Works, fiftance of fome friends, turned the whole into Latin. This vol.i.p.732. is the edition of 1623, and stands as the first part to his grand Inftauration of the Sciences.

Sir Robert Cecil, now earl of Salisbury, who had oppofed Bacon's preferment under Elizabeth, feems to have obferved the fame conduct in this reign; and with him joined fir Edward Coke, the king's attorney-general, who was jealous of Bacon's reputation in many parts of knowledge, and envied and feared his abilities as a statesman. It was not therefore till after many fervices rendered to the king, and repeated folicitations made to his minifters, that fir Francis Bacon obtained, in 1607, the place he had fo long expected of folicitor-general. This year he fent his treatife, entitled Cogitata et vifa, which was the foundation of his Novum organum, to Dr. Andrews bishop of Ely, defiring his opinion of it. In 1610, he published, in Latin, another treaDr. Shaw's tife, entitled De fapientia veterum. This piece, a very inPreface to genious writer obferves, appears like a rich cabinet of anAbridgment of Bacon's tiques opened and fet to view. The happy talent which the Works, author in his phyfical works employs to interpret nature, is vol.i.p.541. here employed to interpret the dark oracles of men: and to say

Vol. ii. p. 469.

the truth, he seems to have used the like artifice in both, proceeding according to the inductive method delivered in the fecond part of the Novum organum, without which, or fomething of the kind, it would not be eafy to derive fuch depths of knowledge from the enigmas or dark parables of antiquity. What the author is forced on many occafions to ftifle, or at most to speak only by halves, for fear of offending, in this work he openly avouches in a manner that is fcarce liable to exception he appears indeed to have chosen the present subject the rather because the course and nature of decyphering the mythology of the ancients would give him an opportunity of freely, or lefs offenfively, expreffing his fentiments for the improvement of arts and sciences, and the general advantage of mankind.

Dugdale's In 1611, fir Francis Bacon was conftituted judge of the Baronage, marshal's court jointly with fir Thomas Vavafor then knightvol. ii. marshal. In 1613, he fucceeded fir Henry Hobart, advanced F.438. to the place of chief juftice of the common pleas, as attorneygeneral. The next year, an objection having been started in the house of commons, that a feat there was incompatible with the office of attorney-general, which required his frequent attendance in the upper houfe; the commons, from their particular regard for Bacon, over-ruled it.

When

When fir George Villers became poffeffed of king James's confidence, Bacon, conscious that none could ferve the new favourite, and through him his country, more nobly or ufefully than himself, entered into a ftrict friendship with Villers, and gave an admirable proof of the fincerity thereof on his part, in that letter of advice how to discharge every part of the difficult office of prime minifter, which is ftill extant among his works. June 9, 1616, he was raised to the dig- Camden, nity of a privy counsellor, whilst he was still in the office of attorney-general: and as he had now more leisure from private caufes, he was defirous to dedicate more time to public fervice; and therefore made an offer to the king of a new Digest of the laws of England.

March 7, 1617, upon the chancellor's voluntary refignation of the feals, they were given to fir Francis Bacon, with the title of lord keeper.

The king went foon after to Scotland, and in his abfence Works, the prince of Wales's marriage with an infanta of Spain was vol. ii. brought upon the carpet. The lord keeper foresaw the diffi- P.544. culties and inconveniencies that would attend this measure, and honestly represented them both to his majefty and to Villers. Whilft the king was in Scotland, another affair happened, which gave Bacon no fmall uneafinefs: fecretary Winwood, out of diflike to the lord keeper, was defirous of bringing fir Edward Coke into favour, and with this view prevailed with fir Edward to confent to his daughter's marrying fir John Villers, brother to the favourite, which alliance he had before rejected not without marks of disrespect. Bacon, apprehensive that if Coke fhould be brought again into the council, all his great defigns for the nation's welfare, the executing whereof was his principal motive for foliciting the office of keeper, would be thwarted, and his power greatly leffened by the lofs of Villers' favour, remonftrated against the projected marriage, both to that lord and to the king. Nevertheless, as the lady was a great fortune, Villers highly approved of the match, and both he and the king took offence at Bacon's oppofition to it. Their refentment of his conduct See Bacon's on this occafion appears, however, to have been of short vol. ii. continuance, for January 4, 1618, fir Francis Bacon was con- p. 555. ftituted lord high chancellor of England, and on the 11th of Pat.15Jac. I. July following created baron of Verulam in Hertfordshire.

The defire of introducing and establishing his new and better philofophy, one capital end of which was to discover methods of procuring remedies for all human evils, feems to have been his ruling paffion through life: in 1620, amidst

all

Works,

P. 4.

all the variety of weighty bufinefs in which his high office neceffarily involved him, he published the most finished and important, though the leaft read, of all his philofophical tracts, the Novum organum fcientiarum. The defign of this piece was to execute the fecond part of the Inftauration, by advancing a more perfect method of ufing the rational faculty than men were before acquainted with; in order to raise and improve the understanding as far as its prefent imperfect state admits, and enable it to conquer and interpret the difficulties and obfcurities of nature. The next year he was accused of bribery and corruption. The king found it was impoffible to fave both his chancellor, who was openly accused of corruption, and Buckingham, his favourite, who was fecretly and therefore more dangerously attacked as the encourager of whatever was deemed most illegal and oppreffive: he therefore forced the former to abandon his defence, giving him pofitive advice to submit himself to his peers, and promiling, upon his princely word, to fcreen him in the last determination, or if that could not be, to reward him afterwards with ample retribution of favour (B). The chancellor, though he forefaw his approaching ruin, if he did not plead for himself, resolved to obey, and took leave of his majesty with these words, Thofe that will strike at your chancellor, it is much to be feared • will strike at your crown;' and wished, as he was the firft, fo he might be the laft of facrifices. The houfe of peers, on the 3d of May, 1621, gave judgment against him, That he fhould be fined 40,000l. and remain prifoner in the • Tower during the king's pleasure; that he fhould for ever be incapable of any office, place, or employment in the • ftate or commonwealth; and that he should never fit in parliament, or come within the verge of the court.' But he was foon reftored to his liberty, and had his fine remitted; and was fummoned to the first parliament of king Charles (c). After

(B) The author of the Effay on Spirit (who is generally supposed to be Dr. Clayton bishop of Clogher) in his Defence of that Effay, p. 34. fays, that lord Bacon had too much learning and too much honesty to be a favourite with the clergy of those days; and that to their influence with king James he probably owed his difgrace, and was pitched upon as a fcape-goat to fave the head of Buckingham.

(c) The greatest blame is generally

6

laid on his fervants; and there is no doubt that fome of them were guilty, and that their lord had this opinion of them: one day, during his trial, paffing through a room where several of his domestics were fitting, upon their rifing up to falute him, he said, Sit down, my mafters, your rife

hath been my fall.' Stephens, p. liv. And we are told by Rushworth in his Hiftorical Collections, That 'he treasured up nothing for himself

or family, but was over-indulgent

to

After this fentence he retired from civil affairs, and for five years gave himself wholly up to philofophy and writing; fo that during this time he executed several portions of his grand Inftauration, but did not live to finish the whole fo far as he had hoped to do. Though he enjoyed, after his fall, 1800 1. a year out of the broad-feal and alienation-office, and his lands brought him about a third more, yet his great liberality when in place, and his expence in procuring and making experiments, reduced him to ftraits, which forced him to make fuch applications to king James, as prove his great addrefs and perfect knowledge of that prince's difpofition. He died April 9, 1626, at the earl of Arundel's house at Highgate, of a fever attended with a defluxion upon his breaft; and lies buried in St. Michael's church at St. Alban's, where a monument was erected for him, by fir Thomas Meautys, once his fecretary, and afterwards clerk of the council. He was of a middling ftature: his forehead fpacious and open, early impreffed with the marks of age; his eye lively and penetrating; his whole appearance venerably pleafing. He continued fingle till after forty, and then took to wife a daughter of alderman Barnham of London, with whom he received a plentiful fortune, but had by her no children: and she outlived him upwards of twenty years.

BACONTHORP, or BACONDORP, (JOHN) firnamed Leland. the Refolute Doctor, a learned English divine, who flourish- Comment, de Script. ed towards the end of the thirteenth century, born at Ba- Britan. conthorp, a small village in Norfolk, from whence he took cap. 374. his name. He spent fome of his early years at a convent in Norfolk, from whence he removed to Oxford, and from thence to Paris, where he had a degree in divinity and laws conferred upon him, and was in high reputation for his learning, being efteemed the head of the Averroifts (A). Upon his return to England, he was chofen twelfth provincial of the Carmelites, in an affembly of that order held at London in the year 1329. Four years after, he was in

(A) See the article AVERROES.

Babeus de Script. Brit.

cent. v. cap. 1.

Niceron's Memoirs, tom, iii. P. 26.

vited by letters to Rome, where he was held in great esteem. During his refidence here, he had several difputations on the fubject of marriage, in which he gave great offence to måny, by afcribing too much to the papal authority in dispensing with the laws of God in regard to marriage; but he afterwards retracted his opinion on this fubject, and proved by the ftrongeft arguments from reafon and Scripture, that, in degrees of confanguinity prohibited by the divine law, the pope had no difpenfing power. Baconthorp died at London in the year 1346. He wrote feveral treatises (B).

(B) The moft remarkable of thofe which have been published, are the two following:

1. Commentaria, feu quæftiones fuper quatuor libros Sententiarum : published at Milan in 1510, and 1611; at Cremona, in 1618; twice at Paris, and once at Venice.

2. Compendium legis Chrifti et quodlibita. Venice, 1527.

Dr. Cave mentions another piece, but is not fure whether it was ever published it is entitled, Tractatus duo de regula ordinis Carmelitani, et compendium hiftoriarum et jurium

pro defenfione ejusdem ordinis, Hift. Literar. Sæc. Wicklev. ann. 1329.

Leland gives a long catalogue of Baconthorp's works, which were never published, the most remarkable of which are the four following:

1. Commentaries on all the Books of the Bible, and on St. Austin's Book De civitate Dei.

2. Several Treatifes against the Jews.

3. A Treatise against Pope John, concerning the Vision of the Blessed. 4. Difcourfes on various Subjects.

BAILLET (ADRIAN) a learned French author, born June 13, 1649, at Neuville, a village near Beauvais in Picardy. His father was very poor, and could not afford to give him a proper education; but there being a convent not far from Neuville, young Baillet used to go thither frequently in the morning he affifted the priests at mafs, and the reft of the day used to do all the little offices in his power to the fexton and the other fathers of the houfe. The fexton was fo pleased with his behaviour, that he conceived an affection for him, and taught him to read and write. He was afterwards recommended to the bishop of Beauvais, who fent him into the little feminary of Beauvais, where he studied Greek and Latin, and afterwards applied himself to philofophy, hiftory, chronology, and geography. In 1670, he went into the great feminary, where he ftudied divinity. In 1672, he was appointed to teach the fifth form in the college of Beauvais; and the fourth, two years afterwards this employment, befides his board, brought him in about 601. per annum, part of which he gave towards the fupport of his poor relations, and the reft he spent in books.

In 1676, he entered into holy orders, and the bishop of Beauvais prefented him to the vicarage of Lardieres, which, though

only