WHISTON, William, an English divine of a singular character, was born the 9th of December 1667, at Norton, near Twycrosse, in the county of Leicester, where his father was rector. He was admitted of Clare Hall, Cambridge. In 1693 he took the degree of A.M., and became a fellow. He afterwards began to take pupils; but his ill health at length forced him to decline this occupation. Having entered into orders, he became chaplain to Dr More, bishop of Norwich, in 1694; and in this station he published his first work, entitled “A New Theory of the Earth,” in which he undertook to prove the Mosaic doctrine of the earth perfectly agreeable to reason and philosophy. This work brought no small reputation to the author. In the beginning of the eighteenth century he was made Sir Isaac Newton’s deputy, and afterwards his successor, in the Lucasian professorship of mathematics; when he resigned a living he had in Suffolk, and went to reside at Cambridge. About this time he published several scientific works, explanatory of the Newtonian philosophy; and he had the honour to be one of the first, if not the very first, who rendered these principles popular and intelligible to the generality of readers. About the year 1710, he was known to have adopted Arian principles, and was forming projects to support and propagate them. He had translated into English the Apostolic Constitutions, which favoured the Arian doctrine, and which he asserted to be genuine. The consequence was, that in 1710 he was deprived of his professorship, and expelled from the university. He nevertheless pursued his scheme, by publishing the next year his Primitive Christianity revived, 4 vols. 8vo, for which he incurred the censure of the convocation. On his expulsion from Cambridge, Mr Whiston settled in London, where, without suffering his zeal to be intimidated, he continued to write and propagate his primitive Christianity, with as much ardour as if he had been in the most flourishing circumstances. In 1721 a subscription was commenced for the support of his family, and it amounted to L.470. Though he drew profits from reading astronomical and philosophical lectures, and also from his publications, which were very numerous, yet these of themselves would have been very insufficient; nor, when augmented by the benevolence and charity of those who loved and esteemed him for his learning, integrity, and piety, did they prevent his being frequently in great distress. He long continued a member of the church of England, and regularly frequented its service, though he disapproved of many things in it; but at last he went over to the Baptists, and attended Dr Foster’s meeting at Pinner’s Hall, Broad Street. Among other performances not specified above, he wrote Memoirs of his own Life and Writings, which contain some curious particulars.

He was remarkable for speaking the plainest truths on every occasion, and to persons of every degree. During the year 1725, when Whiston, with Dr Clarke, Dr Berkeley, and others, had the honour to attend Queen Caroline on a certain day of every week, to discuss the progress of science, her majesty one evening took occasion to pay him a just compliment on his truth and integrity, requesting that he would, with his usual plainness, point out to her any fault that he might have observed in her conduct. At first he begged to be excused, adding, that few persons could bear to have their faults plainly told to them, and least of all royal personages, who, from their elevation, are necessarily surrounded by flatterers, to whose lips truth is a stranger. Her majesty replied, that he was to consider her not as a queen, but as a philosopher; and that philosophy is of very little use, if it cannot enable its professors to bear without offence truths necessary to their own improvement. Upon this he told her, that the greatest fault which he had observed in her conduct, was her indecent behaviour in the house of God, which, he assured her, had made very unfavourable impressions on the minds of many persons, who, coming to town from distant parts of the country, had gone to the chapel to obtain a sight of her majesty, the king, and the royal family. The queen made no reply; but in about six weeks afterwards renewed her request, that Mr Whiston would point out the most glaring improprieties in her conduct. To this he answered, that he had laid down a maxim, from which he could not deviate, never to point out to any person more than one fault at a time, and never to give a second reproof till he had observed some good consequence to have arisen from the first.^[1. Bishop Berkeley was present at there conversations, and from his son we received the account which we have given of them. They are likewise mentioned, but not so accurately, by Bishop Newton in his own Life. ] ' Much to the queen’s honour, she was pleased with this plain dealing, and continued to think favourably of Mr Whiston. This honest, but whimsical and credulous man, died on the 22d of August 1752, in the eighty-fifth year of his age.