to the continewance thereof, it was the Lord, and 'therefore to him lift we up our harts that he would perfect itt. And furely Mr. Storie it were a piteous thinge to fee a lecture fall in the hands of foe manie able and godly men as I am perfwaded the founders of this are, in theife times wherin wee fee they are • fuppreffed with too much haft, and violence by the enemies of God, his truth, far be it that foe much guilt should sticke to your hands, who live in a citye fo renowned for the clere fhininge light of the gospell. • You knowe Mr. Storie to withdrawe the pay is to ⚫ lett fall the lecture, for whoe goeth to warfare at his owne coft. I beseech you therefore in the bowells of Chrift Jefus putt it forward and let the good man have his pay. The foules of God his children will ⚫blefs you for it: and foe fhall I, and ever rest Your lovinge friend in the Lord, • OLIVER CROMWELL. • Commende my hearty love to Mr. Busse, Mr. Beadly, and my other good friends. I would have written to Mr. Buffe, but I was loath to 'trouble him with a longe letter, and I feared I fhould not receive an answer from him, 'from you I expect one foe foon as conveniently you may. Vale. To my very lovinge friend Mr. Storie, at the fign of the Dogg in the Royal Exchange London, die. theife.' The importance of this letter to Cromwell's character will excuse the length of it, especially as 'tis an original, and now first published. But he not only practifed the external duties of religion (real inward religion appears not to men, but by its fruits) but he was carried away into enthusiasm. He fancied himself favoured and diftinguished by heaven; that God in answer to his prayers afforded him fupernatural illumination and affiftance. I had oc• cafion to converfe with Mr. Cromwell's physician, Dr. Simcott, (b) War wick, 249. P. . Simcott, who affured me, that for many years his patient was a moft fplenetick man, and had phanfyes about the crofs in that town; and that he had been called up to him at midnight and fuch unfeasonable hours very many times, upon a strong phancy, which • made him believe he was then dying; and there went a ftory of him, that in the day-time lying melancholy in his bed, he believed that a spirit appeared to him, and told him he fhould be the greatest man (not mentioning the word King) in this kingdom. Which his ⚫ uncle Sir Thomas Steward, who left him all the little eftate Cromwell had, told him was traiterous to relate. The first years of his manhood were spent in a diffolute courfe of life-but-when he was civiliz'd he joined himself to men of his own temper, who pretended unto tranfports and revelations (b).' The following extracts from fome of Oliver's letters will, perhaps, better than any thing else illuftrate this part of his character. Truly noe poore creature hath more cause to putt forth himselfe in the cause of his God, then I. I have had plentiful wadges before hand; and I am fure I fhall never earn the leaft mite. The Lord accept mee in his Sonn, and give me to walk in the light, and give us to walk in the light, as hee is in the light. He it is that inlighteneth our blackneffe, our darkneffe. I dare not fay, hee hideth his face from mee; hee giveth me to fee light in his light one beame in a darke place hath exceed(Thurloe, inge much refreshment in it; bleffed be his name for fhininge upon foe darke a hart as mine (c).' This was written in 1638.In a letter to the lord Whar ton, dated Sept. 2, 1648, we have the following paffages. I befeech the Lord make us fenfible of this great mercye heere [the victory over the Scots under Duke Hamilton, I fuppofe] which furelye was much • more then ***** the house expreffeth. I trust ******* the goodneffe of our God, time and opportunitye to fpeak of itt with you face to face. When we think of our God, what are wee! oh! ⚫his mercye to the whole focietye of Saincts, defpifed, jeered vol. i. p. 1. 6 6 6 our eyes (d) Thur jeered Saincts. Let them mocke onn. Would we were all Saints; the beft of us are (God knows) 'poore weake Saincts, yet Saincts; if not fheepe, yet lambs, and muft bee fed. We have daily bread and fhall have itt, in defpite of all enimies. There's • enough in our fathers houfe, and he dispenseth itt as **** bekind, then wee can **** we for him. I thinke thorough these outward mercyes (as we call them) faith, patience, love, hope, all are exercised and perfected, yea Chrift formed, and C growes to a perfect man within us. I knowe not how well to distinguish: the difference is only in the fubject to a worldly man they are outward: to a Sainct, chriftian: but I difpute not. My lord I re'joice in your perticular mercye. I hope that is foe to you; if foe it fhall not hurt you, nor make you plott or fhift for the younge baron to make him great. You will fay he is Gods to difpofe off, and guide for, and there you will leave him (d).' In a letter to the governor of the caftle of Edinburgh, loe, vol, i dated Sept. 9, 1650, he thus writes: in our papers with what hearts and 'compt we came; [into Scotland] and heard us, though you would not, upon as folemn an appeal as any experience can parallel. And although they [the Scots] feem to comfort themselves with being the fons of Jacob, from whom (they fay) God hath hid his face for a time; yet it's no wonder, when the Lord hath lift up his hand fo eminently against a < family, as he hath done fo often against this [the Stuart] and men will not fee his hand, if the Lord hide his face from fuch, putting them to fhame, both for it and their hatred at his people, as it is this day. • When they purely truft to the fword of the fpirit, which is the word of God, which is powerful to bring down ftrong holds, and every imagination that exalts itself, which alone is able to square and fitt the ftones for the new Jerufalem; then, and not before, and by that means, and no other, fhall Jerufalem (which is to be the praife of the whole earth) the city of the Lord be • built, 6 We have faid upon what acthe Lord hath P. 99. (e) Thurloe, vol. i. p. 159. (ƒ) la. P. 161. built, the Sion of the holy one of Ifrael (e) The governor in his reply telling Cromwell the Scots minifters faid, that they had not fo learned Christ as to C hang the equity of their cause upon events:' he reaffumed his pen on the fame fubject, and writes as follows: In answer to the witneffe of God upon our folemn appeal; you fay, you have not fo learned Chrift, to hang the equity of your cause upon events. We could with blindneffe hath not been upon your eyes to all thofe marvellous difpenfations, which God hath wrought lately in England. But did not you folemnly appeal and pray? Did not we do fo too? And ought not you and we to think with fear and trembling of the hand of the great God in this mighty and ftrange appearance of his? But can flightly call it an event. Were not both yours and our expec'tations renewed from time to time, whilst we waited upon God, to fee which way he would manifeft himself upon our appeals? And fhall we after all these our prayers, faftings, tears, expectations, and folemne appeals, call these base events? The Lord pity you. Surely we fear, because it hath been a merciful and gracious deliverance to us. I beseech 'you in the bowels of Chrift, fearch after the mind of the Lord in it towards you, and we fhall help you by our prayers, that you may find it out; for yet (if we know our hearts at all) our bowels do in Chrift Jefus earn after the godly in Scotland (ƒ).'--Bishop Burnet tells us, that when Cromwell was in the greateft ftreights and perplexities, juft before the battle at Dunbar, he called his officers to a day of feeking the Lord. He loved to talk much of that matter all his life long afterwards. He faid he felt fuch an enlarge⚫ment of heart in prayer, and fuch quiet upon it, that he bade all about him take heart, for God had certainly heard them, and would appear for them. After prayer they walked in the Earl of Roxborough's gardens that lay under the hill; and by prospective glaffes they difcerned a great motion in the Scottifo camp. Upon which Cromwell faid, God is deliver ⚫ing ing them into our hands, they are coming down to (g) Burnet's us (g). The event was comformable to his expecta tion. Hutery of his oan times, vol. i. Dutch edit. in note (b) Me Whitlock, who well knew the man, writes as follows: p. 82. 12mo. From the council of ftate Cromwell and his fon Ireton See Crom⚫ went home with me to fupper, where they were very well's letter chearful, and feemed extremely well pleafed; we to Lenthall difcourfed together till twelve a-clock at night, and (LL). they told me wonderful obfervations of God's providence, in the affairs of the war, and in the business of the army's coming to London, and feizing the ' members of the houfe, in all which were miraculous 'paffages (b).' morials, Thefe paffages are, I think, abundantly fufficient to P. 334. eftablish the enthufiafm of Cromwell. However, that the reader may determine the better, let him attend to the following anecdotes which feem to indicate him an hypocrite. His rude cant and fpiritual fimplicity were 'downright affectation: than which nothing can be 'more evident from Mr. Waller's obfervation, and his 'confeffion to him. Mr. Waller often took notice, that in the midft of their difcourfe a fervant has come in to tell them fuch and fuch attended; upon which • Cromwell would rife, and ftop them, talking at the 'door, where he could over-hear them fay, The Lord will reveal, The Lord will help, and several such expreffions; which when he return'd to Mr. Waller he 'excus'd, faying, Coufin Waller, I must talk to these 'men after their own way; and would then go on where they left off. This created in Mr. Walr an opinion that he secretly defpifed those whom he seemed to court (i).' And the author of the Political biflery of the age, thinks the enthufiafm of Cromwell entirely affum'd and politic; quoting the following anecdote from Oliver St. John, in proof of it, viz. That being one day at table with his friends, and looking for the cork of a bottle of champaign which he had opened, on being informed, that fome perfon attended for admittance to fee him, Tell him, fays Cromwell, we are ⚫ in fearch of the Holy Spirit (4) C Thefe (¿) Waller's Life, p. 30. (Monthly Review, for |