ed by queen Mary, with whom she had the honour to keep a conftant correfpondence by letters, in which he had an admirable turn of wit, and a peculiar elegance and beauty of expreffion. Sir William furvived her four years, and died in January. 1698-9, in his feventieth year, at Moor-Park; where according to his directions in his will, his heart was depofited in a filver box, and buried under the fun-dial in his garden, opposite to the window from whence he ufed to contemplate and admire the works of nature with his beloved fiftcr, the ingenious lady Giffard. His character is given by Dr. Birch, as follows. "He had an extraordinary vivacity, with fo agreeable a vein of wit and fancy in his converfation, that no body was more welcome in all forts of company; but his humour was greatly affected by the spleen in fudden changes of weather, and especially from the croffes and difappointments which he so often met with in his endeavours to contribute to the honour and fervice of his country. He was an exact obferver of truth, thinking none, who had failed once, ought ever to be trufted again; of great humanity and good nature; his paffions naturally warm and quick, but tempered by reafon. He never seemed busy in his greatest employ. ments, was devoted to his liberty, and therefore averfe to the fervitude of courts. He had been a paffionate lover, was a kind husband, an indulgent father, a good master, an excellent friend, and, knowing himself fo, was impatient of the leaft fufpicion or jealousy from those he loved. He was not without (trong averfions, fo as to be uneafy at the first fight of fome whom be disliked, and impatient of their converfation; apt to be warm in difputes and expoftulations, which made him hate the one and avoid the other; being used to fay, that they might fometimes do well between lovers, but never between friends. He had a very familiar way of converfing with all forts of people, from the greatest princes to the meaneft fervants, and even children, whofe imperfect language, and natural innocent talk, he was fond of, and made entertainment of every thing that could afford it. He was born to a moderate eftate, and did not much increase it during his employments. His religion was that of the church of England, in which he was born and educated; and, how loose soever bishop Burnet, who was not acquainted with him, in the hif. tory of his own time, represents his principles to have been; yet there is no ground for fuch a reflection given in his writings; among which his excellent let ter to the countess of Effex, is a convincing proof both of his piety and elo. quence. He was rather tall in his fta-, ture; his fhape, when young, very exact ; his hair dark brown, and curled naturally; and, whilft that was elteemed a beauty, no body had it in greater perfection: his eyes grey, but lively; and his body lean, but extremely active; so that none acquitted themselves better at all exercises." Life of Thomas Tenifon. Tenifon (Thomas) archbishop of Canterbury, was born at Cottenham, in Cambridgeshire, the 29th of September, 1636, and educated in the free school of Norwich, whence he was fent to Corpus. Chrifi college in Cambridge. Having at length taken orders, he became minifter of St. Andrew's church, Cambridge, where he attended the fick inhabitants during the plague, in 1665, for which his parithioners prefented him with a piece of plate. He was afterwards promoted to several other livings: and in 1680, being then doctor of divinity, he was prefented to the vicarage of St. Martin's in the Fields, London. During the fevere froft in 1683, his disbursements to the poor out of his own ftock, amounted to above 300l. In 1685 he attended the duke of Monmouth on the morning of his execution. During the reign of king James II. he wrote feveral pieces against popery, and in 1689, was prefented by king William and queen Mary to the archdeaconry of London. While he enjoyed the vicarage of St. Martin's he made feveral donations to that parish; and among others, endowed a free-school for it, and built a very handfome library, which he furnished with very useful books. In 1691 he was nominated to the bishopric of Lincoln; and in 1694, upon the death of archbishop Tillotton, was promoted to the archiepifcopal fee of Canterbury, which this worthy and modest divine was with difficulty prevailed upon to accept. In queen Anne's reign he opposed the bill to prevent occafional conformity; was firft English commiflioner to treat of an union between England and Scotland; and upon the death of that princefs became the first of the lords juftices to govern the kingdom till the arrival of king George 1. whom he 'crowned in Weftminster-abbey on the 20th of October, 1714. This learned prelate, who was remarkable for his humanity, piety, and moderation, died at Lambeth on the 14th of Dece...ber, 1715, in the seventy-ninth year of his age. His grace, befides the above works, published, 1. The Creed of Mr. Hobbes examined in a feigned conference between between him and a ftudent in divinity: land. He, at the fame time, fuperintend 2. A Difcourfe of Idolatry: 5. Baconiana, certain genuine remains of Sir Francis Bacon; and other works. Life of Lewis Theobald. Theobald (Lewis) an English author in the beginning of the prefent century, was born at Sittingburn in Kent, of which place his father, Mr. Peter Theobald, was an eminent attorney. He acquired bis grammar learning under the Rev. Mr. Els at ifleworth, in Middlesex, and afterwards applied himself to the fudy of the law; but finding it fuitable to his genius, he engaged in a paper called the Cenfor, printed in Mift's Weekly Journal, and by delivering his opinion with too litthe referve on the productions of the most eminent wits, expofed himself to their lafh and refentment; among thefe was Mr. Pope, who, in revenge, made him the hero of his Dunciad, though he afterwards difrobed him of that dignity, and placed Colley Cibber in his room. Mr. Dennis, who wrote with fo much bit terness against Mr. Pope, was alfo his enemy, and thus fpeaking of him in his remarks on Pope's Homer: "There is a notorious idiot, one Hight Whachum, who, from an under fpur-leather to the law, is become an understrapper to the playhoufe; who has lately burlefqued the Metamorphofes of Ovid, by a vile tranflation; and this fellow is concerned in an impertinent paper called the Cenfor." In 1720 Mr. Theobald introduced upon the ftage a tragedy called the Dou ble Falfhood, the greateft part of which he afferted was Shakespear's, in which he was oppofed by Mr. Pope and others, while he, by way of reply, endeavoured to vindicate his affertion. He wrote feveral dramatic pieces; but bis principal work, is an edition of Shakespeare's plays, in which he has corrected, with great pains and ingenuity, many faults which had crept into that great poet's writings. Hiftories of a Tete-a-Tete annexed; or, Memoirs of the Popular Preacher, and the Enthufiaftic Widow. UR hero, we find, is a native of Aberdeen, where having finished his ftudies at the University, he repaired to Edinburgh, in order to obtain farther improvement by the lectures and converfation of the literati in that celebrated U. nivcrfity. About the year 1765, lord A-P-, (the then honourable Mr. P-) being entered in that feminary, the Popular Preacher was appointed his private tutor, which station he filled for three years, whilft his pupil remained in Scot ed the education of feveral other young noblemen and gentlemen, whom he inftructed in Greek and Latin, Natural Philofophy, Mathematics, the Belles Lettres, Chemistry, Botany, and other branches of polite literature. Our hero appears at one time to have made Botany his favourite ftudy, and whilft he remained in Scotland, he wrote upon this fubje&t in the latin language. This work poffeffed fuch confiderable merit, that it has been adopted in the botanical clafs at Edinburgh. Notwithftanding his attachment to this fcience, it did not engage his attention fo much as to make him lofe fight of his chief object -a clerical purfuit, to which his ftudies, under one of the greateft pulpit orators in Scotland, immediately led him. To this end he entered himself of the divinity fchool, and perfevered in his application to Theology till he repaired to London, about the year 1768. Botany being his admired, fcience once more became his chief ftudy; and he gave public lectures upon it in the metropolis, with fo much reputation, that he was induced to publish two works upon the fubject, which have met with uncommon applaufe, from the English as well as foreign literati. He has alfo written upon Chemistry with equal fuccefs and reputation. a vacant Thefe learned and ingenious publications fo extended his fame as an eminent writer, that he was invited by feveral celebrated botanifts, at Oxford, to give a courfe of lectures at the Phylical gar dens in that feat of learning. On his arrival at that univerfity, he was unanimoufly elected a member of the Botanical Society; but juft as he was upon the point of entering upon his course of lectures, with the approbation of the vice chancellor, he was recalled to the capital by his patron the D-- of Nliving being then in his gift, which he had refolved to prefent the Popular Preacher with, as a teftimonial of his approbation for the care and attention our hero had paid in the education of his Grace's fon, whilft in Scotland; and he the fame period, the Popular Preacher was accordingly properly ordained. About had the degree of doctor of laws conferred upon him by the univerfity of Aberdeen; an honour he obtained unfolicited He foon after gained another living in the vicinity of the metropolis, notwithstanding he had a powerful competitor, fupported by uncommon intereft; but through the friendship and influence of his patron the D of N-- he proved the fuccefsful candidate. Our Our hero's fame, as a pulpit orator, was of his country at the beginning of the prefpread far and near; he was frequently fent war; but not before he had broke for folicited to preach Charity Sermons, and the good of himself in the Gazette-fo true to recommend publick charities; upon it is, as Murphy obferves in the Citizen, which occafions, the church was as much that the best commiffion the king has in crouded as Drury lane theatre now is, his gift, is a commission of bankruptcy; when Mrs. Siddons makes her appearance. and we would take Arthur's word upon It may with truth he faid, that he was this occafion as foon as the Ghoft's for a unequalled in the metropolis in eloquence, thousand, as he was himself a commiffioand poffeffing the great art of inftructing, ner of bankrupts, and mult necessarily perfuading, and moft fenfibly touching the have been in the fecret. hearts of his audience. Notwithstanding he was born and bred in Scotland, and remained there for a number of years, he had divelled himself, by great attention and affiduity, of the Scottish idiom and the Scottish accent; and in liftening to him, as when we do to Bord Mansfield, without being previously acquainted with the circumftance, we should not conjecture he drew his firft breath on the other fide of the Tweed. He has published a volume of fermons, which has established his reputation as a theological writer; the language being natural, elegant, and engaging; the fentiments affecting and fublime; the ideas new and ftriking; and the doctrine orthodox, moral, and interefting. With regard to the perfon of the Popular Preacher, he is in ftature short, but well proportioned; his aspect is juvenile, though his complexion is pale, owing to intente ftudy and application; his vifage is thin, but his features are expreffive, particularly his eyes, which are piercing and hikingly brilliant; his voice is fonorous, folemn, melodious and variegated. He feems to have been born an orator, being in poflefli. on of all the powers of utterance. He has a very tenacious memory, yet he has recourfe to notes, though we are inclined to think he would fhine ftill more in the pulpit, were he to preach entirely extemporaneously. He feems to have traced the avenues to the heart through all their labyrinths, yet he never courts the paffions, without convincing the understanding. From this outline of the Popular Preacher's portrait, the reader need not be furprifed, that he has jully obtained this title; or that his followers are as judicious as they are numerous. Indeed he has the art of making profelytes, not by hypocrify, but by fair reatoning and judicious argument. It is true, that his doctrines are so penetrating and forcible, that he has driven fome of his difciples almoft to enthusiasm, and amongst thefe may be ranked the heroine of these memoirs, whom we fhall now introduce. Mrs. Deborah Dubiens is the daughter of a dry-falter, who refided upon Dowgate-hill. He broke his heart for the good Previous to these two difaters, which followed close upon the heels of each other, for few misfortunes come alone, Mifs Deborah's father had given her what is called a polite education, and the herfelf had tickled it with a finishing hand by reading the most tender plays, the most luscious romances, and the most lafcivious novels. But ere he had got over her teens, Deborah began to have her waverings-the spirit moved her, and the now turned her thoughts entirely to divinitythe read nothing but religious bookswhat a tranfition!—She took in every theological work published in the Rów, from the Royal Folio Bible, down to Jofephus, whether publifhed with or without a patent, or whether the editor's name was real or fictitious. In a word, he fhortly laid in fuch a stock of religious knowledge, that he might have commenced itinerant preacher; and at times was fo agitated with this very idea, that he had her flutterings, her doubts and helitations, whether the thould turn Quaker and hold forth as a woman, or change her habit for that of a man, and make profelytes upon Tower hill, and in Moorfields. Indeed it was whispered amongit her particular acquaintance, that, judging herfelf properly qualified to preach between Bedlam and St. Luke's, the feveral times held forth to the curables and incurable in men's apparel. But, ftrange to tell he fell to the lot of a Jefuit defraque for a wife. Father Dubious had run away with a nun from Douay; but their finances being completely exhaufted, the unfortunate filter was compelled to go upon the town for her livelihood, and the pious prieft, who was a flout Irishman, till in his prime, not being able to get employment in any of the foreign minifters chapels, turned his thoughts to matrimony, and Deborah's hundreds, the wreck of her father's fortune, bad their charms and their attractions. Wedded and bedded, the holy father thought it his duty to convert his wife to the true religion. To compass this pious defign he took uncommon pains; but though he had taken the Athanafian Creed |