No. LII.

MR. SIMON SOLOMON, A Jew.

Ir is with the sincerest pleasure, that we now have an opportunity of giving some account of a son of Israel, who in every point of view, deserves commemoration and applause.

Mr. Simon Solomon, although long settled in England, was not a native of this country, having been born in that portion of Poland, seized on by Frederic the Great, as the spoil of the Prussian eagle. He was born at Lissau, in 1748, and appears to have acquired, either by means of others, or himself, a learned education. Indeed, in that portion of Europe, the Jews are not a despised race, as both here and in France; for they are settled in clusters, inhabit villages and towns, and are treated by the government with lenity and respect.

Among the descendants of Abraham, a proficiency in the Hebrew, accompanied with a taste for rabbinical learning, is considered as classical; to these, the subject of this memoir superadded the German and French languages, doubtless, acquired by him, during the wanderings of his early youth.

A taste for practical chemistry became the means of obtaining bread, not only for himself and his family, but also for such of the wretched of his own, and of every other nation, as appeared deserving of commiseration. His knowledge of the nature and composition of colours enabled him to become what is technically termed a paper-stainer, and he excelled, not in the common, but in the fancy line.

The following account of him is drawn up, with great liberality, by a gentleman of a different faith:

"From persevering habits, added to a truly benevolent heart, he was not only able to provide for a large family, and to contribute to the necessities of the Jewish community, of which

he was a conscientious member, but to indulge in what he also conceived his duty, by relieving the wants of his Christian neighbours, in such a manner as to insure the admiration and esteem of all who knew him. Exclusive of his private charities, he was one of the first founders of the Clerkenwell Philanthropic Society, to which himself and some of his family contributed; he was therefore chosen, with several other persons, during the late distressing winter, to collect subscriptions for the poor, and afterwards to distribute the amount in coals, bread, potatoes, &c. Precluded by his religion, even from taking refreshments during this time, he was nevertheless, so ardent and cheerful in the performance of these duties, that the poor in his presence, always seemed to forget their poverty; so that, like Job, the blessing of those that were ready to perish,' often came upon him, and he has literally made the widow's heart sing for joy.'

“Next to his sudden demise, nothing seemed to excite the regret of his Christian neighbours, more than the hasty interment of his remains, which, according to the Mosaical law, must take place before the sun can set twice upon them. Yet, though strictly Jewish in his belief, and always averse to what he thought was mis-named "the Conversion of the Jews;" he had not the least objection to an attendance upon Christian worship for the sake of doing good; and among his own weekly pensioners, he had several persons of both these persuasions.

"Consistently with this liberality, the writer of this article has to acknowlege the many facilities cordially afforded him by the deceased, in his humble attempts to remove the prejudices excited against a long injured and aspersed people, whose rights, after all that has been said or done by other powers, England has been the first to appreciate and secure, by an equitable administration of the ægis of its laws. And here it may be safely asserted, that no description of people whatever, out of the pale of our ecclesiastical establishment, feel the obligation more warmly, than the reflecting part of the Hebrew nation, to their rulers. The remains of Mr.

Solomon, attended by his family, the heads of his synagogue, the children educated in the Jewish hospital, and a number of Christians, were deposited in the burial-ground near Duckingpond-row, on the 19th Sept., with peculiar marks of respect. Mr. Solomon was auditor to the synagogue of which he was a member, and an acting director of the hospital in Mile-End road. He has left four sons, and a daughter, whose anonymous but sprightly effusions have contributed to enhance the interest of several of our periodical publications. She also published an animated letter to the Rev. Mr. C. Frey, on the subject of his conduct with respect to Jewish converts by the London Society, to which he promised a reply; but this, it seems, he wanted either time or ability to perform, before he was recently compelled to leave England.”

Mr. Solomon, died in the 69th year of his age, leaving behind him the character of a most ingenious artist; a most benevolent man; and a most excellent husband, father, and friend. In short, he would have reflected honour on any sect or nation: for he discharged all his duties with a degree of zeal, patience, and propriety, that could alone have originated in a sound judgment, and good heart.

No. LII.

SIR WILLIAM-PIERCE-ASHE A'COURT, BART.

LATE M. P. FOR HEYTESBURY.

THE name of A'Court, indicates a foreign extraction, while the surnames of Pierce and Ashe, proceed from intermarriages with females of the same appellation. The family itself appears to have been settled for many years at Roddon, a hamlet situate in the hundred of Frome, in Somersetshire.

Mr. Pierce A'Court, married Elizabeth, daughter of William Ashe of Heytesbury, in Wilts, and M. P. for that borough, in consequence of which, his descendants have become joint lords of the manor with the Dukes of Marlborough ; whence has arisen a certain degree of patronage of a very delicate but efficient nature.

General William Ashe A'Court, was the first to profit by this, and also to assume the name of his uncle, in pursuance of a clause in his will; he also first exercised the influence just alluded to, having been returned one of the members for the borough mentioned above.

Sir William Pierce Ashe, his only son, was born in 1747. He obtained a great accession to his patrimonial fortune, in right of his mother, Annabella, the heiress of Thomas Vernon, of Twickenham Park, in the county of Middlesex, Esq. By his first wife Catharine, daughter of Lieut.-Col. Bradford, there was no issue; but by his second, Letitia, the daughter of Henry Wyndham, of Salisbury, Esq., he had seven children; two sons and five daughters.

This gentleman, early in life, devoted himself to the military profession; and soon after his first marriage obtained a command in the Wiltshire militia, in one of the battalions of which

he afterwards rose to the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel. On the demise of his father, he also was nominated M. P. for Heytesbury, and re-elected at three different dissolutions of parliament. On June 25, he obtained the Baronetcy for his family; and lived to see one of his sons employed in the diplomatic line; while another obtained a company in the army.

Sir William died at Heytesbury-house, his usual place of abode, July 27, 1817, in his seventieth year. He is succeeded in his title and a large portion of his extensive estates by William A'Court, Esq. (now Sir William) who, for some time, resided at Palermo, in Sicily, in the character of Envoy Extraordinary.