Wood's

vol.ü.

are full of things relating to polite literature, are agreeable enough to read, fave that they are written, like his history, a little too rhetorically.

We know not the year of Strada's birth, or of his death.

STREATER (mr. ROBERT) an English painter, was born in the year 1624, and being a perfon of great industry as well as capacity, arrived to an eminent degree of perfection in his art. He excelled particularly in history, architecture, and perspective; and fhewed himself a great master by the truth of his outlines, and skill in forefhortning his figures. He was also excellent in landscape and still-life ; and there is some fruit of his painting, yet to be feen, which is of the highest Italian gufto, both for pencilling, judg ment, and compofition. It is faid, that he was the greatest and moft univerfal painter England ever bred, which is fuppofed to have been owing in fome measure to his reading; for he was reputed a very good hiftorian. He had a very good collection of Italian books, drawings, and prints, after the best masters. Upon the reftoration of Charles II. he was made his majesty's ferjeant-painter; for that king was a lover of painting and painters, as well as his father. He became violently afflicted with the ftone, and refolved to be cut; which the king hearing of, and having a great kindness for him, fent on purpose to France for a furgeon, who came and performed the operation, which, however, Streater did not long furvive. He died in 1680, at fifty-fix years of age, having spent his life in great efteem and reputation. His principal works were, at the Theatre at Oxford, some cielings at Whitehall, now burnt, the battle of the giants with the gods, at fir Robert's Clayton's, the pictures of Mofes and Aaron at St. Michael's church in Cornhill, &c. &c.

STRYPE (JOHN) an English compiler of lives and Fafti Oxon. memoirs, was defcended from a German family, and born Birch's Life at London, but it is not mentioned in what year. He was of Tillotion, educated at Catharine-Hall in Cambridge, and took a master p. 328, of arts degree; to which he was alfo admitted at Oxford the 11th of July 1671. He was at firft rector of Theydon

1752, in

Boys in Effex, which he was collated to in July 1669, and refigned in February following for the vicarage of Low-Layton in the fame county. In 1684, he diftinguifhed himself as an editor of the fecond volume of dr. John Lightfoot's works; and in 1694, he published The memorials of archbishop Cranmer, wherein the history of the church, and the reformation of it during his primacy, are greatly illuftrated, &c. dedicated to archbishop Tillotson. He compiled a great number of works in the fame way; and dr. Birch tells us, that "his fi «delity and industry will always give a value to his nume

rous writings, however deftitute of the graces and even "uniformity of ftyle, and the art of connecting facts."

Befides his living he had a confiderable fine cure, given him by archbishop Tenifon; and was lecturer of Hackney near London, where he died at the house of mr. Harris an apothecary, who had married his grand-daughter, on the 13th of December 1737. He lived to an uncommon age, having enjoyed his vicarage near fixty-eight years. He kept an exact diary of his own life, which contains many curious circumstances, relating to the literary history of his times, as it is eafy to conceive, he being engaged in a frequent correfpondence by letters with archbishop Wake, the bishops Burnet, Nicholson, Atterbury, and other eminent perfons. Dr. Birch fays, he has seen it.

Oton. vol

i.

1721.

STUBBE (HENRY) an English writer of uncommon Wood's parts and learning, and especially noted in his own times, Athen. was born at Partney, near Spilsbye in Lincolnshire, the 28th p. 56c, of February 1631. His father was a minifter, and lived at &c. edit. Spilsbye; but being Anabaptistically inclined, and forced to leave, it, he went with his wife and children into Ireland. Upon the breaking out of the rebellion there in 1641, the mother fled with her fon Henry into England, and landing at Liverpool, trudged it on foot from thence to London. There fhe got a comfortable fubfiftence by her needle, and fent her fon Henry, being then ten years of age, to Weftminfter-school, where dr. Bufby was fo ftruck with the furprifing parts of the boy, that he fhewed him more than ordinary favour, and recommended him to the notice of fir Henry Vane, junior, who one day came accidentally into

the

the school. Sir Henry took a fancy to him, frequently relieved him with money, and gave him the liberty of reforting to his house, "to fill that belly," fays Stubbe," which "otherwife had no fuftenance, but what one penny could "purchase for his dinner, and which had no breakfast, ex"cept he got it by making fome body's exercife." He fays this in the preface to his Epiftolary discourse concerning phlebotomy; from whence, many other particulars of his life, mentioned by mr. Wood, and here recorded, are also to be found. Soon after fir Henry got him to be a king's scholar; and his mafter at the fame time gave him money to buy books, cloaths, and his teaching for nothing, on account of the wonderful progress he made.

In 1649, he was elected student of Chrift-Church in Oxford, where, fhewing himself too forward, pragmatical, and conceited, he was, as mr. Wood relates, often kicked and beaten. However, through the interest of his patron, he was certainly of no small confequence; for the oath called The engagement, being framed by the parliament that fame year, was fome time after fent down to the university by him; and he procured fome to be turned out, and others to be fpared, according as affection or difaffection influenced him. While he continued under-graduate, it was usual with him to difcourfe in the public fchools very fluently in the Greek tongue, which conveys no fmall idea of his learning. After he had taken a bachelor of arts degree, he went into Scotland, and ferved in the parliament army there from 1653, to 1655: then he returned to Oxford, and took a mafter's degree in 1656; and, at the motion of dr. Owen, was in 1657, made fecond-keeper under dr. Barlow, of the Bodleian library. He made great use and advantage of this poft for the furtherance of his ftudies, and held it till 1659, when he was removed from it, as well as from his place of ftudent of Chrift-Church, having published the fame year, A vindication of his patron fir Henry Vane; An effay on the good old caufe; and a piece intitled, Light fhining out of darkness, with an apology for the Quakers, in which he reflected upon the clergy and the universities.

After his ejection he retired to Stratford upon Avon in Warwickshire, in order to practice phyfic, which he had

ftudied

ftudied fome years; and upon the restoration applied to dr. Morley, foon bishop of Winchester, for protection in his retirement. He affured him of an inviolable paffive obedience, which was all he could or would pay, till the covenant was renounced; and, upon the re-establishment of epifcopacy, received confirmation from the hands of his diocefan. In 1661, he went to Jamaica, being honoured with the title of his majefty's phyfician for that ifland; but the climate not agreeing with him, he returned and fettled at Stratford. Afterwards he removed to Warwick, where he gained very confiderable practice, as likewife at Bath, which he frequented in the fummer feafon. He did not however apply fo clofely to the bufinefs of his profeffion, as to neglect every thing elfe; on the contrary, he was ever attentive to the tranfactions of the literary world, and was often himself a principal party concerned. Before the restoration, he had joined mr. Hobbes, with whom he was intimately acquainted, against dr. Wallis, and other mathematicians; and had published a very smart piece or two in that controverfy, in which he was looked upon as mr. Hobbes's fecond. After the reftoration, he was engaged in a controverfy with some members of the royal fociety, or rather with the royal fociety itself; in which, far from being a second, he was now a principal, and indeed alone.

The royal fociety had from its first institution alarmed the zeal of the admirers of the old philofophy, who affected to represent the views of many of its members to be the deftruction, not only of true learning, but even of religion itself. This gave occafion to dr. Sprat's Hiftory of the royal fociety, in 1667, and to a difcourfe by mr. Glanvill in 1668, under the title of Plus ultra, or, the progrefs and advancement of knowledge fince the days of Ariftotle, in an account of fome of the most remarkable late improvements of practical useful learning, to encourage philofophical endeavours. Mr. Stubbe attacked both these works with great warmth and severity, yet with prodigious smartness and learning, in a 4to volume, thus intitled, Legends no histories, or, a fpecimen of fome animadverfions upon the hiftory of the royal fociety; together with the Plus ultra of mr. Glanvill, reduced to a Non plus, 1670. In this book

he

Reply to a Jetter written to Henry Stubbe, in defence of the History of the royal fociety, P.

Preface to Epiftolary difcourfe

concerning

he charges the members of the royal fociety, with intentions to bring contempt upon ancient and folid learning, especially the Ariftotelian philofophy, to undermine the univerfities, to deftroy the established religion, and even to introduce popery. This laid the foundation of a controversy, which was carried on with great heat, and much ill language, for fome time; and mr. Stubbe wrote feveral pieces to fupport his allegations. He was encouraged in this affair by dr. Fell, who, it feems, was no admirer of the royal fociety; and he made himself so obnoxious to that body, that, as he himself informs us, "they threatened to write his "life."

ઃ

The writings of mr. Stubbe, though his life (as will be seen) was no long one, were extremely numerous, and variupon ous fubjects. Those which he published before the reftoration, were against monarchy, minifters, universities, churches, and every thing which was dear to the royalifts; yet he did this more to please and serve his friend and patron fir Henry Vane, than out of principle or attachment to a party: and when his antagonists infulted him for changing his tone afterwards, he made no fcruple at all to confefs it: "My "youth," fays he, " and other circumftances, incapacitated "me from rendering him any great fervices; but all that phlebotomy. "I did, and all that I wrote, had no other aim: nor do I, tr care, how much any man can inodiate my former wri"tings, fo long as they were fubfervient to him." The truth is, and all, fays mr. Wood, who knew him in Oxford, knew this of him for certain, that he was no frequenter of conventicles, no taker of the covenant, or engagement, no contractor of acquaintance with notorious fectaries; that he neither enriched or otherwife advanced himself during the late troubles, or fhared the common odium, and dangers, or profperity of his benefactor. On this account he eafily made his peace with the royalifts, after the restoration: yet not, as it fhould feem, without fome overt-acts on his part. Thus, for inftance, befides conforming intirely to the church of England, he wrote a fmall piece against Harrington's Oceana, in the year 1660; which, in the preface to The good old caufe, printed in 1659, he had extolled, as if, fays mr. Wood, "it were the pattern in the mount." By thefe

means