"Was pleased to dress up the principles of the Presbyterians in a frightful shape; but let me tell you, Sir, in my turn, that the principles of your party have been burnt, not by a rude and lawless rabble, but by the common hangman, in broad day-light, before the Royal Exchange in London, and by authority of Parliament. Perhaps," he continues, "you never heard of this contemptuous treatment of the Oxford principles, and therefore I will give it you from the Parliamentary Records:—'Anno Domini 1710. The House of Lords, taking into consideration the judgment and decree of the University of Oxford, passed in their Convocation July 21, 1683,—it was resolved by the Lords Spiritual and Temporal in Parliament assembled, that the said judgment and decree contains in it several positions contrary to the Constitution of this kingdom, and destructive to the Protestant Succession as by law established. And it was thereupon ordered, by the Lords Spiritual and Temporal in Parliament assembled, that the said judgment and decree shall be burnt by the hands of the common hangman before the Royal Exchange, between hours of twelve and one, on Monday the 17th March, in the presence of the Lord Mayor of the City of London,' &c."
Doleman's Conference about the next Succession to the Crown of England, reprinted at N. with licence, in 1681, was, in 1683, condemned by the University of Oxford, and burnt by the common hangman.
In the above examples I have confined myself to those books, &c. only which were expressly consigned to the flames by the hangman. The instances of book-burning where this indignity was either not imposed, or its infliction not recorded, are numerous. Among the curiosities of literature of Elizabeth's reign, were certain books ascribed to a Dutchman, by name Henry Nicholas, translated into English, and probably imported from the Low Countries. This person, imbibing the "damnable heresies" of David George, of Leyden, became the apostle of a sect who styled themselves "The Family of Love," and their fanatical books becoming obnoxious to the dominant party, they were, by proclamation, ordered to be burnt; and, as such manifestations of the royal will usually ran, all persons were held punishable for having them in their possession. (See Herbert's Ames.) As an example of the spiritual power thus dealing with a book, apparently upon its own authority, the following may be offered:—Servetus de Trinitate, &c. (London, 1723.) This edition, which is without name of place or printer, and without date, was printed by Palmer for Osborne the bookseller; but, as soon as completed was seized at the instance of Dr. Gibson, Bishop of London, and burnt, with the exception of a very few copies. (Davis' Journey round the Library, &c.) The last unfortunate book I shall mention is the Metrical Psalms of Dod; which was also, most likely, an episcopal seizure. Mr. Holland, in his Psalmists of Britain, quoting from George Withers' Scholler's Purgatory, says, "Dod the silkman's late ridiculous translation of the Psalms was, by authority, worthily condemned to the fire," and, judging from its extreme scarcity, I should say very few escaped.
J. O.
I have not seen in your list of martyred books the following, in the year A.D. 1684: A Plea for the Nonconformists, by Thomas De Laune, Gentleman. He died in Newgate, during his imprisonment for the book, in pursuance of the following sentence:
"Ad General. Quartercal. Session. Pacis Dom. Regis tent. pro Civitat. London per adjornament, apud Justice-hall in le Old Bayly, die Mercurii Scil. Decimo Sexto die January, Anno Regis Caroli Secundi cundi nunc Ang. &c.
"Thomas De Laune Convict. pro illicite Scribend. Imprimend. et Publicand. Libel. Seditios. dert. concernen. librum Communis præcationis. Fin. 100 Marc. Et committit, etc.! Et ulterius quousq; Inven. bon. de se bene gerend. per spacium Unius Anni Integri ex tunc prox. sequen. Et quad libel. sedit. cum igne Combust. sint apud Excambium Regal. in London, et si Del. Sol. 5 shil. Wagstaffe."
In a letter containing a narrative of his trial and imprisonment, written by him from prison, occur many touches of humour. In his remarks on the sentence he says,—
"The six shillings to be paid on my discharge is to the hangman, for the faggots, I suppose."
"The Court told us that, in respect to our education as scholars, we should not be pillory'd, though ('twas said) we deserved it.... We were sent back to our confinement, and the next execution-day our books were burnt WITH FIRE (not with water, you must note), and we continue here; but, since I writ this, Mr. Ralphson had a supersedeas by death to a better place!"
In his account he affirms that, on his own confession of being the author of The Plea, and because he could find no bail, he was committed to Newgate—
"Lodged among the felons, whose horrid company made a perfect representation of that horrible place which you describe when you mention hell. A hard bench was my bed, and two bricks my pillow. But after two days and nights, without any refreshment, the unusualness of that society and place having impaired my health, which at the very best is tender, and crazy, I was removed, and am now in the press-yard, a place of some sobriety, though still a prison ubi nihil amabile est!"