Page:Dictionary of National Biography volume 12.djvu/379

 and on more than one occasion he had the honour of singing with Madame Malibran. His first appointment as organist was to the parish church of Lambeth, and on the opening of the Crystal Palace at Sydenham he was given the post of organist there. This situation he filled with credit to himself and advantage to the institution until his death, which took place at his house in Lupus Street, Pimlico, 22 Jan. 1880. For some time before his death he had been conductor of the Abbey and City glee clubs. In October 1864 he succeeded Turle as conductor of the Western Madrigal Society, an office which he retained until March 1872. Besides these various appointments he held the post of organist to St. George's Church, Bloomsbury (1866–9), the Sacred Harmonic Society, and the grand lodge of freemasons. His last church appointment was to St. Magnus the Martyr, London Bridge, which he held till his death. His compositions are not numerous, but they show considerable refinement and musical knowledge, as well as an earnestness of aim for which he was scarcely given credit by those who were accustomed to hear his operatic selections or transcriptions for the organ. Considering the musical taste of the time, it is not to be wondered at that these performances formed part of his ordinary duties at the Crystal Palace, but it is to be regretted that so great a power of improvisation as he possessed should so often have been turned to account to provide musical accompaniment for acrobatic displays. The most important of his published works are: ‘O Lord, correct me,’ anthem; ‘Sing unto God,’ a canon (4 in 2); ‘Ten Glees and a Madrigal’ (published 1857), ‘Take thy Banner,’ ‘Airy Fairy Lilian’ (five-part song), ‘I strike the Lyre,’ part-songs; ‘The Skylark,’ prize glee; marches, &c., for the organ, and several pianoforte pieces.

 COWARD, WILLIAM (1657?–1725), physician, was born at Winchester in 1656 or 1657. His mother was sister of Dr. John Lamphire, principal of Hart Hall, Oxford, and Camden professor of history, whose property he apparently inherited (, Collections, i. 248). In May 1674 Coward was admitted as a commoner of Hart Hall; and in 1675 a scholar of Wadham College. He proceeded B.A. in 1677, and in January 1679-1680 was elected fellow of Merton. In 1682 he published a Latin version of Dryden's 'Absalom and Achitophel' (1681) which was eclipsed by a contemporary version published by Atterbury. Coward was ridiculed, and, according to Wood, procured the insertion of a notice in 'Thompson's Intelligence,' attributing it to 'Walter Curle of Hartford.' In 1683 Coward became M.A., in 1685 M.B., and in 1687 M.D. He practised in Northampton; and in 1693 or 1694 settled in Lombard Street, London, having to leave Northampton in consequence of some immorality, according to Hearne (ib. i. 304).

In 1702 Coward published, under the pseudonym 'Estibius Psychalethes,' 'Second Thoughts concerning Human Soul, demonstrating the notion of human soul as believed to be a spiritual, immortal substance united to a human body to be a plain heathenish invention ... the ground of many absurd and superstitious opinions, abominable to the reformed churches and derogatory in general to true Christianity.' His argument was possibly suggested by Locke's famous speculation as to the possibility that a power of thinking might be 'superadded' to matter. He maintains, partly upon scriptural arguments, that there is no such thing as a separate soul, but that immortal life will be conferred upon the whole man at the resurrection. Replies were made in Nichols's 'Conference with a Theist,' John Turner's 'Vindication of the Separate Existence of the Soul,' and John Broughton's 'Psychologia.' Locke, in letters to Collins, speaks contemptuously both of the 'Psychologia' and of Coward's next work, 'The Grand Essay; or a Vindication of Reason and Religion against Impostures of Philosophy,' to which was appended an 'Epistolary reply' to the 'Psychologia.' Upon the publication of this, complaint was made in the House of Commons, 10 March 1703-4. A committee was appointed to examine Coward's books. Coward was called to the bar and professed his readiness to recant anything contrary to religion or morality. The house voted that the books contained offensive doctrines, and ordered them to be burnt by the common hangman. The proceeding increased the notoriety of Coward's books; and in the same year he published another edition of the 'Second Thoughts.' In 1706 (apparently) appeared 'The Just Scrutiny; or a serious enquiry into the modern notions of the soul.'

Henry Dodwell's 'Epistolary Discourse,' &c. in support of the natural mortality of the soul, appeared in 1706, and led to a controversy with Samuel Clarke and Anthony Collins. Coward distinguishes his own position from Dodwell's and attacks Clarke. In 1706 Coward also published his 'Ophthalmoiatria,' chiefly medical, in which he 