COCKBURNE (Mrs Catharine), a most accom-
plished lady and celebrated writer, was the daughter
of captain David Trotter, a native of Scotland, and a
sea-commander in the reign of king Charles II. She
was born in London, Aug. 16. 1679, and baptized in
the Protestant church, according to which she was bred
up in her infancy a Protestant; but being a sprightly,
ingenious, and beautiful child, she was particularly
caressed by some considerable families among the Pa-
pists. This favour naturally wrought a good opinion
of such friends; and entering into an intimacy with
them as she grew up, she became an easy conquest to
their faith, in which she continued many years. In Cock-
burne the mean time her genius ripened apace, and shot forth
proofs of her talents for poetry, even before she had
passed her childhood. In her 17th year she produced
a tragedy called Agnes de Castro, which was acted in
1695. This performance, and some verses addressed
to Mr Congreve upon his Mourning Bride in 1697,
brought her into the acquaintance of that gentleman.
Thus encouraged in her first attempt, her Muse brought
upon the stage three plays more, before the death of
Mr Dryden in 1701, to whose memory she joined with
several other ladies in paying a tribute of verse. How-
ever, poetry and dramatic writing was not the most
distinguished of Miss Trotter's talents; she had a re-
markable philosophic turn, and capacity equal to such
researches. Mr Locke's Essay on Human Understanding
came out during this interval: that famous philo-
sopher had dressed out logic and metaphysics in such a
new mode as was very agreeable to the taste of the sex
in general, and particularly engaged the attention and
admiration of our young authoress. She had begun
to project a defence of the essay against some remarks
of Dr Burnet of the Charter-house, which was finished
so early as the beginning of December 1701. She
had but lately passed the 22d year of her age; and
the masterly way in which the piece was drawn must
needs have given singular pleasure to her great cham-
pion, who accordingly expressed his satisfaction by a
present of books to his fair defendress. Philosophy
sojourns in the neighbourhood of religion; these phi-
losophic reveries would naturally lead a thoughtful
mind to that subject; and taking into her consideration
the tenets of her present faith, she began to discover
their indefensible grounds: she therefore resolved to
renounce it, and published a vindication of her change
in 1707; and returning to the established church of
Scotland, she changed her condition likewise the next
year, 1708, and was married to Mr Cockburne, a
learned divine of that church. The duties of a wife
and mother called Mrs Cockburne from her books and
pen many years; and domestic cares engaging her at-
tention, we hear nothing of her as a writer till 1726,
when her zeal for Mr Locke's opinions drew her again
into public light. She exercised her pen afterwards as
occasion offered; and in 1739 she entered into the
controversy concerning the foundation of moral duty
and obligation. In that controversy she wrote two
treatises, the first of which she transmitted in manu-
script to Mr afterwards Dr Warburton, the late bishop
of Gloucester, who published it, with a preface of his
own, in 1747. Mrs Cockburne survived this publica-
tion two years only. She died in 1749, and was in-
terred at Long Horley, near her husband, who died
the year before her, with this short sentence upon the
tomb, "Let their works praise them in the gates,"
Prov. xxx. 31. Her works were collected and pub-
lished in 1751, in two volumes 8vo, with an account
of her life prefixed.—This collection is an incontestable
proof of the author's genius. But her abilities as a
writer will not be seen without attending to the pecu-
liar circumstances in which her writings were produced:
her early youth, for instance, when she wrote some;
her very advanced age, and ill state of health, when she
drew up others; the uneasy situation of her fortune
during
during the whole course of her life; and an interval of near 20 years, in the vigour of it, spent in the cares of a family, without the least leisure for reading or contemplation; after which, with a mind so long diverted and encumbered, resuming her studies, she instantly recovered its entire powers; and, in the hours of relaxation from domestic employments, pursued to the utmost limits some of the deepest researches the human understanding is capable of. Her character is that of a most uncommon lady, no less celebrated for her beauty in her younger years, than for her genius and accomplishments. She was small of stature, but had a remarkable liveliness in her eyes, and a delicacy of complexion which continued to her death.