in the important services he rendered to his country's literature. Young Percy was educated at Christ church, Oxford, and had the fortune early to obtain ecclesiastical preferment, the vicarage of Easton Mauduit and the rectory of Wilby. He commenced his literary career by the publication of some translations from the Portuguese and the Icelandic, the latter of which appeared in 1761 and following years. But it was in 1765 that the first of his two principal works was given to the world—we allude to his celebrated "Reliques of Ancient English Poetry." This is a collection of the finest old English ballads, many of the beautiful lyrics of the Elizabethan age, and several pieces by more modern authors. There can be only one opinion of the ability with which the compiler performed his task, and of the genuine value of the materials he has gathered together. Few works have had a wider and deeper literary influence. Percy's book opened once more the fresh fountain of real poetry, that had so long been artificially walled in; simplicity, pathos, passion, breathed throughout its pages, and men's minds were again led back to nature as the true fountain of inspiration, and the source of the divinest song. The "Reliques" justly made the name of its compiler popular, and he rose rapidly in his profession. In 1769 he was appointed one of the royal chaplains, in 1778 dean of Carlisle, and in 1782 bishop of Dromore. The second of his two chief works appeared in 1770, namely, his translation of Mallet's Northern Antiquities. To it we are disposed to attach nearly as much importance as the "Reliques of English Poetry." Dr. Percy was the first to direct attention to the antiquities and characteristics of the grand Scandinavian north, to make known the sublime and wonderful mythology of the Eddas to English readers, and thus originally to stimulate the study of northern literature, that in our day is producing such valuable fruit. His own learned preface, besides, to Mallet's treatise, is remarkable in the history of ethnological science. In it he, for the first time in this country, clearly pointed out the essential difference between the Celtic and Teutonic races, which had been largely overlooked till then. The opposite hypothesis of the identity of the two, as assumed by Cluverius, and maintained by him with great erudition, and afterwards by such men as Keysler and Pelloutier, has long been universally exploded. Let due honour be awarded to him who was the pioneer in this interesting path of ethnological inquiry. Dr. Percy's other productions, as of comparatively trifling moment, it is unnecessary to particularize. The episcopal dignity he held for nearly thirty years. He devoted himself to his diocese, and resided almost invariably at the palace of Dromore, respected and beloved by all. There his death occurred on the 30th September, 1811. To the reader of Boswell it will be superfluous to state, that Dr. Percy enjoyed the friendship of Johnson, Goldsmith, and the most distinguished men of his day.—J. J.
PERDICCAS, the son of Orontes, was one of the generals of Alexander the Great, who enjoyed much of his confidence, and displayed conspicuous bravery at the attack on Thebes, the siege of Tyre, and the battle of Arbela. On his deathbed, Alexander delivered his royal signet to Perdiccas, which, however, he resigned at a meeting of the principal officers, held after the death of the conqueror, when it was agreed by them that Arrhidæus, a natural son of Philip, should be recognized as king. Perdiccas was appointed to the command of the household troops, which made him virtually the protector of the whole empire. It was arranged that if Roxana, Alexander's widow, who was then far advanced in pregnancy, should bear a son, the child should be associated in the throne with Arrhidæus. Perdiccas allied himself closely with this princess on the birth of her son Alexander, and in order to conciliate her, did not scruple to put to death Alexander the Great's other wife, Statira. He suppressed an insurrection of Asiatic Greeks, defeated and slew Ariarathes, king of Cappadocia, and severely punished several cities of Pisidia which had revolted against his authority. The generals of Alexander among whom his dominions had been divided, refused to submit to him and the puppet kings whom he kept on the Macedonian throne. It soon became evident that Perdiccas had designs on the regal power. He put to death Meleager the commander of the Macedonian phalanx, who was associated with him in the guardianship of the young prince. He then made war on Antigonus, whose activity and energy he dreaded as likely to thwart his plans, but that general fled to Antipater in Macedonia, and organized a confederacy with him and Ptolemy against their common enemy. Perdiccas lost no time in forming the plan of a campaign against his rivals Leaving Eumenes to make head against Antipater and Antigonus, he marched in person into Egypt to attack Ptolemy. His measures, however, were badly planned; his severity disgusted his troops, who deserted in great numbers; nearly two thousand of them were drowned in crossing a branch of the Nile, and the remainder became disaffected, and put him to death along with the greater part of his friends, 321 b.c., only two years after the death of Alexander.—J. T.
PEREGRINO DA CESENA, a celebrated Italian engraver and worker in niello, who flourished in the early part of the sixteenth century. Nothing whatever is known of his life. He was an imitator, perhaps a scholar, of Francesco Francia, whose niello of Orpheus he copied. From all the prints which have the monogram of Peregrino being of small size, and the figures being detached from a black ground as in nielli, Duchesne was led to conclude that they were really proofs of nielli; but though some are, it is certain that many were not, as several copies often occur of the same print. Passavant ingeniously suggests that they were prints published for the use of goldsmiths—patterns, in short, to be copied by the workers in niello. Duchesne describes several nielli by Peregrini; Bartsch and Nagler give a catalogue of sixty-four prints by him, consisting chiefly of religious, mythological, and allegorical subjects; and the number has been increased by Passavant (Peintre Graveur, vol. i.). The earliest date on a print by Peregrino is 1511.—J. T—e.
PEREGRINUS, Proteus, a cynic philosopher, was born at Parium on the Hellespont, about the close of the first century after Christ. According to Lucian, his youth was spent in vicious debauchery, which he crowned by the murder of his own father. After this, being in distressed circumstances, he professed himself a christian in Palestine, with the hope of imposing on the simple-minded and charitable believers. Among the christians he seems to have obtained considerable influence; and on persecution arising was thrown into prison by the civil authorities. Upon this the christians of several cities of Asia Minor sent contributions for his relief, and he was ultimately set at liberty by the Roman governor After a time the christians, discovering his hypocrisy, excommunicated him from their body. He then travelled through various countries, visiting Egypt, Rome, and Greece, seeking everywhere by the most impudent and unscrupulous means to gratify his ruling passion for notoriety and display. Having exhausted all the methods of making himself conspicuous, he at length resolved on publicly burning himself at the Olympic games, and carried this strange resolution into effect in the 236th Olympiad, a.d. 165, in the reign of Marcus Aurelius. This event took place at night, after the celebration of the festival, in the presence of an immense concourse of people, and has been described by Lucian, who was an eye-witness. This account of Peregrinus is taken from Lucian, who was prejudiced against him, and may have distorted the events of his life. Aulus Gellius and Maximus Tyrius speak of him in much more favourable terms. Lucian himself admits that Peregrinus gave away all his hereditary property to his native city Parium; and it is stated by Athenagoras, in his Apology for Christianity, that the Parians raised a statue in honour of him.—G.
PEREIRA, Jacobo Rodrigo, a Spanish Jew, born in 1716, and the first systematic teacher of the deaf and dumb. He attempted to carry out his plans in Cadiz, but on the removal of his family to France, he established a school at Rochelle. Louis XV. granted him a pension of eight hundred livres, and appointed him one of the royal interpreters. Some of his pupils were enabled to articulate certain sounds, and to understand the words addressed to them, from the motion of the lips. He had usually but three or four pupils at a time, and they remained with him four or five years; but the details of his method were kept secret. He died in 1780.—F. M. W.
PEREIRA, Jonathan, an eminent medical man and pharmacologist, was born in the parish of Shoreditch, London, on 22nd May, 1804, and died in London on 20th January, 1853. He was educated in his native parish, and devoted much attention to classics. He showed a predilection for the medical profession, and became an apprentice to an apothecary. In 1821 he attended Aldersgate Street school and dispensary. He subsequently entered Bartholomew's hospital, and passed the Apothecaries' Company in 1823. He was then appointed apothecary to the Aldersgate Street dispensary, and there he prosecuted phar-
