PRESTON. 353 amazing progress in philosophy, and almost every other branch of polite literature. Being of an ambitious mind, and having hopes of high preferment at court, he looked upon the study of divinity as insignificant, and far beneath the attention of a great mind. In the year 1609 he was chosen fellow of his college. The Lord, who designed him to fill an important office in his church, was pleased to frus- trate, his aspiring thoughts. Being brought to hear Mr. John Cotton at St. Mary's church, the word of God made so deep an impression on his mind, as at once cured him of thirsting after preferment. From this time he became remarkable for true christian piety ; and though he had hithertodespised the ministerialwork as beneath his notice, he nowdirected all his studies with a view to that sacred employment. When King James visited the university of Cambridge, Preston, being a man of such extraordinary learning, was appointed one of the disputants before his majesty. The subject of disputation was, " Whether brutes had reason, and couldmake syllogisms." He maintained the affirma- tive; as in the case of a hound, when he comes to a place where three ways meet, he tries one, then another; but, finding no scent, runs down the third with full cry, conclud- ing that as the hare is not gone in either of the two first ways, she must necessarily be gone in the third. The argument, it is said, had so wonderful an effect upon the audience, especially upon the king, that it would have opened a door to his preferment, had not his inclinations to puritanism been a bar in the way. Indeed, Sir Fulke Graville, afterwardsLord Brook, was so highly pleased with him, that, in addition to other demonstrations of his peculiar esteem, he settled fifty pounds a year upon him, and con- tinued to be his great friend ever after.. Clark's Lives annexed to his Martyrologie, p. 75-81 .-Lord Brook was a most zealous patriot, and an avowed advocate for liberty. On ac- count of the arbitrarymeasures of CharlesI. he determined to seek freedom in America ; and he and Lord Say actually agreed to transport themselves to New England ; but upon the meeting of the long parliament, and the sudden change of public affairs, they were prevented from undertaking the voyage. He was afterwards commander in the parliament army, and having reduced Warwickshire to the obedience of the parliament, he ad- vanced into Staffordshire. On the festival of St. Chad, to whom the cathe- dral of Lichfield is dedicated, he ordered his men to storm the adjoining close, to which Lord Chesterfield had retired with a body of the king's forces. But before his orders could be put in execution, he received a musquet shot in the eye, of which he instantly expired, in the year 1642. It was the opinion of some of the royalists, and especially of the papists, 'VOL, tr. 2 A
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