6<i! in want, or protected them against violent or uniust oppression, he was a Puritane. if any gentleman in his country maintain'd the good !awes of the land, or stood up for any publick interest, for good order or government, he was a Pmitane: in short, all that crost the viewes of the neeclie courtiers, the proud encroaching priests, the theevish proiectors, the lewd nobillity and gentrie, whoever was zealous for God's glory or worship, could not endure bias" phemous oathes, ribbald conversation, prophane scoffes, sabbath breach, derision of the word of God, and the like; whoever could endure a sermon, modest habitt or conversation, or aniething good, all these were Puritanes; and if Puritanes, then enemies to the king and his government, seditious factious hipocrites, ambitious disturbers of the publick peace, and finally, the pest of the kingdome; such false logick did the children of darknesse use to argue with against the hated children of light, whom they branded besides as an illiterate, morose, melancholly, discontented, craz'd sort of men, not fitt for humane conversation'; as such they made them not only the sport of the pulpiu, which was become but a more solemne sort of stage, but every stage, and every table, and eve.ry puppelt-play, belcht forth prophane scolfes upon them, the drunkards made them their songs, all ficllers and mimicks learnt to abuse them, as finding it the most gamcfu11 way of fooling. Thus the t\VO factions in those dayes grew up to greate heighths and enmities, one ·agajnst the other, while the Papist wanted not industry and subtilty to blow the coals betweene them, and was so successeful that, unlesse the mercy b Such is the idea ~ntertained of them _in general even at this day; whoever shall read these memoirs will be well convinced that not one of these qualiti es needs or does by any natural consequence accompany· the character. It is a great misfortune . that many of the zealous professors of piety should give it so austere an aspect, and Lhis can never be better contrasted than by the cheerful and amiable one this professed Purilan gives it.
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