534 MAT 
This office he retained upwards of feven years; and he had 
afterwards the fatisfa&ion of feeing feveral of his pupils 
become eminent characters in the church and world. Mr. 
Mather’s early inclination was to the minifterial office ; 
and he profecuted the ftudy of divinity with fuch fuc- 
cefsful application, that, before he reached the age of 
eighteen, he was judged to be competently furniffied tor 
commencing preacher. He firft entered the pulpit in the 
year i6Sc; and gave fuch fatisfaCtory evidence of his abi¬ 
lities, that, in the following year, the North Church at 
Bolton gave him an unanimous invitation, to become ail 
affiliant to his father, with a hahdfome offer tor his fup- 
port. After having had two years’ experience of his mi- 
nifterial qualifications, they unanimoufly chofe him co- 
paftor with his father ; but his modelty led him to decline 
being ordained before the year 1684. From that time he 
continued indefatigably diligent in the difcharge of the 
pattoral functions, in ftudying every practicable means 
of being ferviceable to fociety, and in drawing up a pro¬ 
digious number of writings for the information and im¬ 
provement of the public. That he might be the more 
extenfively ufeful, he applied himfelf to the ftudy of the 
modern languages, particularly the French and Spaniih ; 
and in his forty-fifth year he made himfelf in a great 
meafure mafter of the Iroquois Indian tongue, fo that he 
was able to write and publiffi treatifes in each of thofe 
languages. In fuch eftimation were his abilities and cha¬ 
racter held at Bolton, that the magiftrates frequently con- 
fulted him upon affairs of ftate; and fo highly was he re- 
fpeffed by the people in general, that, in the moments of 
public effervefcence, he more than once fucceeded in 
quelling dangerous riots, merely by the force of his per- 
iuation. In one thing, however, he was ftrangely mif- 
guided by the prejudices of the times in which he lived; 
he believed in the powers of witchcraft, and joined in 
the perfecutions that were carried on in that country 
againft fome poor creatures who had incurred the dif- 
pleafure of their neighbours on this head. He contri¬ 
buted to promote the phrenzy of the time by publilhing 
the trials of the accufed, and by fome other writings in 
iupport of the abfurd and pernicious doctrine of witch¬ 
craft. Notwithftanding, however, this inftance of his 
weaknefs, which charity will attribute to the fuperltition 
of the times, his memory is defervedly cherilhed by his 
countrymen on various accounts. Influenced by a difm- 
terefted regard for the public good, he planned and pro¬ 
moted feveral ufeful iniiitutions, of which he was an ac¬ 
tive member; particularly, a fociety for fuppreffing dis¬ 
orders, and promoting a reformation of manners; and a 
fociety of peace-makers, whofe profeffed bulinefs it was 
to compofe differences and prevent law-fuits. He was 
one of the commiffioners for Indian affairs, and did what 
lay in his power to promote the inftrudtion and happinefs 
of thofe poor people. He alfo printed propofals for an 
evangelical trealury, for the purpofe of building churches 
where they were wanted, of diifributing books of piety 
among the poor, of relieving poor miniiters, &c. and he 
engaged the countenance of his own church, and of fome 
others, to fo laudable an undertaking. To him, likewife, 
is to be attributed the introduction of the practice of ino¬ 
culation for the fmalL-.pox into America ; for he firft drew 
v.p an account of this method from the Tran factions of 
ihe Royal Society, and recommended it to the phyficians 
at Bolton. His fame was not confined to his own coun¬ 
try ; for in 17 jo, the univerfity of Glafgow, in Scotland, 
conferred on him the degree of D.D. and in 1714, the 
Royal Society of London elefted him one of their tellows. 
He was further honoured by an epistolary correlpondence 
with feveral perfons of eminent character for piety and 
learning ; and, among others, the lord chancellor King, 
lord Barrington, Mr. Whifton, Dr. Defaguliers, the ce¬ 
lebrated Dr. Francke, profelTbr of divinity in the univer- 
ifty of Halle, in Saxony, &c. He died in 1727-8, on the 
day after he had completed his fixty-fifth year. 
In his private character. Dr. Mather was ardently pious, 
ftnCtly moral even to afcetic feverity, benevolent, charita- 
M A T 
ble, polite, friendly, and a moft entertaining as well as 
instructive companion. Of his extraordinary indultry, 
his^ numerous publications, amounting to three hundred 
and eighty-two diltinct pieces, afford abundant evidence. 
Many of them, indeed, were but final), as fingle fermons, 
effays, Szc. yet feveral were of a larger fize. In this num¬ 
ber were, 1. Magnalia Ckrijli Americana ; or, an Ecclefi- 
aftical Hiltory ot New England, from its firft Planting in 
1620 to 1698; 1701, folio. 2. The Wonders of the Iri- 
viiible World; being an Account of the Trials of feve¬ 
ral Witches lately executed in New England, and of fe¬ 
veral Remarkable Curiofities therein occurring, &c. 1692, 
4to. 3. The Triumphs of the Reformed Religion in 
America, ih the Life of Mr. John Eliot, 1690, 8vo. 4. 
Johannes in Eremo ; or, The Lives of feveral famous Di¬ 
vines, 1695, Svo. 5. Decennium LuEluofum-, or, A Hiltory 
of Remarkable Occurrences in the long War wdrh the 
Indians, from 1688 to 1698, See. 1698, Svo. 6. Duode*. 
ccnnium LuEluofum ; or. The Hiltory of the War with the 
Indians from 170a to 1714, 8vo. 7. Pfalterium Americanum 
or. The Book of Pfalms in blank Verle, with Illutlrations, 
1718, 8 vo. 8. Directions for a Candidate of the Mini!= 
t‘‘y, 1725* 8v °> 9 - The Chriltian Philolopher, 1720, 8vo. 
10. Ratio Difciplinte Fratrum Nov-Anglorum, 1726, 8vo. 
11. Parentator ; or, Memoirs of the Lite of Dr. Increafe 
Mather; 1723, 8vo. 12. India Chrijliana ; or, An Ac¬ 
count of the Propagation of Chriftianity in the Ealt as 
well as Weft Indies ; 1721, 8vo. &c. He alfo left behind 
him feveral manulcripts; propofals for printing one of 
which, in three volumes folio, entitled Biblia Americana, 
or The Sacred Scriptures of the Old and New Teftament, 
iilultrated, are fubjoined to The Life of Dr. Cotton Mather, 
by his Jon Samuel Mather, 
MATH'ERN, a river of South Wales, which runs into 
the Tivy two miles above Llanbeder. 
MATH'ERN, a village in Herefordffiire, near the Mal¬ 
vern hills. 
MATH'ERN, a village in Monmouthffiire, fouth of 
Chepftovv ; remarkable for being the burial-place of Theo- 
doric king of Glamorgan, who was killed at the battle 
of Tintern, againft the Saxons, (which occafioned the 
building of the church;) whole corpfe bilhop Godwin, 
in 1630, ordered to be replaced in its ftone-coffin, hav¬ 
ing been difcovered by chance, and was nearly entire, 
though it had lain buried above a thoufand years, and 
the wound in the head which occafioned his death was 
very vifible. Formerly the biffiops of Llandaff had a pa¬ 
lace here; but it was deltroyed by Oliver Cromwell. 
MATH'ESIS, / [Greek.] The doctrine of mathema¬ 
tics.—Mad mathefis alone was unconfin’d. Pope. 
MATH'FIELD, commonly called Mayfield (Upper 
and Lower), two villages on the Dove, near Alhborne, 
Derbyfiiire. In the neighbourhood, in a field called Dale- 
Clole, Roman money has been found ; and in Church- 
Town field, in Upper Mathfield, about twenty years ago, 
was dug up a Roman urn. There are alio in Harlow- 
Greave, and on Colwich-Common, near thefe villages, 
two burial-places, luppoled to have been Roman. 
MATHIEU', a town of France, in the department of 
the Calvados: five miles north ot Caen, and thirteen ealt 
of Bayeux, 
MATHIL'DIS, a woman’s name. 
MA'THO, a man’s name ; a corrupt lawyer in the time 
of Domitian, mentioned in Juvenal’s firft Satire. 
MA'THON, a village in Worcelterlhire, feven miles 
from Worcelter, in a notch of the county, on the ealt. 
lide of Malvern Hills, almoft furrour.ded by Hereford- 
fiiire. A great deal of cider is made here. 
MATHRAV'EL, a village of North Wales, in the 
county ot Montgomery ; once the feat of the prince of 
Powis, and fuppoied to be the ancient city called Medio¬ 
lanum-, now reduced to a farm-houfe. It is five miles 
north-welt of Wellhpool. 
MA'THRY, a village in Pembrokeftiire, South Wales; 
with a fair on the 10th of October. 
MATH'URINS,/i in church-hiftory, a focitty cf re¬ 
ligious 
