which were never spoken there; printing dec- dom. The External Government being as good larations which were never passed; relating as ever it was, and I am sure as learned Judges battles which were never fought, and victories which were never obtained; dispersing letters which were never writ by the authors, together with many such contrivance, to abet a party, or interest. Pudet hæc opprobria. Such practices, and the experience I had thereof, and the impossibility for any man in after ages to ground a true history, by relying on the printed pamphlets in our days, which passed the press whilst it was without controul, obliged me to all the pains and charge I have been at for many years together, to make a great Collection; and whilst things were fresh in memory, to separate truth from falsehood, things real from things fictitious or imaginary."

Comet of 1618.

"At this time there appeared a Comet, which gave occasion of much discourse to all sorts of men; amongst others a learned Knight, our countryman (Sir John Heydon), confidently and boldly affirmed, that such persons were but abusers, and did but flatter greatness, who gave their verdict, that that comet was effectual, as some would have it, or signal, as others judge it, only to Africa, whereby they laid it far enough from England: when this Knight, out of the consideration of the space of the Zodiac which this Comet measured, the inclination of his sword and blade, and to what place both the head and tail became vertical, together with other secrets, said, that not only all Europe to the elevation of fifty-two degrees was liable to its threatenings, but England especially: yea, that person besides, in whose fortune we are all no less embarked than the Passenger with the ship is in the Pilot that guided the same, the truth whereof, said he, a few years will manifest to all men."-RUSHWORTH, vol. 1, p. 8.

"QUEEN ANNE died this year at Hampton Court. The common people, who were great admirers of princes, were of opinion that the Blazing Star rather betokened the death of the Queen, than that cruel and bloody war which shortly after happened in Bohemia and other parts of Germany."-RUSHWORTH, vol. 1, p. 10.

James's Confession of Abuses, 1621. "I CONFESS," said James to his Parliament in 1621, "that when I looked before upon the face of the Government, I thought (as every man would have done) that the people were never so happy as in my time. For even as at divers times, I have looked upon many of my coppices, riding about them, and they appeared on the outside very thick and well grown, unto me; but when I turned into the midst of them, I found them all bitten within, and full of plains, and bare spots, like the apple or pear, fair and smooth without, but when you cleave it asunder, you find it rotten at heart. Even so this king

as ever it had, and, I hope, as honest, administering justice within it; and for peace, both at home and abroad, I may truly say, more settled and longer lasting than ever any before, together with as great plenty as ever; so as it was to be thought, that every man might sit in safety under his own vine and fig-tree. Yet I am ashamed, and it makes my hair stand upright, to consider, how in this time my people have been vexed and polled by the vile execution of projects, patents, bills of conformity and such like; which besides the trouble of my people, have more exhausted their purses than many subsidies would have done.". RUSHWORTH, vol. 1, p. 26.

Jesuits acting the Puritan. This the strongest fact upon the subject, if the date be correct.

A LETTER, said to have been found among the papers of some Jesuits at Clerkenwell in 1627, has these passages. "When K. James lived (you know) he was very violent against Arminianism, and interrupted, with his pestilent wit and deep learning, our strong designs in Holland. Now we have planted that sovereign drug Arminianism, which we hope will purge the Protestants from their heresy; and it flourisheth, and bears fruit in due season. The materials which build up our bulwark are the Projectors and Beggars of all ranks and quali ties. Howsoever both these Factions cooperate to destroy the Parliament, and to introduce a new species and form of Government, which is Oligarchy. These serve as direct mediums and instruments to our end, which is the Universal Catholic Monarchy. Our foundation must be mutation.-I cannot choose but laugh to see how some of our own coat have accoutred themselves; you would scarce know them, if you saw them: and it is admirable how in speech and feature they act the Puritan. The Cambridge scholars, to their woful experience, shall see we can act the Puritans a little better than they have done the Jesuits. They have abused our sacred patron, St. Ignatius, in jest, but we will make them smart for it in earnest.' RUSHWORTH, Vol. 1, p. 475.

Sir Benjamin Rudyard, upon Reasons of State.

"THE King," said Sir Benjamin Rudyard, "is a good man; and it is no diminution to a King to be called so. He hath already intimated unto us by a message, that he doth willingly give way to have the abuse of power reformed; by which I do verily believe, he doth very well understand what a miserable Power it is which hath produced so much weakness to himself and to the kingdom: and it is our happiness that ho is so ready to redress it.-For mine own part, I shall be very glad to see that old decrepit law, Magna Charta, which hath been kept so long, and lien bed-rid, as it were, I shall be glad to

see it walk abroad again with new vigour and one hand to the Pope, another to the King of lustre, attended and followed with the other six Spain; and these men having kindled a fire in statutes: questionless it will be a great heart- our neighbour country, now they have brought ening to all the People.-As for intrinsical over some of it hither, to set on flame this power and reason of state, they are matters in kingdom also."-RUSHWORTH, part 1, p. 645 the clouds, where I desire we may leave them, and not meddle with them at all, lest by the way of admittance we may lose somewhat of that which is our own already. Yet this by the way I will say of Reason of State, that in the latitude by which 'tis used, it hath eaten out almost, not only the Laws, but all the Religion of Christendom."-RUSHWORTH, part 1, p. 552.

:

Sale of Arms to the Savages.

THE sale of swords, pikes, muskets, match, powder, shot, &c., to the savages of New England, had been forbidden both by James and Charles I. as an insufferable abuse.-RUSHWORTH, part 2, vol. 1, p. 75.

Covenant proposed, 1628.

Sir Benjamin Rudyard on Moderation. "IF," said Rous, "a man meet a dog alone, "I WILL remember you of one precept," the dog is fearful, though never so fierce by said Sir Benjamin Rudyard, "and that of the nature; but if that dog have his master by him, wisest man. Be not over wise; be not over he will set upon that man from whom he fled before. This shows that lower natures being backed with the higher, increase in courage and strength; and certainly man being backed with Omnipotency, is a kind of Omnipotency. All things are possible to him that believeth; and where all things are possible there is a kind of Omnipotence. Wherefore, let us now, by the unanimous consent and resolution of us all, make a vow and a covenant henceforth to hold fast, I say, to hold fast to our God and our Religion, and then may we from henceforth certainly expect prosperity on this kingdom and nation. And to this Covenant let every man say Amen."-RUSHWORTH, part 1, p. 646.

just and he gives his reason, for why wilt thou be desolate?If Justice and Wisdom may be stretched to desolation, let us thereby learn that Moderation is the Virtue of Virtues, and Wisdom of Wisdoms. Let it be our masterpiece so to carry the business, that we may keep Parliaments on foot; for as long as they be frequent, there will be no irregular Power, which, though it cannot be broken at once, yet in short time it will be made and mouldered away. There can be no total or final loss of liberties as long as they last: what we cannot get at one time, we shall have at another." RUSHWORTH, part 1, p. 552.

Goad, against Uniformity.

"EXTERNAL forms are the rudiments and elements of children, with which state there is no uniformity consistent, there being in it so many several statures and ages. And the design of Uniformity is from none but Satan to kill Christ while he is a child, and stifle him in his swadling clothes, though the pretence be, with Herod, to give him honour and worship."CHRISTOPHER GOAD, Preface to William Dell's Works.

Arminianism.

Books to be superseded by Faith. "WE are almost at the end of Books," says CHRISTOPHER GOAD in the Preface to William Dell's Works:-"these paper-works are now preaching their own funerals. Whilst they are holding forth the spirit, the letter is grown old, and is dying into the newness of the spirit, into which all things shall be resolved."

Birth of Charles the Second.

"ON the 29th of May, Prince Charles was born, a little before one of the clock in the afternoon; and the Bishop of London had the "I DESIRE," said Mr. Rous, "that we may honour to see him, before he was an hour old. consider the increase of Arminianism, an error At his birth there appeared a Star visible that that makes the Grace of God lackey it after very time of the day, when the King rode to the Will of Man, that makes the sheep to keep St. Paul's Church to give thanks to God for the shepherd, and makes a mortal seed of an the Queen's safe delivery of a Son. But this immortal God. Yea, I desire that we may look into the very belly and bowels of this Trojan Horse, to see if there be not men in it ready to open the gates to Romish tyranny, and Spanish monarchy. For an Arminian is the spawn of a Papist; and if there come the warmth of favour upon him, you shall see him turn into one of those Frogs that rise out of the bottomless pit. And if you mark it well, you shall see an Arminian reaching out his hand to a Papist, a Papist to a Jesuit, a Jesuit gives

Star then appearing, some say was the Planet Venus, others Mercury, the sign of Merlin's prophecy: the splendour of the Sun shall languish by the paleness of Mercury, and it shall be dreadful to the beholders.' Any Planet, says the Astrologer, within its degrees of the Sun, is very unfortunate; and Mercury being the Lord of the Ascendant and Mid-Heaven, was a chief significator of the Prince his person, who being afflicted by the presence of the Sun, yet miraculously God did by his power make this Star

shine bright in a clear sun-shine day, which | And that women should have leave to carry was contrary to Nature."-RusuWORTH, part 2, vol. 1, p. 50.

Taking of Bristol.

"I CAN truly and particularly say," says WILLIAM DELL,-" (let them that will needs be offended, stumble and fall at it)-that Bristol was conquered by faith, more than by force; it was conquered in the hearts of the Godly by faith, before they stretched forth a hand against it; and they went not so much to storm it, as to take it, in the assurance of Faith."--P. 73.

Declaration concerning Sports.

rushes to the church for the decoring of it according to their old custom. But withall he prohibited all unlawful games to be used upon Sundays only, as Bear and Bull-baitings, Interludes, and at all times in the meaner sort of people, by law prohibited, Bowling. And he barred from this liberty all known recusants who abstained from coming to divine service, being therefore unworthy of any lawful recreation after the service, that would not first come to the church and serve God, and in like sort he prohibited them to any who, though conform in religion, had not been present in the church, at the service of God, before their going to the said recreations. His pleasure likewise was, that they to whom it belonged in office, should present and sharply punish all such as, in abuse of this his liberty, would use these exercises before the end of all divine services for that day. He commanded that every person should resort to his own parish church, and each parish use these recreations by itself, and prohibited any offensive weapons to be carried or used in the said times of recreation."-RUSHWORTH, part 2, vol. 1, p. 193.

Authority in Matter of Religion denied.

"No Princes or Magistrates in the world," says WILLIAM DELL, "have any power to forbid the preaching of the everlasting Gospel,— or of any one truth of it, though never so cross to their designs. And if they should, yet hereon ought we to know no more obedience than Peter and John did here. We ought to obey God and not them, and to make known the whole mind of God, though it be never so contrary to their mind; after the example of Peter and John, who having received this power of the Holy Spirit, held on their ministry against all the countermands and threatenings and punishments of the magistrates."-P. 26.

KING JAMES in his Declaration concerning Lawful Sports (1618) states, "that in his progress through Lancashire he did justly rebuke some Puritans and Precise people, and took order that the like unlawful carriage should not be used by any of them hereafter, in the prohibiting and unlawful punishment of his good people for using their lawful recreations and honest exercises upon Sundays and other holydays, after the afternoon sermon or service.With his own ears he heard the general complaint of his people that they were barred from all lawful recreations and exercise upon the Sundays after noon, after the ending of all divine service; which, he said, could not but produce two evils: the one, the hindering the conversion of many, whom their Priests will take occasion hereby to vex, persuading them that no honest mirth or recreation is lawful or tolerable in the religion which the King professeth, and which cannot but breed a great discontentment in his people's hearts, especially of such as are peradventure upon the point of turning the other inconvenience is, that this prohibition barreth the common and meaner sort of people from using such exercises as may make their bodies more able for war when his Majesty, or his successors, shall have occasion to use them; and in place thereof sets up tippling and filthy drunkenness, and breeds a number of idle and THIS figure of speech seems to have been a discontented speeches in their Alehouses. For favourite one with Hollis. Speaking with wellwhen shall the common people have leave to merited eulogium of Sir Randal Crew, "He exercise, if not upon the Sundays and holydays, kept his innocency," said he, “when others let seeing they must apply their labour, and win theirs go, when himself and commonwealth their living, on all working days? Therefore, were alike deserted, which raises his merit to the King said, his express pleasure was that no a higher pitch. For to be honest when every lawful recreation should be barred to his good body else is honest, when honesty is in fashion, people which did not tend to the breach of the and is Trump (as I may say), is nothing so laws of this kingdom and canons of the Church: meritorious: but to stand alone in the breach, that after the end of divine service his good to own honesty when others dare not do it, canpeople be not disturbed, letted, or discouraged not be sufficiently applauded, nor sufficiently from any lawful recreation, such as dancing, rewarded. And that did this good old man do; either men or women; archery for men; leap in a time of general desertion he preserved himing, vaulting, or any other such harmless recre- self pure and untainted."-RUSHWORTH, part 2, ation; nor from having of May Games, Whitson- vol. 2, p. 1359. Ales, and Morice-Dances; and the setting up of May-poles, and other sports therewith used: so as the same be had in due and convenient time, without impediment or neglect of divine service.

Hollis's Trumps.

The Spirit empties its Vessels. "THE works of the Spirit, whereby he first

prepares us for himself, and then entertains him- for the University of Oxford were finished and self in us, are these two especially: 1st, he published in Convocation. empties us; and 2nd, he fills us with himself, whom he hath made empty.

Rushworth's Malus Animus against the Con- always spoke excellently, that the Twelve

Judges were like the Twelve Lions under the 1636. "ABOUT this time the New Statutes throne of Solomon-under the throne in obedi

"His first master was one Mr. Willis that part 2, vol. 2, appendix, pp. 137, 138. kept a school at Isleworth. That man was a rigid Presbyterian, and his wife a furious Independent. Those two seets at that time contended for preeminence in tyranny, and reaping "In the exercise of the Foot-troops, the the fruits of too successful rebellion; which Companies are to be of hundreds only, besides conjured up a spirit of opposition betwixt them, Officers, that they may be so much the nearer so that they hated each other more than either together, to be trained and exercised with less the Bishops or even Papists themselves. Such pains to the soldiers, and less loss of time when is the ordinary curse of God upon men permitted they shall be called together by their Captain.