Chap. VI. The HISTORY of the PURITANS. 245 of quality in the county, applied to the lord treafurer in his behalf; and Queen the treafurer writ to the bifhop, requefling him to take off his fequeftrati- Eliza on , but his lordfhip replied, that what he had done was by virtue of the queen's letter to him, requiring him to allow of no minifters, but fuch as Strype's Ann. were perfeétly conformable. Mr. Calthorp replied, and urged the great P 585. want the church had of fuch good men, as Mr. Lawrence, for whofe fit - nefs for his work, he would undertake the chief gentlemen of credit in the county fhould certify ; but his fequeftration was fill continued. The like feverities were ufed in moft other diocefes. The bifhop of London came not behind the chief of his brethren the bi-" Chops, in his perfecuting zeal againft the puritans ; he gave out orders for apparitors and other officers, togo from church to church, in timeof divine. fervice, to obferve the conformity of the minifter, and to make report to her majefty's commifltoners. As this prelate had no compaffion in his nature, he had little or no regard to the laws of his country, or the cries of the people after the word ofGod. Great was the fcarcity ofpreachers about England, at this time ; in the Scarcity erf in large andpopulous town of Northampton, there was not one, nor had been Prear rarn for a confiderable time, though the people applied to the bifhop of the f gngland. diocefe, by moll humble fupplication for the bread of lift. In the county of Cornwall there were too clergymen, not one of which was capable of preaching a fermon, and molt of theta were pluralifis and`non.refidents. Even the city of London, was in a lamentable cafe, as appears by their peti- In London. tion to the parliament which met this winter, in which are thefe words. " May it pleafe you therefore, for the tender mercies of God, to un- " derftand the woeful eflate ofmany thou(ands of fouls dwelling in deep darknefs, and in the fhadow of death, in this famous and populous city '° ofLondon ; a place, in refpea of others, accounted as the morning liar, or rather as the fun in its brightnefs,.hecaufe of the gofpel, fuppof . " to aline glorioufly and abundantly in the fame ; but being neai "- looked into, will be found ford}, eclipfed' and darkened, through the dim cloud of unlearned minifters, whereof there be no (mall norn- " ber. There are in this"city, a great number of churches, but the one " half of them, at the leaft, are utterly unfurnifhedof preaching minifters, and are peftered with candleflicks, not of gold but of clay, unworthy " tohave the. Lord's light let in them, with watchmen that have no eyes, " and clouds that have no water., In the other half,, partly by means " of non-refidents, which .are very many ; partly through the poverty of " many meanly qualified, there is fcarcely the tenth man, that makes con- " ° fcience to wait uponhis charge, whereby the Lord's fabbath isoft-times a <. wholly negledted, and for the moll part miferably mangled ; ignorance " increafeth, and wickednefs comes upon us like. an armed man. As Sheep
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