work than that of preaching, that he declined to accept some of the most important offices in the gift of his denomination.
LYDIUS, Johannes, clergyman, b. in Holland;
d. in Schenectady, N. Y., 1 March, 1709. He had
held the pastorate of a Reformed church in Ant-
werp, Belgium, but came to this country in 1700,
and was settled at Albany. He also labored in
Schenectady after 1705, and from 1702 till his death
did missionary work among the Indians. Robert
Livingston, the Indian agent, had promised the
Mohawks in 1700 that he would engage Lydius to
learn their language and preach the gospel to
them, and that he hoped soon to have the Bible
translated for their benefit. In 1702 the " praying
Indians" represented to the agent that Lydius
" had exhorted them to live as Christians," and
that his teachings had so wrought on their spirits
that " they were all now united and friends." They
returned hearty thanks for the pains that he had
taken with them, which they acknowledged with a
belt of wampum, and when Lydius died they pre-
sented four beaver-skins to the agent as an expres-
sion of condolence. Lydius ministered among the
tribes of the B^ive Nations, and received from the
governor and council suitable compensation for
his services. About thirty Indian communicants
were connected with his church when Lydius died.
The latter is represented by Thomas Barclay, his
contemporary, and a clergyman of the Church of
England, as " a good, pious man," who " lived in
entire friendship " with him, and " sent his own
children to be catechized." — His son, John Henry,
Indian trader, b. in Antwerp, Belgium, in 1693 ;
d. near London, England, in 1791, became an In-
dian trader in the province of Xew York, and un-
derstood several native dialects, among them Cher-
okee, Choctaw, and Catawba, besides speaking
Dutch, French, and English iiuently. He was a
counsellor of Sir William Johnson, and for several
years governor at Fort Edward. An English
writer is responsible for the statement that the
Lydius family were possessed of considerable land-
ed property in the province under an original grant
from James I., and that the Indians, grateful for
the services of the father as a missionary, added to
these domains a large tract of country in central
New York. Lydius is said to have gone to Eng-
land in 1776 to solicit arrears for services that he
had rendered the government and money that he
had expended, and to visit Holland. Before leav-
ing New York he gave homesteads to many fami-
lies, and urged his children to pursue the same
policy. He never returned to this country, but
resided in Kensington, London, until his death.
LYELL, Sir Charles, bart., English geologist, b.
in Kinnordy, Forfarshire, 14 Nov., 1797 ; d. in Lon-
don, 22 Feb., 1875. He was the eldest son of
Charles Lyell, of Kinnordy, and was graduated at
Oxford in 1819. He then studied law, and was
admitted to the bar, but abandoned the profession
and gave himself to his favorite study of geology.
He made extensive geological tours in Europe in
1824, and again in 1828-30, giving the results of
his observations in the " Transactions of the Geo-
logical Society " and elsewhere. In 1830 appeared
the first volume of his great work. " The Princi-
ples of Geology," which in scientific circles at-
tracted much attention. The second volume appeared in 1832, and the third in 1833. Meantime
he was named professor of geology at King's col-
lege, London, but he filled the office only for a
short time. Another remarkable work from his pen
appeared in 1838, entitled '• The Elements of Ge-
ology." These works, which efcected a revolution
in geological science, went counter to the univer-
sally accepted Huttonian theory, that the former
changes of the earth and its inhabitants were due
to causes differing in kind and intensity from
those now in operation, and taught that the true
ke.y to the interpretation of the geological move-
ments was to be found in a correct knowledge of
the changes now going on. Sir Charles visited
this continent on two occasions, and made exten-
sive explorations in the United States, Canada, and
Nova Scotia. His " Travels in North America "
appeared in 1841, and his '"Second Visit to the
United States," in which he treats of the social as
well as geological characteristics of the New World,
was published in 1845. Sir Charles was president
of the Geological society in 1836 and 1850, and
in 1864 of the British association. In 1848 he
was honored with knighthood, and in 1864 he was
made a baronet. In 1855 his own university con-
ferred upon him the title of D. C. L., and" from
Cambridge he received the degree of LL. D. His
latest work was " The Geological Evidences of the
Antiquity of Man. with Remarks on Theories of
the Origin of Species by Variation " (1863).
LYELL, Thomas, clergyman, b. in Richmond
county, Va., 13 May, 1775; d. in New York city,
4 March, 1848. His parents were members of the
Protestant Episcopal church, but. as there were no
clergyman of that denomination in the neighbor-
hood, young Lyell was early thrown with the
Methodists. When only fifteen years old he be-
gan to exhort, and after teaching for two years
he saved enough money to purchase a horse, and
in 1792, after examination, was admitted to preach
on trial as an itinerant. He labored on the Fred-
erick circuit in Virginia, and subsequently in
Providence, R. I., and was chaplain to congress
during the closing years of the administration of
John Adams and the early part of that of Thomas
Jefferson. He often spoke of the shock he experi-
enced at the first official dinner that was given by
the latter on finding the usual blessing omitted,
although both congressional chaplains were pres-
ent. Subsequently Mr. Lyell received orders in
the Protestant Episcopal church from Bishop
Claggett in 1804, and at the close of that year he
became rector of Christ church. New York city,
where he remained for over forty years. He was
given the degree of A. M. by Brown in 1803 and
that of D. D. by Columbia in 1822. He was sec-
retary of the convention of the diocese from 1811
until he declined re-election in 1816, a member of
the diocesan standing committee from 1813 until
his death, a deputy to the general convention from
1818 until 1844, a trustee of the General theological
seminary from 1822, and an active member of
nearly all the institutions of his diocese.
LYLE, John, clergyman, b. in Rockbridge county, Va., 20 Oct., 1769; d. in Paris, Ky., 22 July, 1825. He was graduated at Liberty Hall in 1794, and after teaching, studied theology, and was licensed to preach as a Presbyterian in 1797. He was ordained two years later, and in 1800 took charge of the churches of Salem and Sugar Ridge, in Clark county, where he remained several years
and opened a school. In May, 1807. he removed to Paris, Ky., where he established an academy, at the same time preaching to the churches of Cane Ridge and Concord. About 1810 he withdrew from the academy, as well as from the churches, and soon after began preaching near Cynthiana,
Harrison co. He subsequently gave up pastoral work and devoted the rest of his life to missionary labors. Mr. Lyle was a thorough scholar and did much for the cause of education in the This page needs to be proofread
