Page:A new and general biographical dictionary; containing an historical and critical account of the lives and writings of the most eminent persons in every nation v1.djvu/388

 35 Mifceii. on fron their OtT't'a^ Lond.i 7 j' 4 A S H M O L E. 1 for the prefs a complete colleclion of the works of fuch Eng- oliih chemilts as had till then remained in manufcript : this undertaking coft him great labour and expence, and at length the work appeared, towards the dole of the year 1652 [ B ]. He propoled at fitft to have carried it on to feve- ral volumes, but he afterwatds dropped this dcfign, and 'feemed to take a different turn in his ftudies. He now applied himfelf totheftudy of antiquity and records: he was at great pains to trace the Roman road, which in Antoni- ,nus's Itinerary is called Ht nncvanna, from Weedon to Lkch- field, of which he gave Mr. Dugdale an account in a letter. In 1658, he began to collect materials for his " Hiftory of thereby cliJ PO lei's honour to the order than to himfelf. In September following, he made a journey to Oxford, where he Tec about a full and particular description of the coins given to the public library by archbifhop Laud. .'f-iv 'ii.ics vaile the vigorous beams Of an unbnumk-vi i'cul ; the fcrowle and fchemes T ue full interpreter ; but how's cor.cealed Who thro' itiii^mas lockes, is lo revealed. T. V. M. U. [B] The litle of this woilc is as fol- " than want trie fight thereof, content- '* Tbtatrurn Chemicum Britan- '" ed to view them through a tranfla- " nicum, contaimng 1'everal .oet'cal " iion, vitncfs what Maierus, Her- u pieces "f our t.rtU'US Er.glifh i'hilo- " mannus, Cornbachuis, Faber, and " fophers, who have Written the her- l( m.iny others have done; the firft of " cient Lanjuuii ; : ! l':'.ly collefted " in England, purpofely that he might '* into or.c Yf " iberern, by " e(t Merciirt- phiius Aiighcus : " dnn, ,&icnard Carpenter, Abraham And ew?, .-, v:t!i Arn. t^tions " fo ur.derirand our Englifh tongue, as ? Aflirr'.ole, I.l'.j. Qi_ii " tu translate ' Norton's Ordinal' into Latin verfe, which mcft judiciouHy z," quarto. It <:>.- 'sins 'he *' and learnedly he did: yet (to our cf Ali l-.yniv,' 1 winter) by " fliaine be it fpoken) his entertain- TbomasNortonof Briftol; "TheCom- " ment was too coarfe for fo deferving " po'-.r:.! uf Alcl:>rn,*' by (irC^'.r^e " a fcholar. How great a blemifli is it yj v-ith feveial othrr pieces, by " then to us, that rcfufj to rtjd fo ( famous authors in our natural Ian- Vi!!ia'n Blomc- " pnage, whilft ftrangcrs are necefli-, fir Edv. ;ird Kslly, Ur. ] hn Dee, " taled to read them in ours to under- Thorn.is UubiDfon, John (. -j.-ci, lir *' ftand them in their own, yet think <]ck Mr. Afhmolc, in his prnlegoimn to " ii t on, than negleft fuch pieces of th : s work, " generally (like jircphr's) " learning as are natives of cur own " have received little honour (.unlels " country, and by this inquifition find " v* hat has bten privately paid them, " no nation has written more or better, " in their own country. But in parts " althoagh at preftnt (as well through " abroad, they have found more noble " our own fii[.inenefs as the decrees " obtaining their works j nay, rather M fuuad." Upon
 * ' the OrJer of the Garter," which he lived to finifli, and
 * metii)ic Myfteries in tlieir own an- " which came out of Germany to live
 * ' reception, and the w rl ereeJy of " nt fate) few of their works can be