SOME SUCCINCT REMARKS ON THE SPEECH OF THE Late Lord RUSSEL, To the SHERIFFS: Together with the PAPER delivered by him to them, at the Place of Execution, on July 21. 1683.  
HORA MORTIS, has been ever looked upon as HORA VERACITATIS: And though Men may dare it out with Impudence, and attest their Innocency with all the Asseverations imaginable, yet when this Terrible of Terribles draws near, when this Hour that launches a Man into the Ocean of Eternity, from whence he must never return; I say, when this approaches, it might be rationally supposed, That no Man will then cheat his Soul of an Eternal Being, by horrid and damnable Equivocations. Yet though this has been held as an undoubted Maxim, such has been the practice of our Modern Traitors, (particularly our Noble Lord) that we may certainly infer, That as the present Age transcends all that has been hitherto in Treasons, Rebellions, Villainies, etc. and nothing of that pristine Veracity and Ingenuity, is to be found in our Modern Times: So likewise the present Traitors are resolved to excel all their Forerunners in that which they call Valour, but we may safely term it Impudence at this final hour; and think by their pretended Bravery, to create a Disbelief of those hellish Crimes of which they are accused. But alas! they are mistaken, they do but gull and cheat their Immortal Souls of that Felicity which they might have capacitated themselves for, by a free and ingenuous Confession: For I dare aver, That if all the Jesuits in Europe had laid their heads together to stuff a Libel with Equivocations, Tricks, and Evasions, they would all have come short of the SPEECH emitted into the World by our Protestant-Jesuite the Lord Russel.  
Tantum Religio potuit suadere malorum.  
☞ Swear, and Forswear, But the Great SECRET to reveal, Forbear.  
I am sorry I am confined to such narrow Limits, that I might have dissected and anatomised this Epitome of Hell, and showed at large what Tricks, etc. a True-Protestant Lord could be guilty of at this very dreadful Hour, to save his Party from the Appellation of Traitors, and some of his True Associates from the Gallows, notwithstanding his Lordship's Abhorrence of such Actions in the whole course of his Life: However, I shall take notice of the most material Passages which lie heavy on his Lordship, and which, no doubt, were patched up for no other End, but to stifle this Horrid Plot, and to hinder its Authors and Abettors from being brought to Exemplary Punishment.  
But to descend to Particulars, his Lordship is pleased to begin thus:  
[I have set down in this Paper all that I think fit to leave behind me.]  
No doubt but his Lordship had a due regard to his Cause, and those that were to continue it, and therefore thought it not fit to leave any thing behind him, that might discover either of them, but to wrap it up in such ambiguous terms as might not be understood; wherein his Lordship at once would make us believe, that he would have us understand him, and yet at the same time would not, otherwise (but that he is made up with Equivocations) why did not his Lordship deal sincerely and plainly, and add, That it was all he knew: But, it seems, he was resolved to wrong his Soul, rather than his Party, by discovering them.  
His Lordship proceeds, and says:  
[God knows how far I was always from Designs against the King's Person, or of altering the Government.]  
This is a pretty way of Appealing; for certainly God knows how far he was for Designs against the King as from them, and so must his Lordship's Conscience too; but he was afraid his Conscience would be too plain, and therefore left that Point as soon as he had begun it.  
[To my knowledge, I never saw Captain Walcot in my life.]  
That may be, and yet both deep in the Plot too, according to their Spheres, his Lordship, possibly, being of a higher Club than the Captain was; for we are told of several Cabals.  
[I bless God that I was born of worthy good Parents, and had the advantages of a Religious Education, which gave me checks, etc.]  
The greater the Person, the greater the Crime; and he has no reason to brag of his Religious Education, since he made such ill uses of it, which was no wonder that it give him so many Checks, for acting such horrid Crimes that were directly against it.  
[I have lived, and now die of the Reformed Religion, a true and sincere Protestant, and in the Communion of the Church of England, though I could never yet comply with, or rise up to all the heights of many People.]  
His Lordship must certainly equivocate here, in his meaning of a Church, for the Church of England (according to the common acceptation of it) never allowed such Practices: And though he would fain signalise it with such a Member, yet he must have a Reservation; for that disowns all Equivocation, and allows Salvation for none under his Lordship's Circumstances, that deal not sincerely in their last hour, and make a plain and full Confession of all he knows; which his Lordship resolves against, as inconsistent with the advantage of his Reformed Traitors.  
[I think Bitterness and Persecution are bad at all times, much more now.]  
No doubt but his Lordship would have them go on without control, and not have his Saints persecuted NOW, though 'tis evident to the World, that they are the very Source and Fountain of Treasons, Rebellions, etc. but yet, forsooth, they must not be persecuted.  
[For the King, I do sincerely pray for Him, and wish well to Him, and to the Nation, that they may be happy in one another, and that he may be indeed the Defender of the Faith.]  
Here his Lordship is pleased to lend the King a Box on the Ear on one side, and endeavour to hold Him up on the other; I would fain know what he means by indeed, he must certainly insinuate, that He is nothing at present but an Hypocrite, and pretends one thing, and means another; but his Lordship's Defender of the Faith indeed, must certainly be one that would suffer his own Throat to be cut, and say nothing: And that would see his Kingdom invaded, and all his Loyal Subjects destroyed, to make way for such Bloodthirsty Miscreants: But we now well know, that a Whig is that sort of Animal, that admires nothing, and praises none, or at least but slightly, and that not without some pity of his defects and wants; but he, forsooth, has all that every Man has, and all that every Man wants too: So that what's the meaning of this Religious and dying Speech, but a scandalous Libel on the King and Government.  
[I did believe, and do still, that Popery is breaking in upon the Nation; and that those who advance it, will stop at nothing to carry on their Design: I am hearty sorry that so many Protestants give their helping Hand to it.]  
This is the old Bugbear, Popery, Slavery, and Arbitrary Government, have been ever the pretensions of their Fears and Jealousies; Metuere falli, & meruere falli: He deserves to be deceived, that too much fears it, has been ever a politic Maxim; for certainly it is one of the greatest Follies in the World, to make the World wiser than it is; and to suspect a Plot and Mine in every Molehill; and 'tis a Hell aboveground, to be always dying, for fear of dying. And I am of the Opinion of the learned Lord Bacon, that notwithstanding his Lordship's fear of Popery, if ever that Religion come in, (which God forbidden) it will be through the sides of Jack Presbyter: And that his Proselytes that so much advance it now, will stick at no means to effect it, I am of his Lordship's opinion. As for his Lordship's sorrow for so many Protestants being in it, it's plain that there are none else but his Lordship's Coventry-Blue-Protestants concerned, and therefore 'tis feared that his sorrow was more for their being found in it, than not in.  
The next is one of the same stamp, for speaking of the Bill of Exclusion, he says:  
[As to the Limitations that were proposed, if they were sincerely offered, etc.]  
Here he as much questions the Sincerity of the King in the management of His Affars, as he did before of His being the Defender of the Faith indeed: So that this good Lord, at the very instant of his going out of the World, the best word that he can give the King, (and indeed 'tis no Wonder, since he has endeavoured to do much worse) is to Libel Him with the most scandalous Reflection that was ever said by Malice itself.  
Speaking of the Crime for which he was condemned, he says:  
[That there was some discourse of the feasibleness of it, (i.e. seizing the ●●●rds) and that at the Lord Shafis●●●…'s, there was some general discourse of it, but he did abhor it; That the Duke of Monmouth told him he was glad he was come to Town, for the Earl of Shaftsbury and some hot Men would undo us all, for they'll do some disorderly thing, if care be not taken; That he was at Shepherd's, where many things were said with more Heat than Judgement, which he did disapprove; but all this was but Misprision at most.]  
Certainly his Lordship forgot what he said before, he then knew of no Plot or Design, but here he hears it debated; he owns a discourse of the feasibleness of it, yet knows nothing of the matter, this must be as great as ever any Salamanca-Miracle proved. There was some disorderly thing to be committed, does his Abhorrence intimate his Ignorance, no sure, but Gild; for his Abhorrence must presuppose his Knowledge of it.  
The next is the greatest piece of Jesuitism that ever was hatched:  
[Some infer (says he) that I was acquainted with these Heats and ill Designs, but this is but Misprision.]  
And a very natural Inference, but pray what's the meaning of your Heats and ill Designs? his Lordship feared to be too ●p●ain, and yet something he must say to baffle Conscience, O Tempora! O Mores!  
Reader, If thou art not surfeited with unparallelled Lies and Equivocations, (though his Lordship would make us believe he ever abhorred them) I could enumerate much more, but this may suffice, to show that a True Protestant Lord can, upon occasion, venture the Eternal Loss of his Soul, to hinder the Discovery of a beloved Plot so long in hatching, and the bringing to condign punishment his true Friends the Associators.   

LONDON, Printed by George Croom in Thames-street over against Baynards-Castle. 1683.