A Brief Handbook of English Authors. Adams Oscar Fay
wit and humor sparkling, but their plays reflect the full coarseness of the time. Among plays written by them jointly are Philaster, Thierry and Theodoret, A King and No King, and the comedy of The Knight of the Burning Pestle. See Fletcher, John. See Schlegel's Dramatic Lit., Hazlitt's Dramatic Lit. and Hallam's Lit. of Europe. Pub. Apl.
Beaumont, Sir John. 1582–1628. Bro. to F. B. Author Bosworth Field, a poem in heroic verse.
Beckford, Wm. 1760–1844. Author of Vathek, an Oriental romance. Style luxuriant. See Chambers' Cyc. Eng. Lit.
Beddoes, Thos. Lovell. 1803–1849. Poet. Author The Bride's Tragedy, Death's Jest-Book, etc. See Ward's Eng. Poets, vol. 4.
Bede, Cuthbert. See Bradley, Edward.
Bede, Beda, or Bæda, The Venerable. 673–735. "First among Eng. scholars, first among Eng. theologians, first among Eng. historians." His whole life was passed in the monastery of Yarrow, where he composed more than 40 Latin works, the greatest of which is the Eccl. Hist. of the Eng. Nation. On the day of his death was finished his translation of St. John's Gospel into Eng., being the earliest example of Eng. prose. See edition of Bede by Dr. Giles, 6 vols. 1843-4. See Green's Short Hist. of the Eng. People, also Green's Making of England. Pub. Dut.
Behn [bĕn], Mrs. Aphra. 1642–1689. Novelist and dramatist. Known in her day as Astræa. Author of The Forced Marriage, Oronooko, etc. A lively, immoral writer. See edition of 1871. See Miss Kavanagh's Eng. Women of Letters, and Ward's Eng. Poets, vol. 2.
Bellenden, Wm. fl. c. 1615. Scotch classical writer. Author De Statu.
Bentham, Jeremy. 1748–1832. Philosopher and political economist. Founder of the Utilitarian school of thought, and a valued authority upon jurisprudence. Many reforms in Eng. jurisprudence are traceable to his influence. See edition of 1843 in 11 vols. See Edinburgh Rev. Oct. 1843.
Bentley, Richard. 1662–1742. Classical writer. Author Dissertations on the Epistles of Phalaris, works provoked by his famous controversy with Boyle, and which rank as masterpieces of argument. They display great learning, a rapid, concise style, and a sarcastic wit. See Bentley, by R. C. Jebb, in Eng. Men of Letters.
Berkeley, George. 1684–1753. Bp. Cloyne. Irish metaphysician. An eccentric but pure-minded thinker, in whose Principles of Human Knowledge is denied the existence of matter. Other works of B. are Alciphron or the Minute Philosopher, Theory of Vision, Siris, etc. Also the poem in which occurs the famous line, "Westward the course of empire takes its way." See edition of Berkeley, by Fraser, 4 vols. Oxford, 1871.
Berners, Lord. 1469–1532. Translator of Froissart's Chronicle. The translation is faithful and is a masterpiece of picturesque and spirited English.
Berners, Juliana. c. 1388-c. 1461. Author of the Bokys of Hunting and Hawking. See Warton's Hist. Eng. Poetry.
Besant, Walter. 1838 – . Novelist. Colleague of James Rice, and with him author of The Seamy Side, Ready Money Mortiboy, the Chaplain of the Fleet, Shepherds All and Maidens Fair, etc. Sole author of The Revolt of Man, Life of E. H. Palmer, etc. See Rice, James. Pub. Har. Rob. Dut.
Beveridge, Wm. 1638–1708. Bp. St. Asaph. Theologian. Thesaurus Theologicus, Expositions of the Catechism and 39 Articles, and Private Thoughts are some of his chief works.
Bickerstaff, Isaac. 1735-c. 1788. Dramatist. Author of Maid of the Mill, Love in a Village, etc. See Hazlitt's Essays on the Comic Writers.
Bickersteth, Edward. 1786–1850. Religious writer. Author of The Scripture Help, etc. See edition of his Works in 17 vols. 1853. See Memoir of, by T. R. Birks, 1851.
Bickersteth, Edward Henry. 1825 – . Son to E. B. Religious Poet. Author of Yesterday, To-Day and Forever, The Two Brothers, etc. Pub. Ca. Dut.
Bickersteth, Rob't. 1816 – . Bp. Ripon. Religious writer. Author of Lent Lectures, Bible Landmarks, etc.
Birch, Thomas. 1705–1766. Historian and biographer. Author of a General Dictionary, Historical and Critical.
Black, Wm. 1841 – . Novelist. A prolific writer, the best of whose works are A Daughter of Heth, Princess of Thule, Strange Adventures of a Phaeton, and Macleod of Dare. They evince rare powers of description and much constructive skill. See Harper's Mag. Dec. 1882. Pub. Har.
Blackie, John Stuart. 1809 – . Scotch poet and scholar. For 30 years Greek Professor at Edinburgh Univ. His numerous works include Greek, Latin, and German translations, several vols. of poems, and a famous work on Self-Culture which has been translated into every European language. Pub. Scr.
Blackmore, Sir Richard. 1650–1729. Poet. Author of the epics The Creation, and Prince Arthur.
Blackmore, Richard Doddridge. 1825 – . Novelist. Author Lorna Doone, Maid of Sker, Alice Lorraine, Erema, Mary Anerly, Christowell, etc. A vigorous and original writer. Lorna Doone is his finest work. Pub. Har. Lip.
Blackstone, Sir Wm. 1723–1780. Jurist. Author of Commentaries on the Laws of England, an authoritative work. See Campbell's Lives of the Chief Justices. Pub. Har. Lip.
Blair, Hugh. 1718–1800. Author of the once famous Lectures on Rhetoric. Pub. Por.
Blair, Robert. 1699–1747. Poet. Author of The Grave, a dull, didactic, but once popular poem. See Ward's Eng. Poets, vol. 3.
Blake, Wm. 1757–1827. Artist and poet. Author of Poetical Sketches, Songs of Innocence and Experience, etc. A writer of rare simplicity and beauty. An Elizabethan poet of the 19th cent. See editions of his poems by Shepherd and Rossetti, and Life by Gilchrist, 1863 and 1881, also Swinburne's Study of Blake, 1863. Pub. Rob.
Blamire, Susanna. 1747–1794. Poet. Author of the fine lyrics, The Siller Crown, What Ails this Heart o' Mine, etc.
Blanchard, Edward Laman. 1820 – . Dramatist and novelist.
Blanchard, Laman. 1803–1845. Littérateur. See Bulwer's Memoir of, with Blanchard's Essays and Sketches, 1849.
Blessington, Marguerite, Countess of. 1789–1849. Society novelist. See Life and Correspondence edited by D. R. Madden.
Bloomfield, Robert. 1766–1823. Pastoral poet. Author of The Farmer's Boy, Rural Tales, The Horkey, etc. Pub Por. Rou.
Blunt, John Henry. 1823 – . Theologian. Author Hist. Reformation in Ch. of England and editor Dict. Sects and Heresies, etc. Pub. Dut.
Blunt, John James. 1794–1855. Ecclesiologist. Author Hist. Christian Ch. in the first three centuries, etc. Pub. Ca.
Bolingbroke, Lord. See St. John, Henry.
Bonar, Horatius. 1808 – . Scotch poet. Author Hymns of Faith and Hope, etc. Pub. Ca.
Borrow, George. 1803–1881. Author of Gipsies of Spain, Bible in Spain, Lavengro, The Romany Rye, Romany Word Book, etc. See Autobiography, 1851. Pub. Ca. Har.
Boswell [boz´well], Alexander. 1775–1822. Poet. Son to J. B. His song, Jenny Dang the Weaver, is his best known production.
Boswell, James. 1740–1795. Biographer. His Life of Dr. Samuel Johnson is an incomparable work. Pub. Ho. Lit. Rou.
Boswell, James. 1779–1822. Son to preceding. Shakespearean scholar.
Boucicault [boo-se-ko´], Dion. 1822 – . Dramatist. Among his very numerous popular plays, London Assurance, Rip Van Winkle, The Corsican Brothers, Led Astray, and the Shaughran