HEBER, REGINALD, second Bishop of Calcutta, was born on the 21st of April 1783, at Malpas, Cheshire, of which place his father was for many years co-rector. The family was of considerable antiquity in the county of Yorkshire, and on the death of no elder brother without heirs-male, the father of Reginald Heber succeeded him as lord of the manor of Marton, Yorkshire, and patron of the rectories there, and to estates at liodnet, Shropshire, which had come into the possession of the family by intermarriage. By his first marriage, with Mary, co-heiress of the Rev. Martin Baylie, rector of Wrentham, Suffolk, he had one child, Richard, who for some time was representa tive in parliament of the University of Oxford, and is known as a great collector of books; and by his second marriage, with Mary, daughter of Cuthbert Allauson, D.D., he had three Reginald, the subject of tho present notice, Thomas Cuthbert, and Mar At y.
a very early period of his childhood Reginald Heber was remark able for his piety and for his eager thirst for knowledge. An excellent memory enabled him to recollect through life whatever he read with almost verbal accuracy. Ile gave early indications of his poetical talents, and at seven years old he had translated Plixdrus into English verse. At eight he was sent to the grammar-school of Hawk burst under Dr. Kent, and in he thirteenth year he was placed in the school of a clergyman near London. lie remained here about three years, and in Novomber 1800 was entered at Brasenoso College, Oxford. In his first year at the university he gained the prize for Latin verse, the subject of his poem being on the commencement of the new century. In the spring of 1803 he wrote his prize poem, ' Palestine; which has obtained a permanent place in Eoglish lite rature. His career at Oxford was one continued course of success. From the modesty of bias manners, his gentleness of disposition, and the charm of his conversation, his society was courted by persona of all ages. In his studies he evinced no taste for the exact sciences, but the ancient languages he studied with larger views than was then usual with young moo at tho universities. In 1804 he became a Fellow of All Souls. The year after he had taken his degree he gained the Bachelor's prize for an English prose essay on the 'Sense of Honour.' About the middle of 1805, in company with his friend Mr. John Thornton, son of tho member for Surrey, he set out on a continental tour. They proceeded through Russia, tho Crimea, Ifungary, Austria, and Prussia, and returned to England in October 1806.
In 1807, before he had obtained his degree of M.A., he took orders, and was instituted by his brother Richard to the family living at Hodnet. Here, as he himself described, he was iu a "half-way situation between a parson and a squire." Never however were the duties of a parochial clergyman discharged with more exemplary zeal and benevolence ; and liebcr's conduct in his parish has often been pointed at as displaying in the greatest perfection all the best charac teristics of a Church of England priest. Iu April 1809 he married Amelia, youngest daughter of Dr. Shipley, dean of St. Asaph. While discharging the duties of his parish with so much earnestness, he was ardently attached to the pursuits of literature. He was a frequent contributor to the `Quarterly Review' from its commencement. In 1812 he commenced the preparation of a 'Dictionary of the Bible,' on which he laboured with much delight; but other duties compelled him to auipeud this work, and no part of it was ever published. In the s sine year be published a small volume of ' Poems and Trans lations for Weekly Church Service.' The composition of his ' Hymns,' with a view of improving the psalmody and devotional poetry used in churches, was also a favourite recreation. He was an elegant versifier, and continued to indulge his poetical talents even while engaged iu visiting his diocese in India. He had a great distaste for controversial theology, and only once was engaged in a discussion of this kind, in reply to what he conceived were the unwarrantable imputations of a writer iu the 'British Critic.' His life was diversified by an occasional visit to his friends in other parts of England, or to his father-in-law iu Wales, and by correspondence with a few friends. His political views were those of the High Church and Tory party, but quite devoid of bitterness. In 1815 he was appointed Hampton lecturer, and the subject he selected was The Personality and Office of the Christian Comforter.' In 1817, Dr. Luxmoro, the bishop of St. Asaph, appointed Heber to a stall in that cathedral, at the request of his father-in-law, the dean. In 1819 he edited the works of Bishop Jeremy Taylor. His other works consist of Parish Sermons,' preached at Hodnet ; and Sermons preached in India. In April 1822 he was elected preacher of Lincoln's Inn, for which he had formerly been an unsuccessful candidate.