Page:Appletons' Cyclopædia of American Biography (1900, volume 2).djvu/686

652 vols., New York, 1874); and "The Moral System" (1875); besides minor works, including "Life Les- sons," "Ancient Cities and Empires," and "Eng- land Two Hundred Years Ago."

GILLETTE, Francis, senator, b. in Windsor, now Bloomfield, Hartfoi-d co.. Conn., 14 Lee, 1807; d. in Hartford, Conn., 30 Sept., 1879. He was graduated at Yale in 1829 with the valedic- tory, and then studied, law with Gov. William W. Ellsworth. Failing health compelled him to re- linquish this pursuit, and he settled in Bloomfield as a farmer. In 1832 and again in 1880 he was sent to the legislature, where he gained notice in 1838 by his anti-slavery speech advocating the striking out of the word " white " from the state constitution. In 1841 he was nominated against his own will for the office of governor by the Lib- erty party, and during the twelve following years frequently received a similar nomination from the Liberty and Free-soil parties. He was elected by a coalition between the Whigs, temperance men, and Free-soilers, in 1854, to fill the vacancy in the LI. S. senate caused by the resignation of Truman Smith, and served from 25 May, 1854, till 3 March, 1855. Mr. Gillette was active in the formation of the Republican party, and was for several years a silent partner in the '• Evening Press," the first distinctive organ of that party. He was active in the cause of education throughout his life, was a coadjutor of Dr. Henry Barnard from 1838 till 1843, one of the first trustees of the State normal school, and for many years its president. Mr. Gil- lette took interest in agricultural matters, was an advocate of total abstinence, and delivei'ed lectures and addresses on both subjects. He moved to Hartford in 1852, and passed the latter part of his life in that city. — His son, Edward Hooker, con- gressman, b. in Bloomfield. Conn., 1 Oct., 1840, was educated at the Hartford high-school, and the New York state agricultural college at Ovid. In 1803 he removed to Iowa and settled in Des Moines, where he has since been occupied in farming, in manu- facturing, and in editing the " Iowa Tribune." He has held the office of chairman of the National committee of the National greenback party for several years, and was a delegate to the conventions that nominated Peter Cooper, James B. Weaver, and Benjamin F. Butler for the presidency. In 1879 he was elected to congress as a National greenbacker from Iowa, and served from 4 March, 1879, till 3 March, 1881.— Another son, WilHam Hooker, actor, b. in Hartford, Conn., 24 July, 1853, was graduated at the Hartford high-school in 1873, and studied at the University of the city of New York during 1875-'6. He obtained an appointment in one of the New York theatres, and is evenings were spent on the stage. During 1870-'7 he studied at the Boston university, and also attended the lectures of Prof. Lewis B. Monroe, still acting during the evenings. Subsequent- ly he devoted himself entirely to the stage, and played in various roles in the principal cities of the United States. His greatest success was in the character of the Private Secretary, in the play of that name. He has also acted leading parts in plays written by him. These include " The Pro- fessor," first produced at the Madison square the- atre. New York, in June, 1881 ; with Mrs. Frances H. Burnett, " Esmeralda," introduced at the same theatre in October, 1881, and " Held by the Ene- my," originally played at the Madison square in February, 1886, and in London in April, 1887.

GILLETTE, Abram Dunn, clergyman, b. in Cambridge, Washington co., N. Y., 8 Sept., 1807 ; d. in Lake George, N. Y., 24 Aug., 1882. He was chiefly self-educated, but was for a time a student in Granville academy, and attended occasional lec- tures in Union college. After teaching for a time, he entered the Baptist ministry in 1832, and held pastorates in Schenectady, Philadelphia, New York, and Washington, D. C. He was a manager of the American Baptist publication society in 1836-'48. In 1869 illness compelled him to retire from the ministry. In 1887 a memorial window was placed in Calvary Baptist church. New York, in his mem- ory. He published a " History of the Eleventh Baptist Church, Philadelphia," " Memoir of the Rev. Daniel H. Gillette," and " Pastor's Last Gift," and edited " Social Hymns " and the minutes of the Philadelphia Baptist association from 1707 till 1807. He also contributed largely to journals. " Ren^iniscences of the Life and Labor of A. D. Gillette, D. D.," by four of his friends and associ- ates, was published in New York, 1883.

GILLI, Filippo Salvatore, clergyman, b. in the Papal States ; d. there after 1764. He was a member of the .Jesuit order, and went as mission- ary to South America about 1740. He travelled seventeen years through the country watered by the Orinoco and lived for seven years in Santa Fe de Bogota. He returned to Europe when his order was suppressed. He wrote in Italian " Essay on the History of America, or Natural, Civil, and Sacred History of the Spanish Kingdoms and Provinces of Terra Firma in South America " (Rome, 4 vols., 1780-'4). The work of Gilli is still con- sidered valuable for the information it gives on the vast regions watered by the Orinoco. It was for a long time the only one to be consulted on the subject, and many writers have drawn from it without acknowledgment. Gilli refutes the inac- curate views that then prevailed regarding the source of the river, and tries to demonstrate its communication with the Amazon. Unfortunately, his ignorance of natural history and his credulity prevented him from reaping all the advantages due to his zeal. He gives vocabularies of most of the languages spoken by the natives, and attempts to compare them, but the value of his comparison is lessened by his lack of the cintical faculty. A part of Gilli's work was translated into German by Sprengel (Hamburg, 1785). The whole of the 3d book of vol. iii., which comprises his observations on the languages of the tribes of the Orinoco, was translated into German with notes by Father Xa- vier Veigl, an ex-Jesuit, who had travelled in the same regions. This part of the work is contained in the collection of the travels of missionaries of the Society of Jesus in America, published by Von Murr (Nuremberg, 1785).

GILLIAMS, Jacob, physician. b. in Philadel- phia, Pa., in 1784; d. there, 4 Feb., 1808. After his graduation in medicine he entered on a long and successful practice in Philadelphia, which he did not relinquish until within a few years of his death. He was proficient in the natural sciences, especially iii ornithology, and was brought into contact with Audubon, Wilson, and Ruslienberger. In connection with Charles Lueien Bonaparte and others he established in Philadelphia in 1816 the short-lived Maclurian lyceum, and afterward as- sisted in founding the Academy of natural sciences. The hall that it occupied was built at his expense.

GILLIS, John Pritchet, naval officer, b. in Wilmington, Del., 6 Sept., 1803 ; d. there, 25 Feb., 1873. Pie was appointed a midshipman from Illinois on 12 Dec, 1825, his mother having removed to that state after the death of his father. He was commissioned as lieutenant on 9 Feb., 1837. During the Mexican war he had charge of the boats of