events, the conditions made with him must be kept ;-and we doubt not were. LETTER CXXXIII. 'To the Honourable William Lenthall, Esquire, Speaker of the House of Commons: These.' MR. SPEAKER, London, 20th June 1650. When we lay before Bristol in the Year 1645, we considered the season of the year, the strength of the place, and of what importance the reducement thereof would be to the good of the Commonwealth, and accordingly applied ourselves to all possible means for the accomplishment of the same; which received its answerable effect. At which time, for something considerable done in order to that end, by Humphrey Hooke, Alderman of that place,— which, for many reasons, is desired to be concealed,—his Excellency the Lord General Fairfax and myself gave him an Engagement under our hands and seals, That he should be secured and protected, by the authority of the Parliament, in the enjoyment of his life, liberty and estate, as freely as in former times, and as any other person under the obedience of the Parliament; notwithstanding any past acts of hostility, or other thing done by him, in opposition to the Parliament or assistance of the Enemy. Which Engagement, with a Certificate of divers godly persons of that City concerning the performance of his part thereof, is ready to be produced. I understand, that lately an Order is issued out to sequester him, whereby he is called to Composition. I thought it meet therefore to give the honourable Parliament this account, that he may be preserved from anything of that nature. For the performance of which, in order to the good of the Commonwealth, we stand engaged in our faith and honour. I leave it to you; and remain, Sir, your most humble servant, OLIVER CROMWELL.* On Wednesday 26th June 1650, the Act appointing ‘That 'Oliver Cromwell, Esquire, be constituted Captain-General and • Commander-in-Chief of all the Forces raised or to be raised by authority of Parliament within the Commonwealth of Eng'land,'1 was passed. 'Whereupon,' says Whitlocke, 'great cere'monies and congratulations of the new General were made to 'him from all sorts of people; and he went on roundly with 'his business.' Roundly, rapidly; for in three days more, on Saturday the 29th, 'the Lord General Cromwell went out of 'London towards the North: and the news of him marching ' northward much startled the Scots.' He has Lambert for Major-General, Cousin Whalley for Commissary-General; and among his Colonels are Overton, whom we knew at Hull; Pride, whom we have seen in Westminster Hall; and a taciturn man, much given to chewing tobacco, whom we have transiently seen in various places, Colonel George Monk by name.3 An excellent officer; listens to what you say, answers often by a splash of brown juice merely, but punctually does what is doable of it. Puddingheaded Hodgson the Yorkshire Captain is also there; from whom perhaps we may glean a rough lucent-point or two. The Army, as my Lord General attracts it gradually from the right and left on his march northward, amounts at Tweedside to some Sixteen-thousand horse and foot. Rushworth goes with him as Secretary; historical John; having now done with Fairfax: -but, alas, his Papers for this Period are all lost to us: it was not safe to print them with the others; and they are lost! The Historical Collections, with their infinite rubbish and their modicum of jewels, cease at the Trial of the King; leaving us, fallen into far worse hands, to repent of our impatience, and regret the useful John! The following Letters, without commentary, which stingy space will not permit, must note the Lord General's progress for us as they can; and illuminate with here and there a rude gleam of direct light at first-hand, an old scene very obsolete, confused, unexplored and dim for us. * Tanner MSS. (in Cary, ii. 222). 2 Whitlocke, pd. 446-7. 1 Commons Journals, in die. 3 Life of Monk, by Gumble, his Chaplain 4 Train, 690; horse, 5,415; foot, 10,249; in toto, 16,354 (Cromwelliana, p. 85). LETTER CXXXIV. DOROTHY CROMWELL, we are happy to find, has a 'little brat;'-but the poor little thing must have died soon in Noble's inexact lists there is no trace of its ever having lived. The Lord General has got into Northumberland. He has a good excuse for being 'silent this way,'-the way of Letters. For my very loving Brother Richard Mayor, Esquire, at his House at Hursley: These. DEAR BROTHER, Alnwick, 17th July 1650. The exceeding crowd of business I had at London is the best excuse I can make for my silence this way. Indeed, Sir, my heart beareth me witness I want no affection to you or yours; you are all often in my poor prayers. I should be glad to hear how the little Brat doth. I could chide both Father and Mother for their neglects of me: I know my Son is idle, but I had better thoughts of Doll. I doubt now her husband hath spoiled her; pray tell her so from me. If I had as good leisure as they, I should write sometimes. If my Daughter be breeding, I will excuse her; but not for her nursery! The Lord bless them. I hope you give my Son good counsel; I believe he needs it. He is in the dangerous time of his age; and it's a very vain world. O, how good it is to close with Christ betimes; -there is nothing else worth the looking after. I beseech you call upon him,—I hope you will discharge my duty and your own love: you see how I am employed. I need pity. I know what I feel. Great place and business in the world is not worth the looking after; I should have no comfort in mine but that my hope is in the Lord's presence. I have not sought these things; truly I have been called unto them by the Lord; and therefore am not without some assurance that He will enable His poor worm and weak servant to do His will, and to fulfil my generation. In this I desire your prayers. Desiring to be lovingly remembered to my dear Sister, to our Son and Daughter, to my Cousin Ann and the good Family, I rest, your very affectionate brother, OLIVER CROMWELL.* On Monday 22d July, the Army, after due rendezvousing and reviewing, passed through Berwick; and encamped at Mordington across the Border, where a fresh stay of two days is still necessary. Scotland is bare of resources for us. That night the Scotch beacons were all set on fire; the men fled, and drove away their cattle.' Mr. Bret, his Excellency's Trumpeter, returns from Edinburgh without symptom of pacification. 'The Clergy represent us to the people as if we were monsters of the world.' Army of Sectaries and Blasphemers," is the received term for us among the Scots.5 Already on the march hitherward, and now by Mr. Bret in an official way, have due Manifestos been promulgated: Declaration To all that are Saints and Partakers of the Faith of God's Elect in Scotland, and Proclamation To the People of Scotland in general. Asking of the mistaken People, in mild terms, Did you not see us, and try us, what kind of men we were, when we came among you two years ago? Did you find us plunderers, murderers, monsters of the world? 'Whose ox have we stolen ?' To the mistaken Saints of God in Scotland, again, the Declaration testifies and argues, in a grand earnest way, That in Charles Stuart and his party there can be no salvation; that we seek the real substance of the Covenant, which it is perilous to desert for the mere outer form thereof; —on the whole, that we are not sectaries and blasphemers; and that it goes against our heart to hurt a hair of any sincere servant of God.—Very earnest Documents; signed by John Rushworth in the name of General and Officers; often printed and reprinted. They bear Oliver's sense in every feature of them; but are not distinctly of his composition: wherefore, as *Harris, p. 513: one of the Pusey stock. 5 Balfour, iv. 97, 100, &c.: 'Cromwell the Blasphemer' (ib. 88). space grows more and more precious, and Oliver's sense will elsewhere sufficiently appear, we omit them. ་ 'The Scots,' says Whitlocke,7 ‘are all gone with their goods 'towards Edinburgh, by command of the Estates of Scotland, ' upon penalty if they did not remove; so that mostly all the men are gone. But the wives stay behind; and some of them 'do bake and brew, to provide bread and drink for the Eng'lish Army.' The public functionaries 'have told the people, "That the English Army intends to put all the men to the 'sword, and to thrust hot irons through the women's breasts;" '—which much terrified them, till once the General's Procla'mations were published.' And now the wives do stay behind, and brew and bake,-poor wives! That Monday night while we lay at Mordington, with hard accommodation out of doors and in,—my puddingheaded friend informs me of a thing. The General has made a large Discourse to the Officers and Army, now that we are across; speaks to them “as a Christian and a Soldier, To be doubly and trebly diligent, to be wary and worthy, for sure enough we have work before us! But have we not had God's blessing hitherto? Let us go on faithfully, and hope for the like still!"'8 The Army answered with acclamations,' still audible to me.-Yorkshire Hodgson continues : ་ 'Well; that night we pitched at Mordington, about the 'House. Our Officers,' General and Staff Officers, 'hearing a 'great shout among the soldiers, looked out of window. They ' spied a soldier with a Scotch kirn' (churn) ‘on his head. Some ' of them had been purveying abroad, and had found a vessel 'filled with Scotch cream: bringing the reversion of it to their tents, some got dishfuls, and some hatfuls; and the cream 'being now low in the vessel, one fellow would have a modest 'drink, and so lifts the kirn to his mouth but another cant'ing it up, it falls over his head; and the man is lost in it, all 'the cream trickles down his apparel, and his head fast in the 'tub! This was a merriment to the Officers; as Oliver loved an innocent jest.' ་ A week after, we find the General very serious; writing thus to the Lord President Bradshaw. 7 p. 450. 8 Hodgson, p. 130; Whitlocke, p. 450. |