During the widowhood, fhe made the first draught of that pious treatise, which she afterwards finished and published, entitled, A Me-, thod of Devotion: or, Rules for Holy and Devout Living; with Prayers on Several Occafions, and Advices, and Devotions for the Holy Sacrament: in octavo. This piece has been fo well received as to run through three editions.

After continuing a widow near feven years, fhe was married to the bishop of Salisbury; who was fo fenfible of her worth and goodnefs, that he committed the care of his children entirely to her, and left her abfolute mi→ ftrefs of her own fortune.

In 1707, fhe took a journey to Spaw for her health, and, after her return, feemed to be much recovered; but, the winter following, upon the breaking of the frost in January, fhe was taken with a pleuretic fever, of which he died in a few days, and was buried at Spetchly, by her former husband, according to a promife fhe had made him, as appears by a clause in her will.- She was a lady, in every respect, of moft exemplary life and converfation.

To give the reader an idea of the bishop's ability and diligence in educating the duke of Gloucefter, we must refer him to his own words.

"I took to my own province, the reading and explainining the fcriptures to him; the inftructing

inftructing him in the principles of religion and the rules of virtue; and the giving him a view of history, geography, politics, aud government. I refolved alfo to look very exactly to all the masters that were appointed to teach him other things."

In another place, fpeaking of the duke of Gloucester's death, he says,

"I had been trufted with his education now for two years, and he made an amazing progrefs; I had read over the Pfalms, Pro verbs, and Gospels, with him; and had explained things, that fell in my way, very copioufly. I went through geography fo often with him, that he knew all the maps very particularly: I explained to him the forms of government in every country, with the interests and trade of that country, and what was both good and bad in it: I acquainted him with all the great revolutions that had been in the world, and gave him a copious account of the Greek and Roman histories, and of Plutarch's Lives. The laft thing I explained to him was the Gothic conftitution; and the beneficiary and feudal laws: I talked of these things, at different times, near three hours a day."

We fhall juft touch upon the principal parts of his conduct as a bishop, which are described at large by the author of his life.

As he had always looked upon confirmation as the likelieft means of reviving a spirit of Christianity, if men could be brought to entertain just notions concerning it, he wrote a

fhork

fhort Directory, containing proper rules for preparing the youth upon fuch occafions. This he printed, and fent copies of it, fome months before hand, to the minifter of every parish where he intended to confirm.

Every fummer, he made a tour, for fix weeks, or two months, through fome district of his bishopric, daily preaching and confirming from church to church; fo as, in the compass of three years, befides his triennial vifitation, to go through all the principal livings of his diocefe. In thefe circuits, he entertained all the clergy that attended upon him at his own expence, and held conferences with them upon the chief heads of divinity.

During his refidence at Salisbury, he conftantly preached a Thurfday's lecture, founded at St. Thomas's church. He likewife preached and confirmed, every Sunday morning, in fome church of that city, or of the neighbourhood round about it; and, in the evening, he had a lecture in his own chapel, wherein he explained fome portion of fcripture. Every week, during the feafon of Lent, he cate chifed the youth of the two great schools in the cathedral church, and inftructed them in order for confirmation. He endeavoured, as much as in him lay, to reform the abuses of the bishop's constitutional court. No part of the epifcopal office was more strictly attended to by him, than the examination of candi dates for holy orders. He examined them himfelf, as to the proofs of the Chriftian reli

gion, the authority of the fcriptures, and the nature of the gofpel-covenant; and, a day or two before ordination, he submitted all those, whom he had accepted, to the examination of the dean and prebendaries.

As the qualification of clergymen for the paftoral care was always uppermost in his thoughts, he inftituted at Salisbury a little nurfery of students in divinity, being ten in number, to each of whom he allowed a falary of thirty pounds a year. Once every day, he examined their progrefs in learning, and gave them a letter on fome fpeculative point of divinity, or fome part of the paftoral function but this foundation being exclaimed at, as a defigned affront upon the method of education at the univerfities, he was prevailed upon, after fome years, to lay it wholly aside.

He was a warm and conftant enemy to pluralities, where non-refidence was the confequence of them, and in some cases hazarded a fufpenfion rather than give inftitution. In the point of refidence, he was so strict, that he immediately difmiffed his own chaplains upon their preferment to a cure of fouls.

He exerted the principle of toleration, which was deeply rooted in him, in favour of a non-: juring meeting-houfe at Salisbury, which he obtained the royal permiffion to connive at; and this spirit of moderation brought over fe veral diffenting families of his diocese to the communion of the church.

In

In 1699, he published his Expofition on the Thirty-nine Articles of the Church of England. In 1704, he had the fatisfaction to fee his project for augmenting poor livings carried into execution.

The laft five years of his life he grew more abftracted from the world than he had been in the former part of it. He lived to see a fucceffion take place, and that family established, in whose interests he had been so zealous; and died on the feventeenth of March, 1714-15, in the feventy-fecond-year of his age; and was interred in the parish of St. James's, Clerkenwell.

After his death, his Hiftory of his own Times, with his Life annexed, was published by his fon Thomas Burnet, efq. agreeable to the intention of his father; for the bishop, by his laft will and teftament, had ordered, that this History fhould not be printed till fix years after his death, and then faithfully, without adding, fuppreffing, or altering it in any particular.

The first volume was printed at London in 1724, and the fecond in 1734, in folio. To the first volume is prefixed an advertisement, acquainting the reader, That the editors intended, for the fatisfaction of the public, to depofit the copy, from which his history is printed (corrected, and interlined, in many places, with the author's own hand) in fome public library, as foon as the second volume hould be published.

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