Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n
Text snippets containing the quad
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A81686
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Mr. Dowdall's just and sober vindication, in opposition to several injustices practised against him, by some of his fellow prisoners in the gate-house prison of Westminster, although reputed priests, Jesuits, and sufferers for Christs sake
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Dowdall, Gerard.
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1681
(1681)
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Wing D2055; ESTC R225596
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35,535
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115
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his Lordship was as guilty as I was of what he said and that the Maids she then had were never suspected before of any dishonesty I desir'd reparation of honour and good name of my Lord but he beg'd my pardon assuring me he would never any more believe stories of me being twice before guilty of wronging me in prefering his own Friends to my Imployment for which he was once check'd by the Q. but he came off as ill as he begun declaring I had dependancy of a Lady of ill repute yet his Lordship prefer'd one of his best Friends to such an other preferment with a Lady of a far worse report I could mention many other like Examples touching my self which I leave out for Brevities sake Let us then conclude with the Scriptures that whosoever thinks himself no sinner is a Lyar If therefore all men be breakers of Gods holy Commandments since the just offends him seven times a day why then should any justifie them in their evils as many tatling Women publickly maintain'd what Calumnie soever my Companions reported of me out of some Natural kindness or some good opinion they conceived of them I know love and hatred perverts most Men and Womens judgment I know the love some of the said Women boar to my Adversaries and the hatred they conceived of me for their sakes made them do me all the prejudice immaginable and now I am forc'd to stoop under the weight of so great a burden languishing for the wounds their Lies and Calumnies gave to my Reputation the which I ever prefer'd before my Life wishing rather to dye then to be defil'd Some judicious men understanding how many Rivalls I have had at all times began as they told me afterwards to conclude among themselves that surely I must be a man of great parts that was so much envyed as if one of little capacity would not be regarded or taken notice of much less fit to be prefer'd before them I only told them in my own behalf that I would undertake to teach Mr. Power and another of my Adversaries as yet two years their Lattin and to instruct all the five in the Mathematicks and in three Forreign Languages yet they were to me as so many Doggs in a Manger neither minding themselves of any Studies all the year long nor permitting me to divert my self according to my inclinations therein having before I was cross'd and tormented by them compos'd three Books in Prison one of Heraldry another of the Mathematicks and the third a History Book notwithstanding it was resolved unless I forsook all conveniencies of Studies and was controul'd or rather led by the Nose by them I should be depriv'd of the payment of my Chamber-Rent and loose my share of the Charities gathered for Prisoners all which was afterwards punctually observ'd by calumniating and belieying me all the City and Country over The Reason I have so often accus'd them of Lies is because if they told but truth they could do me no harm They are also guilty of Calumny Detraction and Back-biting although what they invented of me was true because none can discover another Mans crimes unless publickly known without a Mortal sin for the holy Scripture saith If your Brother or Neighbour offend you admonish him of his faults between him and you privately if he amends not correct him before Witnesses if he rejects also this complain of him to the Church or his Superiors if then he is not Penitent let him be to you as a Reprobate Not one of my Companions followed this Precept although I put them in mind thereof begging for Gods sake they would tell me what it was they heard or believed of me each of them answered as I said before Nothing upon this I intreated a certain Lady of Quality to reconcile me to the foresaid Countess but she sent to me that nothing could be done for the five reputed Priests and Jesuits my companions had given so bad a Character of me that she was wholly incens'd against me 'T is true indeed before this honourable Countess promised to pay my Chamber Rent I lay on a Quilt on the Boards but with this satisfaction that the Master of the Prison knowing my little ability said he would be satisfied with eighteen pence a week but the said Countess having promised him the payment of my Chamber Rent in what Room soever I lay I am ever since ingaged in five shillings a week without any likelihood of payment or to have the advantage of my said Quilt on the Boards without three and six pence a week so that the promise of the said Lady is no small prejudice to me All which is contrary to the good opinion I had of English Catholicks whom I have heretofore extol'd above all others I knew both for their Piety Charity and good Examples especially in these times of Troubles which I really believ'd were sufficient motives to appease the Divine Wrath and manyfold afflictions they lay under But now what construction can I make of these precedent vertues when on a sudden I see them decline their good Principles as if not well grounded therein I sent to some Ladies of Quality a brief account of the former transactions against me the which they did reject with a great deal of indignation and unbecoming Language not believing one word I writ One was so offended with my defence that she sent my Letter open to me back again but seeing there was nothing therein but what concern'd me to let all Catholicks know therefore I directed her Ladiships Letter to her Butler and Cook-Maid desiring them to let others their fellow Companions know the Contents thereof and how the Unjustice of my Companions were countenanced by most Catholicks in Town How then can they expect that God will hear their complaints and grievances in the times of Sorrow since they are Upholders of Injustice and Wickedness themselves They pretend to be much injur'd by the false accusations of their ill Wishers and yet make no scruple to justifie the Calumny maintain'd against their Brother They blame their Neighbours for giving credit to the false Reports of their Enemies and themselves are as willing to believe for Truth any Lies invented against him whom God and the World knows to be Innocent in what he is accus'd They seem to have Faith that God will confound the first Authors of their Sufferings but do not think it Damnation to themselves to Rob an other of his good Name and Reputation For my part I commiserate the weakness of these Catholicks who think it lawful to do any thing which Church-men perswades them Yet I am rather of opinion that they are led by some natural kindness or some other Interest or else they would never be so blinded as to prejudice him that never did them the least diskindness either in thought word or deed Now I begin to consider that one of the Gentlewomen that oppos'd me so highly in a thing
of all Relief from former friends by their calumnies and Lies That I was indebted for Lodging and therefore forc'd to lay on the Boards Twenty six weeks That I was credibly inform'd that one of them got about an hundred pound gains since his Imprisonment That I should be glad if he and the rest had got ten times so much That they also ought in Charity to wish me well and not to be so incens'd for Gods Providence towards me But all I said avail'd nothing for three of them being chief Leaders and acquainted with a great many Persons of Quality easily perswaded the two others to side with them All five unanimously without the least ground of truth informs the said Countess with multitude of Lies of me and got Mrs. Catherine Sheldon to second them they prevailed so far with the said Lady that she would never afterwards pay one penny of what she promised for me I must confess the want of a sufficient livelihood was no small trouble to me in a Prison where every thing is sold at a dear Rate and where one cannot send for the worth of two pence but must pay the Messenger and this out of six shillings a week my whole allowance for Meat Drink Firing Candlelight Washing and the repairing of Cloaths the rest I give for my Chamber Rent or else I must have layn on the Boards in the Common side In truth all this was the least of my troubles knowing well the more my Body suffered for Gods sake the greater my Reward in Heaven would be hereafter the consideration thereof made me rather Glory then to be any ways troubled at my Imprisonment but to be back-bited by inhuman Tongues sharper than Raizors who have no more Mercy than the worst of creatures perplexes me more then by any human Art I am able to bear especially when I consider that my Reputation which I ever prefer'd before all the happiness of this world is unjustly stained by the calumny and malice of the forementioned reputed Priests and Jesuits who persecuted me for lucre of Monys and self Interest sake as the Impartial Reader may judge since they never attempted any thing against me but when they believed I had extraordinary Releif from Friends or was in a likelyhood of obtaining some which hapned to me but twice to wit at my first coming to the Prison as I said before and a twelve month after when the said Countess promised to pay my Chamber Rent the onely two times they vented their Mallice against me To prevent for the Future the like abuses occasioned by the too much credulitie of the Female Sex especially to Churchmen or so reputed let them know that these are Men as others are Subject to all human Frailties as if they were never such although by their Profession they ought to overcome their passions but to say they all do so is too much presumption therefore we must yeild some bad among them and every of them to have their impefections to wit one has one failing and another other failings Who then is of so little Sence or Reason as to believe that all these Frailties are to be approved off because committed by such Men If one of them be Naturally self Interested or Passionate or Revengful or inclined to any other particular Vice ought we then to side with them and maintain their 〈◊〉 because they have other good qualities as some graceless Women have done much to my prejudice No God and the Catholick Church hates Vice and the Upholders thereof for certainly 't is no small Sin to defame unjustly a man that bears the Characters of honest Principles I do not doubt but such evil Mouth'd Creatures incurs the wrath of God more then Robbers and Murtheres in the high ways 'T is certainly better for one to loose his Life then his good Name My adversaries by stayning my reputation bereived me of my livelyhood and of all future preferments hereafter All this while I do not deny but I have been to blame in some things I know being highly provoked the effect of Passion moved me to say that which I did not my self approve of soon after for one Mr. O. Bryan of whom we shall speak at large hereafter being in great distress entreated me to beg some assistance for him from my Companions who upon motion thereof willingly condescended excepting Mr. Melchior Power who answered he needed as much as any in Prison I only said if it was so he was much bely'd for the common report was he had Forty Shillings a week setl'd on him by four Persons whom I nam'd to him as I was inform'd but his answer was I invented the same my self and consequently I was a Babler I must confess I was so vex'd thereat that I did not know whether I ought rather to Bridle my hands more then my tongue but I did not indeed touch him although it had been according to his deserts I own it was my destiny to be unjustly persecuted by some Churchmen but that the impartial Reader may be as well a Judge of the occasion thereof as my self I will set down some Examples Of Mr. PARSONS The Second of my Companions in the Gatehouse Prison who persecuted me was one Mr. Parsons a reputed Priest This Gentleman setting his Passion a side is a good natur'd man but is so transported with Natural Pride or rather a Lofty Mind that he is impossible to be pleased by some unless they yeild wholly to his humors let others be ever so well quallified these dispositions I discovered in him from the very beginning and therefore judg'd it most necessary to comply with him as with one Born in this Kingdome and extremaly well beloved especially by Ladies Gentlewomen who commonly brought what Charity we received 'T is true indeed he was a proper handsome man in the prime of his Age more agreeable to some in his own Person then in that he was reputed to be which was no small advantage to him in the said distribution of Charities The first distaste he took at me was discoursing of ordinary matters as about the Mathematicks and the Customes Fashions Education Judgment and common Breeding of all sorts of People in most Countries of Europe in all such occasions he seemed much offended if contradicted in the least although I might presume in some difficulties to be his Master I mean as concerning the Mathematicks in which he was altogether ignorant yet he us'd to side with others as unknowing as himself against me in such Subjects although I taught that Science for some years so that rather then to hear me prove the matter by clear Demonstrations he was wont to fall into a passion calling me a wrangling fellow but what ever the reason was from that time forward he boar me an antipathy he was sure afterwards on all occasions to snap and correct me as if I had been a Boy I could justly say I hardly Din'd five times afterwards in his company