Chap. XI. 'l'!Je HIS T 0 RY of the PuRITANs; bilhop of Canterbury was afraid to act in it; Durham was fo lifted •UP . King (fays Burnet), that he fa id his name would now be recorded in hill:o- Ja•~es6 II. ry; and Sprat bifhop of Rochejler, in ho~es of (~rther prefer~ent,~· iwam with the fiream. Some roman catho!tcs were 111 the comm1ffion, and confequcmly the enemies of the protefiant religion were to be its judges. But his majefiy not being willing to rely altogether on the Oiford de- Ajlanding cree, nor on the fafhionable doCtrines of paflive obedience and non-rejiftance, army.tofup– which had been preached up for above twe~ty years, as the unalterable doe- port 11 ' trines of the church of England; in order to fuppo.rt his extraordinary proceedings, refolved to augment his 11anding forces to fifteen thoufand men. He was apprehenGve of a jizake in the grafs, or a fecret referve, that might break out when the church itfelf came to be pinched ; he therefo re ordered his army to encamp on Hounjlow-Heath, under the command of the earl of Feverjham, to awe the city, and be at hand upon any emergency; the officers and many of the foldiers were irijh papijls, and they had a public chapel in which mafs was faid every day, fo that it was believed the king might introduce what religion he pleafed. It was Gazette, dangerous to fpeak or write againfi his majell:y's proceedings; for when Numb.ug~ t-he reverend Mr. Johnfon, a clergyman, ventered to publiih a writing, direCted to the protefiant officers of the army, to diifuade them from being tools of the court, to fubvert the confiitution and protefiant religion; diligent fearch was made for him, and being apprehended, he was fenteneed to fiand three times in the pillory, to be degraded of his orders, to be wbipt from Newgate to 'lj•burn, and to be fined five hundred marks; all which was executed with great feverity. Affi1irs in Scotland were in equal forwardne[s with thofe of England; Affairs if the parliament which met at Edinburgh in May 1685, while the perfecu- Scotland. tion continued, declared their abhorrence of all principles derogatory to ~us net, P. the king's abfolute power, and offered their lives and fortunes to defend it 7 • againil: all oppofet s. They paifed an aCl:, making it death to refort to any conventicles in houfes or fields; and declared it high rreafon to give or take the 11ational covenant, or to write in defence of it. They alfo obliged the fubjeCl:s of Scotland to take an oath, when required, to maintain the king's abjolute pou•er, on pain of ba.niibment. Popery made very confiderable advances in that kingdom, and feveral perfons of charaCter changed their religion with the time~. But the populace were in the other extream ; the earl of Perth having fet up a private chapel for mafs, the mob broke into it with fuch fury, that they defaced and dellroyed the whole furniture~ for which one of them was apprehended and hanged. When the englijh court changed meafu res, the jcots parliament agreed to a fufpenfion of the penal laws, during the king's life; but his majefiy inS E z filling
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy OTcyMjk=