as a greater freedom from his country cares, the advantage of a better fociety, and a more liberal penfion than his country parfonage did afford him. But these reasons were not powerful enough to incline him to a willing acceptance of it: his wish was rather to gain a better country living, where he might "fee God's "bleffing fpring out of the earth, and be "free from noife," (fo he expreffed the defire of his heart,)"and eat that bread which "he might more properly call his own, in "privacy and quietnefs." But, notwithftanding this averfenefs, he was at last perfuaded to accept of the Bishop's propofal, and was by a patent for life made Matter of the Temple the 17th of March,

a This you may find in the Temple Records. Will. Ermstead was Mafter of the Temple at the diffolution of the Priory, and died 2 Eliz.

Richard Alvy, Bat. Divinity, Pat. 13 Feb. 2 Eliz. Magifter five Cuftos Domûs et Ecclefiæ novi Templi, died 27 Eliz.

Richard Hooker fucceeded that year by patent, in terminis, as Alvy had it, and he left it 33 Eliz.

That year Dr. Belgey fucceeded Richard Hooker.

1585, he being then in the 34th year of

his age.

And here I fhall make a stop; and, that the reader may the better judge of what follows, give him a character of the times, and temper of the people of this nation, when Mr. Hooker had his admiffion into this place; a place which he accepted, rather than defired: and yet here he promised himself a virtuous quietness, that bleffed tranquillity which he always prayed and laboured for, that so he might in peace bring forth the fruits of peace, and glorify God by uninterrupted prayers and praises. For this he always thirsted and prayed: but Almighty God did not grant it; for his admiffion into this place was the very beginning of those oppofitions and anxieties, which till then this good man was a ftranger to; and of which the reader may guess by what follows.

In this character of the times I fhall, by the reader's favour, and for his information, look fo far back as to the beginning of the reign of Queen Elizabeth ; a time,

in which the many pretended titles to the crown, the frequent treafons, the doubts of her fucceffor, the late civil war, and the fharp perfecution for religion that raged to the effufion of fo much blood in the reign of Queen Mary, were fresh in the memory of all men; and begot fears in the most pious and wifeft of this nation, left the like days fhould return again to them, or their prefent pofterity. And the apprehenfion of thefe dangers begot a hearty defire of a fettlement in the Church and State; believing there was no other probable way left to make them fit quietly under their own vines and fig-trees, and enjoy the defired fruit of their labours. But time, and peace, and plenty, begot felf-ends; and these begot animofities, envy, oppofition, and unthankfulness for those very bleffings for which they lately thirsted, being then the very utmost of their defires, and even beyond their hopes.

This was the temper of the times in the beginning of her reign; and thus it continued too long; for those very people

that

peace; and more like the Devil, who is not a glutton, nor can be drunk, and yet is a Devil : but I mean thofe fpiritual wickedneffes of malice and revenge, and an oppofition to government: men that joyed to be the authors of mifery, which is properly his work that is the enemy and disturber of mankind; and thereby greater finners than the glutton or drunkard, though fome will not believe it. And of this party there were also many, whom prejudice and a furious zeal had fo blinded, as to make them neither to hear reafon, nor adhere

to the ways of peace; men, that were the very dregs and peft of mankind; men, whom pride and felf-conceit had made to overvalue their own pitiful crooked wifdom fo much, as not to be ashamed to hold foolish and unmannerly disputes against those men whom they ought to reverence, and thofe laws which they ought to obey; men, that laboured and joyed first to find out the faults, and then to speak evil of government, and to be the authors of confufion; men, whom company, and converfation, and cuftom had at laft fo blinded, and made fo infen

VOL. I.

T

fible

fible that these were fins, that, like thofe that perished in the gainfaying of Core, fo thefe died without repenting of these fpiritual wickednesses; of which the practices of Coppinger and Hacket in their lives, and the death of them and their adherents, are, God knows, too fad examples, and ought to be cautions to those men that are inclined to the like spiritual wickedneffes.

And in these times, which tended thus to confufion, there were also many of these fcruple-mongers, that pretended a tendernefs of conscience, refufing to take an oath before a lawful magiftrate: and yet these very men in their fecret conventicles did covenant and fwear to each other, to be affiduous and faithful in ufing their best endeavours to fet up the Presbyterian doctrine and difcipline; and both in fuch a manner as they themselves had not yet agreed on; but, up that government must. To which end there were many that wandered up and down, and were active in fowing difcontents and fedition, by venomous and fecret murmurings, and a difperfion of

fcur