Encyclopædia americana. A popular dictionary of arts, sciences, literature, history, politics and biography, a new ed.; including a copious collection of original articles in American biography; on the basis of the 7th ed. of the German Conversations-lexicon. Ed. by Francis Lieber, assisted by E. Wigglesworth ...

BENTLEY-BENZOIC ACID. 61
were written by some sophist, under the ton's' Paradise Lost, with conjectural
borrowed name of Phalaris, in the declin- emendations, which appeared in 1732.
ing age of Greek literature. Soon after This added nothing to his reputation, and
this publication, doctor B. was presented may, in one word, be characterized a failby the crown to the mastership of Trinity ure. IHe died at the master's lodge at
college, Cambridge, worth nearly ~1000 Trinity, July 14, 1742, and was interred
a year. He now resigned the prebend of in the college chapel. As a scholar and
Worcester, and, in 1701, was collated to a critic, B. was very distinguished. The
the archdeaconry of Ely. His conduct as best informned of his opponents respected
head of the college gave rise to accu- his talents, while they were loading him
sations against him from the vice-master:with classical abuse, which he did not fail
and some of the fellows, who, among to return with interest. Now that the prejvarious offences, charged him with em- udices, excited apparently by his personal
bezzling the college money. The con- conduct, have subsided, his preeminence
test was much protracted, and occasioned in that species of literature which he cula lawsuit, which was decided in the doc- tivated, is universally acknowledged. The
tor's favor, about twenty years after. In celebrated German philologist J. A. Wolf
1711, he published an edition of IHorace, wrote an excellent biography of B. in the
at Canmbridge, in 4to., which was reprint-.Rnalecta, (vol. 1, Berlin.)
ed at Amsterdam; and, in 1713, appeared BENZEL-STERNAU, Charles Christian,
his rernarks on Collins's Discourse on count, born at Mentz, 1750, was, in 1812,
Free-thinking, under the form of a Letter president of the ministry for the departto F. H. [Francis Hare] D. D., by Phile- ment of the interior in the former grandleuthertus Lipsiensis. He was appointed duchy of Frankfort, and now lives in the
regius professor of divinity in 1716, and, neighborhood of Hanau. Hie is one of
in the same year, issued proposals for a the most humorous writers of our time,
new edition of the Greek Testament-an and, in the character of his writings,
undertaking for which he was admirably resembles J. Paul Richter. His fame was
qualified, but which he was prevented from established by the Golden Calf (a biograexecuting, in consequence of the animad- phy, 1802-1804, 4 vols. in the first ediversions of his determined adversary, Mid- tion). B. has written much, and all his
dleton. In 1717, George I, visiting the uni- productions display wit, richness of imversity, nominated by mandate, as is usual agery, and nice observation of character.
on such occasions, several persons for the BENZENBERG, John Frederic, born,
doctor's degree in divinity. It was the May 5, 1777, at Scholler, a village between
duty of B., as professor, to perform the Elberfeld and Dtisseldorf, studied theoloceremony called creation; previous to gy in Marburg, and, in Gottingen, mathewhich he made a demand of four guineas matics and natural philosophy. He renfrom each candidate beyond the usual dered much service to the latter science,
fees, absolutely refusing to create any doc- by his observations on the fall of bodies,
tor without payment. Some submitted; and the motion of the earth, which he
but others, among whom was Middleton, began by experiments in the steeple of
withstood the demand, and commenced a the church of St. Michael, in Hamburg,
prosecution against the professor before and continued in the shaft of a mine, in
the vice-chancellor, who, deciding in favor the county of AMark, having a depth of
of the complainants, first suspended B., 266 feet. He was appointed, in 1805,
and subsequently degraded him from his professor of astronomy and natural phihonors, rights and offices in the univer- losophy, by the then elector of Bavaria,
sity. These proceedings were, after con- in Dfisseldorf. At a later period, he has
siderable litigation, annulled by the court written much in favor of the Prussian
of king's bench; and the doctor, in 1728, government; but the influence of his
was restored to all his former honors and political pieces has not been so great as
emoluments. In 1726, he published an that of his scientific observations aboveedition of Terence and Pheedrus; and mentioned. B. lives now retired, near
his notes on the comedies of the former Crefeld, in the neighborhood of the
involved him in a dispute with bishop Rhine.
hare, on the metres of Terence, which BENzoIC ACID is obtained by the appliprovoked the sarcastic observation of sir cation of a moderate heat to the balsam
saac Newton, that "two dignified clergy- of Peru: it rises in vapor, and condenses
men, instead of minding their duty, had in slender prisms, which are white and
fallen out about a play-book." The last brilliant. It has a peculiar aromatic odor.
work of doctor B. was an edition of Mil- When heated on burning fuel, it inflames
VOsI. II. 6