The HIS T 0 RY of the PuRITANS. Vot II. King L~ndon, and the fuburbs; feveral of wl1om were dead in the gaols. But Charles li. thefe were only the beginning of farrows. 1661, ~· RELIGION, which had been in vogue in the late times, was now St~te of,.,. univerfally difcountenan ced ; the name of it was hardly mentioned but llgmz. with contempt, in a health or a play. Thofe who obferved the fabbath, and fcrupled prophane [wearing and drinking healths, we:re expofed under the opprobrious names of puritans, fan atics, presbyterians, republicans, feditious perfons, &c. The presbyterian minifiers were every where fuf. pended or deprived, for fome unguarded expreilions in ther fermons or prayers. Lord Clarendon was at the head of all this madnefS, and declared in parliament, " that the king could dJtinguilh between tendernejs of con– " fcience and pride of confcience; that he was a prince of fo excellent " a nature, and of Jo tender a cc1ljcience him.Jetj; that he had the " highe!l: compaffion for all errors of th:lt kind, and would never fuffer " the weak to undergo the puni{hment ordained for the wicked." Sue h was the deep penetration of the chancellor; and fuch the reward the pref– byterians received for their pall: fer vices! Extra·vaganThe profligate manners of the court, at the fame time, fpread over cies of r!Je the whole land, and occafioned fuch a general licentioufnefs, that the c•urtandna- king took notice of it in his fpeech at the end of this feffion of parlia– mn. ment. "I cannot but ohferve (fays his majefl:y) that the whole nation " feems to be a little corrupted in their excefs of living; fure all men fpend " much more in their clothes, in their diet, and all other expences, than " they have been ufed to do; I hope it has been only the excefs of joy " after fo long fufrering, that has tranfported us to thefe other exce!fes, but " let us take heed that the continuance of them does not indeed corrupt our " natures. I do believe I have been faulty myfelf; I promife you I will " reform, and if you will join with me in your feveral capacities, we " !hall by our examples do more good both in city and country than any '' new laws would do." This was a frank acknowledgemfnt, and a good refolution, but it was not in the king's nature to retrench his expences, or controul his vices for the public good. 1662. Though the revenues of the crown were augmented above double what !!<_, mother at they had been at any time fince the reformation; and though the king had Somerfcta vafl: dowry with his queen, whom he married this fpring , yet all was Houfe. not fufficient to defray the extravagance of the court ; for befides the king's own expences,. the queen- mother maintained a fplendid court of ro– man catholics. at Somerfet-Houfe, and might have done fo as long as fhe had lived, if !he could have kept within moderate bounds; but her conduCl: was fo imprudent and profufe, that fi1e was obliged to return to France after three or four years, where fhe died in the year 166g. A lady of fuch
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