Philosophy and in Astronomy, of a book called "The Farm and Fireside," and of the Biographical Dictionary which bears his name.

BLAKE, Mrs. Kesiah, Bristol, R. I., Aug. 20, æ. 84, widow of Ebenezer Blake.

BLAKE, Royal, Forestdale, Brandon, Vt., Dec. 2, æ. 64.-"Resolved, That the Vestry of this church desire to record the expression of their deep sorrow, at the afflicting dispensation which has so suddenly deprived them of the valuable cooperation of Royal Blake, their late senior warden. They bear their affectionate testimony to his upright character, his pure example, his active benevolence, and his constant zeal in the support of the church, and in the fulfilment of every known duty."

BLAKELEY, Charles, Laurensville. March 17, æ. -.

BLANCHARD, Rev. Wm. H., Florence village, N. Y., Jan. 23, æ. 32. BLANDING, Dr. William, Rehoboth, Mass., Oct. 12, æ. 84.

BLANKENSHIP, Mrs. Geraldine B., Indianola, Vermilion Co., Ill., Jan. 13, æ. 32.

BLATCHFORD, Mrs. Abigail, Gloucester, Conn., April 19, æ. 85, widow of the late Nathaniel Blatchford.

*

BLENNERHASSETT, Richard Spotteswoode, St. Louis, Mo., Dec. 25, æ. 46. He was born at Conway Castle, Killorglin, in the county of Kerry, Ireland, May, 1811. By his mother, he was related to Daniel O'Connell, to whom she was second cousin - also to the Spotteswoodes of Virginia, Spotteswoode being her maiden name; and his father, Edward Blennerhassett, of Tralee, was second cousin of Harman Blennerhassett, of the "Island." R. S. B. received his early education at a seminary in Tralee, and completed his classical studies under the superintendence of an elder brother, who was a graduate of Trinity College. Owing to the ruinous results of a lawsuit, which deprived his family of considerable property, he joined his father in his determination to

* An American vessel, commanded by a Captain Spotteswoode, was wrecked on the coast of Iveragh; being rescued by a neighboring family and their tenants, the kindness and hospitality extended to

him and his crew so won on the warm-hearted

Virginian, that, settling up his affairs as quickly as possible, he returned, married into the family, and

settled in Kerry, where his descendants still reside.

emigrate to this country. In 1831, having married Miss Byron, (greatgranddaughter of Jean Jaques Rousseau, and whose father served in India under Lord Cornwallis,) on the 26th of May, accompanied by his father, a brother, and two sisters, they embarked for America, landed at Quebec, and travelled on to Guelph in Upper Canada, where they intended to settle; but being disappointed in land speculations, they returned to Hamilton, (where they had spent a few days on their journey,) opened a school, and remained there till the cholera broke out in 1832. On leaving Hamilton, Mr. B. passed on to Lockport, where he first joined the democratic ranks; and he continued throughout his life a firm and consistent adherent to that party. His next move was to Western New York, where, like the celebrated Luther Martin, "he devoted himself to the double duty of preceptor and student at law" in the village of Attica; and so diligently did he apply himself, that he was in 1835 admitted to the bar, six months sooner than the term usually prescribed. After obtaining his license, he rose rapidly in his profession, and practised in Genesee and the neighboring counties till the year 1841, when, desirous of moving still farther west, he took up his residence in the city of St. Louis. Here a field opened, where free scope being afforded for the exercise of his talents, he soon became distinguished as one of the most prominent criminal lawyers in the state. The uncommon command of temper which he possessed, and which was a distinguishing trait in his character, gave him vast advantages over his opponents; and the shafts of irony and ridicule, which he well knew how to wield, often in a doubtful case turned the scale in favor of his client. But it was not in wit and humor alone that he excelled. When engaged on the defence, into which he uniformly entered with all the fervor of his national character, and the energy of his capacious mind, so powerful was his pleading, so persuasive his eloquence, that judge and jury were alike borne along by the logic of his reasoning, and the warmth of his feelings, and seldom failed to acquit the prisoner whose cause he defended. In cross-examination, which was his forte he, like his

relative, "Counsellor Dan," stood unrivalled. When quite a boy, it was his delight to visit the courts of his native county, and listen to the manner in which O'Connell twisted and turned a witness, until he almost turned him inside out; and the shadow of the old man's mantle seemed to have fallen on his young admirer. In criminal cases he was always on the defence, and when running for the judgeship of the criminal court, was frequently heard to say, "that if elected, he did not believe he could ever sit on the bench and convict a prisoner." So sensitive was he to human sufferings, that he has been known, when visiting the jail in the severest kind of weather, to give his overcoat to a prisoner, who was unprovided with sufficient clothing, and go himself for weeks after without one. In his domestic relations, the same spirit characterized all his actions. If annoyances and difficulties "cast a shadow on his brow" out doors, it was quickly dissipated on passing the threshold of that home, where he was adored; while the kind greeting, the affectionate word to his aged father, and to every member of his family, testified the happiness he felt and wished to diffuse around him. In October last, being absent on professional business, he returned home ill, and shortly after had an attack of apoplexy, which terminated in his death on the 25th of Dec., 1857. Mr. B. was a member of the Episcopal church, as all the Blennerhassetts (with few exceptions) are. He lies interred in Bellefontaine cemetery, St. Louis.

BLISS, Mrs. Mary K., Gainesville, Ala., formerly of Medford, Mass., was born March 6, 1809, and died April 12, 1857, æ. 48. She united with the church at Charlestown, Mass., in 1827, and adorned her profession by a humble, devoted life of active piety until her death. She was, for about the whole of this period, an active and successful teacher in the Sabbath school, and ever anxious, and laboring in her sphere, for the prosperity of Zion. Her piety was peculiarly uniform, active, and free from fluctuation. Its foundation was manifestly laid in a vital union with Christ. He was emphatically the Sun of her spiritual system, her life, her sole reliance, the joy of her heart, her all in all. She possessed an ex

traordinary degree of benevolence and kindness of heart. She seemed to feel happiness and joy ever in doing good, and in contributing to the welfare of others; so much so that she evidently experienced more happiness in giving than others could in receiving. This was manifested not only while ministering to temporal wants, but preeminently in relieving spiritual wants. It prompted her to meet every call with an earnestness proportioned to the necessity of the case. Her piety was evinced also by her faithfulness in duty, her love for the sanctuary and all religious ordinances, her conscientious exactness in the performance of all religious duties and exercises, especially in reading the word, meditation, and prayer. These were always as food to her, and she felt a loss and discomfort if at any time, under any circumstances, they were neglected or materially abridged. She had indeed in all matters a remarkably tender conscience, alive to the gentlest suggestions. If at any time betrayed into any wrong, she was never at rest until she had sought pardon, no matter how low or humble the object against whom she had offended.

BLISS, George, Norwich, Conn., Sept. 12, æ. -, for the last 12 years sheriff of New London Co. He was highly esteemed as a man and citizen, and as an executive officer he has received the highest commendation from the court and bar of New London Co.

His

BLOCK, Abraham, New Orleans, La., March 17, æ. 77. He was a friend of the destitute, a reliever of the troubled, and a comforter of the afflicted. ear was always open to the cry of distress, and none worthy of his bounty ever asked it in vain. As a merchant, who had done an extensive business for more than half a century, and who had experienced all the vicissitudes of fortune incident to this hazardous profession-having often found himself, during the great monetary pressures to which this country has from time to time been subject, involved to the extent of many thousands of dollars beyond the means at his control,-none exhibited a clearer record for honesty and integrity. And there is not a single one of his numerous creditors, during this long period of time, who can say he ever lost a dollar by his neglect.

Honesty was his watchword from the beginning to the end of his useful course on earth-it was the polar star of his existence, and no influence, however strong, could ever force him to swerve an iota from the simple integrity of heart that governed all his actions. It was this he taught his children when they first began to lisp his name, and he had never ceased to enforce it upon them, both by precept and example, until the cold hand of death chilled his warm and generous heart. He was indeed and in truth "the man of a thousand;" and while few ever leave a history so beautiful and a record so clear and admirable, none has ever left one superior. BLODGETT, Howard, Stewartstown, N. H., Oct. 29, æ. 88. He had been a resident of Stewartstown for 50 years, was beloved and revered by neighbors and acquaintances, was also an affectionate husband and parent.

BLOODGOOD, Lynott, Enfield, Conn., June 17, æ. 76, formerly of Utica. He was born in Albany, and belonged to one of those families whose names are associated with the early history and progress of that city, and was familiarly known to most of its inhabitants up to the day of his death, but who, like those older generations, are now numbered with the dead. He had lived for some few years past in Utica. N. Y.

BLUE, Mrs. Elizabeth, Romney, Va., Oct. 31, æ. 80, widow of Mr. Uriah B., at the residence of her son-in-law, Col. Isaac Parsons. The last survivor of the Donaldson family.

BOARDMAN, Capt. George, Hamilton, Madison Co., N. Y., æ. 95. Capt. B. was a native of Wethersfield, Conn., and formerly, and for many years, a much respected citizen of Schenectady, N. Y.

BOGARDUS, C. S., Bloomingdale, N. J., Sept. 21, æ. 45, late naval officer.

BOGERT, Alida, Geneva, N. Y., Mar. 19, æ. 85. She was born in the city of New York, was the daughter of Nicholas Bogert, one of the whig committee of safety during the revolutionary war, and granddaughter of the Rev. Johannes Ritzema, one of the early pastors of the Collegiate Reformed Dutch church, by whom she was baptized in 1772. Her father, having removed to Dutchess Co. when she was quite young, she united in 1813 with the Reformed

Dutch church of Hopewell, which was then under the pastoral care of the Rev. Dr. Dewitt. In 1817 she removed to Geneva, where she had since, with the exception of two short intervals, resided with her brother, Col. James Bogert. Miss B. was one of the nine communicants who were organized into the Reformed Dutch church of Geneva in 1832, and (while free from bigotry) was always devotedly attached to the church of her fathers. She was a regular attendant upon all the means of grace, until prevented by age and infirmities, she having been confined to her house for the last five years. She was eminently a Bible Christian, and found great delight in the daily study of the Scriptures. One of the most beautiful features of her religious character was her scrupulous regard for the Sabbath, when she would suffer nothing of a secular character to divert her mind from the duties and enjoyments of the day. The cause of her Master was always dear to her, and her influence in favor of religion was felt and acknowledged by all with whom she came in contact, especially by the young. Her health had for several years been delicate, and she suffered much bodily pain, which was occasionally aggravated by seasons of spiritual depression; but her faith in God sustained her under every trial, and was evidently strengthened by its exercise.

BOGERT, Jacob C., Old Hackensack, N. J., July 7, æ. 95.

BOGGS, Thomas J., Sonora, Cal., Oct. 13, æ. 56, formerly a resident of Booneville, Missouri. Possessing talents of a high order, and a mind well stored with general knowledge, the deceased, as a social companion, had few equals. But owing to a retiring disposition and diffidence in his own powers, it was only to his more intimate associates that his intellectual strength was fully manifested. Mr. B. was a native of Fayette Co., Ky. He went to Missouri some 40 years ago, where he continued to reside till the spring of 1850, when he moved to California. He settled in the town of Sonora, and entered on the practice of the law, in which he continued up to the time of his late illness.

BOISE, Mrs. Sarah Goodyear, Ann Arbor, Mich., April 8, æ. 40, wife of Prof. J. R. Boise.