SEVENTEENTH CENTURY.
MI
\»ibles were several times printed both in Holland and England ; an edition was on sale in Eng- land at the commencement of the nineteenth century, dated 1682, with a London title, though printed at Amsterdam. His best printel bibles are on a fine silky paper ; and should not exceed erne inch in thickness, including the corere. John Basket, at Cambridge, printed an edition in 4to, 1720.
16^. The LordCi Pruytr, in forty lang^uages, was printed at Riga, the capital or Livonia, in Russia. — Le Long. The British museum con- tains a LivoMc tatament executed at Riga in 1685, and a Lnoaic Bible, in 1689.
1663. Thomas Johnson printed a comedy, entitled the Poor Scholar, written by George Nevile, fellow of King's college, Cambridge.
Spectatum admini rlaom teneatia amici.
Hur. de Art, Poet.
London: printed for Francis Kirkman and Henry Marsh, and are to be sold at their shop, at the Princes arms, in Chancery lane. 1662.
1662, July 1. The Inullu/eitetr.
1663, Au^t 24. On this day was passed the Act of Umformity, by which two thousand ministers were silenced and (gected from the boaom of the established church. Dr. CaUuny* chronicles this bloodless martyrology. Their history is not glorious, and uieir heroes are obscure ; but it is a domestic tale ! When the second Charles was restored, the presbyterians, like every other faction, were to be amused, if not courted. Some of the king's chaplains were selected from among them, and preached once. Their hopes were raised that they should, by some agreement be enabled to share in that ecclesiastical establishment which they bad so often opposed; and the bishops met the presby- ters in a convocation at the Savoy. A confer- ence was held between the high church, resum- ing the seat of power, and the low church, now prostrate ; that is, between the old clergy who had recently been mercilessly ejected by the new, who in their turn were awaiting their fate. The conference was closed with arguments by the weaker, and votes by the stronger. Many curious anecdotes of this conference have come down to us. The presbyterians, in their last struggle, petitioned for indulgence: but op- pressors who had become petitioners, only showed that they possessed no longer the means of resistance. These divines were not driven from their father-land, and compelled to learn another
- Bdmmd Cilam7 was born In lOoo, and educated at
OamMdKC. He Joined the nonconformbti, and obtained the valuable recMry of Rochford, in Baaex. In Idas, he was chosen miniaterof St. Mary Aldermanbnry, on which he removed to London, and enga^ced warmly in the reli. (iooa diapates of the timea. He was one of the wrtten of the celebnted treatise against episcopacy, entitled Smee- hrnmauy a word formed form the Initials and somame of those connected with it. He opposed both the exeeation of Charies I. and the usurpation of Cromwdl, for which, an the restoration, be was oilto«d the bishopric of Ucb. Held, which he refused. The act of anUonnity obliged him to resign his chnrcfa poferment. He died October sg, lOOd, and hla death is soppoaed to have been hastened by witnessing the treat Oie of London.
language than their mother-tongue. Destitute as £vine8, they were suffered to remain as citi- zens; and the result was remarkable. These divines could not disrobe themselves of their learning and their piety, while several of them were compelled to become tradesmen: among these the learned Samuel Chandler, whose lite- raiy productions are numerous, kept a book- seller's shop in the Poultry. — Ifltraeli.
1662. The office of licencer of the press which had been abolished during the usurpation of Cromwell, was restored by an act of parliament. By this act, the press, with reference to its dif- ferent productions, was placed under the domi- nion of the judges, some of the officers of state, and the archbishop of Canterbury. Thus it will be seen, that the control of the press no longer remained a royal prerogative of the crown, but was passed into the possession of the legislature, and made the subject of statutory enactment. It has already been shewn (see page 247, ante,) that very soon after the introduction of printing into England, the king assumed the right ol controlling the exercise of the art, not merely in regard to certain classes, but in regwd to aU classes of books ; and there was no stretch of jurisdiction in this matter which the prerogative did not claim to possess, and which, therefore, it might not upon the same grounds tranfer to be exercised by another ; for the king assumed not only the right of exclusive printing, but also of excluave selling to whom he pleased. This was asserted in its fullest extent down to the abolition of the star chamber, 1641. The censors, or licensers of books appointed by that court were appointed in virtue of the supposed royal prerogative, and were conceived to derive from Its all comprehensive nature that universal au- thority over the press which they were empowered to exercise. The abolition of the star chamber, however, did not long leave the press free. By the above act, the parliament soon took up the office of censorship which the royal court no longer exercised. In vain did Milton attempt to prevent this usurpation ; it was perpetrated in defiance of all his eloquence and all his un- answerable arguments. But still an important principle was asserted by the parliament having thus taken the matter into their own hands. The ground thus gained was preserved at the restoration ; tideed, the press was put under a censorship, but the yoke was imposed upon it by an act of parliament. Subsequent acts con- tinued the grievance till 1694, when the last restrictive law expired. From that date the press in England has been commonly considered to be free.
1662, Dee. Died, William Do Gard, an eminent schoolmaster, orator, poet, and printer. He was born in the parish of Bromsgrove, in Worcestershire, January 9, 1605, and admitted a pensioner of Sidney Sussex college, Cambridge, Sept. 17, 1622, where he took the degree of M. A. In 1629, he was usher of Onndh school, in Northamptonshire ; the same year, appointed master at Stamford free school, in Lincolnshire ;
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