them, which now, it seems,
their rule as to truth as well as practice,

evils in the late times. If we suppose this enacted as the king's pleasure signified to

must be

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late troubles; and finding that government, to seditious persons, and contemners of the royal be the church government most agreeable to the authority. As also, that they be careful, that word of God, most convenient and effectual for such ministers, who keep not the diocesan meetpreservation of truth, order, and unity, and ings, and concur not with the bishops in the most suitable to monarchy, and to the peace acts of church discipline, being for the same and quiet of the state; hath therefore, with ad- suspended or deprived, as said is, be accordingly, vice and consent of his estates of parliament, by after deprivation, removed from their benefices, several acts passed in the second session of this glebes, and manses; and if any of them shall, parliament, restored the church to its ancient notwithstanding, offer to retain the possession and right government, by archbishops and of their benefices or manses, that they take prebishops, and hath redintegrated the estate of sent course to see them dispossessed; and if they bishops to the exercise of their episcopal func- shall thereafter presume to exercise their ministion, and to all the privileges, dignities, juris- try, tha they be punished as seditious persons, dictions, and possessions due, and formerly be- and such as contemn the authority of church longing thereunto. And in further order to and state. And as his majesty doth expect, the settlement of the church, and bringing the from all his good and dutiful subjects, a due ministers to a due acknowledgment of, and com- acknowledgment of, and hearty compliance with pliance with the government thereof, thus estab- his majesty's government, ecclesiastical and civil, fished by law, his majesty, with advice foresaid, as it is now established by law within this kinghath also statute and ordained, that all these dom, and that in order thereunto, they will give ministers, who entered to the cure of any parish, their cheerful concurrence, countenance, and without right or presentations from the lawful assistance to such ministers, as by public authorpatrons, in and since the year one thousand six ity are or shall be admitted in their several hundred and forty-nine, and should not, be- parishes, and attend all the ordinary meetings twixt and the twentieth of September last, ob- for divine worship in the same; so his majesty tain presentations from their several patrons, doth declare, that he will, and doth account a and collation from the bishop of the diocese withdrawing from, and not keeping and joining where they lived, should have no right to the in these meetings, to be seditious, and of dangeraplifting the rents of any benefice or stipend for ous example and consequence. And therefore, the year one thousand six hundred and sixty- and for preventing the same for the future, his two, but that their places, benefices, and kirks majesty, with advice and consent of his estates should be, ipso jure, vacant: and that whatever in parliament, doth hereby statute, ordain, and ministers should, without a lawful excuse to be declare, that all and every such person or peradmitted by their ordinary, absent themselves sons, who shall hereafter ordinarily and wilfully from the diocesan assembly, or who should not withdraw and absent themselves from the concur in all the acts of the church discipline, as ordinary meetings of divine worship, in their they should be thereunto required by the arch- own parish church, on the Lord's day, (whether bishop or bishop of the diocese, should be for the upon account of popery, or other disaffection to first fault suspended from their office and bene- the present government of the church) shall fice till the next diocesan meeting; and if they thereby incur the pains and penalties underamend not, should be deprived, and the church written; viz. each nobleman, gentleman, and and benefice to be provided as in other cases of heritor, the loss of a fourth part of ilk year's vacancies. And the king's majesty, having re- rent, in which they shall be accused and consolved to conserve and maintain the church in victed; and every yeoman, tenant, or farmer, the present state and government thereof, by the loss of such a proportion of their free movearchbishops and bishops, and others bearing ables, (after the payment of their rents due to office therein, and not to endure nor give way their master and landlord) as his majesty's or connivance to any variation therein in the council shall think fit, not exceeding a fourth least, doth therefore, with advice and consent part thereof; and every burgess to lose the of his estates convened in this third session of liberty of merchandising, trading, and all other his parliament, ratify and approve the afore-privileges within burgh, and fourth part of their mentioned acts, and all other acts and laws made in the two former sessions of parliament, in order to the settling of episcopal dignity, jurisdiction, and authority within this kingdom; and ordains them to stand in full force as public laws of the kingdom, and to be put to further execution in all points, conform to the tenor thereof. And in pursuance of his majesty's royal resolution herein, his majesty, with advice aforesaid, doth recommend to the lords of his majesty's privy council, to take speedy and effectual course, that these acts receive ready and due obedience from all his majesty's subjects; and for that end, that they call before them all such ministers, who, having entered in or since the year one thousand six hundred and fortynine, and have not as yet obtained presentations and collations, as aforesaid, yet dared to preach In contempt of the law, and to punish them as

moveables. And his majesty, with advice for said, doth hereby authorize and require the lords of his majesty's privy council, to be careful to see this act put to due execution; and for that end, to call before them all such persons as, after admonition of the minister, in presence of two sufficient witnesses, and by him so attested, shall be given up to the council as transgressors of this act, in withdrawing from their parish churches, as aforesaid; and the same, after hearing of the parties, being duly found, to decern, and inflict the censures and penalties above-mentioned, and such other corporal punishment as they shall think fit, and direct all execution necessary for making the same effectual, and to do every other thing they shall find necessary, for procuring obedience to this act, and putting the same to punctual execution, conform to the tenor and intent thereof.

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every body will not acquiesce in it, | all are required to subject to those minisand to be sure it was no infallible rule. ters as his majesty's government ecclesiasThey next resume their former acts last tical now established; and the not hearing session, which have been considered; only of those creatures of the king and bishops, this act speaks out the design of some of the is declared to be of seditious and dangerous preceding more plainly than many at first example and consequences, and punishable believed, to bring all ministers to subject to by the fines specified in the act. Indeed bishops. Then the king is made to engage the uplifting of those fines drew prodigious his royal word pro futuro to maintain the sums of money from the country; but conprelates, and not to endure or give any con- strained worship cannot be conscientious. nivance to the least variation from prelacy. In a parenthesis the papists are cast in with It had been better to have used softer terms, the presbyterians, and made censurable for than afterwards, in a kind of contradiction withdrawing from their parish church: but to this, when there appeared an absolute ne- I never heard of any of them troubled by cessity to grant indulgences, and to travail our zealous protestant bishops! In the in accommodations to please some of the next session of parliament, this clause is bishops. Next they give us to understand, expunged, and the papists left to their own that the acts of the first, as well as the freedom, and the anger of the government second session of this parliament, were made levelled only against religious protestants. to settle the episcopal dignity, though the contrary was at first pretended: but the fashion now was, to make acts in general and dubious expressions, and in a year or two after, fully to extend their meaning, when king and council had practically explained their sense. Accordingly, the council, in the next place, are made the bishops' executioners, and the execution of all laws and acts relative to the church, is put into their hands this clause was of great use to the prelates, and for many years that court served them vigorously. But generals are not sufficient, therefore more particularly the council is required to begin the persecution of ministers who dared to fulfil the ministry they had received from Christ Jesus, without the bishops' collation, and patrons' presentation, and to punish them as seditious, and contemners of royal authority.

The following clause is in favours of the contemned curates, who are pretty singularly described, ministers by public authority admitted to parishes. This kind of ministers, I dare say, the Christian church was unacquainted with for three hundred years after Christ. Ministers they were literally of the king and bishops, and not the people, the sacra plebs, their choice, settled by public authority, and the reader may add, by military force, and not by consent, and consequently servants of men, and not of Christ, or his people for his sake. Further,

Toward the close of the act, the honourable privy council are de novo, that all might be sure, constitute executioners of this act, and empowered not only to exact the fines from all whom the curate shall delate, but further corporally to punish them, as they shall think fit. How far corporal punishment in law extends, I am not to determine; but they seem empowered by this to make poor people's life a bitterness to them. Last of all, the council are warranted to do all things necessary for procuring obedience to this act, in the intent thereof. How far this goes, I know not; but it looks very like the spirit of the treaty we heard of since in another persecuting country: we need not doubt that the bishops, in this case both judges and partics, sufficiently extended the intent of the act. In a word, this act contains a rule and canon, I cannot call it ecclesiastical, but it is sufficiently so to prelates, when to suspend and deprive ministers of the gospel. We have seen the council very soon explaining and enlarging this act; and the first persecution of country people, which was any way general, began upon this; and indeed it was the foundation of much severity.

Their 3d act specifics the time of signing the declaration, appointed last year to be subscribed by all persons in public trust, which hath been insert, and needs not be repeated. All are required to sign betwixt

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and the 11th of November, and make returns | who framed this act, and with whose to the council against the 1st of January concurrence, and at their desire it next to come; and it is recommended to was passed, took effectual care to prevent the council to be careful it be put in execu- the convocating any such synod; and we tion, which, as we have seen, and shall have shall afterwards hear of some debate upon ground to observe further, they were careful this head among the clergy. By this act, and to do. At this time a new clause is added consequently by the bishops, it is declared, unreasonable enough: if persons be elected" that it is necessary for the honour of God,

and good of souls, there be a national synod." And if the act be true, our prelates had neither of these before their eyes. By this

synod, (the dignified clergy, and some from universities, but none from burghs) a power is lodged "in the meeting for exercise, to send one to the synod who is a presbyter." These meetings which, for what I can find, were very unfrequent, they will not call by the name of presbyteries. The power of this synod is very much narrowed, that it may be as near the English convocation as possible. Here indeed they differed, that in Scotland, "the king or his commissioner behoved always to be present ;" and without him there can be no national synod. This looks as if no restrictions could bound them, neither a perpetual president, nor the king's will expressly signified to them, from time to time, by the archbishop of St. Andrews, but the king or his commissioner behoved always to be present.

counsellors or magistrates, and refuse to sign the declaration, they are not only for ever declared incapable of being magistrates, but are to "forfeit all the privileges of mer-act, besides other members constituent of this chandising and trading." The remark is so obvious, that we need not be surprised that this was called "the mark in the right hand," without which none might "buy or sell." This was highly unjust. A party in a town that had a mind to be rid of a man, who, it may be, was their rival in trade, and knew he could not declare "the covenants to be in themselves sinful," had no more to do but to get him chosen a counsellor or magistrate; and then, though otherwise he was not obliged to take the declaration, yet now, by pique and party, he must be turned out of all his trade and business. This declaration comes pretty near the sacramental test, annexed to civil places and military posts in some nations; upon the account of which we are so much abused by the papists, for prostituting that holy ordinance, contrary to our own protestant principles, and the nature of the institution. For refusing this declaration imposed last year, John earl of Crawford, lost his office of lord treasurer, and Sir James Dundas of Arniston, his post of one of the lords of session. The lord Stair, and Sir George Mackenzie of Tarbet, since earl of Cromarty, after some difficulties, came at length to sign it.

Their fifth act is for establishing a national synod, which, because it concerns church affairs, though never put in execution, I have annexed it, below.* The bishops

• Act for the establishment and constitution of a national synod.

Forasmuch as the ordering and disposal of the external government of the church, and the nomination of the persons, by whose advice matters relating to the same are to be settled, doth belong to his majesty, as an inherent right of the crown, by virtue of his prerogative royal, and supreme authority in causes ecclesiastical:

How far the frame of this act agrees with the foundation of Scots prelacy, where all church power is lodged in the persons of the bishops, as creatures of the regal supremacy, and the king's delegates in church affairs, I shall not spend time in considering. By this act the jurisdiction seems to me to be lodged in the plurality of the meeting, and the vote of the meanest presbyter goes as far as the vote of the bishops, and one of the archbishops. Indeed the president hath a negative, and though the plurality of the meeting, yea the whole bishops and

and in prosecution of this trust, his majesty, considering how fit and necessary it is, for the honour and service of Almighty God, the good and quiet of the church, and the better government thereof in unity and order, that there be a national synod and assembly daly constitute within this kingdom, hath therefore appointed and declared, and by these presents appoints and declares, that there shall be a national synod

sufferings of particular persons this year, major-general Morgan to seize Sir 1663. and the sealing the laws of this and former Archibald Johnston of Warriston, sessions, with the blood of the excellent lord register. The day upon which his lord Warriston.

Of the sufferings and martyrdom of the lord dentially out of town visiting a friend. Warriston, July 22d, 1663.