this moment, there is now no doubt, had excited great attention. Crumwell will be seen, presently, to ground his foreign correspondence upon them; and by the man's own account in 1539, the King himself had conversed particularly with him. "His Majesty reasoned with me himself almost nine years ago,"-and Constantyne then presumed to form his own opinion of the depth of the King's learning. But More was the chief cross-examinator, and Constantyne, very harshly treated, was now at the lowest point of degradation throughout his varied life. Very strange indeed were the changes that took place in these times. How astonished would the Chancellor have been, could he have been informed of the future path of the person he then held in irons! But Sir Thomas was not aware that he was now conversing with a man who should return to England after his death; who should get into the service of Sir Henry Norris, and thus become intimately acquainted with the Court; who should be present at the death of Henry's now intended Queen; and, moreover, whose son-in-law should rise to be Archbishop of York, (the very place that Wolsey himself once occupied,) nay, and become President of Queen Elizabeth's Council for the North of England!

The Chancellor is represented by one manuscript, as having put Constantyne in the stocks;7 but by a subsequent letter it will appear, that this was another way of expressing that he was in irons. Sir Thomas, by his official severity, at last constrained the man, through fear, to affirm much more than he could have substantiated, respecting people abroad, including even Mr. Vaughan, the English Envoy, himself; and as these forced confessions came out, they soon found their way across the sea. The Chancellor had an evil eye fixed upon Vaughan, as having been far from that rigour which would have gratified him; while, on the other hand, the Envoy, displeased with the freedom now used with his character, immediately wrote to Crumwell on hearing the first rumours, desiring to know what Constantyne had said of him.8

Crumwell himself, however, now writes to Antwerp, once and again counselling the Envoy; as men of violent spirit abroad

7 Manuscript Life of More, edited by Dr. Wordsworth.

8 Cotton MS., Titus, B. i., fol. 368.

alone could satisfy the violent at home. But in the meanwhile, to the no small mortification of our Lord Chancellor, Constantyne contrived to escape from his iron chain, and, sailing for the Continent, he arrived in safety at Antwerp, on the 6th of December!

Vaughan, by this time, was effectually roused; and in an interesting and noble letter, dated 9th December, 1531, only three days after Constantyne had reached his home, he remonstrates with Crumwell, his patron, for allowing any suspicion of heresy to rest on his conduct. In order to compass the ends of the commission with which he was charged, his policy had been various; among the Jews, a Jew; among Lutherans, a Lutheran. "What can I do here," says he, "without such policy? Shall such policy hurt me because I used it to compass other things?" He therefore prays to be removed from such a service, where the only possible way of prosecuting it successfully involved the Agent in so much danger. He was well aware of the personal dislike with which he and his proceedings were viewed by Sir Thomas More, who, by leading questions in examining his victims, showed whom he wished them to impliIt was thus his good name had fared ill in the hand of Constantyne, who, in the hope of liberty, would be willing to accuse one to whom he was under no obligation. He adds some nobler sentiments on the subject of persecution for conscience' sake, which he shows only tended to spread the doctrines so obnoxious to those in power, and to raise the character of those persecuted for them. "Let His Majesty be farther assured," says he, "that he will with no policy, nor with no threatenings of tortures and punishments, take away the opinions of his people, till His Grace shall, fatherly and lovingly, reform the Clergy of his realm. For there springeth the opinion. From thence riseth the grudge of his people. If I say truth, let it be for such received."

cate.

It may here be called to mind that we have already seen one English envoy in no small perplexity, and forced to move from his ground, in consequence of his zeal in opposing this great cause; but here we have the second, and in greater perplexity still. Eager to gratify his impetuous Sovereign, and his no less temporising superior, Master Crumwell, the man had, in truth, been only doing his utmost. But being at once no favourite of

Sir Thomas More (nor he assuredly of Vaughan), and, at the same time, the pupil of Crumwell, by whom he had been recommended to Henry; between the two, this ambassador was now in a maze. After such sound advice as he had tendered to bis King, and all around him; after such fine sentiments as he had now so well expressed; one cannot but regret to find, in the end, that through his "divers policies" he had been only one of those of whom the Scriptures speak-"they have made them crooked paths: whosoever goeth therein, shall not know peace."

It may only be stated here that Constantyne again went on, importing books: but it will be remembered that we have given these instances, merely as a characteristic specimen of this sad year. "For why stand I here," says Foxe in one place, "numbering the sand ?" And again, "So great was the trouble of those times, that it would overcharge any story to recite the names of all them, which during those bitter days, before the coming in of Queen Anne, either were driven out of the realm, or were cast out from their goods and houses, or brought to open shame by abjuration. Yet, nevertheless, so mightily the power of God's gospel did work in the hearts of good men, that the number of them did nothing lessen for all this violence and policy of the adversaries; but rather increased in such sort, as our story almost suffereth not to recite the particular names of all and singular such as then groaned under the persecution of those days." But still besides those whose names are given, there must have been many who were never detected.

By these furious proceedings, the deep interest abroad, not one whit diminished, was increased, and in more places than one, for of course the parties molested fled to different ports. But on the 30th of December, Vaughan concludes the year, by giving us the result, so far as his own residence and neighbourhood were concerned. In a letter, as before addressed, to Crumwell, he reports that "divers, as well men as women, whose persons or names I know not, nor will know, be fled out of England, for fear of punishment; bringing with them all that ever they can make. So that by this means, it is likely that new Tyndales shall spring, or worse than he. But I am utterly determined, henceforth, never to intermeddle, or to have any communication, with any one of them; but shall rather give place to some other man, which, peradventure, shall have better

luck than I hitherto have had; whom they go about thus unkindly to threaten, beat, rend, and tear for my service."9

Vaughan, it is evident, was now thoroughly frightened, yet he need not have greatly "marvelled." The reports respecting. him, must, of necessity, have been very contradictory, and the miserable plight, of which he complained so loudly, was nothing more than the natural result of those "divers policies," which he had dreamt to be the fruit of wisdom, or the evidence of his superior talent. He never wrote again on this subject. The truth was, he was at once alarmed for himself, and disgusted with the proceedings at home; yet he retained his station, long survived Sir Thomas More, and remained on the Continent for years. But if Henry the Eighth be still resolved to have agents out in pursuit of Tyndale, he must find some other man than Mr. Vaughan. Already we have seen a Friar, and two Ambassadors, completely foiled, and disappointed of their prey; though still the long pursuit is not even yet at an end! In the persons of her rulers at this period, no nation upon earth had surpassed Britain, in her opposition to Divine truth.

MDXXXII.

TYNDALE'S PROGRESS-EXPOSITION IN MATTHEW-HIS SENTIMENTS UNDER PERSECUTION THE KING NOT APPEASED RENEWED PURSUIT OF TYNDALE-NOW BY SIR THOMAS ELYOT-STILL IN VAIN-PERSECUTION GOES ON-BAINHAMLATIMER-MORE AGAINST TYNDALE-FRYTH ARRIVES IN ENGLAND-IN PERIL

-IN THE TOWER-WRITING THERE IN DEFENCE OF THE TRUTH, AND ADDRESSING THE CHRISTIANS IN ENGLAND.

B

AD Tyndale been only left unmolested, or left to proceed with the Scriptures, he would, unquestionably, have had some additional portion finished at press; but since the year 1528 the reader may now judge of his situation. Already he had given the New Testament, the Pentateuch, and the Prophet Jonah, to his native

land. The work of translation, or the joy of his heart, he still pursued, but without due deliberation he would not employ the press. Our English exile fled for protection to no foreign prince; nor had he the aid of eminent literary assist

9 Galba, B. x., fol. 25.

ants, like his contemporary Martin Luther. If he had hitherto enjoyed the assistance and fellowship of only John Fryth, this was soon to be withdrawn, by his journey to the martyr's stake in England; and though labouring under the frown of his own monarch, as well as that of all his counsellors and bishops, on he went.

Meanwhile, he had one solitary encouragement. He well knew that whatever he put forth from the press, excited immediate notice; for, in fact, every thing he had yet published, had enjoyed the honour of being denounced in England, and interdicted both by royal and priestly authority. The only piece unnoticed as not being so, his "Exposition of the Epistle of John," was this year added to the catalogue, and reprobated in print, by the Lord Chancellor.

Our Lord's Sermon on the Mount, in the gospel by Matthew, now engaged Tyndale's attention, as demanding to be expounded, owing to the errors which still reigned triumphant ; and his exposition first came out some time this year. In this fundamental portion of the Sacred Volume, he represents the Saviour as "opening the kingdom of heaven," which the enemies "had shut up, that other men should not enter."

Before this, we have had occasion to observe that Tyndale was almost immediately in possession of whatever was transacted in England; more especially by the King, and his obsequious or subdued Parliament; and, of course, he must have been fully aware of their doings in the spring of last year. His opinion of the change for which Henry and Crumwell had been so eager, may be inferred from various passages now put forth. Already he had shown himself a most loyal subject, and an ardent admirer of good government; in desiring, above all things, that his King and country should be rescued from spiritual thraldom: but in desiring this, he was no less ardent in drawing the line of distinction between the world and the Church. As to the latter, he longed for its restoration to its original spirituality, and simple grandeur; and as to his much loved native land, that the throne should be established on a safe and righteous basis. But the truth was, the King was yet to be born whom Tyndale wished to see. "No King, Lord or Master, or whatever ruler he be, hath absolute power in this world, nor is the very thing