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his "Collection of English Proverbs." This book, though fent to Cambridge to be printed in 1669, yet was not published till 1672. He allo prepared his Catalogue of English Plants" for the prefs, which came out in 1670: his humble thoughts of this and his other book, for his nature was modeft and amiable in the highest "Philofo- degree, may be feen in a Latin letter of his to Dr. Lifter, ❝ phical "letters be- Aug. 22, 1670. In the fame letter, he alfo takes notice of the altering his name, by leaving out the W in the Mr. Ray beginning of it; for, till 1670, he had always wrote his name Wray: but this being, he fays, contrary to the way "friends," of his forefathers, he therefore reaffumed the name of Published in Ray. In the fame letter, he mentions another thing re8vo, by Derham. lating to himself, which was an offer of 200l. per annum, to travel with three young noblemen into foreign parts but the acceptance of this propofal not being confiftent with his infirm ftate of body, he thought it prudent to decline it.

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1671.

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In 1671, he was afflicted with a feverish diforder, which ended in the yellow jaundice: but he was foon cured of it, as he tells us himself, by an infufion of stone-horse Philofophi dung with faffron in ale. The year after, his beloved cal Letters friend Mr. Willoughby died in his 37th year, at MiddletoDr.Lifter, ton Hall, his feat in Yorkshire; "to the infinite and June 28, unfpeakable lofs and grief," fays Mr. Ray, "of myself, "his friends, and all good men.' There having been the fincerest friendship between Mr. Willoughby and Mr. Ray, who were men of fimilar natures and tastes, from the time of their being fellow collegians, Mr. Wil loughby not only confided in Mr. Ray in his life-time, but alfo at his death: for he made him one of the executors of his will, and charged him with the education of his fons, Francis and Thomas, leaving him alfo for life tol. per annum. The eldeft of thefe young gentlemen not being four years of age, Mr. Ray, as a faithful trustee, betook himfelf to the inftruction of them; and for their nfe compofed his "Nomenclator Clafficus," which was published this very year 1672. Francis the eldest dying before he was of age, the younger became lord Middleton. Not many months after the death of Mr. Willoughby, Mr. Ray loft another of his best friends, bifhop Wilkins; whom he vifited in London, Nov. 18, 1672, and found near expiring by a total fuppreffion of urine for eight days. As it is natural for the mind, when it is hurt on one part, to feek relief from another; fo Mr. Ray, having loft fome.

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fome of his best friends, and being in a manner left deftitute, conceived thoughts of marriage; and accordingly, in June 1673, did actually marry a gentlewoman of about twenty years of age, the daughter of Mr. Oakeley of Launton in Oxfordshire. Towards the end of this year, came forth his "Obfervations Topographical, Moral, "&c." made in foreign countries; to which was added Catalogus Stirpium in exteris regionibus obferva"tarum" and about the fame time, his "Collection of "unusual or local English words," which he had gathered up in his travels through the counties of England. On 1674, Mr. Oldenburgh, the fecretary of the Royal Society, renewed his correfpondence with Mr. Ray, which had been fome time intermitted, and fent him letters almost every month. Mr. Ray's accounts in these letters were published by Oldenburgh in the Philofophical Tranfactions. Oldenburgh had a farther view in his correfpondence with Mr. Ray: it was to engage him with thofe leading members, who had agreed to entertain the fociety with a philofophical discourse at their meetings, fo that the burden might not lie among too few of the members. Mr. Ray complied, and accordingly fent him

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A Difcourfe concerning Seeds, and the Specific Differ- Philofophi"ences of Plants;" which, Oldenburg tells him, was fo cal Letters, well received by the prefident and fellows, that they returned him their thanks, and defired him to let them have more of the like favours from him.

This year 1674, and part of the next, he spent in preparing Mr. Willoughby's "Obfervations about Birds" for the prefs which however was not published till 1678. Thefe two gentlemen, finding the hiftory of nature very imperfect, had agreed between themfelves, before their travels beyond fea, to reduce the feveral tribes of things to a method, and to give accurate defcriptions of the fe-. veral fpecies from a ftrict furvey of them: and, fince Mr. Willoughby's genius lay chiefly to animals, therefore he undertook the birds, beafts, fishes, and infects, as Mr. Ray did the vegetables. How they discharged each their province, the world has feen in their works. Old lady Willoughby dying, and Mr. Willoughby's fons being removed from under Mr. Ray's tuition, about 1676, he thought it beft to leave Middleton-Hall, and retire with his wife to fome convenient place: and accordingly he removed to Sutton Cofield, about four miles from Middleton. Some time after he went into Effex to FalborneVOL. XI. Hall,

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Hall, where he continued till June 1679; and then made another remove to Black-Notley, his native place. Being fettled here, and now free from interruptions, he began to refume his wonted labours, particularly in botany and one of the first things he finifhed was his "Methodus Plantarum Nova," which was published in 1682. This was preparatory to his "Hiftoria Plantarum Generalis;" the firft volume of which was published in 1686, the fecond in 1687, and the third fome years after. To the compiling of this hiftory, many learned and ingenious men gave their helping hands particularly Sir Hans Sloane and Dr. Tancred Robinson, two great friends of Mr. Ray. Nor was Mr. Ray lefs mindful of Mr. Willoughby's collections, where there were noble, though rude and indigefted, materials; but fpent much time and pains in reducing them to order, and fitting them for the prefs. He had published his "Obfervations upon Birds" in 1678; and, in 1685, he published his "Hiftory of Fishes:" and though thefe works were then the completeft in their kinds, yet they loft much of their perfection by the mifcarriage of Mr. Willoughby's and Mr. Ray's papers in their travels. They had very accurately defcribed all the birds, fishes, &c. which they faw, as they paffed through High and Low Germany, especially thofe in and upon the Danube and the Rhine; but loft their accounts in their return home. This lofs Mr. Ray laments in the philofophical

letters above cited.

P. 180, 181. Though Mr. Ray's health began to be impaired by years and study, yet he continued from time to time to give his works to the public. He publifhed, in 1688,

Fafciculus Stirpium Britannicarum;" and, in 1690, "Synopfis Methodica Stirpium Britannicarum," which was republifhed, with great amendments and additions, in 1696, but the laft edition is that of 1724. Having thus publifhed many books on fubjects which he took to be fomewhat foreign to his profeffion, he at length refolved to entertain the world like a divine, as well as natural philofopher; and with this view fet about his Demonftration of the Being and Attributes of God, which he calls, "The Wisdom of God manifefted in the Works "of the Creation." The rudiments of this work were laid in fome college lectures, read in the chapel, and called common places; which, having much refined and enlarged, he fitted up for a convenient volume, and pub

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lished

lifhed in 1691, 8vo. This work meeting with univerfal applaufe encouraged him to publish another of a like nature, whofe foundation was alfo laid at Cambridge, in fome fermons which he had preached before the univerfity; and this was his "Three Phyfico-Theological "Difcourfes concerning the Chaos, Deluge, and Diffo"lution of the world, 1692," 8vo. Both thefe works have been often reprinted with large additions.

Soon after thefe theological pieces came out, his " Sy "nopfis Methodica Animalium Quadrupedum" was ready for the prefs, and publifhed in June 1693: and, having dispatched that, he fet about and finifhed a Synopfis of Birds and Fishes. This, getting into the bookfellers' hands, lay fuppreffed for many years, and was thought to have been deftroyed and loft; but, after Mr. Ray's death, it was published by Mr. Derham in 1713. He made a catalogue of Grecian, Syrian, Egyptian, and Cretan plants, which was printed with Rauwolff's travels in 1693; and, the year after, publifhed his "Syl"loge Stirpium Europearum extra Britanniam." He had afterwards fome little contefts with Rivinus and Tournefort, concerning the method of plants, which occafioned him to review and amend his own method; and to draw it up in a completer form than he had ufed in his "Methodus Plantarum," published in 1682, or in his Hiftoria Plantarum." He began now to be grie voufly afflicted with a continual diarrhoea, and with very painful ulcers in his legs, which eat deep into the flesh, and kept him waking whole nights by which means he was fo difabled, that, as he tells Dr. Tancred Robinfon, Philofophiin a letter of Sept. 30, 1698, he could not fo much as cal Lettersa walk into the neighbouring fields. He lived however fome years with thefe infirmities; for his death did not happen till Jan. 17, 1704-5, at Black-Notley, in a house of his own.

He was an honeft and good man, and had a zeal for the promoting of virtue and piety; as appeared, not only from his life and converfation, but also from a tract of practical divinity, intituled, " A Perfuafive to an Holy "Life," which he published in 1700. He was a man of excellent parts, and had a fingular vivacity in his ftyle, whether he wrote in Latin or English, which were equally, eafy to him. This he retained, notwithstanding age and infirmities, to the day of his death; of which he gave good proof in fome of his letters, written manifeftly with

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a dying

a dying hand. One of thefe is the following to Sir Hans Sloane, bart.

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"DEAR SIR,

Black Notley, Jan. 1, 1704.

"THE beft of friends: these are to take a final leave of you as to this world. I look upon myself as a dying 66 man. God requite your kindness expreffed any ways "towards me an hundred fold: blefs you with a con"fluence of all good things in this world, and eternal life and happiness hereafter. Grant us an happy meeting in heaven. I am, SIR, eternally yours, JOHN RAY." "P. S. When you happen to write to my fingular friend "Dr. Hotton, I pray tell him I received his moft obliging "and affectionate letter, for which I return thanks; and acquaint him, that I was not able to answer it, or

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The following account of Mr. Ray's dying words and behaviour is given from a MS. of the Rev. Mr. Pyke, prebendary of Norwich, and at that time rector of Black Notley: "I am a Prieft of the Church of England, or“dained by Dr. Sanderson, then bishop of Lincoln. That I did not follow the peculiar duties of my function more, is now the greatest concern and trouble to 46 me. I do here profefs, that as I have lived, fo I defire, and by the grace of God refolve, to die in the "communion of the Catholic church of Chrift, and a "true, though unworthy fon of the church by law "eftablished in this kingdom. I do think, from the bottom of my heart, that its doctrine is pure, its woríhip decent, and agreeable to the church and word of God, and in the most material point of both conformable to the faith and practice of the godly churches "of Chrift in the primitive and pure time. I am not led to this perfuafion fo much from force of cuftom " and education, as upon the clear evidence of truth and reafon; and after a ferious and impartial examination of the grounds thereof, I am fully perfuaded, that the fcruples men raife againft joining in communion with it, are unreafonable and groundless; and that the feparation which is made may very juftly be "charged upon the Diffenters themfelves as the blame

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worthy authors of it."-" He then defired me," Mr. Pyke adds, "to read to him the prayers of the "church, which, in the Vifitation of the fick, are apέσ pointed to be used by us; and the abfolution in parti"cular he requested me to read, which I having pro

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