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 early age, and in 1814 made his début in Drury Lane theater in London in the character of Shylock. He at once took rank as the leading actor of the day, and his subsequent appearance as Hamlet, Othello and other Shakespearean characters showed still more clearly the greatness of his power and his mastery of all phases of tragic emotion. Unhappily his irregularities of life were as marked as his talents; and his reputation was well-nigh ruined by the case of Cox vs. Kean in 1825. After the trial Kean paid a visit to America, remaining till the close of 1826, and on his return home he re-appeared on the stage; but his powers of body and mind were so impaired that he seemed little more than a wreck of his former self. His last appearance was at Covent Garden, March 25, 1833, when he suddenly broke down and fell insensible into the arms of his son. He never appeared on the stage again, and died at Richmond on the 15th of May following. See Lives by Barry Cornwall, F. W. Hawkins and G. T. Molloy.

Kear′ney (kār′nĭ), Neb., county-seat of Buffalo County, in the Platte River valley. It has good water-power, graded schools and numerous manufactories, besides the state normal school, a military academy, a Carnegie library and a state industrial school for boys. Kearney has the service of the Union Pacific and of the Chicago, Burlington and Qunicy. Population 6,202.

Kear′ny, a town in Hudson County, N. J., on Newark Bay, opposite Newark. Its chief manufacturing establishments are Marshall Thread Co. with 2,000 employees, Nairn Linoleum Works with 1,200 employees and Arlington Celluloid Works with 1,000 employees, besides manufactories of roofing-material, metal bedsteads and golf-balls. The town has good public and parish schools, the Sacred Heart Industrial School for Boys, the Soldiers' Home and several churches. It has the service of four railroads. As New Barbadoes it was settled in 1755, became part of Harrison later, and was incorporated in 1871 and named in honor of Gen. Philip Kearny whose residence still stands within the limits of the town. Population 18,659.

Kear′ny, Lawrence, a United States naval officer of considerable fame, was born at Perth Amboy, N. J., Nov. 30, 1779. He entered the navy as a midshipman in 1807. He served during the War of 1812 against Great Britain, and after it won great distinction by clearing the West Indies and the coast of the Gulf of Mexico of pirates. In 1832 he was promoted to the rank of captain, and in 1841 secured important commercial rights to Americans in China. He was made commodore in 1866, and died at Perth Amboy, Nov. 29, 1868.

Kear′ny, Philip, a soldier who distinguished himself in the Mexican War and in the War for the Union, was born at New York on June 2, 1815. He commanded a division in the Peninsular campaign in which he won an enviable reputation for courage and gallantry. He took an active part in the second battle of Bull Run and at Chantilly, Va., where he was killed by a Confederate soldier while reconnoitering in front of his command. His death, Sept. 1, 1862, was greatly lamented.

Kear′ny, Stephen Watts, uncle of Philip Kearny, was born at Newark, N. J., Aug. 30, 1794, and died at St. Louis, Mo., Oct. 31, 1848. He entered the United States army in 1812, and served through various grades until 1846, when he rose to the rank of brigadier-general. At the beginning of the Mexican War in that year he commanded the Army of the West, which conquered New Mexico. After establishing a provisional government at Santa Fé, he marched to California and fought the battle of Pascual, in which he was twice wounded. On account of his services in Mexico and California he was brevetted major-general.

Kearsarge (kẽr′särj), The, was the U. S. ship which in 1864 destroyed and sank that terror to commerce, the Confederate cruiser Alabama, and was shipwrecked in 1894. This vessel was named from a mountain in New Hampshire. The mountain reaches the height of 3,250 feet. A new battleship, Kearsarge, was launched on Aug. 8, 1907. She was said to be the first to leave the dry dock under steam.

 Keats (kēts), John, author of Endymion, Isabella, Hyperion and other poems, was born at London in 1795. He attended a school at Enfield during his early years, and in 1810 was apprenticed to a surgeon. He practiced that profession for seven years, and then gave his entire attention to literature and especially to poetry. Although Keats lived only 26 years, his poetry displays genius of a very high order. He died of consumption at Rome in 1821. See Life by Lord Houghton and by Sidney Colvin. 

Keble (kē′b′l), John, an English clergyman and poet, was born on April 25, 1792. At 15 he entered Corpus Christi, Oxford, where he won prizes and otherwise distinguished himself. In 1827 Keble published his volume of sacred poetry entitled