r34. fle HISTORY of the PURImANS. Chap. IV. Qeeen " ers of chr ftian liberty, and the open rebukcrs of all fuperftition, to Elizabeth, " do with the dregs of the Rornifh beatt ? Our brethren that of con - 61y " fcience refufe that unprofitable apparel, do neither dawn yours, nor " moleft you, that ufe fuch vain trifles. If ye (hail do the like by them, we doubt not but you will therein pleafe God, and comfort the hearts of A,nPrndix, ' many." But the whole letter breaths loch an excellent fpirit, that I N I. cannot forbear recommending it to the reader's perufal in the Appendix. It is evident upon the whole, that it was the unanimous opinion of the foreign divines, that the habits ought to be laid afide by authority; and that in the mean time, they fhould not be urged upon thofe that fcrupled them : But they were not fo well agreed in the lawfulnefs of wearing them till they were taken away ; though their fears of the return of popery, if the minifters thould defert their ftations ; their compaf- lion to the foulsof the people, who were perilhing for lack ofknowledge; and their hopes, that the queen would quickly be prevailed with to remove them ; made molt of them. apprehend, they might be difpenfed with for the prefent. Of the Eng- The Englifh laity were more averle to the habits than the clergy; l;fh laity. as their hatred of popery encreafed, fo did their averfion to the garments. There was a firong party in the very court againft them, among whom was the great earl of Leice/ter, Sir Francis Knollys vice - chamberlain; Burleigh, lord treafurer; Sir Francis Wal ngham, fecretary of date ; the earl of Bedford, Warwick, and others. But the protetlant populace throughout the nation, were fo enflamed, that nothing but an awful fub- jettion to authority could have kept them within bounds. Great num- bers refus'd to frequent thofe places of worfhip, where fervice was ttìi- nifter'd in that drefs; they would not falote fuch minifters in the dreets, nor keep them company; nay, if we may believe Dr. Whitgift, in his Strype's An- defence againft Cartwright, " They fpit in their faces, reviled them as Halo. p. ¢60. a they went along, and £hewed fuch like rude behaviour," becaufe they p. 363. took them for papifis in difguife, for time -fervers, and half-faced pro- Life of Par- teftants, that would be content with the return of that religion whole ken, P. 77. badge they wore. There was indeed a warm fpirit in the people, againft 's An- Vol. I. every thing which came from that pretended church, whole garments had p. i78. boa. been fo lately dyed with the blood of their friends and relations. Upon the whole, I leave the reader to determine, how far the wifdom and moderation of the queen can be vindicated, in impofing thefe habits on the clergy; or the bithops be excufed for imprifoning, fufpending, and de- priving, fome of the mod ufeful preachers in the kingdom, on account of things which in their own opinion were but barely tolerable; and in the judgment of their brethren were abfolutely finful. We have already mentioned the queen's letter of yanuary 25th; in obedience to which archbifhop Parker wrote to his brethren of the ec- clefiaftical
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