Mr. Rowse HIS SPEECH BEFORE THE LORDS AT THE TRANSMISSION OF Dr. cousins March 16. 1640.  
LONDON, Printed for John Bartlet, and are to be sold at his shop at the Guilt-cup in Paul's churchyard. 1641.   

MASTER Rowse HIS SPEECH BEFORE THE LORDS AT THE TRANSMISSION OF Dr. cousins, March 16. 1640.  
MY LORDS,  
I Am commanded by the House of Commons to present to your Lordships, a Declaration and Impeachment against Dr. cousins and others upon the complaint of Master Peter Smart; which Master Smart was a Protomartir or first Confessor of note in the late days of persecution: the whole matter is a Tree whereof the branches and fruits are manifest in the Articles of this Declaration, which being read, I shall with your lordship's favour, discover and lay open the root.  
The Declaration was read, and then he proceeded as followeth.  
My Lords,  
I Am now to discover the root of Master Smart's persecution, your Lordships have heard of a great design to bring in Popery, you have heard of Armies of soldiers, and particularly of the Popish Irish Army, the burden and complaint of the Commons; but there is another Army not so much spoken off, and that is an Army of Priests, for since Altars came in, so they delight to be called; it is a saying of Gregory the great, that when Antichrist comes, Preparatus est exercitus Sacerdotum; there is an Army of Priests ready to receive him, this is fulfilled in our time, for certainly this Army of Priests doth many ways advance the designs and plots of Popery.  
A first way is by the subversion of our laws and government, our laws and Popery cannot stand together; but either Popery must overthrow our laws, or our laws must overthrow Popery: but to overthrow our laws, they must first overthrow Parliaments, and to overthrow Parliaments they must overthrow property, they must bring the Subjects goods to be arbitrarily disposed that so there may be no need of Parliaments: this hath been done by Doctor Manwaring, whom we find wanting, yet not in the seats but the bar of the Lord's house, and the like by Doctor Beale, and I think it was the intention of the late Canons.  
A second way by which this Army of Priests advanceth the Popish design, is the way of Treaty, this hath been acted both by writings and conferences Sancta Clara: himself saith, Doctissimi eorum quibuscunque: So it seems they have had conference together, & Sancta Clara on his part labours to bring the Articles of our Church into Popery and some of our side strive to meet him in that way, we have a testimony that the great archpriest himself hath said: It were no hard matter to make a reconciliation, if a wise man had the handling off it; but I verily believe that as the state of Papacy stands, a far wiser man than he, cannot reconcile us, without the loss of our Religion. For the Pope being fastened to his errors, even by his chair of Inerrability, he sits still unmooved, and so we cannot meet, except we come wholly to him.  
A man standing in a boat tied to a rock, when he draweth the rop, doth not draw the rock to the boat, but the boat to the Rock. And Sa. Clara doth in this somewhat honestly confess it; for he saith, that he dealt in this way of Treaty, not to draw the Church to the Protestants, but the Protestants to the Church.  
A third way, is a way of violence, this violence they exercise partly by secular arms, and partly by priestly arms, which they call spiritual, for secular arms, we have their own confession; that the late war was Bellum Episcopale, and we have the Papists confession, that it was Bellum Papale. For in their motives they say, that the war concerns them not only as subjects, but as Catholics, for so they falsely call themselves: and if it be so, than Bellum Episcopale is also Bellum Papale, and in the episcopal-war, the papal cause is advanced, for the spiritual arms thus they come to execution.  
When a great man is coming, his Sumpters, his Furniture, his Provision goes before, the Pope's furniture, Altars and Copes, Pictures and Images, are come before: And if we believe Dr. cousins, the very substance of the mass, a certain sign that the Pope was not afar of.  
Now these forerunners being come, if any man resist them, fire comes out of the Brambles, and devours the Cedars of Lebanon: the Army of the Priests falls upon him, with their Armies of suspension, Sequestration, Excommunication, Degradation, and Deprivation; and by these Armies hath Master Smart been oppressed and undon●: He falls upon their Superstitions and Innovations, and they fall upon him with their Armies, they beat him down: yea, they pull him up by the roots, taking away all his means of Maintenance and Living: yet they leave him life to feel his misery: Ita feriunt, ut diu se sentiat mori, there is no cruelty to Priestly cruelty. These are they that did put our very Saviour to death, the Calling is reverend; but the corruption of it is most pernicious: Corruptio optimi pessima, I know no reason of this change, except it be that of the Apostle, because when they knew God, they did not worship him as God; but made a God of the World, placing the excellency of priesthood in worldly pomp and greatness, and gave the glory of the invisible God, to Pictures, Images and Altars▪ Therefore God gave them up to vile affections, to be Implacable, unmerciful, and without natural affection: But whatsoever the cause is of corruption, certainly their Armies have fallen heavily upon Mr. Smart, and Priestly cruelty hath cast him into a long misery, from which he could get no release by any Priestly mercy.  
And now it is prayed, that as these Delinquints by the cruel oppressions of Mr. Smart have advanced the cause of Popery, so they may in such a degree of Justice be punished, that in them Priestly cruilty, and the very cause of Popery may appear to be punished and suppressed, and that Mr. Smart suffering for the cause of Protestancy, may be so repaid, that in him pious constancy, and the very cause of Protestancy may appear to be righted and repaired.  
FINIS.