of that cathedral, a celebrated scholar, and many years master of the King's school there; one who made his profession his delight, and, though in very easy circumstances, continued to teach for the sake of doing good.
How long Mr Butler continued under his care is not known, but, probably, till he was fourteen years old. There can be little doubt that his progress was rapid, for Aubrey tells us that "when but a boy he would make observations and reflections on everything one said or did, and censure it to be either well or ill;" and we are also informed in the Biography of 1710 (the basis of all information about him), that he "became an excellent scholar." Amongst his schoolfellows was Thomas Hall, well known as a controversial writer on the Puritan side, and master of the free-school at King's Norton, where he died; John Toy, afterwards an author, and master of the school at Worcester; William Rowland, who turned Romanist, and, having some talent for rhyming satire, wrote lampoons at Paris, under the title of Rolandus Palingenius; and Warmestry, afterwards Dean of Worcester.
1562, appointed schoolmaster 1586, made prebendary 1619, died 1626. The inscription in capitals, on a mural stone, now placed in what is called the Bishop's Chapel, is as follows:
Mane hospes et lege,
Magister HENRICUS BRIGHT,
Celeberrimus gymnasiarcha,
Qui scholse regiæ, istic fundatæ per totos 40 annos
summa cum laude præfuit,
Quo non alter magis sedulus fuit, scitusve, ae dexter,
in Latin Græcis Hebraicis litteris,
feliciter edoceudis:
Teste utraque academia quam instruxit affatim
numcrosa plebe literaria:
Sed et totidem annis eoque amplius theologiam professus,
Et hujus ecclesiæ per septennium canonicus major,
Sæpissime hic et alibi sacrum Dei præconem
magno cum zelo et fructu egit.
Vir pius, doctus, integer, frugi, de republica
deque ecclesia optime meritus.
A laboribus per diu noctuque
ad 1626 strenue usque exantlatis
4° Martii suaviter requievit
in Domino.
See this epitaph, written by Dr Joseph Hall, dean of Worcester, in Fuller's Worthies, p. 177.
