A Biographical Dictionary of Freethinkers of All Ages and Nations Part 12

Ferri (Luigi), Italian philosopher, b. Bologna, 15 June 1826. Studied in Paris and became licentiate of letters in 1850. Author of History of Philosophy in Italy, Paris 1868; The Psychology of Pomponazzi, etc.

Ferriere (Emile), French writer and licentiate of letters, b. Paris, 1830; author of Literature and Philosophy, 1865; Darwinism, 1872, which has gone through several editions; The Apostles, a work challenging early Christian Morality, 1879; The Soul the Function of the Brain, a scientific work of popular character in two vols., 1883; and Paganism of the Hebrews until the Babylonian Captivity, 1884. All these are works of p.r.o.nounced Freethought. M. Ferriere has also announced a work Jesus bar Joseph.

Feuerbach (Friedrich Heinrich), son of a famous German jurist, was b. at Ansbach 29 Sept. 1806. He studied philology, but set himself to preach what his brother Ludwig taught. He wrote Theanthropos, a series of Aphorisms (Zurich, '38), and an able work on the Religion of the Future, '43-47; and Thoughts and Facts, Hamburg, '62. Died Nurenberg, 24 Jan. 1880.

Feuerbach (Ludwig Andreas), brother of the preceding, b. Landshut, Bavaria, 28 July 1804. He studied theology with a view to the Church, but under the influence of Hegel abandoned it for philosophy. In '28 he was made professor at Erlangen, but was dismissed in consequence of his first published work, Thoughts upon Death and Immortality, '30, in which he limited immortality to personal influence on the human race. After a wandering life he married in '37, and settled near Ans.p.a.ch. He published there a history of modern philosophy from Bacon to Spinoza. This was followed by a work on Peter Bayle. In '38 he wrote on philosophy and Christianity, and in '41 his work called the The Essence of Christianity, in which he resolves theology into anthropology. This book was translated by Mary Ann Evans, '53. He also wrote Principles of the Philosophy of the Future. After the revolution of '48 he was invited to lecture by the students of Heidelberg, and gave his course on The Essence of Religion, published in '51. In '57 he published Theogony from the Sources of Cla.s.sical, Hebrew, and Christian Antiquity, and in '66 Theism, Freedom, and Immortality from the Standpoint of Anthropology. Died at Rechenberg, near Nurenberg, 13 Sept. 1872. His complete works were published at Leipsic in 1876. He was a deep thinker and lucid writer.

Fichte (Johann Gottlieb), one of the greatest German thinkers, b. 19 May, 1762. He studied at the Universities of Jena, Leipsic, and Wittenberg, embraced "determinism," became acquainted with Kant, and published anonymously, A Criticism of all Revelation. He obtained a chair of philosophy at Jena, where he developed his doctrines of science, a.s.serting that the problem of philosophy is to seek on what foundations knowledge rests. He gave moral discourses in the lecture-room on Sunday, and was accused of holding atheistical opinions. He was in consequence banished from Saxony, 1799. He appears to have held that G.o.d was not a personal being, but a system of intellectual, moral, and spiritual laws. Fichte took deep interest in the cause of German independence, and did much to rouse his countrymen against the domination of the French during the conquest which led to the fall of Napoleon. Besides many publications, in which he expounds his philosophy, he wrote eloquent treatises on The Vocation of Man, The Nature and Vocation of the Scholar, The Way Towards the Blessed Life, etc. Died Berlin 27 Jan. 1814.

"Figaro." See Larra (Mariano Jose de).

Figuiera (Guillem), Provencal troubadour and precursor of the Renaissance, b. Toulouse about 1190. His poems were directed against the priests and Court of Rome.

Filangieri (Gaetano), an Italian writer on legislation, b. Naples, 18 Aug. 1752. He was professor at that city. His princ.i.p.al work is La Scienza della Legislazione, 1780. In the fifth volume he deals with pre-Christian religions. The work was put on the Index. Died 21 July, 1788.

Fiorentino (Francesco), Italian philosopher, b. Sambiasa, Nicastro, 1 May, 1834. In 1860 he became Professor of Philosophy at Spoletto, in '62 at Bologna, and in '71 at Naples. He was elected deputy to Parliament, Nov. '70. A disciple of Felice Tocco, he paid special attention to the early Italian Freethinkers, writing upon The Pantheism of Giordano Bruno, Naples, '61; Pietro Pomponazzi, Florence, '68; Bernardius Telesio, Florence, 2 vols., '72-74. He has also written on Strauss and Spinoza. In the Nuova Antologia he wrote on J. C. Vanini, and on Caesalpinus, Campanella, and Bruno. A friend of Bertrando Spaventa, he succeeded to his chair at Naples in '83. Died 22 Dec. 1884.

Fischart (Johann), German satirist called Mentzer, b. Strasbourg about 1545. His satires in prose and verse remind one of Rabelais, whom he in part translated, and are often directed against the Church. Died at Forbach in 1614.

Fischer (J. C.), German materialist, author of a work on the freedom of the will 1858, a criticism of Hartmann's Philosophy of the Unconscious, '72; Das Bewusstsein, '74. Died 1888.

Fischer (Kuno), German philosopher, b. 23 July, 1824, at Sandewald, Silesia. Educated at Leipsic and Halle, in 1856 he was appointed Professor of Philosophy at Jena. His chief works are History of Modern Philosophy, '52-72; Life and Character of Spinoza; Francis Bacon, '56; and Lessing, '81.

Fiske (John), American author, b. Hartford, Connecticut, 30 March, 1842. Graduated at Harvard, '63. In '69-71 was Lecturer on Philosophy at that University, and from '72-9 Librarian. Mr. Fiske has lectured largely, and has written Myths and Mythmakers, '72; Outlines of Cosmic Philosophy, 2 vols. '74; Darwinism, and other essays, '79; Excursions of an Evolutionist, '83; The Idea of G.o.d as Affected by Modern Knowledge, '85.

Flaubert (Gustave), French novelist, b. Rouen, 12 Dec. 1821. The son of a distinguished surgeon, he abandoned his father's profession for literature. His masterpiece, Madame Bovary, published in '56 in the Revue de Paris, drew a prosecution upon that journal which ended in a triumph for the author. For his next great work, Salammbo, '62, an epic of Carthage, he prepared himself by long antiquarian studies. His intellectual tendencies are displayed in The Temptation of Saint Anthony. He stands eminent among the naturalist school for his artistic fidelity. He was a friend of Theophile Gautier, Ivan Turgenev, Emile Zola and "George Sand." His correspondence with the last of these has been published. He distinctly states therein that on subjects like immortality men cheat themselves with words. Died at Rouen, 9 May, 1880.

Flourens (Marie Jean Pierre), French scientist, b. near Beziers, 15 April, 1794. In 1828 he was admitted into the Academy of Sciences, after having published a work on the nervous system of vertebrates; he became perpetual secretary in '33. A work on Human Longevity and the Quant.i.ty of Life on the Globe was very popular. Died near Paris, 6 Dec. 1867.

Flourens (Gustave), eldest son of the preceding, b. Paris, 4 Aug. 1838. In '63 he took his father's chair at the College of France, and his course on "Ethnography" attracted much attention. In the following year he published his work on The Science of Man. His bold heresy lost him his chair, and he collaborated on Larousse's Grand Dictionnaire. In '65 he left France for Crete, where for three years he fought in the mountains against the Turkish troops. Upon his return he was arrested for presiding at a political meeting. He showed himself an ardent Revolutionist, and was killed in a skirmish near Nanterre, 3 April, 1871.

Fonblanque (Albany William), English journalist, b. London, 1793; the son of an eminent lawyer. In 1820 he was on the staff of the Times, and contributed to the Westminster Review. In '30 he became editor of the Examiner, and retained his post until '47. His caustic wit and literary attainments did much to forward advanced liberal views. A selection of his editorials was published under the t.i.tle, England under Seven Administrations. Died 13 Oct. 1872.

Fontanier (Jean), French writer, who was burnt at the Place de Greve, 1621, for blasphemies in a book ent.i.tled Le Tresor Inestimable. Gara.s.se, with little reason, calls him an Atheist.

Fontenelle (Bernard le Bovier de), nephew of Corneille, called by Voltaire the most universal genius of the reign of Louis XIV., b. Rouen, 11 Feb. 1657. Dedicated to the Virgin and St. Bernard, he was educated at the Jesuits' College. He went to Paris in 1674; wrote some plays and Dialogues of the Dead, 1683. In 1686 appeared his Conversations on the Plurality of Worlds, and in the following year his History of Oracles, based on the work of Van Dale, for which he was warmly attacked by the Jesuit Baltus, as impugning the Church Fathers. He was made secretary to the Academy of Sciences in 1699, a post he held forty-two years. He wrote Doubts on the Physical System of Occasional Causes, and is also credited with a letter on the Resurrection of the Body, a piece on The Infinite, and a Treatise on Liberty; "but," says l'Abbe Ladvocat, "as these books contain many things contrary to religion, it is to be hoped they are not his." Fontenelle nearly reached the age of one hundred. A short time before he died (9 Jan. 1757), being asked if he felt any pain, "I only feel," he replied, "a difficulty of existing."

Foote (George William), writer and orator, b. Plymouth, 11 Jan. 1850. Was "converted" in youth, but became a Freethinker by reading and independent thought. Came to London in 1868, and was soon a leading member of the Young Men's Secular a.s.sociation. He taught in the Hall of Science Sunday School, and became secretary of the Republican League. Devoting his time to propagating his principles, he wrote in the Secular Chronicle and National Reformer, and in '76 started the Secularist in conjunction with Mr. G. J. Holyoake, and after the ninth number conducting it alone. This afterwards merged in the Secular Review. In '79 Mr. Foote edited the Liberal, and in Sept. '81, started the Freethinker, which he still edits. In the following year a prosecution was commenced by the Public Prosecutor, who attempted to connect Mr. Bradlaugh with it. Undaunted, Mr. Foote issued a Christmas number with an ill.u.s.trated "Comic Life of Christ." For this a prosecution was started by the City authorities against him and his publisher and printer, and the trial came on first in March, '83. The jury disagreed, but Judge North refused to discharge the prisoners, and they were tried again on the 5th March; Judge North directing that a verdict of guilty must be returned, and sentencing Mr. Foote to one year's imprisonment as an ordinary criminal subject to the same "discipline" as burglars. "I thank you, my lord; your sentence is worthy of your creed," he remarked. On 24 April, '83, Mr. Foote was brought from prison before Lord Coleridge and a special jury on the first charge, and after a splendid defence, upon which he was highly complimented by the judge, the jury disagreed. He has debated with Dr. McCann, Rev. A. J. Harrison, the Rev. W. Howard, the Rev. H. Chapman, and others. Mr. Foote has written much, and lectures continually. Among his works we mention Heroes and Martyrs of Freethought (1876); G.o.d, the Soul, and a Future State; Secularism the True Philosophy of Life (1879); Atheism and Morality; The Futility of Prayer; Bible Romances; Death's Test, afterwards enlarged into Infidel Death-Beds; The G.o.d Christians Swear by; Was Jesus Insane? Blasphemy No Crime; Arrows of Freethought; Prisoner for Blasphemy (1884); Letters to Jesus Christ; What Was Christ? Bible Heroes; and has edited The Bible Hand-book with Mr. W. P. Ball, and the Jewish Life of Christ with the present writer, in conjunction with whom he has written The Crimes of Christianity. From 1883-87 he edited Progress, in which appeared many important articles from his pen. Mr. Foote is President of the London Secular Federation, and a Vice-President of the National Secular Society.

Fouillee (Alfred), French philosopher, b. La Poueze, near Angers, 18 Oct. 1838. Has been teacher at several lyceums, notably at Bordeaux. He was crowned by the Academy of Moral Sciences for two works on the Philosophy of Plato and Socrates. Elected Professor of Philosophy at the Superior Normal School, Paris, he sustained a thesis at the Sorbonne on Liberty and Determinism, which was violently attacked by the Catholics. This work has gone through several editions. M. Fonillee has also written an able History of Philosophy, 1875, Contemporary Social Science, and an important Critique of Contemporary Moral Systems (1883). He has written much in the Revue des Deux Mondes, and is considered, with Taine, Ribot, and Renan, the princ.i.p.al representative of French philosophy. His system is known as that of idees-forces, as he holds that ideas are themselves forces. His latest work expounds the views of M. Guyau.

Forberg (Friedrich Karl), German philosopher, b. Meuselwitz, 30 Aug. 1770, studied theology at Leipsic, and became private docent at Jena. Becoming attached to Fichte's philosophy, he wrote with Fichte in Niethammer's Philosophical Journal on "The Development of Religious Ideas," and an article on "The Ground of our Faith in Divine Providence," which brought on them a charge of Atheism, and the journal was confiscated by the Electorate of Saxony. Forberg held religion to consist in devotion to morality, and wrote An Apology for Alleged Atheism, 1799. In 1807 he became librarian at Coburg, and devoted himself to the cla.s.sics, issuing a Manuel d'Erotologie Cla.s.sique. Died Hildburghausen 1 Jan. 1848.

Forder (Robert), b. Yarmouth, 14 Oct. 1844. Coming to to Woolwich, he became known as a political and Freethought lecturer. He took part in the movement to save Plumstead Common from the enclosers, and was sent to trial for riotous proceedings, but was acquitted. In '77 he was appointed paid secretary to the National Secular Society, a post he has ever since occupied. During the imprisonment of Messrs. Foote, Ramsey, and Kemp, in '83, Mr. Forder undertook charge of the publishing business. He has lectured largely, and written some pamphlets.

Forlong (James George Roche). Major General, H.B.A., b. Lanarkshire, Scotland, Nov. 1824. Educated as an engineer, joined the Indian army '43, fought in the S. Mahrata campaign '45-6, and in the second Burmese war. On the annexation of Barma he became head of the Survey, Roads and ca.n.a.l branches. In '58-9 he travelled extensively through Egypt, Palestine, Turkey, Greece, Italy, Spain, etc. From '61-71 was a superintending engineer of Calcutta, and in Upper Bengal, North-west Provinces, and Rajputana, and '72-76 was Secretary and Chief Engineer to the Government of Oudh. He retired in '77 after an active service of 33 years, during which he frequently received the thanks of the Indian and Home Governments. In his youth he was an active Evangelical, preaching to the natives in their own tongues. He has, however, given his testimony that during his long experience he has known no one converted solely by force of reasoning or "Christian evidences." A great student of Eastern religions, archaeology, and languages, he has written in various periodicals of the East and West, and has embodied the result of many years researches in two ill.u.s.trated quarto volumes called Rivers of Life, setting forth the evolution of all religions from their radical objective basis to their present spiritualised developments. In an elaborate chart he shows by streams of color the movements of thought from 10,000 B.C. to the present time.

Fourier (Francois Marie Charles), French socialist, b. Besancon, 7 April, 1772. He pa.s.sed some of the early years of his life as a common soldier. His numerous works amid much that is visionary have valuable criticisms upon society, and suggestions for its amelioration. He believed in the transmigration of souls. Died at Paris, 8 Oct. 1837.

Fox (William Johnson), orator and political writer, b. near Wrentham, Suffolk, 1786. Intended for the Congregational Ministry, he became a Unitarian, and for many years preached at South Place, Finsbury, where he introduced the plan of taking texts from other books besides the Bible. One of his first published sermons was on behalf of toleration for Deists at the time of the Carlile prosecutions 1819. He gradually advanced from the acceptance of miracles to their complete rejection. During the Anti-Corn Law agitation he was a frequent and able speaker. In 1847 he became M.P. for Oldham, and retained his seat until his retirement in '61. He was a prominent worker for Radicalism, contributing to the Westminster Review, Weekly Dispatch, and Daily News. For some years he edited the Monthly Repository. His works, which include spirited Lectures to the Working Cla.s.ses, and a philosophical statement of Religions Ideas, were published in twelve volumes, '65-68. Died 3 June, 1864.

"Franchi (Ausonio)," the pen name of Francesco Cristoforo Bonavino, Italian ex-priest, b. Pegli, 24 Feb. 1821. Brought up in the Church and ordained priest in '44, the practice of the confessional made him sceptical and he quitted it for philosophy, having ceased to believe in its dogmas, '49. In '52 he published his princ.i.p.al work, ent.i.tled The Philosophy of the Italian Schools. The following year he published The Religion of the Nineteenth Century. He established La Razione (Reason) and Il Libero Pensiero at Turin, '54-57; wrote on the Rationalism of the People, Geneva, '56, and became an active organiser of anti-clerical societies. In '66 he published a criticism of Positivism, and has since written Critical and Polemical Essays, 3 vols. Milan, '70-72. In '68 was appointed Professor of Philosophy in the Academy of Milan by Terenzio Mamiani.

Francis (Samuel), M.D., author of Watson Refuted, published by Carlile, 1819.

Francois de Neufchateau (Nicolas Louis), Count, French statesman, poet, and academician, b. Lorraine, 17 April, 1750. In his youth he became secretary to Voltaire, who regarded him as his successor. He favored the Revolution, and was elected to the Legislative a.s.sembly in '91. As Member of the Directory, '97, he circulated d'Holbach's Contagion Sacree. He became President of the Senate, '14-16. He wrote numerous pieces. Died at Paris 10 Jan. 1828.

Franklin (Benjamin), American patriot and philosopher, b. Boston 17 Jan. 1706. He was apprenticed to his uncle as a printer, came to England and worked at his trade '24-26; returned to Philadelphia, where he published a paper and became known by his Poor Richard's Almanack. He founded the public library at Philadelphia, and made the discovery of the ident.i.ty of lightning with the electric fluid. He became member of the Provincial a.s.sembly and was sent to England as agent. When examined before the House of Commons he spoke boldly against the Stamp Act. He was active during the war with this country, and was elected member of Congress. Became envoy to France, and effected the treaty of alliance with that country, 6 Feb. '78, which secured the independence of the American colonies. Turgot summed up his services in the fine line Eripuit caelo fulmen, sceptrumque tyrannis. "He wrested the thunderbolt from heaven and the sceptre from kings." Died at Philadelphia, 17 April, 1790.

Fransham (John), a native of Norwich, b. 1730, became a teacher of mathematics, renounced the Christian religion, and professed Paganism, writing several treatises in favor of disbelief. Died 1810.

Frauenstaedt (Christian Martin Julius), Dr., philosopher and disciple of Schopenhauer, b. 17 April, 1813, at Bojanowo, Posen. He studied philosophy and theology at Berlin, but meeting Schopenhauer at Frankfort in '47 he adopted the views of the pessimist, who made him his literary executor. Among Frauenstadt's works are Letters on Natural Religion, '58, The Liberty of Men and the Personality of G.o.d, '38; Letters on the Philosophy of Schopenhauer, '54, etc. Died at Berlin, 13 Jan. 1879.

Frederick II. (Emperor of Germany), the greatest man of the thirteenth century and founder of the Renaissance, b. 26 Dec. 1194. Was elected to the throne in 1210. He promoted learning, science, and art, founded the Universities of Vienna and Naples, had the works of Aristotle and Averroes translated, and was the patron of all the able men of his time. For his resistance to the tyranny of the Church he was twice excommunicated. He answered by a letter attacking the Pope (Gregory IX.), whom he expelled from Rome in '28. He made a treaty with the Sultan of Egypt, by which he became master of Jerusalem. For some heretical words in his letter, in which he a.s.sociates the names of Christ, Moses, and Mohammed, he was reported author of the famous work De Tribus Impostoribus. He addressed a series of philosophical questions to Ibn Sabin, a Moslem doctor. He is said to have called the Eucharist truffa ista, and is credited also with the saying "Ignorance is the mother of devotion." Died at Florence, 13 Dec. 1250.

Frederick the Great (King of Prussia), b. 24 Jan. 1712, was educated in a very rigid fashion by his father, Frederick William I. He ascended the throne and soon displayed his political and military ability. By a war with Austria he acquired Silesia. He wrote several deistical pieces, and tolerated all religions and no religion saying "every man must get to heaven his own way." He attracted to his court men like Lamettrie, D'Argens, Maupertuis, and Voltaire, who, says Carlyle, continued all his days Friedrich's chief thinker. In 1756 France, Austria, Sweden, and Russia united against him, but he held his own against "a world in arms." After a most active life Frederick died at Potsdam, 17 Aug. 1786. The Philosophical Breviary attributed to him was really written by Cerutti.

Fredin (Nils Edvard), Swedish writer, b. 1857. Has published translation of modern poets, and also of Col. Ingersoll's writings. In '80 he was awarded first prize by the Swedish Academy for an original poem.

Freeke (William), b. about 1663, wrote A Brief but Clear Confutation of the Trinity, which being brought before the notice of the House of Lords it was on 3 Jan. 1693 ordered to be burnt by the common hangman, and the author being prosecuted by the Attorney General was fined 500.

Freiligrath (Ferdinand) German poet, b. Detmold 17 June, 1810. In '35 he acquired notice by some poems. In '44 he published his profession of faith Mein Glaubensbekenntniss, and was forced to fly the country. In '48 he returned and joined Karl Marx on the Neue Rheinische Zeitung. Again prosecuted he took refuge in London, devoting his leisure to poetry and translation. Freiligrath holds a high place among the poets of his time. Died Kannstadt, near Stuttgart, 18 March 1876.

Freret (Nicolas), French historical critic, b. 15 Feb. 1688. He was a pupil of Rollin, and was patronised by Boulainvilliers. Distinguished by his attainments in ancient history, philosophy and chronology, he became member of the Academy of Inscriptions 1714. For a Discourse on the "Origin of the Franks," he was incarcerated for four months in the Bastille. While here he read Bayle so often that he could repeat much from memory. He was an unbeliever, and the author of the atheistic Letters from Thrasybulus to Leucippe on Natural and Revealed Religion, and perhaps of La Moisade, a criticism of the Pentateuch, translated by D. I. Eaton, as A Preservative against Religious Prejudices. The Letters to Eugenie, attributed to Freret, were written by D'Holbach, and the Critical Examination of the Apologists of the Christian Religion by J. Levesque de Burigny. A Critical Examination of the New Testament, 1777 which long circulated in MS. has also been wrongly attributed to Freret. Died at Paris, 8 March, 1749.

Frey (William), the adopted name of a Russian Positivist and philanthropist, b. of n.o.ble family, the son of a general, 1839. Educated at the higher military school, St. Petersburg, he became teacher in a Government High School, and disgusted with the oppression and degradation of his country he went to New York in 1866 where he established co-operative communities and also Russian colonies in Kansas and Oregon. In 1884 he came to London in order to influence his countrymen. In '87 he revisited Russia. Died 6 Nov. 1888.

Fries (Jacob Friedrich), German philosopher, b. Barby, 23 Aug. 1773. Brought up as a Moravian, he became a Deist. Fries is of the Neo-Kantian rationalistic school. Among his writings are a System of Metaphysics, 1824; a Manual of the Philosophy of Religion and Philosophical aesthetics, Heidelberg '32; in which he resolves religion into poetry. He criticised Kant's proofs of G.o.d and immortality, and wrote a History of Philosophy. Died Jena, 10 Aug. 1843.

Frothingham (Octavius Brooks), American author, b. Boston, 26 Nov. 1822. Graduated at Harvard, '43, and became Unitarian minister. In '60 he became pastor of the most radical Unitarian congregation in New York. In '67 he became first president of the Free Religious a.s.sociation, but, becoming too advanced, resigned in '79 and came to Europe. Since his return to Boston, '81, he has devoted himself to literature. He has published The Religion of Humanity, N.Y., '73; Life of Theodore Parker, '74; The Cradle of the Christ, '77; Life of Gerrit Smith, 78; and numerous sermons.

Froude (James Anthony), man of letters and historian, the son of an Archdeacon of Totnes, was b. Dartington, Devon, 23 April, 1818, and educated at Westminster and Oxford, where he took his degree in '40, was elected fellow of Exeter College and received deacon's orders. At first, under the influence of the Romanising movement, he became a rationalist and abandoned his fellowship and clerical life. His Nemesis of Faith, '48, showed the nature of his objections. Mr. Froude devoted his abilities to a literary career, and fell under the influence of Carlyle. For many years he edited Fraser's Magazine, in which he wrote largely. His essays are collected under the t.i.tle of Short Studies on Great Subjects, '71-83. His largest work is the History of England, from the Fall of Wolsey to the Defeat of the Spanish Armada, '56-76. His Life of Carlyle, '82, and publication of Carlyle's Reminiscenses provoked much controversy. His magical translation of Lucian's most characteristic Dialogue of the G.o.ds is done with too much verve to allow of the supposition that the translator is not in sympathy with his author.

Fry (John), a colonel in the Parliamentary army. In 1640 he was elected one of the burgesses of Shaftesbury, but his return was declared void. After serving with distinction in the army, he was called to the House of Commons by the Independents in 1648. He voted for Charles I. being put on trial; and sat in judgment when sentence was pa.s.sed on him. He was charged with blasphemy and wrote The Accuser Shamed, 1649, which was ordered to be burnt for speaking against "that chaffie and absurd opinion of three persons in the G.o.dhead." He also wrote The Clergy in their Colors, 1650.

Fuller (Sarah Margaret), American auth.o.r.ess, b. Cambridgeport, Ma.s.sachusetts, 23 May, 1810. In '40-42 she edited the Dial. She also published Woman in the Nineteenth Century, '44. Among friends she counted Emerson, Hawthorne, Channing, and Mazzini. She visited Europe and married at Rome the Marquis D'Ossoli. Returning she was shipwrecked and drowned off the coast of New Jersey, 16 July, 1850.

Furnemont (Leon), Belgian advocate, b. Charleroi, 17 April, 1861. Entered the school of Mines Liege in '76, and founded the Circle of Progressive Students. Became president of International Congress of Students, '84, and represented Young Belgium at the funeral of Victor Hugo. Radical candidate at the Brussels munic.i.p.al elections, he obtained 3,500 votes, but was not elected. He is a Councillor of the International Federation of Freethinkers and director of a monthly journal, La Raison, 1889.

Gabarro (Bartolome) Dr., Spanish writer, b. Ygualade, Barcelona, 27 Sept. 1846, was educated in a clerical college with a view to taking the clerical habit, he refused and went to America. After travelling much, he established a day school in Barcelona and founded an Anti-clerical League of Freethinkers pledged to live without priests. This induced much clerical wrath, especially when Dr. Gabarro founded some 200 Anti-clerical groups and over 100 lay schools. For denouncing the a.s.sa.s.sins of a Freethinker he was pursued for libel, sentenced to four years' imprisonment, and forced to fly to Cerbere on the frontier, where he continues his anti-clerical journal La Tronada. He has written many anti-clerical brochures and an important work on Pius IX. and History.

Gabelli (Aristide), Italian writer, b. Belluno, 22 March, 1830. Author of The Religious Question in Italy, '64, Man and the Moral Sciences, '69, in which he rejects all metaphysics and supernaturalism, and Thoughts, 1886.

Gage (Matilda Joslyn), American reformer, b. Cicero, New York, 24 March, 1826. Her father, Dr. H. Joslyn, was an active abolitionist. Educated at De Peyster and Hamilton, N.Y., in '45 she married Henry H. Gage. From '52 till '61 she wrote and spoke against slavery. In '72 she was made President of the National Woman's Suffrage a.s.sociation. She is joint author of The History of Woman Suffrage with Miss Anthony and Mrs. Stanton, and with them considers the Church the great obstacle to woman's progress.

Gagern (Carlos von), b. Rehdorf, Neumark, 12 Dec. 1826. Educated at Berlin, travelled in '47 to Paris where he became acquainted with Humboldt. He went to Spain and studied Basque life in the Pyrenees; served in the Prussian army, became a friend of Wislicenus and the free-religious movement. In '52 he went to Mexico; here he had an appointment under General Miramon. In the French-Mexican expedition he was taken prisoner in '63; released in '65 he went to New York. He was afterwards military attache for Mexico at Berlin. His freethought appears in his memoirs ent.i.tled Dead and Living, 1884, and in his volume Sword and Trowel, 1888. Died Madrid 19 Dec. 1885.

Gall (Franz Joseph), founder of phrenology, b. Baden, 6 March, 1758. He practised as a physician in Vienna, devoting much time to the study of the brain, and began to lecture on craniology in that city. In 1802 he was prohibited from lecturing. He joined Dr. Spurzheim and they taught their system in various cities of Europe. Died at Paris, 22 Aug. 1828.