in the house for the purpose. What then can be the plain English of the business but this, that they concluded, his former kindness, thus abused, would for ever disengage him for the future; and that, since he could not be prevailed upon to stifle the evidence he had, and might yet have produced (for he acknowledged to some, he had been both tampered with and menaced) they would strangle him; which is such a demonstration, that their folly, as well as malice, hath given of the whole to be true, that none can now deny it to be a plot, but those that are of it, or will lose by the discovery. But some say, he killed himself. That is a likely business indeed; for what I pray? a sober, charitable, judicious man. 0, but he was melancholy; that is, he was a serious man. But why now more melancholy than ever? Because he had wronged the innocent Papists. Is that it? Where is the wrong? Is it, that he heard what persons, upon oath, declared of the most horrid conspiracy that ever was on foot in the world, but the murdering of the Son of God? But, be this deposition true or false, it was his duty and place to take it, he was sworn to do it, it was a great, and the best part of his office; he had deserved a plotter's punishment to have refused the thing. Here is no virulency, suborning of evidence, condemning, or murdering them, in all this. Where is the sin then, that should trouble his conscience? But they, that will murder, will lie to cover it. Besides, it is plain that he was strangled, and his neck broke before stabbed, because he could neither strangle himself, nor break his neck, after he was stabbed through his heart, nor stab himself after he was strangled, and his neck broke. Moreover, had he been stabbed before dead, or soon after, blood would have appeared on the hilt of his sword on which he lay, or on the ground, it being a dry place, or on his cloaths; but no blood was to be seen, and when the sword was drawn out of his body, which his murderers put in to palliate the butchery, nothing issued from him but a dark water, as is usual, where blood is congealed, as his doubtless was, before he was stabbed; for, we are of opinion, there was a good time betwixt strangling and stabbing him, and that the latter was upon great deliberation, and that on purpose to hide the actors, and cast the murder upon himself. O Lord God! that ever men should be so much the children of the devil, as first to murder, then charge it upon the innocent soul murdered. But the devil was ever a fool, and so in this; for, besides what we have observed, this further is to be said, they that killed him would have us think it was himself, because neither cloaths, nor money, nor rings, were taken away. True, but though they that are concerned in the plot wanted neither his cloaths, nor money, nor rings, to carry it on, yet they took what they wanted, and they wanted what they took with a wit. ness, and that was his pocket-book of depositions and examinations; which puts it out of doubt, that they, that were so much concerned in them, both murdered him and took it; for none can think that Father Conyers, the Duke of Norfolk's confessor, taking the air over hedge and ditch to Primrose Hill, dropt just upon him, and pickt his pockets of the book. Well, but why may he not have hang. ed himself, and his kindred, to save his estate, stabbed him afterwards, and carried him thither? This is deadly cunning; but why was his pocket-book only wanting, wherein the plotters were con cerned? Tricks will not do here. Furthermore, why did they not keep his gold, silver, and rings, that were found in his pocket, but expose them? Why not strip him in some degree, make wound in his sword-arm, and hack, bend, or break his sword, that it might look like robbery? But, last of all, why should they carry him out exactly as he used to go, quite dressed, and want a band, especially since they were so punctual as to take his sword, belt, gloves, and stick, with them? He went out, in the morning, with a great laced band, none was found, as well as the book of examinations. Of that we have already spoke; for the band, it is a plain case they strangled him, and being a long-necked man, and wearing an high strong collar, he struggling to save himself, and they striving to dispatch him that way, the band was torn in the fray, and, to have let it go so, had been to have told the story too plainly; that is, that the man was strangled to death by violence, and that the stab of his own sword was an after-trick to cover the business. Thus this poor gentleman, but worthy and brave patriot, ended his days, by the assassinating hands of Papists, whose butchery made him the common martyr of his religion and country, and his death is to us the earnest of their cruelty; in him they have massa. cred us all, we must take it to ourselves, and can no more be un concerned in his death, than disinterested in the cause of it. The plot is opened, the tragedy is begun, our wives are affrighted, our children cry, no man is sure of his life a day; the choice is only, what death we shall die, whether be stabbed, strangled, or burned. This consternation and insecurity must needs obstruct all commerce, scare people from following their lawful occasions, deter all officers of justice from their duty, and, in fine, dissolve human society, and reduce the world into its first chaos. For the Lord's sake, let us consider our condition, let us all turn to the Lord with unfeigned repentance, let us look and cry to him for help, that he, who has discovered, would confound this bloody conspiracy, and shew mercy, and bring us deliverance, that we may yet see his salvation, and serve him all the days of our lives; and, in order to our security, these things are earnestly requested of you: 1. Take effectual care to preserve the king; they say, and we believe, he is not for their turn. We would not have him, for his sake and ours. In order to this, pray find out the Ahithophels, the dangerous men about him; you know who they are, be free and bold, prize your time, the conjuncture is great. 2. Vote an address to the king, to banish all Irish Papists out of the army, navy, and kingdom, by such a day, and all Papists out of the City of London, whose gross ignorance, and base desperateness, renders them the fittest men for assassinations. Besides, it is a shame, that the children and kindred of Irish rebels, if not some of them the very men themselves that were actors in that horrid mas in the house for the purpose. What then can be the plain English of the business but this, that they concluded, his former kindness, thus abused, would for ever disengage him for the future; and that, since he could not be prevailed upon to stifle the evidence he had, and might yet have produced (for he acknowledged to some, he had been both tampered with and menaced) they would strangle him; which is such a demonstration, that their folly, as well as malice, hath given of the whole to be true, that none can now deny it to be a plot, but those that are of it, or will lose by the discovery. But some say, he killed himself. That is a likely business in. deed; for what I pray? a sober, charitable, judicious man. O, but he was melancholy; that is, he was a serious man. But why now more melancholy than ever? Because he had wronged the innocent Papists. Is that it? Where is the wrong? Is it, that he heard what persons, upon oath, declared of the most horrid conspiracy that ever was on foot in the world, but the murdering of the Son of God? But, be this deposition true or false, it was his duty and place to take it, he was sworn to do it, it was a great, and the best part of his office; he had deserved a plotter's punishment to have refused the thing. Here is no virulency, suborning of evidence, condemning, or murdering them, in all this. Where is the sin then, that should trouble his conscience? But they, that will murder, will lie to cover it. Besides, it is plain that he was strangled, and his neck broke before stabbed, because he could neither strangle himself, nor break his neck, after he was stabbed through his heart, nor stab himself after he was strangled, and his neck broke. More. over, had he been stabbed before dead, or soon after, blood would have appeared on the hilt of his sword on which he lay, or on the ground, it being a dry place, or on his cloaths; but no blood was to be seen, and when the sword was drawn out of his body, which his murderers put in to palliate the butchery, nothing issued from him but a dark water, as is usual, where blood is congealed, as his doubtless was, before he was stabbed; for, we are of opinion, there was a good time betwixt strangling and stabbing him, and that the latter was upon great deliberation, and that on purpose to hide the actors, and cast the murder upon himself. O Lord God! that ever men should be so much the children of the devil, as first to murder, then charge it upon the innocent soul murdered. But the devil was ever a fool, and so in this; for, besides what we have observed, this further is to be said, they that killed him would have us think it was himself, because neither cloaths, nor money, nor rings, were taken away. True, but though they that are concerned in the plot wanted neither his cloaths, nor money, nor rings, to carry it on, yet they took what they wanted, and they wanted what they took with a wit ness, and that was his pocket-book of depositions and examinations; which puts it out of doubt, that they, that were so much concerned in them, both murdered him and took it; for none can think that Father Conyers, the Duke of Norfolk's confessor, taking the air over hedge and ditch to Primrose Hill, dropt just upon him, and pickt his pockets of the book. Well, but why may he not have hang ed himself, and his kindred, to save his estate, stabbed him afterwards, and carried him thither? This is deadly cunning; but why was his pocket-book only wanting, wherein the plotters were concerned? Tricks will not do here. Furthermore, why did they not keep his gold, silver, and rings, that were found in his pocket, but expose them? Why not strip him in some degree, make wound in his sword-arm, and hack, bend, or break his sword, that it might look like robbery? But, last of all, why should they carry him out exactly as he used to go, quite dressed, and want a band, especially since they were so punctual as to take his sword, belt, gloves, and stick, with them? He went out, in the morning, with a great laced band, none was found, as well as the book of examinations. Of that we have already spoke; for the band, it is a plain case they strangled him, and being a long-necked man, and wearing an high strong collar, he struggling to save himself, and they striving to dispatch him that way, the band was torn in the fray, and, to have let it go so, had been to have told the story too plainly; that is, that the man was strangled to death by violence, and that the stab of his own sword was an after-trick to cover the business. Thus this poor gentleman, but worthy and brave patriot, ended his days, by the assassinating hands of Papists, whose butchery made him the common martyr of his religion and country, and his death is to us the earnest of their cruelty; in him they have massa. cred us all, we must take it to ourselves, and can no more be un. concerned in his death, than disinterested in the cause of it. The plot is opened, the tragedy is begun, our wives are affrighted, our children cry, no man is sure of his life a day; the choice is only, what death we shall die, whether be stabbed, strangled, or burned. This consternation and insecurity must needs obstruct all commerce, scare people from following their lawful occasions, deter all officers of justice from their duty, and, in fine, dissolve human society, and reduce the world into its first chaos. For the Lord's sake, let us consider our condition, let us all turn to the Lord with unfeigned repentance, let us look and cry to him for help, that he, who has discovered, would confound this bloody conspiracy, and shew mercy, and bring us deliverance, that we may yet see his salvation, and serve him all the days of our lives; and, in order to our security, these things are earnestly requested of you: 1. Take effectual care to preserve the king; they say, and we believe, he is not for their turn. We would not have him, for his sake and ours. In order to this, pray find out the Ahithophels, the dangerous men about him; you know who they are, be free and bold, prize your time, the conjuncture is great. 2. Vote an address to the king, to banish all Irish Papists out of the army, navy, and kingdom, by such a day, and all Papists out of the City of London, whose gross ignorance, and base desperateness, renders them the fittest men for assassinations. Besides, it is a shame, that the children and kindred of Irish rebels, if not some of them the very men themselves that were actors in that horrid mas tom of our hearts, with the fervent love and good works of our mar. tyred ancestors; or their life, doctrine, and death will rise up in judgment against us, and God will yet suffer their and our enemies to swallow us up quick. And be assured, as looseness and debauch ery were designed by the Papists, as a state-trick, to dispose the minds of the people to receive, or at least suffer Popery, that, to say true, cannot live with better company; so the discouragement of it, and cherishing of all virtuous persons, with a serious and hearty prosecution of the fore-mentioned proposals, will stop, and in time wear it out of the kingdom; for Popery fears nothing more than light, inquiry, and sober living. Hear us, we beseech you, for Jesus Christ's sake; take heart, we will never leave you, do not you leave us; provide for the king, provide for the people; for God alone knows, when we lie down, if we shall ever rise, or, when we go forth, if we shall ever return. Remember the massacre of Paris, in which so many thousands fell, and, with them, that brave admiral, Coligni Infamy enough, one would think, to shame the party, did they know such a thing; but, instead of that, it was meritorious, yea, it is a subject of triumph: Look into the Vatican at Rome, and, among the other rare feats performed by christian kings against infidels, this massacre of Paris, now about an hundred years old, is to be found; and so careful was the designer to do it to the life, that he has not omitted to shew us, how the noble admiral was flung dead out of the window into the street, to be used as people use cats and dogs in Protestant countries, but good enough for an heretick, whom the worse they use, the better they are. But, to shew they own the plot, and glory in the action, for fear one not read in the story should take Coligni for Jezabel, they have gallantly explained the action upon the piece, and writ his name at large. But there is a cruelty nearer home, no less barbarous, the Irish massacre, in 1641; nay, it exceeded, First, in number; there were above three-hundred thousand murdered. Next, in that no age or sex was spared; and, lastly, in the manner of it. It was general throughout the kingdom; and, as they were more savage, so more cruel; they spared not either sick, or lying-in women; they killed poor infants, and innocent children, tossing some upon their swords, skeens, and other instruments of cruelty; flinging others into rivers, and, taking several by the legs, dashed their brains out against walls or rocks. O Lord God, avenge this innocent blood; it still cries. But, that these actors of this tragedy, or their bloody-minded offspring, should swarm in England, be pensioners here, as if they were the old soldiers of the queen, men of eighty-eight, cripples of loyalty, laid up for their good services, and St. James's their hospital, this scandalises us. We think them the worst cattle of their country, and pray, that there may be an exchange, that you would prohibit their importation, instead of more useful beasts. For the bloody massacre of Piedmont, you have it at large described by Sir Samuel Morland. Bnt we must never forget the horrid murder of Henry the Third and of Henry the Fourth of France, our king's renowned grandfather |