The Nuttall Encyclopaedia Part 84

BOURDON, SEBASTIAN, a French painter, born at Montpellier; his _chef-d'oeuvre_ "The Crucifixion of St. Peter," executed for the church of Notre Dame (1616-1671).

BOURDON DE L'OISE, a French revolutionist, member of the Convention; banished to Guiana, where he died in 1791.

BOURGELAT, a famous French veterinary surgeon, born at Lyons, and founder of veterinary colleges at Lyons in 1762; was an authority on horse management, and often consulted on the matter (1712-1779).

BOURGEOIS, SIR FRANCIS, painter to George III.; left his collection to Dulwich College, and 10,000 to build a gallery for them (1756-1811).

BOURGEOISIE, the name given in France to the middle cla.s.s, professional people, and merchants, as distinguished from the n.o.bles and the peasants, but applied by the Socialists to the capitalists as distinct from the workers.

BOURGES (43), a French town in the dep. of Cher; birthplace of Louis XI. and Bourdaloue.

BOURGET, PAUL, an eminent French novelist and essayist, born at Amiens; a subtle a.n.a.lyst of character, with a clear and elegant style, on which he bestows great pains; his novels are what he calls "psychological," and distinct from the romantist and naturalistic; _b_.

1852.

BOURIGNON, ANTOINETTE, a Flemish visionary and fanatic; resolved religion into emotion; brought herself into trouble by the wild fancies she promulgated, to the derangement of others as well as herself (1615-1680).

BOURMONT, LOUIS AUGUSTE VICTOR, COMTE DE, a French marshal; at the Revolution joined the Bourbons on the frontiers; served the royal cause in La Vendee; held high commands under Napoleon; commanded under Ney on Napoleon's return from Elba; deserted on the eve of Waterloo to Louis XVIII.; gave evidence against Ney to his execution; commanded the expedition against Algiers; refused allegiance to Louis Philippe on his accession, and was dismissed the service (1773-1846).

BOURNE, HUGH, founder of the Primitive Methodists, and a zealous propagator of their principles; he was a carpenter by trade, and he appears to have wrought at his trade while prosecuting his mission, which he did extensively both in Britain and America (1772-1852).

BOURNEMOUTH (38), a town in Hants, on Poole Bay, 37 m. SW. of Southampton, with a fine sandy beach; a great health resort; is of recent, and has been of rapid, growth.

BOURRIENNE, LOUIS ANTOINE FAUVELET, secretary of Napoleon, and a school friend, born at Sens; held the post for five years, but dismissed for being implicated in disgraceful money transactions; joined the Bourbons at the Restoration; the Revolution of 1830 and the loss of his fortune affected his mind, and he died a lunatic at Caen; wrote "Memoirs"

disparaging to Napoleon (1769-1834).

BOUSSA, a town in Central Africa, capital of a State of the same name, where Mungo Park lost his life as he was going up the Niger.

BOUSTROPHE'DON, an ancient mode of writing from right to left, and then from left to right, as in ploughing a field.

BOUTERWEK, FRIEDRICH, a German philosopher and professor of Philosophy at Gottingen; a disciple of Kant, then of Jacobi, and expounder of their doctrines; wrote "History of Poetry and Eloquence among the Modern Races" (1766-1828).

BOWDICH, THOMAS EDWARD, an English traveller, born at Bristol; sent on a mission to Guinea, and penetrated as far as Cooma.s.sie; wrote an interesting account of it in his "Mission to Ashanti" (1791-1824).

BOWDITCH, NATHANIEL, American mathematician, born at Salem, Ma.s.sachusetts; a practical scientist; published "Practical Navigation,"

translated the "Mecanique Celeste" of Laplace, accompanied with an elaborate commentary (1773-1838).

BOWDLER, THOMAS, an English physician; edited expurgated editions of Shakespeare and Gibbon in the interest of moral purity; added in consequence a new term to the English language, Bowdlerism (1754-1825).

BOWDOIN, JAMES, an American statesman, born in Boston, of French extraction; a zealous advocate of American independence; author of "Discourse on the Const.i.tution of the United States" (1727-1790).

BOWEN, RICHARD, a gallant British naval commander, distinguished himself in several engagements, and by his captures of the enemy's s.h.i.+ps; killed by grape-shot at the storming of Santa Cruz, at the moment when Nelson was wounded (1761-1797).

BOWER, WALTER, abbot of Inchcolm, Scottish chronicler; continued Fordun's History down to the death of James I. in 1437 from 1153 (1385-1449).

BOWLES, WILLIAM LISLE, a poet, born in Northamptons.h.i.+re; his sonnets, by their "linking," as Professor Saintsbury has it, "of nature's aspect to human feeling," were much admired by Coleridge, and their appearance is believed to have inaugurated a new era in English poetry, as developed in the Lake School (1762-1850).

BOWLING, TOM, a typical British sailor in "Roderick Random."

BOWLING, SIR JOHN, linguist and political writer, born at Exeter; friend and disciple of Bentham as well as editor of his works; first editor of _Westminster Review_; at the instance of the English Government visited the Continental States to report on their commercial relations; became governor of Hong-Kong; ordered the bombardment of Canton, which caused dissatisfaction at home (1792-1872).

BOWYER, WILLIAM, printer and scholar, born in London; wrote on the origin of printing, and published an edition of the Greek New Testament with notes (1699-1777).

"BOX AND c.o.x," a farce by J. M. Morton, remarkable for a successful run such as is said to have brought the author 7000.

BOY BISHOP, a boy chosen on 6th December, St. Nicholas' Day, generally out of the choir, to act as bishop and do all his episcopal duties, except celebrate ma.s.s. For the term of his office, which varied, he was treated as bishop, and if he died during his tenure of it was buried with episcopal honours. The term of office was limited in 1279 to 24 hours.

BOYARS, the old n.o.bility of Russia, whose undue influence in the State was broken by Peter the Great; also the landed aristocracy of Roumania.

BOYCE, WILLIAM, composer, chiefly of church music, born in London; published a collection of the "Cathedral Music of the Old English Masters"; composed "Hearts of Oak," a naval song sung by s.h.i.+ps' crews at one time before going into action (1710-1779).

BOYCOTT, CAPTAIN, an Irish landlord's agent in Connemara, with whom the population of the district in 1880 refused to have any dealings on account of disagreements with the tenantry.

BOYD, ANDREW KENNEDY HUTCHISON, a Scottish clergyman and writer; bred for the bar, but entered the Church; known to fame as A. K. H. B.; author of "Recreations of a Country Parson," which was widely read, and of Reminiscences of his life; died at Bournemouth by mischance of swallowing a lotion instead of a sleeping-draught (1825-1899).

BOYD, ZACHARY, a Scottish divine; regent of a Protestant college at Samur, in France; returned to Scotland in consequence of the persecution of the Huguenots; became minister of Barony Parish, Glasgow, and rector of the University; preached before Cromwell after the battle of Dunbar; author of the "Last Battell of the Soule in Death" and "Zion's Flowers,"

being mainly metrical versions of Scripture, called "Boyd's Bible"

(1585-1653).