faithfull servant I shall not neede I hope in this my exceeding great weaknesse hauing gone alreadie beyond my present strength in a halfe blinde condition to write these lines my selfe without Inke unto you being aboue measure pressed in my spirit to do it inregard I am so exceeding tormented with bodilie Paine especially in my head by reason of my long closenesse and the crueltie that I under went in the daie of my publicke suffering that my soule is not able to containe it selfe in silence any longer seast I become guiltie of my owne blood To laie down any more arguments vnto you but desire you to read two late printed bookes the one is called The Beast is Wounded Or the Scots Newes and put forth by Iohu Bastwicks Younger Brother [a] It is pitty that young Bastwick puts not forth more bookes but it may be he hopes their ruin is at hand in that regard thinkes it not necessary to write the other is Called A Light for the ignorant And in them you shal find your dutie punctually laid down how to detest the wicked Lordlie Bb. as the Divel himself whose officers they are with all lawfull power to keep assist those that groan under their tirannie in a lawful right waie seeke deliuerance from them So remembring my brotherly loue vnto you and returning my humblest thankes vnto you for your loue alreadie manifested vnto mee and bestowed vpon mee for which the Lord hath a recompence in store My soule now lying a bleeding before my God (b) That which giues us case to think that their cursed Kingdome is comming down It is in regard of the many effectuall prayers which are dayly put up to God against them and it is obserued how the Lord doth in a speciall manner now moue the harts of his Children this way to seek him as if he meant to prepare away by their prayers for to bring in his judgments upon the Kingdom of the Beast earnestlie and uncessantlie crying vnto him with manie teares proceeding from a too too much burdened and wounded spirit and his Sion and the downfall of all Gods enimies which he for his mercies sake hasten and accomplish Now vnto Iehovah the Lord of Hosts and our faithfull and powerfull God I committ and commend you rest From the Fleete my refining furnace in which though my soule thriue in Godlinesse yet my bodie and blood is almost spent This present Friday being one of the Bishops idoll-Idoll-daies commonly called St. thomas-Thomas-day December 20. Anno. 1638. Your faithfull courraigious Brother in great tribulation for the purity of the truth of Christ and publique bearing witnesse theretoo JOHN LILBVRNE Etatis suae 22. The fore-mentioned Petition followes To the Right Honourable the Lords and others of his Majestyes most Honourable privie Councill The humble Petition of IOHN LILBVRNE Close prisoner in the Common Jayle in the Fleete HVmbly sheweth that your Petitioner hath beene about ten moneths close prisoner the greatest part whereof hath been in the wards of the Fleete where hee hath beene so closely kept that no friends haue beene suffered to come at him to reliefe him to speake with him And alsoe for a great time together hath layen in letters of Iron vpon both handes and legs and so it hath pleased God inregard of the exceeding greatnesse of his sore punishment and misery which he hath layen under to bring bodily weaknesse upon him and a heavy and dangerous sicknesse which he hath laid many moneths together which hath brought him many times even to deaths doore which yet with weaknesse and patience hee hath undergone though hee rather hath desired to haue chosen present death then to haue felt the constant bitternes of those bodily torments paines which in this miserable condition he hath groned vnder Now forasmuch as your petitioner hath in all humble manner besought his Majesty and your Honours for a little liberty to take some aire for the preseruation of his life but no answere could he receiue being now out of all hopes to obtaine his humble and reasonable request yet remaines as close as ever in which regard he hath continued very weake and in exceeding much bodily paine and misery being forced in this his weaknes to keepe the coldnesse of his Irons from his Tender flesh to lye for a long time together in his bed in stockings and bootes which sicknes in regard of the greatnes and long continuance of it and being forced to a constant course of Physick and to keepe a dyet of Phisicall things to keepe life in his body which hath beene extraordinary chargeable to him and hath exhausted and spent all his estate and being from the first beginning unto this day forsaken by his kindred and friends and left to the world Hee is therefore forced in regard of want of meanes to keepe life substain nature in this his sicknes To Petition most humbly to your honours that out of compassion to him in his great distresse who suffers for his conscience sake in which he is like to perish to grant him a competent allowance to preserue life that he may not dye for want of food And as in duty bound shall ever pray FINIS
THE POORE MANS CRY Wherein Is shevved the present miserable estate of mee IOHN LILBVRNE Close prisoner in the Fleete ALSO An humble Petition to his Maiesties Honorable privy Councill for meantenance that I famish not Pro. 21.13 Who so stoppeth his eares at the cry of the poore he also himselfe shall cry and not be heard Published by a backe friend of the English Popish Prelates 1639. Courteous Reader IT is not without the special wisdome of God to set forth the kingdome of Antichrist vnder the name title of a Beast For looke as Beasts do exercise all kinde of cruelty and no favour is to be expected from them so it is with the inhuman Prelates their delight is only in the blood of the Saints and as for Pittie Compassion Charritie c. there is no more in them then in Dogs I could giue many instances * Witnes lately their offering of two hundred pounds to one in London to betray his friend into their bloody hands It seemes there is now some scarsity among these Wolues that they will giue soe much monie for one poore sheep of their beast-like doings this way but it needs not considering how the same is already knowne vnto all men in all places Besides in this short Relation thou shalt haue as much proued as I do here affirme of them namely that they are without naturall affections inhumane barberous Such as Please not God and are contrarie to all men 1 Thess 2.15 fulfilling herein as did Iudas the Prophesies recorded of thē in the Revelation viz. to be Serpents Scorpions and the Spirits of Divels making warre against the Saints and to overcome them The consideration of whose cruelty is to advertise euery faithfull man to looke to it that he well prepare himselfe to fight with these Beasts that so whensoever the Lord shall call him to warree this way he may by the power of the Lambe overcome and possesse the Crowne of life Thy exiled friend and namelesse Country-man To all the people of God that loue the Lord Iesus Christ in truth and sincerity and desire the vvelfare and prosperity of his poore afflicted Saints Seruants DEarely beloued Brethren and fellow heires of the same Kingdome and Crowne of Glory with mee I am at this present constrained to declare vnto (a) If we will be like vnto God we must haue our eares open to heare the cry of the oppressed and our hāds ready to releeve them in what we are able you and truely to say with the Prophet Jeremiah in the third of his Lamentations that I am the man that haue seene felt afflictions by the rod of Gods wrath Also I am aboue measure forced to send forth vnto you and cry out aloud to make my grievous deplorable lamentable complant knowne vnto you of the barberous cruelty tiranies that Prelates and Iaylors haue for a long time together and still do exercise vpon mee labouring by vnheard of cruelty to take away my life privatly (b) This hath been constantly their practice barberously to murder the Saints in secret knowing their cause to be so wicked that if it should come to be openly discouered all good men would detest it them in a hole and corner that so it might be noysed abroad not daring in regard of my vnspotted innocency to bring me againe into the publique view of the Kingdome and therefore doe they tortour my poore weake body with vnparaleld Paganish and Heathenish cruelty (c) Howsoever wee cannot but greeve to heare of such cruell sufferings yet wee maie herein rejoyce that we se these marked slaves of Antich so farre to fulfill the scriptures as that we may infallibly conclude that they are the Locusts which came out of the bottomlesse pit A breife Relation of part of which you may read after these lines in my Humble Petition to the Noble Lords for meantenance which J sent the last week to the Wardens of the Fleete having leave of them for a Scribe to write it and they kept it all night and Warden Jugram sent me this word back againe that he would deliuer no Petitiō vnles I would recant and submitt (d) That is turne Papist and see he might be sure to haue liberty enough and preferment also J answered him back again that if any of my adversaries would shew mee wherein I had broken any of my Soveraignes Lawes J would submit without any conditions to all that they wovld desire of mee Or if they see that I am erronious in my Iudgment J would dispute it with them and if they could groundedly by the authority of the word of God shew and proue that I hold one errour I will be bound publiquely to recant in every Citty of the Kingdome And I said to my Keeper at severall times and so I do still I desire no favour at his hands nor any Bishop in the Kingdome for if I be an offender I desire the extreamity of the law may be inflicted vpon me to the vtmost for J had rather I professe vnto you chuse to morrow to dy at Tyburne or (e) It is no marvaile that the Scotsmen will haue no Bishops among them Considering that it is better that aman were put to the cruelst death that could be devised then to be vnder their hands Smithfield then to bee still induring of my Constant Extraordinarie bodily paines and torments which haue been so great that I do assure you many times they haue almost distracted me of my sences And if they will not do this then seeing my owne estate is spent and all my kindred hath from the beginning left mee (f) Gods people when they suffered vnder the pagans had this favour shewed them that ther friēds might come freely to them supply their wāts But the Prelates for cruelty are far worse then the Heathens for when they once get a man into their prison they will not suffer any body to visit him but rather do seeke by some secret way to murder him my weake condition is so exceeding chargable vnto me standing mee in more in one week now then would keep me fiue weekes if I were wel And also seing that any that will take compassiō of my low estate are not suffered to come at me to releeue mee I desired the Warden having none at all to do it for me besides him that hee according to his place office would truly make my miserable condition known to to the LORDS that J may haue a competant allowance from them to sustaine nature that so I may not perish in this deplorable weake condition and this said I hee being my chiefe Keeper hee is bound to do it at his your perrell be it for I know if my innocent blood should this night by cruelty be takē awaie the Lord would raise vp some that will require of you him a strict account how it was shed though you keep me so close that
to devise notorious lyes for their excuse but the Lord who sees their wickednesse will bring them forth one day for it to their shame before men and Angels I dyed of long sicknes and weaknesse and so colour over their tyrany and crueltie for he dares not let his and the Bishops crueltie be knowne but seeks by all means to hide it from the Noble Lords (b) No doubt the noble Lords Peeres doe know a great deal of their treachery villany yet not halfe of it for it is one of their speciall imploymēts to keep from the King and state the knowledge of their base actions and hence it is that they striue soe much to suppresse al books that are writen in the discouery of their actions for they wel known should the land know what they doe it would spue them out Peeres of the Land whom I know haue more Humanity Nobilitie and mercie in their heroycall breast then for nothing without any just offence to take awaie a poore young mans life in a corner Now the very speaking of these things to some of my compassionate friends that came vp to my lodging to se me who would receiue no wrong of my Keeper hath struck him to the very heart and made him looke soe paile as if he would haue fallen down dead at my bed side it so affrighted him that now he will not let any come to me but hath refused to let many come at me that haue desired to cōmunicate to my necessities neither can I now scarce get himselfe to come vp to mee But saith hee that which you set your hand too before Sr. John Bankes hath vndone you well if it haue said I yet I am sure there is nothing in it either against the King or his lawes Its true I accused the Bishops of High Treason [c] So much hath beene from time to time offered to bee proued in the chiefest Courts of the Land yea if some parliament had stood they would haue been ere this time censured executed for Traytors this they know well enough insomuch as a Parliament to them is as Drake was to the Spaniard mentioned the Parliament lawes of the Land for proofe of it Also their publique renouncing of the King and State in the Censure of Noble Doctor Bastwick in the High Commission Court And J offered vpon my life to make it good and this I spake also before many Prisoners through the grates of my window desiring them beare wittnesse of this and much more which I then spake and now againe to you my Brethren vnderstanding well what I say and J will affirme it that all the Bishops in England that had a hand in the Censuring of Dr. Bastwick in the High Commission Court are Traytours to the King State as I will proue by severall Acts of Parliamet vpon paine of loosing my head if I may haue a legall proceeding against them Therefore make it knowne (a) Jt is made known to the whole nation and proved clearely in many Bookes as the Abreviate Syons Plea c. Besides the people generally take them no otherwise for hee that conceales Treason by the lawes of the Land is guilty of punishment as well as the Traitour himselfe therefore looke to it for J am able to proue what J say But as for my Petition J am out of all hopes of any releefe by it in regard it is not yet neither do I think it wil ever be delivered to the Lords by the Warden And also I do verily thinke it will be found that hee and the Bishops as J haue accused them before mauy witnesses even the same day fell sicke and as J haue formerly said they haue conspired together by tiranicall cruelty of set purpose to take awaie my life and blood which is almost spent alreadie that so I might not liue to make their Pagan like wickednes and barberous tirnanie knowne And therefore was I laid in Irones for a long time together even in my sicknesse in which I laid night and day with my hands and feet fast in the Fetters my Bootes stockens being on my legs for many nights together Without I verilie thinke the least order from the Honorable Lords they hoping by this meanes to put an end to my daies which they haue almost done For as I then tould my Doctor the coldnesse of my Irones they being verie straite vpon the wrists of my Armes which struck an ague soe to my heart that J thought I should haue dyed in a sudden fitt of paine when none was with mee and I verily thinke it had killed me ere this if I had not followed my Doctours advise in being at charges to get a wider made which sent for to the Smiths my Keeper delaying to do it for mee though I much desired it of him that so I might haue wrapped cloaths enough about it to keep awaie the peircing cold which proceeded from the coldnesse of the Irones (b) It is a thing which the Prelates doe much labour about namely to perswade the King and his Councill that the Puritants in writings against their cruelty do greatly disgrace the Government of the Land But if the thing were truly cōsidered that which hath made the English nation Contemptible in the eyes of the world is the inhumane practises of Bishoppes for where shall a man heare of so vile and bloody a practice as this O yee Heavens and earth that is to say you true Churches Christian Common wealths as you are called stand amazed and wonder at the barberous and savadge crueltie of bloody Bishops Iaylours exercised vpon mee a poore weake and young stripling without any just cause at al only because I love the Lord Iesus Christ am a faithfull subject to my Prince (a) Were thou not a faithfull subject to thy Prince the Prelates would never hate thee for what Priest or Iesuit haue they ever so hādled Country and wil not suffer as much as in me lies to be ruinated by Ambitious Treacheros popish Prelats For if my strēgth of bodie which is now exceeding weake would serue and a fit oppertunity I could write a large Lamentable complaint vnto you that one would hardly beleeue (b) Yes many would beleeve it For it is certain I here report it of knowledg that in all the Popish countries where I haue beene there is not that cruelty now exercised by Bis any where as there is in England The Prelates in Poland Spaine France are not halfe so vile Much lesse sinne as those doe against knowledge and conscience that ever such barberous crueltie should be in England vpon a poor weak and innocent young man Now this may make your spirits within you to faile in rememberance of your great sinne want of courage (c) It is iust vvith God that he should keepe these Canaanites amongst us as pricks in our side in regard wee shew