A most rare & true report, of such great tempests, strange sights, and wonderful accidents, which happened by the providence of God, in Herefordshire, at a place called the Hay, and there abouts, besides the sights of strange Fowls, which there were seen, most fearful to behold, with their horrible cries & strangeness, with the great hurt was done by them.  
LONDON Imprinted for Thomas Law. 1585.   
Math. 3. 
Amend your lives, for the kingdom of God is at hand.  
IF beloved, the sundry and manifold examples of God's indignation powered upon us, which we through our intolerable heaps of iniquities have deserved be extinct, and that through his own entire mercy and unspeakable clemency withdrawing his heavy displeasure, from our heads, we become forgetful of his goodness sleeping in sin, drenched in the depth of our desires, and wallowing in iniquities. Let this rare and wonderful spectacle of our utter decay, and ruinous subversion be an admonition, a caveat, yea and an alarm to awake us from our sinful and sluggish sleeping, lest the condign wrath of our Lord and saviour come upon us before we be aware, but unwares we cannot account it, in somuch as he sendeth, giveth, and showeth innumerable signs of his heavy displeasure even in a moment to fall upon us, aswell in other signs as in this sight, the very report whereof but little read, and lightly regarded, may be sufficient to reclaim the most sinful, and hard hearted creature.  
On Saturday being the 25. of September, last passed, at the Hay in Herefordshier was seen so rare a sight as neither our forefathers have known, nor we ourselves heard of. For there arose suddenly a most wonderful and cruel tempest, with such abundant high waters, that the whole country was not only greatly amazed therewith, but also in danger of drowning: besides the loss of great and plenteous store of Corn and cattle, wherewith they were endued: at which instant there appeared also a most wonderful and dreadful sight of two great clouds, the one being black, which arising, issued from the North the other being white, came from the South part, which meeting together seemed, to rend the Sky with their rattling, in such unusual sort, that it brought a most rare and terrible terror to the beholders. In the midst of which clouds, opposite with the earth did visibly appear, there situated a fair green Field, as it had been of feirne, in which field dispersed was seen flying an innumerable company of black Crows, and other Fowls which continuing a certain time, sent forth most dreadful strange and wonderful cries, no less rare to be recited then lamentable to regard: being in altitude to the judgement of the beholders not above 30. fathoms from the earth: with a very obscure and dark continuance: and not long before the vanishing of these clouds, was heard so rare and horrible roaring (as if it had been) the cries of bears and lions: yea and that so terrible that it was rather judged to have been the screeching of some malevolent hellish and furious fiends: these presupposed Crows were of divers credible persons visibly seen to rent and tear whole houses, barns, and stables, yea and to pull out whole and huge trees by the roots, in a most rare and wonderful manner ransacked and dispersed into diverse places, yea and after a most dreadful sight some of the rafters and pieces thereof, were carried up into the air, and after that never sithence seen, with great store of corn which at that time was carried away: Likewise such havoc made, of trees that had stood a long time, as would almost exceed a truth to be spoken of, some were pulled up by the roots and cast a bow shot from the place, other some cut as it had been with an axe or saw, and other some so strangely writhe as the like hath not been seen of our forefathers nor hard of ourselves. Moreover, and besides all this, was seen a most rare and terrible stratagem and perfect pattern of our impiety, for the which unless speedy and suppliant prayers be lifted up unto our Lord, that it may please him of his infinite goodness and mercy, to be favourable unto us, we are and shall be in danger of his heavy displeasure: from the which God for his infinite goodness and mercy's sake deliver us: At that instant I say beloved, there was seen of diverse credible persons a most huge, great and ugly black dog, who running along in the presence of many beholders, rend, toare, and pulled up whole trees by the roots, most wonderful to look upon, which did so amaze and terrify the inhabitants there about, that they expected nothing else, but that doleful and dismal day of Doom, I mean the coming of our Lord and Saviour jesus Christ, which no doubt neither is nor can be far off. Many other rare and great tempests about that time were seen in Devonshier and divers other places: the very rumour whereof may of itself without further witness, be sufficient to withdraw us from our most obstinate, sinful, and wicked lusts and determinations, whereby we heap upon our heads the heavy wrath and indignation of our Saviour Christ, who I say (beloved) except we speedily repent and call for grace, the multitude of our sins daily increasing more and more, will suffer his wrath to fall upon us. Look how far the East is from the West, so far hath he set our sins from us, to th'end we might repent and sin no more, yea even as a father pitieth his own children, so hath he compassion on us, and favourably admonisheth us by diverse examples of his indignation, to abolish these our manifold sins: In somuch as with jerusalem by diverse and sundry tokens he hath manifested his fatherly clemency unto us: yea even as a hen gathereth her Chickens under her wings, so would he have called us and we would not: Verily beloved, the men of Niniveh repent at the preaching of jonas with ashes and sackcloth, and turned unto the Lord, who had pity and compassion on them: The Queen of the South shall arise against us in judgement, for she came to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and we have greater than Solomon, or jonas, when the Lord himself admonisheth us by earth quakes, comets, and signs in the air: the very Turks, paynim, and Infidels, will arise in judgement against us, who no doubt, had they known the Lord God, or the multitude of examples that we have seen, would have been converted. Let us I say repent, be watchful, and vigilant that our Lord and saviour coming (like good stewards) we may make account of our lives, and be ready for the coming of our father, when he shall descend in his glorious majesty to judge both the quick and the dead: and when he shall say come ye blessed of my father, inherit the kingdom which is prepared for you from the beginning of the world, that then I say we may appear all righteous before him to ascend with him into his glorious majesty, there to live and remain with him & the father in glory world without end.  
FINIS.