His sisters were ingeniose and well-bred; they well understood the use of the globes, as you may find in the preface of Mr. Blundevill of the Sphaere: see if it is not dedicated to them. One of them was maried to Sir John Cunstable of Yorkshire. To this brother in lawe he dedicates his second edition of his Essayes, in 8vo; his last, in 4to, to the duke of Bucks.
[304]Blundevill's Exercises, preface:—'I began this arithmetique more then seven yeares since for that vertuous gentlewoman Mris Elizabeth Bacon, the daughter of Sir Nicholas Bacon, knight (a man of most excellent witt and of a most deep judgement and sometimes Lord Keeper of the great seale of England), and lately the loving and faithfull wife of my worshipfull friend Mr. Justice Windham, who for his integrity of life and for his wisdome and justice dayly shewed in government and also for his good hospitalitie deserved great commendation; and though at her request I had made this arithmetique so plaine and easie as was possible (as to my seeming) yet her continuall sicknesse would not suffer her to exercise herself therin.'
<His residences.>
[305]I will write something of Verulam, and his house at Gorhambery.
At Verulam is to be seen, in some few places, some remaines of the wall of this citie[XVII.]; which was in compass about ... miles. This magnanimous Lord Chancellor had a great mind to have made it a citie again: and he had designed it, to be built with great uniformity: but Fortune denyed it him, though she proved kinder <to> the great Cardinal Richelieu, who lived both to designe and finish that specious towne of Richelieu, where he was borne; before, an obscure and small vilage. (The ichnographie, etc., of this towne and palais is nobly engraved).
[XVII.] Verolamium, Virolamium, Cassivelani oppidum.
Within the bounds of the walls of this old citie of Verulam (his lordship's Baronry) was Verulam howse, about ½ a mile from St. Albans; which his Lordship built, the most ingeniosely contrived little pile[XVIII.], that ever I sawe. No question but his lordship was the chiefest architect; but he had for his assistant a favourite of his (a St. Albans man) Mr. ... Dobson (who was his lordship's right hand) a very ingeniose person (Master of the Alienation Office); but he spending his estate upon woemen[306], necessity forced his son William Dobson to be the most excellent painter that England hath yet bred, qui obiit Oct. 1648; sepult. S. Martin's in the fields[307].
[XVIII.] I am sorry I measured not the front and breadth; but I little suspected it would be pulled downe for the sale of the materialls.
[308]The view of this howse from the entrance into the gate by the high-way is thus. The parallel[309] sides answer one another. I doe not well remember if on the east side were bay windowes, which his lordship much affected, as may be seen in his essay Of Building. Quaere whether the number of windowes on the east side were 5 or 7: to my best remembrance but 5. This model I drew by memorie, 1656.