Wherein shee stain’d the Spaniards; they did nought
[X. 479.]But what revenge, on slaughter’d sorrow wrought:
Thus, they who turn’d her, went themselves astray,
And shee though ignorant, trac’d the Christian way:
For which great God reward her make her Soule
As white within, as she without is foule;
And if I might, as reason knowes I would
Her love, and praise, my deeds should crowne with gold.
Now about the middle of Lent, Hazier, my former Friend, was appoynted to attend me agayne, suspecting Ellenors compassion; but as my miseries were multiplied, my Patience in God was redoubled: For men are rather killed with the impatience they have in adversity, then adversity it selfe: And of all men, that man is most An impatient man in trouble is a triple torture.unhappy, to whom God in his troubles hath not given Patience; for as the violent enemy of age is griefe, so is the mindes impatiency, the arch-corruptor of all our troubles: But indeede in the weakenesse of judgement, when men seeme lost by long affliction to themselves, then they are often and ever neerest to God: for who would have thought, that I who had seene so many sects and varieties of Religion, dispersed over the face of the earth, could have stucke fast to any religion at all; Travailers being reputed to be Ubique et omnibus parati. But I will tell thee Christian, it was the grace of God in me, and not mine: For as fire lying hid under ashes, and touch’d will flame; so I seeming to my selfe carelesse of Christianity, then God pricking my Conscience made tryall of my Faith: For Christ forbid, that every Shippe which coasteth the rockey shoare, should leave her ruines there.
This I speake not for any selfe-prayse, but to glorifie God, and to condemne the rash censures of opinion, and [X. 480.]with Phocion, I mistrust my selfe, because of popular applause: Erubuit quasi peccasset quod placuerit: But now to abbreviate a thousand Circumstances of my Lamentable sufferings, which this Volume may not suffer to containe: By Gods great providence, about a fortnight before Easter, Anno 1621. there came a Spanish Cavaliere of Grenada to Malaga, whom the Governour one night invited to Supper, being of old acquaintance: where after Supper to intertayne Discourse, the Governour related and Gods great mercy in my first discovery by a stranger.disclosed to the stranger (God working thereby my discovery and deliverance) all the proceedings and causes of my first apprehending, my Confessions, Torments, starvings, their mistaking of the English Fleete, and finally the wresting of the Inquisition upon me, and their Condemnatory Sentence seeming also much to Lament my mis-fortunes, and praysing my Travailes and Deserts.