MACAULAY 



3550 



MACBETH 



of poems and essays, and in 1825 had contrib- 

 uted to the Edinburgh Review his essay on 

 Milton, which had been received with enthusi- 

 astic praise. Thus his literary career opened 

 with most promising prospects, and his popu- 

 larity kept on increasing until his death. The 

 essay on Milton was followed by a long series 

 of magazine articles, on a variety of subjects, 

 and Macauley became the most widely read 

 essayist of the age. 



In 1830 he entered Parliament, became promi- 

 nent as an ardent Whig and eloquent debater, 

 and helped in securing the passage of the great 

 Reform Bill in 1832, abolishing the so-called 

 "rotten boroughs." After a period of absence 

 in India as a member of the supreme council 

 there, he was again returned to Parliament, 

 where he served at intervals during nearly all 

 the remainder of his life. In 1842 was pub- 

 lished his Lays of Ancient Rome, a book of 

 ballads based on Roman legends and remark- 

 able for their vigorous, swinging meter. Hora- 

 tius at the Bridge, one of the Lays, is known 

 and liked by almost every schoolboy. Six years 

 later were issued the first two volumes of his 

 greatest work, The History of England from 

 the Accession of James II. The effect produced 

 by these books was unique. They were wel- 

 comed not only by scholars but by the entire 

 reading public, who found in them the enter- 

 taining style and the thrilling narrative which 

 they expected only from novels. The history 

 sold by the thousands, not only in Great Brit- 

 ain but in the United States. The third and 

 fourth books were even more eagerly received, 

 and it is said that in the United States the sale 

 of copies was exceeded only by that of the 

 Bible. There have been few authors who have 

 enjoyed such popularity during their lifetime. 

 In 1857 Queen Victoria recognized his ability 

 and his services by creating him Baron Macau- 

 lay of Rothley. Two years later, after a long 

 period of ill health, he died suddenly, leaving 

 his great history unfinished. 



Macaulay's style is regarded as a model of 

 clearness and grace. It has had many imita- 

 tors, but no one of them has approached the 

 original. In value of content, however, his es- 

 says and histories do not compare with those 

 of accurate and philosophical present-day writ- 

 ers. His love for vividness and picturesqueness 

 in his presentation led him into a coloring of 

 facts, and his Whig tendencies were so pro- 

 nounced that he often did injustice to other 

 parties. Nevertheless he must always be re- 

 markable for his great breadth of learning and 



for his ability to gain and hold the interest of 

 his readers. A.MC c. 



Consult McMaster's "Thomas Babington Ma- 

 caulay," in Warner Classics. 



MACAW, makaw', one of a species of large, 

 gorgeous, strong-flying parrots, mostly found in 

 South America, although a few reach as far 

 north as lower Central America. Among the 

 best-known species are the great scarlet macaw, 

 the red and yel- 

 low, green-winged 

 macaw and the 

 green macaw. The 

 distinctive fea- 

 tures of this bird 

 are long, pointed 

 wings, naked 

 cheeks, a short, 

 arched bill and a 

 very long, wedge- 

 shaped tail. They 

 are easily domes- 

 ticated, but as 



their natural MACAW 



notes are harsh and piercing, and they do 

 learn to use words readily, and cannot be taui 

 not to scream, they make undesirable pets. 



Macaws are usually seen in pairs, flying 

 feeding close together. Their eggs, which sel- 

 dom exceed two in number, are laid in the 

 hollows of trees; they feed chiefly on seeds and 

 fruits and sometimes cause great damage in 

 fields of grain. When domesticated, they readily 

 eat bread and sugar. 



MACBETH, makbeth' ( ? -1057), a king 

 Scotland whose seventeen years' reign is chn 

 cled as a time of plenty. In a revolt in H 

 Macbeth slew Duncan, then the Scottish king, 

 and seized the throne. Duncan's sons at once 

 fled to England, and in 1054, with their Uncle 

 Siward, Earl of Northumbria, led an army into 

 Scotland against Macbeth. An indecisive bat- 

 tle was fought near Scone; it was not until 

 1057 that Macbeth was finally defeated and 

 slain at Lumphanan, in Aberdeenshire. 



The Tragedy, "Macbeth." Shakespeare, using 

 as a basis one of the stories in Holinshed's 

 Chronicles of England, Scotland and Irela\ 

 and investing the tale of Macbeth and Du: 

 with the glow of imagination, produced in t] 

 tragedy Macbeth one of the greatest plays of 

 all time. This drama is historical only in that 

 it is founded on the murder of King Duncan 

 by Macbeth. It is due to the poet's genius 

 that we read in this masterpiece of dramatic 

 writing the story of a soul's degradation; it is 



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