Значение слова MATHER в Литературной энциклопедии

COTTON (1663-1728).-Divine, _s._ of Increase M., a leading American divine, was _ed._ at Harvard, became a minister, and was colleague to his _f._ He was laborious, able, and learned, but extremely bigoted and self-sufficient. He carried on a persecution of so-called "witches," which led to the shedding of much innocent blood; on the other hand he was so much of a reformer as to advocate inoculation for small-pox. He was a copious author, his chief work being _Magnalia Christi Americana_ (1702), an ecclesiastical history of New England. Others were _Late Memorable Providences relating to Witchcraft and Possession_ (1689), and _The Wonders of the Invisible World_ (1693). In his later years he admitted that "he had gone too far" in his crusade against witches.