lently by forecast, with a deliberate mind, and proditoriously; therefore they are far from deserving the shelter of the church. The sacred scripture takes us out of all doubt, by the act of holy and religious Solomon, when, in execution of the just commandment of David his father, he consulted how to punish Joab for having slain Abner, who had David's safe conduct, for which he fled to the church and to the altar: Fugit ergo Joab in tabernaculum Domini, et apprehendit cornu altaris: And Benaias, who had the charge of executing him, returning with this news to Solomon, he answered, Vade, interfice eum, go and kill him. Benaias, going again to Joab, told him the King's command, and bid him come out: Joab replied, I will not come out, but I will die here. Thereupon, Benaias going back to Solomon to inform him what Joab had said, the King rejoined, Fac sicut locutus est, et interfice eum; do as he hath said, and kill him. So Benaias, the son of Jehoiada, went up to the altar, and, assaulting Joab, he killed him. Now, it is a great question among the theologues, whether Solomon sinned in doing this? Abulensis excuseth him, giving this reason: Quia non illi profecit tenuisse aram, quia nullum homicida insidiator habet præsidium: because the altar could not profit him, in regard that no treacherous man-slayer hath any protection. Add hereunto what Gaspar Sanchez and Ruperto alledge touching the same fact: Nihil debet illi fides altaris, qui per dolum occidendo proximum omnem fidem perdidit: the faith of the altar oweth him nothing, who lost all faith in slaying his neighbour feloniously. But Cajetan, with others, find no way how to excuse Solomon touching this business, in regard that he might, by his pretorian troops and veteran soldiers, have taken him both from the altar and the tabernacle; and so, without any note of violating religion, he might have dispatched him in some profane place, as the priest Jehoijada commanded Athaliah to be taken out of the temple, and killed without. This is a great and precise lesson for the Lords Alcaldes, for they need not fear to put these men to death, in regard they are not now materially in the church. To prove the minor of the second syllogism, viz. that these men did voluntarily, of set purpose, with a deliberate mind, and proditoriously murder the ambassador of the parliament of England, shall be thus proved: Certain men espied the said ambassador lighting at his lodging the same night he came; the next day, William Spark and Henry Progers (who is fled) spoke with John Baptista Riva, the ambassador's servant, and Henry, going down, said to William, Let us go here below (where the other three delinquents were) and said, Let us kill the resident for a destroyer of our nation: So they swore among themselves, that, if one died, all would die with him in so heroick an act: Whence this circumstance may be drawn, that this murder was committed by former consultation and with a deliberate mind. What is formerly related is confessed by the delinquents themselves, and that they came to perform this exploit two by two; for, being come to the lodging, two remained at the foot of the stairs, two on the top, and two entered. William Spark went in first; seeing two sitting at the table, he pulled off his hat, and said, I kiss your hands: Which is the resident? And, when they knew who he was, Don John Guillim came, and, snatching him by the hair, with a naked dagger he gave him a thrust, that overthrew him; then came William Spark and gave him another, so that they gave him five stabs in all; John Baptista Riva thinking to retire to his chamber, there went four of them after him and gave him four wounds, whereof he presently expired; whereby it appears most evidently, that the murder of the ambassador was committed per insidias, appensatè, animo deliberato, et proditoriè; therefore the church cannot protect them. It was done proditoriously, in regard that Prodere est unum actibus ostendere, et aliud in mente gerere; unde homicidium proditorium est cædes hominis nihil tale suspicantis, as Augustine Barbosa affirms. Just so was Abner killed by Joab; according to the text, he killed Abner in a dishonourable way, viz. fraudulently, when he spoke to him peaceably, therefore Joab deserved to be deprived of the immunity of the temple; and just so was this ambassador killed, and, it may be thought, they deserve not the shelter of the sanctuary, as Joab did not. But, methinks, I hear the delinquents, to extenuate their delict, whisper, that they killed the said ambassador for an heretick, for a disturber of the publick peace, who particularly fomented the death of the King, and the change of government; and they did operate this to vindicate the death of their King upon a regicide, an enemy to his country, and on an impostor. Moreover,one of the delinquents saith, that,in this rebellion, he killed a brother of his, with whom he had a particular enmity. To these arguments I may say, as John Garcia did in his Gloss. Nobilit. Adducuntur leviuscula quædam argumenta, quæ meritò subtaceri poterant; sed satisfaciendum est doctis pariter ac indoctis: Certain light arguments are alledged, which might have been spared; but we must satisfy the unlearned, as well as the learned. And, concerning the first, They say, they killed the ambassador for an heretick; so was their King, whom, they pretend, he had helped to murder: But the Catholick church never held yet, that it was lawful to kill a man only for his religion; besides, this ambassador had a royal passport, and was attended all the way, from the sea-side, by his Majesty's servants; and ministers of any religion may have passports for their safety, as John Huss had, and as Charles the emperor gave Luther. They say, this ambassador came to seduce and deceive by a book of his, which was found among his papers, and a medal which he had, which had, on the one side, Nebart, and on the other XII. and the word obstricti; and they say it signifies those twelve, which gained Nebart, and occasioned the wars: Hence they infer, that he came to deceive. There was also found a crown stabbed with a ponyard. This same argument Joab propounded to David, when he said, Ignoras Abner filium Ner, quoniam ad hoc venit ad te, ut deciperet te, ut sciret exitum tuum, et introitum tuum, et nosse omnia quæ agis. Thou knowest not Abner the son of Ner; for he is come hither to deceive thee, to know thy goingout and thy coming in, and to pry into all things thou dost, as the sacred text tells us: But this could not excuse Joab for killing Abner, who came hither all the way with a safe conduct; and it is the prerogative only of that prince, who gave him the safe conduct, to know the cause of his coming. To come now to a conclusive point, and final period of this plea. The punishment of these men, for having fraudulently, by prepense malice, with a deliberate mind, and proditoriously murdered the ambassador of the parliament of England, according to the foregoing circumstances, and by their own spontaneous confessions; I say, the speedy chastisement of these men to death (notwithstanding the depending process, touching the immunity of the church) is required by six parties that are interested therein, viz. 1. By God himself. 4. By the publick cause. 5. By the fiscal of the council. First, God requires it, who watcheth over all crimes, especially those of blood, which cry for vengeance more than any, therefore the procrastination hereof would be offensive to his divine Majesty. Secondly, The King (whom God preserve) requires speedy execution, in regard some grave doctors do doubt, whether it was a sin in David to delay the punishment of Joab till after his death, by bequeathing the execution of justice to his son Solomon, as a legacy. Thirdly, the subjects of the King our Lord require a hastening of the punishment; because it troubles them to see, hard before the King's eyes, and in the Catholick court, so horrid and sudden a murder committed: Quando accidunt aliqua mala et horrenda, quæ sunt penitus inopinata, solent homines nimium turbari, etiamsi ad illos mala illa non pertineant; quia ergo mors Abner erat malum quoddam rarum et inopinatum, subito, illo audito, turbati sunt omnes Israelitæ. When some horrid, unexpected, and unusual mischiefs happen, people use to be strangely troubled, though it nothing belongs unto them; therefore, because Abner's death was a kind of extraordinary, sudden mischief, all Israel was troubled at it, as Abulensis speaks upon the second of Kings. Fourthly, The publick cause requires a sudden execution of justice upon these deliquents, because they murdered two men by fraud, quorum opera utilis videbatur futuræ reipublica, whose negotiation was to be profitable to the commonwealth, as Gaspar Sanchez saith. Lastly, The fiscal requires justice for God, for the King, for his fellow-subjects, for the publick cause, and for himself, who concludes with Cokier, in his treatise de legato, Ac perde has animas, patriam bonus eripe noxá. To shut up all; the justified cause cries out for speedy justice, in regard that these delinquents murdered an ambassador of the parliament of England. Now to every ambassador there is owing an extraordinary respect, especially to the ambassadors of England: they slew him, though they knew that he had his Majesty's safe conduct; they slew him in the Catholick court, where the right of nations useth to be kept inviolable, and more solemnly than any where else, whereby they committed not only a foul, treacherous murder, but treason in a high degree against his Majesty; they surprised the ambassador and his secretary at dinner, a harmless hour; they came in like friends; wherefore it may justly be inferred, that this murder was committed per insidias, animo deliberato, appensatè, et proditoriè; by fraud, with a deliberate mind, by forecast, and treacherously. Touching the circumstances, their own spontaneous confessions make them good; therefore both God, the King, all the vassals of this court, the publick cause, and the fiscal of the council demand a speedy and actual execution of justice upon them, notwithstanding the depending process, and pretensions touching the immunities of the church. Salva in omnibus, &c. Such was the charge in the court of Spain, which was delivered, with much aggravation, by the said Dr. Hieronymo Hierro, knight of the order of Calatrava, against John Guillim, William Spark, Valentine Progers, Jo. Halsal, William Arnet, and Henry Progers, who are detained still in prison for killing Anthony Ascham, resident for the parliament of England, and John Baptista Riva, his interpreter; all except Henry Progers, who, being formerly known to the Venetian ambassador, fled to his house for protection, and so made an escape. The suit is still depending, and no resolution taken, in regard the church stands so earnestly for them; insomuch that it is not known when it will be determined. 1 A TRUE NARRATIVE AND RELATION* OF HIS MOST SACRED MAJESTY's MIRACULOUS ESCAPE FROM WORCESTER, On the Third of September, 1651, till his arrival at Paris. Printed at London, for G. Colborn, 1660. Quarto, containing eight pages. FORT ORTUNE had now twice counterfeited and double-gilt the trophies of rebellion, and its brazen trumpet repeated victory, betrayed, or Prostituted, before at Dunbar, and now ravished at Worcester, by nuThis is the 126th number in the catalogue of pamphlets in the Harleian Library. came thither, and they supposed the King with them, but they made no stay in the village, but presently departed; they were, hereupon, so eager in the pursuit, that, after enquiring which way they took, they followed the rout, and made no further search there; the King straight heard this, by the two aforesaid scouts, who straggled for intelligence into the town. All this day, being Thursday, the King continued in the wood, upon the ground, Richard Pendrill being constantly with him, and sometimes the other two brothers: it proved to be a very rainy day, and the King was wet with showers; thereupon, Francis Yates's wife came into the wood, and brought the King a blanket, which she threw over his shoulders, to keep him dry; she also brought him his first meat he eat there, viz. a mess of milk, eggs, and sugar, in a black earthen cup, which the King guessed to be milk and apples, and said he loved it very well. After he had drank some of it, and eaten part in a pewter spoon, he gave the rest to George, and bid him eat, for it was very good. There was nothing of moment passed this day in court, but only the King exchanged his wood-bill for Francis Yates's broom-hook, which was something lighter. They had much ado, all that day, to teach and fashion his Majesty to their country guise, and to order his steps, and straight body, to a lobbing Jobson's gate, and were forced, every foot, to mind him of it; for the language, his Majesty's most gracious converse with his people, in his journey to, and at Worcester, had rendered it very easy, and very tuneable to him. About five o'clock that evening, the King, with the retinue of Richard, Humphry, George, and Francis Yates, left the wood, and betook himself to Richard's house, where he went under the name of William Jones, a wood-cutter, newly come thither for work. Against his coming, the good wife, for his entertainment at supper, was preparing a fricasy of bacon and eggs; and, whilst that was doing, the King held on his knee their daughter Nan. After he had eat a little, he asked Richard to eat, who replied, yea, Sir, I will; whereto his Majesty answered, you have a better stomach than I, for you have eaten five times to-day already. After supper ended, the King, according to his resolution to pass into Wales, prepared, when it should be dusky, to depart; before he went, Jane Pendrill, the mother of the five brethren, came to see the King, before whom she blessed God, that had so honoured her children, in making them the instruments, as she hoped, of his Majesty's safeguard and deliverance. Here Francis Yates offered the King thirty shillings in silver; the King accepted ten, and bid him put the other up. Humphry would have gone before, to see and view about, but the King would not let him; it being now near night, they took their leave of the King upon their knees, beseeching God to guide and bless him. So the King and Richard only departed, to go to one Mr. Francis Wolfe of Madely, there to take passage into Wales. On the way, they were to pass by a mill, at a place called Evelin, and going over (it was about nine o'clock at night) the bridge of the said mill, the miller steps forth, and demanded, who goes there; having a quarter-staff, or a |