BLENKINS, William Bazett Goodwin. Captain 6 Bombay native infantry 26 April 1842 to death; C.B. 4 July 1843. d. Bombay 12 June 1852.
BLENKIRON, William (son of Mr. Blenkiron of Marrick near Richmond, Yorkshire, farmer). b. Marrick 1807; a general agent at 78½ Wood st. Cheapside, London 1834–48; a breeder of race horses at Dalston 1848, at Middle park near Eltham 1852 to death; his breeding stud gradually became the largest in England; held his first sale of blood stock at Middle park June 1856, held two annual sales there 1867 to death; bred Hermit winner of the Derby 1867, and Gamos winner of the Oaks 1870; gave 5000 guineas for Blink Bonny, 5000 guineas for Blair Athol, and 5800 guineas for Gladiateur; founded the great two year old race at Newmarket, namely The Middle Park Plate 1866. d. Middle Park 25 Sep. 1871 in 64 year. Rice’s History of the British turf ii, 338–44 (1879); Gent. Mag. iii, 451–62 (1869); I.L.N. lix, 377 (1871), portrait; Illust. sporting and dramatic news i, 181 (1874), portrait; Sporting life 27 Sep. 1871, p. 2, cols. 1, 5, 4 Oct. p. 2, col. 6.
BLEWITT, Jonathan (son of Jonas Blewitt of London, organist who d. 1805). b. about 1781; organist in London, at Haverhill and at Brecon; organist of St. Andrew’s Dublin; composer and director of music at T. R. Dublin; grand organist to Freemasons of Ireland; wrote pantomime music for most of the London theatres 1826–52; director of music at Sadler’s Wells Theatre 1828–29, at Vauxhall gardens 1838 and at Tivoli gardens Margate; wrote a few light operas and upwards of 2000 pieces of vocal music, most of them comic songs, the best known are Barney Brallaghan’s Courtship and The merry little fat grey man 1845, which he used to sing inimitably; composed the tune of The Perfect Cure 1844 which was associated with a now forgotten song called The monkey and the nuts, 20 years afterwards it was utilised by James Hurst Stead who became known as The Perfect Cure, and cleared more than £2000 by linking the tune with other words. d. London 4 Sep. 1853 in 73 year.
BLEWITT, Octavian (son of John Edwards Blewitt of London, merchant 1784–1860). b. St. Helen’s place, Bishopsgate, London 3 Oct. 1810; ed. at Plymouth gr. sch.; travelled in Italy, Egypt, Greece, Turkey and other countries 1837–39; secretary of Royal literary fund in London 13 March 1839 to death; elected a member of the Athenæum club 1848 by a majority of 112 votes to 2; F.G.S. 1835; a knight of order of Leopold of Belgium 1872; edited the newspaper portion of the Gardener’s Chronicle 1840–69; author of A panorama of Torquay 1830; A sketch of the district comprised between the Dart and the Teign 1832; Treatise on the happiness arising from the exercise of the Christian faith 1832; Handbook for travellers in Central Italy 1843 (anon.) 2 ed. (with the author’s name) 1850; Handbook for travellers in Southern Italy 1853. d. 133 Elgin crescent, London 4 Nov. 1884. Biograph v, 170–85 (1881).
BLEWITT, Reginald James (2 son of Edward Blewitt of Llantarnam abbey, Monmouthshire who d. 8 March 1832 in 70 year). b. 26 May 1799; ed. at Rugby; solicitor at 8 New square Lincoln’s Inn London 1821–27; M.P. for borough of Monmouth 24 July 1837 to March 1852; established the Monmouthshire Merlin a liberal paper 1829, edited it 1829–32; manager of Monmouthshire bank which failed for a very large sum. d. The Priory, Putney 11 Sep. 1878. Law Times lxv, 405 (1878).
BLIGH, Sir John Duncan (2 son of John Bligh, 4 Earl of Darnley 1767–1831). b. London 11 Oct. 1798; ed. at Eton, and Ch. Ch. Ox., B.A. 1821, B.C.L. 1828, D.C.L. 1836; paid attaché in Paris 9 May 1828; sec. of legation at Florence 30 July 1829; sec. of embassy at The Hague 1 Nov. 1830; Min. plenipo. at The Hague 3 July 1832, at St. Petersburg 7 Sep. 1832, at Stockholm 28 Oct. 1835, and at Hanover 17 April 1838 to 14 June 1856 when he retired; C.B. 1 March 1851, K.C.B. 30 Sep. 1856. d. Sandgate, Kent 8 May 1872.
BLIGHT, William. Entered navy 9 May 1793; captain 22 July 1830; retired R.A. 27 Sep. 1855. d. Stonehouse, Plymouth 22 July 1862 aged 77.
BLISS, Henry (4 son of Jonathan Bliss of New Brunswick). b. New Brunswick; barrister I.T. 9 Feb. 1827, bencher 1850, reader 1863, treasurer 1864; Q.C. 1850; agent in England for Nova Scotia many years; author of On colonial intercourse 1830; Statistics of the trade, industry and resources of Canada 1833; State trials, specimen of a new edition by N. T. Moile, pseud. 1838; Cicero, a drama by N. T. Moile, 1847; Robespierre, a tragedy 1854. d. Folkestone 31 July 1873 aged 76.
BLISS, Rev. Philip (son of Rev. Philip Bliss 1742–1803 R. of Frampton Cotterell, Gloucs). b. Chipping Sodbury, Gloucs. 21 Dec. 1787; ed. at Merchant Taylors’ 1797–1806 and St. John’s coll. Ox., scholar 1806, law fellow 1809, B.C.L. 1815, D.C.L. 1820; assistant librarian Bodleian library 1810, under librarian July 1822 to Dec. 1828; prepared the first 136 pages of the catalogue issued 1814; C. of Newington, Oxon. 1817 to Feb. 1830; registrar of the University 1824 to April 1853; chaplain at Studley Priory 1830–55; registrar of the University Court 1831; principal of St. Mary hall Ox. April 1848 to death; edited Bishop Earle’s Microcosmography 1811; Anthony à Wood’s Athenæ Oxonienses and Fasti 4 vols. 1813–20; Reliquiæ Hearnianæ the remains of Thomas Hearne 2 vols. 1857, 2 ed. 1869 and many other books. d. the Lodgings St. Mary Hall, Oxford 18 Nov. 1857. Dict. of Nat. Biog. v, 221–22 (1886).
BLITZ, Antonio. b. Deal, Kent 21 June 1810; made his first appearance on the stage as a ventriloquist and conjurer at Hamburg Sep. 1823; performed in all the cities of North Europe; first appeared in England at Dover Dec. 1825, and in London at Coburg theatre, Lent 1828; sailed for New York 1 Aug. 1834; in 1870 there were 13 conjurers travelling in America under assumed name of Blitz. d. Philadelphia 28 Jany. 1877. Fifty years in the magic circle by Signor Blitz (1871), portrait.