No. VII. MASTERS OF ST. JOHN'S COLLEGE, OF Dr. HUMPHREY GOWER and Dr. ROBERT JENKIN some particulars will be found (extracted principally from Mr. Cole's MSS.) in Vol. IV. pp. 240. 246. Of Dr. LAMBERT, Dr. NEWCOME, and Dr. POWELL, Memoirs shall here be given from the same MSS.† * In the "Catalogue of the Harleian MSS. now in the British Museum, 1759," is the List of the Articles in Mr. Baker's XXIII Volumes of MSS. in that Collection, preceded by this short note: "The XXIII following Volumes in folio, contain Collections written by the hand of Thomas Baker, of St. John's College in Cambridge, Bachelor in Divinity." "Then follow the Contents of each Volume, which I shall endeavour to supply the defects of my own transcript by that, though a very paltry performance. The First Volume I shall transcribe wholly, as it is in the Printed Catalogue. "7028. Vol. I. A succinct and impartial Account of St. John's House, and St. John's College, with some occasional and incidental Account of the Affairs of the University, and of such private Colleges as held Communication or Intercourse with the Old House or College, Collected anno 1707." (Cole's MSS. vol. XXXI. p. 24. b.) This first Volume contains the History, or Annals of St. John's College, through a succession of all its Masters, from the Foundation to the end of Bishop Gunning's (the 22d) Mastership. This Mr. Baker himself had some thoughts of making public himself: as appears by a marginal note in his Preface prefixed to Bishop Fisher's Funeral Sermon, p.lv; and I am told, by those who have perused it, that it is a complete -and most useful as well as entertaining Work, and every way ready and fit for the press. This, or a duplicate of it, I suppose, is in St. John's College Library. Bishop Gunning resigned the mastership in 1670." W. C. ↑ In Mr. Cole's Continuation of Baker's History he has written the Lives of the following Masters: Francis Turner, Humphrey Gower, Robert Jenkin, Robert Lambert, John Newcome, William-Samuel Powell, John Chevallier. DR. DR. ROBERT LAMBERT, the 26th Master of this College, was of Northern extraction, being a native of the county of York. The year of his admission into the Society I have not learnt; but he was sworn and admitted Fellow * for Mr. Gregson, on March 28, 1699, in the place of Mr. Alleyn. On the death of Dr. Jenkin there was no small stir in the Society about the choice of a successor. No fewer than five Candidates appeared upon this occasion, whose names were, Dr. Drake, Mr. Field, Dr. Lambert, Dr. Newcome, and Dr. Baker. As this election was made before I came to the University, so I can pretend to say nothing of it upon my own knowledge: yet I have some Memoirs relat ing to it that will sufficiently explain it.-The Author of the Annals of University College (p. 324, 325) gives this account of it: " Upon the Election of a new Master of St. John's College in Cambridge, there were five Candidates: none of which being able to get a majority of votes of all that had suffrages, there was a devolution to the eight senior Fellows; and if a majority of them could not concur in one of the Candidates, the Election would have devolved farther to the Bishop of Ely; but five of the eight agréeing in one person, the Election was concluded without going any farther." I have a particular scheme of all the Scrutinies upon this warm Election, in which Dr. Lambert carried it against his Opponents. He was elected April 21, 1727. Dr. Baker seems to have laid the loss the most to heart. The exact time when Dr. Lambert took his degrees I do not know: in 1722 he was Lady Mar Mr. Baker's History of St. John's College, p. 397. † Here Mr. Cole has inserted a Conference between Dr. Baker and Dr. Newcome, which does not throw any light on Dr. Lambert. On December 31, 1722, he was elected. garet's garet's Preacher; and the same year that he was elected Master of the College, viz. 1727, he was elected Vice-Chancellor of the University. This office he served again in 1729; but not without the utmost struggle between the two Parties that then divided the Body. The two Candidates were, Dr. Mawson, Master of Bene't College, and our Dr. Lambert, who carried it by one vote only, 84 for Dr. Lambert, and 83 for Dr. Mawson. And had the votes been equal, as was like to be the case, the Regius Professor of Divinity, Dr. Bentley, in that case, was to have had the determining vote. Indeed people's spirits were then warmly agitated by party distinctions; and, though the Tory interest carried it this time by a single vote, it was a strong presumption that the cause was declining ;and that the Whigs, with the countenance of the Court, would soon have the majority. This shewed itself at their next election, in 1730, when Dr. Mawson was chosen; and the Party, to shew their triumph, elected him again the following year. It seems that times have altered the property of things; for at this time, 40 years after, that office is looked upon so burthensome and troublesome, that no one takes it upon him but through necessity and by rotation. When party ran high, it was the harvest for preferment-hunters. Dr. Mawson stood upon the Whig interest, and was rewarded with a bishoprick; Dr. Lambert was supported by the Tories, and got nothing. I have a very particular account and list of this contested election, with the names of each voter as he voted. One thing however the Tories gained their point in; for a public Commencement was voted, to grace the second year of Dr. Lambert's Vice-chancellorship. In the first year also of Dr. Lambert's Vice-chancellorship he met with some trouble and vexation from a disputed election of a person to be one of the four Vintners of the University, at the Mitre tavern in Trumpington-street, now converted into a coffee coffee-house, and stands on King's-college Rents, towards the South-east angle of their designed quadrangle. The Tory part of the University supported Thomas Whitstones of Whittlesey, esq. and a member of the body; the other party set up John Bacon of Cambridge. The election came on upon the 12th of June 1728, when it was pretended that Mr. Bacon was chosen by a majority of legal and statutable votes; but this not appearing so to the gentlemen who supported Mr. Whitstones, the Vice-Chancellor ordered him to be declared duly elected. Upon this determination, the party injured made a complaint against the Vice Chancellor to the King; who laying it before the Privy Council, they were pleased to reverse the Vice-Chancellor's decree, and ordered him to declare Mr. Bacon duly elected into that office, and to cause the University Seal to be affixed to his appointment. The affair thus related, I take from a Pamphlet supposed to have been written by that pragmatical Coxcomb, Dr. Chapman, then Master of Magdalen College, called "An Inquiry into the Right of Appeal from the Chancellor, &c. in Matters of Discipline, &c. Lond. 8vo. 1751," p. 47, 48, 49. After having presided over this House near eight years, he gave way to fate, on 24 Jan. 1734-5, and was buried in the College Chapel. I remember to have seen him when I was first admitted of the University: his appearance was not advantageous, being small, and not at all bettered by a squint in one of his eyes; but, what was more to the purpose, he was generally esteemed a very worthy man. I have seen a small and ordinary picture of him, in his scarlet gown, which is extremely like him, at Mr. Alderman Norfolk's in Jesus-lane. His will is entered in one of Mr. Baker's MS Volumes, vol. XXXVI. No. 22, p. 263; where more particulars, possibly, may be met with concerning him *. *MS. Cole, vol. xlix-(No. 5850 of the Donation MSS.) DR. Dr. JOIN NEWCOME. Dr. Newcome had made an attempt for this Mastership in 1727, when Dr. Lambert carried it against him, where some features of his character may be discerned: On that Master's death, he was more successful, being elected into his place, on another warm contest, on February 6, 1734-5; when he, Dr. Williams, Mr. Parnham, and Mr. Chapelow, were the candidates. This contest I well remember; being after my admission into the University. Dr. Newcome's character will be discussed in the present article. Dr. Williams was then President of the College, Orator of the University, and generally esteemed a very worthy, upright man, and seemed as much calculated for the post he aimed at, and deserved, as he that attained it. But there are always great heats and divisions in this society; and perhaps Dr. Newcome's then living in his Professorial house in the town might have been no disadvantage to his having been brought into College *. Dr. Williams was son to a Rector of Dodington, and slightly allied to the Peyton family; he resided, some years after his disappointment, in the College, by which he was presented to the Rectory of Barrow, where he soon after married the only daughter of Dr. Dighton of Newmarket: rather a disproportionate match in point of age. By her he left three children; a son, who, on the alliance abovesaid, was sent, as Founder's kinsman, to New College, and is now Fellow of Winchester College; * In my vol. XXI. (p. 85, 86,) of these Collections, is an exact list of the poll on this election, drawn up by Dr. Williams, and communicated to me with many things of the sort, by my late worthy friend, Dr. Zachary Grey, rector of Houghton Conquest in Bedfordshire. VOL. I. Ου and |