beft, for he would be as good as his word: fo after a little engagement, his mafter being really fuperior to him, hit him on the head, and he performed his pro mife; for he gave him the house freely and was not unwilling at that rate to learn fo early to diftinguish flattery from plain and fimple truth.

He now was fo taken up with martial matters, that inftead of going on in his defign of being a fcholar, or a divine, he refolved to be a foldier: and his tutor Sedgwick going into the Low Countries, chaplain to the renowned Lord Vere, he refolved to go along with him, and to trail a pike in the Prince of Orange's army; but a happy ftop was put to this refolution, which might have proved fo fatal to himself, and have deprived the age of the great example he gave, and the useful fervices he afterwards did his country. He was engaged in a fuit of law with Sir William Whitmore, who laid claim to fome part of his eftate, and his guardian being a man of a retired temper, and not made for business, he was forced to leave the uni verfity, after he had been three years in it, and go to Lon. don to folicit his own bufinefs. Being recommended to Serjeant Glanvill for his counfellor, and he obferving in hin a clear apprehenfion of things, and a folid judgment, and a great fitness for the ftudy of the law, took pains upon him to perfuade him to forfake his thoughts of being a foldier, and to apply himself to the ftudy of the law; and this had so good an effect on him, that on the 8th of November, 1629, when he was paft the 20th year of his age, he was admitted into Lincoln's Inn; and being then deeply fenfible how much time he had loft, and that idle and vain things had over-run and almost corrupted his mind, he refolved to redeem the time he had loft, and followed his ftudies with a diligence that could fcarce be believed, if the fignal effects of it did not gain it credit. He ftudied for many years at the rate of 16 hours a day: he threw afide all fine clothes, and betook himself to a plain fashion, which he continued to ufe in many points to his dying day.

But

But fince the honour of reclaiming him from the idlenefs of his former courfe of life, is due to the memory of that eminent lawyer Serjeant Glanvill, and fince my defign in writing is to propose a pattern of heroic virtue to the world, I fhall mention one paffage of the Serjeant which ought never to be forgotten. His father had a fair eftate, which he intended to fettle on his elder brother, but he being a vicious young man, and there appearing no hopes of his recovery, he fettled it on him that was his fecond fon. Upon his death, his eldest fon finding that what he had before looked on, as the threatnings of an angry father, was now but too certain, became melancholy, and that by degrees wrought fo great a change on him, that what his father could not prevail in while he lived, was now effected by the feverity of his laft will, fo that it was now too late for him to change in hopes of any eftate that was gone from him. But his brother obferving the reality of the change, refolved within himself what to do: So he called him, with many of his friends together to a feaft, and after other difhes had been ferved up to the dinner, he ordered one that was covered to be fet before his brother, and defired him to uncover it; which he doing, the company was furprised to find it full of writings. So he told them that he was now to do, what he was fure his father would have done, if he had lived to fee that happy change, which they now all faw in his brother: and therefore he freely restored to him the whole eftate. This is fo great an instance of a generous and juft difpofition, that I hope the reader will eafily pardon this digreflion, and that the rather, fince that worthy Serjeant was fo inftrumental in the happy chance that followed in the courfe of Mr. Hale's life.

Yet he did not at firft break off from keeping too much company with fome vain people, till a fad accident drove him from it; for he with fome other young ftudents, being invited to be merry out of town, one of the company called for fo much wine, that notwithstanding all that Mr. Hale could do to prevent it,

he

he went on in his excefs till he fell down as dead before them, fo that all that were prefent were not a little affrighted at it, who did what they could to bring him to himfelf again. This did particularly affect Mr. Hale, who thereupon went into another room, and fhutting the door, fell on his knees, and prayed earneftly to God, both for his friend, that he might be reftored to life again; and that himself might be forgiven for giving fuch countenance to fo much excefs: and he vowed to God, that he would never again keep companyin that manner, nor drink a health while he lived. His friend recovered, and he most religiously obferved his vow, till his dying day. And though he was afterwards preffed to drink healths, particularly the King's, which was fet up by too many as a diftinguishing mark of loyalty, and drew many into great excefs after his Majefty's happy Reftoration; but he would never difpenfe with his vow, though he was fometimes roughly treated for this, which fome hot and indifcreet men called obftinacy.

This wrought an entire change on him. Now he forfook all vain company, and divided himself between the duties of religion, and the studies of his profeffion; in the former he was fo regular, that for fix and thirty years time, he never once failed going to church on the Lord's day; this obfervation he made when an ague first interrupted that conftant courfe, and he reflected on it, as an acknowledgment of God's great goodness to him, in fo long a continuance of his health.

He took a ftrict account of his time, of which the reader will beft judge, by the fcheme he drew for a diary, which I fhall infert, copied from the original, but I am not certain when he made it; it is fet down in the fame fimplicity in which he writ it for his own private use.

MORNING.

I. To lift up the heart to God in thankfulness for renewing my life.

II. To renew my covenant with God in Chrift, 1. By renewed Acts of Faith, receiving Chrift, and rejoic

ing

ing in the height of that relation. 2. Refolution of being one of his people doing him allegiance. III. Adoration and Prayer.

IV. Setting a watch over my own Infirmities and Paffions, over the Snares laid in our way. Perimus licitis1.

DAY EMPLOYMENT.

There must be an employment, two kinds. I. Our ordinary calling, to ferve God in it. It is a fervice to Chrift though never fo mean. Colof. iii. Here Faithfulness, Diligence, Cheerfulness. Not to over-lay myself with more bufinefs than I can bear. II. Our Spiritual employments, mingle fomewhat of God's immediate fervice in this day.

REFRESHMENTS.

1. Meat and drink, moderation feafoned with fomewhat of God.

II. Recreations. 1. Not our bufinefs.

2. Suitable.

No games, if given to covetoufness or paffion.

IF ALONE.

I. Beware of wandering, vain, luftful thoughts, fly from thyfelf rather than entertain thefe.

IL. Let thy folitary thoughts be profitable, view the evidences of thy Salvation, the state of thy Soul, the coming of Chrift, thy own Mortality, it will make thee humble and watchful.

COMPANY.

Do good to them. Ufe God's name reverently. Beware of leaving an ill impreffion of ill example. Receive good from them if more knowing.

EVENING.

Caft up the accounts of the day. If ought amifs, beg pardon. Gather refolution of more vigilance. If well, blefs the Mercy and Grace of God that hath fupported thee.

We are ruined by indulgence.

Thefe

Thefe Notes have an imperfection in the wording of them, which fhews they were only intended for his privacies. No wonder a man who fet fuch rules to himfelf, became quickly very eminent and remark.

able.

Noy, the attorney-general, being then one of the greatest men of the profeffion, took early notice of him, and called often for him, and directed him in his ftudy, and grew to have fuch friendship for him, that he came to be called young Ney. He paffing from the extreme of vanity in his apparel, to that of neglecting himfelf too much, was once taken when there was a prefs for the King's fervice, as a fit perfon for it; for he was a strong and well-built man: but fome that knew him coming by, and giving notice who he was, the prefs-men let him go. This made him return to more decency in his clothes, but never to any superfluity or vanity in them.

Once as he was buying fome cloth for a new fuit, the draper, with whom he differed about the price, told him he fhould have it for nothing, if he would promife him an hundred pound when he came to be lord chief juftice of England; to which he answered, that he could not with a good confcience wear any man's cloth, unless he payed for it; fo he fatisfied the draper and carried away the cloth. Yet the fame draper lived to fee him advanced to that fame dignity.

While he was thus improving himself in the ftudy of the law, he not only kept the hours of the hall conitantly in term time, but feldom put himfelf out of commons in vacation time, and continued then to follow his ftudies with an unwearied diligence; and not being fatisfied with the books writ about it, or to take things upon truft, was very diligent in fearching all records: then did he make divers collections out of the books he had read, and mixing them with his own obfervations, digefted them into a common-place book;,. which he did with fo much induftry and judgment, that an eminent judge of the king's-bench, borrowed