A True Copy of a DISPUTE Lately held at ROME, BETWEEN Father Conyer a Jesuit, and Alexander Thompson a Church of England Man, and Barrister at Law, concerning the PLOT.  Jesuit, 
WELL, Sir, you are willing, I suppose, to vindicate the Execution of your Laws, in every particular, against those Roman Catholics, that were sacrificed to your Country's Vengeance.  Protestant, 
I shall give you my Apprehensions thereof; but if my Vindication be not Satisfactory, I will rather believe it to be my own Weakness, than the Justice of your Cause.  Jes. 
I appeal to any man of Sense, whether there was any Probability, there could be a design of taking off the King? That very Act would have alarmed the People, and consequently have dashed the Design; for upon that Juncture, where had we any Forces in readiness to espouse our Cause, and to alter that Government, which could not be subverted, but by Sword? We could not expect any Foreign Assistance to evade, before your Malitia were Embatteled; and to believe that a Cabal of some designing Heads could execute it, is Groundless.  Protest. 
As to the Fact itself, we know that 'tis nothing but what the Principles of your Religion doth enjoin you to; 'tis reckoned by your Church as Meritorious, and is very consistent with your Conscience. Now, as to the Probability, why this should be executed, 'twas very apparent; your Party had Conspired to shame it upon the Presbyterians, and in order to that, you had given Commissions, and disposed on Preferment to such and such men, as the Discovery of the Meal-Tub-Plot doth very clearly confirm; then where was the need of an Army in readiness, when you might expect that Justice would be done upon the Presbyterians, whilst you free from Suspicion, might unconcernedly look on the Vertigo of the State? Besides, if in the end you had failed in this, yet at present such a general Consternation had seized the Kingdom, that you might easily expect some Foreign Auxiliaries, before the Discovery of your Practices, and the Nation in a Military Posture; your Church doth authorise and justify the Actions of that Nature; and you have daring Clement's, and zealous Ravilliats, that think it their Duty to attempt them.  Jes. 
I confess that Mariana doth endeavour to maintain that King-killing Tenet, but it was damned as Pernicious and unchristian by the Church: 'Tis also objected against Bellarmine; but it was only inserted into his Volumes by an unknown hand, as is apparent in the Original Copy. But to revert your Assertion against yourself, if Regicide be Authorized by our Church, and Heaven promised as a Reward to the Actor, we have Clements in store, that would Assassinate Majesty upon the first Summons or Command; we need not have contrived so many several sorts of Death, and have ventured the Abortion of our Plot upon the least Miscarriage. Do you think that Pickering would have had the Patience to have waited for an opportunity so long in the Park, when he might easily have had access to the King's Prescence, and might with a surer Fate, than an erring Gun, have dispatched, and consequently m 〈…〉 d Heaven? He was unworthy of it, if he durst not die for't: The very Lashes he had upon the account of his Negligence was worse than the Pains of Death; besides the Forfeiture of those Masses that were promised him, upon the Performance.  Protest. 
Though your Religion doth warrant Heaven to such as dare propagate its Interest by such sinister Means, yet I do not perceive, that any of you are so reserved from the Indulgence of the Flesh, as presently to quit your Interest upon Earth, and yield yourselves a Victim to appearing Death, if your Contrivances could but prevent its present Execution; you could be content to live a little here, rather than to purchase your Imaginary Happiness, by embracing a Temporal and bugbear Death. Johannes Acutus, one of your Order, and one that entertained as great a Zeal for the Interest of his Church, as the boldest Promoter of your all, and though he had a Warrant signed, for the immediate Possession of Heaven, if he should accidentally be seized after the Execution of his Design upon the Person of Count Ladowick of Nasshaw, yet his mean and dastard Soul durst not publicly play the Russian, but omitted his Opportunities, and was Lashed.  Jes. 
Our Talon of time is now so small, we must not employ it in Canvasing this Point; let us omit the Opinions of our Church in this King-Killing Tenet, and return to our particulars. Can you imagine, that a Design of this nature, wherein no less than the Death of the KING, and the Alteration of GOVERNMENT was endeavoured, should be communicated to every Papist of any Note through the Realm? (as the Depositions of the Evidence would persuade you) Or that Letters should be sent, or Correspondence kept, in order to that, by the common Post? Or, that Sir George Wakeman and Groves, etc. were to have so many Hundreds of Pounds for their good Service, and adventure when four Gentlemen that were privy to all the Proceedings, would Assassinate him for Fourscore? Or that any of the Conspirators, which you believe to be such Profligate villains, would die and be damned, when they might be preferred upon Confession? or being conscious to themselves of the Truth of the Information, that they would not endeavour to make an escape, but would skulk about to be ferreted out by Justices of the Peace, prosecuted and hanged? Pray reconcile these.  Protest. 
Your first Supposition I answer thus, That although you had confided in the generality of those of your Religion, yet you might believe the Oath of Secrecy, you had imposed upon them, to be so Obligatory, as not to be violated by either Fear or Interest.  
Secondly, You argue an Improbability that so great a Design should be trusted to the duty of the common Post; but 'twas apparent, you had so far provided, that to prevent the ill consequence of a Miscarriage, you had contrived a Character, which none but your Correspondent could apprehend.  
Thirdly, It is no Argument against the Probability of the intended Regicide, that the four Assassins were so reasonable in their agreement, it only argues their great Zeal to your general Interest.  
Fourthly, Although we should be so candid, as not to insist upon the Merit your Church asignes to obstinacy of that Nature, yet some of you, for the very fear of an Injury from their incensed Party, durst not betray the Cause by Confession. Now, whereas they rather stood Trial, than attempted an escape upon the first Discovery, it might be the Effects of their Impudence, rather than Innocence; they might expect their Design would be shamed upon the Dissenters, and so prevent that inconvenience to their future Conduct, that would have attended their flight.  
Finally, That you have endeavoured this before, if we look back to the fifth of November, we must believe; and why there is now more Simplicity and Innocence in your Religion, is unaccountable: We had not only sufficient Evidence, but other demonstrating Circumstances to persuade us of the Legality of their Trials and Execution.  
FINIS.   

LONDON, Printed for John Bringhurst, at the Sign of the Book in Grace-Church-street, near Cornhill, 1681.