94 While women, great with child, miscarry'd, 1125 Or truft our fafeties or undoings, 1120 Inveigle, or betray one man, And charm whole herds of beasts, like Orpheus; Could turn the Covenant, and translate The Gospel into fpoons and plate: 1130 And prove all pouches orthodox; Until the Caufe became a Damon, And Pythias the wicked Mammon: And yet, in spite of all your charms To conjure Legion up in arms, And raife more devils in the rout, Than e'er y' were able to cast out, Y' have been reduc'd, and by thofe fools For 'twas your zealous want of sense, And fanctify'd impertinence, 1135 Your carrying bufinefs in a huddle, 1195 That forc'd our rulers to new-model, Oblig'd the State to tack about, And turn you, root and branch, all out; To reformado, one and all, your great Croyfado General: Your greedy flavering to devour, Before 'twas in your clutches, power: That fprung the game you were to fet, And all your facrilegious ventures Laid out in tickets and debentures: Your envy to be sprinkled down, By under-churches in the Town, And no courfe us'd to stop their mouths, Nor th' Independents' fpreading growths: All which confider'd, 'tis most true None bring him in fo much as you, 1155 Who have prevail'd beyond their plots, Their midnight juntos, and feal'd knots; That thrive more by your zealous piques, Than all their own rath politics. 1100 128 For, had you preach'd and pray'd your worst, Elfe frogs and toads, that croak'd the Jews From Pharaoh and his brick-kilns loote, And flies and mange, that fet them free From tafk-mafters and flavery, Alas! you were no longer able 1165 Were likelier to do the feat, 12 To raise your poffe of the rabble: In any indifferent man's conceit: One fingle red-coat centinel For who e'er heard of Restoration, Outcharm'd the magic of the spell, was a perfon of extraordinary sobriety, induftry, and courage, and was killed at the taking of Bristol by the King, in 1643. Until your thorough Reformation? But firft, o' th' firft: The Ifle of Wight Will rife up, if you should deny 't, 1235 ere Henderfon, and th' other Maffes, re fent to cap texts, and put cafes: pafs for deep and learned scholars, nough but paltry Ob and Sollers: As if th' unfeasonable fools 1243 1250 Until they 'ad prov'd the devil author, inclofe him with his warriors round; Nor had the Uxbridge bufinefs lefs 1255 1260 Fer. 1239. Where Henderson.] When the King, he year 1646, was in the Scotch army, the h Parliament feat him fome propofitions, of which was the abolition of Epifcopacy, the fetting up Prefbytery in its flead. Mr. derfon one of the chief of the Scotch Prefrian minifters, was employed to induce the g to agree to this propofition, it being what Majefty chiefly stuck at. Accordingly he e provided with books and papers for his pofe: the controverfy was debated in writing, vell as by perfonal conference, and feveral ers paffed between them, which have been eral times published; from which it appears, :the King, without books or papers, or any to afft him, was an overmatch for this old mpion of the Kirk (and, I think it will be hyperbole if I add, for all the then English Scotch Prefbyterian teachers put together), made him fo far a convert, that he departed, h great forrow, to Edinburgh, with a deep fe of the mischief of which he had been the hor and abettor; and not only lamented to his nds and confidents, on his death-bed, which owed foon after, but likewife publifhed a mn declaration to the Parliament and Synod England, in which he owned, "That they had been abused with most falfe afperfions against his Majefty, and that they ought to restore him to his full rights, royal throne, and dignity, left an endless character of ingratitude lie upon them, that may turn to their, ruin." As to the King himfelf, befides menning his juftice, his magnanimity, his fobriety, charity, and other virtues, he has thefe ords: "I do declare, before God and the world, whether in relation to the Kirk or State, I found his Majesty the most intelligent man that ever I fpake with, as far beyond He is called Thomas Lord Pride, in the commifmy expreffion as expectation.-I profefs I was oftentimes aftonished with the quick-trial of Sir Henry Slingfby, Dr. Hewit, &c. fion for erecting a High Court of Justice for the nefs of his reafons and replies; wondered how he, fpending his time in sports and recreations, could have attained to fo great knowledge and must confefs that I was convinced in confcience, and knew not how to give him any reasonable fatisfaction: yet the fweetness of his difpofition is fuch, that whatever I faid was well taken. I must say that I never met with any difputant of that mild and calm temper; which convinced me that his wifdom and moderation could not he without an extraordinary measure of divine grace. I dare fay, if his advice had been followed, all the blood that is fhed, and all the rapine that has been committed, would have been 6 prevented." defigned as a character of Mr. Henderson and his fellow difputants, who are called Males (as Mas is an abridgment of Mafter) that is, young mafters in divinity; and this character fignifies fomething quite contrary to deep and learned fcholars; particularly fuch as had ftudied controverfies, as they are handled by little books or fyftems (of the Dutch and Geneva cut) where the authors reprefent their adverfaries' arguments by small objections, and subjoin their own pitiful folutions. In the margin of these books may be feen Ob and Sol. Such mushroom-divines are ingenioufly and compendiously called Ob and Sollers. Ver. 1242. Ob and Sollers.] Whoever confiders the context, will find that Ob and Sollers are Ver. 1250. Pride.] Pride was a foundling. He went into the army, was made a colonel, and was principally concerned in fecluding the members, in order to the King's trial; which He was one of Oliver Cromwell's upper house. great change was called Colonel Pride's Purge. Mr. Butler calls him Sir Pride, by way of sneer upon the manner of his being knighted; for Oliver Cromwell knighted him with a faggotftick instead of a fword. Ibid, Hughson.] He was a cobler, went into the army, and was made a colonel; knighted by Oliver Cromwell, and, to help to cobble the crazy ftate of the nation, was made one of Oliver's upper houfe. Ver. 1263.] This was Mr. Chriftopher Love, a furious Prefbyterian, who, when the King's commiffioners met thofe of the Parliament at Uxbridge, in the year 1644, to treat of peace, preached a fermon there, on the 30th of Janu ary, against the treaty, and faid, among other things, that "no good was to be expected from "it, for that they (meaning the King's commif. To prove themselves your troity friends, 1275 As if we did not take, but give; 1315 1320 And fuffer'd your own tribe of Christians 1280 Unless we can get in again; The only way that 's left us now, 'Tis true we 'ave money, th' only power Money, that, like the fwords of kings, 1285 And therefore need not doubt our play 1330 1395 1290 1295 T'expose to fale, befides the wages, 1340 What power can hinder :s to win? 1349 Than thofe who never fhift their linen. 1300 In peace and war, and fomething more, And by th' unfortunate events Can mend our next experiments; For when we're taken into trust, How eafy are the wifeft chouft, While power ufurp'd, like ftol'n delight, 1305 Who fee but th' outfides of our feats, And, when the times begin to alter, None rife fo high as from the halter. 1310 "fioners) came from Oxford with hearts full " of blood." Ver. 1269, 1270] The expence the English rebels engaged the nation in, by bringing in their brother rebels from Scotland, amounted to an extravagant fum; their receipts in money and free-quarter, 1,462,7691. 55. 3d. William Lilly, the Sidraphel of this Poem, obferves of the Scots, "That they came into England purposely to ❝fteal our goods, ravish our wives, enilave our "perfons, inherit our poffeffions and birthrights, remain here in England, and everlast"ingly to inhabit among us." Mr. Bowlitrode, fon of Colonel Bowlstrode, a factious rebel in Buckinghamshire, in his And not their fecret fprings and weights, Infame them both with falfe alarms Our Brethren, though by other venters; New Jewish tribes in Church and State; And fpiritual mifrule in one fente; But in another quite contrary, As Difpenfations thance to vary; By watching narrowly, and fnapping 1360 All blind fides of it, as they happen: For, if fuccefs could make us Saints, Our ruin turn'd us mifereants; 1365 A fcaudal that would fall too hard Upon a few, and unprepar'd. Thefe are the tourfes we must run, 1370 As ftars by day, and funs by night; 1375 The end of all we first defign'd, 1380 Authority, as men in want; 1390 1420 1425 1430 1435 As fome of us, in trufts, have made The one hand with the other trade; Gain'd vaftly by their joint endeavour, The right a thief, the left receiver; 1440 1385 And what the one, by tricks, foreftall'd, 1445 1450 And stand for, as the times will bear it, 1395 | And draw in ftore of customers, All contradictions of the Spirit; Protect their emiffaries, inpower'd 1405 Ver. 1419, 142c.] The author of the Fourth Part of the Hißory of Independency, p. 56, compares the governors of thofe times with the Turks, who afcribe the goodriefs of their caufe to the keenaefs of their favord, denying that any thing. may properly be called nefas, if it can but win the epithet of profperum. Dr. Owen feems to have been in this way of thinking. "Where," 1415" fays he (Eben Ezer, p. 13. L'Etrange's D fester's Sayings, part ii. p. 11), is the God of "Mariton Moor, and the God of Nazeby is an (6 acceptable expoftulation in a glorious day. "O! what a catalogue of mercies has this nation "to plead by in a time of trouble? The God' "came from Nazeby, and the holy One from "the Weft. Silah."" Let bufinefs, like ill watches, go But, when the feat 's defign'd and meant, Than ruin any other way. All poffible occafions start, The weightieft matters to divert ; And lay perpetual trains to wrangle; That neither do us good nor hurt, Of heads and fhoulders, nods and fhrugs); Of Mum, and Silence, and the Rofe, Thus far the Statesman-when a shout, Till, having gather'd up his wits, He thus began his tale by fits: Are now drawn up-in greater fhoals, 1465 And all the Grandees-of our members 1470 To represent their perfonages; 1475 1515 In which they roaft, and fcorch, and broil, 120 Have vow'd to roaft-and broil alive: And 'tis a miracle we are not Already facrific'd incarnate; That, henceforth, they may ftand reputed, 1490 That worthy patriot, once the bellows, As well as the most primitive; Who, for his faithful fervice then, (For fince the ftate has made a quint Of Generals, he 's lifted in 't): 1495 This worthy, as the world will say, Is paid in fpecie his own way; For, moulded to the life, in clouts They 've pick'd from dunghills hereabouts, 1500 1505 That beaftly rabble-that came down Ver. 150.] This is an accurate defcription the mob's burning ramps upon the admiffion the fecluded members, in contempt of the Ru Parliament. Ver. 1534] Dun was the public execution at that time, and the executioners long that went by the fame name. Ver. 1540.] Sir Arthur Hazlerig, one of 1510 five members of the House of Commons, impeached 1641-2; was Governor of Newca upon Tyne, had the Bishop of Durham's hou park, and manor of Aukland, and 6500/. in m ney given him. He died in the Tower of Londo Jan. 8, 1661. Ver. 1504.] We learn from Lilly, that the meffenger who brought this terrifying intelligence to this cabal was Sir Martyn Noell. Sir Martyn tells his story naturally, and begins like a man in a fright and out of breath, and continues to make breaks and ftops till he naturally recovers it, and then proceeds floridly, and without impediment. This is a beauty in the Poem not to be difregarded; and let the reader make an experiment, and shorten his breath, or, in other words, put himself into Sir Martyn's condition, and then read this relation, and, he will foon be convinced that the breaks are natural and judicious. Ver. 1541, 1542.] The Rump, growing lous of General Monk, ordered that the genet fhip fhould be vefted in five commnito se Monk, Hazlerig, Walton, Morley, and Alar making three a quorum, but denying a moti that Monk should be of that quorum; but, the authority not being then much regarded, this as der was not obeyed, and Monk continued folë General notwithstanding. |