was it only in the north of England that such instances of sympathy with the Scots were breaking out, in a manner to attract the attention of the local authorities and of the Home Office. In London, now and for weeks and months to come, Mr. Secretary Windebank, and his private secretary and son-in-law, Mr. Robert Reade, were busy to weariness with informations that had reached them of cases of the Scottish distemper, and with inquiries and arrests arising out of these informations. Some of these cases are comical enough. Lists were made out of Scottish tailors and other Scottish tradesmen in the city, and of the cheap eating-houses and the like to which Scotchmen did most resort; and one reads, inter alia, how a certain Mrs. Cromwell, living near Shere Lane, and not only she, but her neighbour Mrs. Grace Southcott, and the Rev. Mr. Swadling, Vicar of Aldgate's, and Dr. May, a physician-all of whom chanced to be in Mrs. Cromwell's house at the time-were alarmed by the wild talk of a certain Captain Napier, a Scotchman, who had dropt in with apologies from his sick wife for not having been able to call on Mrs. Cromwell. The news from Scotland having been mentioned, Captain Napier had told them that there was more in that matter than people generally knew. "There were many good heads writing and busy about these things,' and he himself was not in London for nothing. He has the honour of seeing the imprisoned Bishop of Lincoln almost every day in the Tower; "that Bishop hath more in him "than all the rest of the Bishops of England, and, if he had "been made Archbishop of Canterbury, none of all these "things had fallen out." What was brewing time alone could tell. Only this he would hint, that "all the apostles of Christ had not 1007. a year amongst them," and that, if the Bishops of England were brought back to something like that state of things, it might be better for all parties! All this and much more did Captain Napier say openly in Mrs. Cromwell's house, till the hair of his hearers stood on end; and no sooner was he gone than, Mr. Swadling and Dr. May having agreed that "many a man hath been laid upon a hurdle for less matters than this and for concealment," an

account of what had passed was drawn up, read to the women, and sent to Secretary Windebank. The result was that Captain Napier soon found himself under lock and key. If the accounts are correct, we need not pity him much; he was but a Scottish Bobadil, who had probably a bee in his bonnet.— But what shall we say of the daily intercepting of letters addressed to respectable London citizens, and of police-visits to their houses to search for papers on suspicion of their complicity with the Scots? Among the persons so suspected, and examined under warrant from Windebank, was a "Samuel Hartlib, merchant," of whom we shall hear more in this History. And the feeling regarding the existence of which the Government was thus on the alert, did, doubtless, exist throughout the entire body of the English Puritans. Above all, for the Hampdens, the Cromwells, and the Pyms, walking about this time, as we can fancy them, in the fields or along quiet pathways in their several parts of England, and wondering how long the reign of "Thorough" was to last, and when, if ever, they were to be called upon again to act for their countrymen, the news from Scotland must have had a strangely agitating interest.1

1 The little odds and ends of fact mentioned in this paragraph are from notes of my readings in the MSS. in the State-Paper Office. The date of the Alured case is July 4-9; that of the Napier case, August 8; the date of the inquiry about the Newcastle sympathisers is January 1638-9. Thence, on for some months, Windebank and Reade are busy with London cases. The warrant for examining Hartlib and searching his house is of date May 1, 1639. It is to Reade, who had just written on the previous day (April 30), “I am in such continual employment in examining these Puritan rogues, &c., that I am weary of my life."-I have seen a letter of Pym's in the State-Paper Office, dated "London, July 20, 1638," and addressed to his " very worthy and much esteemed friend, John Wandesforde, Esq. His Maj. agent and counsel for the English at Aleppo in Syria." In this letter (doubtless intercepted and brought to Windebank) Pym says, "Being again to go into the country, where I have been for the most part of

these two years past, and it being a time which threatens great change and trouble, I have thought good now to salute," &c.-I may here mention that to the fears of complicity with the Scots, entertained by the Government about this time, we owe some curious statistics as to the number of foreigners then resident in London. From a return of names made to Windebank, in pursuance of a Privy Council order (S. P. O. MS. of date March 15, 1638 9), I find that there were then 838 "strangers" in Westminster-viz. 641 French, 176 Dutch, 15 Italians, and 6 Spaniards -a large proportion of whom are described as "painters," "picturedrawers," or "lymners," while others are engravers, musicians, silver-workers, &c. Westminster would naturally be the head-quarters of foreigners who were artists. In the city of London there were at the same time (MS. of date March 19, giving, however, only numbers, and not a list of names) 830 "strangers," classified thus - French, 228; Dutch, 221; Walloons, 330; Ger

The nature of this interest of the English Puritans in the Scottish struggle may be easily conceived. From the time of Elizabeth, it is true, a large proportion of those who were called Puritans in England had desired nothing more in the shape of ecclesiastical change than a modification of the Episcopal power, an abatement of ceremonies and the like; but, in so far as any other model of a Church than the Episcopal had been contemplated by those English Puritans who stopped short of Independency and Separatism, it had, of course, been the Genevan or Presbyterian. Most probably the tightening and heightening of English Episcopacy by Laud had of late driven the thoughts of the Puritans more and more to this notion of a Church without bishops as promising the only effective deliverance. Such a notion, however, can have existed but vaguely while it was only by looking across the seas to Holland and Switzerland that actual specimens of non-episcopal Church-government could be found. But, now that one portion of the British Island itself had actually swept away its bishops and reverted to the Presbyterian system, it was not wonderful that Presbyterianism should seem to the English Puritans a nearer possibility than it had been. All of them indeed did not as yet go the length of desiring the Presbyterian system for England. But all of them were satisfied that, if the Scots chose to have that system in Scotland, they ought not to be prevented by any interference from without; and they were shocked at the idea of a war between the two nations for the sake of the Scottish bishops.

Nevertheless, war there was now to be. On this the King, Laud, Wentworth, Arundel, Cottington and others were resolved. Nor could any of the Councillors see how it could be longer avoided. The Marquis of Hamilton, who had been detained by illness and disappointment in Scotland till the month of January, could give no other advice. Accordingly, as preparations had been going on more or less secretly for

mans, 24; Italians, 11; Polanders, 2; Bohemians, 1; Norwegians, 1; Savoyards, 1; Normans, 1; Florentines, 1; Palatinate-men, 1; Venetians, 6; Ham

burghers, 1. As regards professions, 202 of the total 830 are described as "weavers," and the rest of other professions.

months, with a view to a war in the spring at any rate, so during the months of January and February 1638-9 these preparations were pressed forward with all the urgency of immediate haste. The details of these preparations the reader may easily conceive for himself. We will but glance at one or two of the special methods for raising money to which the King had recourse.

The Nobles were called upon to subscribe. By a circular letter in the King's name to all the English nobility, dated "Westminster, January 26, 1638-9," they were individually informed that the King was to lead in person an expedition against the Scots, and that the rendezvous was to be at York on the 1st of April; and they were required to intimate within fifteen days to one of the Secretaries of State the nature and the extent of the assistance which his Majesty might expect from them on that occasion. A good many replies to this letter, some of which are curious specimens of aristocratic penmanship and orthography, are still to be seen in the StatePaper Office; where also there is an abstract, in the handwriting of Mr. Nicholas, Clerk to the Council, of all the replies sent in, to the number of seventy-seven. The gradations of wealth among the English nobles, in combination with their zeal and loyalty in general, or with their appetite for the Scottish war in particular, are easily to be seen in this document. None of the seventy-seven nobles included in it comes up to Wentworth. His name is not included in it, apparently because it was necessary that he should remain in Ireland; but, hearing that such a summons had gone forth, he had written over to the King, subscribing 2,000l., and asking his Majesty to command all he had beyond that, "to the uttermost farthing." Perhaps next in zeal to Wentworth is the Earl of Worcester. He promises 1,000l., and will send his son and heir (Lord Herbert, afterwards Earl of Glamorgan) to the rendezvous with 20 horse. A few nobles-as Lord Goring, Lord Cottington, the Earl of Suffolk, the Earl of Newcastle, and the Earl of St. Alban's and Clanricarde-promise 20 horse, and attendance in person or by substitute; while others as the Earls of Thanet, Kingston, and Rivers-offer

10007., in lieu of horse, or of both horse and attendance. The Earl of Bridgewater, Milton's "Earl" in Comus, will furnish 12 foot for six months, or pay 10007., whichever is most acceptable to the King; and the money is most acceptable. Lord Falconbridge will attend with 10 horse and 20 foot "at the least." There are smaller offerings from many, of 5007. or 600l., or of 4 horse, 6 horse, 10 horse, with or without personal attendance; and a very considerable numberamong whom are the Marquis of Winchester, the Earls of Dover, Danby, Northampton, Northumberland, Westmoreland, Hertford, Denbigh, Berkshire, Bolingbroke, and Clare-do not commit themselves to any exact contribution, but promise to attend "with as good equipage as their fortunes and the shortness of the time will permit." Not a few beg to be excused altogether-from attendance, on the grounds of illhealth, old age, or important engagements; and from contribution, on account of poverty or the suddenness of the demand. Among these are the Earls of Lincoln, Sussex, and Nottingham. Some of the replies in this category are peculiar. Lord Charles Stanhope, for example, "is not able to subsist since he lost his place but by his Majesty's help;" but, if he were paid his arrears of 14007. or 15007., he might be able to do something. Similarly, the philosophical Lord Herbert of Cherbury reminds Windebank that since 1624 he has been waiting in vain for repayment of 5,5007. disbursed by him while he was ambassador in France, and that moreover he has been more in the cold shade of late than a person of his merits, both literary and diplomatic, might have expected. The Earl of Bristol, who had greater cause of complaint against Charles, sends no distinct reply, but hopes to come to London soon with "such an answer as may be expected." Lord Mandeville, son of the Earl of Manchester, "hopes his father will furnish him" with the means to serve. The Earl of Warwick, "being to go to the West Indies, desires to be excused from his personal attendance," but will send his son. The Earl of Bedford first offers 500l., and then, seemingly with reluctance, raises the sum to 1000l., with a promise of personal attendance. In his case, as in some of the preceding,