Character Sketches of Romance, Fiction and the Drama, Vol. 1: A Revised American Edition of the Reader's HandbookBrewer, Ebenezer Cobham
General
Character Sketches of Romance, Fiction and the Drama, Vol. 1: A Revised American Edition of the Reader's Handbook
Brewer, Ebenezer Cobham
Allusions; Fiction -- Dictionaries; Literature -- Dictionaries
BREWSTER (_William_). _The Life and Death of William Brewster_, elder
in the first church planted in Massachusetts, was written by his
colleague William Bradford (1630-1650). After a feeling eulogy upon
his departed friend, he remarks, parenthetically: "He always thought
it were better for ministers to pray oftener and divide their prayers,
than be long and tedious in the same (except upon solemn and special
occasions, as in days of humiliation and the like). His reason was
that the hearts and spirits of all, especially the weak, continue and
stand bent (as it were) so long towards God as they ought to do in
that duty without flagging and falling off." This is a remarkable
deliverance for a day when two-hour prayers were the rule, and from
a man who, his biographer tells us, "had a singular good gift in
prayer."
BRIA´NA, the lady of a castle who demanded for toll "the locks of
every lady and the beard of every knight that passed." This toll was
established because sir Crudor, with whom she was in love, refused
to marry her till she had provided him with human hair sufficient to
"purfle a mantle" with. Sir Crudor, having been overthrown in knightly
combat by sir Calidore, who refused to pay "the toll demanded," is
made to release Briana from the condition imposed on her, and Briana
swears to discontinue the discourteous toll.--Spenser, _Faëry Queen_,
vi. 1 (1596).
BRI´ANOR (_Sir_), a knight overthrown by the "Salvage Knight," whose
name was sir Artegal.--Spenser, _Faëry Queen_, iv. 5 (1596).
BRIAR´EOS (_4 syl._), usually called Briareus [_Bri´.a.ruce_], the
giant with a hundred hands. Hence Dryden says, "And Briareus, with
all his hundred hands" (_Virgil_, vi.); but Milton writes the name
Briareos (_Paradise Lost_, i. 199).
Then, called by thee, the monster Titan came,
Whom gods Briareos, men Ægeon name.
Pope, _Iliad_, i.
BRI´AREUS (_Bold_), Handel (1685-1757).
BRI´AREUS OF LANGUAGES, cardinal Mezzofanti, who was familiar with
fifty-eight different languages. Byron calls him "a walking polyglot"
(1774-1849).
BRIBO´CI, inhabitants of Berkshire and the adjacent counties.--Cæsar,
_Commentaries_.
BRICK (_Jefferson_), a very weak pale young man, the war correspondent
of the _New York Rowdy Journal_, of which colonel Diver was
editor.--C. Dickens, _Martin Chuzzlewit_ (1844).
BRIDE OF ABY´DOS (_The_), Zulei´ka (_3 syl._), daughter of Giaffer (_2
syl._), pacha of Abydos. She is the troth-plight bride of Selim; but
Giaffer shoots the lover, and Zuleika dies of a broken heart.--Byron,
_Bride of Abydos_ (1813).
BRIDE OF LAMMERMOOR, Lucy Ashton, in love with Edgar master of
Ravenswood, but compelled to marry Frank Hayston, laird of Bucklaw.
She tries to murder him on the bridal night, and dies insane the day
following.--Sir W. Scott, _The Bride of Lammermoor_ (time, William
III.).
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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