Good agreements, brother, but badly performed: For assoone as the armies were dissolved, and the King possessed of the castles of Edinburgh, Dumbarton, &c. new cavells were raysed against the covenanters. And it was reported, That, under the colour of a parle with the lords at Berwicke, they should all have been detayned, and sent prisoners to London. But, as good happe was, they went not, but excused themselves to the king, because the appointed assemblies was then to begin, which hath since quite abolished bishops.

The King seemed displeased, and thereupon placed Generall Rothwen governour of the castle of Edenburgh. And now he, having gotten that by a tricke, which they never could have gotten by strength, keeps a couple of false knaves to laugh at the lords, a foole and a fidler; and, when he and they are almost drunke, then they goe to singing of Scots iigges, in a jearing manner, at the covenanters, for surrendering up their castles.

The fidler he flings out his heels, and dances and sings:

Put up thy dagger, Jamie,

And all things shall be mended,
Bishops shall fall, no not at all,

When the parliament is ended.

Then the fool, he flirts out his folly, and, whilst the fidler plays, he sings:

Which never was intended,
But onely for to flam thee:
We have gotten the game,
Wee'll keep the same,
Put up thy dagger, Iamie.

The devill a dagger, quoth Iamie, shalbe put up by me, nor, I beleeve, by any man in the kingdome, untill the parliament be ended, and have confirmed the putting down of bishops; wee'll be no longer flim-flamb'd by any of them. And, for this trick, we will have that false papisticall traitor Rothwen, and all his knaveries, out of the castle; or else we will make it too hot for him to hold it. I am in such a rage at these rascalls, as, if I had them here, I would beat them both black and blew, and teach them to sing another song, called, The Lowns Lamentation;' yea, and make them dance after my pipe, ere I had done with them.

Peace, quoth Willie, patience will bring all to perfection, and time will discover the truth. But if this pacification was onely pretended, that they might get the castles into their custodie, and the parliament but onely promised, and never intended to confirm the abolishing of bishops, then we have just cause to doe that which was never dreamed on. Dreamed on, quoth Iamie, if dreames prove true, I shalbe master of a mytre ere it be long; for every night I am so troubled with finding of mytres, crucifixes, rich copes, and the like, that I thinke, to my com

fort, it wilbe my fortune to fall upon the rifling of some of those belly god bishops houses, before this warre be ended; and then let me alone to expone my dreame. And I hope, if I take pains, to pull down popery in such a manner, as it will not trouble my conscience hereafter. I would it were come to that, quoth Willie, if it must needs come to it; but it were better the businesse ended in a peaceable way.

That will never be, quoth lamic, for there is a time when Babylon must down, and the bishops, who are but whelps of that whores litter, must down before her; and why may not the time be now? For the pope had never such a blow as Scotland now hath given him; and, if England give him but such another, it will make him stagger.

Ha, Jamie, there thou hitst the marke, for all the pollicie that I have can never possesse me any possibility of bringing peace and safety, except the bloudy and undermining locusts be sent to the bottomlesse pit, from whence they came; and the whole litter of the whores whelps, as thou callest them, the bishops, with all their appendices, be rooted out: yea, except some carpenters arise, and saw off these strong hornes of the beast, which, by stickling, make so many leakes in the English church, she and all in her are like to perish; and then those hellish pirats, worse than Tunnees and Algeir, will have a bout with the bordering of the Scots: but I hope they shall be hanged first. The Scots have set the English a faire coppy, and, if they cannot write for these also, the Scots will lend their hand, if they be willing to learne. Yet not to write a letter, much lesse a line of rebellion; for, as they may compare with any nation in the world for their loyalty, so to terme the saving of the church, king, and state rebellion, is of the devill, the father of lyes.

I am confident, that the English will not be so forgetfull of their honour and profession, as to make such use of the Scots, as the monkey made of the spannell, in pulling the chestnut out of the fire with the spannells foot: but, as mutual necessity craves mutuall ayd, so I hope the Scots and English will, in a brotherly conjunction, like Ioab and Abijhai, help one another against the Syrians and Ammonites; that is, forraigne and domesticke enemies. If the Syrians be too strong for me, saith Joab, then thou shalt helpe me; but, if Ammon be too strong for thee, then I will come and helpe thee,' 2 Sam. x. 11. The application is easie. But whither am I gone, certainly beyond both packe and packe pin, yea, and the warehouse too.

O Billie Willie, that some good engine bad the hammering of this, and it might prove a bonny piece. But I meane well. Now to close up all, as I wish, with the spirit, all happinesse to attend those that dash Babels brats against the walls: so let both nations take heed of that curse denounced against those that doe the worke of the Lord negligently, Psal. cxxxvii. 11. Jer. xlviii. 10.

By this time we were called to supper, and thereupon gave over discourse: and the next day after departed all three for Edenburgh, where agreed over againe to owne the hazard of a new journy to London, to see how things were carryed there. But the manner of the carriage, and how we shall dispose of our selves there, cannot be resolved till we

see the successe of this parliament. Till when, and ever, we remaine ready to do our utmost indeavours in any thing that may tend to the good of this kirk and kingdome.

POSTSCRIPT.

THROUGH fire and water we have past,

To bring you Northerne news:
And, since as scouts we travelled last,
We now that name refuse.

But, if henceforth new broyles appeare,
And warre begin to rise,

Castiliano like, wee'll cloth our selves,
And live like Spanish spyes.

THE

ATHEISTICAL POLITICIAN;

OR,

A BRIEF DISCOURSE

CONCERNING

NICHOLAS MACHIAVELL”.

The intention of this discourse appears to be levelled against the government and ministry of K. Charles I. and by way of apology for Machiavell, which, I think, is very artfully composed, endeavours to depreciate Archbishop Laud and the Earl of Strafford, by alledging them to be more dishonest than Nicholas Machiavell.

a

a

think he deserves a better title; yet, when I consider he was not only an Italian, but a courtier, I cannot chuse but commiserate his fortune, that he, in particular, should bear the marks, which belong to the wisest statesmen in general,

He, that intends to express a dishonest man, calls him a Machiavil

lian, when he might as justly say, a Straffordian, or a Cantibirian +: we embrace the first apparition of virtue or vice, and let the substance pass by untouched.

For, if we examine the life of Lewis the Eleventh of France, we shall find he acted more ill, than Machiavell writ, or, for aught we know, ever thought, yet he hath wisdom inscribed on his tomb; and, had he not kissed his crucifix ever after the doing a dishonest thing, pronouncing a sentence or two, that discovered the complexion of his heart, he might have past for as honest a man as all wise ancestors or any prince living in his time, who now lie quiet in their graves; a favour this man is denied by ignorant and ungrateful posterity.

He was secretary to the State of Florence, of which he hath written an excellent and impartial history; he had lived in the days of Pope Alexander the Sixth, been familiar with his son Cæsar, and what these princes were is sufficiently known.

No time was fuller of action, nor more shewed the instability of worldly honours, than the occurrences that happened in Italy at this time. Now, from a man wholly employed in court affairs, where it was thought madness to look beyond second causes, worse things might have been with better reason expected, than these so bitterly condemned; which are, indeed, but the history of wise impieties, long before imprinted in the hearts of ambitious pretenders, and by him made legible to the meanest understanding; yet he is more blamed for this fair expression, than they are that daily commit far greater impiety, than his, or any pen else, is able to express.

It was his profession to imitate the behaviour of princes, were it never so unseemly: nay, religion cannot condemn the speculation of ill in ministers of state, without laying herself and professors open to all injury.

For, upon how great disadvantage should a good prince treat with a bad neighbour, if he were not only familiar with the paths of wickedness, but knew other ways to shun them, and how to countermine their treacherous practices?

Do any blame Albertus for writing obscenely? Nay, do not they rather call him the Great, because he hath so plainly set open the closet of nature? Indeed, if any man can pretend a just quarrel to Machiavell, they are kings; for, as it is the ordinary course of light women to find fault with the broad discourse of that they maintain their power by, so statesmen may best blame the publication of these maxims, that they may put them in practice with more profit and security.

The unjust steward is commended for his worldly wisdom, and, what doth he say more of Cæsar Borgia, than that he was a politick tyraut? An dif, without leave of the text, he propose him for an example, yet it is of ill: and who is more fit to be a pattern to a villain, than one of the same coat?

Most of the estates in Italy did then voluntarily, or were compelled to change their masters; neither could that school teach him any thing

Alluding to the Earl of Stafford, beheaded in K. Charles I's reign. + Alluding to Archbishop Laud. N. B. These two were looked upen by the Author, and many others, his cotemporaries, to be evil counsellors to K. Charles I. and, as such, were Machiavells in England.

more perfectly than the way to greatness, nor he write a more acceptable treatise than aphorisms of state.

He saw the kingdom of Naples torn out of the house of Angieu by Ferdinand, and the people kept in tyranny both by the father and son; he saw the no less mad than disloyal ambition of Lodowick, Duke of Milan, who took the government upon him out of the hands of young Galeas, with as much treachery and cunning as Francis Sforca, father to Galeas, had done from the Dukes of Orleans; he beheld Charles the Eighth, King of France, brought into Italy by the said Duke of Milan, to keep the people at gaze, whilst he poisoned his nephew, who was to expect the dukedom when he came of age; he saw the descent of Charles winked at by Pope Alexander the Sixth, in hope to raise a house for his son Cæsar out of the ruins of some of the princes, in which he was deceived; for the French King made himself master of all Italy, entered Rome twice, put the holy father to take sanctuary in the castle St. Angelo, and there to subscribe to such conditions as the victorious king was pleased to prescribe him; upon which his holiness came out: and, thongh Charles, in shew of reverence, did kiss his foot, yet he took his son Cæsar for hostage, to secure the performance of his promise, though he covered it with the name of ambassage, ever to reside with the king, in token of amity; and, after Cæsar had made an escape, the holy father, contrary to his oath, made a league against the French King.

He was an eye-witness of an amity contracted between the vicar of Christ and his known enemy the Turk; with whom he agreed for money to poison his + brother, who was fled into Christendom, for fear of Bajazet, then reigning, and was under the pope's protection at Rome; and might have been of excellent use to any prince that would have im vaded the Turk, had not his holiness observed his promise to this monster, which he seldom kept with the best of men.

After all this, he saw the French King lose all Italy, with the same dexterity he had gained it; and Pope Alexander and his son both overthrown by one draught of poison, prepared by themselves for others; of which the father died presently, but the son, by reason of youth and antidote, had leisure to see, what he had formerly gotten, torn out of his bands, and he forced to flee to his father-in-law, the King of Navarre, in which service he was murthered.

To these ambitious practices of princes may be added the domesticall impiety of the pope, who was a corrival with his two sons in the love of his own daughter, the lady Lucretia, whom they all three enjoyed; which bred such a hatred between the brothers, that Cæsar, being jealous that the other had a greater share in her affection, killed him one night, and threw him into the Tiber: nay, it could not be discerned when the head of the church spake truth or falshood, but by the extraordinary execrations he used, when he meant to deceive.

Neither are these only the commodities of Italy, but the usual traffick of all the courts in the world; for the mark that God hath set upon Jeroboam, who, according to our dialect, may be stiled the Ma