FARADAY, MICHAEL (1791-1867).—­Natural philosopher, s. of a blacksmith, was b. in London, and apprenticed to a book-binder.  He early showed a taste for chemistry, and attended the lectures of Sir H. Davy (q.v.), by whom he was, in 1813, appointed his chemical assistant in the Royal Institution.  He became one of the greatest of British discoverers and popularisers of science, his discoveries being chiefly in the department of electro-magnetism.  He had an unusual power of making difficult subjects clearly understood.  Among his writings are History of the Progress of Electro-Magnetism (1821), The Non-metallic Elements, The Chemical History of a Candle, and The Various Forces in Nature.  F. was a man of remarkable simplicity and benevolence of character, and deeply religious.

FARMER, RICHARD (1735-1797).—­Shakespearian scholar, b. at Leicester, and ed. at Camb., where he ultimately became Master of Emanuel Coll.  He wrote an Essay on the Learning of Shakespeare (1767), in which he maintained that Shakespeare’s knowledge of the classics was through translations, the errors of which he reproduced.  It is a production of great ability.  F. was a clergyman, and held a prebend in St. Paul’s.

FARQUHAR, GEORGE (1678-1707).—­Dramatist, b. at Londonderry, s. of a clergyman, and ed. at Trinity Coll., Dublin, on leaving which he took to the stage, but had no great success as an actor.  This, together with an accident in which he wounded a fellow-actor with a sword, led to his relinquishing it, and giving himself to writing plays instead of acting them.  Thereafter he joined the army. Love and a Bottle (1698) was his first venture, and others were The Constant Couple (1700), Sir Harry Wildair (1701), The Inconstant (1703), The Recruiting Officer (1706), and The Beau’s Stratagem (1707).  F.’s plays are full of wit and sparkle and, though often coarse, have not the malignant pruriency of some of his predecessors.  He made an unfortunate marriage, and d. in poverty.

FARRAR, FREDERIC WILLIAM (1831-1903).—­Theological writer, b. in Bombay, and ed. at London Univ. and Camb., was for some years a master at Harrow, and from 1871-76 Head Master of Marlborough School.  He became successively Canon of Westminster and Rector of St. Margaret’s, Archdeacon of Westminster and Dean of Canterbury.  He was an eloquent preacher and a voluminous author, his writings including stories of school life, such as Eric and St. Winifred’s, a Life of Christ, which had great popularity, a Life of St. Paul, and two historical romances.