Pulteney's eloquence was keen and incisive, sparkling with vivacity and with allusions drawn from the literature of his own country and of Rome. Of business he was never fond, and the loss in 1734 of his trusted friend John Merrill, who had supplied the qualities which he lacked, was feelingly lamented by him in a letter to Swift. His chief weakness was a passion for money. Lord Bath has left no trace of the possession of practical statesmanship.
BIBLIOGRAPHY.--Wm. Coxe's _Memoirs_ of Sir Robert Walpole (1816), and of Henry Pelham (1829); John Morley's _Walpole_ (1889); Walter Sichel's _Bolingbroke_ (1901-1902); A. Ballantyne's _Carteret_ (1887); _Eng. Hist. Rev._ iv. 749-753, and the general political memoirs of the time. (W. P. C.)
BATH, a city, municipal, county and parliamentary borough, and health resort of Somersetshire, England, on the Great Western, Midland, and Somerset & Dorset railways, 107½ m. W. by S. of London. Pop. (1901) 49,839. Its terraces and crescents, built mostly of grey freestone, cover the slopes and heights of the abrupt hills which rise like an amphitheatre above the winding valley of the river Avon. The climate is pleasant, and the city, standing amidst fine scenery, itself possesses a number of beautiful walks and gardens. Jointly with Wells, it is an episcopal see of the Church of England. The abbey church of St Peter and St Paul occupies the site of earlier Saxon and Norman churches, founded in connexion with a 7th-century convent, which was transferred for a time to a body of secular canons, and from about 970 until the Dissolution, to Benedictine monks. The present cruciform building dates from the 15th century, being a singularly pure and ornate example of late Perpendicular work. From the number of its windows, it has been called "The Lantern of the West," and especially noteworthy is the great west window, with seven lights, and flanking turrets on which are carved figures of the angels ascending and descending on Jacob's Ladder. Within are the tombs of James Quin, the actor, with an epitaph by Garrick; Richard Nash; Thomas Malthus the economist; William Broome the poet, and many others. Some of the monuments are the work of Bacon, Flaxman and Chantrey. Slight traces of the previous Norman building remain. There are many other churches and chapels in Bath, the oldest being that of St Thomas of Canterbury, and one of the most interesting St Swithin's, which contains the tombs of Christopher Anstey and Madame d'Arblay. Among educational institutions may be mentioned the free grammar school, founded by Edward VI., the Wesleyan College, originally established at Bristol by John Wesley, and the Roman Catholic College. The hospital of St John was founded in the 12th century. The public buildings include a guild hall, assembly rooms, Jubilee hall, art gallery and library, museum, literary and scientific institute, and theatres. In the populous suburb of Twerton (pop. 11,098), there are lias quarries, and bricks and woollen cloths are manufactured. The parliamentary borough returns two members. The city is governed by a mayor, 14 aldermen and 42 councillors. Area, 3382 acres.