MANSFIELD, IVILLrior MURRAY, Earl of, lord-chief-justice of the kinff's bench, was the fourth son of Andrew, viscount Stormont, and was born at Perth,'Mar. 2. 1704. He studied at Christ-church, Oxford, took the degree of M.A. in 1730, and was called to the bar in 1731. He soon acquired an extensive practice--mainly, it would seem, on account of his facility- and force as a speaker, for neither then nor at any subsequent period of his career was he reckoned a very erudite lawyer—and was ofteu employed on appeal cases before the house of lords. In 1743 he was appointed by the ministry solicitor-general, entered the house of commons as member for Boroughbridge, and at once took a high position. In 1746 he acted, ex officio, as counsel against the rebel lords, Lovat, Balmerino, and Kilmarnock; was appointed king's attorney in 1754; and at this thne stood so high that, had not the keenness of his ambition been mitigated by a well founded distrust of his fitness for leading the house, he might have aspired to the high est political honors. He became chief-justice of the king's bench in 1756, and entered
the House of Lords under the title of baron Mansfield of Mansfield in the county of Not tingham. Still, his political role has little interest for posterity. As his opinions were not those of the popular side, he was exposed to much abuse and party hatred. Junius, among others, bitterly attacked him; and during the Gordon riots of 1780, his house, with all his valuable books and manuscripts, was burned. He declined, with much dig nity, indemnification by parliament. In 1776 Murray was made earl of Mansfield. He worked hard as a judge till 1788, when age and ill-health forced him to resign. Ile died Mar. 20, 1793, in the 89th year of his age.