Gabriel had meanwhile circulated the story, and being challenged from several quarters to produce evidence for his assertion, at length published a number of White's letters to Badcock, giving irrefragable evidence of the joint authorship, and also suggesting that yet other hands had been employed on the discourses. Gabriel's pamphlet ran through several editions; and additional force was lent to it by a rejoinder from one of White's partisans, in which Gabriel was virulently attacked, but his charges were left unanswered. White kept silence as long as possible. At last, in 1790, being compelled to answer, he published an account of his literary obligations, in which he apparently endeavoured to conceal nothing, but maintained still that the 500l. bond was for help in a projected history of Egypt, of which his 'Abdullatif' was to be the forerunner. His pamphlet seems to have satisfied the public, but White did not attempt again the role of popular preacher.
Between 1790 and 1800 he published little. In the latter year his edition of 'Abdullatif ' at last appeared, with a dedication to Sir William Scott. He had printed the text sixteen years before, but, not being satisfied with it, had presented the copies to Paulus of Jena, afterwards famous as the leader of rationalism, who issued the work in Germany. White's edition embodied a translation which had been commenced by the younger Edward Pococke [see under Pococke, Edward], but was completed by White himself. This is the only part that ever appeared of a great work on Egypt which he seems to have planned, and which Badcock was to have rendered popular in style. The time, however, was by no means ripe for such a work, and the elaborate monograph on Pompey's Pillar which White published in 1804 became antiquated as soon as the science of Egyptology was started. The rest of White's literary work was concentrated on the textual study of the Old and New Testaments, and earned him in 1804 the regius professorship of Hebrew at Oxford, carrying with it a canonry of Christ Church. Besides various pamphlets, in which he advocated a retranslation of the Bible, and proposed a new edition of the Septuagint, to be based on the Hexaplar-Syriac manuscript then recently discovered at Milan, he published in 1800 a 'Diatessaron or Harmony of the Gospels,' and in his edition of the 'New Testament in Greek' (1st edit. 1808; often reprinted) endeavoured to simplify and popularise Griesbach's 'Critical Studies.' His last work, 'Criseos Griesbachianae in Novum Testamentum Synopsis' (1811) contains a summary of the more important results. Both as a theologian and as a critic he was ultraconservative.
White died at Christ Church, Oxford, on 23 May 1814. He married, in 1790, Mary Turner, sister of Samuel Turner (1749?1802) [q. v.] who visited Thibet as a British envoy. Her death in 1811 affected him severely.
Persons who knew White declared him to be of an indolent disposition, and it is a fact that in most of his books he embodied where possible the labours of others. His linguistic attainments were, however, very great, and compare favourably with those of the most eminent orientalists of his time, with many of whom, including Silvestre de Sacy, he was in communication. His portrait was painted by William Peters and presented to the university of Oxford. It was engraved by Joseph Thompson and appeared in the 'European Magazine' for October 1796.
[Nichols's Illustrations of the Literary Hist, of the Eighteenth Century, iv. 858-65; Gardiner's Register of Wadham Coll. vol. ii.; Langles's Nécrologie de J. W.; Gent. Mag. 1814, i. 626.]
WHITE, JOSEPH BLANCO (1775–1841), theological writer, was born at Seville on 11 July 1775, and christened José Maria. His grandfather, an Irish Roman catholic, as the heir of an uncle, Philip Nangle, had become head of a large mercantile house at Seville. His father, after some early misfortunes, carried on the business successfully, and married an Andalusian lady of noble descent and small property. Other Irishmen became partners in the house, and formed a ‘small Irish colony,’ in which some English was spoken; although the Whites translated their name into Blanco and became virtually Spaniards. Joseph was put into his father's office at the age of eight. He hated the business, and preferred lessons on the violin. His mother thought commerce degrading, and had him taught some Latin. At twelve he declared his desire to become a priest, in order to escape the counting-house. His mother induced his father to consent. He was allowed to attend a school, and at fourteen he was sent to study philosophy at a Dominican college. An accident led him to read the works of Feyjoo (1701–1764), who had attacked the scholastic philosophy still dominant in Spanish colleges. This induced the boy to revolt against the repulsive teaching of his masters. He was then allowed to enter the university (October 1790). He formed a friendship with a senior student of literary tastes,
