Starkie, a female servant of his brother James, by whom he had three daughters-Susan, married in 1796 to George Augustus, third Earl of Guildford; Frances, married in 1800 to John, first Marquis of Bute; and Sophia, married in 1793 to Sir Francis Burdett, Bart. About three months after the decease of his first wife, which took place in 1815, he married Harriet Mellon, an actress of some distinction in her profession, whom he constituted, at his death, sole legatee of his immense property, consisting of personals in the diocese of Canterbury sworn under £600,000, besides considerable real estates in lands, houses, &c., and the banking establishment in the Strand. This lady afterwards became by marriage Duchess of St. Albans, and, by her acts of beneficence, proved herself not unworthy of the great fortune which she had acquired. Mr. Coutts' death took place at his house in Piccadilly, February 24th, 1822, about the ninetieth year of his age.

Craig replied that he had no recollection of such an event; but in this case the obliged party had the better memory: the bandit told him that he could never forget the kindness he had received on that occasion, which he would now beg to repay by administering to the present necessities of his benefactor. In short, this man gave Craig a sufficient sum to carry him to Bologna.

CRAIG, JOHN, an eminent preacher of the Reformation, was born about the year 1512, and had the misfortune to lose his father next year at the battle of Flodden. Notwithstanding the hardships to which this loss subjected him, he obtained a good education, and removing into England, became tutor to the children of Lord Dacre. Wars arising soon after between England and Scotland, he returned to his native country, and became a monk of the Dominican order. Having given some grounds for a suspicion of heresy, he was cast into prison; but having cleared himself, he was restored to liberty; and returning to England, endeavoured, by the influence of Lord Dacre, to procure a place at Cambridge, in which he was disappointed. He then travelled to France; and thence to Rome, where he was in such favour with Cardinal Pole, that he obtained a place among the Dominicans of Bologna, and was appointed to instruct the novices of the cloister. Being advanced to the rectorate, in consequence of his merit, he had access to the library; where, happening to read Calvin's Institutes, he became a convert to the Protestant doctrines. A conscientious regard to the text in which Christ forbids his disciples to deny him before men, induced Craig to make no secret of this change in his sentiments; and he was consequently sent to Rome, thrown into a prison, tried and condemned to be burned, from which fate he was only saved by an accident. Pope Paul IV. having died the day before his intended execution, the people rose tumultuously, dragged the statue of his late holiness through the streets, and, breaking open all the prisons, set the prisoners at liberty. Craig immediately left the city; and as he was walking through the suburbs, he met a company of banditti. One of these men, taking him aside, asked if he had ever been in Bologna. On his answering in the affirmative, the man inquired if he recollected, as he was one day walking there in the fields with some young noblemen, having administered relief to a poor maimed soldier, who asked him for alms.

The fugitive soon found reason to fear that some of his former acquaintances at this place might denounce him to the Inquisition; and accordingly he slipped away as privately as possible to Milan, avoiding all the principal roads, for fear of meeting any enemy. One day, when his money and strength were alike exhausted by the journey, he came to a desert place, where, throwing himself down upon the ground, he almost resigned all hope of life. At this moment a dog came fawning up to him, with a bag of money in its mouth, which it laid down at his feet. The forlorn traveller instantly recognized this as "a special token of God's favour;" and picking to a little village, where he obtained some refreshment. He now bent his steps to Vienna; where, professing himself of the Dominican order, he was brought to preach before the emperor Maximilian II., and soon became a favourite at the court of that sovereign. His fame reverting to Rome, Pope Pius III. sent a letter to the emperor, desiring him to be sent back as one that had been condemned for heresy. The emperor adopted the more humane course of giving him a safe-conduct out of Germany. Reaching England about the year 1560, Craig heard of the reformation which had taken place in his native country; and, returning thither, offered his services to the church. He found, however, that the long period of his absence from the country (twenty-four years) had unfitted him to preach in the vernacular tongue, and he was therefore obliged for some time to hold forth to the learned in Latin.1 Next year, having partly recovered his native language, he was appointed to be the colleague of Knox in the parish church of Edinburgh, which office he held for nine years. During this period he had an opportunity of manifesting his conscientious regard to the duties of his calling, by refusing to proclaim the banns for the marriage of the queen to Bothwell, which he thought contrary to the laws, to reason, and to the word of God. For this he was reproved at the time by the council; but his conduct was declared by the General Assembly two years after to have been consistent with his duty as a faithful minister. About the year 1572 he was sent by the General Assembly to preach at Montrose, “for the illuminating the north; and when he had remained two years there, he was sent to Aberdeen to illuminate these dark places in Mar, Buchan, and Aberdeen, and to teach the youth in the college there." In 1579 Mr. Craig, being appointed minister to the king (James VI.), returned to Edinburgh, where he took a leading hand in the general assemblies of the church, being the compiler of part of the Second Book of Discipline; and, what gives his name its chief historical lustre, the writer of the NATIONAL COVENANT, signed in 1580 by the king and his household, and which was destined in a future age to exercise so mighty an influence over the destinies of the country.

John Craig was a very different man from the royal chaplains of subsequent times. He boldly

1 His Latin discourses were delivered in Magdalen's Chapel, in the Cowgate, Edinburgh; a curious old place of worship, which still exists, and even retains in its windows part of the stained glass which adorned it in Catholic times.

of Sir Thomas Craig had been educated in the Roman Catholic religion. His son, whose studies after his return from France were, as we have seen, superintended by Mr. John Craig, the eminent reformer, appears early and zealously to have embraced the new opinions. The old man continued in the faith of the Church of Rome till a late period of his life; but, being at length converted by the unanswerable reasons which were incessantly, though rever

It would appear that Craig either was one of those who accompanied the king to England, or soon after followed him; as he was present at the entrance of his majesty into London, and at the subsequent coronation. He celebrated these events in a Latin hexameter poem, entitled Zreparopopia, which is neither the chastest nor the most pleasing of his productions, although the richest in metaphorical ornament and florid description. Craig was, in 1604, one of the commissioners on the part of Scotland, who, by the king's desire, met others on the part of England, for the purpose of considering the possibility of a union between the two countries. He wrote a work on this subject, in which he warmly seconded the patriotic views of the king. This treatise, written, like all his other works, in Latin, has never been published; although, in point of matter and style, in the importance of the subject to which it relates, the variety of historical illustrations, the sagacity of the political remarks, and the insight into the mutual interests of the two countries which it exhibits, it perhaps deserves to rank the highest of all his works. The work upon which he appears to have been last engaged is one upon the old controversy respecting the homage claimed from Scotland by the English monarch. The De Hominio of Craig remained in manuscript till the year 1695, when a translation of it was published by Mr. George Ridpath, under the title, Scotland's Sovereignty Asserted, or a Dispute concerning Homage.

Craig was, in the latter part of his life, advocate for the church, and under that character was employed at the famous trial of the six ministers in 1606, on a charge of treason for keeping a General Assembly at Aberdeen. He was perhaps unfitted, by his studious and modest disposition, to come farther forward in public life. King James repeatedly offered him the honour of knighthood, which he as constantly refused: he is only styled "Sir Thomas Craig," in consequence of an order from the king that every one should give him the title. He had been married, in early life, to Helen Heriot, daughter of the laird of Trabrown, in East Lothian, to which family belonged the mothers of two great men of that age, George Buchanan and the first Earl of Haddington. By this lady he had four sons and three daughters. Sir Lewis Craig, the eldest son, who was born in 1569, was raised, at the age of thirty-four, to the bench, where he took the designation of Lord Wrightshouses. As this was in the lifetime of his own father, the latter had sometimes occasion to plead before his son. A pleasing tradition regarding the filial respect shown by Sir Lewis is preserved in the biographical sketch prefixed to the treatise De Feudis. The supreme judges in those days sat covered, and heard the counsel who pleaded before them uncovered. "Whenever," says his biographer, "his father appeared before him, Sir Lewis, as became a pious son, uncovered, and listened to his parent with the utmost reverence.

Another family anecdote of a very pleasing character is derived from the same source. The father

This great man died on the 26th of February, 1608, when, if we are right as to the date of his birth, he must have attained his seventieth year.

CRAIG, WILLIAM, a distinguished senator of the College of Justice, and a large contributor to the literary paper styled the Mirror, was the son of Dr. William Craig, one of the ministers of Glasgow; a man of so much eminence that the editors of the Biographia Britannica thought proper to admit an account of him, drawn up by Professor Richardson, into their very select collection.' The subject of the present memoir was born in 1745, and received his education at Glasgow College, where he attended the classes of Smith in moral philosophy and political economy, and those of Miller in jurisprudence and civil law. His acquirements were at an early period very great, especially in the belles-lettres, and to a less degree in history and metaphysics. He entered at the bar in 1768, and was the contemporary and intimate friend of some of the most distinguished men of the last age. Robert Blair, afterwards lordpresident; Alexander Abercromby, afterwards Lord Abercromby; along with Craig and some others, held for some years a private meeting once every week, for mutual improvement in their legal studies. It is remarkable that, at the commencement of Mr. Pitt's administration in 1784, Blair, Abercromby, and Craig were appointed together to be deputeadvocates under Sir Ilay Campbell, who was at the same time nominated lord-advocate. Mr. Craig held this office till 1787, when he was nominated sheriff of Ayrshire. On the death of Lord Hailes, in 1792, Mr. Craig was appointed to succeed him on the bench, on which occasion he assumed the designation of Lord Craig. In 1795 he succeeded Lord Henderland as a judge of the court of justiciary.

In the concluding number of the Mirror, which appeared on the 17th of May, 1780, it is mentioned that "the idea of publishing a periodical paper in Edinburgh took its rise in a company of gentlemen whom particular circumstances of connection brought frequently together. Their discourse often turned upon subjects of manners, of taste, and of literature. By one of those accidental resolutions of which the origin cannot easily be traced, it was determined to put their thoughts in writing, and to read them for the entertainment of each other. Their essays assumed the form, and soon after some one gave them the name, of a periodical publication. The writers of it were naturally associated; and their meetings increased the importance, as well as the number, of their productions. Cultivating letters in the midst of business, composition was to them an amusement only; that amusement was heightened by the audience which this society afforded; the idea of publication suggested itself as productive of still higher enter tainment. It was not, however, without diffidence that such a resolution was taken. From that and

1 Dr. Craig was author of an Essay on the Life of Christ, and of Twenty Discourses on various subjects.

WILLIAM CRAIG

several circumstances it was thought proper to observe the strictest secrecy with regard to the authors; a purpose in which they have been so successful, that at this moment the very publisher of the work knows only one of their number, to whom the conduct of it was intrusted."

It is now to be mentioned, upon the credit of the sole survivor of the association above alluded to, that the first idea of starting this periodical work occurred to Mr. Craig, who, next to Mr. Mackenzie, was the most zealous of them all in the cultivation of the belles-lettres. The remaining persons concerned were Mr. Alexander Abercromby, of whom a memoir has been given in the present dictionary; Mr. Robert Cullen, afterwards Lord Cullen; Mr. Macleod Bannatyne, afterwards Lord Bannatyne; Mr. George Home, afterwards Lord Wedderburn, and one of the principal clerks of session; Mr. William Gordon of Newhall, and Mr. George Ogilvy, both also advocates, but of whom the first died, and the latter fell into bad health, before having made any contribution to the Mirror. Mr. Mackenzie was the only individual unconnected with the bar. The association was at first termed the Tabernacle; but when the resolution of publishing was adopted, it assumed the name of the Mirror Club, from the title of the projected paper. It was resolved to commit the business of publishing to Mr. Creech, the well-known bookseller, and the duty of communicating with him, and of the general superintendence of the work, was devolved on Mr. Mackenzie. The club used to meet once a week, sometimes in one tavern, sometimes in another, in order that their proceedings might be less liable to the observation of their acquaintance. A list of their haunts will tell strangely in the ears of those who, thinking of the Mirror as the pink of elegance in literature, might expect to find that every circumstance connected with its composition was alike elegant. The club met, for instance, sometimes in Clerihugh's, in Writer's Court; sometimes in Somers's, opposite the Guardhouse in the High Street; sometimes in Stewart's oyster-house in the Old Fish-market Close; and fully as often, perhaps, in Lucky Dunbar's, a moderate and obscure house, situated in an alley leading betwixt Forrester's and Libberton's Wynd. On these occasions, any member who had written a paper since the last meeting, produced it to be read and considered. But as a general invitation had been held out for contributions from persons not members of the club, and a box placed at Mr. Creech's shop for receiving them, the papers so contributed, as well as those produced by the members, were read over and considered, and a selection made of those proposed to be adopted. Among these occasional contributors were several individuals of great respectability, of whom we may mention Lord Hailes, Professor Richardson of Glasgow, Dr. Henry, author of the History of Great Britain, and Mr. David Hume, afterwards one of the barons of exchequer. Some other papers of no inconsiderable merit were supposed to be from ladies. The Mirror was commenced on the 23d of January, 1779, and finished with the 110th number on the 27th of May, 1780. It appeared in one small folio sheet, which was sold at three halfpence, and though not above four hundred were ever sold of any particular number, the public approbation was so high as to demand the immediate republication of

the whole in three volumes duodecimo.

Mr. Craig's contributions to the Mirror, which were the most numerous, next to those of Mr. Mackenzie, are indicated in a later edition of the work.

To the Lounger, which was started some years

393

after by the same club, he also contributed many excellent papers.

Lord Craig, who possessed originally a very weak constitution, enjoyed so poor a state of health in his latter years as to be obliged to resign his place on the justiciary bench. He died on the 8th of July, 1813. The mental qualifications of this eminent person were of a very high order. Although his practice at the bar had never been very extensive, he was much esteemed in his character as a judge, his decisions being remarkable for their clearness and precision, while his habits were of a singularly industrious order, considering the state of his health. In private life he was beloved on account of his gentle, unassuming manners, and his eminently benevolent and sociable disposition.

CRAIK, GEORGE LILLIE, M.A., LL.D. A life of this gentleman, if fully written, would present an interesting picture of literary life in London, under its most recent phases; and form a record of successful struggle, in which high talent, persevering energy, and moral rectitude could win their way along a path so crowded with difficulties and defeats. Dr. Craik was born at Kennoway, in the county of Fife, in 1798. His father, the Rev. William Craik, was first parish schoolmaster, and afterwards minister of Kennoway; his mother, Patterson, was daughter of Mr. Henry Lillie, farmer in the same parish. He was the eldest of three brothers, the second being the Rev. James Craik, D.D., of Glasgow, and the third the Rev. Henry Craik of Bristol. Of the early life of the subject of this memoir we know little, but it is evident that, even while a boy, he must have been forming those habits of studious application, and gathering those stores of general knowledge for which he was afterwards distinguished among his literary associates. Possessing also the best of all inheritances in a virtuous and intellectual parentage, we are told, that from father and mother he derived a remarkable combination of strength and sweetness; great firmness of character, indomitable perseverance, and an almost fastidious refinement. "These qualities," the same authority truly adds, "stamped his individuality as a man quite as much as a man of letters, and caused him to exercise, wherever he went, a large and abiding influence both social and moral."

After qualifying himself by a general English education and some knowledge of the ancient classics, George L. Craik entered the university of St. Andrews, and went through the usual curriculum of what are called the gown-classes, after which he became a student of theology. But although he finished the usual course prescribed by the church, he did not take license as a preacher. It is probable that general literature had more attractions for him than the study of theology, and that he already felt the profession of an author to be his proper vocation. It appears also that before his college career was ended, he had, like many other aspiring students, preluded in authorship. In 1816, when only eighteen years old, he began to support himself at college as a tutor to younger students than himself, and soon afterwards he was appointed editor of a local newspaper called the Star. From 1812, when he entered the university, until 1820, when his connection with it closed, he had carried off many college honours, and was regarded by his fellowstudents as a scholar of great attainments and very superior intellectual powers. It was more important still that the professors were of the same opinion; and of these, Dr. Chalmers, in recommending him to his friends in Glasgow, where Mr. Craik intended