the East. Among her books are _The City of the Sultan_ (1836),
_Romance of the Harem_, _Thousand and One Days_, _Louis XIV. and the
Court of France_, _Court of Francis I._, etc.
PARIS, MATTHEW (_c._ 1195-1259).--Chronicler, entered in 1217 the
Benedictine Monastery of St. Albans, and continued the work of Roger de
Wendover (_q.v._) as chronicler of the monastery. In 1248 he went on the
invitation of Hacon King of Norway to reform the Abbey of St. Benet Holm.
In this he was successful, and on his return to England enjoyed the
favour of Henry III., who conversed familiarly with him, and imparted
information as to matters of state, which constitutes a valuable element
in his histories. He had a high reputation for piety and learning, was a
patriotic Englishman, and resisted the encroachments of Rome. His chief
work is _Historia Major_, from the Conquest until 1259. In it he embodied
the _Flores Historiarum_ of his predecessor Roger, and the original part
is a bold and vigorous narrative of the period (1235-59). He also wrote
_Historia Minor_ and _Historia Anglorum_, a summary of the events
(1200-1250).
PARK, MUNGO (1771-1806).--Traveller, _b._ near Selkirk, studied medicine
at Edin. As a surgeon in the mercantile marine he visited Sumatra, and on
his return attracted the attention of various scientific men by his
botanical and zoological investigations. In 1795 he entered the service
of the African Association, and made a voyage of discovery on the Niger.
His adventures were _pub._ in _Travels in the Interior of Africa_ (1799),
which had great success. He _m._ and set up in practice in Peebles; but
in 1805 accepted an invitation by Government to undertake another journey
in Africa. From this he never returned, having perished in a conflict
with natives. His narratives, written in a straightforward and pleasing
style, are among the classics of travel.
PARKER, THEODORE (1810-1860).--Theologian, _b._ at Lexington,
Massachusetts, _ed._ at Harvard, was an indefatigable student, and made
himself master of many languages. In 1837 he was settled at West Roxbury
as a Unitarian minister, but the development of his views in a
rationalistic direction gradually separated him from the more
conservative portion of his co-religionists. He lectured on theological
subjects in Boston in 1841, travelled in Europe, and in 1845 settled in
Boston, where he lectured to large audiences, and exercised a wide
influence. He took a leading part in the anti-slavery crusade, and
specially in resisting the Fugitive Slave Act. In 1859 his health, which
had never been robust, gave way; he went to Italy in search of
restoration, but _d._ at Florence. Although he was a powerful theological
and social influence, his writings are not of corresponding importance:
it was rather as a speaker that he influenced his countrymen, and he left
no contribution to literature of much permanent account, though his
_coll._ works fill 14 vols. Among the most outstanding of his writings
are _A Discourse of Matters Pertaining to Religion_, and _Sermons for the
Times_.
PARKMAN, FRANCIS (1823-1893).--Historian, _s._ of a Unitarian minister in
Boston, Massachusetts, graduated at Harvard, and qualified as a lawyer,
but never practised, and though hampered by a state of health which
forbade continuous application, and by partial blindness, devoted himself
to the writing of the history of the conflict between France and England
in North America. This he did in a succession of works--_The Conspiracy
of Pontiac_ (1851), _The Pioneers of France in the New World_ (1865),
_The Jesuits in North America_ (1867), _La Salle and the Discovery of the
Great West_ (1869), _The Old Regime in Canada_ (1874), _Count Frontenac
and New France_ (1877), _Montcalm and Wolfe_ (1884), and _A Half Century
of Conflict_ (1892). In these the style, at first somewhat turgid,
gradually improved, and became clear and forcible, while retaining its
original vividness. P. spared no labour in collecting and sifting his
material, much of which was gathered in the course of visits to the
places which were the scenes of his narrative, and his books are the most
valuable contribution in existence to the history of the struggle for
Canada and the other French settlements in North America. He also wrote
two novels, which had little success, and a book upon rose-culture.
PARNELL, THOMAS (1679-1718).--Poet, _b._ and _ed._ in Dublin, took orders
in 1700, and was Vicar of Finglas and Archdeacon of Clogher. The death of
his young wife in 1706 drove him into intemperate habits. He was a friend
of Swift and Pope, a contributor to the _Spectator_, and aided Pope in
his translation of the _Iliad_. He wrote various isolated poems showing a
fine descriptive touch, of which the most important are _The Hermit_,
_The Night Piece_, and _The Hymn to Contentment_. P. was a scholar, and
had considerable social gifts. His Life was written by Goldsmith.
PARR, DR. SAMUEL (1747-1825).--Scholar, _s._ of an apothecary at Harrow,
where and at Camb. he was _ed._ He was successively an assistant-master
at Harrow and headmaster of schools at Colchester and Norwich, and having
taken orders, finally settled down at Hatton, Warwickshire, where he took
private pupils. He was undoubtedly a great Latinist, but he has left no
work to account for the immense reputation for ability which he enjoyed
during his life. His chief power appears to have been in conversation, in
which he was bold, arrogant, and epigrammatic. He was nicknamed "the Whig
Johnson," but fell very far short of his model. His writings, including
correspondence, were _pub._ in 8 vols.
PATER, WALTER HORATIO (1839-1894).--Essayist and critic, _s._ of Richard
G.P., of American birth and Dutch extraction, a benevolent physician,
_b._ at Shadwell, and _ed._ at the King's School, Canterbury, and at
Queen's Coll., Oxf., after leaving which he made various tours in Germany
and Italy where, especially in the latter, his nature, keenly sensitive
to every form of beauty, received indelible impressions. In 1864 he was
elected a Fellow of Brasenose, and in its ancient and austere precincts
found his principal home. As a tutor, though conscientious, he was not
eminently successful; nevertheless his lectures, on which he bestowed
much pains, had a fit audience, and powerfully influenced a few select
souls. He resigned his tutorship in 1880, partly because he found himself
not entirely in his element, and partly because literature was becoming
the predominant interest in his life. In 1885 he went to London, where he
remained for 8 years, continuing, however, to reside at Brasenose during
term. The reputation as a writer which he had gained made him welcome in
whatever intellectual circles he found himself. Leaving London in 1893 he
settled in a house in St. Giles, Oxf. In the spring of 1894 he went to
Glasgow to receive the honorary degree of LL.D., a distinction which he
valued. In the summer he had an attack of rheumatic fever, followed by
pleurisy. From these he had apparently recovered, but he succumbed to an
attack of heart-failure which immediately supervened. Thus ended
prematurely in its 55th year a life as bare of outward events as it was
rich in literary fruit and influence.
P. is one of the greatest modern masters of style, and one of the
subtlest and most penetrating of critics. Though not a philosopher in the
technical sense, he deeply pondered the subjects with which philosophy
sets itself to deal; but art was the dominating influence in his
intellectual life, and it was said of him that "he was a philosopher who
had gone to Italy by mistake instead of to Germany." He may also be
called the prophet of the modern aesthetic school. His attitude to
Christianity, though deeply sceptical, was not unsympathetic. As a boy he
came under the influence of Keble, and at one time thought of taking
orders, but his gradual change of view led him to relinquish the idea.
Among his works may be mentioned an article on Coleridge, and others on
Winckelmann, Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Botticelli, etc., which
were _coll._ and _pub._ as _Studies in the History of the Renaissance_
(1873); _Appreciations_ (1889) contained his great essays on _AEsthetic
Poetry_ and _Style_, various Shakespearian studies and papers on Lamb and
Sir T. Browne; _Imaginary Portraits_, and _Greek Studies_ (1894); _Plato
and Platonism_ (1893). His masterpiece, however, is _Marius the
Epicurean_ (1885), a philosophical romance of the time of Marcus
Aurelius. The style of P. is characterised by a subdued richness, and
complicated, but perfect structure of sentences. In character he was
gentle, refined, and retiring, with a remarkable suavity of manner and
dislike of controversy.
PATMORE, COVENTRY KERSEY DIGHTON (1823-1896).--Poet, _s._ of Peter George
P., also an author, _b._ at Woodford, Essex, was in the printed book
department of the British Museum. He _pub._ _Tamerton Church Tower_
(1853), and between 1854 and 1862 the four poems which, combined, form
his masterpiece, _The Angel in the House_, a poetic celebration of
married love. In 1864 he entered the Church of Rome. Thereafter he _pub._
_The Unknown Eros_ (1877), _Amelia_ (1878), and _Rod, Root, and Flower_
(1895), meditations chiefly on religious subjects. His works are full of
graceful and suggestive thought, but occasionally suffer from length and
discursiveness. He was successful in business matters, and in character
was energetic, masterful, and combative. He numbered Tennyson and Ruskin
among his friends, was associated with the pre-Raphaelites, and was a
contributor to their organ, the _Germ_.
PATTISON, MARK (1813-1884).--Scholar and biographer, _b._ at Hornby,
Yorkshire, _s._ of a clergyman, _ed._ privately and at Oxf., where in
1839 he became Fellow of Lincoln Coll., and acquired a high reputation as
a tutor and examiner. At first strongly influenced by Newman and the
Tractarian movement, he ultimately abandoned that school. In 1851,
failing to be elected head of his coll., he threw up his tutorship, and
devoted himself to severe study, occasionally writing on educational
subjects in various reviews. In 1861, however, he attained the object of
his ambition, being elected Rector of Lincoln Coll. In 1883 he dictated a
remarkable autobiography, coming down to 1860. In 1875 he had _pub._ a
_Life of Isaac Casaubon_, and he left materials for a Life of Scaliger,
which he had intended to be his _magnum opus_. He also wrote _Milton_ for
the English Men of Letters Series, and produced an ed. of his sonnets.
PAULDING, JAMES KIRKE (1779-1860).--Novelist, etc., _b._ in the state of
New York, was chiefly self-educated. He became a friend of W. Irving, and
was part author with him of _Salmagundi_--a continuation of which by
himself proved a failure. Among his other writings are _John Bull and
Brother Jonathan_ (1812), a satire, _The Dutchman's Fireside_ (1831), a
romance which attained popularity, a _Life of Washington_ (1835), and
some poems.
PAYN, JAMES (1830-1898).--Novelist, _s._ of an official in the Thames
Commission, _ed._ at Eton, Woolwich, and Camb. He was a regular
contributor to _Household Words_ and to _Chambers's Journal_, of which he
was ed. 1859-74, and in which several of his works first appeared; he
also ed. the _Cornhill Magazine_ 1883-96. Among his novels--upwards of 60
in number--may be mentioned _Lost Sir Massingberd_, _The Best of
Husbands_, _Walter's Word_, _By Proxy_ (1878), _A Woman's Vengeance_,
_Carlyon's Year_, _Thicker than Water_, _A Trying Patient_, etc. He also
wrote a book of poems and a volume of literary reminiscences.
PEACOCK, THOMAS LOVE (1785-1866).--Novelist, _b._ at Weymouth, the only
child of a London merchant, was in boyhood at various schools, but from
the age of 13 self-educated. Nevertheless, he became a really learned
scholar. He was for long in the India Office, where he rose to be Chief
Examiner, coming between James Mill and John Stuart Mill. He was the
author of several somewhat whimsical, but quite unique novels, full of
paradox, prejudice, and curious learning, with witty dialogue and
occasional poems interspersed. Among them are _Headlong Hall_ (1816),
_Nightmare Abbey_ (1818), _Maid Marian_ (1822), _Misfortunes of Elphin_
(1829), _Crotchet Castle_ (1831), and _Gryll Grange_ (1860). He was the
intimate friend of Shelley, memoirs of whom he contributed to _Fraser's
Magazine_.
PEARSON, CHARLES HENRY (1830-1894).--_B._ at Islington, _ed._ at Rugby
and King's Coll., London, at the latter he became Prof. of Modern
History. Owing to a threatened failure of sight he went to Australia,
where he remained for 20 years, and was for a time Minister of Education
of Victoria. Returning to England in 1892 he wrote his _National Life
and Character: a Forecast_, in which he gave utterance to very
pessimistic views as to the future of the race. He also wrote a _History
of England during the Early and Middle Ages_ (1867).
PEARSON, JOHN (1613-1686).--Theologian, _s._ of an archdeacon of Suffolk,
_b._ at Great Snoring, Norfolk, _ed._ at Eton and Camb., took orders, and
after holding various preferments, including the archdeaconry of Surrey,
the mastership of Jesus Coll., and of Trinity Coll., Camb., was made, in
1673, Bishop of Chester. His _Exposition of the Creed_ (1659) has always
been regarded as one of the most finished productions of English
theology, remarkable alike for logical argument and arrangement, and
lucid style. He was also the author of other learned works, including a
defence of the authenticity of the epistles of Ignatius. In his youth P.
was a Royalist, and acted in 1645 as a chaplain in the Royal army. He was
one of the commissioners in the Savoy Conference.
PECOCK, REGINALD (1395?-1460?).--Theologian, _b._ in Wales, entered the
Church, and rose to be successively Bishop of St. Asaph 1444, and of
Chichester 1450. He was a strenuous controversialist, chiefly against the
Lollards; but his free style of argument, and especially his denial of
the infallibility of the Church, led him into trouble, and on being
offered the choice of abjuration or death at the stake, he chose the
former, but nevertheless was deprived of his bishopric, had his books
burned, and spent his latter days in the Abbey of Thorney,
Cambridgeshire. His chief work is _The Repressor of overmuch blaming of
the Clergy_ (1455), which, from its clear, pointed style, remains a
monument of 15th century English. _The Book of Faith_ (1456) is another
of his writings.
PEELE, GEORGE (1558?-1597?).--Dramatist and poet, _s._ of a salter in
London, _ed._ at Christ's Hospital and Oxf., where he had a reputation as
a poet. Coming back to London about 1581 he led a dissipated life. He
appears to have been a player as well as a playwright, and to have come
into possession of some land through his wife. His works are numerous and
consist of plays, pageants, and miscellaneous verse. His best plays are
_The Arraignment of Paris_ (1584), and _The Battle of Alcazar_ (1594),
and among his poems _Polyhymnia_ (1590), and _The Honour of the Garter_
(1593). Other works are _Old Wives' Tale_ (1595), and _David and Fair
Bethsabe_ (1599). P. wrote in melodious and flowing blank verse, with
abundance of fancy and brilliant imagery, but his dramas are weak in
construction, and he is often bombastic and extravagant.
PENN, WILLIAM (1644-1718).--Quaker apologist, _s._ of Sir William P., a
celebrated Admiral, was _b._ in London, and _ed._ at Oxf., where he
became a Quaker, and was in consequence expelled from the Univ. His
change of views and his practice of the extremest social peculiarities
imposed by his principles led to a quarrel with his _f._, who is said to
have turned him out of doors. Thereafter he began to write, and one of
his books, _The Sandy Foundation Shaken_ (_c._ 1668), in which he
attacked the doctrines of the Trinity, the atonement, and justification
by faith, led to his being, in 1668, imprisoned in the Tower, where he
wrote his most popular work, _No Cross, No Crown_ (1668), and a defence
of his own conduct, _Innocency with her Open Face_ (1668), which resulted
in his liberation. Shortly after this, in 1670, on the death of his _f._,
who had been reconciled to him, P. succeeded to a fortune, including a
claim against the Government amounting to L15,000, which was ultimately
in 1681 settled by a grant of the territory now forming the state of
Pennsylvania. Meanwhile, however, he had again suffered imprisonment for
preaching, and employed his enforced leisure in writing four treatises,
of which one, _The Great Cause of Liberty of Conscience_ (_c._ 1671), is
an able defence of religious toleration. In 1682, having obtained the
grant above referred to, he set sail for America, with the view of
founding a community based upon the principles of toleration. Having
established a Constitution and set matters in working order there, P.
returned to England in 1684 and busied himself in efforts for the relief
of those Quakers who had remained at home. The peculiar position of
affairs when James II. was endeavouring to use the Dissenters as a means
of gaining concessions to the Roman Catholics favoured his views, and he
was to some extent successful in his efforts. His connection with the
Court at that time has, however, led to his conduct being severely
animadverted upon by Macaulay and others. In 1690 and for some time
thereafter he was charged with conspiring against the Revolution
Government, but after full investigation was completely acquitted. His
later years were embittered by troubles in Pennsylvania, and by the
dishonesty and ingratitude of an agent by whose defalcations he was
nearly ruined, as a consequence of which he was imprisoned for debt. He
_d._ soon after his release in 1718.
PENNANT, THOMAS (1726-1798).--Naturalist and traveller, _b._ in
Flintshire, and _ed._ at Oxf., was one of the most distinguished
naturalists of the 18th century, and _pub._, among other works on natural
history, _British Zoology_ (1768), and _History of Quadrupeds_ (1781). In
literature he is, however, best remembered by his _Tours in Scotland_
(1771-75), which did much to make known the beauties of the country to
England. He also travelled in Ireland and Wales, and on the Continent,
and _pub._ accounts of his journeys. Dr. Johnson said of him, "he
observes more things than any one else does."
PEPYS, SAMUEL (1633-1703).--Diarist, _s._ of John P., a London tailor,
but of good family and connected with Sir E. Montague, afterwards Earl of
Sandwich, was _ed._ at St. Paul's School and at Camb. After leaving the
Univ. he entered the household of Montagu, who became his life long
patron. He held various Government posts, including that of
Surveyor-General of the Victualling Office, in which he displayed great
administrative ability and reforming zeal, and in 1672 he became Sec. of
the Admiralty. After being imprisoned in the Tower on a charge in
connection with the Popish plot, and deprived of his office, he was in
1686 again appointed Sec. of the Admiralty, from which, however, he was
dismissed at the Revolution. Thereafter he lived in retirement chiefly at
Clapham. P. was a man of many interests, combining the characters of the
man of business, man of pleasure, and _virtuoso_, being skilled in music
and a collector of books, manuscripts, and pictures, and he was Pres. of
the Royal Society for two years. He wrote _Memoirs of the Royal Navy_
(1690), but his great legacy to literature is his unique and inimitable
_Diary_, begun January 1, 1660, and coming down to May 31, 1669, when the
failure of his sight prevented its further continuance. As an account by
an eye-witness of the manners of the Court and of society it is
invaluable, but it is still more interesting as, perhaps, the most
singular example extant of unreserved self-revelation--all the foibles,
peccadilloes, and more serious offences against decorum of the author
being set forth with the most relentless _naivete_ and minuteness, it was
written in a cypher or shorthand, which was translated into long-hand by
John Smith in 1825, and ed. by Lord Braybrooke, with considerable
excisions. Later and fuller ed. have followed. P. left his books, MSS.,
and collections to Magdalene Coll., Camb., where they are preserved in a
separate library.
PERCIVAL, JAMES GATES (1795-1854).--Poet, _b._ at Berlin, Conn., was a
precocious child, and a morbid and impractical, though versatile man,
with a fatal facility in writing verse on all manner of subjects and in
nearly every known metre. His sentimentalism appealed to a wide circle,
but his was one of the tapers which were extinguished by Lowell. He had
also a reputation as a geologist. His poetic works include _Prometheus_
and _The Dream of a Day_ (1843).
PERCY, THOMAS (1729-1811).--Antiquary and poet, _s._ of a grocer at
Bridgnorth, where he was _b._, _ed._ at Oxf., entered the Church, and
became in 1778 Dean of Carlisle, and in 1782 Bishop of Dromore. He _pub._
various antiquarian works, chiefly with reference to the North of
England; but is best remembered for his great service to literature in
collecting and ed. many ancient ballads, _pub._ in 1765 as _Reliques of
Ancient Poetry_, which did much to bring back interest in the ancient
native literature, and to usher in the revival of romanticism.
PHILIPS, AMBROSE (1675?-1749).--Poet, _b._ in Shropshire and _ed._ at
Camb., wrote pastorals and dramas, was one of the Addison circle, and
started a paper, the _Freethinker_, in imitation of the _Spectator_. He
also made translations from Pindar and Anacreon, and a series of short
complimentary verses, which gained for him the nickname of "Namby Pamby."
His _Pastorals_, though poor enough, excited the jealousy of Pope, who
pursued the unfortunate author with life-long enmity. P. held various
Government appointments in Ireland.
PHILIPS, JOHN (1676-1709).--Poet, _s._ of an archdeacon of Salop, and
_ed._ at Oxf. His _Splendid Shilling_, a burlesque in Miltonic blank
verse, still lives, and _Cyder_, his chief work, an imitation of Virgil's
_Georgics_, has some fine descriptive passages. P. was also employed by
Harley to write verses on Blenheim as a counterblast to Addison's
_Campaign_. He _d._ at 33 of consumption.
PHILLIPS, SAMUEL (1814-1854).--Novelist, of Jewish descent, studied for
the Church at Goettingen and Camb., but his _f._ dying, he was obliged to
give up his intention and take to business, in which, however, he was
unsuccessful, and fell into great straits. He then tried writing, and
produced some novels, of which the best known was _Caleb Stukely_, which
appeared in _Blackwood_ in 1842. He was latterly a leader-writer for the
_Times_.
PICKEN, ANDREW (1788-1833).--Miscellaneous writer, _b._ in Paisley, was
in business in the West Indies, and in Glasgow and Liverpool, but not
being successful, went to London to try his fortunes in literature. His
earlier writings, _Tales and Sketches of the West of Scotland_ and _The
Sectarian_ (1829), gave offence in dissenting circles: his next, _The
Dominie's Legacy_ (1830), had considerable success, and a book on
_Travels and Researches of Eminent Missionaries_ (1830) did something to
rehabilitate him with those whom he had offended. His last work, _The
Black Watch_ (1833), had just appeared when he _d._ of an apoplectic
seizure. His best work is somewhat like that of Galt (_q.v._).
PIERPONT, JOHN (1785-1860).--Poet, _b._ at Litchfield, Conn., was first a
lawyer, then a merchant, and lastly a Unitarian minister. His chief poem
is _The Airs of Palestine_.
PIKE, ALBERT (1809-1891).--Poet, _b._ at Boston, Mass., was in his early
days a teacher, and afterwards a successful lawyer. His now
little-remembered poems were chiefly written under the inspiration of
Coleridge and Keats. His chief work, _Hymns to the Gods_, which appeared
in _Blackwood's Magazine_, closely imitates the latter. He also wrote
prose sketches.
PINDAR, PETER, (_see_ WOLCOT, J.).
PINKERTON, JOHN (1758-1826).--Historian and Antiquary, _b._ in Edin., was
apprenticed to a lawyer, but took to literature, and produced a number of
works distinguished by painstaking research, but disfigured by a
controversial and prejudiced spirit. His first publication was _Select
Scottish Ballads_ (1783), some of which, however, were composed by
himself. A valuable _Essay on Medals_ (1784) introduced him to Gibbon and
Horace Walpole. Among his other works are _Ancient Scottish Poems_
(1786), _Dissertation on the Goths_ (1787), _Medallic History of England_
(1790), _History of Scotland_ (1797), and his best work, _Treatise on
Rocks_ (1811). One of his most inveterate prejudices was against Celts of
all tribes and times. He _d._ in obscurity in Paris.
PINKNEY, EDWARD COATE (1802-1828).--_B._ in London, where his _f._ was
U.S. ambassador. He wrote a number of light, graceful short poems, but
fell a victim to ill-health and a morbid melancholy at 25. His longest
poem is _Rudolph_ (1825).
PIOZZI, HESTER LYNCH (SALUSBURY) (1741-1821).--Miscellaneous writer, _m._
Henry Thrale, a wealthy brewer, and, after his death, Gabriel Piozzi, an
Italian musician. Her chief distinction is her friendship with Dr.
Johnson, who was for a time almost domesticated with the Thrales. Her
second marriage in the year of Johnson's death, 1784, broke up the
friendship. She wrote _Anecdotes of Dr. Johnson_, a work which had a
favourable reception, and gives a lifelike picture of its subject, and
left an _Autobiography_. Her poem, _The Three Warnings_, is supposed to
have been touched up by Johnson. Many details of her friendship with J.
are given in the _Diary_ of Madame D'Arblay (_q.v._).
PLANCHE, JAMES ROBINSON (1796-1880).--Dramatist and miscellaneous writer,
_b._ in London of Huguenot descent, was in the Herald Office, and rose to
be Somerset Herald, in which capacity he was repeatedly sent on missions
to invest foreign princes with the Order of the Garter. He produced
upwards of 90 adaptations, and about 70 original pieces for the stage. He
also wrote a _History of British Costumes_, _The Pursuivant of Arms_
(1852), and _The Conqueror and his Companions_ (1874), besides
autobiographical _Recollections_ (1872).
POE, EDGAR ALLAN (1809-1849).--Poet and writer of tales, was _b._ at
Boston, where his parents, who were both actors, were temporarily living.
He was left an orphan in early childhood in destitute circumstances, but
was adopted by a Mr. Allan of Richmond, Virginia. By him and his wife he
was treated with great indulgence, and in 1815 accompanied them to
England, where they remained for five years, and where he received a good
education, which was continued on their return to America, at the Univ.
of Virginia. He distinguished himself as a student, but got deeply into
debt with gaming, which led to his being removed. In 1829 he _pub._ a
small vol. of poems containing _Al Araaf_ and _Tamerlane_. About the same
time he proposed to enter the army, and was placed at the Military
Academy at West Point. Here, however, he grossly neglected his duties,
and fell into the habits of intemperance which proved the ruin of his
life, and was in 1831 dismissed. He then returned to the house of his
benefactor, but his conduct was so objectionable as to lead to a rupture.
In the same year P. _pub._ an enlarged ed. of his poems, and in 1833 was
successful in a competition for a prize tale and a prize poem, the tale
being the _MS. found in a Bottle_, and the poem _The Coliseum_. In the
following year Mr. Allan _d._ without making any provision for P., and
the latter, being now thrown on his own resources, took to literature as
a profession, and became a contributor to various periodicals. In 1836 he
entered into a marriage with his cousin Virginia Clemm, a very young
girl, who continued devotedly attached to him notwithstanding his many
aberrations, until her death in 1847. _The Narrative of Arthur Gordon
Pym_ appeared in 1838, and in 1839 P. became ed. of the _Gentleman's
Magazine_, in which appeared as _Tales of the Arabesque and Grotesque_
many of his best stories. In 1845 his famous poem, _The Raven_, came out,
and in 1848 _Eureka, a Prose Poem_, a pseudo-scientific lucubration. The
death of his wife gave a severe shock to his constitution, and a violent
drinking bout on a visit to Baltimore led to his death from brain fever
in the hospital there. The literary output of P., though not great in
volume, limited in range, and very unequal in merit, bears the stamp of
an original genius. In his poetry he sometimes aims at a musical effect
to which the sense is sacrificed, but at times he has a charm and a magic
melody all his own. His better tales are remarkable for their originality
and ingenuity of construction, and in the best of them he rises to a high
level of imagination, as in _The House of Usher_, while _The Gold
Beetle_ or _Golden Bug_ is one of the first examples of the cryptogram
story; and in _The Purloined Letters_, _The Mystery of Marie Roget_, and
_The Murders in the Rue Morgue_ he is the pioneer of the modern detective
story.
_Life_, Woodberry (American Men of Letters). _Works_ ed. by Woodberry and
Stedman (10 vols.), etc.
POLLOK, ROBERT (1789-1827).--Poet, _b._ in Refrewshire, studied for the
ministry of one of the Scottish Dissenting communions. After leaving the
Univ. of Glasgow he _pub._ anonymously _Tales of the Covenanters_, and in
1827, the year of his untimely death from consumption, appeared his poem,
_The Course of Time_, which contains some fine passages, and occasionally
faintly recalls Milton and Young. The poem went through many ed. in
Britain and America. He _d._ at Shirley, near Southampton, whither he had
gone in search of health.
POMFRET, JOHN (1667-1702).--Poet, _s._ of a clergyman, entered the
Church. He wrote several rather dull poems, of which the only one
remembered, though now never read, is _The Choice_, which celebrates a
country life free from care, and was highly popular in its day.
POPE, ALEXANDER (1688-1744).--Poet, was _b._ in London, of Roman Catholic
parentage. His _f._ was a linen-merchant, who _m._ as his second wife
Edith Turner, a lady of respectable Yorkshire family, and of some
fortune, made a competence, and retired to a small property at Binfield,
near Windsor. P. received a somewhat desultory education at various Roman
Catholic schools, but after the age of 12, when he had a severe illness
brought on by over-application, he was practically self-educated. Though
never a profound or accurate scholar, he had a good knowledge of Latin,
and a working acquaintance with Greek. By 1704 he had written a good deal
of verse, which attracted the attention of Wycherley (_q.v._), who
introduced him to town life and to other men of letters. In 1709 his
_Pastorals_ were _pub._ in Tonson's _Miscellany_, and two years later
_The Essay on Criticism_ appeared, and was praised by Addison. The _Rape
of the Lock_, which came out in 1714, placed his reputation on a sure
foundation, and thereafter his life was an uninterrupted and brilliant
success. His industry was untiring, and his literary output almost
continuous until his death. In 1713 _Windsor Forest_ (which won him the
friendship of Swift) and _The Temple of Fame_ appeared, and in 1715 the
translation of the _Iliad_ was begun, and the work _pub._ at intervals
between that year and 1720. It had enormous popularity, and brought the
poet L5000. It was followed by the _Odyssey_ (1725-26), in which he had
the assistance of Broome and Fenton (_q.v._), who, especially the former,
caught his style so exactly as almost to defy identification. It also was
highly popular, and increased his gains to about L8000, which placed him
in a position of independence. While engaged upon these he removed to
Chiswick, where he lived 1716-18, and where he issued in 1717 a _coll._
ed. of his works, including the _Elegy on an Unfortunate Lady_ and the
_Epistle of Eloisa to Abelard_. In 1718, his _f._ having _d._, he again
removed with his mother to his famous villa at Twickenham, the adornment
of the grounds of which became one of his chief interests, and where, now
the acknowledged chief of his art, he received the visits of his friends,
who included the most distinguished men of letters, wits, statesmen, and
beauties of the day. His next task was his ed. of Shakespeare (1725), a
work for which he was not well qualified, though the preface is a fine
piece of prose. The _Miscellanies_, the joint work of Pope and Swift,
were _pub._ in 1727-28, and drew down upon the authors a storm of angry
comment, which in turn led to the production of _The Dunciad_, first
_pub._ in 1728, and again with new matter in 1729, an additional
book--the fourth--being added in 1742. In it he satirised with a wit,
always keen and biting, often savage and unfair, the small wits and
poetasters, and some of a quite different quality, who had, or whom he
supposed to have, injured him. Between 1731 and 1735 he produced his
_Epistles_, the last of which, addressed to Arbuthnot, is also known as
the _Prologue to the Satires_, and contains his ungrateful character of
Addison under the name of "Atticus;" and also, 1733, the _Essay on Man_,
written under the influence of Bolingbroke. His last, and in some
respects best, works were his _Imitations of Horace_, _pub._ between 1733
and 1739, and the fourth book of _The Dunciad_ (1742), already mentioned.
A naturally delicate constitution, a deformed body, extreme
sensitiveness, over-excitement, and overwork did not promise a long life,
and P. _d._ on May 30, 1744, aged 56.
His position as a poet has been the subject of much contention among
critics, and on the whole is lower than that assigned him by his
contemporaries and immediate successors. Of the higher poetic qualities,
imagination, sympathy, insight, and pathos, he had no great share; but
for the work which in his original writings, as distinguished from
translations, he set himself to do, his equipment was supreme, and the
medium which he used--the heroic couplet--he brought to the highest
technical perfection of which it is capable. He wrote for his own age,
and in temper and intellectual and spiritual outlook, such as it was, he
exactly reflected and interpreted it. In the forging of condensed,
pointed, and sparkling maxims of life and criticism he has no equal, and
in painting a portrait Dryden alone is his rival; while in the _Rape of
the Lock_ he has produced the best mock-heroic poem in existence. Almost
no author except Shakespeare is so often quoted. His extreme vanity and
sensitiveness to criticism made him often vindictive, unjust, and
venomous. They led him also into frequent quarrels, and lost him many
friends, including Lady M. Wortley Montagu, and along with a strong
tendency to finesse and stratagem, of which the circumstances attending
the publication of his literary correspondence is the chief instance,
make his character on the whole an unamiable one. On the other hand, he
was often generous; he retained the friendship of such men as Swift and
Arbuthnot, and he was a most dutiful and affectionate son.
SUMMARY.--_B._ 1688, _ed._ at various Romanist schools, introduced to
Wycherley 1704, _pub._ _Pastorals_ 1709, _Essay on Criticism_ 1711, _Rape
of the Lock_ 1714, _Windsor Forest_ and _Temple of Fame_ 1713,
translation of _Iliad_ 1715-20, _Odyssey_ 1725-26, _coll._ _Works_ 1717,
buys villa at Twickenham 1718, _pub._ ed. of _Shakespeare_ 1725,
_Miscellanies_ 1727-28, _Dunciad_ 1728 (fourth book 1742), _Epistles_
1731-35, _Essay on Man_ 1733, _Imitations of Horace_ 1733-39, _d._ 1744.
The best ed. of the _Works_ is that of Elwin and Courthope, with _Life_
by Courthope (10 vols., 1871-89).
PORDAGE, SAMUEL (1633-1691?).--Poet, _s._ of a clergyman in Berks, _ed._
at Merchant Taylor's School, studied law at Lincoln's Inn, and made
various translations, wrote some poems, two tragedies, _Herod and
Mariamne_ (1673), and _The Siege of Babylon_ (1678), and a romance,
_Eliana_. He is best known by his _Azaria and Hushai_ (1682), in reply to
Dryden's _Absalom and Achitophel_, distinguished from the other replies
by its moderation and freedom from scurrility.
PORSON, RICHARD (1759-1808).--Scholar, _s._ of the parish clerk of E.
Ruston, Norfolk, was distinguished from childhood by a marvellous
tenacity of memory which attracted the attention of the curate of the
parish, who _ed._ him, after which he was sent by a gentleman to Eton.
Subsequently a fund was collected for the purpose of maintaining him at
Camb., where he had a brilliant career, and became a Fellow of Trinity
Coll. This position he lost by refusing to take orders. In 1792 he was
appointed Prof. of Greek in the Univ., but resided for the most part in
London, where he was much courted by literary men, but unfortunately fell
into extremely intemperate habits. P. was one of the very greatest of
Greek scholars and critics; but he has left little permanent work of his
own. He ed. four plays of Euripides, viz., _Hecuba_, _Orestes_,
_Phoenissae_, and _Medea_. His most widely read work was his _Letters_
to Archdeacon Travis on the disputed passage, 1 John v. 7, which is
considered a masterpiece of acute reasoning. He is buried in the chapel
of Trinity Coll.
PORTER, ANNA MARIA (1780-1832), PORTER, JANE (1776-1850).--Novelists,
were the _dau._ of an Irish army surgeon, and sisters of Sir Robert Ker
P., the painter and traveller. After the death of the _f._ the family
settled in Edin., where they enjoyed the friendship of Scott. ANNA at the
age of 12 _pub._ _Artless Tales_, the precursor of a series of tales and
novels numbering about 50, the best being _Don Sebastian_ (1809). JANE,
though the elder by four years, did not _pub._ until 1803, when her first
novel, _Thaddeus of Warsaw_, appeared. _The Scottish Chiefs_ followed in
1810. Both of these works, especially the latter, had remarkable
popularity, the _Chiefs_ being translated into German and Russian. She
had greater talent than her sister, but like her, while possessed of
considerable animation and imagination, failed in grasping character, and
imparting local verisimilitude. Both were amiable and excellent women. A
romance, _Sir Edward Seaward's Diary_ (1831), purporting to be a record
of actual circumstances, and ed. by Jane, is generally believed to have
been written by a brother, Dr. William Ogilvie P.
POWELL, FREDERICK YORK (1850-1904).--Historian, _ed._ at Rugby and Oxf.,
called to the Bar at the Middle Temple 1874, became an ardent student of
history, and succeeded Froude as Prof. of Modern History at Oxf. in 1894.
Absorbed in study, he wrote less than his wide and deep learning
qualified him for. Among his works are _A History of England to_ 1509,
and he also wrote on Early England up to the Conquest, and on Alfred and
William the Conqueror.
PRAED, WINTHROP MACKWORTH (1802-1839).--Poet, _s._ of a sergeant-at-law,
was _b._ in London, _ed._ at Eton and Camb., and called to the Bar 1829.
He sat in Parliament for various places, and was Sec. to the Board of
Control 1834-35. He appeared to have a brilliant career before him, when
his health gave way, and he _d._ of consumption in 1839. His poems,
chiefly bright and witty skits and satirical pieces, were _pub._ first in
America 1844, and appeared in England with a memoir by Derwent Coleridge
in 1864. His essays appeared in 1887.
PRESCOTT, WILLIAM HICKLING (1796-1859).--Historian, _b._ at Salem,
Massachusetts, the _s._ of an eminent lawyer, was _ed._ at Harvard, where
he graduated in 1814. While there he met with an accident to one of his
eyes which seriously affected his sight for the remainder of his life. He
made an extended tour in Europe, and on his return to America he _m._,
and abandoning the idea of a legal career, resolved to devote himself to
literature. After ten years of study, he _pub._ in 1837 his _History of
Ferdinand and Isabella_, which at once gained for him a high place among
historians. It was followed in 1843 by the _History of the Conquest of
Mexico_, and in 1847 by the _Conquest of Peru_. His last work was the
_History of Philip II._, of which the third vol. appeared in 1858, and
which was left unfinished. In that year he had an apoplectic shock, and
another in 1859 was the cause of his death, which took place on January
28 in the last-named year. In all his works he displayed great research,
impartiality, and an admirable narrative power. The great disadvantage at
which, owing to his very imperfect vision, he worked, makes the first of
these qualities specially remarkable, for his authorities in a foreign
tongue were read to him, while he had to write on a frame for the blind.
P. was a man of amiable and benevolent character, and enjoyed the
friendship of many of the most distinguished men in Europe as well as in
America.
PRICE, RICHARD (1723-1791).--Writer on morals, politics, and economics,
_s._ of a dissenting minister, was _b._ at Tynton in Wales, _ed._ at a
dissenting coll. in London, and was then for some years chaplain to a Mr.
Streatfield, who left him some property. Thereafter he officiated as
minister to various congregations near London. In 1758 his _Review of the
Principal Questions and Difficulties in Morals_, a work of considerable
metaphysical power, appeared; and it was followed in 1766 by a treatise
on _The Importance of Christianity_. In 1769 his work on _Reversionary
Payments_ was _pub._, and his Northampton Mortality Table was about the
same time constructed. These, though long superseded, were in their day
most valuable contributions to economical science. His most popular work,
_Observations on Civil Liberty and the Justice and Policy of the War with
America_, appeared in 1776, had an enormous sale, and led to his being
invited to go to America and assist in establishing the financial system
of the new Government. This he declined chiefly on the score of age.
Simplicity, uprightness, and toleration of opinions opposed to his own
appear to have been marked traits in his character.
PRIDEAUX, HUMPHREY (1648-1724).--Divine and scholar, belonged to an
ancient Cornish family, was _b._ at Padstow, and _ed._ at Westminster
School and at Oxf. He first attracted notice by his description of the
Arundel Marbles (1676), which gained for him powerful patrons, and he
rose to be Dean of Norwich. Among his other works are a _Life of Mahomet_
(1697), and _The Old and New Testament connected in the History of the
Jews and Neighbouring Nations_ (1715-17), long an important work, of
which many ed. were brought out.
PRIESTLY, JOSEPH (1733-1804).--Chemist, theologian, and political writer,
_s._ of a draper at Fieldhead, Yorkshire, where he was _b._ Brought up as
a Calvinist, he gradually became a modified Unitarian, and after
attending a dissenting academy at Daventry, he became minister to various
congregations. About 1756 he _pub._ _The Scripture Doctrine of
Remission_, denying the doctrine of atonement, and in 1761 succeeded Dr.
Aiken as teacher of languages and _belles-lettres_ in the dissenting
academy at Warrington. About the same time he became acquainted with
Franklin and Dr. Price (_q.v._), and began to devote himself to science,
the fruits of which were his _History and Present State of Electricity_
(1767), and _Vision, Light, and Colours_. He also became a distinguished
chemist, and made important discoveries, including that of oxygen. In
1773 he travelled on the Continent as companion to Lord Shelburne, where
he was introduced to many men of scientific and literary eminence, by
some of whom he was rallied upon his belief in Christianity. In reply to
this he wrote _Letters to a Philosophical Unbeliever_ (1774), and in
answer to the accusations of Atheism brought against him at home, he
_pub._ (1777) _Disquisition relating to Matter and Spirit_. In 1780 he
settled in Birmingham, in 1782 _pub._ his _Corruptions of Christianity_,
and in 1786 his _History of Early Opinions concerning Jesus Christ_. He
was one of those who wrote replies to Burke's _Reflections on the French
Revolution_, one consequence of which was his election as a French
citizen, and another the destruction of his chapel, house, papers, and
instruments by a mob. Some years later he went to America, where he _d._
P. has been called the father of modern chemistry. He received many
scientific and academic honours, being a member of the Royal Society, of
the Academies of France, and of St. Petersburg, and an LL.D. of Edin. He
was a man of powerful and original mind, of high character, and of
undaunted courage in maintaining his opinions, which were usually
unpopular.
PRINGLE, THOMAS (1789-1834).--Poet, _b._ in Roxburghshire, studied at
Edin., and became known to Scott, by whose influence he obtained a grant
of land in South Africa, to which he, with his _f._ and brothers,
emigrated. He took to literary work in Cape Town, and conducted two
papers, which were suppressed for their free criticisms of the Colonial
Government. Thereupon he returned and settled in London, where he _pub._
_African Sketches_. He also produced a book of poems, _Ephemerides_.
PRIOR, MATTHEW (1664-1721).--Poet, _b._ near Wimborne Minster, Dorset,
_s._ of a joiner who, having _d._, he was _ed._ by an uncle, and sent to
Westminster School. Befriended by the Earl of Dorset he proceeded to
Camb., and while there wrote, jointly with Charles Montague, _The Town
and Country Mouse_, a burlesque of Dryden's _Hind and Panther_. After
holding various diplomatic posts, in which he showed ability and
discretion, he entered Parliament in 1700, and, deserting the Whigs,
joined the Tories, by whom he was employed in various capacities,
including that of Ambassador at Paris. On the death of Queen Anne he was
recalled, and in 1715 imprisoned, but after two years released. In 1719 a
folio ed. of his works was brought out, by which he realised L4000, and
Lord Harley having presented him with an equal sum, he looked forward to
the peace and comfort which were his chief ambition. He did not, however,
long enjoy his prosperity, dying two years later. Among his poems may be
mentioned _Solomon_, which he considered his best work, _Alma, or the
Progress of the Mind_, _The Female Phaeton_, _To a Child of Quality_, and
some prose tales. His chief characteristic is a certain elegance and easy
grace, in which he is perhaps unrivalled. His character appears to have
been by no means unimpeachable, but he was amiable and free from any
trace of vindictiveness.
PROCTER, ADELAIDE ANN (1825-1864).--Poetess, eldest _dau._ of Bryan W.P.
(_q.v._). Many of her poems were first _pub._ in _Household Words_ and
_All the Year Round_, and afterwards _coll._ under the title of _Legends
and Lyrics_ (1858), of which many ed. appeared. In 1851 Miss P. became a
Roman Catholic. She took much interest in social questions affecting
women. She wrote the well-known songs, _Cleansing Fires_ and _The Lost
Chord_, and among her many hymns are, _I do not ask, O Lord, that Life
may be_, and _My God, I thank Thee who hast made_.
PROCTER, BRYAN WALLER ("BARRY CORNWALL") (1787-1874).--Poet, _b._ at
Leeds, and _ed._ at Harrow, went to London and practised successfully as
a solicitor. Thereafter he became a barrister, and was, 1832-61, a
Commissioner of Lunacy. By 1823 he had produced four vols. of poetry and
a tragedy, _Mirandola_ (1821). His works include _Dramatic Scenes_
(1819), _A Sicilian Story_, _Marcian Colonna_ (1820), _The Flood of
Thessaly_ (1823), and _English Songs_ (1832), which last will perhaps
survive his other writings. P. was the friend of most of his literary
contemporaries, and was universally beloved.
PROUT, FATHER, (_see_ MAHONY, F.S.).
PRYNNE, WILLIAM (1600-1669).--Controversial writer, _b._ near Bath, _ed._
at Oxf., studied law at Lincoln's Inn, of which he became a bencher, but
soon became immersed in the writing of controversial pamphlets. After the
_Unloveliness of Lovelocks_ and _Health's Sicknesse_ (1627-30) appeared
his best known controversial work, _Histrio-Mastix_, or a _Scourge for
Stage Players_ (1633), a bitter attack on most of the popular amusements
of the day. It was punished with inhuman severity. P. was brought before
the Star Chamber, fined L5000, pilloried, and had both his ears cut off.
Undeterred by this he issued from his prison a fierce attack upon Laud
and the hierarchy, for which he was again fined, pilloried, and branded
on both cheeks with the letters S.L. (seditious libeller). Removed to
Carnarvon Castle he remained there until liberated in 1641 by the Long
Parliament. He soon after became a member of the House, and joined with
extreme, but not inexcusable, rancour in the prosecution of Laud. After
this he turned his attention to the Independents, whom he hated scarcely
less than the Prelatists, and was among those expelled from the House of
Commons by Cromwell, whom he had opposed in regard to the execution of
the King with such asperity that he again suffered imprisonment, from
which he was released in 1652. He supported the Restoration, and was by
Charles II. appointed Keeper of the Records in the Tower. Here he did
good service by compiling the _Calendar of Parliamentary Writs_ and
_Records_. He _pub._ in all about 200 books and pamphlets.
PSALMANAZAR, GEORGE (1679?-1763).--Literary impostor. His real name is
unknown. He is believed to have been a native of France or Switzerland,
but represented himself as a native of the island of Formosa, and palmed
off a Formosan language of his own construction, to which he afterwards
added a description of the island. For a time he was in the military
service of the Duke of Mecklenburg, and formed a connection with William
Innes, chaplain of a Scottish regiment, who collaborated with him in his
frauds, and introduced various refinements into his methods. Innes,
however, was appointed chaplain to the forces in Portugal, and P. was
unable to maintain his impositions, and was exposed. After a serious
illness in 1728 he turned over a new leaf and became a respectable and
efficient literary hack; his works in his latter days included a _General
History of Printing_, contributions to the _Universal History_, and an
_Autobiography_ containing an account of his impostures.
PURCHAS, SAMUEL (1575?-1626).--Compiler of travels, _b._ at Thaxton, and
_ed._ at Camb., took orders, and held various benefices, including the
rectory of St. Martin's, Ludgate Hill. The papers of R. Hakluyt (_q.v._)
came into his hands, and he made several compilations relating to man,
his nature, doings, and surroundings. His three works are (1) _Purchas
his Pilgrimage, or Relations of the World and the Religions observed in
all Ages and Places, etc._; (2) _Purchas his Pilgrim, Microcosmus, or the
History of Man, etc._; and (3) _Hakluytus Posthumus, or Purchas his
Pilgrimes, containing a History of the World in Sea Voyages and Land
Travels, etc._ Although credulous, diffuse, and confused, these works
have preserved many interesting and curious matters which would otherwise
have been lost.
PUSEY, EDWARD BOUVERIE (1800-1882).--Scholar and theologian, _b._ at
Pusey, Berks, _ed._ at Eton and Oxf., belonged to the family of Lord
Folkstone, whose name was Bouverie, his _f._ assuming that of P. on
inheriting certain estates. After studying in Germany, he became in 1828
Regius Prof. of Hebrew at Oxf. His first important work was an _Essay on
the Causes of Rationalism in German Theology_, and the arrest of similar
tendencies in England became one of the leading objects of his life. He
was one of the chief leaders of the Tractarian movement, and contributed
tracts on _Baptism_ and on _Fasting_. In consequence of a sermon on the
Eucharist, he was in 1843 suspended from the office of Univ. Preacher
which he then held. Later writings related to _Confession_ and _The
Doctrine of the Real Presence_, and in 1865 he issued an _Eirenicon_ in
support of union with the Church of Rome. He was prominent in all
movements and controversies affecting the Univ., and was foremost among
the prosecutors of Jowett (_q.v._). Among his other literary labours are
commentaries on Daniel and the minor Prophets, a treatise on Everlasting
Punishment, and a Catalogue of the Arabic MS. in the Bodleian Library.
PUTTENHAM, GEORGE (1530?-1590).--Was one of the _s._ of Robert P., a
country gentleman. There has been attributed to him the authorship of
_The Arte of Poesie_, a treatise of some length divided into three parts,
(1) of poets and poesy, (2) of proportion, (3) of ornament. It is now
thought rather more likely that it was written by his brother RICHARD
(1520?-1601). George was the author of an _Apologie_ for Queen
Elizabeth's treatment of Mary Queen of Scots.
PYE, HENRY JAMES (1745-1813).--A country gentleman of Berkshire, who
_pub._ _Poems on Various Subjects_ and _Alfred, an Epic_, translated the
_Poetics_ of Aristotle, and was Poet Laureate from 1790. In the last
capacity he wrote official poems of ludicrous dulness, and was generally
a jest and a byword in literary circles.
QUARLES, FRANCIS (1592-1644).--Poet, _b._ at the manor-house of Stewards
near Romford, was at Camb., and studied law at Lincoln's Inn. Thereafter
he went to the Continent, and at Heidelberg acted as cup-bearer to
Elizabeth of Bohemia, _dau._ of James I. He next appears as sec. to
Archbishop Ussher in Ireland, and was in 1639 Chronologer to the City of
London. On the outbreak of the Civil War he sided with the Royalists, and
was plundered by the Parliamentarians of his books and rare manuscripts,
which is said to have so grieved him as to bring about his death. His
first book of poems was _A Feast for Worms_ (1620); others were _Hadassa_
(Esther) (1621), _Sion's Elegies_ (1625), and _Divine Emblems_ (1635), by
far his most popular book. His style was that fashionable in his day,
affected, artificial, and full of "conceits," but he had both real
poetical fire and genuine wit, mixed with much that was false in taste,
and though quaint and crabbed, is seldom feeble or dull. He was twice
_m._, and had by his first wife 18 children.
RADCLIFFE, MRS. ANN (WARD) (1764-1823).--Novelist, only _dau._ of parents
in a respectable position, in 1787 _m._ Mr. William Radcliffe, ed. and
proprietor of a weekly newspaper, the _English Chronicle_. In 1789 she
_pub._ her first novel, _The Castles of Athlin and Dunbayne_, of which
the scene is laid in Scotland. It, however, gave little promise of the
future power of the author. In the following year appeared _The Sicilian
Romance_, which attracted attention by its vivid descriptions and
startling incidents. Next came _The Romance of the Forest_ (1791),
followed by _The Mysteries of Udolpho_ (1794), and _The Italian_ (1797),
a story of the Inquisition, the last of her works _pub._ during her
life-time. _Gaston de Blondeville_, ed. by Sergeant Talfourd, was brought
out posthumously. Mrs. R. has been called the Salvator Rosa of British
novelists. She excels in the description of scenes of mystery and terror
whether of natural scenery or incident: in the former displaying a high
degree of imaginative power, and in the latter great ingenuity and
fertility of invention. She had, however, little power of delineating
character. Though her works belong to a type now out of fashion, they
will always possess an historical interest as marking a stage in the
development of English fiction.
"RAINE, ALLEN" (MRS. BEYNON PUDDICOMBE).--Novelist. _A Welsh Singer_
(1897), _Tom Sails_ (1898), _A Welsh Witch_ (1901), _Queen of the Rushes_
(1906), etc.
RALEIGH, SIR WALTER (1552?-1618).--Explorer, statesman, admiral,
historian, and poet, _s._ of Walter R., of Fardel, Devonshire, was _b._
at Hayes Barton in that county. In 1568 he was sent to Oxf., where he
greatly distinguished himself. In the next year he began his career of
adventure by going to France as a volunteer in aid of the Huguenots,
serving thereafter in the Low Countries. The year 1579 saw him engaged in
his first voyage of adventure in conjunction with his half-brother, Sir
Humphrey Gilbert. Their object was to discover and settle lands in North
America; but the expedition failed, chiefly owing to opposition by the
Spaniards. The next year he was fighting against the rebels in Ireland;
and shortly thereafter attracted the notice of Queen Elizabeth, in whose
favour he rapidly rose. In 1584 he fitted out a new colonising expedition
to North America, and succeeded in discovering and occupying Virginia,
named after the Queen. On his return he was knighted. In the dark and
anxious days of the Armada, 1587-88, R. was employed in organising
resistance, and rendered distinguished service in action. His favour with
the Queen, and his haughty bearing, had, however, been raising up enemies
and rivals, and his intrigue and private marriage with Elizabeth
Throckmorton, one of the maids of honour, in 1593, lost him for a time
the favour of the Queen. Driven from the Court he returned to the schemes
of adventure which had so great a charm for him, and fired by the Spanish
accounts of the fabulous wealth of Guiana, he and some of his friends
fitted out an expedition which, however, though attended with various
brilliant episodes, proved unsuccessful. Restored to the favour of the
Queen, he was appointed an Admiral in the expeditions to Cadiz, 1596, and
in the following year was engaged in an attack on the Azores, in both of
which he added greatly to his reputation. The death of Elizabeth in 1603
was the turning point in R.'s fortunes. Thenceforward disaster clouded
his days. The new sovereign and his old enemies combined to compass his
ruin. Accused of conspiring against the former he was, against all
evidence, sentenced to death, and though this was not at the time carried
out, he was imprisoned in the Tower and his estates confiscated. During
this confinement he composed his _History of the World_, which he brought
down to 130 B.C. It is one of the finest specimens of Elizabethan prose,
reflective in matter and dignified and grave in style. Released in 1615
he set out on his last voyage, again to Guiana, which, like the former,
proved a failure, and in which he lost his eldest _s._ He returned a
broken and dying man, but met with no pity from his ungenerous King who,
urged, it is believed, by the King of Spain, had him beheaded on Tower
Hill, October 29, 1618. R. is one of the most striking and brilliant
figures in an age crowded with great men. Of a noble presence, he was
possessed of a commanding intellect and a versatility which enabled him
to shine in every enterprise to which he set himself. In addition to his
great fragment the _History of the World_, he wrote _A Report of the
Truth of the Fight about the Azores_, and _The Discoverie of the Empire
of Guiana_, besides various poems chiefly of a philosophic cast, of which
perhaps the best known are _The Pilgrimage_, and that beginning "Go,
Soul, the Body's Guest."
The most recent _Lives_ are by Stebbing (1892), and Hume (1898). _Works_
(1829), with _Lives_ by Oldys and Birch.
RAMEE, LOUISE DE LA ("OUIDA") (1840?-1908).--Novelist, _b._ at Bury St.
Edmunds, _dau._ of an English _f._ and a French mother. For many years
she lived in London, but about 1874 she went to Italy, where she _d._ She
wrote over 40 novels, which had considerable popularity. Among the best
known of them are _Under Two Flags_, _Puck_, _Two Little Wooden Shoes_, _In
a Winter City_, _In Maremma_. She also wrote a book of stories for
children, _Bimbi_. Occasionally she shows considerable power, but on the
whole her writings have an unhealthy tone, want reality, and are not
likely to have any permanent place in literature.
RAMSAY, ALLAN (1686-1758).--Poet, _s._ of a mine-manager at Leadhills,
Dumfriesshire, who claimed kin with the Ramsays of Dalhousie. In his
infancy he lost his _f._, and his mother _m._ a small "laird," who gave
him the ordinary parish school education. In 1701 he came to Edinburgh as
apprentice to a wig-maker, took to writing poetry, became a member of the
"Easy Club," of which Pitcairn and Ruddiman, the grammarian, were
members, and of which he was made "laureate." The club _pub._ his poems
as they were thrown off, and their appearance soon began to be awaited
with interest. In 1716 he _pub._ an additional canto to _Christ's Kirk on
the Green_, a humorous poem sometimes attributed to James I., and in 1719
he became a bookseller, his shop being a meeting-place of the _literati_
of the city. A _coll._ ed. of his poems appeared in 1720, among the
subscribers to which were Pope, Steele, Arbuthnot, and Gay. It was
followed by _Fables and Tales_, and other poems. In 1724 he began the
_Tea Table Miscellany_, a collection of new Scots songs set to old
melodies, and the _Evergreen_, a collection of old Scots poems with which
R. as ed. took great liberties. This was a kind of work for which he was
not qualified, and in which he was far from successful. _The Gentle
Shepherd_, by far his best known and most meritorious work, appeared in
1725, and had an immediate popularity which, to a certain extent, it
retains. It is a pastoral drama, and abounds in character, unaffected
sentiment, and vivid description. After this success R., satisfied with
his reputation, produced nothing, more of importance. He was the first to
introduce the circulating library into Scotland, and among his other
enterprises was an unsuccessful attempt to establish a theatre in Edin.
On the whole his life was a happy and successful one, and he had the
advantage of a cheerful, sanguine, and contented spirit. His foible was
an innocent and good-natured vanity.
RAMSAY, EDWARD BANNERMAN (1793-1872).--A clergyman of the Scottish
Episcopal Church, and Dean of Edinburgh in that communion from 1841, has
a place in literature by his _Reminiscences of Scottish Life and
Character_, which had gone through 22 ed. at his death. It is a book
full of the engaging personality of the author, and preserves many
interesting and entertaining traits and anecdotes which must otherwise,
in all probability, have perished. The Dean was deservedly one of the
most popular men in Scotland.
RANDOLPH, THOMAS (1605-1635).--Poet and dramatist, _ed._ at Westminster
School and Camb., was a friend of Ben Jonson, and led a wild life in
London. He wrote six plays, including _The Jealous Lovers_, _Amyntas_,
and _The Muses' Looking-glass_, and some poems. He was a scholar as well
as a wit, and his plays are full of learning and condensed thought in a
style somewhat cold and hard.
RAPIN DE THOYRAS, PAUL (1661-1725).--Historian, _b._ at Castres,
Languedoc, belonged to a Protestant Savoyard family, and came to England
on the revocation of the Edict of Nantes in 1686. He afterwards served
with William III. in Holland, and accompanied him to England in 1688. His
_History of England_, written in French, was translated into English, and
continued by various writers, and was the standard history until the
appearance of Hume's.
RASPE, RUDOLF ERIC- (1737-1794).--_B._ in Hanover, was a prof. in Cassel,
and keeper of the Landgrave of Hesse's antique gems and medals, in the
purloining of some of which he was detected, and fled to England. Here he
won for himself a certain place in English literature by the publication
in 1785 of _Baron Munchausen's Narrative_. Only a small portion of the
work in its present form is by R., the rest having been added later by
another hand. He appears to have maintained more or less during life his
character of a rogue, and is the prototype of Douster-swivel in Scott's
_Antiquary_.
RAWLINSON, GEORGE (1812-1902).--Historian, _b._ at Chadlington.
Oxfordshire, and _ed._ at Oxf., took orders, and was Canon of Canterbury
from 1872. He held the Camden Professorship of Ancient History at Oxf.
from 1861. Among his works are a translation of Herodotus (1858-62) (with
his brother, Sir Henry R., _q.v._), _Historical Evidences of the Truth of
the Scripture Records_, _The Five Great Monarchies of the Ancient Eastern
World_ (1862-67), _Manual of Ancient History_ (1869), _The Sixth and
Seventh Great Oriental Monarchies_ (1873-77), _History of Ancient Egypt_
(1881), _Histories of the Phoenicians and Parthians_, _Memoirs of Sir
H.C. Rawlinson_ (1898).
RAWLINSON, SIR HENRY CRESSWICKE (1810-1895).--Brother of the above,
entered the service of the East India Company, and held many important
diplomatic posts. He studied the cuneiform inscriptions, and _pub._ _The
Cuneiform Inscriptions of Western Asia_ (1861-80), _Outlines of the
History of Assyria_ (1852). He deciphered most of the inscriptions
discovered by Sir A.H. Layard (_q.v._).
RAY, JOHN (1627-1705).--Naturalist, _s._ of a blacksmith at Black Notley,
Essex, was at Camb., where he became a Fellow of Trinity, and
successively lecturer on Greek and mathematics. His first publication
was a Latin catalogue of plants growing near Cambridge, which appeared in
1660. Thereafter he made a tour of Great Britain, and _pub._ in 1670 his
_Catalogue of the Plants of England and the adjacent Isles_. In 1663 he
had travelled on the Continent for three years with his pupil-friend, F.
Willughby, and in 1673 appeared _Observations_ on his journeys, which
extended over the Low Countries, Germany, Italy, and France, with a
catalogue of plants not native to England. On the death of Willughby, R.
_ed._ his sons, and in 1679 retired to his native village, where he
continued his scientific labours until his death. These included the ed.
of W.'s _History of Birds and Fishes_, a collection of English proverbs,
_Historia Plantarum Generalis_ (1686-1704), and _Synopsis Methodica
Animalium_. He was for long popularly known by his treatise, _The Wisdom
of God manifested in the works of the Creation_ (1691), a precursor of
Paley's _Natural Theology_. R. is the father of English botany, and
appears to have grasped the idea of the natural classification of plants,
afterwards developed by Jussieu and other later naturalists. His greatest
successors, including Cuvier, highly commended his methods and
acquirements.
READ, THOMAS BUCHANAN (1822-1872).--American poet, was a
portrait-painter, and lived much abroad. He wrote a prose romance, _The
Pilgrims of the Great St. Bernard_, and several books of poetry,
including _The New Pastoral_, _The House by the Sea_, _Sylvia_, and _A
Summer Story_. Some of the shorter pieces included in these, _e.g._,
"Sheridan's Ride," "Drifting," and "The Closing Scene," have great merit.
READE, CHARLES (1814-1884).--Novelist, _s._ of a country gentleman of
Oxfordshire, _ed._ at Oxf., and called to the Bar at Lincoln's Inn 1843.
He did not, however, practise, but began his literary career with some
dramas, of which the most remarkable were _Masks and Faces_, _Gold_, and
_Drink_. He afterwards rewrote the first of these as a novel, _Peg
Woffington_ (1852), which attained great popularity. _It is never too
late to Mend_ appeared in 1856, his historical novel, _The Cloister and
the Hearth_, generally regarded as his masterpiece (1861), _Hard Cash_
(1863), _Griffith Gaunt_ (1867), _Foul Play_ (1869), _Put Yourself in his
Place_ (1870), and _A Terrible Temptation_ (1871). Critics have differed
very widely as to the merits of R. as a novelist, and have attributed to,
and denied him the same qualities; but it will be generally admitted
that, while very unequal, he was at his best a writer of unusual power
and vividness. Nearly all are agreed as to the great excellence of _The
Cloister and the Hearth_, Mr. Swinburne placing it "among the very
greatest masterpieces of narrative." Many of his novels were written with
a view to the reformation of some abuse. Thus _Hard Cash_ exposes certain
private asylums, and _Foul Play_, written in collaboration with Dion
Boucicault, is levelled against ship-knackers.
REED, HENRY (1808-1854).--Critic, was Prof. of English Literature in the
Univ. of Pennsylvania. He _d._ in a shipwreck. He was a sympathetic and
delicate critic, and was among the first of American men of letters to
appreciate the genius of Wordsworth, of whose works he brought out an ed.
in 1837. His lectures on English Literature, English History, and English
Poets were _pub._
REEVE, CLARA (1729-1807).--Novelist, was the author of several novels, of
which only one is remembered--_The Old English Baron_ (1777), written in
imitation of, or rivalry with, H. Walpole's _Castle of Otranto_, with
which it has often been printed.
REEVE, HENRY (1813-1895).--Editor, etc., _s._ of a physician, was on the
staff of the _Times_, the foreign policy of which he influenced for many
years. He was ed. of the _Edinburgh Review_ 1855-95, and of the Greville
Memoirs 1865. He held a leading place in society, and had an unusually
wide acquaintance with men of letters all over the continent.
REID, MAYNE (1818-1883).--Novelist, _b._ in the north of Ireland, he set
off at the age of 20 for Mexico to push his fortunes, and went through
many adventures, including service in the Mexican War. He also was for a
short time settled in Philadelphia engaged in literary work. Returning to
this country he began a long series of novels of adventure with _The
Rifle Rangers_ (1849). The others include _The Scalp Hunters_, _Boy
Hunters_, and _Young Voyagers_, and had great popularity, especially with
boys.
REID, THOMAS (1710-1796).--Philosopher, was the _s._ of the minister of
Strachan, Kincardineshire, where he was _b._ His mother was one of the
gifted family of the Gregorys. At the age of 12 he was sent to Marischal
Coll., Aberdeen, where he graduated, and thereafter resided for some time
as librarian, devoting himself to study, especially of mathematics and
the Newtonian philosophy. He was in 1737 ordained minister of New Machar,
Aberdeen, and in 1748 he communicated to the Royal Society an _Essay on
Quantity_. Four years later he became one of the Prof. of Philosophy
(including mathematics and natural philosophy) in King's Coll., Aberdeen,
and in 1763 he was chosen to succeed Adam Smith as Prof. of Moral
Philosophy in Glasgow. In the following year he _pub._ his great work,
_Inquiry into the Human Mind on the Principles of Common Sense_, directed
against Hume's _Essay on Human Nature_. Up to the appearance of the
latter work in 1739 R. had been a follower of Berkeley, but the
conclusions drawn therein from the idealistic philosophy led him to
revise his theories, and to propound what is usually known as the "common
sense" philosophy, by which term is meant the beliefs common to rational
beings as such. In 1785 he _pub._ his _Essay on the Intellectual Powers_,
which was followed in 1788 by that _On the Active Powers_. R., who,
though below the middle size, was strong and fond of exercise, maintained
his bodily and mental vigour until his death at 86. His writings,
distinguished by logical rigour of method and clearness of style,
exercised a profound influence in France as well as at home; but his
attempted refutation of Berkeley is now generally considered to have
failed.
_Works_ ed. by Sir W. Hamilton and H.L. Mansel. Sketch by Prof. A.C.
Fraser (1898).
REID, SIR THOMAS WEMYSS (1842-1905).--Novelist and biographer, _b._ at
Newcastle, and after being connected with various provincial newspapers
came to London in 1887 as manager for Cassell and Co. Thereafter he was,
1890-99, ed. of _The Speaker_. Among his more permanent writings are _The
Land of the Bey_ (1882), _Gladys Fane_ (1883), and Lives of W.E. Forster
(1888), and Lords Houghton (1891), and Playfair (1899), and William Black
(1902). He was knighted in 1894.
REYNOLDS, SIR JOSHUA (1723-1792).--Painter and writer on art, _s._ of a
clergyman and schoolmaster at Plympton, Devonshire. After studying art in
Italy, he settled in London, where he attained extraordinary fame as a
portrait-painter. He is regarded as the greatest English representative
of that art, and was first Pres. of the Royal Academy. He was the
intimate friend of Johnson, Burke, Goldsmith, and indeed of most of the
celebrated men of his time. He has also a place in literature for his
_Fifteen Discourses_ on painting, delivered to the Academy. He also
contributed to the _Idler_, and translated Du Fresney's _Art of
Painting_. He suffered from deafness, and in his latter years from
failure of sight. He was a man of great worth and amiability. He was
knighted in 1769.
RHODES, WILLIAM BARNES (1772-1826).--Dramatist, was in the Bank of
England, of which he became Chief Teller. He wrote a burlesque,
_Bombastes Furioso_, which achieved great popularity.
RHYMER, THOMAS THE, (_see_ ERCILDOUN).
RICARDO, DAVID (1772-1823).--Political economist, _s._ of a Jewish
stockbroker, himself followed the same business, in which he acquired a
large fortune. On his marriage he conformed to Christianity. He was an
original and powerful writer on economic subjects, his chief work being
_The Principles of Political Economy and Taxation_ (1817). After retiring
from business he entered the House of Commons, where, owing to his
remarkable power of lucid exposition, combined with his reputation as a
highly successful man of business, he acquired great influence. The
writings of R. are among the classics of his subject.
RICE, JAMES (1844-1882).--Novelist, was _ed._ at Camb., and studied law,
from which he drifted into literature. He wrote a number of successful
novels in collaboration with W. Besant (_q.v._).
RICH, BARNABE (1540?-1620?).--Writer of romances, _b._ in Essex, saw
military service in the Low Countries. He began to write in 1574, and
took Lyly's _Euphues_ as his model. Among his numerous romances is _The
Strange and Wonderful Adventures of Simonides, a Gentleman Spaniard_ and
_Riche, his Farewell to the Military Profession_ (1581), which furnished
Shakespeare with the plot for _Twelfth Night_.
RICHARDSON, SAMUEL (1689-1761).--Novelist, _s._ of a joiner, was _b._ at
Derby. His _f._ had intended him for the Church, but means failed, and at
the age of 17 he went to London, and was apprenticed to a printer.
Careful and diligent, he prospered in business, became printer of the
Journals of the House of Commons, and in the year before his death
purchased the moiety of the patent of King's Printer. He was twice _m._,
and each of his wives brought him six children, of whom, however, only
four daughters were living at his death. R., who was the originator of
the modern novel, did not take seriously to literature until he was past
50 when, in 1740, _Pamela_ appeared. It originated in a proposal by two
printers that R. should write a collection of model letters for the use
of persons unaccustomed to correspondence, but it soon developed in his
hands into a novel in which the story is carried on in the form of a
correspondence. With faults and absurdities, it struck a true note of
sentiment, and exploded the prevalent idea that dukes and princesses were
the only suitable heroes and heroines (Pamela was a maid-servant), and it
won immediate and phenomenal popularity. In 1748 _Clarissa Harlow_, his
masterpiece, was _pub._, and in 1753 _Sir Charles Grandison_, in which
the author embodies his ideal of a Christian gentleman. All these surfer
from an elaboration of detail which often becomes tedious; but in deep
acquaintance with the motives of conduct, and especially of the workings
of the female heart, they are almost unrivalled; their pathos also is
genuine and deep. R. had an unusual faculty as the platonic friend and
counsellor of women, and was the centre of an admiring circle of the sex,
who ministered to a vanity which became somewhat excessive. R. has also
the distinction of evoking the genius of Fielding, whose first novel,
_Joseph Andrews_, was begun as a skit or parody upon _Pamela_. R. is
described as "a stout, rosy, vain, prosy little man." _Life_ by Sir W.
Scott in Ballantyne's _Novelists Library_. _Works_ with preface by L.
Stephen (12 vols., 1883), etc.
RITCHIE, LEITCH (1800?-1865).--Novelist, _b._ at Greenock and in business
as a clerk in Glasgow, but about 1820 adopted literature as his
profession. He wrote several novels of which the best known is _Wearyfoot
Common_; others were _The Robber of the Rhine_ and _The Magician_. In his
later years he ed. _Chambers's Journal_.
RITSON, JOSEPH (1752-1803).--Antiquary and critic, _b._ at
Stockton-on-Tees, settled in London as a conveyancer, at the same time
devoting himself to the study of ancient English poetry. By his diligence
as a collector and acuteness as a critic he rendered essential service to
the preservation and appreciation of our ancient poetry. His chief works
are _A Collection of English Songs_ (1783), _Ancient Songs from Henry
III. to the Revolution_ (1790), _A Collection of Scottish Songs_ (1794),
and _A Collection of all the Ancient Poems, etc., relating to Robin Hood_
(1795). Of a jealous and quarrelsome temper, R. was continually in
controversy with his fellow-collectors and critics, including Johnson,
Warton, and Percy. His acuteness enabled him to detect the Ireland
forgeries. He _d._ insane.
ROBERTSON, FREDERICK WILLIAM (1816-1853).--Divine, _s._ of Captain
Frederick R., of the Royal Artillery, was _b._ in London, and _ed._ at
Edin. and Oxf. After holding various curacies he became in 1847 incumbent
of Trinity Chapel, Brighton, where his preaching, though it brought him
under the suspicion both of the High and Evangelical parties in the
Church, had an extraordinary influence. Always of delicate and
highly-strung constitution, his health gave way after his ministry in
Brighton had extended to six years, and he _d._ in 1853. The beauty of
his life and character had almost conquered the suspicion and dislike
with which his views had inspired many. His sermons, of which five series
were _pub._ posthumously, have had a very wide popularity.
ROBERTSON, THOMAS WILLIAM (1829-1871).--Dramatist, belonged to a family
famous for producing actors. Never a successful actor himself, he
produced a number of plays, which had unusual popularity. Among these are
_David Garrick_, _Society_, _Caste_, and _School_.
ROBERTSON, WILLIAM (1721-1793).--Historian, _s._ of the parish minister
of Borthwick, Midlothian, where he was _b._, received his earlier _ed._
at Dalkeith, which then had a school of some repute; but his _f._ being
translated to Edin., he attended school, and afterwards the Univ. there,
studying for the Church. In 1743 he became minister of Gladsmuir, near
Prestonpans. In the '45 he showed his loyalty by offering himself to Sir
J. Cope as a volunteer, a service which was, however, declined. He soon
began to take a prominent part in the debates of the General Assembly, of
which he rose to be the undisputed leader. In 1758 he became one of the
city ministers of Edin., and in the following year _pub._ his _History of
Scotland_, which had an extraordinary success, and at once raised him to
a foremost place among British historians. Preferment immediately
followed: he was made Chaplain of Stirling Castle 1759, King's Chaplain
for Scotland 1760, Principal of the Univ. of Edin. 1761, and
Historiographer for Scotland 1763. In 1769 appeared the _History of the
Reign of the Emperor Charles V._, in 1777 _The History of America_, and
in 1791 _Historical Disquisition on Ancient India_. In 1780 R. retired
from the management of Church affairs, in which he had shown conspicuous
ability, and gave himself to study, and the society of his friends, among
whom were most of his distinguished contemporaries. As a writer he
possessed a finished style, clear, measured, and stately, which carried
his well-arranged narrative as on a full and steady stream; he was also
cool and sagacious but, like Hume, he was apt to take his facts at second
hand, and the vast additional material which has been in course of
accumulation since his day has rendered the value of his work more and
more literary, and less and less historical.
_Lives_ by Dugald Stewart (1801), Bishop Gleig (1812), and Lord Brougham
in _Men of Letters_.
ROBINSON, HENRY CRABB (1775-1867).--Diarist, _b._ at Bury St. Edmunds,
was articled to an attorney in Colchester. Between 1800 and 1805 he
studied at various places in Germany, and became acquainted with nearly
all the great men of letters there, including Goethe, Schiller, Herder,
Wieland, etc. Thereafter he became war correspondent to the _Times_ in
the Peninsula. On his return to London he studied for the Bar, to which
he was called in 1813, and became leader of the Eastern Circuit. Fifteen
years later he retired, and by virtue of his great conversational powers
and other qualities, became a leader in society, going everywhere and
knowing everybody worth knowing. He _d._ unmarried, aged 91, and his
_Diary, Reminiscences and Correspondence_, which stands in the forefront
of its class, was _pub._ in 1869.
ROCHESTER, JOHN WILMOT (2ND EARL OF) (1647-1680).--Poet, _s._ of the 1st
Earl, _b._ at Ditchley in Oxfordshire, and _ed._ at Oxf., saw some naval
service when he showed conspicuous bravery. He became one of the most
dissolute of the courtiers of Charles II., and wore himself out at 33 by
his wild life. He was handsome, and witty, and possessed a singular charm
of manner. He wrote a number of light, graceful poems, many of them
extremely gross. Bishop Burnet, who attended him on his deathbed,
believed him to have been sincerely repentant. In addition to his short
pieces he wrote a _Satyr against Mankind_, and a tragedy, _Valentinian_,
adapted from Beaumont and Fletcher.
ROGERS, HENRY (1806-1877).--Critic and theologian, was a minister of the
Congregationalist Church, and ultimately Prof. of English Literature in
Univ. Coll., London. He was a contributor to the _Edinburgh Review_, and
is best known by his _Eclipse of Faith_ (1852), a reply to F.W. Newman's
_Phases of Faith_. This work, which displays remarkable acuteness and
logical power, had great popularity.
ROGERS, SAMUEL (1763-1855).--Poet, _s._ of a banker in London, received a
careful private education, and entered the bank, of which, on his
father's death, he became the principal partner. From his early youth he
showed a marked taste for literature and the fine arts, which his wealth
enabled him to gratify; and in his later years he was a well-known leader
in society and a munificent patron of artists and men of letters, his
breakfasts, at which he delighted to assemble celebrities in all
departments, being famous. He was the author of the following poems: _The
Pleasures of Memory_ (1792), _Columbus_ (1810), _Jacqueline_ (1814),
_Human Life_ (1819), and _Italy_ (1822). R. was emphatically the poet of
taste, and his writings, while full of allusion and finished description,
rarely show passion or intensity of feeling; but are rather the
reflections and memory-pictures of a man of high culture and refinement
expressed in polished verse. He had considerable powers of conversation
and sarcasm. He was offered, but declined, the laureateship.
ROLLE, RICHARD (1290?-1349).--Hermit and poet, _b._ at Thornton,
Yorkshire, was at Oxf. Impressed by the uncertainty and the snares of
life he decided to become a hermit, a resolution which he carried out
with somewhat romantic circumstances. He wrote various religious
treatises in Latin and English, turned the Psalms into English verse, and
composed a poem--_The Pricke of Conscience_--in 7 books, in which is
shown the attitude of protest which was rising against certain Papal
pretensions and doctrines.
ROLLOCK, ROBERT (1555?-1599).--Theologian and scholar, _b._ in
Stirlingshire, was first a Prof. in St. Andrews, and then the first
Principal of the Univ. of Edin. He also held office as Prof. of Theology,
and was one of the ministers of the High Church. He was one of the
earliest of Protestant commentators. He wrote chiefly in Latin, but some
of his sermons and commentaries are in vernacular Scotch.
ROPER, WILLIAM (1496-1578).--Biographer, _s._ of a Kentish gentleman,
_m._ Margaret, _dau._ of Sir Thomas More. He has a place in literature
for his excellent and appreciative biography of his father-in-law. He was
a member of various Parliaments between 1529 and 1558. Although he
remained a Roman Catholic, he was permitted to retain his office of
prothonotary of the Court of King's Bench after the accession of
Elizabeth.
ROSCOE, WILLIAM (1753-1831).--Historian, _s._ of a market-gardener near
Liverpool, for a time assisted his _f._, devoting all his spare time to
mental improvement. Subsequently he entered the office of an attorney,
and in due time went into business on his own account, continuing,
however, his literary studies. In 1799 he joined a local bank as partner
and manager, which proved an unfortunate step, as the bank was obliged,
in 1816, to suspend payment. In 1795 he rose into fame at a bound by his
_Life of Lorenzo de' Medici_. It was followed in 1805 by the _Life and
Pontificate of Leo the Tenth_, which, though also a work of great
ability, had not the same success--his treatment of the Reformation
offending Protestants and Roman Catholics alike. Both works were
translated into various languages. He also wrote some poems, including
_The Butterfly's Ball and the Grasshopper's Feast_, and several pamphlets
on political questions, including the slave-trade, of which he was a
determined opponent. He also took a leading part in the public life of
Liverpool, which he represented in Parliament for a few years. He was an
accomplished botanist.
ROSCOMMON, WENTWORTH DILLON, 4TH EARL of (1633?-1685).--Poet, nephew of
the famous Earl of Strafford, was _b._ in Ireland. He studied and
travelled on the Continent, and enjoyed a considerable literary
reputation in his own day on the strength of a poetical _Essay on
Translated Verse_, and translations from Horace's _Art of Poetry_.
ROSE, WILLIAM STEWART (1775-1843).--Poet and translator, _s._ of George
R., who held various Government offices, including that of Treasurer of
the Navy. After being _ed._ at Eton and Camb., he was appointed Reading
Clerk to the House of Lords. He translated the romance of _Amadis de
Gaul_ (1803), _Partenopex de Blois_ (1807), etc., and from 1823-31 was
occupied with the principal work of his life, his translations from the
Italian, including the _Orlando Furioso_ of Ariosto, in which he was
encouraged by Sir W. Scott, whose friend he was. He also produced a vol.
of poems, _The Crusade of St. Louis_ (1810).
ROSSETTI, CHRISTINA GEORGINA (1830-1894).--Poetess, sister of Dante
Gabriel R. (_q.v._), was _b._ in London, where she lived all her life.
She began to write poetry in early girlhood, some of her earliest verse
appearing in 1850 in the _Germ_, the magazine of the pre-Raphaelites, of
which her brother was one of the founders. Her subsequent publications
were _Goblin Market and other Poems_ (1862), _The Prince's Progress_
(1866), _A Pageant and other Poems_ (1881), and _Verses_ (1893). _New
Poems_ (1896) appeared after her death. _Sing-Song_ was a book of verses
for children. Her life was a very retired one, passed largely in
attending on her mother, who lived until 1886, and in religious duties.
She twice rejected proposals of marriage. Her poetry is characterised by
imaginative power, exquisite expression, and simplicity and depth of
thought. She rarely imitated any forerunner, and drew her inspiration
from her own experiences of thought and feeling. Many of her poems are
definitely religious in form; more are deeply imbued with religious
feeling and motive. In addition to her poems she wrote _Commonplace and
other Stories_, and _The Face of the Deep_, a striking and suggestive
commentary on the Apocalypse.
ROSSETTI, DANTE GABRIEL (1828-1882).--Poet and painter, was _b._ in
London. His _f._ was Gabriele Rossetti, an Italian scholar, who came to
England in 1824, and was Prof. of Italian in King's Coll., London. His
mother was Frances Polidori, English on her mother's side, so that the
poet was three-fourths Italian, and one-fourth English. He was _ed._ at
King's Coll. School, and began the systematic study of painting in 1842,
and in 1848, with Holman Hunt, Millais, and others, founded the
pre-Raphaelite school of painting. In 1849 he exhibited the "Girlhood of
Mary Virgin," and among his other pictures are "Beata Beatrix," "Monna
Vanna," and "Dante's Dream." Simultaneously with art he worked hard at
poetry, and by 1847 he had written _The Blessed Damozel_ and _Hand and
Soul_ (both of which appeared in the _Germ_, the magazine of the
pre-Raphaelites), _Retro me Sathanas_, _The Portrait_, and _The Choice_,
and in 1861 he brought out a vol. of translations from the early Italian
poets under the title of _Dante and his Circle_. The death of his wife in
1862, after a married life of less than two years, told heavily upon him,
as did various attacks upon his poetry, including that of Robert Buchanan
(_q.v._)--_The Fleshly School of Poetry_--to which he replied with _The
Stealthy School of Criticism_. His _Poems_ which, in the vehemence of his
grief, he had buried in the coffin of his wife, and which were afterwards
exhumed, appeared in 1870; and his last literary effort, _Ballads and
Sonnets_, containing the sonnets forming _The House of Life_, in 1881. In
his later years he suffered acutely from neuralgia, which led to the
habit of taking chloral. Rossetti was fastidious in composition; his
poems are as remarkable for condensation, finish, and exact expression of
the poet's thought as for their sumptuous colouring and rich concrete
imagery. In later years he was subject to depression, and became somewhat
embittered, and much of a recluse.
_Life_ by A.C. Benson (English Men of Letters). _Family Letters and
Memoir_ by W.M. Rossetti. Poetical Works with preface by the same, etc.
ROUS, FRANCIS (1579-1659).--Versifier of the Psalms, a Cornishman, and a
prominent Puritan, took a leading part in Parliament, was Provost of
Eton, and wrote several theological and devotional works. His memory has,
however, been chiefly kept green by his translation of the Psalms into
verse, which with some modifications was adopted by the Church and
Parliament of Scotland for use in public worship, a position which it
held almost exclusively until the middle of the 19th century. It is still
in universal use in the Presbyterian churches of that country, though now
accompanied by hymns. Though rough, and sometimes, through the endeavour
to maintain literalness, grotesque, it is strong and simple, and not
seldom rises to a certain severe beauty; and association has endeared it
to many generations of Scottish Christians.
ROW, JOHN (1568-1646).--Scottish ecclesiastical historian, _b._ at Perth,
_s._ of John R., one of the Scottish Reformers, was minister of Carnock
in Fife, and a leading opponent of Episcopacy. His _Historie of the Kirk
of Scotland_, 1558-1637, left by him in manuscript, was printed in 1842
for the Wodrow Society. It is an original authority for the period.
ROWE, NICHOLAS (1674-1718).--Dramatist and poet, _b._ of a good family at
Little Barford, Bedfordshire, was bred to the law, but inheriting an
income of L300 a year, he devoted himself to literature, and produced
several dramas, including _The Ambitious Stepmother_, _The Fair
Penitent_, and _Jane Shore_. The last, which is his best, contains some
scenes of true pathos, and holds its place. He also wrote some poems, and
translated Lucan. R., who was a man of very engaging manners, was the
friend of Pope, Swift, and Addison, and received many lucrative
appointments, including that of Under-Sec. of State. He has the
distinction of being the first ed. and biographer of Shakespeare (1709).
He was appointed Poet Laureate in 1715, and was buried in Westminster
Abbey, with an epitaph by Pope.
ROWLEY, WILLIAM (1585?-1642?).--Dramatist, was an actor in the Queen's
Company 1610. He collaborated with Middleton in _A Fair Quarrel_ and _The
Changeling_, and in others with Dekker, Webster, etc., and wrote
unassisted _A New Wonder_, _A Match at Midnight_, _A Shoemaker, a
Gentleman_, and several others; also a picture of life in London called
_A Search for Money_. R. was vigorous and humorous, but his verse lacked
sweetness and smoothness.
RUDDIMAN, THOMAS (1674-1757).--Grammarian, _b._ in Banffshire, and _ed._
at King's Coll., Aberdeen, obtained a position in the Advocates' Library
in Edin., of which in 1730 he became Librarian. In 1714 he _pub._ his
_Rudiments of the Latin Tongue_, which was for long the recognised Latin
grammar in the schools of Scotland. He was made printer to the Univ. in
1728. R., who was one of the greatest of Scottish Latinists, produced an
ed. of the works of George Buchanan, and an ed. of _Livy_ said to be
"immaculate." He also reprinted, with notes, Gavin Douglas's version of
the _AEneid_.
RUSKIN, JOHN (1819-1900).--Writer on art, economics, and sociology, was
_b._ in London, the _s._ of a wealthy wine merchant, a Scotsman. Brought
up under intellectually and morally bracing Puritan influences, his
education was mainly private until he went to Oxf. in 1836; he remained
until 1840, when a serious illness interrupted his studies, and led to a
six months' visit to Italy. On his return in 1842 he took his degree. In
1840 he had made the acquaintance of Turner, and this, together with a
visit to Venice, constituted a turning point in his life. In 1843
appeared the first vol. of _Modern Painters_, the object of which was to
insist upon the superiority in landscape of the moderns, and especially
of Turner, to all the ancient masters. The earnestness and originality
of the author and the splendour of the style at once called attention to
the work which, however, awakened a chorus of protest from the adherents
of the ancients. A second vol. appeared in 1846, the third and fourth in
1856, and the fifth in 1860. Meanwhile he had _pub._ _The Seven Lamps of
Architecture_ (1849), _The Stones of Venice_ (1851-53), perhaps his
greatest work, _Lectures on Architecture and Painting_ (1854), _Elements
of Drawing_ (1856), and _Elements of Perspective_ (1859). During the 17
years between the publication of the first and the last vols. of _Modern
Painters_ his views alike on religion and art had become profoundly
modified, and the necessity of a radical change in the moral and
intellectual attitude of the age towards religion, art, and economics in
their bearing upon life and social conditions had become his ruling idea.
He now assumed the _role_ of the prophet as Carlyle, by whose teaching he
was profoundly influenced, had done, and the rest of his life was spent
in the endeavour to turn the mind of the nation in the direction he
desired. _The Political Economy of Art_ (1857) showed the line in which
his mind was moving; but it was in _Unto this Last_, _pub._ in the
_Cornhill Magazine_ in 1860, that he began fully to develop his views. It
brought down upon him a storm of opposition and obloquy which continued
for years, and which, while it acted injuriously upon his highly
sensitive nervous system, had no effect in silencing him or modifying his
views. There followed _Munera Pulveris_ (Gifts of the Dust), _The Crown
of Wild Olive_, _Sesame and Lilies_ (1865), _Time and Tide by Wear and
Tyne_, and innumerable fugitive articles. In 1869 R. was appointed first
Slade Prof. of the Fine Arts at Oxf., and endowed a school of drawing in
the Univ. His successive courses of lectures were _pub._ as _Aratra
Pentelici_ (Ploughs of Pentelicus) (1870), _The Eagle's Nest_ (1872),
_Ariadne Florentina_ (1872), and _Love's Meinie_ (1873).
Contemporaneously with these he issued with more or less regularity, as
health permitted, _Fors Clavigera_ (Chance the Club-bearer), a series of
miscellaneous notes and essays, sold by the author himself direct to the
purchasers, the first of a series of experiments--of which the Guild of
St. George, a tea room, and a road-making enterprise were other
examples--in practical economics. After the death of his mother in 1871
he purchased a small property, Brantwood, in the Lake district, where he
lived for the remainder of his life, and here he brought out in monthly
parts his last work, _Praeterita_, an autobiography, 24 parts of which
appeared, bringing down the story to 1864. Here he _d._ on January 20,
1900. R. was a man of noble character and generous impulses, but highly
strung, irritable, and somewhat intolerant. He is one of our greatest
stylists, copious, eloquent, picturesque, and highly coloured. His
influence on his time was very great, at first in the department of art,
in which he was for a time regarded as the supreme authority, later and
increasingly in the realms of economics and morals, in which he was at
first looked upon as an unpractical dreamer. He _m._ in 1848, but the
union proved unhappy, and was dissolved in 1855.
For his Life _see_ his own works, especially _Praeterita_. _Life and
Works_ by Collingwood (2 vols., 1893). _Bibliography_, T.J. Wise
(1889-93). Shorter works by Mrs. Meynell, J.A. Hobson, F. Harrison, etc.
RUSSELL, LORD JOHN, 1ST EARL RUSSELL (1792-1878).--Statesman, biographer,
and historical writer, third _s._ of the 6th Duke of Bedford, was _ed._
at Westminster School and the Univ. of Edin. He entered Parliament in
1813, and became one of the most eminent English statesmen of the 19th
century. He uniformly acted with the Whig and afterwards with the Liberal
party, advocated all measures of progress, especially the removal of
tests, the extension of education, and Parliamentary reform. He was the
leader of his party in the House of Commons from 1834-55, represented the
City of London from 1841 until his elevation to the peerage in 1861, and
held the offices of Paymaster of the Forces, Home Sec., Colonial Sec.,
Foreign Sec., and Prime Minister, which last he held twice, 1846-52, and
1865-66. His contributions to literature were considerable, both in
number and importance, and include _Essay on the English Constitution_
(1821), _Memoirs of the Affairs of Europe from the Peace of Utrecht_
(1824), _Correspondence of the 4th Duke of Bedford_, _Life, Diary, and
Letters of Thomas Moore_, _Correspondence of Charles James Fox_, and a
_Life_ of the same statesman, _Essays on the Rise and Progress of the
Christian Religion in the West of Europe_ (1873), and _Recollections and
Suggestions_ (1875).
RUSSELL, WILLIAM (1741-1793).--Historian, _b._ in Selkirkshire, and
apprenticed to a bookseller in Edin., he was patronised by Lord Elibank,
and went to London, where he followed literature as a profession. He
wrote poems and fables, a _History of America_ (1779), and a _History of
Modern Europe_, which he left unfinished.
RUSSELL, SIR WILLIAM HOWARD (1821-1907).--War correspondent, _b._ in Co.
Dublin, was called to the Bar in 1850. Having joined the staff of the
_Times_, he was sent as war correspondent to the Crimea, his letters from
which caused a profound sensation, and led to an improved condition of
things in regard to the army. He was also correspondent in India during
the Mutiny, in America during the Civil War, and during the
Austro-Prussian War of 1866, and the Franco-German War of 1870-71, in
South Africa in 1879, and in Egypt in 1883. Among his books are _The
Adventures of Dr. Brady_ (1868), _Hesperothen_ (1882), _A Visit to Chili_
(1890), and _The Great War with Russia_ (1895). He was knighted in 1895,
and also received various foreign decorations.
RUTHERFORD, SAMUEL (1600?-1661).--Theologian and controversialist, _b._
at Nisbet, Roxburghshire, _ed._ at Edin. Univ., where he became in 1623
Regent of Humanity (Prof. of Latin). In 1627 he was settled as minister
of Anwoth in Galloway, whence he was banished to Aberdeen for
nonconformity. On the re-establishment of Presbytery in 1638 he was made
Prof. of Divinity at St. Andrews, and in 1651 Principal of St. Mary's
Coll. there, and he was one of the Scottish Commissioners to the
Westminster Assembly. At the Restoration he was deprived of all his
offices. He was a formidable controversialist, and a strenuous upholder
of the divine right of Presbytery. Among his polemical works are _Due
Right of Presbyteries_ (1644), _Lex Rex_ (1644), and _Free Disputation
against Pretended Liberty of Conscience_. _Lex Rex_ was, after the
Restoration, burned by the common hangman, and led to the citation of the
author for high treason, which his death prevented from taking effect.
His chief fame, however, rests upon his spiritual and devotional works,
such as _Christ Dying and drawing Sinners to Himself_, but especially
upon his _Letters_, which display a fervour of feeling and a rich imagery
which, while highly relished by some, repel others.
RYCAUT, or RICAUT, SIR PAUL (1628-1700).--Historian, was at Camb., and
held various diplomatic positions. He wrote _Present State of the Ottoman
Empire_ (1668), and a continuation of _Knolles's General Historie of the
Turks_, and translated Platina's _Latin History of the Popes_.
RYMER, THOMAS (1641-1713).--Archaeologist and critic, _ed._ at Camb.,
became a barrister at Gray's Inn. He _pub._ in 1678 _Tragedies of the
last Age Considered_, in which he passed judgments, very unfavourable,
upon their authors, including Shakespeare. He was of much more use as the
collector of English treaties, which he _pub._ under the title of
_Faedera_, in 20 vols., the last 5 of which were ed. after his death by R.
Sanderson (_q.v._). R. also _pub._ poems and a play, _Edgar_. He held the
office of historiographer to William III. His learning and industry have
received the recognition of many subsequent historians.
ST. JOHN, H., (_see_ BOLINGBROKE).
SALA, GEORGE AUGUSTUS HENRY (1828-1895).--Journalist and novelist, _b._
in London of Italian ancestry, began life as an illustrator of books and
scene-painter, afterwards taking to literature. He contributed to many
periodicals, including _Household Words_, and the _Illustrated London
News_, and was the founder and first ed. of _Temple Bar_. Among his
novels were _The Buddington Peerage_ and _Quite Alone_. He also wrote
books of travel, and an autobiographical work, his _Life and Adventures_
(1895).
SALE, GEORGE (1697?-1736).--Orientalist, a Kentish man, and practising
solicitor. In 1734 he _pub._ a translation of the _Koran_. He also
assisted in the _Universal History_, and was one of the correctors of the
Arabic New Testament issued by the S.P.C.K.
SANDERSON, ROBERT (1587-1663).--Theologian and casuist, _b._ of good
family at Rotherham in Yorkshire, was at Oxf. Entering the Church he rose
to be Bishop of Lincoln. His work on logic, _Logicae Artis Compendium_
(1615), was long a standard treatise on the subject. His sermons also
were admired; but he is perhaps best remembered by his _Nine Cases of
Conscience Resolved_ (1678), in consideration of which he has been placed
at the head of English casuists. He left large collections of historical
and heraldic matter in MS.
SANDS, ROBERT CHARLES (1799-1832).--Miscellaneous writer, _b._ at New
York, was a scholarly and versatile writer, but without much originality.
His best work is in his short stories. His chief poem was _Yamoyden_, an
Indian story written in collaboration with a friend.
SANDYS, GEORGE (1578-1644).--Traveller and translator, _s._ of an
Archbishop of York, _b._ at Bishopsthorpe, and _ed._ at Oxf., is one of
the best of the earlier travellers, learned, observant, and truth-loving.
He _pub._ in 1615 an account of his journeys in the East which was highly
popular. He also translated when in America the _Metamorphoses_ of Ovid,
produced a metrical _Paraphrase on the Psalms_, with music by Henry
Lawes, and another on the Canticles, and wrote _Christ's Passion_, a
tragedy. He held various public offices, chiefly in connection with the
colony of Virginia.
SAVAGE, RICHARD (1697?-1743).--Poet, was probably of humble birth, but
claimed to be the illegitimate _s._ of the Countess of Macclesfield. He
was the friend of Johnson in the early and miserable days of the latter
in London; and in _The Lives of the Poets_ J. has given his story as set
forth by himself, which is, if true, a singular record of maternal
cruelty. There are strong reasons, however, for doubting whether it was
anything but a tissue of falsehoods mingled with gross exaggerations of
fact. He led a wildly irregular life, killed a gentleman in a tavern
brawl, for which he was sentenced to death, but pardoned; and by his
waywardness alienated nearly all who wished to befriend him. For a time
he had a pension of L50 from Queen Caroline on condition of his writing
an ode yearly on her birthday. He wrote _Love in a Veil_ (1718) (comedy)
and _Sir Thomas Overbury_ (1723) (tragedy), and two poems, _The Bastard_
(1728) and _The Wanderer_ (1729). He _d._ in prison at Bristol.
SAVILE, SIR HENRY (1549-1622).--Scholar, _ed._ at Oxf., where he lectured
on mathematics. He was afterwards Warden of Merton Coll. and Provost of
Eton, and made a translation from Tacitus entitled, _The Ende of Nero and
Beginning of Galba, etc._ (1581), and in the same year _pub._ _Rerum
Anglicarum Scriptores post Bedam Praecipui_, a collection of some of the
chronicles subsequent to Bede, William of Malmesbury, Roger of Hoveden,
etc. He founded the Savilian Professorship of Astronomy and Geometry at
Oxf.
SAXBY, EDWARD (_d._ 1658).--_B._ in Suffolk, and was in Cromwell's Horse.
His extreme republican views, however, led him into the bitterest
antagonism when C. assumed the Protectorship. This received expression in
his extraordinary pamphlet, _Killing no Murder_, in which the
assassination of C. is advocated, and which displays in a remarkable
degree perverted ingenuity of argument combined with considerable
literary power. S. _d._ demented in the Tower in 1658.
SCOTT, ALEXANDER (1525?-1584?).--Scottish poet. Almost nothing is known
of his life, but he is believed to have spent most of his time in or near
Edin. Thirty-six short poems are attributed to him, including _Ane New
Yeir Gift to Quene Mary_, _The Rondel of Love_, and a satire, _Justing at
the Drum_. He has great variety of metre, and is graceful and musical,
but his satirical pieces are often extremely coarse.
SCOTT, HUGH STOWELL (1863?-1903).--Novelist (under the name of Henry
Seton Merriman). He was an underwriter in Lloyd's, but having a strong
literary bent, latterly devoted himself to writing novels, many of which
had great popularity. They include _The Slave of the Lamp_ (1892), _The
Sowers_ (generally considered his best) (1896), _In Kedar's Tents_
(1897), _Roden's Corner_ (1898), _Isle of Unrest_ (1900), _The Velvet
Glove_ (1901), _The Vultures_ (1902), and _Barlasch of the Guard_ (1903).
He worked with great care, and his best books hold a high place in modern
fiction. He was unusually modest and retiring in character.
SCOTT, JOHN (1730-1783).--Poet, _s._ of a Quaker draper who in his later
years lived at Amwell, a village in Herts, which the poet celebrates in
his descriptive poem, _Amwell_. He wrote much other verse now forgotten.
SCOTT, LADY JOHN (ALICIA ANN SPOTTISWOODE) (1801-1900).--_M._ Lord John
Scott. She was the writer of a number of Scottish songs characterised by
true poetic feeling. Among them may be mentioned _Annie Laurie_,
_Douglas_, and _Durrisdeer_. She also composed the music for them.
SCOTT, MICHAEL (1789-1835).--Novelist, _b._ near and _ed._ at Glasgow,
and settled in business at Kingston, Jamaica, which led to his making
frequent sea voyages, and thus yielded him experiences which he turned to
account in two vivacious novels, _Tom Cringle's Log_ and _The Cruise of
the Midge_, both of which first appeared in _Blackwood's Magazine_, where
they attained deserved popularity. They have frequently been reprinted.
The author, however, maintained a strict _incognito_ during his life.
SCOTT, SIR WALTER (1771-1832).--Poet, novelist, and biographer, _s._ of
Walter S., a Writer to the Signet in Edinburgh, and Margaret Rutherford,
_dau._ of one of the Prof. of Medicine in the Univ. there. Through both
parents he was connected with several old Border families; his _f._ was a
scion of the Scotts of Harden, well known in Border history. In early
childhood he suffered from a severe fever, one of the effects of which
was a permanent lameness, and for some time he was delicate. The native
vigour of his constitution, however, soon asserted itself, and he became
a man of exceptional strength. Much of his childhood was spent at his
grandfather's farm at Sandyknowe, Roxburghshire, and almost from the dawn
of intelligence he began to show an interest in the traditionary lore
which was to have so powerful an influence on his future life, an
interest which was nourished and stimulated by several of the older
members of his family, especially one of his aunts. At this stage he was
a quick-witted, excitable child, who required rather to be restrained
than pressed forward. At the age of 7 he was strong enough to be sent to
the High School of Edinburgh, where he was more remarkable for
miscellaneous and out-of-the-way knowledge and his powers of
story-telling than for proficiency in the ordinary course of study; and
notwithstanding his lameness, he was to be found in the forefront
wherever adventure or fighting were to be had. Thereafter he was for
three sessions at the Univ., where he bore much the same character as at
school. He was, however, far from idle, and was all the time following
the irresistible bent, which ultimately led to such brilliant results, in
a course of insatiable reading of ballads and romances, to enlarge which
he had by the time he was 15 acquired a working knowledge of French and
Italian, and had made the acquaintance of Dante and Ariosto in the
original. Percy's _Reliques of Ancient Poetry_, _pub._ in 1765, came into
his hands in 1784, and proved one of the most formative influences of
this period. At 15 he was apprenticed to his _f._, but preferring the
higher branch of the profession, he studied for the Bar, to which he was
called in 1792. He did not, however, forego his favourite studies, but
ransacked the Advocates' Library for old manuscripts, in the deciphering
of which he became so expert that his assistance soon came to be invoked
by antiquarians of much longer standing. Although he worked hard at law
his ideal was not the attainment of an extensive practice, but rather of
a fairly paid post which should leave him leisure for his favourite
pursuits, and this he succeeded in reaching, being appointed first in
1799 Sheriff of Selkirk, and next in 1812 one of the Principal Clerks to
the Court of Session, which together brought him an income of L1600.
Meanwhile in 1795 he had translated Buerger's ballad of _Lenore_, and in
the following year he made his first appearance in print by publishing it
along with a translation of _The Wild Huntsman_ by the same author. About
the same time he made the acquaintance of "Monk" Lewis, to whose
collection of _Tales of Wonder_ he contributed the ballads of
_Glenfinlas_, _The Eve of St. John_, and _The Grey Brother_; and he _pub._
in 1799 a translation of Goethe's _Goetz von Berlichingen_. In 1797 he
was _m._ to Miss Charlotte Margaret Charpentier, the _dau._ of a French
gentleman of good position. The year 1802 saw the publication of Scott's
first work of real importance, _The Minstrelsy of the Scottish Border_,
of which 2 vols. appeared, the third following in the next year. In 1804
he went to reside at Ashestiel on the Tweed, where he ed. the old
romance, _Sir Tristrem_, and in 1805 he produced his first great original
work, _The Lay of the Last Minstrel_, which was received with great
favour, and decided that literature was thenceforth to be the main work
of his life. In the same year the first few chapters of _Waverley_ were
written; but the unfavourable opinion of a friend led to the MS. being
laid aside for nearly 10 years. In 1806 S. began, by a secret
partnership, that association with the Ballantynes which resulted so
unfortunately for him 20 years later. _Marmion_ was _pub._ in 1808: it
was even more popular than the _Lay_, and raised his reputation
proportionately. The same year saw the publication of his elaborate ed.
of Dryden with a Life, and was also marked by a rupture with Jeffrey,
with whom he had been associated as a contributor to the _Edinburgh
Review_, and by the establishment of the new firm of J. Ballantyne and
Co., of which the first important publication was _The Lady of the Lake_,
which appeared in 1810, _The Vision of Don Roderick_ following in 1811.
In 1812 S. purchased land on the Tweed near Melrose, and built his famous
house, Abbotsford, the adornment of which became one of the chief
pleasures of his life, and which he made the scene of a noble and kindly
hospitality. In the same year he _pub._ _Rokeby_, and in 1813 _The Bridal
of Triermain_, while 1814 saw _The Life and Works of Swift_ in 19 vols.,
and was made illustrious by the appearance of _Waverley_, the two coming
out in the same week, the latter, of course, like its successors,
anonymously. The next year, _The Lord of the Isles_, _Guy Mannering_, and
_The Field of Waterloo_ appeared, and the next again, 1816, _Paul's
Letters to his Kinsfolk_, _The Antiquary_, _The Black Dwarf_, and _Old
Mortality_, while 1817 saw _Harold the Dauntless_ and _Rob Roy_. The
enormous strain which S. had been undergoing as official, man of letters,
and man of business, began at length to tell upon him, and in this same
year, 1817, he had the first of a series of severe seizures of cramp in
the stomach, to which, however, his indomitable spirit refused to yield,
and several of his next works, _The Heart of Midlothian_ (1818), by many
considered his masterpiece, _The Bride of Lammermoor_, _The Legend of
Montrose_, and _Ivanhoe_, all of 1819, were dictated to amanuenses, while
he was too ill to hold a pen. In 1820 _The Monastery_, in which the
public began to detect a falling off in the powers of the still generally
unknown author, appeared. The immediately following _Abbot_, however,
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