suffering, which convinced the world, that they were not actuated by humour, but conscience. 2. To their doctrine and manner of preaching, which was plain and practical, accompanied with a warm and awakening address to the conscience. Their doctrines were those of the first reformers, which were grown out of fashion in the church; and their way of worship was simple and plain; without the ornament of rites and ceremonies. 3. To the severity of their morals, at a time when the nation was sunk into all kinds of vice and luxury, from which they preserved themselves in a great measure untainted. Their conversation was sober and virtuous. They observed the Lord's day with religious strictness, and had a universal reputation for justice and integrity in their dealings. 4. To the careful and strict education of their children, whom they impressed with an early sense of scriptural religion, and educated in their own way, as they had opportunity, under private schoolmasters of their own principles. 5. To a concern for a succession of able and learned ministers; for which purpose they encouraged private academies in several parts of the kingdom; and it is remarkable that many gentlemen and substantial citizens devoted their children to the ministry, at a time when they had nothing in view but worldly discouragements. 6. To the persecuting zeal of the high-church party, attended with an uncommon licentiousness of manners. If their zeal against the Nonconformists had produced a greater sanctity of life, and severity of morals, amongst themselves, it had been less offensive; but to see men destitute of common virtue signing warrants of distress upon their neighbours, only for worshipping God peaceably at a separate meeting, when they themselves hardly worshipped God at all; made some apprehend there was nothing at all in religion, and others resolve to take their lot with a more sober people. Finally, To the spirit and principles of toryism, which began to appear ruinous to the nation. The old English constitution was in a manner lost, while the church and prerogative had been trampling on the dissenters, who had stood firm to it for twenty years, in the midst of reproaches and sufferings. This was the consequence of tory measures; and Popery being now coming in at the gap they had made, the most resolved Protestants saw their error, entertained a favourable opinion of the dissenters, and many of them joined their congregations. To return to the history. The dissenters being now easy, it was resolved to return the artillery of the preroga tive against the church, and make them feel a little of the smart they had given others; the king and his priests were thoroughly enraged with their opposition to the court, and therefore appointed commissioners throughout England to inquire, what money had been raised; or what goods had been seized by distress on dissenters, on prosecutions for recusancy, and not brought to account in the exchequer. In the Gazette of March 5, 1687, it is advertised, that the commissioners appointed to examine into the losses of the dissenters and recusants, within the several counties of Gloucester, Worcester, and Monmouth, were to hold their sessions for the said counties at the places therein mentioned. Others were appointed for the counties of Middlesex, Essex, &c. to inquire what money or goods had been taken or received for any matters relating to religion since Sep+ tember 29, 1677, in any of the counties for which they were named. They were to return the names of all persons who had seized goods, or received money. The parties themselves, if alive, were obliged to appear, and give an account; and if dead, their representatives were to appear before the commissioners for them. This struck terror into the whole tribe of informers, the confiding justices, and others, who expected now to be ruined; but, says Dr. Calamy, the Protestant dissenters generously refused to appear against their enemies, upon assurances given by leading persons, both clergy and laity, that no such methods should be used for the future. Had this inquiry proceeded, and the dissenters universally come into it, a black and fraudulent scene would have been opened, which now will be concealed. Bishop Burnet says, "The king ordered them to inquire into all vexatious suits into which the dissenters had been brought in the spiritual courts, and into all the compositions they had been forced to make to redeem themselves from farther trouble, which, as was said, would have brought to light a scandalous discovery of all the ill practices of those courts; for the use that many who belong to those courts had made of the laws with relation to dissenters, was, to draw presents from such as could make them, threatening them with a process in case they failed to do that, and upon doing it, leaving them at full liberty to neglect the laws as much as they pleased. The commission subsisted till the Revolution, and it was hoped (says his lordship) that this would have animated the dissenters to turn upon the clergy with some of that fierceness with which they themselves had been lately treated."* But they took no advantage of the dispo sition of the court, nor of the opportunity that was put into their hands of making reprisals on their adversaries; which shews the truly generous and Christian spirit of those confessors for religion; and deserved a more grateful acknowledgment. To humble the clergy yet farther, his majesty, by the advice of Jefferies, erected a new ecclesiastical commission, though the act which took away the high-commission in 1641 had provided, that no court of that nature should be erected for the future; but the king, though a Papist, assumed the supremacy, and directed a commission to the archbishop of Canterbury, Jefferies the chancellor, the bishops of Durham and Rochester; to the earl of Sunderland-president of the council; Herbert and Wright, lordchief-justices, and Jenner recorder of London, or any three of them, provided the chancellor was one," to exercise all manner of jurisdiction and pre-eminence, touching any spiritual or ecclesiastical jurisdictions, to visit, reform, redress, and amend, all abuses, offences, contempts, and enormities, which by the spiritual or ecclesiastical laws might be corrected. They were also to inquire into all misdemeanours and contempts which might be punished by the censures of the church, and to call before them all ecclesiastical persons of what degree and dignity soever, and punish the offenders by excommunications, suspensions, deprivations, or other ecclesiastical censures, &c."+ This was a terrible rod held out to the clergy, and if the commissioners had had time to proceed in their inquiries, according to the mandates sent to the chancellors and archdeacons of the several diocesses, they would have felt more of the effects of that arbitrary power which their indiscreet conduct had brought on the nation; but Providence was kinder to them than they had * Burnet, vol. 3. p. 140, 141, Edinb. edit. ↑ Burnet, p. 82. been to their brethren.* The commission was granted the beginning of April, but was not opened till the beginning of August: the archbishop of Canterbury was afraid to act in it;t Durham was so lifted up, says Burnet, that he said his name would now be recorded in history; and Sprat bishop of Rochester, in hopes of farther preferment, swam with the stream. Some Roman Catholics were in the commission, and consequently the enemies of the Protestant religion were to be its judges. But his majesty, not being willing to rely altogether on the Oxford decree, nor on the fashionable doctrines of passive obedience and nonresistance, which had been preached up for above twenty years as the unalterable doctrines of the church of England, in order to support his extraordinary proceedings, resolved to augment his standing forces to fifteen thousand men. He was apprehensive of a snake in the grass, or a secret reserve, that might break out when the church itself came to be pinched; he therefore ordered his army to encamp on Hounslow-heath, under the command of the earl of Feversham, to awe the city, and be at hand upon any emergency; the officers and many of the soldiers were Irish Papists, and they had a public chapel in which mass was said every day, so that it was believed the king might introduce what religion he pleased.§ It was dangerous to speak or write against his majesty's proceedings; for when the reverend Mr. Johnson, a clergyman, * Welwood, p. 198. : + It is said, that he took exception at the lawfulness of the commission itself. But then on its being opened, he did not appear and declare against it, as judging it to be against law contenting himself with not going to it: and it was not at first apprehended that he made a matter of conscience of it. He was of a timorous nature, and cautious of doing any thing that might eventually be prejudicial to his great object, which was to enrich his nephew. Burnet, vol. 3. p. 82, 83. Grey's Examination, vol. 3. p. 405.-Ed. Though the bishop of Rochester might, from views to preferment, be induced to act in a commission to which he was, without his knowledge, named; yet he is stated to have acted with integrity in this matter, through his ignorance of the laws, having no objection to the legality of it; with the purpose of doing as much good, and preventing as much evil, as the times would permit. In the execution of it he pleaded, that he had studied to moderate and restrain the violence of others, never giving his consent to any irregular and arbitrary sentence, but declaring against every extravagant decree. His opinions, he said, were always so contrary to the humours of the court, that he often thought himself to be really in as much hazard from the commission itself, by his noncompliance, as any of his brethren could be that were out of it. And at last, rather than concur in the prosecution of such as refused to read the king's declaration, he solemnly took his leave and withdrew from the court. Grey's examination, vol. 3. p. 405, 406.-ED. § Gazette, No. 2192. ventured to publish a writing, directed to the Protestant officers of the army, to dissuade them from being tools of the court to subvert the constitution and Protestant religion; diligent search was made for him, and being apprehended, he was sentenced to stand three times in the pillory, to be degraded of his orders, to be whipped from Newgate to Tyburn, and to be fined five hundred marks; all which was executed with great severity.* Affairs in Scotland were in equal forwardness with those of England; the parliament which met at Edinburgh in May 1685, while the persecution continued, declared their abhorrence of all principles derogatary to the king's absolute power, and offered their lives and fortunes to defend it against all opposers. They passed an act, making it death to resort to any conventicles in houses or fields; and declared it high-treason to give or take the national covenant, or to write in defence of it. They also obliged the subjects of Scotland to take an oath, when required, to maintain the king's absolute power, on pain of banishment. Popery made very considerable advances in that kingdom, and several persons of character changed their religion with the times. But the populace were in the other extreme; the earl of Perth having set up a private chapel for mass, mob broke into it with such fury that they defaced and destroyed the whole furniture, for which one of them was apprehended and hanged. When the English court changed measures, the Scots parliament agreed to a suspension of the penal laws during the king's life; but his majesty insisting upon an entire repeal, which they declined, he dis the * Mr. Johnson, previously to his sufferings, was degraded in the chapter-house of St. Paul's on the 22d of November, 1686. He bore the whipping on the 1st of December following with great fortitude. The Revolution restored him to his liberty; the degradation was annulled; the judgment given against him was declared illegal and cruel; and a pension of 300l. a year for his own and son's life was granted to him, with 1000l. in money, and a place of 100l. a year for his son. His temper, which was haughty, rough, and turbulent, rendered his solicitations for a bishoprick, and two addresses of the lords recommending him to preferment, unsuccessful. He had been chaplain to lord Russel; and was a man of considerable learning and abilities, of great firmness and fortitude of mind. In 1683-4 he had incurred a heavy sentence in the King's-bench, being fined five hundred marks, and committed to the prison till it was paid, and sureties for his good behaviour for a year were found. This penalty was incurred by the publication of a book entitled Julian the Apostate, in 1682, intended to expose the doctrines of passive obedience and nouresistance; and to shew th great difference between the case of the primitive Christians, who had the laws against them, and ours who have the laws on our side. Birch's Life of Archbishop Tillotson, p. 216, &c.-ED. |