Isaac Watts (1674-1748) 25 November

Isaac Watts' life story is simply told. Born into a nonconformist family in Southampton, he went in 1690 to the dissenting academy in Stoke Newington for four years; spent two years at home writing and studying; and was for five years tutor to Sir John Hartropp. In 1698 he became assistant pastor of the Independent Chapel in Mark Lane, and soon after succeeded as pastor. But intensive study damaged his health, and after 1712 he lived with Sir Thomas and Lady Abney at Theobalds, Herts, and in Stoke Newington. Though seldom fit to take services, he remained co-pastor of Mark Lane until his death. He was buried in Bunhill Fields.

In his lifetime, Watts became a famous and popular writer - his Logic was long a standard textbook - but it is his hymns which have survived. Hymn-singing was a neglected and controversial activity in his time, and he provided the first body of decent hymn lyrics after Tate & Brady's metrical psalms. Of his 600-odd hymns, at least 43 are still in use in various hymn books, and there are thirteen in the New English Hymnal. Most, like 'Jesus shall reign, where'er the sun' are too well known to need listing. Watts also pioneered poems for children, and some of them held their popularity long enough to be cruelly parodied by Lewis Carroll as 'How doth the little crocodile' and 'Tis the voice of the lobster.' And not many of us today would identify Watts as the author of such popular sayings as 'Birds in their little nests agree'; 'Satan finds some mischief ... for idle hands'; and 'Let dogs delight to bark and bite.'

Charles Plouviez