Women of History: Selected from the Writings of Standard AuthorsVarious
History
Women of History: Selected from the Writings of Standard Authors
Various
Women -- Biography
In the archives of Christ's Church, in Oxford, are the Psalms of David,
written in French with her own hand, and presented to Queen Elizabeth by
Mrs Inglis herself; and were by that princess given to this library. In
the archives in Bodley's Library are two more of her manuscripts,
preserved with great care. One of them is entitled "Les Six Vingts et
Six Quartains de Guy de Faur Sieur de Pybrae, escrits Esther Inglis,
pour sin dernier adieu ce 21 jour de June 1617." In the second leaf this
in capital letters: "To the Right Worshipfull my very singular friende,
Joseph Hall, Doctor of Divinity and Dean of Worchester, Esther Inglis
wisheth all increase of true happiness, Junii 21, 1616." In third leaf,
her head, painted on a card, and pasted upon the leaf.
The title of the other book is "Les Proverbes de Solomon, escrites in
diverses sortes des Lettres, par Esther Anglois, Francoise. A
Lislebourge en Escosse, 1599." This delicate performance gains the
admiration of all who see it; every chapter is wrote in a different
hand, as is the dedication, and some other things at the beginning of
the book, which makes near forty several sorts of hands. The beginnings
and endings of the chapters are adorned with most beautiful head and
tail pieces, and the margins are elegantly decorated with the pen, in
imitation, I suppose, of the elegant old manuscripts. The book is
dedicated to the Earl of Essex, Queen Elizabeth's great favourite. At
the beginning are his arms, neatly drawn, with all its quarterings, in
number fifty-six. In the fifth leaf is her own picture, done with the
pen, in the habit of that time. In her right hand a pen, the left
resting upon a book opened, in one of the leaves of which is written,
"Del eternal le bien. De moi le mal, ou rien." On the table before her
there is likewise a music-book lying open, which perhaps intimates that
she had some skill in that art. Under the picture is an epigram in
Latin, written by Andrew Melvin, and, in the next page, another composed
by the same author in Latin, of which the following is a translation:--
"One hand Dame Nature's mimic does express
Her larger figures, to the life in less;
In the rich border of her work do stand
Afresh, created by her curious hand,
The various signs and planets of the sky,
Which seem to move and twinkle in our eye;
Much we the work, much more the hand admire,
Her fancy guiding this does raise our wonder higher."
It appears that she lived unmarried till she was about forty; and then,
I find by a memorandum made by my late friend Mr Hearne, in a spare leaf
at the beginning of her manuscript of the Proverbs of Solomon, that she
was married to Mr Bartholomew Kello [Kelly?], a Scotchman, by whom she
had a son, named Samuel Kello, who was educated in Christ Church
College, Oxon.
MARGARET, DUCHESS OF NEWCASTLE.
[1620.]
BALLARD.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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