From the school of Bradford, Mr. Difney was removed to Clare-hall, Cambridge, where he was admitted, July 5, 1755, under the care of the reverend John Courtail, M.A. tutor of the college. Being difqualified by the ftatutes of that society from fucceeding to a fellowship, on account of the annual value of an estate in Nottingham

fhire,

John Scot; Thomas Arthington, efq. Rev. Dr. Jofeph Milner; Henry Wickham, efq; Rev. Henry Elmfall; Charles Booth Swain Sharp, efq; Rev. Samuel Disney; William Serjeantfon, efq; Rev. Sandford Hardcastle; Mr. Smithfon; Captain More; Mr. Richard Green; Mr. Eamonfon; Mr. Barlow; Walter Spencer Stanhope, efq; and Richard Henry Beaumont, efq.

As a farther proof of Mr Disney's regard for his worthy and venerable schoolmaster, he left him a legacy of fifty pounds, and, in a paper explanatory of his bequests, he writes, "If Mr. Butler furvives me, I defire his acceptance of fifty pounds, as a grateful, though inconfiderable, acknowledgement of the many favours I received under his care and tuition. I have long, indeed, had my eye upon his worth, expecting to have seen it rewarded with fome honourable and lucrative employment in the church; but, at one time, his services to the public were unhappily too great for him to be moved from his prefent laborious fituation; and now, his age will be pleaded against him. To the eternal difgrace of such self-interested politics, this able and ingenious man hath never enjoyed, either from his school, or his lectureship, one hundred pounds a year.”.

fhire, which he inherited from his father, he proceeded in civil law, taking the deof bachelor in that faculty, July 7th,

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1761.

He entered into holy orders on the 6th of September the fame year, being ordained deacon at Chester, by Dr. Edmund Keene, bishop of that diocese, and was appointed to the curacy of Ripley in Yorkshire, by the late Dr. Samuel Kirshaw, then rector of that parish. On the 12th of September, 1762, he was ordained priest at Brodsworth, by Dr. Robert Drummond, archbishop of York. Mr. Difney continued to refide at Ripley, until his removal to the chapelry or perpetual curacy of Hedingley, in the parish of Leeds, vacant by the death of the reverend John Moore, to which he was nominated by Dr. Kirfhaw, patron thereof, in right of his vicarage of Leeds, and was licensed thereto by the archbishop, on Dec. 12, 1764. After which time he refided at Wheatwood-hall, which is fituated in the chapelry.

On the ift of Auguft, 1767, he married Ann, eldest daughter of the rev. Dr. Chriftopher Wilson, then refidentiary of St.

Paul's,

Paul's, and fince bishop of Bristol, by Ann, youngest daughter of Dr. Edmund Gibfon, late bishop of London. Upon occafion of his marriage, he took a house in Leeds, as there was none to be hired within the peculiar district of his chapelry, and continued to live there about a year and a half.

At the inftance of Dr. Wilfon, his father-in-law, and upon his refignation, Mr. Disney was collated, Nov. 8, 1768, by Dr. Terrick, bishop of London, to the vicarage of Halstead in Effex. To which place he removed in the month of May following, and refided there till his death.

Early in the spring of the year 1779, Mr. Disney was offered a valuable rectory in Effex, contiguous to Halftead, and legally tenable with it. This offer, which he says "was made with fo much kindness, preffed upon him with fuch earneftness, and fupported by all the authority of fome dignified and very learned perfons," he finally refufed to accept.

He had, on a former occafion, declined a presentation to a fecond benefice, but, in deference to the respectable characters whọ,

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at this time, were pleased to interest themfelves in fo friendly and flattering a manner, in the removal of his fcruples, he committed his thoughts to paper, that he might, as he observed, "at leaft plead his own apology, if not justify himself to others, for a conduct which vifibly arofe not from any interested views, and which he hoped was equally remote from perverseness,and proceeded not from an affected fingularity of opinion." These reasons were confined to his own study, and committed to the perufal of none, but very particular friends during his lifetime; they are, however, fubjoined to the following Difcourfes under the title of "Confiderations on Pluralities," agreeably to his own request.

The fentiments contained in these "Confiderations," are no lefs the author's own, than the manner in which the argument is conducted. At least, I am justified in adding, that he never read any book upon the question, unless" the Paftoral Care," of the excellent bishop Burnet, may be reckoned of that number; nor even fo much as entered into an argument with any person upon the subject. This is mentioned, upon

the best authority, only to fhew, that his repeated refusal of any additional preferment, with the cure of fouls, was intirely the refult of his own unprejudifed state of mind, and flowed folely from what he thought due to the people, of whom he had taken the overfight, and infeparable from the character of a faithful paftor.*

On the appointment of Dr. Wilson to the fee of Bristol, in June 1783, his lordship nominated him one of his chaplains.

Mr. Disney fuffered a fevere affliction in the death of his amiable and beloved wife, who died at Kenfington, May 8th, 1785, of a confumption, in the fortieth year of her age; and was buried on the 14th of the same month, in the vault of her grandfather, bi

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* If the reader should wish to inquire further into the fubject of pluralities, he may promise himself much fatisfaction in the perusal of a book which was published in 1743, entitled, "Pluralities indefenfible. A treatise humbly offered to the confideration of the parliament of Great Britain. By a Prefbyter of the church of England." This work was generally afcribed to Dr. R. Newton, princicipal of Hartford college, Oxford.