will the time permit it. But I rather advised him to come to him, as well to deliver his knowledge of blood in this last action. And I beseech you all With that he turned from the rail towards the executioner; and the minister offering to speak with him, he came again to the rail, and besought that his conscience might not be troubled, for he was resolved; which he desired for God's sake. Whereupon commandment was given, that the minister should not interrupt him any farther. After which he prepared himself to the block, and so died very manfully and resolutely. An Abstract out of the Earl of Essex's confession under his own hand. ļ Upon Saturday, the twenty-first of February, after the late Earl of Essex had desired us to This request being granted him, and Cuffe brought before him, he there directly and vehemently charged him; and among other speeches used these words: "Henry Cuffe, call to God for mercy, and to the queen, and deserve it by declaring truth. For I, that must now prepare for another world, have resolved to deal clearly with God and the world: and must needs say this to you; You have been one of the chiefest instigators of me to all these my disloyal courses into which I have fallen." Testified by THO. EGERTON, C. S. The Earl of Essex his confession to three ministers, The late Earl of Essex thanked God most heartily, that he had given him a deeper insight into his offence, being sorry he had so stood upon his justification at his arraignment, for he was since that become another man. He thanked God that his course was so prevented: for if his project had taken effect, God knows, said he, what harm it had wrought in the realm. He humbly thanked her majesty, that he should die in so private a manner, lest the acclamation of the people might have been a temptation unto him. To which he added, that all popularity and trust in man was vain; the experience whereof himself had felt. He acknowledged, with thankfulness to God, that he was thus justly spewed out of the realm. He publicly in his prayer and protestation, as also privately, aggravated the detestation of his offence; and especially in the hearing of them WRITTEN BY SIR FRANCIS BACON, ON THE IMPORTUNITY OF HIS PATRON AND FRIEND. NOBLE SIR, You know, I am no courtier, nor versed in state affairs: my life hitherto hath rather been contemplative than active; I have rather studied books than men; I can but guess, at the most, at these things in which you desire to be advised; nevertheless, to show my obedience, though with the What you requested of me by word, when I last waited on you, you have since renewed by your letters. Your requests are commands unto me: and yet the matter is of that nature, that I find myself very unable to serve you therein as you desire. It hath pleased the king to cast an extra-hazard of my discretion, I shall yield unto you. ordinary eye of favour upon you, and you express yourself very desirous to win upon the judgment of your master, and not upon his affections only. I do very much commend your noble ambition herein; for favour so bottomed is like to be lasting; whereas, if it be built upon the sandy foundation of personal respects only, it cannot be long-lived. [* My lord, when the blessing of God, to whom, in the first place, I know you ascribe your preferment, and the king's favour, purchased by your noble parts, promising as much as can be expected from a gentleman, had brought you to this high pitch of honour, to be in the eye and ear, and even in the bosom of your gracious master: and you had found by experience the trouble of all men's confluence, and for all matters, to yourself, as a mediator between them and their sovereign you were pleased to lay this command upon me; first, in general, to give you my poor advice for your carriage in so eminent a place, and of so much danger, if not wisely discharged. Next, in particular, by what means to give despatches to suitors of all sorts, for the king's best service, the suitors' satisfaction, and your own ease. I humbly return you mine opinion in both these, such as a hermit, rather than a courtier can render.] Yet in this you have erred, in applying yourself to me, the most unworthy of your servants, to give assistance upon so weighty a subject. * What is found in crotchets is borrowed from the original edition, published in 4to, 1661. Sir, in the first place, I shall be bold to put you in mind of the present condition you are in. You are not only a courtier, but a bed-chamber man, and so are in the eye and ear of your master; but you are also a favourite; the favourite of the time, and so are in his bosom also. The world hath so voted you, and doth so esteem of you; for kings and great princes, even the wisest of them, have had their friends, their favourites, their privadoes, in all ages; for they have their affections as well as other men. Of these they make several uses; sometimes to communicate and debate their thoughts with them, and to ripen their judgments thereby; and sometimes to ease their cares by imparting them; and sometimes to interpose them between themselves and the envy or malice of their people; for kings cannot err; that must be discharged upon the shoulders of their ministers; and they who are nearest unto them must be content to bear the greatest load. [Remember then what your true condition is. The king himself is above the reach of his people, but cannot be above their censures; and you are his shadow, if either he commit an error, and is loath to avow it, but excuses it upon his ministers, of which you are first in the eye; or you commit the fault, or have willingly permitted it, and must suffer for it; and so perhaps you may be offered a sacrifice to appease the multitude.] But truly, sir, I do not believe or suspect that you are chosen to this eminency out of the last of these considerations; for you serve such a master, who by his wisdom and goodness is as free from the malice or envy of his subjects, as, I think, I may truly say, ever any king was, who hath sat upon his throne before him. But I am confident his majesty hath cast his eyes upon you, as finding you to be such as you should be, or hoping to make you to be such as he would have you to be; for this I may say, without flattery, your outside promiseth as much as can be expected from a gentleman; but be it in the one respect or other, it belongeth to you to take care of yourself, and to know well what the name of favourite signifies. If you be chosen upon the former respects, you have reason to take care of your actions and deportment, out of your gratitude for the king's sake; but if out of the latter, you ought to take the greater care for your own sake. You are as a new-risen star, and the eyes of all men are upon you; let not your own negligence make you fall like a meteor. [Remember well the great trust you have undertaken; you are as a continual sentinel, always to stand upon your watch to give him true intelligence. If you flatter him, you betray him; if you conceal the truth of those things from him which concern his justice or his honour, although not the safety of his person, you are as dangerous a traitor to his state, as he that riseth in arms against him. A false friend is more dangerous than an open enemy: kings are styled gods upon earth, not absolute, but "Dixi, Dii estis ;" and the next words are, "sed moriemini sicut homines;" they shall die like men, and then all their thoughts perish. They cannot possibly see all things with their own eyes, nor hear all things with their own ears; they must commit many great trusts to their ministers. Kings must be answerable to God Almighty, to whom they are but vassals, for their actions, and for their negligent omissions: but the ministers to kings, whose eyes, ears, and hands they are, must be answerable to God and man for the breach of their duties, in violation of their trusts, whereby they betray them. Opinion is a master wheel in these cases: that courtier who obtained a boon of the emperor, that he might every morning at his coming into his presence humbly whisper him in the ear and say nothing, asked no unprofitable suit for himself: but such a fancy raised only by opinion cannot be long-lived, unless the man have solid worth to uphold it; otherwise, when once discovered it vanisheth suddenly. But when a favourite in court shall be raised upon the foundation of merits, and together with the care of doing good service to the king, shall give good despatches to the suitors, then can he not choose but prosper.] The contemplation then of your present condition must necessarily prepare you for action: what time can be well spared from your attendance on your master, will be taken up by suitors, whom you cannot avoid nor decline without reproach. For if you do not already, you will soon find the throng of suitors attend you; for no man, almost, who hath to do with the king, will think himself safe, unless you be his good angel, and guide him; or at least that you be not a "malus genius" against him: so that, in respect of the king your master, you must be very wary that you give him true information; and if the matter concern him in his government, that you do not flatter him: if you do, you are as great a traitor to him in the court of heaven, as he that draws his sword against him: and in respect of the suitors which shall attend you, there is nothing will bring you more honour and more ease, than to do them what right in justice you may, and with as much speed as you may: for, believe it, sir, next to the obtaining of the suit, a speedy and gentle denial, when the case will not bear it, is the most acceptable to suitors: they will gain by their despatch; whereas else they shall spend their time and money in attending, and you will gain, in the ease you will find in being rid of their importunity. But if they obtain what they reasonably desired, they will be doubly bound to you for your favour; "Bis dat qui cito dat,” it multiplies the courtesy, to do it with good words and speedily. That you may be able to do this with the best advantage, my humble advice is this; when suitors come unto you, set apart a certain hour in a day to give them audience: if the business be light and easy, it may by word only be delivered, and in a word be answered; but if it be either of weight or of difficulty, direct the suitor to commit it to writing, if it be not so already, and then direct him to attend for his answer at a set time to be appointed, which would constantly be observed, unless some matter of great moment do interrupt it. When you have received the petitions, and it will please the petitioners well, to have access unto you to deliver them into your own hand, let your secretary first read them, and draw lines under the material parts thereof; for the matter, for the most part, lies in a narrow room. The petitions being thus prepared, do you constantly set apart an hour in a day to peruse those petitions; and after you have ranked them into several files, according to the subject matter, make choice of two or three friends, whose judgments and fidelities you believe you may trust in a business of that nature; and recommend it to one or more of them, to inform you of their opinions, and of their reasons for or against the granting of it. And if the matter be of great weight indeed, then it would not be amiss to send several copies of the same petition to several of your friends, the one not knowing what the other doth, and desire them to return their answers to you by a certain time, to be prefixed, in writing; so shall you receive an impartial answer, and by comparing the one with the other, as out of "responsa prudentium," you shall both discern the abilit es and faithfulness of your friends, and be able to give a judgment thereupon as an oracle. But by no means trust to your own judgment alone; for no man is omniscient: nor trust only to your servants, who may mislead you or misinform you; by which they may perhaps gain a few crowns, but the reproach will lie upon yourself, if it be not rightly carried. For the facilitating of your despatches, my advice is farther, that you divide all the petitions, and the matters therein contained, under several heads: which, I conceive, may be fitly ranked into these eight sorts. are inconsistent with the truth of religion professed and protested by the Church of England, whence we are called Protestants; and the Anabaptists, and separatists, and sectaries on the other hand, whose tenents are full of schism, and inconsistent with monarchy: for the regulating of either, there needs no other coercion than the due execution of the laws already established by parliament.] 3. For the discipline of the Church of England by bishops, &c., I will not positively say, as some do, that it is "jure divino;" but this I say and think ex animo," that it is the nearest to I. Matters that concern religion, and the church apostolical truth; and confidently I shall say, it and churchmen. is fittest for monarchy of all others. I will use II. Matters concerning justice, and the laws, no other authority to you, than that excellent proand the professors thereof. III. Councillors, and the council table, and the great offices and officers of the kingdom. IV. Foreign negotiations and embassies. V. Peace and war, both foreign and civil, and in that the navy and forts, and what belongs to them. VI. Trade at home and abroad. And whatsoever will not fall naturally under one of these heads, believe me, sir, will not be worthy of your thoughts, in this capacity, we now speak of. And of these sorts, I warrant you, you will find enough to keep you in business. I begin with the first, which concerns religion. 1. In the first place, be you yourself rightly persuaded and settled in the true Protestant religion, professed by the Church of England; which doubtless is as sound and orthodox in the doctrine thereof, as any Christian church in the world. [For religion, if any thing be offered to you touching it, or touching the church, or churchmen, or church government, rely not only upon yourself, but take the opinion of some grave and eminent divines, especially such as are sad and discreet men, and exemplary for their lives.] 2. In this you need not be a monitor to your gracious master the king: the chiefest of his imperial titles is, to be The Defender of the Faith, and his learning is eminent, not only above other princes, but above other men; be but his scholar, and you are safe in that. [If any question be moved concerning the doctrine of the Church of England expressed in the thirty-nine articles, give not the least ear to the movers thereof: that is so soundly and so orthodoxly settled, as cannot be questioned without extreme danger to the honour and stability of our religion; which hath been sealed with the blood of so many martyrs and confessors, as are famous through the Christian world. The enemies and underminers thereof are the Romish Catholic, so styling themselves, on the one hand, whose tenets VOL. II.-48 clamation set out by the king himself in the first year of his reign, and annexed before the book of Common Prayer, which I desire you to read; and if at any time there shall be the least motion made for innovation, to put the king in mind to read it himself: it is most dangerous in a state, to give ear to the least alteration in government. [If any attempt be made to alter the discipline of our church, although it be not an essential part of our religion, yet, it is so necessary not to be rashly altered, as the very substance of religion will be interested in it: therefore, I desire you, before any attempt be made of an innovation by your means, or by any intercession to your master, that you will first read over, and his majesty call to mind that wise and weighty proclamation, which himself penned, and caused to be published in the first year of his reign, and is prefixed in print before the book of Common Prayer, of that impression, in which you will find so prudent, so weighty reasons, not to hearken to innovations, as will fully satisfy you, that it is dangerous to give the least ear to such innovators; but it is desperate to be misled by them and to settle your judgment, mark but the admonition of the wisest of men, King Solomon, Prov. xxiv. 21. "My son, fear God and the king, and meddle not with those who are given to change."] 4. Take heed, I beseech you, that you be not an instrument to countenance the Romish Catholics. I cannot flatter, the world believes that some near in blood to you are too much of that persuasion; you must use them with fit respects, according to the bonds of nature; but you are of kin, and so a friend to their persons, not to their errors. 5. The archbishops and bishops, next under the king, have the government of the church and ecclesiastical affairs: be not you the mean to prefer any to those places for any by-respects; but only for their learning, gravity, and worth: their lives and doctrine ought to be exemplary. 6. For deans, and canons or prebends of cathedral churches; in their first institution they were of great use in the church; they were not 212 only to be of counsel with the bishop for his revenue, but chiefly for his government in causes ecclesiastical: use your best means to prefer such to those places who are fit for that purpose, men eminent for their learning, piety, and discretion, and put the king often in mind thereof; and let them be reduced again to their first institution. 7. You will be often solicited, and perhaps importuned to prefer scholars to church living: you may further your friends in that way, "cæteris paribus;" otherwise remember, I pray, that these are not places merely of favour; the charge of souls lies upon them; the greatest account whereof will be required at their own hands; but they will share deeply in their faults who are the instruments of their preferment. 8. Besides the Romish Catholics, there is a generation of sectaries, the Anabaptists, Brownists, and others of their kinds; they have been several times very busy in this kingdom, under the colour of zeal for reformation of religion: the king your master knows their disposition very well; a small touch will put him in mind of them; he had experience of them in Scotland, I hope he will beware of them in England; a little countenance or connivancy sets them on fire. 9. Order and decent ceremonies in the church are not only comely, but commendable; but there must be great care not to introduce innovations, they will quickly prove scandalous; men are naturally over-prone to suspicion; the true Protestant religion is seated in the golden mean; the enemies unto her are the extremes on either hand. 10. The persons of churchmen are to be had in due respect for their work's sake, and protected from scorn; but if a clergyman be loose and scandalous, he must not be patronized nor winked at; the example of a few such corrupt many. 11. Great care must be taken, that the patrimony of the church be not sacrilegiously diverted to lay uses his majesty in his time hath religiously stopped a leak that did much harm, and would else have done more. Be sure, as much as in you lies, stop the like upon all occasions. 12. Colleges and schools of learning are to be cherished and encouraged, there to breed up a new stock to furnish the church and commonwealth when the old store are transplanted. This kingdom hath in later ages been famous for good literature; and if preferment shall attend the deservers, there will not want supplies. II. Next to religion, let your care be to promote justice. By justice and mercy is the king's throne established. 1. Let the rule of justice be the laws of the land, an impartial arbiter between the king and his people, and between one subject and another: I shall not speak superlatively of them, lest I be suspected of partiality, in regard to my own pro fession; but this I may truly say, They are second to none in the Christian world. [They are the best, the equallest in the world between prince and people; by which the king hath the justest prerogative, and the people the best liberty; and if at any time there be an unjust deviation, "Hominis est vitium, non professionis."] 2. And as far as it may lie in you, let no arbitrary power be intruded: the people of this kingdom love the laws thereof, and nothing will oblige them more, than a confidence of the free enjoying of them; what the nobles upon an occasion once said in parliament, Nolumus leges Angliæ mutare," is imprinted in the hearts of all the people. 3. But, because the life of the laws lies in the due execution and administration of them, let your eye be, in the first place, upon the choice of good judges: these properties had they need to be furnished with; to be learned in their profession, patient in hearing, prudent in governing, powerful in their elocution to persuade and satisfy both the parties and hearers; just in their judgment: and, to sum up all, they must have these three attributes; they must be men of courage, fearing God, and hating covetousness; an ignorant man cannot, a coward dares not be a good judge. 4. By no means be you persuaded to interpose yourself, either by word or letter, in any cause depending, or like to be depending in any court of justice, nor suffer any other great man to do it where you can hinder it, and by all means dissuade the king himself from it, upon the importunity of any for themselves or their friends: if it should prevail, it perverts justice; but if the judge be so just, and of such courage, as he ought to be, as not to be inclined thereby, yet, it always leaves a taint of suspicion behind it; judges must be as chaste as Cæsar's wife, neither to be, nor to be suspected to be unjust; and, sir, the honour of the judges in their judicature is the king's honour, whose person they represent. 5. There is great use of the service of the judges in their circuits, which are twice in the year held throughout the kingdom: the trial of causes between party and party, or delivering of the jails in the several counties, are of great use for the expedition of justice: yet, they are of much more use for the government of the counties through which they pass, if that were well thought upon. 6. For if they had instructions to that purpose, they might be the best intelligencers to the king of the true state of his whole kingdom, of the disposition of the people, of their inclinations, of their intentions and motions, which are necessary to be truly understood. 7. To this end I could wish, that against every |