officiating in connection therewith in Sr. Thomas's parish, ten miles distant. He received the degree of D. D. from Washington college, Md., in 1785, was active in the work of settling church affairs, directly after the Revolution, and was a corre- spondent of Bishop White, who valued his sound judgment and accurate acquaintance with the important subject of organizing the Protestant Episcopal church and in revising the liturgy. He was secretary of the convention of Maryland, in June, 1784, and president in May, 1790 ; and was a delegate to the general convention.
WEST, William Edward, artist, b. in Lexington, Ky., 10 Dec, 1788; d. in Nashville, Tenn.. 2 Nov., 1857. He was first a pupil of Thomas Sully
in Philadelphia, and in 1819 visited Italy to continue his studies. In 1825 he went, to London, where he remained until 1839. He returned to the
United States, going first to Baltimore in 1840, to New York, and in 1855 to Nashville, Tenn. He excelled especially in portraiture, and in Europe
executed likenesses of Washington Irving, Lord Byron, and the Countess Guiccioli, Percy B. Shelley, Mrs. Hemans, and many other well-known
persons. His' figure-pieces include "Pride of the Village," "Annette de l'Arbre," "Confessional" (belonging to the New York historical society),
"The Toilet," and "Judith and Holofernes."
WESTCOTT, James Diament, senator, b. in
Alexandria, Va., 10 May, 1802; d. in Montreal,
Canada, 12 Jan., 1880. He was the son of James
D. Westcott (1775-1841), who was secretary of state
in New Jersey in 1830-'40, and his grandfather
served in the Revolutionary war as captain of artillery. At an early age he removed with his father to New Jersey, where he received his education,
studied law, was admitted to the bar in 1824, and
practised until 1829. Afterward he was a clerk in
the consular bureau of the state department in
Washington, and in 1830-'4 was secretary of the
territory of Florida, occasionally performing the
duties of the governor. In 1832 he was a member
of the territorial legislature, and in 1834-'6 was
attorney-general for the middle district of Florida.
He served again in the legislature, was a member
of the convention for framing a state constitution
in 1838 and 1839, and on the admission of Florida
into the Union in 1845 was elected to the "U. S.
senate as a Democrat, serving from 1 Dec, 1845,
till 3 March, 1849. On the expiration of his term
he removed to New York city, where he practised
law until 1862, when he went to Canada and remained there until his death. — His son, James Diament, jurist, b. in Tallahassee, Fla., 18 June,
1839, was educated in his native town, studied law,
and was admitted to the bar. He entered the Confederate service at the beginning of the war, and attained the rank of major. In 1885 he became
attorney-general of Florida, Hut resigned this post
a year later, and was appointed a justice of the supreme court.
WESTCOTT, Thompson, editor, b. in Philadelphia, Pa., 5 June, 1820 ; d. there, 8 May, 1888. He was educated at the English schools of the
University of Pennsylvania, studied law, and was admitted to the bar in 1841. In 1846 he became law-reporter on the " Public Ledger," remaining
there until 1851 and frequently acting in an editorial capacity for this journal and for the "Dollar Newspaper." When the " Sunday Despatch " was
begun in 1848 he became its editor and served until 1884. In 1863-'9 he was editor-in-chief of the "Inquirer," and he contributed to this journal until
1876. In 1884 he accepted an editorial appointment on the Philadelphia " Record," which he held for several months, after which he contributed to
the " Public Ledger" and toother journals. Mr. Westcott was the author of a " Life of John Fitch, the Inventor of the Steamboat" (Philadelphia,
1857); "The Taxpayer's Guide" (1864); "Names of Persons who took the Oath of Allegiance to the State of Pennsylvania between the Years 1777 and
1789, with a History of the 'Test Laws' of Pennsylvania" (1865); "The Chronicles of the Great Rebellion against the United States of America,"
first published in the "Old Franklin Almanac" (1867): "Official Guide-Book of Philadelphia" (1876); "Centennial Portfolio" (1876); "Historic Mansions and Buildings of Philadelphia" (1877); and. with J. Thomas Scharf, a "History of Philadelphia, 1609-1884" (3 vols., 1884) ; and contributed to the "Sunday Despatch" a "History of Philadelphia from the First Settlements on the Delaware to the Consolidation in 1854."
WESTERLO, Eilardus, clergyman, b. in Can-
tes, Groningen, Holland, in October, 1738; d. in
Albany, N. Y„ 26 Dec, 1790. His father, Isaac,
was pastor of the church in Cantes. After gradu-
ation at the University of Groningen the son was
licensed to preach, and in 1760 was made pastor of
the Dutch Reformed church in Albany, where he
remained until his death, also supplying quarterly
the charge at Schaghticoke, N. Y. He was influ-
ential in procuring a plan of union for the churches
of his denomination. During the Revolution he
sympathized with the patriots, and delivered the ad-
dress of welcome to Gen. Washington when he visit-
ed Albany in 1782. Among his correspondents he
numbered the Rev. Ezra Stiles, president of Yale,
to whom he frequently wrote in Latin and He-
brew. He left in manuscript an autobiography
containing references to the years between 1761
and 1790, Greek and Hebrew lexicons, complete,
and a translation from the Dutch of Alberthonias's
" Catechism " (1790 ; 2d ed„ 1805). In 1775 he
married the widow of Stephen Van Rensselaer. —
Their son, Rensselaer, b. in Albany in 1775 ; d.
there in 1851, was graduated at Columbia in 1795,
and was elected to congress as a Federalist, serving
from 1 Dec, 1817, till 3 March, 1819.
WESTERMAN, Hans (ves-ter-mon), Alsatian
explorer, b. in Hagenau in 1660; d. in Paris in
1721. He studied law in Strasburg and Paris, but
early showed a strong desire for travel and visited
western Europe, serving as volunteer against the
Turks for a few months, and, after publishing a
narrative of his travels in Paris, sailed for Manila
as supercargo. He afterward visited the East
Indies, where, to avoid difficulties with the Spanish
and Portuguese authorities, he became a
Franciscan friar and received minor orders. Thus
enabled to visit South America, he sailed from
Manila for Acapulco, going afterward to Mexico
and Vera Cruz, made an exploration of the
pyramids of Tezcoco, and visited the mines of Pachuca
and San Agustin de las Cuevas. He visited Cuba,
Porto Rico, Santo Domingo, and several of the
Lesser Antilles, returning to Paris in 1708. Besides
works that describe his travels in Europe and Asia,
he wrote “De Manille à Vera-Cruz, à travers le
royaume de la Nouvelle Espagne” (1710); “Essai
sur les pyramides de Tezcoco et les mines
méxicaines” (1710); and “Voyage aux Indes Occidentals”
(1715).
WESTERN, Pauline Lucille, actress, b. in New Orleans, La., 8 Jan., 1843; d. in Brooklyn, N. Y., 11 Jan., 1877. She made her first appearance on the stage with her sister Helen as “change artist” at her father's theatre in Washington, D. C., and travelled extensively with her in this country.
