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their strength being in the generals, &c. I perceived that they took the King for a tyrant, and an enemy, and really intended absolutely to master him, or to ruin him. They said, what were the Lords of England, but William the Conqueror's Colonels? Or the Barons, but his Majors? Or the Knights, but his Captains? Per fas aut nefas, by law or without it they were resolved to take down-all that did withstand their way. They most honoured the Separatists, Anabaptists, and Antinomians; but Cromwell and his party took on them to join themselves to no party, but to be for the liberty of all."

Page 53. "My life among them [Cromwell's soldiers] was a daily contending against seducers. I found that many honest men of weak judgments, &c. had been seduced into a disputing vein, and made it too much of their religion to talk for this opinion, or for that; sometimes for State-democracy, and sometimes for Churchdemocracy. I was almost always, when I had opportunity, disputing with one or another of them; sometimes for our Civil-government, and sometimes for Churchgovernment: Sometimes for Infant-baptism, and often against Antinomianism, and the contrary extreme. But their most frequent and vehement disputes were for liberty of conscience, as they called it; that is, that -every man might not only hold, but preach and do in matters of religion, what he pleased, &c.-Because I perceived that it was a few men that bore the bell, that did all the hurt among them, I acquainted myself with those men, and I found that they were men that had been in London, hatched up among the old Separatists," &c.

Page 56, 57. "I found that if the army had but had ministers enough that would have done but such a little as I did, all their plot might have been broken, and king, parliament and religion, might have been preserved. Therefore I sent abroad to get some more ministers among them, but I could get none. Saltmarsh and

Dell were the two great preachers at the head-quarters. -When any troop or company was to be disposed of— he [Cromwell] was sure to put a sectary in the place;

and when the brunt of the war was over, he looked not so much at their valour as at their opinions: So that by degrees he had headed the greatest part of his army with Anabaptists, Antinomians, &c., and all these he tied together by the point of liberty of conscience, which was the common interest in which they did unite. Yet did he not openly profess what opinion he was of himself; but the most that he said for any, was, for Anabaptism and Antinomianism, which he usually seemed to own. He would not dispute [with me] at all, but he would in good discourse very fluently pour out himself in the extolling of Free-grace.”

Page 58. "I called the ministers again together who had voted me into the army; I told them that the forsaking of the army by old ministers, and the neglect of supplying their places by others, had undone us ;- that the active sectaries were the smallest part of the army among the common soldiers, but Cromwell had lately put so many of them into superior command, and their industry was so much greater than that of others, that they were like to have their will: That whatever obedience they pretended, I doubted not but they would pull down all that stood in their way in State and Church, both king, parliament, and ministers, and set up themselves. I told them that for this little that I have done [in opposing the high republican spirit] I have ventured my life.-The wars being now ended, I was confident they would shortly shew their purposes, and set up for themselves."

Page 59, &c. Baxter tells us, that, when the royalists were all killed or scattered, and the king himself taken prisoner, Cromwell began to serve the parliament as he had done the king; availing himself of the absolute power he had over the army, by the influence of the hotheaded sectaries whom he had promoted, some of whom were called Agitators; and as they now stood in his way to the supreme power, he began to serve them in their turn, as he had served the king and parliament. Take Baxter's own words: "When Cromwell had taught his Agitators to govern, and could not easily unteach them

of their agreement of the people [upon the high repub can plan] which suited not with his designs: And make them odious, he denominated them Levellers, as they intended to § level men of all qualities and estate

Did Cromwell absolutely, wrong them when he said thi: Is it not probable that some of them leaned to the levellir principles of the headstrong Anabaptists? Was it not whe such Anabaptists were most in favour, that England saw church without bishops, a parliament without lords. and king without a head? And were not these some importan steps taken towards levelling Anabaptistry; though Crom well's ambition prevented Republicans and Levellers from proceeding any farther, as Baxter soon observes? The reade: will be glad to see what Lord Clarendon says of the levelling Agitators.

"The Agitators would not be so dismissed from State affairs, of which they had so pleasant a relish, &c., and therefore, when they were admitted no more to consultations with their officers, they continued their meetings without them, and thought there was as great need to reform their officers as any part of the Church or State. They entered into new associations, and made many propositions to their officers, and to the parliament, to introduce an equality into all conditions, and a party among all men, from whence they had the appellation of Levellers; which appeared a great party. They did not only meet, against the express commands of their officers, but drew very considerable parties of the army to rendezvous, without the order or privity of their superiors; and there persuaded them to enter into such engagements, as would in a short time have dissolved the government of the army, &c. The suppression of this licence put Cromwell to the expense of all his cunning, dexterity, and courage; so that after he had cajoled the parliament, as if the preservation of their authority had been all he cared for, &c., and had sent some false brothers to comply in the coun sels of the conspirators, by that means having notice of their rendezvous, he was unexpectedly found with an ordinary guard at those meetings; and with a marvellous vivacity, having asked some questions of those whom he observed most active, and receiving insolent answers, he knocked two or three of them on the head with his own hand, and then charged the rest with his troop, and took such a number of them as he thought fit; whereof he presently caused some of them to be hanged, and sent others to London to a more formal trial. By two or three such encounters, [of which that at Burford, mentioned by Baxter, seems to have been one,] for the obstinacy continued long, he totally subdued that spirit In the army, though it continued and increased very much in the kingdom; and if it had not been encountered at that time,

-At last they rendezvous at Burford to make head against him. But Cromwell had presently his brother Desborough, and some other regiments, ready to surprise them there in their quarters, before they could get their numbers together; so that above fifteen hundred being scattered and taken, and some slain, the Levellers' war was crushed in the egg.'

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Page 64. "The king being thus taken out of the way, Cromwell takes on him to be for a Commonwealth, (put all in order to the security of the good people,) till he had removed the other impediments which were yet to be removed; so that the Rump [that is, the rest of the house of commons, whom Cromwell still allowed to sit, after he had turned out the members who displeased him most] presently drew up a form of engagement, to be put upon all men, viz. I do promise to be true and faithful to the Commonwealth, as it is now established without a king or house of lords.' So we must take the Rump for an established Commonwealth, and promise fidelity to them.”

In the following pages, Baxter tells us how Cromwell put down the Rump at last, and, page 74, he gives this account of the manner in which he farther laid aside his trusty friends the Anabaptists, who had done him so much service. "The sectarian party in his army and elsewhere he [Cromwell] chiefly trusted to and pleased, till, by the people's submission and quietness, he thought himself well settled; and then be began to undermine them, and by degrees to work them out: And though he had so often spoken for the Anabaptists, now he findeth them so heady, and so much against any settled government, and so set upon the promoting of their way and party, that he does not only begin to blame their unruliness, but also designeth to settle himself in the people's favour by suppressing them. In Ireland they were grown so high, that the soldiers were, many of them, re-baptized as the way to preferment: And those that opposed them, with that rough and brisk spirit of Cromwell, it would presently have produced all imaginable confusion in the parlia

of their agreement of the people [upon the high republi can plan] which suited not with his designs: And t make them odious, he denominated them Levellers, as i they intended to § level men of all qualities and estates

Did Cromwell absolutely, wrong them when he said this Is it not probable that some of them leaned to the levelling principles of the headstrong Anabaptists? Was it not wher such Anabaptists were most in favour, that England saw a church without bishops, a parliament without lords and a king without a head? And were not these some important steps taken towards levelling Anabaptistry; though Cromwell's ambition prevented Republicans and Levellers from proceeding any farther, as Baxter soon observes? The reader will be glad to see what Lord Clarendon says of the levelling Agitators.

"The Agitators would not be so dismissed from State affairs, of which they had so pleasant a relish, &c., and therefore, when they were admitted no more to consultations with their officers, they continued their meetings without them, and thought there was as great need to reform their officers as any part of the Church or State. They entered into new associations, and made many propositions to their officers, and to the parliament, to introduce an equality into all conditions, and a party among all men, from whence they had the appellation of Levellers; which appeared a great party. They did not only meet, against the express commands of their officers, but drew very considerable parties of the army to rendezvous, without the order or privity of their superiors; and there persuaded them to enter into such engagements, as would in a short time have dissolved the government of the army, &c. The suppression of this licence put Cromwell to the expense of all his cunning, dexterity, and courage; so that after he had cajoled the parliament, as if the preservation of their authority had been all he cared for, &c., and had sent some false brothers to comply in the coun. sels of the conspirators, by that means having notice of their rendezvous, he was unexpectedly found with an ordinary guard at those meetings; and with a marvellous vivacity, having asked some questions of those whom he observed most active, and receiving insolent answers, he knocked two or three of them on the head with his own hand, and then charged the rest with his troop, and took such a number of them as he thought fit; whereof he presently caused some of them to be hanged, and sent others to London to a more formal trial. By two or three such encounters, [of which that at Burford, mentioned by Baxter, seems to have been one,] for the obstinacy continued long, he totally subdued that spirit In the army, though it continued and increased very much in the kingdom; and if it had not been encountered at that time,

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