"offences, practised rather to have murder committed, than CHAP. "to be taken as they were. I. “All this while the mass-sayer stood at the north end of Anno 1576. "the altar; and no man living said a word to him, nor "touched him; saving that he did give to divers of our "servants singing cakes: wherewith I was offended with "them for receiving that idolatrous bread. And all being "done, and we ready to depart, it was said by a stander "by, If ye look in at that door, near the altar, said he, you "shall find a number of mass-mongers. And then did the "priest take a key out of his pocket, and smiling, opened "the door; and Mr. Sheriff Kimpton, with the priest, look-414 ❝ed in, and there was nobody. "And then Anthony Guarras took me by the hand, to "see the altar, how trim it was. For Mr. Barnes and I ❝ stood afar off in the gallery. And I said to Guarras, Sir, "if I had done my duty to God and to the queen, I had "taken two hundred here upon All Hollown day last, and "as many upon All Souls day also. Ho, sir, said Guarras ❝ unto me, become of this religion, and surely you will like "it well, and it will be a ready means to make you a good "Christian. And so we went near the altar; where neither " he nor I touched any manner of thing. And so we bade "the priest farewell; who gently saluted us. And I suddenly looking back, saw the priest shake his head at ❝us, and mumbled out words, which sounded diable, and "male croix, or to that effect. And then I said to Mr. ❝ Sheriff, Sirs, let us depart, for the priest doth curse. And so we departed. Anthony Guarras brought us to the ut most gate; where Mr. Sheriff and I invited him to din ner with us: but he departed back to hear out the afore"said mass. "The foresaid Guarras, at this business, said, that he "himself was an ambassador to a greater person than " and so did shake his head. What! quoth I, do you mean "a greater personage than the queen our mistress? Na, na, "said he, I meant not so. No, quoth I, it were not best II. BOOK "for you to make comparison with the queen our mistress. "Whose ambassador are you then? quoth I. The pope's? Anno 1576." And then he departed further off in an anger. 415 "Guarras was a very busy fellow in this action. This "Among all these strangers, I marked one Swygo, who ❝ is a free denizen, married to an English woman. He is a "broker, and hath his chief living by our merchants. This "fellow made himself more busy than it became him. There 66 was a tall young fellow, an Italian, that was very wanton "with us; and it hath been told me sithence, that he and "others are kept here for two causes: the one for uttering "the pope's allom; and the other to serve for intelligencer: “which, I think, are very spies. This youth was very busy, "and bestirred him as though he had been treading of a "galliard. There was one John Chivers, an Irishman, a ❝student of the inns of the chancery; who, as it appeared "unto me, (I having a vigilant eye of all sides,) was a great "stirrer of the strangers against us. This young man, "when he could not prevail, then he gat up to the south "end of the altar; and there he confronted the mass-sayer, "with his cap on his head, who was on the other end, and "stood there as though he had been an Italian. His gar"ments were a cloak and a rapier, after the Italian fashion. "And when I demanded what he was, be bowed on the one "side and the other, as though he had not understood me; “much like the fashion of seignior Giraldie: by which I "did note that he had been often there. "This is all that I do remember; and in my conscience, "and as I shall answer before God at the latter day, we ❝ used ourselves with such humble reverence unto his lady “and her family, as more we could not do to the queen, "our mistress, save kneeling. "I sent seignior Giraldie word, as I remember, at Easter "last, by Mr. Benedict Spinello, that he should not suffer "the queen's subjects to repair to his mass: yea, and that "other things also should be amended; wherewith the people "did wonderfully grudge at him: and I am sure Mr. Spi I. "nello did my message to him in a decent order. This is CHAP. "not the first time that his house hath been dealt withal by "the sheriffs. Strumpets have been gotten with child in Anno 1576. "his house; and we of the hospital driven to take order for "their keeping. The masters shall justify this. I never saw any ambassador sent out of England, but that he was "both wise and virtuous, and was not indebted to any. "And whether seignior Giraldie was an ambassador or not, "surely, my lord, I knew not, until my lords of the coun"cil had told me thereof upon Monday last, at the council "board." This shews how jealous the state at that time was of papists and mass-mongers, as they called them, and what watchfulness to prevent the subjects from lapsing into that religion. the exche The state was concerned to be watchful in these times, Fugitives the queen having so many enemies of the popish faction her certified in subjects, both at home and abroad; of the latter sort were quer. the fugitives, entertained by the pope and Spaniard. This year, 1576, Jan. 29, were certified into the exchequer such as were fled over the seas, of noblemen, gentlemen, priests, and schoolmasters, to near the number of fourscore; contrary to the statute reg. Eliz. 13. Their names, conditions, and in what counties they inhabited, may be read, taken from an authentic paper, in the Appendix. No. I. Anno 1576. The bishop of Exon sends up some that refused going to 416 church. Another of his diocese makes nothing of a book Bishop of oath. His dealing with him. He opposeth the sending down a commission ecclesiastical: and why. The bishop of Lincoln preacheth at court. The suitableness of his subject. He is concerned as visitor of king's college, Cambridge. Great differences in that college. Articles of accusation against Dr. Goad, the provost: his answers: his good service to that house. Sandys, bishop of London, translated to York: his farewell sermon at St. Paul's. Endeavours used to get Bishopthorp from that archbishop. His reasons why he will not part with it. Elmer, that succeeded in the see of London, contests with the archbishop about the revenues. The case brought before the lord treasurer. Now to come to some matters occurring this year, wherein the bishops were concerned both with the papists and with other schismatics and heterodox men, or otherwise employed. It was ordered about these times, that such of either sort, disturbing the peace of the church, and disagreeing to the religion and worship established, should be sent up to the privy council, or to the commission ecclesiastical, held at Lambeth; there to be dealt withal, in order to their reducement. Bradbridge, bishop of Exeter, had now to deal with both Exon's dealsorts. Some Cornish gentlemen, being of his diocese, came ing with some of his not to church, and were informed of, and brought before diocese that him. But he could not prevail with them, to work them to to church. any good conformity. "Whether the cause was, as he conjectured, the boldness that they had conceived by rea came not 66 66 son of the lenity used in these days, (mild usage hitherto "being exercised towards the papists,) or rather their hope " of alteration in time to come: because he saw they craved "ever respite of time, and in time grew rather indurate ❝ than reformable; as the bishop now, December 3, wrote "to the lord treasurer; when three of them were sent up, CHAP. "viz. Rob. Beckote, Richard Tremain, and Francis Er 66 11. myn; and now commanded to wait there above. As he Anno 1576. "had in some letters before, so now in this, he desired his "lordship to prevail with the archbishop of Canterbury or "the bishop of London to take some pains with them; "they [there of the ecclesiastical commission] wanting no "assistance of learned men and books: adding, that the "whole country longed and desired to hear of their godly "determination; namely, what success they should have "with these gentlemen." make in recusants. Such letters from the lords were not unusual in those 417 times, to call upon the bishops to look to recusants in their Bishops to dioceses, that came not to the public service. So after-quiry after wards, in the year 1581, the archbishop received a letter, reminding of an act made for the retaining of her majesty's subjects in their due obedience, as abusing her highness' former great goodness and lenity, and refusing to conform: and that the bishops should make inquiry as well according to former certificates heretofore made of recusants, as by others. And the next year other letters came from the lords to the archbishop and bishops, against recusants, for a diligent search to be made of such persons; and certificates to be made, under their hands, of such offenders, and their residences, and to send them up. tion of one an oath upon a book. The same bishop also this year was concerned, and took The asserpains about a dangerous opinion broached in his diocese. of bis dioThere happened a dispute between two, a preacher and a cese about schoolmaster. Whereof the one affirmed, that an oath taken upon a book of the holy evangelists was of no more value, than an oath taken upon a rush or a fly. Because it was nothing, he said, but ink and paper. He that asserted this, was one that lived at Liskerd in Cornwall, and taught a grammar-school; a young man, lately come thither, and not entered into the ministry; licensed to catechise and expound the scripture by Dr. Tremayn, who was in commission to visit for the archbishop of Canterbury, and com |