vitude : and " because we served not the Lord our God with joy- " fuhiess and gladness of heart, for the abundance of all things, " that therefore we shall serve our enemies, which the Lord shall " send aganist us, in hunger, and thirst, and nakedness, and the " want of all things ?"" Deut. xxviii. 47. That so we may return to God with the church, and say, as it is Isa. xxvi. 13. " O Lord "our God, other lords beside thee have had dominion over us, " but by thee only will we make mention of thy name ;'' and as Hos. ii. 7. " I will return to ray first husband, for then was it better " with me than now."
These are some of the principal grounds of England's fear at this day, in reference to the popish party. Let the serious and considering reader lay them together, allow them but a just and even balance, and doubtless it will hereby appear, that how great soever our fears are, yet our dangers must exceed them.
Having thus hinted the grounds of our fears, what remains but that I next address myself to the principal work designed in these papers ; which is to call upon England to awake out of her de- structive security, and not to suffer her enemies to surprise her sleeping ? And I would do it in the words of the prophet, Zeph. ii. 1, 2. ^' Gather yourselves together, yea, gather together, O " nation not desired, before the decree bring forth, before the day " pass as the chaff, before the fierce anger of the Lord come upon " thee." O that I could sound this admonition so loud, that all in the nation might hear it ! Had I any hopes that these poor papers might be honoured with a glance of his Majesty's eye, I would as it were, prostrate myself at his feet and cry as that woman did, 2 Kings vi. « Help, my Lord, O King."
Great Sir, The Lord hath done great things for you, and you are scarcely capable of doing a greater service for him and his people, than vigorously to withstand the attempts and encroachments of this subtle and formidable enemy ; in that it hath pleased the I^ord to move your heart to send forth your royal proclamation against them, we accept it always, and in all places, with all thankfulness ; and pray, that he would not only secure your royal person from their attempts, but also make you a shield to his people in these nations.
It is not hid from your majesty, what a perfidious and bloody enemy this is, whose principles as well as practice, tend to the subversion both of* kings and kingdoms, 'f- One of them affirms it lawful to murder any one (though his own prince) if the Pope hold him excommunicate ; and another sets down rules how it may be done; and thinks poisoning to be the best way. What but treason and rebellion can flow from those bloody doctrines of the
570 TIDINGS FROM ROME ; OR,
pope's temporal jurisdiction over princes, and his power to dissolve all oaths and ties of allegiance? So that neither your person nor honour can be safe in their hands ; or should your royal person be exempt from danger, yet if this enemy prevail, how many thou- sands of your poor innocent subjects may fall by their merciless hands ; what a field of blood will they make your kingdom ? and surely, '^ the enemy can never countervail the king's damage herein," Esth. vi. 16. Most gladly at your command, would we offer our hves on the high places of the field against them ; but to fall by treachery, and be butchered in our beds, is horrible to think.
And O that God would make our honourable representatives in parliament still vigilant to observe, and zealous to oppose the mo- tions of this enemy ! We bless the Lord for what you have al- ready done, in detecting them so far ; but yet we cannot think our danger over, whilst they swarm in such numbers among us. Han- nibal was wont to say, Magis se a non pugnante Fabio, quam apug- nante Marcello t'lmere ; he more feared Fabius not fighting, than fighting Marcellus. O be as zealous for the Protestant interest as they are against it ; if they dare to smite with the fist of wicked- ness, we hope you will not be afraid to smite them with the sword of justice. Remember what a matchless salvation was once given to our ilnglish parliament, I mean from the powder-plot, that Ca- tholic villany^ as one aptly calls it ; such a deliverance as ages past cannot parallel in any history, and of which we may say, as the historian in another case. Si in annalibus nonforeUfabula videretur. Had it not been recorded in our own annals, posterity would never believe it. They have indeed studiously endeavoured, in their late hold remonstrance^ to hide from your eyes the goodness of God in that deliverance, that so by forgetting his goodness, they might bury in silence their own wickedness ; we hope none of your actings against this enemy will be stained with lukewarmness ; if justice be sprinkled ^tith a favourable hand, like a fewdropsof water upon fire, we doubt instead, of quenching, it will rather increase the flame. Rome is a nettle, the more gently it is handled, the more it stings. IVIy lords and gentlemen, here is an enemy that deserves your hottest zeal, and greatest vigilance, much better than honest loyal Nonconformists, who plead with God night and day on your behalf.
It is acknowledged they differ in lesser matters from the establish- ed worship of the nation ; but from the toleration of such differ- ences, no public danger can arise. Some diffei-ences in opinion (saith an honourable author *) are as the striving of one Israelite
• Lord Verulam Orliand.
exgland''s alahm. 571