Chapter Newton to Norton of N by Biographical Dictionary of English Literature

Newton to Norton

Newton, Sir Isaac (1642-1727).—Natural philosopher, born at Woolsthorpe, Lincolnshire, the son of a small landed proprietor, and educated at the Grammar School of Grantham and at Trinity College, Cambridge By propounding the binomial theorem, the differential calculus, and the integral calculus, he began in 1665 the wonderful series of discoveries in pure mathematics, optics, and physics, which place him in the first rank of the philosophers of all time. He was elected Lucasian Professor of Mathematics at Cambridge in 1669, and a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1672, over which body he presided for 25 years from 1703. In the same year his new theory of light was published in a paper before the society. His epoch-making discovery of the law of universal gravitation was not promulgated until 1687, though the first glimpse of it had come to him so early as 1665. The discovery of fluxions, which he claimed, was contested by Leibnitz, and led to a long and bitter controversy between the two philosophers. He twice sat in Parliament for his University, and was Master of the Mint from 1699, in which capacity he presented reports on the coinage. He was knighted in 1705, and died at Kensington in 1727. For a short time, after an unfortunate accident by which a number of invaluable manuscripts were burned, he suffered from some mental aberration. His writings fall into two classes, scientific and theological. In the first are included his famous treatises, Light and Colours (1672), Optics (1704), the Principia (1687), in Latin, its full title being Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica. In the second are his Observations upon the Prophecies of Holy Writ and An Historical Account of Two Notable Corruptions of Scripture. In character Newton was remarkable for simplicity, humility, and gentleness, with a great distaste for controversy, in which, nevertheless, he was repeatedly involved.

Life by Sir D. Brewster, second ed., 1855, etc.

Newton, John (1725-1807).—Divine and hymn-writer, son of a shipmaster, was born in London, and for many years led a varied and adventurous life at sea, part of the time on board a man-of-war and part as captain of a slaver. In 1748 he came under strong religious convictions, and after acting as a tide-waiter at Liverpool for a few years, he applied for orders in 1758, and was ordained curate of Olney in 1764. Here he became the intimate and sympathetic friend of Cowper, in conjunction with whom he produced the Olney Hymns. In 1779 he was translated to the Rectory of St. Mary, Woolnoth, London, where he had great popularity and influence, and wrote many religious works, including Cardiphonia, and Remarkable Passages in his Own Life. He lives, however, in his hymns, among which are some of the best and most widely known in the language, such as In evil long I took delight, Glorious things of Thee are Spoken, How Sweet the Name of Jesus sounds, and many others. In his latter years Newton was blind.

Nichol, John (1833-1894).—Poet and biographer, son of John P. Nichol, Professor of Astronomy in Glasgow, educated at Glasgow and Oxford, and held the chair of English Literature in Glasgow, 1862- 1889. Among his writings are Hannibal (1873), a drama, Death of Themistocles and other Poems (1881), Fragments of Criticism, and American Literature; also Lives of Bacon, Burns, Carlyle, and Byron.

Noel, Hon. Roden Berkeley Wriothesley (1834-1894).—Poet, son of the 1st Earl of Gainsborough, was educated at Cambridge He wrote Behind the Veil (1863), The Red Flag (1872), Songs of the Heights and Deeps (1885), and Essays on various poets, also a Life of Byron.

Norris, John (1657-1711).—Philosopher and poet, educated at Oxford, took orders, and lived a quiet and placid life as a country parson and thinker. In philosophy he was a Platonist and mystic, and was an early opponent of Locke. His poetry, with occasional fine thoughts, is full of far-fetched metaphors and conceits, and is not seldom dull and prosaic. From 1692 he held G. Herbert’s benefice of Bemerton. Among his 23 works are An Idea of Happiness (1683), Miscellanies (1687), Theory and Regulation of Love (1688), Theory of the Ideal and Intelligible World (1701-4), and a Discourse concerning the Immortality of the Soul (1708).

North, Sir Thomas (1535?-1601?).—Translator, 2nd son of the 1st Lord North, may have studied at Cambridge He entered Lincoln’s Inn 1557, but gave more attention to literature than to law. He is best known by his translation of Plutarch, from the French of Amyot, in fine, forcible, idiomatic English, which