Mrs Elizabeth Gaunt's Last Speech, who was Burnt at London, Oct. 23. 1685. as it was written by her own hand, & delivered to Capt. Richardson Keeper of Newgate.  
NOt knowing whether I shall be suffered, or able, because of weaknesses that are upon me, thro' my hard & close imprisonment, to speak at the place of Execution, I have wrote these few Lines, to signify that I am reconciled to the ways of my God towards me, though it be in ways I looked not for, & by terrible things, yet in righteousness; for having given me life, he ought to have the disposing of it, when & where he pleases to call for it; and I desire to offer up my all to him, it being but my reasonable service, & also the first terms Christ offers, that he that will be his disciple, must forsake all & follow him: and therefore let none think hard, or be discouraged at what hath happened unto me; for he doth nothing without cause in all that he hath done unto us, he being holy in all his ways, & righteous in all his works; and it is but my Lott in common with poor desolate Zion at this day; neither do I find in my heart the least regret for any thing that I have done in the service of my Lord & Mr. C. Jesus, in securing & succouring any of his poor sufferers, that have showed favour to his righteous cause, which cause, though it be now fallen & trampled on, as if it had not been anointed, yet it shall revive, & God will plead it at another rate than ever he hath done yet, with all its opposers & malicious haters; and therefore let all that love & fear him, not omit the least duty that comes to hand, or lies before them, knowing that now Christ hath need of them, & expects they should serve him; & I desire to bless his holy name, that he hath made me useful in my generation, to the comfort & relief of many desolate ones, that the blessing of those that were ready to perish hath come upon me, & been helped to make the heart of the widow to sing; & I bless his holy name, that in all this, together with what I was charged with, I can approve my heart to him, that I have done his will, though it doth cross man's will; and the scriptures which satisfy me are Esay. 16. 3, 4. Hide the outcasts, bewray not him that wandreth; be thou a covert to them from the face of the spoiler. And Ob. 12, 13, 14. Thou shouldest not have delivered up those of his that did remain in the day of distress: but men say, you must give them up, or you shall die for it; now who to obey, judge ye; so that I have cause to rejoice, & be exceeding glad, in that I suffer for righteousness sake, & that I am accounted worthy to suffer for well-doing, & that God hath accepted any service from me, which hath been done in sincerity▪ though mixed with manifold infirmities, which he hath been pleased for Christ's sake to cover & forgive And now as concerning my crime as it is called, alas! it was but a little one, & might well become a Prince to forgive. (But he that shows no mercy, shall find none.) And I may say of it in the language of Jonathan, I did but taste a little honey, & lo I must die for it; I did but relieve an unworthy, poor, distressed family, & lo I must die for it; well, I desire in the Lamblike nature of the Gospel to forgive all that are concerned, & to say, Lord, lay it not to their charge; but I fear it will not; nay I believe, when he comes to make inquisition for blood, it will be found at the door of the furious Judge, who because I could not remember things through my dauntedness at Burton's wife & Daughter's witness, & my ignorance, took advantage thereat, & would not hear me when I had called to mind that which I am sure would have invalidated the evidence; & though he granted something of the same kind to another, he denied it to me at that time: my blood will also be found at the door of the unrighteous Jury, who found me guilty upon the single oath of an out-lawd man; for there was none but his Oath about the money, who is no legal witness, though he be pardoned, his out-lawry not being reversed, the law requiring 2 witnesses in point of Treason, and then about my going with him to the place mentioned (viz. the Hope) it was by his own word before he could be out-lawd; for it was but about 2 months after his absconding, so that though he was in a Proclamation yet not high Treason, as I am informed, whereby I am clearly murdered; and also bloody Mr. Atterbery, who hath so unsatiably hunted after my life, though it is no profit to him, yet thro' the ill will he bears me, left no stone unturned, as I have ground to believe, till he brought it to this, and showed favour to Burton, who ought to have died for his own fault, & not to have bought his life with mine: and Captain Richardson, who is cruel & severe to all under my circumstances, & who did at that time, without all mercy & pity, hasten my sentence, & held up my hand that it might be given; All which, together with the great one of all, by whose power all these & multitudes more of cruelties are done, I do heartily & freely forgive as against me, but as it is done in an implacable mind against the Lord Christ & his righteous cause & followers, I leave it to him, who is the avenger of all such wrong who will tread upon Princes as upon mortar, & be terrible to the Kings of the earth; & know this also, that though you are seemingly fixed, & because of the power in your hands, are weighing out your violence, & dealing with a despiteful mind, because of the old & new hatred, by impoverishing & every way destressing those you have got under you, yet unless you can secure jesus Christ & all his holy Angels, you shall never do your business, nor your hand accomplish your erterprises; for he will be upon you ere you are aware; and therefore that you would be wise, instructed, & learn, is the desire of her that finds no mercy from you.  
ELIZABETH GAUNT.