66 46 of the extant Rabbinical Midrashim cannot be traced with any 5. The Jewish Midrashim. The earlier stages in the growth certainty. Although there are several allusions to early written works, other references manifest an objection to the writing down of Haggada and Halaka. Perhaps it was felt that to preserve uniformity of teaching in the schools it was undesirable to popularize the extant collections, or perhaps the references must be reconsidered in the light of those significant changes after the fall of Jerusalem which have been mentioned above (§ 3). However this may be, the independent Hǎlākōth (where the oral decisions are interpreted or discussed on the basis of the Old Testament) were gradually collected and arranged according to their subject in the Mishnah and Tosephtā (TALMUD, § 1), while in the halakic Midrashim (where the decisions are given in connection with the biblical passage from which they were derived) they follow the sequence of the text of the Old Testament. The Haggada was likewise collected according to the textual sequence of the Old Testament. But the sermons or discourses of the homiletic Midrashim are classified according to the reading of the Pentateuch in the Synagogue, either the year cycle, or else according to the sections of the Pentateuch and Prophetical books assigned to special and ordinary Sabbaths and festival days. Hence the latter are sometimes styled Pesiqta ("section"). The homiletic Midrashim are characterized by (a) a proem, an introduction based upon some biblical text (not from the lesson itself), which led up to (b) the exposition of the lesson, the first verse of which is more fully discussed than the rest. They conclude (c) with Messianic or consolatory passages on the future glory of Israel. A feature of some Midrashim (e.g. nos. 4, 5d, e, and 7 below) is the halakic exordium which precedes the proems.3 three Christian and Rabbinical teaching. Similarly the application | sqq., and Thackeray, op. cit. (ch. vii. use of the Old Testament," St Paul the Haggadist "). The latter observes (p. 203): of Hos. ii. 23, not to the scattered tribes of Israel, but to the ch. viii. the arguments by which Paul tried to convince his opponents Gentiles, is common to the Mishna and to Romans ix. 25 seq. of the true meaning of the Old Testament as pointing forward to (Sanday and Headlam, Comment. ad loc.) The Apostle Paul, Christ, are those which they would themselves have employed for once a disciple of the famous Rabbi Gamaliel, uses in 1 Cor. x. 4 another purpose; and to some extent we need not doubt that they ("the spiritual rock that followed them ") a familiar Jewish were selected for that very reason. They were the arguments which were best calculated to appeal to them.' Quite in accordance with Haggada which, however, he reinterprets, even as, when he Rabbinical custom is the system of question and answer (Rom. identifies the "rock" with Christ, he diverges from the Alex- x. 5, seq., 16 seq.), and the argument in the sequence: statement, andrian Philo who had identified it with Wisdom or the Word objection and reply, appears already in the book of Malachi (q.v.). of God. Moreover, not only are passages thus taken out of their context, but they are combined, especially when they contain the same words or phrases, or appear to have the same or similar thoughts or aims. The Talmud, with a reference to Prov. xxxi. 14 ("she bringeth her food from afar "), says "the words of the Torah are poor (or deficient) in one place but rich in another." Hence in the Mid. Siphre on Numbers xv. 39, “ye shall not seek after . . . your own eyes" is explained to refer to adultery, after the words of Samson "she is pleasing in my eyes" (Judg. xiv. 3); and on Deut. vi. 5 it charges man to love the Lord "with all thy soul . . . even if he should take away thy soul," the teaching being based upon Ps. xliv. 22.1 Similarly, in the New Testament, after the same method, Mal. iii. 1 and Is. xl. 3 (linked by the phrase to prepare the way") are combined in Mark i. 2 seq.; Abraham's faith (Gen. xv. 6) and temptation (xxii. 1) are associated in James ii. 21-23, as also in contemporary Jewish thought; and by other combined quotations Paul enunciates the universality of sin (Rom. iii. 10 sqq.) and the doctrine that Christians are God's temple (2 Cor. vi. 16 sqq). Proceeding upon such lines as these, the Jews wove together their Midrashic homilies or sermons where, though we may find much that seems commonplace, there are illuminating parables and proverbs, metaphors and similes, the whole affording admirable examples of the contemporary thought and culture, both of the writers and-what is often overlooked-the level of their hearers or readers. Like many less ancient discourses, the Midrashim are apt to suffer when read in cold print, and they are sometimes judged from a standpoint which would be prejudicial to the Old Testament itself. But they are to be judged as Oriental literature and if they contain jarring extravagances and puerilities, one may recall that even in modern Palestine it was found that the natives understood Robinson Crusoe as a religious book more readily than the Pilgrim's Progress (J. Robertson, Early Rel. of Israel, 1892, p. 66). In making allowance for the defects (without which they would probably not have appealed to the age) it must be remembered that some of the Rabbis themselves recognized that the Midrashic Haggada was not always estimable. An interesting example of combined quotation is illustrated in Matt. xii. 4-8, where the teaching of Jesus on the law of the Sabbath rests upon 1 Sam. xxi. 1-6, Num. xxviii. 9 seq. and Hos. vi. 6. Apropos of this law the Rabbinical arguments are worth noticing. Apparently the severe rules laid down in Jubilees 1. 8-12 (see R. H. Charles, ad loc.) were exceptional. It was allowed that the Sabbath need not be too rigorously kept, and this was justified by Exod. xxxi. 13, where the singular use of the restrictive particle ak (EV" verily supported the teaching that other Sabbaths need not be observed. Also, from the words holy unto you" (v. 14) it was taught that “the Sabbath is given to you to desecrate in case of need, but thou art not given to the Sabbath." Hence the Sabbath might be broken when life was in danger. Moreover, it was argued that a battle need not be stopped from religious considerations, e.g. the Sabbath. This was justified by Deut. xx. 20“ until it fall" (Talm. Shabb. 19a). Also, the Passover Lamb could be sacrificed on the Sabbath, and justification for this was found in Num. ix. 2“ in its season" (Pesah. 66a). See further on this subject, and on the evasions of the Sabbath law, S. Shechter, Studies in Judaism, pp. 297 sqq.; ibid. in C. G. Montefiore, Hibbert Lectures (for 1892), Appendix; ibid. Hastings' Dict. Bib. v. 63, and also S. R. Driver, Hastings' Dict. iv. 320 seq. With the above interpretations, cf. A. H. McNeile on Matt. xii. 5, John vii. 23: the à priori element in them perhaps suggests that [these verses] were due to later reflexion on the part of Christians who had realized the inadequacy of the law" (Swete's Camb. Bibl. Essays, 1909, p. 226). For other examples illustrating Rabbinical methods of exegesis in the New Testament, see McNeile, pp. 221, sqq. ("Our Lord's use of the Old Testament "); Briggs, op. cit. pp. 436, 66 1 Cited by S. Schechter, Hastings, Dict. Bible, v. 64. Among the more important Midrashim are: i.—Měkilta (Aram. measure," i.e." rule") best known as the name of a now imperfect halakic Midrash on Exod. xii.-xxiii. 19 (also xxxi. 12-17 and xxxv. 1-3). It represents the school of R. (Rabbi) Ishmael, is a useful Exodus), and is interesting for its variant readings of the Canonical source for old Haggadah (especially on the narrative portions of Massoretic text. Edited by Blasius Ugolinus, Thes. Antiq. Sacr. xiv. (Venice, 1744, with a poor Latin translation), more recently by J. H. Weiss (Vienna, 1865) and M. Friedmann (ibid. 1870), Germ. J. Z. Lauterbach, Jew. Ency. viii. 444 seq. trans. by J. Winter and A. Wünsche Leipzig, 1909). See further ii. Siphra (Aram. "the book ") or Tōrath Kōhănim ("the law of the priests"), a commentary on Leviticus, mainly halakic, the text being a source for various maxims. (On Lev. xix. 17 seq., neighbourly love and abstinence from vengeance constitute, according to R. Aqiba, the great principle of the Torah.) It is useful for the interpretation of the Mishnah treatises Qŏdāshim and Těhärōth. Latin trans. in Ugolinus, vol. xiv.; recent editions by I. H. Weiss (Vienna, 1862), and with the commentary of Shimshon (Samson) of Siens (Warsaw, 1866); see Jew. Ency. xi. 330 sqq. iii. Siphrē (Aram. "the books"), an old composite collection of Halaka on Numbers, after R. Ishmael's school; and on Deut. after that of R. Aqiqa, although the haggadic portions belong to the former. Latin in Ugol. xv.; recent edition, with good introduction by Friedmann (Vienna, 1864); see Jew. Ency. xi. 332 seq. The above works, although of 5th century or later date in their present form, contain much older material, which was perhaps first redacted in the earlier part of the 2nd century, A.D. They are of 2 See, on this point, Jew. Ency. viii. 549 seq., 552, 576; Schechter, op. cit. p. 62; Strack, op. cit. pp. 10 sqq. 3 See more fully Jew. Ency. viii. 553. Cf. for the structure, the hopeful concluding notes in the prophecies (e.g. Amos) and the discourse after the reading of the lesson from the prophets in Luke iv. 17 sqq., Acts xiii. 15 sqq. 4 See I. Abrahams in Swete's Cambridge Bibl. Essays (1909), pp. 174 seq. Palestinian origin, although the main redaction was made in Babylonia.1 iv. Tanḥūmā, one of the oldest on the lessons of the Pentateuch, with many proems ascribed to R. Tanḥūma ben ("son of ") Abbā, one of the most famous haggadists of Palestine (4th century), who systematized and fixed the haggadic literature. This collection of 158-161 homilies is also known as T. Yelammedēnu, from the opening words, Yel. Rabbēnā, our Rabbi teaches us "; on the critical questions connected with the titles and the present redaction (probably 5th century), see Jew. Ency. viii. 560 seq., xii. 44 sqq. Recent edition by Buber (Wilna, 1885). v. Midrash Rabbah (or Rabboth), a large collection of very diverse origin and date, probably not completed before the 13th century. It covers the Pentateuch (1st ed., Constantinople, 1512) and the "Five Rolls" (Pesaro, 1519; the whole printed first at Venice, 1545); Germ. trans. by A. Wünsche, Bibliotheca rabbinica (Leipzig, 1880-1885). The several portions are named after the ordinary Jewish titles of the Old Testament books with the addition of Rabbah great." These are (a) Bereshith (“in the beginning,' Gen. i. 1) Rabbah, on Genesis, the oldest and most valuable of haggadic Midrashim. Traditionally ascribed to R. Hōshaiah (3rd. century), but in the main a redaction of 6th century. Ed. J. Theodor; see Jew. Ency. iii. 62 seq.; viii. 557 seq. (b) Shemōth (" names Exod. i. 1) R., a composite and incomplete work of 11th and 12th century date, but valuable nevertheless for its Tanḥūmā homilies. Exod. i.-xi. is a commentary on the text in continuation of (a). See Jew. Ency. viii. 562 (c.) Wayyigra (" and he called ") R., on Leviticus, perhaps 7th century, based upon sources in 2 and 5a above. It is characterized by its numerous proverbs (e.g. on xix. 6: “do not care for the good pup of a bad dog, much less for the bad pup of a bad dog "). See Jew. Ency. viii. 560, xii. 478 seq. (d) Bemidbar (" in the desert of. ") R., 33 homilies on Numbers, mainly derived from 4 above (though in an earlier text), with a later haggadic exposition, perhaps of 12th century, on Num. i.-vii. See Jew. Ency. ii. 669 sqq., viii. 562. (e) Děbārīm ("words") R., independent homilies on Deuteronomy, of about A.D. 900, but with a good collection of Tanḥūmās and excerpts from the old sources. See Jew. Ency. iv. 487 seq. (f) Shir ("song ") R., or (after the opening words) Aggadath Hazith, a late compilation of haggadah on Canticles, illustrating the allegorical interpretation of the book in reference to the relation between God and Israel (so already in the exegesis of R. Aqiba, cf. also 2 Esd. v. 24, 26, vii. 26). For this and other Mid. on this popular book, see Jew. Ency. viii. 564 seq., xi, 291 seq. (g) Mid. Ruth or Ruth Rabbah, a compilation including an exposition of 1 Chron. iv. 21-23, xi. 13-15 and interesting Messianic references. For this and similar Mid. or Ruth, see Jew. Ency. viii. 565, x. 577 seq. (h) Ékāh ("how") Rabbathi, a compilation of about the 7th century on Lamentations, from sources cited also in the Palestinian Talmud. Thirty-six proems precede the commentary. See Jew. Ency. v. 85 seq. (i) Mid. Koheleth or Koh. Rabbah, on Ecclesiastes; see Jew. Ency. vii. 529 sqq.; viii. 565. (j) Mid. Megillath Esther, dating, to judge from its indebtedness to Josippon (the pseudo-Josephus), after 10th century. On this and other similar works dealing with this everpopular book, see Jew. Ency. v. 241, viii. 566, and Paton's Comment. on Esther, p. 104. vi. Pesiąta ("section") or P. de-Rab Kahana, contains 33 or 34 homilies (on the principal festivals), the first of which opens with a sentence of R. Abba bar Kahana, who was confused with a predecessor, Rab Kahana. Although it goes back to early Haggada it has received later additions (as is shown by the technique of the proems). Edited by S. Buber (Lyck, 1868), Germ. trans. by A. Wünsche (Leipzig, 1885); see Jew. Ency. viii. 559 seq. Not to be confused with this is: vii. Pesigṭā Rabbāthi.-A very similar but larger collection of 51 homilies, of which 28 have a halakic exordium prefixed to the Tanḥūmā-proems, perhaps of 9th century. Edited by M. Friedmann (Vienna, 1880). Quite another and later work is the Pes. Zutarta or Legaḥ Tob of Tobiah b. Eliezer of Mainz (trans. Ugolinus, vol. xv. seq.; ed. Buber, 1880); see Jew. Ency. viii. 561 sqq. viii. In addition to the more prominent Midrashim mentioned above there are numerous self-contained works of greater or less interest. Some are connected with Old Testament books; e.g. Aggadath Bereshith, 83 homilies on Genesis, each in three parts connected with a section from the lectionary of the Pentateuch, and one from the Prophets, and a Psalm (ed. Buber, Cracow, 1903; see Jew. Ency. viii. 563); the Mid. Tehillim on the Psalms (Germ. trans. A. Wünsche, Trier, 1892-1893), &c. Others are historical, e.g. Pirqe or Baraitha de-Rabbi Eliezer, a fanciful narrative of events They contain (as I. Abrahams has pointed out to the present writer) a good deal of haggada, but far more halakic material than those which follow. The latter (nos. 4 sqq.) also contain halaka, but the chief contents are haggadic and homiletical. 2I. Abrahams points out to the writer that the rest is more summary. This difference is accounted for by the fact that Exod. xii. onwards and the rest of the Pentateuch have independent Midrashim: the Law proper was held by the Rabbis to begin at | selected from the Pentateuch, &c.; the eschatology is interesting. Besides dictionary articles on this subject (S. Schiller-Szinessy, or 66 66 at the age of seventeen were supposed to be qualified to be masters' mates. To-day the midshipman is the officer of the British and American navies who has passed through the preliminary schools and has been appointed to a ship. The French equivalent is aspirant, and other European navies use that name, or cadet. MIDSOMER NORTON, an urban district in the northern parliamentary division of Somersetshire, England, 12 m. S.S.W. of Bath. on the Somerset & Dorset and the Great Western railways. Pop. (1901), 5809. The town is pleasantly situated in a hilly district, between two branches of the small river Somer. The church of St John the Baptist, principally Perpendicular, has in its tower three bells presented by Charles II. Both this town and the adjacent urban district of RADSTOCK (pop. 3355) have a considerable trade in coal, which is mined in the vicinity. The coalfield extends northwestward towards Bristol, and is of great importance to the manufactures of that city. MIDWIFE (Mid. Eng. midwif, mydwyf or medewife, from preposition mid, with, and wife, i.e. woman, in the sense of one who is with the mother, or from adjective mid, one who is the means of delivering the mother, a woman who assists other women in childbirth). As a class, midwives were recognized in Egypt in the time of the Jewish captivity. It was the universal practice in Europe until the middle of the 16th century, as it is to-day in the East, that women should be attended in confinement only by those of their own sex. From that period more attention was given to the practice of midwifery by the medical profession (see OBSTETRICS), while in continental Europe, towards the close of the 17th century, special schools were instituted for the proper training of midwives. But it was not until well on in the 19th century that any supervision or regulation was imposed on those who acted as midwives. Now in practically every European country midwives are under strict state control, they are required to undergo a course of thorough training, and their practice is carefully regulated by legislation. In France midwives (sages femmes) are divided into a first and a second class. Those qualifying for both classes go through a two years' course of training and must qualify both in the theory and practice of midwifery, as well as in anatomy, physiology and pathology. A midwife of the first class has a superior status and can practise in any part of France, while those of the second class are restricted in their practice to the department for which the certificate was issued. Their qualifications allow them also to vaccinate and to prescribe certain antiseptic preparations. They are not allowed to use instruments and must call in a medical man in difficult cases. All cases must be reported to a central officer. In Spain midwives are allowed to practise on the result of an examination after studies covering at least four half-years. The diploma is issued by the director-general of public instruction. In Germany midwives are appointed, recognized and authorized by the state. They can conduct confinements independently and without the aid of a medical man. They must be provided with a certificate from the police authorities, and must reside in special districts assigned to them by the authorities. In Austria midwives before they are allowed to practise must pass a strict examination, after having followed a six months' course at one of the state schools of midwifery. They are subject to elaborate" instructions for midwives" issued from time to time by the ministry of the interior. In Italy a midwife must pass an examination and obtain a diploma from a recognized authority; but in order to obviate the difficulty which the poorer classes in the smaller communes would find in obtaining properly-authorized midwives, a certificate of permission to practise may be given to a certain number who have practised without the sanction of the law satisfactorily during a term of five years. These certificates are distributed by the prefect. In Russia matters pertaining to the appointment, transfer, dismissal and pay of midwives are under the charge of the medical department of the ministry of the interior. In each town of a province or region there is stationed one senior midwife and a number of junior midwives in proportion to the number of districts in the province. The examination of midwives and the issue of certificates of competency is carried out by the Medico-Chirurgical Academy and certain of the universities. A duly-licensed midwife, on presentation of her licence, is at once excluded from the tax-paying class to which she may have belonged. The general code of Russian laws lays down extensive rules for the carrying out of the duties of midwives. In Norway all midwives are licensed after examination and are under the control and inspection of the board of health. Provision is made for infirm and aged midwives. They are usually paid by the parish, but also receive fees according to the means of the person attended. In Sweden a certificate of competency and of having passed an examination does not give a midwife a right to practise until a note has been made on the certificate that the oath of office has been duly taken. All midwives are under the control of the board of health. When a midwife takes up her residence in a parish, or moves from one place to another, she must announce the fact within a month to the nearest appointed doctor and exhibit her certificate. In towns a midwife must put up a notice board outside her residence; she must not absent herself from home without leaving word as to where she may be found and at what hour she will probably return. In the country a midwife may be paid out of the poor rate. In Denmark, also, midwives are recognized by the state, and the practise of midwifery is almost entirely in the hands of women. In Holland a certain number of candidates are given free training by the state in return for their practising midwifery in scattered country districts at a fixed salary. Many of the states of the United States have also passed laws for the registration of midwives. In England alone there was no regulation of any kind so late as 1902. Any person, however ignorant and untrained, could describe herself as a midwife and practise for gain. Several societies made continuous efforts towards the close of the 19th century to obtain legislation. A select committee on midwives' registration reported in 1892 that the evidence they had taken showed that there was at the time "serious and unnecessary loss of life and health and permanent injury to both mother and child in the treatment of childbirth, and that some legislative provision for improvement and regulation was desirable." A similar committee reported to the same effect in 1893. Eventually a bill was drafted with the object of securing the examination and registration of midwives, but, although introduced several times into the House of Commons, it was not successful until 1902. The Midwives Act 1902 forbids any woman after the 1st of April 1905 to call herself midwife without a certificate, or to act as a midwife for gain without a certificate after the 1st of April 1910. Existing midwives (those who held certificates in midwifery from certain recognized institutions, or produced satisfactory evidence at the passing of the act that they had been for at least one year in bona fide practice as midwives, and bore good characters) were allowed to claim certificates within two years from the 1st of April 1903. The act created a central midwives' board, whose duties are, inter alia, to regulate the issue of certificates and the conditions of admission to the roll of midwives; to regulate the course of training and conduct of examinations; to regulate, supervise and restrict within due limits the practice of midwives; to publish annually a roll of duly certified midwives; to remove from the roll the name of any midwife who disobeys the rules and regulations laid down from time to time; to Court of Justice against removal of a name, but the appeal must issue and cancel certificates, &c. There is an appeal to the High be made within three months. Local authorities are required to exercise supervision over the midwives within their area; they must investigate charges of malpractice, negligence or misconduct; exercise the power of suspension and report convictions. They must supply the central board with the names and addresses of those practising within their area, and notify any death. The local authority must appoint a committee to carry out its powers or duties under the act, and may, if it think fit, delegate its powers to a lesser local authority, such as a district council. The act provides for penalties for obtaining a certificate by false representation or for wilful falsification of the roll. The act does not apply to Ireland or Scotland. (T. A. I.) MIERES, a town of northern Spain, in the province of Oviedo, of the Nalon. Pop. (1900), 18,083. Mieres is the chief town 12 m. by rail S.E. of Oviedo, on the river Caudal, a tributary of a mountainous, fertile and well-wooded region in which coal, iron, and copper are extensively mined and sulphur and cinnabar are obtained in smaller quantities. The town contains large iron foundries and chemical works, and has an active trade in fruit, cider, timber and live stock. MIEREVELT (MIEREVELD, or MIREVELDT), MICHIEL JANSZ VAN (1567-1641), Dutch painter, was born at Delft, the son of a goldsmith, who apprenticed him to the copperplate engraver J. Wierix. He subsequently became a pupil of Willem Willemz and Augusteyn of Delft, until Anthonie van Montfoort (Blocklandt), who had seen and admired two of Mierevelt's early engravings, "Christ and the Samaritan and "Judith and Holofernes," invited him to enter his school at Utrecht. Devoting himself first to still life, he eventually took up portraiture, in which he achieved such success that the many commissions entrusted to him necessitated the employment of numerous assistants, by whom hundreds of portraits were turned out in factory fashion. The works that can with certainty be ascribed to his own brush are remarkable for their sincerity, severe drawing and harmonious colour, but comparatively few of the two thousand or more portraits that bear his prime at the age of fifteen. Another beautiful example, the "Doctor Feeling a Lady's Pulse" in the gallery of Vienna, is dated 1656; and Waagen, in one of his critical essays, justly observes that it is a remarkable production for a youth of twenty-one. In 1657 Mieris was married at Leiden in the presence of Jan Potheuck, a painter, and this is the earliest written record of his existence on which we can implicitly rely. Of the numerous panels by Mieris, twenty-nine at least are dated-the latest being an allegory, long in the Ruhl collection at Cologne, illustrating what he considered the kindred vices of drinking, smoking and dicing, in the year 1680. his name are wholly his own handiwork. He settled down | for composition and finish, it would prove that Mieris had reached in his native town, but went frequently to The Hague, where he entered the gild of St Luke in 1625. So great was his reputation that he was patronized by royalty in many countries and acquired great wealth. The king of Sweden and the count palatine of Neuburg presented him with golden chains, Archduke Albrecht gave him a pension, and Charles I. vainly endeavoured to induce him to visit the English court. Though Mierevelt is chiefly known as a portrait painter, he also executed some mythological pieces of minor importance. Many of his portraits have been reproduced in line by the leading Dutch engravers of his time. He died at Delft on the 27th of June 1641. The Ryks Museum in Amsterdam has the richest collection of Mierevelt's works, chief of them being the portraits of William, Philip William, Maurice, and Frederick Henry of Orange, and of the count palatine Frederick V. At The Hague Museum are the portraits of four princes of the house of Orange, of Frederick V., king of Bohemia, and of Louise de Coligny as a widow. Other portraits by him are at nearly all the leading continental galleries, notably at Brunswick (3), Gotha (2), Schwerin (3), Munich (2), Paris (Louvre, 3), Dresden (4), Berlin (2), and Darmstadt (3). The town hall of Delft also has numerous examples of his work. Many of his pupils and assistants rose to fame. The most gifted of them were Paulus Moreelse and Jan van Ravesteyn. His sons Pieter (1596–1623) and Jan (d. 1633), and his son-in-law Willem Jacobz Delff, probably painted many of the pictures which go under his name. His portrait was painted by Van Dyck and engraved by Delff. MIERIS, the name of a family of artists who practised painting at Leiden for three generations in the 17th and 18th centuries. 1. FRANS VAN MIERIS, the elder (? 1635-1681), son of Jan van Mieris, a goldsmith and diamond setter, was born, according to Houbraken, at Leiden on the 16th of April 1635, and died there on the 12th of March 1681. His father wished to train him to his own business, but Frans preferred drawing to chasing, and took service with Abraham Torenvliet, a glazier who kept a school of design. In his father's shop he became familiar with the ways and dress of people of distinction. His eye was fascinated in turn by the sheen of jewelry and stained glass; and, though he soon gave up the teaching of Torenvliet for that of Gerard Douw and Abraham van den Tempel, he acquired a manner which had more of the finish of the exquisites of the Dutch school than of the breadth of the disciples of Rembrandt. It should be borne in mind that he seldom chose panels of which the size exceeded 12 to 15 in., and whenever his name is attached to a picture above that size we may surely assign it to his son Willem or to some other imitator. Unlike Gerard Douw when he first left Rembrandt, or Jan Steen when he started on an independent career, Mieris never ventured to design figures as large as life. Characteristic of his art in its minute proportions is a shiny brightness and metallic polish. The subjects which he treated best are those in which he illustrated the habits or actions of the wealthier classes; but he sometimes succeeded in homely incidents and in portrait, and not unfrequently he ventured on allegory. He repeatedly painted the satin skirt which Ter Borch brought into fashion, and he often rivalled Ter Borch in the faithful rendering of rich and highly-coloured woven tissues. But he remained below Ter Borch and Metsu, because he had not their delicate perception of harmony or their charming mellowness of touch and tint, and he fell behind Gerard Douw, because he was hard and had not his feeling for effect by concentrated light and shade. In the form of his composition, which sometimes represents the framework of a window enlivened with greenery, and adorned with bas-reliefs within which figures are seen to the waist, his model is certainly Gerard Douw. It is a question whether Houbraken has truly recorded this master's birthday. One of his best-known pieces, a party of ladies and gentlemen at an oyster luncheon, in the Hermitage at St Petersburg, bears the date of 1650. Celebrated alike Mieris had numerous and distinguished patrons. He received valuable commissions from Archduke Leopold, the electorpalatine, and Cosimo III., grand-duke of Tuscany. His practice was large and lucrative, but never engendered in him either carelessness or neglect. If there be a difference between the painter's earlier and later work, it is that the former was clearer and more delicate in flesh, whilst the latter was often darker and more livid in the shadows. When he died his clients naturally went over to his son Willem, who in turn bequeathed his painting-room to his son Frans. But neither Willem nor Frans the younger equalled Frans the elder. 2. WILLEM VAN MIERIS (1662-1747), son of Frans. His works are extremely numerous, being partly imitations of the paternal subjects, or mythological episodes, which Frans habitually avoided. In no case did he come near the excellence of his sire. 3. FRANS VAN MIERIS, the younger (1689–1763), also lived on the traditions of his grandfather's studio. The pictures of all the generations of the Mieris family were successfully imitated by A. D. Snaphaan, who lived at Leipzig and was patronized by the court of Anhalt-Dessau. To those who would study his deceptive form of art a visit to the collection of Wörlitz near Dessau may afford instruction. MIFFLIN, THOMAS (1744-1800), American soldier and politician, was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on the 10th of January 1744, of Quaker parentage. He graduated at the college of Philadelphia (now the university of Pennsylvania) in 1760. As a member of the Pennsylvania house of representatives in 1772-1775, he was an ardent Whig, and in 1774 was a member of the first Continental Congress. After the outbreak of the War of Independence he devoted himself chiefly to the enlisting and drilling of troops, and was chosen major of a regiment. In June 1775 he entered the continental service as Washington's first aide-de-camp, and in August was chosen quartermaster-general. He became He became a brigadier-general in May 1776 and a major-general in February 1777. On the 5th of June 1776 he was succeeded as quartermaster-general by Stephen Moylan. Moylan, however, proved incompetent, and Mifflin resumed the office on the 1st of October. In the autumn of 1777 Mifflin was a leader in the obscure movement known as the Conway Cabal, the object of which was to replace Washington by General Horatio Gates. On the ground of ill health Mifflin tendered his resignation on the 8th of October, and on the 7th of November Congress accepted his resignation as quartermastergeneral, but continued him in rank as major-general without pay. On the same day he was appointed a member of the new board of war, and on the following day was asked to continue as quartermaster-general until his successor should be appointed. On the 21st of November he urged before the old board of war and ordnance that Gates should be made president of the new board of war "from a conviction that his military skill would suggest reformations in the different departments of the army essential to good discipline, order and economy, and that his character and popularity in the army would facilitate the execution of such reformations when adopted by Congress." The attacks on Washington failed, and in March 1778 Mifflin was finally superseded as quartermaster-general by General Nathanael Greene. In October of the same year he was removed from the board of war. The sufferings of the troops at Valley Forge having been charged to his mismanagement as quarter XVIII. 14a which was superintended by the learned Benedictine J. B. Pitra. Its vast scope leaves it still unique and valuable, where other editions of special works do not exist. The indices in 3 vols. are arranged so that one may easily find any reference in the patristic writings. In February 1868 a great fire destroyed the whole of Migne's printing premises, but he established a new house in Paris, which was purchased in 1876 by the publishers Garnier Frères, who still own all the works brought out by Migne. He died in Paris on the 25th of October 1875For a more complete account of Migne's life, see the article in the Catholic Encyclopedia (New York, 1906 seq.). master-general, Congress, in June 1778, ordered an investigation; | criticism. By far the most noteworthy is the Patrology, but before this inquiry had proceeded far, Congress granted him $1,000,000 to settle all claims against the office during his administration. In February 1779 he resigned his commission as major-general. During the war his eloquence was repeatedly of assistance to Congress in recruiting soldiers. He was a delegate in Congress in 1782-1784, and from November 1783 to November 1784 was president, in which office he received Washington's resignation of the command of the army and made a congratulatory address. In 1785-1788 he was speaker of the Pennsylvania general assembly (then consisting of only one house); he was a member of the Federal Constitutional Convention of 1787, and president of the state supreme executive council (or chief executive officer of the state) in 1788-1790. He was president of the Pennsylvania Constitutional Convention of 1789-1790; was the first governor of the state, from 1790 to 1799, after the adoption of the new state constitution; and during the Whisky Insurrection assumed personal command of the Pennsylvania militia. Towards the close of his last term as governor he was elected a member of the state assembly, but died during the first session, at Lancaster, on the 20th of January 1800. See William Rawle, Sketch of the Life of Thomas Mifflin,' in Memoirs of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania (vol. 2, part 2, Philadelphia, 1830); and J. H. Merrill, Memoranda relating to the Mifflin Family (Philadelphia, 1890). MIGNARD, PIERRE (1610-1695), called-to distinguish him from his brother Nicholas Le Romain, French painter, was born at Troyes in 1610, and came of a family of artists. In 1630 he left the studio of Simon Vouet for Italy, where he spent twenty-two years, and made a reputation which brought him a summons to Paris. Successful with his portrait of the king, and in favour with the court, Mignard pitted himself against Le Brun, declined to enter the Academy of which he was the head, and made himself the centre of opposition to its authority. The history of this struggle is most important, because it was identical, as long as it lasted, with that between the old gilds of France and the new body which Colbert, for political reasons, was determined to support. Shut out, in spite of the deserved success of his decorations of the cupola of Val de Grace (1664), from any great share in those public works the control of which was the attribute of the new Academy, Mignard was chiefly active in portraiture. Turenne, Molière, Bossuet, Maintenon (Louvre), La Vallière, Sévigné, Montespan, Descartes (Castle Howard), all the beauties and celebrities of his day, sat to him. His readiness and skill, his happy instinct for grace of arrangement, atoned for want of originality and real power. With the death of Le Brun (1690) the situation changed; Mignard deserted his allies, and succeeded to all the posts held by his opponent. These late honours he did not long enjoy; in 1695 he died whilst about to commence work on the cupola of the Invalides. His best compositions have been engraved by Audran, Edelinck, Masson, Poilly and others. MIGNET, FRANÇOIS AUGUSTE ALEXIS (1796-1884), French historian, was born at Aix in Provence on the 8th of May, 1796, and died at Paris on the 24th of March 1884. His father, a Vendean by birth, was an ordinary locksmith, who enthusiastically accepted the principles of the French Revolution and roused in his son the same love for liberal ideas. François had brilliant successes when studying at Avignon in the lycée where he was afterwards professor (1815); he returned to Aix to study law, and in 1818 was called to the bar, where his eloquence would have ensured his success had he not preferred the career of an historian. His abilities were shown in an Éloge de Charles VII., which was crowned by the Académie de Nîmes in 1820, and a memoir on Les Institutions de Saint Louis, which in 1821 was crowned by the Académie des Inscriptions et Belles Lettres. He then went to Paris, where he was soon joined by his friend and compatriot, Adolphe Thiers, the future president of the French republic. He was introduced by J. A. Manuel, formerly a member of the Convention, to the Liberal paper, Courrier français, where he became a member of the staff which carried on a fierce pen-and-ink warfare against the Restoration. He acquired his knowledge of the men and intrigues of the Napoleonic epoch from Talleyrand. He wrote a Histoire de la révolution française (1824) in support of the Liberal cause. It was an enlarged sketch, prepared in four months, in which more stress was laid on fundamental theories than on the facts, which are more rigidly linked together than their historical sequence warrants. In 1830 he founded the National with Thiers and Armand Carrel, and signed the journalists' protest against the Ordonnances de juillet, but he refused to accept his share of the spoil after his party had won. He was satisfied with the modest position of director of the archives at the Foreign Office, where he stayed till the revolution of 1848, when he was dismissed, and retired permanently into private life. He had been elected a member of the Académie des Sciences Morales et Politiques, re-established in 1832, and in 1837 was made the permanent secretary; he was also elected a member of the Académie Française in 1836, and sought no further honours. He was well known in fashionable circles, where his witty conversation and his pleasant manners made him a favourite. The greater part of his time was, however, given to study and to his academic duties. Eulogies on his deceased fellow-members, the Academy reports on its work and on the prizes awarded by it, which it was part of Mignet's duty as secretary to draw up, were literary fragments thoroughly appreciated by connoisseurs. They were collected in Mignet's Notices et portraits. He worked slowly when in his study, and MIGNE, JACQUES PAUL (1800-1875), French priest and publisher, was born at St Flour, Cantal, on the 25th of October 1800. He studied theology at Orleans, was ordained priest in 1824 and placed in charge of the parish of Puiseaux, in the diocese of Orleans. In 1833 he went to Paris, and started L'Univers | religieux, which afterwards became Louis Veuillot's ultra-willingly lingered over research. With the exception of his montane organ. On severing his connexion with the paper three years later, he opened at Petit Montrouge, near Paris, the great publishing house which brought out in rapid succession numerous religious works at popular prices. The best known of these are: Scripturae sacrae cursus completus, and Theologiae cursus (each in 28 vols., 1840-1845); Collection des auteurs sacrés (100 vols., 1846-1848); Encyclopédie théologique (171 vols., 1844-1866); Patrologiae cursus completus, Latin series in 221 vols. (1844-1855; 2nd edition, 1878 seq.); Greek series, first published in Latin (85 vols., 1856-1861); with Greek text and Latin translation (165 vols., 1857-1866). Unfortunately these editions, brought out in great haste and often edited by superficial scholars, do not come up to the requirements of modern description of the French Revolution, which was chiefly a political manifesto, all his early works refer to the middle ages-De La féodalité, des institutions de Saint Louis et de l'influence de la législation de ce prince (1822); La Germanie au viii et au ix siècle, sa conversion au christianisme, et son introduction dans la société civilisée de l'Europe occidentale (1834); Essai sur la formation territoriale et politique de la France depuis la fin du xie siècle jusqu'à la fin du xve (1836); all of these are rough sketches showing only the outlines of the subject. His most noted works are devoted to modern history. For long time he had been taken up with a history of the Reformation, but only one part of it, dealing with the Reformation at Geneva. has been published. His Histoire de Marie Stuart (2 vols., 1851) |