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Article MEMOIR OF THE REV. WILLIAM ROMAINE, A. M. ← Page 2 of 3 →
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Memoir Of The Rev. William Romaine, A. M.
chaplain to the Lord Mayor ; but obtaining no preferment , he resolved to quit London , and accordingly took a passage on board a vessel for his native country . As he was going to the water-side to embark , a stranger abruptly asked him if his name was not Romaine ? On replying in the affirmative , he told him that the striking resemblance which he bore to his father had led him to make the enquiry . The gentlemanon being informed of his situation and designtold
, , him that the lectureship if the parish where he lived , St . George , Botolph-Lane , was vacant , and he promised to exert his interest to procure it for him . Mr . Romaine gave his consent , and the election was secured . in
How long he remained in this situation weT ^ now . not ; but 1745 he was chosen lecturer at St . Dunstan ' s in the West , and in 1750 , morning preacher at St . George ' s , Hanover-Square . In the former of these years he completed an edition of Caiasio ' s Dictionary , and Concordance of the Hebrew Bible , in 4 volumes folio . . His eloquence drew a multitude of heareis at both churches ; and this began to excite the disapprobation of the
parishionersparticu-, larly ot St . Geqrge ' s , the rector of which was prevailed upon to , dismiss him . The lectureship was barely eig hteen pounds a ye ; tr . Here also the church was constantly crowded ; and endeavours being made to exclude him from the pulpit , a suit at law was commenced , and terminated in his favour . At the time when the bill for the naturalization of the Jews
occasioned such violent disputes , Mr . Romaine embarked in the controversy , and gave such satisfaction thereby to the opposers of the measure , that he was appointed astronomical professor at Gresham College . Here his violent prejudices in favour of the Hutchinsonian jargon broke forth , and in consequence he was soon dismissed from a professorship he certainly was very ill qualified to fill . When Lady Huntingdon took the popular clergy under her patronage , she appointed Mr . Romaine her chaplain , and he preached both in her ladyship ' s house in town , and at the different chapels which she erected in the country .
Although his popularity was deservedly great , and his friends had encreased , he yet remained for many years without any higher preferment than his lectureship . In 17 6 4 , the majority of the parishioners of St . Anne ' s , Blackt'riars , chose him for their rector , after a long and sharp contest . On this occasion he , much to his honour , refused to canvas for votes , not from pride but from a sense of its impropriety . The election was followed by a suit in Chancery ,
which ended in his favour , though he was not inducted till 1766 . The prejudices which had at the beginning prevailed so greatl y against him , at length gave way before the conviction of his eminent usefulness , his zeail his charity , and exemplary conduct He built a handsome parsonage house , erected a gallery in the church , and rendered all the avenues to it more commodious , without the least ; assistance from the parish . Alter a life spent in the service of his Master with ; fidelity and
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Memoir Of The Rev. William Romaine, A. M.
chaplain to the Lord Mayor ; but obtaining no preferment , he resolved to quit London , and accordingly took a passage on board a vessel for his native country . As he was going to the water-side to embark , a stranger abruptly asked him if his name was not Romaine ? On replying in the affirmative , he told him that the striking resemblance which he bore to his father had led him to make the enquiry . The gentlemanon being informed of his situation and designtold
, , him that the lectureship if the parish where he lived , St . George , Botolph-Lane , was vacant , and he promised to exert his interest to procure it for him . Mr . Romaine gave his consent , and the election was secured . in
How long he remained in this situation weT ^ now . not ; but 1745 he was chosen lecturer at St . Dunstan ' s in the West , and in 1750 , morning preacher at St . George ' s , Hanover-Square . In the former of these years he completed an edition of Caiasio ' s Dictionary , and Concordance of the Hebrew Bible , in 4 volumes folio . . His eloquence drew a multitude of heareis at both churches ; and this began to excite the disapprobation of the
parishionersparticu-, larly ot St . Geqrge ' s , the rector of which was prevailed upon to , dismiss him . The lectureship was barely eig hteen pounds a ye ; tr . Here also the church was constantly crowded ; and endeavours being made to exclude him from the pulpit , a suit at law was commenced , and terminated in his favour . At the time when the bill for the naturalization of the Jews
occasioned such violent disputes , Mr . Romaine embarked in the controversy , and gave such satisfaction thereby to the opposers of the measure , that he was appointed astronomical professor at Gresham College . Here his violent prejudices in favour of the Hutchinsonian jargon broke forth , and in consequence he was soon dismissed from a professorship he certainly was very ill qualified to fill . When Lady Huntingdon took the popular clergy under her patronage , she appointed Mr . Romaine her chaplain , and he preached both in her ladyship ' s house in town , and at the different chapels which she erected in the country .
Although his popularity was deservedly great , and his friends had encreased , he yet remained for many years without any higher preferment than his lectureship . In 17 6 4 , the majority of the parishioners of St . Anne ' s , Blackt'riars , chose him for their rector , after a long and sharp contest . On this occasion he , much to his honour , refused to canvas for votes , not from pride but from a sense of its impropriety . The election was followed by a suit in Chancery ,
which ended in his favour , though he was not inducted till 1766 . The prejudices which had at the beginning prevailed so greatl y against him , at length gave way before the conviction of his eminent usefulness , his zeail his charity , and exemplary conduct He built a handsome parsonage house , erected a gallery in the church , and rendered all the avenues to it more commodious , without the least ; assistance from the parish . Alter a life spent in the service of his Master with ; fidelity and