MIRACLE upon MIRACLE. Or A true Relation of the great Floods which happened in Coventry, in Lynne, and other places, on the 16. and 17. days of April last passed, in this present year of our Lord God, 1607.  
Printed at London for Nathanael-Fosbrook. and john Wright. 1607.   

A true Relation of the great Floods which happened in Coventry in the county of Warwick. In Lynne in the County of Norfolk. In Stopworth in the County of Chester, and in Sheppy, and other places in the County of Kent, all which happened on the 16 and 17. days of April last passed in this present year of our Lord God. 1607.  
WHen I enter into the consideration of the aptness & greediness of our Nation (and not only of them, but almost of all people whatsoever) both to entertain and even with a violent belief, to embrace the report of any Miracle whatsoever, how ever delivered from the mouths or pens of vain Impostres, or the most untrue speakers, without either examination of the grossness, or respect of the malicious or fantastical inventors, nay albeit it be even repugnant to holy Scriptures, I cannot choose but admire at their want of faith, especially in these days, wherein truth was never (since the days of the Apostles) more truly published, and yet such is our natural blindness, or our wilful Ignorance that if we journey never so safely in the perfect path of salvation yet we will be drawn astray with the vainest & lightest report either of prodigious monster or false miracle, witness Garnets' straw, being an imagination and a report as false as Satan himself who is the Author of all falsehood & yet it is harboured in the hearts and mouths of many simple seduced people, witness the jews prophesy, being an idle, vain Pamphlet, as gross and grosser than john of Calabria, and was printed many years ago, and this last year only renewed with the addition of 1607. yet amongst fools, women & children, retained for such an approved miracle that as if the gift of prophesy were hereditary to the jews & their tribes, there are few things better believed when as in truth there was never any such jew, nor any such prophesy but a mere invention, witness Haoker, that would be no less than Christ, & many other such like, all which being most absurd, & most improbable. And yet that in these latter days, the man of sin shall bring in false prophets, false prophecies, false miracles, & false deceivers, it is most plain in many places of holy Scripture & therefore if such falsehoods be the signs of a false Church, and a false religion, then questionless the Church of Rome hath no alliance with truth, since in her these evils are daily nourished & engendered almost hourly beguiling and enchanting the people with the casting out off Devils, and other vain and false miracles, there may be Miranda multa, & yet indeed miracula nulla, many wonders as in the Sun, Moon Stars, and firmament, many wonders in the earth, in the air, and in the waters, some as forerunners of the last day, some as forwarning us of the evils which hang over us and some as punishments of our sins and of these wonders, the waters have this year brought forth the strangest that hath been read of either in this age or any age since the general flood which hath gone before it: as namely that which in the latter end of january last, happened in Somerset shire, & other parts of the West-countries, the lamentable report whereof, hath already been published and hath almost ●●ld every ear both with pity and wonder, so many souls perishing, so much goods and cattle consumed, & so many Townes-houses and good buildings over-whell, med, that the consideration thereof is able to move remorse and astonishment in men of the most bloody and barbourous natures, even such as Vergill writs of the Myrmidons, or Homer of the Thracians that being as it were, he wed out off stint & moved with no cruelty, yet wept at the destruction of Troy, albeit themselves were the greatest actors in that hugh massacre: like soft hearted executioners that feel a touch of that affliction, with which the afflict only, but this first outrage of waters, proceeding from the great deep, I mean the Sea, albe at, the first it appeared most fearful & wondrous, and that the effects thereof were both most lamentable and at first beyond all bound of imagination, some not so strangely perishing, as others more strangely preserved (the true relation whereof is to be read at pleasure) yet after the days of sorrow were passed over & that the finishing of nine days had finished the remembrance of the wonder, immediately almost every one could collect unto himself a natural cause and a proscript & constant reason both how, why, and which way this inundation was effected: as one while the violence of the winds holding back the springe tides that they would not have their free course according to their dispositions, made that two tides joining in one and coming both with a double power and quantity, it must of necessity follow that they must rise to a double height & have double bounds wherein to be contained, which not being found there would not choose but follow this most sudden fearful, and unexpected Overflow: others imagined, that the fury of the winds driving the waters before them and raising as it were a double quantity made the spring tides double their accustomed greatness, and so overflowing their banks to drowned all within the compass of that level. thus men forgetting the powerful hand of the Almighty, & turning the wallet of their sins behind their backs, began to imagine liken natural men, that sith there was a natural reason for these natural causes sure they were not punishments for our transgressions, neither had God in his displeasure, or for our amendment laid this gentle affliction upon us, but questionless they were deceived, as may appear evidently by the sequel of this relation: For in Coventry a City seated in  upon the mount of a small hill, being not near any part of the Sea or falt-water by many scores of miles, neither where there is any ebding or flowing, neither any fresh River of any quantity, more than such as a man may at any reasonable time of the year, either leap or stride over, this City being ever accounted a very dry City as wanting water either for traffic, or to bear a vessel of burden. In this City upon Thursday at night being the ●6. of April the doors of heaven being opened there fell a great rain, mixed with thunder & lightning, to the amazement of the Citizens, I do not mean such an amazement as drove them either to fear or despair but such an amazement as doth commonly follow and depend upon thunder & lightning which are the darts and arrows of the highest: this rain, this thunder & lightning continued the most part of all that night even in the greatest extremity that could be imagined, the heavens as it were even opening and spreading the lightning abroad like acurtaine, and making the darkness of the night as bright as day, for the moment it lasted, and the thunder roaring so loud, that it broke the weariest labourer from his sleep and recreation: about morning the thunder ceased and the rain not falling so thick as before, was then no more but an ordinary drizzling, so that the Ploughman betook him to the field, the labourer to his work, and the Artificer to his occupation not any whatsoever either fearing or seeing any cause to fear either extraordinary or ordinary flood or inundation, now about eight of the clock this morning being Friday the 17. of April, according to the usual custom of that religious City, the Citizens repaired to the Church to hear a Lecture, which is usually preach devery Friday throughout the whole year, and when they went from their houses, the left them dry neither saw they any cause of suspicion why they should not so continue, but when they returned back from the Lecture, they found all the lower parts of the City overflown, with a most strange and wonderful flood, such a one as no age, memory or record hath ever known in that place from the first beginning: the waters being risen within the City in the space of three quarters of an hour, better than nine foot high, so that their houses stood like little Islands about which the water beat and seemed to contend with all violence, much hurt there was done of household goods, many sellers of salt, corn and other commodities spoiled, but unto the high praise of the great God of heaven not any man, woman, or child nor any other living creature, that was of any valuable estimation perished in the waters, only the affliction of their minds, who being the owners of those houses saw this fearful combat betwixt their goods and this merciless enemy, how far they were transported with agony, fear and desperateness none can truly judge or write of, but such as have felt & known the like or a greater extremity, for in these sudden and miserable disasters, there is ever a divers and furious combat of many passions and many afflictions.  
This water after it was grown to his full height and strength, it so continued as in a stay for the space of three hours, giving men leave as it were to behold his dreadfulness, and to tremble at the work of the highest, and after the three hours were expired, it suddenly vanished away beyond all expectation making his coming in, & his going forth of equal wonder, the stay of the Flood being almost three times so long, as both his increase and falling, his increasing, abiding & decaying being in all little above four hours, yet his extraordinary depth full nine foot by measure, & his bounds many miles in compass, a wonder more than ever hath been read of, and an exemplary punishment so great & so merciful that it is worthy the recording to all after ages, for it came only to affright and forewarn, not to afflict or confound: For first no living soul hath perished, no cattle are destroyed, no houses are overwhelmed, and for the loss of private goods and commodities, it is supposed that the value of 200. marks, will make a full restitution and yet never came Flood more sudden, never was water in show more cruel: nor ever were men more secure, or less suspicious of so unlooked for a danger, but the hand of the Lord is upon his servants, and he will chastise those which offend, and have mercy where he pleaseth.  
About 19 years again when the same Gentleman which now is Mayor of the City of Coventry was then Mayor, it is reported there was then a very strange flood and so great a Water, that the amazement and rumour thereof ran through the whole Kingdom, but such as saw both this and that former affirm, that the flood which fell 19 years ago being compared with this that fell now was but a small puddle to a great Sea: from which I gather that as our sins do increase, so these signs and warnings for the amendment of our faults are likewise both multiplied and redoubled, and we that will not put on Sackcloth and ashes at the cry and preaching, not of one jonas, but of many millions must either be warned by these wonders, or else look for most sudden destruction.  
In the week before Easter last passed in this present year of our Lord God 1607. the Sea forcing a breach through the bank a little from Lynne, 
Floods at Lynne.  came flowing in with such a furious spring tide, that it drowned up a great part of the Town together with the marshes and grounds thereunto adjoining and so passing like an invincible host, along the Sea coast, it overflowed to the number of almost a dozen Towns and Villages; only the people with great difficulty, and by the forewarning of the former flood which happened the 20. of january, escaped with safety of their lives, but most of their cattle were lost and all their corn and grain consumed.  

Flood at Boston.  The like to this the same week before Easter last happened at Boston where the Sea broke in above the haven and drowned a great part of the Town even almost to the great-Crosse, and if the vigilancy and industry of the Country and the Commanders thereof had not exceeded both hope and expectation, it was feared that a great part of that Town and country would have been within the hazard of bure coverable evil, so mighty was the breach, and so extreme the swelling of the sea.  

Flood in Kent.  The same week before Easter, the Sea broke in upon the I'll of Sheppe, and drowned the most part of all those grounds, and if the vigilance and wildome of one private Gentleman had not prevented the fury of the waters, it had borne away many thousands of sheep and many hundreds of great cattle, but praise be given to our great God, they were preserved for the benefit of this nation, only some few were lost, which few it is hoped will be no occasion of dearth or ensuing scarcity, at the same time that this I'll of Sheppy was thus drowned, the River of Thames breaking over her banks drowned a great part of all those Marshes and low grounds which border upon her, wherein many cattle were lost, and an infinite deal of good grass made utterly unfit for this years' service.  
Lastly & which of all was most strange and miraculous at the Town of Stopworth upon the edge of Ches-shre, 
Flood at Stopworth.  through which there passeth a river from thence down to Warington, upon a night's cain in the week before Easter last the water risse & overflowed both some part of the town, & all the plains that were adjoining, a thing never till that time beheld by any man, and as divers men dwelling about those parts, and which were eyebeholders of the inundation have reported, that the river for many hours together seemed to be carried against his course, even towards the head and upper part of the river a thing both strange, unreasonable and unnatural, from which we may gather many observations for our soul's health, as the testimonies of Gods great power, the marquable signs of his mercies and the true touch and feeling of our own sins which touch breeding in us remorse and penance & that penance a satisfaction for our sin? and a detestation of our sins no doubt but we shall have the threatening of God's wreath removed and be the injoyers of the bliss of his Kingdom.