THE NEW SCHAFF-HERZOG
of the Established Church^ (Only the records of
the High Commission Court can tell the havoc he
made, and the misery he inflicted on
9. Whit- some of the holiest of the clergy and gift's the people of their charge] A new
Severity, commission was issued at his-mstigation. Its jurisdiction was almost universal, embracing heretical opinions, seditious books, false rumors, slanderous words, abstaining from divine service, etc. A jury might be dispensed with, and the court might convict by witnesses alone; if they were wanting, "by all other means and ways they could devise," — by the rack and ex-officio oath, etc.; and, if the oath were declined, then the court might inflict " fine or imprisonment according to its discretion." Whitgift drew up twenty-four articles to guide the commissioners when examining delinquent clergymen. /The privy council remonstrated with him, and Lord Burleigh described the articles thus: " I find them so curiously penned, so full of branches and circumstances, that I think the Inquisition of Spain use not so many questions to comprehend and entrap their preys." Whitgift's reply was that he had undertaken the defense of the rights of the Church of England to appease the sects and schisms therein, and to reduce all the ministers thereof to uniformity and due obedience. " And herein," said he, " I intend to be constant, and not to waver with every winder And so persistent was he that (at one time, toward the close of Elizabeth's reign and of his life, no less than a third of the whole beneficed clergy of England were suspended; and this involved at least destitution and penury} The story of Cartwright's troubles given in more extended histories is a sad illustration of the spirit of Whitgift's rule. Cartwright died Dec. 2L 1603, and Whitgift within three months after. \_Parliament on several occasions manifested a disposition to legislate for the relief of the Puritans. In 1570 they enacted that ministers who had received Presbyterian ordination might qualify for service in the English Church by de-
10. Atti- daring before the bishop, and subtude of scribing their assent " to all articles of
Parliament, religion which only concern the confession of the true Christian faith and the doctrine of the sacraments contained in the Book of Articles, 1562." Many of the Puritans attempted to_shelter themselves under this act, but in vain] \When, in 1572, Field and Wilcox presented ~xh&T~ Admonition and Parliament lent an ear, the queen issued a proclamation against it, and forbade Parliament to discuss such questions as were mooted inl_it-\ Again, in 1584, 1587, and 1592, the queen interfered, and at length charged the speaker " that henceforth no bills concerning religion should be received into the House of Commons, unless the same should be first considered and approved of by the clergy "; well knowing that the clergyjwould only act in such a matter under her direction^. Peter Wentworth remonstrated in the House against this dictation, but only to be committed to prison. In 1592 an act was passed, entitled " An Act for the Punishment of Persons obstinately Refusing to Come to Church." It was decreed that " all persons above the age of sixteen,
refusing to come to church, or persuading others to deny her Majesty's authority in causes ecclesiastical, or dissuading them from coming to church or being found present at any conventicle or meeting, under pretense of religion, shall, upon conviction, be committed to prison without bail till they shall conform, and come to church "; and that should they refuse to recant, " within three months, they shall abjure the realm, and go into perpetual banishment; and that if they do not depart within the time appointed, or if they ever return without the queen's license, they shall suffer death without benefit of clergy." Under the provisions of this cruel act, Barrow, Greenwood, Penry (qq.v.), and others suffered death, and many of the Brownists left-the kingdom.
(The Puritans themselves were not always wise or moderate in the expression of their sentiments. The oppression to which they were subjected was severe enoughjbo goad them often to the use of strong language.! But in 1588{ajseries of tracts was issued from a~~secret press, by an unknown writer who called himself Martin Marprelaji (see 11. The Mabphelate Tracts). /They were Marprelate bitter and caustic, excitecTthe wrath Tracts; of the bishops, and brought down fur- Brownists. ther afflictions upon the heads of the Puritans, although it is probable that the Puritans properly so called had nothing to do with themT] Indeed /"many Puritans greatly disapproved^of them ancTregretted their publicationj They \ possibly had their origin among the Brownists (see" Browne, Robert), whose opinions and practises were even more obnoxious to_the bishops than those of the ordinary Puritans^ [These Brownists may be classed among the Puritans, and by many persons are confounded with them; but they were a distinct species of the order, and during the latter part of the reign of Elizabeth they suffered the jseverest afflictions!]
(Elizabeth died on~Ene last day of 1602, and James Virof Scotland succeeded her. The Puritans hoped that from him they would receive milder treatment. He had praised the Scottish Kirk, and disparaged the Church of England, say- 12. James ing that " its service was but an evil- I. ; Hamp- said mass in English, wanting nothing ton Court but the liftings." But Whitgift had Conference, sent agents to Scotland to assure the king of the devotion of the English ecclesiastics to his interestsT/and he, in return, gave them his patronage entirely. (The Puritans presented a petition to him, when on his way to London, unsigned but expressing the wishes of about a thousand clergymen, and therefore called the " Millenary Petition " (q.v.). In it they set forth in moderate language their desires. And now a fair opportunity presented itself for conciliation. A conference was resolved upon, which assembled at Hampton Court, Jan. 14, 1604, professedly to give due consideration to these matters (see Hampton Court Conference). On the first day the king and the episcopal party alone^jszent over the ground, and settled what was to be donel The next day four Puritan ministers — John Reynolds (q.v.), Dr. Sparks, Mr. Chadderton, and Mr. Knewstubs—