blessed haven of reformation, endeavoured by us, and cause all our troubles and disquiet to end in a happy rest and peace-when all His people shall be one, and His name one in all your dominions, which is and shall be the daily prayers of, my Lord, your Highness's most humble and obedient servant to his power,

66

Chatham, 26th August, 1656."

"THOS. KELSEY.

This advice was adopted, and between one and two hundred of the persons returned were refused their seats because of their disaffection to the Protectorate Government.

The second Protectorate Parliament met on the 17th of September, 1656. Sir Harry Vane, now a prisoner, had been proposed in three places, but had been elected in none. Haselrig had succeeded in securing his return, but for a time he did not take his seat. After Dr. Owen had preached at Westminster Abbey from the words in Isaiah xiv. 32"What shall one then answer the messengers of the nation? That the Lord hath founded Zion, and the poor of his people shall trust in it,"-adjourning to the Painted Chamber, Cromwell stood up, took off his hat, and discoursed characteristically upon the Spaniards and Papists, and the Cavaliers-upon the late rising-the levellers and the Fifth Monarchy men-and also upon the Major-Generals. Then he turned to the subject of religion. His practice since the last Parliament, he said, had been to grant liberty to all who continued quiet and peaceable. He was against such liberty of conscience as might be repugnant to this. Let Baptists, Independents, and Presbyterians be countenanced as long as they were thankful to God, and made use of their liberty-not to interfere with others, but "to enjoy their own consciences." Men who believed in free justification by the

blood of Jesus, and lived upon the grace of God, claimed freedom as a debt due to God and to Christ; and God would require it, if such Christians did not enjoy what they claimed. But his Highness declared he would not suffer one Christian to trample on the heels of another, or to revile, reproach, or provoke him. He prayed that God would give hearts and spirits to keep things equal, for striving after which he had "some boxes on the ear.' Even Presbyterians, at last, were beginning to see the justice of his course, and petitions from them in certain counties shewed how they did but desire liberty, and would not strain themselves beyond their own line." The Protector touched on another topic. For his own part, he should think himself very treacherous if he took away tithes till he could see the legislative power settle the maintenance of ministers in another way. To destroy tithes was to cut ministers' throats. Tithes, or some other public maintenance, formed "the root of visible profession." He had also a word of favour for his Commission of Triers and " Expurgators." They had a great esteem for learning; but "neither Mr. Parson, nor Doctor in the University, hath been reckoned stamp enough by those that made these approbations." Grace must go with and sanctify learning. He believed, he said, that God had "a very great seed" in the youth then in the Universities, who, instead of studying books only, studied their own hearts. "It was never so upon the thriving hand" as at that day. Touching upon religion generally, the speaker added that the Cavalier interest had been one of disorder and wickedness; that fifteen or seventeen years before it had been a shame to be a Christian. A badge then was put upon the holy profession. But a blessed change had come, and now-since people esteemed

it a shame to be bold in sin and profaneness-God would bless them.1

The second Protectorate Parliament walked in the steps of the first, as it regarded the suppression of error and of fanaticism by legal penalties. The month of December saw the new senators at Westminster plunging into discussions upon the case of James Naylor.

Lord President Laurence2 and a few others were disposed to interpret the views of this notorious person as merely the extravagances of a mystical temperament; but most of the members, horror-stricken at his conduct, pronounced it utterly intolerable, and declared that it deserved the severest chastisement from the magistrate. Mr. Samuel Bedfords expressed his joy at finding that so many had adopted such an opinion; for the nation's eyes were fixed upon them to see what they would do for the cause of God; and he would not have them lay down the business unfinished, but sit day and night until it was

1 Carlyle's Cromwell, ii. 416, et seq. The following document is in the State Paper Office, 17th of September, 1656:-"We whose names are subscribed, with others, being chosen and accordingly returned to serve with you in this Parliament, and in discharge of our trust offering to go into the House, were at the lobbydoor kept back by soldiers, which, lest we should be wanting in our duty to you and to our country, we have thought expedient to represent unto you to be communicated to the House, that we may be admitted therein."-Subscribed by Sir Ralph Hare and 160 others.

September 22.-Resolved, that the persons which have been returned from the several counties to serve the Parliament, and have not

been approved, be referred to their application to the Council for their approbation, and that the House do proceed with the great affairs of the nation.

The Committee's answer is, that they have refused none that to them have appeared to be men of integrity, and according to the qualification of the Instrument. And therefore his Highness and the Council have given orders to the soldiers to keep those persons out.-State Papers Dom.

2 This was Henry Laurence, Lord President of the Council, member for Westmoreland in the Long Parliament, and for Colchester in the Parliament of 1655.

3 Member for Bedfordshire in the Parliaments of 1654 and 1656.

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perfected. Lord Lambert1-after alluding to the unhappy man as having been unblameable in life, and a member of "a very sweet society of an Independent Church "-intimated his own readiness to punish the accused, should he be proved guilty of blasphemy; only, not being hurried away by passion, like some honourable members, he wished the subject to be referred to a committee, that nothing might be done irregularly and in haste. Major Edward Desborough, though he did not speak with a view of mitigating Naylor's offence, pointed out the fact that the people who encouraged him and paid him homage were, in one sense, worse than he. Some members would immediately have sent this delinquent to the gallows; and at length the poor man actually was doomed to be repeatedly whipped, set in the pillory, branded with red-hot irons, and kept in prison with hard labour during the pleasure of Parliament. Even the Lord Protector said he would not tolerate such offenders in his dominions.

At the time when this debate was carried on-touching as it did the question whether Government has a right to take cognizance of purely religious offences-the Protector wrote two very significant letters, which are here introduced in further illustration of his religious policy. One was addressed to the municipal authorities of Newcastleupon-Tyne, with reference to some fears which the Independents, who were the predominant party in the town, had expressed, in consequence of his Highness's encouragement of the Presbyterians in that neighbourhood. After an explanation of the circumstance, he proceeds :—

This was Major-General Lambert, called Lord Lambert, from his being the first president of the Protector's Privy Council. He was member for Yorkshire in 1654 and again in 1656.

2 Member for Somersetshire in 1654 and in 1656.

For all these speeches see Cromwellian Diary, i. 62, 28, 33, 55. 3 Ibid., 158.

"I, or rather the Lord, require of you that you walk in all peaceableness and gentleness, inoffensiveness, truth, and love towards them, as becomes the servants and Churches of Christ-knowing well that Jesus Christ, of whose diocese both they and you are, expects it; who, when He comes to gather His people and to make Himself a name and praise amongst all the people of the' earth,' He 'will save her that halteth, and gather her that was driven out, and will get them praise and fame in every land where they have been put to shame.' And such lame ones' and driven-out ones' were not the Independents only, and Presbyterians, a few years since, by the Popish and prelatical party in these nations; but such are and have been the Protestants in all lands, persecuted and faring alike with you, in all the reformed Churches. And therefore, knowing your charity to be as large as all the flock of Christ who are of the same hope and faith of the Gospel with you, I thought fit to commend these few words to you, being well assured it is written in your heart, so to do with this, that I shall stand by you in the maintaining of all your just privileges to the uttermost."1 The Christian spirit which breathes through this epistle commands our sympathy and admiration. Every line testifies to that gentle love for all the true disciples of Jesus Christ-which grew like a tender flower, which gushed like a limpid stream, for the refreshment of his friends, out of the depths of a strong and rugged nature such as made Cromwell a terror to his enemies.

The other noticeable letter despatched from his Highness's Cabinet about the same time, was intended for no other hands than those of the renowned Cardinal Mazarin,

1 Carlyle, ii. 470.