the Dukes of Norfolk and Suffolk, Lord Southampton and Cromwell, were present with a pardon, if at the last moment his courage should fail. The sermon began. When it was over, Latimer turned to Forest, and asked him whether he would live or die.

"I will die,' was the gallant answer; 'do your worst upon me. Seven years ago you durst not for your life have preached such words as these. And now, if an angel from heaven should come down and teach me any other doctrine than that which I learnt as a child, I would not believe him. Take me, cut me to pieces, joint from joint; burn, hang, do what you will, I will be true henceforth to my faith.'

"It was enough. He was laid upon his iron bed, slung off into the air, and the flame was kindled. In his mortal agony he clutched at the steps of the ladder, to sway himself out of the blaze; and a pitiless chronicler who records the scene, could see only in this weakness an evidence of guilt!! 'So impatiently' (says Hall) 'he took his death, as never any man that put his trust in God.'"

So far Froude.

Another martyr-victim of Henry's, who should not be omitted without a brief notice, is JOHN FISHER, bishop of Rochester, martyred in the eightieth year of his age. He was a learned and devout man-Confessor to the King's grandmother, the Countess of Richmond, and it was believed he persuaded her to the founding of St John's and

Christ's College, Cambridge, and divinity professorships in both. In acknowledgment, he was chosen Chancellor of the University. Henry VII. gave him the bishopric of Rochester, which, according to the rule of the primitive Church, he never would change for a better. He used to say the Church was his wife, and he never would part with her because she was poor. The business of the divorce lost him favour with the King, as he adhered firmly to the Queen's cause, and the Pope's supremacy. The King determined to show no mercy to any denying his being supreme head of the Church. He was imprisoned above a year, and severely used. He complained by letter to Cromwell that he had neither clothes nor fire, being nearly fourscore. The Pope, hearing of his circumstances, declared him a Cardinal, and this precipitated his ruin. Had he kept his views regarding the King's supremacy to himself, it would have been all well. But he would not do that, and so was brought to trial on the 17th of June, and condemned to death. On the 22nd, the day of his execution, he dressed himself with more than ordinary care, and on its being noticed by his servant, he said he was to be a bridegroom that day. As he was led to the place of execution, being stopped on the way by the crowd, he opened his New Testament and prayed to this purpose, "that as that book had been his companion and chief comfort in his imprisonment, so then some place might turn up to him that might comfort him in his last

passage." This being said, he opened the book at a venture, in which these words of St John's turned up: "This is life eternal, to know Thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom Thou hast sent." So he shut the book with much satisfaction, and all the way was repeating and meditating on them. When he came to the scaffold he pronounced the "Te Deum," and after some other devotions his head was cut off.

The last we shall name is (see Burnet's History) Sir THOMAS MORE, beheaded in the 53rd year of his age, for denying the King's supremacy. He was a man of rare virtues and excellent parts. When Cromwell, Bedyll, and others pressed him. upon the King's supremacy, he said, "He would not meddle with any such matter, and was fully resolved to serve God, and think upon His passion, and his own passage out of the world." He sent divers messages to Fisher to encourage him, and said, "The Act of Parliament is like a sword with two edges; if a man answer one way, it will confound his soul; if he answer another way, it will confound his body." When Rich pressed him, on the authority of the Parliament, to declare the King's supremacy, he said, "What if Parliament should declare me king, would you not acknowledge me?" "I would," said More; "but what if the Parliament made an act that God was not God?" Rich acknowledged that it could not bind. He received his sentence with that equal temper of mind which he had ever shown, and set himself

wholly to prepare for death. After some time spent in private devotions, he was beheaded, June 6th, 1535.

We now proceed to the sanguinary reign of the so-called "Good Queen Bess."

Lingard, as already observed, states that Thomas Woodhouse was the first priest judicially murdered in her reign for the exercise of his vocation; whereas Challoner gives precedence to Cuthbert Maine, whom he calls the proto-martyr of Douay College, and of whom we find the following notice in Stow, at p. 681-"The 30 November, Cuthbert Mayne was drawne, hanged, and quartered at Lawncestone in Cornwall, for preferring Romane power."

But whichever of these good men could claim precedence in the time of their martyrdom, we can only select a few biographies from a very great and glorious multitude, all worthy of notice, and commence with the honoured name of EDMUND CAMPION.

Many, perhaps even the majority, of the Roman priests of those days were persons of good and ancient family; but in the present case he belonged to that of a respectable tradesman.

Edmund Campion was born in London, January 25th, in the year 1540, and educated in Christ Church School (blue coats), where he distinguished himself above all of his standing. His father, Edmund Campion, was a citizen and bookseller of London-in account of which he was chosen to entertain Queen Mary with a Latin oration on her

accession, 1553. He afterwards entered St John's College, Oxford, took his M.A. degree in 1564, and took holy orders according to the Church of England from the hands of Richard Cheney, Bishop of Gloucester, who had encouraged him in his studies. Again he was appointed to make a Latin oration for the Queen, on which occasion he gave even more satisfaction than at first.

His mind, uneasy in respect to his religious convictions, he forsook the English Church when a proctor of the university, and conformed to the Roman faith in the year 1569, thus giving up very fair prospects of advancing himself. After a stay of some time in Ireland, where many persons of distinction became great admirers of his learning and talent, he returned privately to England, from whence he went over to Douay, where he took degrees, became a professor, and went on to Rome.

Of his travels, his professorships, and his writings, we will not speak in this brief sketch of his life and martyrdom. Suffice it to say, that in the year 1580, on the 25th of June, he landed at Dover as a missionary priest, and that some time after he was seized in the house of Edward Yates, Esq., of Lyford, in Berkshire, where he and some others were assembled on the duties of their function. He was carried in triumph through Abingdon, Henley, and Colebrook, with a paper fixed on his hat, bearing his name and his pretended crimes, and was conducted to the Tower.

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