The Jesuits all abound in praise of father Parsons, but there are many Romanists who impeach the in- tegrity of his character. Thus cardinal D'Ossat, in a letter to the king of France, giving an account of Parsons's Conference, declares that he was a man who regarded neither truth nor reason. Pasquin also at Rome thus exposed Parsons's factious and plotting hu- mor : " If there be any man that will buy the kingdom of England, let him repair to a merchant in a 'oiac'K square cap in the city, and he shall have a very good penny- worth thereof." To conclude, the imputation laid upon him by the English secular Romish priests, as well as the Protestants, that Parsons was a person of a tur- bulent and seditious nature, is sufficiently supported by his nuinerous writings, the titles of which are as follows : A brief Discoui'se, containing the Reasons ichy Catholics refuse to go to Church, icith a Dedication to Queen Eliz- abeth, under the fictitious name of John Hovvlet, Dec. 15, 1580 : — Reasons for his coming into the Mission of England, etc. ; by some ascribed to Campian : — A biief Censui'c upon tiro Books written against the Reasons and Pi'oofs : — A Discovery of John Nichols, misreported a Jesuit, all written and printed while our author was in England : — A Defence of the Censure given upon his two Books, etc. (1583) : — De peisecutione Anglicana episiola (Rome and Ingolstadt, 1582): — A Christian Directory (1583) : — A second Part of a Christian Directory, etc. (1591) ; these two parts being printed erroneously at London, our author published an edition of them under this title, -1 Christian Directory, guiding Men to their Salvation, etc., with many Corrections and Additions by the Author himself; this book is really an excellent one, and was afterwards put into modern English by Dr. Stanhope, dean of Canterbury, and has gone through eight editions, the last in 1782: — Responsio ad Eliz. Regince edictum contra. Catholicos (Romse, 1593), under the name of And. Philopater: — A Conference about the next Successio7i to the Crown of England, etc. (1594), under the feigned name of Doleman : — A temperate Wardicord to the turbulent and seditious Watchword ef Sir F. Hastings, Knight, etc. (1599), under the same name: — A Copy of a Letter written by a Master of Arts at Cambridge, etc. (written in 1584, and printed about 1600) ; this piece was commonly called " Father Par- sons's Green Coat," being sent from abroad with the binding and leaves in that livery: — A pologetical Epis- tle to the L.ords of her Majesty's Privy Council, etc. (1601) : — Brief Apology, or Defence of the Catholic Ec- clesiastical Hierarchy erected by Pope Clement VII F, etc. (St. Omer, 1601) : — A Manifestation of the Folly andbad Spirit of secular Priests (1602) : — A Decachordon often quodlibetical Questions (liiQT) : — De Pei-egrinatione : — An A nsiver to 0. E. whetfier the Papists or Protestants be ti'ue Catholics (1603): — A Treatise of the three Conver- sions of Paganism to the Christian Religion, published (as are also the two following) under the name of N. D. [Nicholas Doleman] in 3 vols. 8vo (1603, 1604) :—vl Relation of a Trial made befoi-e the King of France in 1600 between the Bishop of Evreux and the Loi-d Plessis Mornay (1604): — A Defence of the precedent Relation, etc.: — A Revieiv of ten public IHsjmtations, etc., concern- ing the Sacrifices and Sacrament of the Altar (1004): — The Forerunner of Bell's Dow? fall of Pojyery (1605) : — An Answer to the Fifth Part of the Reports oj Sir Ed- ward Coke, etc. (1606, 4to), published under the name of a Catholic Divine: — De sacris alienis nan adeundis, qucEstiones duce (1607) : — .4 Treatise tending to Mitiga- tion toicards Catholic Subjects in England, against Thomas Morton, afterwards bishop of Durham (1607) :
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— The Judgment of a Catholic Gentleman concerning King Jameses Apology, etc. (1608) : — Sole)' Beckoning with Thomas Morton (1009): — ^4 Discus.non oj" Mi: Ba? low's Arisicer to the Judgment of a Catholic English- man concerning the Oath of Allegiance (1612) ; this book, being left not (juite finislied at our author's tleath, was afterwartls comiileted and published by Thomas Fitz- herbert. The following are also posthumous pieces; The Liturgn of the Sacrament of the Mass (1620) : — .1 jtlemoriiil fur the Reformation, etc. ; thought to be the same with The High Court and Council of the Reforma- tion, finished, after twenty years' labor, in 1596, but not published till after our author's death, and republished from a copy presented to James II, with an introduc- tion and some animadversions by Edward Gee, under the title of The Jesuits'' Memorial for the intended Ref- ormation of the Church of England under their first Pojiish Prince (1690, 8vo). There is also ascribed to him A Declaration of the true Causes of the great Troubles presupposed to be intended against the Reedni of England, etc. ; seen and allowed, anno 1581. Parsons, besides, translated from the English into Spanish, A Re- lation of certain Martgrs in England, printed at Madrid, 1590, 8vo. See Dr. James, Jesuits' Downfall (1612) ; Berington, Memoirs of (iregor Panzani (papal legate in England under Charles I) ; Ilenke, Kirchengesch. vol. iii ; Dodd, Ch. Hist, (see Index) ; Lingard (Rom. Cath.), Hist, of England; Hallam, Literary Hist, of Europe; id. Constit. Hist, of England; Green, Hist, of the English People, p. 412; Ranke, Hist, of the Papacy, i, 439, 504; Kutt, Ch.Hist. of England ; (Lond.) Gentleman's Maga- zine, 1823, p. 412 sq. ; AUibone, Diet, of Brit, and Amer. A uthors, ii, 1517, 1518. (J. H. W.)