ROM 



the 



tion 



inteni 



inent 



was certainly difordered, and wo may trace, ni the 

 y of this drc-ad, the incipient ftaKe of mental derange- 

 ^A ftrikinjr inlbnce of this feehn^ appears .none of 

 ;;;; u-ftamentary papers written by him abont this time m 

 ihi he gave panicnlar d.rertions as to the management of 

 hi p operu-, the care of his children, and the cuilody of 

 h p^X and ellate, in the event of his becom„>g a lunattc. 

 It may be remarked alfo, that tl.e circumftance of us lofing 

 iUt in a great meafure, of the pnmary caufe of his 

 "K'"' '", Pr...-^ 1.;.. of,„n,inn fo much upon hi3 own 



circumilances, . 



friends, confirm the fame obfervation. , , , , ^ 



On the morning after lady llomdly'e death, when Dr. 

 Roget infonncd him of the event, he received the mtelh- 

 eence with calmnefs and refignation, and without any effu- 

 fion of -rief ; and prepared to cpiit the fcene of his forrows at 

 the f.iao-elUon of his friends without helitation or demur. 

 At Mur"rel-green, where they lodged in their way to Lon- 

 don, we learn from Dr. Roget, who paffed the night m the 

 fame room with liim, that, although he was in general 

 relUefs, vet, at intervals, he enjoyed tranquil fleep : nor 

 did he betray, at any period, the fmalleft fign of impatience 

 or irritability. As he approached London, however, on 

 the following day, his agitation increafed, and he once 

 complained to his daughter that his head was dillurbed. 

 After his arrival at his own houfe in town, he ate his dinner 

 with his ufual appetite ; lie then fent for Dr. Marcet, who 

 inquired particularly concerning the ftate of his head, and 

 was informed by fir Samuel, " that he had no head-ache, 

 nor any uneafy fenfation whatever in his head." " The 

 fymptoms prefent were thofe of a high degree of nervous 

 irritation, unaccompanied by fever or any inflammatory 

 aftion ; but they were of a nature to excite confiderable 

 alarm as to the ftate of his mind. Though he refrained 

 from giving vent to his feelings, it was evident, from his 

 manner and from the expreflions which dropped from him, 

 that he defpaired of his recovery, in fpite of every endea- 

 vour to infpire him with hope and comfort." To the ufe 

 of all means that were recommended for allaying his ex- 

 treme irritation he objected ; alleging, " that he mull 

 neceffarily pafs a wretched night, and that if he were to 

 ufe any medical prefcription, it would only have the effeft 

 of taking away all his confidence in the powers of 

 medicine." 



During the greateft part of the night. Dr. Roget, who 

 flcpt in the fame room, reports that he was perfettly 

 tranquil and apparently aflcep ; though in the morning fir 

 Samuel allured him, that he had never, for an inilant, 

 dropped alleep. 



The next morning the reftlefTnefs returned, and was 

 attended with fymptoms of fever ; the tongue became 

 white during the night, and the pulfe at one time rofe 

 to 130 in a minute. Upon confulting Dr. Marcet, it was 

 propofed, at his fuggellion, to apply ice to the head, and 

 to have recourfe to cupping ; but before thefe meafures 

 were adopted. Dr. Babington was fent for, and before he 

 arrived the excitement had fubfided, and fir Samuel was 

 much relieved by a copious perfpiration. Upon confultation 

 it was agreed, that the meafures propofed by Dr. Marcet, 

 in exifting circumilances, would not be expedient ; and 

 other medicines of an aftive nature were prefcribed. Thefe 

 were taken by fu- Samuel witliout reluctance ; and he con- 

 tinued tranquil and apparently afleep till about two o'clock. 

 His daughter remained at the fide of his bed, who ob- 

 ferved upon his awaking, that he became reillefs and 



R O S 



agitated. Upon being alked whether Dr. Roget fliould be 

 called, he replied in the negative ; but upon a fecond in- 

 quiry, he faintly alTentcd. During the Ihort interval of 

 Mifs Romllly's abfeiicc, a fudden paroxyfm had feized liim, 

 hurried liim from the bed, and armed his hand again 11 his own 

 life. The razor with which he had inflicted the fatal wound 

 was in his hand when Dr. Roget entered his apartment. 

 Before he expired, as his biographer proceeds in the rela- 

 tion of the melancholy cataftrophe, he made figns that he 

 wilhed to write, but though fupplied with pen and ink, 

 nothing intelligible could be collected from his attempts. 

 He then defiiled from making them, and joining his hands, 

 appeared, from the movements of his lips and eyes, to be 

 abforbed in fervent prayer. It is hardly neceflary to Hate, 

 that the jury fummoned on the coroner's inquell brought 

 in a verdict, " that the deceafed had deftroyed himfelf in a 

 Hate of temporary mental derangement." 



Sir Samuel and his lady were interred at tlie fame time, 

 in the fame grave, at Knill, the feat of lier anceilors, in . 

 Herefordlhire. The funeral, agreeably to the iiiltruCtions 

 of his will, was private ; being attended only by iiis nearell 

 relations and moll intimate friends. Six fons and one 

 daughter furvived to lament the irreparable lofs which they 

 fullained. The calamitous event, vvhich thus awfully ter- 

 minated the life of fir Samuel Romilly on the 2d of 

 November, 18 18, in the 62d year of his age, made a 

 deep impreffion, not only in the circle of his family and 

 friends, but through the country in general. So highly 

 was he refpeCted and efteemed, that, on this melancholy 

 occafion, " the folicitors fufpended their practice ; the 

 counfel abandoned the courts ; while the judge forfook the 

 bench, after he had Ihed a torrent of tears !" The follow- 

 ing fingulai- circumllance is mentioned by his biographer, 

 viz. that in the parifli church of St. Bride, Fleet-llreet, there 

 is a fimple undecorated tablet placed againft tiie wall, with 

 an infcription on it to the memory of Mr. Ifaac Romilly, 

 F.R.S., who was the uncle of fir Samuel, and who died 

 in 1759 of a broken heart, feven days after the deceafe of a 

 beloved wife. For the materials and authentic documents 

 that have furnifhed this article, we refer to the " Annual 

 Biography and Obituary for the Year 18 19," vol. iii. 



ROMNEY, in Geography, a town of Grafton county, in 

 New Hamplhire, containing 765 inhabitants. 



ROOFS, in Rural Economy. Add — Roofs of iron have 

 lately been introduced with advantage. Mr. T. Pearlall of 

 Bath has conllruCted feveral in the neighbourhood of Brillol 

 and London : and on a comparifon ot a roof of this kind 

 with that of timber, he obferves, that the iron-roof is fixed 

 on the walls complete for the covering ; that the llrength 

 and durability of the iron mull be allowed to be fuperior to 

 thofe of wood ; and that the prevention of fire fliould not 

 be forgotten. By his llatement, the whole expence of fucll 

 a roof, erected over a brick-kiln near Brillol, 29 feet 3 inches 

 in length, and 1 8 feet 6 inches in fpan, appears to have been 

 18/. 6s. lid. 



ROSAMOND, col. 2, I. 17, r. if it cannot be. Sec. 



ROSS, in Ohio, 1. I, r. 16. Add — Alfo, a townlhip of 

 Butler county, in Ohio, having 1 321 inhabitants. 



ROSSO of Florence, in Biography, called by the French 

 Maitre Roux, was born in 1496, and without regular tuition 

 arrived at a confiderable degree of eminence in the art of 

 painting. The works of Michael Angelo were his favourite 

 lludies, whofe llyle he endeavoured to imitate without fer- 

 vilely following it. Hurried away by a lively imagination 

 and great command of the pencil, he could not attach him- 

 felf to the lludy of nature, or the antique, fo lleadily as he 

 ought ; hence, though his works exhibit great brilliancy of 



invention, 



