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BLOT L'EglisE, or Blot h Rode, in Geography, a 

 town of France, in the department of the AUier, lo miles 

 W. of Gainat. 



BLOTED China Ware, a name given by fome to a fort 

 of china that is loaded with colours in an irregular manner. 

 This pleafes fome people, but it is a defective fort of ware, 

 the large blotches of colours having been only laid on to 

 cover tiie blemifhes or faults in the firll baking. 



BLOTNO, in Geography, a town of Lithuania, in the 

 palatinate of Wilna, on the river Rawie, i6 miles N. of 

 Lida. N. lat. t;4° 5'. E. long. 25^ 34'. 



BLOTTING Paper, a fpccies of ppper, made without 

 fize or ftiffeiiiiig, ferving to imbibe the wet ink in books of 

 accouut, and prevent its felling oif, or blotting the oppolite 

 page- . _ . ' 



BLOTTiNG-i^oti, a fort of minute book, or memorandum 

 book, ufed by fome merchants for making imperfeft entries 

 in a prefent hurry, which are to be copied out fairer and 

 fuller at night into the journal. 



BLOUNT, Thomas, in Biography, a learned Englifh 

 writer, v.as born at Bordedcy, in VVorcefterfnire, in 1619 ; 

 and, without the advantage of an univerlity education, made 

 a confiderable progrefs in literature. By profeffion lie was a 

 banilter of the Inner Temple. Upon the breaking out of 

 the popifh plot in t!ic reign ot Charles II., he was much 

 alarmed on account of his being a zealous Roman Catho- 

 lic, and fcizcd wjth a paify, which terminated in his death, 

 in 1679. His wjrks were numerous, and are as follow : viz. 

 " Tiie Academy of Eloquence ;" " Giofibgraphica, or a 

 diftionary interpreting fuch hard words, Hcbrevi', Greek, 

 Latin, Italian, S:c. introduced into the Englilb tongue," 

 1656, 8vo ; " The Lamps of the La-.v, and the Light of 

 the Gofpel, &c.;" " B )fcobel, or the Hiilory of his Ma- 

 jelly's Elcape after the battle of Worcelter," i66c, 8vo ; 

 the fecond part was printed in l6Si, 8vo ; "The Catho- 

 lic Almanac for 1661, 62, 6j, &c. ; " Booker refuted," 

 or Animadverfions on Booker's Ephemeris, 1665, 410.;" 

 " A Law Dictionary," 1671, fol. ; " Animadverfions 

 upon iir Richard Bilker's Chronicle, &c." 1672, 8vo. ;" 

 *' A World of Errors difcovered in the New World of 

 Words, &c." 167;, fol.; " Fragmenta Antiquilatis, an- 

 cient tenures of lands, &c." 1679. Biog. Diet. 



Blount, Sir Henry, was born at the feat of his father 

 fir Thomas Pope Blount, at Titttnhanger, in Hertfordiliire, 

 in 1602; and having completed his education at Trir.ity 

 college, Oxford, he commenced the ftudy of the law at 

 Gray's Inn. Being refolved to travel, he fet out on his 

 tour in 1634, and vifited the Turkifh dominions in Europe, 

 and alio i'everal parts of Egypt. After a long ilay at Grand 

 Cairo, he returned to England, in l6.;r), and publifhtd an 

 account of his travels under the title of " A Voyage into 

 the Levant, &c." Lond. 1636, 4to. which had a rapid 

 fale, though it was not held in high elliniation by the mod 

 competent judges. Charles I. appointed him one of the 

 band of peniioners ; and. on his father's death, in i6jif!, he 

 fucceedcd to the family feat at Blount's hall in Staff -rdlliire, 

 and a confiderable eltate. In the civil war he joined the 

 royal party ; but abandonir'g the royal caufe, he was well 

 receivLd in London by perfons in power. In 161; I, he be- 

 came one of the committee for reforming the practice of the 

 law ; and he wa« very zealous againft tythes, and for the 

 reduCl:on of the ftipends of all parifh minillers to an eqvial 

 and moderate provifion. His general knowledge recom- 

 men Kd him to the otnce of one of the commiflioners for 

 advancing the trade and navigation of the commonwealth. 

 His brother's death, in 1654, made way for his fncceffioa 

 to the Heitforddure eftate. At the Reftocation he was 



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favourably received by the king; and in i6fji he ferved the 

 office of high-flieriff for the county of Herts. From this 

 time, till his death in 1682, he lived as a retired Engliih 

 "■entleman ; but he feems to have acquired from his Itavtls 

 an inclination to freedom of opinion, and to have adopted 

 feveral frip-iilar and paradoxical notions. Six comedies, en- 

 titled " Court Comedies," and publifiied under tl'.e name of 

 John Lilly, have been afcribcd to him. Biog. Brit. 



Blount, Sir Thomas Pope, elJ.rll fon of the preceding, 

 was born at Upper Huiloway, near London, in 1649, and 

 educnted indcr the immediate infpefti.)n of his father. Hav- 

 ing cilablilhed an early reputation for learning and worth, he 

 was created a baronet by Charles II. in l6'9. He reprefent- 

 ed firll the borough of St. Albin's, and afterwslrds the county 

 of Herts, and was always elleemtd as a friend of liberty, 

 and a- true patron of literature. Of his erudition he gave 

 evidence in his learned work, entitled, " Cenfura Celebri- 

 orum Authorum," printed at London, in 1690, folio, and 

 reprinted at Geneva in 1C94 and 17 10, 410. This work is 

 an accurate and ufeful compilation, containing an account 

 of the characters and writings of both ancient and modern 

 authors. His work " De Re Poetica," publifhed in 1694, 

 4to. is a fimilar compilation, comprehending an account of 

 ancient and modern poets. His " Natural Hillory," print- 

 ed lfi93, i2mo. is a kind of common-place book, containing 

 obfervations, many of which are uncommon, felefted from 

 the bed modern writers. Of his talents as an original writer, 

 we have a Ipecimen in his " Effays on feveral fubjecfs," 8vo.. 

 in which he difcuffes many curious points ; fuch as the in- 

 fluence of the priclthood ; the regard due to the ancients ; 

 the variety of opinions ; the uncf rtainty of human know- 

 ledge ; the etFedts of cullom and education, &c. He died 

 at Tittenhanger in 1697, and left a numerous family. 

 Biog. Brit. 



Blount, Charles, brother of the preceding, was born 

 at Upper HoUoway in 1654, and polTelfcd diftinguiflied ta- 

 lents, which were affiduoufly cultivated by his father, who 

 alTumed the direilion of his (Indies. As he was the favourite 

 of his father, he encouraged his marrying and fettling in an 

 independent eftate at the early age of eighteen years. If 

 we except a little treatife, publifhed without his name, and 

 entitled " Mr. Dryden vindicated, &:c." his literary c?reer 

 commenced in j67Sor i679,withthe publication of his " Ani- 

 ma Mundi, or an hiftorical narration of the opinions of the 

 ancients concerning man's foul after this life, according to 

 unenlightened nature ;" in the compofition of which he is 

 faid to have been affifted by his father. This work contain- 

 ed free opinions, which gave great offence ; and though it 

 had been previoully hcenfed, was fupprefled by order of 

 Compton, billiop of London ; and during his abfcnce bumed 

 by fome olficious zealot. Several anfwers to it were written ; 

 and it was particularly animadverted upon in the fecond vo- 

 lume of Nichols'j Conference with a Theilt. In the fame 

 year Mr. Blount publilbed fome extrafts from Hobbes'i 

 Leviathan, in a lingle (hect, entitled " Mr. Hobbes's lail 

 Words and dying Legacy ;" and intended to expofe, pro- 

 bably, the political principles of this writer. To thefe, his 

 ardent zeal for liberty rendered him peculiarly adverfe ; and 

 his zealous attacltment to this canfe was foon after maiiifelled 

 in a pamphlet, under the fignature of " Junius Brutus ;" 

 defigned to alarm the nation with regard to a popilb plot, 

 and the profpeil of a popilh fucceflor to the crown. In 1680 

 he publilhed his tranllation of " the Two Firll Books of 

 Philoilratus, concerning the life of Apollonius Tyanasus, 

 with philological notes on each chapter," fol. which, being 

 confidered as a dangerous attempt to reproach and injure 

 the Chiiltiaa religion, was immediately fuppreffed, fo that 



