nd." Her poems, which
were not collected until 1842, depict Cumbrian life and manners with
truth and vivacity. She also wrote some fine songs in the Scottish
dialect, including "Ye shall walk in Silk Attire," and "What ails this
Heart o' Mine."

BLESSINGTON, MARGARET (POWER), COUNTESS of (1789-1849).--Married as her
second husband the 1st Earl of B., with whom she travelled much on the
Continent, where she met Lord Byron, her _Conversations_ with whom she
_pub._ in 1834. This is the only one of her books which has any value.
The others were slight works on Travel, such as _The Idler in Italy_,
annuals, and novels. She became bankrupt and went to Paris, where she
lived under the protection of the Count d'Orsay.

BLIND HARRY or HENRY THE MINSTREL (_fl._ 1470-1492).--Is spoken of by
John Major in his _History of Scotland_ as a wandering minstrel, skilled
in the composition of rhymes in the Scottish tongue, who "fabricated" a
book about William Wallace, and gained his living by reciting it to his
own accompaniment on the harp at the houses of the nobles. Harry claims
that it was founded on a Latin _Life of Wallace_ written by Wallace's
chaplain, John Blair, but the chief sources seem to have been
traditionary. Harry is often considered inferior to Barbour as a poet,
and has little of his moral elevation, but he surpasses him in graphic
power, vividness of description, and variety of incident. He occasionally
shows the influence of Chaucer, and is said to have known Latin and
French.

BLIND, MATHILDE (1841-1896).--Poetess, _b._ at Mannheim, but settled in
London about 1849, and _pub._ several books of poetry, _The Prophecy of
St. Oran_ (1881), _The Heather on Fire_ (1886), _Songs and Sonnets_
(1893), _Birds of Passage_ (1895), etc. She also translated Strauss's
_Old Faith and New_, and other works, and wrote Lives of George Eliot and
Madame Roland. Her own name was Cohen, but she adopted that of her
stepfather, Karl Blind.

BLOOMFIELD, ROBERT (1766-1823).--Poet, _b._ at Honington in Suffolk, lost
his _f._ when he was a year old, and received the rudiments of education
from his mother, who kept the village school. While still a boy he went
to London, and worked as a shoemaker under an elder brother, enduring
extreme poverty. His first and chief poem, _The Farmer's Boy_, was
composed in a room where half a dozen other men were at work, and the
finished lines he carried in his head until there was time to write them