CRASHAW, RICHARD (1613?-1649).--Poet, _s._ of William C., a Puritan divine, was _b._ in London, and _ed._ at Charterhouse and Camb., where he became a Fellow of Peterhouse, from which, however, he was, in 1643, ejected for refusing to take the Solemn League and Covenant. Thereafter he went to France, and joined the Roman communion. He suffered great straits, being almost reduced to starvation, but was, through the influence of Queen Henrietta Maria, appointed Sec. to Cardinal Palotta. About 1649 he went to Italy, and in the following year became a canon of the Church of Loretto. He _d._ the same year. C. is said to have been an eloquent preacher, and was a scholar as well as a poet of a high order in the ecstatic and transcendental style. His chief work is _Steps to the Temple_ (1646), consisting mainly of religious poems somewhat in the style of Herbert; his _Weeping of the Magdalen_ is full of the most extravagant conceits, a fondness for which is, indeed, his besetting sin as a poet. His friend Cowley commemorated him in a beautiful ode. CRAWFORD, FRANCIS MARION (1854-1909).--Novelist and historian, _s._ of Thomas C., an American sculptor, _b._ at Bagni di Lucca, Italy, and _ed._ in America, at Camb., and in Germany, he went to India and ed. _The Indian Herald_ (1879-80). Thereafter he settled in Italy, living chiefly at Sorrento, and becoming a Roman Catholic. His principal historical works are _Ave Roma Immortalis_ (1898), _The Rulers of the South_ (reprinted as _Sicily, Calabria, and Malta_, 1904), and _Venetian Gleanings_ (1905), but his reputation rests mainly on his novels, of which he wrote between 30 and 40, the best known of which are perhaps _Mr. Isaacs_ (1882), _Dr. Claudius_ (1883), _A Roman Singer_ (1884), _Marzio's Crucifix_ (1887), _Saracinesca_ (1887), _A Cigarette-maker's Romance_ (1890), generally considered his masterpiece, _Don Orsino_ (1892), _Pietro Ghisleri_ (1893), and _The Heart of Rome_ (1903). His one play is _Francesca, da Rimini_. His novels are all interesting, and written in a style of decided distinction. His historical works, though full of information, lack spirit. CREASY, SIR EDWARD SHEPHERD (1812-1878).--Historian, _ed._ at Eton and Camb., and called to the Bar in 1837, he became in 1840 Prof. of History, London Univ., and in 1860 Chief Justice of Ceylon, when he was knighted. His best known contribution to literature is his _Fifteen Decisive Battles of the World_ (1852). Other works are _Historical and Critical Account of the Several Invasions of England_ (1852), _History of the Ottoman Turks_, and _Imperial and Colonial Institutions of the British Empire_ (1872). CREECH, THOMAS (1659-1700).--Translator, _b._ near Sherborne, _ed._ at Oxf., became Head Master of Sherborne School. He translated _Lucretius_ in verse (1682), for which he received a Fellowship at Oxf., also Horace, Theocritus, and other classics. Owing to a disappointment in love and pecuniary difficulties he hanged himself.