A Short Biographical Dictionary of English Literature Part 13

CROWE, EYRE EVANS (1799-1868).--Historian and novelist, _s._ of an officer in the army, _b._ near Southampton, and _ed._ at Trinity Coll., Dublin. He wrote several novels, including _Vittoria Colonna_, _To-day in Ireland_ (1825), _The English in France_ (1828), and _Charles Dalmer_ (1853). Among his historical works are a _History of France_ in _Lardner's Cabinet Encyclopaedia_, afterwards enlarged and separately _pub._, and a _History of Louis XVIII. and Charles X._

CROWE, SIR JOSEPH ARCHER (1825-1896).--Writer on art, _s._ of the above, was _b._ in London. Most of his childhood was spent in France, and on his return to England in 1843 he became a journalist. He was then for some years engaged in educational work in India, and was afterwards war correspondent for the _Times_ on various occasions, and filled various important consular posts, for which he was in 1890 made K.C.M.G. In collaboration with G.B. Cavalca.s.selle, an Italian refugee, he was the author of several authoritative works on art, including _The Early Flemish Painters_ (1856), _A New History of Painting in Italy_ (1864-68), _A History of Painting in North Italy_ (1871), _t.i.tian, His Life and Times_ (1877), and _Raphael, His Life and Works_ (1883-85). The actual writing of all these was the work of C.

CROWE, WILLIAM (1745-1829).--Poet, _b._ at Midgham, Berks, the _s._ of a carpenter, was _ed._ as a foundationer at Winchester, whence he proceeded to Oxf., where he became Public Orator. He wrote a smooth, but somewhat conventional poem, _Lewesdon Hill_ (1789), ed. Collins's Poems (1828), and lectured on poetry at the Royal Inst.i.tution. His poems were _coll._ in 1827. C. was a clergyman and Rector of Alton Barnes, Wilts.

CROWNE, JOHN (1640?-1703).--Dramatist, returned from Nova Scotia, to which his _f._, a Nonconformist minister, had emigrated, and became gentleman usher to a lady of quality. His first play, _Juliana_, appeared in 1671. He wrote in all about 17 dramatic pieces, of which the best is _Sir Courtly Nice_ (1685), adapted from the Spanish. It is amusing, and enjoyed a long continued vogue. In general, however, C. is dull.

CUDWORTH, RALPH (1617-1688).--Divine and philosopher, _b._ at Aller, Somerset, and _ed._ at Camb., where, after being a tutor, he became Master of Clare Hall 1645, Prof. of Hebrew (1645-88), and Master of Christ's Coll., 1654. His great work is _The True Intellectual System of the Universe_ (1678). A work of vast learning and acuteness, it is directed against the infidelity of the age. C.'s candour in his statement of the opposing position was so remarkable that Dryden remarked "that he raised such strong objections against the being of a G.o.d and Providence that many thought he had not answered them." He also left in MS. a _Treatise concerning Eternal and Immutable Morality_, _pub._ in 1731.

c.u.mBERLAND, RICHARD (1732-1811).--Novelist and dramatist, _ed._ at Westminster and Camb., entered the diplomatic service, and filled several government appointments. His best play is _The West Indian_. His novels do not rise much above mediocrity. Along with Sir J.B. Burges he wrote an epic ent.i.tled _The Exodiad_, and he also made some translations from the Greek.

c.u.mMINS, MARIA SUSANNA (1827-1866).--_B._ at Salem, Ma.s.s., was well-known as the auth.o.r.ess of _The Lamplighter_, a somewhat sentimental tale which had very wide popularity. She wrote others, including _Mabel Vaughan_, none of which had the same success.

CUNNINGHAM, ALLAN (1784-1842).--Poet and miscellaneous writer, _b._ near Dalswinton, Dumfriesshire, in his youth knew Burns, who was a friend of his father's. He was apprenticed to a stonemason, but gave his leisure to reading and writing imitations of old Scottish ballads, which he contributed to Cromek's _Remains of Nithsdale and Galloway Song_, _pub._ in 1810, and which gained for him the friendship of Scott and Hogg.

Thereafter he went to London, and became a parliamentary reporter, and subsequently a.s.sistant to Chantrey, the sculptor, but continued his literary labours, writing three novels, a life of Sir D. Wilkie, and _Lives of Eminent British Painters, Sculptors, and Architects_, besides many songs, of which the best is _A wet sheet and a flowing Sea_. He also brought out an ed. of Burns's Works. He had four sons, all of whom rose to important positions, and inherited in some degree his literary gifts.

CURTIS, GEORGE WILLIAM (1824-1892).--American essayist, editor, and journalist, contributed to _New York Tribune_, and to _Putnam's_ and _Harper's_ monthlies, in which most of his books first appeared. Among these are _Trumps_, a story of New York life, _Prue and I_, _Lotus-eating_, and the _Potiphar Papers_. C. was also one of the finest American orators of his day.

CYNEWULF (_fl._ 750).--Anglo-Saxon poet. He was probably a Northumbrian, though sometimes thought to have been a Mercian. His poems, and some others, more or less doubtfully attributed to him, are contained in the Exeter Book and the Vercelli Book. The poems which are considered to be certainly his are the _Riddles_, from hints and allusions in which is derived nearly all that is known of him, or at least of the earlier part of his life, which appears to have been that of a joyous and poetical nature, rejoicing in the beauty of the world. His next poem, _Juliana_, the legend of a virgin-martyr, indicates a transition in his spiritual life; sorrow and repentance are its predominant notes, and in these respects another poem, _St. Guthlac_, resembles it. In the _Crist_ (Christ), C. has pa.s.sed through the clouds to an a.s.sured faith and peace.

_The Phoenix_, and the second part of _Guthlac_, though not certainly his, are generally attributed to him. _The Fates of the Apostles_ and _Elene_ (the legend of St. Helena) are his; the _Andreas_ and _The Dream of the Roode_ are still in some respects the subject of controversy. In several of the poems the separate letters of C.'s name are introduced in a peculiar manner, and are regarded as an attesting signature. _Juliana_, _Crist_, _The Apostles_, and _Elene_ are thus said to be signed. The Exeter and Vercelli Books are collections of ancient English poems, and they are named from the places where they were found.

DALLING AND BULWER, WILLIAM HENRY LYTTON EARLE BULWER, 1ST LORD (1801-1872).--Elder brother of Lord Lytton (_q.v._), and a distinguished diplomatist. He represented England at Madrid, Washington (where he concluded the Bulwer-Clayton Treaty), Florence, Bucharest, and Constantinople, and was raised to the peerage in 1871. He was the author of a number of books of travel and biography, including _An Autumn in Greece_ (1826), a _Life of Byron_ (1835), _Historical Characters_ (1868-70), and an unfinished life of Lord Palmerston.

DAMPIER, WILLIAM (1652-1715).--Discoverer and buccaneer, _b._ near Yeovil. After various seafaring adventures, and leading a semi-piratical life, he was in 1688 marooned on Nicobar Island, but escaped to Acheen, returned to England in 1691. He _pub._ his _Voyage Round the World_ (1697), and _A Discourse of Winds_ (1699). He was then employed by government on a voyage of survey and discovery (1699-1700), in the course of which he explored the north-west coast of Australia and the coasts of New Guinea and New Britain. In 1701 he was wrecked upon Ascension Island, from which he was rescued by an East Indiaman. He was afterwards court-martialled for cruelty, and wrote an angry but unconvincing vindication. His _Voyage_ is written in a style plain and homely, but is perspicuous and interesting.

DANA, RICHARD HENRY (1787-1879).--Novelist and critic, _b._ at Camb., Ma.s.s., was called to the Bar in 1817. Among his novels are _Tom Thornton_ and _Paul Felton_, both somewhat violent and improbable tales, and his poems, which are better, include _The Buccaneer_ (1827), and _The Dying Raven_. He is, however, stronger as a critic than as a writer. He wrote largely in _The North American Review_, and for a time conducted a paper, _The Idle Man_, which contains some of his best work.

DANA, RICHARD HENRY, JR. (1815-1882).--Miscellaneous writer, _s._ of the above, _ed._ at Harvard, but on his eyesight giving way shipped as a common sailor, and gave his experiences in _Two Years before the Mast_ (1840). Called to the Bar in 1840, he became an authority on maritime law. Other books by him are _The Seaman's Friend_ (1841), and _Vacation Voyage to Cuba_ (1859).

DANIEL, SAMUEL (1562-1619).--Poet, _s._ of a music master, was _b._ near Taunton, and _ed._ at Oxf., but did not graduate. He attached himself to the Court as a kind of voluntary laureate, and in the reign of James I.

was appointed "Inspector of the children of the Queen's revels," and a groom of the Queen's chamber. He is said to have enjoyed the friendship of Shakespeare and Marlowe, but was "at jealousies" with Ben Jonson. In his later years he retired to a farm which he owned in Somerset, where he _d._ D. bears the t.i.tle of the "well-languaged," his style is clear and flowing, with a remarkably modern note, but is lacking in energy and fire, and is thus apt to become tedious. His works include sonnets, epistles, masques, and dramas. The most important of them is _The History of the Civil Wars between York and Lancaster_ in 8 books, _pub._ in 1604.

His _Epistles_ are generally considered his best work, and his sonnets have had some modern admirers. Among his poems may be mentioned the _Complaynt of Rosamund_, _Tethys Festival_ (1610), and _Hymen's Triumph_ (1615), a masque, and _Musophilus_, a defence of learning, _Defence of Rhyme_ (1602).

DARLEY, GEORGE (1795-1846).--Poet, novelist, and critic, _b._ at Dublin, and _ed._ at Trinity Coll. there, he early decided to follow a literary career, and went to London, where he brought out his first poem, _Errors of Ecstasie_ (1822). He also wrote for the _London Magazine_, under the pseudonym of John Lacy. In it appeared his best story, _Lilian of the Vale_. Various other books followed, including _Sylvia, or The May Queen_, a poem (1827). Thereafter he joined the _Athenaeum_, in which he showed himself a severe critic. He was also a dramatist and a profound student of old English plays, editing those of Beaumont and Fletcher in 1840. So deeply was he imbued with the spirit of the 17th century that his poem, "It is not beauty I desire," was included by F.T. Palgrave in the first ed. of his _Golden Treasury_ as an anonymous lyric of that age.

He was also a mathematician of considerable talent, and _pub._ some treatises on the subject. D. fell into nervous depression and _d._ in 1846.

DARWIN, CHARLES ROBERT (1809-1882).--Naturalist, _s._ of a physician, and grandson of Dr. Erasmus D. (_q.v._), and of Josiah Wedgwood, the famous potter, was _b._ and was at school at Shrewsbury. In 1825 he went to Edin. to study medicine, but was more taken up with marine zoology than with the regular curriculum. After two years he proceeded to Camb., where he _grad._ in 1831, continuing, however, his independent studies in natural history. In the same year came the opportunity of his life, his appointment to accompany the _Beagle_ as naturalist on a survey of South America. To this voyage, which extended over nearly five years, he attributed the first real training of his mind, and after his return _pub._ an account of it, _Zoology of the Voyage of the Beagle_ (1840).

After spending a few years in London arranging his collections and writing his _Journal_, he removed to Down, a retired village near the Weald of Kent, where, in a house surrounded by a large garden, his whole remaining life was pa.s.sed in the patient building up, from accurate observations, of his theory of Evolution, which created a new epoch in science and in thought generally. His industry was marvellous, especially when it is remembered that he suffered from chronic bad health. After devoting some time to geology, specially to coral reefs, and exhausting the subject of barnacles, he took up the development of his favourite question, the transformation of species. In these earlier years of residence at Down he _pub._ _The Structure and Distribution of Coral Reefs_ (1842), and two works on the geology of volcanic islands, and of South America. After he had given much time and profound thought to the question of evolution by natural selection, and had written out his notes on the subject, he received in 1858 from Mr. A.R. Wallace (_q.v._) a ma.n.u.script showing that he also had reached independently a theory of the origin of species similar to his own. This circ.u.mstance created a situation of considerable delicacy and difficulty, which was ultimately got over by the two discoverers presenting a joint paper, _On the Tendency of Species to form Varieties_, and _On the Perpetuation of Varieties and Species by Natural Means of Selection_. The publication in 1859 of _The Origin of Species_ gave D. an acknowledged place among the greatest men of science, and the controversies which, along with other of his works, it raised, helped to carry his name all over the civilised world. Among his numerous subsequent writings may be mentioned _The Fertilisation of Orchids_ (1862), _Variation of Plants and Animals under Domestication_ (1868), _The Descent of Man, and Selection in relation to s.e.x_ (1871), _The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals_ (1872), _Insectivorous Plants_ (1875), _Climbing Plants_ (1875), _Different Forms of Flowers_ (1877), _The Power of Movement in Plants_ (1880), and _The Formation of Vegetable Mould through the Action of Worms_ (1881). D., with a modesty which was one of his chief characteristics, disclaimed for himself the possession of any remarkable talents except "an unusual power of noticing things which easily escape attention, and of observing them carefully." In addition, however, to this peculiar insight, he had a singular reverence for truth and fact, enormous industry, and great self-abnegation: and his kindliness, modesty, and magnanimity attracted the affection of all who knew him.

_Life and Letters_, by his son, F. Darwin, 3 vols., 1887; _C. Darwin and the Theory of Natural Selection_. E.B. Poulton, 1896; various short Lives by Grant Allen and others.

DARWIN, ERASMUS (1731-1802).--Poet, physician, and scientist, was _b._ at Elston, Notts, and _ed._ at Camb. and at Edin., where he took his degree of M.D. He ultimately settled in Lichfield as a physician, and attained a high professional reputation, so much so that he was offered, but declined, the appointment of physician to George III. In 1778 he formed a botanical garden, and in 1789 _pub._ his first poem, _The Loves of the Plants_, followed in 1792 by _The Economy of Vegetation_, which combined form _The Botanic Garden_. Another poem, _The Temple of Nature_, was _pub._ posthumously. He also wrote various scientific works in prose. The poems of D., though popular in their day, are now little read. Written in polished and sonorous verse, they glitter with startling similes and ingenious, though often forced, a.n.a.logies, but have little true poetry or human interest.

DASENT, SIR GEORGE WEBBE (1817-1896).--Scandinavian scholar, _b._ in the island of St. Vincent, of which his _f._ was Attorney-general, _ed._ at Westminster School, King's Coll., London, and Oxf., he entered the diplomatic service, and was for several years Sec. to the British Emba.s.sy at Stockholm, where he became interested in Scandinavian literature and mythology. Returning to England he was appointed a.s.sistant Ed. of _The Times_ (1845-1870). In 1852 he was called to the Bar, and in the following year was appointed Prof. of English Literature and Modern History at King's Coll., London, an office which he held for 13 years. He was knighted in 1876. His princ.i.p.al writings have to do with Scandinavian language, mythology, and folk-lore, and include an _Icelandic Grammar_, _The Prose or Younger Edda_ (1842), _Popular Tales from the Norse_ (1859), _The Saga of Burnt Njal_ (1861), and _The Story of Gisli the Outlaw_ (1866), mostly translated from the Norwegian of Asbjornsen. He also translated the Orkney and Hacon Sagas for the Rolls Series, and wrote four novels, _Annals of an Eventful Life_, _Three to One_, _Half a Life_, and _The Vikings of the Baltic_. His style is pointed and clear.

DAVENANT, or D'AVENANT, SIR WILLIAM (1606-1668).--Poet and dramatist, was _b._ at Oxf., where his _f._ kept an inn, which Shakespeare was in the habit of visiting. This had some influence on the future poet, who claimed to be Shakespeare's natural son. D., _ed._ at Lincoln Coll., was afterwards in the service of Lord Brooke, became involved in the troubles of the Civil War, in which he took the Royalist side, and was imprisoned in the Tower, escaped to France, and after returning was, in 1643, knighted. Later D. was employed on various missions by the King and Queen, was again in the Tower from 1650 to 1652, when he _pub._ his poem _Gondibert_. He is said to have owed his release to the interposition of Milton. In 1656 he practically founded the English Opera by his _Siege of Rhodes_ (1656). In 1659 he was again imprisoned, but after the Restoration he seems to have enjoyed prosperity and Royal favour, and established a theatre, where he was the first habitually to introduce female players and movable scenery. D. wrote 25 dramatic pieces, among which are _Albovine, King of the Lombards_ (1629), _Platonick Lovers_ (1636), _The Wits_ (1633), _Unfortunate Lovers_ (1643), _Love and Honour_ (1649). None of them are now read; and the same may be said of _Gondibert_, considered a masterpiece by contemporaries. D. succeeded Ben Jonson as Poet Laureate, and collaborated with Dryden in altering (and debasing) _The Tempest_. He _coll._ his miscellaneous verse under the t.i.tle of _Madagascar_. He is said to have had the satisfaction of repaying in kind the good offices of Milton when the latter was in danger in 1660. He joined with Waller and others in founding the cla.s.sical school of English poetry.

DAVIDSON, JOHN (1837-1909).--Poet and playwright, _b._ at Barrhead, Renfrewshire, _s._ of a Dissenting minister, entered the chemical department of a sugar refinery in Greenock in his 13th year, returning after one year to school as a pupil teacher. He was afterwards engaged in teaching at various places, and having taken to literature went in 1890 to London. He achieved a reputation as a writer of poems and plays of marked individuality and vivid realism. His poems include _In a Music Hall_ (1891), _Fleet Street Eclogues_ (1893), _Baptist Lake_ (1894), _New Ballads_ (1896), _The Last Ballad_ (1898), _The Triumph of Mammon_ (1907), and among his plays are _Bruce_ (1886), _Smith: a Tragic Farce_ (1888), _G.o.dfrida_ (1898). D. disappeared on March 27, 1909, under circ.u.mstances which left little doubt that under the influence of mental depression he had committed suicide. Among his papers was found the MS.

of a new work, _Fleet Street Poems_, with a letter containing the words, "This will be my last book." His body was discovered a few months later.

DAVIES, JOHN (1565?-1618).--Called "the Welsh Poet," was a writing-master, wrote very copiously and rather tediously on theological and philosophical themes. His works include _Mirum in Modum_, _Microcosmus_ (1602), and _The Picture of a Happy Man_ (1612). _Wit's Bedlam_ (1617), and many epigrams on his contemporaries which have some historical interest.

DAVIES, SIR JOHN (1569-1626).--Lawyer and poet, _s._ of a lawyer at Westbury, Wiltshire, was _ed._ at Winchester and Oxf., and became a barrister of the Middle Temple, 1595. He was a member successively of the English and Irish Houses of Commons, and held various legal offices. In literature he is known as the writer of two poems, _Orchestra: a Poem of Dancing_ (1594), and _Nosce Teipsum_ (Know Thyself), in two elegies (1) Of Humane Knowledge (2) Of the Immortality of the Soul. The poem consists of quatrains, each containing a complete and compactly expressed thought.

It was _pub._ in 1599. D. was also the author of treatises on law and politics.

DAVIS, or DAVYS, JOHN (1550?-1605).--Navigator, known as D. of Sandridge to distinguish him from another of the same name. He was one of the most enterprising of the Elizabethan sailors, who devoted themselves to the discovery of the North-west Pa.s.sage. Davis Strait was discovered by, and named after, him. He made many voyages, in the last of which he met his death at the hands of a j.a.panese pirate. He was the author of a book, now very scarce, _The World's Hydrographical Description_, and he also wrote a work on practical navigation, _The Seaman's Secrets_, which had great repute.

DAVIS, THOMAs...o...b..RNE (1814-1845).--Poet, _b._ at Mallow, _ed._ at Trinity Coll., Dublin, and called to the Irish Bar 1838. He was one of the founders of _The Nation_ newspaper, and of the Young Ireland party.

He wrote some stirring patriotic ballads, originally contributed to _The Nation_, and afterwards republished as _Spirit of the Nation_, also a memoir of Curran the great Irish lawyer and orator, prefixed to an ed. of his speeches; and he had formed many literary plans which were brought to naught by his untimely death.

DAVY, SIR HUMPHREY (1778-1829).--Chemist and man of letters, _s._ of a wood-carver, was _b._ at Penzance. He early showed an enthusiasm for natural science, and continued to pursue his studies when apprenticed in 1795 to a surgeon. He became specially interested in chemistry, to which in 1797 he began more exclusively to devote himself. Thereafter he a.s.sisted Dr. Beddoes in his laboratory at Bristol, and entered upon his brilliant course of chemical discovery. His _Researches, Chemical, and Philosophical_ (1799), led to his appointment as Director of the Chemical Laboratory at the Royal Inst.i.tution, where he also delivered courses of scientific lectures with extraordinary popularity. Thereafter his life was a succession of scientific triumphs and honours. His great discovery was that of the metallic bases of the earths and alkalis. He also discovered various metals, including sodium, calcium, and magnesium. In 1812 he was knighted, and _m._ a wealthy widow. Thereafter he investigated volcanic action and fire-damp, and invented the safety lamp.

In 1818 he was _cr._ a baronet, and in 1820 became Pres. of the Royal Society, to which he communicated his discoveries in electro-magnetism.

In addition to his scientific writings, which include _Elements of Agricultural Chemistry_ (1813), and _Chemical Agencies of Electricity_, he wrote _Salmonia, or Days of Fly Fishing_ (1828), somewhat modelled upon Walton, and _Consolations in Travel_ (1830), dialogues on ethical and religious questions. D. sustained an apoplectic seizure in 1826, after which his health was much impaired, and after twice wintering in Italy, he _d._ at Geneva, where he received a public funeral. Though not attached to any Church, D. was a sincerely religious man, strongly opposed to materialism and scepticism. He holds a foremost place among scientific discoverers.

DAY, JOHN (_b._ 1574).--Dramatist, _s._ of a Norfolk yeoman, was at Camb., 1592-3. It is only since 1881 that his works have been identified.

He collaborated with Dekker and others in plays, and was the author of _The Isle of Gulls_ (1606), _Law Trickes_ (1608), and _Humour out of Breath_ (1608), also of an allegorical masque, _The Parliament of Bees_.

DAY, THOMAS (1748-1789).--Miscellaneous writer, was _b._ in London, _ed._ at the Charterhouse and at Oxf., and called to the Bar 1775, but having inherited in infancy an independence, he did not practise. He became a disciple of Rousseau in his social views, and endeavoured to put them in practice in combination with better morality. He was a benevolent eccentric, and used his income, which was increased by his marriage with an heiress, in schemes of social reform as he understood it. He is chiefly remembered as the author of the once universally-read _History of Sandford and Merton_.

DEFOE, DANIEL (1661?-1731).--Journalist and novelist, _s._ of a butcher in St. Giles, where he was _b._ His _f._ being a Dissenter, he was _ed._ at a Dissenting coll. at Newington with the view of becoming a Presbyterian minister. He joined the army of Monmouth, and on its defeat was fortunate enough to escape punishment. In 1688 he joined William III.

Before settling down to his career as a political writer, D. had been engaged in various enterprises as a hosier, a merchant-adventurer to Spain and Portugal, and a brickmaker, all of which proved so unsuccessful that he had to fly from his creditors. Having become known to the government as an effective writer, and employed by them, he was appointed Accountant in the Gla.s.s-Duty Office, 1659-1699. Among his more important political writings are an _Essay on Projects_ (1698), and _The True-born Englishman_ (1701), which had a remarkable success. In 1702 appeared _The Shortest Way with the Dissenters_, written in a strain of grave irony which was, unfortunately for the author, misunderstood, and led to his being fined, imprisoned, and put in the pillory, which suggested his _Hymns to the Pillory_ (1704). Notwithstanding the disfavour with the government which these disasters implied, D.'s knowledge of commercial affairs and practical ability were recognised by his being sent in 1706 to Scotland to aid in the Union negotiations. In the same year _Jure Divino_, a satire, followed by a _History of the Union_ (1709), and _The Wars of Charles XII._ (1715). Further misunderstandings and disappointments in connection with political matters led to his giving up this line of activity, and, fortunately for posterity, taking to fiction.