The Oxford University Press.

1585.

1. Bilson, Thomas. THE TRVE DIFFE-|RENCE BETWEENE CHRI-|STIAN SUBIECTION AND | VNCHRISTIAN REBELLION: | WHEREIN THE PRINCES LAWFULL | power to commaund for trueth, and indepriuable | right to beare the sword are defended against the | Popes censures and the Iesuits sophismes vt-|tered in their Apologie and DE-|FENCE OF ENGLISH | CATHOLIKES: | With a demonstration that the thinges refourmed in the Church of England by the | Lawes of this Realme are truely Catholike, notwithstanding the vaine shew | made to the contrary in their late Rhemish Testament: by | Thomas Bilson Warden of Winchester. | Perused and allowed by publike authoritie. | [Device: then two mottos].

Impr. 2: 1585 (CIↃIↃXXCV): (eights) sm. 4o: pp. [24] + 820 + [10]: p. 11 beg. wee bee farre, p. 111 be not Judges: chiefly Pica English. Contents:—p. (1) title: (3–12) Epistle dedicatorie to queen Elizabeth: (13) “the generall contents of euerie part”: (14–22) “To the Christian Reader”: 1–820 the work, in 4 parts: (1–9) “the speciall contents of euery part”: (9) “Faultes escaped”, i.e. errata.

For the author &c. see Wood’s Ath. Oxon. ii. 169: where it is pointed out that the book has a curious history. Its ostensible purpose is to uphold the doctrine afterwards called “passive obedience” by refuting two books which were regarded as subversive of the Queen’s temporal power, (1) An apologie and true declaration of the institution ... of the tvvo English colleges ... in Rome ... (and) in Rhemes, 1581 (ascribed to card. Will. Allen), (2) A true, sincere and modest defence of English catholiques that suffer for their faith, n. d. (asserted by Antony à Wood to be also by card. Allen). But Wood declares that the Queen “conceiving it convenient for her worldly designs to take on her the protection of the Low-Countries against the King of Spain, did employ our author ... to write the said book” to justify the Netherland revolt. And certain it is that in consequence of the temperance and fairness with which Bp. Bilson treats his subject, the parliamentary party in Charles I’s time used this book to oppose “passive obedience.”

Probably issued about the end of November, 1585. Greek type is used on p. 263 and perhaps elsewhere. Another ed. appeared at London in 1586: an extract from pp. 520–21 was reprinted in 1641 and again in Somers’s Tracts, 2nd ed., iv. 29 (Lond. 1810).

2. Case, John. [Ornament] SPECVLVM MORALIVM | QVAESTIONVM IN VNIVERSAM ETHICEN | Aristotelis, Authore Magistro Iohanne Caso | Oxoniensi, olim Collegij Diui Io-|hannis Præcursoris | Socio. | [then the University Arms: then a motto from Seneca].

Impr. 1, so also colophon: 1585: (eights) sm. 4o: pp. [28] + 401 + [19]: p. 11 beg. Opp. Iuuenes, p. 111, Distinctio: chiefly Pica Roman. Contents:—p. (1) Title: (3–7) Epistola nuncupatoria to Robert Dudley, earl of Leicester, chancellor of the University, signed “Iohannes Casus”: (8–10) “Ad studiosos iuuenes vtriusque academiae”: (10) “Prosopopœia Libri Ad Lectorem”: (11) “Honoratissimo suo domino et patrono Comiti Leicestrensi &c. Iosephus Barnesius Typographus Oxonie nsis”: (12–23) Complimentary Latin verses to the author: between (24) and (25), “Tabula virtutum et vitiorum omnium”, a folio leaf printed on one side only: (25–28) Præfatio: 1–401 the work in 6 books: (1–2) “Peroratio ad lectorem”: (4–17) Index: (17) Errata and colophon.

The first book printed at the new Oxford press. The allusions to this and kindred facts are (1) in the “Epistola Nuncupatoria.” Case says of the reasons for dedicating the work to the Earl of Leicester “Unum est nouum hoc præli beneficium, quod te authore nostra Academia nuper recepit ... Prælum hoc nouum (cuius author existis) hunc nouum de moribus libellum pressit. Ne ergo author libelli præli authori videatur ingratus, tibi primùm eiusdem fructum ex animo propinauit ...” (2) the printer himself writes “Admirabilem hanc artem typographicam (Mecęnas amplissime) primum Iohannes Faustus Moguntiæ fauste genuit [the marg. supplies “Anno 1450”], eandem Guilielmus Caxtonus ciuis Londinensis probè aluit & perpoliuit: Laus summa debetur authori qui invenit, laus magna debetur mercatori qui primùm ad nos transuexit ... Londinum diù in hac arte floruit, & non inuideo: Cantabrigia eandem nunc didicit, Oxonia recepit, & certè gaudeo. Nam si characteres typographi sint vera insignia & arma Mineruæ; vbi terrarum potius floreret hæc nobilis scientia, quàm vbi vera publicè docetur sapientia? vt enim à fonte in riuum dulcis aqua, ita hîc quidem à mente in prælum dulcissima Musa fluet. Non nugæ, non aniles fabulæ, non Aristarchi dentata opera hîc excudentur: ea solùm ex his prælis in lucem venient quȩ sapientum calculis approbentur, & Sybillȩ foliis sint veriora. Hoc vnum nunc restat (vir inclytissime) vt hunc librum opus alterius ingenij & pignus laboris mei tuo honori offeram ... Vt ergo Thomas Thomasius collega meus [Cantabrigiensis] suo, ita ego Iosephus Barnesius tibi (vir summe) meo patrono dominoque gratulor: nos ambo & publico pro multis, & priuato nomine pro magnis in nos meritis vobis vtriusque Academiæ patronis deuincti sumus, gratias immortales vterque agimus, maiores in posterum pollicemur”: (3) the Vice-chancellor, J. Underhill, writes “Non dedit hoc seclo prælum Oxoniense priorem [librum] | Doctrinâque dabunt secula nulla parem.” (4) Laurence Humfrey says “Hoc Speculum vobis nunc Oxoniensis alumnus | Porrigit, en præli dat quoque primitias.”