BAYLK, Pi 



BAYNK, ALKXANDER. 



USB Ibr literary exertion daring more than a year, lie was obliged 

 to (tire ap hi* periodical, but it continued to be published by Mother 



! 1WO there appeared a book, once celebrated, now forgotten, 

 entitled 'Aris Important am Refugiex,' Ac., containing a violent 

 attack on the doctrine* and conduct of the French Protestant*. This 

 work Jurieu, whose former friendahip had long given way to jealousy 

 of the reputation, or dislike of the opinions, real or suspected, of hit 

 colleague, ehoee to attribute, without any proof, to Bayle, upon whom 

 he published a violent attack. (' Exaraen d'un iibelle intitule" Aris 

 Important,' Ac.) Style retorted in 'La Cabale Chiicenque; Rotter- 

 dam, 1601, followed by 'La Chimore de la Cabale de Rotterdam 

 daVaontree,' Ac. It is not necessary to trace the progress of the 

 quarrel, which was marked by great asperity. The question whether 

 Bayle was the author of the ' Avis,' Ac., or not, a question deeply 

 B^tinff his literary integrity, can hardly be regarded as determined. 

 Bayle always denied it. His friend and biographer, DCS Maizeaux, 

 seems nevertheless to disbelieve his assertions. 



Whether Jurieu was right or wrong in his accusation, his precipitate 

 and violent conduct drew on him great discredit, especially at Geneva. 

 Bat he possessed much influence in Holland, which he employed in 

 inducing the Consistory of Rotterdam to review his adversary's letter 

 on comets, which they condemned as containing dangerous and anti- 

 christian doctrines. This was employed by the magistracy of Rotter- 

 dam as an excuse fur depriving him of his pension and licence to 

 teach ; but the real cause, according to De* Maizeaux, was the express 

 command of William III, who exercised an overpowering influence 

 in that body, and who was led to believe that Bayle was deeply 

 engaged in advocating the views and wi-ln-s of the court of France. 

 The injury thus done to our author was slight, for his habits were 

 simple and nnexpemire, and it left him at liberty to attend to his 

 chief work, the ' Oictionnaire Hiatorique et Critique.' His first scheme 

 in respect of this undertaking was to compose a dictionary, expressly 

 to correct the errors of other dictionaries ; and he proceeded so far as 

 to publish a specimen of the intended work (' Projet et Fragmcns d'un 

 Dictionnaire Critique.') But this specimen not suiting the public 

 taste, be altered his plan, and produced his dictionary in the form 

 in which it now is. The composition of it, together with bis paper 

 warfare with Jurieu, engrossed his time until August 1695, when the 

 first volume appeared ; the second volume, which completed the first 

 edition, was printed in 1696, but bears the date of 1697. It obtained 

 great popularity, so that a second edition was soon called for ; but it 

 gave gr. at offence to the religious, and incurred a public censure from 

 the Consistory of Rotterdam. Five principal errors were alleged against 

 it: 1. The indecency visible in many passages; 2. The tendency of 

 the whole article on David ; 3 and 4. The support covertly given to 

 the Manichean doctrine of evil, and the sceptical tenets of the philo- 

 sopher Pyrrhon ; 6. Too studious commendation of Epicureans and 

 atheists, by which a tacit support was supposed to be given to their 

 tenets. The author submitted to the authority of the church, and 

 promised to amend the faults in a second edition. According to 

 promise, the article David was replaced by another ; but the purchasers 

 en-lsimed loudly against this interference with the work, aud the 

 publisher finally reprinted the obnoxious article in a separate form. 

 It is to be found at the end of the second volume of the editions of 

 1720 and 1780, Ac. As to the other objections, instead of altering, 

 Bayle defended himself and his work in a series of ' Kclaircisiements,' 

 mbjoined to the second edition of 1702, and published in subsequent 

 editions of the book. 



After the publication of the second edition, which was considerably 

 enlarged. Baric aronsed himself by preparing the first volume of 

 lUponn* aux Questions d'un Provincial,' intend- d, as he says, " to 

 occupy middle place between books for study and books for recrea- 

 tion." In 1704 he published a defence of his 'Letter on Comets,' 

 which engaged him in a controversy, which lasted for the rest of his 

 life, with Le Clere, the well-known author of the ' Bibliotheque Choisie,' 

 and a theological writer named Jacquelot. To this discussion the 

 Moond and third volume* of the ' Rc'ponsea aux Questions' Ac., 1705, 

 were devoted. Controversy seems to have been Bayle's pleasure ; and 

 it ; probable that the attacks made on his work* made no Impression 

 on hi* tranquillity ; but hi* enemies bad nearly done him a serious 

 injury by endeavouring to procure his banishment from Holland in 

 1704. by reviving the accusation that he was a secret agent of France. 

 His last work* were a fourth volume of the ' Rdponees,' and ' Entre- 

 Uen* de Maxime et Themiste/ in answer to Le Clcro ; and a second 

 book under the same tHle, in answer to Jacquelot The last was not 

 quite finished : he was working on it the evening before his death, 

 which took place December 28, 1708, in the 00th you- of hi* age. 



Bayle'* life and habit*, in the relations of man to man, were simple, 

 tool pel ate, and moral. Without a cynical or affected contempt, he 

 displayed a truly philosophical indifference to wealth ; and he lived 

 independently, in virtue of the moderation of his wants, yet not 

 ia|.rovid-ntly. for he left a legacy of 10,000 aorins to his niec' 

 Worst moral charge brought against him is that of lit. rary duplicity ; 

 *d of this be had no right to complain ; for a man who is known to 

 ooctal hi* authorship under the thickest disguise* of false names, 

 fclae date*, and false preface*, need not wonder if much which cannot 

 he proved i* believed to be bin The tamo spirit of concealment 



attended him in religion ; for whether he was Atheist, Epicurean, or 

 Christian, it is at least pretty clear from his writings that he could not 

 lave been at heart a member of the strict church to which he out- 

 wardly conformed. 



Warburton describes Bayle very accurately : "A writer whose 

 itrength and clearness of reasoning can be equalled only by the gaiety, 

 easiness, and delicacy of hi* wit ; who, pervading human nature with 

 a glance, struck into the province of paradox as an exercise for tho 

 restless vigour of his mind ; who, with a soul superior to the sharpest 

 attacks of fortune, and a heart practised to the best philosophy, had 

 not yet enough of real greatness to overcome that last foible of supe- 

 rior geniuses the temptation of honour, which the academic exercise 

 of wit is supposed to bring to ite possessors." (' Divine Legation,' 

 book i. sect 4.) 



The later folio editions of Bayle's ' Dictionary ' are comprised in 

 four volumes. The 'Supplement' by the AbtwS Cbaufepie occupies 

 Tour more. Bayle's miscellaneous works, of which we have not given 

 anything like a complete list, fill four volumes also. 



BAYNE, ALEXANDER, of Rirea, first professor of the municipal 

 law of Scotland, was the son of John Bayne of Logie in the county of 

 Fife, who was descended from the old Fifeshire family Itayne of 

 Tulloch, to whom he was served heir in general ou the 8th of October 

 1700. ('Inquis. Retorn. Abbrev.') On the 10th of July 1714, he 

 passed advocate at the Scottish bar. In January 1722, the faculty 

 appointed him senior curator of their library, and on the 23th of 

 November, in the same year, he was constituted by the town-council 

 of Edinburgh professor of Scots law in the university of that city. 



The common law of Scotland was substantially the same witli that 

 of England till the erection of the Court of Session in the beginning of 

 the 16th century, when, in consequence of the peculiar constitution of 

 that court, the old common law was superseded by the principles 

 of the civil and canon laws, which thereupon became, in fact, as in 

 legal acceptation, the common law. The consequence was, that till 

 the beginning of the last century, when the sources of the Scottish law 

 ceased to be sought in the Roman code, preparation was generally 

 made for the Scottish bar at some one of the foreign colleges. Of 

 these, the colleges of Franca and Italy were the moet frequented, till 

 those of the Low Countries, aiding the connection which arose between 

 Scotland and them at the Reformation, drew the student thither. On 

 the erection of the University of Edinburgh however, attempts were 

 mode by tho bench and bar (o remedy the inconvenience of foreign 

 study, but as the object of those attempts was to establish a chair of 

 civil law, they were long baffled by the want of means of preparatory 

 instruction in the language of that law. In the end of the 17th century 

 private lectures on the law began to be given in Edinburgh by memWrs 

 of the faculty, and at length, in 1707, a chair of public law was founded ; 

 and, in 1709, the choir of civil law. By this time however the natural 

 working of an independent judicature, and, still more, the operation 

 of the union with England, by which the Scots courts were subjected 

 to on appellate jurisdiction common to both parts of the island, carved 

 out a system of law in many respects different from that of Rome, and 

 requiring a separate chair for its elucidation. We believe however 

 that the establishment of the professorship to which Mr. Bayne was 

 appointed, was by no means popular with the profession. The 'Faculty 

 Records ' contain no allusion to his appointment The only record of 

 it which we have is in the ' Council Register,' where, under date 

 28th November 1722, there is this entry: "Mr. Alexander Bayne 

 having represented how much it would be for the interest of the nation 

 and of this city, to have a professor of the law of Scotland placed in 

 the university of this city, not only for teaching the Scots law but 

 also for qualifying of writers to big Majesty's signet; and being fully 

 apprised of the fitness and qualifications of Mr. Alexander Bayue of 

 Rires, advocate, to discharge such a province therefore the council 

 elect him to be professor of the law of Scotland in the university of 

 this city, for teaching the Scot* law and qualifying writers to his 

 Majesty s signet" (Bower, ' Hist of the Univ. of Edinb.') Hut only 

 a year elapsed when his despised chair began to work a change ou tho 

 course of examination for the bar, and on the system of legal study. 

 In January 1724, Mr. Dundas of Arniston proposed to tho faculty, 

 that all Intrants should, previous to their admission, undergo a trial, 

 not only in the civil law, as heretofore, but also in the municipal law 

 of Scotland ; and though this was long resisted, it was at length 

 determined by Act of Sederunt, 28th February 1750. We apprehend 

 it is to Bayne, also, we ought to concede the impulse given at this time 

 to investigate the sources of tho Scottish ancient common law. 



In 1726 Mr. Bayne retired from the office of senior curator, and in 

 the same year he published the first edition of Sir Thomas Hope'* 

 ' Minor Practicks ' a work which is remarkable for it* legal learning, 

 the breadth and boldness of its views, the acuteness of its observations, 

 and the subtlety of its distinctions, but which had loin near a century 

 in manuscript To this work Bayne added a ' Discourse on the Rise, 

 aud Progress of the Law of Scotland, and tho Method of stn>lvm_- ,<.' 

 In 1731 he published a small volume of ' Notes,' for the use of the 

 .-in.]- nts of the municipal law in the University of Edinburgh, which, 

 framed out of the lectures delivered from the chair, impress us with a 

 favourable opinion of the author's acquaintance with the Roman juris- 

 prudence, as well as with the ancient common law. About the same 

 time he published another small volume, which he entitled ' Institu- 



