escaped out of London, and rode hard for it, and as we rode to Ware we made a halt, and advised how we should settle this kingdom in peace, and dispose of the King; the result was this, They should bring him to justice, try him for his life, and cut off his head; whether this was the expression of Cromwell I cannot tell; but to the utmost of my remembrance, and I am mistaken if it was not the advice of Mr. Peters to Cromwell; and I believe it, because his former relations of his instructions out of Ireland did tend to that effect.
Peters—My lord, I desire to speak a word [his voice being low, he was brought to the second bar]. I am the bolder to speak to your lordships at this time a word, and it is high time to satisfy my conscience; if these things were true, there is enough said to destroy me; I desire leave to tell you what offence I take at the witness, thus, my lord. This gentlemen I do know——
Peters—That which I have to say is this, that in his story he hath told that which is not true; but I will not find fault with him, because he was my host, I will not reflect and recriminate: I shall give your lordships in simplicity as much satisfaction myself as any witness; this I say to the man that speaks, and this is certain, I did spend some time at this gentleman's house, he is called there Dr. Young; and my trouble at this discourse is this, I do not know, my lord, that I found a more violent man for the parliament than himself; so far he undertook to be a spy on one side; this I find to be so, he will not deny it; he was very fierce in that way; I think words of such a man ought to be little attended to. The second is this, this gentleman is not a competent witness, and that upon a two-fold ground. First, because I know he is under a very great temptation and trouble in this very thing, and it is upon this account he was put out of his living in the country, and here he came to me to help him in again, and was very highly offended because I did not do it. Secondly, it is not that I would invalidate his witness, but give me leave to tell you, it is his way to snap and catch at every man, which is the complaint of the people in his own country. I know that same which is spoken is false; I speak it in the presence of God, I profess, I never had any near converse with Oliver Cromwell about such things; I speak this to the Jury, that they would have a care of the witness; I was in sickness then; those that have known me do know likewise that I have much weakness in my head when I am sick, and to take words that are spoken in a sick condition, he ought not to do it; for the words themselves I do here profess against them, for the generality of them; and that he hath been freer in my judgment in any communication in this way than I have been; it is marvellous, here I profess the things untruths; I call God and angels to witness they are not true. I will give you an account of my whole condition by-and-by, if I may be heard.
Court—You shall be heard at large; that which you have been heard now is concerning the competency or incompetency of the witness: the incompetency against him is this, that when you came thither none more violent for the parliament than himself, and that he was a great spy, and you say it was usual with him to take such courses; these are but words; if you have any witnesses we will hear them; the man may be traduced and slandered, and so all witnesses may be taken away. Mr. Peters, if you take this course, God knows when this business will end; if you have a mind take pen, ink, and paper, and take notes of the witnesses, and make exceptions to them one after another; but interrupting one, and so another, we shall never have done.
Young—I do recollect myself of some other conferences between us; as to my being malicious, I know he never did me any wrong, and therefore I cannot be malicious; and as for my reputation, having resided two years in London I can have certificates both from my country, and some of this city, to vindicate me in that particular; But, my lord, that which I would inform your lordship is this, he told me he took duke Hamilton a prisoner himself in his own chamber, seized on his goods, and took his George and blue ribbon off his shoulder, and the George he shewed me.
William Gunter was a drawer at the Star in Coleman Street. Oliver Cromwell and several of his party used to meet there in consultation; there were several meetings; he remembered one in particular when Peters was there; he came about four in the afternoon and stayed till ten or eleven at night; they were talking about the King after he was a prisoner, for they called him by the name of Charles Stuart; they were writing something, but the witness could not say what. He could not say whether Peters was there oftener than once, 'but once I am certain of it; this is the gentleman; for then he wore a great sword.'
Peters—I never wore a great sword in my life.
Starkey deposed that in the December before the King's death, and up to the 12th of the following January, the headquarters of the army were at Windsor, and General Ireton was quartered at his father's house. The Council of War was held there, and Cromwell, Ireton, Peters, Col. Rich, and another gentleman, whose name he forgot, would meet and consult there, and sit up till two or three in the morning very privately together. The witness was often in Ireton's company, and Peters would often come in to meals in the evening.
Mr. Ireton being civil in carriage, would usually entertain discourses with Mr. Peters, likewise would favor me sometimes with discourse; and in that discourse I did many times take occasion to assert the laws in point of the king; and discoursing about the king as being a capital instrument in the late inconveniences, as they called it, in the times of the war, Mr. Ireton would discourse this ordinarily; I was bold to tell them that the person of the king was solutus legibus; this gentleman the prisoner at the bar, told me it was an unequal law. I did observe Mr. Peters did bend his discourse, not by way of argument only, but in point of resolution of judgment, fully against the person and government of the king. I remember some of his expressions were these, That he was a tyrant, that he was a fool, that he was not fit to be a king, or bear that office; I have heard him say, that for the office itself (in those very words which shortly after came into print) that it was a dangerous, chargeable, and useless office. My lords, the constant discourse of this gentleman at that time was such as he did believe would never be called into question, so it was not a thing that a man was necessitated to observe by an accident, but it was their whole discourse. I will put you in mind of a particular passage. When the news came to Windsor that the king was in prison at the Isle of Wight, my father (whose house that was) was very much troubled at it; and being an ancient man, was not able to control his passions with reason, told my mother that they (meaning Mr. Ireton, etc.) should have no entertainment there, and took the key of the cellar and put it in his pocket; his passions being lessened, Mr. Ireton, his wife, and another officer being at supper, and afterwards my father said grace, and, as he usually did, though they were there, he said that usual and honest expression, praying for the king in these usual words, 'God save the king, prince, and realm'; sometimes they did laugh at it, but never did reflect upon him; but this night he made this expression, 'God save the king's most excellent majesty, and preserve him out of the hands of all his enemies.' Peters, who was then at the table, turns about to him, and said, 'Old gentleman, your idol will not stand long'; I do conceive he meant it of the king. For a matter of two months of the constant residence and being of the army there, I did observe that in the General Council there, and in this private cabal (after the business was broke out, and when the king was taken prisoner, and carried to Windsor), Mr. Peters was the constant man; and when the business broke out, I looked upon it in reason that Cromwell, Ireton, and this gentleman at the bar, and Rich, and that other gentleman, whose name I have forgot, that they were the persons that did the business. My lords, Mr. Peters he continued at Windsor: I remember very well that after the body of the army, the general, and the officers of the army, were gone to London, he continued at Windsor: I remember a passage of one Bacon, who was a sectary; Mr. Peters being in discourse of the king, Mr. Bacon took great distaste at Mr. Peters for some affront put upon the King; Mr. Peters falls upon him, and rails at him, and was ready to beat him; we understood it so, because he did tell him of his affronting the King.