PALK, THOMAS, M. A. He was born in 1636, at Staverton, in Devonshire, and educated at New Inn Hall, Oxford. He was a hard student, a most industrious man, and an excellent preacher. Having but a small library, he borrowed many books, and abridged them for his own use. He engaged in teaching a school, but was so harrassed by the spiritual court, that he was obliged to give it up. At length he was excommunicated for his nonconformity, and died in consequence of the troubles to which it subjected hin, June 18, 1693, aged fifty-six.

He was author of, 1. "The Loyal Nonconformist, or Religious Subject, yielding to God his due, and to Cæsar his Right: Discourses on John v. 23, 24. and Rom. xiii. 1." printed as preached in August, 1662.-2. "Usury Stated, in Opposition to Jellinger's Usurer Cast." He left in MS. "A Vindication of this," and, "An Answer to Long's History of the Donatists."

PALMER, HERBERT, born at Wingham, in Kent, in 1601. The impressions of grace had so early an appearance in him, that he was, not without good ground, esteemed one sanctified from the womb. When but four years old, he would cry to go to his mother, to hear her read or speak something of God; and his religious desires grew up with his age. He was early acquainted with the book of God, which he much delighted in, and read with great affection, He had excellent natural parts, which were soon exercised; he learned French so young, that he has been often heard to say, he could not remember learning it. In 1615, he was admitted fellow-commoner of St. John's College, Cambridge, where he greatly improved in learning. In 1622, he took the degree of master of arts; and in the year following was constituted fellow of Queen's College, in the same university: in 1624, he entered into holy orders. In 1626, he was chosen lecturer in the city of Canterbury ; where, notwithstanding the great opposition he met with, he laboured, in word and doctrine, with diligence and success, for several years, till he removed to Ashwell, Hertfordshire, in 1632. Besides his constant preaching twice every Lord's day, and on every other occasion, studying plainness of speech, that he might profit all that heard him, he was remarkably careful by catechising to instruct in the principles of religion not only the children and youth, but even aged people, privately, whom he found ignorant.

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And in order to render as extensively useful as possible this most important part of pastoral duty, he prevailed upon the greater part of his parish and the most considerable persons in it, to send their children and servants constantly to be catechized before the afternoon sermon at church; and when they grew so very numerous, that they took up too much time at church, he divided them, and catechized the rest at his own house in the evening. After studying se veral forms of catechism, and finding, by experience in teaching, they were defective in point of easy and ready in struction, he drew up a very excellent one, entitled, " An Endeavour of making the Principles of the Christian Religion plain and easy;" which was so well approved, that several thousands were printed every year.

In 1632, he was by the aniversity of Cambridge made one of the university preachers, (having proceeded bachelor in divinity two years before :) which, after the nature of a general licence, authorized him to preach, as he might have occasion, in any part of England. In the beginning of the parliament, he with Dr. Tuckney was chosen clerk of the convocation for the diocese of Lincoln. In 1643, he was called to be a member of the assembly of divines at Westminster and, after some time, was chosen one of the assessors, and appointed to assist the prosecutor in case of absence or infirmity. He was in that assembly an eminent and very useful member, exceedingly diligent and industrious, being very rarely absent; for as he esteemed it an honour to be employed so publicly in the service of God and his church, so he conscientiously attended upon it. And having provided Ashwell with a pious able divine, to whom he gave the whole stipend, he continued to preach occasionally in and about London, till he was invited by the inhabitants of Duke's Place to be their minister: which call he accepted, and laboured amongst them with much faithfulness and diligence, preaching twice every Lord's day, duly administering the sacraments, publicly catechising, and expounding the Scriptures.

When his friends advised him to favour himself, seeing him labour beyond his strength, his answer was, "My strength will spend of itself, though I do nothing; and it cannot be better spent than in the service of God." Indeed so far was he from favouring himself in this way, that it was a rule, which he constantly observed, never to decline VOL. III.-No. 72. 3 T

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any ministerial exercise that he was requested to perform, if he could possibly do it.'

The New Church at Westminster being finished, at the earnest solicitation of the people, and by the advice of the assembly of divines, he consented to take that charge upon. himself, upon condition that the assembly would provide a faithful pastor to be his successor at Duke's Place: which, being complied with, and Dr. Young, afterwards master of Jesus College, Cambridge, appointed to succeed him, he entered upon this large and important cure with his usual fidelity, labour, and zeal, in all the pastoral charge; with the additional labour of being one of the seven daily morning lecturers at the Abbey Church, by the appointment of parliament.

April 11, 1644, he was constituted president of Queen's College, Cambridge. Here his first care and chief study was, to promote the study of true religion and the advancement of practical piety, knowing that where these took place, a conscientious improvement of time in other things would necessarily follow. He paid great attention to the life and conversation of every individual, and frequently gave them personal counsel and private directions. His next care was for the advancement of learning, which he endeavoured to promote, by frequent exhortations and encouragements to diligence in their studies and a due improvement of every opportunity, and also by requiring the constant performance of public exercises by persons of all ranks, exciting the fellows to a diligent inspection, as well jointly over the college in general, as severally over their own pupils in particular. He also furnished the college library with all proper books, which he did partly by the assistance of some subscribing friends of his own, and by converting some college dues to that purpose which used to be spent in feasting, but chiefly at his own expence; resolving, that in support of poor scholars, and whatever he judged inost for the good of the college, to spend all his college income. He had the greatest regard to equity in the elections to places of preferment in the college, that they might be bestowed on the most deserving: and to that end, with the unanimous consent of the fellows, he made a decree, that, in all future elections, none should be admitted to a schollarship or fellowship in the college, till they had given

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full proof of their learning by two or three days trial before the whole college. So that when any one solicited him for preferment for a friend, his constant answer was, "If he be found to deserve it better than others, he shall have it; but, if not, he must expect to go without it."

Mr. Paliner wrote a treatise " Of making Religion one's Business;" with an appendix "applied to the Calling of a Minister," which, with other small tracts, were printed together under the title of "Memorials of Godliness and Christianity." In preaching at the cathedral of Canterbury before the dean, and prebends, he set before, them such things as were notoriously amiss; but, what more immedi ately concerned them, he expressed in Latin, that they might take notice of it, and not the people. This caused him some opposition and trouble, but did not prevent him going to the bishop of Lincoln's visitation at Hitchin, and there speaking fully and freely against the corrupt innovations then in practice, though sensible of his great danger in so doing. He likewise took a decided part, with much zeal, in defence of the perpetuity of the Sabbath and the moral obligation of the fourth commandment; and looking upon such an opposition, which was at that time very great, to be an act of the highest indignity to the majesty and authority of God, he mentioned it in almost all his prayers, discourses, counsels, and conversations; and, in conjunction with the rev. Daniel Cawdrey, published an excellent discourse entitled "Vindiciae Sabbathi." And when, in the former part of his time, the book for sports on the Lord's day, bowing to the altar, and some other silly ceremonies imposed by archbishop Laud, were urged, he determined not to comply; and, with that resolution, went to the archbishop's visitation at Welling, held by sir John Lambe; bat, contrary to his expectation, he found them inclined to connive at him.

And in the same manner he conducted himself concerning the convocation-oath in the new book of canons, in 1640, which be vigorously opposed, and took much pains to evince the unlawfulness of it. And in his ordinary course of preaching at the New Church, the Abbey, and St. Margaret's, in Westminster, where the greatest number of parliament men usually resorted, and also in those discourses preached by special order before one or both houses of par liament, he faithfully and plainly declared what he believed

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God expected from them, and freely reproved them for whatever he saw amiss; frequently saying, he did not in that place preach before them, (ut coram judice) but to them (authoritativè) as by commission from God; and that how much soever they might be superior to him in other respects, yet he was in that place superior to them, as acting in God's name; and therefore would not be afraid to speak whatever he thought to be the will of God, nor regard any displeasure or danger that night follow upon a faithful discharge of his duty.

Not long before his death, when a friend had read to him the thirty-eighth chapter of Isaiah, (having then some little hopes of his recovery,) and was ready to go to prayer, he desired him to stay awhile that he might pray first, which he did briefly, (as his weakness would permit,) but very fully, both for himself, the kingdom, the church of God, and alt to whom he stood in any relation. Being spoken to, to cast the burden of his sickness and pain upon God, he answered, "I should do very unworthily, if when I have preached to others, that they should cast their burdens upon God, I should not do so myself." He departed this life in 1647, and in the forty-sixth year of his age; having served God faithfully in his generation, being an instrument of much good, and an excellent pattern for imitation. He was interred in the New Church at Westminster.

His works, besides those already mentioned, so far as we can learn, are only some Sermons preached before the parliament.

PARE', DAVID, a celebrated divine of the Reformed religion, was born Dec. 30, 1548, at Francolstein, in Silesia, and put to the grammar school there, apparently with a design to breed him to learning; but his father marrying a second wife, this step-mother prevailed with him to put his son apprentice to an apothecary at Breslau; and not content with that, he was taken thence, and, at her instigation, bound to a shoemaker. However, he was not long abandoned to the shameful ill usage of a step-mother; Providence had ordained better things for him, and many years had not passed when the good old man his father resumed his first design; and David was not above sixteen years of age when he was sent to the college school of Hermsberg, in the neighbourhood of Francolstein, to prosecute his stu