Nature, a Systematic Treatise of the Causes and Laws of Natural Phenomena' (London, 8vo). This work is certainly the result of long-continued and careful thought. It deals 'with the relationship of the principal sciences, both concrete and pure; it shows t hat whatever department of nature we make the object of our investigation, whether as to its outward appearance or as to its inner constitution, it will be found to have both a real and ideal side, and accordingly as we direct our attention to the one or the other, the knowledge obtained must relate either to forces or ideas—that it must be resolved into either a physical or a formal science,' There is a considerable amount of deductive power shown in this volime, but the reasoning from the inductive facts is not always satisfactory. This work never attracted any special notice; the neglect being evidently due, as Boase himself expresses it, to 'the frequent antagonism of our opinions to those which more generally prevail.' He also published: 'An Essay on Human Nature, London, 1865 (8vo); 'The Second Adam, the Seed of the Woman,' anon., London, 1876 (8vo); 'A few Words on Evolution and Creation,' London, 1883 (8vo).
In addition to the above we find that Boase contributed several memoirs and papers to the 'Transactions of the Cornwall Geological Society ' and to scientific journals, the following being the most important; those omitted were chiefly devoted to the chemical examination of metallic and earthy minerals: 1. 'Observations on the Submersion of part of the Mount's Bay, and on the Inundation of Marine Sand on the North Coast of Cornwall,' 'Cornwall Geol. Soc. Trans.' ii. 1822. 2. 'On the Differences in the Annual Statements of the quantity of Rain falling in adjacent places, Thompson's 'Ann. Phil.' iv. 1822. 3. 'Some Observations on the Alluvial Fonuations of the Western part of Cornwall,' 'Cornwall Geol. Soc. Trans.' iii. 1827. 4. 'Contributions towards a Knowledge of the Geology of Cornwall' (1830), ibid. iv. 1832. 5. 'Note on Capros aper Lacép., Zeus aper Linn., and a Tetrodon taken in Mount's Bay, Cornwall,' 'Zoological Society Proceedings,' i. 1833. 6. 'An Inquiry into the Nature of the Structure of Rocks,' 'Philosophical Magazine,' vii. 1836. 7. 'Remarks on Mr. Hopkins's "Researches on Physical Geology,"' ibid. ix. 1836; with 'Additional Remarks on these " Researches,"' ibid. x. 1837. 8. 'A Sketch of M. Faye's "Examen d'un Memoire de M. Plante sur la force répulsive et le milieu résistant," with a few remarks thereon,' ibid. xxi. 1861.
Boase died after a short illness on 5 May 1883, leaving a numerous family by his wife, Elizabeth Valentina, who died in 1876. This lady was the eldest daughter of William Stoddard.
[Transactions of the Royal Cornwall Geological Society; Royal Society's Catalogue of Scientific Papers; Boase and Courtney's Bibl. Cornubiensis.]
BOAST, JOHN. [See Bost.]
BOATE, DE BOOT, BOOTIUS, or BOTIUS, ARNOLD (1600?–1653?), Hebraist, was the son of Godefrid de Boot of Gorcom, Holland. Born about 1600 he graduated at the university of Leyden, where he received the degree of doctor of medicine, and applied himself assiduously to the study of Hebrew rabbinical writings. His labours in that direction were mainly in relation to questions which had been raised concerning the various readings in the Hebrew text of the Bible, and the possibility of correcting them by the Septuagint. Boate's first work appears to have been that produced in conjunction with Francis Taylor, and published at Leyden in 1630 with the following title: 'Examen Præfationis Morini in Biblia Graeca de textus Ebraici corruptione et Graeci authoritate: cujus auctores Franciscus Taylor et Arnoldus Bootius.' The publication consisted of 226 pages, 12mo, and the preface was dated at London in October 1636. About this time Boate entered into correspondence with Primate Ussher, then engaged on biblical and chronological works. At his instance Boate became a resident in Dublin, where many Dutch merchants then carried on trade, and through Ussher's influence he soon acquired extensive medical practice. A treatise by Boate and his brother Gerard depreciatory of the Aristotelian philosophy was published at Dublin in 1641, with the following title: 'Philosophia Naturalis reformata, id est Philosophiæ Aristotelicæ accurata exaininatio ac solida confutatio et novæ et verioris introductio. Per Gerardum et Arnoldum Bootios, fratres Hollandos, medicinæ doctores.' This volume of three hundred and eighty pages in small quarto was dedicated to Robert Sydney, earl of Leicester, then recently appointed to the viceroyalty of Ireland, and father of Algernon Syaney. Prefixed to the book were also dedicatory epistles to Primate Ussher and to the university of Leyden, of which the authors designated themselves 'quondam alumni.' A certificate was also prefixed under date of 18 Jan. 1640–1, from Edward Parry chaplain to the archbishop of Dublin, and subsequently bishop of Ossory. On Christmas day 1642 Boate was married at Dublin to Margaret, daughter of Thomas Dungan,
