least I should offer both violence and wrong with my vnskilfull pensil to limme out more largely this most beautifull and well proportioned Image of a Princes vertuous mynd But I dare say which I referre to the best judgement of Your Majestie ablest to judge of Your owne noble sayings it is an exquisite Aphorisme or Abstract of that divine Rule prescribed to Kings by the Lord and Iudge of Kings It shall be when the King sitteth vpon the throne of his Kingdome that he shall write him h copy of this Law in a Booke out of that which is before the Priests and Leuites and it shall bee with him and he shall read therein all the dayes of his life that hee may learne to serue the Lord his God to keepe all the words of this Law and these Statutes to doe them that his heart be not lift vp aboue his brethren and that hee turne not aside from the Commandement to the right hand or to the left to the end that he may prolong his dayes in his Kingdome hee and his children in the midst of Israell Now what is the summe of all this but Honesty is the best Pollicy From this Root to wit Honesty the heathen deriued all the branches of vertue As those foure Cardinall vertues Prudence Justice Fortitude and Temperance the subiect of those three bookes of Offices Tully draweth from the force and nature of Honestie as himselfe expresseth And those foure also Iethro Moses father in law in his direction to his Sonne requireth to bee in all Magistrates saying Thou shalt prouide out of all the people men of Courage such as feare God men of truth and hating Couetousnesse Still the summe totall is Honestie is the best Policy Thus neede wee goe no further then Your Maiesty to learne the rule of all good policy whereof Honestie is the ground as containing all duties both to God and man in Prince or people Thus haue I though slenderly for the which I most humbly craue Your Maiesties generall pardon discharged my faithfull dutie in discovering so great a danger towards Your Maiestie It pertaines to the wisdome of Your Maiestie to provide speedy meanes for the prevention that Your Kingdomes may not become a prey to the enemie nor Your sacred Person exposed to the perill of beeing forsaken by Your owne Subiects whom the Pope instigateth by the authority of his Bull and by the incessant industrie of his Iesuites to stand closse to his Holinesse against Your Maiestie when occasion serveth His Breeue also mentioneth what anxious prayers the Church of Rome now maketh for hir Catholicke Sonnes in England There is some waighty cause in hand sure Wee poore Ministers hope that Your Maiestie will bee pleased to call a generall Fast to frustrate all Romes prayers Wee haue all fared the better for the last publicke Fast which Your Maiestie proclaimed for the averting of vnseasonable weather against the last harvest And it is memorable that on the same day wherein the Fast was kept generally over all England began the heavens to cleare vp their clowdy countenance and so continued till they had brought vs in a plentifull harvest in stead of a feared famine Not that wee place any vertue in a Fast but because a Fast with humble prayer preuaileth much with God not onely as being commanded by him and hauing a promise annexed but for the necessity of it to bee joyned with true repentance and reformation not onely of mens manners and all raigning sinnes publicke and private but also of the worship of God being purged from all the pollutions of Idolatry and superstition which are an abomination in Gods sight and especially a clearing the Coast of all Romish Iesuites and Idolatrous Priests whose religion is treason against Your Majesty and God himselfe When the good King Hezechiah had received the blasphemous letter of Senacherib King of Assyria he went into the Temple of the Lord humbled himselfe and prayed spreading the Letter for the Lord to read and revenge all the blasphemies contained in it both against God and the King perswading his subjects to defection from him But loe here a letter sent into England from the King of the spirituall Babylon full of most impious blasphemies against Your Maiesty most Antichristianly vsurping a power over Your subiects charging them to disavowe their fidelity vnto Your Maiesty shall not this iustly provoke Your Maiesty with Hezechiah to go into the Lords Temple and there publickly intreat the Lord to take revenge on such blasphemies and to turne the mischiefe which Rome and her confederates now intend and machinate against Your Person and Crowne vpon their owne head as Ezechias obtained of the Lord yea Your Maiestie thus doing all Gods faithfull Ministers as so many Esayes to King Ezechiah as so many Azariahs to King Asa dare promise Your Maiestie both certaine victory ouer Your enemies and a constant peace with prosperity while You constantly follow the worthy examples of those religious Kings of Juda which grace the Lord giue vnto Your Maiestie in abundance Amen Your Maiesties most loyall subiect though vnworthy servant HENRY BVRTON TO THE LORD DVKE OF BVCKINGHAM his Grace Right Honorable THE Dutifull zeale I beare to the safety of my dread Soueraigne and deare Country inforceth mee otherwise loth to put my finger into the fire in the second place to sollicite Your Grace to bee the more carefull to preuent the danger When King Saul and Abner with the whole guard were in a dead sleepe so that Dauid had the opportunity to take away the Kings speare and Pot of water by him onely to testifie his fidelity to the King hee called alowd to Abner and awakening him said Art not thou a valiant man and who is like to thee in Israell wherefore hast thou not kept thy Lord the King surely yee are worthy to dye c. But neither can I say so altogether nor neede I cry so loud to your Grace vnlesse these many businesses which will scarce suffer you to sleepe so soundly as did Abner will neither suffer such a dwarfe as my selfe easily to bee heard But speaking for the King I hope I shall not be denied Audience Nor are they good subiects persecuted as Dauid of whom the King is in danger but such as though they haue small cause to complaine of persecution yet are instigated to deny vnto their Soueraigne that loyalty and Allegiance which all true subiects owe vnto their lawfull Prince Doth not your Grace erect your most earnest attention to this But who dare thus instigate the Kings subiects against him No lesse then the Pope and that by a Breeue or Bull lately sent ouer into England wherein he straitly chargeth his Catholique Sonnes as hee termes them vpon no termes to take the Oath of fidelity to the King inciting and animating them as against their Enemy as the Breeue can testify Nor had I I confesse beene thus bold to meddle in such a matter if
if his Master had conquered England in 88. the English should haue had the fauour to be transported to digge in his Indian Mines and by the way sâ—w you vp close in the old Romaine Culleus a leather sack the ancient reward of 〈◊〉 casting you into the Sea as vnworthy to touch any Element that would vnnaturally betray that sweet Country wherein you first receiued your Being and breath The Spaniard 〈◊〉 his lesson ad vnguem Amo proditionem odi Proditorem I loue the Treason but hate the Traytor Or say that necessity may inforce him for the present to allow you to breath still in England to be his Drudges and Vassals as it was with 〈◊〉 at the Captiuity in Babilon to till the ground for him to carry him in prouision for the warres in his conquest of the rest of Christendome and to feed his hungry pround Spaniards sucking the sweet of your swâ—â—t continually yet 〈◊〉 whither you will account this a condign recompense for such a foule treason yea consider also what yee haue now purchased in comparison of that which yee were before when yee liued like free English men euery man vnder his owne Vine and vnder his owne Figtree But why do I so much as suppose or imagine the least probabilitie of the comming to passe of any such prodigious 〈◊〉 God forbid I assure my selfe none of you will euer 〈◊〉 such vnnatural Miscreants to betray your natiue Country to the Spaniard neither if any would be so mad will our good God ever forsake this his inheritance wherein he hath so many thousands of his faithfull and vowed seruants who haue not bowed the knee to Bâ—â—l or kissed 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 And you cannot but know so much as little acquaintance as is allowed 〈◊〉 to haue with the Scriptures that so long as but one 〈◊〉 was in wicked Sodome euen the power of the Omnipotent himselfe was suspended from taking reuenge vpon it till Lot was safely provided fir and if but one righteous had beene found in the Citie God had spared it for their sakes Therefore neuer let any Romish or Spanish hopes feed themselues with such a vaine conceit of Englands Conquest vnlesse the conniuence at your innumerable 〈◊〉 Idols may indanger 〈…〉 place your chiefe confidence 〈…〉 more zealous then wise and 〈…〉 alleadge the Catholicke cause and the libertie of conscience as preponderating all other mischiefes the freedome of Religion and of the soule being to be preferred before the thraldome of the body yea and the betraying of your earthly Country not to be forborne for the meriting of an heauenly this indeed may seeme a waighty point and therefore not vnworthy altogether in this place of our deepest considerations for the discussing of such a difficulty To begin then at the head-spring of this our discourse it is no newes vnto you that the Pope of late hath sent his Bull or Brieue into England recommended to all his Catholicke sonnes of England wherein he chargeth you by no meanes to take the Oath of Allegeance or fidelity to your King but rather that you should account him for your Enemy the summe is that you should bee armed with the spirit of rebellion against your King and Country when occasion of the Catholicks cause should serue to show your valour in the open field as ye may all more plainely see in this briefâ— vnfolding of the Brieue How to charge subiects to disauow their fidelity to their Prince by what authority who hath such power ouer men to dispense to dissolue to absolue from the bonds of duty and obedience which naturall subiects owe to their King By what lawe or example God in his word hath taught the contrary But Christ Vicar hath this power but Christ practised the contrary But the Apostolicke successour of Peter may doe it but Peter Paul both preached practised the contrary so all the Patriarckes and Prophets Yet Christs Vicar Peters successor are titles not lightly to be regarded to which is added also Head of the Church Oracle of the world to whom is committed all power in heauen and earth who cannot erre to whom all must be subiect vnder paine of damnation and much more then I can tell Huge titles enough to intoxicate and infatuate silly and simple soules yea and to dazzle the eyes euen of the acutest wits with their glorious luster where they are attended or entertained but with credulity But if there be any truth at all in these things concerning the Pope whence in the name of God hath he these titles From what ground of truth He dare plead from Scripture From Scripture Hold you there we desire no better euidence or vmpire in this cause you will graunt then that the Scripture is of authority in it selfe to challenge our faith to rest vpon it as a most sure rule Yes but with condition as you are taught if it haue authority from the Church From what Church What Church Of Rome From whose mouth who must pronounce the verdict The Pope forsooth if so then the Popes power is not built primarily vpon the Scriptures but vpon himselfe and so he is Iudge in his owne cause The Pope belike lendeth authority to the Scriptures and they againe repay him with his owne minted coyne by confirming his supremacy This is pretty Iust as Boniface confirmed Phocas in his vsurped Empire and Phocas reciprocally settled him in his Papall supremacy Or as the Pope makes Saints who by that meanes receiuing a power and merit are by their Canonization qualified to become intercessors for their Canonizer his Holinesse What a coniuration-circle is here but pitch we vpon the center If the Pope giue the authority to the Scriptures prescribing and limiting them their sence whence then hath the Pope this authority From Christ as his Vicar How proues he that From Scripture But what authority hath the Scripture for this till first it receiue it from the Popes brest Come come let such popish jugglings impose vpon fooles and such turn-sicke windings cause the braines of young children to runne round and to conceit that the whole earth runnes round when it standeth still vnmoued But let men be guided by reason vnderstanding iudgement He that denyeth principles is to be detested not disputed with It is a Principle in Divinity that the Scripture is and euer hath beene the rule of Faith Yes say your Pontificians a Partiall rule but not Totall the vnwritten word is to be added What is that Apostolicke traditions Apostolicke That sounds well Well let not Apostolicke Traditions crosse Apostolicke writings and haue with you But otherwise looke not that your penny of Traditions should passe for current siluer with vs for waight and purenesse as the Scriptures in point of rule of Faith for all the Pope stampeth them with the Image and Superscription of Apostolicke Abrahams wells are now digged so deepe so large as not all your Philistian rubbidge can stop them vp not Apostolicke not all Romes holy
THe Triple crowned Vicar horn'd Lamb-like Pretends Christs soveraine pow'r ov'r Kings and States These hornes but borrow'd proue Rammes hornes to strikâ— Even Christ himselfe ruling in Potentates Strong spells that come in Iesus name and finde Blind credulous zeale to captivate the minde Who might this Monster bee his speech bewrayes T is like the Dragon's who to Christ durst say All worldly power is myne I rule I rayse Whom pleaseth mee and my behests obey Such the Popes voyce such is his practise too Kings he vnkings that will not kisse his shooe How comes it then that sith the Papall power Is from the Dragon all men doe not see The Pope is Antichrist to overâ—ower All that is called God By reason hee Makes showes by Lambes hornes seeming innocence His power is from divine Omnipotence His Triple-crowne three Kingdomes notes what three Pope reckons fower three are controversorie Heaven hee despaires for surety Earth must be His heaven the while vsurpt tho Purgatorie He holds by blind beleife but never any Question'd the fowrth due to him and his Meiny Loe vnderneath a Romish Prelate placed With teh Popes Bull Romes Catholicks absolving From th' Oath of their Allegiance but not imbraced By th'wiser truer English most resolving Clossely to cleaue vnto their soveraine head Least forraine tyranny might on them tread The noble Charles with sword and scepter armed Ready to'ffend his foes defend his friends Victorious proues and Papall charmes vncharmed While royall throne justice and truth defends How can that state but vndivided stand In spite of foes where loue and lawes command THE BAITING OF THE POPES BVLL Or An vnmasking of the Mystery of iniquity folded vp in a most pernitious Breeue or Bull sent from the Pope lately into England to cawse a Rent therein for his Reentry With an advertisement to the Kings seduced subiects By H. B. My Son feare the Lord the King meddle not with them that are giuen to chang Pro. 24. 21. Bernard ser 3. in dedicatione Ecclesiae â—avendum ne quis pusillanimitate deiectus fugias a munitione vbi trepidaus timore vbi non est â—imor vbi vero summum periculum insana temeritate securus Imprinted at LONDON by W. I. for MICHAELL SPARKE 1627. TO THE HIGH AND MIGHTY PRINCE CHARLES BY THE GRACE of God King of Great Britaine France and Ireland Defender of the Faith c. Dread Soveraigne I ACCOVNT it my greatest misery that being to present Your Maiestie with a busines of such consequence so neerelie concerning the safety of Your sacred Person and Crowne I am inforced to adventure so rich a fraight in so brittle a barke so ticklish to be overturned with the least disgust or blast of displeasure wherein yet I should bee happy if miscarying herein I might but perish alone Mine owne experience might be sufficient to teach me to feare For if the noble Queene Hester so gracious in the Kings eyes yet feared to hazard her person into the Presence vncalled how much more a poore Out-cast yet betweene feare of the yron law and hope of the golden scepter shee pressed in with this resolution And if I perish I perish chusing death rather then not to discharge the duty she owed to Gods people now destinated and doomed to destruction Only this is my comfort looke what advantage that excellent Queene had of my despicable person as a Petitioner no lesse haue I of her in regard of the royall Person petitioned Shee had to deale with a heathen King the Captiuer of Gods people and who had already consigned their Massacre and that by a Decree irrevocable according to the Law of the Medes and Persians though a it appeared without his speciall knowledge Haman hauing abused the Kings hand and seale to his owne wicked purposes as chap. 5. 7. besides which might be not the least discouragement she was to passe the Pikes of a most tyranni all and vnkingly law forbidding any vpon paine of death to enter into the Kings presence vncalled as Hester now had beene for 30. dayes Haman in the meane time hauing the onely Monopoly of the Kings care who like the vast lunary body eclipsed the beames of his favour especially from Gods owne people whose cause the while lay a bleeding and became the more desperate through the inaccessiblenesse of intercessors to moue Kingly compassion vpon their iust complaints such were the difficulties which the noble Hester was to incounter with yet poore I liue vnder a more benigne Climate vnder a Christian Prince a Protector of Gods people Defender of the faith one whose royall presence is not by any seuere law locked vp from the free accesse of the poorest sutors whose naturall disposition also like the Sunne vneclipsed is freely to impart light and heate to the inferiour Creatures yea whos 's owne deare Person and crowne is imbarked in the same adventure of Gods people and His to reioyce or suffer together all these giuing mee incouragement and as it were reaching forth the goldeÌ„ scepter while I humbly present to Your sacred Maiesty the dangerous condition wherin the royal scepter it selfe by all the prognosticating signes of a Papall Bull or Breeue lately come into England is like without speedy preueÌ„tiues to be involved Dauid now desolate and disconsolate about Ziglag was willing to harken to a poore starueling Amalekite lad giuing him intelligence where his enemies were I acknowledge my selfe vnworthy to doe Your Maiesty the least seruise and I could haue wished this Task rather to any other yet the indeleble character of my fidelity so often reimprinted in my heart by sacred Oath in Your Highnesse service besides the habituall affection of a loyall subiect deeply ingaged me rather then it should be vndone in this addressement And God forbid that by ouercautelous or rather cowardly silence I should contract the guilt of Misprison of no lesse then high treason against Your Maiesties Crowne and Scepter Yea otherwise I should be also vngratefull to God who of late hath mercifully if not miraculouslie preserued my life from a Iesuited Assassin The causes with the Circumstances I here omit to trouble Your Maiestie withall Onely I take occasion to mention it as not altogether vnworthy of Your Maiesties knowledge For what assured confidence may not Your Maiestie haue in the protection of that God whose eyes runne to and fro throughout the whole earth to shew himselfe strong in the behalfe of them whose heart is perfect toward him If his diuine vigilant eye watcheth ouer the life of the poorest yet faithfull Ministers to deliuer them euen in the midst of danger how much more ouer the more precious persons of Kings and Princes while as Gods Vicegerents they faithfully and diligently execute his will by iustice and iudgement It is for the Infidell Virginians for feare of the Devil to adore and please him with their gifts neglecting God because he is good but faithfull Christians doe by the true feare and worship
clowd breake forth into a tempest vpon our heades Wee as silly birds like the Done without heart sit and looke on till the fowler spread his net ouer vs or like the foolish fish which beaking her selfe neere the banke suffereth the fisher to tickle and handle her lightly till at length hee gripes her fast and flings her on the Land shall wee thus suffer Romes Fishers to play and dally with vs till by their smooth flatteries they haue with a suddaine vnexpected jerke cast vs out of our fresh pleasant riuers that they may presently vnbowell vs and put vs into their hotte boyling panne and so deuour vs shall thus the theife bee so vigilant rising by night to kill men and shall not honest men awake to preserue themselues Hell no doubt enlargeth her mouth as waiting for the euent of her Sonnes deepe designes and machinations that shee may deuoure such a precious morsell as England is This Hell is Rome or rather the Popes Pallace there from whence through the Gate-Portusa a faire way leadeth downe to a place called the valley of Hell It is a pregnant embleme of the Papall state But the Pope here by his very mentioning of Hells mouth enlarging it selfe doth from hence fetch fire to enflame his sonnes with a more violent ardour of hostilitye telling them that they ought therefore to bee armed with the inuincible Buckler of a good resolution But that he should withall impute vnto vs mortall crueltie thirsting after the blood of Martyrs we cannot choose but take it for a fine frumpe or rather for the Sardenian laughter a most bitter taunt Wee cruell vnlesse by shewing mercy to the Popes white sonnes wee are therein most cruell to our owne selues and so may prooue our selues to bee the Martyrs whose blood that purple whore so thirsteth after Or doe we thirst after the blood of Martyrs doth the Pope imagine so because England neuer since Queene Maries dayes so much as tasted any such like drinke that now after so long abstinence it should bee so thirsty but what Martyrs if he meane Romish rebels traitors murtherers factious seducers and the like cannot our just lawes which at first by such villanies were forced to bee made and now by the like your Romish attempts are a fresh justly enough prouoked to bee executed punish such miscreants but you must charge vs with mortall cruelty as thirsting after the blood of Martyrs such Martyrs of yours as justly suffered death for their many treacheries and treasons in that good Queene ELIZABETHS raigne against her Royall person Crowne and Realme farre vnlike those Martyrs of Christ which suffered fire and faggot in Queene MARIES dayes for the Gospells sake Or your late Martyrs Garnet Catesby Piercy Digby Tressam the two Winters the two Wrighâ—â—â— Rookwoad Grant Koyes and Faux those hellish Conspiratours in the Gunpowder-treason These be your Martyrs yet call yee vs cruell for executing but justice vpon such malefactors Wee know you pretend you exclaime you suffer for religion and therefore Martyrs So did the Donatists in Saint augustines time who beeing justly punished by Imperiall Lawes for maintaining their schismaticall factions and se ducements complayned they suffered Martyrdome whom Saint Augustine reproueth Hoc putant esse signum c. The Donatists account this to be the marke of a true Christian if hee doe not practise but suffer persecution But let them saith hee aske of the Apostle what Church Sara figured when she persecuted her bondmaid Surely in Sara the Apostle saith that the heauenly Ierusalem to witt the true Church of God was figured which afflicted the handmaid Si autem melius discutiamus c. And if wee better discusse the matter the handmaid did more persecute Sara by her insulting then Sarab her by hampering for Hagar did iniurie her Mistresse Sara disciplined her for her pride A pregnant parallell to this purpose Hee that is a Seruant that ought to bee a dutifull and peaceable subject playeth the insolent rebell denyeth obedience and subjection to his rightfull Soueraigne the Soueraigne by just Lawes chastiseth such a rebell whether of these is the Persecutor whether of these is the Martyr for nor paena sed causa facit Martyrem not the punishment but the cause maketh the Martyr But Pontificians suffer for Religion for what Religion not that of Christ but for that which is flat rebellion against Christ and his Word which streightly commandeth loyalty and subjection to Princes and Magistrates In that sense Popish Traytors may be said to suffer for Religion such a Religion which is so combined with rebellion that they can neither bee diuided nor yet distinguished so that not vnfitly in this place so much doth the Pope recommend and mention his Martyrs in this Breeus may wee rancke them with those Heretiques called Martyriam whom Saint Augustine joyneth with the Satamani in his 57. cap. de Haeres These Martyriani were so called for honouring one of their sect put to death by Luppieianus a Generall as a Martyr of God and Christian faith with these consented the Satanici or Satiniant who worshipped Satan as the Moderator of all their actions whose manners Saint Iude describeth These also were consociated with the Euchitae who despising labour were all for praying from whom the whole rabble of Monkes deriue their Order But how farre the Pontificians symbolize with these let their owne doctrines and practises witnesse But howsoeuer the great Vulcan of Rome heere plyeth his Forge hee beates while the Iron is hotte to frame a compleate Armour for his Sonnes and an inuincible buckler of a good resolution concluding this clause with a rhetoricall gradation that neither the prison the racke nor death it selfe should daunt them But when you Pontificians beginne to call to arme against vs your pretended enemies is it not high time for vs to leaue our dallying and in good earnest to buckle on our armour against your intended mischeifes It followeth Among the brittish rockes of their shipwracke religion Christs crosse hath beene a planke which hath brought you into the Hauen of your desire This Crosse you must embrace by the vertue whereof the bitternesse of punnishments is sweetned Answer IF the Pope heere did rightly apply Christs Crosse in that sense whereof the Scriptures spake namely as it is taken for the conformable sufferings of Christs members then might wee of the Church of England take vp this speach and say that by the Crosse of persecution in Queene MARIES dayes wee did swimme from the shipwrake to the shoare in Queene ELIZABETHS time the blood of Martyrs in that time being the seede whereof this our Church by the gracious dew of heauen and plentifull showers of preaching is sprung vp and increased to a most fruitfull harvest and other shipwrake religion wee knowe none but your Pontifician Religion which is a totall apostacie from the faith of Christ wherein you haue too many confederates euery where Your owne Apostate Marcus