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taking ministry in the nations; and suffered them to persecute, oppress, and afflict the most precious ministers and servants of God, whose estates they took away, and whose bodies they imprisoned, and some of them most cruelly abused in prison, even unto death. Mark, therefore, O king, had the Lord been pleased with such things, then, doubtless, thou and thy party had never returned to govern in these nations any more; if the Lord had seen good, that oppression, and grinding the faces of the poor, and maintaining a hireling ministry, and forcing the people of God to pay tythes, and persecuting and imprisoning of God's ministers and servants, should have continued in these nations, then those men, which he removed to bring thee in, might have been fit in. struments for such a work, and no need for thee to have been brought in, in so eminent a manner, to do the work, with which the Spirit of the Lord was burdened and grieved, from day to day, and for which his wrath broke forth against those men, whose names now rot in perpetual infamy.

Therefore, doth it not concern thee, O king, and thy council, to consider what you are doing? For the Lord is the same now, as ever he was, and regards not king, councils, parliaments, armics, protectors, so called, or any one, more than another, otherwise than they are found in the path of righteousness, mercy, and true judgment.

Therefore, awake, awake, O king; with thy council stand up, and see whereon the basis of thy kingdom stands, lest thy crown and dignity fall in the dust in these great overturnings; for verily, verily, there is yet a greater overturning than has been, that will suddenly come upon these nations: In which overturning, O king, thou, and thy party, if you proceed, as you have begun, must be the very subject matter of the day, and must drink the very bottom and dregs of that cup, which all persons, that have miscarried in government for divers years past, have tasted of; for the Lord has tried you many years, by sore and grievous affliction, and now hath restored you, that all people and nations may see what you will do; and thou, O king, and thy party, hast begun to set up and maintain that false ministry and worship, and idolatrous practice, and vain sports (for which the wrath of God broke forth, about twenty years since, against thy family) that is to say, episrepacy, with all the abominations, both in worship and practice, which it brings along with it, notwithstanding the light that shines in this day of the Lord's mighty power, and this glorious day of visitation, wherein the Lord hath admitted you to stand for trial: And know this, O king, thy father and his party deceased, never saw such a day, nor received so much mercy (as thee, and thy party that now survives, have done) but were in the dark and cloudy day, folded up under the hireling ministers, and had not the ministers of Christ, the Light of the world, sent unto them, with message after message, as to thee, and thy party, hath been done, counselling thee, O king, and thy council, to fear God, and to work righteousness; and the ministers and servants of the Lord

have been faithful unto thee, O king, in every thing, and in this thing in particular; that is, thou limit not the Spirit of God, in forcing all to worship God, after the manner of the nations and heathen, nor to maintain a hireling ministry; for, where there is such a thing done by authority, there must of necessity follow great ignorance, and gross darkness will soon cover the face of such a nation; for a forced uniformity in matters of God's worship, and the hireling ministry, are not of God, but of the devil; not of Christ, but antichrist; and such a ministry I do affirm, and shall maintain, was the cause of thy father's fall; for the hireling ministry, at tha time, had their hearts full of war, and were divided, and so ministered death unto the people on both sides. And if thou, O king, shalt suffer religion to be established by a law, and shalt force people thereunto, it will be thy utter ruin, and thou wilt assuredly miscarry in government, as any that hath gone before thee.

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And this I declare to thee in tender love and pity towards thee, and likewise exhort thee in the fear and dread of the Lord God, that thou swear not at all; for, if thou dost, thou breakest the command of Christ Jesus, the Light of the World, who is the wisdom of God (by whom princes rule, and the kings of the earth decree justice) who said, Swear not at all.' Consider, O king, what advantage is swearing to the just man? Will he be the more just for swearing? Or, is the command of Christ of none effect? Nay, O king, the just man need not swear, thereby to add to his integrity; nor doth the unjust man any ways abate or destroy the deceit or hypocrisy of his wicked heart, whereby he may become more just, by swearing. Therefore, O'king, if thou canst not do justice and right, for the people over whom God hath made thee chief ruler and magistrate, without swearing, thou wilt never be able to do it by swearing. Nay, O king, but on the contrary, for thee to swear that thou wilt maintain such religion, or do such and such justice for the people, puts thee into an absolute incapability to do justice, forasmuch as that thou refusest that wisdom, by which kings decree justice, as aforesaid, that is, Christ Jesus, the Wisdom of God, who said, Swear not at all,' and so said his apostle James. And, under the old covenant, an oath was an end to all strife; but Christ the oath of God, and new covenant, said, Swear not at all;' and Christ the new covenant is the prophet, that Moses prophesied of, and said, Whosoever would not hear him, should be cut off from among the people.'

Therefore, O king and council, swear not at all, neither establish religion by a law, to force an uniformity thereunto, nor maintain a hireling ministry; for such a thing was the overthrow not only of thy father, but of all that have followed after, till thyself, by the mighty hand of God, were set in the place where now thou art. The parliaments, protectors, and armies were all swearers, and high pretenders to religion in the form, but nothing in the power, but persecuted all the upright in heart, who were in the power, but out of their form; so I say, those governors who

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have miscarried in government did busy themselves very much in matters of God, touching the consciences of other men, whereof they had nothing to do; but, in the mean time, neglected the witness of God in their own particulars, and so were mindless and careless of their duties, as civil magistrates, professing themselves wise, and exalting themselves into the temple of God, wherein they had not to do, save in their own particulars. They became fools even in the management of their civil affairs, and so laid a sandy foundation, and, like foolish builders, continued building their own, till such time as their building did fall, and great was the fall thereof. And all this did proceed from the hireling ministry, which hath in all ages brought forth the same fruits, being still fawning upon, and tampering with the great men of the earth, and kings and councils, and parliaments, and all men in authority, to establish religion, and to settle their maintenance; and then, as the prophet saith of them, He that will not put into their mouths, they presently make war against him'; and this hath been the state and condition of this nation and others.

And therefore, O king and council, be wise, and learn by other men's harms (who not contenting themselves in their places, to do the work set them about, but leaving their own work undone, did intermeddle and busy themselves about God's work, and the consciences of men, of which Christ alone is Lord; and for this hath the Lord dashed them to pieces, one after another, since thy father's days; first the parliament, then protector, so called, and protector again; then the parliament, then army and Committee of Safety, so called, then parliament again; against all which the Lord hath appeared in much severity, and hath removed all out of his way, and hath brought thee and thy party into their place and authority, to try you. Take heed, I say, therefore, O king and council, of running against this rock, for, if you do, you will assuredly be dashed to pieces, as they already are; for false worship and false ministers must down, and all that take part with them, and, till that time, there will never be peace on earth; for it is the false ministry, that divides the people, and causes them to run into factions and divisions, and that sets people at variance one with another.

The false ministry, O king, that is the evil tree which brings forth bad fruit; and, indeed, they can do no otherwise, for they are not of God, but of the evil one. It is clearly so, O king; for the tree was to be known by his fruit, and he is now grown so big, and his fruit so numerous, that one may run and read of what sort the tree is; and they, that sec it not to be the evil tree, are very near the pit of everlasting destruction.

Thou wast a child, O king, in thy father's days, and knewest not to what perfection this evil tree was then grown; but withdraw thyself a little into thy private chamber, and there inquire of the ancient of days, and ask counsel at the oracle of God, the light in thine own conscience, and therewith compare the doctrine of Christ, who is the word of God, and is very near thee, even

in thy heart, and in thy mouth, and thou wilt then see, hear, and understand what Christ and his apostles say, and the prophets before them, concerning the false prophets and the false ministers. C. C.

AN ACCOUNT OF THE BURIAL OF

KING CHARLES THE FIRST, AND OF OLIVER CROMWELL:

In which it appears, how Oliver's friends contrived to secure his Body from future disgrace, and to expose the Corpse of King Charles to be substituted in the punishment and ignominy designed for the Usurper's Body. MS.

Amongst other Papers, the following MS. was carefully preserved by my Lord Oxford. It contains an Extract from the Journal of the House of Commons; which honourable House, resolving to disgrace the name of the late Usurper Oliver Cromwell, as far as lay in their power, ordered his Body to be taken up, and to be first hanged on the gallows at Tyburn, and then to be burnt.

This Order was pursued by the Serjeant of that honourable House so far, as to find a Coffin with Oliver's name, and usurped Titles, at the east-end of the middle isle of Henry the Seventh's Chapel, in Westminster-Abbey. ̧

This, with an account where the said Inscription is, or was, within a few years ago, to be seen, is written in a very fair hand.

Then, in two different hands, there follows the most remarkable account of a Counter-Interment of the Arch-Traytor, as well as the reason and contrivance to secure his Body from that expected ignominy, and to continue the revenge of King Charles's enemies, even to the disgrace of substituting the Body of the beheaded King, in the punishment intended by a justly enraged People, upon the dead Body of the Usurper.

SOON after the restoration, the then serjeant of the house of commons was ordered, by the house, to go with his officers to St. Peter's, Westminster, and demand the body of Oliver Cromwell, buried there, to be taken up, in order to be disposed in the manner the house should adjudge fitting.

Whereupon the said serjeant went, and, in the middle isle of Henry the Seventh's chapel, at the east end, upon taking up the pavement, in a vault, was found his corpse; in the inside of whose coffin, and upon the breast of the corpse, was laid a copper-plate, finely gilt, inclosed in a thin case of lead, on the one side whereof, were engraved the arms of England, impaled with the arms of Oliver; and, on the reverse, the following legenda, viz. Oliverius Protector Reipublicæ Angliæ, Scotia, & Hiberniæ, Natus 25. April. 1599, Inauguratus 16.° Dec. 1653, Mortuus 3.tio Sept.ris, Anno 1658, Hic situs est.

The said serjeant, believing the plate to be gold, took it pretendedly, as his fee; and Mr. Gifford, of Colchester, who mar

ried the serjeant's daughter, has now the plate, which, his fatherin-law told him, he came by, in the manner above related.

A counter-interment of the aforesaid arch-traytor, as averred, and ready to be deposed (if occasion required) by Mr.

Barkstead, who daily frequents Richard's Coffee-House, within Temple-Bar, being son to Barkstead, the regicide, that was executed as such, soon after the restoration, the son being, at the time of the said arch-traytor's death, about the age of fifteen years.

THAT the said regicide Barkstead, being lieutenant of the Tower of London, and a great confident of the usurper, did, among other. such confidents, in the time of the usurper's sickness, desire to know where he would be buried: To which he answered, where he had obtained the greatest victory and glory, and as nigh the spot as could be guessed, where the heat of the action was, viz. in the field at Naseby, co. Northampton; which accordingly was thus performed: At midnight (soon after his death) being first embalmed, and wrapped in a leaden coffin, he was, in a hearse, conveyed to the said field, the said Mr. Barkstead, by order of his father, attending close to the hearse; and, being come to the field, there found, about the midst of it, a grave, dug about nine feet deep, with the green sod carefully laid on one side, and the mould on the other; in which, the coffin being soon put, the grave was instantly filled up, and the green sod laid exactly flat upon it, care being taken, that the surplus mould was clean taken away.

Soon after, like care was taken, that the said field was intirely ploughed up, and sown three or four years successively with wheat.

Several other material circumstances, relating to the said interment, the said Mr. Barkstead relates (too long to be here inserted) and, particularly, after the restoration, his conference with the late (witty) Duke of Buckingham, &c.

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Talking over this account of Barkstead's, with the Reverend Mr. Sm, of Q— whose father had long resided in Florence, as a merchant, and afterwards as minister from king Charles the Second, and had been well acquainted with the fugitives after the restoration; he assured me, he had often heard the said account by other hands: Those miscreants always boasting, that they had wrecked their revenge against the father, as far as human fore. sight could carry it, by beheading him, whilst living, and making his best friends the executors of the utmost ignominies upon him, when dead. Asking him the particular meaning of the last sentence, he said, that Oliver, and his friends, apprehending the restoration of the Stuart family; and that all imaginable disgrace, on that turn, would be put upon his body, as well as memory; he contrived his own burial, as averred by Barkstead, having all the theatrical honours of a pompous funeral paid to an empty coffin, into which, afterwards, was removed the corpse of the martyra

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