An Answer to the Bishop of Rochester's second letter to the Earl of Dorset &c. by an English-man. 1689 Approx. 61 KB of XML-encoded text transcribed from 35 1-bit group-IV TIFF page images. Text Creation Partnership, Ann Arbor, MI ; Oxford (UK) : 2008-09 (EEBO-TCP Phase 1). A25576 Wing A3390 ESTC R31265 11869906 ocm 11869906 50105 This keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the Early English Books Online Text Creation Partnership. This Phase I text is available for reuse, according to the terms of Creative Commons 0 1.0 Universal . The text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. Early English books online. (EEBO-TCP ; phase 1, no. A25576) Transcribed from: (Early English Books Online ; image set 50105) Images scanned from microfilm: (Early English books, 1641-1700 ; 996:21) An Answer to the Bishop of Rochester's second letter to the Earl of Dorset &c. by an English-man. Englishman. Charlton, Mr. [4], 57 [i.e. 63] p. Printed for A. Smith, London : MDCLXXXIX [1689] Attributed to Mr. Charlton by NUC pre-1956 imprints. Pages 23-28 repeated in paging. Imperfect: print show-through. Reproduction of original in the Huntington Library. Created by converting TCP files to TEI P5 using tcp2tei.xsl, TEI @ Oxford. Re-processed by University of Nebraska-Lincoln and Northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. Gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. 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Copies of the texts have been issued variously as SGML (TCP schema; ASCII text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable XML (TCP schema; characters represented either as UTF-8 Unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless XML (TEI P5, characters represented either as UTF-8 Unicode or TEI g elements). Keying and markup guidelines are available at the Text Creation Partnership web site . eng Sprat, Thomas, 1635-1713. Church of England -- History. Religious tolerance -- England. 2006-07 TCP Assigned for keying and markup 2006-07 Apex CoVantage Keyed and coded from ProQuest page images 2007-02 Robyn Anspach Sampled and proofread 2007-02 Robyn Anspach Text and markup reviewed and edited 2008-02 pfs Batch review (QC) and XML conversion An Answer , TO THE Bishop of ROCHESTER's Second LETTER . AN ANSWER TO THE Bishop of Rochester's SECOND LETTER TO THE Earl of Dorset , &c. By an English-man . LONDON , Printed for A. Smith , MDCLXXXIX . AN ANSWER TO THE Bishop of Rochester's SECOND LETTER , &c. Right Reverend , ACTS of Mercy descend with Power , and come well Recommended from the Crown , to be Received with the highest Gratitude by the People : but Acts of Justice are our Lasting Securities ; And tho' we are Aptto pitty the Afflicted , yet Publick Crimes require Publick and Real , Expiations . Such as I am , from Observation and Good Wishes , pretend to discern Safety , and the Kingdom in a State of Recovery , past danger of Relapse ; but Justice must be Vindicated . There are Measures , in proper Season , Necessary for Confirming All , least the Government seem Precarious and , Desperate Persons , having Screwed up the Preparatories for our Ruin to the height , may discourage , very Useful Subjects , if , instead of Effectual Attonements , they shall be Able to Word Us into their Impunity . In good Earnest , my Lord , nothing urges a Sensible Man more to speak his Mind Freely , than while his Purse is draining , or Blood letting out in the Rescue of his Fellow Subjects ( and the more remote they are , the more at Heart it is with him ) to find the Enemies of his Country , and their Peace , at Home , in Plenty , and Ease , scarce Tributary , but Remaining in Preferment , or Enjoying the Acquisitions of Rapine ; Ready , perhaps , for more upon the first Opportunity , and in the mean time , under the Tenderness of some Illustrious , Spotless , Friend , between a Smile and Disdain , laughing in their Sleeves , at the Worshippers of Truth , and despising the Companions of Honesty . I am so much a Roman , as to shed a Tear for an Acquaintance in Misery , but cannot forget who Condemned a Son. When I hear it said , Spare him for his Parts ? My Reply is , Punish him the more , and not make that which Explains his Condemnation , the Reason of his Indemnity , I can no more Excuse an Ill Man , for his good Parts , than , I would be supposed to write against the Church of England , in answering the Bishop of Rochester , or to Arraign the Profession of the Law , from whence so many of the Nobility , are Descended , in saying , there have been Wicked Judges , and as Bad Councellors . The Text that informs me , the Samaritan was Neighbour to the Traveller , tells me , likewise , who was not . He is my Neighbour , who pours Oyl into my Wounds , and my Friend , that lets me retain the Image of God , in the Freedom of a Man. Wit , and Parts , are of full Age at Five and Twenty , and must form into Judgment , with Reference to some Fundamental of Principle , by Thirty , otherwise , it is an Escape , if He runs not into Depravation , and a narrow One , if the publick Justice of his Country do's not at one time , or other , overtake his Extraordinary Actions . I am , therefore , English-man enough to hope for Justice , and Christian enough to desire it in Mercy , yet so Exerted , That she may shew her Head , in this glorious Revolution , and call to Account , those Unfaithful Servants who Delivered up her Keys , & Notorious Offenders , that broke in upon her Administration , Pursuing her Assertors to destruction , if the same God , who many Thousand Years ago brought the Children of Israel out of Egypt , had not Remembred Us in her Low Estate , and Excited this Heroick Prince to Assist the Restoring our Paths , in the Establishment of our Religion and Laws ; Secure for Ages : Unless Divided , through Prejudice , and Trifling Disappointments , instead of joining , as one Arm , against our Common Adversaries Abroad , regardless of the whole , We part into Contemptible Faction , and Labour among our selves ; Or , Frighted into a Stupidity at the Very Sight of our Escape , we become Unserviceable to our own Advantages ; Or rather , Degenerated by a Vicious Age , we have lost our Courage , and our Priests their Zeal . If the Markets of Fortune do not take up our Thoughts , the Fields of Honour are Open to all our Virtues ; The Desolation in Ireland calls for our Sharpest Resentment , and the Outrage of France is a Scene Worthy our Gallantry . Things , like Men , have their Climacterick , they may out live , but they shall Languish ; Periods , also , are set , the Harvest of Impiety may be Ripe for the Avenger , and the Visible Concurrence of Human Means is a Sign the Decree is gone out . The Authorities are too many to be Repeated , and discoursed upon in the Compass of a Letter , but they are Known and Satisfactory to All , whose Interest , affection , or long habit of maxim controuls not the Use of their Judgment ; And too strong to be confuted in a Day , when the most Noble Part of Liberty , the Dictates of Reason are allowed , Vouching to Us , That Kings by a General Derogation from the Laws , they are Trusted to Support , may Distress Themselves . It is not Impossible , but Liberty Regained in One Quarter of the World , may sound Charmingly into Another , and Wisdom Prevail against Bigotry to an Empty Name . Constitution of Government , and Ancient Laws may gain a Preference before the Will or Empire , and Considerate People groaning under Heavy Burthens , if a Friendly Hand appears to Ease then Shoulders may incline to throw them down , and hearken after a clear Possession of Religion , and Property with Old Age , under their own Vines and Fig-Trees , rather than Fatigue in Slavery , to be Driven up and down , as Chaff , by the Breath of Lust , and Training up their Children , from Generation to Generation , to Pall Untimely Sacrifices to the Wild Efforts of Ambition . Nor is any Prince , so far above the Reach of Fate , but if the Happy and Wise Restorer prove Comprehensive to Fix Nations upon their Respective Solid Interests , Uniting Contraries , as in the Body of Man , so to Ballance , and from thence to Work up one mighty Compound in the Bodies of State , but the Nursery of the Cardinal may happen to End in Convincing the Oppressor . The Time I parted with to Undress the Commissioner in my Last , my Lord was to come the Better at the Adviser in This , and tho' I might reduce the Historian to another Character with Ease , yet taking no Pleasure in Accusation , I will consider some Paragraphs in the beginning of your Second , introducing me to your Notions of Councel at the Latter End , and refer all the Rest to Those , who more Concern'd in the Reflections , may if they think Fit , find a more Compendious Way of Answer . The First Paragraph of the Letter . My Lord , I Cannot in good Manners make my Address to your Lordship in another Letter , without Premising my most humble thanks for your favourable Acceptance of the Former , and for your kind Recommendation of my Plea to Men of Honour and Goodness , by the Powerful Authority of your approving it , And now , my Lord , since you have in so generous a manner , admitted me once to be your Client , I am come again to put my whole Cause into your Hands . For , it was my chance , I know not how to have a share in one , or two other Public Affairs of the late Times , as obliges me to a second Defence . Though I have always thought , that next to the Committing Offences , nothing can be more grievous to an Ingenuous Mind , than to be put upon the Necessity of making Apologies . Answer . Upon what Terms the Powerful Earl of Dorset admitted your Person , accepted and recommended your Plea , is strange to none , who have the Honour to know that Lord , the Strength of his Unquestionable Judgment gave Way to the Object of his Compassion ; But if his Lordship had vouchsafed me leave to Publish such a Plea , a Thought would have come in my Head , that he put me upon my Country , and the most I could hope from his Indulgence was , that if they found me Guilty of Ignorance , he would not Trouble himself to Charge me with more Understanding , than my Present Circumstances required , and from that Minute should have determined with what regard to move towards his Lordship in a Second ; For tho' Easy to be intreated , is the very Note of Greatness , and from the Consideration of Infirmity , the worst of Men sink gently with them , nor is Disdain to be seen in their Countenances without a Line of Charity ; Yet , on the other side , my Lord , the Uncorrect Looseness of Argument Profanes Honour , and Care is to be taken by Men of Talent , least the Dignity of the Patronage , lessen in the Presumption of the Client ; Not , that the Gravity of your Pen ought to approach his Lordship with the Ceremony of an Ambassador ; nor yet , my Lord , after a Daub of vain Complement , with such an Indifference , or Negligence of Hand , as if your Design was upon the Quality , not the Authority you Address to . A Meen between both , agreeable to the Case , with respect to the Person , Soft but withal Masculine , is far better Written to a Lord , than , It was my chance , I know not How to have a share , &c. That Language cannot Usher an Apology with Reputation into the Opinion of the most Uncurious , I fancy after one Letter , with so much Ignorance in it ; such was my Unhappiness to have Share , &c. A Style more becoming your Condition , my Lord , than Chance , or I know not how , in another , More pressing into the Good Nature of the English-man , because the One has in it , a Symptom of Reluctancy , the Other , of Force or Disaffection , and Looks as if the Man was Still the same Inward ( which Heaven forbid ) but our Redemption against his Will , had put him to the Necessity of Apology , for his Share in the Enslaving Us. It was your Chance , you know not how , in your Sleep , it may be , to have a great many Papers Conveyed under your Pillow , which made you Dream of Black-birds and Gold-finches , of Goose Quills and Crow Quills , Assassinations , and Bow upon Bow , where the Steeple of Bow , brought in the Story of the Cross-Bow , and a Thousand Fantastio Miscellanies , the Ramble of a Mercurial Working-Brain , And from the Natural Aversion you have to any Business , that may Reflect Severely , your Inclination rather leading you to the other Extream , that is , rather to Commend too much , what in the least seems well done , than to Aggravate what is Ill done by others , For instance , my Lord , Tarentum in your Satyr upon the French Historiographer where you bring in the Presbyterians pleasing Themselves with Expectation of Religious Liberty , from a Share they had in the Restoration of Charles the Second , or Troubled at Forgetting the Promise of Breda , and from the Innate , Healing Quality you are indued with , rather to commend too much , what in the least seems well done , than to aggravate what is ill done by others , Charity all over , you submit to honour them , as thus far Contributory to the Blessed Work , That if they had not Driven him Out , he had never been restored . From that natural Aversion you have to Reflect , your Inclination we all know , leading you to Panegyrick between sleeping and waking , your Lordship Writ , That which King James the Second Calling for the Papers , and having Read them , and Altered divers Passages ( not Telling Us , what those Alterations are , but no doubt , for the Good of the Protestant Religion . ) Caused to be Printed , by his own Authority ( Perfectly against your Will ) as to be seen before the Book , and in every Line of it ( your Lordship being wholly Passive , and rather bearing a Share of Grief for the Victims , than Contributing to the Fall of their Honours ( the Dearest part of Them ) after Dispatching their Bodies , and Came Out under the Name of History , deserving another Denomination . And when the Benign Virulency of your Wit had pursued Men with Uncharitable Characters beyond Death , with more Delight , than Constraint of Mind , Et quae , Poeticis magis Decora Fabulis , quam Incorruptis rerum gestarum Monument is tradenda fuerunt , no sooner is the Artillery turned , but you are in Passion for my Lord Russel , you Lamented , after you had been Fully Convinc'd by Discourse with the Reverend Dean of Canterbury , of that Noble Gentleman's great Probity and Constant Abhorrence of Falsehood . Delicate Words ! But that was a good while after you say , such was your Ignorance of the Upright , but Obscure , Lord. Russel , your Lordship , who had liv'd so many Years about the Town , could not be Convinced of his Probity , till after he had suffered Martyrdom , any more than you understood his Grace of Canterbury took Exception to the Legality of the Ecclesiastical Commission , till after my Lord of London had been Cited , Appeared , had Answered , and the Unjust Sentence past upon him . Ignorance and Chance , by your own Account , have carried the Ascendant over the Last Scenes of your Life , my Lord , in a wonderful Manner ; But , a Reader , less Tender , than your Answerer , tho' he would not altogether disown the Philosophy , that Accident governs the World , Adding , in Subordination to Providence , for Chance makes Cases here , Engaging Men , for the better Connection in Support of Societies to Mutual Obligation by unexpected Standing in Need One of Another ; Yet , by the Course of your Actions , from the time of a Certain Sermon , for which you had No Thanks , and from whence ( such is the Curse of Variance between a King and Subjects , the People receive the Banished from Court , and the Court Embraces the Disregarded by the People ) some derive your Advancement , and Others your Misfortune ; From that Hour , my Lord , to the day of the Bishops Tryal , above Eight Years in a State of Ignorance , and Chance , as you carelesly alledge , but of most Dangerous Observance , ( as Sense interprets ) such a Reader , my Lord , would sooner imagine the Parts were made for the Sake of the Representer , knowing how well they Suited his Genius to Describe them ; than that Chance , brought your Lordship so often , and so Artificially , upon the Stage . He that with a Common Eye looks into this your Second Letter , shall find in it , Expostulation , no Apology ; Raised above that by the First Admittance , Remorse Vanishes , the least Shadow of Condescension to Chance , and I know not How , brings your Lordship to a Position of Assurance . There have been indeed , those , whose Haughtiness of Mind bearing down all the Rest of their Faculties , hath deceived them into a Superlative Idea , of their being Above Apology , they have perished in Falls Unnatural , tho' not Unpitied : But , if a Bishop , a Pattern of Humility , One who to be Great among Us , is to be our Minister , shall Dare give it under his Hand , that , He always thought next to Committing Offences , Nothing can be more Grievous to an Ingenuous Mind , than to be put upon the Necessity of making Apologies ; In English no more , but Owning a Miscarriage in Decency of Reasoning to Unload his Conscience , if that be so very Grievous to the Ingenuous Mind of a Bishop , I take his Apologies to be like his Compliances , One , the Result of more than Ignorance , or Chance , the Other , of much less than Contrition , and without charge upon my Self of any Disrespect either to his Quality or Function , Conclude , tho' with a Modesty , even to Tameness of Expression , that the Best and most Ingenuous Part of the Apology , Lyes , in Confessing the Necessity to make it . To what Advantage might an Elaborate Man , in Concern for the Injuries done his Country display this Abundant Paper ; How easily , my Lord , might a Pen , if like yours , Incapable of Parting with a Luxuriant Stroak for the sake of Persons or Families , take down these Altars of Praise you have Built to Others , Contriving to annex your self , however without Detraction from the Merit due to any whomsoever , I will reduce the Overflowings within Bank , bring them to Fact , and Qualifie the Magnificent Apology , Shewing that your Better Understanding , Proceeded , not from Argument but Appearance , terrible Aspect , and dreadful Apprehension your own Words , my Lord , are very Dogmatical ; Full Satisfaction may seize People in Lightning , and they may be Struck with the Convincing of Thunder . Only , by the way , my Lord , whereas you seem to intitle your self to something or other , within Guess , by incurring the Displeasure of our Two Last Kings , in declining to Write against the States of Holland , during the First and Second Dutch Wars , I humbly desire , if any thing in these Papers tempt your Lordship to a Third Apology , or a Reply , that you will please to let us know , if they desired you to Write in Prose , for neither of those Wars , or Depredations afforded Subject Matter for one Paragraph of Truth ; How , Specious soever , the First might be rendred , in the Frenchified Heat of our Honey Moon after the Restoration ( the Effect , of Private Sentiments in Religion here , tho' he seemingly took part with the Dutch against us ) I am sure , No Man , will say , but the Second was an Apparent Violation of the Law of Nations , the Triple League broke on our side ( with Grief be it remembred by Us , and very unkind in your Lordship not to bury ) against all the Rules of Mutual Defence , and Notwithstanding the most direct Warning of the Fatal Consequences of such a Breach , that a Wise Man , our Agent abroad , could , possibly insinuate ; To our Great Reproach , my Lord , Opening a Passage to the Common Disturber of Manking , and , for ought I know , too great a Cause of all the Blood that has been , and may be shed in Christendom from the Ravage , of that Imperious Monarch of France , beside a Subjugation of Us here to Popery and Slavery , or the Inevitable Fury of a Civil War , if , in return of Good for Evil , the Dutch had not Aided our Deliverance from the Influence of all those Pernicious Counsels , and I make no doubt but your Lordship knew then , as well as I do now , that Invention must have been the Guide of your Undertaking , and the Topick , Dimunition of Glory , if you had obeyed their Commands . The Tenth Page of the Letter . If I have now given your Lordship any Satisfaction , touching my Fair Dealing in my part of that Book , I doubt not but what follows will give you more ; when I shall assure you of my having refused to Write a Continuation of the same History , For , my Lord , it was sometime after the Duke of Monmouth 's Overthrow and Execution , that King James the Second required me to Vndertake such another Task , and presently set about a Second Part , To that purpose his Majesty gave me a sight of Multitudes of Original Papers and Letters , together with the Confessions of several Persons then taken in England and Scotland , who did seem to Outview one another , who should reveal most , both of Men and Things , relating to the Old Conspiracy , as well as to the Duke of Monmouth 's , and the Earl of Argyle 's Invasion . But finding , the Innocence of Divers Persons of Honour and Worth , touched in those Papers , And by that time beginning Vehemently to Suspect Things were Running apace towards the Endangering our Laws and Religion , I must say , I could never be induced by all his Majesties reiterated Commands to go on with that Work. Instead of that , tho' I had all the Materials for such a Narrative within my Power , for above Three Years , and might Easily have finished it in Six Weeks , yet I chose rather to Suppress , and Silence as much I could , all that New Evidence , which if openly produced would have blemished the Reputation of some Honourable Persons . Answer . Blemishes , my Lord , are from the Cause ; nor will I ask Pardon to say , 'T is as necessary to live in the Disesteem of some , as the Good Opinion of Others . The Overthrow of the Duke of Monmouth was in the Name of King , and if what our Neighbours assert to be Law in Scotland , be Reason in England , the late Kings assuming the Regal Power of this Protestant Kingdom being a Papist , was in it self a Forfeiture of his Exercise of the Authority . If the Eyes of the People had been as Open to apprehend it , as his Chappel was Early to declare it , their Hands had been Strong enough to have brought a General to Town , then , Confirming the Bill of Exclusion , And placing the Crown , where it now is . The Generosity of Trust in the English , towards their King at his First Accession to the Throne , Over-ruling their Jealousie , Reasonable from his Conduct of many Years before , but Demonstration of Entire Affection to their Kings , while any Tolerable Bounds , will hold Them , very Honourable in Them , but very much to be Deplored , was the End of that Duke : Rebellion had been a Word in his Attainder , if he had not taken upon him the Title of King , that part of him which Died , had perhaps been less than Execution , and his Defeat , not so much as an Overthrow . King James , my Lord , made good that Cause by the Continuation of his own History to the time of his Departure , and King William and Queen Mary , ( whom God for ever preserve ) by Consent , and Authority of the Estates have given it Immortality . The Old Conspiracy , is not a Language , but in those Times , when Judges deliver for Law , that surprizing a Garrison , apart from the King is an Overt Act of Treason to destroy the Person of a King within the Statute of 25 Ed. 3d. What greater Invasion can there be , than when Judges shall Force in upon Express Words of Law , and Kill a Man by a Rule of Court. The Statute says , That if any Person , beyond Sea , at the time of an Outlawry for High Treason , surrenders himself within a Year after he shall have leave to Traverse the Indictment upon which the Outlawry is grounded , and be admitted to Tryal . What can be inferred from these Words , but if the King will Execute him upon that Outlawry , he must have Patience till the Year Expires , Otherwise , a Fair Tryal must be allowed ; for who can tell but it may come into his Heart to deliver himself to Justice according to the Forms of that Law , the very last Point of the Year ; And are not those Invading Judges , whom the Law Trusts , not only , to be Councel for the Prisoner , but directs them to expound all Penal Laws most Beneficially in favour of Life , to send a Subject in Cool Blood , Nay , which is worse , to force the Natural Born Subject of a Free State , out of their own Dominions , send him out of the World upon these Terms , and Sanctifie it with the Name of an Execution , this my Lord , is Invasion also , and Conspiracy . Or , when the Law is Positive , that Men must be tryed in the County where the Facts are Committed , and be Executed in the same County , where they receive Judgment , for the Prerogative Dealers , to gratify the Vain Humour of a King , and Mount a Chief Justice , only to send a Wretch contrary to Law , to be put to Death at the Head of a Regiment , in Terror , forsooth , that the Rest may continue more Unlawfully together , than he Deserted them . These are Invasions my Lord , that have been may encountred with that which is no Invasion , but Reprisal of the People's Rights , and Liberties ; Such Invasions , as made the Renowned Hales , Foreseeing our Dangers from Colour of Law , say , The Twelve Red-coats in Westminster-Hall , where capable of Doing the Nation more Violence than Twenty Thousand in the Field . But , my Lord , if so soon , after that Kings Ascending the Throne , as the Unfortunate Duke of Monmouth's Last Return into England , you began , Vehemently to suspect Things were Running apace towards the Endangering Our Religion and Laws , so that you could not be induced by all his Majesties reiterated Commands to go on with the Work of History , because you must have Blemished the Reputation , that is , Libelled , the Innocence of some Persons of Honour , One would think , That Vehemence of Suspicion , might have grown into Satisfaction in less than Three Years , and your Lordship have broke loose from the Conspirators long before the Tryal of the Bishops . The Twelfth page of the Letter . Next , my Lord , having mentioned my being concerned in the Commission for the Diocess of London , in that I had the good Fortune to be Joyned with an Excellent Person , my Lord Bishop of Peterborough . And we can both truly say , that as we entered into that Commission with my Lord of London 's Good Will , so we acted nothing in it , without the Greatest Respect to his Interest . It is well known we continued all his Officers , in their Full Profits and Priviledges of their Places . We faithfully maintained the Rights of his Bishopprick , and Once in the Kings own Presence , against his Majesties Express Inclinations , in a business of no less Concernment than my Lord Mayor 's Chappel : We never invaded any of my Lord Bishops Preferments that fell Void in that Interval . We disposed of none but according to his own Directions . We used his Clergy with the same Affectionate Care , and Brotherly Love , as He himself had done , who was on that Account as Dear to them , as any Bishop in Christendom was to his Diocess . And we Appeal to them , whether we might not rather expect their Kindness , and Thanks , than suspect their Ill-will for all our Transactions with them ; nor can this be thought a vain Boast to any Man , who shall seriously reflect on the terrible Aspect of Things from Court upon the London Clergy , during the whole time of our Exercising that Jurisdiction . The remembrance whereof makes me not doubt to affirm , That if my Lord Bishop of Peterborough , and I , had not then stood in the Gap , but some other Persons , who were prepared to be thrust in , upon our leaving that Commission , had got it absolutely into their Power : 't is possible the most Learned and Pious Clergy in the World , had been somewhat otherwise imployed than they were ; and too much taken up in defending themselves from the violent Persecutions of the Popish Party , to have leisure to Confute , and Triumph over the Popish Cause , as they entirely did in their Admirable Writings , to the Glory and Establishment of the Church of England . Answer . I am apt to think , the Bishop of Peterborough had , as far , my Lord of London's Good-will in that Commission , as was possible , for so Faithful a Bishop , to consent , that any , but himself , should execute his Trust ; because , from the Character of that Bishop , he might , under the Necessity of his Affairs , hope for Performance , and Good Offices ; but your Lordship of Rochester , who sate Illegally in the Grand Commission , and in Favour at Court , have no reason to flatter your self , but the Appearance of my Lord of London's Good-will toward you , in the matter was , Prevention ; And we , to whose Reading you issue out this Manifesto , can take it for no other , than a Continuance of your Regard for that Commission which suspended him . The Jurnal you present us with , of Eine Carriage , &c. during the time of your exercising that Jurisdiction with the Excellent Bishop of Peterborough , has this Melancholy in it too , my Lord , That the Excellencies of my Lord of Peterborough one way , compared , at that time , with your Excellencies another , it may be thought his Excellency carried in the Medium ; Nor yet could you have done otherwise , for the most Pious and Learned Clergy in the World must have concluded you quite out of the Protestant Religion , if you had not maintained the Rights of the Bishoprick in the inferiour Respects you mention ; and every Body living beside , would have believed you gone into Utter Darkness , or in very great and Personal Hatred to the Bishop of London , if a Suspension , from which an ordinary submission would discharge him , as you have said , should lay his Lordship so low in your Esteem , Or so Immediate in your Fear of displeasing the Court , as to turn out his Officers , and Abandon him to that Extremity , or render him so Obnoxious , as not to be consulted in the disposal of his Vacant Preferments . Especially , when the Papists did not value what Heretick you put in , so the Game was kept on , till the Managers were ready to Sweep and Distinguish at once . But a Thinking Man , my Lord , will summ up all this , and resolve from it , That you sate Knowingly in the Ecclesiastical Commission , because you acted Discreetly in that for the Diocess ; and was so Exact in pursuing my Lord of London's desires , because , to gratifie the pleasure of the Court , you sate in the First Commission , which was Illegal , and the Act of Suspending my Lord of London , therefore , void ; In consequence all the Derivations were so too , and the Commission for the Diocess to my Lord of Peterborough , and your self , being under the same Fate , All you did , was , perhaps , in strictness , against Law , and not only the more Inexcusable , if you had acted without my Lord's Directions ; but Unsafe as to the Actions themselves , if my Lord's Approbation had not warranted them into a Connivance , so that Acting in Commission , for the Diocess of London , was in the Bishop of Peterborough , as Publishing the Suspension was in the Dean of Paul's , an Expedient of Necessity to chuse the least of Two Evils ; but more Amiss in you , my Lord , because you , who sate in the Ecclesiastical Commission , did it , in confirmation of the great Evil which drew on the necessity of that . The terrible Aspect of things from Court upon the London Clergy ; your standing in the Gap to hinder some other Persons , prepared to be thrust in , upon your leaving that Commission ; and if such Persons had got it Absolutely into their Power , 't is possible that most learned and Pious Clergy had been somewhat otherwise Employed than they were , and had been too much taken up in defending themselves from the Violent Persecutions of the Popish Party , to have leisure to confute and triumph over the Popish Cause , ] can have no other meaning but that if the Papists had got the Diocess of London into their Power , for nothing else can be collected from the word Absolutely with the Terrible Aspect of that Court , which had no other Tendency , 't is more than Possible , for 't is Absolutely Certain , that all those of the London Clergy who had Resolution of Adhering to the Protestant Religion , ( that is , All those who by a Vigorous , and Ready Allegiance in Defence of the Protestant Religion now , shall justifie to all the Protestants at home , and abroad , they would have forsaken their Livings then , ) had been Deprived , or otherwise Engaged in too much Persecution by the Popish Party , to have leisure to confute the Popish Cause , and to triumph over Both , as they do now , if they can see their Felicity . But your Lordship's standing in the Gap to hinder those Persons , who were prepared to take that Diocess Absolutely into their Power , is not Discernible ; On the contrary , Open War being proclaimed between the Two Parties , All those Eminent Supervisors of the Church who continued in Court were so far Endearing the Conspiracy on the Popish Side , as to weaken the Protestant , by going on with the Impracticable Distinction of Protestant Loyalty , against Protestant Religion ; while the Papists made it their Business to single out the Flower of our Patriots in Church and State , hunting them down with Renegades , and Masqueraders of our own Faith , to Death , and Obscurity , as well , for their Entertainment , as Interest . Fifteenth Page of the Letter . I should be glad I could claim as just a share in another of his Lordship's meritorious services to the Publick , as I may do in This : But in that , I cannot , for 't is evident the Seven Bishops , whereof he was One , had such an Opportunity put into their Hands by God's Providence , for the Overthrow of Popery and Arbitrary Power by their sufferings for delivering the sense of King James the Second's Declaration , as 't is likely never any of the Episcopal Order had before , and 't is to be hoped will never have again . This however I will say , I had certainly added my self to their Number , if I had then understood the Question , as well as I did afterwards upon their Tryal , where I was present in order to be Witness in their Behalf , at the same time when your Lordship and many other Noble Lords were there to give Countenance to so Good a Cause . There it was , my Lord , that I was first convinc'd of the false Foundations and mischievous Consequences of such a Dispensing Power , as that on which the Declaration was grounded ; So that I have ever since been perswaded that from that Petition of the Bishops , so defended by the Invincible Arguments of the Learned Councel on that Day , and so justified by the Honest Verdict of the Undaunted Jury on the next day : From thence I say , we may date the first great successful Step that was made towards the Rescuing of our Religion and Laws ; For my part I must ever own I was so Fully satisfied by the excellent Pleadings of those great Lawyers at that Trial , that , I confess , I never had till then so clear a Notion , what unalterable Bounds the Law has fixt between the just Prerogatives of the Crown , and the Legal Rights of the Subjects : and therefore from that very day , I hastned to make all the Reparations I could for the Errors occasioned by my former ignorance , and to act for the future , what I always intended , as became a True Englishman . Answer . You are in the right , My Lord , to say , The truth of an Englishman consists in the Reality of his Actions ; it gives me notice , at the same time , not to depend upon his Glistering Sentences , nor be deceived by his plausible Apologies . For if any but the Bishop of Rochester himself should tell me , He had added to the number of the Petitioning Bishops , if he had understood the Question ; I would answer it with a Smile . The Bishop of Rochester had the same Organs disposing , and Methods of Advice , to inform his Judgment , as the other Bishops had ; If , to say no worse , his Courage to Adhere had been the same : and to add these words , As well as I did afterwards upon their Trial , is Ignorance repeated , Ignorance upon Ignorance , to the last Minute . The Bishops maintained their Post with Honourable , but not , Unexampled , Constancy , and the Impudence of the Jesuite was no Diminution to the Credit of their Fortitude ; The Kingdom stood as Firm to Them , the Warrant of Their Commitment was also , in it self , a Warrant for Correcting that Vagabond , and a Pass for their Religion to Travel . No sooner were their persons in the Tower , but we were ready for the Field , to Extricate them , not only , from the Present difficulties they laboured under , and Convince your Lordship the Protestant Religion , and Interest was no Forsaken Cause , but to Clear them at Once , from the Enemies of their Religion , and the Rivals to their Possessions . I hope , their Lordships will prove Firm to Us , and their Bishopricks now , as in a chearful Allegiance , No longer Puzling our Enjoyment with Unaccountable Reserves , nor make Us such Cruel Returns as to suffer the Profound Respect we have for Them , to Object against the Security of Our Selves . It is the happiness of the Church of England that her Proselytes are not Slaves , they Reverence their Spiritual Guides , and Honour their Faithful Advisers , the least distance between them is the Torment of their Lives ; but they will not be Undone in Blind Dependance , nor yield that the Private Conscience of the Bishop , Or the Less will of the Priest shall be the Uncancellable Obligation upon all their Actions , and the Unalterable Law of their Souls . The presence of our Great and Brave Men in , and about the Court of King's Bench at that Trial , seemed a Kind of Parliament met to Defend the Church , and State , Awing the Trembling Mercenaries , ( for Honorary , and Judge are lost in the Abuse ) upon the Polluted Cushion , even , to Convulsion in Every Joint ; But the Invincible Arguments at the Bar , you admire , my Lord , were only so many Gentlemen of the Robe with Brief in Hand , and plain Law in their Mouths , not a Syllable of Conjuration , or The least depth of Mystery , and Charm. When the Councel for the King , to shew the Moderation of the Conspirators , being content with Misdemeanour , could no more resemble the Case to Treason , than the New Councel for the People could Jest his Reverend Clients into Fornication , by the Mercury , of a False Step in the Church being Harlotry in Emblem . When the highest Violation of Sacred Promise not to take Publick Advantage of what was owned in Private upon that express Condition ; With the careful Evidence of that Diligent Clerk of the Council , could not furnish the Undaunted Jury , you magnifie , with the least ground of Fact to find a General Verdict against them , nor a Line of Law from the Bench to direct a special one . When the Salute upon their Acquittal , was so much the Joy of our Hearts , as to become loud Acclamation , and , if the Voice of the People , be the Voice of God , shook the Battlements of one Hall , Piercing the inner Chambers of another , and putting the Mis-led King in mind , if not of the Day of Judgment , at least of the Battle of D — And that , if one sort of Protestants , Jealous of their Religion , and Property , from a Match with France , Discontinuance of Parliaments for Thirteen Years together , Imposing Arbitrary Taxes , and Commissions , And lastly , having Occasion for a Parliament , by hoping to suppress a damnable Popish Conspiracy in the power of his Cabinet Council , lest the Parliament should be out of Humor , and Grievances retard Benevolences ; If one sort of them , in Fear of Popery Unseen , had strength to hollow his Unhappy Father out of Three Kingdoms : Popery , and Slavery in Full View , must , of Necessity , Unite Protestants of all Perswasions whatsoever , against those Common Enemies , who , by playing Under-hand Games , had prevailed upon the Generous Church of England to Disbelieve , and from thence to Hate , and Prosecute the Jealous Dissenter , Managing them , for Generations , to the Tearing one another in Pieces , and Promoting Divisions among themselves , while the Papist wrought up his Design to seize both , if the Great Restorer had not Interposed . When the Conspirators run about Whitehall , like Men in a Tempest , and the Priests traversed the Park to St. James's , like Ghosts , for Consternation was in all their Looks ; and Leyburn , the Titular , crawling to Dinner , bid the Fraternity Retrench , for the Cause was lost . If this be True , my Lord , and an Honest Description of that Cause , without Rhetorick , it follows , That the more successfull the Step was to our Rescue , the Plainer I have made it , That Full Satisfaction seized your Lordship in Lightning , and you were struck with the Convincing of Thunder . The same Reasons of not hazarding your Preserment , which made you remain in Court , Writing Histories , Acting in Commissions , Suffering the Declaration to be Read in your Diocess of Rochester , Ordering it to be Read in your Deanry of Westminster , and staying to be the Last Man born from the Tables ; the very same Reasons , my Lord , of not hazarding your Preferment from the Protestant Quarter obliged you to withdraw from the Popish , in that Critical Day of the Bishops Tryal . And the lofty strains of Encomium upon the Bishops , the Great Men of the Kingdom , the Invincible Arguments of the Lawyers , the Undaunted Jury , the strong Fleet , consisting of Twenty Sail and more , ( when we were sure of the Seamen from their Irreconcileable Hatred to Popery , and their Constant Fidelity to the Protestant Religion , and Cause ) with the Formidable Army , the Honest , and Conscientious part whereof was satisfied their Valour would be their Ruine , Others applying the same Argument to the Tender part of themselves , and most of the new raised Common Soulders such , as never saw an Enemy , but a Constable , nor set Foot in a Garison , but a Gaol ; In a word , my Lord , your Eloquence upon all Mankind , who , long before , your Lordship , quitted their Temporal Circumstances , and took up the Cross , satisfied , that nothing in this World is an exchange for the Prospect of another , beside the Honour of Avowing Just Principles , are but so many Reflections upon your self ; and ( notwithstanding your Aiery Notion at the beginning of this Letter , That nothing can be more Grievous in your Thoughts , next to Committing Offences , than Apologies , no Remorse appearing in a Cursory perusal , Yet in the Anatomy much less is to be found , Laying about you , upon any Terms whatsoever , Catching at every thing , from the First Dutch War to the Bishop's Trial , and at every Body that can but carry his Head above Water , and some as likely to drown ) in this Glorious , but not so very Miraculous , Revolution , as your Lordship would perswade us to believe , and write Us into for the sake of your Posthumous Conversion . All this , my Lord , rises in a natural Remark upon the very words of your Letter to the rest of the Ecclesiastical Commissioners , though Courtier-like written in the Contrary Stile . And if the great Veneration I entertain for the Bishops of this Protestant Kingdom did not restrain me , Comparing the Advice given by them to King James the Second , and the Abhorrence refused ( which make so large a part of your Letter , and so much insisted on , ) with the Times of them , when the Prince of Orange had been at the Credit of so many hundred thousand pounds to assist our Deliverance , and ready to Sail , with the Carriage of some of Them hitherto towards him , and the Nation , since he has made it good to us , and we ought to throw our selves at his Feet , in Duty and Acknowledgement becoming so great an Enterprize ; I could say , much more , than that , The Divinity of Kings lies in the Humanity of their Actions : That an Abhorrence , at that time , had been a Backsliding from the Protestant Religion , and an Apostasie from the Understanding , of those Great and Learned Men , That the Advice it self came too late , and the Merit impaired in the Unseasonable , and Extraordinary , Application : Extraordinary , because it is evident from your Letter , It was of your own Seeking ; For though the King had sent for You , yet nothing passed but general Expressions of Favour , and Duty between You , and , in Fact , the King had Altered his Mind , and Resolved not to Enter into any Particulars with you , if you had not made it your own Request to Him ; And so very Unseasonable , that if I had been in the Place of such preliminary Consultation , I should humbly have Offered , That my Lords the Bishops would please to refer his Majesty to his Popish Councils , by which he had for so many Years been conducted , rather than , so late , have thought it any Service to the Protestant Religion , and Interest , voluntarily to inform him , how he might Amuse the People with more vain Promises , Unspirit their Hopes , and Disappoint the Expedition , Leaving Us , a Reproach to our own sense , a Certain Prey to our Mortal Enemies , and the Disdain , if not , the Danger of Christendom . And if I had found your Lordship in the Advice who had so often Exercised your Parts for Them before , notwithstanding your Letter to the Ecclesiastical Commissioners , should readily have thought It proceeded from your Lordship , as One , rather Willing to Compound for a present Safety , upon Imaginary Conditions , than venture Calling to Account in a Manlike Reformation , which can never be , without some Stroaks , and more Marks of Impartial Justice . For , my Lord , tho' Moderation is Healing , yet the Body having been grievously Wounded , and Unable to discharge the Offices of a Political Life , when the Physicians with regard to the Constitution , have taken care to obviate the danger of Feaver , or other Distemper , the First Applications are Corrosive ; Laying open , and Probing of Wounds , by declaring Crimes , and designing Persons , is necessary ; Proud Flesh must be taken off , whether , by Fine , Degradation , or Confiscation , and Gangrene prevented , by Death , Banishment , or other Disability , according to the wisdom of Parliament . In the beginning of a Persecution an Honest Man in a Lawful Employment may , with Anxiety , submit to a Rash Action , in hopes to hinder worse : but he must quickly repair , by a Good one , or withdraw , not presuming to go on under Colour to Mitigate the Violence of Times ; For his Early Departure may Nip a Conspiracy in the Bud , Stagger the Design , and save a Nation : Whereas , if he Continues among them , the Plot gathers Strength , while his Reputation is a Snare to the Weaker . He that remains in a Station of Evil , pretending to keep out a Worse Man than himself , greatly aggravates his Crime , Apology is gone in the very Capacity to Distinguish , for he makes his Judgment Stoop to his will , and Honesty Slave to Ambition ; But your Streamer , my Lord , is an Admirable Spark , He that , God help him , was in the middle of the Stream , poor wretch ! when the Tide turn'd so Violently against Our Establisht Church , and State ; No warning : for he never heard of the name of Admiral parted with , rather than take one Test , and a Proviso obtained to secure Passage to the House of Lords in another ; but was driven down , by Chance I Know not How , Lower than he expected , The Turn was so Sudden , before he could resist the Current , or get to Shore ? otherwise , we had been Sure of him , for all the World Knows his Heart was with Us. That Man has nothing to do , but Apologise for a Stream ; He got off , as soon as he Could , thinks to be at rest under an Act of Oblivion , and , it may be , Fifty thousand Pounds , or such a Trifling Sum , from half a Crown , to dry himself with ; If that will pass for an Apology , upon my word , my Lord , one Streamer shall Outlive Five hundred Porpoises , and a Stemmer of Tides is a Goose to him . It is so far from being well , that so many forsook not the True Interest of the Nation , 't is a Shame , that so many Did ; but when I consider again , that true Protestant was a mark of Reproach , I wonder , we have so many Left. It is happy so many preserv'd their Integrity , and wretched so many Betra'yd it ; That so many Stood Unmov'd by the Importunity of their King , whom they were Bred up to Honour , and in all things Else to Obey , and Pity their Honour was not Sooner Consulted in their Obedience . In Sense of Humane Frailty many Infirmities are to be Overlook'd , but Ignorance is no Common Plea , for Those , who are Known to be Able , nor Chance , and Surprise , where the Province is Care ? If it be a great Crime in a Centinel to Sleep at his Post , 't is Unpardonable to take Opiate , and True , only to Preferment , Stupify all the Rest of his Qualifications . False Steps are to be Considered ; Heat of Spirit , may carry the Undiscerning Loyalty of Youth out of the way for a while , Or a Dazle from the Sun may intoxicate him : but Temper is expected in Ripeness of Judgment , and Firmeness of Wisdom from Age. It may be thought some kind of Merit ; or some Degree of Innocence , not to make more False Steps in a Slippery Ground , that is , Where Arbitrary Dominion has gained the Point , and from general Consent , as to a Conqueror , ready Obedience is Yielded to the Inconstant Motions of Unlimited Power . But when the Prerogative is labouring to break in up-upon the Fences of Known , and Written Laws , he is an Ill Husband that does not Endeavour to transmit that most Sacred part of his Inheritance , the Rights , and Liberties of his Countrey , to Posterity , Free from Incumbrance , as the Sweat , the Honesty , and the Blood of his Ancestors Secured , and left to him : And if he that Assists the Betraying those Rights , who , with Ignorance , and Chance , Sets up for Innocence , Merit , or Thanks , Imputes all to Slippery Ground , and 't is well , 't is no worse , Gentlemen , Take it as you find it , be contented , and mend for the Future ; if he be Excusable , with such an Apology , there may be Room for our Enemies to dispute our Deliverances , and Our Friends to question the Just Sense we have of it . Compliance looks very well meaning , because All are not Inflexible , and Allowance may be given to Better Understanding : But he that Complies in all Times , and Causes , Or he that Complies with many Bad Causes , Or the many Labours of one Bad Cause , if Great , or Learned , in the Eyes of the People , is a Dangerous Creature ; for the Powerful Argument of Private Advantage with such an Example , draws in the Numbers ; The First is neither True , nor of Reputation to Any Cause , and the Last makes a Good One Suspicious , unless some Extraordinary Act of Purgation assures him , and much more is required , than Breaking Loose from Ecclesiastical Commissioners at the last Minute , when they were Ready to part by Consent , and the Conspirators behind the Curtain , only directed them , like Generals , to draw up seemingly to Face the whole Body of the Clergy , to secure an Orderly Retreat in the Shape of Adjournment , with no more intent to meet again the Fourth of December , than , they designed to Establish Liberty of Conscience by a Religious Magna Charta , or than , they were so vain as to think , tho' the Dissenters accepted a Liberty of Worship , they would ever consent to Repeal the Tests , or were able to Compass it Effectually for them , if they were so Ill inclined : but , as , I have said in my First , to Amuse Us by Forms of Justice , till they were in a Posture , to follow the Example of the Parliament of Paris , and after disposing of our Principal Nobility , to put all the Rest under Military Reconciliation by the Assistance of France . 'T is Pleasant to say , the Constant Experience of all Wise Times has shewed , that Civil Dissentions , and Quarrels are best Ended by the Largest Acts of Indemnity : And 't is as Easy to prove the Contrary , and to shew that all wise Governments , from Sparta , down to Rome , the Mistress of the World , were Supported by the Strict Execution of Impartial Justice , That Tyranny took possession of her , at last , and has ever prevailed more , by Flattering the wicked , than strength ; That Civil Dissentions will never Extinguish , where there is matter of Faction , while some are too Great , and others too wise for the Laws of their Country — 'T is a very little while since , in the late Kings Reign , Pardons flew about like Wild Fire ; and the Act of Oblivion , my Lord , after the Restauration , will shew you , that some of All sorts were Excepted . Good Nature in England is soon Apt to have Compassion upon the Afflicted , but he that says , scarce any thing can be more Dangerous to the Party that is Uppermost , than to put English-men upon pitying those that suffer under it , Articles with a Sword in his Hand , and Threatens while he Desires . Certainly , it can neither become the Honour , nor Consist with the safety of any Revolution , to let such Language pass , where Good Nature is Demanded : And tho' I presume to join in this part of your Advice , my Lord , that the Revolution may be mild in the Event , yet not for the same Reasons of being Bloodless in the whole Course of it , or believing there was much danger of Bloodshed , but Principally , to oblige the Merciful Disposition of the King , whose Goodness recommended the Act , and , then to try , if . Marks of Reproach , with Confusion of Face , may not strike deeper , and more lasting Impressions into the Minds of the People , restraining them from Villanous Attempts for the Future , than Sanguinary Dispatches , the Work of a Minute , Forgot in an Hour . Last Pages of the Letter . I Will say no more , My Lord , but this , that after great and unexpected Changes , That hath been always found the firmest settlement of any State or Government where the Prevailing Party hath look'd but very little backward , and very much forward ; where Private Animosity , and Revenge have wisely given way to the greater Benefits of Publick Pardon and Indulgence . Perhaps , towards the beginning of great Reformations , a warm Impetuous Spirit may have its Use ; But to Compose Things after sudden Commotions , to Calm Men's Minds for the Future , to settle Affairs in a secure and Lasting Peace , most Certainly a gentle , generous , charitable Temper is the best . Answer . Private Animosity , and Revenge are not to be imagined in the Supream Assemblies of a Kingdom ; My Lord , 't is a great Oversight , or a higher Vanity to Mention them : The Impetuous Spirit of Reformation , is not English , Unless Affection pass for a Crime ; and Indifference a Virtue . To Compose Things after Sudden Commotions , to Calm Men's minds , for the present , a Generous , Good-natured , Charitable Temper is Best , because a Sudden , hot-headed Tumult ought to be Quickly Appeased , and no more thought of ; But when Conspiracies have been of long Standing , Obstinate , Carried on against the Laws of a Nation , by Inches , the Growth of Many Years , the Intriegue of Ages to Ripen and Effect , they bear no likeness to Sudden Commotion ; Nor can Affairs be Settled in a secure , and Lasting Peace upon any such Revolution , without Deliberate Councels , Steddy Resolutions , and Bold Execution . The Firmest Settlement of any State , or Government after Great Changes , is , when the Prevailing Party goes to the Root of the Evil , as well in the Instrument , as the Design . The Surest Method of Composing Things within , and Preventing Temptations to Berray from Abroad , is to let all Mankind see , no Injuries from thence shall pass Unaccounted for , because no Offenders at Home can Escape without Punishment . If Ministers of State were brought to Understand , that , according to our Laws , they gave their advice at their Peril , Kings would be well serv'd , and Subjects live Happy : Favourites would not only Examine Themselves , before they Entred upon those Important Trusts , but seriously Consider how to Carry Themselves when Engag'd ; Nor would they Ever Attempt to accumulate Honours and Fortunes by gratifying the Unreasonable Desire of their Master , if , they were , Once , well Satisfied beyond words , That the Powers of the Prince were not Strong enough to protect Them , while they live , nor Death it self to secure the Plunder to their Posterity . Thus , my Lord , you see , according to the Premise of my First , I am no Dealer in the Art of Language , Nor Accuser , I do assure your Lordship , but a plain , Ordinary Man , a Reverencer of Publick Honesty , Impartial Justice and Naked Truth . The Dearest Friend I have , cannot charge me with an Approach to Flattery , nor my greatest Enemy , Justly yet , with any Act of Private Animosity , or Revenge : Love for my Country raises me to Warmth , but no Impetuous Spirit . When I find a Man Acting against her Interest before , Forward , in Advising her , out of his Station , now , I cannot help being Jealous and Satisfied , in my own Breast , the Notions laid down are Disagreeable to her Safety in General , however they may be taken for granted with reference to his Particular , am so much an English-man , as not to let them pass for Unanswerable Maxims and Standing Rules , without Opposition , of which the World is to Judge between Us. Persons are not my Courtship , but Things my Industry , I Honour the Great , pay Respect to the Deserving , and Share with the Really Afflicted ; But , he that lays hold of Ignorance in so many Remarkable Transactions of his Life can be no sure Adviser ; Nor , in my Humble Opinion ought your Lordship to have Pleaded so Liberally , for all the Criminals in the Kingdom , Unless you thought your self the last Man upon Earth to be Forgiven . My Lord , Your Lordships most Humble Servant . May the 25th . 1689. FINIS . Notes, typically marginal, from the original text Notes for div A25576-e140 p. 6. p. 7. Pag. 6. 6 Ed. 6. Page . 3. Page 21. Page 27 , 28 , 29 , 30. Page 59º Page 60. Page 60. Page 61. Page 61. Page 61. Page 61.