་ chofen to be the fpecial array of their priesthood. That the words in the thirty-third article, concerning the punishment of those who do not conform in all things to the public order concerning ceremonies, may be mitigated.-That all faint days, and holy-days bearing the name of a creature, may be abolished, or at least a commemoration of them be obferved only by fermons, homilies, or common prayer, for the better inftructing the people in hiftory; and that after fervice men may go to work. This paper was fubfcribed by thirty-three perfons, whofe names and ftations are as follow: Alexander Nowel, Dean of St Paul's, Prolocutor; Sampfon, Dean of Chrift's Church, Oxford; Lawrence Nowel, Dean of Litchfield; Ellis, Dean of Hereford; Day, Provost of Eaton; Dods, Dean of Exon; Merllins, Archdeacon of Lordon; Pullan, Archdeacon of Colchefter; Lever, Archdeacon of Coventry; Beaumont, Archdeacon of Huntington; Spencer, Archdeacon of Chichefter; Croley, Archdeacon of Hereford; Heton, Archdeacon of Gloucefter; Rogers, Archdeacon of St Afaph's; Kemp, Archdeacon of St Alban's; Prat, Archdeacon of St David's; Longland, Archdeacon of Bucks; Watts, Archdeacon of Middlefex; with the Proctors Calfhill, Walker, Saul, Wiburn, Savage, W. Bonner, Avys, Wilfon, Nevynfon, Tremayne, Renyger, Roberts, Reeve, and Hills. This paper was not approved of, and therefore another was brought into the lower houfe on the thirteenth of February, containing the following articles: That all Sundays in the year, and prin cipal feafts of Chrift, be kept as holy days; and that all other holy-days be abolifhed. That in all parish churches the minifter fhall in common prayer turn his face towards the people, and read the fervice diftinctly, that the people may hear and be edified. That in baptifm the crofs may be omitted, as tending to fuperftition.-That fuch communicants as are not able to kneel for age and infirmity at the facrament, and others who do it fuperftitiously, fhall be forbidden by the ordinary, according as he fhall think proper. That it be fufficient for the minister, in time of faying divine service and administering of the facraments (once) to wear a furplice; and that no minifter fay fervice, or administer the facrament, except in a comely garment or habit. That the use of organs be laid afide. These propofitions occafioned great altercation; for fome approved and others condemned them. In conclufion, the houfe was divided, and it appeared upon fcrutiny that the majority then prefent were for approving them; forty-three were for approving and thirty-five for rejecting. The Bishops at last gained their point by the majority of one proxy, fifty-nine against fifty-eight; fo the articles were continued as they now are, by the majority of one vote of a person who was not prefent. There were forty-three members who approved of the articles which were brought in at this time. for amending the liturgy; their names are to be found in the larger hiftories of thefe times; the moft part of them are in the lift which I have fet down above. It is manifeft that half the convocation : vocation, and a great number who were not prefent, were for an amendment of the rites and ceremonies, or at least for forbearance in the practice thereof and indeed it might have been expected, when fuch confiderable indulgences were granted to the Roman catholics, that fome fmall favours might have been fhewed to the puritans, whofe principles were no way inconfiftent with civil government, or the peace of fociety. The Bishops allowed that ceremonies are indifferent, and yet treated those who could not in confcience practife them, with great rigour and feverity. Religion does not appear to have reached the hearts of those who were then dignitaries in the church, otherwife they would have been merciful as their father who is in heaven is merciful. The church having now gained the point 1563, against the puritans in the convocation, those who had the chief management proceeded to great feverities against them. The plague, which broke out this fummer in feveral parts of England, reftrained their proceeding for a while, and fome were indulged who refufed to wear the habits for a fhort time, but none of thofe called puritans were prefered to any benefice of confideration. Miles Coverdale, formerly Bifhop of Exeter, who affifted Tyndal and Rogers in tranflating the Bible, and Mr Fox, who wrote the martyrology, were both unprovided for. The firft was affifting to the confecration of Archbishop Parker, and had fuffered many hardships for religion in the reign of Mary. He narrowly escaped death for his religion; for if it had not been for the interceffion of the King of Denmark, he had fuffered among the reft who were burnt in that period. This Bishop was born. in Yorkshire, and bred at Cambridge: he received the degree of Doctor in Divinity in the university of Tubingen, a town in Swabia, in Germany, and returned to his native country, among other exiles, upon Elizabeth's preferment to the throne, and joined with others to confecrate the firft Archbishop in her reign; but because he could not agree with the vestments and ceremonies, was left expofed to poverty and diftrefs. Bifhop Grindal gave him a fmall living at St Magnus', where he preached peaceably for two years; but not following the precepts of conformity exactly enough, he was perfecuted, and obliged to leave it a little before his death, which happened on the twentieth day of May, one thoufand five hundred and fixty-feven, at the age of eighty-one. He was a celebrated preacher among the puritans, and much admired and followed by all; but the act of uniformity brought him mourning to the grave. He was buried in St Bartholomew's, behind the exchange, and was attended to his grave by a great crowd of people. Fox was a grave and learned man, of much activity and piety. He wrote the acts and monuments of the church when he was an exile, and spent all that time in which he was banifhed from his country in collecting materials for writing his martyrology. He was but ill rewarded for his labour, when he returned home, for the fervice he had Vol. II. K done done his country in his exile; for he lived for æ long time in great poverty and want, without no-, tice and preferment, merely because he could not comply with the habits, which were ufed, nor the ceremonies which were then practifed. No book, except the fcriptures, ever gavè fuch a mortal blow to popery as his acts and monuments: it was dedicated to the Queen, and held in fuch great re-, putation, that it was ordered to be fet up in the churches; where it raifed in the minds of the people fuch a horror against popery, as never had been known before. Elizabeth had a particular efteem for Mr. Fox, and yet through the evils of thefe times he remained in diftrefs without preferment, till by the interceffion of a friend he obtained a prebend in Sarum, which he held with fome difficulty till his death. The Bishops meant him no favour, and gave him conftant difturbance as long as he lived. 1564. The clergy who did duty in the parishes both in town and country, had in general an averfion to the habits: they fometimes wore them in obedience to the laws, but more frequently omitted them. For this they were fometimes cited to the fpiritual courts, and admonished; but the Bishops had not yet proceeded to fufpend and deprive minifters for not using them. They gathered courage at laft, and laid the matter before the Queen, and prevailed with her to interpofe her authority in behalf of these fragments of fuperftition. She therefore in her letters to the Archbishops of Canterbury and York, defired that they |