BENGER, MISS ELIZABETH OGILVY. 



BENTHAM, JAMES. 



618 



Bengel's father died of an epidemic, which raged in his native town, 

 in the year 1693. The armies of Louis XIV. invaded the country a 

 few months afterwards, and burned the house which his mother had 

 bought. His father's library was destroyed in the conflagration. From 

 this time Bengel was educated and supported by David Wendel 

 Spindler, a friend of his father's. This gentleman kept a school in the 

 castle at Winnenthal, but was afterwards driven from place to place, 

 until he was appointed, in 1699, one of the masters of the grammar 

 school at Stutgardt. He took Bengel with him wherever he went. At 

 Stutgardt, Bengel made very satisfactory progress in the ancient and 

 modern languages, but would have been deprived of a university 

 education, had it not been for his mother's marriage, after ten years 

 widowhood, with Johann Albrecht Glockler, who was steward to the 

 convent at Maulbronn. Bengel was received in 1703 into the theo- 

 logical college at Tubingen, and continued there until 1707, when lie 

 finished his academical career by a public disputation, ' De theolojrii 

 mystica,' and then became curate in the parish of Metzingen. In 

 about a year he was recalled as tutor to his college. He himself states 

 his opinion, " That it is very desirable, after having acquired in a 

 country parish a practical turn of mind, to return to college to study 

 divinity afresh." At this time he wrote an essay on the holiness of 

 God, ' Syntagma de Sanctitate Dei.' Soon afterwards he was appointed 

 preceptor of the seminary at Denkendorf, where he read especially 

 the letters of Cicero with his pupils, among whom he maintained a 

 mild bat strict discipline. At a later period of his life he became 

 prelate (nearly corresponding to the English bishop) in Wurtemberg. 

 Though Bengel was so weakly after his birth, that he received private 

 baptism, nevertheless he reached the age of sixty-five years. He was 

 several times subject to dangerous disorders, especially in the latter 

 part of his life. It became his habit to consider life as a constant 

 tendency to death, and he endeavoured to familiarise himself with the 

 thoughts of death; but he did not agree with those divines who 

 consider the whole of divinity to be nothing more than the art of 

 dying. According to Bengel, the Christian has not so much to wait 

 for death as for the appearance of Jesus Christ, and the most important 

 business for every man is to come from a state of sin into a state of 

 grace, and afterwards not to look for death, but for the Lord. Death 

 had originally no place in the economy of God, and was only intro- 

 duced afterwards. Bengel did not tliink highly of the artificial mode 

 of dying, and followed his own ideas on death. He would not die with 

 spiritual pomp, but in a common way, and was employed to the last 

 with his proof-sheets. It was as if he was called out of his room during 

 the hours of work. 



Bengel left a numerous family, although six of his twelve children 

 died liefore him. His great-grandson, J. C. F. Burk, n clergyman in the 

 kingdom of Wurtemberg, published in 1831 a 'Memoir of the Life 

 and Writings of Bengel,' an English translation of which, by R. F. 

 Walker, M.A., appeared in 1837, in 8vo. 



The literary fame of Bengel has been principally established by. his 

 excellent edition of the Greek Testament, which excited the emulation 

 of \Vetstein, and facilitated the subsequent researches of Griesbach, 

 S':holz, nnd Lachmann. His ' Novi Testament! Graci recte cauteque 

 adornamli Prodromus ' was printed at Stutgardt, 1723, 8vo, and also 

 at Tubingen, 1 73 1 and 1 790 ; ' Cyclus, sive de anno inaguo Solis, Lunse, 

 Stellarum Consideratio,' Uhn, 1745, 8vo ; * Ordo Temporum, a principio 

 per Periodos (Economic Divina;,' Stutgardt, 1753, 1770, 8vo; 'Trac- 

 Utus de Sinceritate N. Test Grace,' Halle, 1763, 4to; 'Apparatus 

 Criticus Novi Testament!,' Tubing., 17G3, 4 to ; 'Gnomon Novi Testa- 

 ment! in quo ex nativa verborum vi simplicitas, profunditas, concinnitas 

 mn-uiiin crcle>tium indicatur;' the best edition was printed at Ulm, 

 1763, 4to, TUBing., 1773, 4to. His 'Introduction to the Exposition 

 of the Apocalypse' was translated by J. Robertson, M.D., Lond., 1757, 

 8vo. This, as well as his 'Reden iiber die Offenbarung Johann is,' 

 hare still their admirers, who see in the events of our days the fulfil- 

 ment of Bengel'g Apocalyptical predictions. 



BKNGER, MISS ELIZABETH OGILVY, was born at the city of 

 Wells in 1778. She was au only child, and her father, who was a 

 purser in the navy, dying abroad in 179'), her mother was left with 

 Tery slender means. Miss Banger's early life was consequently passed 

 amidst many privations, one of the greatest of which was her inability 

 to gratify her ardent thirst of knowledge and love of books. In her 

 twelfth year her mother was prevailed upon to let her attend a boys' 

 school for the purpose of studying Latin. At thirteen she wrote a 

 poem entitled ' The Female Geniad,' which was published ; and though 

 containing, as might be supposed, many imperfections, it exhibited the 

 dawning* of genius. In 1802, in order to gratify her daughter's earnest 

 wish, Mrs. Benger came to reside in London ; and a lady who had 

 previously known Mini B nger, and estimated her as she deserved, 

 introduced her to a circle of friends which included Mrs. Barbauld, 

 Mrs. Joanna Baillie, Mr*. Elizabeth Hamilton, Dr. Aikin, Dr. Gregory, 

 and others. Miss Aikin was amongst the number of her warmest 

 friend* ; and it is from a short account of Miss Banger's life by this 

 lady that the information contained in the present notice is obtained. 



Miss Benger's fir.it literary efforts were directed to the drama, but 

 in this department she did not prove successful, and she soon aban- 

 doned it. She next wrote a poem on the ' Abolition of the Slave 

 Trade,' which, with two others, was published in 4to, with engravings. 

 She also published two novels, to which the did not attach her name. 



None of the above works can be considered as very perfect composi- 

 tions. It was as a biographical writer that she obtained her first 

 decided success, and her reputation became fully established by her 

 historical biographies. At the period of her death, which occurred 

 after a short illness, on the 9th of January 1827, Miss Benger was 

 engaged in writing ' Memoirs of Henry IV. of France.' In private life 

 she was sincerely beloved and esteemed for the warmth of her heart 

 and disinterested character. 



The following is a list of Miss Benger's biographical works : 1, 

 ' Memoirs of Mrs. Elizabeth Hamilton,' 2 vols. small 8vo. 2, ' Memoirs 

 of John Tobin,' 1 vol. small 8vo. 3, 'Memoirs of Klopstock and his 

 Friends,' prefixed to a translation of their Letters from the German. 

 4, ' Memoirs of Anne Boleyn,' 2 vols. small 8vo. 5, ' Memoirs of Mary, 

 Queen of Scots,' 2 vols. small 8vo. 6, 'Memoirs of Elizabeth Stuart, 

 Queen ^of Bohemia,' 2 vols. small 8vo. A complete edition of Miss 

 Benger's historical works has been published in 5 vols. small 8vo. 



BENJAMIN of Tudela, a Jewish rabbi, and author of the ' Itine- 

 rary,' was the son of Jonas of Tudela, and was born in the kingdom 

 of Navarre. He was the first European traveller who went far east- 

 ward. He penetrated from Constantinople through Alexandria in 

 Egypt and through Persia to the frontiers of Tzin, now China. Saxius, 

 who follows Wolnus's ' Bibliotheca Hebraica,' places the date of rabbi 

 Benjamiu's travels about 1160. They ended in the year in which he 

 died, A.D. 1173. (Gantz, ' Tsemach David,' fol. 39, quoted by Baratier, 

 ' Diss. I. sur R. Benj.') 



The ' Itinerary ' of Benjamin is no doubt a curiosity, as the pro- 

 duction of a Jew in the 12th century; but considered in itself, it has 

 only a small portion of real worth : for, in addition to the fabulous 

 narrations which lead the reader to suspect him when he speaks tho 

 truth, there are many errors, omissions, and mistakes. Benjamin's 

 principal view seems to have been to represent the number and state 

 of his brethren in different parts of the world, and accordingly he 

 merely mentions the names of many places to which we are to suppose 

 he travelled, aud makes no remark about them, except perhaps a brief 

 notice of the Jews found there. When he relates anything farther, it 

 is often trifling or erroneous. 



Wolfius says, the 'Itinerary' was first printed at Constantinople, in 

 8vo, 1543 ; at Ferrara in 1556, and a third edition at Fribourg in 1583. 

 It has been translated from the Hebrew into Latin, Dutch, and French. 

 An English translation, witli notes, was published in 8vo, Lond. 1783, 

 by the Rev. B. Gerrans, made from the Hebrew edition published by 

 Constantino L'Empereur at Leyden in 1633. 



BENSERADE, ISAAC, a French poet, was born at Lyons-la-foret 

 in Upper Normandy. He was patronised by Richelieu, introduced at 

 court, and quickly became popular by his sprightly and flattering 

 verses. For twenty years he was employed in composing ballets, 

 which, whila Louis XIV. was young and his court brilliant, formed 

 one of tha principal diversions of the time. No other poet could so 

 happily give a pleasing turn to the expressions placed in the mouths 

 of his characters, which were a continued series of allusions to per- 

 sonages or events that were immediately recognised by all. Whether 

 Jupiter or Danaii, Apollo or Daphne, all spoke as king, princes, lords, 

 or ladies, distinguished by their beauty or their foibles. Mohere pro- 

 tested aguiust the b;id taste of such pieces, and composed verses, in 

 which, representing the king as Neptune, he has imitated Benser.ide's 

 style, aud exaggerated his defects. The effort was vain : Beusei-adc 

 retained the court favour, and composed a great variety of pieces of 

 this description. He wrote in addition a number of sonnets, a para- 

 phrase on some chapters of Job ; and later in life paraphrases of some 

 of the Psalms. He had then retired to Cuantilly, but he returned to 

 Paris to undergo a surgical operation, when the surgeon having severed 

 a vein of which he was unable to stop the bleeding, became frightened 

 and fled ; and Benserade died in 1591, a-ed nearly seventy years accord- 

 ing to some authorities ; according to others iu his eighty-second year. 



BENTHAM, JAMES, author of the ' History of the Church of Ely,' 

 was born in the year 1708. He was the fourth son of the Rev. Samuel 

 Bentham, vicar of Witchford near Ely, and was descended from a very 

 ancient family in Yorkshire, which had produced an uninterrupted 

 succession of clergymen from the time of Queen Elizabeth. Having 

 received the rudiments of classical learning in the grammar-school of 

 Ely, he was admitted of Trinity College, Cambridge, in 1727, and took 

 the degree of B.A. in 1730 and M.A. in 1738. His first preferment 

 was the vicarage of Stapleford in Cambridgeshire, in 1733, which he 

 resigned in 1736, on being made a minor canon in the clmrch of Ely. 

 In 1767 he was presented to the vicarage of Wymondham in Norfolk, 

 which ho resigned in the year following for the rectory of Feltwell 

 St. Nicholas, in the same county. Thia he resigned in 1774 for the 

 rectory of Northwold, which he exchanged in 1779 for a prebendal 

 stall at Ely. In 1783 he was presented to the rectory of Bow-brick-hill 

 in Buckinghamshire, by the Rev. Edward Guellaume. 



From his first connection with the church of Ely, Mr. Bentham 

 appears to have directed his attention to the study of church archi- 

 tecture, the varieties of which, from the earliest period to the time 

 of the Reformation, were constantly within his view. After above 

 thirty years of diligent research he published ' The History and Anti- 

 quities of the Conventual and Cathedral Church of Ely, from the 

 foundation of the Monastery, A.D. 675, to tho year 1771," 4to, Cam- 

 bridge, 1771. The ' History of the Church of Ely' was reprinted at 



