sins in this land have too near bordering with that sin. Innumerable scriptures are to this purpose, but these may suffice at present. Another thing makes me scruple, because they command no more prayers to be prayed, save unto thee O king,' Dan. vi. 7. And lastly, I dare not pray it, because all the profane profligate persons have it always in their mouth, especially when they are drunk; and if I do what they do, I fear I go where they go: but blessed be the Lord, who has yet prevented me from the paths of these destroyers. Much of this was spoken when I was before them, and so I shall forbear to speak any more as to this question.

"The next question is, in order to the prelate's death, Whether it was murder or not? Murder I dare not call it, more than Eglon's, Sisera's, and Balaam's deaths, but the just judgment of God for his fearful apostasy and backsliding, together with the horrid murders committed by him upon the saints and servants of God. The third is, That of the death of the late king; whether it was murder or not? I am not much to meddle with it; but the many thousands that were slain in England, the horrid murder committed by the Irish in Ireland, and the dreadful slaughter of the protestants in Scotland, cause great thoughts of heart, that it was a fatal stroke. A fourth thing, Whether Bothwell bridge was rebellion? which whether it was so or not, may appear, if ye consider our former engagements to that effect. And, fifthly, Anent owning and adhering to the covenants, -We answered publicly before the court, That in all the scripture it was warrantable, both to make covenants, and also to keep them, and that there was never a covenant so broken, but that which was punished by signal judgments and plagues by the Lord. These were the answers to the indictment, whereupon the sentence of death passed, or for not answering to some of these questions; for which I must lay down my life. And if this be not murder, let Christian nations bear witness, if ever the like was done in any Christian kingdom heretofore.

"But now being straitened for want of time and other inconveniences, I cannot say much more to you. Only, I leave it with you as my last advice, that you would endeavour to keep the way of the Lord sincerely, and not to meddle with them that are given to such changes, which alas too many plead for, and are given to this day; and that ye would not be so formal in many things, concerning godliness, and the work and worship of God.-Formality, it may be feared, will give many a beguile, when it cannot be mended. As first, I beseech you, be more observant in keeping the Lord's day, in rising betimes in the morning, and in spending the whole time in worshipping God sincerely: take heed to your thoughts, words, and actions. And when ye set a day apart, I mean of humiliation, give God the whole day, and notice what success ye have had, and how ye have found the work thrive and prosper among you: and use less disputings even in things seemingly necessary and be more in examination and edification both of yourselves and others; and believe that a well spent Sabbath will be helpful to spend the week well. And also, labouring to have your conversation aright through the week, will be a noble presage to begin the Sabbath. And what ye spare of your ordinary diet, bestow it upon the poor and needy. There is this among many, who profess to be reli

gious, which is odious, that they take well with it to be called religious, and yet they have little or no scruple to do wrong, and speak wrong of others, and towards them. I beseech you sin not,-though there were no eye to see you but God, either by doing or suffering: you will never perform religious duties aright, till ye be at this, that ye dare do wrong in no kind to any. Do justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with your God.' Alas! it is sad to see and hear judgments and plagues multiplied, and sin so much increasing. O for more tenderness one towards another! and of a spirit of meekness and zeal for God, give yourselves to be ever in prayer one with another, and for another: wrestle with him in behalf of his church, and ruined work now borne down; and that he may return to the land, and pity his people; and be importunate with him in this, lest the ruin thereof be found to be under your hand. I fear you may expect judgments to come suddenly upon this sinful land; so that ye will think, happy were they that got away before they came: therefore so many of you as would in any measure escape the deluge of wrath, that is coming on this sinful generation,-keep clean hands, and be free of the sinful abominations committed therein; and for witnessing against them, we are to lay down our lives this day.

"And now as a dying man, and a dying Christian, I join with, and approve of all the Holy Scriptures, both of the Old and New Testament, both of threatenings and promises therein. As also I agree with, and allow of that excellent book, called the Confession of Faith, with the Larger and Shorter Catechisms, Sum of Saving Knowledge, Directory for Worship; and particularly, I adhere to, and allow of the two Covenants, both National and Solemn League and Covenant, Acknowledgment of Sins and Engagement to Duties, with all others contained in the forenamed book. As also I do witness and testify my dislike of the breaches and burnings of these covenants, and of all other horrid abominations of that nature. And likewise I abhor and detest all compliance or joining with the enemies of our Lord Jesus Christ; and more particularly, of bonding, bargaining, and informing, or putting them to do hurt, any manner of way, to any of the Lord's poor afflicted, borne down, wandering and distressed people. And in like manner I hate and detest all communing with, speaking favourably of, or eating or drinking with any such, except in case of necessity. And in like manner, I testify my dislike of that dreadful, blasphemous, and abominable unparalleled test, and of all pretended magistrates and ministers, who have taken the same, and of all that meddle or join with them, or pay fines for hearing the gospel, or transact or colleague with any such, any manner of way, upon the foresaid account. And lastly, I hate too much covetousness in prisoners who are in a capacity to maintain themselves, and yet are burdensome to other poor, mean (though charitable) people. And I join heartily with the testimonies of our dear suffering brethren, who suffered either formerly or of late. And likewise, I join my testimony to a faithfully preached gospel, by faithful, presbyterian, lawfully called and authorized ministers, and lawful magistrates placed and empowered, as is agreeable and warranted by the word of God, and none other. And notwithstanding I be branded with not admitting of magistracy and kingly authority,

I do hereby declare and make it known to the world, that I do allow of lawful authority, agreeable and conformable to the will and command of God, the only lawgiver, as much as any man in my station in Scotland, and account a land happy and blest, in having and enjoying such.

"And now, being honoured to die for adhering to the truth, and to die this same day, being the 22d of February, 1684,-I do hereby forgive all persons all wrongs done to me, and wish them forgiveness, as I desire to be forgiven of God. And now, I leave all my friends and Christian relations to the good guiding of Almighty God, and bid you all farewell in the Lord: farewell all worldly enjoyments, and created comforts. And welcome Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, into whose hands I commit my spirit!

Sic sub.-GEORGE MARTIN."*

Together with this martyr suffered John Gilrig,† wright in the parish of Hownam in Teviotdale, whose indictment was founded upon the same heads, and his testimony is much of a piece with his. He dies admiring and praising free grace, adhering to the truths of Jesus, and firmly trusting in him for salvation.-C. W.

XXXV. JOHN DICK

[This distinguished martyr was a Student of divinity, and son to Mr. David Dick, Writer in Edinburgh. He was apprehended, and brought before the Council, so early as August 1683, and thereafter tried, condemned, and sentenced to be executed, on the 28th of September following. Before the day arrived, however, he, with a number of other prisoners, made his escape from the Tolbooth

Cloud of Witnesses, pp. 229, 305.

The person here alluded to, is spoken of by Wodrow under the name of Jolin Kerr. Whether he is here called Gilrig by mistake, or that he was accustomed to assume both, names, we have no means of ascertaining. The latter supposition seems to be favoured by the following statement from Wodrow. " I have," says he, “before me, two original letters signed John Gilrig, from the Iron-house, December 27th, 1683, which savour much of humility, self-diffidence, and meekness,-wherein he offers many solid grounds of support to sufferers, and presses them to observe providences, and believe well of God. I doubt not but it is the same person here mentioned, and know no more about him than what is stated (as above) in the Cloud of Witnesses." And yet it appears that he is spoken of under the name of John Kerr, as the following quotation from the registers renders evident. "John Kerr refuses to own the king's authority. He says the king lays things on his subjects contrary to the word of God, and so he cannot own his authority;-that Bothwellbridge was lawful, as a defence of the truth. As to the bishop's murder, he says, it is not his part to judge. As to the late king's murder, he refuses to answer. owns the covenant, and adheres to the end of it. Refuses to sign."

He

It appears that besides these two, and along with them, a third individual, by name James Muir, belonging to Cessford-Boat, was condemned, and most probably suffered. The grounds of his indictment, and the nature of the evidence adduced against him were precisely the same with those of the others, and consequently equally insufficient to infer the last penalty of the law.-See Wodrow, Vol. ii. pp. 368, 369.

prison, nor was it till the beginning of March, 1684, that he was retaken. Being, immediately after, remitted to the Justiciary, he

• The account of this curious incident, as given by Wodrow, will, though somewhat long, give no small gratification to the reader.

"It was upon the 16th of September, that Mr. John Dick and upwards of 24 other prisoners, none of whom almost could ever have expected to come out of prison, but for execution,-found means to cut a window and get out. The circumstances accompanying their escape, were such as were truly remarkable ; and the more to be observed, that not one of them, save Mr. Dick, fell again into the enemies' hands. There was a sentinel in the street just below the window at which they got out; whether for the security of the prison, or because the Earl of Linlithgow, justice-general, and colonel to the red regiment, had his lodgings just opposite to the tolbooth,-my informer cannot tell. The window was cross-barred with iron, and after they had cut one bar, they found the space not large enough to get out at, which cost them the cutting of three other iron bars, and this took them so much time and pains, that the matter was talked of among their friends, not only in the town of Edinburgh, but even at Glasgow, before they could get it accomplished; yet it came not to the ears of their enemies, but which is yet stranger, as my author very well remembers,-it so happened that the first bar they cut fell from the window, which was on the third story, upon the street of the town, about nine of the clock at night, and continued laying there all night and next morning,-till about the same hour, a friend coming in to see them was sent down to the street, not so much as to look after the bar, (for that they did not so much as expect,) as to know if the want of it was easily perceivable from the street, and he found it just where it fell, and got it sent up to them, and they made a shift to fix it again in its place, till they had ended the rest of their project. They could not but wonder, that the street being so narrow there, and the Earl of Linlithgow's lodgings just opposite to, and on a level, with their window, a sentinel at his sentry, within a few paces of where the bar fell, and the bar being amissing for some hours, and they putting it again in its place, they could not (I say) but with admiration remark, that they were not observed and hindered; that night, likewise, they had also cut the beam of the floor above them, and made way for some of their fellow-prisoners, in that room, to get out with them.

"When all was ready, and they just coming out, two friends surprised the sentinel at the centry foresaid, threatening him with present death if he spoke one word; and the fellow was not only silent at the time, but spoke nothing when he was relieved from his post, which gave them full time to shift for themselves; and several of them were country people who knew not the town, and had no friends nor acquaintance with them to direct them how to dispose of themselves, yet they all escaped: yea, it was affirmed, that one Miller, an Eaglesham man, wandering up and down and seeing a light in a house went to it, and knocking, a servant opened to him, and he most ingenuously told his circumstances: this happened to be the Bishop's lodgings, but the maid had the generosity to hide the man, till next day she told some of her acquaintance, whom she knew to be favourers of the sufferers, and they came and took care of him. This passage being fully verified to me, I thought it deserved room here.

"No small noise was made about this escape. The Council could not be got to gather till the 20th of September, when I find, by the registers, a committee of their number was appointed to go to prison and call for the magistrates of Edinburgh and view it, and see what was necessary to be done for its security: they appoint, likewise, general Dalziel to call a council of war, and examine the behaviour of captain, lieutenant, sergeants, corporals, and sentinels, that night, and report. And January 22d, next year,-I find a process before the council against the magistrates and town of Edinburgh. They are libelled for suffering Mr. John Dick, Adam Philip, George Atkin, prisoners for high treason, and about two and twenty others, criminal prisoners,-to escape. The town's lawyers are heard, and the magistrates assolied as being a casual and fortuitous escape, and the president is appointed to give them a reprimand and admonition to take heed to their prison in time to come."-Wodrow, Vol. II. pp. 280 90.

was ordered to be executed on the 5th of that month, agreeably to his former sentence. He suffered accordingly-leaving behind him a very minute detail of his Examination, Trial, and Testimony, which together with his Last Words, have since been printed, and altogether, form a considerable pamphlet,-from which a few extracts are subjoined.]

"My first assertion I have to vindicate, is this ;-that I own the Work of reformation, as the same is contained in the Confession of Faith and Catechisms, conform to the covenant against popery, prelacy, and Erastianism, and am resolved, by the Lord's strength, to bide by the same; and to this I subjoin the inviolable obligation of the covenant, to adhere to these principles and practices.

*

"The second assertion I am to defend is, that the laws overturning the presbyterian church and establishing episcopacy, particularly these three acts-To wit, 1st, The act rescissory, whereby at one dash the glorious fabric, sometime the glory of these nations, is overturned; 2dly, The act of supremacy, and act explanatory of the same, whereby our blessed Lord is set by his chair, and a poor worm set down in his room; 3dly, That act called the Test, a hotchpotch of nonsense, lies, and contradictions ;—that these, and others of their nature, were null, and asserted principally, because contrary to express Texts of scripture.

"The third thing I have in task, is to defend these assertions following; To wit, that I own the Hamilton Declaration, and that when we were invaded or assaulted by any person whatsoever, in the exercise of our reformed religion and worship-upon that account, we were obliged to stand to our own defence:-that I own the lawfulness of field conventicles, and our being in arms to defend ourselves in case of being molested;—and that I myself was ever ready to own and defend my brethren in arms when invaded, as said is, and declaring that the invasions made against the Lord's people at Pentland and Bothwell, they being then in the exercise of their religion,-were services done to the devil, and the resistance made by them in their own defence, was service done to God. Now, the sum of all these assertions is, that it is the duty of protestant reformed churches to stand to the defence of their reformation and religion :-especially with this consideration, that with their religion, they are also assaulted as to their privileges,-as in the freedom of parliaments, and many other particulars,-which if time would allow could enumerate; considering especially, that this church and kingdom are obliged so to do, by a most solemn oath made to the ever living God,-they, their kings, their princes, and nobles, and the whole body of the realm;-and that this oath stands still inviolate. *

*

*

"And now, unto his Majesty our king, must I address myself, and to all under him, from his brother the Duke of York, to all the counsellors, sheriffs, justices, magistrates of boroughs, and members of parliament, since his majesty's restoration.

*

"Now, as to you all and sundry, I declare in the entry of my address, as in the sight of Jehovah, whose I am, and before whom both you and I ere long, must stand naked and bare, to answer for all