001 



ZOUST, GERARD. 



ZSCIIOKKE, JOHANN HEINRICH. 



952 



Yorkshire, in 1737. He entered Trinity College, Cambridge, in 1757. 

 In 1760 he was elected into one of Lord Craven's scholarships. He was 

 chosen fellow of his college, and appointed assistant tutor in 1763. 

 The state of hia health obliging him to leave the University in 1770, 

 his college presented him to the living of Wycliffe, in the North Hiding 

 of Yorkshire. In 1791 he was appointed deputy-commissary of the 

 archdeaconry of Richmond ; and in 1793 chaplain to the Master of 

 the Rolls, and rector of Scrayingham. At the death of his elder 

 brother, the Rev. Henry Zouch, he inherited an estate at Sandal, 

 where he continued to reside till his death. Mr. Pitt conferred upon 

 him the second prebend in the church of Durham. The see of Carlisle 

 was offered to him in 1808, but he declined it on account of his 

 advanced age. He died on the 17th of December, 1815. Dr. Zouch 

 was an elegant classical scholar, and possessed considerable acquire- 

 ments in botany. Besides several occasional discourses, he published 

 * An inquiry iuto the Prophetic Character of the Romans, as described 

 in Daniel viii. 23-25,' 1792 ; and ' An attempt to illustrate some of the 

 1'rophecies of the Old and New Testament,' 1800. He also published 

 some biographical works : 1,' Memoir of the Life and Writings of 

 Sir Philip Sidney,' 4to, 1808 ; 2, ' Memoir of the Life of John Suclbury, 

 D.D., Dean of Durham, 4to, 1808 ; and an edition of Isaak Walton's 

 4 Lives,' with additions. 



ZOUST, GERARD, called sometimes Sowst and Soest, was a Ger- 

 man portrait-painter of great ability, who established himself in 

 England, and was one of Lely's rivals, in the reign of Charles II. He 

 was born in Westphalia, in 1637, but the year in which he came to 

 England is not known. Buckeridge, in his ' English school,' says he 

 came to this country about the year 1656, and found encouragement 

 suitable to his merit. " His portraits of men," he continues " are 

 admirable, having in them a just, bold draft, and good colouring ;' but 

 he did not always execute with a due regard to grace in women's 

 faces ; which is an habit that can only be acquired by drawing after 

 the most perfect beauties, in which his country did not greatly abound. 

 What we are most indebted to him for is his educating Mr. Riley." 

 Walpole says of Zoust " By what I have seen of his hand, particu- 

 larly his own head at Houghton, he was an admirable master. It is 

 animated with truth and nature ; round, bold, yet highly finished." 

 Jervase, the painter, admired Zoust's style and endeavoured to acquire 

 it : he copied a portrait which he had in his possession, by Zoust, more 

 than once. Zoust was a man of singular temper, and was much dis- 

 pleased at Lely's female portraits being preferred to his. He was 

 slovenly in his dress, and he often opened bis house-door in Cursitor's- 

 alley or Holborn-row himself, and if he did not like the look of his 

 visitor, he used to say that his master was not at home. Walpole 

 mentions several portraits by him, among them a fine head of Loggan, 

 the engraver, one of Sir F. Throckmorton, and an excellent one of a 

 gentleman in a dark periwig, on the back of which was written the 

 price of the picture and frame : the picture Zl. and the frame 16s. His 

 draperies were frequently of satin, in which he imitated the manner of 

 Terburgh. He died in 1681, aged forty -four. 



ZSCHOKKE, JOHANN HEINKICH DANIEL, was born at Mag- 

 deburg in Prussia on March 22, 1771, and received the earlier part of 

 his education in the Klosterschule and in the gymnasium of that 

 town. When only seventeen he quitted his school and family, and 

 became play-writer to a troop of strolling-players. In a short time 

 however he returned to his family, and was sent to the university of 

 Frankfurt-on-the-Oder, where, without any settled plan, he studied 

 philosophy, theology, the fine arts, history, and finance. In 1792 he 

 commenced private teaching in Frankfurt, but with little success ; 

 aud he employed most of his time in writing for the stage, where his 

 ' Aballino, the Baudit ' (of which the story was borrowed by Monk 

 Lewis for his ' Bravo of Venice '), and ' Julius von Sassen,' produced 

 at this period, were favourably received. But he also wrote against 

 a government edict respecting religion, and therefore when, in 1796, 

 he applied for a professorship, it was refused him. He then left Frank- 

 furt, travelled about Germany and France, and at length settled at 

 Reichenau in the Uraubundten where, in conjunction with Tscharner, 

 he established a boarding-school for boys, which was so well conducted 

 that the canton presented him with its freedom as a burgher, and he 

 evinced his gratitude by writing his ' Geschichte des Freistaats der 

 drei Biindo in Rhaeten' (History of the Free State of the Three 

 Leagues in Rhsetia), which was published in 1790. This is an account 

 of the early associations of the canton for the establishment of its 

 liberties, and was the precursor of several other works on the history 

 of Switzerland. In that year however the Canton of Graubundten 

 declined to join the Helvetic republic established under French in- 

 fluence ; Zschokke was in favour of the union ; he became unpopular, 

 and his school was the sacrifice. Austrian troops entered the canton, 

 and Zschokke withdrew to Aarau, where the central government of 

 the Helvetic republic was then fixed. His reputation, his talents, and 

 his political opinions, procured him employment under the govern- 

 ment. He was made chief of the department of education, and was 

 sent in the capacity of a fully-empowered government commissioner to 

 settle the affairs of Unterwalden, then suS'ering from the devastations 

 of a foreign enemy and the effects of party violence, where he acted 

 as a true benefactor and a restorer of peace. A memorial of this 

 remarkable period is given in his ' Historischen Denkwiirdigkeiten der 

 Schweitzerische Staatsumwalzung' (Historical Memoirs of the Swiss 



Revolution). His commission was subsequently extended over the 

 cantons of Uri, Schwytz, and Zug, and his appeals for the help of the 

 miserable sufferers remain in proof of his powers of eloquence. 

 During this time he wrote his ' Geschichte vom Kiimpfe und Unter- 

 gange dor Schweitzerische Berg- und Waldcantone ' (History of the 

 Conflicts and Fall of the Swiss Mountain and Forest Cantons), an 

 excellent sketch, published in 1801. In 1801 the central government 

 of Bern nominated him to the bailiwicks of Lugano and Bellinzona, 

 where he executed his duties with the best results. On his return to 

 Bern he was loud in his complaints against the French ambassador 

 Bernhard, and the General Duuias, on account of their oppressive con- 

 duct and arbitrary proceedings ; for Zschokke had opposed the desires 

 of the Graubundten for independence rather from a conviction of 

 their hopelessness than from any unpatriotic love of French domina- 

 tion, and he stated "that the Helvetic executive directory enjoyed no 

 influence or consideration ; it was in a manner foreign to the people 

 it was appointed to govern ; " but it was not cruel, and it avoided 

 anarchy, so that he was contented to act under it. His remonstrances 

 had produced no immediate effects, when he was created governor 

 of Basel, where a commotion had arisen against the land tax and 

 tithes; he there threw himself into the midst of an armed assemblage 

 of the people, and induced them to follow his advice and submit. 

 When the central government at Bern, with the Landmann Aloys 

 Piediug at its head, prepared in 1801 to restore the ruptured federalism 

 of the union, Zschokke resigned his offices, as he doubted whether 

 the attempt could be successful then, and he retired to Biberstein in 

 Aargau, to devote himself to his favourite studies. Much civil con- 

 tention arose, and a civil war seemed inevitable, when in October 

 1802, Bonaparte offered his mediation, aud by it the federal union of 

 Switzerland was established in 1803. The modification brought 

 Zschokke again into political activity. He was presented with the citi- 

 zenship of Aargau, and nominated by the government in 1804 a member 

 of the council of mines and forests. In the same year he commenced 

 his popular 'Schweizerboten' (Swiss Messenger), and in 1807 his 

 ' Miscellen fiir die neueste Weltkunde ' (Miscellany of the mo^t recent 

 Events), which was continued without interruption till 1813; it dis- 

 played a happy choice of subjects, a richness of contents, a conscien- 

 tious liberalism, and hi general a strong aud correct judgment. In 

 1814, when the Swiss, after the downfall of Bonaparte, again wished 

 to reconstruct their constitution, Zschokke exerted himself to main- 

 tain peace in Aargau, while he strenuously defended its independence 

 against the claims of Bern. In 1829, in consequence of some impu- 

 tations against him as editor of the ' Schweizerboten,' he resigned his 

 offices of church and forest inspector, but retained those of member of 

 the council, of the school directory, and president of the directory of 

 the school of education for artisans. In 1830 he was re-chosen a member 

 of the church council, and he continued to exert himself actively and 

 effectively in the promotion of education and all social reforms, though 

 his time was now chiefly given to literary composition. With these 

 duties and his literary works, which became extremely numerous, "he 

 continued to occupy himself until his death, which took place at Biber- 

 stein, on June 27, 1848. His published works are of very varied charac- 

 ter. We have noticed some of his historical and political productions, 

 but in this class the most valuable are his ' Geschichte des Baierischen 

 Volks und seiner Fiirsten ' (History of the Bavarian People and their 

 Princes), 1813-18 ; and ' Des Schweizerlandes Geschichte fiir das 

 Schweizervolk ' (History of Switzerland for the Swiss People), 1822 ; 

 which are highly esteemed, have been frequently reprinted, and are 

 distinguished by a lucidity of arrangement, clearness of perception, a 

 keen insight into character, and warmth and strength of expression. 

 His novels and tales exceed all other classes in number. Among the 

 best are his 'Adventures of a New Year's Night,' which was translated 

 in ' Blackwood's Magazine," 'Jonathan Frock,' a serio-comic novel, 

 1 The Dead Guest,' and ' The Goldmaker's Village.' His merits are a 

 correct delineation of the nicer shades of character, a naturally simple 

 pathos, a happy exposition of some of the weak points of our social 

 institutions, a considerable amount of humour, and a constant 

 maintenance of good principles and feelings. Some of these novels, 

 like the ' Cottagers of Glenburnie,' aim at effecting the removal of social 

 evils, national prejudices, or injurious customs, such as 'Die Braunt- 

 weinpest' (The Brandy Pest); he is frequently tedious, and his plois 

 are improbable, and the least happy of his attempts are of the historical 

 class. His poetry seldom rises beyond mediocrity, nor are his dramatc 

 attempts of a high character. He had much knowledge of a kind 

 fitting him for his office of inspector of forests, and was acquainted with 

 geology, particularly in reference to the country in which he resided, 

 as is shown in his ' Gebirgsforster ' and ' Die Alpenwiilder.' By far 

 the most popular of his works was his 'Stunden der Andacht ' (Hours 

 of Devotion), which was first published as a Sunday periodical, and 

 which has gone through forty editions. It is one of the most complete 

 expositions of modern rationalism, but its want of orthodoxy was held 

 to be compensated by its fervid eloquence, and its zealous inculcation 

 of every practical duty in all ranks. This work was not known to be 

 his till the appearance of his ' Selbstschau," a sort of autobiography of 

 a somewhat singular character, which has been translated into English. 

 He published a collected edition of his historical writings, in 1830, in 

 16 volumes, and a selection of his novels and poems in 10 volumes, in 

 1847 ; but an edition of his collected works, in 1825, occupied 40 vols. 



