Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 13.djvu/764

* MOLESWORTH. 686 MOLIERE. he was elected intiiihiT of Parliament for East Cornwall, lie »at lor Leeds from 18.'?7 to 1841. He was the friend of lientliam and James Mill, and was regarded as the parliamentary repre- sentative of the "philosophical radicals." In 1839 he eonnnenced and carried to completion, at a cost of six thou.sand ponmls, a reprint of the entire miscellaneous and vohiniinous writinfjs of Hobbes, which were placed in most of the Knfjlish university and piovineial libraries. The |)ubliea- tion (lid "him j^riMt disservice in public life, his opponents cn<leavoring to identify him with the freethinkinj: opinions of llolibes in religion as ■well as with the philosopher's conclusions in favor of despotic government. In 184.'5 he was elected to Parliament for Southwark. which he continued to ri'present imtil his death. He was the first to call attention to the abuses connected with the transportation of criminals, and as chairman of a Parliamentary committee brought to light the horrors of the convict system. He pointed out the maladministration of the colonial office, explained the true principles of colonial self-government, prepared drafts of constitutions for remote de]iendencics, and made investigations as to the true and natural relations between the Imperial Covernment a!id its colonial empire. Jlolesworth's views, although at first unwelcome to the legislature, were adopted by successive administrations, and Ix-camc part of the colonial policy of (ircat Hritain. In .January, 18')3, he accepted the office of first commissioner of public works in the Administration of the Earl of Aber- deen, and in 185.5 the i)ost of Secretary of State for the Colonies in that of Viscount Palmcrston. Before he could give proof of his administrative capacitv he died. October 22. 1855. He estab- lished the I.nnilmi Itcricir. a new quarterly, in J835, and afterwards purchased the ^Vr!itminstcr Rcriric. the organ of the "philosophical radicals." The two riuarterlies being then merged into one, under the title of the iMtulon and Westminster, Molcsworth contributed to it many articles on politics and political economy. The enduring influence of his views was attested by the fact that his speech on the abandonment of the Orange River Territiuy in 1854 was advanced by the Boer (iovernnient 'in 1878 as the chief argu- ment for the British withdrawal from the Trans- vaal. MOLESWORTH, William N.ss.mi (1810- 00). . Kngli>h clergyman and historian. He was born near Southampton, was educated at Cambridge, and entered the English Church. He was presented to Saint Andrews. Manchester, in 1841. and to Saint Clement Spotland. Rochdale, in 1844. He was a strong advocate of coilpera- tion and had an interest in the well-known ex- periment of cor.peration at Rochdale. His most important writings are: .1 Ilislnni of the Ueform Hill of /.S.!.' (18fi4): Ilisloni of Knqlnnd from the Year tS.W (1871-73): and P.s/on/ of the Chiireh of Kiiiihind from KKW (1882). MOLFET'TA. A city in the Province of Bari ihlle Pn-lie. Haly. Ifi miles by rail from Bari (Map: Italy, T. fi). The city is pleasantly situated, and the old section, snrroimded liy walN studded with towers, presents a very striking as- pect when approached from the sea. A spacious harbor adds to its attractiveness, and serves to render it an extremely important conunercial centre. There are extensive manufaetircs of flour, vermieelli. soap, bricks, and wine; and a large export trade in oil. almonds, earobs, nitre, and fish. Population, in ISOl (connnune), 40,- 135. MOLIERE, mo'lyar'. The name assumed by .lli,. li.UTisTE Poyuf:LIX (1022-73). The great- est dramatist and perhaps the greatest writer of France. Moli&re was born January 15, 1022, in Paris. His father was a well-to-do tradesman and titular 'tapissier valet-de-chambre' of the King, an office held later by iloli&re. lUoli^re's mother died in 1032. He was educated by the .Jesuits at the College de Clermont (1030-41), and came into touch with some literary men (Luillier, Chapelle, (iasscndi). Some say he went to Orltons to study law; others that he studied theology at the Sorbonne; and others still that he went with the Court as a minor officer to Narbonnc, and formed bohemian asso- ciations, among them being the Bejarts. w'hose daughter, Annande, he afterwards (10(2) mar- ried. In 1043 Molit^re abandoned his ollicc and familv ]>rospects for the stage. After two un- successful theatrical ventures he was imiH'isoned for debt (1045), and in the winter of 1040-47 he became chief of a troupe of players which for twelve vears (1047-58) acted in the provinces. ; In October, 1058, Moli&re played for the first time before the King, acting in Nieomiilc and Le doc- ] teiir amourcux. Hi these vears of wandering Mo- ( li&re learned the practical side of his profession; as dramatic adapter and coiiqiosi.r he lc;uned its literary side. More tluin all. he learned hunian nature" by observing the provinces in the excited period of" the Fronde from the vantage ground of an actor who could view objectively the panorama of high and low life; and at the same time as manager he gained seriousness from rcsponsi- bilityra seriousness that gives his satire some- times a tinge of bitterness and always the seal of sujieriority. On Moliferc's return to Paris (1058) he had the prestige of provincial success, and he had written two plays which he thought worthy of preservation, J.U-tourdi and J-e depit amoureux. These were sufliciently superior in their easy, nat- ural dialogue and the alert brilliancy of their style to win for him a Court patronage which he never lost and a jiopularity which assured bis troupe a permanent support in Paris. This work was, however, Italian in spirit: but in 1059 MoliJire discarded, with I.i/s iin'ririises ridicules, the stereotyped pattern, with its st<ick characters, and inaugurated a new era in comedy with the first dramatic satire on cultured society in France. Not the atl'ectcd language and manners of the Hrptel de Ranibouillet. but those, rather, of its bourgeois imitators, who abounded in Paris, were ridiculed with such infinite good humor that the play has not yet lost its comic force. As typical "of MoIi^l■c's genius, though of a quite oilier phase of it. is Sfinniirelle (1000). the first of those gay yet profound farces that still hold the stage because they evoke first a laugh and then a thoughtful smile. He was still feel- ing his way, and Don (Inrcir de yarnrre (1001), a five-act tragi-coiiicdy in verse, marks a rclai>sp to the traditions of the Spanish stage. 1,'frole drs mnri.1 (1001) shows, however, a decided advance. The plot is from Terence, but the aged lover is treated with a pathos and a fidelity to nature that hear the print of genius. From this point onward it becomes necessary to distinguish the