LEVER. 213 andwith his resignation. For the masters and fellows, says he, were afterwards under the necessity of appealing to Chancery, to oblige him to account for several sums of money which he had received, and had notpaid ; to restore many writings, the private seal of the master, and some other things; and to discharge the various debts which he had contracted. These, however, were not recovered till after his death, which happened in the year 1576.. These are certainly very heavy charges ! But how far he was guilty, is not easy now to ascertain. He was a man well versed in the learned languages, also in the French and ltalian.+ The Oxford historian says, that he was deprived of his prebend for notorious nonconformity; but, upon his re- pentance and reconciliation, that he was admitted to another prebend, in 1576, the year in which he died4 It is not easy to reconcile this with the account given above from Mr. Strype. THOMAS LEVER, B. D.-This celebrated divine was born of respectable parents at Little Lever in Lancashire, and educated in the university of Cambridge. After taking his degrees, he was chosen fellow, then master of St. John's college ; in which office he succeeded Dr. William Bill, and was the seventh master of the house.§ He was a famous disputant, a celebrated scholar, and remarkably 'Zealous in the advancement of true religion.11 He was ordained both priest and deacon, in the year 1550, by Bishop Ridley, afterwards martyr in the Marian persecu- tion, andwas a most eloquent and popular preacher to the close of the reign of King Edwards This learned prelate 'had a very high opinion of him, and esteemed him famous -for his bold and plain preaching. Speaking of the preaching of Latimer, Bradford, Knox, and Lever, he said : " They ripped so deeply in the galled backs of the great men at court, to have purged them of the filthy matter festered in their hearts ; as, insatiable covetousness, filthy carnality, voluptuousness, intolerable pride, and ungodly loathsome- ness to hear poor mens' cases and God's word; that they could never abide them above all others.".. Afterwards, Master's Hist. of C. C. C. p. 111, 112. fi Strype's Parker, p. 289. t Wood's Athena. Oxon. vat. i. p. 755. § Baker's MS. Collec. vol. i. p.'146. I Strype's Crammer ' p. 163. 4 Baker's MS. Collec. vol. i. p. 146. 55 Strype's Parker, p. 211.
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