betwixt the Archbishop and the Bishop of Winchester, on the one part; and Dr. Sparke and Mr. Travers, on the other, in the presence of the Earl of Leicester, Lord Gray, Sir Francis Walsingham, and some others. The conference was held at Lambeth, concerning things needful to be reformed in the Book of Common Prayer.* In the year 1586, the persecution of the puritans went forwards with unabating fury. The celebrated Mr. Travers was silenced by Archbishop Whitgift. Mr. Udal was sus pended and deprived of his living. Mr. Glover was convened before Whitgift, and cast into prison. Mr. Moore was cited before the high commission at York, where he endured many troubles. Mr. Hildersham, a most excellent divine, was suspended, and commanded to make a public recantation. Dr. Walward, a learned professor of divinity at Oxford, and Mr. Gillibrand, fellow of Magdalen college in the same university, were both cited before the high commission at Lambeth; when they were suspended, enjoined public recantations, and obliged to enter into bonds till they were performed. Mr. Gardiner was deprived and committed to Newgate by Bishop Aylmer, from whom he received most cruel usage. Mr. Wigginton, vicar of Sedburgh, was deprived of his living, and afterwards apprehended and carried before Whitgift; who, upon his retusal of the oath ex officio, committed him to prison, where he was treated with the utmost barbarity. The tyrannical archbishop also deprived him a second time, and degraded him from the ministry. Mr. Wigginton afterwards obtaining his release, returned home; and venturing to preach after his lordship's censure, he was apprehended and sent prisoner to Lancaster castle, where he remained a long time under very cruel usage. At the same time, about one hundred and forty of his people, for hearing him preach, were excommunicated. The zealous minister having at length obtained his liberty, was again apprehended and carried before Whitgift, who, for refusing the above oath, committed him to the Gatehouse, where he continued most probably till he consented to be banished. Mr. Settle, a Suffolk divine, was arraigned before the archbishop, who treated him with very reproachful language, calling him ass, dolt, fool, and after many threatenings, the angry prelate sent him to the Gatehouse, where he continued close prisoner * See Art. Travers, many years. Such were the proceedings of that archbishop who is said to have been eminently distinguished for his mild and excellent temper. The suffering puritans, during this year, presented a petition to the convocation, tending to promote a reconciliation betwixt the conformists and nonconformists, but most probably without the least effect. They also made another effort to obtain a redress of their grievances from the parliament, by presenting an humble supplication to the house of commons; in which they say, "It pierces our hearts with grief to hear the cries of the people for the word of God. The bishops either preach not at all, or very seldom. And others abandon their flocks, contrary to the charge of Christ, feed my sheep. But great numbers of the best qualified for preaching, and of the most industrious in their spiritual function, are not suffered quietly to discharge their duties, but are followed with innumerable vexations, notwithstanding they are neither heretics nor schismatics, but keep within the pale of the church, and persuade others so to do, who would have departed from it. They fast and pray for the queen and the church, though they have been rebuked for it, and diversly punished by officers both civil and ecclesiastical. They are suspended and deprived of their ministry, and the fruits of their livings sequestered to others. This has continued many years; and last of all many of them are committed to prison, when some have been chained with irons, and continued in hard durance a long time. "To bring about these severities, the bishops tender the suspected persons an oath ex officio, to answer all interrogatories to be put to them, though it be to accuse themselves; and when they have got a confession, they proceed upon it to punish them with all rigour, contrary to the laws of God and the land. Those who refused have been cast into prison, and commanded there to lie without bail, till they would yield. The grounds of these troubles are not impiety, immorality, want of learning or diligence in their ministerial work, but not being satisfied in the use of certain ceremonies and orders of the church of Rome, and for not being able to declare, that every thing in the Book of Common Prayer is agreeable to the word of God."‡ Two bills were at the same time brought into the house of commons, for the abolition of the old ecclesiastical laws, + Parte of a Register, p. 323. *Paule's Life of Whitgift, p. 37. MS. Register, p. 672. and the old Book of Common Prayer, and for the establishment of a new one; but the queen being offended, forbad them to proceed. All the endeavours of the puritans proving ineffectual, and being wearied with repeated applications to their superiors, they began to despair of obtaining relief. There fore, in one of their assemblies, they came to this conclusion: "That since the magistrates could not be induced to reform the discipline of the church, it was lawful, after waiting so many years, to act without them, and introduce a reformation in the best manner they could." They had their private classes or associations in Essex, Northamptonshire, Warwickshire, London, Cambridge and other places, when they consulted about the most proper means of promoting the desired object. And having revised their book, entitled "The Holy Discipline of the Church, described in the Word of God," it was subscribed by above five hundred ministers, all divines of good learning, and of unspot. ted lives. + In the year 1587, Mr. Holmes, rector of Kenn, was driven from his flock and bis living. Mr. Horrocks, vicar of Kildwick, in the West-Riding of Yorkshire, was convened before the high commission at York, committed to York castle, and enjoined a public recantation, for suffering Mr. Wilson, another puritan minister, to preach in his church, though it was his native place. Mr. Wilson was also convened, and cast into prison. After he had obtained his release, he was obliged to remove out of the archbishop's province; and going to London, he was called before Whitgift and suspended. Mr. Allison was twice suspended. Mr. Penry was summoned before the high commission and committed to prison. Mr. Johnson and Mr. Bainbrigg, both fellows in the university of Cambridge, and popular preachers, were cast into prison, where they continued a long time. Mr. Jewel was tried at the public assizes for nonconformity, and condemned to suffer five months' imprisonment. Mr. Wight was harassed for many years, when his study was broken open, searched, and his private papers carried away. Mr. Darrel and Mr. Moore were both cited before the high commission at Lambeth, when the former was deposed from his ministry, and committed close prisoner to the Gatehouse, and the latter close prisoner to the Clink, where they continued MS. Remarks, p. 465. + Neal's Puritans, vol. i. p. 423. many years. Mr. Udal was summoned before the council, sent close prisoner to the Gatehouse, and not suffered to have pen, ink, or paper, or any one to speak to him. He was afterwards tried at the public assizes and condemned as a felon. Having received sentence of death, pardon was offered him if he would have recanted; but he continued firm to his principles, and died in the Marshalsea, as a martyr in the cause of religious liberty. The proceedings of the high commission against the afflicted puritans, now exceeding all bounds, men of the greatest eminence began even to question the legality of the court. But the archbishop, to get over this difficulty, and remove the odium from himself, sent the principal nonconformists, especially those possessed of worldly estates, to be prosecuted in the star-chamber. Indeed, several of the bishops, as well as many of the lords temporal, opposed these proceedings; and it appears from a list now before me, that upwards of one hundred and twenty of the house of commons, were not only averse to persecution, but zealous advocates for a reformation of the church, and the removal of those burdens under which the puritans groaned.+ Therefore, in 1588, a bill against pluralities and nonresidence passed the commons, and was carried up to the lords; but by the determined opposition of the zealous prelates, it came to nothing.‡ The puritans still continued to hold their associations. Many divines, highly celebrated both for learning and piety, were leaders in their assemblies, and chosen moderators: as, Messrs. Knewstubs, Gifford, Rogers, Fenn and Cartwright. At one of these assemblies, held at Coventry, it was resolved, "That private baptism is unlawful.— That the sign of the cross ought not to be used in baptism.That the faithful ought not to communicate with ignorant ministers.-That the calling of bishops is unlawful.That it is not lawful to be ordained by them, nor to rest in their deprivation of any from the ministry.-And that * Fuller's Church Hist. b. ix. p. 187. + MS. Chronology, vol. ii. p. 417. (15.) During the debate upon this bill in the upper houses, when it was signified that the queen would confer with the bishops upon the points contained in the bill, the celebrated Lord Gray said," he greatly wondered at her majesty choosing to confer with those who were enemies to the reformation; and added, that he wished the bishops might be served as they were in the days of Henry VIII. when they were all thrust out of doors."-Strype's Annals, vol. iii. p. 543.---Fuller's Church Hist. b. ix. p. 190. § Strype's Annals, vol. iii. p. 470, 471. for the restoration of ecclesiastical discipline, it ought to be taught the people, as occasion shall serve.* Some of the more zealous nonconformists about this time, published Martin Mar-Prelate, and other satirical pamphlets.+ They were designed to expose the blemishes of the established church, and the tyrannical proceedings of the bishops. They contained much truth, but were clothed in very offensive language. Many of the puritans were charged with being the authors: as, Udal, Penry, Throgmorton, and Wigginton; but the real authors were never known. However, to put a stop to these publications, the queen issued her royal proclamation, " For calling in all schismatical and seditious books, as tending to introduce monstrous and dangerous innovation, with the malicious purpose of dissolving the present prelacy and established church."+ The flame of contention betwixt the conformists and nonconformists, broke out this year with redoubled fury, when Dr. Bancroft, afterwards Archbishop of Canterbury, ventured to assert, that the order of bishops was superior to that of presbyters, by divine appointment, and that the denial of it was heresy. This new doctrine was readily adopted by many, in favour of their high notions of episcopal ordination, and gave new fuel to the flame of controversy. They who embraced the sentiments of Bancroft, considered all ministers not episcopally ordained, as irregularly invested with the sacred office, as inferior to the Romish priests, and as mere laymen. In the year 1590, the persecution of the puritans still raged with unabating fury. Many of the best divines were prosecuted with the utmost rigour in the high commission and the star-chamber. Mr. Hubbock and Mr. Kendal, two divines in great repute at Oxford, were cited before Fuller's Church Hist. b. ix. p. 194. + The bishops having cried out loudly against Martin Mar-Prelate, it was prohibited that no person should presume to carry it about him, upon pain of punishment. This the queen declared in the presence of the Earl of Leicester, who, pulling the book out of his pocket, and shewing it the queen, said, “what then will become of me?" But it does not appear. that any thing was done.--Selection Harleim Miscel. p. 157. Edit. 1793. Sparrow's Collec. p. 173. The first English reformers admitted only two orders of church-officers, bishops and deacons, to be of divine appointment. They accounted a bishop and a presbyter to be only two names for the same office. But Bancroft, in his sermon at Paul's Cross, January 12, 1588, maintained, that the bishops of England were a distinct order from priests, and possessed a suporiority over them, jure divino. Mr. Strype thinks that Bancroft published this new doctrine under the instructions of Whitgift.-Strype's Whitgift, p. 292. Mosheim's Eccl. Hist. vol. iv. p. 393, |