"Bishop. Things not forbidden of God may be used for order and obedience. This is according to the judgment of the learned Bullinger. We, therefore, desire you to be conformable. "Smith. What if I can shew you Ballinger against Bullinger, in this thing?

"Bishop. I think you cannot, Smith, "Smith. Yes, that I can

"Bishop. Though we differ from other reformed churches, in rites and ceremonies, we agree with them in the substance of doctrines.

"Hawkins. Yes; but we should fol

low the truth in all things. Christ saith,Go ye, therefore, be teaching them to observe all things; but you have brought the Gospel and its ordinances into bondage to the ceremonies of Antichrist; and you defend idolatry and papistry, &c."

"After much of the same sort

"Mayor. Well, good people, I wish you would wisely consider these things, and be obedient to the Queen's good laws, that you may live quietly and have liberty. I am sorry that you are troubled; but I am an officer under my prince, and therefore blame me not.

The Queen hath not established these

garments and other things for any holiness in them, only for civil order and Comeliness; and because she would have ministers known from other men, as aldermen are known by their tippets, judges by their red gowns, and noblemen's servants by their liveries: therefore, you will do well to take heed and bey." pp. 134-139.

We own we like the speech of the good, honest lord mayor better than all the rest; and cannot help thinking within ourselves" Now, mark how a plain tale will set thee down." It seems many of these conferences were not indeed wholly without their use at the time; for, strangely enough to appearance as they are given, they sometimes suddenly end in the submission and subscription of the party under examination, and that, either with or without explanation. Messrs. Underdown and others, p. 272, seem to be instances of this; Mr. Stroud, p. 300; Drs. Humphrey and Sampson, pp. 368 and 373. These latter persons were two

learned Oxonians of high consi deration in the school of peaceable Puritanism; and it would repay the trouble of investigating both their conduct and their treatment, to ascertain from their history the limit at once of the scruples of reasonable and conscientious Nonconformists, and of the persecutions of the ruling party. Time, however, will not let us enlarge on the memoirs of these two nurslings, unfortunately, of Zurich and Strasburgh. We can only notice their singular ground of dissent, not to say their prevarication, in allowing the lawfulness of the habits, but still denying their expediency (p. 368): and whilst on the former ground they were acquitted by the church of nonconformity, on the latter they reserved their claim to appear amongst Mr. Brook's worthies. They were both decided Presbyterians in discipline: yet Humphrey obtained nearly complete toleration; and though Sampson suffered deprivation and a temporary restraint, he spent the last twenty-one years of his life in the government of an hospital at Leicester, and "in his beloved work of preaching," and "died in great tranquillity and comfort in his nonconformity," in 1589, aged seventy-two years. His plain dealing with Archbishop Grindal and the Queen herself in council, is alike honourable to his own sincerity and, if we may add it without offence, to the candour of those whom he addressed. It is remarkable, that these two learned divines, who seem to have referred every thing to their continental advisers, wrote, as Mr. Brook informs us, to Bullinger of Zurich, also to P. Martyr and Bernardin, for their opinion on habits and bishoprics. Mr. Brook tells us of the reference-why does he not tell us of the result? For this we must look in Collier. Bullin ger replies in the first place to the queries proposed by Humphrey "Whether a particular habit ought

time, by these champions of liberty, to which they required each other severally to swear, and afterwards to take the holy communion in ratification of it.

We do not understand how Mr. Brook or his authorities are entitled, after such a Protestation, to write of Mr. Wilcocks thus: "He was a person of great moderation: he acknowledged the Church of England to be a true church, and her ministry a true ministry, though greatly encumbered, &c. He also "occasionally attended the public

V. They give offences both to the preacher and the hearer. VI. They glad and strengthen the Papists in their errors, and grieve the godly. VII. They persecute our Saviour Christ in his members, &c. VIII. These popish garments are now become very idols indeed, &c. IX. I come not to them, because they should be ashamed and so leave their idolatrous garments, &c.*.. If any man obey not our sayings, note him. More over, I have now joined myself to the church of Christ; wherein I have yielded myself subject to the discipline of God's word, as I promised at my baptism. Which if I should now again mistake, and join myself with their traditions, I should forsake the union wherein I am knit to the body of Christ, and join myself to the discipline of AntiChrist.-God give us grace still to strive in suffering under the cross, that the blessed word of God may only rule, and have the highest place to cast down strong holds, to destroy or overthrow policy or imaginations, and every high thing that is exalted against the knowledge of God, and to bring into captivity or subjection every thought to the obedience of Christ, &c. that the name and word of the eternal, our Lord God, may be exalted or magnified above all things." Collier's Eccl. Hist. vol. ii. p. 544. This Protestation, let it be ob served, was framed so early as 1573, fifteen years after Elizabeth's accession, and may therefore afford a key to the proceedings of the large remainder of her own, and the subsequent reigus.

service of the church, and was a divine of great learning and piety (this as a matter of course always with Mr. Brook); yet, for the single sin of nonconformity often persecuted, &c." p. 194.

The mention of Mr. Wilcocks brings us into the 2d vol. from which, however, and the 3d, our extracts must be very few. We find in the 2d vol. many of Mr. Wilcocks's brethren in labour, all celebrated in Mr. B.'s pages, but who must nearly all pass with us for an ingens sine nomine turba. We lament to find "the learned and pious but Calvinistic Perkins," before "the high tribunal," answering for conferences with Cartwright or others, about matters of discipline. p. 133.

"Mr. Perkins's sermons were all law, and all gospe!. He was a rare instance of those opposite gifts meeting in so eminent a degree in the same preacher, even the vehemence and thunder of Boa

nerges...and the persuasion and comfort of Barnabas. He used to apply the terrors of the law so directly to the consciences of his hearers, that their hearts would often sink under their convictions; and he used to pronounce the word damn with so peculiar an emphasis, that it left a doleful echo in their ears a long time after! Also his wisdom in giving advice and comfort, was great," &c. Vol, ii. p. 130.

are

He was a singularly rapid and accurate reader; and used to write in the title of all his books, "Thou art a minister of the word; mind thy business." His peaceable behaviour and great fame "said" to have procured him a dispensation from the persecutions of his brethren. Perhaps, like one Parker in this same volume, "he most probably received the ecclesiastical cen❤ sure: and if he had been taken, must have been cast into prison; where, without doubt, he must have died!!" p. 239.

senter. Note him.

memory. We think one of the most questionable features in Mr. Brook's work, is this indiscriminate conjunction of men of all classes, under one broad and sweeping banner of non-conformity. This very Dr. Whitaker, who is at issue with the Archbishop on the most essential points of discipline, yet we find the selected delegate from Cambridge, in 1595, to Lambeth, for the purpose of consulting with the Archbishop and other learned divines, upon the Calvinistic points (then opposed by Dr. Baro and others): "when they concluded upon nine propositions, commonly called the Lambeth Articles, to which, as it should seem, by Whitaker himself, the scholars in the University were enjoined an exact conformity." p. 82.

But of all friends to meet, stealing along the trackless mazes of Puritanism, we own we are most surprised at recognising the face of good old venerable Joseph Mede! pp. 429 et seq. If there ever was a man whom we should have been desirous of claiming more than another, as a pure specimen of mild, judicious, and Christian-like, but, at the same time, true and faithful conformity to the established church, it is the author of the Clavis Apocalyptica. It seems Mr. B. has had the same likeing for so great a name: and we should have been as well satisfied with him, if we had not found him at his old work of leaving out, from his documents quoted, the exact sentences which make against himself. The letter quoted from p. 865 of the folio vol. of his works, and which we have no space to give, speaks ambiguously, it is true, as far as Mr. B. has gone, of our church going upon differing principles from the rest of the reformed, p. 432. But had the following sentence been added, all would have been clear." If this union, (viz. with foreign churches,) be like to further and advantage us in the way we affect, we shall listen to it. If it

be like to be prejudicial, as, namely, to give strength and authority to those amongst us, who are enamoured of the foreign platform, or bring a yoke upon our own by limiting and making us 'obnoxious, we'l stand aloof and not meddle with it, lest we infringe our liberty." We are sorry Mr. Brook should lay himself open to so severe a charge as he incurs, by attempting to prove the non-conformity of a man, by a letter which he knows to contain such a sentence as the above. The fact is, Mr. Mede, like a wise and good man, saw and lamented errors on both sides; and without the smallest leaning towards the Presbyterian discipline, which he expressly disclaimed, he yet knew enough of its strength to see it could not be put down by mere violence; and his sagacious mind discovered very plainly, without the help of prophecy, the course which things were likely to take, unless a different spirit were adopted, and that church and state would in all probability buy experience by their downfall. Joseph Mede, we should take in one word, to be a complete ante-dated instance of the true Church-of-England spirit; that which we should wish it always to have been, and that which we are bold to say, in an age certainly more liberal, enlightened, and experienced, than the puritanical one, it now is. He gained that temper of mind, that view of things, from his own natural sagacity, or, let us say, from above, in reward for his humble and unceasing investigations of the Divine word, which we have obtained from hard experience; and as soon should we think of implicating a Tillotson, a Burnet, a Beveridge, or a Secker, in the charge of non-conformity, from their known liberality of sentiment, as we should this learned and divinely-enlightened interpreter of prophecy.

Many an affecting contrast to this quiet and moderate spirit, does the present volume afford us in the

mixed medley of characters it contains. To Messrs. Cartwright, Travers, and other choice spirits of the Presbyterian school, we have before alluded. Mr. Brook commits one of his usual convenient oversights, in misplacing a journey of the for.mer to the continent (it is intimated by Fuller, in consequence of an offence taken at the conduct of Queen Elizabeth to him at Cambridge), from which he is said to have "returned" in due time " a bitter enemy to the hierarchy." It is of great consequence to know the points at issue between him and Whitgift to have been Geneva-bred; particularly as Mr. B. has been so large in the detail of that controversy, of which he significantly hints the issue in profit to have been, that " Whitgift was made Archbishop of Canterbury, and Cartwright was persecuted from place to place as unfit to live." We can only, however, stop to ask how, in the face of Fuller, an historian of the most undoubted credit, and constantly referred to as such by him, and who expressly and particularly relates this journey, and the time of it; can Mr. B. positively declare, without any mention of that historian's evidence on this occasion, "it is pretty certain Cartwright never went to Geneva, till after his expulsion from the University." p. 143. The relation of the controversies in which Mr. C.'s views of church-government involved himself and his church-adversaries is sufficiently lamentable. Threats, and even expulsion, might certainly be necessary in extreme cases, in a university; but confinement in a cold prison, with the gout and sciatica, could form no part of syllogistic reasoning, or of legitimate discipline, either for university or church: much less could personal reproach and invective be expected to win back a lost son to the church, who had already "left all to follow-Christ" shall we say, or" Calvin?" Yet we are told

"The pardon and release of Mr. Cartwright and his brethren was procured of the Queen by the intercession of Archbishop Whitgift" [the persecutor himself.] Also it is observed," that when Mr. Cartwright was freed from his troubles, he often repaired to the Archbishop, who used him kindly, and for several years tolerated his preaching at Warwick, upon his promise not to impugn the laws, orders, and government of the Church of England, but promote, both publicly and privately, the estimation With these and peace of the same. terms, it is said, he complied. Notwithstanding, when the Queen understood that he preached again, though in a temperate manner, according to his promise, she would not permit him any longer without subscription; and she was not a little displeased with the Archbishop for his past connivance." P. 158.

The character of Travers, the famous opponent of Hooker, is given by Mr. Brook from Fuller, we think with no fair admission of the extreme candour and general impartiality, as well as real and unaffected piety of that witty historian, and "zealous conformist;" whom we cannot too strongly recommend to the attention and perusal of our readers.

Fuller observes of Mr. Travers, "that his utterance was agreeable, his gesture graceful, his matter profitable, his method plain, and his style carried in it the flowings of grace 'from a sanctified heart." Why "graceful" was substituted for Fuller's word "plausible," Mr. B. must determine. We will give Mr. B. so far credit for forbearance in the eyes of our readers, as to add, what he has not added, the historian's account of Hooker in the next sentence. "Some say that the congregation in the temple ebbed in the morning, and flowed in the afternoon, and that the auditory of Mr. Travers was far the more numerous, the first occasion of emulation between them. But such as knew Mr. Hooker, knew him to be too wise to take exception at such trifles," &c. Fuller, lib. ix. p. 216. In truth, Travers appears to