630 
PER 
fon fays ; hut, I believe, it is yet in ufe among the 
vulgar. Todd. 
My ragged ronts, 
They wont in the wind wag their wriggle tails, 
Perk as a peacock. Spenfer's Shep. Cal. 
PER'KELSKAREN, a Email ifland in the Gulf of Fin¬ 
land. Lat. 60.15. N. Ion. 27. 24, E. 
PER'KERI, a town of Curdiftan, on Lake Van : 
eighteen miles eaft of Argifh, and thirty north-north-weft 
of Van. 
PERKERNUCK'A, f. A term ufed in India for petty 
officers. James's Mil. Di£l. 
PER'KIN, f. [dimin. of perry or of pear.'] A beve¬ 
rage made from pears, as cider from apples. It may be 
called the fmall beer of perry, as ciderkin of cider. See 
Perry. 
PER'KIN, [i. e. Peterldn, or Little Peter.] A man’s 
name. 
PER'KINS (William), a learned and pious -Englifh 
divine, was born at Marllon, in Warwicklhire, in the 
year 1558. From the grammar-fohool he was fent for 
academical education to Chrift’s College, Cambridge, 
where his behaviour was for fome time wild and irregular, 
though he foon became reclaimed, and exhibited a com¬ 
mendable pattern of lludious diligence, virtue, and piety. 
While he was an under-graduate he appears to have 
fhown a ftrong attachment to the ftudy of the mathematical 
fciences, which, in the reports of the ignorant and credu¬ 
lous, was conftrued into a fondnefs for the ftudy of magic; 
but, after taking his firft degree in arts, he devoted him- 
felf entirely to the ftudy of divinity, and the branches of 
learning more immediately conne&ed with that fcience. 
He was chofen a fellow of his college, of which he was 
alfo appointed one of the tutors, and acquired high re¬ 
putation for the learning and judgment with which he 
difcharged the duties of that office. He was likewife no¬ 
minated catechift of his college, and delivered a courfe 
of Leisures on the Commandments, which made a deep 
impreffion on the minds of his pupils. After having en¬ 
tered into holy orders, he firft exercifed his pulpit-talents 
in preaching to the prifoners in the caftle of Cambridge, 
whom he prevailed upon the jailor to bring to the ad¬ 
joining fhire-houfe every Sunday. When it was known 
that he had thus voluntarily undertaken the office of 
fpiritual inftrudor to thefe ignorant and vicious wretches, 
fome refpedlable perfons from the contiguous parilhes came 
to hear him, who foon fpread abroad the fame of his ex¬ 
traordinary abilities as a preacher. At length he was in¬ 
vited to become preacher of St. Andrew’s parifh in Cam¬ 
bridge ; and for many years was admired and followed by 
numerous auditories, comprehending many of the mem¬ 
bers of the Univerfity moll refpediable for learning and 
difcrimination, who were inftructed and edified by his 
difcourfes, while they were level to the underftandings of 
the inoft common hearers. 
Mr. Perkins had repeated offers of more advantageous 
fituations; but, though he married, and had feveral 
children, his affection for the parifhioners of St. Andrew’s 
induced him to refufe them, and to be fatisfied with the 
inconfulerable compenfation for his arduous labours 
which he derived from his appointment, and the prefents 
of fome liberal individuals. Befides difcharging the du¬ 
ties of his minifterial office, he devoted no inconfider- 
able portion of his time to the compofition of various 
vtorks. In his religious fentiments he was ftriftly calvi- 
niftical; and he publiffied feveral treatifes in defence of 
the dodlrines of that fchool, which involved him in a 
controverfy with Arminius, then profeffor of divinity at 
Leyden, which continued till his death. 
Perkins was deprived by archbifhop Whitgift.for Pu- 
ritanifm.” He was one of thofe divines who “ were 
fometimes called conforming non-conformijls, as they were 
againft feparation from the national church.” He fell 
PER 
under the difpleafure of the archbifhop, in confequepce 
of his having fubfcribed, or declared his approbation of, 
the Booh of Dicipline ; but his deprivation, orfufpenfion, 
feems not to have been of any long continuance; his 
great learning, worth, and quiet peaceable behaviour, 
making the high party afhamed of proceeding to any vio¬ 
lent meafures againft him. He died of a violent attack 
of the ftone in 1602, when he had only arrived at the 
44th year of his age. 
In perfon he was rather ffiort and corpulent; in his 
difpofition cheerful and pleafant; and, owing to a lame- 
nefs in his right hand, wrote all his works with his left. 
Of his great induftry, their number alone affords fuffi- 
cient proof. Many of his pieces have been tranflated 
into elegant Latin; and others into the German, Dutch, 
French, Italian, and Spanifh, languages. The whole 
have been collefted together, in 3 vols. folio, confiding 
of A Foundation of Chriftian Religion ; The Golden 
Chain, or Defcription of Divinity ; An Expofition of the 
Apoftie’s Creed; An Expofition of the Lord’s Prayer; 
Cafes of Confcience, in Three Books; An Analyfis and 
Harmony of the Bible; Commentaries upon the Fifth, 
Sixth, and Seventh, Chapters of St. Matthew; on the 
Five Firft; Chapters of the Epiftle to the Galatians; on 
the Epiftle of Jude; and on the Three Firft Chapters of 
the Apocalypfe; Problem of the forged Catholicifm, or 
Univerfality of the Romilh Religion, in Latin, intended 
as an introdudlion to young Undents in the ftudy of the 
Fathers and Councils; together with numerous doc¬ 
trinal, pradlical, and controverfial, treatifes. Neal's Hijl. 
Purit, vol. i. ch. vii. viii. 
PER'LEBERG, a town of Brandenburg, and capital 
of the Mark of Pregnirz, fituated on the Stepenitz, and 
containing about 370 houfes: feventy-fix miles fouth-eaft 
of Hamburgh, and fixty-two north-weft of Berlin. Lat. 
53. 8. N. Ion. 11. 58. E. 
PER'LICAN (New), a noted harbour on the eaft coaft 
of Newfoundland-illand, eight leagues weft-fouth-weft 
of Old Perlican, and five leagues from Random-head. It 
has a wide and fafe entrance ; and fhips may ride in it, 
locked from all winds, in from ten to five fathoms water. 
PER'LING, adj. [from pearl.] Pearly : 
Though plaine fhe faw, by all that fhe did heare, 
That lhe of death wasguiltie found by right, 
Yet would not let juft vengeance on her light; 
But rather let, inftead thereof, to fall 
Few perling drops from her faire lampes of light. 
Spenfer's F. Q. 
Her long loofe yellow locks like golden wire, 
Sprinkled with pearl, and perling flowers atween, 
Did like a golden mantle her attire. Spenfer’s Epit/ialamiou. 
That in the latter of the foregoing citations the word 
perling could never mean purling is felf-evident: whence 
it feems probable that the ingenious Upton was miftaken 
when he gave it that fenfe in the former. Mafon's Suppl. 
to John fon. 
PER'LOUS, adj. [from perilous.] Dangerous ; full of 
hazard.—In Phaedria’s fleet bark over the perlous fliard. 
Spenfer. 
A perlous paffage lies, 
Where many maremaids haunt making falfe melodies. 
Spenfei-. 
PERLUSTRA'TION, f. [perlujlratus, Lat.] The aft 
of viewing all over.—By the perlujlration of fuch famous 
cities, caftles, amphitheatres, and palaces, fome glorious 
and new, fome mouldered and eaten away by the iron - 
teeth of time, he may come to difcern the beft of all 
earthly things to be but frail and tranfitory. Hoivell's 
Inflrutl. for Trav. 
PERM, a town of Ruffia, and capital of a government, 
on the Kama: 808 miles eaft of Peterfburg, and 620 eaft 
of Mofcow. Lat. 57. 40. N. Ion. 56. 14. E. 
PERMA- 
