by daily prayer and meditation, at length attained to this mastery over himself.

As foon as he rofe in the morning, it was, throughout his whole life, his daily practice to retire for an hour to private prayer and meditation; this, he often told his friends, gave him spirit and vigour in the bufinefs of the day, and this he therefore commended as the beft rule of life; for nothing, he knew, could fupport the foul in all diftreffes but a confidence in the Supreme Being, nor can a steady and rational magnanimity flow from any other fource than a confcioufnefs of the divine favour.

He afferted on all occafions the divine authority, and facred efficacy of the holy fcriptures; and maintained that they alone taught the way of falvation, and that they only could give peace of mind. The excellency of the Chriftian religion was the frequent subject of his conversation. A strict obedience to the doctrine, and a diligent imitation of the example of our Bleffed Saviour, he often declared to be the foundation of true tranquillity. He recommended to his friends a careful obfervation of the precept of Mofes concerning the love of God and man. He worshiped God as he is in himself, without attempting to enquire into his nature. He defired only to think of God, what God knows of himfelf. There he stopped, left, by indulging his own ideas, he fhould form a Deity from his own imagination, and fin by falling down before him. To the will of God he paid an abfolute fubmiffion, without endeavouring to difcover the reason of his determinations; and this he accounted the first and most inviolable duty of a Chriftian. When he A 2 2 heard

heard of a criminal condemned to die, he used to think, who can tell whether this man is not better than I or, if I am better, it is not to be aferibed to my felf, but to the goodness of God.

Such were the fentiments of Boerhaave, whofe words we have added in the note *. So far was this man from being made impious by philofophy, or vain by knowledge, or by virtue, that he afcribed all his abilities to the bounty, and all his goodness to the grace of God. May his example extend its influence to his admirers and followers! May those who ftudy his writings imitate his life! and thofe who endeavour after his knowledge afpire likewife to his piety!

He married, September 17, 1710, Mary Drolen veaux, the only daughter of a burgo-mafter of Leyden, by whom he had Joanna Maria, who furvives her father, and three other children who died in their infancy.

The works of this great writer are fo generally known, and so highly esteemed, that, though it may

*Doctrinam facris literis Hebraicè & Græcè traditam, folam animg falutarem & agnovit & fenfit. Omni opportunitate profitebatur difciplinam, quam Jefus Chriftus ore & vita expreflit, unicè tran quilitatem date menti. Semperque dixit amicis, pacem animi hand reperiundam nifi in magno Mofis præcepto de fincero amore Dei & hominis bene obfervato. Neque extra facra monumenta ufpiam inveniri, quod mentem fercnet. Deum pius adoravit, qui ett. In telligere de Deo unicè volebat id, quod Deus de fe intelligit. Eo contenus ultra nihil requiiivit, ne idololatria erraret. In voluntate Jei fic requiefcebat, ut illius nullam omnino rationem indagandam putaret. Hanc unicè fupremam omnium legen effe contendebat; deliberata conftantia perfcctiffimè colendam. De aliis & feipfo fentiebat: ut quoties criminis reos ad poenas letales damnatos audiret, femper cogitaret, fæpe diceret; Quis dixerat annon me fint "meliores? Ung iple melior, id non mihi auctori tribuendum cile palam aio, confiteor; fed ita largienti Deo." Orig. Edit.

6.

not

not be improper to enumerate them in the order of time in which they were published, it is wholly unneceffary to give any other account of them.

He published in 1707, "Inftitutiones Medicæ," to which he added in 1708 "Aphorifmi de cognofcendis ❝ & curandis morbis."

1710, "Index ftirpium in horto academico." 1719, "De materia medica, & remediorum for"mulis liber;" and in 1727 a fecond edition.' 1720, "Alter index ftirpium," &c. adorned with plates, and containing twice the number of plants as

the former.

1722, "Epiftola ad cl. Ruifchium, quâ fententiam Malpighianam de glandulis defendit." 1724, "Atrocis nec prius defcripti morbi hiftoria

"illuftriffimi baronis Waffenariæ."

1725, "Opera anatomica & chirurgica Andreæ "Vefalii," with the life of Vefalius.

1728, Altera atrocis rariffimique morbi mar"chionis de Sancto Albano hiftoria."

"Auctores de lue Aphrodifiaca, cum tractatu " præfixo."

1731, "Aretaei Cappadocis nova editio."
"Elementa chemiæ."

1732,

1734, "Obfervata de argento vivo, ad reg. foc. &

"acad. fcient."

These are the writings of the great Boerhaave, which have made all encomiums useless and vain, fince no man can attentively perufe them without admiring the abilities, and reverencing the virtue of the author

* Gent. Mag. 1739, p. 176.

BLA K E

A

Ta time when a nation is engaged in a war with an enemy, whofe infults, ravages, and barbarities, have long called for vengeance, an account of such English commanders as have merited the acknowledgements of pofterity, by extending the power, and raifing the honour of their country, feem to be no improper entertainment for our readers. We fhall therefore attempt a fuccinct narration of the life and actions of admiral Blake, in which we have nothing farther in view than to do juftice to his bravery and conduct, without intending any parallel between his atchievements and thofe of our prefent admirals,

ROBERT BLAKE was born at Bridgwater, in Somerfetfhire, in Auguft 1598, his father being a merchant of that place, who had acquired a confiderable fortune by the Spanish trade. Of his carlicft years we have no account, and therefore can amufe the reader with none of thofe prognofticks of his future actions, fo often met with in memoirs.

In 1615 he entered into the university of Oxford, where he continued till 1623, though without being

• This Life was first printed in the Gentleman's Magazine for the year 1740.

much

much countenanced or careffed by his fuperiors, for he was more than once difappointed in his endeavours after academical preferments. It is obfervable that Mr. Wood (in his Athenæ Oxonienfes) afcribes the repulfe he met with at Wadham College, where he was competitor for a fellowship, either to want of learning, or of ftature. With regard to the first objection, the fame writer had before imformed us, that he was an early rifer, and ftudious, though he fometimes relieved his attention by the amufements of fowling and fishing. As it is highly probable that he did not want capacity, we may therefore conclude, upon this confeffion of his diligence, that he could not fail of being learned, at least in the degree requifite to the enjoy ment of a fellowship; and may fafely afcribe his dif appointment to his want of ftature, it being the custom of Sir Henry Savil, then warden of that college, to pay much regard to the outward appearance of thofe who folicited preferment in that fociety. So much do the greatest events owe fometimes to accident or folly!

He afterwards retired to his native place, where "he "lived," fays Clarendon, " without any appearance of "ambition to be a greater man than he was, but in"veighed with great freedom against the licence of "the times, and power of the court."

In 1640 he was chofen burgefs for Bridgwater by the Puritan party, to whom he had recommended himself by his difapprobation of bifhop Laud's violence and feverity, and his non-compliance with thofe new ceremonies which he was then endeavouring to introduce.

When the civil war broke out, Blake, in conformity with his avowed principles, declared for the pariiament; and, thinking a bare declaration for right not all the duty of a good man, raifed a troop of dragoons A a 4

for