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Leigh of Love,' a poem, published in 1812; this was followed by 'Trifles Light as Air,' in 1813; 'Poesy, a Satire,' 1818 (anon.); 'Epistles to a Friend in Town, Golconda's Fate, and other Poems,' 1826; 2nd edit. with additional poems 1831. Other works in verse which he printed privately were 'The Spirit of the Age,' 1832 'Vasa,' and 'A Fragment.' His poems though never widely known, and reflecting the influence of Horace, Virgil, Pope, and Byron, were much prized by the scholarly few. He also issued privately in prose 'Fragments of Essays,' 1816, and published, under the sobriquet of 'A Gloucestershire County Gentleman,' about 1820, three tracts on subjects connected with agriculture. These tracts are mentioned in the 'Bibliotheca Parriana,' as 'the gift of the author [C. L.], an ingenious poet, an elegant scholar, and my much esteemed friend.' 'Tracts written in the years 1823 and 1828 by C. L., Esq.,' were privately printed at Warwick in 1832. About 1840 he printed, for private circulation only, a pamphlet on the corn law question, entitled 'A Word of Consolation,' in which he showed that the farmers and squires need not fear being ruined by the abolition of protection if they would improve their methods of agriculture.

 LEIGH, CHARLES (d. 1605), merchant and voyager, was younger son of John Leigh (d. 31 March 1576) and of Joan, daughter and heir of Sir John Oliph of Foxgrave, Kent, an alderman of London. His eldest brother, (1560-1612), claimed at the coronation of James I, 'as seized of Addington, to make a mess of "herout or pigernout" in the kitchen,' but it does not appear that the claim was admitted (Cal. State Papers, Dom., 24 July 1603; cf., Gazetteer of England, s.n. 'Addington, Surrey'). In the early part of James's reign he was keeper of the great park of Eltham, the surrender of which he sold, 21 May 1609 for 1,200l. (ib.) On 14 Nov. 1610 he was granted a 'license to impark 500 acres of land in East Wickham and Bexley in Kent' (ib.) He died 14 March 1611-12, and was buried in Addington Church, Surrey. His will is in Somerset House (Fenner, 74). He married Jane, daughter of Sir Matthew Brown of Betchworth in Surrey, and had issue one son, Sir Francis, baptised 6 Sept. 1590, buried 17 Nov. 1644. Lady Leigh, Sir Oliph's widow, was buried 28 June 1631 (Coll. Topogr. et Geneal. vii. 288, 290).

Charles fitted out, in partnership with Abraham Van Herwick, two ships, the Hopewell of 120 and the Chancewell of 70 tons burden, for a voyage to 'the river of Canada,' the St. Lawrence; and sailed from Gravesend on 8 April 1597, Leigh himself and Stephen Van Herwick, the brother of Abraham, going as chief commanders. The purpose of the voyage was partly fishing and trade, but partly also the plundering of any Spanish ships they might meet with. They left Falmouth on 28 April, and after touching at Cape Race, and sighting Cape Breton, on 11 June the Hopewell anchored off the island of Menego–apparently St. Paul's–to the north of Cape Breton. They had lost sight of the Chancewell off the bay of Placentia. On the 14th they came to 'the two Islands of Birds, some 23 leagues from Menego' the Bird Rocks and on the 16th to Brian's Island, 'which lyeth five leagues west from the Island of Birds'–Bryon Island. On the 18th they came to Ramea–probably the Magdalen Islands–where in a harbour called Halabolina they found four ships, two being French from St. Halo, the others from St. Jean de Luz. Leigh insisted that these must be Spaniards, and seized their powder as a mea-sure of security. But next day the Frenchmen gathered in force, to the number of two hundred, from other ships and residents in different parts of the island, retook the powder, claimed Leigh's largest boat, and drove the English out of the harbour. Coming again to Menego and Cape Breton on the 27th they met a boat with eight of the Chancewell's men, from whom they learnt that the Chancewell had been wrecked on the coast of Cape Breton. After rescuing all the Chancewell's men, they crossed over to Newfoundland. On 25 July they took, after a sharp action in the harbour of St. Mary, 'a notable strong [Breton] ship,' 'almost two hundred tun in burden,' belonging,it appeared, to Belle-Isle. Leigh moved to this ship, dividing the men between her and the Hopewell, and put to sea on 2 Aug.; but finding the new ship less well appointed than he had thought, left the coast of Newfoundland on 3 Aug. to make directly for England. The Hopewell parted company shortly afterwards, going for an independent cruise off the Azores; but Leigh landed on the Isle of Wight on 5 Sept., and a few days later the ship arrived in the Thames,' where she was made prize as belonging to the enemies of this land.'

After this, Leigh made other voyages, the accounts of which have not been preserved, with a view to establishing a colony to look for gold in Guiana. He sailed from Woolwich on 21 March 1603-4 in the Olive Plant,