of my Order must be executed upon me againe and I must be locked up closse in a room and my Friends must not come to me to relieve me nor come to speake with me to see if I be alive or no and the poor Prisoners must be punished and tormented if they give me but a little water or doe any other courtesie for me some of whom have had three Beds taken from under them by your command and order and several times put off the charity and threatned by your selfe to be put in Irons for helping me to my Victuals and yet you nor your great Lord and Master will not alow me one farthing to live upon and if this be not hard measure then sure I am the Devils Instruments never measured any in their lives But for my Order the strictnesse of which at some times you so much stand upon let me tell you without feare That I verily beleeve if Beelzebub the Prince of Devils had sate in personall presence at the Inner Star-chamber instead of the Pope of Lambeth his dutifull Son he could not have made a more mercilesse inhumane Order against me then my Order is which the bloody Prelat caused to be made against me the 18. of Aprill was 2. yeares after he had caused me to be whipped at a Carts arse from Fleet Bridge to Westminster Hall For how can a Man live when all resort of persons shall be kept from him and that necessary subsistence from his Friends and yet his Enemies will not allow him a bit of bread or a drop of drinke Well Sir if by your new plots you take away my life from me before I can have Justice against you in the Parliament know thus much that I have already made my Will and bequeathed my soule to him that purchased it with his own blood and my body to the dust from whence it came and if the Priests will not suffer it to be buried in the Church-yard as they call it then would I have it layd beside the Coblers in Finsbury Fields and for my goods they are soon disposed of for the Prelats have already robbed me of the most part of them for Canterburies Catchpoles took from me last yeare at the Custom-house almost two thousand of my Books as they came from Amsterdam but when I was informed that they had cozened him of the greatest part or them and sent them to Scotland for filthy lucres sake at whose Parliament they were fold as publique as Martin Parker the Bishops champion Ballad maker Ballads are sould here at London it made me to laugh at my losse but yet for all that I have left you for a Legacie a biting whippe to lash and scourge your fat and knavish sides for to my Executor as the greatest part of my Treasure that I have to leave him have I bequeathed to him a punctuall Anatomie of some part of your matchlesse knavery villany and bloodthirstinesse with a strict Order to put it in Print with some Marginall notes to it and also to prosecute you in the greatest Court in England for a criminall and fellonious person for murthering the Kings loyall and faithfull Subjects for their innocencie and their honest reall and good indeavours for the welfare of his Kingdomes And though you have bin so observant of that wicked man that beares so great a sway in the ruling of the Kingdome of whom and his commands you have said you must be observant so that it seems if the Kings Trayterly enemies be great ones you must be a combinator with them to destroy the Kings best Subjects • yet me thinks the time is hard at hand wherein you and he both for all your wickednesse and blood-thirstinesse will receive your just and long since due deserts at Saint Tyborne if you doe not make your Feet to be worth two payre of Hands unto you as your Predecessour Harr• did before you in a former Parliament in the beginning of King CHARLES his Reigne which is the thing that I am greatly afraid of which if you doe know that I will indeavour to get Martin Parker the Papist or some other Ballad maker to send some of their rimes after you to jeare you for a Runaway But if you dare but stay by it the which I would intreat you though you now by your greatnesse tyrannize over me in my afflicted and distressed condition yet I doubt not but time is a coming wherein my innocencie and my honesty will procure me more Friends then all your base and ill gotten Gold and Silver will doe you a great part of which hath been gotten by Cussening Cheating and Robbing of the Poore and by exacting and oppressing of the Prisoners in their Fees and Chamber rents of some of whom to my own knowledge you have taken 20. shillings where 5. shillings was not your due and for Tyrannising with unheard of cruelty over others to the taking away of some of their lives and in•angering of divers others it may be for bribes given to you by their potent adversaries or else because you in revenge would plague and hamper them for complaining of your Lawlesse and bloody oppre•sions that so your cruell punishment inflicted upon them might be a terrifying example to all the rest of the Prisoners no to trouble or molest you in your in•ollerable wicked and ungodly practises but take notice that I for my part by these my lines bid defiance to you letting you understand that doe the worst you can you can doe no more unto me then the Devill did to Iob and I have by large experience found the tenderest of your mercies towards me to be cruelty and for my own particular I neither feare you nor care for you nor ever a conferate the Devils agents hath upon the earth For the Righteous are as bold as a Lyon though the wicked flee when none persues them Prov. 28. 1. And for my subsistence in my condition as I told the Prelat in my Booke called Come out of her my People which I writ when my hands were fettered together with Irons that by Faith I could live in every condition whether it were in hunger or nakednesse in want or scarcity in Pr•son or in Dungion in exile or in banishment and now I tell you that so strong is my Faith that by it I can live upon a stony and flinty Mountaine where neither Bread nor Water is to be had nor found yea so great is my grounded confidence in the Lords Goodnesse and Allmightinesse tha• I verily beleeve before I want that which is fitting for me he will make the stones and sencelesse creatures to change their natures and be serviceable in ministring to my necessities You told my Neighbour Deane when you commanded him to depart his Lodging for letting People talke with me out of his Roome that you were afraid to get a great deale of anger about my Books true it is that you• Barbaro•s and more then Pagan like cruelty made
that the Beast which ascended out of the bottomloste Pitt which is the Pope and Roman State hath his power and authority given him by the Dragon the Devill So that all the power which the Pope hath and doth exercise originally comes from the Devill If you reade also some Bookes lately set forth by the P•elates themselves and their Creatures you shall there finde that they claime their jurisdiction standing and power from the Pope Now if their power and calling be from the Pope as they themselves say it is then it must needs be from the D•vill also For the Popes power and calling is from the Devill And he cannot give a better power and calling to them then he himselfe hath and I pray Sir if the Bishop of Ca•terbury be offended at that which J spake yesterday tell him I will seale it with my bloud And if he please to send for me I will justifie it to his face and if I be not able to make it good before any noble man in the Kingdome let mee loose my life Ey but it had been a great deale better said he for thine owne particular good to have beene more sparing of thy speech at that time No Sir said I nothing at all for my life and blo•d is not deare and precious to me •o I may glorifie God and doe him any service therewith I assure thee said he I was exceedingly chidd about thee and also there were old businesses rubd up •gainst mee concerning Dr. Lai•on and Mr. Burton for that Liberty that they had Wherefore were yo• chidd fo• me said I About the Bookes said he that you threw abroade in regard you were close Prisoner and yet had those Bookes about you I would aske you one question Did you bring those Bookes to the F•eete with you or were they since brought to you by any other I beseech you Sir pardon me for revealing that said I. Then he would have knowne who they were that most resorted to me I desired I might be excused in that also Ey but you must give me an answer said hee for I must certifie the Lords thereof Then said I I pray you tell their Honours I am unwilling to tell you What were those Bookes said he that you threw abroade were they all of one sort Those that have them said I can certifie you of that I my selfe have one of them said he and have read it and I can finde no wit in it there is nothing but railing in it Sir said I I conceive you are mistaken for the Booke is all full of wit it is true this Booke which you lighted on is not so full of soliditie as other of his Bookes are but you must understand that at that time when the Dr. made that Booke hee was full of heavines and in danger of a great punishment for the Prelates had breathed out more crueltie against him for writing his Apology And at that time also he was compassed about on every side with the P•stilence Th•refore he made that Booke to make himselfe merrie But said he hee doth not write any thing in it to the purpose against the Bishops callings Sir said I I must confesse you lighted on the wo•stof the 3. And it is true there is not much soliditie and force of argument in it but only mirt• But the other two are as full of s•l•ditie as this is of mir•h What were they •f 3. so•ts said he Yes Sir that they were said I What were the other two called said he The one said I was his Answer to Sr. I•hn Ba•ks his Information The other is an Answer to some Objections that are made against that Booke which you have But if ever you reade his Latine Bookes you shall there finde soliditie enough and the wickednes and unlawfulnes of the Bishops Callings and practises set forth to the full What Latine Bookes be they said he His Flagelluw for which hee was first Censured said I What hath hee been twice Censured said he Yes said I he was Censured in the High-Commission Court for writing his Flagellum And after that he wrote his Apology and that little Booke which you have which were the cause of his Censure in the Starr-Chamb•r But hast thou any more of those Bookes said he Sir said I if I had had 20. of them more they should all have gone yesterday But hast thou any more of them now said he Sir said I I verily think• that if I should tell you I had not you would not beleeve me and therefore if you please you may search my Chamber So I must said he for the Lords have commaunded me so to doe therefore open your Trunke Sir said I it is open alreadie Search it Iohn Hawes said he So he search it and found nothing there Open the Cubbard said he So I gave the Porter the key of my Cubbard to search it and he found nothing there but my victuals Search his pocket said the Warden Indeed Sir said I there is none in them Yet he searched them and found as I said Then he searched all my Chamber over but found nothing at all Well Sir said I now you can certifie the Lords how you finde things with me But I pray Sir mu•• I still be kept close Prisoner I hope now the Lords have inflicted their Censure on me they will not still keepe me close No said hee within a little time you will be eased of it So we tooke our leaves each of other and hee went away And the next day being Fryday and a Starr-Chamber-day J hoped I should have had the Libertie of the Prison But in stead thereof newes was brought me at evening that I must be removed to the Common Goale or a worse place and that I must bee put in Irons Well for all this my God enabled me to keep my hold still and not to let my confidence goe For blessed be his name for it this newes did not in the least manner trouble me And upon Saterday morning Iohn Hawes the Porter came with the Woman that looked to mee to my Chamber to stand by her that none might speake with me till she had made my bedd and done other things for me And he told me hee was sorrie to heare such newes as he did concerning me VVhat is it said I I heare said he that the Lords have ordered that you must be put into the Wards and kept close Prisoner there and lie in irons and none must be suffered to come at you to bring you any thing but you must live upon the Poore Mans Box Sir that 's verie hard said J but the will of my God be done For mine owne part i• nothing at all troubles me For I know in whom I have beleeved and I know not one Haire of my Head shall fall to the ground without his providence And I have cast up my account alreadie what it will cost me Therefore I waigh not any thing that can be
Objections And another Booke called The vanity impiety of the old Letany that J had divers other Bookes of the said Dr. Bastwicks in Printing that Mr. Wharton had beene at the charges of Printing a Booke called A Breviat of the Bishops late proceeding and another Booke called 16. new Queries and in this his Oath hath sworne they were Printed at Rotterdam or some where else in Holland that on Iames Oldam a Turner keping Shop at Westminster hall-gate disperced divers of these bookes Now in this Oath he hath againe forsworne himselfe in a high degree for wheras he took his Oath that I had printed the Booke called The Vanitie and impiety of the old Letany I here speake it before you all that I never in all my daies did see one of them in print but I must confess I haue seen read it in written hand before the Dr. was censured as for other books of which he saith I haue diverse in printing To that I answer that for mine owne perticuler I never read nor saw any of the Drs. Bookes but the forenamed foure in English and one little thing more of about two sheetes of paper which is annexed to the Vanity of the Old Letany And as for his Lattine Bookes J never saw any but two Namely his Flag•llum for which he was first censured in the High Commission Court and his Apologeticus which were both in print long before J knew the Dr. But it is true there is a second edition of his Flagellum but that was at the presse aboue two yeares agoe namly Anno 1634. And some of this impression was in England before J came out of Holland And these are the maine things for which I was Censured and Condemned Being two Oaths in which the said Chillington hath palpably forsworne himselfe And if hee had not forsworne himselfe Yet by the law as I am given to vnderstand I might have excepted against him being a guilty person himselfe and a Prisoner and did that which hee did against •ee for pvrchasing his owne liberty which he hath by such Iudasly meanes gott and obtained Who is also knowne to bee a lying fellow as J told the Lords I was able to proue and make good But besides all this there was an inquisition-Oath-tendered vnto mee which J refused to take on foure severall daies the summe of which Oath is thus much You shall sweare that you shall make true answer to all things that shall be asked of you So helpe you God Now this Oath I refused as a sinfull and vnlawfull Oath it being the High-Commission Oath with which the Prelates euer haue and still do so butcherly torment afflict and vndoe the deare Saints and Servants of God It is also an Oath against the Law of the Land As Mr. Nicholas Fuller in his Argument doth proue And olso it is expressly against the Petition of Right an Act of Parlament Enacted in the second yeare of our King Againe it is absolutely against the Law of God for that law requires noe man to accuse himselfe but if any thing be laid to his charge there must come two or three witnesses at the least to proue it It is also against the practise of Christ himselfe who in all his examinations before the High Priest would not accuse himselfe but vpon their demands returned this answer Why aske yea mee go to them that heard mee With all this Oath is against the uery law of nature for nature is alwaies a preserver of it selfe and not a distroyer But if a man takes this wicked Oath he distroyes and vndoes himselfe as daily experience doth witnesse Nay it is worse then the Law of the Heathen Romans as we may reade Act. 25. 16. For when Paull stood before the Pagan Governours and the Iews required Iudgement against him the Governour replyed it is not the manner of the Romans to condemne any man before his accusers hee were brought face to face to justify their accusation But for my owne part if I had beene proceeded against by a Bill J would haue answered justified all that they coulde have proved against me by the strength of my God would have sealed whatsoever I have don with my bloud for I am privy to mine own actions my conscience beares me witnes that I have laboured ever since the Lord in mercy made the riches of his grace known to my Soule to keep a good conscience and to walke inoffensably both towards God man But as for that Oath that was put unto me I did refuse to take it as a sinfull and unlawfull Oath by the strength of my God enabling me I wil never take it though I be pu•d in peices with wilde horses as the ancient Chritians were by the bloudy Tirants in the Primitive Church neither shall I thinke that man a faithfull Subject of Christs Kingdome that shall at any time hereafter take it seeing the wickednes of it hath been so apparently laid open by so many for the refusall wherof many doe suffer cruell persecution to this day Thus have I as briefly as I could declared unto you the whole cause of my standing here this day I being upon these gr•unds censured by the Lords at the Starr-chamber on the last Court day o• the last tearme to pay 500. pÅ. to the King and to receive the punishment which with rejoicing I haue undergon vnto whose censure I do with willingnes cheerefulnes submit my selfe But seeing I now stand here at this present I intend the Lord assisting me with his power and guiding me by his spirit to declare my minde unto you I haue nothing to say to any mans person and therefore will not meddle with that Onlie the things that I have to say in the first place are concerning the Bishops their calling They challeng their callings •o be Iure Divino for the oppugning of which those three renovvned living marters of the Lord Dr. Bastwick M. Burton M. Prinne did suffer in this place and they have sufficientlie proved that their Calling is not from God which men I love and honour and doe perswade my selfe their soules are deere and precious in the sight of God though they were so cruellie and butcherlie dealt with by the Prelates and as for Mr. Burton and Mr. Prynne they are worthie and learned men but yet did not in manie things write so fullie as the Dr. did who hath sufficientlie plentifullie set forth the wickednes both of the Prelates themselves of their callings as you may reade in his Bookes that they are not Iure Divino which noble and reverend Dr. I love with my Soule and as he is a man that stands for the truth and Glorie of God my verie life and hart blood I will lay downe for his honour and the maintaining of his cause for which he Suffered it being Gods cause As for the Bishops they vsed in former times to challeng their
himselfe neither would they condemne him before his accusers and he were brought face to face to justifie and fully to proue their accusation But the Lords haue not d•alt so with m• for my accusers and I were neuer brought face to face to justi••e their accu•ati•n against m• it is true two false Oathes were Sworne against mee and I was therevpon condemned and because I would not accuse my selfe It is true said hee it was soe with Paul but the Lawes of this Land are otherwise then their Lawes were in those dayes Then said I they are vvorse and more cruell then the Lawes of the Pagans and Heathen Romans were whoe would condemne no man without wittnesses and they should be brought face to face to justifie their accusation And so hee went away I prepared my selfe for the Pillary to which J went with a joyfull courage and when I was vpon i• I made obeysance to the Lords some of them as J suppose looking out at the Sarr-Chamber-window towards mee And so I putt my neck into the hole which beeing a great deale to low for me it was v•ry painfull to me in regard of the continuance of time that I stood on the Pillary which was a bout two houres my back also being very sore and the Sunne shining exceeding hot And the Topstaffe man not suffering mee to keepe on my hat to defend my head from the heat of the Sunne So that I stood there in great paine Yet through the strength of my God I vnderwent it with courage to the very last minute And lifting vp my heart and spirit vnto my God While I was thus standing on the Pillary J craued his Powerfull assistance with the spirit of wisdome and courage that I might open my mouth with boldnesse and speake those things that might make for his greatest glory and the good of his people and soe casting my eyes on the multitude I beganne to speake after this manner My Christean B•ethren to all you that loue the Lord Iesus Christ and desire that hee should raigne and rule in your hearts and liues to you especially and to as many as heare me this day I direct my speech J stand here in the place of ignominy and shame Yet to mee it is not so but I owne and imbrace it as the Wellcome Crosse of Christ And as a badge of my Christian Profession I haue been already whipt from the Fleet to this place by vertue of a Censure from the Honourable Lords of the Starr Chamber hereunto The Cause of my Censure I shall declare unto you as briefly as I canne The Lord by his speciall hand of prouidence so ordered it that Not long agoe I was in Holland Where I was like to haue settled my selfe in a Course of trading that might haue brought me in a - pretty large portion of earthlie things after which my heart did too much runne but the Lord hauing a better portion in store for mee and more durable riches to bestow vpon my soule By the same hand of providence brought me back a gaine And cast me into easie affliction that there by I might be weaned from the world and see the vanitie and emptines of all things therein And he hath now pitched my soule vpon such an object of beautie amiablenessc excelencie as is as permanent and endurable as eternitie it selfe Namely the personall excelencie of the Lord Iesus Christ the sweetnesse of whose presence no affliction can ever be able to wrest out of my soule Now while J was in Holland it seemes ther were divers Bookes of that Noble and Renowned Dr. Iohn Bastwicks sent into England which came to the hands of one Edmond Chillington for the sending over which I was taken and apprehended the plot being before laid by one Iohn Chilliburne whom I supposed tooke to be my friend servant to my old fellow souldier Mr. Iohn Wharton living in Bow-lane after this manner I walking in the Street with the said Iohn Chilliburne was taken by the Pursevant and his men the said Iohn as I verily beleeve hauing given direction to them where to stand and he himselfe was the third man that laid hands on me to hold mee Now at my Censure before the Lords I there declared vpon the word of a Christian that I sent not over those Bookes neither did I know the Shipp that brought them nor any of the men that belonged to the Shipp nor to my knowledge did I ever see either Shipp or any appertaining to it in all my dayes Besides this I was accused at my examination before the Kings Atturny at his Chamber by the said Edmond Chillington Button Seller •iving in Canon street neere Abchurch Lane and late Prisoner in Bridewell Newgate for printing 10. or 12. thousand Bookes in Holland and that J would haue printed the Vnmasking the mistery of iniquitie if I could haue gott a true Copie of it and that I had a Chamber in Mr. Iohn Foot 's house at Delfe where hee thinkes the bookes were kept Now here I declare before you all vpon the word of a suffering Christian that hee might haue as well accused mee of printing ahundred thousand bookes and the on been as true as the other And for the printing the Vnmasking the Mistery of Iniquity vpon the word of an honest man I never •aw nor to my knowledge heard of the Booke till I came back againe into England And for my having a Chamber in Mr. Iohn Foot 's house at Delfe where he thinkes the Bookes were kept J was soe farre from having a Chamber there as I never lay in his house but twice or thrice at the most and upon the last Friday of the last Tearme I was brought to the Star-Chamber Barre where before mee was read the said Edmond Chillingtons Affidavit vpon Oath against Mr. Iohn Wharton and my selfe The Summe of which Oath was That hee and I had Printed at Rotterdam in Holland Dr. Bastwicks Answer and his Letany with divers other scandalous Bookes Now here againe I speake it in the presence of God all you that heare mee that Mr. Wharton and I never joyned together in printing either these or any other Bookes whatsoever Neither did I receive any mony from him toward the printing any Withall in his first Oath hee peremtorilie swore that wee had printed them at Rotterdam Vnto which I likewise say That hee hath in this particular forsworne himselfe for my owne part I never in all my daies either printed or caused to be printed either for my selfe or Mr. Wharton any Bookes at Rotterdam Neither did I come into any Printing house there all the time I was in the Citty And then vpon the Twe•day after he swore against both of us againe The summe of which Oaths was that I had confessed to him which is most false that I had Printed Dr. Bastwicks Answer to S• Iohn Banks his Information and his Letany another Booke called Certaine answers to certaine