church, there to have preaching, and to join together in prayer, with humiliation and fasting, for the assistance of GOD's spirit in all their consultations, during th ́s parliament; and for the preservation of the Queen's majesty and her realms."* The house was so cautious as not to name their preachers, for fear they might be thought puritanical, but referred it to such of her majesty's privy council as were members of the house. There was nothing in this vote contrary to law, or unbecoming the wisdom of parliament; but the Queen was no sooner acquainted with it, than she sent word by Sir Christopher Hatton, her vice-chamberlain, that "She did much admire at so great a rashness in that house, as to put in execution such an innovation, without her privity and pleasure first made known to them." Upon which it was moved by the courtiers, that the house should acknowledge their offence and contempt, and humbly crave forgiveness, with a full purpose to forbear committing the like for the future ;" which was voted accordingly. A mean and abject spirit in the representative body of the nation!

Her majesty having forbid her parliament to appoint times for fasting and prayer, took hold of the opportunity, and gave the like injunctions to her clergy; some of whom, after the putting down of the PROPHESYINGS, had ventured to agree upon days of private fasting and prayer for the Queen and church, and for exhorting the people to repentance and reformation of life, at such times and places where they could obtain a pulpit. All the puritans, and the more devout part of the conforming clergy, fell in with these appointments; sometimes there was one at Leicester; sometimes at Coventry and at Stamford, and in other places; where six or seven neighboring ministers joined together in these exercises; but as soon as the Queen was acquaint. ed with them, she sent a warm message to the archbishop to suppress them, as being set up by private persons, without authority, in defiance of the laws, and of her prerogative.† Mr. Prowd, the puritan minister of Burton upon Dunmore, complains, in a melancholy letter to Lord Burleigh, of the sad state of religion, by suppressing the exercises; and by * Heylin, p. 287. Heylin's Aerius Redivivus, p. 286.

forbidding the meeting of a few ministers and christians, to pray for the preservation of the protestant religion, in this dangerous crisis of the Queen's marrying with a papist. He doubted whether his lordship dealt so plainly with her majesty as his knowledge of these things required, and begs him to interpose. But the Queen was determined against all prayers, except what herself should appoint.

We have already taken notice of the petitions and supplications to parliament from London, Cornwall, and some other places, for redress of grievances; but the house was so intimidated by the Queen's spirited behavior, that they durst not interpose, any further than in conjunction with some of the bishops, to petition her majesty as head of the church, to redress them. The Queen promised to take order about it, with all convenient speed; putting them in mind at the same time, that all motions for reformation in religion ought to arise from none but herself.

But her majesty's sentiments differed from the parliament's; her greatest grief was the increase of puritans and non-conformists, and therefore, instead of easing them, she girt the laws closer about them, in order to bring them to an exact conformity. Information being given, that some who had livings in the church, and preached weekly, did not administer the sacrament to their parishioners in their own persons, her majesty commanded her bishops in their visitations, to enquire after such HALF CONFORMISTS as disjoined one part of their function from the other, and to compel them by ecclesiastical censures to perform the whole at least twice a year. The puritan ministers being dissatisfied with the promiscuous access of all persons to the communion, and with several passages in the office for the Lord's supper, some of them used to provide qualified clergymen to administer the ordinance in their room; but this was now made a handle for their ejectment: Inquisition was made, and those who after admonition would not conform to the Queen's pleasure were sent for before the commissioners, and deprived.

Though the springs of discipline moved but slowly in the diocese of Canterbury, because the metropolitan, who is the first mover in ecclesiastical causes under the Queen, was suspended and in disgrace; yet the sufferings of the puri

tans were not lessened; the other bishops, who were in the high commission, doubled their diligence; the Rev. Mr. Nash was in the Marshalsea, Mr. Drewet in Newgate, and several others were shut up in the prisons in and about London. Those that were at liberty had nothing to do, for they might not preach in public without full conformity; nor assemble in private to mourn over their own and the nation's sins, without the danger of a prison.

40

This exasperated their spirits, and put them upon writing satyrical pamphlets* against their adversaries; in some of which there are severe expressions against the unpreaching clergy, calling them (in the language of scripture) dumb dogs, because they took no pains for the instruction of their parishioners; the authors glanced at the severity of the laws, at the pride and ambition of the bishops, at the illegal proceedings of the high commission, and at the unjustifiable rigors of the Queen's government; which her majesty being informed of, procured a statute this very parliament,† [1580] by which it is enacted, that " If any person or persons, 6 days after the end of this session, shall devise, or write, 'or print, or set forth any manner of book, rhyme, ballad, 'letter, or writing, containing any false, seditious, or slan'derous matter, to the defamation of the Queen's majesty, 6 or to the encouraging, stirring, or moving of any insur❝rection or rebellion within this realm, or any of the domin'ions to the same belonging: or if any person or persons *shall procure such books, rhymes, or ballads, to be written, 'printed, or published, (the said offence not being within 'the compass of treason, by virtue of any former statute) that then the said offenders, upon sufficient proof by two 'witnesses, shall suffer death and loss of goods, as in case of 'felony." This statute was to continue in force only during the life of the present Queen; but within that compass of time, sundry of the puritans were put to death by virtue of it.

In the same session of parliament, another severe law was made, which like a two-edged sword cut down both papists

Bishop Warburton censures Mr.Neal for not speaking in much severer terms of these pamphlets. But he should have adverted to our author's grave censure of them,in chap. viii. and have recollected that "the writers on the church side came not behind their adversaries in buffoonery and ridicule." These were the weapons of the age. † 23 Eliz. cap.

and puritans; it was entitled, An act to retain the Queen's subjects in their due obedience:*"By which it is made treason, for any priest or jesuit to seduce any of the Queen's subjects, from the established to the Romish religion. If any shall reconcile themselves to that religion, they shall be guilty of treason: And to harbor such above twenty days, is misprision of treason. If any one shall say mass, ' he shall forfeit 200 marks and suffer a year's imprisonment; and they that are present at hearing mass shall forfeit 100 marks, and a year's imprisonment." But that the act might be more extensive, and comprehend protestant non-conformists as well as papists, it is further enacted, "That all persons that do not come to church or chapel,or other place where common prayer is said, according to the act of uniformity, shall forfeit twenty pounds per month to 'the Queen, being thereof lawfully convicted, and suffer ' imprisonment till paid. Those that are absent for twelve 'months shall, upon certificate made thereof into the King'sBench, besides their former fine, be bound with two suffi'cient sureties in a bond of two hundred pounds, for their "good behavior. Every school-master that does not come to common-prayer, shall forfeit ten pounds a month, be disabled from teaching school, and suffer a year's impris onment." This was making merchandize of the souls of men (says a reverend author;)† for it is a sad case to sell men à licence to do that which the receivers of their money conceive to be unlawful. Besides, the fine was unmerciful; by the act of uniformity, it was twelve penče a Sunday for not coming to church, but now twenty pounds a month; so that the meaner people had nothing to expect but to rot in jails, which made the officers unwilling to apprehend them. Thus the Queen and her parliament tacked the puritans to the papists, and subjected them to the same penal laws, as if they had been equal enemies to her person and government, and to the protestant religion. A precedent followed by several parliaments in the succeeding reigns.

The convocation did nothing but present an humble petition to the Queen, to take off the archbishop's sequestration, which her majesty was not pleased to grant.

This summer Aylmer bishop of London, held a visitation of his clergy, at the convocation house of St. Paul's, and obliged them to subscribe the following articles; 1. Exactly to keep to the book of common prayer and sacraments. 2. To wear the surplice in all their ministrations. 3. Not add or diminish any thing in reading divine service.--He then made the following enquiries, 1. Whether all that had cure of souls administered the sacraments in person? 2. Whether they observed the ceremonies to be used in baptism and marriage? 3. Whether the youth were catechised? 4. Whether their ministers read the homilies? 5. Whether any of them called others that did not preach by ill names, as dumb dogs? Those who did not subscribe, and answer the interrogatories to his lordship's satisfaction, were immediately suspended and silenced.

But these violent measures, instead of reconciling the puritans to the church, drove them further from it. Men who act upon principles* will not be easily beaten from them with the artillery of canons, injunctions, subscriptions, fines, imprisonments, &c. much less will they esteem a church that fights with such weapons. Multitudes were by these methods carried off to a total separation, and so far prejudiced, as not to allow the church of England to be a true church, nor her ministers true ministers; they renounced all communion with her, not only in the prayers and ceremonies, but in hearing the word and the sacraments. These were the people called BROWNISTS,§ from one Robert Brown, a preacher in the diocese of Norwich, descended of an ancient and honorable family in Rutlandshire, and nearly related to the lord treasurer Cecil; he was educated in Corpus Christi

*To do so is highly virtuous and praise-worthy. It is the support of integrity, and constitutes excellence of character: Yet, in this instance, bishop Warburton could allow himself to degrade and make a jest of it. "It is just the same (says he) with men who act upon passion and prejudice, for the poet says truly,

"Obstinacy's near so stiff

"As when 'tis in a wrong belief."

ED.

§ With them commenced the third period of puritanism. The increasing severity of the bishops inflamed, instead of subduing, the spirits of the non-conformists, and drove them to a greater distance from the establishment.

ED.