the world, my hearty abhorrence and detestation of them.

'And, first, I ask pardon of God and the king, for having violated my loyalty, by taking most abominable oaths, in defence of usurpation, against my lawful sovereign King James the Third.

'And, as I ask pardon of all whom I have injured or offended, so I do especially desire forgiveness of all those whom I have scandalized by pleading guilty. I am sensible it is a base and dishonorable action, that it is inconsistent with my duty to the king, and an entire surrender of my loyalty. Human frailty, and too great a desire of life, together with the persuasion of several, who pretended to be my friends, were the occasion of it. I trust God, of his infinite mercy, has forgiven me, and I hope all good Christians will. "You see, my countrymen,by my habit, that I die a son, though a very unworthy one, of the Church of England; but I would not have you think I am a member of the schismatical Church, whose bishops set themselves up in opposition to those orthodox fathers who were unlawfully and invalidly deprived by the Prince of Orange. I declare that I renounce that communion, and that I die a dutiful and faithful member of the nonjuring church, which has kept itself free from rebellion and schism, and has preserved and maintained true orthodox principles both as to church and state; and I desire the clergy, and all members of the Revolution Church, to consider what bottom they stand upon, when their suc. cession is grounded upon an unlaw. ful and invalid deprivation of Catholic bishops, the only foundation of which deprivation is a pretended act of parliament.

"Having asked forgiveness for myself, I come now to forgive

others. I pardon those who, ander a notion of friendship, persuaded me to plead guilty. I heartily forgive all my most inveterate enemies, especially the Elector of Hanover, my Lord Townsend, and others, who have been instrumental in promoting my death. Father, forgive them! Lord Jesus, have mercy upon them! and lay not this sin to their charge.

'The next thing I have to do, Christian friends, is to exhort you all to return to your duty. Remember that King James the Third is your only rightful sovereign, by the laws of the land and the constitution of the kingdom; and, therefore, if you would perform the duty of justice to him which is due to all mankind, you are obliged, in conscience, to do all you can to restore him to his crown; for it is his right; and no man in the world, besides himself, can claim a title to it. And, as it is your duty to serve him, so it is your interest; for, till he is restored, the nation can never be happy. You see what miseries and calamities have befallen this nation by the revolution; and I believe you are now convinced, by woeful experience, that swerving from God's laws, and thereby put ting yourselves out of his protec tion, is not the way to secure you from those evils and misfortunes you are afraid of in this world. Before the revolution, you thought your religion, liberties, and proper. ties, in danger; and I pray you to consider how you have preserved them by rebelling: are they not ten times more precarious than ever? who can say he is certain of his life or estate, when he considers the proceedings of the present administration? and, as for your religion, is it not evident that the revolution, instead of keeping out Popery, has let in Atheism? Do not heresies

abound every day? and are not the teachers of false doctrine patronised by the great men in the government? This shows the kindness and affection they have for the church; and, to give you another instance of the respect and reverence they have for it, you are now going to see a priest of the Church of England murdered for doing his duty; for it is not me they strike at so particularly, but it is through me they would wound the priesthood, bring a disgrace upon the gown, and a scandal upon my sacred function. But they would do well to remember that he who despises Christ's priests despises Christ; and he who despises him despises him that sent him.

'And now, beloved, if you have any regard to your country, which lies bleeding under these dreadful extremities, bring the king to his undoubted right: that is the only way to be freed from these misfortunes, and to secure all those rights and privileges which are in danger at present. King James has promised to protect and defend the Church of England; he has given his royal word to consent to such laws which you yourselves shall think necessary to be made for its preservation. And his majesty is a prince of that justice, virtue, and honour, that you have no reason to doubt of the performance of his royal promise. He studies nothing so much as to make you all easy and happy; and, whenever he comes

to his kingdom, I doubt not but you will be so.

I shall be heartily glad, good people, if what I have said has any effect upon you, so as to be instrumental in making you perform your duty. It is out of my power now to do any thing more to serve the king than by employing some of the few minutes I have to live in this world in praying Almighty God to shower down his blessings, spiritual and temporal, upon his head, to protect and restore him, to be favorable to his undertaking, to prosper him here, and to reward him hereafter. I beseech the same infinite goodness to protect and defend the Church of England, and to restore it to all its just rights and privileges; and, lastly, I pray God to have mercy upon me, pardon my sins, and receive my soul into his everlasting kingdom, that, with the patriarchs, prophets, apostles, and martyrs, I may praise and magnify him for ever and ever. Amen.

As to my body, brethren, I have taken no care of it, for I value not that barbarous part of my sentence, of being cut down and quartered. When I am once gone I shall be out of the reach of my enemies; and I wish I had quarters enough to send to every parish in the kingdom, to testify that a clergyman of the Church of England was martyred for being loyal to his king. WM. PAUL.

'July 13, 1716.'

JOHN Hall, Esq. was a justice of the peace for the county of Northumberland, and, having been taken prisoner with the other rebels at Preston, was brought to London, and indicted for having joined, aided, and abetted, the rebels.

Two evidences deposed that he was seen at different places with the rebels: but, in his defence, he said that, having been to a meeting of the justices at Plainfield, he had lodged at a friend's house; and that, on the following day, while

he was stooping on his horse's neck, to screen himself from the tempestuous weather, himself and his servant were surrounded by the rebels, who forced them away; and that he was unarmed, and had only seven shillings and sixpence in his possession.

Though this circumstance was sworn to by Mr. Hall's servant, yet the Court, in the charge to the jury, observed that, If a man was seen with rebels, if it appeared that he had frequent opportunities of escaping, and did not do it, but continued by his presence to abet and comfort them, it was treason within the meaning of the law.'

Now, as it appeared in evidence that Mr. Hall had liberty to ride out when he pleased, and did not seem to be restrained, the jury found him guilty; and, when the Court passed sentence on him, he said, "God's will be done.'

After conviction he was attended by a nonjuring clergyman, and behaved with manly fortitude under his misfortunes: however, he made such interest that he obtained five short reprieves, and might possibly have been pardoned, but that, having written the following speech some weeks before his death, the knowledge thereof is supposed to have reached the Court; for, when a nobleman made application for a pardon, he was answered, By no means, my good lord: it were a pity Mr. Hall should lose the opportunity of leaving such a speech behind him as he gives out will raise the spirits of the whole nation to be of the same mind with him, and will be instrumental in bringing in the person whom he calls his lawful sovereign, King James III.'

Mr. Hall was executed at the same time and place with Mr. Paul; and, a few minutes before he was turned off, he delivered a

paper to the sheriff, which is as follows :—

Friends, Brethren, and Countrymen,

I am come here to die, for the sake of God, my king, and my country; and I heartily rejoice that I am counted worthy of so great an honour for let not any of you think that I am come to a shameful and ignominious end: the truth and justice of the cause for which I suffer make my death a duty, a virtue, and an honour. Remember that I lay down my life for asserting the right of my only lawful sovereign, King James III.; that I offer myself a victim for the liberties and happiness of my dear country, and my beloved fellow-subjects; that I fall a sacrifice to tyranny, oppression, and usurpation. In short, consider that I suffer in the defence of the command of God and the laws, and hereditary constitution of the land; and then know, and be assured, that I am not a traitor, but a martyr.

'I declare that I die a true and sincere member of the Church of England, but not of the revolution schismatical Church, whose bishops have so rebelliously abandoned the king, and so shamefully given up the rights of the church, by submitting to the unlawful invalid laydeprivations of the Prince of Orange. The communion I die in is that of the true Catholic nonjuring Church of England, and I pray God to prosper and increase it, and to grant (if it be his good pleasure) that it may rise again, and flourish.

I heartily beg pardon of all whom I have in any manner, and at any time, injured and offended. I do particularly implore forgiveness of God and my king for having so far swerved from my duty as to comply with the usurpation, in swearing allegiance to it, and act

ing in public posts by the usurper's commissions, which were void of all power and authority. God knows my heart: I did this at first through ignorance and error, but, after I had recollected myself, and informed my judgment better, I repented, and drew my sword for the king, and now submit myself to this violent death for his sake. I heartily pray God my patience and my sufferings may atone for my former crime; and this I beg through the merits, mediation, and sufferings, of my dearest Saviour, Jesus Christ. I do sincerely forgive all my enemies, especially those who have either caused or increased the destruction in church or state; I pray God to have mercy upon them, and spare them, because they are the works of his own hands, and because they are redeemed with his Son's most precious blood. I do particularly forgive, from the bottom of my heart, the Elector of Brunswick, who murders me; my unjust pretended judges and jury, who convicted and condemned me; Mr. Patten and Carnaby, evidences who swore against me at my trial. And I do here declare, upon the words of a dying man (and all my Northumberland fellow-prisoners can testify the same), that the evidence they gave was so far from being the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, that, in relation to my indictment, they swore not one true thing against me, but many absolute falsehoods. I pray God forgive them, for I am sure I do.

Lastly, I forgive all who had a hand in the surrender at Preston, for they have surrendered away my life; and I would to God that were the only bad consequence of it. But, alas! it is too plain that the surrenderers not only ruined many of his majesty's brave and faithful

subjects, but gave up their king and country into the bargain: for it was then in their power to have restored the king with triumph to his throne, and thereby to have made us a happy people. We had repulsed our enemies at every attack, and were ready, willing, and able, to have attacked them.

'On our side, even our common men were brave, courageous, and resolute; on the other hand, theirs were directly the contrary, insomuch that, after they had run away from our first fire, they could never be brought so much as to endeavour to stand a second. This I think myself obliged in justice to mention, that Mr. Wills may not impose upon the world, as if he and his troops had conquered us, and gained the victory; for the truth is, after we had conquered them, our superiors thought fit to capitulate and ruin us: I wish them God's and the king's pardon for it.

May it please God to bless, preserve, and restore our only rightful and lawful sovereign, King James the Third; may he direct his counsels, and prosper his arms; may he bring him to his kingdom, and set the crown upon his head.

'May he protect him from the malice of his enemies, and defend him from those who for a reward would slay him innocent! May he grant him in health and wealth long to live; may he strengthen him, that he may vanquish and overcome all his enemies; and finally, when it pleases his infinite wisdom to take him out of this world, may he take him to himself, and reward him with an everlasting crown of glory in the next.

These, my beloved countrymen, are the sincere prayers, these the last words, of me who am now a dying person; and if you have any regard to the last words of one