A Short Biographical Dictionary of English Literature. John W. Cousin
nearly as much upon his eccentric extravagances as a builder and collector as upon his literary efforts. In carrying out these he managed to dissipate his fortune of £100,000 a year, only £80,000 of his capital remaining at his death. He sat in parliament for various constituencies, and one of his two dau. became Duchess of Hamilton.
BEDDOES, THOMAS LOVELL (1803–1849).—Dramatic poet and physiologist, s. of Dr. Thos. B., an eminent physician, and nephew of Maria Edgeworth. Ed. at the Charterhouse and Oxford, he pub. in 1821 The Improvisatore, which he afterwards endeavoured to suppress. His next venture was The Bride's Tragedy (1822), which had considerable success, and won for him the friendship of "Barry Cornwall." Thereafter he went to Göttingen and studied medicine. He then wandered about practising his profession, and expounding democratic theories which got him into trouble. He d. at Bale in mysterious circumstances. For some time before his death he had been engaged upon a drama, Death's Jest Book, which was published in 1850 with a memoir by his friend, T.F. Kelsall. B. had not the true dramatic instinct, but his poetry is full of thought and richness of diction. Some of his short pieces, e.g.: "If there were dreams to sell," and "If thou wilt ease thine heart," are masterpieces of intense feeling exquisitely expressed.
BEDE or BÆDA (673–735).—Historian and scholar. B., who is sometimes referred to as "the father of English history," was in his youth placed under the care of Benedict Biscop, Abbot of Wearmouth, and of Ceolfrith, afterwards Abbot of Jarrow. Ordained deacon in 692 and priest in 703, he spent most of his days at Jarrow, where his fame as a scholar and teacher of Latin, Greek, and Hebrew brought him many disciples. Here likewise he d. and was buried, but his bones were, towards the beginning of the 11th century, removed to Durham. The well-deserved title of "Venerable" usually prefixed to his name first appears in 836. He was the most learned Englishman of his age. His industry was marvellous, and its results remain embodied in about 40 books, of which about 25 are commentaries on books of Scripture. The others are lives of saints and martyrs, and his two great works, The Ecclesiastical History of England and the scientific treatise, De Natura Rerum. The former of these gives the fullest and best information we have as to the history of England down to the year 731, and the latter is an encyclopædia of the sciences as then known. In the anxious care with which he sought out and selected reliable information, and referred to authorities he shows the best qualities of the modern historian, and his style is remarkable for "a pleasing artlessness."
History of Early Engl. Lit., Stopford Brooke (2 vols., 1892), etc.
BEECHER, HENRY WARD (1813–1887).—Orator and divine, s. of Lyman B. and bro. of Harriet Beecher Stowe, was one of the most popular of American preachers and platform orators, a prominent advocate of temperance and of the abolition of slavery. His writings, which had a wide popularity, include Summer in the Soul and Life Thoughts.
BEHN, APHRA (JOHNSTON) (1640–1689).—Novelist and dramatist, dau. of a barber named Johnston, but went with a relative whom she called father to Surinam, of which he had been appointed Governor. He, however, d. on the passage thither, and her childhood and youth were passed there. She became acquainted with the celebrated slave Oronoko, afterwards the hero of one of her novels. Returning to England in 1658 she m. Behn, a Dutch merchant, but was a widow at the age of 26. She then became attached to the Court, and was employed as a political spy at Antwerp. Leaving that city she cultivated the friendship of various playwrights, and produced many plays and novels, also poems and pamphlets. The former are extremely gross, and are now happily little known. She was the first English professional authoress. Among her plays are The Forced Marriage, Abdelazer, The Rover, The Debauchee, etc., and her novels include Oronoko and The Nun. The former of these was the first book to bring home to the country a sense of the horrors of slavery, for which let her have credit.
BELL, HENRY GLASSFORD (1805–1874).—Poet and historian, was a member of the Scottish Bar, and became Sheriff of Lanarkshire. He wrote a Life of Mary Queen of Scots (1830), strongly in her defence, and two vols. of poetry, Summer and Winter Hours (1831), and My Old Portfolio, the latter also containing pieces in prose.
BELLENDEN, or BALLANTYNE, JOHN (fl. 1533–1587?).—Poet, b. towards the close of the 15th century, and ed. at St. Andrews and Paris. At the request of James V. he translated the Historia Gentis Scotorum of Boece. This translation, Chroniklis of Scotland is a very free one, with a good deal of matter not in the original, so that it may be almost considered as a new work. It was pub. in 1536, and is the earliest existing specimen of Scottish literary prose. He also translated the first five books of Livy. He enjoyed the Royal favour, and was Archdeacon of Moray. He latterly, however, became involved in controversy which led to his going to Rome, where he d., according to one account, about 1550. Another authority, however, states that he was living in 1587.
BENTHAM, JEREMY (1748–1832).—Writer on jurisprudence and politics, b. in London, s. of a prosperous attorney, ed. at Westminster and Oxford, was called to the Bar at Lincoln's Inn, but disliking the law, he made little or no effort to practise, but devoted himself to physical science and the theory of jurisprudence. In 1776 he pub. anonymously his Fragment on Government, an able criticism of Blackstone's Commentaries, which brought him under the notice of Lord Shelburne, and in 1780 his Introduction to Principles of Morals and Legislation. Other works were Panopticon, in which he suggested improvements on prison discipline, Discourse on Civil and Penal Legislation (1802), Punishments and Rewards (1811), Parliamentary Reform Catechism (1817), and A Treatise on Judicial Evidence. By the death of his f. he inherited a competency on which he was able to live in frugal elegance, not unmixed with eccentricity. B. is the first and perhaps the greatest of the "philosophical radicals," and his fundamental principle is utilitarianism or "the greatest happiness of the greatest number," a phrase of which he is generally, though erroneously, regarded as the author. The effect of his writings on legislation and the administration of the law has been almost incalculable. He left his body to be dissected; and his skeleton, clothed in his usual attire, is preserved in University College, London.
Life by Bowring in collected works (J.H. Barton, 11 vols., 1844). Study of Life and Work, Atkinson, 1903.
BENTLEY, RICHARD (1662–1742).—Theologian, scholar, and critic, b. in Yorkshire of humble parentage, went at the age of 14 to Camb., afterwards had charge of a school at Spalding, and then becoming tutor to the s. of Dr. Stillingfleet, Dean of St. Paul's, afterwards Bishop of Worcester (q.v.), accompanied his pupil to Oxf. After taking his degree at both universities, and entering the Church, he laid the foundation of his reputation as perhaps the greatest scholar England has produced by his letter in Mill's ed. of the Chronicle of John Malelas, and his Dissertation on the Letters of Phalaris (1699), which spread his fame through Europe. After receiving various preferments, including the Boyle lectureship and the Keepership of the Royal Library, he was, in 1700, appointed Master of Trinity, and afterwards was, largely owing to his own pugnacity and rapacity, which were almost equal to his learning, involved in a succession of litigations and controversies. These lasted for 20 years, and led to the temporary loss of his academic preferments and honours. In 1717, however, he was appointed Regius Prof. of Divinity. During the contentions referred to he continued his literary activity without abatement, and pub. various ed. of the classics, including Horace and Terence. He was much less successful in certain emendations of Milton which he attempted. Having incurred the resentment of Pope he was rewarded by being assigned a niche in The Dunciad! His style is strong and nervous, and sparkles with wit and sarcasm. His classical controversies called forth Swift's Battle of the Books.
Life by Monk (1833). Life by Sir R. Jebb in English Men of Letters (1882).
BERESFORD, JAMES (1764–1840).—Miscellaneous writer and clergyman. He made translations and wrote religious books, but was chiefly known as the author of a satirical work, The