EIGHTEENTH CENTURY.
609
1714, March 22. Patriot, No. I. In No 125, Jan. 22, 1715, the author of this paper^ takes leave of the tovni; and arows his name to be John Hams, a young man who had not then seen two and twentr years.
1714, April 22. The Reader, No. 1. This was another periodical by Steele, and commenced in opposition to the Examiner of Swift, which con- tinued with unabated zeal to blazon forth the virtues of the tory administration, and to calum- niate the merit of its opponents. Both the Lover and the Reader received the assistance of Addison; and the latter work reached but nine numbers, ending May 10.
I7l4, April i2. Monitor, No. 1. The second number of this paper gives the following brief account of the names and titles of such of the pamphlets and weekly papers as were then, or had lately been, flourishing in this nation; that is to say, " Prints : Guardian, Englishman; (defunct.) From the ashes of which (phcenix- like) are risen, the Lover, Patriot, Merchant, Ikying Post, Daily Courant, Examiner, Post- boy, Mercator, Weekly Pacquet, Dunton's Ghost. The authors of those prints and pamphlets : Mr. George Ridpath and Co.; Mr. Samuel Buckley, the learned printer; Mr. Toland, a Socinian heretick , Mr. Collins, Freethinker; Mr. Steele, a gentleman born;
Tkntft msjor Famce sltis est, qulm Vtitatis.-^vv.
Mr. Asgill, a Lawyer going to heaven by fire; Mr. John Dunton, lunatick; Mr. Abel Roper and his man Toby: with divers others utterly unknown."
1714, May 1. High German Doctor, No. 1. Ended May 12, 1715.
1714, May 6. The Miueomte, No. 1.
1714, Oct. 8. The Controller, being a Sequel to the Examiner, No. 1.
1714, Dec. 6. N. Mist's WeeklyJoumal,No. 1.
1714. Norwich Courant, or Weekly Packet, printed by Mr. Collins, price three halfpence.
1715, March 17. Died, Gilbert Burnet, bishop of Salisbury. He was bora at Edinburgh, September 18, 1743, where his father was an advocate of reputation, and nephew of Johnston of Warriston, one of the principal popular leaders of the civil war in Scotland. Gilbert Burnet received his education at Edinburgh and Aber- deen, and afterwards went to Holland to study the Hebrew language. In 1679 appeared the first volume of his History of the Reformation, for which he received the thanks of parliament. This work he afterwards completed in three volumes. His work entitled A History of My own Times, which was not printed till the year 1734, g^ves an outline of the events of the civil war and commonwealth, and a fiill narration of all that took place from the restoration to the year 1713, during which the author had advanced from his seventeenth to his seventieth year. Under various circumstances, Burnet had personally known the conspicuous characters of a century, and penetrated most of the state
secrets nearly as long. He wrote many other works in history, biography, and theology. After entering life as a clergyman of his native church, Burnet removed to a benefice in London, where, partly by his talents, and partly through forward and officious habits,* he rendered himself the confidant of many high political persons. Exiled by the Stuarts, he became serviceable ip Holland to the prince of Orange, accompanied the ex- pedition which brought about the revolution, and was rewarded by king William with the bishopric of Salisbuiy. He was twice married; first to a Dutch lady, who died in 1693, and soon after was united to Mis. Berkley.
1716, May 18. Susannah Centlivref received from Mr. Curll twenty guineas in full for the copy of the comedy of the Wonder; or, a Woman keeps a Secret.
1715. The Common Prayer Book was engraved upon copper-plates,^ by Mr. Stmt, and is one of the most beautiful examples of genius and in- dustry in the world : every page has a border, and head and tail ornaments.
Mr. Sturt was born in 1648, and leamt the art of engraving under Robert White.§ In 1704 the rev. Samuel Wcsley|| published the History of the New Testament, representing the Actions and Miracles of our Blessed Saviour and his Apostles, attempted in verse, and adorned with 152 engravings, in three volumes 12mo. These engravings were executed by Mr. Sturt. A third edition of this work appeared in 1717, in one volume 8vo, printed by R. B. for Thomas Ward, Inner Temple lane.
• " Dr. Boinet, that arch-villain," salth Fonntainhall, "attends the Rye House conspirators, captains Walcot, Rose, and Hone, at their execution, but was checked for penning their speeches, July 30, 1613,'*
t Susannah Freemanvras the daughter of a Lincolnshire gentleman, but supposed to have been born in Ireland about 1667. After a llf^ of extraordinary adventure, she became a writer for the theatres, and appeared upon the stafre. Her principal plays are the Buay Bodf, performed In 171)8, and sold to Lintot the bookseller, for igio. The character of Marplot, in this comedy, is one of the roost memorable portraitures in the whole range of the English drama. The Wonder; or^ a Woman keeps a Secret, ap- peared in 1714. Besides her dramatic pieces, she wrote poems and letters. In 170O she was married to Mr. Cent- livre, yeoman of the mouth to queen Anne. She died at London, December 1, 1723, and was buried in St. Martin's in the Fields.
t Mr. Sturt published a Common Prayer Book, all of which was engraved on silver plates. Unfortunately, however. It did not scU; and poor Sturt became seriously alarmed, and took every body's advice (as usual) as whM was to be done. Itwasatiengthdetermined to takeoff a number of copies privately, and then to cat the plates up publickly. After this, the hoarded copies belnR brought out stealthily, one by one, as particular favour, fetched greater prices. Such are the attractions and tricks in the world of connoisseurs. — Noble's Orainger.
^ Robert White was born in Loudon l6ti, and was a pupil of David Loggan's. He engraved the first Orford Almanack, in 1674, Monckes Funeral, and a great number of English beads. He died In 1 704.
II Father of John and Charles Wesley, the two ccle 1 brated founders of the mcthodists. He was rector of Ep- worth, in Lincolnshire, where he died, April 2S, 1735. Mr. Wesley was a very voluminous author; and though his poetry was far from being excellent, be made amends for it by the goodness of his life. John Dunton, who was nearly related to him by marriage, says,
" He loves too much the Heliconian strand. Whose stream's onfarnished with the golden sand."
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