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 MOORE

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MOORE

Moore (or Moor), MicnAEi., priest, preacher, and professor, b. at Dublin, lrpl;in(l, llilO; d. at Paris, 22 Aug., 1726. Educated af NanI cs and Paris, he taught philosophy and rhetoric at (he College des Grassins. Returning U> Ireland, he was ordained priest in 1684, and apiHiiiilcd \icar-General of the Diocese of Dublin by Archbishop Russell. When the Revolution of 1688 drove James II from his British dominions, Ireland was held for liim by Richard Talbot, Earl (afterwards Duke) of Tyrconnell. The provost of Trinity College, Dublin, Dr. Huntingdon, fled to England when James landed in Ireland. The college was seized by the Jacobites, the chapel was made a powder magazine, one portion of the building was turned into a barrack, and another into a gaol for persons suspected of dis- affection to the royal cause. Moore was chaplain and confessor to Tyrconnell through whose influence and on the recommendation of the Irish Catholic bishops, he was appointed (1689) by James, provost of Trinity College — the only Catholic who ever held that posi- tion. He upheld the rights of the college, secured it from further pillage, and endeavoured to mitigate the treatment of the prisoners. With the librarian, Father McCarthy, he prevented the soldiery from burning the library, and by preserving its precious collections rendered an incalculable service to letters. A sermon which he preached in Christ Church cathedral of- fended the king so deeply that he was obliged to resign (1690), and retired to Paris. Wlien James, after the battle of the Boyne (1690), fled to Paris, Moore removed to Rome, became Censor of Books, and won the favour of Innocent XII and Clement XI. When Cardinal Barbarigo established his college at Monte- fiascone, he appointed Moore rector, and professor of philosophy and Greek. The college attracted men of learning, and received from Innocent XII an annual grant of two thousand crowns. After the death of James II (1701), Moore returned to France, where, through Cardinal de Noailles, he was appointed Rec- tor of the University of Paris (10 Oct., 1701 to 9 Oct., 1702). He was also made principal of the College de Navarre, and professor of philosophy, Greek, and Hebrew in the College de France. In 1702 he was selected to deliver the annual panegyric on Louis XIV, founded by the City of Paris. Moore joined Dr. Far- relly (Fealy) in purchasing a house near the Irish College for poor Irish students. Blind for some years, he had to employ an amanuensis, who took advantage of his master's affliction to steal and sell many hun- dred volumes of his choice library. What remained Moore bequeathed to the Irish College. He died in the College de Navarre, and was buried in the vault under the chapel of the Irish College. His published works include: "De Existentia Dei, et Human* Men- tis Immortalitate, secundum Cartesii et Aristotelis Doctrinam" (Paris, 1692); "Hortatio ad Studium Linguae Graeca; et Hebraicae" (Montefiascone, 1700); "VeraSciendi Methodus" (Paris, 1716).

Ware, Tke Wrilers of Ireland, ed. Harris (Dublin, 174.^)); MoRERi, Morus (Michel) in Le Grand Dictionnaire Historique (1740); Taylor, History of the University of Dublin (IMS) ; Giu- BERT, History of Dublin (1861); Jourdain, Histoire de I'Universiti de Paris au XVII' el au XVIII' siicle (Paris, 1862-66); Webb, Compendium of Irish Biography; Macaula Y, History of England; Diet, of National Biography.

P. J. Lennox.

Moore, Thomas, poet and biographer, b. 28 May, 1779, at Dublin, Ireland; d. 26 February, 1852, at Devizes, England. His father was a grocer till 1806 when he was appointed barrack-master at Dublin. His mother, a woman of varied accomplishments, did much to train him for his remarkable success in soci- ety. Thomas early manifested a remarkable power of rhyming, singing, and acting. When fifteen he was entered at Trinity College, Dublin, which by the Cath- olic Relief Act of 1793 had opened its doors to Catho- lics, who were, however, hardly more than tolerated. Denied all incentive because of his religious belief,

Moore gave li(tle or no heed to academic honours. A curious point noted by a recent liiographer is that Moore was entered as a Protest :inl, imssibly by his school-master, Mr. Whyte, who hiinself ;i Protestant, wished to qualify his favourite inipil for all the gocHl things that the college off'ered to non-Catholics. Moore probably was not aware of this; at any rate he never availed himself of it. Though his education and associations were mostly Protestant, and though he himself was in fact after his first year in college scarcely more than a nominal Catholic, he never changed his creed. Among his intimate friends was Robert Emmet, whose tragic death made on him a lasting impression. Moore shows this in his writings, as in the beautiful lyric, "O breathe not his name", and also in the veiled allusions in "The Fire Worship- pers", one of the four long poems of "Lalla Rookh".

After graduating in 1798 he set out in the following spring for London to study law. He was never ad- mitted to the Bar, as legal studies had for him no at- traction. Literature was more to his liking. When scarcely fifteen, some verses of liis appeared in a Dub- lin magazine "The Anthologia Hibernica". While in college he wrote a metrical translation of the "Odes of Anacreon" which he published in London in 1800, with a dedication "by permission" to the Prince of Wales. He published in the following year his first volume of original poems under the title of "The Poetical Works of the late Thomas Little", which met with severe criticism on the grounds of indecency. Later editions were expvirgated; but Moore showed his fondness for amorous poetry by recurring to it in "The Loves of the Angels". Again criticized, he bent to the storm by "turning his poor Angels into Turks". Moore's success almost from the day he set foot in England was extraordinary. It was no doubt his per- sonal charm and the masterly singing of his own songs that gave him the start in his successful career. Like the ancient bard he sang his own verses to his own accompaniment, and was welcomed everywhere.

Early in 1803 the Government projiosed to estab- hsh an Irish laureateship and ofTerecl Moore the posi- tion with the same salary and I'nmlunic-nts as the English office of similar title; but Moore declined the honour. Another offer later in the year, that of Reg- istrar of the Admiralty Court of Bermuda, he ac- cepted and left England in September for his post of duty. After four months' trial, findinf^ the office not to his liking he appointed a deputy :uiil sailed for New York. He visited the principal cilirs of the States, and then went to Canada. He w:is delighted with his Canadian tour, but was far ditTer<'ntly impressed by "the land of the free" and its ])eo|)le. Judging everything from his pro-English viewpoint, he could find scarcely anything to admire in the young re- public which had so lately gained its independence from England. After an absence of fourteen months he returned to London "with a volume of poetic travels in his pocket" which with later additions he published in 1806 under the title of "Epistles, Odes and other Poems". In addition to his animadversions on America it contained several amatory pieces. The famous critic, Jeffrey, in an article in the "Edin- burgh Review" attacked the book severely and called its author "the most licentious of modern versifiers". This brought on the famous ' ' leadless duel ", and paved the way for the lifelong friendship between the poet and the critic. Another challenge from Moore, this time to Lord Byron for his sarc;isti(^ reference to the "leadless pistols" used in the iiiei-tiiig with Jeffrey, resulted in another close friendship between "hostile forces".

In 1807 Moore published the first numbers of his "Irish Melodies". Were all his other works lost, these would give him the right to the title he .so much prized, "The Poet of the .people of Ireland". The importance and the difficulty of this undertaking — to