ed of fourteen Fellows, including the
President, Dr. Stearne. Stearne was a grand-nephew of Archbishop Usher,
and was born in his house at Ardbraccan, county Meath. He was a man of
profound learning; and although he appears to have been more devoted to
scholastic studies than to physic, the medical profession in Ireland may
well claim him as an ornament and a benefactor to their faculty. The
College of Physicians was without a President from 1657 until 1690, when
Sir Patrick Dun was elected. The cause of this was the unfortunate
illiberality of the Provost and Fellows of Trinity College, who refused
to confirm the election of Dr. Crosby, simply because he was a Roman
Catholic. In 1692 the College received a new charter and more extended
privileges; and these, with certain Acts of Parliament, form its present
constitution.

In medieval cities the castle was the centre round which the town
extended itself. Dublin was no exception to this rule, and in this
century we find High-street and Castle-street the fashionable resorts.
The nobility came thither for society, the tradesmen for protection.
Castle-street appears to have been the favourite haunt of the
bookselling fraternity, and Eliphud Dobson (his name speaks for his
religious views) was the most wealthy bookseller and publisher of his
day. His house was called the Stationers' Arms, which flourished in the
reign of James II. The Commonwealth was arbitrary in its requirements,
and commanded that the printer (there was then only one) should submit
any works he printed to the Clerk of the Council, to receive his
_imprimatur_ before publishing the same. The Williamites were equally
tyrannical, for Malone was dismissed by them from the office of State
Printer, and tried in the Queen's Bench, with John Dowling, in 1707, for
publishing "A Manuall of Devout Prayers," for the use of Roman
Catholics.[532]

There were also a great number of taverns and coffee-houses in this
street; the most noted was the Rose Tavern, which stood nearly opposite
to the present Castle steps. Swift alludes to this in the verses which
he wrote on his own death, in 1731:--

"Suppose me dead; and then suppose
A club assembled at the _Rose."_

Political clubs, lawyers' clubs, and benevolent clubs, all assembled
here; and the Friendly Brothers of St. Patrick had their annual dinner
at the _Rose_, at the primitive hour of four o'clock, annually, on the
17th of March, having first transacted b