B E V 



oriental literature, in wliich he fo much excelled, that at the 

 age of 1 8 he wrote a treatife on the excellency and life of the 

 oriental tongues, with a Syriac grammar. He was no lefs 

 diiUnguiilied at college by hi* early piety and exemplary fo- 

 briety and integrity. Having taken orders in 1661, lie was 

 collated by Dr. Sheldon, bifhop of London, to the vicarage 

 of Ealing in Middlefex, which he refigned in 1672, upon 

 being chofcn reftor of St. Peter's Cornhill, by the lord mayor 

 and aldermen of London. In this fituation, fuch were his 

 zeal and afliduity in the difcharge of the dutiis of hisofPice, 

 not only in the pulpit but out of it, and fueh was the fuc- 

 cefs that attended his labours, that he was denominated " the 

 great reviver and reilorer of primitive piety." His fingular 

 merit recommended him to the favour of hisdiocefan, biihop 

 Henchman, who, in 1674, collated him to one of theprei3:nds 

 of St. Paul's ; ar.d in j68i, bidiop Compton promoted him 

 to the archdeaconry of Colchefter, every parifh of which he 

 vifited in perfon. In 16S4, he was iiirtalled prebcndsrv of 

 Canterbury, and he alio became chaplain to king William and 

 queen Mary. Declining to accept the fee of Batli and 

 Wells, which was ofTcred to him in 1691, he was confecratcd, 

 in 1704, biiliop of St. Afaph. In lliis elevated ftatioii he 

 profecuted, with his accuftomed zeal and diligence, every 

 praflicable meafure for advancing the honour and intereft ot 

 religion, both among the clergy and laity ; recommending to 

 the former the " duty of catechiling and inftrufting the 

 people committed to their charge, in the principles of the 

 Chrillian religion, to the end that they might know what 

 they were to do, in order to falvation," and furnilhing them 

 with a plain and eafy " Expofition upon the Church Cate- 

 chifm." After having poflcffed this new dignity for between 

 three and four years, he died March, 5th, 1708, in the yilt 

 year of his age, and was buried in St. Paul's cathedral. He 

 left the greateft part of his eftate to the focieties for propa- 

 gating the gofpel, and for promoting Chrillian know- 

 ledge. Of his numerous works, thofe publilhcd by himlelf 

 were ; i. " De Linguarum Orientalium, prsefertim Hcbraics, 

 ChaldaicK,' Syriacse, Arabics, et Samaritana', pracftantia et 

 ufu, cum Grammatica Syriaca tribus libris tradita," Lond. 

 1658, 8vo. ; 2. " laftitutionum Chronologicarumlibri duo, 

 una cum totidem Arithmetices Chronologicce libeliis," Lond. 

 i66g, 4to., 1705, 4to., and 1721, Svo. ; 3. " ZtvoJiMi', five 

 PandecSae Canonum S. S. Apoftolorum, et Concilicrum ab 

 Ecclefia Gnca receptorum ; necnon Canomcarum S. S. Pa- 

 trum Epillolarum ; una cum Scholiis Antiquorum fingulis eo- 

 ^unanne^;i3, et fcriptis alfis hue fpeftantibus; quorum plurima 

 ct Bibhothecx Bodleianae aharumque MSS. codicibus nunc 

 primum edita ; reliqua cum iifdem MSS. fumma tide et dili- 

 gentia collata, Sic," Oxon. 2 vols. fol. 1672 ; " 4. Codex 

 Canonum Ecclefix primitivae vindicalus et illullratus," Lond. 

 1679,410. (See Canons.) 5. " The Church Catechifm 

 explained, for the ufe of the diocefe of St. Afaph," Lond. 

 170^, 4to. : feveral times reprinted in a fmaller volume. 

 After his death, feveral of the bilhop's works, not intended 

 by himfelf for publication, and in various refpcfts injurious 

 to his memory, were publidied by his'executor. Thefe con- 

 fid of devotional tvafts, among which are his " Private 

 Tiioughts upon Religion," a great number of fermons, a 

 fyflem of divinity, or " Thefaurus Theologicus," an " Ex- 

 pofition of the 39 articles, &c." In his " Private Thoughts" 

 the bidiop lias incurred aniraadverfion ; particulariy v.'ith 

 rcfpeft to his meditation upon the Trinity, in which he un- 

 refcrvedly adopts the famous maxim of Tertullian, " credo, 

 quia impofubile ei>." The theology of bidiop Beveridge 

 was Calviniftical ; his cxteufive learning has been univerfally 

 allowed ; his devotion inclined to mytticifm ; and as a rca- 

 foner and writer, he has been extravagantly extolled by his 

 admirers and panegyrills, and no kfs feveicly ccufured by 



B E V 



others, forthe quaintnefb ai.J puerility of his ftylr, the fiUa- 

 cioufiiefs and inconclufnenefs of his rcafoning, and his avowed 

 oppolition to rational fci.timciits of religion. Thefe reflec- 

 tions, however, refult from a perufal of his podhumous writ- 

 ings, the publication of which has been afcribed to avarice or 

 want of judgment on Aie part of his executor. All h.ivc con- 

 curred in allowing him the praife of the Itriclcft integrity, of 

 finccre pitty, of exemplary charity, and of great zeal for re- 

 ligion. Biog. Biit. Gen. DiSl. 



BEVEP.LACKE, in Geography, a tiver of Germany, 

 which runs into the Aland, 3 milti fouth of Seehaufcn, in 

 the old mark of Brandenburgh. 



BEVERLAND, Adrian, in Biography, a man of 

 genius and learning, who prollituted his talents in the ccmpo- 

 iition of feveral obnoxious books, was a native of Middle- 

 burgh in Zealand, about the middle of the 17th century, and 

 fludied polite hterature under Voffius ; and for this piirpofc 

 he vifited Oxford in 1672. Devoting himfelf to the dudy 

 of the law, he became a doftor and a counfellor ; and as a 

 philologer, he made himltlf known to the learned world. 

 But the fubjeds of his felcction, both for ftudy and difcuffiotl, 

 were principally of the impure and loofe kind ; and of his li- 

 centious taile, he gave fome fpecimens in his work, entitled 

 " Dejure d.olatx virginitatis, lucubratio academica," Leyd. 

 1680, 4to. ; and in a treatife " De proftibulis veterum," ('.;u 

 the brothels of the ancients), part of which was inferted by 

 Ifaac VofTius in his comm.entary upon Catullus ; but which 

 he was did'uadcd by his friends from publidiing. Before 

 this time, viz. in 1678, he had rendered himfelf obnoxious by 

 his book on original fm, entitled " Peccalum originale y.%7 

 t^o^vi fic nuncupatum philologice problematicos elucubratum 

 a 'Themidisahimno, &c. ;" in which work he revived the 

 notion of Cornelius Agrippa, that Adam's fin confided en- 

 tirely in the commerce with his wife, and that original fin u 

 nothing but the inclination of the fexesto each other. This 

 book was condemned to be. burnt by the magitlrates at the 

 Hague, and the author was committed to prilon, whenc^he 

 WES not liberated without paying a pecuniar)- fine, and tak^ig 

 an oath, that he would never write again upon fuch fubjcits. 

 He then removed to Utrecht, where his debauched manners 

 expofed him to fredi odium, and obliged him to withdraw to 

 Leyden. Here he wrote a bitter fatire againft. the magillrates 

 and profcffors under the title of " Vox clamantisin defcrto ;" 

 and Et length, finding himfelf infecure in Holland, he fougiit 

 an afylum in England, where Ifaac VofTius is faid to havt 

 procured for hirn a penfion upon the ecclefiaftical revenues, 

 which he expended in the purchafe of fcarce books and me- 

 dals, and of obfcene piclnres and prints, till he was reclaimed 

 from his culpable mode of life by an acquaintance with the 

 learned and worthy Dr. Edivard Bernard. In token of his 

 regret on account of his pad conduft, and of the fincerity of 

 his reformation, he wrote a treatife " De Fornicatione ca- 

 vcnda admonitio, &c." pubHdicd, probably, firft at London 

 in 1690, with a dedicatory epiille to Dr. Bernard, and after- 

 wards in 1698, Svo. ; in which, notwitlidanding his pre- 

 tended, or real reformation, fome offenfive padages occur. 

 After the death of Vofiius, he fell into extreme poverty, 

 and into a ftatc of mental derangement ; ai.d probably focn 

 after the year 1712, when he wandered tlirough England, 

 under an appreher.lion that 200 pcrfons had confederated 

 together to aflaflinatc him, he died. Gen. Dift. 



BEVERLEY, or Beverly, in Geography, is alarge cor- 

 porate, borough, and principal town in that portion of York- 

 Ihire called the eaft riding. It is featcd at the foot of the 

 woulds, on the banks of the river Hull, which is rendered na- 

 vigable, by means of a diort canal, up to the town. This 

 place appears to have been of fome note previous to the time_ 

 of Bede, whofe preceptor, John of Beverley, archbidiop ot 



York, 



