Bowring, Sir John

BOWRING, SIR JOHN: English Unitarian; b. at Exeter Oct. 17, 1792; d. there Nov. 23, 1872. He served his country as member of Parliament (1835–37 and 1841–49), in the public service in China and the Far East (1849–59), and as member of various governmental commissions; he was an ardent Utilitarian and first editor of the Westminster Review (1825). He was a remarkable linguist and an enthusiastic student of literature. His writings relate to public affairs, give the results of his travels, and include numerous translations, particularly of the popular poetry of Eastern Europe; he edited the works of Jeremy Bentham with biography (11 vols., London, 1838–43). He is mentioned here for his hymns, many of which are in general use, as "God is love, his mercy brightens," "From the recesses of a lowly spirit," "In the cross of Christ I glory," "Watchman, tell us of the night," "We can not always trace the way," and others.

Bibliography: Autobiographical Recollections, with Memoir by [his son] Lewin Bowring, London, 1877; DNB, vi, 76–80; S. W. Duffield, English Hymns, pp. 263–263, New York, 1886; J. Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology, pp. 166–167, London, 1907.