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through his ftudies in Marpurg, where he took his degree of M. A. in 1599, having taken his bachelor's in 1595. He was a moft early genius; compofed a prodigious number of Greek verfes at 15; and was capable of teaching Greek, Hebrew, and even philofophy, before he was 20. The Hebrew he poffeffed fo entirely, that he spoke it as fluently as if it had been his native language. He read thoroughly the Greek authors; and even ftudied phyfic for fome time, though he had devoted himfelf to the miniftry. In 1605, he was chofen to teach Greek and Hebrew in the college, which the landgrave had lately established in Gieffen; and which the year after was converted into an univerfity by the emperor, who endowed it with privileges. Having discharged for five years the feveral duties of his employment with great reputation, he was appointed divinity profeffor in 1610. He married this year; yet continued as affiduous as ever in the duties of his profeffion. A church was offered him in Moravia in 1611, and a profefforfhip at Hamburg with a confiderable stipend: however, he refused both those offers. In 1613, he took the degree of D.D. at the command of the landgrave; who sent him to Frankfort, in order to view the library of the Jews, lately driven away by popular tumults. Helvicus, fond of reading the rabbins, bought feveral of their books on that occafion. He died, in the flower of his age, 1617; and his lofs was bewailed after a very peculiar manner. All the German poets of the Augsburg confeffion compofed elegies, to deplore his immature death. A collection was made of his poems, which were printed with his funeral fermon and fome other pieces, under the title of "Cippus "Memorialis," by the care of Winckleman, colleague to Helvicus.

He was reputed to have had the moft fkilful and methodical way of teaching languages. He was a good grammarian; had publifhed feveral grammars, a Latin, Greek, Hebrew, Chaldee, Syriac: but they were only abridgements. His Hebrew and Latin Lexicons were only, by way of effay, calculated for youth. He was not only a good grammarian, but also an able chronologer. His chronological tables have gone through feveral editions, and been greatly efteemed, though they are not, as it is difficult to conceive they should be, quite free from errors. He published them in 1609, under the title of "Theatrum Hiftoricum, five Chronologiæ "Syftem Novum, &c." and brought them down from the beginning of the world to 1612; but they were afterwards revifed and continued by John Balthafar Schuppius, fon-in

law to the author, and profeffor of eloquence and history in the university of Marpurg. Helvicus had projected the writing a great number of books; and it is plain by the books he published, that, had he lived threefcore years, his works might have made feveral volumes in folio. They are not interesting enough to make a particular and minute account of them neceffary: his chronology being the only one, whose ufe has not been fuperfeded.

Fred. Gro

nov.inOrat.

HEMELAR (JOHN), a very learned man, born at the Hague, was a fine poet and orator; and to be compared, fays Gronovius, with the Roman Atticus for his probity, Joann. tranquillity of life, and abfolute disregard of honours and public employments. He went to Rome, and spent fix years in Funeb. Jathe palace of cardinal Cefi. He wrote there a panegyric on cobi Golii, Pope Clement VIII. which was fo graciously received, that P• 7• he was offered the poft of librarian to the Vatican, or a very good benefice. He accepted the latter, and was made a canon in the cathedral at Antwerp. Lipfius had a great esteem for him, as appears from letters he wrote to him. He was Grotius's friend, and publifhed verfes to congratulate him on his delivery from confinement. He was uncle by the mother's fide to James Golius, the learned profeffor at Leyden, who has gained fo vaft a reputation by his profound knowledge in the Oriental languages: but Golius, who was a zealous Proteftant, was greatly difaffected to him, for having carried his brother Peter over to Popery. He applied himself much more to the study of polite literature and to the fcience of medals, than to theology. "He published ex"tremely useful commentaries upon the medals of the Ro

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man emperors, from the time of Julius Cæfar down to "Juftinian, taken from the cabinets of Charles Arfchot and "Nicholas Rocoxius: wherein he concifely and accurately explains by marks, figures, &c. whatever is exquifite, elegant, and fuitable or agreeable to the hiftory of those times, and the genius of the monarchs, whether the me"dals in queftion be of gold, filver, or brafs, whether caft or ftruck in that immortal city. It is a kind of ftorehouse "of medals; and nevertheless in this work, from which any "other person would have expected prodigious reputation, << our author has been fo modeft as to conceal his name." Gronovius, p. 8. This work of Hemelar's, which is in Latin, is not easily to be met with, yet it has been thrice printed: first at Antwerp, in 1614, at the end of a work of James Biæus; fecondly, in 1627, 4to; and thirdly, in 1654, folio. The

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other

other works of this canon are fome Latin poems and ora tions. We know not the year of his death.

HEMSKIRK (MARTIN), an eminent painter, was a peasant's fon, and born at a village of his name in Holland, in 1498. In his youth he was extremely dull, and nothing was expected from him; but afterwards he became a correct painter, eafy and fruitful in his inventions. He went to Rome, and intended to ftay there a long time; but at the end of three years, returned to his own country. He fettled at Haerlem, and lived there the remainder of his days. Moft Lives of the of his works were engraved. Vafari gives a particular account of them, commends them, and fays, Michael Angelo was fo pleased with one of the prints, that he had a mind to colour it. Nevertheless it is vifible from the prints of Hemfkirk's works, that he did not understand the claro obfcuro, and that his manner of defigning was dry. He died in 1574, at 76 years of age; having lived much longer than is usual for painters.

Painters.

1783, P.

754.

Gent. Mag. HENAULT (CHARLES JOHN FRANCIS), was born at Paris, Feb. 8, 1685. His great grandfather, Remi Henault, ufed to be of Lewis XIIIth's party at tennis, and that prince called him "The Baron," because of a fief which he poffeffed near Triel. He had three fons, officers of horse, who were all killed at the fiege of Cafal. John Remi, his father, an efquire, and lord of Mouffy, counsellor to the king's fecretary to the council, kept up the honour of the family, and becoming farmer-general, made its fortune. He was honoured with the confidence of the Count de Pontchartrain; and, being of a poetical turn, had fome fhare in the criticifms which appeared against Racine's tragedies. He married the daughter of a rich merchant at Calais, and one of her brothers being prefident of that town, entertained the queen of England, on her landing there in 1689. Another brother, counsellor in the parliament of Metz, and fecretary to the duke of Berry, was affociated with Mr. Crozat in the armaments, and, dying unmarried, left a great fortune to his fifter.

Young Henault early discovered a sprightly, benevolent difpofition, and his penetration and aptnefs foon diftinguished itfelf by the fuccefs of his ftudies. Claude de Lifle, father of the celebrated geographer, gave him the fame leffons in geography and hiftory which he had before given to the duke of Orleans, afterwards regent. Thefe inftructions have

been

been printed in feven volumes, under the title of " Abridge"ment of Universal History.'

On quitting college, Henault entered the oratory, where he foon attached himself to the ftudy of eloquence: and, on the death of the Abbé Rene, reformer of La Trappe, he undertook to pronounce his panegyric, which not meeting the approbation of Father Maffilon, he quitted the Oratory after two years, and his father bought for him, of Marefchal Villeroi, the lieutenance des chaffes, and the government of Corbeil. At the marshal's he formed connections and even intimate friendships with many of the nobility, and passed the early part of his life in agreeable amusements, and in the livelieft company, without having his religious fentiments tainted. He affociated with the wits till the difpute between Rouffeau and De la Motte foon gave him a difguft for these trifling focieties. In 1707, he gained the prize of eloquence at the French Academy, and another next year, at the Academy des jeux Floraux. About this time, M. Reaumur, who was his relation, came to Paris, and took leffons in geometry under the fame mafter, Guinée. Henault introduced him to the Abbé Bignon, and this was the first step of his illuftrious courfe. In 1713 he brought a tragedy on the ftage, under the difguifed name of Fufelier. As he was known to the public only by fome flighter pieces, "Cor"nelia the Veftal” met with no better fuccefs. He therefore locked it up, without printing. In his old age his paffion for thefe fubjects reviving, and Mr. Horace Walpole being at Paris in 1768, and having formed a friendship with him as one of the amiable men of his nation, obtained this piece, and had it printed at a prefs which he has at his country feat, from whence a beautiful edition of Lucan had before iffued. In 1751, Mr. Henault, under a borrowed name, brought out a fecond tragedy, intituled "Marius," which was well received and printed.

He had been admitted counsellor in parliament in 1706, with a difpenfation on account of age, and in 1710, prefident of the first chamber of inquefts. Thefe important places, which he determined to fill in a becoming manner, engaged him in the most folid ftudies. The excellent work of Mr. Domat charmed him, and made him eager to go back to the fountain head. He spent feveral years in making himself mafter of the Roman law, the ordonances of the French king, their cuftoms, and public law.

M. de Morville, procureur-general of the great council, being appointed ambaffador to the Hague in 1718, engaged

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Mr.

Henault to accompany him. His perfonal merit foon introduced him to the acquaintance of the moft eminent perfonages at that time there. The grand penfionary, Heinfius, who, under the exterior of Lacedemonian fimplicity, kept up all the haughtiness of that people, loft with him all that hauteur which France itself had experienced from him in the negociations of the treaty of Utrecht.

The agitation which all France felt by Law's fyftem, and the consequent fending of the parliament into exile, was a trial to the wife policy of the prefident Henault. His friendThip for the first prefident, De Mefmes, led him to fecond all the views of that great magiftrate: he took part in all the negociations, and was animated purely by the public good, without any private advantage. On the death of the cardinal du Bois, in 1723, he fucceeded in his place at the French Academy. Cardinal Fleury recommended him to fucceed. himself as director, and he pronounced the eloge of M. de Malezieux.

Hiftory was his favourite ftudy; not a bare collection of dates, but a knowledge of the laws and manners of nations; to obtain which he drew inftruction from private converfations, a method he fo ftrongly recommends in his preface. After having thus difcuffed the most important points of our public law, he undertook to collect and publifh the result of his inquiries, and he is defervedly accounted the first framer of chronological abridgements; in which, without ftopping at detached facts, he attends only to thofe which form à chain of events that perfect or alter the government and cha racter of a nation, and traces only the fprings which exalt or humble a nation, extending or contracting the space it occupies in the world. His work has had the fortune of thofe literary phænomena, where novelty and merit united excite minds eager after glory, and fire the ardour of young writers to prefs after a guide whom few can overtake. The firft edition of the work, the refult of 40 years reading, appeared in 1744, under the aufpices of the chancellor Dagueffeau, with the modeft title of "An Effay." The fuccefs it met with furprized him. He made continual improvements in it, and it has gone through nine editions, and been tranflated into Italian, English, and German, and even into Chinefe. As the beft writings are not fecure from criticism, and are indeed the only ones that deferve it, the author read to the Academy of Belles Lettres a defence of his abridgement. All the ages and events of the French monarchy being prefent to his mind, and his imagination and memory being

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