be easily recognised, and saw with wonder, that his fine imagination had never been able to seduce him from the truth. Whately's work went through several editions. Translations in German and French appeared as early as 1771. Remarks on Some of the Characters in Shakespeare Whately's Remarks on Some of the Characters in Shakespeare was left unfinished at his death and published posthumously by his brother, the Rev. Joseph Whately, in 1785. Whately's analysis of several of Shakespeare's principal characters applies to them the principles of psychology and motivation of Whately's own proto-Romantic sensibilities. Hutchinson Letters affair After Whately's death, correspondence directed to him from Thomas Hutchinson, governor of Massachusetts, Lieutenant-Governor Oliver and other British colonial agents was leaked to Benjamin Franklin. They were later published in Boston, causing great scandal, and eventually involving his brother William Whately in a duel. "These letters, though not official, related wholly to public affairs, and were intended to affect public measures. They were filled with representations, in regard to the state of things in the colonies, as contrary to the truth, as they were insidious in their design. The discontents and commotions were ascribed to a factious spirit among the people, stirred up by a few intriguing leaders; and it was intimated, that this spirit would be subdued, and submission to the acts of Parliament would be attained, by the presence of a military force, and by persevering in the coercive measures already begun." Other notable facts At the insistence of Hutchinson, then acting governor, the town of Whately, Massachusetts was named for him when it was set apart from Hatfield in 1771. References External links Biography of Thomas Whately in the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography Thomas Whately, The Regulations lately Made concerning the Colonies and the Taxes Imposed upon Them, Considered (London, 1765): Whately's observations on the Stamp Act: "this Mode of Taxation is the easiest, the most equal and the most certain that can be chosen; The Duty falls chiefly upon Property; but it is spread lightly over a great Variety of Subjects, and lies heavy upon none." Thomas Whately, Observations on Modern Gardening Thomas Whately, Remarks on Some of the Characters in Shakespeare (e-books text) Attribution 1726 births 1772 deaths Alumni of Clare College, Cambridge Members of the Middle Temple Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for English constituencies British MPs 1761–1768 British MPs 1768–1774 English garden writers