Page:Dictionary of National Biography volume 43.djvu/117

 eundem at Oxford on 21 June 1861. Palin was ordained deacon by the bishop of London on Trinity Sunday, 1833, and was curate in charge of Stifford in Essex for twelve months. From July 1834 till death he was rector of Stifford. Between 1861 and 1863 the parish church was restored through his exertions. With a daughter he compiled ‘Stifford and its Neighbourhood, Past and Present,’ a description of twenty parishes in South Essex (privately printed 1871); and ‘More about Stifford and its Neighbourhood’ (1872). Both volumes contain many extracts from parish registers, and are full of information on social life. He died in the rectory-house at Stifford on 16 Oct. 1882, and was buried in Stifford churchyard.

Palin's wife was Emily Isabella Slaughter (1813–1878), daughter of Stephen Long, solicitor, of Southampton Buildings, London. She was born in London on 7 July 1813, and died at Stifford on 27 March 1878. Their children were: Emily Isabella Jane, who has contributed to Shipley's ‘Lyra Messianica’, ‘Sunday,’ the ‘Child's Pictorial,’ and other papers; William Long, an artist; Mary Eliza, who was married to Croslegh Dampier Crossley of Scaitcliffe, Lancashire; and Fanny Elizabeth, who has also written verses for children.

Palin's other works consisted of: 1. ‘Village Lectures on the Litany,’ 1837. 2. ‘Bellingham: a Narrative of a Christian in Search of the Church,’ 1839. 3. ‘History of the Church of England, 1688–1717,’ 1851; a continuation, ‘in a state of forwardness,’ was never published. The labour involved more research than was practicable for a country parson. He also wrote a paper on 4. ‘The Weekly Offertory: its Obligations, Uses, Results,’ which went through two editions. 5. ‘Squire Allworthy and Farmer Blunt on the Weekly Offertory: a Dialogue,’ 1843. 6. ‘Ten Reasons against Disestablishment,’ 1873 and 1885. 7. ‘The Christian Month: Original Hymns for each Day of the Month, set to music by Miss Mounsey.’ Two hymns by him were contributed to Orby Shipley's ‘Lyra Messianica,’ 1864. From 1853 to 1857 he edited the ‘Churchman's Magazine,’ and he contributed frequently to various church periodicals.

[Men of the Time, 1865 ed.; Hist. of Stifford, pp. 72, 179–80; Guardian, 25 Oct. 1882, p. 1485; Foster's Alumni Oxon.] 

PALK, ROBERT (1717–1798), governor of Madras, was eldest son of Walter Palk, seventh in descent from Henry Palk, who was possessed of Ambrooke, Devonshire, in the time of Henry VII. Robert was born at Ambrooke in December 1717; he was at first intended for the church, took deacon's orders, and proceede to Madras as one of the East India Company's chaplains. He eventually, however, renounced his orders, and entered the civil service. He had by 1753 risen to the rank of member of the Madras council. In June 1753, during the contest for the Carnatic between Chunda Sahib, favoured by the French, and Mahommed Ali, favoured by the English, Palk was deputed envoy to the rajah of Tanjore, and prevailed on that prince to give assistance to the English candidate. In January 1754, after the close of the contest, Palk and Vansittart were the two delegates appointed to discuss terms of settlement with the French agents, Lavaur, Kirjean, and Bausset, at Sadras, a Dutch settlement between Pondicherry and Madras. After an angry discussion of eleven days the conferences were broken off. In April 1754 Palk was again sent to Tanjore, the rajah of which was again wavering, and for a second time succeeded in confirming his allegiance. Peace was eventually signed on 11 Jan. 1755, Mahommed Ali being at last recognised nabob of the Carnatic, and in January 1755 Palk was sent to Arcot with Colonel Stringer Lawrence, with whom he now formed a life-long friendship, to conduct the nabob in triumph to Madras.

In Oct. 1763 George (afterwards baron) Pigot (d. 1777) [q. v.] the governor of Madras, resigned office. He was succeeded by Palk, who found himself called upon to formulate the relations between the English and the Deccan powers. Mahommed Ali had incurred heavy debts to the English, on account of their assistance to him during the past war. He had made cessions of territory and granted assignments on his revenue. But this being insufficient, he endeavoured to augment his income by plundering the weaker princes in or bordering on his own dominions. Palk, while ready to give the nabob any reasonable assistance in maintaining order within his actual boundaries, declined to help him in a policy of aggression. While, therefore, he assisted him to crush the rajah of Madura in October