JOX80X. BENJAMIN. 



JOUQKXSON, JOBQEN. 



i 



M ft soldier in the Low Countries, and the statement Menu to be 

 confirmed by one of hU own epigrams. The feet U, that the esrly 

 put of his life U quite uncertain, though it is well known that on 

 leaving Cambridge ho betook himself to the stage, when he proved 

 but an indifferent actor and ai 6nt an indifferent author. While a 

 retainer to the stage he had the misfortune to kill a man in a duel, 

 and wu committed to pri.on, where the visit* of a Roman Catholic 

 priest c.uverW him to the Church of Rome. Twelve yean after- 

 ward* he returned to the Church of England. 



It waa in the year 169S that hit fame rose by the production of the 

 comedy of ' Every Man in his Humour,' at the Globe Theatre, and 

 from thU time he adopted the practice of writing a play a year, for 

 several successive yean. 'Every Mitn out of his Humour' was acted at 

 the Globe; 'Cynthia's Revels,' which the author baa called not a 

 comedy, but a comical satire, was performed by the children of Queen 

 Elisabeth's chapel, as wus alto another comical satire, ' The Poetaster.' 

 This lait piece wu occasioned by a quarrel with Decker, who is 

 satirised under the name of Crispiuus. Decker retaliated by a play 

 entitle,! ' Satiromutix,' in which Jonson appears under the title of 

 Young Horace. Jonaon's tragedy of ' Sejanus ' was produced in 1003, 

 and his nobla play of 'Volpoue* appeared two years afterwords. 

 About thin time he was committed to prison with Chapman and 

 Man ton, the three poets having written the comedy of ' Eastward- 

 hoe ' (printed in Dodsley's oolU ction), which contained some reflections 

 on the Soots. They were in danger of losing their ears and their 

 noses, but were soon pardoned and released. It is said that Jonson's 

 mother intended to poison herself, if tho punishment had been 

 inflicted. Doing much occupied with court mosques, iu the writing 

 of which he bad acquired great celebrity, Jouson did not product! 

 another play (in the strict tense of the word) till 1609, when his 

 ' Epicicna ' wot acted, which is regarded by Dryden as a perfect 

 comedy. The 'Alchemist' appeared in 1010, ond though more 

 deservedly reckoned ono of the beat of his works, was no great 

 favourite with the public. Its ill success is ascribed by some to a 

 party raised against him. Dryden has supposed that the 'Alchemist ' 

 was written in imitation of a piece called ' Albumozar ' (in Dodsley's 

 collection), but the style and general conduct of the two pieces are 

 so very different that there scarcely seems a reason for supposing any 

 imitation other than the mere circumstance that both plays satirise 

 pretended adepts. In 1611 appeared the tragedy of 'Catiline,' in 

 which the long speeches translated from Cicero and Sallust colled 

 forth animadversions, which were disregarded by the author, as he 

 gloried iu plagiarisms which served to exhibit his learning. After 

 the production of ' Bartholomew Fair' in 1614, and the ' Devil is on 

 Ass' in 1616, he published his works in folio, and soon after retired 

 to live in Chriatchurch, Oxford, whither he had been invited by 

 several members. In 1619 he became poet laureate, and received on 

 annual stipend of 1001. and a tierce of Spanish wine. The condemna- 

 tion of 'The New Inn,' which he produced in lti'25, nearly disgusted 

 him ith tho stage, though he afterwards wrote ' The Magnetic Lady ' 

 and ' The Tale of a Tub,' which are considered inferior productions. 

 He appears to hare suffered much from poverty in the latter port of 

 his life. He died on the 6th of August 1037, and was buried three 

 days afterwards in Westminster Abbey. His monument, inscribed 

 ' O Hare Ben Jonson," is familiar to every person who has visited the 

 Abbey. 



Jonson's plays are well adopted to the perusal of earnest students, 

 who will find in them a mine of sterling though often rugged beauty ; 

 but tho.-e will be disappointed who look to his works for the amuse- 

 ment of a passing hour. In the first place it requires a suitable 

 education to enable a person to relish his imitations of tho classic 

 authors; and in the second, his plays do not so much represent 

 human character generally, as mankind under the particular circum- 

 stances of .lonson's own time, and many local allusions are mode 

 which cannot be understood without some knowledge of the manner* 

 and customs of the time : but Mr. Gilford's notes in his edition of 

 Jonson nre a treasure of this kind of information. The practice of 

 exhibiting the " humour*," that is, the peculiarities of character, 

 obtained for Jonson the name of the "humorous" poet, which name 

 must be understood in a sense quite different from that in which it 

 is u-cd at present. The lovers of o more natural school of poetry are 

 seldom admirers of Jouson, who finds his chief readers among those 

 who like to obterve the elaboration of dramatic art Besides his com- 

 pleted dramatic works, Jonson bos left two fragments, 'Mortimer's 

 Fall,' which be intended to be a tragedy in tho Greek style, and the 

 ' Sod Shepherd,' a dramatic j a-tond which is one of the gems of early 

 Kngliih literature. He bus also left a translation of Horace's 'Art 

 of 1'oetry,' an ' English Grammar ' of some merit, and a few poems, 

 collected under the title of ' Underwoods,' some of which are singu- 

 larly beautiful ; as well as a collection of notes in prone, which he 

 entitled ' Timber, or Discoveries, made upon Men and Matter as they 

 have flowed out of his daily reading; or had their reflux to his 

 peculiar Notion of thu Times.' These discoveries contain many 

 valuable passages as well as mine acute criticism. Hi* ' Conversations 

 with Druinnjond of Hawthorndeu/ am noticed under DIIUMHORD, 

 Wit I.IAJI. ' Every Man in his Humour ' Is the only piece of Jouson's 

 that has kept possession of the stage. ' The Alchemiit ' bos bean 

 abridged to a force called ' The Tobacconist,' 



.TONSSON, FINN (known also by the Latin name of I 

 JOHASNJHJS), the historian of Out Icelandic Church and literature, was 

 born on thu Kith of January 17U4 at Hit.ir.lul in Iceland, where hi. 

 father, Jon Haldorsson, was minuter. After receiving the elements 

 of education from his father, who hod formerly been master f il. 

 school of Sltnlholt, he went himself to that school; and in 1725, at 

 the age of twenty-one, passed over to Copenhagen' to prosecute his 

 studies at the university. In 1728 he was present at the great fire of 

 Copenhagen, which, among other calamities inflicted an irreparable 

 loss on Icelandic literature by the destruction of most of the collection 

 of manuscripts formed by hii friend and patron Arnos Magnum*, or 

 Uagnuason ; and in his endeavours to save a portion of this invaluable 

 treasure he neglected to attend to his own wardrobe and library, 

 which were consumed. On his return to Iceland his intention was to 

 become a lawyer, but the death of his uncle, a parish priest, wi 

 behind him a numerous family of email children, led hi* fa: 

 request him to alter his views to the church, that he might bring up 

 the orphans. He obtained the vacant benefice, brought up the family, 

 married himself, and in 1754 was appointed to the bishopric of Skallu.it. 

 He was very attentive to tho revenues of bis diocese, and the account 

 of his episcopate by Pe'tursion is chiefly occupi.-d with his disputes 

 with refractory tenants of church property, lie found time also to 

 compose, and publish several works in Latin and Icelandic, one of 

 which, the 'HUtoria Ecolesiastica Islaudiic,' is certain to preserve bis 

 name. He died on the 23rd of July 1769 at the ago of eighty-five, 

 leaving behind him six children, one of whom, Jon Piuason, succeeded 

 him in the see of Skalholt, and was the last bishop of that diocese, 

 which was abolished at hU decease in 1790. Fiusson was editor of the 

 ' Londuamobok' and other Icelandic sagas, ond founder of the Icelandic 

 agricultural society ; and being long resident at Copenhagen, where ho 

 was one of the leading members of the Arna-Magua)au Comin 

 for publishing manuscripts saved from tho conflagration of 1728, he 

 had also the opportunity of passing through the press his father's 

 ' Historia Eccleaiaatica,' to which ho made valuable additions. 



The 'Historia Ecclesiastica IsUindiiu' is in four quarto volumes, 

 closely printed, of which the tiist was published in 177^ and the fourth 

 in 1778, ut Copenhagen. A continuation by Petursson, containing the 

 hundred years from 1740 to 1540, was published in 1841. Tho original 

 book is a more valuable and interesting one than might be supposed 

 from its title. The history is made to embrace the literary as well os 

 the ecclesiastical attain of Iceland, and both are treated in so lively 

 and attractive a style that few ecclesiastical histories can be perused 

 with> equal satisfaction. To those whose studies lead them to take 

 an interest in the very singular country to which it relates, the 

 ' HUtoria ' is a rniuo of valuable information, the want of which no 

 other work can supply. 



JOKDAENS, JACOB, was born at Antwerp in 1594. He was a 

 disciple of Adam von Oort, but was indebted to Itubeus, by whom he 

 was employed as on assistant, for the greater part of his knowledge in 

 the art of painting. He wos prevented from visiting Rome by on early 

 marriage with Van Oort's daughter, but he diligently copied the best 

 pictures of the great Italian masters to which he could procure access. 

 His pictures are distinguished by powerful, brilliant, and harmonious 

 colouring, as well os knowledge of chiaroscuro. Hi.i composition is 

 rich, his touch free and spirited ; but he is deficient in elegance and 

 taste : he copied nature as he found it. He died in 10"S. Jordoens 

 painted with great facility and rapidity, and being also extremely 

 diligent and living to a great age, his works are very numerous : a 

 great many of the churches in the Netherlands have altar-pieces by 

 him, and his pictures are met with in moat collections of any eminence. 

 There is o ' Holy Family ' by Jordaens in the Notional Gallery, but it 

 is by no means one of his best works : he seldom succeeded well in 

 the treatment of subjects of an elevated character. 



JOKGENSON, JOUUEN, the form of uome adopted in his Kuglish 

 writings by JiiuoEX JoBenUN, or JI'RUBNSKX, o Dane, who as- 

 and exercised for a time the dignity of 1'rotector of Icid.md. 

 ;enson, who was born at Copenhagen in 1779, belonged to a family of 

 teamed watch-makers. His father, Jorgen Jiirgenaeu, waa watch- and 

 clock-maker to the court of Denmark ; his elder brother, Urban (born 

 1776, died 1830), was the author of a quurto volume iu Danish on the 

 measurement of time, published at Copenhagen iu 1S04 ; his nephew, 

 Louis Urban (born in 1806, and still living), is the author of important 

 works in Danish, French, and German on the art of watchmaking, 

 and also published iu English n 'Specification of Chronometers, 

 Thermometers, Watches, &c., made by Urban Jiirgenseu and .Sons ' 

 Copenhagen, 8vo, 1837). Jorgen, who was probably not 

 ,he hope of the family, wos at the age of fourteen sent to Kn 

 and bound apprentice on board a collier; he subsequently entered ill.- 

 English navy, and is stated to have served as a midshipman. In tho 

 year 1806 he returned to Copenhagen, and published in 1S07 a small 

 work in Danish on the commerce of the English and Americans in 

 the Pacific, to which he had performed a voyage iu an l.i"-h-h xhip. 

 Ho soon afterwards set sail iu command of a Dnih privateer, tho 

 ' Admiral .luul,' to make prizes on the ICnglixh coast; but me. tin. 

 Flamborough Head with two Kuglish ve--rl*, was obliged to * 

 and was sent to London o prisoner of war, but left at larg" on hi* 

 parole. At that time, iu consequence of the war between England 

 mark, the situation of the inhabitants of Iceland, who mainly 



