gon of a ruler? What an immaculate patriarch of the "reformed people" But do you really believe this tale, reader?" Do you really think the one party so grossly unjust, and the other so conscientiously innocent? But to the narrative. One would suppose that this submission would have been sufficient to have gratified the most obdurate heart; but no, John Fox knew the capability of his reader's mind, and his modern editors seems to have as high an opinion of the capacity of their reader's credulity, or they would not have ventured to impose these absurdities upon them. The legate, however, who is . here commander in chief and civil governor too, is not satisfied; he must have seven of the strongest castles as securities for the earl's good behaviour, though he had been long before dispossessed of his property, unless indeed the bishops' excommunications and commands were disregarded by the people, and then what becomes of the power of the pope? The eyes of the earl, we are told, were now opened, and he saw his error, but it was too late, and away went his castles. Well, the legate, like a cautious general, and he seems to have understood military tactics better than ecclesiastical discipline, by a happy stroke of legerdemain, instantly transforms the earl's subjects into subjects of the pope, and the governors of the castles are astonished, yes "greatly astonished," to find "themselves compelled to act in a manner so contrary "to their inclinations and consciences." Bless us! what pretty consciences the "reformed people" had in those days. The primitive martyrs could not be compelled to violate their consciences. Dungeons, tortures, and death, had no effect on them; they suffered all with invincible constancy, in which example they were followed by the Catholics when persecuted by "Protestant-ascendency;" but here, it is said, the pope's legate could make these lords and governors of the "reformed people" act against their consciences, without any resistance on their part. Those who will believe this account will believe any thing. In conclusion, the poor earl is whipped round the grave of the friar, made to swear obedience to the pope, to conform to the church of Rome, to make interminable war against his innocent subjects, the Albigenses, and moreover, installed by compulsion inspector general of the siege of a fortified town in which the Albigenses had taken refuge!!!! Now, reader, what is your opinion of John Fox? Do you not think him a complete master of the art of falsification? But what must we think of the mental faculties of those who have so long looked upon his Book of Martyrs as a specimen of historical veracity? What but prejudice the most clouded, and bigotry the most bloated, could induce any one to credit such a mass of palpable absurdity and improbability as we have here dissected?

But it is time we should lay before the reader a more faithful and authenticated account of the origin of these unhappy transactions. The Rev. Alban Butler writes thus:-" Charles the bald, king of France, in "855, made Raymund, son of the governor of Toulouse, hereditary governor and count, reserving only a homage to be paid to himself and successors. Raymund V. the tenth sovereign count of Toulouse, duke "of Narbonne, and marquis of Provence, died a zealous Catholic, in 1194, "His son Raymund VI. openly protected these impious heretics, who "in armed troops expelled the bishops, priests, and monks, demolished

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"monasteries, and plundered churches. They were also countenanced "in their seditions and violences by the earls of Foix and Comminge, "the viscount of Bearn, and other princes in those parts. Pope Inuo"cent III, ordered Arnold, abbot of Citeaux, to employ his monks in "preaching against these heretics in Languedoc, Accordingly twelve "abbots of that order were charged with that commission, But the "princes opposed their endeavours, and Peter of Chateau-nuef, a Cis"tercian monk, the pope's legate in Languedoc, who exerted his authority against the heretics, was assassinated on the banks of the "Rhone, near the town of St. Giles's, where he and some other missionaries were coming out from a conference with the count of Toulouse, in 1208. The pope excommunicated the murderers, and especially the count of Toulouse, who was looked upon as the principal author; and exhorted Philip Augustus, king of France, and the lords "of that kingdom, to raise a crusade against the Albigenses and the "said count.' By this statement, which is gathered by Mr. Butler from the most ancient and authentic historians, a different colour is given to the conduct of the conscientious earl of Toulouse and his dear innocent subjects. It is here stated that the Albigenses were the originators of the disorders which produced such scenes of carnage and blood as stain the annals of that period. One of the opinions held out by these people was, that the clergy had no right to temporalities; the fruits of which opinions we see, were the demolition of monasteries and the plundering of churches. In these outrages the people were encouraged by the earl of Toulouse, a feudatory lord to the king of France, who, no doubt, thought it a fine opportunity to add to his fortune at the expense of the church, as our reformers of the sixteenth century did. Thus it was not the murder of the legate only, as Fox represents, but the previous seditions and violences of a lawless horde of impious desperadoes, that occasioned the crusade entered into to put them down. And even force was not attempted until the power of persuasion was found to be unavailing. Again it is here stated that the king of France was exhorted by the pope to raise an army to restore the seditious to obedience; but Fox makes the pope and his legate not only the raisers but the directors of the army. Of course this was done to "excite a hatred and abborrence of the (pretended) crimes and corrup"tions of Popery and its professors;" and to accomplish this act of Christian charity, an adherence to truth was not at all necessary on the part of John Fox, and his modern editors. Not a word does Fox mention of the sending preachers to reclaim the misguided people from their errors, which was the province of the head of the church and father of the faithful; not a syllable of the excesses committed by the seduced multitude before the force of arms was applied to subdue them; no, this was not his object, because then it would have been clearly seen that the measures taken to repress the outrages were only measures of defence and security, whereas John Fox wanted to make them measures of persecution. In this account by Mr. Butler there is every appearance of truth. He gives us names and dates, and his language has none of that high-colouring which distinguishes Fox's relation. It is clear that the Albigenses were the occasion of the crusade by the excesses they committed. These excesses they were not con

tent to perpetrate in their own country, but they overran several other provinces in bodies of from four and five to eight thousand men, laying towns in waste, pillaging the country, and furthering the priests, some of whom they flayed alive. Father Parsons, in his reply to Fox, says, that they were guilty of the most beastly and filthy actions in the churches, committing fornication therein and other acts of immorality. Now, we will here ask the "few plain Christians" if any set of men. were to be guilty of the like offences in this country and in these days, whether all parties would not unite in reducing them by force of arms. to subjection, and punish the ringleaders with death? Whether the military would not be instantly sent against them to prevent their further progress and outrages? And whether any man would be besotted enough to call such a mode of preventing robbery, sacrilege and murder, a religious persecution? Had the Albigenses confined them-selves to opinions, and not violated the bounds of decency and disturbed the peace of society, they would not have been the objects of military vengeance, but would have been reclaimed by the usual arguments of the church, persuasion and truth; but as the fruits of their opinions shewed themselves in acts of violence and injustice, and as they refused to listen to the voice of reason, the civil authorities found themselves necessitated to repel force by force, and this is the persecution which bigotry is ever and anon bellowing in the ears of the ignorant and credulous, to inspire "a hatred and abhorrence of the (pretended) corrup"tions and crimes of Popery and its professors;" or, in other words, to excite a hatred and abhorrence against that church in which the real truths of religion are to be found.

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Fox next gives an account of the "Siege of Bezieres," and in such exaggerated terms that we lay it before our readers, as another specimen of the little regard paid by this historian to the rational faculties of his readers. He writes, "The army, however, proceeded to besiege Bezieres; and the earl of Bezieres, who was governor of that city, "thinking it impossible to defend the place, came out, and presenting "himself before the legate, implored mercy for the inhabitants; intimating, that there were as many Roman Catholics as Albigenses in "the city. The legate replied, that all excuses were useless; the place must be delivered up at discretion, or the most dreadful consequen66 ces would ensue. The earl of Bezieres returning into the city, told "the inhabitants he could obtain no mercy, unless the Albigenses would abjure their religion, and conform to the worship of the church of "Rome. The Roman Catholics pressed the Albigenses to comply with "this request; but the Albigenses nobly answered, that they would "not forsake their religion for the base price of their frail life; that "God was able, if he pleased, to defend them; but if he would be glo"rified by the confession of their faith, it would be a great honour to "them to die for his sake. They added, that they had rather displease "the pope, who could but kill their bodies, than God, who could cast "both body and soul into hell. On this the Popish party, finding their "importunities ineffectual, sent their bishop to the legate, beseeching "him not to include them in the chastisement of the Albigenses; and representing, that the best means to win the latter over to the Roman "Catholic persuasion,, was by gentleness, and not by rigour. The le

gate upon hearing this, flew into a violent passion with the bishop, " and declared that, If all the city did not acknowledge their fault, they should taste of one curse without distinction of religion, sex,

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or age.'

Here the legate is again represented as the most bloodthirsty and cruel of monsters. He is still commander-in-chief and director of all the military operations. Inexorable alike to the Catholics and Albigenses, nothing can move him to mercy, nothing satisfy him but slaughter and destruction. The Catholics and Albigenses are equally balanced, just as many of the one as the other, and then how kind to each other. The Catholics pressing the Albigenses to abjure their religion; pretty religion truly that taught them to destroy churches and murder priests. Then the Albigenses nobly refuse to "forsake their religion for the base price of their frail life: that God was able, if he pleased, to defend them; but if he would be glorified by the confes"sion of their faith, it would be a great honour to them to die for his "sake." What cant and hypocrisy is this! Pretty confessors of the faith, truly, to teach that marriage was unlawful, and practice the most indecent acts. But if they wished to be glorified by the confession of their faith, why did they not follow the example of the primitive martyrs, who were glorified by the confession of Christ's faith? These holy men did not resort to fire and sword to propagate and defend the faith they had received from the apostles, though they continued stoutly to maintain the truths revealed to them by word of mouth and writing, but no further. They inculcated the necessity of practising every moral virtue, and submitting to lawful authority; whereas we have shewn that John Fox's new confessors of the faith preached and practiced the most abominable vices. Well, but the Catholics finding the Albigensian confessors obstinate, sent their bishop to the legate, "be

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seeching him not to include them in the chastisement of the Albigenses;" and they moreover took the liberty to represent to the legate, through the bishop," that the best means to win the latter over to the Roman Catholic persuasion, was by gentleness, and not by rigour." This sensible hint, we are told, put the legate into a violent passion with the bishop, and he declared that "if all the city did not acknowledge their fault, they should taste of one curse without distinction of religion, sex, or age."-Now if this character of the legate were true; if these barbarous and unjustifiable proceedings were occasioned by the principles of the Catholic religion, as the bigots of ascendency insinuate; if the Albigenses were such innocent and good men, as John Fox represents them to be; is it not, gentle reader, a subject of astonishment with you, as it is with us, that the Catholics did not become disgusted with a religion that could instigate the representative of the head of their church to become such a monster of cruelty, and instantly renounce so horrible a system? yet we do not find that this was the case, but on the contrary, while the crusaders were contending against the Albigenses in the south of France, Pomerania, Finland, Sweden, and the northern nations were receiving the Christian faith from Catholic missionaries.

It is but too true that cruel excesses were committed by the crusaders on taking the town of Bezieres, but not by the direction of the

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legate. The earl of Toulouse had then made his peace with the powers assembled, and the army having nothing to do, siege was laid to Bezieres, where the Albigenses had fortified themselves, which being taken by assault, the inhabitants were barbarously put to the sword.Fox says, 60,000 persons were murdered; the Rev. Alban Butler reduces the number to one-fourth. This latter writer, speaking of this and other transactions of the crusaders, says, "The inhumanity of which action is not to be palliated, though the inhabitants of that " town were robbers and murderers, and guilty of all manner of crimes, as Peter of Vaux-Sernay (c. 16.) and, from him, Fleury observe; ." and though the innocent perished by their own fault by refusing to separate themselves from the guilty, when required so to do.... "Crimes and seditions (Mr. B. continues,) are not to be punished or "revenged by other crimes. Avarice, ambition, or revenge in many, "only covered themselves under a cloak of zeal for religion."-These just sentiments are those of every Catholic writer, and are conformable to the genuine principles of the Catholic church. How unjust and disgraceful then must that conduct be, which charges the Catholic religion with the crimes and excesses arising from the worst passions of -human nature, and which that religion was established by God himself to curb and conquer.

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To enter into an exposure of the whole of the misrepresentations and exaggerations, fictions and falsehoods, of Fox, in his account of the Waldenses and Albigenses would require a bulky volume, we must therefore be content with a few of the most prominent instances of his utter disregard of veracity as an historian. The following account is given under the head, "CRUELTIES OF THE POPE, AND ARTIFICES OF DOMINIC." When the pope (writes Fox) found that these cruel means ." had not the desired effect, he determined to try others of a milder na." ture; he therefore sent several learned monks to preach among the "Waldenses, and induce them to change their opinions. Among these "monks was one Dominic, who appeared extremely zealous in the cause of popery. He instituted an order, which, from him, was called "the order of Dominican friars; and the members of this order have ever since been the principal inquisitors in every country into which "that horrid tribunal (the inquisition) has been introduced. Their power was unlimited; they proceeded against whom they pleased, "without any consideration of age, sex, or rank. However infamous "the accusers, the accusation was deemed valid; and even anonymous "informations were thought sufficient evidence. The dearest friends or kindred could not, without danger, serve any one who was imprisoned on account of religion; to convey to those who were con-“fined a little straw, or give them a cup of water, was called favouring "the heretics; no lawyer dared to plead even for his own brother, or notary register any thing in favour of the reformed. The malice of "the papists indeed, went beyond the grave, and the bones of many Waldenses, who had been long dead, were dug up and burnt. If a man on his death-bed were accused of being a follower of Waldo, his "estates were confiscated, and the heir defrauded of his inheritance: " and some were even obliged to make pilgrimages to the Holy Land, "while the Dominicans took possession of their houses and property, "which they refused to surrender to the owners upon their return."