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 TENNYSON

TENNYSON

baronet. In 1668 he was chosen ambas sador at the Hague. He retired in 1670 for the purpose of study, and published his Observations upon the United Provinces (1672), which the clergy charged with heresy on account of the liberal plea for toleration. In 1674 Temple returned to the Hague as ambassador, and in 1677 he succeeded his father as Master of the Bolls for Ireland. In 1679 he was elected Member of Parliament for Cambridge University and admitted to the Privy Council. In 1680 he definitely closed his brilliant diplomatic career, and retired to the study of letters and philosophy. Temple was one of the most elegant prose writers of the time, and among his secre taries he included Jonathan Swift. His chief works, besides the above, are Miscel lanea (1680) and An Introduction to the History of England (1695). Bishop Burnet says of Temple : &quot; He thought religion was only for the mob. He was a great admirer of the sect of Confucius in China, who were Atheists themselves, but left religion to the rabble&quot; (ii, 70). He also credits Temple with the Epicurean belief that &quot; things were as they are from all eternity.&quot; Burnet accordingly tries to belittle Temple s character ; but his editor observes in a footnote : &quot; The author should have done more justice to the

character of this truly great man one

of the ablest, most sincere, generous, virtuous ministers that any age has pro duced.&quot; All admit that Temple was &quot; untainted by corruption &quot; (Diet. Nat. Biog.) in one of the worst periods of British political corruption. D. Jan. 27, 1699.

TENNYSON, Alfred, first Baron Tennyson, poet. B. Aug. 6, 1809. Ed. Louth Grammar School and Cambridge (Trinity College). Tennyson had collabo rated with his brother as a boy in writing verse, and together they had published Poems of Two Brothers (1827). In 1829 he won the Chancellor s gold medal by his poem Timbuctoo, and in the following year

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his Poems, Chiefly Lyrical convinced many that he had a great future. In 1833 he published Poems (including &quot; The Lady of Shalott &quot; and other fine pieces), and two- further volumes of poems in 1842 com pleted his reputation in literary circles. He received a Civil List Pension of 200. In 1847 he produced Tlie Princess ; and in 1850, when he published In Memoriam, he was appointed Poet Laureate. Idylls of the King (3 vols.) appeared in 1859, 1869, and 1872. Enoch Ardcn (1864) made a record in poetic circulation at the time, selling about 60,000 copies. Tennyson gave great offence to Freethinkers, and aroused protests in the theatre, by his Promise of May (1882), of which the Agnostic hero had an unworthy character ; and he is very commonly regarded by religious readers as orthodox. But the plain Pantheism of In Memoriam, his most thoughtful production, is a correct expres sion of his views. The poet Allingham- [SEE], who was an intimate friend, often discussed religion with Tennyson, and found him uniformly sceptical. &quot; I believe in Pantheism of a sort,&quot; he said (Diary, p. 127). In 1867 Allingham found him &quot; uncertain regarding the condition and destiny of man &quot; (p. 149), and, although he later became more hopeful of a future life (p. 368), he never leaned on the Chris tian doctrine. His son, Hallam Tennyson, sufficiently, if reluctantly, confirms this in his Alfred Lord Tennyson (2 vols., 1897)- A few months before the poet died he was induced to take the Communion with his family ; a fact which was widely adver tised. But Hallam tells us (ii, 412) that his father was careful to impress upon the clergyman that he took it only on the- understanding, in his own lines :

It is but a communion, not a mass : No sacrifice, but a life-giving feast.

He had no further ministrations from the- Church. A few days before he died he spoke with great admiration of Giordano Bruno and Spinoza, and said of the former :: &quot; His view of God is in some ways mine &quot; (ii, 424). It is clear that he lived and

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