lation of St. John, that "antichrist was to be overcome by the sword," which they were very ready to take into their hands. So that those very men, that began with tender meek petitions, proceeded to print public admonitions, and then to satirical remonstrances ; and at last (having, like David, numbered who was not, and who was, for their cause), they got a supposed certainty of so great a party, that they durst threaten first the bishops, and, not long after, both the Queen and parliament; to all which they were secretly encouraged by the Earl of Leicester, then in great favour with her Majesty, and the reputed cherisher and patron-general of these pretenders to tenderness of conscience; whom he used as a sacrilegious snare to farther his design, which was by their means to bring such an odium upon the bishops, as to procure an alienation of their lands, and a large proportion of them for himself: which avaricious desire had so blinded his reason, that his ambitious and greedy hopes had almost flattered him into present possession of Lambeth-house.

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And to these strange and dangerous undertakings, the nonconformists of this nation were much encouraged and heightened by a correspondence and confederacy with that brotherhood in Scotland; so that here they became so bold, that one told the Queen openly in a sermon, she was like an untamed heifer, that would not be ruled by God's people, but obstructed his discipline." And in Scotland they were more confident, for there they declared her an atheist, ↳ and grew to such a height as not to be accountable for any thing spoken against her; no nor for treason against their own King, if spoken in the pulpit : shewing at last such a disobedience even to him, that his mother being in England, and then in distress, and in prison, and in danger of death, the church denied the King their prayers for her; and at another time, when he had appointed a day of feasting, their church declared for a general fast, in opposition to his authority.

To this height they were grown in both nations, and by these means there was distilled into the minds of the common people such other venomous and turbulent principles, as were inconsistent with the safety of the church and state: and these vented so daringly, that, besides the loss of life and limbs, the church and state were both forced to use such other severities, as will not admit of an excuse, if it had not been to prevent confusion, and the perilous consequences of it; which, without such prevention, would in a short time have brought unavoidable ruin and misery to this numerous nation.

These errors and animosities were so remarkable, that they begat wonder in an ingenious Italian, who being about this time come newly into this nation, writ scoffingly to a friend in his own couna Mr. Dering.

See Bishop Spotswood's History of the Church of Scotland.

try; "That the common people of England were wiser than the wisest of his nation; for here the very women and shopkeepers were able to judge of predestination, and determine what laws were fit to be made concerning church government; then, what were fit to be obeyed or abolished. That they were more able (or at least thought so), to raise and determine perplexed cases of conscience, than the most learned colleges in Italy. That men of the slightest learning, and the most ignorant of the common people were mad for a new, or super, or re-reformation of religion; and that in this they appeared like that man, who would never cease to whet and whet his knife, till there was no steel left to make it useful. And he concluded his letter with this observation," that those very men than were most busy in oppositions and disputations, and controversies, and finding out the faults of their governors, had usually the least of humility and mortification, or of the power of godliness." And to heighten all these discontents and dangers, there was also sprung up a generation of godless men; men that had so long given way to their own lusts and delusions, and had so often, and so highly opposed the blessed motions of the blessed Spirit, and the inward light of their own consciences, that they had thereby sinned themselves to a belief of what they would, but were not able to believe into a belief, which is repugnant even to human nature (for the heathens believe there are many gods); but these have sinned themselves into a belief, that there is no God; and so finding nothing in themselves, but what is worse than nothing, began to wish what they were not able to hope for, "that they should be like the beasts that perish;" and, in wicked company (which is the atheists's sanctuary), were so bold as to say so: though the worst of mankind, when he is left alone at midnight, may wish, but cannot then think it. Into this wretched, this reprobate condition, many had then sinned themselves.

And now, when the church was pestered with them, and with all these other irregularities; when her lands were in danger of alienation, her power at least neglected, and her peace torn in pieces by several schisms, and such heresies as do usually attend that sin: when the common people seemed ambitious of doing those very things which were attended with most dangers, that thereby they might be punished, and then applauded and pitied: when they called the spirit of opposition a tender conscience, and complained of persecution, because they wanted power to persecute others: when the giddy multitude raged, and became restless to find out misery for themselves and others; and the rabble would herd themselves together, and endeavour to govern and act in spite of authority-In this extremity, fear, and danger of the church and state, when, to suppress the growing evils of both, they needed a man of

prudence and piety, and of a high and fearless fortitude; they were blest in all by John Whitgift, his being made archbishop of Canterbury; of whom ingenious Sir Henry Wotton (that knew him well) hath left this true character, that he was a man of a reverend and sacred memory; and of the primitive temper, a man of such a temper, as when the church by lowliness of spirit did flourish in highest examples of virtue.

And though I dare not undertake to add to his character, yet I shall neither do right to this discourse, nor to my reader, if I forbear to give him a farther and short account of the life and manners of this excellent man; and it shall be short, for I long to end this digression, that I may lead my reader back to Mr. Hooker, where we left him at the Temple.

count of

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bury.

John Whitgift was born in the county of Lincoln, of a family Some acthat was ancient, and noted to be prudent and affable, and gentle Whitgift, by nature. He was educated in Cambridge; much of his learning archbishop was acquired in Pembroke-hall (where Mr. Bradford the martyr was his tutor): from thence he was removed to Peter-house; from thence to be master of Pembroke-hall; and from thence to the mastership of Trinity-college. About which time the Queen made him her chaplain; and not long after prebendary of Ely, and then dean of Lincoln; and having for many years past looked upon him with much reverence and favour, gave him a fair testimony of both, by giving him the bishopric of Worcester, and (which was not an usual favour) forgiving him his first-fruits; then by constituting him vice-president of the principality of Wales. And having for several years experimented his wisdom, his justice and moderation in the manage of her affairs, in both these places, she in the twenty-sixth of her reign made him archbishop of Canterbury; and, not long after, of her privy council; and trusted him to manage all her ecclesiastical affairs and preferments. In all which removes, he was like the ark, which left a blessing upon the place where it rested; and in all his employments, was like Jehoiada, that did good unto Israel.

These were the steps of this Bishop's ascension to this place of dignity and cares; in which place (to speak Mr. Camden's very words in his Annals) "he devoutly consecrated both his whole life to God, and his painful labours to the good of his church." And yet in this place he met with many oppositions in the regulation of church affairs, which were much disordered at his entrance, by reason of the age and remissness of Bishop Grindal a (his immediate predecessor), the activity of the nonconformists, and their chief

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Or rather by reason of his suspension and sequestration, which he lay under (together with the Queen's displeasure) for some years, when the ecclesiastical affairs were managed by certain civilians. J. S.

His speech to the Queen.

assistant the Earl of Leicester; and indeed, by too many others of the like sacrilegious principles. With these he was to encounter ; and though he wanted neither courage nor a good cause, yet he foresaw, that, without a great measure of the Queen's favour, it was impossible to stand in the breach that was made into the lands and immunities of the church, or to maintain the remaining rights of it. And therefore by justifiable sacred insinuations, such as St. Paul to Agrippa," Aprippa, believest thou? I know thou believest," he wrought himself into so great a degree of favour with her, as, by his pious use of it, hath got both of them a greater degree of fame in this world, and of glory in that into which they are now entered.

His merits to the Queen, and her favours to him, were such, that she called him her little black husband, and called his servants her servants: and she saw so visible and blessed a sincerity shine in all his cares and endeavours for the church's, and for her good, that she was supposed to trust him with the very secrets of her soul, and to make him her confessor of which she gave many fair testimonies; and of which one was, that she would never eat flesh in Lent, without obtaining a licence from her little black husband: and would often say, she pitied him because she trusted him, and had eased herself by laying the burthen of all her clergy-cares upon his shoulders, which she was certain he managed with prudence and piety.

I shall not keep myself within the promised rules of brevity in this account of his interest with her Majesty, and his care of the church's rights, if in this digression I should enlarge to particulars; and therefore my desire is, that one example may serve for a testimony of both. And that the reader may the better understand it, he may take notice, that not many years before his being made archbishop, there passed an act or acts of parliament, intending the better preservation of church-lands, by recalling a power which was vested in others to sell or lease them, by lodging and trusting the future care and protection of them only in the crown; and amongst many that made a bad use of this power or trust of the Queen's, the Earl of Leicester was one; and the good Bishop having by his interest with her Majesty put a stop to the Earl's sacrilegious designs, they two fell to an open opposition before her; after which they both quitted the room, not friends in appearance. But the Bishop made a sudden and a seasonable return to her Majesty (for he found her alone) and spake to her with great humility and reverence, and to this purpose:

"I beseech your Majesty to hear me with patience, and to believe that your's and the church's safety are dearer to me than my life, but my conscience dearer than both: and therefore give me leave to do my duty, and tell you, that princes are deputed nursing fathers of the church, and owe it a protection; and therefore God

forbid that you should be so much as passive in her ruin, when you may prevent it; or that I should behold it without horror and detestation; or should forbear to tell your Majesty of the sin and danger. And though you and myself are born in an age of frailties, when the primitive piety and care of the church's lands and immunities are much decayed; yet, madam, let me beg that you will but first consider, and then you will believe there are such sins as profaneness and sacrilege; for if there were not, they could not have names in holy Writ; and particularly in the New Testament. And I beseech you to consider, that though our Saviour said, ' He judged no man;' and, to testify it, would not judge nor divide the inheritance betwixt the two brethren, nor would judge the woman taken in adultery; yet in this point of the church's rights he was so zealous, that he made himself both the accuser and the judge, and the executioner to punish these sins; witnessed, in that he himself made the whip to drive the profaners out of the temple; overthrew the tables of the money-changers, and drove them out of it. And consider, that it was St. Paul that said to those Christians of his time that were offended with idolatry, yet committed sacrilege, Thou that abhorrest idols, dost thou commit sacrilege?' supposing, I think, sacrilege to be the greater sin. This may occasion your Majesty to consider, that there is such a sin as sacrilege; and to incline you to prevent the curse that will follow it, I beseech also to consider that Constantine the first Christian emperor, you and Helena his mother; that King Edgar, and Edward the Confessor, and indeed many others of your predecessors, and many private Christians, have also given to God, and to his church, much land, and many immunities, which they might have given to those of their own families, and did not; but gave them as an absolute right and sacrifice to God: and with these immunities and lands they have entailed a curse upon the alienators of them; God prevent your Majesty from being liable to that curse.

"And to make you that are trusted with their preservation, the better to understand the danger of it; I beseech you, forget not, that, besides these curses, the church's land and power have been also endeavoured to be preserved, as far as human reason and the law of this nation have been able to preserve them, by an immediate and most sacred obligation on the consciences of the princes of this realm. For they that consult Magna Charta shall find, that as all your predecessors were at their coronation, so you also were sworn before all the nobility and bishops then present, and in the presence of God, and in his stead to him that anointed you, to maintain the church-lands, and the rights belonging to it; and this testified openly at the holy altar, by laying your hands on the Bible then lying upon it. And not only Magna Charta, but many modern