by sparing the hoary hairs of the Archbishop from going down to the grave in blood, than by taking his life. They converted him into a saint and a martyr; and occasioned feelings of pity, where only those of indignation and scorn would have been felt. Into the details of his trial we cannot

enter. We are not lawyers enough to pronounce upon the validity of many of the charges brought against him, or on the validity or invalidity of much of his defence. In more moderate times, if such a case could occur in such times, we apprehend such a sentence at least would not have been pronounced, or if pronounced, would not have been inflicted. But long suppressed exasperation could no longer be restrained-It began with Strafford-it fell upon Laud-it rested on Charles.

We give, without any farther remarks, a part of the account of the last scene. It was solemn and touching. May his prayer have been heard, and William Laud found among those whom he had cruelly oppressed and persecuted.

"After these devotions, the Archbishop arose, and gave his papers to Dr. Stern, his chaplain, who accompanied him to the scaffold, saying, Doctor, I give you this, that you may show it to your fellow-chaplains, that they may see how I went out of the world, and God's blessing and mercy be upon you and them.' Then turning to a person named Hinde, whom he perceived busy writing the words of his address, he said, 'Friend, I beseech you, hear me. I cannot say I have spoken every word as it is in my paper, but I have gone very near it, to help my memory as well as I could, but I beseech you, let me have no wrong done me:' intimating that he ought not to publish an imperfect copy. Sir,' replied Hinde, you shall not. If I do so, let it fall upon my own head. pray God have mercy upon your soul.' I thank you,' answered the venerable sufferer; I did not speak with any jealousy as if you would do so, but only,

I

as a poor man going out of the world, it is not possible for me to keep to the words of my paper, and a phrase might do me wrong.

"The Archbishop now prepared for the block, and observing the scaffold crowded with people, he said, 'I scaffold, that I might have had room to thought there would have been an empty die. I beseech you, let me have an end of this misery, for I have endured he said, I will pull off my doublet, and it long.' When the space was cleared, God's will be done. I am willing to go out of the world; no man can be more willing to send me out, than I am willing to be gone.'

he was displaying a magnanimity not "Yet, in this trying moment, when exceeded by the holy martyrs of the primitive ages, he was beset by a furious enthusiast,-one of those revolutionary demagogues who had brought him to this melancholy end. Sir John Clotworthy, a follower of the Earl of Warwick, and an Irishman by birth, irritated because the revilings of the people made no impression on this renowned prelate, propounded to him certain questions, with the hope of exposing him to his associates. What special text of Scripture,' asked he, is now comfortable to a man in his departure?'

Cupio dissolvi, et esse cum Christo,' was the Archbishop's meek reply. That is a good desire,' said the enthusiast,

but there must be a foundation for that divine assurance.'- -No man can express it,' replied the Archbishop, it is to be found within.'-- It is founded upon a word, nevertheless,' said Clotworthy, and that word should be known.' That word,' replied the Archbishop, is the knowledge of Jesus Christ, and that alone.' Perceiving, however, that there would be no end to this indecent interruption, the Primate turned to the executioner, and giving him some money, said, 'Here, honest friend, God forgive thee, and do thine office upon me in mercy.' He was then desired by the executioner to give some sign when he should strike, to which he replied, I will, but first let me fit myself.'

66

The Archbishop then knelt down before the block, and thus prayed: Lord, I am coming as fast as I can. I know I must pass through the shadow of death before I can come to thee; yet it is but umbra mortis, a mere shadow of death, a little darkness upon nature, but thou, by thy merits and passion, hast broke through the jaws of death. So, Lord, receive my soul, and have mercy upon me, and bless this kingdom

et Filius et Spiritus Sanctus, et hii tres unum sunt.

5.

Quoniam tres sunt qui Testimonium dant in terra Spiritus, Aqua et Sanguis, et tres sunt qui testimonium perhibent in Cœlo Pater, Verbum, et Spiritus

Sanctus et hi tres unum sunt. "This last I took from an ancient manuscript in Marsh's library, St. Patrick's, Dublin.

"In the Bible printed by Fradin and Pinard, Paris, 1497, fol. the text is the same with No. 2, only instead of testimonium dant, it read's dant testimonium.

"The reader will observe, that in No. 2, 4, and 5, the eighth verse is put before the seventh, and that 3 and 4 have filius instead of verbum. But both these readings are united in an ancient English manuscript of my own, which contains the Bible from the beginning of Proverbs to the end of the New Testament, written on thick strong vellum, and evidently prior to the time of Wicliff.

such

when St. Thomas Aquinas wrote, from whom this note is taken.

"The following is the whole note literatim :

"Sanctus Thomas in expositione secunde Decretalis de suma Trinitate et fide Catholica tractans istum passum contra Abbatem Joachim ut tres sunt qui testimonium dant in celo Pater Verbum et Spiritus Sanctus: dicit ad Et ad litteram verba sequentia. insinuandam unitatem trium personarum subditur, Et hii tres unum sunt. Quodquidem dicitur propter essentie Unitatem. Sed hoc Joachim perverse trahere volens ad unitatem charitatis et consensus inducebat consequentem auctoritatem. Nam subditur ibidem: Et tres sunt qui testimonium dant in terra, s. Spiritus: Aqua: et Sanguis. Et in quibusdam libris additur: Hii tres unum sunt. Sed hoc in veris exemplaribus non habetur: sed dicitur esse appositum ab hereticis arrianis ad pervertendum intellectum sanum auctoritatis premisse de unitate essentie trium personarum. Hec beatus Thomas ubi supra.'

"If the Complutensian Editors translated the passage into Greek from the Vulgate, it is strange they made no mention of it in this place, where they had so fair an opportunity, while speaking so very pointedly on the doctrine in question; and forming a note for the occasion, which is indeed the only theological note in the whole volume. It is again worthy of note, that when these editors found an important various reading in any of their Greek manuscripts, they noted it in the margin: an example occurs 1 Cor. xvi. 51.— Why was it then that they took no notice of so important an omission as the text of the three witnesses, if they really had no manuscript in which it was contained? Did they intend to deceive the

reader, and could they possibly imagine that the knavery should never be detected? If they designed to deceive, they took the most effectual way to conceal the fraud, as it is probable they destroyed the manuscripts from which they printed their text; for the story of their being sold in 1749 to a rocket-maker, (see Michaelis, vol. ii. p. 440,) is every way so exceptionable and unlike the truth, that I really wonder there should be found any person who would seriously give it credit. It is more likely the manuscripts were destroyed at first, or that they are still kept secret, to prevent the forgery (if it be one) of the text of the three witnesses from being detected; or the librarian already mentioned may have converted them to his own use. If they were not destroyed by the Complutensian editors, I should not be surprized if the same manuscripts should come to light in some other part of the world, if not in the Alcala library itself."*

It is worthy of notice in this part of this important controversy, that Dr. Clarke's suspicion of the story of the rocket-maker, who is alleged to have purchased the MSS., from which the Complutensian Edition was formed, and who was of course supposed to have exploded them long ago, turns out to be well founded; and his anticipation that they might one day be discovered, has at length been realized. I copy the following passage from a pamphlet recently published by Dr.

Smith.

"Mr. T. quotes the Bishop of Peterborough's third edition of his translation of Michaelis, to show that the learned Bishop has changed his opinion, and now believes the manuscripts from which

* Pp. 92–97.

the Complutensian text was taken, to have been more ancient and valuable than, agreeably to the general opinion, he had before supposed. This is, however, a matter which does not at all affect our argument. Undoubtedly, for reasons of critical curiosity and satisfaction, we should be gratified by knowing the character and history of the Alcala manuscripts; yet there is the highest moral certainty that this knowledge would do nothing more than confirm what is already well enough known. In fact, the matter is established: for there is good reason to believe that the learned Germans, Moldenhauer, and Tychsen, were the subjects of an imposition practised. upon them by some people in the Spanish University, who were not disposed to permit their manuscript treasures to be scrutinized by Protestants. A gentleman with whom I have the honour of acquaintance, well known as a friend of rational freedom and a sufferer in its cause, and whose extraordinary talents as a linguist and a poet have eminently enriched our literature, John Bowring, Esq., has spent much time in Spain, and was the intimate friend of the most enlightened, learned, and patriotic men in that country, during its enjoyment of the blessing, (of which it has been so basely and cruelly robbed!) of a constitutional government. He had the opportunity of carefully examining the manuscripts at Alcala; he has published reasons amounting to a demonstration that no sale or destruction of manuscripts ever took place; by his personal examination he found THE SAME Scripture manuscripts which had been described as being in the library, by Alvaro Gomez, who died in 1580; and he adds, That the manuscripts referred to are modern and valueless, there can be no longer any ques