B U R 



B U R 



forrraiice was fo much ac'.mired on its firll appearance in I^a- 

 tin. t!iat the author publiflicd an Knp;h(h idition of it, in 

 f^ibilance the farr.e witii the Lutiii, but newly cotupofed 

 vith a variety of additions, in 2 vohimes ; the firll of whicli 

 \v?.s dedicated to king Charles II. and the fccond to queen 

 Muiy. To tlie i'lKth edition, in 17^6, is added, the "Au- 

 thor's Defence oF the Work from the Exceptions of Mr. 

 Warren, and the Examination of Mr. Keil." Of this theo- 

 ry a panicultir acci)unt will be given in a future article. See 

 Earth. We flia'l liere oblerve, that though the principles 

 of it have been deuionlhafed to be erroneous, and it can be 

 regarded only as a b?nutifnl pliilofophical romance, it was 

 much applauded on its lirfl appearance, and many perfons 

 were fcduced by the invention and ingenuity dilplayed in it, 

 and by the elegance of its compcifition. Among its ad- 

 mirers we m..iy reckon Bayle, wlio entertained a very high 

 opinion of it, and particularly Mr. Addifon, who addrclfed to 

 the authoran elegant Latin poem, into whichhe has transfnfed 

 the fancy and lublimity of the original. The mathematicians, 

 however, were not fo tafily feduced. Mr. Keil attacked it 

 vith ieverity ; and Mr. Elanilicad obferved concerning it, 

 that " there went more to the making the world than a line 

 turned period ; and that he was able to overthrow it in one 

 fheet of paper." In 1685 Dr. Burnet was eleded, by the 

 interell of the duke of Ormond, into the mallerlhip of the 

 Charter-houfe ; and foon after he entered into holy orders. 

 In his fituation at the Charter-houfe he refilled the illegal 

 attempt of king James II. to introduce one Popham, a 

 papift, as a penfioner into that houfe ; and his oppofition to 

 him was fupportcd by the other governors, the lord chancel- 

 lor Jefferies excepted, fo that the king deliiled from purfuing 

 the contetl. After the revolution, Burnet was appointed 

 chaplain to king William, and through the interell of arch- 

 bifhop TiUotfon, clerk of the clofet to that prince. In 

 1692 he pubhlhed his " Archeologise Philofopl\icK," in 

 which he not only quellioned the littral hiilory of the fall, 

 but imprudently introduced an imaginary dialogue between 

 Eve and the Serpent, which gave great offence. So fenli- 

 ble was he of the imprudence of this dialogue, that when a 

 new edition of the " Archeologi^e" was printing in Hol- 

 land, he dclired that it might be fupprefled, and it was like- 

 wife omitted in the fccond edition of the year 1733. '^'^ 

 this work was prefixed a dedication to king William, in 

 which the charider of that prince is drawn with great 

 ftreiigth and elegance. The clergy were fo offended by 

 the publication of this woik, that it is faid to have occa- 

 fioned his removal from the office of clerk of the clofet ; 

 and though he was favoured by king William, and patronized 

 by archbiihop Tiilotfon, the Icepticiim and heterodoxy 

 charged on his writings prevented his preferment in tlie 

 cliurch, and particularly his advancement to the epifcopal 

 bench, and even to the fee of Canterbury, which is faid to 

 have been in contemplation. He died September the 27th 

 1711;, and was buried in the chapel of the Ciiarter-houfe. 

 After his death were publifhed two pollhumous treatiL's ; 

 one entitled " De Fide et Officiis Chrillianonim," being 

 part of a larger defign, and a valuable compend of Chrillian 

 doilrine and duty, written with a liberal fpirit, but not 

 deemed altogether unexceptionable ; and the other, entitled 

 " De Statu Mortuorum et Refurgentium ;" to which is 

 added, an appendix, " De Futura Judaiorum Reltauratione." 

 In this work the author has given greater fcope to liis fancy ; 

 attacked the doClrine of the eternity of hell-torments ; and 

 contended for the tinal falvation of the whole human race. 

 But fo apprehenhve was the author left his notions concern- 

 ing the temporary duration of future punifliments (hould be 

 made an ill ufe of by the bulk of mankind, that in a note to 



this work, he earnetlly proteftcd againll its being trandattd. 

 Dennis, liowever, in defiance of the author's prottlhitior;, 

 not only publillied a tranflation of the trcatifc, but with j. 

 fidelity whch can harJly be thought a fufficient cxcufe for 

 the cilVontery of it, infcrted the iiotc in Englilh at the bot- 

 tom of the page. Dr. Burnet was alio the author of throe 

 fmall traCls in oppolition to Mr. Locke, to which was pub- 

 lillied a reply by ^Ils. Cockburne, contained in Dr. Birch's 

 edition of that lady's works. Whatever opinion may be 

 entertained of Dr. Burnet's fpeculations, philofophical and 

 theological, hio llyle, both in Latin and Englifh, has been 

 univcrfally admired for its elegance and perfpicuitv. Biog. 

 Brit. Blocker's Hift. PhilofT by Enfield, vol. ii.' p. 48.).. 



BuR.NET, Thomas, a Scotch phyfician, educated at Edin- 

 burgh, where he arrived at the honour of being fellow of 

 the Royal College, and phvlician to the king, was author 

 ot " 'I'liefaui'us Medicinic et Praiiticas ex preltantilTuTioruin 

 Medicorum Obfervationibus colle(!:ius," 4to. London, 1672. 

 It has been frequently reprinted, and contains many curious 

 and ufeful obfervatioi-s. Alfo, " Hippocrates Contracflus, 

 ill quo Hippocratis Opera omnia in brevcm Epitomen re- 

 duita debentur," Hvo. Ediiib. 1685. A convenient com- 

 pendium, with perpetual references to the Opera Omnia. 

 Hallcr. Bib. Med. 



BuRNKT, in ylgricullurc, the name of a plant that may be 

 cultivated in fome cafes with advantage, as a green winter 

 food for difTerent forts of animals. As the providing of a 

 large fupply of green food for live Hock, efpecially fattening 

 Ihetp, ewes, and lambs, and for milch cows, during the 

 winter and early fpring months, is an objeifl of the grcateft 

 importMiice to the farmer, he fliould not negletl the culture 

 ot luch plants as promife to be beneficial in this way ; for 

 as turnips, though well adapted to the purpofe, cannot be 

 preferved in itverc winters, and clover, rye, and other grafies, 

 are not ready fufficiently early : burnet, in fuch cafes, fliould 

 be attended to in this view. It is not, probably, however, 

 fo agreeable a food for animals as that of fome other plants, 

 but from its Itanding fcveral winters without injury, and be- 

 ing an early plant, it may frequently be found highly ufeful. 

 it fuccecds on almoll any forts of foil but thofe of a llrong 

 clayey nature, and may be town, like other feeds, with com, 

 and covered by means of a flight harrowing. The piodice 

 is in proportion to the goodiiefs of the land. The quantity 

 ot leed lown is commonly about a bufl.cl to an acre. The 

 author of the New Farmer's Calendar thinks it advantage- 

 ous to mix burnet with ray-grals and white clover, or with 

 the latter alone, not only with the view of fecuring a good 

 bottom, but to render the herbage more palatable to cattle 

 in general, which he has been convinced, by ocular proof, 

 have no great relifh for burnet : they, however, become ac- 

 cu Homed, he fays, to its cucumber-flavour in time, and 

 contented with it ; no fmall inducement to which is, that 

 they are commonly fed with it when no other grafs is to be 

 obtained. And Mr. Young obferves, that it does well mixed 

 with ray-grafs, or cock's-toot, in the proportion of about 

 three pecks of burnet to one of either of the other two. 

 April is recommended as the proper feafon for fowing bur- 

 net with crops of barley or oats, covering it in by two har- 

 rowings. It may likewife be fowii with buck-wheat in 

 May, with great propriety. 



In the railing of crops of this fort much depends upon 

 having good well ripened feed of the true kind, which is 

 always the bell provided by coUedling it from the belt plants 

 by the farmer liimlelf. 



When dcfigned for (hcep pafture, the beft method of 

 fowing this crop is probably that of broadcall over the fur- 

 face ; but in other cafes the drill mode may be employed. 



4B2 Of 



