876 A Review of the principal fags objeEied to the not Whitgift do every thing in his power, by her majefly's exprefs .command, to force the confciences of men, when he fufpended near three hundred miniflers in his primary vifitation, for not fubfcribing, that there was nothing in the book of commonprayer and ordination repugnant to the word of God? The confciences of men, in ftrh tnefs of fpeech, can never be forced ; but to fay the queen did not exert her authority to en- force uniformity, without regard to the confciences ofmen, is to contradiJt the flrongeft evidence that can poflibly be given for any hiftorical fa& in the world, and which even the advocates for Dr. Sacheverel, at his tryal, had not the affurance to deny. Her majefty's fecond principle is, that " when caufes of confcience ex- " ceed their bounds, and grow to be matter offatlion, they lofe their no- " lure, and ought to bepun f ed, though colouredwith the pretence of con- ;' faience andreligion." That is, if men fpeak or write againft any defects in the fablfhment, or attempt a redrefs of their religious grievances, a- gainft the will of their fovereign, by applying to parliament, it thall be calledfatlion, and a contempt ofauthority which princes ought dfinêïly to puma. The proteftant diffenters have formerly felt the weight of this arbitrary principle, when it has been in the breaft of a king, or a high ,commiffion.court, or a liar- chamber, tocall what theypleafed fatlion, and a contempt ofauthority, and to punifh it with the lofs ofmen's ears, liber- ties and lives; but thanks be to God, we have no fuch fovereignty among ,us at prefent! ..For the otherparty, which have been offinfive to the fiate, though in another degree, which named themfelves R E FORMERS, andwe commonly " call PUR I TANS, fir Francis obferves, that their violence was fmetimes " ° cenfured, but upon thewhole, that they were tolerated with much conni- vance andgentlenefsthat when they endeavoured tofet up their difcipline, andopenedto thepeople away togovernment by their confafiories andprefby- " tery, this was borne with, except in afew that entered into extreme con- " tempt, becauft they pretended to make propftions in a dutiful manner, " andto leave it to theprovidence ofGodand the authority ofthe magiflrate " but oflate years, when there fued outfrom among them, that afirmed " that theauthorityof the magifirate was not to be attended when they writ PASou I LS againft the church, when they began to make manypeo- " ° ple in doubt, to take oaths [i. e. the oath ex officio] when they began to " vaunt of their firength and numbers, and to ufe combinations, that their .caufe wouldprevail through uproar andviolence, then theflate was com- " pelled to holdfomewhat a harder hand to refrain them." How far the , puritáns of thefe times were tolerated withmuch connivance and gentlene, does not depend upon fir Francis Walfingham's reputation, nor upon any other man's, but upon the FACTS and authorites to which Mr. N. appeals. The
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