with illustrations by Bewick in 1800. It had a signal success, 26,000 copies having been sold in three years. The Duke of Grafton obtained for him an appointment in the Seal Office, and when, through ill-health, he was obliged to resign this, allowed him a pension of 1s. a day. Other works were Rural Tales (1804), Wild Flowers (1806), The Banks of the Wye (1811), and May Day with the Muses (1817). An attempt to carry on business as a bookseller failed, his health gave way, his reason was threatened, and he d. in great poverty at Shefford in 1823. B.'s poetry is smooth, correct, and characterised by taste and good feeling, but lacks fire and energy. Of amiable and simple character, he was lacking in self-reliance.
Bodenham, John (fl. 1600).—Anthologist, is stated to have been the ed. of some of the Elizabethan anthologies, viz., ''Politeuphuia'' (''Wits' Commonwealth'') (1597), Wits' Theater (1598), Belvidere, or the Garden of the Muses (1600), and England's Helicon (1600). Mr. Bullen says that B. did not himself ed. any of the Elizabethan miscellanies attributed to him by bibliographers: but that he projected their publication, and he befriended the editors.
Boece, or Boethius, Hector (1465?-1536).—Historian, probably b. at Dundee, and ed. there and at Paris, where he was a regent or professor, 1492 to 1498. While there he made the acquaintance of Erasmus. Returning to Scotland he co-operated with Elphinstone, Bishop of Aberdeen, in founding the univ. there of which he was the first Principal. His literary fame rests on two works, his Lives of the Bishops of Mortlach and Aberdeen, in which his friend Elphinstone figures prominently, and his History of Scotland to the accession of James III. These works were, of course, composed in Latin, but the History was translated into Scottish prose by John Bellenden, 1530 to 1533, and into English for Hollinshed's Chronicle. The only predecessor of the work was the compendium of Major, and as it was written in a flowing and pleasing style it became very popular, and led to ecclesiastical preferment and Royal favour. B. shared in the credulity of his age, but the charge of inventing his authorities formerly brought against him has been shown to be, to some extent at any rate, unfounded.
Boker, George Henry (1823-90).—Poet, was in the American Diplomatic Service. Among his dramas, generally tragedies, are Anne Boleyn, The Betrothed, and Francesca da Rimini, and among his books of poetry, Street Lyrics, Königsmark, and The Book of the Dead. His dramas combine poetic merit with adaptability for acting.
Bolingbroke, Henry St. John, 1st Viscount (1678-1751).—Statesman and philosopher, s. of Sir Henry St. J., b. at Battersea, and ed. at Eton and perhaps Oxf., was during his youth noted chiefly for dissipation, but entering Parliament in 1701 as a supporter of Harley, soon made himself a name by his eloquence and talent. He held office as War and Foreign Sec. successively, became a peer in 1712, intrigued successfully against Harley, and formed an administration during the last days of Queen Anne, with the intention of bringing back the Stuarts, which was frustrated by the Queen's
