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HISTORY OF THE LIVES 
 
 OF THE 
 
 PROTESTANT REFORMERS 
 
 IN SCOTLAND. 
 
Digitized by the Internet Archive 
 
 . in 2012 with funding from 
 
 Princeton Theological Seminary Library 
 
 http://archive.org/details/histivesOOscot 
 
HISTORY 
 
 OF 
 
 THE LIVES 
 
 OF THE 
 
 PROTESTANT REFORMERS 
 
 IN SCOTLAND. 
 
 BY 
 
 THE REVEREND JAMES SCOTT, 
 
 LATE SENIOR MINISTER OF PERTH. 
 
 EDINBURGH : 
 
 PRINTED FOR JOHN OGLE, PARLIAMENT-SQUARE, 
 
 BY JAMES BALLANTYNE AND CO. 
 
 1810. 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 A very high degree of regard is due to the me- 
 mory of the Scottish Martyrs, who, rather than 
 renounce their adherence to the Protestant prin- 
 ciples, chose to suffer a cruel death. The first of 
 them was Mr Patrick Hamilton, who suffered 
 death at St Andrews, in the year 1528 ; and the 
 last of them was Mr Walter Mill, who was put to 
 death, also at St Andrews, in April, 1558. They 
 were the beginners of the Reformation in Scot- 
 land ; and the constancy which they shewed in 
 maintaining their religious principles, produced 
 on the minds of the people, in favour of the re- 
 formation, a very deep and lasting impression. I 
 have not thought it necessary to write the lives of 
 these martyrs, because they are already pretty 
 generally known, from the accounts which have 
 been given of them by other writers. 
 
 The persons who are most commonly called the 
 Scottish Reformers, were those learned and pious 
 men, who, by the good Providence of God, were 
 protected in the midst of persecution, and allow- 
 
vi PREFACE. 
 
 ed to continue their labours, teaching the pure 
 doctrines of the Gospel, and struggling against 
 the popish party, till, in July, 1560, they obtained, 
 in behalf of themselves and of the people of Scot- 
 land, the free exercise of the protestant religion. 
 Their names are authentically recorded, partly in 
 the list of those who were early commissioned, by 
 the protestant lords, to compile a Book of Disci- 
 pline and a Confession of Faith ; partly in the 
 list of those who were afterwards nominated Ec- 
 clesiastical Superintendants ; and more fully in 
 the list of those who were appointed to officiate 
 as ministers in the chief cities. They did not ex- 
 ceed fifteen in number, and they were honoured, 
 in the hand of God, to be the founders of the re- 
 formed church of Scotland. 
 
 My biographical sketches of seven of them, 
 viz. of the five ecclesiastical superintendants, and 
 of Mr John Row, and Mr John Douglas, were 
 inserted in " The Religious Monitor, or, Scots 
 Presbyterian Magazine." These I am now en- 
 couraged to give more largely, and to add to 
 them the lives of the eight other reformers, which 
 1 have since written. 
 
 I have been careful to mention my authorities 
 as I went along ; and, as I have uniformly marked 
 the dates, those pages in the published histories 
 from which facts have been selected may easily 
 be found. My peculiar sources of information, 
 were, 1. Large extracts from that part of Calder- 
 wood's History which has not yet been printed. 
 2. An old copy of some of the Historical Collec- 
 tions which were made by Mr Robert Wodrow ; 
 and I regret that I did not meet with it sooner, as 
 it would have saved me a great deal of trouble in 
 the collections which I had before made. 3. A 
 
PREFACE. vii 
 
 considerable number of ancient writs and records 
 extant at Perth, of which 1 have chiefly availed 
 myself in my account of the life of Mr John Row. 
 4. Some extracts from what is commonly called 
 " Row's Manuscript History of the Church of 
 Scotland." 
 
 From the view which I have been enabled to 
 give of the Protestant Reformers in Scotland, I 
 hope it will be evident that they were not, what 
 some of the enemies of our religion have repre- 
 sented them and the reformers in other countries 
 to have been, fanatics and ignorant enthusiasts, 
 but men of a sound understanding, who generally 
 had received a most liberal education ; and who, 
 by the lights both of reason and revelation, fully 
 considered the importance of the truths for which 
 they were contending. It has been my endeavour 
 to write their histories in such a manner as might 
 tend to impress a serious regard to true religion. 
 And, surely, J scarcely need to make an apology 
 for my having intermixed brief anecdotes ol some 
 pious protestants, who deserve to be remembered, 
 who, though they were not of a clerical profession, 
 encountered the dangers of persecution, and, in 
 various ways, were promoters of the reformation. 
 
 My work may, in some respects, be considered 
 as new to the public. The lives, indeed, of many 
 eminent men, who, at after periods, distinguished 
 themselves by their zeal in defence of presbyte- 
 rian government, have been several times written, 
 and their names are deservedly famous ; but the 
 greatest number of the original reformers, to 
 whose labours we are indebted, are now little 
 known. The neglect of them, perhaps, has pro- 
 ceeded from their not having been so fully re- 
 solved in their minds in what related to the out- 
 
viii PREFACE. 
 
 ward government of the church. All of them, 
 however, were men of sound evangelical princi- 
 ples, zealous in defence of the Gospel, and highly 
 exemplary in their life and conversation. 
 
 I cannot now be much longer absent from those 
 who have gone before ; and I feel a satisfaction in 
 having done my endeavour, to revive a proper re- 
 membrance of some of them in the world in which 
 they once were. 
 
 JAMES SCOTT. 
 
 Perth, October 11, 1809 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 Page. 
 Preface, , .,..., v 
 
 NAMES OF THE REFORMERS. 
 
 Lives, I. John Erskine, Baron of Dun, Superintendant of Angus and 
 Mearns, 1 
 
 2. Mr John Spottiswood, Minister of Calder, and Superintend- 
 
 ant of Lothian, 20 
 
 3. Mr John Winram, Sub- Prior of St Andrews, and Superin- 
 
 tendant of Fife, 37 
 
 4. Mr John Willock, Superintendant of the West, 53 
 
 5. Mr John Carswell, Minister of Kilmartine, Superintend- 
 
 ant of Argyle, and Bishop of the Isles, 86 
 
 6. Mr John Knox, Minister of Edinburgh, 94. 
 
 7. Mr John Row, Minister of Perth, and Commissioner of 
 
 Galloway, ..... 155 
 
 8. Mr John Douglas, Master of St Mary's College, Rector 
 
 of the University, and Archbishop of St Andrews 193 
 
 g. Mr David Lindsay, Minister of Leith, and Bishop of 
 
 Ross , 2 1 6 
 
 10. Mr Paul Methven, Minister of Jedburgh, 233 
 
 11. Mr Adam Heriot, Minister of Aberdeen, 239 
 
 12. Mr William Harlowe, Minister of St Cuthbert's, 241 
 
 13. Mr David Ferguson, Minister of Dunfermline, 245 
 
 14. Mr William Chrystison, Minister of Dundee, 248 
 
 15. Mr Christopher Goodman, Minister of St Andrews, 250 
 
 Appendix, , , , „„„.„„. , 255 
 
THE 
 
 LIVES AND CHARACTER 
 
 OB 
 
 THE PROTESTANT REFORMERS 
 
 IN SCOTLAND. 
 
 I. JOHN ERSKINE, 
 Baron of Dun, and Superintendant of Angus 
 
 AND MeKNS. 
 
 CHAP. I. 
 
 His Birth, Education, and Conversion. His Kindness to David 
 Straiton and to George Wishart. A List of his Protestant 
 Friends and Associates. His Defence of the Town of Montrose. 
 His Acquaintance with Mr John Knox. Is sent as a Commis- 
 sioner to France. The Public Reformation at Perth. FHs Be- 
 haviour on that Occasion. Enters as a Minister among the lie- 
 formers. 
 
 John Erskine, Baron of Dun, in the shire of Angus, was 
 born at the family seat near Montrose, in the year 1508 or 1509. 
 His father was John Erskine of Dun, a descendant of the Earls 
 of Marr; his mother was Jean Ruthven, a daughter of William, 
 the first Lord Ruthven. He received his literary education, 
 most probably, in the university of Aberdeen ; and, according 
 to the ancient custom of the nobility of Scotland, he completed 
 it by travelling into foreign parts, and attending, for some time, 
 in one or other of the foreign universities. In the opinion of 
 George Buchanan, " he was a man of great learning." 
 
 After his fatner's death, he was employed, as the other 
 barons then were, in administering justice in the county to 
 which he belonged, and occasionally assisting in the meetings 
 
 A 
 
2 JOHN ERSKINE OF DUN. 
 
 of parliament. He was besides almost constantly chosen provost 
 of the neighbouring town of Montrose, as I suppose his father 
 also had been. 
 
 At an early period of his life, he became a convert from 
 popery; but the precise manner in which his conversion was 
 accomplished is not now known. We find, that Mr Knox, 
 when speaking of the Laird of Dun, in his History of the Events 
 of the Year 1534, says, that " he was one whom God in those 
 days had marvellously illuminated." Some time prior to that 
 year, he had been eminently useful in the conversion of David 
 Straiton, who suffered death, as a martyr, at Edinburgh, August 
 27th, 1534. An English writer calls him a fisherman, probably 
 because it is said of him, that he scrupled to pay tithes out of 
 the fishings which he possessed. But he was a gentleman of a 
 small estate, on the sea coast of Angus, and was descended 
 from the ancic nt family of the Straitons of Lavvriston. He had 
 once been extremely ignorant, and of a rough behaviour; but 
 Archbishop Spottiswood tells us, that " he became another man 
 through frequenting the company of John Erskine of Dun, by 
 whom it pleased God to enlighten his mind with the knowledge 
 of his truth, and to kindle in his heart a love of it." 
 
 Mr Erskine, by his friendly attention, having gained a con- 
 siderable degree of ascendancy over him, encouraged him to 
 be often in his company ; and piously and affectionately exhort- 
 ed him to a change of life. He invited him to hear, in his 
 house, or family chapel, the scriptures read and explained, 
 either by himself, or by enlightened teachers whom he enter- 
 tained. 
 
 In Knox's History, the following instance is given of the sin- 
 cerity of this man's conversion, who had been so much indebt- 
 ed to Mr Erskine. He had not learned to read ; but, " one day, 
 Avhen the young Laird of Lawriston was, in a certain quiet place 
 in the fields, reading to him out of the New Testament, and 
 happened, as God had appointed, to read to him the words of 
 our Saviour, " He that denieth me before men, in the midst of 
 this wicked generation, I will deny him in the presence of my 
 father, and before his angels," Mr Straiton suddenly became 
 as one ravished, (enraptured.) He threw himself upon his 
 knees, extending his hands; and, after looking some time ear- 
 nestly towards heaven, burst forth in these words : " O Lord, I 
 have been wicked, and justly mayst thou abstract thy grace from 
 me : But, Lord, for thy mercies' sake, let me never deny thee, 
 nor thy truths, for fear of death or corporal pains." His prayer 
 was graciously answered ; for Spottiswood says, that " David 
 Straiton stood, at his trial and death, most constantly to the de- 
 fence of the truth ; and gave great encouragement to another 
 gentleman Norman Gourlay, who suffered death along with 
 
 njis" 
 
JOHN ERSKINE OF DUN- 3 
 
 Mr Erskine also acted in a very friendly manner to Mr George 
 Wishart, a son of the Laird of Pittarrow. Being Provost of 
 Montrose, he easily procured that Mr Wishart should be ap- 
 pointed master of the grammar school of that town. Mr 
 Wishart had imbibed protestant principles. He not only in- 
 structed his scholars in the Latin language, but also in the 
 Greek, that they might become acquainted with what is contain- 
 ed in the New Testament. His doing so offended the popish 
 clergy, who wished that the people should remain ignorant of 
 the scriptures; and their threatenings rendered it expedient that 
 he should leave his native country. 
 
 After he had been some years abroad, especially at the uni- 
 versity of Cambridge, where he improved himself in all branches 
 of learning, was a tutor or preceptor to severals of the students, 
 and a preacher of the gospel, he felt a strong desire to do good 
 to his own countrymen. He landed at Montrose, from Eng- 
 land, about the beginning of summer, 1544; having come to 
 Scotland along with some commissioners from the English king. 
 Mr Erskine earnestly advised him to continue in that remote 
 part of the kingdom, where he could find means to protect 
 him. But Mr Wishart's zeal could not be restricted. Hoping 
 also to meet with support from some powerful men in Scotland, 
 who, at that time, were adverse to the alliance with France, 
 and favourers of the proposed alliance with England, he went 
 boldly into different parts of the kingdom, preaching publicly 
 to the people, and disputing with some of the most eminent 
 popish divines, till he fell into the snares of Cardinal Beaton, 
 and suffered death, as a martyr, at St Andrews, March 1st, 
 1546. 
 
 The castle of Dun was indeed, as a sanctuary, always open to 
 protestant preachers and professors. While they chose to re- 
 main in it, they were protected against their persecuting ene- 
 mies, and enjoyed Christian fellowship with one another. Mr 
 Erskine and his protestant associates, in their private meetings, 
 worshipped God, read and expounded the scriptures, and piously 
 exhorted one another. Long before he became a regular mini- 
 ster among the reformers, he was much employed as an exhort- 
 er. And, it may be observed, that, even after the reformation 
 of religion was established, there was kept up in the church, 
 for many years, an order of men who were called, " Ex- 
 horters." 
 
 It will be agreeable, I apprehend, to some persons who bear 
 a love to religion, to have before them an authentic list, as far 
 as possible, of the Christian friends with whom Mr Erskine was 
 in use to assemble, and who, in their several spheres, were pro- 
 moters of the reformation. I can furnish it, in some measure, 
 from a copy of an extract with which I have been favoured, 
 
4 JOHN ERSK1NE OF DUST. 
 
 seemingly from the manuscripts of Mr David Calderwood. 1 
 shall set down what the writer says concerning them, and shall 
 add such other particulars relating to them as otherwise have 
 come to my knowledge. 
 
 When Mr Ersline was in Edinburgh, either on a visit at 
 court, or attending the meetings of parliament, there, at an early 
 period, were, 1. Patrick Lindsay, goldsmith: " He was a con- 
 siderable mathematician, and an ingenious maker of horologes," 
 (viz. time-keepers, such as clocks and watches). 2. Friar Alex- 
 ander Lindsay, his brother. 3. George Aldjoy, who was a 
 merchant-burgess. 4. John Maine, another merchant-burgess. 
 5. Sibilla Lindsay, a remarkably religious woman, " the spouse 
 of John Fowler." 6. Francis Aikman. 
 
 At Dun, or occasionally elsewhere, he enjoyed the company 
 of the following more memorable persons : 
 
 i. William Hay, (sixth) Earl of Errol. " He was, says 
 the writer in the extract, a person of great learning, both in 
 humanity and divinity, and suffered much for the sake of Christ. 
 He was particularly well versed in the New Testament, and 
 could rehearse the choicest sentences of it, especially such as 
 tended to establish solid comfort in the soul by faith in Christ." 
 This exemplary nobleman died, a young man, before the year 
 1535. 
 
 2. Mr Robert Alexander. " He had been pedagogue (pre- 
 ceptor) to the foresaid Earl of Errol. He set forth my Lord's 
 Testament in Scottish metre, which was printed at Edin- 
 burgh." It may be observed, that many of the old Scottish 
 poems were styled " Testaments," on a pretence that they con- 
 veyed the advices of the deceased person to his surviving friends, 
 or to the nation at large. Perhaps a copy of the Earl of Errol's 
 Testament may be found in the Banna tyne or Maitland collec- 
 tions. 
 
 3. William (second) Lord Ruthven. " He did not, indeed, 
 openiy profess the protestant religion ; but he was privy to his 
 son Patrick's carriage in it, and approved of what he was doing 
 in behalf of our reformation." He was second cousin to Mr 
 Erskine, and died in the year 1553. 
 
 4. Dame Lilias Ruthven, daughter to the foresaid William 
 Lord Ruthven. She married the second Lord Drummond, one 
 of the ancestors of the Earls of Perth, by whom she had a nu- 
 merous issue. This venerable lady used her utmost endeavours 
 in promoting the reformation of religion. " Although she had 
 a pearl, (a particular disease) in her eye, which could not be 
 cured, yet she saw great light in the eye of her soul ; and was 
 herself a pearl of holiness, gravity, and wisdom." I find it said 
 in Lord Stralhallan's manuscript History of the House of Drum- 
 
John erskine of dun. 5 
 
 monil, that " this Lady Drummond was a beautiful person, of 
 excellent parts and of good breeding." 
 
 5. John Stewart, son to that Lord Methven who married the 
 king's mother. " He made some poems and ballads after the 
 death of the Vicar of Dollar, and was a zealous professor of die 
 truth." I must add, that he could not be a legitimate son of 
 this Lord Methven, unless it may have been by a lady, now un- 
 known, whom he had married before the year 1524; for in that 
 year, Henry Stewart, afterwards Lord Methven, married Mar- 
 garet, Queen Dowager of Scotland, and mother of King James 
 V. She had no son to Lord Methven, and ied in 1540. 
 
 John Stewart must have lived at an earlier period than to 
 have been the son of this Lord Methven by the lady whom he 
 married after the queen's death; and his poems must have been 
 written about the year 15S8, as will appear from the following 
 brief account of the Vicar of Dollar, above mentioned. Dean 
 Thomas Forest, Vicar of Dollar, in the diocese of Dunkeld and 
 presbytery of Stirling, was a regular canon belonging to the 
 Augustine monastery of St Cohn's Inch. " He was a man," 
 says Knox, '* of an upright life;" and Spottiswood relates the 
 defence which he made when he was called before the Bishop 
 of Dunkeld. He, and other four pious Protestants, were, 
 Knox says, " cruelly murdered in a fire, upon the Castle- hill 
 of Edinburgh, last day of February, 15S8." If I am not mis- 
 taken, some of Stewart's poems, or satyrical pieces against the 
 Papists, were published a few years ago by the late Lord 
 Hailes. 
 
 6. " Alexander (Cunningham) Earl of Glencairn, a third 
 brother of that noble house ; but who, by the death of his 
 brethren, succeeded to the earldom. When a youth, he dis- 
 covered the abominations of popery; and painted forth the 
 hypocrisy of the friars, in rhyme, under the title of ' An Epistle 
 directed from the Holy Hermit of Lawriet to his Brethren the 
 Gray Friars.' It is printed in Knox's History, but with many 
 wrong syllabications, which render it dark. This noble eail 
 afterwards acted a glorious part in our reformation." Neither 
 Crawford nor Douglas, in their Peerages of Scotland, lake 
 notice of his elder brothers. A good deal of notice will be 
 taken of this protestant nobleman in the accounts which will be 
 given of John Spottiswood the Superintendant, and of Mr 
 John Willock. 
 
 But while Mr Erskine was attending to the affairs of religion, 
 he did not neglect the duties which he owed to the public, as a 
 magistrate and military knight In that war with England, 
 which began in September, 1547, and lasted nearly two years, 
 the English ships infested the east coast of Scotland. Some of 
 them were sent towards the town of Montrose, for the purpose 
 
6 JOHN' ERSKINE OF DUN. 
 
 of pillage and devastation. They cast anchor out of sight of 
 the town, intending to advance after it was dark. But the ma- 
 riners, imprudently for themselves, but providentially lor the 
 safety of the people of the town, put up some lights in their 
 ships as they were advancing nearer, which occasioned an 
 alarm. 
 
 John Erskine of Dun, being provost, immediately attended. 
 He commanded, Buchanan tells us, that all the inhabitants 
 who were able, should take arms quickly, and with as little noise 
 as possible. He divided them into three companies. The first 
 he stationed behind an earthen rampart, which had been before 
 raised for the defence of the town. The second, which consist- 
 ed of such persons as wore light armour, and were expert in the 
 use of bows and arquebuses, he took under his own immediate 
 leading, and advanced with them towards the shore. The third, 
 which was composed of servants, apprentices, and a promiscu- 
 ous multitude, he ordered should wait behind a neighbouring 
 hill. 
 
 When the enemies were descending from their ships, he and 
 his troops sharply assailed them with missive weapons. He 
 found it necessary in the conflict to draw them towards the 
 rampart, where the party stationed behind it suddenly issued 
 forth, and all were engaged in a close combat. 
 
 The invaders did not yet retire. But day-light soon appear- 
 ing, they beheld a more numerous band, with colours displayed, 
 coming against them from behind the neighbouring hill. Atraid 
 of being surrounded, they fled to their ships ; but were so 
 hastily pursued, that, though about eighty men had landed, 
 scarcely a third part of them made their escape. 
 
 George Buchanan minutely details this exploit of his friend, 
 the baron ; and, probably, oftener than once, he had heard a 
 relation of it from his own mouth. 
 
 In the end of harvest 1555, Mr John Knox, having arrived 
 from Geneva, found in Edinburgh, Mr Erskine and one or two 
 ministers, who, with some pious persons in that city, both men 
 and women, were in use to meet in private houses, for the pur- 
 poses of religious worship and spiritual conversation. It was at 
 supper, in the Laird of Dun's lodgings in Edinburgh, that those 
 who were there present with Mr Knox, resolved, that, to what- 
 ever danger they might be exposed, they would wholly discon- 
 tinue their attendance on the popish mass; and, when a pro- 
 testant minister could be obtained, would have the sacrament 
 of our Lord's Supper administered to them in the same plain 
 manner in which it was given in the reformed churches abroad. 
 
 Mr Erskine having left Edinburgh for his family seat of Dun, 
 Mr Knox, at his request, followed him thither, and staid with 
 him about a month, where he was daily exercised in preaching 
 
 6 
 
JfOHN ERSKINE OF DUN. 7 
 
 the gospel, and was resorted to by the principal men in that 
 part of the country. In the ensuing summer, Mr Knox returned 
 to Dun, and was gratified in dispensing the communion to al- 
 most all the gentlemen of the county of Merns, who promised 
 to oppose idolatry to the utmost of their power. 
 
 Though Mr Erskine's religious principles were well known, it 
 appears that the popish bishops thought him a man too power- 
 ful for them to meddle with ; and he still proceeded in his en- 
 deavours to promote the reformation. 
 
 December 3d, 1557, he, along with the Earl of Argyle, the 
 Earl of Glencairn, and some other noble and eminent persons, 
 subscribed a covenant, in which they bound themselves in the 
 presence of God, to advance the protestant religion, and to main- 
 tain in safety its ministers and its professors, who were now, for 
 the first time, called the congregation, by all the means in their 
 power, even to the hazard of their lives. 
 
 The parliament, which met Dec. 14th, 1557, appointed "John. 
 Erskine of Dun, knight and provost of Montrose," to go to the 
 court of France, as one of the commissioners from Scotland, to 
 witness the young queen's marriage with the dauphin, and to 
 settle the terms of the marriage contract. He sailed for France 
 with the other commissioners, in February, 1558, and he, and 
 such other of them as survived that fatal embassy, returned and 
 landed at Montrose in October following. 
 
 On their arrival, they found that the reformation of religion 
 in Scotland had been unexpectedly forwarded by the cruelty 
 and imprudence of the popish clergy. During their absence, 
 Mr Walter Mill, an aged priest, had suffered martyrdom at St 
 Andrews, April 28th; which had occasioned so great a fermen- 
 tation in the minds of persons of all ranks, that Spottiswood, 
 who was well informed of these matters, says, " the death of 
 this martyr was the very death of popery in this realm." 
 
 The protestants were now increasing in their number, which 
 afforded them greater courage. They were soon afterwards far- 
 ther encouraged by the death of the English Queen, Mary; 
 which happened November 15th, 1558. Her sister and succes- 
 sor, Elizabeth, being a protestant princess, the reformed in 
 Scotland hoped to receive from her considerable support ; and 
 afterwards they were not disappointed in their expectations. 
 
 The queen regent of Scotland, who had always acted chief- 
 ly by the advice of the popish bishops, and other dignified cler- 
 gy, was now addressed more boldly than before by the protes- 
 tant lords, and others who favoured the reformation, in behalf 
 of the free exercise of their religion. Mr Erskine was one of 
 these petitioners, but seems to have been more moderate in his 
 demands than some others of the great men were. Buchanan 
 tells us, that " John Erskine, Baron of Dun, a learned man, 
 
5 JOHN EliSKINE OP DUN. 
 
 and equally pious and humane, expostulated with the queen 
 regent and her council; humbly beseeching, that no harm should 
 be done to the protestant subjects; and that, at least, they should 
 be allowed to pray to God in their religious assemblies, in their 
 own native language." 
 
 But, so far from granting the toleration requested, all the 
 protestant ministers were enjoined, by public proclamation, un- 
 der pain of rebellion, to appear at Stirling on the 10th day of 
 May, 1559, then and there to be tried for their reputed heresy, 
 and schismatical conduct. Bishop Lesly, in his history, gives 
 us the nan.es of four ministers who were more particularly sum- 
 moned, viz. John Knox, who was not then in the kingdom, but 
 abroad at Geneva; John Willock ; John Douglas, alias Grant; 
 and Paul Metlren. 
 
 The lords, ard other chief men of the protestant party, se- 
 riously consulted with one another ; and it was suggested and 
 agreed to, that " the gentlemen of each county should accom- 
 pany their preachers to the place of their trial." The common 
 people also wished to shew their affection to the ministers- and 
 to make an open confession of their faith. 
 
 In the end of April, or beginning of May, 1559, some of the 
 ministers, who had been cited, came to Perth, in their way to 
 Stirling. Butan immense multitude of people accompanied them, 
 chiefly, at that time, from the counties of Angus and Merns, 
 and from the district of Strathern. So zealous, it is said, were 
 the people of these two counties, that scarcely any of the men 
 would consent to stay at home. They were unarmed, but 
 amongst them were many barons and other gentlemen. 
 
 Mr Erskine was solicitous that the ministers should be deli- 
 vered from their impending danger, and solicitous also that 
 peace should be preserved. He proposed to the congregation, 
 that, if they would wait at Perth a few days, he himself would 
 go forward to Stirling, where the queen regent tlien was, and 
 endeavour to give her better advice than she had received from 
 her popish counsellors. His proposal was readily accepted ; 
 and it has also been said, that, by a private messenger, she had 
 signified her desire of having a conference with him. 
 
 In the mean time, Mr John Knox had so far obeyed the sum- 
 mons in the public proclamation, and complied with the desires 
 of his friends, as to come from Geneva to Scotland. He arrived 
 at Edinburgh, May 2d; after two days, he went to Dundee, 
 and from thence he came to Perth, determined to share in the 
 same treatment which his brethren in Scotland should meet with. 
 The arrival of a man of his bold spirit, and whose eloquence was 
 remarkably persuasive, was reckoned a favourable circumstance 
 at that critical season. 
 
 fetters were brought from Mr Erskine at Stirling, containing 
 
JOHN ERSKINE OF DUN, § 
 
 the agreeable intelligence that the queen regent had acceded 
 to his advice; that the ministers were not to be tried, and there- 
 fore needed not to come forward ; and that the people should 
 be persuaded to retire peaceably to their own habitations. In 
 consequence of this intelligence, many of the people went home, 
 and thus nothing finally decisive of the great cause of religion 
 was then likely to happen. 
 
 But it was the will of Providence, that the reformation of re- 
 ligion in Scotland should be effectuated in a more speedy man- 
 ner than by gradually gaining the assent of an opposite party. 
 A suspicion was conceived, that Mr Erskine, who .as a man of 
 great integrity, and therefore less apt to suspect the hypocrisy 
 of the queen regent and her council, might possibly have been 
 deceived by false promises. The barons and gentlemen, there- 
 fore, resolved to wait at Perth, till the 10lh day of May should 
 be past, and then they would see more clearly what course they 
 ought to take. 
 
 It should seem that it was on the evening of the 10th of May, 
 that Mr Erskine arrived in haste from Stirling, with the bad 
 news, that the queen regent had changed her mind ; that the 
 ministers were denounced rebels ; and that all persons were forbid- 
 den, under pain of treason, to assist, to comfort, or receive them. 
 He had not found it safe to continue any longer at Stirling; 
 and added, in his conference with the chiefs, that it now beho- 
 ved them wisely to consider what they should do. Buchanan 
 tells us, that Mr Erskine, when he returned, noticed, no doubt 
 with pleasure, that the principal men of Angus and Merns were 
 still at Perth. 
 
 All writers blame the queen regent for being induced to break 
 her promise. The congregation and their leaders, as might well 
 have been expected, were filled with indignaiion at the deceit 
 which had been practised. They considered that to obey the 
 injunction of having no communication with the protestant teach- 
 ers, would be the same as to return to their former ignorance 
 and superstition, and to give up the important cause in which 
 they had long been engaged, the success of which was now de- 
 manded by the general voice of the nation. 
 
 The next day, May 1 1th, 1559, Mr Knox went into the pulpit 
 of the parish church of Perth, and preached a sermon, in which 
 he exhorted that the temple of God should be cleansed from ido- 
 latry. The principal persons, we are told, after having heard the 
 sermon, retired to their dinner ; but a considerable number of the 
 lower class of people remained. One of the priests having impru- 
 dently provoked them, the}' instantly broke in pieces the altars 
 and images in the parish church. Proceeding from thence, and 
 being joined by a mixed multitude of townsmen and others, they 
 demolished, in a very little time, all the monastery houses, with 
 
10 JOHN EHSKINE OF DUX. 
 
 their churches, which were situated in Perth, or initsnearneiglv- 
 bourhood. 
 
 The protestant lords, some of whom were principal noble- 
 men, and of great power in the kingdom, soon declared them- 
 selves on the side of the reforming congregation ; and a civil 
 war commenced, which, though not a very bloody one, conti- 
 nued about thirteen months. 
 
 During this war, the Laird of Dun occasionally gave his as- 
 sistance as a temporal baron. But, before the conclusion of it, 
 he piously relinquished his armour, and all military atchieve- 
 ments, by his becoming a professed preacher, or minister 
 of the gospel. He was probably urged to this choice by Mr 
 Knox, and other protestant ministers, who greatly needed so 
 able an associate in their labours. In the former part of his life, 
 he had earnestly desired to see a protestant church, and now, 
 that it was upon the point of being obtained, he was willing to 
 bear an office in it. 
 
 His qualifications for the ministry may be mentioned, and 
 were undoubtedly considered. Buchanan, whose testimony in 
 a matter of that kind is not to be questioned, says, " he was a 
 learned man." But it appears that his favourite study was that 
 of the principles of true religion : which principles he was well 
 able to defend, and seemed to have felt their influence from his 
 youth upward. It was known that he had exercised his talents 
 privately as a teacher, and that his zealous endeavours in that 
 way, had, in some instances, been blessed with remarkable suc- 
 cess. His mildness of temper, and the uprightness of his con- 
 duct, are particularly taken notice of; and no fault is known 
 to have been found with regard to the purity of his life and con- 
 versation. Mr Knox says, that " he was a godly man." 
 
JOHN ERSKINE OF DUN. 11 
 
 CHAP. II. 
 
 Appointed Superintendant of Angus and Merns. His former Call 
 to the Ministry, approven by the General Assembly. The Office 
 of Superintendant explained. His Clerical Transactions. Depo- 
 ses the Principal and four Professors cfKitig's College, Old Aber- 
 deen. Foretells the Death of the Regent Murray. His Letters 
 to the Regent Earl of Mar. Excused from acting as a Sheriff. 
 His part in the second Book of Discipline. Is blamed by Calder- 
 wood. His Death and Character. 
 
 i. he civil war being ended by the death of the queen regent, 
 which happened at Edinburgh, June 10th, 1560, and the French 
 troops, who had assisted her, having been sent out of the king- 
 dom, the lords of' the congregation found themselves complete- 
 ly successful. Devout thanksgivings were rendered unto God, 
 July 19th, in the High Church of Edinburgh, by the ministers, 
 many noblemen, and other pious Protestants, who were then in 
 that city. The thanksgiving prayer, which was used, after ser- 
 mon, on that occasion, and which was remarkably appropriate, 
 is to be seen at full length in Knox's History of the Refor- 
 mation. 
 
 A parliament, or convention of the estates, was immediately 
 held, who, at the request of the ministers, and because of the 
 present necessity of the church, began their proceedings by ap- 
 pointing a committee of lords, barons, and burgesses, to distri- 
 bute the few ministers whom they then had, to the places where 
 their services were most required. The committee nominated 
 some of them for the chief cities ; and as the first book of dis- 
 cipline was now produced, they, agreeably to the plan proposed 
 in that book, nominated five ministers who should act in the ca- 
 pacity of ecclesiastical superintendants. Mr Erskine was one of 
 the five who were nominated, and the office assigned him was 
 the superintendency of all church matters in the counties of An- 
 gus and Merns. 
 
 The first general assembly of the protestant church of Scot- 
 land met in December following. The number of ministers was 
 
it JOHN ERSKINE OF DUN". 
 
 necessarily small, when compared with that of the lay commis* 
 sioners, whose aid in the beginning was most thankfully accept- 
 ed. Acting as a supreme court, the assembly ratified the nomi- 
 nations which had been made in the committee of parliament; 
 and in their first session fully sanctioned Mr Erskine in his cle- 
 rical character, by declaring, in the sententious manner of those 
 times, " that John Erskine of Dun was apt and able to minister." 
 The same sanction was granted to some other persons, of whose 
 previous character and actions little is now known. 
 
 From this period, Mr Erskine's usual designation was, "John 
 Erskine of Dun, knight, superintendant of Angus and Merns." 
 
 The appointment of ecclesiastical superintendants was judged 
 to be necessary, when the reformed church was yet in its infant 
 state. They were endowed with a kind of episcopal authority; 
 were elected for life; but were responsible tor their conduct to 
 the general assembl}\ By their having such a degree of autho- 
 rity, and by their frequently visiting the different parts of what 
 might be called their diocese, it was hoped that vice and idola- 
 try would be more easily suppressed, and the parishes more 
 quickly supplied with well qualified protestant ministers, readers, 
 exhorters, and schoolmasters. It was an institution devised as 
 a temporary expedient, and never was specially ratified by an 
 act of parliament. 
 
 From the view given of it in the first book of discipline, ife 
 appears, that the work belonging to it was to be exceedingly 
 laborious. More was required from a superintendant than wiiat 
 any one man, without the assistance of commissaries, was able 
 to perform. The good men, when blamed in the assembly, for 
 some matters which were wrong in their extensive province, were 
 often under the necessity of saying, that the things con. plained of, 
 they could not prevent or redress. So far from being ambitious 
 of the honour annexed to their office, or of any pecuniary pro- 
 fit which they derived from it, they often requested the assem- 
 bly to appoint others in their place. 
 
 In the assembly, December, 1565, of which Mr Erskine was 
 moderator, " he confessed that he had not visited any kirk for 
 two months by-past ; alleging that his visitation could not be 
 very profitable, in respect that it behoved him to lodge in time 
 of visitation with his friends for the most part, who had most 
 need of correction and discipline; therefore he besought the 
 assembly to appoint another to his office." 
 
 In the assembly, December, 1566, of which also Mr Erskine 
 was moderator, " The superintendant of Angus and Merns de- 
 sired to be exonered of his burthensome calling, in respect of the 
 weakness and debility of his body, whereby he was unable to exe- 
 cute the charge as was required. But the assembly would not alto- 
 gether exoner him, but permitted him to appoint some of the 
 
JOHN ERSKINE OF DUN. 13 
 
 best qualified ministers within his bounds, to visit when he found 
 himself unable." 
 
 In the assembly, December, 1567, " The superintendant of 
 Angus presented a supplication in writ, or rather a demission of 
 his oSce of superintendrie, in respect of his age and infir- 
 mity. The assembly, notwithstanding, would not accept of his 
 demission, for divers respects, to be shewn to the said superin- 
 tendant; and continued him in the said vocation till farther ad- 
 vertisement." 
 
 In the assembly, August, 1574, the only three superinten- 
 dants then in life, viz. the superintendant of Angus and Merns, 
 the superintendant of Lothian, and the superintendant of Fife 
 and Strathern, " demitted their office purely and simpliciter 
 into the hands of the assembly. But the assembly continued 
 them." 
 
 Mr Erskine was at least five times moderator of the general 
 assembly. But to shew that he was remarkably free from that 
 arrogance of mind and behaviour, which is sometimes ascribed 
 to dignified clergymen, I shall insert a short letter, which he 
 wrote to the general assembly, in August, 1573, and which I tran- 
 scribe from the copy in Mr Alexander Petrie's General Church 
 History. 
 
 In this letter Mr Erskine says, " Hearing that in my absence, 
 a complaint was given upon me, alleging that I had destroyed, 
 or caused destroy, the church of Inchbryak, and to have joined 
 that parish to the church of Marietown, I have thought it good 
 to declare unto your wisdoms my part in that cause. I never 
 did destroy a parish church, but would have had the reparation 
 of all. As to that church of Inchbryak, I, in my visitation, 
 finding it spoiled and broken down, did request the parishioners 
 thereof to resort unto the church of Marietown, being near 
 unto them, until their own church should be bigged and repair- 
 ed ; to which they did consent, not to continue ever so, but for 
 a time, until their own church were bigged ; the which I wish 
 to be done shortly, and what in me lieth, to further the same, 
 shall not be omitted. This is the truth of that matter; and if 
 it shall be found otherwise, I shall build the church on my 
 expences. If your wisdoms think any fault herein, I am sub- 
 dued, and shall obey your godly judgment." 
 
 Mr Petrie adds, in a kind of note, as follows : ** Under this 
 letter is written thus, 'At Edinburgh, August 10th, 1573, the 
 church presently assembled findeth no fault in the premisses 
 done by the superintendant, but that his proceedings therein are 
 worthy of praise.' And it is subscribed by the clerk of the as- 
 sembly, I. Gray." 
 
 From the above note, and from what will afterwards appear, 
 
14 JOHN ERSKINE OF DUN. 
 
 Mr Petrie seems to have been favoured with a perusal of Mr 
 Erskine's papers. 
 
 As superintendanl of Angus and Merns, and as having a spe- 
 cial commission from the general assembly, Mr Erskine per- 
 formed, what he must have reckoned a very disagreeable work, 
 at Aberdeen, in June, 1569. Mr Alexander Anderson, princi- 
 pal of King's College, Old Aberdeen ; Mr Andrew Galloway, 
 sub-principal ; Mr Andrew Anderson, Mr Thomas Austin, and 
 Mr Duncan Nory, regents ; were still adhering to their old po- 
 pish tenets, and had obstinately refused to renounce them. 
 Queen Mary, during her reign, had protected them. But al- 
 ter her deposition, the Earl of Murray, who was then regent of 
 the kingdom in the minority of King James VI., yielded up these 
 persons to the judgment of the general assembly. 
 
 The assembly, in 1568, justly considering the danger which 
 would arise to religion, if teachers of youth were allowed to re- 
 main, who were known to entertain erroneous opinions, declared 
 the foresaid persons to be unqualified, and gave a special com- 
 mission to the Laird of Dun, to go to Aberdeen, and dispossess 
 them of their places. For some reasons, which do not appear, 
 he was dilatory in executing his commission. But in June, 
 1569, when the Earl of Murray was on a visitation in the north, 
 Mr Erskine embraced the opportunity of obeying, in his pre- 
 sence, and with his approbation, the command which he had 
 received from the general assembly. 
 
 A full copy of the sentence which he pronounced, is insert- 
 ed by Dr M'Kenzie, in the third volume of his Lives of the 
 Scots Writers, when he is giving an account of Mr Alexander 
 Arbuthnot, who was immediately inaugurated as successor to 
 Principal Anderson. 
 
 In the preamble of the sentence, Mr Erskine says, " I, John 
 Erskine, Superintendant of Angus and Merns, Principal of the 
 King's College at Aberdeen, having commission from the 
 church to visit the sheriffdoms of Aberdeen and Banff." The 
 reason why he styled himself Principal, may have been, that he 
 considered the former Principal as already deposed by the act 
 of assembly ; and that, in name of the church, he was now, 
 for the time, virtually invested with all the powers of that 
 office. 
 
 Mr Anderson and his companions were treated as intruders. 
 It was declared, that they were no longer to be reckoned mem- 
 bers of Christ's church ; and that they were secluded from teach- 
 ing privately or publicly in that college, or in any other part of 
 the realm. They were " decerned to remove forth of the said 
 college with all diligence, that other godly men might be 
 placed there, for the upbringing of youth, in the fear of God, 
 in good letters." The sentence was to be formally intimated to 
 
JOHN ERSKINE OF DUN". 15 
 
 them, and duly published. Intimation also was to be made of 
 rt on the Sunday following, viz. July 3d, to the congregations 
 in Old and New Aberdeen. 
 
 Injustice to these men, it may be observed, that they were 
 not charged with any thing immoral or bad in their conduct, 
 further than as their being bigotted Papists. This fault unfitted 
 them for being employed as teachers of young persons, who 
 might have been led by their influence to favour or embrace 
 wrong principles of religion. It was, therefore, justly esteemed, 
 however exemplary they might have been in other respects, as 
 in itself a sufficient ground for their deprivation. 
 
 In 1501, Mr Alexander Anderson, at that time only sub- 
 principal, had held a dispute at Edinburgh, which lasted two 
 days, with Mr John Knox, Mr John Willock, and Mr Chris- 
 topher Goodman. The matter in dispute was chiefly the doc- 
 trine of the popish mass. Though Mr Anderson was reckoned, 
 by those who were present, to have been defeated in his argu- 
 ments, he would not acknowledge the victory obtained by his 
 opponents, but still professed his former opinions. 
 
 Mr John Lesslie, afterwards popish Bishop of Ross, and a 
 zealous vindicator of Queen Mary, was his co-adjutor in that 
 controversy. In his History of Scotland, he says, that " Mr 
 Alexander Anderson was a most grave doctor." A college 
 manuscript, quoted in a printed history of Old Aberdeen, says, 
 that Principal Anderson " was a great scholar, and a subtile 
 disputant : that he was a man both pious and learned ; and had 
 been esteemed very active and fit for his employment." Mr 
 Knox, who could not but know him, as he had been his anta- 
 gonist in the popish controversy, gives this character of him, 
 that " he was more subtile and crafty, than either learned or 
 godly :" and the forecited manuscript relates, that " after his 
 deposition, he lived obscurely in Aberdeen, and died there." 
 
 In December, 1569, the Earls of Northumberland and West- 
 moreland, who had headed a rebellion against Queen Elizabeth, 
 were defeated, and fled into Scotland. The regent, Earl ot 
 Murray, being at that time in Tiviotdale administering justice 
 in the Scottish borders, apprehended the Earl of Northumber- 
 land, and carried him prisoner to the castle of Lochleven. 
 From thence the good regent, as he was commonly called, 
 went to the shire of Angus, where he lodged with Mr Erskine 
 in the castle of Dun. 
 
 In the copy which I have perused of some of Wodrow's Col- 
 lections, an incident is mentioned, which I shall insert in Mr 
 Wodrow's own words : 
 
 " In the beginning of the next year," (viz. January 23d, 
 1570), " the good regent was basely murdered at Linlithgow. 
 I have the following remarkable passage from two ministers of 
 
16 JOHN ERSKINE OF DUN 1 . 
 
 this church, who were once in the family of Dun. It is handed 
 down in that family as an undoubted truth ; and it is an evi- 
 dence that Sir John Erskine, besides his great learning, wisdom, 
 and other qualities, was a person that lived near God, and 
 sometimes had communications of future things vouchsafed to 
 him. 
 
 " The regent had been over in Lochlevin with the Earl of 
 Northumberland, whom he had catched, after the rebellion 
 raised by him and by other persons in England, had been sup- 
 pressed, and kept him as a prisoner in Lochlevin, about the 2d 
 of January, 1570. He came from thence, and was lodging with 
 the Superintendant of Angus in the house of Dun; where they 
 yet know (shew) a large window, at the end of the long hall, 
 which looked out to a pleasant green. The Earl of Murray 
 and the Laird of Dun were standing in that window, conver- 
 sing closely about important matters, with their faces looking 
 towards the green. And while the earl was talking, the super- 
 intendant suddenly looked about to him, and, with tears in his 
 eyes, after he had been silent for some time, at length inter- 
 rupted the regent with these words: 'Ah! woes me, my iord, 
 for what I perceive is to befal you shortly ; for, in a fortnigut's 
 time, you will be murdered.' 
 
 " Such hints of future things were not uncommon among our 
 reformers. The regent had several other notices of his hazard, 
 and too little regarded them." 
 
 In 1571, Mr Erskine shewed his zeal for the liberties of the 
 church, in a long letter which he wrote to his chief, the Earl 
 of Mar, who was then regent of the kingdom. Both Mr Da- 
 vid Calderwood, and Mr Alexander Petrie, have given large 
 extracts from it. His concluding words are : " I lament from, 
 my very heart, a great misorder used at Stirling, at the last par- 
 liament, in creating bishops, placing them, and giving them 
 a vote in parliament as bishops, in despite of the kirk, and in 
 high contempt of God, the kirk opposing itself against that 
 misrule." 
 
 Several letters passed betwixt the regent and him upon this 
 subject : at last it. was agreed that Mr Erskine should corre- 
 spond, and hold conferences with some other of the leading per- 
 sons in the church, for the purpose of bringing the government 
 of the church into a more regular form. 
 
 So entirely did he devote himself to his clerical duties, that 
 he desisted, at least in a great measure, from acting in his ca- 
 pacity as a baron. Mr Petrie relates, that " from an act un- 
 der the privy signet, of date November 21st, 1574, it appears, 
 that Mr John Erskine, so long as he had been superintendant, 
 had not been in the sheriff court, though he was a baron. He 
 *?as indemnified for the time past, and exemption was granted 
 
 8 
 
JOHN ERSKINE OF DUN. 17 
 
 lo him for the time to come, during his continuance in the 
 office of superintend ant." 
 
 It was about this time that the Assembly employed com- 
 missioners for compiling what is called the Second Book of 
 Discipline. Mr Erskinc was one of them. Each of them had 
 a point of church government allotted to him as the subject of 
 which he was to treat. Their work was carried on with great 
 care and attention, with frequent references to the Assembly, 
 and conferences with one another. In the Assembly, 1377, 
 Mr Erskine complained that the head assigned to him was, in 
 his judgment?, obscure; the Assembly therefore requested him, 
 to confer with the other commissioners the uext day, at seven 
 o'clock in the morning, in order that his doubts might be re- 
 moved. 
 
 There had been disputes among the commissioners concern- 
 ing three points, viz. the office and duties of lay deacons; some 
 particulars relating to divorces; and the right of patronage. 
 Perhaps it was in one or other of these points that Mr Erskine 
 had perceived some obscurity. But in 157L>, the book was pre- 
 sented to the Assembly complete, and was approved. It was 
 then, and is still considered, as containing a scriptural model, 
 and true representation, of what should be the government of a 
 presbyterian church. 
 
 Mr Erskine was not one of those persons of whom no man 
 has spokenevil. Mr David Calderwood blames him for having, 
 in his old age, in the year 158.5, shewed too great a complai- 
 sance to some court measures, which were justly esteemed in- 
 jurious to the liberties of the church. He required, it should 
 seem, from the clergy within his bounds, a submission to cer- 
 tain acts of parliament, which had been made in consequence 
 of what is called " the Raid of Ruthven." 
 
 But the words which Mr Calderwood uses in his censure of 
 him, are a great deal too harsh. Mr Erskine required only 
 such a qualified submission as had been before subscribed by 
 many excellent ministers, and which they had published for the 
 information and satisfaction of their brethren. Mr Petrie, when 
 speaking of this affair, says, that he had seen among the papers 
 of John Erskine, (meaning the Laird of Dun), a mitigated form 
 of submission, which the king, as Mr Petrie expresses it, " had 
 taken the pains to pen with his own hand," and had declared 
 that a subscription to it would be sufficient. The principal 
 qualifying expression in this mitigated form was, " In as far as 
 is agreeable to the word of God." 
 
 Mr Erskine was yet able to attend, or at least had work as- 
 signed to him, in the Assemblies which met, May, 1586, and 
 June, 1587. In the first of these Assemblies, he was appointed,, 
 
18 JOHN ERSKINE OF DUN. 
 
 with the king's consent, to visit, for a special purpose, the coun- 
 ties of Angus and Merns. In the other, he and four other mi- 
 nisters were commissioned to make a collection of the acts of 
 parliament which favoured the protestant religion, or tended 
 to the abolition of popery and idolatry, with a view to their 
 being more strictly executed ; and to make a collection of such 
 other acts of parliament as were prejudicial to the privileges of 
 a true presbyterian church, that means might be used for ob- 
 taining their repeal. Also, he was appointed one of the com- 
 missioners who should attend the parliament to settle some 
 matters amicably which related to the church. 
 
 In the Assembly which met in February, 1598, he was not 
 present. His infirmities were now increasing with his years. 
 Archbishop Spottiswood relates, that John Erskine of Dun, Su- 
 perintendant of Angus and Merns, died March 12th, 1591, in 
 the eighty-second year of his age; leaving behind him a nu- 
 merous posterity, and of himself and his virtues, a memory 
 that never shall be forgotten. 
 
 He was the last of the five superinlendants. No successors 
 were appointed to them ; for presbyteries or elderships, as they 
 were then called, in proportion as they became generally erect- 
 ed, answered ail the ecclesiastical purposes for which the su- 
 perintendants had been originally chosen. 
 
 Mr Erskine had spent a long life in the service of God, and 
 of his country, and in his endeavours to maintain the invalu- 
 able interests of our Redeemer's church or kingdom. 
 
 The character given of him by George Buchanan, is, that 
 " he was a learned man, equally pious and humane." Mr 
 Knox says, " The Laird of Dun was a zealous, prudent, and 
 godly man : a man gentle of nature, and addicted to please her 
 (viz. the queen regent) in all things not repugnant to God." 
 
 The character given of him by Queen Mary, is not to be dis- 
 regarded. She had often been desired to hear protestant mi- 
 nisters preach, and to be present at their debates with learned 
 men among the papists. Being in Edinburgh, May 13th, 1565, 
 she sent for three superintendants, who happened to be then in 
 that city, and told them, as Mr Knox relates, " that she desi- 
 red nothing more earnestly than the glory of God, the satisfying 
 menV consciences, and the good of the commonwealth : That 
 albeit she was not persuaded of the truth of any religion, but 
 of the one in which she had been brought up ; yet she assured 
 them, that she would hear conference and disputation in the 
 scriptures : likewise, that she would be content to hear public 
 preaching, out of the mouths of such preachers as pleased her 
 majesty. And she said, that above all others, she would gladly 
 hear the Superintendant of Angus, Sir John Erskine, for he 
 
JOHN ERSKINE OF DUN. 19 
 
 was a mild and sweet-natured man, and of true honesty and up- 
 rightness." 
 
 Archbishop Spottiswood, in his younger years, both before 
 and after his father's death, had good opportunities of being 
 personally acquainted with Mr Erskine ; I shall, therefore, add 
 his testimony to those already given : " He was a man," says he, 
 " famous for the services performed to his prince and country, 
 and worthy to be remembered for his travels in the church, 
 which, out of the zeal which he had for the truth, he under- 
 took, preaching and advancing it by all means. Before the 
 reformation, his house was to those who in that time were call- 
 ed heretics, a special place of refuge ; afterwards, such was the 
 scarcity of ministers, that he took upon him the charge, and 
 was chosen with the first, to have the oversight of the churches 
 in these north parts, which he governed to his death most 
 wisely, and with great authority, giving no way to the nova- 
 tions introduced, nor suffering them to take place within the 
 bounds of his charge whilst he lived. A baron he was of good 
 rank, wise, learned, liberal, of singular courage ; who, for di- 
 vers resemblances, may well be said to have been another Am- 
 brose." 
 
 St Ambrose, Bishop of Milan, who died in the year 397, 
 and to whom Spottiswood compares Mr Erskine, was a person 
 of noble birth, and received a most pious education. In the 
 first part of his life, he was governor of a province in Italy, in 
 which he acquired great fame for his justice and moderation. 
 After he became Bishop of Milan, he bade adieu to all secular 
 affairs, and devoted himself wholly to the pastoral duties of his 
 office. He spake to princes with courage, but also with pru- 
 dence and moderation. He was firm in the defence of the 
 doctrine of Christ, against the persons who had deviated from 
 it ; and such was the sweetness of his natural temper, and the 
 honied or agreeable manner of his eloquence, that the name of 
 " the Mellifluous Doctor" has by some been conferred upon 
 him. 
 
[ 20 j 
 
 Mr JOHN SPOTTISWOOD, 
 
 II. Mr John Spottiswood, Minister of Calder, ani» 
 
 SlJPERINTENDANT OF LOTHIAN. 
 
 CHAP. I. 
 
 His Birth and Education. Becomes a Protestant. Goes to Eng- 
 land. Chaplain to Archbishop Cranmer. Returns to Scotland* 
 Scottish Affairs. Patronised by the Earl of Glencairn. The 
 Bible allowed to he used in Scotland. The Infant Queen to be 
 married to the Dauphin of France. Of IVHUam, Earl of Glen- 
 cairn, and of his Son Alexander, Lord Kilmaurs. Mr Spottis- 
 wood again goes to England. Of the Earl of Lennox. Mr 
 Spottiswood returns to Scotland, and appointed Minister of 
 Colder. Of Lord Toiphichcn and Mr Knox. Of Lord James 
 Stewart, afterwards Earl of Murray. Mr Spottiszood accom- 
 panies him to France, and after his return jteely preaches 
 against Idolatry. 
 
 Mr John Spottiswood, one of the reformers in Scotland, 
 was born in 1 50Q. He was the second son of William Spottis- 
 wood of that ilk, in the shire of Berwick, who lost his life in 
 the disastrous battle of Flodden, along with King James IV. 
 and many others of his countrymen, September 9th, 1513; and 
 of Elizabeth, daughter of Henry Hop-Pringle of Torsonce, on 
 the borders of Selkirkshire. He is said to have been left an 
 orphan by the death of his father. 
 
 The most particular account of him, is that which we find 
 in " Crawfurd's Lives of the Officers of State." But it is there 
 introduced only as a kind of preface to the history of the life of 
 Archbishop Spottiswood, and is so concise as to require to be 
 illustrated by the mention of collateral events. 
 
 The persons to whose care young Mr Spottiswood had been 
 
MR JOHN SPOTTISWOOD. 21 
 
 committed, sent him, when he had arrived at a proper age, to 
 the university of Glasgow, where he made good proficiency in 
 his education, and took his literary degrees. But as his mind 
 was early impressed with a serious sense of religion, he applied 
 himself chiefly to the study of divinity. Mr Crawford says, 
 that " he was for some time under the direction of the learned 
 and famous Dr Major, who was then theology professor at 
 Glasgow." 
 
 The doctrines of Luther were now making progress, not only 
 in England, but also in Scotland. They attiacted the atten- 
 tion of Mr Spottiswood, and he assented to them, in so far as 
 he understood them. But he perceived how dangerous it was 
 to profess them openly in his own country, during the perse- 
 cutions which were carried on in the reign of King James V. 
 Being disgusted with the cruelties which were then exercised, 
 and abhorring the thoughts of appearing as a clergyman in a 
 church which was, in many respects, directly opposite to the 
 religion of Christ, he withdrew himself privately into England, 
 where the reformation had already made a considerable pro- 
 gress, and where a greater degree of liberty, with regard to re- 
 ligion, was then allowed. He went thither, most probably, 
 about the year 1534, when he had entered into the twenty- 
 third year of his age. 
 
 He now intended, it has been said, to follow some secular 
 employment ; but the wise and sovereign Disposer of all events 
 had determined, that this sincere enquirer after truth should 
 have his mind farther enlightened, and that he should serve 
 him in the gospel of his Son. Providence so ordered, that he 
 was introduced to Archbishop Cranmer ; who afterwards, in 
 the reign of the English Queen Mary, suffered death as a mar- 
 tyr to his religion. This great and good man was much plea- 
 sed with Mr Spottiswood ; he admitted him into his familia- 
 rity, and fully instructed and confirmed him in the protestant 
 faith. 
 
 Mr Spottiswood was in England about eight or nine years ; 
 but the particular manner in which he was there employed, is 
 not sufficiently evident. It may be presumed, that, if he had 
 not received clerical orders before, he now received them from 
 the hands of the archbishop. It is probable that he resided 
 chiefly in the archbishop's family as one of his chaplains, and 
 assisted him in the various parts of public business in which, 
 from the nature of his office, he was necessarily engaged. It 
 must have been in some such situation that he became a person 
 well known at the court of England. 
 
 But whatever his employments were, his affection was always 
 strong towards his native country ; and the time at last arrived, 
 when his desire could be properly gratified. Several encoura- 
 
22 MR JOHN SPOTTISWOOB. 
 
 ging circumstances concurred. King James V. had died, De- 
 cember 14th, 1542, and his successor was a daughter, only 
 seven days old. The Earl of Arran, a reputed protestant, was 
 made recent or governor of the kingdom. Cardinal David 
 Beaton, the head of the popish party, had been disgraced by 
 the governor, and was a prisoner in the castle of Blackness. 
 Notwithstanding the seventies of the late reign, the protestants 
 in Scotland were numerous and powerful, as a proof of which, 
 the cardinal, a short time before the king's death, had present- 
 ed to ban a Jist of three hundred and sixty principal noblemen, 
 barons, and gentlemen, whom he accust d of heresy ; and craved 
 that he should be allowed to prosecute them. 
 
 Another circumstance, which afforded encouragement to Mr 
 Spottiswood and the protestant party, was, that King Henry 
 VIII. immediately upon his hearing of the death of his ne- 
 phew, the Scottish king, entered very keenly into a design of 
 effecting a marriage between the infant Queen of Scotland, 
 and his son Edward, who was afterwards the pious King Ed- 
 ward VI. He used various means to accomplish his purpose. 
 He not only sent an ambassador to Scotland, to make pro- 
 posals, but granted liberty to the Scottish noblemen, who had 
 been detained prisoners since the battle of Solway Moss, No- 
 vember 24th, 1542, to return home, upon their having given 
 a promise of exerting their endeavours in his behalf. As he 
 chiefly confided in the protestant party, he also sent divines 
 from England to preach the doctrines of the reformation ; and 
 recommended some of these divines, by special letters, to the 
 Earl of Arran. In all these circumstances, it may be sup- 
 posed, that Cranmer heartily approved of Mr Spottiswood's 
 return to Scotland, and that King Henry was not ignorant 
 of it. 
 
 But Mr Spottiswood had found among the Scottish prisoners, 
 at London, one with whom he became intimately acquainted, 
 and who was always afterwards his steady friend and powerful 
 protector. This was William, fourth Earl of Glencairn, a 
 zealous protestant. It was, most probably, in the company of 
 this nobleman, and of the other released prisoners, who ar- 
 rived at Edinburgh in the middle of January, lo43, that Mr 
 Spottiswood eigain visited bis native country. 
 
 He chiefly resided, after his return, in the house of the 
 Earl of Glencairn, officiating, it may be presumed, in his cle- 
 rical capacity; and he would not fail, on every proper occa- 
 sion, to speak in favour of the match with England, on which 
 the prosperity of the prptestant interest seemed so greatly to de- 
 pend. 
 
 Scotland had never, indeed, before enjoyed such bright pro- 
 spects, with regard to religion, as during the greatest part of 
 
MR JOHN SPOTTISWOOB. 32 
 
 the year 1545. Preachers, especially from England, abounded, 
 who openly declared the true principles of the gospel. In the 
 month of March, an act of parliament was made and published, 
 rendering it lawful for every person to read the Old and New 
 Testaments in their mother tongue. And the treaty of mar- 
 riage of the Queen of Scots, with the Prince of England, was 
 ratified by act of parliament, August 25th. 
 
 " Then," says Mr Knox, " might have been seen the Bible 
 lying on almost every gentleman's table. The New Testament 
 was borne about in many men's hands. The knowledge of God 
 did wonderfully increase, and he gave his Holy Spirit to simple 
 men in great abundance. Then were set forth works in our 
 own tongue, besides those which came from England, that did 
 disclose the pride, the tyranny, and abuses of the Roman An- 
 tichrist." 
 
 It is perhaps almost needless to observe, that, at the end of 
 that year, the sanguine hopes which had been entertained, 
 were sadly disappointed. The cardinal having been impru- 
 dently set at liberty, he, with the assistance of French agents, 
 bribed, it is said, some principal men of the kingdom, and 
 caused the friars every where to preach, that the independency 
 of Scotland was in danger. The timid, or fickle, governor yield- 
 ed to the popish party ; and, to the great grief of the godly and 
 most considerate part of the nation, the parliament, December 
 11th, abrogated the treaty with England, and thereby devoted 
 their infant queen to a marriage with the Dauphin of France, 
 and to receive her education at the then dissolute court of that 
 kingdom. 
 
 It may not be departing too much from the account I am 
 giving of Mr Spottiswood, to mention some particulars relating 
 to his valuable friend and patron, William, Earl of Glencaiin, 
 and his family. This venerable nobleman had long been a 
 promoter of the reformation in the west of Scotland. In the 
 Letters of Sir Ralph Sadler, who was the ambassador Irom 
 England in 1543, the Earl of Glencaiin is characterised as " a 
 man of deep judgment," and is always represented as having 
 great influence in his own country. 
 
 He was happy with regard to the religious principles of his 
 family. His second son, Andrew Cunningham, ancestor of 
 the Baronets of Corse Hill, was a true protestant. Mr Craw- 
 furd, in his Life of Cardinal Beaton, relates, that about the 
 year 1539> this Andrew Cunningham, together with James Ha- 
 milton of Livingston, who was brother of Mr Patrick Hamilton 
 the martyr, and George Buchanan the celebrated poet and his- 
 torian, was, through some means or other, apprehended by the 
 cardinal. And Mr Crawfurd adds, that " these gentlemen 
 
24 MR JOHN SPOTTISWOOD. 
 
 would certainly then have died, if they had not made theit 
 escape out of prison." 
 
 The earl's eldest son, Alexander Lord Kilmaurs, bore, even 
 in his father's lifetime, a high character, and was engaged in 
 many public affairs. Sir Ralph Sadler says of him, in one of 
 his letters to King Henry VI1L : " In my poor opinion, there 
 are few such men in Scotland, both for wisdom and learning, 
 and for his being well addicted to Christ's word and doctrine." 
 At the time when this letter was written, Lord Kilmaurs was 
 in England, as a pledge for his father's fidelity. But Sir 
 Ralph earnestly entreated, that he might be permitted to re- 
 turn home, and assigned as reasons : " that he could not well 
 be spared out of so wild a country; that his father had great 
 need of him ; and that he could now do much good in a coun- 
 try, where the gospel was set forth in English, and all men for- 
 bidden to hinder the reading of it on pain of death." 
 
 Lord Kilmaurs, in the manner of George Buchanan, and of 
 Sir David Lindsay of the Mount, amused himself in writing 
 satirical poems against the friars. One of them is inserted in 
 Knox's History, and is intitled, " An Epistle from the Hermit 
 of Alareit, to his Brethren the Grey Friars." 
 
 After he became Earl of Glencairn, by the death of his fa- 
 ther, who, according to Hume of Godscroft's History of the 
 Douglasses, was killed at the battle of Pinkey, September 10th, 
 1547, he continued to be bold and active, in the behalf of the 
 reformation. In the spring of 1556, Mr Knox, who was then 
 in Scotland, was for some time hospitably entertained by x^lex- 
 ander Earl of Glencairn, in his house of Finlayston, in the shire 
 of Renfrew. Mr Knox not only preached there, but admi- 
 nistered the sacrament of our Lord's Supper, in the protestant 
 form, giving both the bread and the wine to the earl, his lady, 
 his two sons, and to many other of the earl's relations. This 
 was reckoned a very open declaration of their religions princi- 
 ples; and the writer of the Life of Mr Knox, prefixed to 
 Knox's History, says, " The silver cups which were then used 
 for that purpose, are yet remaining in the family." 
 
 Alexander, Earl of Glencairn, immediately before the actual 
 accomplishment of the reformation, was remarkably free in his 
 remonstrances to the epieen regent, when she was threatening 
 to avenge the cause of the friars, upon the town of Perth, where 
 their monasteries had been destroyed. The earl, with a brave 
 body of men from the west, who prosecuted their rout a great 
 ■way to the north of Stirling, where the queen regent then was, 
 came most expeditiously to its relief. Archbishop Spottiswood 
 says, " The celerity which Alexander, Earl of Glencairn, used, 
 was most admired ; for he, upon warning given him of the 
 danger in which the town stood, taking his way through the 
 
MR JOHN SPOTTISWOOD. 25 
 
 mountains, travelled night and day till he came to Perth, bring- 
 ing wi*h him two thousand and five hundred men, a good and 
 opportune support." 
 
 In 1543, we find Mr Spottiswood in Scotland, happy with 
 his protestant friends in the enjoyment of their religious free- 
 dom. But to gratify his friend, William, Earl of Glencairn, 
 he was induced again to make a visit to England. The occa- 
 sion was, Matthew, Earl of Lennox> an accomplished young 
 nobleman, and who was remarkable for his courtly manners, 
 came home from France, in the month of April. His views 
 were of a very elevated nature. The French court had taught 
 him to expect, that he might be married to the Queen Dow- 
 ager of Scotland, and made governor or regent of the kingdom. 
 He, therefore, for some time laboured to promote that alliance 
 with France, which the papists had now in contemplation; but 
 finding at last, that both the Earl of Arran and the cardinal 
 were his enemies, and that the French had deserted and decei- 
 ved him, he changed his political conduct, and favoured the 
 match with England. 
 
 Still, however, his ambition aimed at what was reckoned a 
 high object. He sought to procure for himself in marriage, 
 the Lady Margaret Douglas, niece of King Henry VIII. She 
 was the daughter of Margaret, Henry's sister, who, after the 
 death of her first husband, King James IV., married Archibald 
 Douglas, commonly called the great Earl of Angus, and this 
 young lady was the only child of that second marriage. Henry 
 had taken care that his niece should be educated at the court 
 of England, and she yet remained there. 
 
 The Earl of Lennox applied to her father, who was then in 
 Scotland, and it appears, from the letters of Sir Ralph Sadler, 
 that the Earl of Angus referred the matter entirely to the de- 
 termination of the English kino;. 
 
 But the Earl of Lennox was anxious to find proper persons to 
 transact his affair at the court of England ; and William, Earl 
 of Glencairn, recommended to him Mr Spottiswood, as one 
 who would be very useful to him in that country. 
 
 Mr Spottiswood accordingly went to England, it should seem, 
 in the beginning ol the year 1544. He was successful in his 
 mission. The Carl of Lennox soon after followed ; and the 
 marriage was solemnized in summer 1544. It may be remark- 
 ed, that the eldest son of this marriage, in which Mr Spottis- 
 wood was so greatly instrumental, was Henry, Lord Darnly, 
 the second husband of Mary Queen of Scots, and father of 
 King James VI. 
 
 Mr Spottiswood remained with the Earl of Lennox some 
 months after the marriage, and then returned to his native 
 country, with a resolution never more to forsake it. 
 
26* MR JOHN SPOTTISWOOD. 
 
 He now found another very valuable friend, in Sir James 
 Sandilands, Lord St John, afterwards the first Lord of Tor- 
 phiehen. He was brother to Sir John Sandilands the Knight 
 of Calder. He and his brother were men of an eminent re- 
 ligious character, and zealous promoters of the reformation. 
 Mr Spottiswood was almost constantly with them, and with a 
 young nobleman of great hopes, the Lord James Stewart, Prior 
 of St Andrews. 
 
 At length, in the year 1547, when the parish of Calder be- 
 came vacant, Sir James and bis brother persuaded Mr Spottis- 
 wood to accept of the ministerial charge of that parish ; and 
 had interest enough to procure that his acceptance of it should 
 be allowed, though his protestant principles were pretty ge- 
 nerally known. He continued minister of Calder till his death ; 
 and the book of the Baronage of Scotland says, that he took 
 great pains in teaching his people the principles of the protes- 
 tant faith. 
 
 In the winter of 1555, when Mr Knox was at Calder, Mr 
 Spottiswood, because of the situation of public affairs at that 
 time, could not invite him to preach in the parish church ; but 
 made no objection to, and it may be presumed, heartily ap- 
 proved of, his preaching in the great hall of Calder house, 
 where the Prior of St Andrews, and many other noblemen, re- 
 sorted to him. And in the spring of 1556, Mr Knox, being a 
 second time at Calder, in his way from the Earl of Glencairn's 
 house of Finlayston, again preached, and also dispensed the 
 sacrament of our Lord's Supper, to great numbers ©f people, 
 who convened there from the adjacent parts of the countiy, 
 and from Edinburgh. They came to enjoy the privilege of 
 receiving the holy communion, in the manner which their con- 
 sciences approved. 
 
 Douglas, in his book of the Peerage of Scotland, says, that 
 the sacrament of our Lord's Supper was celebrated in Scotland, 
 for the first time in the protestant form, in the great hall of 
 the house of Calder. But this evidently was a mistake; for it 
 appears from Knox's History, that it had been before cele- 
 brated in that manner in the house of Finlayston. 
 
 AVhile Mr Spottiswood was useful to the people of his own 
 parish, hejwas useful also to persons of a more elevated rank 
 and station. To these persons, he found daily and easy access. 
 They respected him for his talents and learning, his extensive 
 acquaintance with the world, his singular prudence, and exem- 
 plary piety. 
 
 One of these persons was Lord James Stewart, natural son 
 of King James V. In the year 1539, when he was almost yet 
 in his infancy, he had been endowed with the rich priory of the 
 Augustine monastery of St Andrews. In his childhood, Mr 
 
MR JOHN SPOTTISWOOD. 27 
 
 George Buchanan had been appointed his preceptor, but he 
 continued with him only three years. Mr "Spottiswood seems 
 to have superintended the higher branches of his education ; 
 and assuredly was greatly instrumental in impressing upon his 
 mind that love to the protestant religion, for which he was so 
 remarkable at the period of the reformation, and afterwards 
 when he became Earl of Murray, and regent of the kingdom. 
 
 When the prior of St Andrews, in 1558, was to go to the 
 court of France, as one of the commissioners from Scotland, to 
 witness his sister's marriage with the dauphin, he solicited Mr 
 Spottiswood to go along with him, as his religious companion, 
 and safe counsellor. Mr Spottiswood gave his consent, and 
 accompanied him thither. When both returned, in that same 
 year, Mr Spottiswood was in good health ; but the prior, ever 
 afterwards, felt a degree of inward bodily weakness, which was 
 ascribed to the effects of poison. 
 
 They found, on their return, that the reformation in Scot- 
 land had made very general progress. The prior took an 
 active part in behalf of the reforming congregations in the 
 summer of 1559; and Mr Spottiswood no longer thought it ne- 
 cessary to refrain in any place from preaching, in the strongest 
 and most public manner, against the erroneous doctrines, the 
 superstitions, and idolatries, of the church cf Rome. 
 
SB MR JOHN SPOTTISWOOD. 
 
 CHAP. II. 
 
 One of the Compilers of the first Book of Discipline, and the Con- 
 fession of Faith. Mr Knox the Instrument of introducing Pres- 
 byterian Government. Mr Spottiszcood's Ordination to the Of- 
 fice of Super intendunt. His Visit of Compliment to the Queen, 
 on the Birth of her Son. In another Visit obtains Favours for 
 the Ministers of Boroughs. His Friendship for the Earl of Mur- 
 ray. His Pastoral Letter against Queen Mary. Of the Earl 
 of Arran. He ordains a Bishop. His Death and Character. 
 An Account of his Family. 
 
 In the preceding part of my account of Mr Spottiswood, I have 
 endeavoured to illustrate, by historical events, the outlines con- 
 cerning him given in " Crawfurd's Lives of the Officers of State." 
 That my account of him might be, if possible, more interesting, 
 I have also introduced anecdotes of some persons with whom he 
 was connected, who, though they were not of the clerical pro- 
 fession, were distinguished by their early zeal in behalf of the 
 reformation. In what remains, recourse must be had to those 
 few intimations of his conduct and character which arc to be 
 found dispersed in our general histories. 
 
 Biography is a species of writing which was anciently very lit- 
 tle practised in this country, a defect which renders difficult any 
 attempt to furnish an entertaining history of many eminent men 
 of former times. 
 
 In the beginning of the year 1560, the lords of the reforming 
 congregation clearly foresaw what would be the issue of their 
 contest with the queen regent. They were, therefore, desirous 
 that every person in the nation should know precisely, what were 
 to be the doctrines and constitution of that church which they 
 were endeavouring to establish. 
 
 April 29th, they gave a charge, in a most solemn manner, to 
 six ministers, whom they reckoned most able, viz. to Mr John 
 Spottiswood, Mr John Winram, Mr John VVillock, Mr John 
 Knox, Mr John Row, and Mr John Douglas, " to commit to 
 
MR JOHN SPOTTISWOOD. 29 
 
 writing their judgment touching the reformation." They re- 
 quired them to do this " in the name of the eternal God, and 
 as they should answer in his presence." 
 
 It was a very important work which was now assigned them, 
 and they seem before-hand to have been turning their thoughts 
 toward it; for, on the 20th of May, they presented to the lords 
 the first book of discipline fully written, and appear at the same 
 time to have prepared the old Confession of Faith. 
 
 If, at this period, the form of church government for Scot- 
 land had been modelled according to that of the reformed church 
 in England, it would have been no matter of great surprise. Mr 
 Spottiswood, and some of the other preachers in Scotland, had 
 long and successfully availed themselves of the support and di- 
 rections which they received from persons of the English church. 
 And indeed Bishop Keith, quoting from a manuscript copy of 
 Archbishop Spottiswood's history, says, " divers of this num- 
 ber," viz. of the ministers to whom the above charge was given, 
 " persuaded the retaining of the ancient policy, and to purge it 
 from the corruptions and abuses only that were crept into it,, 
 forasmuch as they were not to make up a new church, but only 
 to reform it, and to reduce things unto that perfection from 
 which they had swerved " 
 
 He afterwards adds, still quoting the words of the archbishop, 
 " but these advices took no place : John Knox, who then car- 
 ried the chiefest sway, liked that course best which stood in ex- 
 treme opposition to the church of Rome, and studied by all 
 means to conform the government of the church to that which 
 he had seen in Geneva." 
 
 Thus we may reckon ourselves indebted to that great reform- 
 er, Mr Knox, as the chief instrument in the hand of God, for 
 the Presbyterian church government, which, through the good- 
 ness of God, we now happily enjoy. Much depended upon the 
 resolution that should be taken at that critical season. If pres- 
 bytery had not then been agreed to, and established, it might 
 perhaps at any time afterwards have scarcely been heard of in 
 our country. 
 
 There is one circumstance, which, as the consequences have 
 been lasting, pious Christians may reflect upon with pleasure, that 
 whatever differences of opinion there might have been with re- 
 spect to the outward government of the church, there were none 
 with respect to its doctrines. The good men above named all 
 heartily concurred in framing the doctrinal articles of the old 
 Confession of Faith, which are truly Calvinistical : which were 
 according to the doctrines preached by all our reformers ; and 
 are the same in substance with those in the Confession of Faith 
 now in use. 
 
SO MR JOHN SPOTTISWbOti. 
 
 When the committee of parliament, in July, 1560, norni-* 
 nated ecclesiastical superintendants, as an expedient necessary 
 in the infant state of the reformed church, Mr John Spottis- 
 wood was allotted to superintend the counties of Lothian, Ber- 
 wickshire and Tiviotdaie. His residence at Calder, and his con- 
 nections in the south of Scotland, seemed to point him out as 
 the most fit person to preside in that district. 
 
 He was not, however, admitted in a formal manner to the 
 exercise of this office, till March 9th, 1561. The form of his 
 admission is largely set down in Knox's history; and, as it was 
 to serve as a pattern for the admission of other ecclesiastical su- 
 perintendants, it is still more particularly set down in the old 
 " book of common order." I shall briefly relate some parts of 
 it, chiefly with a view to shew what was the state of Mr Spot- 
 tiswood's mind upon that serious occasion. 
 
 The ceremony took place in the high church of Edinburgh. 
 Earls, lords, barons, gentlemen, and others, residing in the 
 district, had been cited from the pulpits in the chief congre- 
 gations. 
 
 Mr John Knox preached, and presided. In his sermon, he 
 shewed, first, the necessity of having ministers and superinten- 
 dants : Secondly, the crimes which might disqualify them : 
 Thirdly, the virtues which were required of them ; and, lastly, 
 whether those who by public consent of the church were called 
 to such offices, might lawfully refuse the same. 
 
 When the people were asked, " if they would have Mr John 
 Spottiswood to be their superintend ant, would honour and 
 obey him, and comfort and assist him in all things pertaining 
 to his charge r" They answered, " we will : and we do promise 
 obedience unto him, as becometh sheep to give unto their pas- 
 tor, so long as he remaineth faithful in his office." 
 
 One of the questions put to Mr Spottiswood was, " Do you 
 seek to be promoted to this office and charge, lor any respect 
 of worldly commodity, or riches, or glory f" To which Mr 
 Spottiswood devoutly replied, " God knoweth the contrary." 
 
 Another question put to him was, " Know ye not, that the ex- 
 cellency of this office, to which God hath called you, requireth 
 that your conversation and behaviour be such, as that you may 
 be irreprehensible, yea, even in the eyes of the ungodly V 
 To which he humbly answered, ,f This I unfeignedly acknow- 
 ledge; and I humbly desire the church of God to pray with 
 me, that my life be not slanderous to the glorious evangel of 
 Jesus Christ." 
 
 After some prayers and exhortations, the whole of the ser- 
 vice was concluded, with singing the old metre version of the 
 twenty-third psalm. 
 
MR JOHN SPOTTISWOOD. SI 
 
 But after he had entered on the full exercise of his new of- 
 fice, he soon found, that, in consequence of his frequent visi- 
 tation of churches in different parts of the country, his people 
 at Calder were much neglected. He was, therefore, desirous, 
 either of giving up his new office, or of being allowed to quit 
 his parochial charge. His parishioners, also, who had long en- 
 joyed the benefits of his ministry, complained of the inconve- 
 niency to which they were now subjected. 
 
 In the Assembly, July 4th, 1562, "John Douglas of Pum- 
 ferstone complained, in name of the parishioners of Calder, that 
 they were diverse times deprived of the preaching of the word, 
 since their minister was elected superinlendant of Lothian; and 
 desired that the said superintendant should be restored to them 
 again, or that some other qualified minister should be provided 
 for them. 
 
 " It was answered by the Assembly, that the profits of many 
 kirks should be preferred to the profit of one ; that the kirk of 
 Calder should be occupied either by Mr Spottiswood himself, 
 or by some other qualified person in his absence; and that the 
 inconvenience they were under, could not otherwise be helped 
 in the present scarcity of ministers. John Douglas also was 
 told, that the parishioners should have complained twenty days 
 before Mr Spottiswood's admission to the superintendency." 
 
 In the Assembly, December, 1563, in the first session, " Mr 
 John Spottiswood, superintendant of Lothian, requested the As- 
 sembly to give him liberty to return to his former cure, because 
 he was not able to bear so great a burthen as he was now bur- 
 thened with." 
 
 In the fourth session of that same Assembly, " The parishi- 
 oners of Calder complained, that Mr John Spottiswood, who 
 was presented to the parsonage of Calder, fifteen years since, by 
 the Laird of Calder, had been promoved (promoted) three 
 years since to be superintendant of Lothian, without their know- 
 ledge ; and that, by reason of his public office and exercise, he 
 was abstracted from his cure at the said kirk the most part of 
 the year. 
 
 " They therefore desired, as before, that the assembly should 
 cause him, either to renounce his office of superintendant, and 
 return to his former vocation ; or else to demit the parsonage, 
 to the effect that another qualified man should be presented. 
 This they requested in consideration of its being impossible for 
 one man to brook and exercise two offices, without one or other 
 of them being neglected ; otherwise we should differ little from 
 the popish kirk, where one person had plurality of benefices ; 
 as the said complaint bore at greater length. 
 
 " The Assembly judged the former answer, given July 4th, 
 15G2, sufficient." 
 
32 MR JOHN SPOTTISWOOD. 
 
 The last attempt to resign, which appears to have been made 
 by Mr Spottiswood, was in the Assembly, August, 1574. He and 
 two other superintendants then offered a formal resignation of 
 their offices, but the Assembly continued them. 
 
 It is, however, to be noted, that, by the first book of disci- 
 pline, each superintendant was required to be minister of a par- 
 ticular kirk within his district. 
 
 Mr Spottiswood went on amicably with the Assembly in their 
 ordinary business; and some important commissions were as- 
 signed him. 
 
 The Assembly, June, 1566, honoured him by appointing him 
 their commissioner to the queen, to congratulate her in their 
 name on the birth of her son, who was afterwards King James 
 VI., and who was born in the castle of Edinburgh, June 19th. 
 His pious and dignified deportment on that courtly occasion, is 
 particularly described, and mentioned as a family anecdote, in 
 Archbishop Spottiswood's history. 
 
 The venerable superintendant, having complimented the 
 queen in name of the Assembly, and requested that the child 
 should be baptised in the manner of the protestant church, she, 
 to shew how much she was pleased, commanded that the child 
 should be brought, that he might see him. This being done, 
 she delivered the child into his arms ; and then the superinten- 
 dant, immediately upon his receiving the child, fell upon his 
 knees, and offered up to God a short and fervent prayer for the 
 young prince's happiness and prosperity. The queen seemed to 
 pay great attention, and to join in the prayer. 
 
 It is added, that, after he rose from his knees, and was still 
 holding the child, " he willed him to say amen ; which the 
 queen took in so good part, that continually after she called Mr 
 Spottiswood her amen. And the story having been told to the 
 prince, after he came to the years of understanding, he also 
 called him after the same manner, and while he lived, did re- 
 spect and reverence him as his spiritual father." 
 
 January 10th, 1567, Alexander Gordon, who, though now 
 a protestant, retained the title and parliamentary honours of 
 Bishop of Galloway ; Mr John Spottiswood, superintendant of 
 Lothian ; and Mr John Row, minister of Perth, waited on the 
 queen at Stirling, and were graciously received. They obtain- 
 ed from her an act of privy council, " granting to every bur- 
 rough a gift or donation of the alterages, annuals, and obites, 
 which before were paid to the papists, but which now should 
 be disposed of for the maintenance of ministers and schools in 
 the burroughs, and the overplus to go to the poor or hospital." 
 
 This act is inserted in Keith's history; and it appears to have 
 been the last favour which was requested of Queen Mary, or 
 which was granted by her to the protestant church of Scotland. 
 
 11 
 
MR JOHN SPOTTISWOOD. 3$ 
 
 Her troubles soon afterwards began ; and we are fully informed 
 of Mr Spottiswood's sentiments and conduct with regard to the 
 changes which succeeded. 
 
 Mr Spottiswood, as it might haVebeen expected, felt a strong 
 attachment to his old friend the Earl of Lennox, and to his 
 younger friend the Earl of Murray. He entertained also an es- 
 teem of the queen, for some of her good qualities. But after 
 her husband. Lord Darnly, son of the Earl of Lennox, had been 
 barbarously put to death, February 10th, 1567; and when, in 
 the month of May following, she had, imprudently at least, 
 married the Earl of Bothwel, who had been the chief conductor 
 of that murder, his esteem of her appeared to be entirely lost 
 from his mind. 
 
 He and the generality of the protestants expressed great joy 
 when she resigned the crown, July 24th; and, more especially, 
 when the Earl of Murray, in August following, was declared 
 regent. The assembly highly approved of the advancement of 
 this earl, who was their sincere friend, to the head of the nation- 
 al affairs, and Mr Spottiswood was one of the commissioners 
 whom they appointed to meet with the regent's commissioners 
 upon all important matters relating to the church. 
 
 After the queen had made her escape from the castle of 
 Lochleven, May 2d, 1568, and was at Hamilton, endeavour- 
 ing to collect her friends, that they might restore her, if possi- 
 ble, to the possession of her crown, Mr Spottiswood thought 
 it incumbent upon him to write and publish a pastoral letter, 
 addressed to persons of all ranks in the kingdom, and especially 
 to such as were resident within the bounds of his particular ju- 
 risdiction. 
 
 Bishop Keith has given a copy of this long letter, as tran- 
 scribed from the manuscript of Calderwood's history. The 
 style or manner of Mr Spottiswood's writing appears to have 
 been grave, sententious, and energetic. His letter does not 
 contain desultory observations, but a regular train of argument. 
 He asserts that the queen had been most justly deposed ; and that 
 the present magistracy, as he calls it, or regency of the king- 
 dom, was most lawfully established. He laments that many 
 persons, who had made a profession of the protestant religion, 
 were now following the queen, which he represents was greatly 
 strengthening her party; for that if the papists ouly had espou- 
 sed her cause, they might easily have been overcome. 
 
 " Therefore," says he, " in the bowels of Christ Jesus, I ex- 
 hort all in general, and such as are under my charge in special, 
 who have communicated with her odious impieties, that they 
 would deeply consider their fearful defection from God, and 
 from his lawful magistrates, who, by his word and good order, 
 
 c 
 
34 MR JOHN SPOTTISWOOD. 
 
 are now erected within this realm : that by condemnation and 
 public confession of their folly, they would travel speedily to return 
 again to the bosom of the kirk, and to the obedience due unto the 
 magistrates, from the which they have most traiterously declined. 
 " Assuring such as shall be deprehended to remain obstinate 
 in their wicked enterprise, that in our next letters their names 
 shall be expressed, and proclaimed before all congregations; 
 wherewith, if they be not moved to repentance, then will we, 
 albeit with grief of heart, be compelled to draw the sword com- 
 mitted to us by God, to cut them off from all society of Jesus 
 Christ ; and, for their stubborn rebellion, to give them up to the 
 power of Satan, to the destruction of the flesh ; that they may 
 be confounded in themselves, and turn, by unfeigned repentance, 
 from their wicked ways, and so escape condemnation in the day 
 of Christ Jesus, whose omnipotent spirit we pray to move the 
 hearts of cdl that look for the life everlasting, to consider that 
 his coming approacheth ! Amen" 
 
 Without entering into the debate, whether the queen had 
 been apprised of the intended death of her husband, it may be 
 sufficient to observe, that Mr Spottiswood considered her as, in 
 one way or other, highly culpable in that affair, otherwise he 
 would not have applied to her the harsh epithets which appear 
 in several parts of his pastoral letter. 
 
 There is one other national matter in which he is mentioned 
 as having been concerned. James Hamilton, who bore the ti- 
 tle of Earl of Arran, while he was regent or governor of Scot- 
 land, during a part of the time of Queen Mary's minority, was 
 afterwards raised by the French king to the rank and title of 
 Duke of Chattelherault. In his way from France, he visited in 
 England Queen Mary, who was then held in a state of captivi- 
 ty in that country, and received from her an ample com- 
 mission to act as her deputy in Scotland. He arrived at his 
 castle ( f Hamilton, February 29th, 1569, determined to espouse 
 her cause. 
 
 He wrote to the assembly, complaining of the proceedings of 
 the Earl of Murray. He declared his affection to the church, 
 and that he was come with an intention to accommodate all 
 disputes betwixt the queen and her revolted subjects. He re- 
 quested the assembly to order intimation of his intention to be 
 made to all the people; and, at the same time, mentioned that 
 he was willing to converse with any ministers whom the assem- 
 bly should send to him. 
 
 The assembly, after having consulted with the Earl of Mur- 
 ray, deputed three of their number, viz. Mr John Spottiswood, 
 superintendant of Lothian ; Mr John Winram, superintendant 
 of Fife; and Mr John Row, minister of Perth, to go to Hamil- 
 ton, and confer with the duke. 
 
MR JOHN SPOTTISWOOD. 35 
 
 These three ministers, instead of heing gained by the duke 
 to favour the queen, had so much influence with him, by the 
 arguments they made use of, that he professed his submission 
 to the infant king, and to the regency of the Earl of Murray. 
 
 The last notice that I have found taken of Mr Spottiswood's 
 public conduct, is in Calderwood's History. In the assembly, 
 April, 157(5, " The superintendant of Lothian confessed, that 
 he had given offence by inaugurating Mr Alexander Hepburn, 
 elect bishop of the see of Ross, in the palace of Holyroodhouse, 
 contrary to the advice of his brethren." It is to be remarked, 
 that, at this period, there was a kind of bishops allowed by some 
 acts of Assembly, who were to have no other jurisdiction than 
 that which belonged to the superintendants, and were to be 
 accountable for their conduct to the General Assemblies. The 
 elect bishop should have been inaugurated, not at Edinburgh, 
 but in the principal church of the diocese of Ross. 
 
 It is now proper to advert to the words of his son. When 
 speaking of his father, he represents him as having been in his 
 last days much dissatisfied with the intemperate or irregular 
 zeal of some of the younger clergy. *' To the persons who vi- 
 sited him, who were not lew, and were of the better sort, he la- 
 mented that the ministers, by their foolish preaching, would 
 bring religion into hazard. He feared that they would provoke 
 the king to forsake the truth; and wished some to be placed in 
 authority over them to keep them in awe." 
 
 It was natural for the archbishop, who had changed his own 
 principles from presbytery to episcopacy, to endeavour to im- 
 press upon the minds of such as were his readers, an opinion 
 that his father, if he had been alive, would not have disappro- 
 ved of him in the change which he had made. It was natural 
 enough also for an old man, when he heard stories of the vio- 
 lence, or personal invectives, used by some particular preachers, 
 to say that they would need a bishop to keep them in order. 
 But no presbyterian church-writer, as far as I know, has ever, 
 in the smallest degree, accused old Mr Spottiswood of altering 
 his sentiments in his latter days. When they speak of him, it 
 is always with the utmost respect. 
 
 If, in the early period of his life, when he was resident in 
 England, he had imbibed any love to the government of bi- 
 shops, he did not reckon that manner of government a matter 
 of such importance, as that any trouble should be raised on its 
 account. He complied with what Mr Knox had suggested, 
 when he was employed along with him and other commissioners 
 in framing the first book of discipline ; and all his life, after- 
 wards, he appears to have acted in obedience to the General As- 
 sembly, and with an entire conformity to the constitution of the 
 church, as it was then established. 
 
56 MR JOHN SP0TTISW0OD. 
 
 I willingly transcribe his son's account of his death, and clta» 
 racter. " How soon the troubles were ended, (viz. in 1560,) 
 he was chosen superintendent of the churches of Lothian, Mers, 
 and Teviotdale; which, during the space of 20 years," (N. B. 
 This was evidently an error of the press; the numeral figures 
 should have been 25.) " he governed most wisely. His care in 
 teaching, planting of churches, reducing people and persons 
 of all sorts unto the right way, was great, and he was so success- 
 ful, that, within the bounds of his charge, none was found re- 
 fractory from the religion professed. 
 
 " He was a man well esteemed for his piety and wisdom, lov- 
 ing and beloved of all persons ; charitable to the poor, and care- 
 ful, above all things, to give no man offence. His happy life 
 was crowned with a blessed death, which happened the 5th of 
 December, 1585, in the 76th year of his age." 
 
 From all that is known concerning him, the above character 
 given of him appears to be just. He seems to have been a lover 
 of peace ; was pious, prudent, and highly respected by his con- 
 temporaries. He was serviceable in promoting the outward in- 
 terests of the reformed church; and was long successful in teach- 
 ing the faith, and in inculcating the practice of true religion. 
 
 I add a short account of his family. 
 
 The wife of Mr John Spottiswood, the superintendant, was 
 Beatrix Crighton, who has the character of having been " a 
 grave and a discreet matron." She was a daughter of Patrick 
 Criehton, of Lugton and Gilmerton, one of the ancient Scot- 
 tish barons. 
 
 John, his eldest son, who wrote a history of the church of 
 Scotland, succeeded him as minister of Calder. Having after- 
 wards become a convert to episcopal government, he was made 
 archbishop of Glasgow, in 1610; from whence he was transla- 
 ted to the archbishopric of St Andrews, in 1615. He was in- 
 vested with the office of lord high chancellor of Scotland in 
 1635 ; and died at London in 1639- By order of King Charles 
 I., he was interred, with great funeral pomp, in Westminster 
 Abbey, near to the body of King James the VL, whom he had 
 faithfully served. A marble monument, with an inscription on 
 brass, was erected to his memory. 
 
 James, the superintendant's second son, accompanied King 
 James VL, in l6()3, when he went to take possession of the 
 crown of England. In that same year he was appointed rector 
 of Wells, in Norfolk; and, in 1621, he was made bishop of 
 Clogher, in Ireland. He fled from the troubles occasioned by 
 the Irish papists, and died at London in 1644. He was inter- 
 red in Westminster Abbey, near to the bod)' of his brother, the 
 chancellor. 
 
 The superintendant had only one daughter, who was married 
 to • Tennant, laird of Lynnhouse, in East Lothian. 
 
Mit JOHN WINRAM. 
 
 III. Ma John Winram, Sub-prior of St Andrews, and 
 
 SUPERINTENDANT OF FlFE. 
 
 CHAP. I. 
 
 An Augustinian Monk, a?id Sub-prior of the Abbey of St Andrews. 
 A Diversity of Tempers among the Reformers. His Behaviour 
 at the Martyrdom of Mr George Wishart. Death of Cardinal 
 Beaton. Free Disputations between the Papists and Protestant 
 Preachers in St Andrews. Examines John Knox. Mr Knox 
 administers the Sacrament of the Supper in the Castle of St 
 Andrews. 
 
 J. here were several respectable families of the surname of 
 Winram, which are mentioned by Mr Nisbet in the first volume 
 of his book of heraldry. Mr John Winraru, the reformer, seems 
 to have been of the family of Kirkness. 
 
 In the early part of his life, he entered into the order of the 
 monks of St Augustine, and after having been a regular canon 
 for some years, was elected, about the year 1540, sub-prior of 
 their abbey, or monastery, at St Andrews. The prior, who was 
 Lord James Stewart, a natural son of King James V., was then 
 in his non-age ; and, consequently, much of the common busi- 
 ness of the abbey was devolved on Mr Winram. His character, 
 while he professed popery, is thus given by Archbishop Spottis- 
 wood : " he was a man of good learning, and one who secretly 
 favoured the truth." 
 
 There appears to have been a diversity in the temper and con- 
 duct of our reformers. Some of them were men of a bold spirit; 
 they went about daily, to different parts of the kingdom, preach- 
 ing the doctrines of the reformation, and openly inveighing 
 
33 MR JOHN WINRAM. 
 
 against the corruptions which had been introduced into the Ro- 
 man church. These zealous and faithful men were either soon 
 apprehended and put to death, or compelled to seek refuge in 
 England, or in countries more distant. 
 
 Other of our reformers were of a more timid spirit, or thought 
 that they could most successfully promote the general cause, by 
 disseminating in a private manner the protestant principles 
 among the persons with whom they were conversant, and over 
 whom they might expect to have some influence. In their pub- 
 lic preachings they taught the pure doctrines of the gospel, 
 but in such a way as if there had been no controversy concern- 
 ing them. 
 
 Mr Winram seems to have been of this last kind. While he 
 was enlightening the minds of many in the knowledge of the 
 truth, especially the minds of his brethren the monks, most of 
 whom afterwards became protestant ministers, he avoided ut- 
 tering in public any thing that might subject him to persecution. 
 
 His dexterity in this respect, and at the same time what may 
 possibly be reckoned his timidity, were evident at the trial of 
 Mr George Wishart at St Andrews, February 28tb, 1546. Mr 
 Winram had been desired by Cardinal Beaton, and the other 
 bishops there assembled, to preach to them a suitable sermon. 
 Accordingly, after Mr Wishart had been brought as a prisoner 
 into the court, which was held in the abbey church, Mr Win- 
 ram went up to the pulpit, and preached on that part of the 
 thirteenth chapter of Matthew, which contains the parables of 
 the sower, and of the tares among the wheat. Both Knox and 
 Spottiswood thought it proper to detail in their histories the par- 
 ticulars of the sermon. 
 
 Mr Winram shewed, that by the good seed, which was adapted 
 to bring forth good fruits, was meant the pure word of God, 
 which was preached by Christ and his apostles, and is conveyed 
 to us in the holy scriptures. The bad seed, which produced tares, 
 he said was heresy : and he defined heresy to be "a false opi- 
 nion, clearly repugnant to the word of God, and pertinaciously 
 defended." Thus he made the test of heretical opinions to be 
 a contrariety to the plain word of God, and not to the traditions 
 or commandments of men. 
 
 Speaking of the causes of heresy, he said, ,e The great cause 
 of heresy in this, and in all other realms, is the ignorance of 
 those to whom has been committed the care of souls. The per- 
 sons who are entrusted with so weighty a charge, ought " said 
 he, " to have a true understanding of the scriptures, that so with 
 the sword of the spirit, which is the word of God, they may be 
 able to combat, and to confute the adversaries." 
 
 He then proceeded to enumerate the qualifications requisite 
 in bishops and other churchmen, chiefly referring to what the 
 
MR JOHN WINRAM. 59 
 
 apostle Paul says concerning them in the third chapter of his 
 first epistle to Timothy. But the description which he pave of 
 what good bishops or pastors ought to be, was in all respects so 
 notoriously opposite to the character and conduct of the cardi- 
 nal and some other bishops, that many of the people in the church 
 considered it as a just reproof of these prelates. 
 
 He wavered, however, at the end of his discourse. When 
 he came to speak of the manner in which heretics should be 
 treated, he observed, that in the parable it is enjoined that the 
 tares and the wheat should be allowed to grow together until 
 the harvest, which he said was the end of the world, or the day 
 of judgment. But he felt himself at last induced to say, that 
 " though it might appear contrary to the gospel, yet heretics 
 ought to suffer death, or should be put down by the law and the 
 chief magistrate, even in this present world." An assertion for 
 which he had before shewed there was no ground in the parable, 
 and which therefore it was thought he wished should not be be- 
 lieved. But by his having made this declaration, he was saved 
 from being called by the cardinal to a strict account for his 
 sermon. 
 
 The trial having lasted many hours, the multitude were ordered 
 to withdraw from the church, and then sentence was pronoun- 
 ced, that Mr George Wishart should suffer as a heretic. 
 
 Spottisvvood relates Mr Winram's after behaviour with regard 
 to Mr Wishart. " Early in the morning of March 1st, 1546, 
 the prelates sent to Mr Wishart two friars, to advertise him that 
 he was to die that day; and they asked if lie would confess him- 
 self f He answered, that he had no business with friars, nor 
 would he willingly confer with them ; but, if they weredisposed 
 to gratify him in that sort, he desired to speak with the learned 
 man who had preached the day before. 
 
 " i his being permitted, Mr Winram, the sub-prior, came and 
 talked with him a good space. At last he asked Mr George, if 
 he would receive the sacrament of our Lord's supper? He an- 
 swered, most willingly would I receive it, so I may have it mi- 
 nistered according to Christ's institution, under both kinds, viz. 
 of bread and wine. 
 
 u Hereupon the sub-prior went to the bishops, and told them 
 that he had conferred with the prisoner, who did solemnly af- 
 firm that he was free of all the" (deadly) " crimes; and that he 
 did utter this, not out of any desire hi. had of life, but that he 
 might manifest before men his innoceiiey, which was known to 
 God. 
 
 " The cardinal, offended with these speeches of the sub-prior, 
 said, it is a long time since we knew what a man thou art. The 
 sub-prior, answering nothing to this rebuke, only asked if they 
 would allow the sacrament to be given to the prisoner ? The 
 
40 MR JOHtf WINRAM. 
 
 cardinal, conferring with the bishops for a while, replied, in all 
 their names, that it was not reasonable to give any spiritual be- 
 nefit to an obstinate heretic condemned by the church." 
 
 From those few sharp words, which Spottiswood mentions as 
 having been spoken by the cardinal, Mr Winram easily per- 
 ceived that his real principles were known, and that it was ne- 
 cessary he snould act with a great deal of caution. 
 
 But his anxiety, with regard to the cardinal, was soon at an 
 end. Early in the morning of May 29th, 1546, David Beaton, 
 archbishop of St Andrews, cardinal of " St Stephen in the hea- 
 ven iy mount," when he thought himself at the height of his 
 power, and in full safety, was assassinated in the fifty-third year 
 of his age, in his castle of St Andrews, and within his own 
 chamber, by John Lesly and his associates. While he was en- 
 treating that they would not kill him, because he was a priest, 
 they told him that the innocent blood of Mr George Wishart 
 was crying for vengeance, and that they were come to inflict it. 
 
 The action of these persons is not to be commended, for they 
 had no right to take into their own hands the distribution of 
 justice. If private individuals were to assume such a privilege, 
 the consequences would be fatal to the peace and safety of soci- 
 ety. But his death was far from being generally lamented. It 
 is evident that he was a man naturally of a cruel disposition ; 
 and who seemed to think, that for the support of the outward 
 grandeur of a church, which was then greatly corrupted, and 
 of the interests of the pope's dominion, the lives and consci- 
 ences of those men who opposed themselves behoved to be 
 sacrificed. 
 
 The immediate consequences were favourable to the reforma- 
 tion. On the same day in which the cardinal was put to death, 
 the conspirators seized the castle, and being joined by a consi- 
 derable number of persons from the country, kept possession of 
 it about fourteen months. During that space of time, a great 
 change appeared in the city of St Andrews, where popery had 
 formerly been awfully predominant. Protestant ministers preach- 
 ed in the castle, and, under its protection, also in the parish 
 church of the town. The controversy about religion was carried 
 on, not with the aid of burning and imprisonments, but, as it 
 ought always to have been, by the lawful and rational methods 
 of preaching and writing. 
 
 The principal champion on the popish side of the controver- 
 sy, was John Annand, dean of St Andrews, who both wrote 
 and preached against the doctrines of the reformation. His 
 chief antagonist was John Knox, who wrote answers to the dean, 
 and, afterwards, having become a preacher, answered him also 
 from the pulpit. 
 
 When Mr Knox preached his first sermon, in which it was 
 
MR JOHN WIN RAM. 41 
 
 expected he was to make a full reply to the dean, there assem- 
 bled to hear hirn in the parish church, Mr John Winram, sub- 
 prior of the abbey, who now, during the vacancy of an arch- 
 bishop, was vicar-general of the diocese ; a great number of the 
 canons of St Augustine, and of the friars of St Dominic and St 
 Francis; Mr John Major, professor of divinity, and all the other 
 members of the university. In the argumentative parts of the 
 sermon, Mr Knox acquitted himself well in the opinion of most 
 of the people present, who said, that, even more explicitly than 
 George Wishart had done, he had exposed the iniquities of the 
 Roman church. 
 
 But the proceedings thus allowed at St Andrews, gave great 
 offence to the violent papists in other places. John Hamilton, 
 who had been elected, but was not yet consecrated to the arch- 
 bishopric, wrote an angry letter to Mr Winram, expressing his 
 surprise at his permitting such practices, and requiring that he 
 should immediately put a stop to them. 
 
 Mr Winram, on his having received this letter, saw it would 
 be proper for him to show some compliance ; but in his doing 
 so, he still adhered to his favourite plan, of submitting the cause 
 in dispute to calm reasoning or argumentation. He summoned 
 to appear before himself, and some friars whom he had selected, 
 Mr John Rough, who, under the protection of the Earl of Ar- 
 ran, the governor, had long been a protestant minister in Scot- 
 land, and also Mr Knox. 
 
 The convention was held " in St Leonard's Yards." We are 
 not told of what passed at the examination of Mr Rough, but 
 the particulars of the conference with Mr Knox are related by 
 Spottiswood, and by Mr Knox himself, if he really was the 
 writer of that history which goes under his name. The account 
 of what may be called Mr Knox's examination, may be abridg- 
 ed, with the language in some degree modernized, in the follow- 
 ing manner. 
 
 A list was read to him of certain articles of doctrine, which 
 he was said to maintain. " 1 rejoice," said he, " that before 
 so modest, so honourable and judicious an auditory, I am call- 
 ed to declare my mind upon the points which have now been 
 read." Then addressing himself more particularly to the sub- 
 prior, Mr Winram, who sat as preses of the meeting, " It is a 
 long time since I have heard that you are not ignorant of the 
 truth. But now I charge you before the Supreme Judge, if 
 you believe in your conscience that the articles for which I am 
 blamed are contrary to the word of God, that then you will 
 plainly oppose them, and not suffer the people to be deceived. 
 But if, on the contrary, you know them to be true and sound, 
 then I crave your patronage, that by your authority the people 
 may be moved to embrace the truth, whereof many are doubt- 
 ful, because of your indifferency." 
 
42 MR JOHN WINRAM". 
 
 Mr Wini'am replied, " I am come here, not as a judge, but 
 only to talk familiarly. I will, therefore, neither affirm nor 
 condemn these points; but, if you please, we will reason. Why 
 may not the church, for good causes, devise ceremonies to de- 
 corate the sacraments, and other parts of God's servicer" 
 
 Mr Knox answered, " Whatsoever is not of faith is sin, and 
 faith cometh by the hearing of the word of God. If you con- 
 tend that the ceremonies are observed with faith, and are pleas- 
 ing unto God, you must first prove that by his express words 
 he has commanded them." 
 
 " Will you bind us so strait," said Mr Winram, " that we 
 may do nothing without the express word of God ? What if I 
 should ask a drink ? Do you think that in this I would be com- 
 mitting sin? and yet I reckon that 1 have the word of God for 
 me." He spake this rather in a jocular way, and was wishing 
 to refer the argument to an old Franciscan friar of the name of 
 Arbuthnot, or Arbuckle. 
 
 Mr Knox gave a serious answer. Upon which Mr Winram, 
 said, " torgive me; what 1 spake was only in jest, and 1 was in- 
 deed thirsty." Then turning to the aged friar, he said, " Father, 
 follow the argument; you have heard what I said, and the an- 
 swer which he has given." 
 
 The friar seemed to be in his dotage. In the course of the ar- 
 gument, he so far forgot himself as to affirm, that the apostles 
 had not received the Holy Ghost when they wrote their epistles, 
 but after they had received the promised gifts of the spirit, then 
 they ordained the ceremonies. Mr Knox started with surprise. 
 " Father," said Mr Winram, " what do you say ? God forbid 
 that your affirmation should be true, for, if it be truth, then fare- 
 well to the foundation of our hope." 
 
 Spottiswood tells us. that shortly afterwards Mr Winram dis- 
 missed both Mr Rough and Mr Knox, " with this brotherly 
 admonition, that they should take heed of what doctrine they 
 delivered in public." 
 
 A plan, seemingly devised by Mr Winram, was now adopted 
 by the popish clergy at St Andrews. The learned men of the 
 abbey, convents, and university, agreed to preach in their turns, 
 in the parish church on the sabbath-days. They resolved that 
 they would not give offence to an}' persons of a tender consci- 
 ence, and that therefore they would avoid in their sermons the 
 mention of any points of controversy. That this caution might 
 be the better observed, they agreeo " to pen their sermons." 
 Mr Winram began ttiis course of preaching, and was followed 
 by the rest according to their rank or seniority. 
 
 Mr Knox was thereby precluded from preaching in the parish 
 church on the sabbaths, but he was not hindered on the week 
 days. He regularly attended, as a hearer, the sermons which 
 V/ere delivered by the popish clergy. On the week days, he 
 
MR JOHN WINltAM. 43 
 
 praised God that the gospel was now preached, though he re- 
 gretted that these men were not as husy in other places where 
 they were more needed. " I have not yet," said he, " heard 
 them say any thing contrary to the doctrines which I maintain. 
 But if they should say any thing in my absence, opposite to what 
 they say in my presence, then I entreat you, my hearers, to 
 suspend your judgment till you shall hear me again." 
 
 So remarkable was the liberty which the protestants at St An- 
 drews now enjoyed, that many in the castle and in the town 
 partook of the sacrament of our Lord's supper, in the same scrip- 
 tural manner in which that ordinance was administered after the 
 establishment of the reformation. 
 
 But this favourable season came to an end. The castle, having 
 been assaulted by armed galleys, which had arrived from France, 
 was surrendered, July SOth, 1547. Many in the castle, one of 
 whom was Mr Knox, were condemned to serve as slaves in the 
 French galleys ; and though the principles of the reformation 
 were now become more generally known, in the town and in 
 its neighbourhood, and were privately embraced and promoted 
 by Mr VVinram, and some other literary men, yet the outward 
 restrictions were restored, nearly as severe as they had been be- 
 fore the cardinal's death. 
 
44 MR JOHX WJNRAM. 
 
 CHAP. II. 
 
 The Controversy about the " Pater Noster." Mr Winram, and 
 his servant Thomas. Mr Mills' Martyrdom. Mr Winram, a 
 Compiler of the Confession of Faith, and First Book of Discip- 
 line. An Ecclesiastical Superintendant. His troubles in the 
 Assembly. His opinion about the Queen's retaining her Popish 
 Mass. One of the Subscribers of a Letter to the Bishops of Eng- 
 land. Puritans. Ordains Mr John Douglas Archbishop of St 
 Andrews. A Compiler of the Second Book of Discipline. Mr 
 Patrick Adamson nominated Archbishop of St Andrews. Mr 
 Winram's Death and Character. 
 
 An anecdote, related by Mr Spottiswood, in which Mr Win- 
 ram was concerned, may now be taken notice of: It is not, in- 
 deed, of any great importance, farther than as it serves to illus- 
 trate Mr Winram's cheerfulness of temper, his urbanity of man- 
 ners, and the readiness with which he embraced every favourable 
 opportunity of exposing the fooleries of the popish church. 
 
 About the year 1551, Richard Marshall, who was Prior of 
 the Dominicans at Newcastle, and who had imbibed some pro- 
 testant principles, came on a visit to Scotland. When at St 
 Andrews, where the people had contracted a fondness for hear- 
 ing disputes on religion, he preached several sermons, in one of 
 which he had the courage to assert, that the Pater noster, or 
 Lord's prayer, should be addressed to God only; and that it 
 was a perversion of our Saviour's intention, when that prayer 
 was addressed to any of the saints. 
 
 Some of the doctors of the university were highly offended, 
 and excited a Franciscan friar, who is said to have been an ig- 
 norant and audacious fellow, to preach against this new doc- 
 trine, and to endeavour to refute it. But the arguments the 
 Franciscan used were so plainly sophistical and inconclusive, as 
 to excite the laughter of his hearers. He rendered himself so 
 completely ridiculous, that even the children who met him in 
 the streets called to him, giving him the name of " Friar Pa- 
 
MR JOHN WINRAM. 45 
 
 ter noster," which made him at length so much ashamed, that 
 he left the city. 
 
 The doctors, however, were seriously divided in their opi- 
 nions, some of them declaring themselves on the side of the Do- 
 minican, and others on the side of the Franciscan. All the 
 scholastic terms and distinctions possible on such a subject were 
 introduced ; and the matter in debate was at last referred to the 
 judgment of a provincial synod, which was to meet at Edin- 
 burgh, and of which Mr Winram was a member. 
 
 While the controversy had been going on at St Andrews, 
 Mr Winram's servant, whose name was Thomas, and who was 
 reckoned a very simple person, thinking that there was some 
 great matter in hand which made the doctors so often to con- 
 vene, asked him, one night as he went to bed, what that busi- 
 ness might be ? Mr Winram merrily answered, t( Tom, we can- 
 not agree to whom the Pater noster should be said." " To whom," 
 answered Thomas, " should it be said, but unto God i" " But 
 what then," replied Mr Winram, " shall we do with the saints ?* 
 Thomas's answer was nearly in these words : u Give them, in 
 the name of the great enemy, aves and creeds enow," (viz. 
 Hail, Mary! hail, St Peter ! hail, St Andrew ! &c.) « for that 
 may suffice them ; but let God have his glory." Mr Winram 
 was pleased with his servant's sagacity, and did not fail to re- 
 port it. 
 
 The judgment pronounced by the synod at Edinburgh, was, 
 " that Mr Winram should return to St Andrews, and settle the 
 minds of the people there, by telling them, that the Lord's 
 prayer ought to be addressed to God ; yet so as that the saints 
 also ought to be invocated :" Which was an ambiguous deter- 
 mination ; and many afterwards observed, " that a simple man 
 had given a wiser decision than the doctors had done, with all 
 their learned distinctions." 
 
 It may be presumed, that Mr Winram and his prior, Lord 
 James Stewart, who was afterwards Earl of Murray, fully un- 
 derstood each other's sentiments with regard to religion, and 
 that they concurred in such wise and prudent methods as ap- 
 peared to them best calculated for promoting the sure progress 
 of the reformation. 
 
 So late, however, as April, 1558, when Mr Walter Mill was 
 tried and condemned at St Andrews, Mr Winram had not 
 wholly laid aside his outward profession of popery. As sub-prior 
 of the abbey, and consequently a member of the archbishop's 
 chapter, or select council, he behoved to be present at the trial, 
 unless he had subjected himself to the wrath of the adversaries. 
 But it is not to be supposed that he approved of the condem- 
 nation of that faithful martyr, but rather that he spoke against 
 it, as Alexander, Earl of Glencaim, had done some years be- 
 
46 MR JOHN WINRAM. 
 
 fore, in the case of Adam Wallace, another martyr, who was 
 tried, and suffered death at Edinburgh. 
 
 I have met with no particular account of the time and man- 
 ner in which he disowned all connection with the popish church. 
 It was probably about the end of the year 1558, that he became 
 more bold in declaring his real principles; and there can be no 
 doubt that he was an open professor of the truth in the summer 
 of 1559, when his prior and many other noblemen publicly es- 
 poused the cause of the reforming congregation. 
 
 In April 15G0, he was held in such high estimation as a 
 learned man and sound protestant teacher, that he was one of 
 those ministers to whom the lords of the congregation com- 
 mitted the important trust of compiling the old Confession of 
 Faith, and the First Book of Discipline. In this work, one of 
 his co-adjutors was Mr John Knox, with whom he had former- 
 ly disputed at St Andrews ; and he seems ever afterwards to 
 have lived with him in the most entire friendship. 
 
 When the committee of parliament, July 1560, nominated 
 the five ecclesiastical superintendants, Mr John Winram was 
 chosen to be one of them. He had long resided as a public 
 person at St Andrews, which seems to have been the reason 
 that the province assigned to his jurisdiction was the county of 
 Fife, with the district of Strathern, including the town of 
 Perth. 
 
 The particulars to be now mentioned, relating to his charac- 
 ter and conduct after he began to bear an office in the protes- 
 tant church, will not be many. He was a faithful attendant on 
 the meetings of the General Assembly, and was employed in 
 their committees on the most important affairs. Like the other 
 superintendants, he was called to give an account of the pro- 
 ceedings in his province, and, in common with them, was some- 
 times accused of neglects of duty. 
 
 So early as June 1562, the Assembly thought it necessary to 
 enjoin ministers to be obedient to their superintendants. But 
 so much was required of those venerable men, both as to a 
 spotless behaviour and exertion of talents, that it was an easy 
 matter for discontented persons to find some grounds of com- 
 plaint. In December, 1562, Mr Winram told the Assembly, 
 that some things for which he was blamed " lay out of his 
 power to amend." And in 1574, he offered, in a formal man- 
 ner, a resignation of his office; but the Assembly refused to ac- 
 cept it. 
 
 When Queen Mary had arrived from France, to take pos- 
 session of her own kingdom, August J 9th, 1561, she was allow- 
 ed, contrary to the minds of some ministers, to enjoy so much 
 liberty of conscience, as to have the popish services performed 
 in her own chapel of Holyroodhouse. This privilege was, how- 
 
 13 
 
MR JOHN WINRAM. 47 
 
 ever, abused ; for other papists., besides those of her own house- 
 hold, resorted to her chapel. It was at last strongly contend- 
 ed, that the liberty granted her should be withdrawn, and that 
 some other severities should be used against her as an idola- 
 ter. 
 
 In June, 1.564, the Earls of Murray, Argyle, and Glencairn, 
 Sir VY illiam Maitland of Lethington, and other members of her 
 privy council, being under some alarm, thought it requisite to 
 hold a conference with some ministers concerning her. "When 
 Mr John Douglas, rector of the university, and provost of the 
 new college of St Andrews, was asked, in that conference, to 
 give his opinion, according to his conscience, he said, " 1 re- 
 fer it to the superintendant of Fife, Mr John Winram, for I 
 think that we are both of one judgment ; yet, if it be your will 
 that I should speak first, my conscience is, that if the Queen 
 oppose herself to our religion, which is the only true religion, 
 in that case, the nobility and states of this realm, (viz. the par- 
 liament, or the representatives of the kingdom), who have pro- 
 fessed the true doctrine, may justly resist or oppose themselves 
 to her. But as concerning her own mass, which I know is ido- 
 latry, I am not yet resolved whether by violence we may take 
 it from her or not." Mr Winram said, " The same is my con- 
 science." It may be remarked, that the national revolution, 
 which took place in 168S, was conducted in a manner conform- 
 able to this opinion. 
 
 As yet the English and Scottish churches had not expressed 
 any uncharitable opinion of each other. Many members of 
 both churches seem, for a considerable number of years, to have 
 maintained an amicable correspondence. 
 
 The Assembly, December, 1566, granted to Mr John Knox 
 leave of absence for about six months, that he might go into 
 England to transact some of his own affairs, and especially to 
 visit his two sons, who were prosecuting their studies at the 
 university of Cambridge. The Assembly gave him an ample 
 testimonial, subscribed by their clerk^in which he was earnestly 
 recommended, " as a true and faithful minister of the evangel 
 of Jesus Christ." 
 
 At the same time, they took the opportunity of sending by 
 him, to the bishops of hngland, a Christian and friendly letter, 
 which Mr Knox himsell had been desired to indite. The ad- 
 dress ami subslance of the letter were as follows : 
 
 " The superintendants, ministers, and commissioners of kirks 
 within the realm of Scotland, unto their brethren, the bishops 
 an? 1 pastors of England, who have renounced the Roman anti- 
 christ, and are professing with them the Lord Jesus in sincerity, 
 wish the perpetual increase of the Holy Spirit. 
 
 " Reverend pastors, it has come to our knowledge, both by 
 
48 Mil JOHN W1NRAM. 
 
 word and writ, that divers of our dearest brethren, among whom 
 are some of the best learned men in your realm, have been de- 
 prived of their ecclesiastical function, and forbidden by you to 
 preach, because their consciences will not suffer them to take 
 upon them such garments as were used in the times of blindness 
 and idolatry. 
 
 " We will not enter the argument, which we understand is, 
 with greater vehemency than is necessary, agitated with you, 
 whether such apparel is to be accounted among the things 
 which are simple and indifferent; but in the bowels of Christ 
 Jesus, we crave, that Christian charity may so far prevail in 
 you, that ye would not do unto others, what ye would not wish 
 that others should do unto you. 
 
 ** You cannot be ignorant how tender a thing the conscience 
 of man is. All that have knowledge are not alike persuaded. 
 Your conscience reclaims not at the using of such garments ; 
 but many thousands of godly and learned men are of another 
 mind ; they cannot consent to the surplice, the corner cap, and 
 tippet, for these things were formerly the badges of idolatry, 
 and as such were worn by them who were employed in the acts 
 of idolatry. Our brethren, who conscientiously reject that un- 
 profitable apparel, do neither damn nor molest you who use 
 such vain trifles : If ye shall do the like to them, we doubt not 
 but therein ye shall please God, and comfort the hearts of 
 many, who are wounded with your severity to our godly and 
 beloved brethren. 
 
 " We look that you will not refuse the humble request of u» 
 your brethren, in whom albeit there appears no great worldly 
 pomp ; yet we suppose, that ye will not so far despise us, as not 
 to esteem us in the number of them who fight against the Ro- 
 man antichrist, and travel that the kingdom of Jesus Christ may 
 be universally promoted. 
 
 " To the protection of the Lord Jesus we heartily commit 
 you. From Edinburgh, out of our General Assembly, and third 
 session thereof, December 27th, 1566: From your loving bre- 
 thren and fellow-preachers in Christ Jesus." 
 
 Keith inserts in his history this remarkable letter, of which 
 the above is only an abridgment. In the Assembly, it was sub- 
 scribed by such of the superintendants as were then present, 
 and by some other respectable ministers, of whose character the 
 bishops were not ignorant. Keith and Calderwood give the 
 names of the subscribers, one of whom was Mr John " Win- 
 hame," superintendant of Fife, with the moderation of whose 
 sentiments, the strain of the letter, and the request which it 
 contained, were known fully to correspond. 
 
 It may not, 1 think, be improper to observe, that if the bi- 
 shops of England, at this period, bad hearkened to the well- 
 
 1 
 
MR JOHN WINRAM. 49 
 
 meant counsel of the Scottish church, they would not, perhaps, 
 have had cause to distinguish, as they soon did, some of their 
 people hy the name of Puritans; many of whom proceeded at 
 length to dissent from the English church, and to profess pres- 
 byterian principles. It may also be observed, that in a course 
 of time arose, from among those who were discontented, a sect 
 who were called Brownists, or independants. History informs 
 us of what these English Brownists or independants, (who were 
 hostile to presbyterian as well as to episcopal government,) 
 afterwards accomplished under the leading of Oliver Cromwell. 
 Thus, from a small beginning of strife, even about the meanest 
 trifle, obstinately maintained, an increased animosity may be 
 expected to ensue. 
 
 To some persons, however, it may be satisfactory to add, 
 that the early puritans, who disliked fantastical habits, do not 
 appear to have found any fault with the grave apparel, which 
 was then, as it is now, used by ministers in Scotland, and in 
 the best reformed churches abroad. They considered, that 
 such an outward attire, though not absolutely necessary as to 
 its particular form or fashion, was decent, and most suitable 
 for those persons who were warning their hearers against the 
 vanities of the world, and discoursing to them of the serious 
 truths of religion. But I may possibly be deviating too much 
 from my proposed account of Mr Winram. 
 
 There was still a great scarcity of protestant ministers in 
 Scotland, so that many parishes in the country remained un- 
 provided. Superintendants, and " commissioners of the coun- 
 try," as they were commonly called, who were occasionally ap- 
 pointed, and endowed with authority equal to that of superin- 
 tendants, were still reckoned to be needful. 
 
 In 1571, the Earl of Morton, who, though not yet regent, 
 had the chief management of all public affairs, took advantage 
 of this necessity, and prevailed with the Assembly to allow a 
 limited episcopacy. It was agreed, that some ministers should 
 be chosen to the name and rank of bishops, but who, like the 
 superintendants, should be accountable for their conduct to the 
 General Assemblies. 
 
 It was not his intention, that the church should thereby re- 
 cover any considerable part of its patrimony, as some fondly 
 hoped, but that the ministers chosen to be bishops might be 
 invested with a legal right of alienating its revenues to himself, 
 and to some other powerful persons. Many good men in the 
 Assembly, not aware of the views he entertained, thought that 
 no great danger could be apprehended from such an allowance ; 
 for that these nominal bishops, being under the controul of the 
 Assembly, would be as pious in their lives, as circumspect in 
 
 D 
 
50 MR JOHN WIN RAM. 
 
 their transactions, and as unambitious of extending their au- 
 thority, as the superintendants were, and had always been. 
 
 On the Lord's day, February 10th, 1572, which was the day 
 on which Mr John Douglas was to be admitted to the archbi- 
 shopric of St Andrews, the Earl of Morton was present in the 
 church. Mr John Knox, who was then at St Andrews, preach- 
 ed a sermon, but refused to perform the ceremony of inaugu- 
 ration, as he now very much disapproved of what the Assembly 
 had done. Mr Winram did not feel so much reluctance. Con- 
 sidering that his friend Mr Douglas was to be accountable, like 
 himself, to the general meetings of the church, he went up to 
 the pulpit, in the afternoon, and having preached a sermon, 
 admitted him to the office of archbishop, by using the same 
 form which was set down in " the Book of Common Order," 
 for the admission of superintendants. 
 
 The county of Fife was an ancient part of the diocese of St 
 Andrews. Mr Winram, therefore, with the consent, or by the 
 appointment, of the General Assembly, resigned it to the new 
 archbishop, and confined himself to the district of Strathem. 
 He was appointed archdeacon of St Andrews, but was common- 
 ly denominated superintendant of Strathem, during the two 
 years in which Mr Douglas continued to live. After Mr Dou- 
 glas had died, Mr Winram was appointed to resume the whole 
 of his former province. 
 
 At a meeting in 1572, he was nominated one of the commis- 
 sioners for compiling what is called the Second Book of Disci- 
 pline. It was hoped that this book, when completed, would 
 serve to fix the outward constitution of the church, which was 
 now inclining sometimes towards presbytery, and sometimes to- 
 wards episcopacy. The commissioners were occupied in their 
 work about six years ; and their final determination, in which 
 they were seasonably assisted by the zealous Mr Andrew Mel- 
 vin, or Melvil, who, in 1574, arrived from Geneva, was on the 
 side of presbytery. 
 
 But while the work was going on, the Earl of Morton, who 
 had become regent of the kingdom, made an attempt, in 1576, 
 to provide an archbishop to St Andrews, who should have no 
 dependence upon the General Assembly. He presented Mr 
 Patrick Adamson to that archbishopric, who was a man of 
 great learning and of eminent talents, but bold and ambitious. 
 Mr Adamson, without any election, or ceremony of admission, 
 and without consulting the mind of the Assembly, acting merely 
 upon the mandate given by the regent, took possession of the 
 diocese, and began to exercise ecclesiastical jurisdiction, espe- 
 cially in the county of Fife. 
 
 The Assembly were justly offended. Many upright men in 
 the assembly now saw how much the regent had formerly de- 
 peived them, and that his aim \vas to establish an unlimited 
 
MR JOHN VINRAM. 5) 
 
 episcopal government. They appointed a committee with pow- 
 ers to meet, and call Mr Adamson to an account for his undu- 
 tiful behaviour. 
 
 Mr Winram, being then superintendant of Fife, and there- 
 fore a person more immediately concerned, was nominated one 
 of these commissioners. But the Assembly, having knowledge 
 of the great failure of his health and strength, appointed, that, 
 " in case of his inability," two other ministers, whom they na- 
 med, should supply his place. He was now an old man, and 
 was indeed unable, and, as no after-mention is made of him, it 
 is most probable that he died in that same year. 
 
 He could not be very young, when, about the year 1540, he 
 was raised to the office of sub-prior at St Andrews ; especially, 
 as because of the prior's non-age, the business of the abbey was 
 chiefly to devolve upon him. The address with which he ma- 
 naged the ecclesiastical affairs of that city, for some time after 
 the death of Cardinal Beaton, shew, that he must then have 
 been in the prime of his life, and in the full vigour of his 
 judgment. 
 
 1 have not met with any general character of him, farther 
 than that " he was a learned man." From what has been re- 
 lated, it should appear, that he was a man generally respected 
 for his good sense and sound learning: His mind was evidently 
 unfettered by vulgar prejudices, and he held in contempt the 
 false philosophy, and subtile disquisitions, which were fondly 
 taught and practised in the schools in the popish times. 
 
 No blot is known with regard to his moral character; and 
 no presbyterian church writer, that I have heard of, has ex- 
 pressed any censure of him, for his having once in his life as- 
 sented to a limited episcopacy. The unremitting attention 
 which he gave, during such a great number of years, to the in- 
 terests of religion, bind us charitably to believe, that he was ac- 
 tuated by the most serious impressions of its infinite impor- 
 tance. 
 
 Perhaps it may be wished that he had sooner made an open 
 declaration of his protestant principles. But at this distance of 
 time, it is only a few circumstances with which we are acquaint- 
 ed, and therefore we are not competent judges of the line of 
 conduct which it was his duty to follow. It is evident, that his 
 real principles were early known to protestants ; and that even 
 at the lime of George Wishart's death, they were known to 
 Cardinal Beaton. In concert with other persons, who were se- 
 cret favourers of the reformation, he appears to have been all 
 along weakening the efforts of the popish party, and paving a 
 sure way for a general acknowledgment of the truth. 
 
 Such a person as he was, and there were many such among 
 •ur original reformers, added, in the eyes of other nations, a 
 
Si MR JOHN WINRAM. 
 
 considerable degree of respectability to the protestant cause in 
 Scotland, Contrary to the blind assertion of some adversaries, 
 we ate warranted, alter a cartful enquiry, to say, that our re- 
 formation was planned and conducted, not by a mean and illi- 
 terate multitude of people who had no right knowledge, but by 
 some of the principal noblemen of the kingdom, and by pious 
 and learned clergymen, who had received at the universities a 
 libera! education. 
 
 Mi George Martine, in his History of the See of St An- 
 drews, informs us, that there were seventeen monks of the Au- 
 gustine priory or abbey, who became protestant ministers, and 
 were provided in churches which had belonged to the abbey. 
 Their conversion, it may be presumed, was, under God, much 
 owing to the pious endeavours of their sub-prior when he re- 
 sided among them. 
 
 Both Mr Winram, and his prior the Earl of Murray, retain- 
 ed their abbey revenues after the reformation. It may indeed 
 be remarked, that, when the monastery buildings in Scotland 
 were demolished, the monks and friars were not thrown desti- 
 tute, but had yearly salaries allotted them, which were called 
 a friars pensions." 
 
 M r Winram was a benefactor to St Leonard's college, in St 
 Andrews. As prior of Portmoak, viz. of the monastery of St 
 Servanus's Isle in Lochlevin, which was a cell belonging to the 
 Augustine abbey of St Andrews, he annexed, October 5th, 1570, 
 to the said college, the foresaid priory, with the baronies of 
 Kirkness and Auchmuire. 
 
Mr JOHN WILLOCK. 
 
 s 
 
 IV. Mr John Willock, Superintendawt 
 of the West. 
 
 CHAP. I. 
 
 His Conversion. Mr George Wishart. Mr Willock retires to En^ 
 land. State of Affairs there. Goes to Embden Comes to 
 Scotland, Envoy from the Countess of Fries/and. Mr Knox 
 meets with him in Edinburgh. Mr Willock returns to Embden. 
 Comes again to Scotland. State of the Protestant Preachers. 
 
 1 his reformer was a particular favourite of Mr John Knox. 
 In his history he seldom speaks of him without using some re- 
 spectful or affectionate expression. He styles hiin, (i that nota- 
 ble man, whom God in his good pleasure sent unto us; our dear 
 "brother; our loving brother; a man godly, learned, and grave, 
 who, for his faithful labours, and bold courage, deserved im- 
 mortal praise." 
 
 The General Assembly, in 1567, gave him a memorable tes- 
 timony of their regard, and of the sense which thev entertained 
 of what he had done for the reformation in Scotland, when they 
 earnestly entreated that he would return to ti.em from England, 
 and used in their letter to him these words, " that you may en- 
 joy the fruit of your most wearisome and painful labours, and 
 see the cap-stone of that work, whereof you laic! the foundation " 
 
 According to Bishop Lesly, Mr John Willock was originally 
 a Dominican friar. Spottiswood says, that he was a Francis- 
 can friar in the town of Ayr. As a native of the west of Scot- 
 land, he most probably received his education in the university 
 of Glasgow, and afterwards entered, at Ayr, into one or other 
 of the religious fraternities now mentioned. 
 
54 MR JOHN WILLOfJK. 
 
 To the other parts of learning which he had acquired, he add- 
 ed an intimate acquaintance with the writings of the ancient 
 fathers. But, for his information in divine things, he looked 
 beyond all human writings to the sacred scripture ; which he 
 zealously contended, in his after disputes with the popish doc- 
 tors, contains the only infallible rule for our faith and practice. 
 
 It is not improbable that he became a convert from popery 
 in the year 1545, and that Mr George Wishart was the blessed 
 instrument of his conversion. In that year, Mr Wishart preach- 
 ed openly at the market cross of Ayr, where, at that time, he 
 vras under the protection of William, Earl of Glencairn, and 
 of his son Alexander, Lord Kihnaurs. Also, while in that 
 neighbourhood, he seems to have disputed with Quintin Ken- 
 nedy, abbot of Cross-ragnel ; one of whose books, according 
 to Dempster, who is quoted by Dr Mackenzie, in his life of 
 that abbot, was entitled, " Fourteen Heads of a Controversy 
 against George Wishart." It might be then that Mr Willock 
 was brought to the knowledge and belief of the protestant 
 doctrines. 
 
 But whether his conversion took place at this, or at an earlier 
 period, he soon found, that, unless he should conceal his senti- 
 ments, which he was not inclined to do, he could not be al- 
 lowed to remain in the convent; and that no where could he 
 preach the gospel in Scotland, in the ample manner which 
 he wished, without being liable to persecution. u For the love 
 of religion," says Spottisvvood, " he left the country, and lived 
 in England." 
 
 During the reign of Edward VI., who succeeded his father 
 Henry V1I1 , January 29th, 1547, he enjoyed in England the 
 society of serious Christians, and was privileged freely to preach 
 the gospel. But that pious prince having died, July 6th, 1553, 
 the state of religion in that country was sadly changed, under 
 the government of his sister, the English Queen Mary. Tho- 
 mas Cranmer, the protestant archbishop of Canterbury, who, 
 under God, had long been the promoter and support of the pro- 
 testant interest, and the friend and protector of the refugees from 
 Scotland, was immediately committed to prison. In the course 
 of a very few years, this archbishop, a considerable number of 
 other bishops and ministers, and a multitude of persons of both 
 sexes, were condemned to death, and suffered as martyrs to 
 their religion. But so soon as the Hame of persecution arose, 
 Mr Willock, and a great number of English protestants, fled 
 for refuge to foreign parts. 
 
 The place to which Mr Willock went, and in which he was 
 hospitably entertained, was the city of Embden, in the province 
 of East Friesland in Westphalia. The people of that country, 
 Mr Petrie says, were the first who embraced as a nation the 
 
Mil JOHN WILLOCK. 55 
 
 doctrines of the reformers. The prince who governed Friesland 
 about the year 1520, and to whom Petrie gives the name of 
 Edsard, had his mind enlightened by reading some of Luther's 
 books. He not only read them himself, and permitted them to 
 be sold in his territory, but encouraged and persuaded his nobi- 
 lity likewise to read them. He afterwards procured some eminent 
 protestant ministers to preach to his people, who so far prevailed 
 by their teaching and exhortations, that the Romish religion 
 was legally condemned, and its superstition confined within the 
 walls of the Franciscan monastery at Embden. 
 
 When Mr Willock arrived at Embden, in 1.553, the country 
 was governed by the Countess Ann, then in her widowhood. 
 As he had studied medicine, he practised there as a physician, 
 which might be necessary for his present subsistence ; though 
 it is not to be doubted that he also preached the gospel to such 
 persons as understood the language in which he spoke, some of 
 whom might be protestants, who had accompanied him thither 
 from England. 
 
 After he had been nearly a twelve-month in Embden, where 
 he was become well known, and respected for his piety and ta- 
 lents, the countess of Friesland thought he was a fit person to 
 be employed as her envoy to the queen regent of Scotland, to 
 congratulate her on her accession to the regency, and with 
 whom she had some affairs to settle relating to trade, or to 
 some other public matters. He gladly accepted of the com- 
 mission, for he greatly desired to be instrumental in forwarding 
 the reformation in his native country; which he hoped he would 
 in some degree be enabled to do, without being exposed to any 
 trouble on the account of his religious opinions, as he was to 
 bear the public and privileged character of an agent from a 
 protestant princess. " His principal purpose," Mr Knox tells 
 us, *' was to essay what the Lord would work by him in his na- 
 tive country." 
 
 He arrived, it should seem, in the beginning of harvest, 
 1555; and at the end of harvest in that same year, Mr Knox, 
 who had newly come on his first visit from Geneva, found him 
 in Edinburgh, attending on the Embden business at the court 
 of the queen regent ; and also employed, along with William 
 Harlowe, another refugee from England, in preaching the gos- 
 pel in private houses. " These two," says Mr Knox, did some- 
 times in several (or separate) companies assemble the brethren, 
 who, by their exhortations, began to be greatly encouraged, 
 and did show an earnest thirst of godliness." 
 
 It may be gratifying to some serious Christians, and will not, 
 I apprehend, be inconsistent with the design which I should 
 have in view in these biographical sketches, if I now give an 
 account, as particularly as possible, of that " little flock" of 
 
56 MR JOHN WILLOCK. 
 
 Christ which was now at Edinburgh, and to which Mr Willock 
 was administering comfort. They were not allowed publicly to 
 worship God, in the manner which their consciences approved; 
 they could not with safety assemble in numerous congregations; 
 but they confided in the promise made by our Saviour, to two 
 or three who met together in his name, and therefore wor- 
 shipped in small detached companies. Like those Israelites of 
 old, whom the prophet Malachi mentions, and who were liv- 
 ing in the midst of a corrupted people, " they feared the Lord; 
 they thought upon his name ; and spake often in private one to 
 another." 
 
 At this period they were favoured with the teaching and edi- 
 fying conversation of Mr Willock and Mr Harlowe. Concern- 
 ing Mr Harlowe, I shall only observe at present, that he was a 
 lively and affectionate Christian, and preached the gospel with 
 great plainness, though he could not boast of having received 
 a learned education. 
 
 John Erskine of Dun was now also with them, of whom I have 
 already written a biographical memoir. The house in which he 
 dwelt when at Edinburgh, appears to have been one of the 
 houses in which the brethren sometimes met, and had Christian 
 and delightful fellowship with one another. William Maitland, 
 younger of Lethington, was also in use to meet with them, who 
 was indeed a man of a versatile disposition, but appeared at this 
 time to be a sincere inquirer after the truth. While they were 
 thus very comfortably engaged in their pious exercises, Mr 
 Knox's arrival, and his continuance with them, it should seem, 
 for some weeks, afforded them a great and additional cause of 
 thankfulness and joy. 
 
 We learn from Mr Knox's history, the names of some of those 
 burgesses of whom the protestant church at Edinburgh then 
 consisted. They deserve to be remembered, for it may well be 
 supposed that they were not only sound and exemplary Christi- 
 ans, but were endeavouring to spread the knowledge of the 
 truth among their friends and neighbours. 
 
 I. David Forres, or Forrest. He occupied an office belong- 
 ing to the mint of Scotland; and after the reformation, was ad- 
 mitted by the General Assembly as a minister of the gospel. 
 2. Mr Robert Lockhart. He enjoyed a post in the service of the 
 queen regent, for whom he always expressed a high esteem; but 
 no one could Hnd fault with him with regard to his religious cha- 
 racter. 3. James Sym, who, Mr Knox says, " was a notable 
 man of God." He was Mr Knox's kind landlord, and in his 
 house the brethren often convened. 4. James Baron. He was 
 a burgess of such eminent respectability, that he was one of the 
 two commissioners deputed from the city of Edinburgh, to the 
 first General Assemblv in 1560. 
 
MR JOHN WILLOCK. 57 
 
 I beg leave to subjoin the name of Elizabeth Adamson, spouse 
 of the foresaid James Baron. This good woman had long been 
 under a deep concern about her soul's salvation, and had dili- 
 gently attended the preachings of the friars, without obtaining 
 any relief. The first time that she received solid and lasting 
 comfort, was when she heard Mr Knox, in the house of James 
 Sym. deliver an exposition of the hundred-third psalm. He 
 seemed to her to open to her view the fountain of the divine 
 mercv, and her soul round rest and joyful satisfaction. 
 
 Her death happened before the reformation in Scotland was 
 fully accomplished. In her last sickness she suffered acute pain, 
 but her mind was resigned to the will of God. The priests and 
 friars urged her to submit to the ceremonies and superstitious 
 observances, which they commonly used in the case of a dying 
 person; but she commanded them not to trouble her, for, said 
 she, " 1 have refused, and do now refuse all your abomina- 
 tions " When they left her, they anticipated the language 
 of latter tunes, and reported that she knew not what she was 
 saving, or that her mind was deranged by the violence of her 
 distemper. 
 
 A short while before her death, she desired her sisters, who 
 were waiting upon her, and some other persons present, to sing 
 the hundied-third psalm. When the singing was ended, she 
 said, " at the teaching of this psalm, my troubled soul first ef- 
 fectually tasted the mercy of my God, which is now to me more 
 sweet and precious, than alj the kingdoms of the earth would 
 b>-, though they were given me to possess them a thousand years." 
 She afterwards fell asleep in Jesus, to the no small comfort of 
 those who beheld her blessed departure. 
 
 Mr Knox makes the following apology, or rather it was made 
 by the transcribers and interpolators of his history : " This we 
 could not omit of this worthy woman, who gave so notable a 
 confession, before the light of God's word did universally shine 
 through this realm." 
 
 Mr Willock might make excursions to different parts of the 
 country, especially to the western counties; but as the scene of 
 his public business lay at Edinburgh, it is probable that he spent 
 most of his time with the pious people in that oily. His stay, 
 however, was short, for, in the end of the year 1555, he returned 
 to Embden, probably bearing letters to the countess of Friesland 
 from tiie queen regent. 
 
 In the year ensuing, he received a new commission from the 
 countess, and again came to Scotland. He landed at Dundee, 
 it may be supposed in August or September, 1556; from whence, 
 alter he had rested a little while, he went to Edinburgh to deli- 
 ver his credentials, where he was much needed and desired by 
 the serious people, as Mr Knox had left Scotland in the July 
 preceding. 
 
.58 MR JOHN WILLOCtf. 
 
 This, viz. the second coming of Mr Willock to Edinburgti, 
 Mr Knox says, " was so joyful to the brethren, that their zeal 
 anil godly courage daily increased; for though he there con- 
 tracted a dangerous sickness, yet he ceased not from his la- 
 bours, but taught and exhorted from his bed some of the nobi- 
 lity, and many barons and gentlemen, who, by him, were in- 
 structed in godliness, and wonderfully comforted." Mr Wil- 
 lock's sickness, Spottiswood says, " continued divers months." 
 
 After his recovery, his views of being useful seem to have 
 been turned wholly towards his native country. He felt him- 
 self encouraged and supported by the favour of the protestant 
 noblemen, and other powerful persons, with whom he was daily 
 conversing, and whom he was teaching, in his clear and judi- 
 cious manner, the genuine doctrines of the gospel. The Emb- 
 den business probably was soon and easily accomplished, and 
 he relinquished his commission from the countess, which was 
 now indeed no longer necessary for his protection. The pro- 
 testant cause, which he was eagerly promoting, was daily ga- 
 thering strength ; till, at length, some time in the year 1557, 
 he, and some other ministers, ventured to commence public 
 preachers of the gospel. 
 
 In the preface to the second book of Knox's history, we are 
 told, that, previous to the year 1557, the state of the protes- 
 tants in Scotland was as follows : " They had no public minis- 
 ters of the word ; only certain zealous men, among whom were 
 the laird of Dun, David Forres, Mr Robert Lockhart, Mr Ro- 
 bert Hamilton, and William Harlowe, exhorted their brethren 
 according to the gifts and graces granted unto them." 
 
 But in 1557, and especially in 1558, our ecclesiastical wri- 
 ters inform us, that " Mr Willock and Mr Harlowe were preach- 
 ing openly at Edinburgh and Leith; and Paul Methven in Dun- 
 dee, in divers parts of Angus, and in Fife. A regular protes- 
 tant church was formed at Dundee, in which the word was 
 openly preached, and the sacraments of Christ truly adminis- 
 tered." Even at the Scottish court, Mr John Douglas, under 
 the protection of the old Earl of Argyle, freely declaimed in 
 his sermons against the Romish errors and superstitions. In the 
 year 1557, some noblemen and barons bound themselves, by a 
 solemn covenant, to maintain the exercise of the protestant re- 
 ligion, and to defend its ministers and professors. Correspond- 
 encies were established, and private consultations were held, 
 how the popish religion might be abolished, and a national re- 
 formation legally obtained. 
 
 Since the death of Adam Wallace, who suffered at Edinburgh 
 in J 550, no person in Scotland had been put to death for reli- 
 gion. But in April 1558, the popish party endeavoured to in- 
 timidate the Protestants, by putting to death, at St Andrews, Mr 
 
MR JOHN WILLOCK. 59 
 
 Walter Mill. But his martyrdom had an effect quite contrary 
 to what they had expected. The nation was irritated by the in- 
 justice and cruelty of that action, and the Popish party found 
 themselves in a worse condition than what they were before. 
 
 In the end of the year 155S, or beginning of the year follow- 
 ng, they tried to intimidate the protestant preachers, by sum- 
 moning them to appear, under pain of rebellion, before the 
 Queen Regent and her council, at Stirling, May 10, 1559. 
 But the summonses did not deter the preachers from going on 
 in their usual course. The threatened severity only excited the 
 people to be more generally interested in their behalf. Wher- 
 ever they went, they were protected in their ministrations by 
 some of the principal men of the kingdom, a memorable in- 
 stance of which, with regard to Mr Willock, I am now to 
 relate. 
 
60 MR JOHN WILLOCK, 
 
 CHAP. II. 
 
 Preaches publicly at Ayr, protected by the Earl of Glencairn and 
 Others. His Correspondence with Quintin Kennedy. 
 
 Bishop Keith, in the appendix to his " History of the Church 
 and State of Scotland," has inserted a copy of a very curious 
 epistolary correspondence which passed between Quintin Ken- 
 nedy, abbot of the Cluny monaster}- of Cross-Ragnel, and Mr 
 John Willock, and which he had procured to be transcribed 
 from the original manuscript in the Scots college of Paris. As 
 it affords a satisfying specimen of the controversies in which 
 the reformers were engaged ; and especially as it conveys in- 
 formation concerning Mr Willock, it may not, I presume, he 
 reckoned improper that I should state, even with some minute- 
 ness, the particulars of it. 
 
 From the correspondence, in the manuscript, it appears, that 
 Mr Willock, so far from being deterred from prosecuting his 
 usual labours by the summons which he had received, to stand 
 a trial for heresy, before the queen regent and her couucil at 
 Stirling, May 10th, 1559, was, during the preceding months 
 of March and April, preaching publicly at Ayr, every Lord's 
 day, and oftner, in the church of St John, which was the pa- 
 rish church. A numerous band of noblemen and gentlemen, 
 chiefly from the shire of Ayr, with their servants and retainers, 
 were attending him. 
 
 In his sermons, he took occasion to argue very fully against 
 the doctrines of the popish mass. He maintained, that, in the 
 sacrament of the Supper, the bread and wine are not, by the 
 prayer of the priest, changed into the real body and blood of 
 our Saviour, but are only to be considered as the appointed 
 symbols, and that therefore to worship the outward elements 
 is idolatry : That though on our part, when we celebrate that 
 ordinance, we are employed in a thankful commemoration of 
 our Lord's death, or of his love in having died for us, and there- 
 
MR JOHN WILLOCK. 61 
 
 fore by some writers are said to be offering a sacrifice, or reli- 
 gious service of praise, yet that there is no actual renewal of his 
 propitiatory sacrifice ; seeing the scriptures have declared, that 
 " the body of Jesus Christ was offered once for all: — and that 
 he hath once suffered, the just for the unjust." 
 
 Mr Willock, in the itinerant manner in which he was now 
 living, could not carry with him a library from place to place; 
 but he seems to have had with him, or at least to have well 
 remembered, the writings of some of the ancient fathers of 
 the church ; for in his sermons, he mentioned five of the fa- 
 thers, and quoted their words, to shew, that, with regard to 
 the Lord's Supper, they were of the same mind with the re- 
 formers. 
 
 James Beaton, who was the last of the popish archbishops of 
 Glasgow, when he heard of such doctrines being promulgated 
 in his diocese, and countenanced by many honourable persons, 
 was, as might have been expected, alarmed, and highly offend- 
 ed. He reckoned it to be incumbent upon him to use his ut- 
 most endeavours to suppress them. After he had given some 
 private mandates to the prior of the Black Friars, viz. of the 
 Dominicans, at Ayr, he requested him to go to the parish 
 church, and preach in opposition to Mr Willock. But the 
 prior could obtain no access to the pulpit in that church, being 
 hindered by the reforming party. 
 
 The archbishop easily perceived, that it was vain for him 
 to think of taking Mr VVillock by open violence out of the 
 hands of four or five hundred armed men, who constantly guard- 
 ed him, and were determined to defend him ; but he thought, 
 that if an able literary antagonist could be found, who should 
 challenge him to a public debate, and defeat him in a course of 
 argument, it would bring honour to the popish church, and dis- 
 grace upon the cause of the reformers. 
 
 He applied for that purpose to Quintin Kennedy, in whom 
 he placed much confidence, and who was indeed the fittest per- 
 son he could pitch upon, perhaps, in the whole kingdom. The 
 monastery of which he was abbot or commendator, was situ- 
 ated in the parish of Kirk Oswald, not far from the town of 
 Ayr He was connected, in blood, with some of the most con- 
 siderable families in the west of Scotland, being a younger 
 son of Gilbert, the second Earl of Cassillis, and grand uncle 
 to the Earl of Cassillis then living, who had newly succeeded 
 to his titles. He was austere in his manners, zealous in sup- 
 porting the dignity and tenets of the Roman church, and had 
 long been celebrated for his controversial writings and great 
 learning 
 
 So late as the year 155S, he had published a book, dedicated 
 to his grand nephew, then master of Cassillis, which, having 
 
62 MR JOHN WILLOCK. 
 
 been industriously spread, was now in the hands of many peo- 
 ple. The title of it was,- " An compendious Tract, conform to 
 the Scriptures of Almighty God, to reason and authority, de- 
 claring the nearest and only way to establish the conscience of 
 an Christian man, in all matters which are in debate concern- 
 ing Faith and Religion." In this treatise, he had endeavour- 
 ed to shew, that no man should use his own judgment in the 
 interpretation of the holy scriptures, but should yield his con- 
 science and belief to the explanations which were given by the 
 ancient fathers, and by the infallible decrees of famous eccle- 
 siastical councils. 
 
 The abbot readily complied with the request of the archbi- 
 shop. He left Maybole, where he seems to have occasionally 
 resided, and came to Ayr, which was at the distance of about 
 eight miles, on Easter eve, viz. March 25th, 1559 
 
 In this his short journey, he was accompanied by some of bis 
 monks, and other " religious men ;" and in his retinue there 
 was conveyed what may be supposed to have been a cart-load 
 of books, consisting of the large and numerous volumes which 
 were written by at least twelve of the ancient fathers. 
 
 For thus he afterwards wrote in a letter to the archbishop : 
 <c Before my coming to Ayr, Willock had preached with in- 
 tolerable exclamations, crying out against the mass, and per- 
 suading the people that he expounded certain parts of scrip- 
 ture exactly conformable to the judgment of the doctors. The 
 doctors to whom he referred were five in number. This being 
 showed to me, I perceived the craft of the knave ; for he did 
 not think of meeting with any rencounter, but believed that 
 the works of these doctors were not in this country, and there- 
 fore that he might speak of them as he pleased. But it fortu- 
 nately happened, that 1 had all these doctors, and many more." 
 In the challenge which he afterwards wrote to Mr Willock, he 
 said, " I am to bring with me to the conference all the doctors 
 and old writers I can get, to the effect that every man's assertion 
 may be seen." And afterwards, in the course of the corre- 
 spondence, he mentioned the names of twelve doctors, to whose 
 writings he was particularly to refer. 
 
 On his arrival at Ayr, a protestant gentleman, George Craw- 
 furd of Loffhory's, told him, that, in the opinion of the protes- 
 tants, he was not a fit person to contend with Mr Willock, for 
 that they had chosen him to be the " primate" of their religion 
 in this realm, whereas he, the abbot, was only in a mean or 
 subordinate station in the popish church; and that, therefore, 
 no other but the archbishop of St Andrews was the proper per- 
 son to enter the lists. But the abbot was far from considering 
 himself as either mean or unqualified. 
 
 On Easter Sunday, March 26th, he sent this defiance to Mr 
 
MR JOHN WILLOCK. 63 
 
 Willock, written in the usual style of a literary combatant : 
 " Whosoever shall maintain, abide at, and say, that the mass 
 is idolatry, I will prove him an heretic by the express word of 
 God, conformable to the doctrine, judgment, and understanding, 
 of the most ancient and godly writers and doctors, who have 
 been since the time of Jesus Christ unto these days." 
 
 Monday, March 27th, Mr Willock sent a reply, which was 
 also written in due form. " Provoked by the writing I have 
 received, my answer at present is this, whosoever affirms that 
 he is able to prove by the word of God, that the pope's mass 
 is the supper of the Lord, or that it is the institution of our 
 Lord Jesus Christ, affirms that thing which he shall not be 
 able by the word of God to prove. I do affirm the pope's 
 mass is neither the one nor the other, but is plain idolatry, and 
 vain superstition." 
 
 The abbot, in his letter to the archbishop, says, " truly, my 
 lord, Willock never wrote one word to me, without his ha- 
 ving twenty, or twenty-four landed men and gentlemen of his 
 council." But it is evident, that it was necessary for Mr Wil- 
 lock to advise with his protectors in every step he would take 
 towards a public dispute with Quintin Kennedy. The abbot 
 had powerful friends; and what was spoken or maintained by 
 Mr Willock at the conference, would probably be adduced 
 against him at his trial, which might afterwards take place at 
 Stirling. 
 
 The abbot had desired him to fix the time and place of their 
 meeting. But he delayed doing so, on account of the absence 
 of some noblemen and gentlemen of the shire, but who were to 
 be in town shortly. " After their coming," said he, " you shall 
 be advertised." 
 
 In the mean time, Mr Willock was advised to ask a private 
 conference, f Please your Lordship to know," said the abbot 
 in his letter to the archbishop, " that within two days after I 
 had given in my writing against Willock, came one of the bre- 
 thren" (viz. protestant brethren) " to me, and said, if I pleased, 
 Willock would come himself, and only one boy with him, to 
 speak with me in my own chamber. But this I absolutely re- 
 fused." The abbot was determined that there should be a con- 
 siderable number of witnesses called to the disputation, and that 
 even the previous correspondence for settling the terms on which 
 they were to meet should be committed to writing. 
 
 When the friends whom Mr Willock had expected were ar- 
 rived, he wrote to the abbot, March 29th, " we have thought 
 it good that the disputation should be on Sunday next, (April 
 2d,) at ten o'clock before noon, in St John's kirk of Ayr, open- 
 ly, because I do there openly teach my doctrine to the people." 
 
 In this same letter, he mentioned sixteen noblemen and 
 
 « 
 
64 MR JOHN WILLOCK. 
 
 gentlemen, whom he wished should be considered as special 
 witnesses on his part. Their being selected for such a purpose, 
 was honourable to their character as protestants ; and as it may 
 serve in some degree to shew who the zealous protestants 
 in the west of Scotland then were, it may not be improper to 
 insert their names and designations in the manner following : 
 
 1st, Alexander Cunningham, Earl of Glencairn. 2d, Robert 
 Boyd, Lord Boyd. 3d, Andrew Stewart, Lord Ochiltree. 4th, 
 Sir Hugh Campbell of Loudon, sheriff of Ayr. 5th, John 
 
 Wallace of Craigie. 6th, Campbell of Cesnock. 7th, 
 
 John Lockhart of Barr. 8th, Hugh Wallace of Carnel. 9th, 
 David Crawfurd of Keris. 10th, John Muir of Rowallan. 11th, 
 John Dunbar of Blantyre. 12th, John Fullarton of Dreghorn. 
 13th, Robert Campbell of Kinningcleuch. 14th, Alan Cath- 
 cart of Carleton. 15th, The Laird of Sornebeg. lfith, David 
 Currie of Kelwood. 
 
 In another part o c the manuscript it appears, that " Matthew 
 Campbell, son and heir apparent of Hugh Campbell of Lou- 
 don, Knight," was also at this time an ordinary hearer of Mr 
 Willock. 
 
 But the abbot did not approve of the proposed place of meet- 
 ing, nor of the number of special witnesses mentioned by Mr 
 Willock. His reply seems to have been addressed to the pro- 
 testant party in general. " My answer," said he, " to a wri- 
 ting of John Willock, delivered to me in the Gray Friars" (viz. 
 Franciscan) " kirk of 4yr, the 29th day of March instant, by 
 the Laird of Kerris, is this : I am content on Sunday next, before 
 noon, at ten hours of the clock, to come to any lodging within 
 the town of Ayr, and to bring with me twelve reasonable and 
 honest men to be auditors for ray part, he bringing with him 
 the like number : providing always, that there be no more 
 than these twenty-four persons, neither in the house where we 
 reason, nor yet in the back stairs, lofts, nor back doors, the 
 number being sufficient to be auditors; for 1 desire neither tu- 
 multuation, cumber, nor strife; but only the just trial of God's 
 word, and quietness of the congregation." 
 
 It was afterwards agreed, that the meeting should be held in 
 the house of the Laird of Carnel; and Mr "Willock consented 
 that the number of witnesses should be restricted to twelve on 
 each side. 
 
 But a more difficult point remained to be settled. The re- 
 formers always contended, that though the writings of the an- 
 cient fathers were highly respectable, and generally worthy of 
 being quoted, yet, as they were merely human writings, they 
 were to be judged of, according to their degree of conlonnity 
 to the holy scriptures. The papists contended, that the word 
 of God was to be understood, according to the meaning in which 
 
 1 
 
MR JOHN WILLOCK. 6> 
 
 it appeared to the ancient fathers; which was the same thing 
 as to make the opinions of the fathers, however variable, and 
 often contradictory to each other, the ultimate test of truth in 
 any religious controversy. 
 
 Mr Willock had desired the abbot " to proceed in the dis- 
 putation, beginning with the word of God," and added, " by 
 which also I am content to be judged." For though he might 
 argue upon what the fathers had written, yet it was his inten- 
 tion and desire, to submit himself only to the inspired writings. 
 The abbot, March 30th, wrote, " You desire that our reasoning 
 should begin with the word of God, whereof I am very heartily 
 content. But whereas you desire to be judged by the scripture, 
 that would be to make an endless play : for you will say, it is 
 for you, and I will say it is for me. The most competentjudges 
 which we can presently have, in case we differ in understanding 
 the scripture, are the ancient fathers and doctors, such as," 
 (here he mentioned twelve,) " whose writings are now a thou- 
 sand years old, and of whom a great part suffered martyrdom 
 for Christ's sake." 
 
 Mr Willock the same day replied, " My mind is, and ever 
 was, to attend to the judgment of the word of God only, by 
 which all heresies must be tried, as ihey have always hitherto 
 been. The mind of the doctors you mention, and of other doc- 
 tors, I will gladly admit, so long as they do not speak contrary 
 thereto: I mean, that I will allow them, so far as their sayings 
 and judgments agree with the word of God expressly contained 
 in the holy scriptures; otherwise not." 
 
 The proud abbot evidently lost his temper. He immediately, 
 on the same day, wrote a letter, in which he said, '* what you 
 write, is as much as to say, that you will be judge to the anci- 
 ent doctors. Truly, in my conscience, I cannot give you that 
 pre-eminence and place, unless I knew some godly learning and 
 good life in you, more than in all the ancient doctors, which, 
 as yet, is concealed from me. — All the noble gentlemen of this 
 shire shall perfectly know, how you go about to circumvent and 
 abuse them by your preaching, especially this day, (March 30th,) 
 wherein you have openly cried out, without either scripture or 
 doctor, falsely, and in an ungodly manner, affirming, that it is 
 an false idol which is used in the mass." 
 
 Mr Willock seems to have felt himself affected by the 
 haughty strain of this letter. The next day, March 31st, he 
 thus wrote to the abbot : " I answer, that the judgment of the 
 old authors, as well as new, is, and ever was, referred to the 
 godly readers. The old authors did not wish to be otherwise 
 treated, as may appear from their own words." (Here he di- 
 rected the abbot to a considerable number of passages in the 
 writings of St Augustine, St Jerome, Tertullian, Justin Mar- 
 
 £ 
 
66 SIR JOHN WILLOCK. 
 
 tyr, and Ambrose.) " All which doctors appeal to the scrip- 
 tures as their judge, and exhort men to do the same. They 
 seek no farther credit than as they shall be found to agree with 
 the holy scriptures. As you refuse to let me have the liberty 
 of judging the writings of the doctors, so must I refuse the 
 same unto you, because your learning and good life are like- 
 wise to me unknown. Whereas you burthen me with circum- 
 vention, and with false and ungodly preachings, I answer, you 
 have said that which you are not able to prove, for I supported 
 my public doctrine with good arguments, grounded on the scrip- 
 ture, without collusion. Take this for my last answer, not be- 
 ing minded to trouble you with any farther writing, until the 
 day of our reasoning be past." 
 
 The abbot immediately replied, " If you will say that the 
 mass is idolatry, I will prove you an heretic by the word of 
 God, conform to the doctrine and interpretation of godly and 
 ancient doctors and writers. I am content to begin my reason- 
 ing at God's word, providing always, that, if we differ, the de- 
 termination shall be referred to the doctors." 
 
 Mr Willock sent a short answer, exactly in the following 
 words : " These are to advertise you, that I will keep the day, 
 the hour, and the place, with the number of persons, God wil- 
 ling, as is appointed. Chuse you whether you will keep" (tryst) 
 " or not. — At Ayr, the last day of March, at nine hours at 
 night, 1559." 
 
 The whole affair ended, sooner than the literary correspon- 
 dents had seemed to expect. What passed on Sunday, April 
 2d, appears to me to have been as follows: — Mr Willock's 
 friends, and the friends and retainers of the twelve noblemen 
 and gentlemen who were to assemble with him in a private 
 lodging, the back entries to which the abbot had stipulated no 
 person should approach, thought it most proper that a strong 
 guard should attend them. Perhaps they suspected that some 
 treachery would be made use of, especially as it was known 
 that the young Earl of Cassilis, and the Earl of Eglinton, with 
 a numerous train of their friends and servants, were wait- 
 ing in the town and neighbourhood, ready to obey the ab- 
 bot's call. 
 
 In the morning, about four or five hundred protestant men, 
 well arrayed, drew up in the front of the Laird of Camel's house. 
 The abbot, on his seeing, or hearing of such a multitude of 
 persons, most probably hesitated with his company, or did not 
 venture to come forward. After the hour of ten was past, it 
 was not reckoned necessary that Mr Willock should continue 
 longer in the house, and, therefore, with his select friends and 
 their guard, he proceeded to the parish church, where he be- 
 gan, as usual, the public exercises of religion. 
 
 3 
 
MR JOHN WILLOCK. 67 
 
 The abbot artfully availed himself of Mr Willock's secession. 
 He employed a public notary, to protest, in legal form, at 
 the house of the Laird of Camel, and at the market cross, " that 
 the cause of the reasoning's ceasing was in John Willock." Af- 
 terwards, at twelve o'clock noon, the notary renewed the same 
 protest in the parish church, where Mr Willock, at the time, 
 was preaching. 
 
 In the letter to the archbishop, the abbot says, " Your lord- 
 ship will understand, that when the day of our reasoning was 
 come, which was Sunday last, there convened above four or 
 five hundred men to fortify him," (viz. to guard Mr Willock ) 
 "Truly, my lord, if I had pleased, 1 could have brought twice 
 as many ; for my brother's son, and my lord Egiinton, and all 
 their friends and servants, were in readiness as I should please 
 to charge them. But I would not suffer them, nor yet their 
 servants, to come ; for, if I had done otherwise, there would 
 not have failed cumber. I was, therefore, only accompanied 
 with religious men, and with so many gentlemen as I had caused 
 to bear witness to the matter. I took documents, both at the 
 mercat cross, and in the parish kirk openly, he being at his 
 
 J reaching, of which the principals of the brother were marvel- 
 ously miscontent. I assure your lordship that my Lord of Glen- 
 cairn did not his part to me, as the bearer will shew your lord- 
 ship at full length." 
 
 A copy of the instrument of protest taken by the notary pub- 
 lic, " in name of a venerable father, Quintin, commendatorof 
 Crosraguel," in which are inserted the words of the challenge 
 which had been given " by my Lord of Crosraguel to John 
 Wiliock ;" and the names of several witnesses whom the notary 
 had adduced, is, in the manuscript, annexed to the epistolary 
 correspondence. Among the witnesses some gentlemen are 
 mentioned of the surname of Kennedy, viz. Walter Kennedy 
 of Knockdowne ; Fergus Kennedy, his brother german , John 
 Kennedy in Greenline ; John Kennedy his son j Hugh Ken- 
 nedy. 
 
 If the proposed conference had taken place, it is more than 
 probable that acts of violence would have been committed. 
 .Neither the one disputant, nor the other, would have acknow- 
 ledged himself defeated in the controversy, and the irritation 
 of their friends might have become ungovernable. 
 
 An article in the abbot's letter requires to be noticed. He 
 says, " In my opinion this country may be easily helped, which 
 to write to your lordship would be over prolix, and, therefore, 
 I refer it to our meeting. Nevertheless, there are some things 
 which should be presently done, and that in a very secret man- 
 ner, as your lordship shall perceive on the other side of the 
 leaf. It may be observed, that the secret counsel which the 
 
6$ MR JOHN WILLOCK. 
 
 abbot wrote " on the other side of the leaf," was not tran- 
 scribed, or does not appear in the copy of the manuscript, as it 
 is given by bishop Keith. 
 
 The abbot retired to Maybole, where, April 7th, he wrote a 
 copy of what he called his " Colloquium with John Willock," 
 and sent it, along with a letter, to the queen regent; also ano- 
 ther copy, which he sent, with a letter to the archbishop of 
 Glasgow. This archbishop, viz. James Beaton, a son of James 
 Beaton of Balfarg, in the county of Fife, carried with him to 
 France, immediately after the reformation, all the charters and 
 writs which belonged to the see of Glasgow, among which 
 was Quintin Kennedy's manuscript. At his death, which hap- 
 pened in that country, April 24th, 1603, when he was in the 
 eighty-sixth year of his age, all his papers were deposited, 
 partly in the Scots college of Paris, and partly in the Carthusian 
 monastery of that city. 
 
 Abbot Kennedy remained in Scotland, where his vehement 
 zeal in behalf of popery was rather increased than diminished 
 by the establishment of a protestant church. In 1562, he chal- 
 lenged Mr Knox to debate with hiin in the village of Maybole. 
 The debate lasted three days, and Mr Knox wrote and published 
 an account of it. 
 
 But he met with repeated mortifications. In May, 1561, a 
 part of his abbey was thrown down, in consequence of an or- 
 der from the privy council. His rents were ill paid, and, in 
 some instances, totally withdrawn. Con, the Jesuit, says, that 
 he w r as imprisoned; but archbishop Spottiswood says, that, " be- 
 cause of his age and quality, he being of the house of Cassilis, 
 it was thought fit that he should be overseen." He died, Au- 
 gust 22d, 1564. 
 
 One of the poems of Mr Patrick Adamson, who was after- 
 wards a protestant archbishop of St. Andrews, contains a kind 
 of epitaph which he wrote on occasion of the death of abbot 
 Kennedy, and is as follows : — 
 
 " VtE mild quod papa; dcderam nomenquc, fidemquc; 
 
 Va mild quod Christi strcnuus Iwslis cram. 
 Voj vobis papista omnes, nisi tempore vita; 
 
 Vos, Christum umplexi, pontifical! fugith" 
 
 That is, " woe is to me, because I gave name and faith to the 
 pope ; woe is to me, because I was a strenuous enemy of Christ. 
 \Voe will be to all ye papists, unless, in the time of your life, 
 you fly from the pope, and embrace Christ." 
 
 Mr Adamson, however, must be thought to have assumed 
 too much, when he represented some of the above words as pro- 
 ceeding from the mouth of the departed abbot. It appears 
 from those parts of the writings, which have been extracted 
 
MR JOHN WILLOCK. <5<) 
 
 by bishop Keith and Dr Mackenzie, that he was a sincere be- 
 liever on the sacrifice of Christ ; and in these extracts no- 
 thing is said by him conducive to the doctrine of human me- 
 rit. He was an eloquent and sharp reprover of the negligence, 
 and other faults of some of his clerical brethren; and also of the 
 vices of some of the noblemen and gentlemen who were living 
 in his time. 
 
 The popish party, both at home and abroad, held him in 
 very high esteem ; and Douglas, in his book of the peerage of 
 Scotland, informs us, that " Quintin Kennedy, abbot of Cross- 
 raguel, a man of singular piety, and of great austerity of man- 
 ners, was, after his death, canonized for a saint." 
 
 It may be sufficient to add, concerning him, that, in point 
 of argument, he appears to have been the most acute; and with 
 regard to morals, perhaps one of the most unexceptionable of 
 all the literary men who opposed themselves by their writings 
 to the reformers in Scotland, 
 
5JR JOHN WILLOCK.. 
 
 CHAP. IIL 
 
 Goes along with the Protestants from Ayr, to assist the Protestants 
 at Perth. The Earl of Argyle and Lord James Stewart join 
 the Protestants, A short Peace with the Queen Regent. Me- 
 morable Exploit of 300 Men of Perth. Edinburgh taken. Mr 
 Willock left in Edinburgh by the Protestant Armu. His Preaeh- 
 ing in Edinburgh. He and Mr Knox give their Opinions for 
 deposing the Queen Regent. Mr Willoi k goes to England. 
 Retains to Scotland. Military Events. Mr Willock attends the 
 Queen Regent in her last Sickness. Her Death and Character. 
 
 1VJ r Willock, after he had finished his epistolary correspon- 
 dence with Abbot Kennedy, continued in the town of Ayr, and 
 its neighbourhood, till towards the end of May. His zealous 
 friends, who were protecting him against the archbishop of 
 Glasgow and other enemies, had resolved to accompany him 
 to Stirling, if the trial, with which he was there threatened, 
 should take place. 
 
 When they were informed that, May 11th, the monasteries 
 in Perth had been demolished, and that the army of the queen 
 regent, which consisted mostly of French troops, was on its 
 march from Stirling to Perth, to avenge upon its inhabitants 
 the cause of the monks and friars, they immediately resolved 
 to go to the assistance of their protestant brethren. The Earl 
 of Glencairn, as commander-in-chief, having with him Lord 
 Boyd, Lord Ochiltree, and many barons and gentlemen, march- 
 ed from Ayr, at the head of twelve hundred cavalry, and 
 thirteen hundred infantry; and as Mr Willock would have 
 been in danger of his life, if left behind, he took him along 
 with him. 
 
 The popish party, having suspected that the congregation in 
 the west would endeavour to assist their brethren at Perth, had 
 taken care, with a view to impede their progress, to break down 
 all the bridges, and to stop the passes at Stirling and six miles 
 above it. The earl was thereby reduced to the necessity of 
 leading his army over the highland muirs and mountains: 
 
MR JOHN WILLOCK. 71 
 
 which, however, he accomplished so expeditiously, as to bring 
 them in good time, May 24th, to the neighbourhood of Perth. 
 The protestant camp was then a little way west from Perth, and 
 the camp of the queen regent, about ten miles farther west, 
 at the village of Auchterarder. 
 
 The arrival of so many friends from Ayrshire, who were now 
 added to some thousands of men who had hastily crowded from 
 the eastern provinces, gave great joy to the protestants in the 
 camp, and served to increase their courage. In consequence 
 of the accession of strength which the protestants had acquired, 
 the queen regent and her counsellors hesitated as to what had 
 been their first intention, and judged it most advisable to offer 
 terms of accommodation. 
 
 " With the Earl of Glencairn," says Mr Knox, " came our 
 loving brother John Willock." These two ministers, viz. Mr 
 Willock and Mr Knox, seemingly deputed from the chiefs of 
 the congregation, held a serious conference with the young 
 Earl of Argyle, and with another young nobleman, Lord James 
 Stewart, prior of St Andrews, who was afterwards Earl ef Mur- 
 ray, and regent of the kingdom. The result was, that these 
 two lords heartily joined the congregation, and a resolution was 
 adopted, to accept of the terms which the queen regent had 
 now proposed. 
 
 All the preachers in the camp, and in the town, were, there- 
 fore, as Mr Knox relates, " employed to appease the multitude, 
 which, however, they could not effect without great labour. 
 And no wonder," says he, " for many of the people foresaw the 
 danger which would ensue ; and even some of the preachers 
 themselves did openly affirm, in their sermons, their persuasion 
 that the queen meant no truth. Nevertheless, that the mouths 
 of the adversaries might be stopped, who were burthening the 
 congregation with the charge of rebellion, they earnestly re- 
 quired all men to approve of the agreement, and to suffer hy- 
 pocrisy to disclose itself." 
 
 After this agreement, which was made May 30th, 1559, and 
 which was indeed only of a short continuance, it is most pro- 
 bable that Mr Willock returned with the Earl of Glencairn to 
 the west country, to prosecute, as usual, his pious labours. 
 
 I have found nothing more concerning him of an earlier date, 
 than the month of July, at which time he was in Edinburgh. 
 It would indeed be inconsistent with the plan proposed in these 
 sketches, to give a full history of the contest, which subsisted 
 about thirteen months, between the queen regent and the re- 
 forming congregation ; but it may be proper, upon several ac- 
 counts, to give a brief detail of the occurrences which occasioned 
 Mr Willock to be in Edinburgh at the date above mentioned. 
 
 The queen regent, when, according to the terms of the ac- 
 
72 MR JOHN WILLOCK. 
 
 commodation, she had entered Perth, did not fulfil her pro- 
 mise, but oppressed the inhabitants. She staid, however, only 
 a few days ; but, at her departure, she left a French garrison 
 of six hundred men, to preserve the exercise of the Romish re- 
 ligion; and as the town was well fortified with walls and towers, 
 she hoped her garrison might be able to keep it, against any at- 
 tempts which the protestants might make. 
 
 The lords, with a numerous congregation, having completed 
 a rapid and successful progress through the county of Fife, and 
 obliged the queen regent, and the troops which she there had 
 with her, to retreat to Edinburgh, thought the next thing in- 
 cumbent upon them, was to deliver Perth from its oppressors. 
 They came to its neighbourhood June 23d; they summoned 
 the garrison to depart, Juue 'i4th ; and, on the 25th, the town, 
 without any great difficulty, was put into their hands. 
 
 But, on the evening of the 25th, Lord James Stewart, then 
 in Perth, was secrethy informed, that French soldiers were or- 
 dered to Stirling, with a design to prevent the protestants in 
 the north, from passing by the bridge of Slirling to those in the 
 south. It was of the greatest importance to the reformers that 
 the communication should be kept open, and that therefore no 
 delay should be used in taking possession of the bridge, before 
 the French soldiers could have time to arrive. Opposition how- 
 ever might be expected, as the town had always been a chief 
 place of resort for the papists, and it was possible that the 
 French soldiers might have already arrived. In this critical 
 juncture, Lord James Stewart and the Earl of Argyle offered 
 to set out that same night for Stirling, if they could get brave 
 men to accompany them. 
 
 I may be indulged in stating the particulars of an exploit 
 which was now performed, the consequences of which were very 
 important. Keith says, " the inhabitants of Perth were a war- 
 like sort of people." They had often indeed given proofs of 
 their being of such a disposition, and they did so more especi- 
 ally upon this occasion. Three hundred of them, who were 
 men of spirit and intrepidity, immediately volunteered their 
 service, and were accepted. As a token of their zeal, and ac- 
 cording to what was rather the coarse humour of those times, 
 each of them appeared with a cord hanging round his neck, 
 theieby signifying his consent to suffer as a traitor, if he should 
 be found unfaithful in the cause in which he was engaged. Mr 
 Henry Adamson, in his Metrical History of Perth, written about 
 the year 16 1 9, compares them to the four hundred Greeks 
 who, under Leonidas, King of Sparta, having almost no other 
 prospect before them but that of death, proceeded to defend 
 the important straits of Thermopylae against an immense army 
 of Persians. 
 
 13 
 
MR JOHN WILLOCK. 73 
 
 This brave band from Perth, under the Earl of Argyle and 
 Lord James Stewart, who were now exceedingly active in the 
 protestant interest, marched all the night, and, early the next 
 day, June 26th, were at Stirling. The French troops had not 
 yet come hither, and the papists, being surprised, were altoge- 
 ther unprepared to oppose them. They waited there three days, 
 to see if the enemy would make any attempt, and during that 
 time they gained the favour of the multitude, who, to show their 
 real, demolished the monasteries in Stirling, and the neighbour- 
 ing abbey of Cambuskenneth. 
 
 As the brethren from the west were now beginning to as- 
 semble, and might be sufficient to guard the town, they next 
 very bravely resolved to extend their progress, with a view to 
 take possession of the capital of the kingdom, where the queen 
 regent then lay with a small number of her troops. Accord- 
 ingly, early in the morning of June 29th, they began an expe- 
 dition on the south side of the Forth. In their way, they halt- 
 ed at Linlithgow, where the people, at their coining, destroyed 
 the monuments of idolatry, and at night they reached Edin- 
 burgh, and were happy to find that the city, without any trou- 
 ble, was delivered into their hands. 
 
 Archbishop Spottiswood says, " The rumour of their ap- 
 proach, though they were few in number, for they passed not 
 three hundred men in all, did so terrify the queen, and the 
 companies with her, that, with all the haste they could make, 
 thy fled to Dunbar." 
 
 It may not be amiss to remark, that, to commemorate the 
 bravery of these three hundred citizens, and the important ser- 
 vice which they rendered to the protestant cause, there was 
 preserved, till very lately, in one of the public rooms at Perth, 
 an old piece of painting which represented them in their march, 
 in the habit and military accoutrements used at that period, 
 having also the cords, as before expressed. 
 
 Their arrival at Edinburgh was soon generally known. The 
 great men, wiio were favourers of the reformation, with their 
 friends and followers, and some ministeis, among whom were 
 Mr Willock and Mr Knox, hastened thither from all quarters. 
 The cloisters of the monks and friars were destroyed, and the 
 altars and images broken, and carried away. The popish wor- 
 ship was interdicted in the city and neighbourhood, and protes- 
 tant ministers preached freely in all the churches, and admi- 
 nistered the sacraments of baptism and the Lord's supper. So 
 sanguine were the congregation in Edinburgh in their hope of 
 matters continuing in the same favourable condition, that, 
 with a proper solemnity, they made choice of Mr Knox to be 
 their stated pastor. 
 
 It is not my intention to give a circumstantial account of the 
 
74 MR JOHN WILLOCK. 
 
 changes which afterwards happened. It may be sufficient tm 
 observe, that, through the artifices of the queen regent, who, 
 with her companies, still lay at Dunbar, the great men became 
 jealous of each other. Many of them, with their friends and 
 followers, withdrew themselves from Edinburgh; and those who 
 remained, felt it most prudent for them to agree to a truce 
 which was to last about five months, that is, till a parliament 
 should meet in January, which, it was promised, should settle 
 the national disputes which related to religion. 
 
 This truce was agreed to, July 24th, 15.59. Some of the ar- 
 ticles were, that the queen regent should be allowed to return 
 to her palace of H oh/rood house; that the lords and their ad- 
 herents were to leave Edinburgh, July 25th; that protestant 
 ministers were to continue to preach without being molested ; 
 and that no troops, either of Scots or French, were to be gar- 
 risoned within the walls of the city, though individuals of them 
 might resort there, for the purpose of transacting their ordinary 
 secular affairs. 
 
 The next day, July 25th, the lords and their adherents de- 
 parted from the town, after having heard a sermon preached to 
 them by Mr Knox ; and after having proclaimed at the market 
 cross the several articles of the truce. 
 
 As Mr Knox was particularly obnoxious to the papists, he 
 could not safely remain in the town, and, therefore, left it 
 along with the lords. " But," says he, " for the comfort of 
 the brethren, and continuance of the kirk in Edinburgh, was 
 left there our dear brother John Willock, who, for his faith- 
 ful labours and bold courage in that battle, deserved immortal 
 praise. For, when it was found dangerous that John Knox, 
 who before was elected minister to that church, should continue 
 there, the brethren requested the said John Willock to remain 
 with them, lest, for lack of ministers, idolatry again should be 
 erected. To which he consented so gladly, as it evidently ap- 
 peared, that he preferred the comfort of his brethren, and the 
 continuance of the church in that place, to his own life." 
 
 Mr Willock had indeed to sustain what might be called " a 
 battle," or hard struggle, with the papists. July 26th, he 
 preached to a very numerous auditory, in the church of St 
 Giles, which was the parish church of the city, and in his ser- 
 mon earnestly exhorted the people of Edinburgh to stand fast 
 in the truth which they had confessed. But, in his labours, 
 from day to day, he was greatly vexed, and met with mo- 
 lestation. 
 
 For the queen regent, after she had returned, with her reti- 
 nue, to Holyroodhouse, repaired the altars in her private cha- 
 pel, and in the abbey chinch, where she would not allow the 
 English prayers to be used, and deprived the young men, who 
 
MR JOHN WILLOCK. 75 
 
 had ventured to read them, of the abbey pensions which they 
 had ordinarily enjoyed. Though the French troops were not 
 lodged within the walls of the town, yet part of them lay in the 
 Canongate, and part of them in Leith, and were frequently very 
 unwelcome visitors in the city in Leith they brake the puipit 
 from which the piott-stant ministers had preached, and fully re- 
 stored the popish worship. 
 
 Mr Willock's constant use of St Giles' church appeared to 
 them, and to the other adversaries of the reformation, a great 
 grievance, and the}' endeavoured to deprive him ot it. ihey 
 required that mass should be celebrated there as formerly; but 
 this he, and the other protestants, in a general meeting, de- 
 clared they would not allow. The}' next requested, that Mr 
 "Willoek and his people would so far consent to gratify the 
 queen regent, as to chuse some other church in the city, or, at 
 least, would consent that mass should be said, either before or 
 after their sermons. But Mr Willoek and his people answered, 
 that " according to the articles of the truce, they were in 
 possession of St Giles' church, and could not with a good con- 
 science abandon it, or suffer idolatry to be again set up, unless 
 they should be constrained by violence so to do, and if they 
 were so constrained, then they were determined to seek the 
 next remedy." 
 
 " .Notwithstanding the great boasting of the enemy," Mr 
 Knox says, " the brethren, by God's grace, kept possession till 
 the month of November. ISIot only did they convene to the 
 preaching, to the daily supplications, and to the administration 
 of baptism, but even the Lord's table was ministered in the very 
 eyes of the enemy, to the great comfort of many afflicted con- 
 sciences. But as God did powerfully work with his true minis- 
 ter Mr Willoek, and with his troubled kirk, so the devil did not 
 cease to inflame the malice of the queen, and of her papists 
 who were with her." 
 
 We are told particularly, that " her French captains and her 
 soldiers, in great companies, in time of preaching and prayers, 
 resoned to St Giles' kirk in Edinburgh, and made their com- 
 mon deambulations therein, with such loud talking as that no 
 perfect audience could be had." Mr Willoek prayed to God 
 to be delivered trom them; and it may be presumed, though 
 Mr Knox does not mention it, that he also prayed that the 
 Lord would forgive them, would enlighten their minds in the 
 knowledge of the truth, and endow them with a better disposi- 
 tion. He exhorted them to be quiet, and, when they would 
 not cease from their noise, he entreated them to be gone. 
 But, says Mr Knox, " they continued still in their wicked 
 purpose, devised and ordained by the queen, with a view to 
 draw our brethren in Edinburgh, and themselves into cumber, 
 
76 MR JOHN WILLOCK. 
 
 so that she might have a coloured occasion to break the league 
 with them." 
 
 The league or truce was declared to be broken in the begin- 
 ning of October, at which time the queen regent had obtained 
 a large supply of men and money from France, and a promise 
 of more being afterwards sent. The lords and their adherents, 
 in a more numerous body than before, therefore returned, and 
 again took possession of Edinburgh on the 12th day of Octo- 
 ber. The queen regent left Holyroodhouse, and went into 
 Leith, which was now strongly fortified and defended by French 
 troops. There were indeed some Scots among them, but as 
 their number was comparatively small, and as they were paid 
 by the King of France, they were included under the general 
 name of the French army. 
 
 The nobility, barons, and burgesses, who were now at Edin- 
 burgh, reckoning themselves sufficiently powerful, held a con- 
 vention, October 21st, in which they deliberated whether or 
 not the queen regent had, by her bad behaviour, forfeited her 
 delegated authority, and should be deprived of it. They thought 
 it, however, advisable, both for the relief of their own conscien- 
 ces, and for rendering their determination, whatever it should 
 be, more agreeable to the nation, to have a consultation upon 
 this point with Mr Willock and Mr Knox. 
 
 Mr Willock, who was first called, stated at some length, 
 what he conceived to be the reciprocal duties of magistrates 
 and their people. In the conclusion, he said, " that since the 
 queen regent denied her chief duty to the subjects of this realm, 
 which was to minister justice to them indifferently," (viz. impar- 
 tially,) to preserve their liberties from the invasion of strangers; 
 and to suffer them to have God's word freely and openly preach- 
 ed amongst them : seeing, moreover, that the queen regent 
 was an open and obstinate idolatress, and a vehement maintainer 
 of all superstition and idolatry : and, finally, that she utterly 
 despised the counsels and requests of the nobility, he could see 
 no reason why they who were the born counsellors, viz. the no- 
 bility and barons of the realm, might not justly deprive her of 
 all regiment and authority amongst them." 
 
 Mr Knox, being next called, declared his concurrence in the 
 opinion which his brother Mr VVillock had expressed. But he 
 added, that the misbehaviour of the queen regent ought not to 
 withdraw their hearts from their lawful sovereigns, who, at that 
 time, were Queen Mary, not yet seventeen years of age, and 
 her husband, Francis II, King of France, who was nearly about 
 the same age ; that, if they should depose the mother, viz. the 
 queen regent, from her office, merely through malice, or pri- 
 vate envy, they could not escape the righteous judgment of 
 
MR JOHN WILLOCK. 77 
 
 God ; and that, if she afterwards should repent, they ought then 
 
 to restore her to her former station. 
 
 It was a hard trial which was imposed upon these two minis- 
 ters. Archbishop Spottiswood says, " It had been a better and 
 wiser part in them to have excused themselves from giving any 
 opinion in such matters, for they might be sure to have it after- 
 wards cast in their teeth, to the scandal of their profession." 
 But it would be ungenerous to censure these good men for the 
 part which they now acted. The archbishop himself, if he had 
 been in their circumstances, and when the passions of men were 
 so greatly agitated, perhaps might have done no better. They 
 knew that nine tenths of the people of Scotland were on the 
 side of the reformers, and were only kept from declaring them- 
 selves by the dread of foreign invaders. Their best interests 
 were at stake ; and, at that period, the refinements in political 
 discussions were not so well known and practised, as perhaps 
 they now are. 
 
 The writer of the book entitled, ** Memoirs of the Church of 
 Scotland," which was printed at London in 1717,- makes the 
 following apology for Mr Willock and Mr Knox : " This," 
 says he, " was a case which was begun and carried on for mat- 
 ters in religion. The nobility and ministers, all along, had 
 gone hand in hand, aiding and advising one another. It would 
 therefore have been very unkind if the ministers, when they 
 were consulted as in a matter of conscience, had declined giving 
 their opinion to those gentlemen, who, by their instigation, or 
 at least with their full concurrence, had ventured their lives, 
 their families, and estates, in the public affair of religious li- 
 berty. It would have been abandoning their friends, and, what 
 is worse, their cause likewise." 
 
 . The queen regent, however, paid no farther regard to the 
 sentence of deprivation now passed upon her, than to publish a 
 protest against it. Leith was still with-held from the pro- 
 testants; and, October 31st, for the first time, since the com- 
 mencement of the dispute about religion, some men were killed 
 on both sides. The affairs of the protestants took an adverse 
 turn: and, November 6th, the lords and their adherents found 
 themselves compelled to leave Edinburgh. Some of them went 
 to the west country, and some to Fife; and no prjtestant mi- 
 nister could safely remain in Edinburgh and its neighbourhood. 
 The church of St Giles, in which Mr Willock had preached, 
 was cleansed, and, with much ceremony, again consecrated by 
 a French bishop. 
 
 Mr Willock went into England, where he had formerly long 
 resided. It is probable he was commissioned to join there in 
 soliciting, in behalf of the reformers in Scotland, the aid of 
 men and money from the English queen. 
 
75 MR JOHN WILLOCK. 
 
 During the winter, the French troops were at times success- 
 ful in plundering some towns and villages on the south and 
 north borders of the frith of Forth : but in all parts of the king- 
 dom, excepting Edinburgh and Leith, the gospel, where minis- 
 ters could be obtained, was freely preached. 
 
 The remaining events in the course of this religious war, may 
 be briefly mentioned as follows: April 2d, 1560, there arrived 
 an English army of eight thousand men, to whom two thousand 
 more were afterwards added. Mr Willock, it is probable, 
 came along with them from England ; for, April 29th, he was one 
 of the six ministers, whom the lords of the congregation char- 
 ged to compose what is called the Oid Confession of Faith, and 
 the first Book of Discipline. 
 
 The castle of Edinburgh had hitherto been kept in a neutral 
 state, by its governor, John Lord Erskine. Early in April, the 
 queen regent asked him to receive her into that place, as her 
 situation in Leith, which was then closely besieged, would not 
 have been safe for her, and was especially inconvenient as she 
 had fallen into bad health, occasioned by the anxiety she had 
 felt in her administration. Lord Erskine received her, and along 
 with her John Hamilton, archbishop of St Andrews, and some 
 other attendants. 
 
 While she was resident in the castle, the battle betwixt the 
 French and English, at Hawk Hill, happened April 6th; the 
 attack of the French upon the English camp, April 15th ; and 
 the unsuccessful attempt which the English made upon the town 
 of Leith, May 7th. But no more blood was shed in the cause 
 of the reformation; and the death of the queen regent, which 
 was fast approaching, put a period to the civil war, and render- 
 ed the protestants completely victorious. 
 
 Some account of her death and character will be necessary, 
 as Mr Willock attended her in her last illness. Her distemper 
 seems to have been a decline, and, as is usual towards the end 
 of that distemper, her feet and legs were swelled. She request- 
 ed that the protestant lords would visit her, which they accord- 
 ingly did. " To them," says Spottiswood, " site expressed her 
 grief for the troubles of the realm, commending earnestly the 
 study of peace unto them, advising them to send both French 
 and English forth of the country; and beseeching them to con- 
 tinue in the obedience of the queen their sovereign, and to en- 
 tertain the old amity with the king and realm of Fiance. After 
 some speeches to this purpose, bursting forth in tears, she asked 
 pardon of them all whom she in any way had offended, profess- 
 ing that she did forgive those who had injured her in any sort; 
 and embracing all the nobles, one by one, kissing them, she 
 took her farewell. To the others of the meaner sort that stood 
 by, she gave her hand, and so they departed." 
 
MR JOHN WILLOCK. 79 
 
 The archbishop goes on to say, " Afterwards, disposing her- 
 self for another world, she sent for Mr John Willock the preacher, 
 ■who was then returned from England ; and conferring with him 
 a reasonable space, openly professed, that she did trust to be 
 saved only by the death and merits of Jesus Christ." 
 
 One of the particulars which he mentions of her character, 
 is, that " in her court she kept a wonderful gravity, tolerating 
 no licentiousness ; her maids being always busied in some virtu- 
 ous exercise, and to them she was an ensample every way, of 
 modesty, chastity, and the best virtues." 
 
 In Keith's Appendix, page 89, the following words are given 
 from a manuscript copy of Spottiswood's history : " These 
 things," (viz. the things relating to the death and character o" 
 the queen regent,) " I have heard my father," (viz. the old su- 
 perintendant, Mr John Spottiswood,) u often affirm, whose tes- 
 timony deserved credit ; and have many times received the lile 
 from an honourable and religious lady, who had the honour t> 
 wait on her person, and often professed to me, that the queen, 
 regent was much wronged in Knox's story. The author, wlw- 
 soever he was, for I am persuaded that it was none of Knot's 
 writings, in his whole discourse, sheweth a bitter and hateful 
 spite against her, forging dishonest things." 
 
 Impartial justice is indeed due from protestants, even to the 
 memory of those persons with whom the reformers had nost 
 to contend. Spottiswood, Buchanan, and also Mr Knox, throw 
 the blame of her obstinacy against the reformers, chiefly on her 
 brothers, the Duke of Guise, and the Cardinal of Loriain, 
 who bore the principal sway at the French court. Buchaian 
 says, " They were the occasion of their sister being more siarp 
 in the maintenance of the popish religion, than either herown 
 nature, or the temper of the times could bear ; and she did 
 not conceal that they were urging her to the measures she was 
 taking." 
 
 In Knox's history, there are reports of some words, which she 
 is said to have spoken during the siege of Leith. But as they 
 are contrary to her acknowledged character, which is, that she 
 was all along disposed to prevent, as much as possible, the ef- 
 fusion of human blood, they may be considered as doubtful re- 
 ports, or as being exaggerated. There are also some remarks 
 which may not have proceeded from Mr Knox. 
 
 But the following part of Mr Knox's narrative may be fully 
 credited, and is, on Mr Willock's account, necessary to be 
 quoted : " The lords," says Mr Knox, or the writer of the his- 
 tory which goes under his name, " gave to her such counsel 
 and comfort, as they could, in her extremity ; and they willed 
 her to send for some godly and learned man, of whom she might 
 receive instruction ; for these ignorant papists, who were about 
 
80 MR JOHN W1LLOCK. 
 
 her, knew nothing of the mystery of our redemption. Upoa 
 the motion of the lords, John Willoek was sent for, with whom 
 she talked a reasonable space; and who shewed to her plainly 
 the virtue and strength of the death of Christ, and the vanity 
 and abomination of that idol the mass, and she did openly con- 
 fess, that there was no salvation, but in and by the death of 
 Jesus Christ." After some more words, which may be omitted, 
 it is said, " Thus she was constrained to hear one of the princi- 
 pal ministers of the realm," (meaning Mr Willoek) " and to 
 approve the chief head of religion, wherein we dissent from all 
 papists and papistry." 
 
 Her titles were, Mary of Lorrain, Queen Regent of Scotland, 
 vidow of King James V. of Scotland, and daughter of Claud, 
 the first Duke of Guise. She died in the Castle of Edinburgh, 
 June 10, 1560, and may be reckoned to have been, at the time 
 of her death, about forty-four years of age. 
 
MR JOHN WriLOCK. 81 
 
 CHAP. IV. 
 
 Peace established. He is nominated Superintendant of Glasgow 
 and of the Western Provinces. Goes to England. Returns, and 
 is ordained a Superintendant. Moderators to be appointed to the 
 Assembly. The Assembly complains of him. Goes to England. 
 Letter from the Assembly soliciting his Return. Again in Scot- 
 land in 1568. Finally, retires to England. His Character. 
 
 Within a few weeks after the death of the queen-regent, a 
 general peace was established. The fortifications of Leith, and 
 the batteries which had been erected against it, were, with con- 
 sent of both parties, demolished. The English army went to 
 England, July 1 6th ; and the French troops were, at the same 
 time, embarked for their own country in English ships, hired 
 by the Scottish government. Along with the French troops, 
 were allowed to embark James Beaton, archbishop of Glasgow, 
 who had been a persecutor of Mr Willock, and also some other 
 zealous papists, both men and women, who had expressed their 
 wish to retire to France. 
 
 As I know of no account that has been written of Mr Wil- 
 lock's life by any who were personally acquainted with him, or 
 who lived near to his time, and who would have related parti- 
 culars of his private character and conduct as a Christian, 1 am 
 still obliged to have recourse to those less interesting intima- 
 tions concerning him, which occasionally appear in our general 
 histories. 
 
 The committee of parliament, in July, 1560, nominated Mr 
 John Willock to be superintendant of Glasgow, and of the 
 western provinces. His diocese, as it was called, was to com- 
 prehend Clydesdale, Renfrew, Monteith, Lennox, Kyle, and 
 Cunningham; and, as he was to have his residence at Glasgow, 
 he may be considered as having been appointed minister of that 
 city. He made no delay in repairing to the charge assigned 
 him ; but he declared that he accepted of it only for a time, as 
 he was not fully determined to remain in Scotland. 
 
 August 28th, 1560, Thomas Archibald, chamberlain, or fac~ 
 
 F 
 
82 MR JOHN WILLOCK. 
 
 tor, for the archbishop of Glasgow, wrote thus to the archbishop, 
 then at Paris : " John Willock is made bishop of Glasgow now, 
 in your lordship's absence, and is placed in your place at Glas- 
 gow." Mr Archibald would have spoken more accurately, if he 
 had called him " superintendant." 
 
 In another letter to the archbishop, October 10th, 1560, he 
 says, " John Willock is going to London with the ambassador, 
 to bring home his wife. He gets a thousand pounds yearly off 
 the bishopric of Glasgow, and dwells in the dean's house." 
 Keith suspects that the yearly sum was not so large. Mr Wil- 
 lock's connections with England, in consequence of his having 
 married an English woman, might be one of the reasons why he 
 felt an attachment to that country. 
 
 He does not seem to have returned from the visit which he had 
 made to England, when the Assembly met, December 20th, 1560; 
 but he returned before September 14th, 156l ; tor, on that day 
 he was solemnly ordained at Glasgow to his office of superinten- 
 dant. Mr Thomas Randolph, the English ambassador in Scot- 
 land, in his letter to Secretary Cecil, dated September 24th, 
 1561. says, " Upon the 14th of this instant, Mr Wiilock was 
 admitted superintendant of Glasgow." Among the persons who 
 were present, he mentions the Duke of Chattelherault, and his 
 son the Earl of Arran ; the Earl of Glencairn; Lord Ruihven ; 
 Lord Boyd ; Lord Ochiltree. And then he adds, that Mr Wil- 
 lock's admission " was little to the contentation of such as thought 
 not to have left either Mr Knox or him in Scotland." 
 
 June 25th, 1563, the assembly met at St Johnston, viz. Perth, 
 and " the exhortation was made by Mr John Willock, superin- 
 tendant of the west." It was then agreed, " that, for avoiding 
 confusion in reasoning, a moderator should be appointed to 
 moderate during the time of every assembly, and that John 
 Willock should moderate during this assembly." 
 
 He did not, however, at this time, escape the strictness of 
 censure which was usually the lot of the superintendants. " Mr 
 Willock being removed," (that is, desired to withdraw,) " it 
 was complained, that he did not his endeavour for the extirpa- 
 tion of popery." Upon his return to the meeting, he was told 
 of what he had been accused. But " he laid the blame of more 
 effectual methods not having been used, on the Duke of Chat- 
 telherault and the Earl of Cassillis ; and farther, he desired to 
 be disburlhened of the great charge laid upon him, which he 
 had undertaken only for a time; and requested the assembly to 
 lay no heavier burthen upon him than he was able to bear." 
 
 June 25th, 1565, he was again moderator of the assembly, 
 which " he began," it is said, " with prayer, and ended with 
 returning thanks unto God." 
 
 Shortly after this assembly, he went again into England, 
 
MR JOHN W1LLOCK. 83 
 
 where he continued about three years ; during which time his 
 brethren of the ministry in Scotland, and the people over whom 
 he had been placed as an ecclesiastical superintendant, fondly 
 wished for his return. At last, when the Earl of Murray had 
 become regent, and the church was reckoned to be in such a 
 prosperous state as to render it very comfortable to any minister 
 of the gospel to officiate in it, the General Assembly, December 
 25th, J 507, thought it proper to make an affectionate effort to 
 recal him. They addressed to him a letter, in which they en- 
 treated him to return to his native country, and to resume the 
 charge to which they had formerly assigned him ; and they 
 mentioned some very powerful arguments to induce him to com- 
 ply with their request. 
 
 A copy of this letter is given by Bishop Keith, from which 
 the following paragraphs may be selected. 
 
 " Our enemies praised be God, are dashed; religion is esta- 
 blished ; sufficient provision made for ministers ; order taken, 
 and penalties appointed for all sorts of transgression and trans- 
 gressors. Above all, there is a godly magistrate," (meaning the 
 Earl of Murray,) " whom God, in his eternal and heavenly pro- 
 vidence, hath reserved to this age, to put in execution whatso- 
 ever he by his law commandeth" 
 
 " Now then, loving brother, as your presence was to us all 
 in time of trouble, so is it now of us all universally wished, but 
 most earnestly craved by your own flock, who, continually, at 
 all assemblies, have declared the force of that conjunction, the 
 earnestness of that love, the pith of that zeal and mutual care, 
 which bindeth the pastor with his flock. 
 
 " Neither can we think that the shepherd will refuse his flock; 
 that the father wdl refuse the just petition of his son; and, least 
 of all, that the faithful servant of God will shut his ears to the 
 voice and commandment of the kirk, or yet deny his labours to 
 his own country. The time is proper now to reap with blyth- 
 ness, that which you know was before sown in tears, and, to 
 enjoy the fruit of your most wearisome and painful labours. It 
 shall be no less pleasant to you, to see your own native country 
 at liberty and freedom, which you left in mourning, and sobbing 
 under the burden of a most cruel servitude, than comfortable to 
 behold the religion of Jesus Christ throughout all the realm 
 flourishing, virtue encreasing, and virtuous men in reputation.' 
 
 They afterwards say, " we assure ourselves that you are not 
 so restricted and addicted to your own particular, as that this ge- 
 neral and common cause should any ways by you be neglected. 
 Now shall you see the cope-stone of that work, whereof you laid 
 the foundation." 
 
 The energetic and sententious style of this letter seems to in- 
 dicate, that the writing of it had been committed to Mr John 
 Sppttiswood, the superiatendant of Lothian, 
 
84 MR JOHN WILLOCK. 
 
 Mr Willock could not well resist the importunity of his breth- 
 ren. He came again into Scotland before the beginning of Ju- 
 ly, 1568, at which time the assembly met, and made choice of 
 him to be their moderator. But Archbishop Spottiswood informs 
 us, " that Mr John Willock, superintendant of the west, being 
 elected to moderate the me* ting, made difficulty to accept the 
 place, unless some better order were observed than had been in 
 former times. For even then," the archbishop says, " the mul- 
 titudes that convened, and the indiscreet behaviour of some who 
 loved to appear more zealous than others, did cause great con- 
 fusion. Obedience, however, being promised by the whole 
 number, Mr Willock assumed the charge." 
 
 It may be remarked, that in the second session of this assem- 
 bly, of which Mr Willock was moderator, some very good re- 
 gulations were made, which afterwards, as the varying circum- 
 stances of the church required, were im proven from time to 
 time, concerning the proper number of commissioners who 
 should be sent to the general assemblies, and the manner of 
 their being elected. 
 
 I have not been able to obtain any farther information rela- 
 ting to Mr Willock, excepting that he returned to England, and 
 died in that country. 
 
 It may easily be supposed, that, in England, he would be 
 one in that great number of pious ministers, many of whom were 
 among the most learned and exemplary men in the kingdom, 
 who, at that period, were entertaining scruples with regard to a 
 part of the ceremonies, and, especially, with regard to some 
 garments used in worship, to which the papists had been accus- 
 tomed fondly to subscribe a supernatural influence, and a mys- 
 tical meaning. 
 
 Mr Willock, however, does not appear to have suffered any 
 great hardship on account of his scruples, at least, Mr Neal, in 
 his History of the Puritans, makes no mention of him, which, 
 perhaps, he would have done, if he had found him in any way 
 distinguished by his sufferings. If, indeed, he was situated 
 within the diocese of one or other of those bishops, who, imi- 
 tating the example of Archbishop Cranmer, were disposed 
 to make allowances to non-conformists in some outward matters, 
 he would be prosecuting his ministerial labours with a conside- 
 rable degree of peace and comfort. 
 
 My conjecture is, that his friend and patron in England was 
 Dr Barlow, who, in 1537, was bishop of St David's; in 1548, 
 bishop of Bath and Wells ; and, during the persecution carried 
 on by the English, Queen Mary having fled to Embden, as Mr 
 Willock also had done, was chosen superintendant of the con- 
 gregations which were chiefly formed by the English refugees 
 in that city and neighbourhood. After Queen Elizabeth's ac . 
 
MB JOHN WILLOCK. 85 
 
 cession, he returned to England, and was made bishop of Chi- 
 chester, in J 559, in which see he continued till his death, 
 which happened about the year 1573. Dr Barlow was not rigor- 
 ous in exacting from the clergy in his diocese an unlimited 
 conformity to the habits and ceremonies; and, under him, Mr 
 Willock, who must have been well acquainted with him, per- 
 haps formerly in England, but more certainly when he met with 
 him at Embden, may have found his situation very agreeable. 
 
 That Mr Willock was an active and successful instrument in 
 accomplishing the reformation of religion in his own country, is 
 abundantly evident. It is evident also, that persons of all ranks 
 held him, very deservedly, in high estimation. Perhaps he was 
 the only minister whom the national assembly of the church of 
 Scotland at any time honoured with so pressing and affection- 
 ate a letter as the one which they addressed to him. 
 
Mr JOHN CARSWELL, 
 
 V. Mr John Carswell, Minister of Kilmartine, Su- 
 
 PERINTENDANT OF ARGYLE, AND BlSHOP OF THE IsLES. 
 
 CHAP. I. 
 
 Of the Earls of Argyle. Mr Carswell, Chaplain. Ordained a 
 Supenntendant. Prebendary, and Dean of the Chapel-royal of 
 Stirling. Made Bishop of the Isles. List of the Protestant 
 Bishops. Countess of Argyle. Earl of Bothwtll acquitted. 
 Queen Mary imprisoned in the Castle of Loch/even. The Earl 
 and Countess tried by the Assembly. Battle of Langside. The 
 Queen fies to England. Mr Carswell censured by the Assembly. 
 His Death and Character. Concerning Superintendants. 
 
 It is only a very brief account which I am able to give of Mr 
 John Carswell ; and it is so much intermixed with what relates 
 to the fifth Earl of Argyle, as to render necessary the mention 
 of many particulars concerning that earl and his family. It 
 will occasion me also to give such a minute detail of some of 
 the public affairs of that period, as 1 could have wished to avoid, 
 though perhaps it may be acceptable to some persons who do 
 not possess opportunities of being well acquainted with our na- 
 tional history. 
 
 Archibald, the fourth Earl of Argyle, who had been a great 
 friend to the Reformation, died, much regretted, in August, 
 1558. Some time before his death, he had kept as his domes- 
 tic chaplain, and consequently under his protection, a very 
 learned man, Mr John Douglas, who was a celebrated preacher 
 of the gospel, and was afterwards the first prolestant arch- 
 bishop of St Andrews. 
 
MR JOHN CAIISWELL. 87 
 
 Archibald, the fifth earl, was only about eighteen years of 
 age when he succeeded his father. Crawfurd, in his " Lives 
 of the Officers of State," says, that " he had been educated 
 under the able tuition of Mr John Douglas." He early shew- 
 ed himself, as his father had been, a friend to the Reformation : 
 But as Mr Douglas was called to perform ministerial duties in 
 other parts of the kingdom, the earl took for his chaplain, and 
 spiritual instructor, Mr John Carswell, who was a protestant 
 minister, and a promoter of the reformed religion in the west 
 Highlands of Scotland. 
 
 Mr Carswell was rector, or parson of Kilmartine, a parish in 
 the county of Argyle, and situated within the bounds of the 
 presbytery of Inverary. He was so much esteemed for his learn- 
 ing, the soundness of his faith, and his talent for government, 
 that the committee of parliament, in July 1560, nominated 
 him to be one of the five ecclesiastical suj erintendants. 
 
 He was to have his residence in the county of Argyle, pro- 
 bably at the parish church of which he had been minister, and 
 his jurisdiction was to extend over Argyle, Kintyre, Lome, the 
 south isles, Arran and Bute, with their adjacents, and Loch- 
 aber. Thus, as a superintendant, without the name or title of 
 a bishop, an ecclesiastical authority was given him over the 
 provinces which seem, in the popish times, to have constituted 
 two entire dioceses, viz. of the bishop of Argyle, and of the 
 bishop of the Isles. 
 
 Perhaps it was owing to his residence being in a remote part 
 of the kingdom, that he is seldom mentioned as bearing any 
 considerable share in the transactions of the General Assembly. 
 But the earl, his patron, was not inattentive to what he too 
 fondly imagined might conduce to his worldly advantage. The 
 earl had great interest at court, as will afterwards more fully 
 appear. In May 1566, he had procured from Queen Mary the 
 bishopric of Brechin for his own near relation, Alexander 
 Campbell, who was then a boy attending on his education in 
 the protestant schools: and March 24, 1566-7, he procured 
 from the queen a presentation for Mr Carswell to the bishopric 
 of the Isles, and likewise to the ancient abbey of Icolumkill, 
 in the island of Iona ; which abbey, for many years, had been 
 usually granted to the bishops of the Isles, as affording a neces- 
 sary addition to their revenues. Mr Carswell seems to have 
 been previously appointed prebendary, and dean of the chapel- 
 royal at Stirling. 
 
 Keith, in his " Catalogue of the Scots Bishops," says, " this 
 Alexander Campbell alienated the greatest part of the lands and 
 tythes of the bishopric of Brechin to his chief and patron the 
 Earl of Argyle." And when speaking of the bishopric and ab- 
 bey conferred upon Mr Carswell, he says : " All this provision 
 
88 MR JOHN CARSWELL 
 
 has no doubt been with a view that he might dilapidate the 
 temporalty to the family of Argyle." 
 
 But whether what Keith asserts was the real case or not, it 
 is certain that Mr Carswell erred greatly, in not having asked 
 the consent of the General Assembly, before he accepted of his 
 new titles. His preferments also were undoubtedly the means 
 of involving him, in a very trying season, in the prosecution of 
 some court measures, which, it may be supposed, were neither 
 pleasant to himself, nor tending to the advancement of his cha- 
 racter among his brethren of the ministry. 
 
 It may be proper to observe, for the illustration of the state 
 of the church at this period, that when the Reformation in 
 Scotland took place, all the old bishops, with the exception of 
 three, viz. of Alexander Gordon, bishop of Galloway; Robert 
 Stewart, bishop of Caithness ; and James Hamilton, bishop of 
 Argyle, obstinately continued in their profession of popery : 
 but they lost entirely their ecclesiastical jurisdiction. Even 
 those three, who had become protestants, though they were 
 allowed to be members of the General Assembly, were care- 
 fully excluded from exercising any greater authority than that 
 of other ministers of the gospel. They all, however, whether 
 they were papists or protestants, were, in the language of the 
 Scottish law, styled bishops, and still retained theirtemporal 
 privileges, particularly their right of sitting and voting as lords 
 in parliament. 
 
 The see of Orkney being vacant at the time of the Reforma- 
 tion, Mr Adam Bothwell, a protestant minister, was made 
 bishop of Orkney by Queen Mary, in 1562: so that now, 
 when Mr Carswell was made bishop of the Isles, there were 
 five protestant bishops, besides the protestant bishop of Bre- 
 chin, who was yet under age, and eight popish bishops, who 
 could sit in parliament as spiritual peers. 
 
 Mr Carswell was soon induced to claim his temporal privi- 
 leges. He did it at a time when very few persons, besides the 
 queen and the Earl of Argyle, knew that he had been made 
 a bishop ; and the cause of it may be thus explained : The 
 Countess of Argyle, who was Lady Jean Stewart, a natural 
 daughter of King James V. was the intimate friend and favour- 
 ite of Queen Mary, who usually gave to her the title of sister, 
 and treated her as such. She was sitting at supper with the 
 queen and David Rizzio, the foreign secretary, when the con- 
 spirators dragged that unhappy man from the queen's presence, 
 and put him to death 
 
 Her husband, the Earl of Argyle, was also a favourite of the 
 queen. He had distinguished himself by his important ser- 
 vices in behalf of the reforming congregation, during their con- 
 test with the queen-regent ; especially when he and the Eari 
 
MR JOHN CARSWELL. 89 
 
 of Murray, with a band of men from Perth, took possession of 
 Edinburgh, which occasioned the war, if it could properiy be 
 so called, to be ever afterwards confined to a narrow spot, and 
 thereby afforded opportunity for the gospel to be freely and 
 successfully preached in all the other parts of the kingdom. 
 But when the young queen, after the death of her first hus- 
 band, the King of France, came home to Scotland in 156l, he 
 thought it incumbent upon him to be loyal to her, as the reign- 
 ing queen, though he still continued to be a true protestant. 
 
 In the opinion of many, he stretched his loyalty too far. He 
 did not desert her, even after the melancholy death of her se- 
 cond husband, Henry, Lord Darnley, which happened Febru- 
 ary 10, 156i)-7, but condescended to forward what were conjec- 
 tured to be her secret wishes with regaid to the Earl of Both- 
 well. 
 
 As hereditary lord chief justice, or justice general of Scot- 
 land, he presided, April i2, 1567. at the trial of the Earl of Both- 
 well, who had been accused as being principally concerned in 
 the murder of Lord Darnley. A favourable verdict having been 
 returned by a jury, he pronounced the acquittal of that noble- 
 man, though the public were still persuaded of his guilt. 
 
 In the parliament, which met within a few days after the 
 trial, the Earl of Argyle gave his powerful assistance in the 
 matters which were then carrying on ; and it was now thought 
 proper by him, and by the other friends of the queen, that Mr 
 Carswell should publielyappear,and claim hislemporal privileges. 
 
 Accordingly, April 14, 1567, when the noblemen, bishops, 
 mitred abbots, barons, and burgesses, rode, as was customary, 
 in a grand procession from the palace of Holyroodhouse, to the 
 ordinary place where they held their parliamentary meetings, 
 Mr John Carswell was beheld, by the multitude of spectators, 
 riding among the bishops, as one of their number; and it is to 
 be noted, that there were eight bishops who rode at this time, 
 five of whom were papists, and three were protestants. 
 
 But what was reckoned a much worse matter, the Earl of 
 Argyle, John Carswell, bishop of the Isles, and twenty-two 
 other bishops and noblemen, met, April 19, after the parlia- 
 ment was concluded, and subscribed what they called a bond ; 
 in which, as the queen's natural counsellors, they advised her 
 to marry the Earl of Bothwell, and engaged to forward the 
 marriage, and to defend it with their lives and fortunes. 
 
 It is almost needless to mention, that the infatuated queen 
 followed the advice which was now given her. She suffered 
 herself to be carried off by the Earl of Bothwell, seemingly by 
 force, to his castle of Dunbar ; and afterwards, when at liberty, 
 was married to him, May 15, by a protestant bishop, and ac- 
 cording to the riles of the protestant church. Her exasperated 
 
SO MR JOHN CARSWELL. 
 
 subjects committed her, June ]G, a close prisoner to the castle 
 or Lochleven, where she was compelled to renounce her crown 
 in favour of her infant son, and to nominate her natural bro- 
 ther, the Karl of Murray, to be regent of the kingdom. 
 
 As some of the subscribers of the bond above noticed, were 
 afterwards among her keenest enemies, it has been confidently 
 maintained, by such writers as have chosen to be zealous in her 
 vindication, that the advice given her to marry the Earl of 
 Bothwell, was intended merely as a snare to accomplish her 
 rain. But however it might be, with regard to some who had 
 subscribed the bond, it is certain that the Earl of Argyle, and 
 Mr John Carswell, shewed, by their after conduct, that they 
 had entertained in their minds no such treacherous design. 
 
 But 1 refrain from entering into any particular discussion of 
 historical controversies. 
 
 The assembly of the church met December 25, 1567- Mr 
 Carswell was present, but was acknowledged under no other 
 title than that of " the Superinlendant of Argyle " The as- 
 sembly at that time seem to have thought it not expedient to 
 take any judicial notice of the offence which he had given 
 them. But the Earl and Countess of Argyle felt some effects 
 of their displeasure. The earl and his lady, on account of some 
 recent difference which had happened, were now living sepa- 
 rate from one another. This, with some other things, uncon- 
 nected with their political conduct, furnished a ground of com- 
 plaint against them. 
 
 The earl, being called upon, declared to the assembly, that 
 he was not the cause of the separation ; but that, for any of- 
 fences he had given, he was willing to submit himself to the 
 discipline of the kirk. The assembly referred the full trial of 
 him to the superintendant of Argyle, viz. to Mr John Carswell, 
 who was enjoined to cause the earl to make such satisfaction 
 as the law of God requireth, and to report his diligence in this 
 matter to the next assembly ; and also to give an account to 
 the nest assembly of his fidelity and diligence in all the various 
 parts of his office as superintendant. 
 
 The Countess of Argyle next was called. The offence with 
 which she was charged, had happened about a twelvemonth 
 before, viz. on December 15, 1536, when the prince of Scot- 
 land, who had, since that time, in consequence of the deposi- 
 tion of his mother, become King James VI., was baptized in 
 the great hall of the castle of Stirling, by John Hamilton, the 
 popish archbishop of St Andrews. The countess had been pre- 
 sent at the ceremony ; and not only so, but being proxy for the 
 Queen of England upon that occasion, she had held up the 
 child to the font when the archbishop was to baptize him. The 
 
 14 
 
MR JOHN CARSWELL. §1 
 
 English queen had sent, as a present to Queen Mary, a very 
 massy golden font, which was to be used tor that purpose. 
 
 The assembly told the countess, that she who had been a 
 partaker at the table of die Lord Jesus, and a professor of the 
 evangel, had revolted therefrom, in giving her assistance and 
 presence at the baptism of the king in a papistical manner. 
 The countess granted to the assembly, that she had therein of- 
 fended towards the eternal God, and been a slander to the 
 kirk, and therefore that she now willingly submitted herself 
 to the discipline of the kirk, and to their discretion. The as- 
 sembly enjoined her to make her public repentance in the cha- 
 pel-royal of Stirling, upon a Sunday, in time of preaching ; and 
 this to be done at any time which the kirk hereafter should ap- 
 point, by Mr John Spottswood, the superintendant of Lothian; 
 providing always that it be done before the next assembly. 
 
 Thus, during the regency of the Earl of Murray, which had 
 now continued some months, did the General Assembly exer- 
 cise its ecclesiastical discipline without meeting any obstruction, 
 and without respect of persons ; and it may be reckoned honour- 
 able to the persons who gave offence, that they submitted will- 
 ingly to the rules of that church, of which they professed them- 
 selves to be members. 
 
 But the Earl of Argyle, and Mr John Carswell, do not seem 
 to have been persuaded that they had really done wrong, in 
 shewing an attachment to Queen Mary. She made her escape 
 from the castle of Lochleven, May 2, 1568, and took refuge in 
 the castle of Hamilton, where she was encouraged to call her 
 friends to her aid. The Earl of Argyle was among the first 
 who came to her ; and on the 8th of May, when a considerable 
 army was assembling from different quarters, with a view to re- 
 store her to the possession of her crown, nine earls, nine bishops, 
 eighteen lords, and others, who were then met at Hamilton, sub- 
 scribed a bond, in which they acknowledged her authority, and 
 engaged to endeavour her restoration, and to defend her in what 
 they called her just rights. 
 
 The name of the Earl of Argyle is the first in the list of the 
 earls who subscribed this bond ; and among the subscribing 
 bishops, was John Carswell, Bishop of the Isles. 
 
 The Earl of Argyle was then chosen to have the command of 
 the queen's army; but when the battle was fought at Langside, 
 May IS, in which her army was defeated, the earl, at the be- 
 ginning of the battle, was seized with a kind of apoplexy, which 
 rendered him, at that time, of no use to his party. 
 
 The disappointed and affrighted queen fled into England, 
 where Elizabeth, the English queen, after having subjected her 
 to a miserable captivity of about nineteen years, caused her to 
 
92 
 
 MR JOHN CARSWELL.' 
 
 be beheaded, February 8, 1586-7, an action for which she ha* 
 been justly condemned by writers of all parties. 
 
 U hile any hope remained of Queen Mary's restoration, the 
 tarl of AroyJe did his utmost to effect it; but when all proba- 
 bility of it ceased, he submitted himself entirely to the regents 
 of Scotland, and was made chancellor of the kingdom in t 573. 
 Waving spoken so much concerning this Earl of Ar»vle I 
 shall now add, on the testimony of Mr Crawfurd, in his « Lives 
 of the Officers of State," that he « died of the stone gravel, Sen- 
 tember 1 2, 1575, aged about forty-three years." Though he 
 was twice married, he left no lawful children. With regard to 
 Ins first countess, of whom I have also spoken, and who was the 
 great favourite of Queen Mary, her bodv many of us may have 
 seen, and perhaps may again see, lying near to* the body of her 
 father King James V., in the royal vaults within the abbey- 
 church of riolyroodhouse,near Edinburgh. 
 
 Mr Carswell did not finally escape judicial censure for the 
 offence which he had given. Calderwood briefly mentions, that 
 the General Assembly, July 5, 1560, « rebuked Mr John Cres- 
 we I, (Carswell) « superintendant of Argyle, for accepting the 
 bishopric of the Isles, without making the assembly foreseen • 
 and for aiding and assisting of the parliament holden by the 
 queen after the murder of the king," viz. of Henry, Lord Darn- 
 ley, who was commonly called the king, but never actually re- 
 ceived the matrimonial crown. Petrie adds, that this parlia- 
 ment, April 14, 1567, " was holden by the queen's faction " 
 
 I regret that I have had no other account to give of Mr Cars- 
 well than in what related to his public or political conduct 
 which seems to have been wholly regulated by the suggestions 
 of his friend and patron the Earl of Argyle. I have found no- 
 thing concerning his private character as a Christian; but wc 
 may hope it was good ; for otherwise he would not have been 
 elected, nor continued in the office of a superintendant. It 
 may also be presumed, that he was diligent in correcting the 
 manners of the people who were entrusted to his care, and in 
 spreading among them the true knowledge of the gospel. 
 
 The General Assembly, who delayed more than two years to 
 pass any censure upon him for his political offence, seem to have 
 respected him ; and in their administering only a verbal rebuke, 
 without having reconrsfe to any act of suspension, appear to have 
 treated him with some degree of tenderness, probably in consi- 
 deration of the difficult circumstances in which he was placed 
 with regard to his noble patron. 
 
 Keith in his " Catalogue of the Scots Bishops," says, that « Mr 
 Carswell died some time before September 20, 1572." But 
 Spottiswood speaks of him as having been present, along with 
 other protestant bishops, in a meeting of the General Assem- 
 
MR JOHN CARSWELL. 93 
 
 bly, August 6, 1575, when the lawfulness of allowing hishops in 
 the church was called in question, and some resolutions against 
 them were adopted. Spottiswood complains, that the bishop 
 of the Isles, and the other protestant bishops whom he men- 
 tions, were silent upon this occasion, and made no objections. 
 Mr Carswell had no successor in the bishopric of the Isles, tiU 
 the year \6o6. 
 
 I have thus completed my biographical sketches of the five 
 ecclesiastical superintendants. According to the first book of 
 Discipline, ten or twelve such persons should have been chosen. 
 The compilers of that book say, " We have thought it most ex- 
 pedient at the time, that, from the whole number of god.y and 
 learned men, now presently in this realm, there should be selec- 
 ted ten or twelve, foi into so many provinces we have divided 
 the whole realm, to whom charge and commandment should be 
 given, to plant and erect kirks, to set. order, and appoint milli- 
 ters." In the next chapter, they describe ten provinces, over 
 which the superintendants were to preside. But such, in the 
 beginning, was the scarcity of ministers, that so great a number 
 could not be spared from the ordinary parochial labours. 
 
 To remedy this inconvenience, the assembly, from time to 
 time, empowered ministers, whom they denominated "commis- 
 sioners of the country," to visit particular districts, where ihey 
 were reckoned to be necessary, and to exercise the same autho- 
 rity as superintendants. When the old superintendants died, 
 none were chosen to succeed them ; and even the commission- 
 ers, or visitors of the country, were "discontinued, when presby- 
 teries began to be generally erected, 
 
Mil JOHN KNOX. 
 
 VI, Mr John Knox, Minister or Edinburgh. 
 
 CHAP. I. 
 
 His Birth. His Education. His Employments. A true Papist. 
 His Conversion. Friars Williams and Rough. Waits on Mr 
 George Wishart. Some Particulars of that Martyr, and of 
 some Gentlemen in Lothian. Mr Knox escapes from being 
 taken Prisoner. Is persecuted. 
 
 JVIr John Knox was born in 1504, or 1505. The place of 
 his birth has generally been said to have been Gifford, near 
 Haddington ; but a late respectable writer (see " Religious 
 Monitor/' vol. v, p. b\,) has shewed, that it should rather be 
 said to have been Haddington, which is the county town of 
 East Lothian. 
 
 Archbishop Spottiswood relates, that (C he was born of mean, 
 but honest parents :" But the archbishop's notion of a mean 
 birth seems not to have been fully accurate. In a genealogical 
 account of the Knoxes, which belonged to the late Mr James 
 Knox, minister of Scoon, and which is now in the possession, 
 of his family, the reformer's ancestors are said to have been 
 above five hundred years lairds of Kanferlie, in the shire of 
 Renfrew ; and that the reformer's father was a brother of that 
 family, and proprietor (probably lessee, or feudatory proprietor,) 
 of the estate of Gifford. 
 
 In a conversation which Mr Knox had with James Hepburn, 
 fifth Earl of Bothwell, in 1562, his words to that nobleman 
 were : " I have always borne a good mind to your house, and 
 have been very sorry at my heart for the troubles that I have 
 
MR JOHN KNOX. 95 
 
 heard you to be involved in; for, my lord, my great-grandfa- 
 ther, my gudeschir, (viz. grandfather,) and my father, have serv- 
 ed your lordship's predecessors," (probably he meant as vas- 
 sals,) "and some of them have died under their standards." Ac- 
 cording to what I ha"e seen of the genealogical account, the 
 three immediate ancestors of Mr Knox were, Ochtred, John, 
 and William. 
 
 He received the early part of his education in the grammar 
 school of Haddington. From thence he was sent to the uni- 
 versity of St Andrews, probably about the year 1520. The 
 provost of St Sal vator's college, at that time, was Johannes Ma- 
 jor, (in the vernacular language, Mr John Mair,) a native of 
 the town of Haddington, who taught divinity sometimes in the 
 college of St Andrews, sometimes in the college of Glasgow, 
 and sometimes in the colleges abroad. He was a learned man, 
 and wrote many books ; the first of which was printed at Paris 
 in 1509, and the last of them at Cologne in 1555 Under his 
 care, Mr Knox, who was of an acute genius, and addicted to 
 study, made a rapid progress in what were then the usual 
 branches of learning; and, having taken his academical de- 
 grees, was admitted into clerical ordeis, we are told, before he 
 had arrived at the age commonly required. 
 
 It does not appear that the martyrdom of Mr Patrick Ha- 
 milton, who suffered death at St Andrews, last day of February, 
 1527-8, made any good impression upon Mr Knox's mind The 
 writings and speeches of that eminently well-educated young 
 man, especially if Mr Knox was present at his trial, which he 
 probably was, were calculated to excite his serious attention. 
 But his temper led him zealously to adhere to any principles he 
 professed, till he was irresistibly convinced that he had been in 
 an error. During many years, he continued a true papist. 
 
 Alexander Baijlie, a Benedictine monk, quoted by Dr Mac- 
 kenzie in his Life of Knox, says, that Mr Knox " was a priest 
 of Haddington." Bishop Keith, in his Appendix, page 89, af- 
 firms, that " Mr Knox was in the order of priesthood ;" which, 
 he adds, he was able to prove. And Dr Mackenzie, in his Life 
 of James Tyrie, a Jesuit, states, that, in the title of one of that 
 Jesuit's books, in his controversy with Mr Knox, he stiles him 
 " Schir (Sir) John Knox." 
 
 Thus Mr Knox, being a priest, was considered as one of the 
 pope's knights. But as he was not " a preaching friar," he did 
 not think himself obliged to preach publicly. He acted as a 
 preceptor or private teacher to students at the college, and, 
 when at home in Lothian, to other young persons. 
 
 At last, when he was about thirty-six years of age, he began 
 to read the very valuable works of St Jerom, and St Augustine, 
 which had lately been printed. In them he found a theology, 
 
96 MR JOHN KNOX. 
 
 and a manner of arguing, very different from any to which he 
 had been accustomed His mind, in a course of careful, and, 
 it may be presumed, devout stud} 7 , was gradually enlightened ; 
 and it pleased God, in 1543, to afford him, as follows, some spe- 
 cial means of religious instruction, which he was enabled to 
 improve. 
 
 After the death of King James V., in the end of the year 
 1542, the Earl of Arran was appointed governor or regent of 
 the kingdom. He professed to entertain protestant principles ; 
 and what also gave great encouragement to the friends ot the 
 Reformation, he thought it necessary, for his political interest, 
 to put under confinement their chief enemy Cardinal David 
 Beaton, who was archbishop of St Andrews. Other grounds 
 of encouragement were, that King Henry VIII. of England 
 proposed that a treaty of marriage should take place between 
 his protestant son Prince Edward, and Mary, the infant queen 
 of Scotland. The Bible, by an act of parliament, was permit- 
 ted to be read in Scotland in the English tongue ; and Henry, 
 who knew that the protestant party in Scotland favoured the 
 intended marriage, sent protestant ministers into Scotland, to 
 preach against the authority of the pope, and to forward in 
 this country the work of reformation. True religion now pros- 
 pered ; and one peculiarly happy circumstance was, that the 
 regent was prevailed upon to adopt, as his chaplains, who there- 
 by would have full freedom to declare their opinions, two pro- 
 testant preachers, Mr Thomas Guilliam, or Williams, and Mr 
 John Rough. 
 
 As Mr Williams was the chief instrument, in the hand of 
 God, of Mr Knox's conversion, and as Mr Rough was after- 
 wards employed to urge Mr Knox to accept of the call, which 
 was solemnly offered him, publicly to preach the gospel ; the 
 following brief account of them may be given. 
 
 They were both Scotsmen. Mr Guilliam, or Williams, was 
 born at Athelstone-ford, not far from Mr Knox's native town. 
 Calderwood and Keith say, that he was the provincial prior of 
 the whole order of the Dominicans in Scotland : But these re- 
 spectable writers were misinformed. The chartulary, extant at 
 Perth, of the Dominican or Blackfriars monastery in that city, 
 shews, that from the year ij25, to the time oi the reformation, 
 the provincial prior was Mr John Grierson, who commonly re- 
 sided in Dundee, and wrote two books in Latin, one of them 
 " concerning the poverty of the Dominicans in Scotland," and 
 the other " concerning the miserable state of the professors of 
 the Catholic religion in Scotland." Mr Williams, however, 
 may have been in the office of prior, in one or other of the se- 
 veral Dominican monasteries. He is said to have translated 
 the New Testament into the vulgar language. 
 
MR JOHN KNOX. 97 
 
 Mr John Rough is said to have entered, as a member, into 
 the Dominican or Blackfriars monastery at Stirling, when he 
 was seventeen years of age, and to have continued in it sixteen 
 years. He is also said, after his conversion from popery, to 
 have enjoyed an annual pension of twenty pounds from King 
 Henry VIII. 
 
 The character given of them in Knox's History, is : ** Tho- 
 mas Guilliam, a black friar, was a man of a solid judgment, of 
 reasonable letters as for that age, and of a prompt and good 
 utterance. His doctrine was wholesome, without any great ve- 
 hemency against superstition. John Rough was not so learned, 
 but was more simple, and more vehement against all impiety." 
 Mr Calderwood says, " Friar Guilliam was the first from whom 
 Mr Knox received any taste of the truth;'' which may imply, 
 that by the preaching and conversation of this friar, Mr Knox's 
 original prejudices in behalf of popery were wholly removed, 
 and thereby he began sincerely to love, and effectually to ex- 
 perience the power of true religion. 
 
 But before the end of the year 1543. a lamentable change 
 took place in Scotland- The regent was so weak in his con- 
 duct, as to liberate the cardinal from the place of his confine- 
 ment ; the consequence of which was, that the cardinal re- 
 sumed his former influence. The regent also wa9 induced to 
 break the treaty which had been entered into with England ; 
 publicly to renounce his protestant principles; and to agree 
 to an act of parliament, which enjoined the prelates to prose- 
 cute all heretical persons. He also dismissed his two protest- 
 ant chaplains. Mr Williams retired to England, where pro- 
 bably he had been before ; and he never again visited Scot- 
 land. Mr Rough went to Kyle, and other western provinces, 
 where he continued to preach the gospel, protected by some 
 noblemen and gentlemen in those parts of the kingdom. 
 
 Mr Knox was now a real protestant. The fervour of his spi- 
 rit was directed against the hierarchy, the superstitious rites 
 and antichristian tenets of the Roman church. Some gentle- 
 men in the Lothians, who were well affected to the reforma- 
 tion, entrusted him with the education of their children. Two 
 of them are particularly mentioned, viz. John Cockburn of Or- 
 miston, hereditary constable of Haddington ; and Hugh Dou- 
 glas, laird ot Langniddery The first committed to his care his 
 son and apparent heir, Alexander Cockburn , and the other 
 committed to his care his two sons, Francis and George. Mr. 
 Knox resided with his pupils chieHy in the house of Langnid- 
 dery, where he was more safe from being prosecuted by the 
 popish clergy than he would have been in the town of Had- 
 dington. 
 
 The sincerity of his conversion, and the fervour of his spirit, 
 vot. i, * 
 
98 MR JOHN KNOX. 
 
 became conspicuous in the end of the year 1545, the occasion 
 and manner of which were as follows. 
 
 Mr George Wishart, the celebrated Scottish martyr, of whom 
 I have elsewhere mentioned some particulars, when he was on 
 his second visit to Montrose, received a letter from the pro- 
 testant gentlemen in the west of Scotland, with whom he had 
 before been, desiring him to meet them at Edinburgh in the 
 month of December. They promised, that they would there 
 demand of the bishops to grant him a conference on the mat- 
 ters of religion ; that he would assuredly be heard ; and that he 
 should dread no danger, as they would be present for his pro- 
 tection. 
 
 The good man was happy in the prospect of so favourable an 
 opportunity of promoting the great design which he had in 
 view in his returning to Scotland. But John Erskine of Dun, 
 who well understood the political state of the country, the pre- 
 vailing power of Cardinal Beaton, and the fickle temper of the 
 regent, earnestly endeavoured to dissuade him from going to 
 Edinburgh. Mr Wishart, however, could not be withheld. In 
 the midst of a storm of frost and snow, he travelled, with a few 
 attendants, to Innergowrie, to Perth, and through the county 
 of Fife, and arrived at Leith early in December, 1545. The 
 gentlemen from the west were not yet come, nor was there any 
 notice of their being on their way. Indeed the cardinal had 
 been apprised of their intention, and taken effectual means to 
 deter them. 
 
 Mr Knox was no sooner informed that Mr Wishart was in 
 Leith, than, disregarding any danger to which he might there- 
 by be subjected, he hastened from Langniddery to wait upon 
 him. He found him dispirited, and apprehensive that his ex- 
 pectations would be disappointed. 
 
 Mr Knox resolved not to leave him all the time he should 
 be in the Lothians. He declared his purpose to guard him, to 
 serve him, and to listen, while he could enjoy the privilege, to 
 his valuable instructions. 
 
 Mr Wishart was advised by his friends to keep himself secret 
 in Leith for some days. But he became impatient. " In 
 what," said he, " do I differ from a dead man, except that I 
 eat and drink ? To this time God has used my labours to the 
 instruction of others, and to the dissolving of darkness; and 
 now I lurk, as if I were a man ashamed, or who durst not shew 
 his face." It having been understood that he was desirous to 
 preach, his friends said : " Most comfortable it would be to us 
 to hear you; but because we know the danger in which you 
 stand, we dare not desire you." " But," said he, u dare you 
 and others hear me ? If so, I will preach ; and then let ntf 
 God provide for me what best pleases him." 
 3 
 
JIR JOHN KNOX. 99 
 
 fhc conclusion was, that next Sabbath, December 10th, he 
 ahould preach in Leith. His sermon consisted of an exposition 
 of the parable of the sower. Some of the Lothian gentlemen 
 were among his hearers, who, after the sermon, held a consult- 
 ation ; and their opinion was, that Mr Wishart should not re- 
 main in Leith, because the governor, (Earl of Airan,) and the 
 cardinal were shortly to be in Edinburgh. They agreed to 
 take him along with themselves, and to give him safe lodging, 
 sometimes in Brunston, sometimes in Langniddery, and some- 
 times in Ormiston. 
 
 Mr Knox could not be separated from him. From the time 
 that Mr Wishart had been in danger from an assassin at Dun- 
 dee, it was thought necessary that a sword should always be 
 carried by one of his attendants, to be ready for his defence. 
 Mr Knox now obtained the office of being the sword-bearer, 
 and one more faithful could not have been chosen. In Fox's 
 Martyrology, Mr George Wishart is described as having been 
 ** a tall comely man, with long black hair" Mr Knox was in- 
 deed a small man, and of a low stature, but had a firm and un- 
 daunted mind ; and it may easily be supposed, that., having a 
 sword in his hand, he would have greatly endangered his own 
 life, rather than that any hurt should happen to Mr Wishart. 
 
 Sabbath, December 17th, Mr Wishart and his company were 
 at Inveresk, near Musselburgh, where, forenoon and afternoon, 
 he preached in the church to a great number of people. The 
 two following Sabbaths he preached at Tranent. But in all 
 the sermons which he delivered after his departure from Angus, 
 " he spake of the shortness of the time that he had to live, and 
 of his approaching death, the day whereof, he said, was nearer 
 than any would believe." 
 
 At the end of ihe Christmas holidays, the Lothian gentle- 
 men consented that he should preach at Haddington, where a 
 large confluence of people was expected. He preached there 
 two several days ; but very few attended. Patrick Hepburn, 
 fourth Earl of Bothwell, sheriff of the county, had receiv' d a 
 large sum of money from the cardinal, who abounded in riches; 
 and the earl, though he knew it was contrary to the mind of 
 many gentlemen in his neighbourhood, enjoined the people, 
 under the pain cf incurring his displeasure, not to hear Mr 
 Wishart. 
 
 It is gratifying to mention protestants who were distinguish- 
 ed at that period. In Haddington was D.ivid Forres, a man of 
 considerable wealth, who was commonly called (i the General," 
 and upon whom many protestants at that time depended. He 
 probably helped their subsistence, by giving them work to do 
 in some trade in which he was extensively engaged. In Iris 
 
100 MR JOHN KNOX. 
 
 house, Mr Wishart, and, it should seem, also his attendants, 
 lodged the first night after he had preached in Haddington. 
 
 The second night, they went to Liddington, where Sir Rich- 
 ard Maitland, though not yet a professed protestant, entertain- 
 ed them civilly. But the third day, when Mr VVishart had 
 gone to Haddington to preach, a boy brought to him a letter 
 from the gentlemen in the west, which informed him that they 
 could not fulfill their intention of meeting him at Edinburgh. 
 
 This was like a sentence of death passed upon him. It was 
 at their request that he had risked his life by coming to the 
 Lothians, where he had not a sufficient number of friends to 
 oppose his enemies. All the hopes which he had long endea- 
 voured to retain, of seeing a great work of reformation accom- 
 plished, were now at an end. He felt himself as a person de- 
 serted, and yielded up to the cardinal's power. He saw it to 
 be certain, that the time of his preaching the gospel would be 
 immediately cut short by his death. Being greatly affected, he 
 called to him his friend Mr Knox, to whom he said : " 1 am 
 now weary of this world, since I perceive that men are weary 
 of God." He then shewed him the letter he had received. 
 
 Mr Knox was one of those who could not bear that any 
 should shew fear or despondency, when they were conscious of 
 being engaged in a good cause. He did not speak to him in a 
 soft strain of condolence, which perhaps another might have 
 done. He sought to turn his attention to another object. " I 
 wonder," said he, " that you should suffer any earthly matter 
 to occup}' your mind before preaching : it was not before your 
 custom. Sir, the hour of sermon approaches ; and therefore I 
 will leave you at present to your meditations." Having said 
 this, he left him, taking with him the letter which had occa- 
 sioned hirn so much sorrow. 
 
 Mr VVishart went to the church, and walked more than half 
 an hour, backward and forward, behind the high altar, his 
 countenance shewing the grief which he had in his mind. At 
 last, he went up into the pulpit ; and there he saw, what tend- 
 ed also to discourage him, that only a few persons were assem- 
 bled. His purpose had been to expound the second table of 
 the law ; but his thoughts were so troubled, that he could not 
 prosecute the subject according to his original design. 
 
 He began this, which was the last sermon which he lived to 
 preach, with these words : " O Lord, how long shall it be that 
 thy holy word shall be despised, and men not regard their own 
 salvation ? I have heard of thee, Haddington, that when a vain 
 clerk's play is to be pei formed, two or three thousand people 
 will assemble ;" (N. B. Of old, the plays were acted on an open 
 green ;) " but now, to, hear a messenger of the eternal God, 
 out o£ all the town and parish, not one hundred persons can be 
 
MR JOHN KNOX. 101 
 
 numbered." He foretold, that " strangers" (meaning the Eng- 
 lish) " would possess their houses, and chace them from their 
 habitations ;" which, Spottiswood says, " came shortly after to 
 pass" He then adverted to the subject of which he had pro- 
 posed to treat, and concluded with some pious exhortations. 
 
 His trien'ls were grieved. In the afternoon, towards even- 
 ing, he took leave of many of them, in an affectionate and so- 
 lemn manner, especially of Hugh Douglas of Langniddery, 
 who was to go home that night, chiefly, it should seem, on Mr 
 Knox's account, who, he wished, should not be in the way of 
 danger. Cockburn of Ormiston, Crighton of Brunston, and 
 Sir John Sandilands of Calder, were to go, with Mr Wishart, 
 to the house or castle of Ormiston. Mr Knox was very urgent 
 to accompany them ; but Mr Wishart absolutely forbade him : 
 he was apprehensive of what Was soon to happen, and knew 
 that Mr Knox, by his attachment to him, had rendered him- 
 self particularly offensive to the cardinal and his part)'. He 
 kindly said to him : " Return to your bairnes," (meaning his 
 pupils :) " God bless you. One sacrifice at this time is enough." 
 He also commanded, that the two-handed sword, which Mr 
 Knox had been in use to carry, should be taken from him. Mr 
 Knox reluctantly obeyed, and went home with Mr Douglas to 
 Langniddery. 
 
 Mr Wishart, and the three above-named gentlemen, walked 
 to Ormiston, the frost being on the ground ; and that same 
 night, unknown to them, the cardinal arrived at Elphingston, 
 which was scarcely a mile distant from Ormiston. 
 
 Mr Wishart was entirely devout in his behaviour, expres- 
 sing a resignation to the will of God. After supper, he de- 
 livered to the ( ompany present a comfortable discourse on the 
 death of God's children ; at the end of which he said : " I 
 greatly desire to sleep : let us sing a psalm." It was the fifty- 
 first psalm, which had been turned into Scottish metre ; the 
 two first lines of which were : " Have mercy on me now, good 
 Lord, after thy great mercy." The psalm being ended, he re- 
 tired to his chamber, sooner than his usual hour. 
 
 At midnight, the trampling of horses was heard. The family 
 were alarmed, and the house was found to be surrounded with 
 armed men. They were headed by the Earl of Bothwell, who 
 desired to speak with the laird. Without opening the gate, the 
 laird came where he might hear and confer with him. The 
 earl said, " It is vain for you to hold the house, or make any 
 resistance ; for the regent and the cardinal, with all their forces, 
 are coming. But if you will give up to me that man whom 
 you have in your house, I promise, upon my honour, that he 
 shall be safe, and that it shall pass the power of the cardinal to 
 do him any harm." 
 
102 MR JOHN KN'OS.. 
 
 Mr Wishart, on a like trying occasion, when he was in the 
 west country, had said : " It is the word of peace which God 
 sends by me. The blood of no man shall be shed this day for 
 the preaching of it." He was still of the same mind ; for when 
 the Laird of Ormiston acquainted him with what Bothwcll had 
 demanded, lie immediately replied, " Open the yetts, and may 
 the blessed will of the Lord be done." 
 
 Bothwell was admitted, with some of his party ; and Mr 
 Wishart addressed him with these words : " 1 praise my God, 
 that so honourable a man as you, my lord, receives me this 
 night, in the presence of these noble men; for now I am as- 
 sured, that, for your honour's sake, you will suffer nothing to 
 be done unto me besides the order of law. I am not ignorant 
 that their law is nothing but a corruption, and a cloak to shed 
 the blood of the sainls; but 1 less fear to die openly, than to 
 be secretly murdered." 
 
 The earl promised to preserve him from all violence. And 
 the gentlemen present said, that if he would perform his pro- 
 mise, and return to them Mr Wishart in safety, they and all 
 the professors of the true religion in the Lothians would give 
 his lordship a bond of manrent, to serve him all the days of 
 their lives. 
 
 Mr Wishart was then conducted to E'.phingston, and deli- 
 vered to tire cardinal, who ordered that he should be sent to 
 the castle of Edinburgh. The cardinal asked what other per- 
 sons were at Ormiston ; no doubt, hoping to hear that one of 
 them was the zealous Mr Knox. Having been told that there 
 were no other than the Laird of Ormiston, the Laird of Brun- 
 ston, and Sir John Sandilands, he commanded that these three 
 also should be brought. 
 
 By this time, all the cardinal's retinue, who were numerous, 
 had arrived. They, and, it should seem also, some of the re- 
 gent's soldiers, were immediately sent to Ormiston to bring the 
 gentlemen who were there. Brunston made his escape, by 
 fleeing to the wood of Ormiston : the other two were committed 
 prisoners to the castle of Edinburgh. 
 
 If Mr Knox had been found with them, he would undoubt- 
 edly have been taken prisoner; and as he would boldly have 
 avowed his principles, if he had been brought to a trial, it may 
 be reckoned certain that he would have suffered death at St 
 Andrews, along with Mr Wishart, who was cruelly martyred, 
 March 1, 1546. But Providence had in reserve for Mr Knox 
 much work to accomplish, before he should be called to leave 
 this world. 
 
 After this period, he was not easy in his situation. His 
 principles and zeal were publicly known. Though the cardi- 
 nal was put to death, unwarrantably, by conspirators, May 2#, 
 
MR JOHN KNOX. 105 
 
 1546, his successor in the archbishopric, John Hamilton, per- 
 secuted Mr Knox, till, as we are told in his History, " he was 
 wearied of removing from place to place, and was determined 
 to leave Scotland, and to visit the schools in Germany." He 
 could easily have retired to England ; but Henry V1I1., in the 
 latter part of his reign, was persecuting some protestants for 
 their doctrines, though they had pleased him by their renouncing 
 the pope's authority ; and besides, Mr Knox had learned to 
 abhor the outward grandeur, and many of the religious cere-* 
 monies which were still maintained, even by those English 
 bishops who professed to be protestants. 
 
 It is remarkable, that, in the course of the divine Providence, 
 a way of safety was very soon opened to Mr Knox, in the city 
 of St Andrews, where once had been exhibited the most bloody 
 scenes of persecution. 
 
104 MR JOHN KNOX. 
 
 CHAP. ir. 
 
 The Castle of St Andrews kept by the Persons who had put Car- 
 dinal Beaton to Death. Mr John Rough their Chaplain. Mr 
 Knox arrives with his Pupils. His Method of instructing them. 
 Is solemnly called to be a public Preacher of the Gospel. The 
 Castle taken, and Mr Knox condemned to the French Gatlies. 
 Some Transaction') there. He escapes to England. His Treat- 
 ment, and Employment in that Country. 
 
 1he persons who had conspired against Cardinal Beaton 
 kept possession, for fourteen months after his death, of the 
 castle of St Andrews. Though they met with a short interrup- 
 tion, they had the command of the town, in which they great- 
 ly promoted the reformation of religion. Mr John Rough, 
 who had long been a refugee in remote parts of the kingdom, 
 came to officiate as their chaplain, and preached not only in 
 the castle, but also in the parish church. 
 
 At the time of Easter, 1547, Mr Knox came to them from 
 his concealments in Lothian, bringing with hiin the two sons 
 of Hugh Douglas of Langniddery, and the eldest son of John 
 Cockburn of Ormiston. These three young persons had long 
 been his pupils; and as they were now fully prepared for the 
 college, their parents had requested him to take them to St 
 Andrews, where he might now be safe, and continue to super- 
 intend their education. We are told of his method of instruct- 
 ing them. Besides teaching them grammar, and making them 
 acquainted with the classical authors, he carefully explained 
 to them the principles of religion. He furnished them with a 
 catechism, out of which he examined them publicly in the pa- 
 rish church. He likewise went on with them in a course of 
 lectures upon " the gospel of St John ;" which he delivered at 
 a certain hour in the chapel of the castle, where such other 
 persons as chose to hear him were privileged to attend. 
 
 In the first part of my account of Mr John VVinram, 1 shew- 
 ed what, at this period, was the state of religion in St Andrews. 
 
MK JOHN KNOX. 105 
 
 I also noticed the written controversy concerning the popish 
 tenets, which was carried on, with much ability, by Mr Knox 
 and Dean John Annan. 
 
 Among those who usually attended his lectures in the chapel 
 of the castle, were Mr Rough, the protestant minister, and Mi- 
 Henry Balnaves of Hallhill, in the county of Fife, a very learn- 
 ed gentleman, who was afterwards one of the senator;, of the 
 College of Justice. They were highly pleased with his doc- 
 trine, and the manner of it, and very seriously urged him to 
 preach to all the people, in the pulpit of the parish church. 
 He refused, being diffident of his talents, and therefore doubt- 
 ful of his being called of God. Unknown to him, they confer- 
 red with Sir David Lindsay of the Mount, whose Scottish 
 poems, in those days, were of singular use in exposing the fool- 
 eries of the Roman church. In their conference, they agreed 
 that, when he did not expect it, he should be publicly called 
 to the exercise of the ministry. 
 
 Accordingly, one day, when he had come to hear Mr Rough 
 preach, Mr Rough delivered a sermon, in which he treated of 
 '< the election of ministers." In the conclusion of the sermon, 
 he said : " When any considerable number of Christians per- 
 ceive in any man the gifts of God," (probably he meant a man 
 in clerical orders, which Mr Knox had long been,) " and shall 
 desire him, for their instruction, to preach the gospel, it is 
 dangerous for such a man to refuse their request." Then ad- 
 dressing his discourse to iV] r Knox, he said : " Brother, be not of- 
 fended, when I speak to you that which I have in charge, even 
 from all those who are here present ; which is this : In the 
 name of God, and of his Son Jesus Christ, and in the name of 
 those who now presently call you by my mouth, I charge you 
 that you refuse not this holy vocation, but that, as you tender 
 the glory of God, the increase of Christ's kingdom, the edifi- 
 cation of your brethren, and the comfort of me, whom you 
 know well enough to be oppressed by the multitude of labours, 
 you shall take upon you the public office and charge of preach- 
 ing ; even as you look to avoid God's heavy displeasure, and 
 desire that he shall multiply his graces with you." Then turn- 
 ing to the congregation, he said : " Was not this your charge 
 unto me ? and do you approve of this vocation ?" They an- 
 swered : " It was, and we approve of it." 
 
 Mr Knox was abashed. He burst into tears, and silently 
 went home to pray and meditate in his own chamber. For 
 some days, he scarcely held conversation with any person, but 
 privately considered of what was his duty. At last he deter- 
 mined to comply with the call which had been given him by 
 Mr Rough and a protestant people, which he valued more 
 Jhan any imposition of hands which he had formerly received 
 
106 MR JOHN KNOX. 
 
 from a popish bishop. He resolved, depending on the help of 
 God, to go forth publicly into the world as a professed minis- 
 ter of the gospel, and, as his after-conduet shewed, faithfully 
 to declare the truths of Christ, and to confute the adversaries, 
 notwithstanding any danger to which he might thereby be ex- 
 posed. 
 
 A day was named, in which he was to appear in the pulpit 
 of the parish church. I have elsewhere mentioned (viz. in my 
 account of Mr John Winram,) the assembly of learned men, 
 from the colleges and convents, who met in the chuich upon 
 that occasion. Among them, according to Spottiswood and 
 Knox's Histories, was his old teacher and townsman, Mr John 
 Mair ; also Mr John Winram, sub-prior of the Augustinian 
 abbey, who secretly entertained protcstant principles, and was, 
 in his cautious manner, a promoter of the reformation. They 
 had expected that he would display learning and ability in his 
 combating the popish errors ; and they were not disappointed. 
 I also detailed some other occurrences, relating to religion, 
 which then happened at St Andrews. 
 
 1 come now to observe, that though the persons in the castle 
 professed to be protestants, and were eventually promoting the 
 cause of the reformation, yet some of them were very offen- 
 sive in their morals. Their licentious behaviour occasioned 
 much grief to Mr John Rough, who was a pious man, but na- 
 turally of a meek and gentle disposition. As Mr Knox was 
 better qualified to be a sharp reprover of vice, he left them to 
 his care, and went to England, it should seem, in one of the 
 English ships which sometimes arrived at the castle. Robert 
 Holgate, archbishop of York, appointed him to the benefice 
 of Hull, in Yorkshire, where he was happy in preaching the 
 gospel all the time of the reign of Edward VI. When the vio- 
 lent persecution of the protestants began, under the English 
 Queen Mary, he fled, with his wife, to Friesland. In 1557, 
 they returned, on account of some business necessary to the 
 subsistence of their family. In his zeal to do good, he con- 
 sented to be the teacher of a small congregation of protest- 
 ants, who met privately at Islington, near London ; but, being 
 soon discovered, he was, in the end of that year, put to death 
 as a martyr, at Smithfield. 
 
 Mr Knox did not leave the castle, but endeavoured, though 
 without any great success, to restrain the persons who were 
 disorderly. He daily told them, that, " for their corrupt life, 
 they could not escape punishment from God." Henry VIII., 
 who died January 23, 1547, had left orders that troops and 
 ships should be sent to the aid of the defenders of the castle 
 of St Andrews ; but his orders were neglected till it was to» 
 late. 
 
un JOHN KNOX. 107 
 
 June SO, 1547, sixteen French gallies attacked the castle by 
 Sea ; and, on the land side, the siege was carried on by the re- 
 gent with numerous troops, both Scots and French. The be- 
 sieged boasted of the thickness of the walls ; but Mr Knox 
 told them, in his own expressive language, that " the walls 
 would be as egg-shells." They flattered themselves with the 
 hope that ships would arrive to their assistance from England. 
 But he told them, " they would never see them, but would be 
 delivered into the hands of their enemies, and sent to a strange 
 country." 
 
 July 31, 1547, a breach was made in the walls, and the castle 
 was surrendered. Some of the principal men were ordered 
 to be kept in prisons in France ; but the generality, among 
 whom was Mr Knox, were condemned to serve in the gallies. 
 After some time, the gallies, carrying their prisoners, and the 
 spoils of the castle, sailed for France, and the popish party 
 made great rejoicings. It may be noticed, that, agreeably to 
 the custom of the old times, when any thing remarkable had 
 happened, a ballad was now composed, corresponding to one of 
 the well-known Scottish airs ; some of the lines of which were ; 
 
 " Priests content ye, now, now, now ; 
 
 Priests content ye now : 
 For Normand, and his company, 
 
 Have fill'd the gallies fow." (full.) 
 
 Norman Lesly, son and apparent heir of the Earl of Rothes, 
 had been the chief leader in the conspiracy against the cardi- 
 nal, and had acted as governor or captain of the castle. 
 
 It is said in Knox's History, that " those who were in the 
 gallies were miserably intreated." One cause of grief to them, 
 was, that they were importuned often to hear the mass cele- 
 brated ; but they always refused to join in it. When the pa- 
 pists, on Saturday, were singing their " Salve Regina," or hymn 
 to the queen of heaven, the Scotsmen " put on their caps, 
 their hoods, or any thing else which they had to cover their 
 heads." An image, or picture, of the Blessed Virgin was forced 
 into the hands of one of them, that he might kiss it, in token 
 of his adoration ; but he threw it into the river in which the 
 galley was lying. But Mr Knox, when in the gallies, was 
 much employed in pious meditations, and wrote a confession 
 of his faith, which afterwards, with some additions, was made 
 use of in the reformed church. He did not lose his courage ; 
 and he endeavoured to keep up the courage of those who 
 were suffering with him. From the day that they entered the 
 gallies, he always assured them, (and his words were com- 
 monly regarded by many as predictions,) that " God would 
 
108 MR JOHN KNOX. 
 
 deliver them from their bondage, to his glory, even in this 
 life." 
 
 The second time that the gallies were on the coast of Scot- 
 land, which seems to have been in April or May 1548, and 
 were cruising betwixt Dundee and St Andrews, he was sick, 
 and thought to be dying. Mr James Balfour, who afterwards 
 was clerk-register of Scotland, being with him in the same gal- 
 ley, wished him to look toward the land, and then asked him if 
 he knew it. Mr Knox answered : " Yes, 1 know it well ; for 
 I see the steeple of that place (St Andrews) where Uod first 
 opened my mouth in public to his glory ; and I am persuaded, 
 that, however weak 1 now appear, I shall not depart this life, 
 till my tongue shall have glorified his blessed name in that 
 same place." But it was not till eleven years after this date, 
 that Mr Knox preached again in St Andrews. 
 
 Some of the gentlemen who were in the prisons of France 
 wrote to him, to know, whether, with a sale conscience, they 
 might break their prisons. He answered : " If they could ac- 
 complish their freedom without shedding blood, they might do 
 it; but to shed any man's blood for freedom, was a thing to which 
 he never would give his consent." He exhorted them to pa- 
 tience, and not to do any thing which would afterwards fill 
 them with painful reflections ; and he assured them that God, 
 in his own good time, would grant them a deliverance. 
 
 Four of these gentlemen afterwards effected their escape, by 
 binding their keepers. They wandered about thirteen weeks, dis- 
 guised as poor mariners, till they procured a small vessel, which 
 landed them in the west of Scotland, where the protestants 
 were then numerous, and able to protect them. After being 
 some time with their friends in that part of the country, they 
 went into England, and found, to their agreeable surprise, that 
 Mr Knox was there before them. 
 
 The precise time and manner of Mr Knox's deliverance 
 cannot be exactly ascertained. It is certain he was above nine 
 months a prisoner in the gallies. But how he left them, and 
 how he fared afterwards in France ; whether he was in a French 
 
 {nison, or a wanderer, in disguise, does not appear. He says, 
 lis final deliverance happened in the winter, that is, in the end 
 of the year 1548; tor in the beginning of the year 1549> he ar- 
 rived from France in England, having only in his company 
 Alexander Clerk, who had been one of his fellow-sufferers. 
 
 He observes, with a considerable degree of exultation, that 
 all who had been concerned in the plot against Cardinal Bea- 
 ton, and all who had been active in the defence of the castle 
 of St Andrews, though many of them had but small knowledge 
 of religion, were restored safe, about the year 1550; except- 
 
 15 
 
WR JOHN KNOX. 109 
 
 ing James Melvill, who had died of a disease in one of the 
 castles of France. It may be noticed, that this James Melvill 
 was a gentlemen well advanced in years. In Knox's History, 
 the character given of him is, that " he was a man by nature 
 most gentle and most modest." Me had been a familiar friend 
 of Mr George Wishart, and thought that Mr Wishart's death 
 should be avenged upon the cardinal. But it must be con- 
 fessed, that he erred greatly in presuming to take the means of 
 revenge into his own hands. After two of the conspirators had, 
 hastily, and seemingly in wrath, struck the cardinal, who was 
 crying, " I am a priest, I am a priest; ye will not slay me," 
 Mr Melvill put them aside, and said : " This judgment of God 
 should be executed with greater gravity." He then made a 
 speech to him, of some length, in which he declared what were 
 his own motives, and exhorted him to repent of his wicked 
 life ; after which, he deliberately gave him two or three stabs 
 with his sword, which immediately proved mortal. 
 
 Mr Knox, when in England, was soon distinguished by his 
 abilities, by his zeal against popery, and by his boldness and 
 assiduity in preaching the gospel. He seems, immediately af- 
 ter his arrival, to have repaired to Archbishop Cranmer, who 
 was the protector of all the protestant refugees from Scotland. 
 The archbishop, and the young pious King Edward VI., con- 
 sidered him as one who had suffered in the protestant cause ; 
 and a fixed pension was afterwards granted to him of, forty 
 pounds a-year. 
 
 He continued in that country five years ; during which time, 
 he thought it his duty to take a part, in as far as his ability in 
 preaching could serve, in all public matters which tended to 
 the security of the protestant religion. A bishopric was offer- 
 ed him ; but he refused it, because he disliked the worldly 
 grandeur in which the bishops chose to appear. He also re- 
 fused the rectory of All Hallows, in London, lest he should be 
 subjected to conform to some established rites of which he did 
 not approve. He was satisfied with his being appointed one 
 of the king's chaplains, and with being authorised to preach 
 the gospel, without any hindrance, wherever popery was most 
 prevalent, or where the gospel was little known. Indeed he 
 seems to have considered himself as a messenger from God to 
 the whole realm of England ; and, like one of the ancient pro- 
 phets, he reproved disobedient persons, however high their 
 station in life was, and forewarned them of the divine judg- 
 ments which would be inflicted upon them if they did not 
 repent. 
 
 It is proper to observe, that, in England, at this period, there 
 were popish preachers, who, availing themselves of being free 
 
110 MR JOHN - KNOX. 
 
 from persecution, itinerated in all parts of the country, endea- 
 vouring to bring the people back to their former errors, and to 
 alienate them from a protestant king and government. Mr 
 Knox appeared to Cranmer, and other sincere protestants, a 
 person eminently well qualified to oppose these dangerous men. 
 When it was at length determined, that none should be allow- 
 ed to itinerate but those who had received licences from the 
 king, Mr Knox, and some others of similar qualifications, very 
 gladly received them, and thereby were encouraged to act with 
 greater boldness against their opponents. 
 
MR JOHN KNOX. 1 11 
 
 CHAP. III. 
 
 Farther Account of him when he was in England. Summoned by 
 the Bishop of Durham. Extracts from his " Faithful Admoni- 
 tion." His Sermon at Newcastle, in 1551. The Dukes of So- 
 merset and Northumberland. His Sermon at Newcastle, 1552. 
 Complained of to the Privy Council. Death of Edward VI. 
 Protestants persecuted. Retires from London to Buckingham- 
 shire. His Ser?non at Amersham. Leaves England, February, 
 3553-4. His Wife. His Mother-in-law. His Brother Wil- 
 liam. His Confessions. Bishop Ridley s Character of the 
 King's Ministers. Mary of England dies. 
 
 It was chiefly in the northern provinces of the kingdom, that 
 popery was prevailing among the people. Mr Knox, there- 
 tore, at Cranmer's desire, went to the county of Northumber- 
 land, where he preached two years in Berwick, and two in 
 Newcastle. The old bishop of Durham, Cuthbert Tonstal, 
 who was a papist in his heart, and an encourager of those who 
 were of the same religious persuasion with himself, was so 
 much offended with the vehemency which Mr Knox used in 
 preaching, in his diocese, against the mass, that he cited him 
 to appear before him, April, 1550. Mr Knox did not disregard 
 the citation, but hoped it would afford him an opportunity of 
 combating, with some good effect, the popish errors. He pre- 
 
 {)ared himself for the controversy with writing a confession of 
 lis faith, with a declaration of his sentiments relating to the 
 nature of the Lord's supper, and the proper manner of dis- 
 pensing it. This he carried along with him, and read in the 
 bishop's court ; and then, by arguments, which, it is said, the 
 bishop and his clergy were unable to answer, he shewed that 
 idolatry was practised in the celebration of the popish mass. 
 
 He was soon, however, exempted from suffering any farther 
 trouble from this diocesan court ; for the zealous bishop was 
 apprehended,, on a suspicion of his having endeavoured, in 
 
112 MR JOHN KNOX. 
 
 1550, to instigate the papists to rebel against the government. 
 He was committed as a prisoner to the tower of London, and 
 remained so till after the king's death. 
 
 In the Appendix to that edition of Knox's History which 
 was printed and published by authority at London in 1644, 
 there is a copy of " The Faithful Admonition to the true Pro- 
 fessors of the Gospel of Christ within the kingdom of England," 
 which was written by Mr John Knox in 1554. It is not in- 
 serted in the later editions of his History. But the copy, not 
 mutilated, is now before me ; and as it was the source from 
 which some English and other writers chiefly derived their in- 
 formation of what happened to him in England, it is proper 
 that I should give an accouut of it, and make some extracts. 
 
 He wrote it when he was at Frankfort ; and it was soon 
 printed, and in the hands of many persons Me represents in 
 it the grief which he felt on ins being compelled to leave his 
 dear English friends, at whose hands he had received much 
 kindness. When he thought on what they were presently suf- 
 fering from a persecuting popish queen, and from her cruel 
 clergy, he " desired to comfort them, as a natural father de- 
 sireth to ease the grief and pain of his dearest child." 
 
 He had chanced to cast his eve on the margin of his note- 
 book, where he read these words : " Pideat Anglia;" Let Eng- 
 land beware. And on looking into the book, he found that 
 the note on the margin pointed to this assertion, namely, " It 
 is seldom that God worketh any notable comfort to his church, 
 without trouble, fear, and labour, following to them who were 
 therein his servants and workmen : Also, tribulation most com- 
 monly happens to that church in which the gospel of Christ 
 Jesus is most truly preached." 
 
 He saw that. this assertion had been written as the result of 
 his meditations on Matthew, xiv. 15—33, where the evangelist 
 relates, " that after Christ Jesus had favoured his apostles, by 
 employing them to feed, as it were, with their own hands, five 
 thousand needy men, beside women and children, with five 
 barley loaves and two fishes, he sent them to sea, that they 
 might go over to the other side ; which while they were at- 
 tempting to do, the night approached, the wind was contrary, 
 and a vehement and raging storm arose, which was like to over- 
 throw their poor boat and them." 
 
 He then remembered that he had handled this subject in 
 the audience of his friends in England, in those blessed days, 
 " when they had time and opportunity peaceably to hear the 
 messengers of God." He resolved now to resume the same sub- 
 ject in his letter; because he could now more fully illustrate his 
 observations, by referring to the trying events which had since 
 happened. 
 
MR JOHN KNOX. 113 
 
 The whole is written in a serious and affectionate strain. But 
 what I am chiefly to notice, are the particulars which he men- 
 tions relating to himself. 
 
 He early foresaw that the good Duke of Somerset, who, like 
 Archbishop Cranmer, was a true friend to the protestants, would 
 not be allowed long to live. " The papists, he knew, were apt 
 enough to join in a plot against him; and the ambitious Duke 
 of Northumberland, he was persuaded, would not be satisfied 
 till simple Somerset should be bereft of his life." He goes on 
 to express himself much in the following manner : " God com- 
 pelled me to speak often of this matter, especially in Newcastle," 
 (probably in !551); " which Sir Robert Bradling" (probably the 
 lord-mayor,) " did not forget a long time after. He rightly un- 
 derstood my interpretation of the vineyard, whose hedges, ditches, 
 towers, and wine-press, God destroyed, because it would bring 
 forth no sjood fruit." He then adds, concerning that gentleman, 
 " God grant that he may as well remember all the words which 
 were spoken by my mouth that day : the things which I then 
 declared have come to pass, excepting that final destruction has 
 not yet fallen on the greatest offenders ; but assuredly it shall 
 come upon him, and some other of his sort, who were enemies 
 to God's truth, unless they speedily repent of their stubborn dis- 
 obedience." 
 
 He immediately says, " God compelled my tongue openly to 
 declare, that the devil and his ministers only intended the sub- 
 version of God's true religion, by that mortal hatred which was 
 among those" (viz. of the king's privy-council) " who ought to 
 have been firmly knit together in the bond of Christian love." 
 And in a marginal note he says, " This was affirmed, both before 
 the king and before the Duke of Northumberland, oftener than 
 once." 
 
 The Duke of Somerset, who was the king's uncle, was, by the 
 influence of his rival, the Duke of Northumberland, tried and con- 
 demned, December 2, 1551. He was executed, January 22, 1552. 
 His death was always lamented by Mr Knox; and it was Mr 
 Knox's opinion, that the papists, in order to have their old re- 
 ligion restored, were plotting the deaih of the young king. 
 
 It was contrary to Mr Knox's natural temper to conceal any 
 opinion he entertained, either of the character of persons, or of 
 the measures they were pursuing. He was honest in his zeal ; 
 and it was always a good object which he had ultimately in his 
 view. When his zeal seems to have carried him beyond the 
 usual bounds of prudence, it is remarkable how the divine Pro- 
 vidence protected him against those fatal effects which often 
 might have been expected. He suffered, however, some trou- 
 ble, in consequence of the instance of his conduct which he next 
 relates. " It cometh to my mind," says he, " that upon Christ- 
 
 H 
 
114 MR JOHN KNOX. 
 
 mas-day, anno 1552, preaching in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and 
 speaking against the obstinacy of the papists, I made this affir- 
 mation, — that whoever in their hearts were enemies to Christ's 
 gospel and doctrine, which then was preached within the realm 
 of England, were enemits also to God, and secret traitors to the 
 crown and commonwealth oi England; for as they thirsted for 
 nothing more than the king's death, which their iniquities could 
 procure, they cared not who should reign over them, provided 
 that their idolatry might be erected again. How these my 
 words at that time pleased men, the crimes and action" (action 
 at law,) " intended against me did declare. But let my very 
 enemies now say their conscience, if these my words have not 
 proved true." 
 
 Indeed, from expressions in several parts of his " Admonition," 
 he seems to have been one of those who thought that the bad 
 state of health into which the young king had fallen, in 1552, 
 was occasioned by secret means which had been used by some 
 of the popish party. But as a general charge of being traitors 
 was, in his sermon in the church of Newcastle, brought against 
 all who were not of the proteslant religion, the papists entered 
 a complaint to the magistrates of the town, and he was accused 
 before the king's privy-council. More was reported to his pre- 
 judice than was consistent with truth. And the council, consi- 
 dering the state of the country, and knowing what were the 
 real wishes of some of the popish party, did not then think it 
 proper or expedient to pass any hard sentence upon him. 
 
 In a letter to his sister, either his full sister, or the sister of his 
 wife, dated Decembei 22, J553, which was about six or seven 
 weeks before he left England; and in another letter which he 
 wrote to her, March 23, 1554, after he had landed on the con- 
 tinent, he refers to his former trial, and probably also to its ha- 
 ving been revived, with increased accusations, in the new popish 
 queen's privy-council. He says, " Heinous are the delations 
 made against me, and many are the lies made to the council ; 
 but God shall one day destroy all lying tongues, and shall deli- 
 ver his servants from calamity. This last assault of Satan" (a 
 late assault) " hath been turned to Satan's confusion, and to the 
 glory of God. Therefore, sister, cease not to praise God, and 
 to call upon him for my comfort, lor great is the multitude of 
 enemies." 
 
 His last sermon before the king, which he mentions in the 
 " Admonition," seems to have been delivered by him in April, 
 1553, which was about three months before the king's death. 
 He says, " In the last sermon which it pleased God I should 
 make before that innocent and most godly king Edward VI., 
 and before his council, at Westminster, and even to the faces 
 •f those persons whom I meant to describe, handling this place 
 
MR JOHN KNOX. 1 1£ 
 
 of scripture, ' Qui edit meum panem; sustulit adversus me cal- 
 caneum suum,' that is, ' He that eateth bread with me, hath 
 lift up his heel against me/ I made this affirmation, — that com- 
 monly it was seen, that the most godly princes had officers and 
 chief counsellors most ungodly, conjured enemies to God's true 
 religion, and traitors to their princes." He says, " In proof of 
 this, I recited the histories of Ahithophel, Shebna, and Judas." 
 
 It would be tedious to transcribe the narrative which he gives 
 of a part of the Jewish history. It may be sufficient to observe, 
 that by Ahithophel, he meant the Duke of Northumberland ; 
 by Shebna the scribe, he meant the Marquis of Winchester, 
 who was then lord-treasurer ; and to both of them he applied 
 the character of Judas. He did not name the two noblemen, 
 but they well enough understood whom he meant. 
 
 It was probably at their instance, that, very soon after the ser- 
 mon, viz. April 14, 1553, the council called him to answer the 
 following questions: 1. Why he had refused to accept of the 
 benefice (of All Hallows) provided for him in London ? C Z. Why 
 he thought that no good Christian could, with a safe conscience, 
 serve in the ecclesiastical ministration, according to the rites and 
 laws of the realm of England ? 3. Whether he thought kneeling 
 at the Lord's supper was an action indifferent? 
 
 To the first he answered, that his conscience told him he 
 could be more useful in other places than in London. To the 
 second he answered, that there were yet many things with re- 
 gard to the parish ministers of England which needed reforma- 
 tion, particularly, that they had not the power of excommunica- 
 tion, or of separating the clean from the unclean, without which 
 power, he did not think they could act conscientiously before God. 
 His answer to the third was, that there was no kneeling at the 
 original institution of the Lord's supper; that kneeling therefore 
 was man's invention ; and that it was safest to follow the example 
 of our blessed Saviour. There were present in the council, his 
 two friends, Thomas Cranmer, archbishop of Canterbury, and 
 Thomas Goodric, bishop of Ely ; and we are told that he was dis- 
 missed, after he had received some friendly exhortations. 
 
 He takes no notice in the " Admonition" of the examination 
 which he then underwent. But the industrious historical wri- 
 ter, Mr John Strype, gives the above account of it from a letter 
 which was written by Mr Knox himself. 
 
 Edward VI. died July G, 1553, in the seventeenth year of his 
 age. Mary, a violent papist, eldest daughter of Henry VIII V 
 after the party in behalf of Lady Jane Gray, who was a protes- 
 tant, had been defeated, was crowned, October 1, 1553. Popery 
 was restored, December 21, 1553; and in January, 1554, the 
 queen agreed to a treaty of marriage with Philip of Spain, a 
 popish prince, of a blood-thirsty disposition, son of the emperor 
 
116 lilt JOHN KNOX. 
 
 Charles V. Under all these untoward circumstances, Mr Knox 
 and the other protestants sadly lamented. They saw no pros- 
 pect of the reformed religion being in any degree restored, or 
 even tolerated in the kingdom. Some of them had been impri- 
 soned. The protestant bishops had been deposed, and popish 
 bishops put in their places. But the flame of persecution had 
 not yet broke forth in the fury with which it afterwards raged. 
 
 Mr Knox, who had been about a year in London, retired to the 
 county of Buckingham, where many protestants were. He there 
 preached often to the people of Amersham, to whom he was 
 much attached, as we learn from the following passage, contain- 
 ed in his " Faithful Admonition." " In writing hereof," (viz. of 
 the obstinacy of the Jews, in disregarding the words of their pro- 
 phets,) " it came to my mind, that after the death of that inno- 
 cent and most godly king Edv\ard the Sixth, while that great tu- 
 mult was in England, for the establishing of that most unhappy 
 and wicked woman's authority, I mean of Mary, that nowreigneth 
 in Clod's wrath, entreating the same argument in a town in Buck- 
 inghamshire, named Hammersham, before a great congregation, 
 with sorrowful heart, and weeping eyes, I fell into this exclama- 
 tion: O England, England! now is God's wrath kindled against 
 thee." 
 
 He continues a very pathetic address; in the conclusion of 
 which, adverting to the surmises of the queen's intention of mar- 
 rying some popish prince, he foretells the disasters which would 
 happen to England, " if a marriage contract, confederacy, or lea- 
 gue should be made with such princes as do maintain and ad- 
 vance idolatry, such as is the emperor," (( harles V.) " who is no 
 less" (says he) " an enemy unto Christ, than ever was Nero." It 
 is proper to observe, that this his comparison of the emperor 
 Cuarles to Nero, was, on an after occasion, very ungenerously 
 made use of against him. 
 
 The queen, finding her throne secure, began, with the assist- 
 ance of Stephen Gardiner, bishop of Winchester, and of Edmund 
 Bonner, now restored to the bishopric of London, to treat the 
 protestants with increased rigour. About eight hundred of the 
 principal persons amongst them Hed to foreign countries, in the 
 number of whom was Mr Knox. He fled from England in the 
 beginning of February, 1554, leaving behind him ins wife and 
 his two sons. 
 
 When in England, h<* had married Margery Bowes, perhaps 
 in one of the northern counties His molhi r-in-law, Mrs Bowes, 
 was a woman of talents, and of respectability, to whom he ad- 
 dressed several letters. In a letter, dated in 1553, a short time 
 after the king's death, Mr Knox being then in Buckinghamshire, 
 tells her, " he had been obliged to abscond, by reason of the 
 fury of the papist." He says, " I will not make you privy how 
 
MR JOHN KNOX. 117 
 
 rich 1 am ; but off London I departed with less money than ten 
 groats : but God hath since provided, and will, 1 doubt not, pro- 
 vide abundantly for this life." He then refers to tl.e pension 
 which he had received from the late king; and says, " Either 
 the queen's majesty, or some treasurer, will be made forty pounds 
 richer by me ; lor so meikle (much) lack I of the duty ot my pa- 
 tent ; but that little troubles me." 
 
 No mention is made of Mr Knox having been at any time in 
 very indigent circumstances. He might receive occasional sup- 
 plies from the Giffnrd estate in Scotland. His wile's patrimony 
 might be considerable. Besides what he received yearly by the 
 king's patent, the people among whom he laboured would at- 
 tend to his necessities, and add their contributions to his sub- 
 sistence. He might also be helped by his brother William, 
 who, after the reformation in Scotland, was the first protestant 
 minister of Cockpen, in Mid Lothian, but appears to have been, 
 in the earlier part of his life, engaged in mercantile business : 
 he is supposed, in September, 1552, to have obtained, through 
 the interest of his brother Mr John, a peculiar privilege in his 
 trafficking at the ports of England. 
 
 The time of Mr Knox's departure from England, where he 
 had been five years, is thus ascertained : He sent to his mother- 
 in-law nis written commentary on the sixth psalm, at the end of 
 which he says : " Upon the very point of my journey, the last 
 ot January, 1553-4. Watch and pray. Your son, with a sorrowful 
 heart, J K." 
 
 It is now proper that I should transcribe, from his " Faithful 
 Admonition," the confessions which he makes of his own un- 
 worthiness. and of his defects in duty. His confessions may in- 
 deed occupy some paragraphs in this account ot his life; but as 
 they evidently proceeded from his heart, and serve vtry much 
 to illustrate his character, it would be unjust greatly to abridge 
 them. 
 
 He says : " My own conscience beareth record to myself, 
 how small was my learning, and how weak 1 was in judgment, 
 when Christ JVsus called me to be his steward," (in distributing 
 the bread of life) : " But I would be most wicked and unthank- 
 ful, if I were to conceal how mightily, day by day, and time by 
 time, he multiplied his graces with me. But, alas ! how blind- 
 ed was my heart, and how little did 1 consider the dignity of 
 that office, and the power of God, who blessed and multiplied 
 that bread which the people received of my hands ! I delivered 
 the same bread which I received of Christ s hands. 1 take God 
 to record, that I mixed no poison with the same, but taught 
 Christ's gospel without any mixture of men's dreams, devices, 
 •r phantasies : but, alas ! 1 did it not with such fervency, with 
 
118 MR JOHN KNOX. 
 
 such indifferency, (impartiality), and with such diligence, as this 
 day I know it was my duty to have done. 
 
 " Some men complained, in those days, that the preachers 
 were indiscreet persons ; yea, some of them called them railers, 
 and worse, because they spake against the manifest iniquity of 
 men, especially of those who weie then placed in authority in 
 the court, and in olhces universally throughout the realm, in 
 cities, towns, and villages. Perad venture, my rude plainness 
 displeased some, who did complain, that I did speak rashly of 
 men's faults, so that all men might perceive whom I meant : 
 but, alas ! this day my conscience tells me, that 1 did not speak 
 so plainly as was my duty to have done; lor I ought to have 
 said to the wicked man, expressly by his name, " Thou shalt die 
 the death." To shew that it would have been his duty to name 
 the persons, he cites the examples of Jeremiah, Elijah, Elisha, 
 Micah, Amos, Daniel, and even of Christ and his apostles. 
 
 " God knoweth, that in preaching the gospel, mine eye was 
 not much set upon worldly promotion : yet the love of friends, 
 and carnal affection of some men with whom I was most fami- 
 liar, allured me to make more residence in one place than in 
 another, having more respect to the pleasure of a few, than to 
 the necessity of many. That day, 1 thought I had not sinned, 
 if I had not been idle ; but, this day, 1 know it was my duty to 
 have had consideration how long 1 had remained in one place, 
 and how many hungry souls were in other places, to whom, 
 alas ! none took pains to break and distribute the bread of life. 
 Moreover, when remaining in one place, I was not so diligent 
 as mine office required ; for sometimes, by the advice of carnal 
 friends, 1 spared the body; 1 spent some time in the worldly 
 business of particular friends; and some time I spent in taking 
 recreation and pastime, by exercises of the body. 
 
 " Some men may judge these to bo. small offences; but I 
 acknowledge and confess, that unless pardon should be granted 
 to me in Christ's blood, every one of these offences before 
 named, that is to say, lack oi' fervency in reproving sin, lack 
 of indifferency (impartiality) in feeding those that were hungry, 
 and lack of diligence in the execution of mine office, deserved 
 damnation." 
 
 He also says: "• My wicked nature desired the favour, the 
 estimation, and praise of men. The spirit of God moved me 
 to fight, and stir up myself against that temptation ; vet it ne- 
 ver ceased to trouble me, when occasions offered. So privily 
 and craftily did this desire enter into my breast, that v could 
 not perceive myself wounded, till vain-glory had almost gotten 
 the upper hand." 
 
 Such were the notions which Mr Knox had formed oi 1 the 
 
MU JOHN KNOX. 119 
 
 duties of the ministerial office. He aimed at an unremitting 
 diligence, and at a perfection in self-denial. But, it must be 
 owned, that many persons would fail of the end they propos< d, 
 if they were fully to exercise that boldness of spirit which he 
 wished to attain. A consid; rable degree of judgment, in which 
 Mr Knox was not deficient, is necessary to the successful re- 
 prooi' of some offenders. 
 
 fn the Account of Mr Knox's Life, prefixed to that edition 
 of his Historj which was printed at Edinburgh in 1732, there 
 is inserted, from Bishop Ridley, a testimony to his fidelity and 
 usefulness while he was in England. That pious bishop and 
 maityr, in his Lamentation over th( Change of Religion which 
 took place after the Kinc's death, speaking of the king's preach- 
 ers, Latimer, Bradford, Knox, and Lever, says : " They ripped 
 so deeply into the galled hacks of the great men of the court, 
 to remove the filthy matter of insatiable covetousness, filthy 
 carnality and voluptuousness, intoleiable ambition and pride, 
 and ungodly loathsomeness to hear pooi men's caust-s, and God's 
 word, that of ah other preachers they never could abide them." 
 
 It is not improper to mention, concerning the above-named 
 persons, that Nicolas Ridley, bishop ot London, and Hugh La- 
 timer, bishop of Worcester, Were burnt at one stake in Oxford, 
 October 16, 1555. Mr John Bradford, prebendary of St Paul's, 
 was burnt at London, January. 15 m. Mr Thomas Lever, ano- 
 ther of King Edward's preachers, and master of St John's col- 
 lege, Cambridge, fled soon after the king's death, but returned 
 after the accession of Queen Elizabeth, and was long useful in 
 England. Mr John Knox also fled from the persecution in 
 England, but in due sc ason came to Scotland, where he was 
 eminently helpful to the establishment of the reformation. 
 There can be no doubt, that if these two distinguished preach- 
 ers, Mr Lever and Mr Knox, had delayed their flight a few 
 months longer, they would have been among the first ot those 
 who suffered death. 
 
 I repeat an observation, which I before made, that much work 
 was in reserve for Mr Knox in his native country ; and that, till 
 the time arrived in which that work should be accomplished, he 
 was, in a remarkable manner, under the protection of the divine 
 Providence. 
 
 The English Queen Mary reigned five years, four months, and 
 eleven days. She died November 17, 1558. During her jhort 
 reign, two hundred and eighty-four protestant martyrs were 
 burnt at the stake, and also a very great number died in the 
 prisons ; besides, many hundreds of pious and conscientious 
 persons were driven into exile. 
 
120 MR JOHN KNOX. 
 
 CHAP. IV. 
 
 Mr Knox at Dieppe. Goes to Geneva ; afterwards to Frankfort. 
 The Troubles at Frankfort. Returns to Geneva. Visits Scot- 
 land. Returns to Geneva. His Wife and Mother-in-law. He 
 writes and publishes some Tracts and Letters. He had been ex- 
 communicated by the Popish Church. 
 
 Mr Knox arrived at Dieppe, a port in Normandy, in the be- 
 ginning of February, 1554. He wrote from thence a letter, ad- 
 dressed to " the faithful in London, Newcastle, and Berwick," 
 and concluded with these words : " From a sair (sore) and trou- 
 bled heart, upon my departure from Dieppe, 1553-4 : whither, 
 God knows. John Knox." From Dieppe he went to Geneva, 
 where he was well received by Mr John Calvin, the pastor of 
 the church in that city. He was there employed in useful stu- 
 dies, and in preaching to some English protestants, in their own 
 language, who had fled thither from the troubles in England. 
 
 A considerable number of English refugees were also in the 
 free imperial city of Frankfort, and were kindly treated by the 
 magistrates. The English there, in their present poor circum- 
 stances, were unable to afford the expence of building for them- 
 selves a house in which they might assemble for worship; but 
 those French protestants who were resident in that city allow- 
 ed them the use of their house, in which they might, at certain 
 hours, meet, upon the following conditions: 1. They were to 
 subscribe the French confession of faith, recommended by Mr 
 Calvin. 2. They were not to quarrel about the outward ceremo- 
 nies of worship. 3. They were not to answer aloud after the mi- 
 nister, nor to use the English liturgy and surplice. To these 
 articles the English gave their consent, and transmitted a writ- 
 ten invitation to Mr John Knox, September 24, 1554, to come 
 to them, and to officiate as their minister, along with Mr Had- 
 don, and Mr Thomas Lever, whom they also had elected. 
 
 Mr Knox accepted of the call they had given him ; and, for 
 some months, he and they lived in peace, and were happy in. 
 the regulai administration of the divine ordinances. 
 
MR JOHN KNOX. 121 
 
 But their peace was disturbed, March 13, 1555, by the arri- 
 val of a very eminent clergyman, Dr Richard Cox, who, like 
 them, had fled from that persecution of the protestants which 
 was now raging in England. He had been preceptor to King 
 Edward VI., dean of Westminster and Oxford, almoner to the 
 king, and a privy-counsellor. He lived to be afterwards, in 
 Queen Elizabeth's time, bishop of Ely. In his piinciples and 
 conduct, he was a high churchman, a bigot to the ceremonies 
 of the English worship, and too much of an imperious disposi- 
 tion. He had assisted Archbishop Cranmer in composing King 
 Edward's liturgy, generally called, " The Book of Common 
 Prayer :" and when he understood that his countrymen at 
 Frankfort had so far deviated from their former practice as to 
 follow another mode of worship, he was filled with what he be- 
 lieved to be a holy indignation. He seemed to hold Mr Knox 
 in contempt ; not aware that Mr Knox possessed as much bra- 
 very of spirit as he himself did, and was no less tenacious of his 
 opinions. 
 
 Cranmer and his co-adjutors had thought it expedient that 
 the people should make responses, or utter petitions aloud, al- 
 ternately with the minister, in some of the prayers, in order 
 that their attention might be more seriously engaged. Calvin 
 and the French protestants, and Mr Knox and his congregation, 
 thought that there should be no change of speakers in a wor 
 shipping assembly; that the minister should be the speaker; and 
 that the people should join mentally, or with silent devotion in 
 their own hearts. 
 
 According to Mr Daniel Neal, in his History of the Puritans, 
 who took his information in this matter from '* The History of 
 the Troubles of the Church at Frankfort, printed in 1575," the 
 first day that L)r Cox was in the meeting at Frankfort, he dis- 
 turbed the minister when praying, by vociferating such responses 
 as he judged to be proper. The next Sunday, a friend of 
 his own, who was a clergyman, in the forenoon, went into the 
 pulpit, without the previous consent of the pastors and congre- 
 gation, and read the whole liturgy, the doctor and some others 
 uttering aloud the responses. In the afternoon, Mr Knox 
 preached. In the course of his sermon, he rebuked, in his own 
 free manner, the persons who had created the disturbance ; and 
 boldly affirmed, that, " in the service-book, there were some 
 things superstitious and impure." 
 
 A violent controversy ensued, which lasted some weeks ; and 
 many of the English refugees who were in other places were 
 induced to engage in it. Mr Knox and his party were upon 
 the point of gaining the victory, when Dr Cox, who had got 
 into his hands a copy of Mr Knox's " Faithful Admonition to 
 the true professors of the gospel withip the kingdom of Eng- 
 
122 MR JOHN KNOX. 
 
 land," informed the magistrates that Mr Knox had asserted, 
 in his " Admonition," that the emperor Charles V. was as much 
 an enemy to Christ as was the emperor Nero. The magistrates 
 or senate were alarmed, being afraid of the resentment of the 
 emperor, if they should permit Mr Knox to remain any longer 
 in their city; and the issue was, that he was commanded to 
 leave Frankfort. 
 
 He had been residing at Frankfort, in very agreeable circum- 
 stances, at the time when he wrote and published his " Admoni- 
 tion to the people of England." His life might now have been 
 brought into danger, if the magistrates had proceeded to ac- 
 quaint the emperor of the comparison he had made use of. The 
 doctor's conduct in this matter was therefore ungenerous, or 
 worse than ungenerous ; and though Mr Knox's assertions ap- 
 pear, on some occasions, to have been too strong and unguard- 
 ed, yet it should be remembered, that they were always honestly 
 intended to promote the security, or to advance the progress of 
 the protestant religion. 
 
 Mr David Buchanan tells us, in his Account of Mr Knox's 
 Life, r ' that after he had made a comfortable sermon at Frank- 
 fort, in his own lodging, to about fifty persons, on the death 
 and resurrection of Christ, and on the unspeakable joys pre- 
 pared for God's elect, he departed towards Geneva, the 26th of 
 May, 1555, and was conveyed three or four miles in his way 
 by some of those to whom he had made the foresaid exhorta- 
 tion ; who, with great heaviness of heart, and plenty of tears, 
 committed him to the Lord." 
 
 Fifty persons might be more than the one half of the Eng- 
 lish congregation at Frankfort. Some of them afterwards tol- 
 lowed him to Geneva, where the number of refugees from Eng- 
 land daily increased. They formed a church, and chose for their 
 stated pastors, Mr John Knox, and Mr Christopher Goodman, 
 an English divine, who was not deficient in zeal, and was en- 
 tirely of Mr Calvin's sentiments with respect to religious doc- 
 trine and to church government. 
 
 The manner of their worship was simple and spiritual. It was 
 the same which was practised at Frankfort, and which Mr Neal 
 thus describes. "The service was to begin with a general con- 
 fession of sins ; then the people were to sing a psalm in metre, 
 in a plain tune ; after which the minister was to pray for the as- 
 sistance of God's Holy Spirit, and so proceed to the sermon: 
 after sermon, a general prayer was to be made tor all estates, 
 and especially for Fngland ; at the end of which was joined the 
 Lord's prayer, and a rehearsal of the articles of belief; then 
 the people were io sing another psalm, and the minister was to 
 dismiss them with a blessing." 
 
MR JOHN KNOX. 123 
 
 Their mode of worship was afterwards rendered more fixed, 
 and more publicly known, by a printed liturgy, or, " Book of 
 Common Order," winch was written in 1.056, by Mr Knox and 
 his colleague Mr Goodman ; and which the general assembly of 
 the church of Scotland approved, and adopted immediately af- 
 ter the reformation. 
 
 About the end of harvest, 1555, Mr Knox, who had been en- 
 couraged to make a visit to his native country, arrived at Edin- 
 burgh. But his successful labours during the eiyht or nine 
 months he remained in Scotland, 1 have already detailed in the 
 account which I gave of the lives of John Erskine of Dun, Mr 
 John Spottiswood, and Mr John Willock. 
 
 His success was so great, and he was so much favoured by 
 many of the nobility and chief barons, that the friars from all 
 parts of the kingdom applied to the bishops, urging his prosecu- 
 tion. The bishops agreed to meet for that purpose at Edin- 
 durgh, May 15, 1556, and he was cited to attend his trial. In 
 obedience to the summons, he came to Edinburgh, accompa- 
 nied by the Laird of Dun and his adherents, at whose house he 
 had been. Bat the number of these, and or the other gentle- 
 men and their adherents, who also chose to appear as Mr Knox's 
 friends, was so great, that the bishops, on the Saturday before 
 the day appointed for the trial, judged it to be most prudent 
 not to assemble. 
 
 Mr Knox and his friends availed themselves of the timidity 
 of the bishops. On the 15th ol May, instead of his having been 
 obliged to attend in the ecclesiastical court, he pieached in 
 Edinburgh, to a more numerous audience than he had before 
 done in that town ; and it is noticed, that the house in which he 
 preached, was that large house in Edinburgh which belonged 
 to the bishop of Dunkeld. He preached in it ten successive 
 days, both forenoon and afternoon. The Earl of Glencairn and 
 some other noblemen highly relished his doctrine, and advised 
 him to write to the queen-regent, " what might move her to 
 hear the word of God." 
 
 He complied with their desire ; and that his letter might be 
 more acceptable, in which he was plainly and affectionately to 
 mention many things which deserved her serious consideration, 
 he endeavoured to use a courtly style. 
 
 But such a style of writing was not natural to him, and he 
 did not succeed. Some time after she had received the letter, 
 she delivered it into the hands of James Beaton, archbishop of 
 Glasgow, saying, " Please you, my lord, to read a pasquil," 
 (viz. a lampoon, or satire). Her words were reported to Mr 
 Knox; who, when at Geneva, in 1558, thought it proper to 
 cause his letter to be published, with some additions which he 
 had made to it. In h?e additions he said, " Whether you did 
 
1£4 MR JOHN KNOX. 
 
 read :ny letter to the end, I am uncertain. One tliinsr 1 know, 
 that you did deliver it to one of your prelates, saying, ' My lord, 
 will you read a pasquil.' As charity teaches me to interpret 
 things doubtfully spoken in the best sense, so also my duty to 
 God, who hath commanded me to flatter no prince on the earth, 
 compelleth me to say, that if you esteem the admonitions of 
 God no more than the cardinals do the scofhngs of pasquils," 
 (viz. the satires allowed to be affixed to the statue of Pasquin at 
 Rome,) " then will God send you other messengers shortly, with 
 whom you shall not be able in that manner to jest." 
 
 While Mr Knox, in 1556, was preaching at hciinburgh, and 
 other places in Scotland, he received letters from the congre- 
 gation at Geneva, commanding him, in God's name, to r< turn 
 to them, for their comtort, as lie was their chosen pastor, lie 
 saw it to be his dt.ty, as their pastor, not to be absent from them 
 any longer. He went immediately to take leave of his friends in 
 Scotland, almost in every congregation where he had preached, 
 exhorting them to piayer, to reading of the scriptures, and to 
 mutual religious conference, till it should please God to grant 
 them greater liberty. 
 
 To render his departure more convenient, he sent before him 
 to Dieppe his mother-in-law Elizabeth Bowes, and his wife Mar- 
 gery, who probably had come to him from England at the time 
 when they heard of his arrival in Scotland. Their leaving Scot- 
 land, we are told, occasioned " no small dolour to their hearts, 
 and to the hearts of many others," who had delighted in their 
 company. He himself went on a visit to the old earl of Argyle, 
 at Castle Campbell, where he preached some days, aud then, in 
 the month of July, he went to Dieppe in France, where his fa- 
 mily was, and with his family proceeded to Geneva. 
 
 No sooner was he gone from Scotland, than the popish bishops, 
 who had not before ventured to prosecute him, instituted a pro- 
 cess against him, without giving him a new citation, or any pre- 
 vious advertisement. He says, in one of the additional parts of 
 his letter to the queen-regent, " They, (viz. the bishops,) con- 
 trary to all justice and equity, pronounced against me, in my ab- 
 sence, a most cruel sentence, condemning my body to the fire, 
 my soul to damnation, and declaring a'l the doctrine taught by 
 me to have been false, deceivable, and heretical." 
 
 They could not have his body, but his picture or effigy they 
 burnt at the cross of Edinburgh. 
 
 This treatment from the bishops he seems very deeply to have 
 felt, not because it made him think in any degree worse con- 
 cerning himself, but because he was afraid his having been ex- 
 communicated, and judicially declared a heretic, might occa- 
 sion prejudices against him in the minds of many of the people. 
 He therefore, some time after, when at Geneva, wrote the two 
 
MR JOHN KNOX. 125 
 
 following tracts, of which it is proper some account should be 
 given. 
 
 1. His " Appellation to the Nobility and Estates of Scotland, 
 from the cruel and must unjust Sentence pronounced against 
 him by the false Bishops and Clergy of Scotland." 
 
 It consists of many pages. He appeals to a general ecclesi- 
 astical council, when it can be obtained, in which he would de- 
 fend his own doctrine, and expose the heresies of the Roman 
 church. In the mean time, he appeals to the nobility and ba- 
 rons, as the princes within the realm, craving that they would 
 oppose the tyrannical government of the clergy, and cause jus- 
 tice to be done to every subject of the commonwealth. 
 
 He asserts what would require a good deal of explication: 
 Hi* words are : " It is lawful to God's prophets, and to preachers 
 of Chn-t Jesus, to appeal from the sentence and judgment of 
 the visibie church, to the knowledge of the temporal magistrate, 
 who, bv God's law, is bound to hear their cause, and to defend 
 them from tyranny." He must have meant those ecclesiastical 
 sentences which infer tbe infliction or civil pains and penalties: 
 and he supports his assertion by quoting the example of the 
 prophet Jeremiah, who, oftenerthan once, craved and obtained 
 the protection of the civil po*ver against the execution of the 
 unjust sentences which the false prophets and priests at Jeru- 
 salem had passed upon him. (Jerem. xxvi. 8 — J 6. ; xxxvii. 20.) 
 
 2. His letter or admonition " to his beloved brethren the 
 commonalty of Scotland." To them he complains of the un- 
 just sentence which the bishops and their court had pronounced. 
 He entreats that they would not think the worse ot him upon 
 that account, but would give him place among them as former- 
 ly, to utter his mind freely in matters of religion. He strong- 
 ly exhorts them to concur with the nobility in compelling the 
 bishops and clergy to cease from their tyranny, and in " com- 
 pelling them to answer, from the scriptures, to the objections 
 which may be laid against them for their vain religion, their 
 false doctrine, their wicked life, and their scandalous conver- 
 sation." 
 
 March 10, 1557, the Earl of Glencairn and some other 
 protestant lords wrote a letter at Stirling, which they trans- 
 mitted to Mr Knox. In this letter they requested him to come 
 again to Scotland, and to preach to tht-m for their comfort. It 
 was delivered to him in the month of May, by James Sim and 
 James Baron, two pious citizens of Edinburgh. Mr Calvin told 
 him, " that if he should refuse to go, he would shew himself 
 rebellious to God, and unmerciful to his native country." Some 
 other eminent divines expressed the same opinion. He there- 
 fore, having put his affairs at Geneva into proper order, went to 
 
12,6 MR JOHN KNOX. 
 
 Dieppe about the end of September, purposing from thence to 
 sail to Scotland. 
 
 But when there, letters which he received from some of his 
 friends informed him that the protestaut lords were discou- 
 raged from determining as yet to act with vigour against the 
 enemies of religion, and that the zeal of some persons, which 
 once was fervent, was now become cool ; that therefore it was 
 most advisable that he should not now proceed any farther. Mr 
 Knox felt himself greatly disappointed, and knew not what ac- 
 count he should give of the matter to his friends at Geneva, af- 
 ter the trouble he had given them. It must either, he said, re- 
 dound to his shame, or to the shame of the people of Scotland. 
 In his letter to the protestant lords, from Dieppe, October c 27, 
 1557, he complained that they had deceived him. " Before," 
 says he, " I gave my consent to your request, I consulted some 
 of the most godly and learned men now in Europe. I have 
 abandoned my small but beloved flock, of which I am one of 
 the ministers, to the care of another; and I have left my house 
 and poor family without any head, save God only !" 
 
 The prolestant lords and barons were excited by Mr Knox's 
 letter to consider their duty more fully. They entered into a 
 league or covenant, to defend, with their lives and fortunes, the 
 reformed religion and its professors, who began then to be call- 
 ed "The congregation of Christ," against all their enemies. This 
 first covenant of the protectants in Scotland was dated at Edin- 
 burgh, December 3, 1557. Letters were immediately sent to 
 Mr Knox, strongly urging him to come to Scotland. But he did 
 not yet see any prospect of comfort or success; and in the be- 
 ginning of the year 1558, he returned from Dieppe to his con- 
 gregation at Geneva. 
 
 During that year he was not idle in the cause of the protes- 
 tant religion. Besides an apology in behalf ol the French pro- 
 testants, and a number of letters which he wrote to some god- 
 ly and enlightened noblemen, and other pious persons of an in- 
 ferior rank, in England, Germany, and France, comforting them 
 in their troubles, and exhorting them to be stedlast in the faith, 
 he wrote one large tract, and a smaller one, of which it is pro- 
 per to give some account. 
 
 His large tract, and it may be wished that be had not writ- 
 ten it, he entitled " The first Blast of the Trumpet against the 
 monstrous Regiment of Women." He was provoked to it by the 
 tyranny of the English Queen Mary, who was putting multitudes 
 of her subjects to death because of their religion; an;i by the 
 conduct of Mary of Lorraine, the queen-dowager and regent 
 of Scotland, who, with the advice and assistance of her French 
 counsellors, and of the popish clergy, was opposing the lelor- 
 mation of the Scottish church. The opinion which he endea- 
 
MR JOHN KNOX. 127 
 
 voured to establish was, that no woman should be a queen or 
 governor in any country. 
 
 Mr John Fox, the martyrologist, who was then abroad, hav- 
 ing fled from persecution, endeavoured to persuade him to sup- 
 press the publication, but could not prevail. Queen Elizabeth, 
 after her accession to the crown of England, never could entire- 
 ly forgive him, though he wrote to her, maintaining indeed his 
 point, but saying, tliat if she reigned well, and was a friend to 
 religion, she would be considered as having " a providential 
 right," or as being an exception, in the good providence of God, 
 from a general rule. We are told by Mr Strype, an English 
 writer, that " there was a full and notable answer" to Mr Knox's 
 book written by Dr John Aylmer, who had been the precep- 
 tor to the unfortunate Lady Jane Gray, was afterwards an ex- 
 ile, on account of his religion, and in Queen Elizabeth's time 
 was made bishop of London. 
 
 Mr Knox intended a " second Blast of the Trumpet " But 
 Queen Elizabeth was behaving so well, that he desisted from 
 his purpose. 
 
 The smaller tract was, " a brief Exhortation to England for 
 the speedy embracing of Christ's Gospel, heretofore, by the ty- 
 ranny of Mary, suppressed and banished." It was dated at 
 Geneva, January 12, 1559, which was within less than two 
 months after Queen Elizabeth began her reign. 
 
 A copy of it is to be found in the Appendix to that edition of 
 Knox's History which was printed at London in 10'44. It is a 
 pathetic address to the people of all ranks in England, calling 
 them to repent of all their wickedness, especially of their ha- 
 ving been so quiet in the last reign, while a bloody persecution 
 was carried on. He gives them some good advices with regard 
 to the re-establishment of the protestant religion, but plainly 
 takes the part of those who entertained what was afterwards de- 
 nominated puritanical principles. He says, that every bishop- 
 ric then in England should be made ten, and that no more be- 
 nefices than one should be given to any minister. 
 
 1 shall only farther observe, with regard to these tracts, that, 
 when the first edition of Knox's History was printed at London, 
 in 1584, the « Blast of the Trumpet," and "the brief Exhorta- 
 tion," appeared in its appendix ; and, upon that account, the 
 edition was immediately suppressed. In the edition at London 
 in 1644, " the brief Exhortation" was annexed, but not the 
 treatise against the government of women. In the appendix to 
 the Edinburgh edition, 1732, the treatise against the government 
 of women is given, but not " the brief Exhortation." 
 
 Mr Knox's notions of civil government, and of the duties of 
 subjects, were more conformable to the directions given to the 
 prophet? under the Jewish theocracy, than to the rules prescri- 
 
128 MR JOHN KNOX. 
 
 bed in the New Testament dispensation. He may therefore, in 
 this respect, not be reckoned a perfect example. But a person 
 of his talents and character appears to have been needful at the 
 period in which he lived, who should be zealous of doing good, 
 without having any selfish regard to his own worldly advantage. 
 In his own country, after he was settled in it, he indeed acqui- 
 red, in a considerable degree, the controul both of church and 
 state ; but the effects, blessed be God, we now, as a church 
 and nation, happily enjoy. 
 
MR JOHN KNOX. 129 
 
 CHAP. V. 
 
 Mr Knox at Dieppe, in his way to Scotland. His Letter to Sir 
 William Cecil. Arrives at Edinburgh. The part he bore in ac- 
 complishing and establishing the Reformation. His Wife dies. 
 Riots at Edinburgh. The Queen arrives from France. Mass in 
 her Chapel. Mr Knox's Conference with the Queen. His Trial. 
 His Sermon. He is prohibited to preach. Publishes his Ser- 
 mon. 
 
 In April, 1559, Mr Knox came to Dieppe, in his way to Scot- 
 land. According to Bishop Lesly, he had been summoned to 
 appear in the ecclesiastical court which was to. be held at Stir- 
 ling, May 10th. But it is most probable he was coming home, 
 not so much on that account, as at the particular desire of his 
 friends, who thought that matters were nearly prepared for avow- 
 ing a national change of religion. 
 
 JVlr Knox was desirous of passing through England to his own 
 country. He wished to visit his English friends, and to confer 
 with some of Queen Elizabeth's ministers of state, from whom he 
 might learn what assistance the English court were disposed to 
 give to the protestants in Scotland. He had, before he left Ge 
 neva, in vain petitioned the queen for liberty to pass through 
 her dominions. He therefore, when at Dieppe, April 10, 155y, 
 wrote a letter to Sir William Cecil, her secretary of state, who had 
 formerly been his familiar friend, complaining of the refusal he 
 had met with. He says, " By divers messengers I requested such 
 a privilege as Turks commonly grant to men of all nations, to wit, 
 that liberty should be granted to me freely to pass through Eng- 
 land, that with greater expedition I might repair towards my 
 own country, which now beginneth to thirst for God's truth. 
 This request 1 thought so reasonable, that almost I had entered 
 the realm without the licence demanded. But I understand 
 that the solicitors thereof were so rejected, that they hardly 
 escaped imprisonment." He then adverts to his book against 
 
 i 
 
130 MR JOHN KNOX. 
 
 w the Regiment of Women," his writing of which he seems to 
 have thought was the cause of the refusal which had been given 
 him. But he entreats Cecil to assure her majesty, in his name, 
 that if she would acknowledge her " providential right to the 
 crown," or her having come to the possession of it by a singu- 
 lar dispensation of the providence of God, no man in England 
 would be more willing to maintain her authority than he would 
 be. 
 
 Mr Knox received no answer to this letter. He therefore 
 took the opportunity of a ship bound for Scotland, and arrived 
 by Leith at Edinburgh, May 2, 1.559- He sailed from Leith to 
 Dundee, May 4th, and about the 6th of May came to Perth, 
 where he found some protestant preachers, who had come 
 thither expecting to be tried at Stirling, also some protestant 
 lords and barons, and many thousands ol people, who had pur- 
 posed to accompany the preachers to their place of trial ; all 
 waiting to receive an answer to a petition which they had sent 
 to the queen-regent, who was then at Stilling. 
 
 T am not now to relate the circumstances of the actual or 
 final accomplishment of the reformation in Scotland, nor to 
 shew in what respects Mr Knox was a chief instrument in that 
 work. I have already done so in my account of John Erskine 
 of Dun, and Mr John Willock. It is necessary, however, to ob- 
 serve, that in July, 1559, Mr Knox was on good terms with the 
 English court. He was one of the principal correspondents re- 
 lating to the affairs of his party ; and several letters passed be- 
 twixt him and Sir William Cecil, the secretary of state. He 
 even transmitted to Sir William a long letter, to be delivered to 
 Queen Elizabeth, which he addressed, T< \'o the virtuous and 
 godly Elizabeth, by the grace of God Queen of England, &c." 
 in this letter he compared her to " the blessed mother of Is- 
 rael," Deborah, who, by the singular and gracious appointment 
 of the providence of God, was made judge and ruler of that 
 people. 
 
 I have shewed, in my Lifeof Mr John Spottiswood thesuperin- 
 tendant, that, under God, it was chiefly owing to Mr Knox that 
 the presbyteiian, and not the episcopal form of church govern- 
 ment was adopted in Scotland. 
 
 I should now represent him in his character as a minister of 
 Edinburgh ; as the chief actor in the government of the pres- 
 byteiian church ; and as the bold and watchful guardian of the 
 protestant religion in his own country. Some incidents also, 
 which related to his own personal concerns, would require to be 
 noticed. 
 
 In December, 1560, he met with a family affliction, in the 
 death of his wife, Margery Bowes. She seems to have been the 
 slaughter of a respectable family in the county either of Durham 
 
MR JOHN KNOX. 131 
 
 or of Northumberland. Our church writers say, that she was a 
 piou3 woman. By her Mr Knox had two sons and one daughter, 
 of whom notice afterwards will be taken. 
 
 As minister of Edinburgh, he resolved strictly to punish of- 
 fenders of all kinds. But his courage soon was tried ; for, in 
 156 1, a butcher, whom the citizens considered as a man of some 
 eminence, had put his wife from him, and was living witu ano- 
 ther woman. Mr Knox and big consistorial court declared him 
 to be an adulterer, and, as such, delivered him to tne magistrates, 
 that he might be " carted," or ignominiously carried on a cart, 
 through the streets of the city ; but we are told by Mr Knox, 
 that " the rascal multitude, inflamed by som«- ungodly era ts- 
 men, broke the cart, boasted the officers, and bore away ttie 
 malefactor." 
 
 About the same time, a number of people determined to have, 
 as in the times of old, the play of " Robin Hood an;i Little 
 John," two famous English robbers. This play had been before 
 prohibited by an act of parliament, because of the lawless prac- 
 tices with which it was ordinaril} r accompanied. The magistrates 
 took from them their swords, and the ensign which they were 
 carrying. A cordiner, who had been the chief actor, was seized, 
 and a court held upon him. Being convicted of having been 
 one of those persons who had taken money by force from some 
 of the inhabitants, and even from strangers who had happened 
 to arrive in the town, especially, of having taken from one gen- 
 tleman " ten crowns of the sun," he was condemned to suffer 
 death, and for that purpose a gibbet was erected on the street, 
 near the cross. 
 
 Eight deacons of the incorporated trades came to Mr Knox, 
 asking him to solicit the provost for a delay of the execution. 
 Mr Knox told them, he had so often solicited in their favour, 
 that his conscience now accused him ; that he had interceded 
 for two men who had been concerned in the former tumult, who 
 were not yet behaving any better; that, therefore, he plainly 
 saw they were using him only to be a patron to their impiety. 
 They said, that if he would not grant their recpuest, both lie and 
 the baillies should repent it; but he firmly replied, " 1 will not 
 hurt my conscience for the fear of any man." They left him, 
 and having gathered a mob, broke open the door of the prison, 
 set at liberty the condemned man and the other prisoners, and 
 insulted the magistrates, putting them in fear of their lives. Mr 
 Knox excommunicated the rioters, and they were also liable to 
 a legal prosecution ; but the first public act of the queen, after 
 her arrival in her dominions, was to grant them a pardon, which 
 they solicited from her in her way from Leith ; and, having ob- 
 tained it, accompanied her with their acclamations till she had 
 entered into her palace of Holyroodhouse. 
 
132 MB JOHN KNOX. 
 
 Queen Mary arrived at Leith, from France, Tuesday, August 
 19. 1561. She was not yet fully nineteen years of age. As 
 she and Mr Knox were antagonists the six following years, it 
 may now be proper to give the character which she bore at this 
 early period, as quoted by Bishop Keith, from Mezeray, a French 
 historian. " Mature had bestowed upon her every thing tnat is 
 necessary to form a complete beauty. Besides this, she had a 
 most agreeable turn of mind, a ready memory, and a very lively 
 imagination. All these good qualities she took care also to em- 
 bellish by the study of the liberal arts and sciences, especially 
 painting, music, and poetry ; insomuch, that she appeared to be 
 the most amiable princess in Christendom." 
 
 It is probable she would not have met with much trouble from 
 Mr Knox, if her deportment had b^en free from wiiat he esteem- 
 ed to be levity, and if she had not been conspiring with foreign 
 courts for the utter subversion of the protestant religion. 
 
 She gave offence to him. and others of her suhjects, the first 
 Sunday after her arrival. The popish mass had been prohibited 
 in Scotland, but she ordered that it should be celebrated in iier 
 own chape). The Sunday thereafter, viz August 29th. Mi Knox, 
 in his sermon, thought it his duly to take notice of this dangerous 
 infringement of the laws of the country. He said, " One mass 
 tolerated is more fearful unto me than if ten thousand men were 
 arrived in any part of the realm, for the suppression of the holy 
 religion There is strength in God to resist and confound mul- 
 titudes, if we unfeignedly depend upon him; of this we have 
 heretofore had experience : but if we join hands with idolatry, 
 there is no doubt that his amiable presence, and his com- 
 fortable defence, will depart from us, and what then shall be- 
 come of us ?" 
 
 On the Tuesday thereafter, Mr Knox was called to have a 
 conference with the queen. They continued arguing a long time, 
 but without any violence of passion. She stated to him all the 
 objections she had to his conduct, to which he made suitable 
 replies. When she mentioned to him his book against " the 
 government of women," he said, " An Englishman had written 
 a book against it, which he had not yet read ; and that, if he 
 should find in it that his arguments were confuted, he would not 
 be obstinate, but would confess his ignorance and error." In 
 the conclusion of the conference he said," I pray God, madam, 
 that you may be as blessed within the commonwealth of Scot- 
 land, if it be the pleasure of God, as ever Deborah was in the 
 commonwealth of Israel." 
 
 It was generally said at this lime, that the queen was so mild 
 and sweet in her temper, that, if once her three uncles, who had 
 come with her, were returned to France, upon whose account it 
 was thought mass had been performed in the royal chapel, she 
 
MR JOHN KNOX. 133 
 
 would easily be converted to the truth, and in all respects con- 
 form to the wishes of her people. 
 
 But Mr Knox very soon entertained suspicions of her dupli- 
 city. In Keith's History of .Scotland, copies of the letters which 
 were written by Thomas Ran lolph, the English ambassador, are 
 interspersed. Mr Randolph, in his letter to Sir William Cecil, 
 dated at Edinburgh, October c 24, 156 1, says, " Mr Knox cannot 
 be otherwise persuaded than that many men are deceived in this 
 woman. He feareth that ' Posteriora erunt pejora primis ;" (that 
 the latter things will be worse than the first). Mr Randolph 
 adds, " Mr Knox's severity keepeth us in marvellous order. But 
 I commend better the success of his doings and preachings than 
 the manner of them, though I acknowledge his doctrine to be 
 sound. His daily prayer for the queen is, that God would be 
 pleased to turn her heart, which is obstinate against the truth ; 
 or, if his holy will be otherwise, that he would strengthen the 
 hearts and hands of his chosen and elect, stoutly to withstand the 
 rage of all tyrants." 
 
 It would swell this volume much beyond the bounds proposed, 
 if, in the ample manner 1 have hitherto used, I were to relate 
 the subsequent events of Mr Knox's life. Nothing important 
 was transacted, either in church or state, in which he was not 
 consulted, or voluntarily gave his opinion ; and his opinion was 
 not to be disregarded, for it generally influenced the minds of 
 the great body of the people. 
 
 He had many interesting conversations with the queen, which 
 are largely related in the book which bears the name of" Knox's 
 History," a great part of which was undoubtedly written by him- 
 self. These conferences have already been inserted in so many 
 publications, and are thereby so well known, that I shall only 
 give the particulars of one of them, which may serve as a spe- 
 cimen of what the others were ; and shall abridge the particulars, 
 to avoid being tedious. 
 
 In May, 1563, a French ambassador arrived, proposing to the 
 queen that she should marry the youngest son of the Emperor 
 Ferdinand. Her uncle, the Cardinal of Lorrain, wrote to her, 
 strongly advising her to agree to the proposal. The parliament 
 was then sitting at Edinburgh ; and, May 26th, Mr Knox preached 
 a sermon, at which most of the nobility were present. In the 
 conclusion of the sermon he said, " And now, my lords, to put 
 end to all, I hear of the queen's marriage. Dukes, brethren to 
 emperors, and kings, are all striving who shall have her. But 
 this, my lords, will I say, (note the day, and afterwards bear 
 witness,) that whensoever the nobility of Scotland, who profess 
 the Lord Jesus, shall consent that an infidel, and all papists are 
 infidels, shall be head to our sovereign, they will do what in them 
 lies to banish Christ Jesus from this realm ; they will bring ven- 
 
13b ME JOHN KNOX. 
 
 geance upon the country, a plague upon themselves, and, per- 
 cbance, shall do small comfort to our sovereign." 
 
 " His words," it is said, " were judged to be so bold, as that 
 they could not be tolerated. Protestants as well as papists were 
 offended ; yea, his own familiars disdained him for his manner of 
 speaking." Some officious courtiers hastened to the queen, 
 and informed her, that Mr Knox had preached against her mar- 
 riage. He was summoned to appear before her, and went, ac- 
 companied only by John Erskine of Dun, the superintendant of 
 Angus and Mearns. 
 
 When he entered into her cabinet, he found her in a vehement 
 anger. " Never prince," said she, " was handled as I am. I 
 have borne with you in all your rigorous speaking, both against 
 myself and against my uncles ; yea, I have sought your favour 
 by all possible means, and offered to you presence and audience 
 when you should be pleased to admonish me, and yet I cannot 
 be quit of you. I vow to God I shall be once revenged." 
 
 Her chamber boy could scarcely find a sufficient number of 
 handkerchiefs to wipe her eyes. Her howling and weeping 
 stopped her speech. Mr Knox stood silent till she was more 
 composed, and then said, " Madam, when I am out of the 
 preaching place, I think few have any occasion to be offended 
 with me ; but when I am there, [ am not master of myself, but 
 must obey him who commands me to speak plain, and to flatter 
 no flesh upon the face of the earth." 
 
 " But what," said she, " have you to do with my marriage r" 
 When he continued speaking in vindication of himself, she again 
 interrupted him with these words, <e But what have you to do 
 with my marriage I" He shewed that her choice of a husband was 
 a matter of very great importance to every one of her subjects. 
 He then rehearsed to her the words which he had spoken in his 
 sermon ; but, on her hearing the words, her howling and tears 
 a^ain returned. He stood before her with an unaltered counte- 
 nance, but " John Erskine of Dun, a man of a meek and gentle 
 spirit, stood by her, and entreated her to be pacified ; he gave 
 unto her many pleasing words of her beauty, her excellence, 
 and how that all the princes of Europe would be glad to seek her 
 favour." 
 
 Mr Knox was desired to withdraw to another chamber. One 
 of her natural brothers, Lord John Stewart of Coldinghame, 
 came to her, who, with the Laird of Dun, remained with her 
 about an hour. 
 
 In the mean time, Mr Knox, in the chamber or gallery to 
 whic h he had withdrawn, found an assemblage of court ladies, 
 sitting " in all their gorgeous apparel." They looked at him as 
 at a man who had never been seen before, and no one of them 
 
MR JOHN KNOX. 135 
 
 dared to speak to him. The good Lord Ochiltree came into the 
 chamber, and kindly conversed with him. Mr Knox, at last, 
 turning- to the ladies, said, " O! fair ladies, how pleasing would 
 it be, if this life of yours were always to abide ; or if, in the end, 
 you were to pass into heaven with all this gay attire. But fie 
 upon that knave Death, for he will come whether we will or no ; 
 and when once he has laid on us his arrest, the foul worms will 
 be busy with this flesh, be it never so fair and tender; and the 
 silly soul, I fear, will be so feeble, as not to be able to carry 
 away with it gold, garnishing, largating (tassels), pearl, or pre- 
 cious stones." 
 
 After an hour's waiting, the Laird of Dun came to him, and 
 told him, that the queen permitted him to go home to his own 
 house. 
 
 Mr Randolph, in a letter to Cecil, September 24, 1561, 
 having mentioned the indignity which the queen met with on 
 the street of Perth, by the people carrying before her pageants 
 against idolatry ; and that thereby she became sick, and was 
 obliged to be borne from her horse into her lodging, says, " she 
 is often troubled with such sudden passions," (meaning hysterical 
 affections,.) " after any great unkindness or grief of mind." It 
 may also be observed, in Mr Knox's favour, that if the queen 
 had married an Austrian prince, Scotland might soon have been 
 brought into the same deplorable condition in which England 
 was under its former queen, who had made such an alliance ; 
 and of which deplorable condition Mr Knox had been in part 
 an eye-witness. 
 
 But the queen was soon made to hope, that, by the course of 
 law, she would get rid entirely of her formidable antagonist. 
 When she was at Stirling, August 15, 1563, her chaplains and 
 servants at Holyroodhouse had lliousfht proper, though in her 
 absence, to have mass celebrated in her chapel. Two zealous 
 protestants, Patrick Cranston and Andrew Armstrong, had en- 
 tered tiie chapel, and rebuked the priest at the altar. Their 
 violent intrusion into the queen's palace was reckoned an act of 
 treason, and it was determined they should be capitally tried, 
 October 24th. 
 
 The condemnation of these two gentlemen would have been 
 a powerful check to the zeal of the protestants, and would have 
 afforded an encouragement as powerful to the popish party. Mr 
 Knox therefore, October 8th, wrote a circular letter, advertising 
 the protestants, in every quarter of the kingdom, of the danger 
 with which not only their two brethren, but the whole of them 
 were now threatened. A copy of this letter was shewed to the 
 queen, and to some members of her council ; and their judgment 
 was, that a charge of treason should be brought against Mr- 
 Knox, for seditiously convocating the queen's lieges. 
 
136 MR JOHN KNOX. 
 
 About six o'clock in the evening, on a day in the middle of 
 December, 1563, he went from his own house to the queen's 
 palace, to attend his trial, according to the summons he had re- 
 ceived. " The brethren of the town" (viz. the protestants) 
 " followed in so great a number, that they filled the inner court 
 of the palace, and even the stairs to the door of the council 
 chamber." When he entered, the lords and his other judges took 
 their seats, and Mr Knox stood bare-headed, at the end of their 
 long table. The queen came forth from her cabinet, " and was 
 placed in her chair, with no little worldly pomp. But the prin- 
 cipal point, to wit, womanly gravity, was wanting ;" for, when 
 she saw Mr Knox standing as a pannel at the end of the table, 
 she first smiled, and then broke out in a fit of laughter. " This 
 is a good beginning," she said ; " but would you know why I 
 laugh ? Yonder man made me greet (weep), and yet never shed 
 a tear himself. We will now see if we can make him greet." 
 
 Contrary, however, to what she had expected, Mr Knox was 
 acquitted. He had been empowered by the Assembly, early at 
 the time of the reformation, to give general warning when any 
 danger was apprehended to the protestanl religion. Also, many 
 of the lords now present had been in use to convene their friends 
 and followers, both on account of religion and of other matters- 
 Such was still the unsettled state of the country. 
 
 But when the General Assembly met, December 25, 1563, 
 Mr Knox earnestly requested that the Assembly would judge of 
 his conduct in that matter. He said, " Even some protestants 
 are saying, ' What can the pope do more, than to send fovth 
 his letters, and require them to be obeyed V But 1 have as just 
 power to advertise the brethren, from time to time, of dangers 
 approaching, as I have to preach the word of God in the pulpit 
 of Edinburgh ; for by you I was appointed both to the one and 
 to the other." The Assembly remembered that such power had 
 been given him, and therefore avowed, that what he had done 
 tf was not his fact only, but the fact of them all." 
 
 Randolph informs Sir William Cecil, in his letter, March 18, 
 1563-4, that " Mr Knox was asked in the church to be married 
 to Margaret Stewart, the daughter of the Lord Ochiltree. He 
 was married to her in April, 1564. Her father, Andrew Stewart, 
 third Lord Ochiltree, had been an eminent promoter of the re- 
 formation. She was a pious woman, and bore to Mr Knox three 
 daughters. 
 
 The queen was married to Henry Stewart, Lord Darnley, son 
 of the Earl of Lennox, July 19, 1565. He was then in the 
 twentieth year of his age. It is said, that, to please the queen, 
 he burnt his Psalm-book, which had " the Book of Common 
 Order" prefixed, and went to mass ; but it was hoped he would 
 soon renounce his profession of the Romish religion. The Eail 
 
MR JOHN KNOX. 137 
 
 of Murray, and some other protestant lords, disapproved of the 
 marriage, and a kind of civil war ensued, which ended in their 
 exile. During its continuance, some of Lord Darnley's friends 
 advised him to hear Mr Knox preach, which, they said, would 
 tend to procure him the favour of Mr Knox, and of many others. 
 In conformity to their advice, Lord Darnley, who by this time 
 had obtained, by the queen's proclamation, the title of King, 
 went, August 19, 1565, to St Giles's church, in Edinburgh, 
 and, being sealed on a throne which had been placed for him, 
 heard Mr Knox preach a long sermon, in which were shewed 
 the evils which a nation would suffer, if it were governed by 
 children and women. The proud and inconsiderate young man, 
 though Mr Knox had not directly named him or the queen, 
 but had kept closely to his text, was so much irritated, that" he 
 refused to dine, and went in the afternoon to the hawking." 
 
 Mr Knox, that same evening, after he had gone to bed, was 
 called from it to attend the queen and privy-council. He de- 
 fended every part of his doctrine, and spoke more plainly than 
 what he had done in his sermon ; for he told the queen, in the 
 course of their conversation, " that as the king, to please her, 
 had gone to mass, and thereby dishonoured the Lord God ; so 
 should God, in his justice, make her an instrument of his ruin." 
 The queen wept ; and, to gratify her, Mr Knox was interdicted 
 from preaching for about fifteen or twenty days. His words to 
 the queen were afterwards, however, considered as a prediction, 
 for the event he foretold actually happened. 
 
 This temporary prohibition to preach was the only legal sen- 
 tence which had been passed upon him since the time of the 
 reformation. He felt it as an evidence of the increased power 
 of the queen's party, and saw no friends who could help him ; 
 for the Earl of Murray and the other discontented lords, who 
 were now in arms, were likely soon to be overcome; as indeed 
 they afterwards were. 
 
 Mr Knox thought his character had been injured ; and, as he 
 was not now permitted to go to the pulpit, he set himself to re- 
 collect, as well as he could, and to put into writing, the sermon 
 he had delivered, resolved not to omit any of what were reckon- 
 ed the exceptionable passages. A copy of it is in the Appendix 
 to that edition of his History which was printed at London in 
 1644. His text was in Isaiah, xxvi. 13, &c. " O Lord our God, 
 other lords besides thee have had the dominion over us," 8cc. 
 His illustrations were taken from the histories in the Old Testa- 
 ment; and he seems to have given no just cause for the great 
 offence which was taken. But among his hearers there had 
 been many papists, who probably helped to irritate the young 
 king. 
 
 In the printed preface, he tells us, " It is the only sermon 
 
138 MR JOHN KNOX. 
 
 which I have published. Hitherto I have considered myself 
 
 rather called of my God to instruct the ignorant, to comfort 
 the sorrowful, to confirm the weak, and to rebuke the proud, by 
 my tongue and lively voice, in these most corrupt days, than 
 to compose books for the age to come, seeing that much is al- 
 ready written by men of most singular erudition, aud but little 
 regarded. If any then ask, to what purpose is this only sermon 
 set forth, and greater matters omitted? I answer, It is to Jet 
 such as Satan hath not altogether blinded, see upon what small 
 occasion great offence is now conceived. This is the sermon for 
 which, from my bed, 1 was called before the council, and for 
 which, after long reasoning, I was forbidden by some to preach 
 in Edinburgh, so long as the king and queen were in town." 
 
 The two following paragraphs in the preface may be noticed 
 by those who wish to be fully acquainted with Mr Knox's cha- 
 racter. " I dare not deny, lest by so doing i should be injurious 
 to the Giver, that God hath revealed unto me secrets unknown 
 to the world. He hath made my tongue a trumpet, to forewarn 
 realms and nations ; yea, he hath given unto me great revela- 
 tions of mutations and changes, when no such things were feared, 
 nor yet appearing. A portion of what I have spoken, the world 
 cannot deny has been fulfilled ; and the rest, alas ! I fear shall 
 follow with greater haste, and in more full perfection, than my 
 sorrowful heart desireth. In the public place, 1 consult not with 
 flesh and blood what 1 shall propose to the people, but as the 
 spirit of my God, who hath sent me, and to whom I must an- 
 swer, moveth me, so I speak ; and when I have once pronounced 
 threatenings in his name, how unpleasant soever they be to the 
 world, 1 dare no more deny them," (that is, doubt of them,) 
 " than I dare deny that God hath made me liis messenger, to 
 forewarn the inobedient of their assured destruction." 
 
 The generality of the people in Scotland, and many also in 
 England, considered him as a special messenger to the nations, 
 or as a prophet whom God had sent. The paragraphs now 
 quoted shew that he himself was of the same persuasion. Cal- 
 derwood, Spottiswood, and other writers, to whose testimony in 
 this matter I now beg leave to refer, have recorded many in- 
 stances of the exact fulfilment of the predictions which he ut- 
 tered. 
 
 While he was writing his sermon, he had great inward grief, 
 and was also outwardly discomposed. He adds at the end, 
 " Lord, into thy hands I commend my spirit; for the roaring of 
 guns, and the noise of armour, do so pierce my heart, that my 
 soul thirsteth to depart." The guns ot the castle of Edinburgh 
 were now firing upon the troops belonging to those noblemen 
 who, at that time, were called " the rebel lords." 
 
 He next adds the following note : " The last day of August, 
 
MR JOHN KNOX. J 39 
 
 1565, at four of the clock in the afternoon. Written indigest- 
 edly, but truly, so far as my memory would serve, of those 
 things that in public I spake, on Sunday, August 19th, for the 
 which I was discharged to preach for a time. Be merciful to thy 
 flock, O Lord ; and, at thy good pleasure, put an end to my 
 misery. John Knox." 
 
 He continued dispirited, and probably in a kind of amaze- 
 ment, occasioned by the events which afterward happened at 
 court, (in which it does not appear that he took any direct con- 
 cern, perhaps thinking it unnecessary,) till the great change in 
 the public affairs took place in July, 1567, when the now most 
 unhappy and ill-conducted queen was compelled to resign her 
 crown, and the Earl of Murray, the great friend to the reformed 
 church, was chosen regent of the kingdom. 
 
14.® MR JOHN KNOX. 
 
 CHAP. Vf. 
 
 His Usefulness to the Church. His private Character. His Sons. 
 Visits England. Returns to Scotland. Preaches at the Coro- 
 nation oj James VI. Preaches to the Parliament. Earl of 
 Murray. Principal Smeton Mr Knox's Health declines. His 
 Controversy with Kirkaldy of Grunge. Goes to St Andrews. 
 Had refused an English Bishopric. Returns to Edinburgh. His 
 bodily Weakness, massacre in France. Mr James Lawson chosen 
 to be his Colleague. Mr Knox's Death. Characters of him 01/ 
 Smeton and Others. His Family and Writings. Mr David Bu- 
 chanan. Mr Knox's Character. 
 
 While Mr Knox was engaged in contests with the queen and 
 her party, he was not inattentive to the particular affairs of the 
 church. Being in a cordial intimacy with the ecclesiastical su- 
 perintendants, artd other respectable ministers of that period, he 
 joined with them in composing the doctrinal standards of the 
 church, and in framing acts for the establishment of pure pres- 
 bytenan government, and for the successful exercise of parish 
 discipline. In the article of church government he was of the 
 same opinion with Calvin and the French protestants, and was 
 able to shew how well it agreed with what is written in the Holy 
 Scriptures. If any of his brethren, from their early habits, were 
 rather inclined to the episcopal jurisdiction, they did not think 
 it a matter of such importance as to justify them in entering 
 into a controversy with him. 
 
 With regard to his private conduct, he found it necessarv to 
 assert, for his own vindication, that he was not of an uncompas- 
 sionate temper. " My conscience," said he, " bears me witness, 
 that I delight not in the weeping of any of God's creatures. 
 iMone can say I am severe towards them, but those who are vi- 
 cious, or who are setting themselves against religion." 
 
 He was a lover of peace, when it could be obtained with a 
 safe conscience. He laboured to reconcile persons who were at 
 variance with each other, as in the instance of the Earls of Arran 
 
MR JOHN KNOX. 141 
 
 and Bothwell, and also in the instance of the Earl and Countess 
 of Argyle. He was disposed to do acts of kindness to those vvlio 
 sought his aid. It appears from Randolph's letters, that Mr 
 Knox, availing himself of his friendship with Sir William Cecil, 
 Queen Elizabeth's secretary of state, and who was far from being 
 a high churchman, solicited favours for some of his countrjanen, 
 who had gone, or were going into England. 
 
 It was not merely by acts of parliament, or by compulsalory 
 acts of assembly, that he wished to suppress popery. He en- 
 deavoured, as- he had formerly done in St Andrews, to confute 
 the adversaries by fair argumentation. In 1561, he, along with 
 Mr John Willock, superintendant of the west country, and Mr 
 Christopher Goodman, minister of St Andrews, disputed publicly 
 at Edinburgh, with Mr Alexander Anderson, and two other 
 learned papists, from the college of Aberdeen Afterwards, in 
 company with Mr John Spottiswood, the superintendant of Lo- 
 thian, he publicly disputed wfth a celebrated popish writer, Mr 
 Ninian Winzet (Wingate,) schoolmaster of Linlithgow. In 1562, 
 he disputed three days at the village of Maybole, with Quintiu 
 Kennedy, the abbot of Cros-raguel, of which a full account af- 
 terwards was printed. He had also a written controversy with 
 James Tyrie, a Jesuit. 
 
 Oftener than once, he acted as a superintendant in different 
 parts of the kingdom, in consequence of a commission from the 
 General Assembly. He was acting in this capacity at the town 
 of Ayr, in 1562, when he promoted a bond of union, subscribed 
 by the Earl of Glencairn, and many other barons and gentlemen, 
 in defence of the protestant religion. 
 
 Though he thought that the presbyterian government was 
 better than that which was adopted by the English church, yet 
 he was not so bigotted as to restrict his sons, Nathaniel and 
 Eleazer, from receiving their education at the university of 
 Cambridge. Probably their English relations had persuaded 
 him to allow them to remain under their care ; and he gave his 
 consent more readily, because the masters of that university 
 were then famous for the soundness of their doctrine, and for 
 their being moderate with regard to the outward religious cere- 
 monies. It was natural, however, that he should wish to see his 
 sons, and be fully satisfied in what they were doing. 
 
 Accordingly, the Assembly, which met at Edinburgh, Decem- 
 ber <£5, 1566, grant .d him, at his desire, permission to go to 
 England, to visit his children, and his friends and allies in that 
 country, and to settle some of his private affairs; but upon this 
 condition, that he should return home before June 25, 1567. 
 They furnished him with an ample testimonial, in which they 
 warmly recommended him, as having, " during his eight years 
 
142 MR JOHN - KNOX. 
 
 residence within the realm of Scotland, laboured as a true and 
 faithful minister of the evangel of Jesus Christ." They certified, 
 that " in his doctrine he was pure and sincere ; and that, in his 
 life and conversation he was, in their sight, inculpable." He 
 was also to carry along with him a letter from the Assembly, to 
 be delivered to the English bishops, earnestly entreating them 
 to use with greater lenity some conscientious ministers who were 
 entertaining scruples relating to the canonical vestments. This 
 letter, which Mr Knox himself had been desired to indite, I 
 have already particularly noticed in my account of the life of 
 Mr John Winram. 
 
 Mr Knox, having returned from England, was present in 
 the assembly which met at Edinburgh, June 25, 1567. The 
 queen, July 24th, being in the castle of Lochleven, resigned her 
 crown in favour of her infant son, James VI. When the nobi- 
 lity and barons met at Stirling, July 29th, for the coronation of the 
 young king, Mr Knox preached the sermon. He was, as it might 
 have been expected, in excellent spirits ; and George Buchanan, 
 the historian, says, that he preached " a brilliant sermon." The 
 crown was put upon the head of the child by Mr John Spottis- 
 wood, superintendant of Lothian; John Erskine of Dun, super- 
 intendant of Angus and Mearns ; and Mr Adam Bothwell, the 
 protestant bishop of Orkney. 
 
 The Earl of Murray was chosen regent of the kingdom, Au- 
 gust 20, 1567. He held his first parliament, December 15th, 
 at the opening of which Mr Knox preached, giving suitable ex- 
 hortations. The parliament proceeded to enact statutes for the 
 security of the reformed religion ; and Mr Knox, who was now 
 honoured as in all respects the friend of his country, was fully 
 satisfied with the public measures, and enjoyed great repose of 
 mind. The protestant church, in general, also expressed their 
 satisfaction. While the parliament was sitting, the General As- 
 sembly met, December 25, 1567, and, in their letter to Mr 
 John Willock, requesting him to return to them from England, 
 they represented, as an inducement, the flourishing state of re- 
 ligion in Scotland ; and praised God, who had been graciously 
 pleased to provide for this nation so godly a magistrate as the 
 Earl of Murray. 
 
 The earl was indeed a truly religious man, and had been one 
 of the principal promoters of the reformation. Being zealous 
 of whatever tended to the honour of his country, he was indig- 
 nant at the government by which it had lately been disgraced. 
 He possessed uncommon degrees of courage and prudence, and 
 was determined, by distributing impartial justice, to put an end, 
 as far as possible, to those public disorders in the country which 
 were still remaining. According to the character given of him 
 
SIR JOHN KNOX. 143 
 
 by Mr Randolph, in 1561, and which he retained all along-, he 
 was in liis sphere not unlike to Mr Knox, being " rough in his 
 nature, and blunt and homely in his manners." 
 
 The happiest period of Mr Knox's life was during the two 
 years and rive months in which the Earl of Murray governed 
 the nation. But " the good regent/' as he was commonly called, 
 was baibarously shot from a window, when passing through the 
 street of Liniithgow, January 23, 1570. This unexpected event 
 deeply affected Sir Knox. It helped to forward the begun de- 
 cay of his bodily constitution. 
 
 Mr Thomas Smeton, principal of the college of Glasgow, in 
 his answer, printed in 1579, to the infamous book which had 
 been written by Mr Archibald Hamilton, who, from being a re- 
 gent in St Andrews, became an apostate to popery, says, when 
 speaking of Mr Knox, what may thus be translated : " This man 
 of God, having patiently and constantly endured many and va- 
 rious labours in promoting the glory of God, and propagating 
 the gospel of Jesus Christ, fell into bodily weakness. Events 
 happened, which so sorely wounded the heart of this pious man, 
 that the remainder of his strength wasted away in discouraging 
 thoughts, and in continual sighs and tears. One of these events 
 was the death of James Stewart, of blessed memory, the lord- 
 regent of the kingdom, who was the light and ornament of the 
 Scottish nation. JSo ruler ever existed who was more observant 
 of religion, or a greater lover of justice. He was taken from us, 
 as a punishment for our many and great offences, by the coward- 
 ly act of that desperate traitor, James Hamilton (of Bothwell- 
 haugh). The noble regent, from his earliest youth, had been 
 tenderly loved by Mr Knox, on account of his sincere piety and 
 exemplary morals; and it is impossible to conceive or describe 
 how much he was grieved at the death of this illustrious man. 
 He foresaw, and, with the keenest sorrow, revolved in his 
 mind, the factions which would arise, and the other numerous 
 evils which would ensue, both to religion and to the common- 
 wealth." 
 
 In October, 1570, Mr Knox suffered a stroke of apoplexy, 
 from which, however, he was soon recovered. Before the end 
 of the year, he entered into a long and serious controversy with 
 his old friend and companion in the French gallies, Sir William 
 Kirkaldy of Grange, who was now governor of the castle of 
 Edinburgh, and who, in 1547, had been his companion in 
 trouble. It arose from his having, in his sermon, accused this 
 gentleman of being accessory to the murder of a man in Leith. 
 The controversy was terminated ; but, as Mr Knox persisted, in 
 his sermons, to speak freely of all public matters, which were now 
 much embroiled by the faction formed against the regent, Earl 
 
144 MR JOHN KNOX. 
 
 of Lennox, his friends, for the safety of his person, earnestly en- 
 treated him to leave Edinburgh for some time. He complied 
 with their advice, and, in a weak state of health, went to St An- 
 drews, May 15, 1571. He was there mostly confined to his 
 house by sickness; but on the preaching days he frequently 
 taught in the church, though not with his usual strength of 
 voice. 
 
 I have taken notice, in my account of Mr John Douglas, that 
 Mr Knox, while at St Andrews, expressed his dissatisfaction 
 with the Earl of Morton's scheme of introducing into the 
 presbyterian church of Scotland a new kind of bishops. He ex- 
 pressed it publicly in his sermon, February 10, 1572, when 
 Mr Douglas was inaugurated to the archbishopric of St An- 
 drews. Some persons were so uncandid as to say, that he was 
 displeased because he himself had not been the man made 
 choice of. One of these persons was Mr John Rutherfurd, pro- 
 vost of the old college of St Andrews, a learned man, and a »ood 
 writer, both in the belles lettres and in philosophy. Mr Knox, 
 having heard how they had misrepresented him, went the next 
 Sunday to the pulpit, and said in his sermon, " I have refused a 
 greater bishopric than this, and which I might have had with 
 favour of greater men than he (Mr Douglas) now has. I did, 
 and do declare my dissatisfaction, for the discharge of my own 
 conscience." 
 
 With regard to the English bishopric which Mr Knox had 
 refused, it may be observed, that the English parliament, March 
 1, 1553, divided the diocese of Durham, which consisted of two 
 counties, (viz. Durham and Northumberland,) into two parts, 
 one of which was to be called the bishopric of Durham, and the 
 other the bishopric of Newcastle. To the first was annexed a 
 yearly revenue of two thousand merks sterling, and to the other 
 a yearly revenue of one thousand. The old popish bishop of 
 Durham, CuthbertTonstal, had been deposed in October, 1552. 
 Dr Ridley, bishop of London, was now nominated to the dimi- 
 nished bishopric of Durham, of which, however, he declined to 
 take possession; and it is not improbable that Mr Knox, who 
 was in great favour at the court of Edward VI., and had offici- 
 ated almost constantly about four years at Newcastle and Ber- 
 wick, was now nominated to the bishopric of Newcastle. Nei- 
 ther the one nor the other of these bishoprics having been ac- 
 cepted, the Duke of Northumberland, who, according to Mr 
 Strype, was unfriendly to any promotion of Mr Knox, obtain- 
 ed a gift of the revenues of both. But soon after the king's 
 death, the above-mentioned act of parliament was repealed, and 
 Bishop Tonstal was restored to all the jurisdictions and revenues 
 he had formerly enjoyed. 
 
MR JOHN KNOX. 145 
 
 Though the Laird of Grange, under the influence, and by 
 the advice of Sir William Maitland of Lethington, still kept 
 possession of the castle of Edinburgh, in favour of the captive 
 queen, yet as the regent's forces, under the command of the 
 Earl of Morton, were now in the town, the inhabitants thought 
 themselves in a state of greater security than they were at the 
 time when Mr Knox left them. They therefore solicited his 
 return, in a letter, dated August 4, 1572, and which they sent by 
 two respectable citizens, as their commissioners. They told him 
 that they longed "again to hear his voice," and to have him, 
 that he might rectify some things which were amiss among them. 
 Mr Spottiswood, the superinteudant of Lothian, accompanied 
 the commissioners, and told him, that the people were desirous 
 of having: his advice in their choice of a minister, who should 
 be appointed to assist hiin. 
 
 Mr Knox consented to return, on the condition that he should 
 not be restricted from speaking Ins mind freely of the persons who 
 were refusing to surrender the castle. He left St Andrews, Au- 
 gust 17th, and, by slow journies, on account of his bodily weak- 
 ness, arrived at Edinburgh, August 23d. He preached in the 
 large church, August 31st; but his voice was now so feeble that 
 few could hear him. He afterwards, at his own desire, had the 
 use of an apartment in what was called the Tolbooth, in which 
 he might preach as often as he was able, to about a hundred 
 persons. 
 
 The dreadful massacre of the protestants in France, with 
 many of whom Mr Knox was well acquainted, and in whose 
 fellowship he had formerly much delighted, began on St Bar- 
 tholomew day, August 24, 1572. The news of it, when brought 
 to Edinburgh, Mr David Buchanan says, so much affected 
 Mr Knox, that " it did almost exanimate him." All the mi- 
 nisters spoke largely of it in their sermons ; and Mr Knox, 
 when speaking of it to his small congregation in the Tolbooth, 
 predicted a judgment upon the King of Fiance, which, it was 
 observed, took place in the ensuing year. The French ambas- 
 sador complained, but was told that the ministers of Scotland 
 could not be restrained in their preaching. 
 
 Another incident which heightened Mr Knox's distress at 
 this period, was an angry letter from Lethington, now in the 
 castle, addressed to the Session of Edinburgh, representing that 
 Mr Knox had spoken of him as being an atheist, and insisting 
 that he should be called before them to receive the censure he 
 merited. Mr Knox had been long and perfectly acquainted 
 with Lethington's character and conduct, and many disputes 
 had passed betwixt them. When speaking of him in his ser- 
 mon, he bad affirmed, that none could be truly said to believe 
 in God, who went on fearlessly in the commission of iniquity. 
 
 K 
 
146 MR JOHN KNOX. 
 
 The person whom the congregation thought of electing to as- 
 sist Mr Knox in his infirmity, and to succeed him in his part of 
 the pastoral charge, was Mr James Lawson, sub-principal and 
 professor of philosophy in the university of Aberdeen, a pious 
 and learned man, and of whom Mr Knox entertained a very 
 high opinion. It was required that he should come and preach 
 some weeks previous to his election. I cannot omit to trans- 
 cribe the affectionate letter which was written to him by Mr 
 Knox, and which was as follows : 
 
 " Beloved Brother, 
 " God, in his mercy, far above my expectation, hath called 
 me again to Edinburgh ; but I fee 1 nature so decayed, and daily 
 decaying, that I look not for a long continuance of my battle. 
 I would gladly discharge my conscience into your bosom, and 
 into the bosoms of others in whom, I think, the tear of God re- 
 maineth. If I had ability of body I should not have put yon 
 to the trouble which I now require of you, that is, once to visit 
 me, that we may confer together of heavenly things; for upon 
 earth there is no stability, except in the kirk of Jesus Christ, 
 ever fighting under the cross. To his protection I heartily 
 commit you. From Edinburgh, 7th of September, 1572. John 
 Knox." " Accdera, mi f rater, alioque sew venies ;" (make haste, 
 my brother, else you will come too late.) 
 
 Mr Lawson came to Edinburgh, September 15th. His ser- 
 mons having been acceptable to the congregation, and the ne- 
 cessary steps taken, Sunday, the 9th of November, was fixed to 
 be the day on which the superintendant of Lothian should ad- 
 mit him to the ministry. Mr Knox preached the admission 
 sermon, after his having taught, at the usual hour, his small num- 
 ber of people in the Tolbooth. He went to the pulpit in the 
 large church with the help of his staff and of his servant Rich- 
 ard Bannatyne. His voice was so feeble, that few could hear him ; 
 but they who heard him experienced a great deal of pleasure 
 and edification. David Buchanan says, " all his sermons were 
 religiously tuned, but his last farewell sermon made the sweet- 
 est music." 
 
 His fervour and animation that day were indeed greater than 
 what his strength could well bear. Spottiswood tells us, " at no 
 time was he heard to speak with greater power, and more con- 
 tent to the hearers, fn the end of the sermon he called God to 
 witness that he had walked with a good conscience among them, 
 not seeking to please men, nor serving either his own or other 
 men's affections, but preaching in sincerity and truth the gos- 
 pel of Christ. With most grave and pithy words he exhorted 
 them to stand fast in the faith which they had received. After- 
 
MR JOHN KNOX. 147 
 
 wards, having conceived a zealous prayer for the continuance of 
 God's blessings upon them, and the multiplying of the gifts of 
 his spirit upon the preacher who was then to be admitted, he 
 gave them his last farewell. The people did convoy him to his 
 lodging, and could not be drawn from it, so loath they were to 
 part with him ; and he, in the same day, and in the afternoon, 
 by sickness, was forced to take to his bed." 
 
 His sickness increased. Tuesday, November 1 1th, his cough 
 was violent, and there was no hope of his recovery. The early 
 writers of our church history are very circumstantial in their ac- 
 count of his death, in which they have been followed by other 
 writers. They may be said to have furnished what may be call- 
 ed a journal of the last ten days of his life. It is so seldom that 
 mention is made in our histories of the circumstances which ac- 
 companied the death of pious men, who were instruments of 
 great usefulness in the church, that it is not easy to forego the 
 pleasure of dwelling on what is related of the state of Mr Knox's 
 mind, and of his behaviour on that trying occasion. 
 
 Spottiswood had the information he gives, partly from his fa- 
 ther, who, as the superintendant of Lothian, was long a joint la- 
 bourer with Mr Knox in the affairs of the church, and partly 
 from Richard Bannatyne's manuscript Memoirs, which he may 
 have seen. 1 shall do little more than select a few passages 
 from Spottiswood's History; only premising, that no small 
 commendation was due to the archbishop, for having written 
 so favourably, and seemingly with affection, of one who had 
 been an avowed opponent to episcopacy. 
 
 Monday, November 17, 1572, Mr Knox, at his own desire, 
 was visited by Mr David Lindsay, minister of Leith, Mr James 
 Lawson, now minister of Edinburgh, and the elders and church- 
 deacons of that city. In his speech to them, he said, " The 
 time is now approaching for which I have long thirsted, where- 
 in I shall be relieved of all cares, and be with my Saviour Christ 
 for ever." He next spoke concerning the doctrine he had taught, 
 and then added, " I am not ignorant that many have blamed, 
 and yet do blame my too great rigour and severity; but God 
 knows, that, in my heart, I never hated the persons of those 
 against whom I thundered God's judgments : 1 did only hate 
 their sins, and laboured, at all my power, to gain them to Christ. 
 — Now, brethren, I have no more to say, than to warn you that 
 you take heed to the flock over whom God hath made you over- 
 seers, and whom he hath redeemed by the blood of his only be- 
 gotten son. And you, Mr Lawson, fight a good fight ; do the 
 work of the Lord with courage, and with a willing mind ; and 
 may God, from above, bless you and the church whereof you 
 have the charge; against it, so long as it continueth in the 
 doctrine of the truth, the gates of hell shall not prevail." 
 
 9 
 
146 MR JOHN KNOX. 
 
 The person whom the congregation thought of electing to as- 
 sist Mr Knox in his infirmity, and to succeed him in his part of 
 the pastoral charge, was Mr James Lawson, sub- principal and 
 professor of philosophy in the university of Aberdeen, a pious 
 and learned man, and of whom Mr Knox entertained a very 
 high opinion. It was required that he should come and preach 
 some weeks previous to his election. I cannot omit to trans- 
 cribe the affectionate letter which was written to him by Mr 
 Knox, and which was as follows : 
 
 " Beloved Brother, 
 " God, in his mercy, far above my expectation, hath called 
 me again to Edinburgh ; but I fed nature so decayed, and<laily 
 decaying, that I look not for a long continuance of my battle. 
 1 would gladly discharge my conscience into your bosom, and 
 into the bosoms of others in whom, I think, the tear of God re- 
 maineth. If I had ability of body I should not have put yoa 
 to the trouble which I now require of you, that is, once to visit 
 me, that we may confer together of heavenly things; for upon 
 earth there is no stability, except in the kirk of Jesus Christ, 
 ever righting under the cross. To his protection I heartily 
 commit you. From Edinburgh, 7th of September, 1572. John 
 Knox." " Accthra, mi J rater, alioque sero venies ;" (make haste, 
 my brother, else you will come too late.) 
 
 Mr Lawson came to Edinburgh, September 15th. His ser- 
 mons having been acceptable to the congregation, and the ne- 
 cessary steps taken, Sunday, the 9th of November, was fixed to 
 be the day on which the superintendant of Lothian should ad- 
 mit him to the ministry. Mr Knox preached the admission 
 sermon, after his having taught, at the usual hour, his small num- 
 ber of people in the Tol booth. He went to the pulpit in the 
 large church with the help of his staff and of his servant Rich- 
 ard Bannatyne. His voice was so feeble, that few could hear him ; 
 but they who heard him experienced a great deal of pleasure 
 and edification. David Buchanan says, " all his sermons were 
 religiously tuned, but his last farewell sermon made the sweet- 
 est music." 
 
 His fervour and animation that day were indeed greater than 
 what his strength could well bear. Spottiswood tells us, u at no 
 time was he heard to speak with greater power, and more con- 
 tent to the hearers. In the end of the sermon he called God to 
 witness that he had walked with a good conscience among them, 
 not seeking to please men, nor serving either his own or other 
 men's affections, but preaching in sincerity and truth the gos- 
 pel of Christ. With most grave and pithy words he exhorted, 
 them to stand fast in the faith which they had received. After- 
 
MR JOHN KNOX. 147 
 
 wards, having conceived a zealous prayer for the continuance of 
 God's blessings upon them, and the multiplying of the gifts of 
 his spirit upon the preacher who was then to be admitted, he 
 gave them his last farewell. The people did convoy him to his 
 lodging, and could not be drawn from it, so loath they were to 
 part with him ; and he, in the same day, and in the afternoon, 
 by sickness, was forced to take to his bed." 
 
 His sickness increased. Tuesday, November Uth, his cough 
 was violent, and there was no hope of his recovery. The early 
 writers of our church history are very circumstantial in their ac- 
 count of his death, in which they have been followed by other- 
 writers. They may be said to have furnished what may be call- 
 ed a journal of the last ten days of his life. It is so seldom that 
 mention is made in our histories of the circumstances which ac- 
 companied the death of pious men, who were instruments of 
 great usefulness in the church, that it is not easy to forego the 
 pleasure of dwelling on what is related of the state of Mr Knox's 
 mind, and of his behaviour on that trying occasion. 
 
 Spottiswood had the information he gives, partly from his fa- 
 ther, who, as the superintendant of Lothian, was long a joint la- 
 bourer with Mr Knox in the affairs of the church, and partly 
 from Richard Bannatyne's manuscript Memoirs, which he may 
 have seen. 1 shall do little more than select a few passages 
 from Spottiswood's History; only premising, that no small 
 commendation was due to the archbishop, for having written 
 so favourably, and seemingly with affection, of one who had 
 been an avowed opponent to episcopacy. 
 
 Monday, November 17, 1572, Mr Knox, at his own desire, 
 was visited by Mr David Lindsay, minister of Leith, Mr James 
 Lawson, now minister of Edinburgh, and the elders and church- 
 deacons of that city. In his speech to them, he said, " The 
 time is now approaching for which I havelong thirsted, where- 
 in I shall be relieved of all cares, and be with my Saviour Christ 
 for ever." He next spoke concerning the doctrine he had taught, 
 and then added, " I am not ignorant that many have blamed, 
 and yet do blame my too great rigour and severity; but God 
 knows, that, in my heart, 1 never hated the persons of those 
 against whom I thundered God's judgments : 1 did only hate 
 their sins, and laboured, at all my power, to gain them to Christ. 
 — Now, brethren, I have no more to say, than to warn you that 
 you take heed to the flock over whom God hath made you over- 
 seers, and whom he hath redeemed by the blood of his only be- 
 gotten son. And you, Mr Lawson, fight a good fight ; do the 
 work of the Lord with courage, and with a willing mind ; and 
 may God, from above, bless you and the church whereof you 
 have the charge; against it, so long as it continueth in the 
 doctrine of the truth, the gates of hell shall not prevail." 
 
 9 
 
148 MR JOHN KNOX. 
 
 Tuesday, November 18th. He ordered the coffin to be made, 
 in which his body was to be deposited. That day, and during 
 all the time of his sickness, he was much in prayer, ever crying, 
 "Come, Lord Jesus : into thy hands 1 commend my spirit" His 
 attendants asked him if his pain was great ? He answered, that 
 he did not esteem that to be pain, which would be to him the 
 end of all trouble, and the beginning of eternal joys. Often- 
 times, after some deep meditations, he burst forth in these 
 words: " O serve the Lord in fear, and death shall not be ter- 
 rible to you. Blessed is the death of those who have part in 
 the death of Jesus." 
 
 Wednesday, November 19th. The Earl of Morton, who, in a 
 few days, was to be cliosen regent of the kingdom, and some 
 other noblemen, came to visit him. He said to the earl, " My 
 lord, God hath given you many blessings, many and good 
 friends, and is now to prefer you to the government of the 
 realm. In his name [ charge you, that you shall use these bles- 
 sings aright, and better, in time to come, than you have done in 
 times past. In all your actions, seek first the glory of God, the fur- 
 therance of his gospel, the maintenance of his church and minis- 
 try ; and next, be careful of the king, to procure his good, and the 
 ■welfare of the realm. If you shall do this, God will be with you, 
 and honour you : if otherwise, you shall do it not, he shall de- 
 prive you ol all these benefits ; and your end shall be shame and 
 ignominy." These speeches the earl, nine years after, called 
 to mind, at the time of his execution, and said, " therein Mr 
 Knox was a prophet." 
 
 Sunday, November 23d, " the night of which was the last 
 night to him in this wretched life, in the evening, having seem- 
 ingly slept for some hours with great unquietness, it was asked 
 of him, after he awaked, how he did find himself, and what it 
 was which had made him, in his sleep, mourn so heavily ? He 
 answered, " In my life I have often been assaulted b} r Satan, and 
 many times he hath cast in my teeth my sins, to bring me into de- 
 spair, yet God gave me strength to overcome all his temptations; 
 and now that subtile serpent, who never ceaseth to tempt, hath 
 taken anotner course, and seeks to persuade me, that my labours 
 in the ministry, and the fidelity 1 have shewed in that service, 
 have merited heaven and immortality; but blessed be God, 
 who brought to my mind these scriptures, ' What hast thou, 
 that thou hast not received ?' and ' Not I, but the grace of God 
 in me;' with which he, (viz. Satan,) hath gone away ashamed, 
 antt shall no more return." 
 
 All the above circumstances were related by the archbishop. 
 Mr Knox, during his illness, was visited by several noblemen 
 and gentlemen, and also by some women. He entertained them 
 with edifying conversation; for his mind still was clear, and his 
 
MR JOHN KNOX. 149 
 
 recollection accurate. When a lady of rank, probably one of 
 his wife's relations, was bidding him praise God for the good 
 which he had done, and mentioning to him his former labours 
 in the ministry, he hastily replied," Flesh of itself is too proud, 
 and needeth no means to puff it up." He exhorted her not to 
 think highly of herself; and suggested, that she might soon 
 meet with something to vex and humble her, saying, " Re- 
 member the words which a woman spake to you long ago, — 
 ' Lady, lady, the black ox hath never yet trode on your fool." 
 It was, perhaps, a proverbial expression. The physician who 
 attended him was Dr Preston, probably a gentleman of the fa- 
 mily of Craigmillar. He was a religious man, and no doubt 
 was, at that period, a physician of celebrity in the town of 
 Edinburgh. Richard Bannatvnc , Mr Knox's servant and ama- 
 nuensis, constantly waited upon him, and, it should seem, took 
 notes of the several speeches and occurrences. 
 
 Monday, November 24, 1572, was the last day of Mr Knox's 
 life. I shall transcribe the relation of that day's occurrences, 
 given by David Buchanan, and which afterwards was of use to 
 Mr David Calderwood, in writing his history. 
 
 " That day Mr Knox arose about the hours of nine or ten, 
 but he was not able to stand. He put on his hose and doublet, 
 and sat in his chair the space of half an hour, and then again 
 went to his bed. Being asked, by Robert Campbell of Kinzean- 
 cleugh, if he had any pain ? he answered, No great pain, but 
 such as, I trust, will put an end to this battle. Yea, I do not 
 esteem that to be pain, which will be to me an end of all 
 troubles, and the beginning of eternal joys. 
 
 " In the afternoon, his wife read to him the fifteenth chapter 
 of the First Epistle to the Corinthians. When it was ended, he 
 said, Is not that a comfortable chapter ? and, within a little space 
 after, said, I commend my soul, spirit, and body, into thy hands, 
 O Lord. About five hours at night, he said to his wife, Go, 
 read where I cast my first anchor. And so she read to him the 
 seventeenth chapter of St John's Gospel, and next some sermons 
 of Mr Calvin upon the Ephesians. About half hour to ten, they 
 went to prayer, which being ended, Dr Preston said to him, 
 Sir, heard you the prayer ? He answered, Would to God that 
 you and all men had heard it with such an ear and heart as I 
 have done. I praise God for that heavenly soun I. And then 
 he uttered his last words, which were, Lord Jesus, receive my 
 spirit. 
 
 " At last, when his servant, Richard Bannatyne, heard him 
 give a long sigh and sob, he said unto him, Now, sir, the lime 
 for which you have long called to God doth instantly approach; 
 and, seeing all natural powers fail, give us some sign that you 
 remember the comfortable promises which you have often 
 
150 MR JOHN KNOX. 
 
 shewed unto us. At these words, he lifted up one of his hands, 
 and immediately thereafter, without farther motion, as one fall- 
 ing asleep, rather than dying, he departed, about eleven hours 
 at night, in the 67th year of his age." 
 
 Wednesday, JSovember 26, 1572, " Mr Knox was buried 
 in the church-yard of St Giles, at Edinburgh, being convoyed 
 by the Earl of Morton and divers other lords, with people of 
 all ranks. When he was laid in the grave, the Earl of Morton 
 spake these words : Here lies a man, who, in his life, never 
 feared the face of man ; who hath been often threatened with 
 dag and dagger, but yet hath ended his days in peace and ho- 
 nour." 
 
 I have all along, in my narrative of Mr Knox's life, pointed 
 to the distinguishing features of his character. It may be proper 
 that I should now transcribe the following more general de- 
 scription of his character, which was given by Mr David Bu- 
 chanan. " Old and blessed Mr John Knox died in a full age, 
 having fought a good fight, and overcome all his enemies. He 
 was a mirror of godliness, and a pattern to all other ministers, 
 in holiness of life, soundness of doctrine, and boldness in re- 
 proving vice. Though court parasites and proud prelates have 
 blamed him, the first for his doctrine touching the power of 
 princes, and the other for his doctrine concerning the govern- 
 ment of the church ; yet there never was a man born who did 
 more heartily reverence, and more willingly obey all the lawful 
 commands of civil authority ; neither yet was there ever any 
 man more observant of the true and just orders of ecclesiastical 
 polity, according to the word of God, and the practice of the 
 purest primitive times." 
 
 Justice to Archbishop Spottiswood requires that he should 
 be excepted from the number of the fiery and proud prelates 
 mentioned by David Buchanan. He says, in his History, " Mr 
 Knox was certainly a man endowed with rare gifts, and was a 
 chief instrument whom God used for the work of those times. 
 Many good men have disliked some of his opinions touching 
 the authority of princes, and the form of government which he 
 laboured to have established in the church ; yet was he far from 
 those dotages wherein some men, who wished to have been 
 thought his followers, did afterwards fall ; for never was any 
 man more observant of church authority than he was, always 
 urging the obedience of ministers to their superintendants ; for 
 which he caused divers acts to be made by the assemblies of the 
 church, and shewed himself severe to the transgressors." 
 
 it is necessary, however, to observe, that the peremptory re- 
 fusals of the presbyterians of Scotland to comply with requisi- 
 tions by which Spottiswood, when instigated by the king, and 
 by Archbishop Laud of Canterbury, afterwards endeavoured to 
 
MR JOHN KNOX. 151 
 
 abridge their liberty of conscience, ought not to have been called 
 " dotages." It is observable, that Spottiswood passes no cen- 
 sure on Mr Knox tor the rough manner in which he spake to 
 persons in power : He seems to have considered that, in this re- 
 spect, in the then unpolished state of society, the Scottish re- 
 former was not singular. What follows, was indeed what might 
 have been expected from a courtier and an archbishop, who was 
 firmly attached to his own opinions, and, at the same time, not 
 uncharitable towards those who differed from him. " In the 
 things in which Mr Knox was mistaken, it should be remem- 
 bered that the best of men have their errors, and that none 
 should esteem any man above that which is fitting." 
 
 In the life of IVlr Knox which is prefixed to that edition of 
 his history which was printed at Edinburgh in 1732, are con- 
 tained many testimonies from foreign divines to the excellency 
 of his character, and his usefulness in the ministry. Ridley, 
 Strype, Calvin, Beza, Melchior Adamus, and Jacobus Verheiden, 
 are all quoted in that publication. 1 propose only to translate 
 the testimony given to him by a learned Scotsman, in 1579* Mr 
 Thomas Smeton, whom I have already mentioned. 
 
 Mr Smeton was a native of Gask, in Perthshire, and, before 
 his conversion from popery, was some years in the society of the 
 Jesuits at Rome. He was made principal of the college of 
 Glasgow in 1580, and died, in the prime of life, in 1583. When 
 speaking of Mr Knox, he says, " I know not if God ever placed 
 in a weak, frail, and small body, (infragili ct imbecillo co)-pusciilo,) 
 a mind more pious, and of greater capacity. I know that no man 
 easily can be found, in whom the gifts of the Holy Spirit of 
 God did more illustriously shine, for the comfort of the Scot- 
 tish church. No man ever less spared himself, in undergoing 
 labours, both of mind and body, and was more attentive to the 
 duties of the sacred office committed to him ; yet no man was 
 ever more assaulted, while he lived, with the hatred of ungodly 
 men, and wounded with the calumnies of evil speakers. But his 
 greatness of mind was such, that he went on in a straight course, 
 with increased boldness. The instruments of Satan have not 
 thought it enough to defame him while living; they now seek 
 to pour infamy upon him after his death. Certainly in him 
 God hath shewed to us a rule how we should live, and how we 
 should die, though profane persons speak against it." 
 
 " The instruments of Satan," mentioned by Mr Smeton, were 
 the papists, who were Mr Knox's most inveterate enemies. 
 
 It is to be noticed, that Mr Smeton wrote the above in an- 
 swer to Archibald Hamilton, an apostate to popery, who had 
 published a most false account of the manner of Mr Knox's 
 death. 
 
 It now remains that I should give an account of Mr Knox's 
 
152 MR JOHN KNOX. 
 
 family and writings. His first wife, as I have formerly men- 
 tioned, was Margery Bowes, an Englishwoman. Their two sons, 
 Nathaniel and Eleazer, were educated at the university of Cam- 
 bridge. Nathaniel was admitted a fellow in St John's college, 
 in that university, in 1577, and died in 1580. Eleazer v, as a 
 fellow of that same college in 1579; was made vicar of Clag* 
 ton-Magna in 1587 ; died in 1591 ; and was buried in the 
 chapel of the said college. Mr Knox's daughter, by his first 
 marriage, was married to Mr Robert Pont, minister of St Cuth- 
 berts, one of the senators of the college of justice. 
 
 I also mentioned, that Mr Knox's second wife was Mrs Mar- 
 garet Stewart, daughter of Andrew, third Lord Ochiltree. Her 
 eldest brother, Andrew, was fourth Lord Ochiltree. Her se- 
 cond brother, James, was a man distinguished in the Scottish 
 history. He was captain of the king's guards, a favourite of 
 King James VI., who created him Earl of Arran, and, ior some 
 years, was the chief, but an unworthy, minister of state. 
 
 Mr Knox's children by his second wife were three daughters. 
 Elizabeth, the eldest, was married to Mr John Welch, minister 
 of Ayr, who was zealous in the cause of presbytery, and suffered 
 persecution. The second was married to Mr James Fleming, 
 minister of St Bothans, alias Yester, in East Lothian, who has 
 the character of having been a plain and ** single-hearted man," 
 and who, by his second wife, was father to Mr Robert Fleming, 
 some time minister of Rotterdam, in Holland, who wrote the 
 celebrated book " on the fulfilling of the Scriptures." The third 
 daughter, perhaps, died unmarried. 
 
 Both Mr Knox's wives were godly women, and much esteem- 
 ed. Some time after Mr Knox's death, Mrs Margaret Stewart 
 was married to Sir Andrew Ker of Faudownside. Mr Knox's 
 family had been left ill provided. The General Assembly, 
 therefore, in 1573, gave their consent that Mrs Knox and her 
 three daughters should have an annual pension of five hundred 
 merks money, and, out of the church tythes, two chalders wheat, 
 six chalders barley, and four chalders oats. 
 
 In looking into the genealogical account of the Knoxes, I 
 find that William, minister of Cockpen, brother of the reformer, 
 was the progenitor of fourteen ministers of the church of Scot- 
 land, the last of whom, that I have known, was the late Mr James 
 Knox, minister of Scoon. 
 
 A LIST OF MR KNOX S WRITINGS. 
 
 In the possession of Mr Wodrow, the historian, were two 
 manuscript volumes of Mr Knox's works, copied by John Gray, 
 clerk to the General Assembly, " for the use of Mrs Margaret 
 Stewart, Mr Knox's widow," 
 
MR JOHN KNOX. l5o 
 
 The first volume is in folio. It contains, 1. " Preparations 
 to Prayer," (consisting of four sheets). 2. " The Sixth Psalm, 
 expounded," (consisting of ten sheets,)" dated, hy Mr Knox, Ja- 
 nuary 31, 1553-4, when he was leaving England." 3. " The 
 Epistle sent to the Congregations in England." 4. " The Epistle 
 sent to the Faithful in London, Newcastle, and Berwick, dated 
 when on his departure from Dieppe, 1553-4." 
 
 The second volume is in quarto, consisting of 518 pages. In 
 the title page it is said, " This book belonged some time to 
 Margaret Stewart, widow of Mr Knox, afterwards married to 
 the knight of Faudownside ; sister she was to James, Earl of 
 Arran." 
 
 It contains, 1. " Mr Knox's Confession before the Bishop 
 of Durham, April 4, 1550." 2. " His Summary Declaration 
 Concerning the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper." 3. " A De- 
 claration what true Prayer is." 4. " The Exposition of the Sixth 
 Psalm." 5. " John Knox to the Faithful in London, &c." 6. 
 " His Admonition to the Professors in England." 7- " Certain 
 Epistles and Letters of that servant of God, John Knox, sent 
 from cavers places to his friends and familiars in Jesus Christ. 
 These epistles are forty-six in number, written from the year 
 1563 to the year 1557-" 
 
 Dr M'Kenzie, in his Lives of the Scottish Writers, gives the 
 following catalogue of the Works written by Mr Knox. 
 
 1. " The History of the Reformation of the Church of Scot- 
 land. London, 1584 and 1644." 
 
 2. " The First Blast of the Trumpet against the monstrous 
 Regiment of Women. Frankfort, 1558." 
 
 3. " The Answer to an Anabaptist's Cavillations against Pre- 
 destination. London, 1591-" 
 
 4. " The Appellation of John Knox from the cruel and most 
 unjust Sentence, &c. Geneva, 1558." 
 
 5. " An Admonition to the true Professors of the Gospel in 
 England. Said to be printed at Rome, but really at Geneva, 
 in 1554." 
 
 6. " The Admonition of John Knox to his beloved Brethren 
 the Commonalty of Scotland." 
 
 7. " A Letter delivered to Queen Mary, Regent of Scotland, 
 in 1556; augmented in 1558." 
 
 8. " A Sermon upon Isaiah, xxvi. 14 — 17." 
 
 9. " An Answer to a Letter written by James Tyrie, a Jesuit. 
 Edinburgh, 1568." (N. B. James Tyrie, a Jesuit, who was born 
 in the north of Scotland, wrote a letter to his brother, in sup- 
 port of the popish religion. Mr Knox wrote an answer to this 
 letter ; and, in 1573, which was the year after Mr Knox's death, 
 was published at Paris, <f The Refutation of an Answer made 
 
154 MR JOHN KNOX. 
 
 by Schir (Sir) John Knox to an Letter sent by James Tayre 
 (Tyrie) to his umquhile (late) brother.") 
 
 Dr M'Kenzie adds to his above list of Mr Knox's writings, 1. 
 "A Treatise against the Anabaptists." 2. "Two Treatises against 
 the Mass." 3. " A Treatise against the Eucbarist," (probably 
 objecting to the name). 4. " Sermons upon Genesis." 5. " An 
 Exhortation to all Afflicted Churches." 6. " An Advice in Time 
 of Trouble." 
 
 In the three following books, which are also mentioned by 
 Dr M'Kenzie, Mr Knox only bore his share in writing, along 
 with other divines. 1. " First Book of Discipline." <i. u Con- 
 fession of Faith." 3. " Liturgy, or Book of Common Order." 
 
 Most of the books written by Mr Knox are not now easily to 
 be met with ; but they were formerly much relished, and in the 
 hands of many. David Buchanan, who was well acquainted 
 with them, says, after having enumerated some of them, " These 
 refreshing streams of his Christian labours are like most precious 
 ointment, the fragrant savour whereof doth exceedingly rejoice 
 the hearts of Christ's faithful members." 
 
 With regard to what is called " Knox's History of the Refor- 
 mation in Scotland," it appears, from Nicolson's " Scottish His- 
 torical Library," and from the Life of Knox prefixed to the edi- 
 tion in 1 732, that the first Book of the History was written almost 
 entirely by Mr Knox himself; that the second, third, and fourth 
 Books were principally compiled by his amanuensis, Bichard 
 Bannatyne, partly from Mr Knox's loose papers, and partly from 
 what Bannatyne and others were able to recollect. The fifth 
 Book is supposed to have been written by David Buchanan. 
 
 I have not received any satisfactory information concerning 
 Mr David Buchanan, the early writer of Mr Knox's History. 
 He was not a clergyman, but a religious gentleman, and well 
 affected to the presbyterian church. His Preface to his edition 
 of Knox's History, in 1644, shews that he was singularly well 
 acquainted with the aucient history of Scotland. Perhaps he 
 was that David Buchanan who is mentioned by Dr M'Kenzie 
 as having heard the dying speeches of George Buchanan, the 
 historian, in 1582, and who, Dr M'Kenzie says, lived to a great 
 age. He must have been very young at the time of George 
 Buchanan's death ; for he was living at the beginning of the 
 civil wars, in the reign of Charles I. 
 
 I find that William Buchanan of Auchmar, in his Genealogy 
 of the Families of the surname of Buchanan, gives what I sup- 
 pose to be an account of this same old gentleman. He says, 
 " Mr David Buchanan, second son of William Buchanan of 
 Arnpryor, was a gentleman of great learning. He flourished" 
 (that is, as a writer,) " in the latter part of the reign of King 
 James VI., and beginning of the reign of King Charles I. He 
 
MR JOHN KNOX. 155 
 
 wrote a large natural history, which was not completed at the 
 author's death, and therefore never printed, to the great loss of 
 the learned and curious. He wrote also a large etymologicon 
 of all the shires, cities, rivers, and mountains in Scotland, which 
 was printed, though not in many hands ; from which I find Sir 
 Robert Sibbald quotes some passages, in his History of the 
 Shires of Stirling and Fife." 
 
 I have thus finished my account of the life of Mr John Knox, 
 from which it may appear, that he was a man of singular saga- 
 city, and of a public spirit. Corresponding to the literary laste 
 and course of education which prevailed at that period, he was 
 a man of considerable learning. His piety was exemplary, and 
 generally acknowledged ; and, in his detestation of vice, and his 
 zeal to make proselytes to the protectant faith, he was scarcely 
 equalled by any person. The blunt honesty of his reproofs, in 
 which he thought he was acting according to his duty, was not 
 indeed calculated to conciliate those who differed from him ; 
 but it pleased God to endow him with an intrepidity of mind, 
 by which he succeeded in overawing the adversaries of religion, 
 and went on, regardless of the many discouragements he met 
 with, till, in the end, he obtained a complete victory. 
 
 When we recollect his fearless and successful labours, in op- 
 position to the artifices of a popish sovereign and her adherents, 
 we may justly admire the wisdom of Providence, in raising up 
 an instrument so fit for the work which was then to be accom- 
 plished. We may join with Theodore Beza in saying, that " Mr 
 John Knox was granted to the Scots as an apostle, or special 
 messenger, furnished with gifts from above, to restore amongst 
 them the true worship of God ;" and we may gratefully add, 
 not only to restore it at the time, but to procure it to be so 
 carefull}* guarded, as that it should remain a blessing to poste- 
 rity : of the truth of which remark, we have hitherto been fa- 
 voured with the happy experience, 
 
1,55 MR JOHN ROW. 
 
 Mr JOHN ROW. 
 
 VII. Mr John Row, Minister of Perth, and 
 Commissioner of Galloway. 
 
 CHAP. I. 
 
 A curious Letter referred to, which appeared in the Edinburgh 
 Weekly Magazine. Wodrow had received several Accounts of 
 the Detection of the false Miracle. Authentic Authors and Re- 
 cords. His Birth, Education, his commencing an Advocate. 
 Goes to Rome. Eight or Nine Years there, and in other foreign 
 Parts. Returns to his own Country. The particulars of a false 
 Miracle. Chapel of Loretto. Squire Meldrum. Nunnery of 
 Sciennes. Mr Ron's Conversion from Popery. A Minister 
 among the Reformers. Thefrst Protestant Minister of Perth. 
 
 A shall now endeavour to give an account of Mr John Row ; 
 and I purpose, in doing it, to follow, as far as it shall serve me, 
 the account written of him by Archbishop Spottiswood, who 
 must have been personally acquainted with him, from the op- 
 portunities which he had of seeing him often in the company 
 of his father, Mr John Spottiswood, the superintendant of Lo- 
 thian. 
 
 With regard to the place of his birth, the date of his arrival 
 from Italy, and also some of the circumstances relating to the 
 detection of a false miracle, I must beg leave to rely on the au- 
 thority of the writer of a letter concerning him, which appeared 
 in the Edinburgh " Weekly Magazine," June 4, 1772. 
 
 The anecdote of the false miracle, as therein mentioned, had 
 indeed been before pretty generally known, especially to the 
 families who aie descended from Mr Kow. But the ingenious 
 writer, whose letter is dated from Kyle, thought proper to do- 
 
MR JOHN ROW. 157 
 
 tail it, perhaps, it may be said, rather too freely, but in a very 
 animated and entertaining manner. 
 
 I presume that he had found a relation of it, at least in its 
 leading circumstances, in one. or more of those numerous his- 
 torical books and manuscripts which were collected by Mr Ro- 
 bert Wodrow, minister of Eastwood, in the shire of Renfrew, 
 who wrote and published, in two large volumes, " A History of 
 the Sufferings of the Church of Scotland." Indeed, I am well 
 assured that Mr Wodrow received several accounts of the said 
 miracle, some of them differing in some circumstances ; and 
 that he found it, about the beginning of , the last century, at- 
 tested by an aged iady, who was a great-grand-daughter of Mr 
 Row, and widow of a minister ; and also attested by the tradi- 
 tions current among some old people of Edinburgh and its 
 neighbourhood. 
 
 The ecclesiastical histories written by Spottiswood, Calder- 
 wood, Petrie, and Keith, relate many of the public transactions 
 in which Mr Row was engaged; and the ancient records of 
 the church of Perth, which are still preserved, shew the manner 
 in which, rnorp especially during the last three years of his life, 
 his parochial labours were conducted. 
 
 Mr John Row was born in the neighbourhood of Stirling, 
 about the year 1525. There were then in Scotland several fa- 
 milies of the surname of Row, who probably were originally 
 from England, but it is not now known to which of them he be- 
 longed. His parents, however, were in such opulent circum- 
 stances, as that they could afford to him the means of a liberal 
 education. 
 
 He was taught the Latin language at the grammar-school of 
 Stirling. From thence he was sent to the university of St An- 
 drews, where he studied logic and philosophy, but soon applied 
 himself chiefly to the study of the civil and canon laws. He 
 took, in that university, the degree of master of arts, and after- 
 wards entered as an advocate in the diocesan court of St An- 
 drews, in which much business was at that time transacted. His 
 pleadings may be supposed to have commenced within the two 
 last years of Cardinal Beaton, and they were continued about 
 four years under the presidency of Archbishop Hamilton. 
 
 At last, in 1550, the fame which he had acquired by his ta- 
 lents in pleading, and his superior knowledge in the canon law, 
 was so great, that the popish clergy in Scotland made choice 
 of him as a fit person to negociate their affairs at the court of 
 Rome. He went thither accordingly, commissioned as their 
 agent ; and Spottiswood informs us, that he was graciously 
 received by Julius III., who had been elected pope in the be- 
 ginning of that year. 
 
 Spottiswood farther relates, that " he continued in foreign 
 
158 MR JOHN ROW. 
 
 parts about eight or nine years, and gained the favour of all to 
 whom he was known." According to Petrie, he was also " a 
 friar at Rome." But the multiplicity of secular affairs in which 
 he was necessarily employed, seems scarcely to have been 
 compatible with his having entered into any one of the religi- 
 ous orders. 
 
 His most intimate friend, while in Italy, was Guido Ascanius 
 Sforza, the young cardinal of Sancta Flora, who, when only 
 fifteen years of age, in 1534, had been created a cardinal by 
 Paul III. He was chancellor of the university of Padua; and, 
 in this university, at the cardinal's particular desire, Mr Row 
 took the decree of doctor in the civil and canon laws. 
 
 If he would have consented to remain longer in Italy, Spot- 
 tiswood says, " he might possibly have attained some consider- 
 able preferment ;" but, after a severe illness with which he had 
 been seized, he was advised by his physicians to have recourse 
 to his native air for the re-establishment of his health ; and he 
 was also desirous of rendering to the clergy of Scotland an ac- 
 count of his many negotiations* 
 
 In J 558, Mr Row's resolution of returning to his native 
 country having been made known to Paul IV., who was then 
 the reigning pope, he invested him with the character of his 
 nuncio, or legate, and directed him to use his utmost efforts to 
 oppose the reformation of religion, which was then making 
 progress in Scotland. 
 
 Mr Row, as nuncio, or legate from the pope, arrived from 
 Italy at Eyemouth, in Scotland, September 29, 1558. But he 
 found the whole nation in a kind of tumult, and that the re- 
 formed religion was rapidly spreading among persons of all ranks. 
 He attempted to fulfil the instructions he had received from the 
 pope, but soon, despairing of success, entertained thoughts of 
 going again to Rome. The instrument of preventing him from 
 returning to Rome was Lord James Stewart, then prior of St 
 Andrews, who was afterwards made Earl of Murray, and became 
 regent of the kingdom. 
 
 This young nobleman, who was born in 1533, had been edu- 
 cated in protestant principles, chiefly, it should seem, under 
 the care of Mr John Spottiswood, father of the archbishop of 
 that name. He perceived in Mr Row a singular degree of can- 
 dour and uprightness of mind ; and hoped that, if he could be 
 prevailed upon to remain in Scotland, he might be converted 
 from his popish principles, and become a valuable acquisition 
 on the side of the reformers. He succeeded in persuading Mr 
 Row to delay executing his purpose of leaving the country ; and 
 the issue afterwards shewed, that his hope concerning him had 
 been well founded. 
 
 Mr Row, while at Rome, had acted more as a canonist than 
 
MR JOHN ROW. 15§ 
 
 a divine. He seems to have been an implicit believer in what- 
 ever the Roman church declared to be a part of true religion. 
 Ivo free inquiry was there allowed ; and no zealous detecter of 
 pious frauds dared to appear. But matters were now quite dif- 
 ferent in Scotland. Freedom in debate was daily exercised ; 
 the knowledge of true religion was continually increasing ; and 
 there were shrewd persons who watched the actions of the 
 priests and friars, and were ready to expose the artifices which 
 they made use of for deceiving the people. 
 
 This being the stale of things in this country, an incident 
 soon happened, the investigation of which produced a very se- 
 rious effect upon the mind of Mr Row ; and as it is reckoned 
 to have been, under the wise direction of the divine Providence, 
 the primary mean of Mr Row's conversion from popery, it is 
 proper that it should be circumstantially related. 
 
 About the year 1549, a poor, friendless boy, of whose birth 
 
 {Mobably his parents had been ashamed, tended the sheep be- 
 onging to the nuns of Sienna, or Scienues, about a quarter of a 
 mile south from Edinburgh. It was one of his childish amuse- 
 ments to turn up the white of his eyes, and, in doing it, he suc- 
 ceeded so well, as to be able, at his pleasure, to make himself 
 appear perfectly blind. The nuns observed him in his amuse- 
 ment, and spake of it to some priests and friars who were their 
 visitors. It immediately occurred to them, that, if proper care 
 were taken of this young person, he might, in course of time, 
 become the fit subject of a miracle. 
 
 The innocent child was secreted from public view, it has been 
 said, seven or eight years, and mostly in one of the cells, or some 
 retired apartment of the convent. At the end of that number 
 of years, his stature and features were so much altered, as that 
 he could not easily be recollected by the very few persons who 
 formerly had known him. He was now judged to be of a proper 
 age to be sent forth as a blind mendicant, and to receive instruc- 
 tions how he should behave. A person was hired to conduct 
 him, who believed him to have been born blind, and to have 
 been hitherto supported chiefly by charitable contributions from 
 the ladies of Sienna. 
 
 The simple young man, who scarcely knew of any other 
 people in the world than those under whose tuition he had long 
 been held, readily promised to obey their injunctions. They 
 bound him by a solemn, but rash vow, to affect blindness, and 
 to beg alms, till they should advertise him to the contrary. He 
 kept his promise, and, for a considerable space of time, was led 
 through the country, receiving such alms as benevolent people 
 were pleased to give him. 
 At last the period arrived when those priests and friars who 
 
Ib'O MR JOHN ROW. 
 
 were in the secret of his not being really blind, thought it ex- 
 pedient that he should be released from his hard condition. 
 
 In the end of the year 1558, and also in the beginning of the 
 year 155Q, the popish clergy of Scotland, in concurrence with 
 the queen-regent and her counsellors, were making some extrar 
 ordinary efforts to recover to their church its former influence 
 and security. The protestant preachers were laid under prose- 
 cution. Proclamations were issued, enjoining all the people, of 
 whatever rank or profession, as they would not incur severe pe- 
 nalties, to keep, with the utmost strictness, and in the ancient 
 manner, the religious festivals, especially the ensuing Easter. 
 And as the power of working miracles had always been claimed 
 by the church of Rome, and often, as a proof of its being the 
 true church, seemingly exercised, it was judged proper that, 
 among the other miracles which might then be pretended, the 
 pupil of the nuns should be brought forward, to be openly cured 
 of his apparent blindness. 
 
 I shall previously give an account of the place made choice 
 of for the performance of this miracle, as it may serve to shew 
 the policy of the appointment. And if I should seem to give a 
 more diffuse account than is absolutely necessary, I hope for in- 
 dulgence, as it is of importance to know the miserable state, with 
 regard to religion and morals, in which the poor ignorant people 
 were detained in the years preceding the reformation ; and that 
 we should be sensible of what we owe to the memory of our re- 
 formers, who, through the goodness of God, were indefatigable 
 in their endeavours to rescue their countrymen from the dark- 
 ness and dangerous superstition which then prevailed. 
 
 A.t the east end of the village of Musselburgh, in Mid Lo- 
 thian, was a celebrated chapel, dedicated to the honour of the 
 Virgin Mary. Its proper name was Loretto, but it was vulgarly 
 called Alareit, or Lawreit. There was also a chapel of the same 
 name in Perth ; and many credulous people in the Lothians, 
 and at Perth, as well as the people of Loretto in Italy, be- 
 lieved that their chapel contained within it the identical small 
 brick-built house in which the blessed mother of our Lord had 
 dwelt when at Nazareth ; and that it had been miraculously 
 conveyed, and upheld entire, from its original seat by the mi- 
 nistry of angels. 
 
 Mr Henry Adamson, in his Metrical History and Description 
 of Perth, mentions it as the ancient opinion of his townsmen, 
 that the Virgin Mary's house in their chapel was first conveyed 
 from Nazareth to Rome, and afterwards " from Rome's Vatican 
 transported to Perth." And then he adds, in a way of irony, 
 " Ye know that the cloyster monks write never a leasing," (viz. 
 any lies). 
 
 H 
 
MR JOHN ROW. 161 
 
 Though it was contrary to the real doctrine of the church of 
 Rome, yet there were many priests and friars, who, in the ex- 
 travagance of their zeal, and for selfish purposes, encouraged 
 the people in a fond persuasion, that a supernatural power, de- 
 rived from the saints, was inherent in their images. The poor 
 people were thereby betrayed into the grossest idolatry ; and 
 they consequently thought that the image of the Virgin Mary, 
 placed where her original habitation now was, possessed from 
 her a greater energy than her image in any other church or 
 chapel. 
 
 But, besides her image, and what was supposed to have been 
 her house, another mean of attracting crowds of worshippers to 
 the chapel of Loretto, at Musselburgh, was " Thomas," com- 
 monly called " the Hermit of Lawreit." He was famous through 
 the kingdom for being a performer of miracles. " By him," 
 Sir David Lindsay of the Mount says, " the people believed that 
 the blind got sight, and the crooked," that is, the lame, " got 
 feet." It was in the name of this hermit, that Alexander, Earl 
 of Glencairn, while Lord Kilmaurs, addressed to the brethren 
 of the Gray, viz. Franciscan friars, the ludicrous and satirical 
 epistle which we find inserted in Knox's History. 
 
 Sir David Lindsay of the Mount, who died an old man, in 
 1553, takes the following notice of this chapel and its hermit, 
 in what is called his " Exclamation against Idolatry." 
 
 " I have seen a marvellous multitude, 
 Young men and women singing on their feet, 
 
 Under the form of feigned sanctitude, 
 For to adore an image in Lawreit : 
 
 " Many came with their fellows for to meet, 
 Committing their foul fornication." 
 
 He then adds, that they kissed " the clagged tail," or soiled 
 border of the hermit's garment. 
 
 It was therefore at this well-frequented chapel, and where 
 miracles were most commonly expected to be seen, that the 
 pupil of the nuns was to receive his sight. Public intimation 
 of the miracle to be performed was given in Edinburgh, and in 
 the neighbouring parts; and, on the day appointed, a prodigious 
 number of people were assembled. 
 
 They found that there was a stage erected on the outside of 
 the chapel. Having waited a little while, they beheld, led for- 
 ward upon this stage, the seemingly-blind young man, whom 
 many of them knew, and whose blindness they had probably 
 often pitied. He was accompanied by priests and friars, and, no 
 doubt, also by Thomas the Hermit, if he was then alive. After 
 some time being spent in the use of prayers and ceremonies, his 
 
 L 
 
162 JiR JOHN ROW. 
 
 eyes, to the satisfaction of the multitude, appeared to be per- 
 fectly restored. 
 
 The young man, who had long been restricted from employ- 
 ing honest means for his subsistence, now sincerely rejoiced. 
 He returned thanks to the priests and friars ; and, when he 
 came down from the stage, was caressed and congratulated by 
 the people, some of whom gave him money. 
 
 But amongst the multitude there was a protestant gentleman, 
 who had come all the way from Fife, not indeed to witness the 
 miracle, but to prevent a superstitious offering, which his lady, 
 who was a papist, had sent by a servant to this ehapel of Loret- 
 to. Her motive was, that the Virgin Mary might be induced 
 to assist her in her child-bearing. 
 
 The surname, or the name of the estate of this gentleman is 
 said to have been Meldrum ; and he is said to have been com- 
 monly denominated Squire Meldrum ; probably in allusion to 
 the title which had been given to the famous hero in one of Sir 
 David Lindsay's poetical pieces. He possessed a great deal of 
 good sense, and a brave, manly spirit. He had beheld with in- 
 dignation what had passed upon the stage; and being persua- 
 ded in his mind that a base imposition had been practised, he de- 
 termined that it should be investigated and made known. 
 
 He accosted the young man, speaking to him in an affable 
 manner. He gave him some money, and then offered to hire 
 him to be one of his servants; and the young man, who knew 
 no better thing that he could do, very gladly accepted the pro- 
 posal. The squire took him along with him immediately to 
 Edinburgh ; and there, in the inn where the}' lodged, having 
 called him into a private chamber, he prevailed with him, it has 
 been said, by threatening his life, to break his former unlawful 
 promise, and to confess that he never was blind. 
 
 The young man, much humbled and intimidated, related all 
 that had happened to him in the nunnery ; and then, turning 
 up the white of his eyes, he shewed to the squire how well he 
 could act the part of a blind person. 
 
 We have been told, that the squire, the next morning, took 
 him to the cross of Edinburgh, where, standing by him, with 
 his sword in his hand, to protect him, he caused him to call the 
 people around him, and to proclaim that he never was blind, 
 and that the miracle which was supposed to have been perform- 
 ed upon him, on the preceding day, at Loretto, was a fraud, art- 
 fully and wickedly contrived by the popish party. 
 
 The squire, however, that the young man might avoid suffer- 
 ing any injury from the resentment of the priests and friars, 
 hastened with him from Edinburgh ; and when arrived with him 
 at his seat in the county of Fife, he continued to be his protec- 
 tor, and to employ him in his service. 
 
IfR JOHN ROW. 163 
 
 It happened that, within a few days, Mr Row came to Mel- 
 drum's house, on a visit to the lady, whom Mr Row believed 
 to be still a papist. They entered into a conversation about the 
 miracles pretended toby the church of Rome; and speaking of 
 the recent miracle at Loretto, Mr Row said, he had no doubt 
 of its having been a true miracle. The squire told him, that 
 the man on whom it was thought to be performed was now a 
 servant in his family, and could convince him of the trick that 
 had been practised. At the command of his master, the servant 
 came into the room. He related to Mr Row, as he had former- 
 ly done to the squire, the particulars of the treatment he had 
 met with, and also shewed him how easily he could make him- 
 self to appear wholly blind. 
 
 Mr Row was astonished, and justly ashamed. Agreeably to 
 his general character of uprightness and humanity, he detested 
 the dishonesty of his popish brethren, in the instance now 
 brought to his knowledge, and the cruelty they had exercised 
 on the poor young man. 
 
 According to the letter from Kyle, on the authorily of which 
 I have relied for some minute particulars, the squire, making 
 use of some strong expressions, very vehemently charged Mr 
 Row not to stifle any convictions he might feel of the falsity of 
 his religion. Mr Row, having made little or no reply, went 
 home in a pensive frame of mind. 
 
 He was now more disposed than before to consider impartially 
 the controversies then subsisting between the protestants and 
 papists. The points in debate he brought to the test of sacred 
 scripture, and became daily more enlightened in the knowledge 
 of the truth. 
 
 When Mr Knox arrived in Scotland, in May, 1559, Mr Row 
 willingly heard him preach, and held frequent and free con- 
 versations with him. At length, being fully convinced of the 
 scripture grounds of the protestant principles, he professed him- 
 self a convert from popery : and he not only embraced the truth, 
 but wished to be instrumental to the conversion of others. The 
 diffidence which he entertained of his being properly qualified 
 was overcome by the reformed party, who judged him tit to be 
 received as a public teacher ; and Spoltiswood says, it was par- 
 ticularly " by the persuasion of John Knox that he betook him- 
 self to the ministry." 
 
 His open confession of the protestant religion, I apprehend, 
 took place about the end of summer, 1559. It was then that 
 the protestant lords, with their preachers, and other adherents, 
 had made a successful progress through the county of Fife, and, 
 especially, had settled the city of St Andrews in a state of re- 
 formation. 
 
l04 Mil JOHN HOW. 
 
 For some time, Mr Row, like the other protestant ministers 
 at that period, was an itinerant preacher of the gospel in diffe- 
 rent parts or' the country, but especially in Perth and its neigh- 
 bourhood, where he became well known. The eloquence for 
 which he bad been celebrated, he now piously devoted to the 
 service of the true religion. Being mild in bis temper, and of 
 polished manners, from his having been long resident in foreign 
 parts, he was, as a reformer, highly acceptable to persons of all 
 ranks ; and a particular degree of attention was paid to his teach- 
 ing, as he had once been the commissioned opponent of those 
 doctrines which he now maintained. 
 
 In the end of April, 1560, he was one of those six ministers to 
 whom the lords of the congregation gave a solemn charge, " to 
 commit to writing, in a book, their judgments touching there- 
 formation of religion." He was thereby one of the compi- 
 lers of the old Confession of Faith, and of the first Book of Dis- 
 cipline. 
 
 The committee of parliament, in July, 1560, allotted him to 
 the ministry of Perth, where the determined purpose of refor- 
 mation bad first been openly avowed. He for some time offici- 
 ated at Kiiconquhar, in Fife, but soon after betook himself to 
 the town and parish to which he had been nominated. As mi- 
 nister of Perth, he was present in the first General Assembly of 
 the church of Scotland, which met at Edinburgh, December '20, 
 1560. 
 
 His grandson, John Row, who, after being minister of Old 
 Aberdeen, was made, in the time of Oliver Cromwell, principal 
 of the college there, was, for some years, in the more early part 
 of his life, rector of the grammar-school of Perth. While mas- 
 ter of that school, he published a Hebrew Grammar, in 1639- 
 In the dedication of his Grammar, to George Earl of Kinnoull, 
 a part of what he says, when translated, is as follows : 
 
 " I mention things that are known. My grandfather, a man 
 of distinguished fame among the papists, was sent into Scotland 
 by the sovereign pontiff, about the time of the reformation, to 
 oppose the dawnings of the gospel light, and to endeavour to sup- 
 press them. But it happened according to what we are in use 
 proverbially to say, ' Ecce corvum legatum,' Behold the crow 
 legate. 
 
 " Gamaliel's apophthegm is not more ancient than true, that 
 they who fight against God cannot hinder his work; for this 
 same messenger was caught in the gospel-net, allured by the 
 pure, godly, and pathetic preaching of the famous Knox, and 
 was happily delivered from the miry clay, and corruption of 
 popery. 
 
 " He went no more to Rome, but, with entire approbation, 
 governed the church of that city, in the school of which I now 
 preside. He there grew old, dear both to God and to men." 
 
SIR JOHN ROW. 
 
 165 
 
 CHAP. n. 
 
 His Assembly Transactions. His Remonstrance to Queen Mary, 
 Other such Transactions. Elected Commissioner of Galloway, 
 Receives a Grant for the Foundation of an Hospital at Perth, 
 Mr Alexander Young, Prior of Tullilum, and Minister of'Tib- 
 bermuir. Mr Roze censured for Celebrating an Irregular Mar- 
 riage. The Influence which William, Lord Ruthven, afterwards 
 Earl of Gowrie, had over him. His Health declines. Commis- 
 sioned to excommunicate the Earl and Countess of Atholl, 
 
 A history of the life of Mr John Row, after his conversion 
 from popery, might include in it a history of the reformed church 
 of Scotland till very near the time of his death. He was almost 
 constantly a member of the General Assemblies, was at least 
 four times chosen their moderator, and, being a member of 
 their principal committees, no ecclesiastical business of any 
 great consequence seems to have been managed without him. 
 But it is not my intention to take notice of the general affairs 
 of the church, farther than is necessary to shew, from the con- 
 cern which he had in them, the respectability of his character, 
 and the principles on which he acted. A few of those public 
 matters in which he was particularly employed may be detail- 
 ed, as follows : 
 
 June 2Q, 1562, Mr John Row, minister of Perth, and Mr 
 Christopher Goodman, minister of St Andrews, were commis-^ 
 sioned to assist John Erskine of Dun, superintendant of Angus 
 and Mearns, in the visitation of the sheriffdoms of Aberdeen 
 and Banff. It may be observed, that, in these two shires, there, 
 was then great need of ecclesiastical visitors, and of other mi* 
 nisters to preach the gospel ; for, in the ensuing year, Mr Er? 
 skine earnestly entreated Mr Knox to come to the northern 
 parts, and to remain in them for some time; " for," said he, " the 
 preaching of the word is in these parts very precious," 
 
166 MR JOHN ROW. 
 
 December G5, 1 565, Mr Row, as u a commissioner of the 
 country," was appointed " to visit kirks, schools, and colleges ; 
 to remove or suspend ministers, readers, and exhorters, as they 
 should be found offensive or unable; and to eradicate idolatry." 
 His jurisdiction was at this time to extend over " Kyle, Carrick, 
 and Cunninghame." But as these districts were at a consider- 
 able distance from his parochial charge at Perth, John Erskine 
 of Dun,superintendant of Angus and Mearns, and Mr John Win- 
 lam, superintendant of Fife, were appointed by the Assembly to 
 supply alternately his place in Perth, during his absence. 
 
 This same Assembly also honoured him with what was then 
 reckoned another very important commission, and which re- 
 quires to be explained. The queen had given unsatisfactory an- 
 swers to a petition which had been presented to her in the 
 name of the church. She had refused to change her religion, 
 and to forbid her subjects, under civil penalties, to attend the 
 popish worship, in any place where it should happen to be per- 
 formed. She had also declared her resolution of still retaining 
 the greatest part of the church benefices in her own hands, as 
 she needed, she said, their rents and emoluments for maintain- 
 ing her state and dignity, and defraying the expences of her 
 household. 
 
 But the protestant ministers were thereby living in a condition 
 of the most abject poverty. The third part of the tythes which 
 had been assigned them was badly paid. Nothing but a most 
 ardent desire of preaching the gospel, and promoting the spi- 
 ritual welfare of the people, could have induced them, in their 
 present circumstances, to continue in the exercise of their sacred 
 office, without having recourse to some secular employment, 
 for the better subsistence of themselves and their families. 
 
 Most of the members of the Assembly were sharing deeply in 
 this distress : all of them were solicitous that relief in this mat- 
 ter should be afforded. The step which they now reckoned 
 most expedient, was to prepare an address, containing answers 
 to the queen, which, they seemed to think, if it were written in 
 a mild and affectionate manner, might be accompanied with a 
 good effect. 
 
 They made choice of Mr Row, as a person well qualified for 
 executing such a work. " The haill Assembly," that is, the As- 
 sembly unanimously, " appointed Mr Row, atSl Johnstone," (viz. 
 Perth,) " to write answers to the answers given by the queen 
 to the articles presented to her highness by the commissioners 
 of the last Assembly of the kirk ; because her highness's answers 
 had not fully satisfied the kirk. Also, the said Mr John is re- 
 quired to present them to the Assembly to-morrow, after the 
 preaching, that they may be advised upon, and considered, be- 
 fore they shall be presented to her grace." 
 
MR JOHN ROW. 167 
 
 Mr Row accord ingly, the next day, shewed to the /issembly 
 what he had written ; who, having approved of it, deputed him, 
 along with the superintendants of Lothian and Fife, and Mr 
 David Lindsay, minister of Leith, all of them persons well 
 esteemed at court, to present to the queen the Kirk's answers, or 
 what might more properly have been called the Kirk's address, 
 or remonstrance. 
 
 In Knox's History, notice is taken of the behaviour of these 
 commissioners. " They easily," says he, " obtained audience 
 of the king and queen," (viz. of the queen, and her husband, 
 Lord Darnley). " After reverence done, Mr John Row, in name 
 of the rest, opened the matter, lamenting and bewailing the mi- 
 serable state of the poor ministers." In his speech he adverted 
 likewise to the change which the queen had beendesired'to make 
 in her religion ; and then, it should seem, presented, in the name 
 of the Assembly, the written address. 
 
 It has been celebrated for its singular moderation, especially 
 in one point, as well as for the pious and persuasive strain in 
 which it was conceived. Archbishop Spottiswood, whose fa- 
 ther was one of those who presented it, has given an abridge- 
 ment of it, changing some phrases which appeared to him to be 
 obsolete. Bishop Keith has inserted in his history a full cop} r , 
 as it was sent to him, transcribed from a manuscript in the Cot- 
 ton library. It is too long to be here given, but some para- 
 graphs may be selected, as specimens of Mr Row's temper of 
 mind, and style of writing. 
 
 " First," it is said, "whereas her majest}^ has answered, that 
 she is not persuaded in our religion, and that she does not un- 
 derstand that there is any impiety in the mass, but believes that 
 the same is well grounded ; — it is no small grief to the Christian 
 hearts of her godly subjects, considering that the trumpet of 
 Christ's evangel has been so long blown in this country, and 
 his mercy so plainly therein offered, that her majesty remains 
 yet unpersuaded of the truth of our religion. 
 
 " For our religion is no other than the true religion, which 
 Jesus Christ has, in these last days, revealed from the bosom 
 of his Father, whereof he made his apostles the messengers, 
 and which they preached, and have established among the faith- 
 ful, to the again coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. It differs 
 from the impiety of the Turks, the blasphemy of the Jews, and 
 the superstition of the papists, in this, that it alone has God the 
 Father, his only Son Jesus Christ our Lord, and his Holy Spirit, 
 speaking in the prophets and apostles, for authors thereof, and 
 •their doctrine for the ground of the same. 
 
 " Such ground no other religion upon the face of the earth 
 can justly allege, or plainly prove. Yea, whatsoever assurance 
 
16'8 MR JOHN ROM'. 
 
 the papists have for the maintenance of their religion, the same 
 have the Turks for the maintenance of their alcoran, and the 
 Jews far greater for the defence of their ceremonies ; whether 
 it be antiquity of time, consent of people, authority of princes, 
 a multitude (of professors) consenting thereto, or any other 
 such like cloaks as they can pretend. 
 
 " Therefore, as we are dolorous that her majesty in this our 
 religion is not persuaded, we reverently require, in the name of 
 the eternal God, that her majesty would embrace the means 
 whereby she may be persuaded of the truth ; which we present- 
 ly offer unto her grace, as well by preaching the word, which 
 is the chief mean appointed by God for persuading all his cho- 
 sen children of his infallible verity, as by public disputation 
 against the adversaries of this our religion, in presence of her 
 majesty, whensoever it will be thought expedient to her grace." 
 
 A customary invective against the mass follows : after which 
 it is said, "whereas her majesty esteems that the change of her 
 religion would dissolve the confederacy and alliance that she has 
 with the king of France and other princes; assuredly Christ's 
 true religion is the undoubted mean to knit up true confederacy 
 and friendship with Him that is the King of all kings, and Him 
 who has the hearts of all princes in his hands; which ought to 
 be more precious unto her majesty than the confederacies of all 
 the princes ; without which neither confederacy of princes nor 
 kindness can endure." 
 
 The whole of the tythes was now demanded by the Assembly, 
 as being, " by God's law," the patrimony of the church. But it 
 is remarkable, that, at this period, Mr Row was authorised and 
 directed to insert in his paper the following words: " Our mind 
 is not that her majesty, nor any other patron of this realm, 
 should be deprived of their just patronages : but we mean, that 
 whensoever her majesty, or any other patron, does present any 
 person to a benefice, the person presented should be tried and 
 examined by the judgment of learned men of the kirk, such as 
 presently are the superintendants, who are appointed thereto. 
 As the presentation of benefices pertains to the patron, so colla- 
 tion, in law and reason, ought to pertain to the kirk ; of which 
 collation the kirk should not be defrauded, more nor the pa- 
 trons of their presentation ; for otherwise, if it shall be leisum 
 (lawful) to the patrons to present whomsoever they please, with- 
 out trial or examination, what then can abide in the kirk of God 
 but mere ignorance, without all order ?" 
 
 Mr Row and the other delegates were courteously received. 
 Better payment of the ministers' stipends, it is said, was promi- 
 sed, though they still afterwards had reason to complain. But 
 the ill-advised and infatuated queen, to the great injury of her- 
 
MR JOHN ROW. 169 
 
 self and her affairs., and to the inexpressible grief of her sub- 
 jects, remained inflexibly attached to her popish tenets. 
 
 January, 1566-7, Mr Row went, in company with Alexan- 
 der Gordon, the protestant bishop of Galloway, and Mr John 
 Spottiswood, superintendant of Lothian, to the queen at Stirling, 
 where they obtained from her, and her lords of privy-council, 
 a grant of some of the emoluments which had belonged to the 
 popish church, to be now applied to the better support of the 
 ministers in the boroughs. 
 
 June, 1567, while the queen was a prisoner in the castle of 
 Lochleven, the Assembly having been informed that certain 
 lords and barons had declared themselves inclined to support 
 her cause, thought it proper that letters should be written to 
 these lords and barons, inviting them to a conference. Mr Row 
 was appointed one of those ministers who should write and sub- 
 scribe the letters ; and it was assigned to him, as his peculiar 
 province, to procure that the letters should be accurately print- 
 ed, and to deal with the persons to whom they were ordered to 
 be sent. 
 
 The Earl of Murray having been chosen regent, August 22, 
 1567, Mr Row was one of those ministers whom the Assembly 
 empowered to meet with the regent's commissioners, that they 
 might confer and decide on all such matters as related to the 
 church. 
 
 July, 1568, the Assembly elected Mr John Row to be com- 
 missioner of Galloway. The nominal bishop of Galloway was 
 Alexander Gordon, a son of the family of Huntly. He was one 
 of those popish prelates who early embraced the protestant re? 
 ligion, but the Assembly were properly jealous of allowing him 
 any degree of authority in his diocese. Mr Row, however, lived 
 in good correspondence with him, and they seem to have mu- 
 tually assisted each other. Mr Row, during all the remaining 
 years of his life, was commissioner either for one or other dis- 
 trict of the country, in which he exercised all the powers of an 
 ecclesiastical superintendant. 
 
 In 1569, Mr Row was sent, along with the superintendants 
 of Lothian and Fife, to the Duke of Chattelherault, then in his 
 palace at Hamilton, to endeavour to persuade him to relinquish 
 the interests of the popish queen, and to submit to the regency 
 of the Earl of Murray. 
 
 August 9, 156*9, Mr Row and the lay-elders of Perth had the 
 satisfaction of receiving from the Earl of Murray, regent for 
 the infant king, the first foundation-charter of what is called 
 " King James VI.'s Hospital of Perth." The funds allotted, 
 were all the revenues and emoluments which had belonged, in the 
 time of popery, to the monasteries, chapels, and altars in Perth ; 
 
170 SIR JOHN ROW. 
 
 and also whatever had been payable out of Perth and its neigh- 
 bourhood to other religious houses in the kingdom. These 
 funds were to be applied u to the sustenance and hospitality of 
 the poor members of Jesus Christ residing and abiding in the 
 burgh of Perth, and to other pious and divine uses." 
 
 The manner of government appointed for this royal hospital 
 shewed the confidence which the regent placed in Mr Row, 
 and the desire which he entertained of promoting the interests 
 of the protestant church. The ministers and elders were to be 
 the sole managers, and to enjoy in their meetings the powers 
 and privileges of a civil court. The comfort which the poor 
 have derived from this foundation appears to me to have been 
 owing, under the blessing of divine Providence, to the activity 
 and public spirit of Mr Row, who was in a state of cordial 
 friendship with this pious nobleman, and with others who were 
 among the best and most powerful persons in the kingdom. 
 
 I cannot omit observing, that, in the ancient records of this 
 hospital, it is pleasant to see how assiduous Mr Row and the ci- 
 ders were in their endeavours, against much opposition, to gain 
 possession to the poor of the revenues allotted. At the same 
 time they treated, as law allowed them, with much lenity, those 
 of the monks, and friars, and priests, and chaplains, who were 
 then alive, but who had been deprived of their property by the 
 reformation. They granted to them annual pensions, whether 
 they were continuing papists, or had become converts from pop- 
 ery. One instance only I shall mention, which may be con- 
 sidered as affording a small portion of our ecclesiastical his- 
 tory. 
 
 Mr Alexander Young had been prior of the Carmelite monas- 
 tery, commonly called the While Friars monastery, of Tullilum, 
 near Perth. He was an early convert to the protestant faith ; 
 and being a man of good character and education, he was, im- 
 mediately after the reformation, chosen to be minister of Tib- 
 bermuir. It was in that parish that his once richly endowed, 
 and superbly built monaster}' had been situated. The stipends 
 in Scotland were then exceedingly small ; and the pension which 
 Mr Row and the elders allotted to him was twenty pounds in 
 the year. 
 
 He lived long to enjoy his pension, for he was alive in the 
 year 1593> and continuing in the ministry at Tibbermuir; at 
 which time, as he had been early married, his son, Mr John 
 Young, was minister of Methven. 
 
 Mr Row, as a canonist, was generally one of those ministers 
 whom the Assembly appointed to give an opinion upon such 
 questions as related to discipline, and the powers of the church. 
 He was a member of that select committee, who, in March, 
 
MR JOHN ROW. 171 
 
 1571, reported this opinion to the assembly, — " that, as the con- 
 junction of marriages belonged to the ministry, the determina- 
 tion of the causes of adherence and divorce ought also to 
 pertain to them, as being naturally annexed thereto." 
 
 But soon afterwards, Mr Row, through the easiness of his 
 temper, gave offence to the General Assembly in a matter re- 
 lating to marriage. I am obliged to take notice of it, as Mr 
 Row's own son and grandson, and Mr Alexander Petrie, to shew 
 their impartiality with regard to the characters of our reformers, 
 have recorded it in their histories. 
 
 The particulars were as follows. February 12, 1573, were 
 married at Perth, by Mr John Row, as the Church Register 
 testifies, " David Lindsay, master of Crawford, to Lilias Drum- 
 mond, sister of my Lord Drummond." This young nobleman 
 was afterwards the ninth earl of Crawford, and the lady was 
 cousin-german to William, Lord Ruthven. 
 
 JNo proclamation of banns had taken place. The ceremony 
 was indeed performed in the church, but it was on the Thurs- 
 day, at the evening prayers, and not, as it ought to have been, 
 by the clerical law then existing, " on the Sabbath forenoon, in 
 the face of the congregation." 
 
 The irregularity, committed by such a good man as Mr Row, 
 made a great noise, and the Assembly, March 6, 1573, took 
 cognizance of it. The apology which he pleaded was, that 
 what he had done was by the command of his Church Session, 
 of which William, Lord Ruthven, provost of the town, was a 
 member, and present at the time. But the Assembly did not 
 sustain his excuse. " They ordained that the act made against 
 ministers solemnizing the marriages of other parishioners, with- 
 out proclamation of banns, sjiould have strength against John 
 Row, and that he should underly censure during the church's 
 will." 
 
 Some invidious persons also took occasion to complain, that 
 he possessed a plurality of benefices, and that they did not 
 know how the kirks were supplied. He answered, " that he 
 had vicarages, but reaped from them no profit; and he expres- 
 sed his desire of being disburthened from the commissionary of 
 Galloway." But the Assembly would not consent to grant his 
 desire. 
 
 He did not, however, remain long under the censure of the 
 church ; perhaps only for a clay ; for in that same Assembly he 
 appears to have been actively engaged, as usual, in the public 
 business. It was probably considered that his parishioner, 
 William, Lord Ruthven, who was afterwards created Earl of 
 Gowrie, was the person most to blame. This nobleman had 
 always been a warm friend to the reformed church, and was one 
 of its chief supporters. 
 
\1% MR JOHN ROW. 
 
 But it may be remarked, how very ungenerous it is, when 
 persons of a superior station, and who are of an excellent cha- 
 racter, as Lord Ruthven was, take it upon them to importune 
 ministers, in extraordinary cases, to do any thing which mini- 
 sters in any degree reckon to be irregular. 
 
 In the Assembly, at Edinburgh, March, 1574, Mr Row and 
 some others, who had been appointed as a committee, gave it as 
 their opinion, that the Assembly should declare, concerning the 
 bishops then existing, that their authority should not exceed 
 what the superintendants, commissioners of the country, or the 
 occasional visitors now enjoyed ; and that they should neither 
 visit nor exercise any jurisdiction where superintendants had 
 been provided. 
 
 During the Assembly, March, JJ75, Mr Row, whose health 
 had begun greatly to decline, was sick, and confined to bed. 
 He sent a letter to the Assembly, excusing his absence, and ac- 
 quainting them, that he had not been able " to examine Mr 
 Andrew Graham, son to the Laird of Morphie, whom the re- 
 gent, Earl of Morton, had presented to the bishopric of Dun- 
 blane." 
 
 August, 1575, Mr Row was again so well as to attend the 
 General Assembly which met at Edinburgh. A piece of busi- 
 ness was then committed to him which he could not easily ac- 
 complish. John Stewart, euil of Atholl, a lineal descendant of 
 John Stewart, commonly called " the black knight of Lorn," 
 and of Queen Jean, widow of King James L, was continuing, as 
 was also his lady, in their popish errors. 
 
 The Assembly addressed to them a letter, requiring them "to 
 seek conference with Mr John Row, and any other three or four 
 ministers, that they might be instructed in the true religion, 
 and have their doubts of it resolved ; with certification, that if 
 this was not done by them before Martinmas next, then Mr 
 Row, with the assistance of the superintendants of Angus and 
 Fife, and of the ministers of Dundee and Tibbermuir, was to 
 excommunicate them," (the earl and countess,) " in the church 
 of Dunkeld ; and if he should there be hindered, he was to do 
 it in the parish-church of Perth." 
 
 They were to be excommunicated as obstinate papists, but 
 Mr Row did not find it practicable or convenient to pronounce 
 the sentence. 
 
MR JOHN HOW. 173 
 
 CHAP. III. 
 
 Mr Andrew Melvill. Mr Row appointed to argue on the side of 
 Episcopacy. State of the Church. Principal Row's MS. con- 
 cerning the Bishops whose Powers were limited, and Mr Row's 
 Part in the Second Book of Discipline. James Boyd of Troch- 
 riv, Archbishop of Glasgow. Act of Assembly relating to the 
 Apparel of Ministers. Funeral of the Earl of Atholl. James 
 Paton, Bishop of Dunkeld. Mr Row loses his usual Meekness, in 
 a Dispute with the Earl of Morton, and some other Noblemen. 
 
 1 he arrival of Mr Andrew Melvill from Geneva, in July, 1574, 
 had afforded a considerable degree of encouragement to those 
 ministers and others who were adverse to the increase of epis- 
 copal jurisdiction. 
 
 This famous man, to whose exertions the presbyterian cause 
 was much indebted, came to supply the loss which had been 
 sustained by the death of Mr John Knox. He had been absent 
 from his native country about ten years, during which time he 
 had taught philosophy and theology in Geneva, and at Poictiers, 
 in France. Besides his knowledge in divinity and other sciences, 
 he possessed an entire acquaintance with the learned languages ; 
 and that he excelled as a Latin poet, appears from his poems 
 published in the " Delicia; Poetarum Scotorum." But he was 
 impetuous in his temper, and affected a freedom in his words 
 and manners, probably in imitation of Mr Knox, which brought 
 him in the end into a remediless state of trouble. 
 
 Theodore Beza, the successor of Calvin, sent along with him. 
 letters of recommendation, which also helped to rouse the al- 
 most-sleeping zeal of the presbyterians in Scotland. 
 
 Mr Andrew Melvill was a member of the Assembly at Edin- 
 burgh, August, 1575. In this Assembly, Mr John Durie, one 
 of the ministers of Edinburgh, of whom I gave a short me- 
 moir, inserted in the fifth volume of the Religious Monitor, pro- 
 posed this question, which he thought should be discussed, 
 viz. " Whether bishops, as now allowed in Scotland, had their 
 
174 Mil JOHN ROW. 
 
 function from the word of God ?' According to Spottiswood, 
 it was at Mr Melvill's instigation that Mr Durie proposed this 
 question. Mr Melvill seconded it, in a speech, in which he re- 
 presented to the Assembly the pure and scriptural kind of church- 
 government which was exercised in Geneva, and among the 
 protestants in France. 
 
 Several members delivered their opinions, which were different 
 from one another. At last it was agreed, that three respectable 
 ministers on each side of the question should be chosen, fully to 
 debate on the subject of it, and then to report an opinion in 
 which all might concur. 
 
 On the side of episcopal government were appointed Mr 
 George Hay, at that time commissioner of Caithness ; Mr John 
 Row, minister of Perth ; and Mr David Lindsay, minister of 
 Leith. On the side of the government of the church by pres- 
 byters, or ministers of equal authority, were appointed Mr John 
 Craig, then minister of Aberdeen; Mr James Lawson, one of 
 the ministers of Edinburgh ; and Mr Andrew Melvill, at that 
 time principal of the college of Glasgow. 
 
 This able committee argued two whole days. In the end, 
 they reported to the Assembly, that they could not at present 
 answer directly to the question proposed ; only they agreed in 
 their judgment, that the name or title of a bishop properly be- 
 longs to every minister of a parish ; also, that if those persons 
 who were now commonly called bishops should be found by 
 the Assembly not sufficiently qualified, they ought to be de- 
 posed ; but, in the mean time, because of the present circum- 
 stances of the church, they judged it expedient that commis- 
 sioners, or superintendants, should continue to be allotted to the 
 several districts in the kingdom. The Assembly approved of 
 the diligence of their committee, and of the judgment they had 
 expressed. 
 
 Mr Petrie says, that " in this Assembly were six bishops, be- 
 sides superintendants, yet not one of them opposed the sifting 
 of this question, nor the conclusions." 
 
 We learn from Archbishop Spottiswood, who was much dis- 
 pleased with this occurrence in our church history, which in- 
 deed gave a new turn to the affairs of the presbyterian church, 
 and for a long time was, in its consequences, entirely detri- 
 mental to episcopacy, that there were present, James Boyd of 
 Trochrig, archbishop of Glasgow ; James Paton, bishop of 
 Dunkeld ; Alexander Gordon, bishop of Galloway ; Alexander 
 Campbell, bishop of Brechin ; Andrew Graham, bishop of 
 Dunblane; and John Carswell, bishop of the Isles; also, John 
 Spottiswood, superintendant of Lothian, and John Erskine 
 of Dun, superintendant of Angus. Some of these were in- 
 
 12 
 
MR JOHN ROW. 175 
 
 deed among the men who bore the very best character in the 
 church. 
 
 But he reflects upon them with a good deal of asperity, on 
 account of their silence upon this occasion, though his own fa- 
 ther, the superintend ant of Lothian, was in the number. " It 
 does not," says he, " appear, by the register, that they did so 
 much as open their mouths in defence of their office and calling. 
 Whatsoever it was that made them keep so quiet, whether, as 
 I have heard, they expected that the regent, Earl of Morton, 
 would soon quash those motions, or that they affected the 
 praise of humility, it was no wisdom in them to give way to 
 such novelties, and to have suffered the lawfulness of their vo- 
 cation to be called in question." 
 
 It cannot be denied, that many eminent ministers in Scot- 
 land, some of whom had been among the original reformers, 
 were at this period well affected to a limited episcopacy. Mr 
 Row was, for some time, one who approved of bishops, limited 
 in their powers by the General Assembly. But some of his de- 
 scendants were solicitous to vindicate him upon this point. 
 
 The manuscript history, which was begun by Mr David Fer- 
 guson, minister of Dunfermline, continued by Mr John Row, 
 minister of Carnock, and interpolated and completed by Mr 
 John Row, principal of King's College, Old Aberdeen, (a copy 
 of which belongs to the divinity-college of Edinburgh, and from 
 which I once had the opportunity of making^ some extracts,) 
 says, page 310, — " It is true, that when John Durie, minister of 
 Edinburgh, proposed this question, ' Whether bishops, with au- 
 thority and jurisdiction such as they then had, both ecclesias- 
 tical and civil, were lawful, yea, or not ?' Mr John Row, who 
 had been in Rome, and was there doctor ' utriusque juris,' (of 
 both laws,) but thought the doctrine of Rome detestable, ihe 
 Lord having enlightened him with the truth of the gospel, in 
 hearing Mr Knox preach, and in holding conferences with him, 
 judged that the prelatical government might well enough stand, 
 though it was popish, with the protestant doctrine. 
 
 " As monarchy was the best of governments in the state, he 
 thought it most corresponding that the kirk should be ruled by 
 a prelate. Being one of those who were for the affirmative, 
 that bishops weie lawful, after long disputation and examination 
 of this point, he, and all that took part with him in the argu- 
 ment, yielded. They were forced, by the strength of reason, 
 and by the light held forth from Scripture, to confess their error ; 
 and afterwards he, and all the rest, preached down prelacy all 
 his days." 
 
 The concluding words, " all his days," were cautiously and 
 properly added ; for, after Mr Row's death, though the presby- 
 terian government had been established in its purity by an act 
 
176 MR JOHN ROW. 
 
 of parliament in 15QC, and freely for some time exercised, yet a 
 new turn of affairs having taken place, one of those who had 
 been Mr Row's co-adjulors in the foresaid controversy, viz. Mr 
 David Lindsay, who was one of the original reformers, and lived 
 to a great age, accepted of the bishopric of Ross, in the year 
 1600, and, in the year ]G06, began to enjoy, along with the 
 other Scottish bishops, the temporalities and independent juris- 
 diction which had belonged to the ancient prelates. 
 
 That pious minister of Perth, Mr William Cowper, who, in 
 1612, accepted of the bishopric of Galloway, was accustomed 
 to say, in his conversation, that he had only followed the exam- 
 ple of his predecessor, Mr John Row, the first protestant mi- 
 nister of Perth, who was bishop of Galloway. " It is true," says 
 the fore-cited manuscript, " Mr Row was supcrintendant (com- 
 missioner) of Galloway. But the differences betwixt the super- 
 intendants and the diocesan lordly prelates were vast and. 
 many. — The superintendants and commissioners were only ac- 
 knowledged to be necessary and useful in the infancy of our 
 kirk ; they were oastors over a particular flock, an employment 
 too base for a lord-bishop ; they received their commission from, 
 and were censurable by the General Assemblies. It was with dif- 
 ficulty, and much urging, that they accepted of their offices ; 
 and when it was time for them to lay their employment aside, 
 they quitted it gladly and cheerfully." 
 
 But that Mr Row, in the latter part of his life, fully approved 
 of presbytery, is sufficiently ascertained by his being one of the 
 compilers of the Second Book of Discipline, commonly called 
 " The Book of Policy ;" the eleventh chapter of which decidedly 
 condemns the office of bishops. Before the reformation was 
 established, he had been one of the compilers of the First Book 
 of Discipline, and now were committed to him certain heads of 
 the Second Book, of which it was expected he should treat. 
 
 He was moderator of the Assembly, at Edinburgh, April, 1576", 
 in which the bishops were severely censured, and required to 
 make choice of a particular flock ; and in this Assembly he and 
 the other commissioners of the country offered to resign their 
 offices, for this reason, that the jurisdiction they were called to 
 exercise bore too great a resemblance to that of the prelates. 
 But their offer was rejected. 
 
 In October, 1576, Mr Row and some others were appointed 
 to meet at a convenient hour every afternoon, during the con- 
 tinuance of the Assembly, to confer upon the heads of the 
 Book of Policy, and to arrange and put the whole into a proper 
 form. 
 
 In April, 1577, he and Mr James Lawson presented to the 
 Assembly those parts which they had written. One article, 
 
 13 
 
Hit JOHN ROW. 177 
 
 however, which had been penned by Mr Row, was referred for 
 a little while to farther disputation. 
 
 I persuade myself, that the sincere lovers of our church, which 
 underwent many trials, will not find such information as I am 
 now giving to be uninteresting. In October, !577, this book, 
 which had occupied the attention of the Assembly several years, 
 and which was carefully written, by some of the ablest men of 
 the church, was declared to be complete. A copy of it, fairly 
 transcribed, was ordained to be presented to the regent, Earl of 
 Morton; and Mr Row was appointed one of those who should 
 argue with the regent, in case he should object to any part of 
 it. It was not printed, nor was it clearly or properly sanctioned 
 by the civil government, as forming a part of our ecclesiastical 
 constitution ; but the Assembly enacted, that, in all its articles, it 
 should be binding on the members of the established church. 
 
 When the presbyterian Assembly at Glasgow, in 1638, were 
 at a loss to find copies of the Book of Policy, attested by the 
 old clerks of the Assembly, Mr Row's son, the minister of Car- 
 nock, presented a copy so authenticated, and which, he said, as 
 a manuscript history of that Assembly relates, had been in his 
 possession fifty-two years. 
 
 1 have little more to relate concerning Mr Row's conduct in 
 the public affairs of the church. He was moderator of the As- 
 sembly which met at Stilling in June, 1578. 
 
 In general, it may be observed, that the Assemblies were 
 now enjoyinga plenitude of power. They wished to put an end, 
 as quickly as possible, to all appearances of episcopal govern- 
 ment. They were bearing hard upon the bishops, especially 
 upon James Boyd of Trochrig, archbishop of Glasgow, a 
 learned and venerable man, of whose character Mr Andrew 
 Melvill himself entertained and expressed a very high esteem. 
 He had not been purposely educated for the church before he 
 was appointed to a bishopric : he was therefore diffident of 
 himself, was backward to preach often, and hesitated long be- 
 fore the Assembly could prevail with him to undertake, as a 
 parochial minister, the charge of a particular flock. 
 
 They were also solicitous to suppress all kinds of luxury and 
 extravagance ; and, what was very proper, they began with what 
 related to persons of their own order. There seem to have been 
 some excesses committed which did not correspond with the 
 smallness of ministers' stipends. In the Assembly which had met 
 at Edinburgh in August, 1575, of which Mr Row was a member, 
 an act had been made against ministeis and their wives using 
 any gaudy or expensive apparel, a copy of which, as affording 
 a curious specimen of the manners of the times, may be seen in 
 Calderwood's printed history, page 825. 
 
 M 
 
178 MR JOHN ROW. 
 
 The Assembly which met at Edinburgh, July 4, 1579, found 
 that this sumptuary law had not been sufficiently obeyed, and 
 therefore they renewed it, and ordered it to be better observed. 
 It was the last Assembly which Mr Row was able to attend, and 
 they took the opportunity of assigning to him two extraordinary 
 pieces of business. 
 
 Tne first was, that he should use his endeavour to prevent 
 some offensive circumstances which, it was said, were to take 
 place at the funeral of the Earl of Atholl. This nobleman had 
 continued a papist, notwithstanding all that the Assembly cculd 
 do, in their dealing with him, to induce him to change his prin- 
 ciples; and at the time of his death he was lord-high-chancellor 
 of the kingdom. He died at Stirling, or rather at Kincardine, 
 April 24, 1579. His body lay long in state, and was to be in- 
 terred, with a pomp corresponding to his high office. July 4th, 
 in the south aisle of St Giles's church, at Edinburgh. 
 
 But this was the day in which the Assembly were to hold their 
 first session. The earl, it should seem, was to be buried towards 
 the evening, as lighted torches were to be used : the Assembly 
 therefore met at an early hour of that day. They were informed, 
 that in the procession there would be lighted torches, and the 
 figure of a cross openly carried ; that the mortcloth was to be 
 covered with a white cloth ; and that the mourners were to wear 
 Ions gowns, decorated with some kind of straps. 
 
 These particulars having been seriously considered by the 
 Assembly, they agreed that the gowns should be allowed ; but 
 they prohibited the straps, the white cloth, the torches, and the 
 carrying of the cross, not merely as superfluous, but as supersti- 
 tious, and tending to the encouragement of idolatry. 
 
 They immediately deputed two of the brethren. Mr John Row, 
 minister of Perth, and Mr John Dtirie, one of the ministers of 
 Edinburgh, to go, without delay, to some lords, who probably 
 had arrived to attend the funeral, and to acquaint them of what 
 was the mind of the Assembly. The only answer which the two 
 brethren reported from the lords was, that the mortcloth, or 
 cloth of the coffin, was to be covered with black velvet. It can 
 scarcely, indeed, be supposed that there was any real intention 
 of carrying through the streets the figure of a cross. 
 
 But another, and more disagreeable task, was now assigned 
 to Mr How. He had formerly been appointed to excommuni- 
 cate the earl, as an obstinate papist, but had not done it, and 
 probably had given reasons for his neglect, which satisfied the 
 Assembly. Mr James Paton, bishop of Dunkeld, had next been 
 appointed to pronounce the sentence of excommunication, but 
 he also had failed to do so, so that the earl, at the time of his 
 death, might be esteemed as yet within the pale of the Christian 
 church. The Assembly were far from excusing Mr Paton's ne- 
 
 2 
 
MR JOHN ROW. 179 
 
 glecl, and therefore appointed Mr Row to visit the district of 
 Dunkeld, and, in the course of his visitation, to charge the bishop 
 to demit his bishopric ; and to let him know, that, if he refused, 
 he should be excommunicated. 
 
 I do not vindicate such a procedure in a protestant church. 
 But it may be considered, that, at that period, and for more than 
 a hundred years after, no toleration of principles of conscience 
 was thought of being allowed by any opposite religious party ; 
 and it may readily be acknowledged, that the papists, if they 
 had then been in power, would have treated the protestants with 
 a much greater severity. 
 
 There was only one other Assembly before Mr Row's death. 
 It was not fully three months before he died, and was held in 
 Dundee, July 12, 1580. He is not mentioned as having been 
 present ; but it was found that he had not executed the com- 
 mission given to him with regard to Mr James Paton, who was 
 still continuing bishop of Dunkeld, and not excommunicated. 
 A new commissioner of Dunkeld was appointed in place of Mr 
 Row, and told, by the Assembly, that, if he did not make the 
 bishop of Dunkeld to resign, or else excommunicate him, he him- 
 self should be suspended from the exercise of his ministry. 
 
 It does not appear certain whether Mr Paton did actually re- 
 sign, but he was not excommunicated. It may not be improper 
 to add concerning him, that there was no blame thrown upon 
 his moral character, nor objections stated against his clerical ta- 
 lents : his greatest fault, if true, was, and of which the Assembly 
 also complained, that he agreed that the Earl of Argyle, who 
 had procured him the bishopric, should draw a considerable part 
 of the tythes, which was justly reckoned a dilapidation of the be- 
 nefice. 
 
 According to Keith's Catalogue of the Scots bishops, Mr Paton 
 was the lineal representative of the family of Ballilisk, in the pa- 
 rish of Muchart, and presbytery of Auchterarder; and his grave- 
 stone at Muchart was, and perhaps is still to be seen, bearing 
 this inscription, — " Jacobus Paton de Middle Ballilisk, quondam 
 episcopus de Dunkeld, qui obiit 20 Julii, 1596." James Paton 
 of Middle Ballilisk, formerly bishop of Dunkeld, died July 20, 
 1596. 
 
 I apprehend it is pretty evident that Mr Row declined to 
 execute any violent orders which were committed to him by 
 the Assembly, which he seemed to consider as indicating not 
 the sense of the church in general, but the sentiments of some 
 rash and impetuous persons, who sometimes gained an ascendant. 
 In Calderwood's manuscript he is said to have been " a wise "r^d 
 grave man ;" and Spottiswood gives him the character o r having 
 been " a man of singular moderation." Such was his general 
 conduct in the public affairs of the church. 
 
180 MR JOHN ROW. 
 
 But there was one occasion on which he was provoked to 
 speak with more than his usual warmth and freedom. It hap- 
 pened while the parliament was sitting at Stirling, in August, 
 1571- He and some others had been sent to the parliament, as 
 commissioners from the Assembly, to complain of grievances 
 under which the church was suffering, and to present petitions. 
 They met with rather a rude reception. Mr Row felt so much 
 indignation against the conduct of the Earl of Morton, and of 
 some other lords, for their parsimonious and unjust dealings to- 
 wards ministers, and for their arbitrary and covetous assumptions, 
 to their own profit, of the church's revenues, that he broke out 
 into these words, recorded in Calderwood's manuscript : " I care 
 not, my lords, if you will be displeased, for 1 speak my con- 
 science before God, who will not suffer such wickedness and 
 contempt to go unpunished." 
 
 He met in return with such language as perhaps he never 
 before had received from any other person whatever. The Earl 
 of Morton and the other lords " called him a railer, and a se- 
 ditious knave ;" and in their rage for having been attacked on 
 their assumptions of the church revenues, they conferred the 
 like epithets on the other commissioners who were along with 
 him. 
 
MR JOHN ROW. 181 
 
 CHAP. IV. 
 
 Character of the People at the time of the Reformation. Mr WiU 
 Ham Rhind, Minister of Kinnoull. Mr Rows ministerial Labours. 
 The Morning and Evening; Prayers- Mr James Smith, Reader, 
 afterwards Minister of Errol. Mr John Swenton, Master of 
 Music. Origin of Presbyteries. Character of the first Earl of 
 Gowrie. Severity of Discipline. Superstitious Customs. 
 
 In taking a view of his conduct as the minister of a parish, se- 
 veral particulars will appear, tending to illustrate the manners of 
 the times, and the nature and primitive condition of the presby- 
 terian church. 
 
 In Knox's History we are told, that, in May, 1559, when the 
 lords and others of the reforming congregation were to leave 
 Perth, Mr Knox was requested to remain, " to instruct the 
 people, because they were young and rude in Christ." He ac- 
 cordingly continued about two weeks, preaching probably every 
 day. 
 
 But the character then given to that people was applicable to 
 the people in other places; for, though multitudes were captivated 
 by the pious lives and the pathetic eloquence of the reformed 
 preachers, and took a pleasure in shewing how zealous and dex- 
 terous they were in pulling down the monastery-houses, and in 
 destroying the altars and images, yet few, in comparison, had 
 their minds properly enlightened. Under the reign of the po- 
 pish church they had been kept in the grossest ignorance. They 
 were almost totally unacquainted with the real doctrines and 
 precepts of the gospel, and consequently their morals were ex- 
 ceedingly licentious. 
 
 Toward the end of the year 15fi0, Mr Row began to reside, 
 as a stated pastor, with the people of Perth. The record, now 
 extant, of the discipline of his parish, does not commence till 
 May, 1577, so that it does not certainly appear what were the 
 earliest methods which he took for instructing the people, and 
 amending their morals ; but most probably they were much the 
 same with those which he afterwards made use of. 
 
J 83 MR JOHN ROW. 
 
 Tt was not for the benefit of his particular flock that be was 
 so often commissioned to superintend the state of the church 
 in other parts of the country ; but the necessity of the times re- 
 quired that he should be frequently so employed ; and, in his ab- 
 sence, some neighbouring ministers, probably by the appoint- 
 ment of the General Assembly, gave their assistance to the lay- 
 elders in preserving order among the people, and in procuring 
 that the public services of religion should be regularly per- 
 formed. 
 
 In this respect he was much indebted to Mr William Rhind, 
 minister of the adjoining parish of Kinnoull, and who, at the 
 same time, was rector of the grammar-school of Perth, of whom, 
 and of his family, the following short account may be given. 
 This venerable and learned man had been admitted to the mi- 
 nistry, in the protestant church, immediately after the reforma- 
 tion. He lived to a great age, and died in the year 1610. By 
 his wife, Beatrix Pitcairn, a daughter of a family of that sur- 
 name in the district of Strathern, he had several sons : 1. Colin, 
 minister of a parish, the name of which I do not now recollect. 
 2. Robert, minister of Langforgand. 3. Patrick, minister of 
 Dron. 4. William, who was travelling governor to John, Earl 
 of Gowrie, and suffered much on account of his connection with 
 that nobleman. Even after Mr Row's death, Mr Rhind fre- 
 quently met with the elders of Perth, when the ministers were 
 from home, or when a vacancy had happened, by the death or 
 translation of a minister. 
 
 The ordinary means used for promoting religious knowledge, 
 and suppressing vice, were as follows : — 
 
 Mr Row, every Lord's day, preached both in the forenoon 
 and afternoon. He preached also a sermon every Thursday, to 
 which the parishioners of all ranks were strictly enjoined to re- 
 sort. It may be noticed, that when he was to catechise the 
 people, especially before dispensing the communion, the elders 
 were required, with the help of the magistrates, to take up the 
 names of the people, and to be present when the persons be- 
 longing to their several districts were to be examined. He in- 
 deed seemed to think, that the assistance of the elders, who bare 
 rule, but did not labour in word and doctrine, was of great im- 
 portance ; for, when visiting houses, and sick persons, he chose 
 to have one or two of them along with him, to add weight to 
 his ministrations. But the good men also, of their own accord, 
 frequently visited and prayed with the sick. 
 
 It is proper to observe, that, at that time, and long afterwards, 
 even till the time of the revolution, neither the lay-elders nor 
 the church-deacons were elected for life, but only from year to 
 year. They all united in distributing the funds of the poor ; but 
 
MR JOHN ROW. 183 
 
 it was the elders only who could vote with the minister in matters 
 of discipline. 
 
 Two methods, which were found successful, were employed 
 for exciting the people to be diligent in learning the principles 
 of religion. No parent could have his child baptized unless he 
 could repeat the Creed, the Lord's Prayer, and the Ten Com- 
 mandments. And no persons were to be contracted for mar- 
 riage, or have their banns proclaimed, until they had previously 
 been so well instructed by " the reader," as to be able to de- 
 clare to the minister and elders the holy purposes of the insti- 
 tution. 
 
 It is necessary to give some explanation of the office of 
 " readers," who, especially when they were also authorised to 
 be " exhorters," were a set of men of eminent service in the in- 
 fancy of the reformed church. Without them the progress of 
 religion would have been comparatively slow. Many parishes, 
 for many years after the reformation, because of the scarcity of 
 ministers, had no other teachers than the readers. 
 
 By their office, they were to read chapters out of the Bible, 
 and prayers out of " the Book of Common Order," every morn- 
 ing and evening, in the parish church. In parishes where there 
 was no minister, they kept the people long together on the Sab- 
 bath ; and if they had also been licensed to exhort, the Sabbath 
 might thus be spent in a profitable manner. Very few of the 
 people had learned to read, and therefore the public reading of 
 the Scriptures was of singular service. 
 
 The daily morning prayers, in the town in which Mr Row 
 was situated, began at a very early hour. The societies of the 
 Guild and Trades were bound to provide, during the winter 
 season, lights in the church, for their own and the people's con- 
 veniency. The people, by their devout attendance in the morn- 
 ing, it might be presumed, would be prepared to retain in their 
 hearts the fear of God in their after transactions through the 
 day ; and it may be supposed, that their being called to prayer, 
 and to hearing the word read, when the business of the day was 
 over, would lead them to reflect on what their behaviour had 
 been through the day, penitently to confess their sins, and dis- 
 pose them to retire to their houses in a devout and comfortable 
 frame of spirit. 
 
 I shall only farther observe, with regard to the readers, that 
 many of them, having done well in their office, were afterwards 
 admitted to the holy ministry, and had parishes assigned them. 
 During the last year of Mr Row's life, Mr James Smith, a man 
 much approven, was " reader" in the church of Perth, and, in 
 1582, became minister of Errol. 
 
 Another office belonging to the worship in the church was 
 
184 HR JOHN ROW. 
 
 that of precentor and music-master. In Mr Row's time, and in 
 some succeeding years, Mr John Swenton was " uptaker of the 
 psalm in the kirk, and master of the sang-school." He was 
 provided with a salary, a school-house, a dwelling-house, and a 
 garden. The people delighted in church music in all its parts; 
 but the minister and elders found it necessary lo enjoin Mr 
 John Swenton to keep to the tenor part of the tune himself, 
 when he was in the desk, lest he should confuse the people in 
 their singing. 
 
 The weekly meeting of" the exercise," or " eldership," as it 
 was likewise called, was another means of public instruction af- 
 forded to the people. It consisted of the minister of the town, 
 and some other ministers, who met every Wednesday for prayer, 
 for improving themselves, by exercise, in the gift of preaching, 
 and for counselling and encouraging one another in the business 
 of their several parishes. Some lay-elders also attended. A mi- 
 nister present delivered a critical discourse on a text of Scrip- 
 ture, and another added a practical application. 
 
 Associations of the same kind existed in other chief parts of 
 the kingdom ; but, in Mr Row's time, they did not assume any 
 joint jurisdiction, and only gave their advice when matters were 
 referred to them. They always received encouragement from 
 the General Assemblies, and, in 1580, the General Assembly 
 honoured them with the name of " Presbyteries," though they 
 were still vulgarly called " the exercise." By an act of parlia- 
 ment in 1592, the powers which should belong to them having 
 been defined, they were declared to be constituent parts of the 
 national church of Scotland. 
 
 The same act of parliament gave a legal establishment to 
 church sessions. These were consistories, or parochial courts, 
 held for regulating the affairs of the poor, and the discipline of 
 a parish. From the tune of Mr How's admission to the ministry 
 of Perth, there had been such a court, appropriate to that town 
 and parish ; for in the records, now extant, there are references 
 made to acts and transactions which took place prior to the year 
 1577- The name which it bore was, " the weekly assembly of 
 the minister and elders;" and though Mr Row did not live to 
 see the full legal establishment of that court, yet in his tune it 
 exercised a great deal of power over the people. Indeed, one 
 or two of the magistrates were always present, which gave to its 
 transactions the appearance of a legal authority. 
 
 At this period the civil magistrates amicably concurred in 
 enforcing the acts of the parochial meetings. William, Lord 
 Ruthven, who was annually chosen provost of the town, and 
 Mr Bow, who was respected as one of the reformers, and who 
 generally was invested with the character of an ecclesiastical 
 
 3 
 
MR JOHN ROW- 185 
 
 commissioner or superintendant, joined their endeavours for 
 the public good. This Lord Ruthven, who was afterwards cre- 
 ated Earl of Gowrie, was a religious man, a sincere protestant, 
 and a wise and able statesman. After he had been beheaded at 
 Stirling, in 1584, his death at Perth was severely felt, for consi- 
 derable alterations immediately took place. Debates arose be- 
 tween the civil and ecclesiastical rulers, and irritating faults were 
 evidently committed on both sides. But Mr Row did not live 
 to see this change, or to be troubled with the disagreeable oc- 
 currences which followed. 
 
 In Mr Row's time, offenders of all kinds, excepting thieves 
 and murderers, whom the magistrates took into their own hands, 
 were cited to appear before the weekly assembly. Besides be- 
 ing enjoined " to make their repentance in the church," that is, 
 to do penance upon the repenting-stool, in presence of the con- 
 gregation, civil punishments were ordered, such as lines, im- 
 prisonments in the tolbooth, the disgrace of standing in the 
 irons at the cross, or on the cock-stool ; and frequently the de- 
 linquents were sent to an old tower, close adjoining to the 
 church, which then bore, as it still does, the name of " Halker- 
 ston's Tower," where, for a certain time, they were to have no 
 other food than bread and water. But though the weekly as- 
 sembly thought it proper to order these penalties, it may be sup- 
 posed that the magistrate did not always execute them fully, 
 but considered cases in which some lenitv might be shewed. 
 
 It was no easy matter to reform the public manners, which 
 had been miserably corrupted in the popish times. I forbear, 
 therefore, to censure what was professedly an ecclesiastical court, 
 for thus extending its sentences to corporal punishments. Pos- 
 terity were indebted to the vigorous efforts which were made, 
 immediately after the reformation, for civilizing the people of 
 Scotland, and for rendering the state of society more safe and 
 comfortable than it would otherwise have been. 
 
 The seventh commandment had been shamefully disregarded 
 in the popish times. Persons of all ranks and professions were 
 known to be violators of it, without suffering any great injury 
 to their character in the world. It was therefore one object 
 which the weekly assembly had in view, to reform, in that par- 
 ticular, the practice and sentiments of the people. The popu- 
 lation of the town and parish may be reckoned not much to 
 have exceeded six thousand ; yet, even during the last three 
 years of Mr Row's life, which was after sixteen years had passed 
 in strenuous endeavours lor reformation, above eighty such trans- 
 gressors were annually convicted. 
 
 It is proper, however, to mention, that the dissoluteness of 
 the people in this respect was not peculiar to one place or pa- 
 lish, but was a long time general throughout the kingdom ; for 
 
186 Mr john row. 
 
 Mr Petrie informs us, that, in 1570, a report was made to the 
 General Assembly, from a very small district, of six hundred 
 persons eonvicted of having so offended, and who had not yet 
 satisfied the discipline of the church. 
 
 But the weekly assembly were far from confining their atten- 
 tion to one species of immorality. The other vices which are 
 detrimental and disgraceful to society were strictly noticed. — 
 Fighting, flyting, and slander, did not escape punishment. The 
 aim of the parochial meeting was, to polish the people, even 
 in such a degree, as to put an end to all opprobrious language. 
 I shall mention one instance, not thinking it, at this distance of 
 time, in any respect necessary to omit the names of the persons. 
 " May 25, 1579, Thomas Malcom is convicted, before the week- 
 ly assembly, of having called Thomas Brown ' loun carll,' 
 (worthless carle,) w for which the assembly ordained him to be 
 put in the tolbooth two hours, and to pay six shillings eight 
 pennies to the poor." 
 
 But the papists were secretly at work. They endeavoured to 
 create discontent in the minds of the people, and to cherish their 
 fond remembrance of the licentious pleasures in which they had 
 been accustomed to indulge during the popish festivals. They 
 had been delighted with the pageantry exhibited on these oc- 
 casions ; also with the plays, or dramatic performances, which 
 were called ,f mysteries, moralities, and scurrilities;" in the last 
 of which, especially, not only satire, but much ribaldry was in- 
 troduced. Some extracts from the record may be necessary. 
 
 " July 1, 1 >77, the weekly assembly regret that certain in- 
 habitants of this town, against the express command of the ci- 
 vil magistrate, and the prohibition delivered by the minister 
 from the pulpit, have played Corpus Christi play, upon the 
 sixth day of June last, which day was wont to be called Corpus 
 Christi's day ; whereby they have offended the church of God, 
 and dishonoured this haili (whole) town ; the said pla}' being 
 idolatrous and superstitious." The assembly ordained that the 
 guilty persons should receive no benefit from the church, till 
 they had shewed evidence of their repentance. 
 
 About fourteen persons, not of the meanest rank in the town, 
 are mentioned as having been guilty of this fault. But, by my 
 Lord Ruthven's advice, the chief actor among them came vo- 
 luntarily to the weekly assembly, and submitted himself to the 
 pleasure of the church ; and the minister and elders, having 
 heard his confession, and his promise of not committing the 
 like fault again, agreed to re-admit him to church privileges. 
 His associates afterwards followed his example, and were for- 
 given. The lenity tiey had now experienced was not abused, 
 for the said play was never again acted in Perth ; though it was 
 probably stiil acted in some other parts of Scotland, where the 
 
MR JOHN ROW. 187 
 
 rulers were less attentive. In England it was not entirety laid 
 aside till the year 1603. 
 
 The annual festival of Corpus Christi was instituted about the 
 year 1264. The design of it was, to impress upon the minds of 
 the people a belief of the reality of transubstantiation. Be- 
 sides a superb procession through the streets on the day of the 
 celebration, there was commonly acted a mystery, or interlude, 
 the subject of which was the Scripture history, and which some- 
 times lasted eight days. 
 
 But a similar offence soon occurred. " December 16, 1577. 
 It is ordained, that the act made against superstition, Nov. 27, 
 1574, shall be published on Sunday next; also, that all those 
 persons who were playing Sanctoberli's play, on the tenth of 
 this month, shall be warned to compear this day eight days." 
 
 A very great number of persons had been engaged in this 
 play. On the tenth of December, which was wont to be call- 
 ed " Sanctoberti's eve," they had passed through the town in 
 disguised dresses, with piping, and dancing, and striking a drum. 
 They carried in their hands burning torches. One of the ac- 
 tors was clad in the devil's coat ; another rode upon a horse, 
 which went in men's shoes. Probably the horse and its rider 
 represented a part of the legendary history of the saint. 
 
 I have not met with any satisfactory account of St Obert, 
 Berth, or Bert; but the personage, whether real or imaginary, 
 seems to have been the patron saint made choice of by the ba- 
 ker incorporation, for the offenders were of that trade. 
 
 Notwithstanding the penalties inflicted upon them, this play 
 was several times acted after Mr Row's death ; till, in the be- 
 ginning of the year 1588, the baker incorporation enacted, in 
 their books, that such persons as should play, in any time to 
 come, Sanctoberti's play, should " be debarred from all the li- 
 berties of the craft, should never have entry to the same again, 
 and should be banished from the town for ever." An attested 
 copy of this act was sent to the minister and elders, that it might 
 be inserted also in the book of the weekly assembly. 
 
 Another specimen of ancient manners is yet to be mentioned. 
 Many of the young people of both sexes, in their summer 
 dresses, had been accustomed to practise, in the month of May, 
 a pastime which was reckoned superstitious. It is thus noticed 
 in the record : 
 
 " May 2, 1580. It was agreed that an act should be made 
 by the minister, Mr John Row, discharging all persons from 
 passing to the Dragon Hole superstitiously : also, that the 
 same should be published on Thursday next out of the pulpit, 
 and thereafter given to the baillies, to be published at the mer- 
 cat-cross." 
 
 Mr Row being thus desired, wrote as follows : 
 
188 :mk. john row. 
 
 " The Act anent passing to the Dragon Hole." 
 
 " Because the assembly of minister and elders understand that 
 the resort to the Dragon Hole, both by young men and women, 
 with their piping, and drums striking before them, through the 
 town, has raised no small slander to this congregation, not with- 
 out suspicion of filthincss following thereupon ; — the said assem- 
 bly, for avoiding thereof in times to come, have, with consent 
 of the magistrates of this town, statute and ordained, that no 
 person, whether man or woman, of this congregation, shall re- 
 sort or repair hereafter to the Dragon Hole, as they have done 
 in times past, namely, in the month of May, nor shall pass 
 through the town, in their way to it, with piping, and striking of 
 drums, as heretofore they have done, under the pain of twenty 
 shillings to the poor, to be paid by every person, as well man as 
 woman, that shall be found guilty ; also, thai they shall make 
 their public repentance upon a Sabbath-day, in the presence of 
 the people. 
 
 " This ordinance to be published at the mercat-cross on Sa- 
 turday next; as also by the minister, in the pulpit, on Thursday 
 and Sunday next to come, that none hereafter may pretend ig- 
 norance." 
 
 Thus was Mr Row, even when he was very near the end of 
 his life, labouring, with the help of the elders and magistrates, 
 to eradicate every thing that was offensive from among the 
 people. 
 
 Explanatory remarks are necessary, and may be required. — 
 The festivities in May, which were once general over all the 
 kingdom, are justly supposed to have had an idolatrous origin, 
 and to have been instituted by the Druids, who, as the sun, 
 under the name of Bel, or Baal, was an object of their worship, 
 welcomed his near approach to the earth with demonstrations 
 of joy, and with sacrifices, to conciliate his favour. The re- 
 joicings were continued in the after ages, in different forms, and 
 under various pretences. 
 
 A Scottish antiquary would not easily excuse me, if I were to 
 neglect to state some particulars relating to the Dragon Hole, or 
 Den. It is a cave situate in the hill of Kinnoull, on the east 
 side of the river Tay, and at a small distance from Perth. The 
 young people, of both sexes, in Perth and its neighbourhood, in 
 the popish times, and most probably also in the times of hea- 
 thenism, resorted to it in companies, at " Belteine," or " Bel 
 Fire Time," in the month of May. 
 
 It the Druids, like the ancient Babylonians, in the time of Da- 
 niel, as is mentioned in one of the Jewish apocryphal books, 
 (viz. " History of Bel and the Dragon,") paid a sacred regard to 
 
MR JOHN ROW. 189 
 
 a dragon, or large serpent, which was consecrated to " Bel," 
 and regarded as an object of their worship, the reputed place 
 ■ of its residence, it may easily be conjectured, would be religi- 
 ously frequented. But I do not follow out this conjecture : I on- 
 ly suggest it, as a hint to those literary persons who are curious 
 in investigating the nature and rites of the Druidical religion. 
 
 From what is related by Andrew Winton, prior of the mo- 
 nastery of Lochleven, who lived in the reign of King Robert 
 II., it should appear, that the cave had been known by the name 
 of the Dragon's Den, a thousand years previous to the year 1580. 
 When writing the life and actions of St Servanus, or St Serf, as 
 he was vulgarly called, he relates, that, about the year 580, 
 Brude, then king of the Picts, gave, as a donation to this saint, 
 the large isle in Lochleven, who accordingly dwelt in it about 
 seven years, and, during that time, performed in the country 
 many miracles. Among his other miracles, Winton says, 
 
 " By dubbing of devotion, 
 And prayer, he slew a dragon : 
 Where he was slain, the place was ay 
 The Dragon's Den call'd to this day." 
 
 That is, by striking a dragon with his devotion and prayers, 
 he slew him, and the place where he slew him continued to be 
 called, till the days of Winton, the Dragon's Den. 
 
 I have no inclination to detract from any praise which was 
 justly due to St Servanus. He was a pious and exemplary mes- 
 senger of the gospel, both to the Picts and to the Scots. If he 
 found that the Picts, in whose territory Perth and Kinnoull were, 
 as well as Lochleven, were paying an idolatrous regard to a 
 dragon, or serpent, or to the memory of such a creature, and if 
 he cured them of that idolatry by his prayers and pious endea- 
 vours, he might, in the usual language of poetry, be figurative- 
 ly said to have slain the dragon. 
 
 I, however, farther observe, that, according to Mr Whitaker, 
 in his History of Manchester, the words " dragon" and " pen- 
 dragon" were, in the old British language, applied as names of 
 office to kings, chiefs of tribes, and commanders of armies. It 
 is far from being impossible, that the cave in Kinnoull-hill was, 
 oftener than once, in the very old times of public trouble, used 
 as a hiding-place, or dernier place of resort, by some such emi- 
 nent persons. 
 
 The annotator on Mr Henry Adamson's Metrical History of 
 Perth says, " The Dragon's Hole is a cave in a steep rock, on 
 the face of Kinnoull-hill, of very difficult and dangerous access. 
 It will contain about a dozen of men. None but resolute peo- 
 ple dare venture into it." 
 
190 MR JOHN ROW. 
 
 I have been told, that, by the fall of a rock, the cave is now 
 almost entirely demolished, or rendered wholly inaccessible. 
 
 In Mr Henry Adamson's time, the two friends, whom he ce- 
 lebrates in his poem, were in use to climb to the Dragon's Hole, 
 " with clubs in their hands, andcrampets on their feet." When 
 sitting in it, they conversed on historical subjects, and enjoyed 
 what they reckoned an undisturbed retreat from the bustle and 
 debates of the city. 
 
 Mr Adamson also relates a story, which, he says, was " record- 
 ed," (perhaps in some ancient popular chronicle,) that a citizen 
 of Perth once found, in the Dragon's Hole, a stone, which had 
 the same virtue as the ring of the shepherd Gyges, which could 
 render the person who possessed it invisible ; but he afterwards 
 lost it, and never again could find it. 
 
 The foolish hope of finding such a stone might have excited 
 many idle young people to repair hither, who had no notion of 
 the idolatry originally intended in the days of heathenism. 
 
 I do not wish to enlarge, in this memoir, upon such topics ; 
 but I think it necessary to remark, that the prohibition of some 
 pastimes which were once practised by the people did not pro- 
 ceed merely from the austere temper of the reformed church, 
 or from a fear of superstition, but from a conviction of the irre- 
 gularities and dangerous quarrels of which they were often the 
 occasion ; for there is an act of the Scots parliament, in 1555, 
 which was five years prior to the establishment of the reforma- 
 tion, by which it is statute and ordained, that no person, in time 
 to come, shall be chosen to the offices of " Robert Hude, Little 
 John, Abbot of Unreason, and Queens of May ; and that all 
 women singing about summer trees, thereby giving disturbance 
 to travellers, shall be taken, and put upon the cock-stool in the 
 mercat-town." 
 
ilR JOHN ROW. 191 
 
 CHAP. V. 
 
 He dispenses the Lord's Supper. .Ancient Manner of it. His 
 Death. His Character. His Writings. Remark on the Re- 
 formers. Account of his Family. 
 
 A. he last important action in which I have found Mr Row en- 
 gaged, was his dispensing the sacrament of our Lord's supper. 
 The da} 1 of its celebration was the last Sabbath of July, viz. 
 July 31, 1580. I wish to take the opportunity of giving an ac- 
 count of the manner in which that divine ordinance was admi- 
 nistered at so early a period of the reformed church. Tiie par- 
 ticulars may be interesting to some serious persons, but I shall 
 relate them as briefly as possible. 
 
 A previous meeting of the weekly assembly was held on Mon- 
 day, July 25th. From what passed in that meeting it should ap- 
 pear, that the choir, or east end of the church, where the high 
 altar had formerly stood, but which was now generally vacant 
 of seats, was that part of the church of Perth which was to be 
 occupied by the tables, and seats for the communicants. It 
 seems, on this occasion, to have been enclosed with a low fence, 
 or rail, in which were two doors. Two of the magistrates, to 
 prevent indecency, or any tumult, consented to attend at these 
 two doors, and other two of them at the outward doors of the 
 church. 
 
 Two of the church-deacons were to receive from the commu- 
 nicants, as they entered, at one or other of the inner doors, the 
 tickets, (tokens for communicating,) and also the voluntary alms 
 •which they were to offer to the poor. Three deacons were to 
 bring the wine, as it was needed, from the revestry. Two elders 
 were to convey the element of bread along the tables; and four 
 deacons were to convey the cups. The names of these respec- 
 table men are set down in the record. All the other elders and 
 deacons were to await in the choir during the whole time of the 
 service. A person was nominated to prepare the bread ; and 
 
192 MR JOHN ROW. 
 
 the thesaurer (treasurer) was to prepare the tahles and the na- 
 pery. 
 
 In populous towns and parishes, two meetings, on the commu- 
 nion Sabbath, called " ministrations," were, for many years, reck- 
 oned necessary. The one half of the communicants attended 
 the first, and the other half the second " ministration " The 
 hours of these meetings were suited to the ancient habits of the 
 people, or rather, it may be said, were so regulated as to keep 
 up the remembrance that our Saviour's last sufferings began ear- 
 ly in the morning. At Glasgow, according to Wod row's Col- 
 lections, the first meeting on the communion Sabbath, in 1587, 
 was at four hours in the morning, and the second at eight. Ac- 
 cording to the record at Perth, in 1580, " The weekly assem- 
 bly (session) ordered, that to the first ministration the first bell 
 should ring at four hours in the morning, the second at half 
 hour to five, and the third at five; that to the second minis- 
 tration the first bell should ring at half hour to nine, the se- 
 cond at nine, and the third at half hour to ten." Thus three 
 full hours might be spent in the first ministration, and the se- 
 cond, perhaps, might be of a longer continuance. 
 
 It is probable, that at the time of the evening prayers, more 
 time than usual would be spent in reading the Scriptures; and 
 the reader, Mr James Smith, who seems also to have been an 
 exhorter, might enlarge in suitable exhortations to the people. 
 When the curfew-bell was rung, that is, at eight at night, it may 
 be supposed that these good people, who, from very early hours, 
 had been so religious!}* employed through the day, would be all 
 quietly resting in their own houses. 
 
 It is proper to observe, that no mention is made of the ap- 
 pointment of a fast-day, of a preparatory sermon on the Satur- 
 day, or of a thanksgiving sermon on the Monday. It was forty 
 years after this date that these appendages to the communion 
 were introduced by some ministers, who reckoned them expedi- 
 ent, on account of the peculiar circumstances of their people. 
 In Mr Row's time, the minister of a parish, with the help of 
 the reader, could administer the communion, without having 
 any other minister to assist him. 
 
 I shall describe the form, which is contained in the old " Book 
 of Common Order," and which, from the beginning, was long 
 practised by the presbyterian church of Scotland. 
 
 On the communion Sabbath, the minister was to preach as 
 usual ; but before he left the pulpit, he was to read the account 
 which the apostle Paul gives of the institution. He was next to 
 address an exhortation to the people, in the course of which he 
 was to fence the tables, much in the same way as is now done. 
 Having come down to the table, he was to take the bread into 
 
AIR JOHN ROW". 193 
 
 his hands, but before he brake it, he and all the congregation 
 were to join together in a general thanksgiving. 
 
 Our reformers were afraid of seeming to give any counte- 
 nance to the idolatrous use which the papists made of this ordi- 
 nance, which may have been the reason that, in the thanksgi- 
 ving, there is no mention made of the bread and wine, and no 
 petition is offered. It consists of an ascription of praise for re- 
 deeming love, and a profession of remembering the death of 
 our Saviour, and of looking only through him for every benefit 
 that we stand in need of. What was deficient, however, in 
 the old form, was afterwards supplied by the new directory, in 
 1645. 
 
 The minister, after breaking the bread, was to give it to the 
 people, enjoining them to distribute it among themselves, and 
 also the cup, himself partaking of both along with them. No 
 exhortation was to be given by the minister to the people when 
 they were at the table ; but the book says, " Such places of 
 Scripture as most livelily set forth the death of Christ are to be 
 read," (which most probably was done by the reader from the 
 desk,) " to the intent that our eyes and senses may not be en- 
 tirely occupied in these outward signs of bread and wine, which 
 is called the visible word, but that our minds also may be fully 
 fixed in the contemplation of the Lord's death, which is by this 
 holy sacrament represented." 
 
 When the action of communicating was ended, the minister 
 and people were to pray, thanking God for the great privilege 
 they had enjoyed, and praying that they might continue mind- 
 ful of his saving benefits. Then the hundred third psalm, or 
 some other such psalm or hymn, was to be sung; and the bless- 
 ing having been pronounced, (which was either the form an- 
 ciently prescribed in Numbers, vi. 24 — 26., or that which is con- 
 tained in 2 Corin. xiii. 14., for both were occasionally used,) " the 
 people were to rise from the tables, and to depart." 
 
 With regard to the frequency of communicating, it is said, in 
 the preface to the communion service, in the book from which I 
 have been quoting, viz. " The Book of Common Order," and 
 which was called, " The Book of Geneva," " The Lord's sup- 
 per is commonly used once a month, or so oft as the congrega- 
 tion shall think expedient." But in the First Book of Discipline, 
 which was afterwards written and approven in 1560, the com- 
 pilers say, " Four times in the year we reckon sufficient to the 
 administration of the Lord's supper." And the General Assem- 
 bly, in 1562, enjoined that " The Lord's supper should be mi- 
 nistered four times in the year in the borough towns, and twice 
 in the year in the country parishes, and that an uniform order 
 should be kept, according to the Book of Geneva." 
 
 But to return from this digression, which I have reckoned not 
 
 N 
 
194 MR JOHN ROW. 
 
 unsuitable to the subject of this memoir, Mr Row did not long 
 survive his last celebration of the Lord's supper. The death 
 of this venerable reformer happened on Sunday, October 16, 
 1580; and the register of deaths mentions the hour of his depar- 
 ture, viz. " Hora octava noctis" the eighth hour of the night. 
 
 I would feel it gratifying if I were able to relate the particu- 
 lars of his sickness, and especially the farewell advices which he 
 gave to his friends and people, if the nature of his disease was 
 such as to permit him to speak easily to the persons who were 
 then around him. But, as has been the case with many other 
 eminent men, no such account of what passed at his death can 
 now be found. The whole of what I can collect from the re- 
 cord is as follows : — 
 
 The weekly assembly, after the communion had been dispen- 
 sed, continued to meet every Monday, even including October 
 10th, which was the- Monday preceding his death. But as the 
 names of the persons present had not then begun to be inserted 
 regularly in the record, it does not appear certain that he was 
 able to attend all these meetings. 
 
 He gave an evidence, in the last week of his distress, of his 
 still retaining his usual friendly and generous dispositions. 
 Finding his death appioaching, he dictated, and was able to sub- 
 scribe, with his own hand, a letter, addressed to the weekly as- 
 sembly, and to Henry Elder, town-clerk, in behalf of the read- 
 er, Mr James Smith, whom he had regarded as his valuable 
 frieni and assistant, and with whom he wished to leave a part- 
 ing testimony of his esteem. 
 
 The letter was presented to the elders in their meeting, Mon- 
 day, October 31st, which was about a fortnight after Mr Bow's 
 death. The letter is not engrossed in the record, nor is the pre- 
 cise day of its date mentioned ; but the substance is narrated, 
 which was, that their late minister, Mr John Bow, in a letter, 
 subscribed with his own hand, requested that Mr James Smith 
 should enjoy what he had promised him, or given him reason to 
 expect, viz. a salary of ten merks, with the customary perqui- 
 sites. The elders paid a proper respect to this letter, and una- 
 nimously agreed to grant the request. 
 
 Mr Bow could not well be said to be an old man, for Spot- 
 tiswood says, " He died in the year of our Lord 1580, and of his 
 age the fifty-fourth." 
 
 His health, we formerly noticed, had suffered before he left 
 Italy ; and from the time of his conversion from popery, that is, 
 during twenty-one years, his continual labours, which were le- 
 quisite at, that difficult period of the church, may be supposed 
 to have had a wasting influence on his bodily constitution. 
 
 Spotliswood commends him for his " piety and singular 
 moderation," and farther says, " He was a man, whilst he lived, 
 
MR JOHN ROW. 193 
 
 well respected, and much lamented at his death, by the people 
 whom he served." 
 
 I apprehend his character may be thus given : — He was not 
 only a pious, but a prudent and sensible man ; of great candour 
 and uprightness of mind ; very benevolent in his temper; and 
 remarkably amiable and engaging in his manners. He was an 
 eloquent speaker ; and there was one branch of learning in 
 which he excelled, and of which I shall now take some notice. 
 
 The two languages in which the Holy Scriptures were origi- 
 nally written had been shamefully neglected in the Scottish 
 schools and universities. The popish church had discouraged 
 the teaching of them, probably lest the people should become 
 more acquainted with the real doctrines of the Bible than 
 they wished them to be. 
 
 One instance of the discouragement which they gave to the 
 acquisition of the Greek language will appear in the following 
 short account, which I offer, of one of the Scottish martyrs. 
 
 Mr George Wishart, brother to the Laird of Pittarrow, in the 
 early part of his life, was under the patronage of John Erskine 
 of Dun. He shewed an early affection to letters, and having 
 made quick progress in his education, was employed as a teach- 
 er in the grammar-school of Montrose. He there ventured to 
 instruct his scholars in the Greek language, which gave so much 
 offence to the popish clergy in his neighbourhood, that it was 
 thought expedient he should leave his native country. 
 
 After being in several foreign places for some time, in which 
 he improved himself in various branches of learning, he at. last 
 found a comfortable asylum in the university of Cambridge, in 
 England, where he fully prosecuted his studies in divinity, and 
 became highly esteemed, both as a public preacher and as a 
 serious Christian. 
 
 It is well known that this good man, when he returned to 
 Scotland, in 1544, very soon fell a prey to the snares of Cardi- 
 nal Beaton, and suffered death, as a martyr, at St Andrews. But 
 the first cause of his being persecuted was the zeal which he 
 expressed in instructing his scholars in the original language of 
 the New Testament. 
 
 I have not indeed found any similar anecdote, prior to the re- 
 formation, relative to the Hebrew language. Perhaps it never 
 had been taught in Scotland. Mr Row might possibly have be- 
 come acquainted with the Greek language when he was a stu- 
 dent in the university of St Andrews ; but it was while he was 
 abroad that he acquired the knowledge of the Hebrew tongue. 
 
 Having returned to Scotland, and become a convert from 
 popery, he was solicitous that the language in which the Old 
 Testament was originally written should be more generally 
 known, and that it should be considered throughout the king- 
 
J96 MR JOHN ROW. 
 
 I 
 
 dom, especially For ministers of the gospel, as a necessarv part 
 of education. 
 
 We are told how careful he was that his own sons should be 
 early instructed in the knowledge of it. It is certified by his 
 grandson, Principal Row, who, when dedicating a Hebrew 
 grammar to the Earl of Kinnoull, wrote what, when translated, 
 is as follows: ** The Hebrew language has a claim upon me by 
 an hereditary right. It attracts me much in the same manner 
 as my native soil ; for my grandfather, by the father's side," 
 (Mr John How the reformer,) " is reported to have been the 
 pei*on who first introduced the Hebrew teaming into Scotland. 
 My father also," (Mr John Row, minister of Carnock,) " when 
 he was a child of about four or five years of ane, was taught to 
 read the Hebrew alphabet before he knew the letters of his na- 
 tive tongue." 
 
 None of the Scottish reformers (excepting Mr John Knox, 
 before he came to reside constantly in Scotland,) could find 
 leisure to write books, otherwise than in concert with one another. 
 Mr Row, in this way, contributed a portion of the old Confession 
 of Faith, and of the First and Second Books of Discipline. He al- 
 so wrote, from time to time, public papers, and reports of com- 
 mittees, which were adopted by the General Assemblies. 
 
 But he and the other reformers were preaching almost daily 
 to the people, and frequently superintending the ecclesiastical 
 affairs of a whole province. They had to argue with subtle and 
 obstinate papists, and were constrained to use vigorous and 
 unremitting efforts against a restless political party, who were 
 seeking to bring the nation back to its former state of igno- 
 rance and superstition. We do not, therefore, now read any 
 copious writings of our first reformers, but we reap the fruits of 
 their activity and zeal, in their having procured for us, under 
 the blessing of God, the establishment and after continuance 
 of our pure and holy religion. 
 
 It may be expected that I should now give some account of 
 Mr Row's family and descendants. 
 
 He was married about the time when he was settled in the 
 ministry at Perth. There is some reason to suppose that his 
 wife was a daughter of one or other of the families of the sur- 
 name of Beaton, in the county of Fife ; but she seems to have 
 died before her husband, as the children are spoken of, after his 
 death, as being orphans. 
 
 Mr Row, while he lived, had a considerable rank in society 
 to support, and was also of a generous disposition. He was 
 unable, out of his narrow funds, to lay up a sufficient after-pro- 
 vision for his children. They were reckoned, after his death, to 
 be in a poor condition 
 
 The weekly assembly appointed that their case should be re- 
 
MR JOHN ROW. 197 
 
 ported to "the exercise/' or presbytery; and the elders, as 
 managers of the King's Hospital of Perth, settled upon two of 
 the sons, William and John, annuities, which they called "friars' 
 pensions," viz. ten marks each, winch were to be continued during 
 the lives of two of the friars, who were then living. But the 
 children were all well taken care of; and three of the sons 
 lived to make a consideiable figure in the prebyterian church. 
 
 The following may be reckoned the best or most distinct 
 method of mentioning Mr Row's children; and it may also serve 
 as a specimen of the accuracy of former times. 
 
 1. James. — He was baptized, June 25, 1562. The witnesses, 
 or godfathers, were James Beaton, who, perhaps, was the father 
 of Mrs Row, and Oliver Peebles of Chapel-hill, who was often 
 in the magistracy ol Perth. James was minister of Kiispindie, 
 and died December <iQ, KJ14. 
 
 2. William. — His name is omitted in the baptism register; 
 but he was born in 1563, and was probably named after William, 
 master of Rutnven, who was afterwards the first Euil of Gowrie. 
 He was minister of Forgandenny, and died in Oclober, 1634. 
 
 3. Mary. — Baptized, July 29, 1564. The witnesses, or god- 
 fathers, were Henry Stewart, Lord Methven, and Alexander 
 Gordon, bishop of Galloway. She was married to Mr Rigg of 
 Atherney. 
 
 4. Oliver.— Probably born in 1566. He died August 26, 1575. 
 
 5. John. — Baptized, January 6, 1568-9. I he witnesses, or 
 god fathers, were John Anderson, probably of Tullilum, and Co- 
 lin Campbell of Glenorchy. He was minister of Carnoek, and 
 died June i6, 1646. 
 
 6. Robert. — Baptized, April 30, 1570 The witnesses, or god- 
 fathers, were Andrew Row, probably a near relation of Mr Row, 
 and Robert Beaton, fiar of Balfour. 
 
 7. Archibald. — Baptized, March 23, 1571-2. The witnesses, or 
 godfathers, were Archibald Douglas, and Mr Patrick White- 
 law. He was minister of a parish in the synod of Lothian. 
 
 S.Patrick. — Baptized, July 1,1.574. The witnesses, or god- 
 fathers, were Patrick Gray, son of Lord Gray, and Mr William 
 Rhind, ministei ol Kinnoull. 
 
 9. Colin. — Baptized, March 1, 1576-7. The witnesses, or god- 
 fathers, were Colin Campbell of Glenorchy, and Colin Camp- 
 bell, his son. 
 
 Such of Mr Row's sons as were ministers, and his grandson, 
 Mr John Row, principal of King's College, Old Aberdeen, 
 were famous in the presbylenan church. Mr Row's immediate 
 successor, as minister of Perth, was the celebrated Mr Patrick 
 Galloway. 
 
1.98 MR JOHN DOUGLAS, 
 
 Mr JOHN DOUGLAS. 
 
 VIII. Mr John Douglas, Principal of St Mary's Col- 
 lege, and Archbishop of St Andrews. 
 
 CHAP. I. 
 
 His Parentage. A Carmelite Friar. Principal of St Marys 
 College. His Conversion from Popery, by Mr John Winram. 
 Tutor to Lord Lorn. Chaplain to the old Earl of Argyle. Mr 
 Walter Mill. The Earl's Corresponde?ice with Archbishop Ha- 
 milton. Death of the Earl of Argyle. The Queen-Regent. Re- 
 formers persecuted. 
 
 1 his respectable reformer was born, most probably, some years 
 previous to the year 1500. A college manuscript speaks of him 
 as being a person of" high and honourable birth ;" and Keith, 
 in his Catalogue of the Scots Bishops, says, " He was descended 
 from the family of Douglas of Pittendriech." 
 
 The mother of James Douglas, Earl of Morton, and regent of 
 the kingdom, was Elizabeth Douglas, daughter and sole heiress 
 of David Douglas of Pittendriech ; consequently she was the cou- 
 sin, or perhaps the niece of Mr John Douglas the reformer, who 
 was of the same family; a circumstance which may in some mea- 
 sure account for the influence which the regent, Earl of Mor- 
 ton, had over him in the last years of his life. The surname of 
 Grant also was applied to him, the reason of which is not now 
 lyiown. 
 
MR JOHN DOUGLAS. 199 
 
 Mr Douglas was liberally educated, according to his rank, 
 and the expectations which his riends had formed concerning 
 him. But he was of a pious disposition, ami early dedicated, 
 himself to the exercises of religion, by taking the vows, and en- 
 tering into the prder of the Carmelite or White Friars, who 
 hore a good character in the popish times. 
 
 They assumed their designation from Mount Carmel, in Syria, 
 famous for being the mountain on which the prophet Elijah 
 contended wit!) the priests of Baal, and from whence also he is 
 supposed by some to have been translated into heaven. In the 
 recesses of that mountain many Christian hermits afterwards 
 dwelt; and a monastery was, in a course of time, erected, under 
 the superintendance of the patriarch of Jerusalem. 
 
 It does not appear to which of the Carmelite monasteries in 
 Scotland Mr Douglas more particularly belonged ; but having 
 distinguished himself as a man of genius and learning, he was 
 persuaded to leave his cloister in the convent, probably in the 
 year 1539, on his being appointed provost, master, or principal, 
 of the New, or St Mary's college of St Andrews. It had been 
 founded about that time, by Archbishop James Beaton, with 
 the assistance of the cardinal, his nephew, both of whom must 
 have reckoned Mr Douglas a true papist, otherwise they would 
 not have placed him at the head of their new and favourite in- 
 stitution. 
 
 But he could not be long in St Andrews without acquiring 
 some knowledge of the doctrines of the reformers. The deaths 
 of the martyrs in that city made a deep impression on the minds 
 of many persons, and turned their attention to the opinions 
 which these good men had so strenuously maintained. 
 
 In the account formerly given of the life of Mr John Win- 
 ram, sub-prior of the abbey, or Augustine monastery, under Lord 
 James Stewart, who was prior, though yet in his non-age, no- 
 tice was made of the state of religion in St Andrews immediate- 
 ly after the deaths of George VVishart and Cardinal Beaton. 
 It was owing to the dexterous management of Mr Winram, that 
 Mr John Rough, a Dominican friar, woo afterwards suffered 
 martyrdom in England, and Mr John Knox, who had received 
 the order of priesthood from the popish church, were allowed, 
 in 1546, openly to preach, in St Andrews, against the errors of 
 the church of Rome; and free disputations on the points in con- 
 troversy were also carried on. 
 
 This learned man, Mr Winram, had embraced the protestant 
 principles, but did not yet openly profess them. He was the 
 
 f particular friend of Mr Douglas, who, in all the after part of his 
 ire, regarded him with a degree of veneration ; and, most pro- 
 bably, he was the chief instrument, in the hand of God, of Mr. 
 Douglas's conversion from popery. 
 
200 MR JOHN DOUGLAS. 
 
 In 1548, Mr Douglas, besides his being provost of the New 
 college, was chosen general rector of the university, [ndeed, 
 such was the respect which the members of the university bore 
 towards him, that, even before the reformation was fully esta- 
 blished, and afterwards, till the time of his death, he was con- 
 tinued in both these offices. 
 
 It was much in his favour that he was patronised by Archi- 
 bald, the fourth Earl of Argyle. This nobleman was an avow- 
 ed protestant, and a great promoter of the reformation. He com- 
 mitted to Mr Douglas the care of the education of his son Archi- 
 bald, Lord Lorn ; which, it may be presumed, he would not 
 have done, if he had not been certainly informed that Mr Dou- 
 glas's private sentiments of religion were the same as his own. 
 It should seem that Mr Douglas, while Lord Lorn was under his 
 caie, was frequently, during the vacations of the sessions of the 
 college, with the Earl at Inverary, who thought himself profited 
 by his teaching and conversation. 
 
 At last the time arrived, which was about the year 1553, when 
 Mr Douglas, who was of an ardent spirit, and excelled in the 
 eloquence of the pulpit, thought he might venture to lei his real 
 principles in religion be more generally known. He could now do 
 it with the greater safety, because the Douglases, his near rela- 
 tions, most of whom were well affected to the reformation, were 
 now again in favour at court, and because he enjoyed the patron- 
 age of the Earl of Argyle, who, conscious of his power in the 
 country, disregarded the threatenings of the queen-regent, and of 
 John Hamilton, the popish archbishop of St Andrews. There- 
 fore, while his friend, Mr John Winram, remained at St An- 
 drews, Making proselytes in his own cautious manner, especially 
 among the monks of his own abbey, Mr Douglas began to make 
 excursions to several distant places, where he associated with 
 professed protestants, and preached to them the gospel, in their 
 own houses, and in small congregations. 
 
 This his conduct, being reckoned irregular, was reported to 
 the archbishop, and Mr Douglas's usual returns to the college 
 became to him not so safe as formerly. But the Earl of Argyle 
 appointed him his domestic chaplain, which was the same as de- 
 claring him to be one of his own family, and whom he was there- 
 fore determined to protect. He was afterwards almost constantly 
 with tlie earl, promoting the work of reformation in the earl's fa- 
 mily, and in the shire of Argyle ; and the earl, when he went to 
 Edinburgh, took him along with him, and encouraged him to 
 preach at court, in the most open manner, against the popish 
 religion. 
 
 In Knox's History it is said, " The old Earl of Argyle took 
 upon him the maintenance of John Douglas, and caused him to 
 preach publicly in his house, and reformed many things, accord- 
 ing to his counsel." Spottiswood says, " Mr John Douglas, a 
 
MR JOHN DOUGLAS. 201 
 
 Carmelite friar, forsaking his order, became a chaplain to the 
 Earl of Argyle, who then resided at court, and spoke openly in 
 his sermons against the popish superstitions." And Knox again 
 says, that, about the year 1556, "'John Douglas, who had been 
 with the Earl of Argyle, preached in Leith, and sometimes ex- 
 horted in Edinburgh." 
 
 In December, 1557, some of the protestant lords and barons, 
 knowing that the archbishop of St Andrews, and others of the 
 popish party, were deliberating on some vigorous methods for sup- 
 pressing the progress of the reformation, and for prosecuting the 
 reformed preachers, enteied into a bond, or covenant, to defend, 
 with their lives and fortunes, the true religion, and its preach- 
 ers and professors, against all their enemies. It may be remark- 
 ed, that among the subscribers to this covenant were the Earl 
 of Argyle and Lord Lorn, who were the special protectors of 
 Mr John Douglas; the Earl ot Glencairn, the special protec- 
 tor of Mr John Willock ; and Patrick, Lord Ruthven, and his 
 cousin, John Erskine of Dun, who were the special protectors of 
 Mr Paul Methven. 
 
 I cannot, however, help observing, that, in April thereafter, 
 notwithstanding this bond or covenant, a friendless and aged 
 priest, eighty- two years of age, viz. Mr Walter Mill, priest of 
 Lunan, in the shire of Angus, who had long been in Germa- 
 ny, whither he had fled from persecution, and afterwards, since 
 his return to Scotland, had been a laborious protestant preacher 
 of the gospel, was, by some neglect or other, permitted to be 
 tried by an assembly of popish bishops, at St Andrews, and con- 
 demned, as an heretic, to the flames. He was indeed the last of 
 the Scottish martyrs ; and his death, as Spottiswood observes, 
 was held in such general detestation, that it gave a deadly 
 blow to the popish interest in Scotland. 
 
 But Mr John Douglas was the person whom the archbishop 
 now chiefly desired to have in his hands. He knew it was vain 
 to think of taking him by force from the Earl of Argyle; he 
 therefore endeavoured by arguments to persuade the earl to dis- 
 miss him from his service. 
 
 The written correspondence which passed between the arch- 
 bishop and the earl upon this subject is recorded at full length 
 in Knox's History. Nothing but its prolixity hinders me from 
 transcribing the whole of it. Spottiswood abridged it; and my 
 own abridgement of it may be as follows :— 
 
 The correspondence took place in the end of March, 1558, a 
 few weeks before the martyrdom of Mr Waller Mill. The arch- 
 bishop employed his cousin, Sir David Hamilton, to carry his 
 remonstrances to the earl, and to " let the earl see and hear 
 every article." 
 
202 MR JOHN DOUGLAS. 
 
 He put the earl in mind of the antiquity of his house. He 
 expressed his love to his house, and his desire tnut it should 
 ever continue prosperous, and free from blemish, but he was 
 surprised that so noble a man should be seduced by a perjured 
 apostate. He lamented that the earl, in his old age, should 
 waver from the faith, when he ou^ht lo be more than ever con- 
 firmed in it. He represented, that .Douglas, or Grant, was 
 chargeable with heresy, and with spreading pestilential doc- 
 trines ; and therefore he wished that the earl would put him 
 from his company, and from the company of his son, in some 
 honest way ; aud that, if he did it not, danger would arise to linn, 
 and his son, and their friends. 
 
 He also represented, that, as primate of the church of Scot- 
 land, and legate a Latere, or from the Lateran court, all the evil 
 effects of Douglas's doctrines would be laid to his charge before 
 God, because of his having so long refrained from correcting 
 such a man ; that, upon that account, his conscience was troubled; 
 and that many persons blamed him for the lenity he had hitherto 
 exercised. 
 
 " If,'" said the archbishop, " his lordship should desire to have 
 a man to instruct him truly in the faith, 1 will provide to him a 
 cunning" (skilful, learned) " man, and shall put my soul thereon, 
 that he shall teach nothing but what is truly according to our 
 Catholic faith." 
 
 The earl's answers were written in a pious strain. He greatly 
 thanked the archbishop for the love which lie professed towards 
 him and his house. But he feared, he said, (< no danger, for he 
 had always been true to his prince and his God." As to his being 
 seduced by a man-sworn apostate, he said, " May the God who 
 created the Heaven and the earth, and all that is therein, pre- 
 serve me from being seduced ; but I dread there are many, who, 
 under the colour of godliness, are so far seduced as to think that 
 they do God a pleasure when they persecute those who profess 
 his name. 
 
 " If this man" (viz. Mr Doug'as) " made an unlawful oath," 
 (viz. to the popisli church,) " it were better for him to violate it 
 than to observe it. He preaches nothing but the Evangel, and 
 if he were lo preach any other doctrine, we would not believe 
 him, nay, not even an angel from heaven. We hear none of 
 his flattery. He sows no schisms or divisions, but such as may 
 stand with God's word, which we shall cause him to confess in 
 the presence of your lordship, and of the other clergy, when you 
 shall require him thereto. 
 
 " My lord, I waver not in my faith ; but I praise God, who, 
 in his goodness to me in my latter days, has, in his infinite 
 mercy, revealed his grace, making me to acknowledge his Son. 
 
MR JOHN DOUGLAS. 203 
 
 Jesus Christ to be an sufficient satisfaction, and to refuse all 
 manner of idolatry. 
 
 " I cannot put away this man without his being an offender ; 
 and I cannot well want him, or some other preacher. Your 
 lordship says, you will send me one, to instruct me in the true 
 Catholic faith. God Almighty send us many of that soil, who 
 will teach us the true faith, and nothing else. Y\ e Highland 
 rude people have need of them, for the harvest is great, but 
 there are few labourers. If your lordship will provide me such 
 a man, I will provide to him a corporal living ; and I am able to 
 maintain more than one. 
 
 " If your lordship shall please to call this man (Mr Douglas) 
 to confess to you his faith, and to show you how far it is agiee- 
 able to the Evangel of Jesus Christ, I will cause him to attend, and 
 assist at judgment, and, with God's pleasure, be present thereat, 
 that he may render reckoning of his and our doctrine." 
 
 From these last expressions the archbishop might under- 
 stand, that, if Mr Douglas should be cited to take his trial, it was 
 the earl's resolution to accompany him, with a powerful party of 
 his Highland friends and followers, in order that justice might 
 be done to him, and that he should suffer no harm. 
 
 Spottiswood says, that Archbishop Hamilton was dissolute in 
 his morals. It is indeed generally acknowledged that he did 
 not fulfil his vow of celibacy, and that he kept a concubine, the 
 wife of another gentleman, and had several natural children. 
 The earl, therefore, knowing his character, seems, with some se- 
 verity to have reprobated, as follows, his plea of conscience. 
 
 " This man" (meaning Mr Douglas) " preaches against ido- 
 latry : I remit to your lordship's conscience if that be heresy, 
 or not. He preaches against adultery and fornication : I refer 
 that to your lordship's conscience. He preaches against hypo- 
 crisy : I refer that to your lordship's conscience. He preaches 
 against all abuses and corruptions of Christ's sincere religion : 
 I refer that to your lordship's conscience. My lord, I exhort 
 you, in Christ's name, to weigh all these affairs in your con- 
 science, and to consider if it be your duty, not only to thole 
 (permit) these things, but in like manner to do the same. — 
 This is all, my lord, in which I vary in my old age, and in no 
 other thing ; for I knew not before these offences to be abomi- 
 nable to God, but now, knowing his will, by the manifestation 
 of his word, I abhor them." 
 
 But the earl did not live long after the date of this corres- 
 pondence. He died in August, 1558. 
 
 In Knox's History his death is mentioned as follows :-~ 
 
 " Shortly after this, the Lord called to himself the said Earl 
 of Argyle from the miseries of this life; whereof the bishops 
 were glad, for they thought that their great enemy was taken 
 
204 MR JOHX DOUGLAS. 
 
 away. But God disappointed them ; for, as the said earl de- 
 parted most constant in the true faith of Jesus Christ, with a 
 plain renunci ltion of all impiety, superstition, and idolatry, so 
 he left it in his testament to Ins son, that he should study to ^et 
 forward the public and true preaching of the Evangel of Jesus 
 Christ, and to suppiess all superstition and idolatry, to the utter- 
 most of his power. In which point small fault can be found 
 with him to tins day, the 10th of May, 1568." But Knox auds, 
 with regard to the young earl, " God be merciful to his other 
 offences, amen." 
 
 In the account of the life of Mr John Carswell, many particu- 
 lars were related concerning Archibald, the fifth Earl of Aigy le. 
 He was only about eighteen years of age when he succeeded his 
 father, in 1558. He was a promoter of the reformation, but was 
 also a true friend to Queen Mary ; which could not otherwise 
 than appear very offensive to Mr John Knox. 
 
 In 1558. especially towards the end of that year, the favourers 
 of the reformation were so numerous, and had acquired such a 
 degree of power, that Mr Douglas did not reckon it necessary 
 to be confining himself to the shire of Argyie. He went, at his 
 pleasure, to different parts of the kingdom, and preached the 
 gospel, sometimes to large congregations The young Earl of 
 Argyie, finding that Mr Douglas was often absent, tiiought it 
 necessary, for the comfort of his own family, and for continuing 
 the work of reformation among his friends and vassals, to choose 
 another domestic chaplain. The person he made choice of uas 
 Mr John Carswell, who was then priest or rector of the parish 
 of Kilmartine, aiterwards one of the five ecclesiastical superin- 
 tendants, and bishop of the Isles. 
 
 In November, 1558, the protestant lords and barons were in 
 hopes of obtaining full liberty for the exercise of their religion. 
 They presented, for that purpose, a petition to the queen-re- 
 gent, as they had sometimes done before, and held conferences 
 with her. She treated them kindly, and promised to be their 
 friend. 
 
 Knox says," We" (viz. the protestant party) " craved justice 
 of the queen-regent, and a reasonable answer to our former pe- 
 titions. But she was a woman crafty, dissimulate, and false. She 
 thought to make her profit of both parties. She gave us per- 
 mission to use ourselves godlily, according to our desires, pro- 
 vided we should not make public assemblies in Edinburgh and 
 Leith ; and she promised her assistance to our preachers, until 
 some order should be established by a parliament." 
 
 It is to be remarked, that the preacher, as it afterwards ap- 
 peared, who was now gathering public assemblies oi the people 
 in Edinburgh and Leith, was Mr John Douglas. Her policy, in 
 endeavouring, at this period, to gain the favour of both parties, 
 
MR JOHN DOUGLAS. 205 
 
 was, that she might procure the parliamentary and national ap- 
 
 Erobation of the several articles which had been stipulated at 
 er daughter's late marriage with the dauphine of France, espe- 
 cially, that the matrimonial crown of Scotland should be con- 
 ferred upon him. " We," says Knox," nothing suspecting her 
 doubleness, nor her falsehood, departed from her prestnee fully 
 satisfied with her answer, and did use ourselves so quietly, that, 
 for her pleasure, we put to silence John Douglas, who would 
 have preached in the town of Leith ; for in all things we sought 
 the contentment of her mind, so far forth as God should not be 
 offended with us, for obeying her in things unlawful." 
 
 In the beginning of December, 1558, the parliament gratified 
 the queen-regent, by enacting, that the dauphine should receive 
 the matrimonial crown. She having thereby gained this point, 
 and being assured of a powerful aid of French troops, entirely 
 changed her outward behaviour towards the protestants. In- 
 stead of promoting their desire of a toleration, she referred their 
 petition to a popish synod, who, as might have been expected, 
 gave to the praver of it a peremptory refusal. 
 
 About the same time she was informed that the people of 
 Perth had so far avowed their principles, as to allow a protes- 
 tant minister, who, I suppose, was Mr Paul Methven, to preach 
 in their parish church. She expressed great displeasure, and 
 complained of it to their provost, Patrick, Lord Ruthven. He 
 replied, that he could have power over their bodies, but none 
 over their consciences. She also demanded of Mr James Ha- 
 ly burton, provost of Dundee, that he would apprehend Mr 
 Methven, who had his usual residence in that town; but Mr 
 Ha!y burton gave Mr Methven " secret advertisement to avoid 
 the town for a time." 
 
 Instigated by her brother, the Duke of Guise, and relying on 
 the aid of French troops, she ordered a general summons to be 
 issued, requiring Mr John Douglas, Mr John Knox, then abroad, 
 Mr John Willock, Mr Paul Methven, and all the other protes- 
 tant preachers in Scotland, to appear and answer for their con- 
 duct, in a court which was to be assembled for the purpose at 
 Stirling, May 10, 1550. 
 
 Mr Douglas probably now thought it more expedient for him- 
 self to retire to his former place of safety in Argyleshire ; and 
 probably he did not leave it till he heard that the protestants 
 were in arms at Perth, in May 1550. and were there joined by 
 the young Earl of Argyle and his friends. 
 
%Q6 SIR JOHN DOUGLAS, 
 
 CHAP. II. 
 
 J Compiler of the Confession of Faith, and Book of Discipline. 
 Queen Mary. His opinion concerning Mass in her Chapel. 
 James, Earl of Morton. Death of Archbishop Hamilton. Earl 
 of Mortons Scheme for a new Kind of Bishops. Mr Patrick 
 Adamson. Mr Douglas presented to the Archbishopric of St 
 Andrews. Patrick Adamson's Sermon. Mr Doug/as inaugu- 
 rated. His Troubles. His Death and Character. 
 
 J-Vi r Douglas may be reckoned, at this period of his life, to 
 have been above sixty years of age ; but he still possessed such 
 a degree of health and vigour, as might encourage him to ac- 
 company "the reforming congregation," as the protestants then 
 were called, in the several stages of their progress through the 
 kingdom, 
 
 April 29, 1560, he was honoured in being one of those six 
 ministers whom the lords of the congregation solemnly char- 
 ged to frame " a Confession of Faith," and " a Book of Go- 
 vernment and Discipline," which should be binding on all the 
 members of the reformed church of Scotland, the establishment 
 of which, it was foreseen, would soon take place. 
 
 In July, 1560, lie was not nominated one of the five ecclesi- 
 astical superintendants, but was permitted to re-assume his first 
 employments at St Andrews, as general rector of the university, 
 and provost of " the Divinity, or St Mary's college." His do- 
 ing so was deemed most suitable to his peculiar talents, to his 
 age and former habits, and necessary also for the public good. 
 He seldom afterwards seems to have been a member of the Ge- 
 neral Assemblies of the church; but, when present, he was re- 
 quired to assist in their most important committees. 
 
 In my account of the life of Mr John Winram, I mentioned 
 an interesting conversation which happened, in June, 1564, rela- 
 ting to Queen Mary. Her affability, and other accomplish- 
 ments, tended to endear her to her subjects; and she might 
 have been one of the happiest sovereigns that ever reigned in 
 Scotland, if she had not been sent in her infancy to the court 
 
MR JOHN DOUGLAS. 207 
 
 of France, where she was strictly educated in the popish religion. 
 After her return to Scotland, she continued, to the grief of her 
 subjects, a determined papist. Among her other offences, she 
 had the popish mass constantly celebrated in her chapel, to 
 which, not only her own servants, but other papists were allow- 
 ed to resort. This gave occasion to some persons to speak of 
 her in a manner which alarmed her friends; who therefore 
 thought it necessary, for her safety, to invite to a conference 
 some learned and zealous ministers, that their real sentiments 
 Slight be known. 
 
 Thf conference on the one side was carried on by Mr Secre- 
 tary Lethington, and some lords of the privy-council ; and, on 
 the other, by Mr John Knox, and some other ministers, nomi- 
 nated by the General Assembly. 
 
 Mr Knox, in his usual frank manner, represented that all pa- 
 pists weie i lolaters ; and that, according to the judicial law 
 given by Moses, " not only idolatry should be suppressed, but 
 idolaters should die the death." Some contended that the queen 
 should be deprived of the privilege of having the mass said in 
 her chapel, which, they said, " would be doing her no greater 
 wrong, than if they were forcibly to take from her hands a cup 
 of poison which she was going to drink." 
 
 Lethington, tiring of" the arguings and conversation, entreat- 
 ed the Earl of Morton, then lord-chancellor, to ask every one 
 to trive his opinion according to his conscience. We are told, 
 in Knox's History, " The rector of St Andrews, Mr John Dou- 
 glas, was commanded first to speak his conscience. He answer- 
 ed, J refer it to the superintendant of Fife, (Mr John Winram ;) 
 for I think we are both of one judgment. But if ye will that I 
 should speak first, my conscience is, that if the queen oppose 
 herself to our religion, which is the only true religion, in that 
 case, the nobility and states of the realm, who have professed 
 the true religion, may justly oppose themselves unto her. But 
 as concerning her own mass, which I know is idolatry, I am 
 not yet resolved whether by violence we may take it from her 
 or not. The same, said the superintendant of File, is my con- 
 science. And some of the nobility affirmed the same to be ac- 
 cording to their conscience." We are further told, that, after 
 this conference, u the ministers, who were called precise, were 
 holden of all the courtiers as monsters." 
 
 Indeed, at this period of the church, and long after, infidelity 
 had made little or no progress. Men were sincere in the belief 
 which they professed ; but there were very few persons so en- 
 lightened as to be inclined to tolerate, or to think favourably of 
 those, who, even in the smallest points of religion, differed from 
 them. Persecution for conscience sake was reckoned by all 
 parties a duty incumbent upon them, when they were able to 
 exercise it. It must, however, be allowed, that our reformers 
 
208 MR JOHN DOUGLAS. 
 
 were so situated, that it behoved them, as they valued the pre- 
 servation of their own Jives, and the continuance of the protes- 
 tant religion, to act with vigour and constancy against their 
 common enemy. 
 
 It would have been happy for Mr Douglas, if, in the last years 
 of his life, he had confined himself to his original work of prepa- 
 ring candidates for the holy ministry. It may, however, be cha- 
 ritably supposed, from wiiat had been the general tenour of his 
 conduct, that his enteiing upon a more public scene, when he 
 was considerably above seventy years of age, did not proceed 
 from any ambition which he himself entertained, but from the 
 urgent solicitation of his cousin, or grand-nephew, James Dou- 
 glas, Earl of Morton. 
 
 This eminent statesman* even before he became regent of the 
 kingdom, was, in the infancy of King James VI., the chief ma- 
 nager of the national affairs. During the regency of the Earl of 
 Murray, he assisted that nobleman in his political measures. 
 He had great influence with the second regent, the Earl of 
 Lennox, and afterwards with the third regent, the Earl of Mar. 
 By his keeping up a constant intercourse with the English court, 
 he was all along an able supporter of the protestant interest in 
 Scotland. But he was ambitious of power, and shewed, disgrace- 
 fully, on many occasions, his eager desire of riches. 
 
 An opportunity offered of augmenting his estate out of the 
 patrimony of the church, which he did not fail to embrace. John 
 Hamilton, the popish archbishop of St Andrews, had suffered 
 an infamous death at Stirling, in April or May, 1571- He had 
 been permitted, during his life, to enjoy his benefice, almost un- 
 molested ; but now, by his death, the see of St Andrews became 
 vacant, the lands and revenues of which appeared a desirable 
 prey to the Earl of Morton. 
 
 It has happened, that the several steps taken in the business 
 which followed can be traced, with a singular degree of accu- 
 racy, from what is related by our church writers. Calderwood, 
 in his Life of Patrick Adam son, and in his manuscript History of 
 the Church of Scotland ; Petrie, in his general History of the 
 Christian Church ; Keith, in his Catalogue of the Scots Bishops ; 
 and Mr George Martine, in his Account of the Diocese of St 
 Andrews, all contribute particulars cf information concerning 
 this affair. 
 
 Mr Martine says, " The archbishopric of St Andrews was be- 
 stowed upon the Earl of Morton, in recompense of his expences 
 in his embassy to England on his own charges." What is called 
 " his embassy to England," was probably his having accompa- 
 nied the Earl of Murray to carry on the accusations against 
 Queen Mary, then a captive in that country. His acquiring a 
 right to the archbishopric must mean, that power was granted 
 6 
 
MR JOHN DOUGLAS. 209 
 
 him to recommend an archbishop, whom he had persuaded to 
 alienate to himself the best part of the revenue. Of this he had 
 examples before him in the reign of Queen Mary, when the 
 bishoprics of Orkney, Brechin, and the isles were so disposed of, 
 in favour of some other noblemen. The obsequious bishops, so 
 ■appointed, sat in parliament, but enjoyed only a small part of 
 their benefices, and were not acknowledged as prelates by the 
 General Assemblies. It was early known, that the disposal of the 
 vacant see of St Andrews depended on the Earl of Morton. Ap-r 
 plication was made to him by his familiar friend, Sir James 
 M'Gill of Rankeiller, clerk-register, and one of the lords of 
 session, in behalf of Mr Patrick Adamson, alias Constantine. 
 
 This man, who was afterwards famous in the church, posses- 
 sed great talents, was learned and eloquent, and excelled more 
 especially in the composition of Latin poetry. He was tutor to 
 Sir James M'Gill's son, with whom he had studied law at the 
 university of Bruges, in France, nearly three years. Having re- 
 turned to his native country in 1568, or 1569, and having mar- 
 ried the daughter of an advocate in Edinburgh, he for some lit- 
 tle time practised as a lawyer in that city, but did not succeed, 
 and therefore he again turned his thoughts toward the exercise 
 of the holy ministry, which he had formerly deserted, when he 
 was minister of Ceres, in Fife. 
 
 He now obtained an appointment to be minister of Paisley, 
 but could not there restrict his ambition. In March, 1570, " he 
 was waiting at court, preaching to the Earl of Lennox, then re- 
 gent, and to the other courtiers, and had a pension modified to 
 him," (which the General Assembly was anxious should be paid,) 
 " of five hundred merks by year." 
 
 But the Earl of Morton, in 1571, did not think him a person 
 fit to be trusted in the business which he had in hand. He knew 
 Mr Patrick's character, that he was active and ambitious, took 
 pleasure in the luxuries of the table, and was always in pecuni- 
 ary straits. It was not probable that such a person would volun- 
 tarily agree to alienate any part of his benefice. As a succes- 
 sor to another, who had already granted perpetual alienations, 
 which could not be altered, there would have been no hazard, 
 but, in the first instance, he was not a 'man on whom the earl 
 could rely. 
 
 The earl's own relation, old Mr John Douglas, appeared to be 
 a more proper person to deal with in such an affair. He was 
 temperate and exemplary in his manner of living, and could 
 more easily afford to grant alienations, as he had salaries yearly, 
 arising from the offices which he held in the college. 
 
 The simple old man, now almost in his dotage, was prevailed 
 on by the earl to agree to the terms proposed ; and after mat- 
 ters had been privately settled between them, a royal preseqUr 
 
 Q 
 
210 MR JOHN DOUGLAS. 
 
 tion was issued, August 6, 1571, under the great seal, granting 
 to Mr John Douglas, rector of the university of St Andrews, 
 and provost of the New college there, for all the days of his life, 
 " all and hail] the benefice of St Andrews, as well temporality as 
 spirituality." 
 
 The consent of the General Assembly to Mr Douglas's prefer- 
 ment had not been asked, and the commission court of the 
 church were loth that so good a man should give offence, by 
 assuming any right to a benefice merely on the king's presenta- 
 tion. Some of their number were deputed to wait on the par- 
 liament, which was to meet at Stirling, August 28, 1571* and 
 to represent that no church benefice should be bestowed upo« 
 any person till his qualifications were tried by the superintend- 
 ant, or a select committee. Lest Mr Douglas should be indu- 
 ced by the Earl of Morton to begin immediately to act as a 
 bishop, his friend, Mr John Winram, as superintendant of Fife, 
 " charged him, under the pain of excommunication, not to vote 
 in parliament, in the name of the church, till the church should 
 allow and admit him." On the other hand, which would in- 
 crease the perplexity of the old man, the Earl of Morton, as the 
 assertor of the king's authority, " commanded him to vote in 
 parliament, as archbishop of St Andrews, under the pain of trea- 
 son," It is most probable that Mr Douglas found means rather 
 to obey the requisition of the superintendant. 
 
 The earl, in whom the protestant clergy greatly confided, 
 prosecuted his scheme with his usual dexterity. He held private 
 conferences with the deputies, and, to gratify them, while the 
 parliament was sitting, he procured from the new regent, the 
 Earl of Mar, the king's mandate, dated September 8, 157 1, 
 requiring that commissioners should be appointed, " to examine 
 the qualification of the most reverend father in God, John, 
 archbishop of St Andrews." 
 
 The earl, and some other lords of the privy-council, repre- 
 sented to the deputies, that the present superintendants were old 
 nun, and had served mostly on their own charges; that it was 
 not probable that, after their death, other qualified men could 
 easily be found, who would be willing to bear the same burthen ; 
 that it would therefore be far better to admit bishops in their 
 room, who should have no other ecclesiastical jurisdiction than 
 the superintendants had enjoyed, being responsible, as they 
 were, to the General Assembly; and that this would tend to 
 strengthen the general interests of the church, as sufficient be- 
 neliees would thereby be provided. 
 
 The arguments appeared so plausible to the deputies, some of 
 whom were leading men in the church, that a resolution was ta- 
 ken to call an ecclesiastical convention, to meetatLeith, on the 
 
MR JOHN DOUGLAS. 211 
 
 12th day of January, 1512, when the proposal of the noblemen 
 would be more fully considered. 
 
 The convention met accordingly, and, in its second session, de- 
 clared itself to have all the powers of a General Assembly. The 
 Earl of Morion and other lords attended, and a committee of 
 ministers was nominated to confer with them. This assembly, 
 in the issue, agreed, that an order of bishops, limited in their 
 jurisdiction, as above expressed, should be introduced into the 
 constitution of the reformed church of Scotland. It was also 
 allowed that these bishops should have, like the prelates in an- 
 cient times, their chapters, their arch-deacons, their chancellors, 
 and other officers. It was even agreed that protestant ministers 
 might be chosen to the titles and benefices ot abbots, priors, sub- 
 priors, and provosts of collegiate churches. 
 
 Some excellent men in that assembly, who gave their consent 
 to the plan proposed, thinking that the new bishops would be as 
 inoffensive, and as easily kept in subjection as the superintend- 
 ants had been, and that their being appointed would be a mean 
 of paving the way for the recovery to the church of its ancient 
 patrimony, found, in a short course of time, that they had been 
 deceived, and that the lords were actuated by selfish motives. 
 In a few years, they cordially joined with Mr Andrew Melvill, 
 when he had returned to his own country, and with others, in 
 condemning all offices in the church superior to that of a pres- 
 byter. 
 
 The Earl of Morton, however, having thus gained the consent 
 of the assembly, thought it most advisable to hasten the execu- 
 tion of his project. He procured from the new regent, the 
 Earl of Mar, what Mr Marline calls " a commendatory letter, 
 or conge d'tlire, directed, in the king's name, to the dean and 
 chapter of St Andrews, to elect Mr John Douglas, provost of the 
 New college of St Andrews, archbishop." It was dated January 
 20, 1572, and subscribed by the Earl of Mar, regent of the 
 kingdom. 
 
 In his anxiety to have the whole affair successfully accom- 
 plished, he himself went to St Andrews, January c 28th. He 
 caused a paper to be pasted on the door of the church, and up- 
 on the abbey gate, on the Lord's day, February 3d, warning the 
 persons of whom the chapter was to consist to meet on Wed- 
 nesday, February 6th, that they might hear Mr Douglas give a 
 specimen of his doctrine, by his preaching in the church. 
 
 On the day appointed, the chapter assembled, and heard Mr 
 Douglas preach. They immediately afterwards proceeded to 
 the election. There were great debates among them; but the 
 majority, headed by Robert Stewart, dean of the chapter, who 
 also was bishop of Caithness, and commendator of the priory 
 of St Andrews, made choice of Mr Douglas. Mr George Scott 
 
 6 
 
212 MR JOHN DOUGLAS. 
 
 minister of Kirkaldy, who was one of the chapter, dissented, 
 and entered his protest into the record of the meeting. In the 
 conclusion, it was determined that Mr Douglas should be ad- 
 mitted to the archbishopric, on the Lord's clay, February 10th. 
 
 But, before that day, Mr Patrick Adamson, then in St An- 
 drews, took an opportunity of avenging himself upon the Earl of 
 Morton, for the disappointment he had given him. He preach- 
 ed a sermon in the parish church, Friday, February 8th, in which 
 he laid open the selfish and covetous designs which the earl and 
 other noblemen had in view. He told the people " there were 
 three sorts of bishops. My lord bishop," said he, " was in times 
 of popery. My lord's bishop is now, when my lord getteth 
 the benefice, and the bishop serveth for a portion of the bene- 
 fice, to make my lord's right sure. The Lord's bishop is the 
 true minister of the gospel." 
 
 It may here be mentioned, that, about this time, or soon after, 
 a witty person, whom I take to have been Mr David Ferguson, 
 minister of Dunfermline, foreseeing the poverty in which Mr 
 Douglas and the other half-beneticed bishops would be involved, 
 applied to them a ludicrous name, which they still bear in some 
 of our church histories. He called them" tulchane bishops;" the 
 meaning of which has often been thus explained : — A tulchane, 
 in the old Scottish language, means a calf's skin stuffed with 
 straw, which is set up beside a cow, to deceive her, and make 
 her yield her milk. The bishop had an outward form, but was 
 only as a skin stuffed with straw, for my lord drew and took to 
 himself the milk or commodity of the benefice. 
 
 On the Lord's day, October 10, 157-, Mr John Douglas was 
 solemnly admitted, or, as they called it, inaugurated, or conse- 
 crated archbishop of St Andrews. Mr John Knox was then re- 
 siding in that, city, in bad health, and not at all well pleased with 
 what he heard concerning the new appointment of bishops. He 
 preached that day in the forenoon, and the Earl of Morton was 
 present in the church. But Mr Knox refused to assist at the ce- 
 remony of the inauguration In his sermon, he pronounced an 
 anathema both against the giver and the receiver of the benefice. 
 
 In the afternoon, Mr John VVinram went np to the pulpit. 
 Opposite to him was placed, in a chair, the elect archbishop, Mr 
 John Douglas. At the sides of Mr Douglas were placed, in 
 chairs. Robert Stewart, bishop of Caithness, afterwards Earl of 
 .March ; Mr John Spottiswood, superintcndant of Lothian ; and 
 Mr David Lindsay, minister of Leith, afterwards bishop of Ross. 
 
 Mr Winram preached a sermon from Titus, ii.'l. " But speak 
 thou the things which become sound doctrine." He made use 
 of the form enjoined in " the Book of Common Order," for the 
 admission of superintendants. When he asked, " Wil lyou be 
 obedient to the church, and usurp no power over the same ?" 
 
MR JOHN DOUGLAS. 213 
 
 Mr Douglas answered, " I will claim no power over the same 
 but what the Council and General Assembly shall prescribe." 
 At the conclusion of the ceremony, the bishop of Caithness, the 
 superintendanl of Lothian, and Mr David Lindsay, rose up, laid 
 their hands upon Mr Douglas, and embraced him, as a sign of 
 his consecration and admission. 
 
 The General Assembly met at St Andrews, March 6, 1572. 
 It is remarkable, that Mr Patrick Adamson, notwithstanding the 
 sermon which he had delivered, February 8th, was now one of 
 twenty commissioners sent to confer with Mr John Knox, still 
 in St Andrews, and mostly confined, by his sickness, to his house, 
 and to endeavour to reconcile him to the articles of the Leith 
 assembly. 
 
 The only way in which I can account for Mr Adamson's being 
 employed on such a mission is, that he was now seeking to in- 
 gratiate himself with the ruling party. He was supplicating the 
 aid of the Assembly for obtaining prompt payment of his pen- 
 sion of five hundred merks out of the parsonage-teinds of Glas- 
 gow; and the Assembly thought his request so reasonable, that 
 they gave him their countenance, in a petition, which he sub- 
 scribed in their presence, to be transmitted for that effect to 
 the lords of session. I have been induced to notice this inci- 
 dent, as it contradicts the assertion of Dr M'Kenzie, in his Life 
 of Mr Patrick Adamson, who, accompanying his assertion with 
 some unhandsome reflections upon our church writers, says, that, 
 during the whole of this period, Mr Adamson was with his pupil 
 at Bruges, in France. 
 
 But Mr Knox refused his approbation of the Leith assembly, 
 and of the procedure relating to bishops, though afterwards he 
 was induced to yield a degree of compliance. He greatly blamed 
 those persons who had been active in the affair of Mr Douglas. 
 He told the commissioners that" they had laid upon the back of 
 an old man as many offices," (meaning the archbishopric, and 
 the offices which he held in the college,) " as twenty men, of the 
 best gifts, were unable to bear." 
 
 He predicted that Mr Douglas " would be disgraced and 
 wrecked." And indeed, Mr Calderwood says, " Mr Douglas 
 had neithei that honour, health, nor wealth which he had en- 
 joyed before. Morton and his friends took up a great part of 
 his rent in tacks, feus, and pensions. He was unable of his body 
 to travel, and most unable of his tongue to teach. Yet little 
 respect had the court to the abilities of his person, so that the 
 commodity might be reaped by virtue of his title." 
 
 He was now entered into a labyrinth of trouble, from which 
 there was no appearance of his being extricated. The rents he 
 received could not support him in the rank which it behoved 
 him to sustain. Even the university of St Andrews, which had 
 
214 MR. JOHN DOUGLAS. 
 
 always favoured him, complained of him to this, Assembly, that 
 he had not given up, as they said he had promised, the offices 
 which he held in the college. The Assembly, however, " for 
 certain causes moving them, allowed that he should continue 
 rector of the university till the next assembly, on the coudition 
 that a qualified person in the mean time should be provided to 
 the provost ry of the JNew college, according to the terms of 
 the foundation." 
 
 In the Assembly at Edinburgh, March 6, 1573, Mr Douglas 
 was treated in the same humiliating manner as the superintend- 
 ants had been. He was accused of having admitted a papist 
 priest into the ministry. He answered, he did not admit that 
 priest until he had recanted popery openly in the kirk of St 
 Andrews. He was accused of not preaching and visiting during 
 the last half year, or of visiting by others, and not by himself. 
 He answered, that he preached personally when he did visit ; 
 but, because of sickness, he had not visited by himself since the 
 last assembly. He was charged with some other things, which 
 he either denied, or pleaded in excuse, ignorance, or bodily 
 weakness. 
 
 Mr Douglas, in a very debilitated condition, attended the 
 Assembly at Edinburgh, March 6, 1574. He was accused of 
 still retaining the rectory of the university of St Andrews, and 
 the provostry of the New college there. He answered, " he was 
 content to demit both the one and the other, so soon as the re- 
 gent" (viz. Earl of Morton)" should come to St Andrews to visit 
 the colleges." 
 
 Being asked " why he had neither visited Fife nor preached 
 in St Andrews, the place of his residence ?" he pled, in excuse, 
 his bodily infirmity ; and then he added, " Since I took the bi- 
 shopric, J never have been well disposed." He meant his want 
 of health ; but his words excited a kind of sarcastic smile on 
 the countenances of many of the reverend members of the As- 
 sembly. 
 
 In July, 1574, Mr Andrew Melvill arrived from abroad, and 
 was instrumental in rekindling a zeal for presbyterian govern- 
 ment. 
 
 Mr Douglas seems not to have attended the Assembly which 
 met at Edinburgh, August 7, 1574. But he had been so often 
 eazed and roughly treated for not preaching, that within a few 
 weeks after that Assembly he made an effort to preach. The 
 infirm old prelate went to the pulpit of St Andrews, and, after 
 having exerted himself a little while in speaking, his strength 
 wholly forsook him. He fell down, and, as Mr Fetrie tells us, 
 died in the pulpit. 
 
 Such is the account which I have been enabled to give of 
 this truly good, but too easy tempered man, and who had been 
 
MR JOHN DOUGLAS. 215 
 
 eminently instrumental in the national reformation from popery. 
 After a long life, spent in continued usefulness, he was, in his 
 old age, overwhelmed by the selfish policy of the Earl of Mor- 
 ton, from which time, till the day of his death, he seems to have 
 enjoyed neither health of body nor real satisfaction of mind. 
 
 The particulars of the character given of him, in Mr Mar- 
 tine's Account of the Diocese of St Andrews, are, " He was ho- 
 nourable in his birth, skilful in the Scriptures, and had a genius 
 accommodated to grand affairs. He was an adept in philoso- 
 phy, in the learning of the schools, and in theology. He was a 
 man of great piety, and eloquent in preaching. But he did 
 little in the archbishopric," (viz. as to public buildings,) " for 
 Morton took up the most part of the revenue." 
 
 I know of none of his writings that were published, though 
 it is probable he was the author of some learned and religious 
 tracts, which were well known, and read in the college, but 
 which, along with many others of a like kind, are now sunk in 
 oblivion. 
 
216 MR DAVID LINDSAT, 
 
 Mr DAVID LINDSAY. 
 
 IX. Mr David Lindsay, Minister of Leith, anb 
 Bishop of Ross. 
 
 CHAP. I. 
 
 His Birth. His Education. A Preacher among the Reformers. 
 Minister of Leith. His Employments as a Member of the Ge- 
 neral Assembly. Assisted at the admission of Mr John Douglas 
 to the Archbishopric of St Andrews. The Message which he car- 
 ried from Mr Knox to the Laird of Grange. Goes with the Scots 
 Ambassador to England. Returns to Scotland. Committed a 
 Prisoner to the Castle of Blackness. His Dream. Is calum- 
 niated by Mr Patrick Adamson. 
 
 Mr David Lindsay was bom in the year 1530. His father 
 was Alexander, second son of Sir William Lindsay of Edzell, in 
 the shire.of Angus. His mother was a daughter of Barclay of 
 Mathers. Sir Walter, his grandfather, was ancestor to the earls 
 of Balcarras. 
 
 The families of the surname of Lindsay were early well af- 
 fected to the reformation. It is probable, therefore, that, with 
 their connivance, Mr David, while prosecuting his studies at St 
 Andrews, imbibed the knowledge of the protestant religion from 
 Mr Winram, Mr Douglas, and others ; and that, when he was 
 sent abroad for his farther improvement, he was chiefly among 
 the protestants in France and Geneva, and had his mind thereby 
 more enlightened in the knowledge of the truth. Whether he 
 was admitted to the clerical order when abroad, has been de- 
 bated by a certain class of writers; but it is evident, that, when 
 
MR DAVID LINDSAY. 2 17 
 
 he returned to his native country, about the year 1559, he was 
 immediately received as a minister among the reformers. 
 
 When the committee of parliament, in July, 1560, were dis- 
 tributing the few ministers whom they then had to the chief 
 places in the kingdom, Mr Lindsay was allotted to the ministry 
 of Leith ; and it is remarkable, that, though he was afterwards 
 advanced to a higher station, his affection to the people of 
 Leith was so great, that he continued with them till the day of 
 his death. 
 
 He had, for some time, as a colleague, Mr John Durie, who 
 became one of the ministers of Edinburgh. In 1565, he assisted 
 in compiling a very good treatise " on Fasting," which the As- 
 sembly approved, and inserted in their " Book of Common Or- 
 der." In 1566, he was one of those who were appointed to re- 
 consider and revise the answer made by Mr William Ramsay, 
 one of the masters of St Salvator's college, in St Andrews, to 
 Henry Bullinger, chief pastor of the church at Zurich, in Swit- 
 zerland, concerning the canonical vestments of the clergy in 
 England. Mr Lindsay was also one of the subscribers of a 
 letter from the Assembly to the English bishops, on the same 
 subject. 
 
 As he was connected by his birth with some of the nobility, 
 he was more favourably received at court than some other of 
 the clergy were. He was, therefore, several times employed by 
 the General Assembly as the bearer of their messages to Queen 
 Mary. 
 
 In 1571, he approved, along with the generality of his bre- 
 thren, of the earl of Morton's scheme, of introducing bishops, 
 with limited powers, into the Scottish church. He assisted, in 
 1572, at the inauguration of Mr John Douglas to the archbi- 
 shopric of St Andrews, which I have more fully noticed in my 
 account of Mr Douglas's life. 
 
 In November, 1572, when Mr Knox was in his last illness, Mr 
 Lindsay often visited him, and had comfortable conversations 
 with him. He often related an incident, which, chiefly upon 
 his authority, was inserted by David Buchanan, Calderwood, 
 and others, in their histories. The incident was as follows : One 
 day, when he had gone to visit Mr Knox, then near death, and 
 had asked him how he did, Mr Knox answered," Well, brother, 
 I thank God. I have desired all this day to have had you with 
 me, that I might send you to that man in the castle, the Laird 
 of Grange," (Sir William Kirkaldy of Grange,) " whom you 
 know I have loved so dearly, and whose courage and constancy 
 in the cause of God you have sometimes seen, although, now, 
 most unhappily, he hath cast himself away. 
 
 " Go, I pray you, and tell him, from me, in the name of God, 
 that unless he leave that evil cause, and forsake that wicked 
 
218 MR DAVID LINDSAY. 
 
 course wherein he halh entered, neither that rock in which he 
 confideth," (meaning the castle of* Edinburgh, which he was 
 keeping against the Earl of Morton and the other confederate 
 lords, who were acting in name of the young king,) " shall de- 
 fend him, nor shall the carnal wisdom of that man whom he 
 counteth half a god," (meaning Sir William Maitland, younger, 
 of Lethington, commonly called Secretary Lethington,) " afford 
 him any help ; but he shall be pulled out of that nest, and his 
 carcase shall hang before the sun. So God hath assured me." 
 
 Mr Lindsay was loth to carry so hard a message, but, as Mr 
 Knox was earnest, he went, and met with Sir Robert Melvill, 
 who was walking on the wall. He declared his errand, with 
 which Sir Robert seemed to be much moved. Grange himself 
 came to them upon the wall, and appeared to be a good deal 
 affected with the message which was delivered to him. But he 
 Avent from them to consult with Secretary Lethington, and, after 
 a little time, having returned, he dismissed Mr Lindsay with a 
 disdainful answer : — "Go," said he," and tell Mr Knox that he 
 is a dirty prophet." 
 
 When Mr Knox heard from Mr Lindsay that Grange, the 
 captain or governor of the castle, had not, after he had con- 
 sulted with Lethington, well received the message, he said : a I 
 have been earnest with mvGod concerning these two men. As 
 for the Laird of Grange, I am sorry that it should so befal him ; 
 yet God assureth me there is mercy for his soul. As for the 
 other (Lethington), I have no warrant that ever he shall be 
 well." 
 
 Mr Lindsay did not think it prudent to speak openly of Mr 
 Knox's prediction while the castle was unsurrendered, and the 
 fate of Grange undecided. But, after Mr Knox's death, what 
 he had foretold was literally fulfilled. The besieging party being- 
 strengthened by troops and artillery from England, breaches 
 were made in the castle. May 29, 1573, the gate being stopped 
 by rubbish, Grange was let down by a rope from the wall, and 
 went to the English general, to whom he surrendered the castle 
 and himself and garrison as prisoners. They were afterwards 
 delivered to the regent, Earl of Morion. Lethington's place of 
 confinement was under the steeple of the church of Leith. where 
 he died suddenly, and it was thought had taken poison. Grange 
 was tried, and condemned to suffer death. Mr Lindsay often 
 visited him, and Grange took pleasure in hearing him often re- 
 peat Mr Knox's words, in which he had expressed an assurance 
 that there was mercy for his soul. 
 
 Mr Lindsay accompanied him to the scaffold, August 3, 1573. 
 It was erected on the street of Edinburgh, near to the cross. 
 Some of his last words to Mr Lindsay were," I hope, when men 
 shall think that i am passed and gone, I shall give a token of 
 
MR DAVID LINDSAY. 21§ 
 
 my assurance of the mercy of God to my soul, according to the 
 speech of that man of God ;" (meaning Mr Knox) 
 
 About four o'clock in the afternoon, he wus thrown from the 
 ladder, his face being then to the cast. His body was after- 
 wards turned round to the west, where the sun was shining ; and 
 he continued to hang with his face to the sun, as Mr Knox had 
 foretold. But, when al! supposed him to be dead, he lifted up 
 his hands, which were bound before him, and let them fall down 
 again softly. This appeared to be the token which he had hoped 
 to give of his assurance of mercy to his soul. The spectators 
 so understood it ; and good Mr Lindsay could not contain his 
 joy. He broke forth into exclamations of praise, and glorified 
 God for the riches of his mercy, before all who were present. 
 
 It is not my intention to treat with levity, or with the pride 
 of scepticism, the above and other incidents, seemingly of a 
 miraculous kind, which are said to have happened, not only in 
 Scotland, but in other countries, about the time of the reforma- 
 tion. A great and difficult work was to be accomplished ; and 
 it is not unreasonable to suppose, that the persons employed in 
 it would be furnished with some extraordinary gifts, and that 
 attestations would occur to the goodness of the cause in which 
 they were engaged. The praise of the reformation of religion, 
 as well as of the first promulgation of the gospel, is to be ascribed 
 to that wise and gracious God who considers our necessities, 
 and powerfully adapts the means he uses to the purposes which 
 he has in view. 
 
 It was about the year 1574 that Mr Lindsay, in consequence 
 of a commission from the Assembly, visited, as a supermtendant, 
 the districts of KyJe, Carrick, and Cunninghame. In 1575, the 
 Assembly appointed him to argue on the side of episcopacy, in the 
 question then under their deliberation, viz. " Whether the office 
 of bishop, as exercised in Scotland, was lawful." He was mo- 
 derator of the Assembly which met at Edinburgh, October 9, 
 1582, which Assembly cordially approved of the enterprise called 
 " The Raid of Ruthven," which had happened in the August 
 preceding. 
 
 The two rivals for the favour of the young king, both of 
 whom had been set aside by the lords concerned in the late en- 
 terprise at the castle of Ruthven, were Esme Stewart, Duke of 
 Lennox, and James Stewart, Earl of Arran. The duke, by his 
 amiable temper and engaging manners, had gained on Mr Lind- 
 say's affection, who believed him to be a real convert from po- 
 pery, and thought that the sentence by which he had been ba- 
 nished from the kingdom was cruel and unjust. When a French 
 ambassador arrived at Edinburgh, January 1, 1583, who was to 
 endeavour that the duke should be restored to his former office 
 at court, the presbytery of Edinburgh met, January 8th, to con- 
 
220 MR DAVID LINDSAY. 
 
 sider whether it was proper that the ministers, in their sermon?, 
 should warn the people of the danger to be apprehended from 
 the French ambassador. Mr Lindsay, by his speeches, pro- 
 tracted the debate ; and when, at last, it was determined that 
 the people ought to be warned, he protested, and enten-.! his 
 dissent. The object of the duke had been, that tin queen should 
 be called from her captivity in England, to take a part in the 
 government along with her son ; but Mr Lindsay could not be 
 persuaded that the duke would persist in any object which 
 might tend to the prejudice of the piotestant religion. 
 
 The lords who had been concerned in the affair at Ruthven 
 were now the chief managers in all public matters. Sir Wil- 
 liam Stewart of Monkton, commonly called " the Colonel," a 
 younger brother of the Earl of Arran, had gained their favour, 
 though the earl himself was still excluded from the king's pre- 
 sence. The parliament, April 12, 1583, appointed that the co- 
 lonel should go on an embassy to England, and be accompanied 
 by Mr David Lindsay, minister of Leith. They hoped that 
 both the colonel and Mr Lindsay would thereby become more 
 attached to the English party, which had always strenuously op- 
 posed the measures taken for the queen's restoration. 
 
 Mr Lindsay, having obtained from the Assembly leave of ab- 
 sence, went along with the ambassador, April 25, 1583. The 
 embassy, however, was of short continuance. They returned 
 from England, June 3d. In a few weeks after their return, a 
 great change took place. The colonel proved faithless. The 
 king, assisted by him, by the Earl of Arran, by Patrick Adamson, 
 archbishop of St Andrews, and by some popish and other dis- 
 contented lords, rescued himself, June 28th, out of the hands of 
 those who had been his most faithful and popular counsellors. 
 The Earl of Arran regained his former power; and the arch- 
 bishop of St Andrews, who, on many accounts, was ofTr-nsive to 
 the General Assembly, went, in December, into England, to 
 confer with the English bishops, and prosecute his scheme of 
 utterly subverting the presbyterian church. 
 
 He returned to Scotland, end of April, 1584. The parliament 
 met, May 22. The presbytery of Edinburgh, being secretly ad- 
 vertised of rigorous measures intended against the liberties of 
 the church, deputed Mr Lindsay, as the person in their number 
 whom the king most loved, to go to the palace of Holyrood- 
 house, where the king and the lords of articles then were, to en- 
 treat, in their name, that nothing prejudicial to the church 
 should be done in the meetings of parliament. 
 
 Mr Lindsay, apprehending no clanger, went to the palace; 
 but no sooner had he entered the gate, than he was seized, by 
 order of the Earl of Arran, as an intruder. He was detained all 
 the night, without having access to the king, and, in the morning, 
 
MR r>AVJT) T.TNDSAY. 221 
 
 was conveyed, as a state prisoner, to the castle of Blackness. 
 The earl hated him for his having been a friend to the Duke of 
 Lennox, and for his being in some degree in favour with the 
 king. He alleged that Mr Lindsay was in a course of corres- 
 pondence with some persons in England; but no evidence of it 
 was produced. 
 
 The castle of " Blackness," which means " the black promon- 
 tory," to which Mr Lindsay was condemned, and in which he 
 was kept forty-seven weeks, that is, almost a whole year, is si- 
 tuated on the south coast of the Forth, at the end of a peninsula, 
 a few miles west from the south Queen's Ferry. Its rocks are 
 washed by the waves of the sea ; and to this castle prisoners of 
 state were often committed in the times of old. In its cold and 
 dreary apartments he soon became dispirited. Every event of 
 which he heard contributed to discourage him. The enterprise 
 at Rutliven had been declared a deed of treason ; the most zea- 
 lous protestants among the nobility were in a state of exile; 
 the ministers of the gospel, who had refused to speak in their 
 sermons against " the Raid of Ruthven," either were banished, 
 or had fled from the kingdom ; civil animosities were prevail- 
 ing, some of them not without bloodshed ; and wickedness, of 
 all kinds, was abounding: among the people, under the corrupt 
 government of the Earl of Arran. The pious Mr Lindsay ap- 
 prehended that signal judgments from God would be inflicted. 
 
 His dreams at night corresponded with the thoughts which 
 had troubled him through the day. One of his dreams, which 
 was continued two nights, he reckoned so very remarkable, that 
 he committed his account of it to writing. A copy of it is pre- 
 served in Calderwood's manuscript History, and Mr Wodrow 
 from thence inserted it in his Historical Collections. It is as 
 follows : — 
 
 " The sum of that which I dreamed, both the first and the 
 second night, as far as I can remember. 
 
 " The first night, there appeared unto me a personage high in 
 the air. The sun was very bright over his head, a full moon was 
 under his feet," (perhaps this might indicate a full month, after 
 which the judgments were to occur,)" and a bright star was round 
 about him. His visage and portraiture I was unable to behold, 
 hecause of the great light that shined. From him there came 
 one like to a man of great and hideous stature, clad all in red. 
 In his right hand was a red sword, in his left a roll of paper, and 
 under his feet a great fire. He appeared to me to stand above 
 the castle of Edinburgh, and a great number of persons were 
 looking upon him there. 
 
 " The second night, I saw only the red-clad man, with the 
 sword and the roll of paper ; but he was of a far greater stature 
 than I had seen him the first time. I thought I was in a valley, 
 
222 MR DAVID LINDSAY. 
 
 where T saw Edinburgh, Dunbar, Haddington, and other towns 
 which I knew, with wide spaces between them. The red man 
 appeared to me in the air, in the midst of them, and to cry, with 
 a loud voice, Metuant stulti, sapientes episcopant ; (let foois fear, 
 wise men diligently observe ;) appropinquat judicium ; (judgment 
 approaches.) Thereafter, I saw a number of people gathered 
 together, who were crying, Justus cs Domine, etjudicia tua recta; 
 (just art thou, O Lord, and thy judgments are right :) miserere 
 nostri, et protege nos sub umbra alarum tuarum; (have pity upon 
 us, and shield us under the shadow of thy wings.) 
 
 " After this, the red man openeth the roll of paper, saying, 
 with a mighty voice; Adest judex; (the judge is at hand;) ubi est 
 contemptor Dei,sacri/egus, blusphemus, adulter'? (where is the de- 
 spiserof God, the sacrilegious person, the blasphemer, the adul- 
 terer?) with a great number of other voices. Having read the 
 roll, he pronounced this sentence, Edistislucem, tenebras elightis; 
 (you have shunned the light, and loved darkness:) Diu to/te- 
 ravi, nunc vindicabo ; (L have long forborne, but now will avenge.) 
 Upon this he strikes the ground with his sword, and all the 
 streets of the towns, and also the fields, appeared to me to be 
 covered with blood. 
 
 " shortly thereafter, I heard this other sentence pronounced : 
 Domi devorabil pestis, extra vastabit gladius, undique Jiagrabit i«nis; 
 (in the house the pestilence will devour; without, the sword 
 will lay waste ; every where fire will be kindled.) Immediately, 
 I thought I saw the streets and fields full of dead carcasses. The 
 doors of sundry houses were open, and dead persons seen within 
 them, some who had died of boils, and some of fluxes; and a 
 fire was entering the towns: every where a voice was crying, 
 Dies irae, et furoris Jthova; (the day of the anger and fury of 
 Jehovah.) 
 
 " At last, I heard the sound of a bell, and the first company 
 which assembled came to a kirk, where the man clothed in red 
 clothes spake these words unto them : Timeant sapientes, iniqui- 
 tatem fugite, diligite jmtitiam et judicium; (let the wist be afraid : 
 flee from iniquity, love justice and judgment ;) aut cito revertar, 
 et tunc posteriora erunt pejora prioribus; (or else I will quickly re- 
 turn, and then the last things shall be worse than the first.) And 
 all the people said, Amen. 
 
 " With this 1 awaked, and suddenly started out of my bed, and 
 came to one of the windows of my chamber, in Blackness, where 
 1 heard a bell ringing, either in Culross or Dunfermline." 
 
 Thus was this good man exercised, in his solitude, with me- 
 lancholy thoughts, and forebodings of evils to come. I have 
 given the relation which he made of his dream, as a literary cu- 
 riosity. The posture of public affairs at the lime might natu- 
 rally lead his mind, in his sleep, to such visionary rcpresenta- 
 
MR DAVTD LUSTDSAY. £23 
 
 lions. But, if the dream happened soon after his commitment 
 to the castle, it may be reckoned as in some degree prophetical ; 
 for there was no pestilence in the country till more than three 
 months after he was confined. 
 
 The plague began at Perth, September 24, 1584, " where 
 died of it fourteen hundred and twenty-seven persons, young 
 and old." " It was brought to Edinburgh, May 7, 1585, by a 
 servant-woman from Perth. It broke out in St Andrews in 
 August, 1585, and continued till upwards of four thousand people 
 died, and the place was left almost desolate." It was commonly 
 said, that it had come upon the nation on account of the ba- 
 nishment of the protestant lords, and of the faithful ministers of 
 the gospel ; and it was assuaged about the end of the year 1585, 
 when the protestant lords returned from England. 
 
 But Mr Lindsay, while confined, was also vexed with the ca- 
 lumny which Patrick Adamson, archbishop of St Andrews, en- 
 deavoured to throw upon him. This restless and projecting pre- 
 late, in his antipathy to the zealous ministers who had often 
 found fault with his behaviour, was so far destitute of an honest 
 principle, as to fabricate certain writings, in name of Mr James 
 Lawson, minister of Edinburgh, who had fled into England, and 
 who, lamenting the troubles which had occurred to religion and 
 to his country, had died of a broken heart, at London, in Octo- 
 ber, 1584. He had continued firm in the principles which he 
 always had maintained ; but the archbishop sought to represent 
 him as having changed his opinions at the time of his death. 
 
 For that purpose, the archbishop fabricated a writing, which, 
 he called " Mr Lawson's Testament ;" to which he added what 
 he called " Mr Lawson's Repentance ;" and then added sixteen 
 scurrilous letters, as if written by Mr Lawson, and addressed to 
 some of the presbyterian ministers, who were most respectable 
 for their talents, their exemplary life and conversation, and their 
 usefulness in the church. These letters were in the strain of 
 what are commonly called anonymous, or letters under feigned 
 names, which contain whatever is imagined will astonish, or 
 create pain to the good and upright men to whom they are ad- 
 dressed. Mr Adamson, perhaps, never hoped that they would 
 be reckoned genuine, but, in making use of a feigned name, he 
 gave full vent to his spleen against those ministers to whom he 
 had often confessed, "with tears, with sighs, and sobs," the irre- 
 gularities of his own conduct. Three exhortations were sub- 
 joined : the first " To the Queen's Majesty of England ;" the se- 
 cond " To the Kind's Majesty of Scotland ;" and the third 
 « To the Nobility of Scotland." 
 
 All these fabrications appear to have been printed. In Cal- 
 derwood's manuscript History they occupy ten sheets ; and 
 Wodrow, in his Collections, transcribes some of the letters, 
 
224 MR DAVID LINDSAY. 
 
 among which is the one which was addressed to Mr Lindsay 
 The forgery was soon detected, and the author well known. 
 Many bore testimony to what had been Mr Lawson's temper of 
 mind in his last illness ; and an indelible stain is thus left on the 
 character of that archbishop. 
 
 Mr Wodrow apologises for his inserting the letter to Mr 
 Lindsay. " If I thought/' says he, (< that any would suffer them- 
 selves to believe the foul things which the vile pen of the bishop 
 throws on Mr Lindsay, I would not venture to transcribe it; 
 hut since I am persuaded that the bishop's pen, according to 
 our old proverb, is no slander, I shall set it down, as an ins'umce 
 of his hatred to the sufferer, (Mr Lindsay,) for his having op- 
 posed his wicked courses." In another part of his Collections, 
 he reprobates the daring impiety of Mr Adamson, " in playing 
 with the name of a good man after his death, and using it as a 
 cloak under which malevolent purposes might be promoted." 
 
 Mr Calderwood and Mr Wodrow thought themselves obliged, 
 as faithful collectors, to set down every thing which they could 
 find relating to the history of the former times. As 1 am not 
 collecting every thing that has been written, but giving a real 
 account of a good man's life, I spare myself from being sub- 
 jected to the disagreeable task of transcribing such a letter. I 
 onhy observe, that, from what Mr Adamson wrote, it appears 
 that Mr Lindsay had a wife, a son, and other children, for whom 
 he was endeavouring, as it certainly was his duly to do, to make 
 some comfortable provision ; partieularhy, that he had procured 
 lor his son the parsonage of Rcstalrig, near Edinburgh. 
 
MR DAVID LINDSAY. 225 
 
 CHAP. II. 
 
 Is liberated from Blackness. In Favour with the King. A Com- 
 missioner relating to Benefices. Accompanies the King to Nor- 
 way, where he marries the King to the Princess Ann of Denmark. 
 His Letter to the Presbytery of Edinburgh. Returns zvith the 
 King and Queen. Is present at the Queens Coronation. The 
 King's Speech in favour of Presbytery. The Presbyterian Church 
 established. Is present at the Baptism of Prince Henry. Rup- 
 ture between the King and the Church. Baptises the Princess 
 Margaret. His Exhortation to the King after the Heath of 
 John, Earl of Gowrie. Made Bishop of Ross. Baptises Prince 
 Charles. Sits in Parliament. His Death and Character. His 
 Family and Writings. 
 
 J- he Earl of Arran's interest at court being on the decline, Mr 
 Lindsay, in April, 1585, was liberated from his confinement in 
 the castle of Blackness. He was much favoured by the young 
 king, James VI., both on account of his conciliating manners, 
 and of the friendship which he had shewed to the late Duke of 
 Lennox, of whom the king always retained an affectionate re- 
 membrance, and regretted the harsh treatment he had met with. 
 In 15.SC), Mr Lindsay was one of the commissioners appoint- 
 ed by the king to examine into the state of ecclesiastical bene- 
 fices, and to deprive such persons as had illegally obtained them. 
 His assistants in this business were, Mr Robert Pont, and Mr 
 James Carmichael, who, besides being eminent divines, were 
 excellent lawyers ; and to thtm was added Mr Robert Bruce, 
 one of the ministers of Edinburgh. 
 
 In that same year, the king went to Norway, to marry and 
 bring home his queen, the princess Ann of Denmark, whom he 
 had betrothed by his ambassador. He was accompanied by 
 Chancellor Maitland and others, to the number of three hun- 
 dred persons; and Mr Lindsay was the only minister whom ha 
 
 p 
 
22G Mil DAVID LINDSAY. 
 
 chose should attend him. They embarked at Leith, October 
 22, 1581), and, on the fourth or fifth day thereafter, arrived at 
 a haven in Norway, at some distance from Upslo, in which 
 town the princess then was, who had been driven back by a 
 tempest, when on her way to Scotland. The marriage was so- 
 lemnized at Upslo, November 28th. Mr Lindsay had the honour 
 of performing the ceremony, which he did in the French lan- 
 guage. Messengers were immediately dispatched to Scotland 
 with the news, and by them Mr Lindsay took the opportunity 
 of transmitting a letter to the presbytery, then commonly called 
 " the lildership" of Edinburgh ; a copy of which has been pre- 
 served in Calderwood's manuscript History, and is as follows : — 
 
 \ 
 
 " The Lord Jesus Christ, by his mighty power comfort you. 
 
 M After divers perils, and troublesome journeys, we came here 
 to Upsiaw the nineteenth of November; and here I married 
 his majesty, the next Sunday thereafter, with a princess, both 
 godly and beautiful, as appeareth to all who know her. I trust 
 I shall bring a blessing to our country, like as she giveth con- 
 tentment to his majesty. 
 
 " Before our coming, the council of Denmark had concluded 
 not to suffer her to take the sea this winter, which is the cause 
 of our stay : And albeit his majesty hath granted licence to 
 the greatest part of his company to return home, yet I could 
 not obtain the like, seeing thereby he would have been altoge- 
 ther destitute of a minister: and surely I would not willingly 
 have accompanied his majesty to this country, if I had not also 
 been to accompany him in his home-coining. 
 
 " I trust the sight of this country shall be profitable to his 
 majesty and to the kirk. Remember me in your prayers. 
 Leaving to trouble you farther, I commit you to the protection 
 of God. From Upsiaw, the twenty-eighth of November, 1589« 
 Your loving brother, David Lindsay. 
 
 " P. S. — His majesty hath commanded me to write earnestly 
 unto you, that, in his absence, you be very diligent to counsel 
 all estates and persons to keep good order and quietness, which 
 will make him esteem all the ministry, as they will know at his 
 majesty's rt turning. Great necessity constraineth his majesty 
 to be so long absent, as afterwards you will better understand." 
 
 The king and queen, after their marriage, went with their 
 company to the court of Denmark, where they remained all the 
 winter. They left that country, April, 1590, and, May 1st, ar- 
 rived in Scotland, at Leith. The king, immediately after he 
 landed, went to the church, " where," Spottiswood says, " he 
 caused public thanks to be given to God, for his safe and happy 
 return." 
 
MR DAVID LINDSAY. 2£7 
 
 The queen was crowned in the abbey-church, or chapel of 
 Holyroodhouse, May 17, 1590. There were still living tour 
 or five of the old protestant bishops, but they were neglected on 
 this occasion. None of them were invited to be present. Mr 
 Lindsay, and some other ministers, were desired to attend. Mr 
 Patrick Galloway, formerly minister of Perth, and now one of 
 the king's chaplains, who had been sent to the king, to hasten 
 his return, and was now come home with him, preached the 
 coronation sermon. Mr Robert Bruce, one of the ministers of 
 Edinburgh, anointed and crowned the queen, and administer- 
 ed to her the coronation oath. Mr Andrew Melvill, principal 
 of the college of St Andrews, spoke a Latin speech, which was 
 much admired. The king said, that by it he had done honour 
 to his native country. His majesty desired it should be printed; 
 which accordingly was clone ; and Mr Melvill added to the 
 printed copy a Latin poem of congratulation to the king and 
 queen. 
 
 The church was now in a very happy state. It had ceased to 
 be troubled with disputes about episcopal government; and the 
 old antagonist of presbytery, Patrick Adamson, archbishop of 
 St Andrews, was in disgrace, and died the year ensuing. 
 
 In the Assembly which met at Edinburgh, August 4, 1590, 
 the king gave great satisfaction to the generality of his subjects, 
 by a speech which he then made. He took off his bonnet, and 
 rising from his seat, with his hands and eyes lifted up to hea- 
 ven, he said, " I praise God that I have been born into the world 
 at a time when the light of God's word clearly shines forth, nei- 
 ther eclipsed with the mists of ignorance, nor perverted by the 
 false lights of superstition. I thank God, who has honoured me 
 to be king of a country in which there is the sincerest kirk in 
 the world." (These words, u The sincerest kirk in the world," 
 he repeated three times.) 
 
 " The kirk of Geneva keep Pasch and Yule," (Easter and 
 Christmas.) " What authority have they in God's word for 
 these? Where have they any institution for them? As for our 
 neighbours in England, their service is an evil said mass in Eng- 
 lish. They want nothing of the mass but the liftings," (viz. the 
 elevations of the host.) 
 
 Then, turning, we are told, to every side of the church in 
 which the Assembly was sitting, he said, " 1 charge you, my 
 good people, ministers, doctors, eiders, nobles, gentlemen, and 
 barons, to stand to your purity, and to exhort the people to do 
 the same ; and 1, forsooth, so long as I brook (enjoy) my life 
 and crown, shall maintain the same against all deadly." 
 
 The members of the Assembly were in a devout ecstasy. Cal- 
 derwood says, " for a quarter of an hour, nothing was heard in 
 the Assembly but praising God, and praying for the king." 
 
22$ SIR DAVID LINDSAY. 
 
 The king seems to have spoken from the fulness of his heart, 
 and there appears no reason, ;it this period, why his sincerity 
 should be doubted. It was \lr Lindsay's earnest endeavour to 
 keep up the good understanding between the kingand thechurch, 
 and he dexterously used his influence with both for that purpose. 
 The harmony continued a considerable time, without any great 
 interruption. In a consistency with it, the parliament, June 5, 
 159*2, passed an act, establishing the presbyterian church, in its 
 general assemblies, synods, presbyteries, and parochial sessions, 
 as the national church of Scotland ; describing also the powers 
 and privileges which should belong to each of these courts. 
 
 All former ratifications had been vague and indeterminate. 
 Ecclesiastical judicatories did indeed meet, and exercise certain 
 powers, independently of bishops; but no law could be shewed 
 for these meetings, excluding prelatical government. This act 
 of parliament is therefore reckoned the legal charter of the na- 
 tional church of Scotland, in as far as human authority is con- 
 cerned. As such it w;is ratified at the revolution, in 1G08, and 
 afterwards in the articles of union between the two kingdoms, in 
 1707. 
 
 Henry, Duke of Rothsay, afterwards Prince of Wales, was 
 born in the castle of Stirling, February 19, 1.094, and baptised 
 in the king'sehapel there, August 30th, by Mr David Cunningham, 
 the old titular bishop of Aberdeen. Mr Lindsay, with the bi- 
 shop, and another minister, was honoured to sit in a desk, ha- 
 ving a table before them, covered with yellow velvet. After the 
 baptism, Mr Lindsay, Spottiswood says, " made a learned speech, 
 in the French language, to the ambassadors who were present." 
 He had a great facility in speaking the French language, which 
 was owing, f suppose, to his having been, in his younger years, 
 long among the French protestants, and perhaps one of their 
 preachers. The devices used, and the shows exhibited at the 
 prince's baptism, are largely related in the second volume of 
 Nisbet'S Heraldry. 
 
 The presbyteiian church was now fully sensible of the powers 
 with which it had been invested. But some leading men, in 
 their zeal for what they reckoned would be conducive to the 
 gr atest good, thought that the church should superintend and 
 exercise a judicial control, 1 over the civil government. One 
 point which they vigorously claimed, but which had not been 
 pret< nded to in the days ot John Knox, was, that ministers ac- 
 cused of uttering treasonable speeches in their sermons should 
 not be amenable to the civil courts, but only to the church ju- 
 dicatories. Mr Lindsay, in the opinion of some of his brethren, 
 was not so zealous in forwarding these matters as he ought to 
 have been; neither, :n their opinion, did he condemn, with a 
 sufficient severity, the conduct of the king, in the lenity which 
 
MR DAVID LINDSAY. S29 
 
 he shewed to the popish lords. Strong apprehensions of popery 
 were at this time entertained ; justly, according to some writers, 
 but unjustly, according to others. It is, however, certain, that 
 the king, who wished to gain the popish party in England to 
 favour his eventual succession to the English crown, was acting 
 in such a manner as might have endangered the protestant in- 
 terest in Scotland, if its watchful guardians had not timeously 
 taken an alarm. . 
 
 In the Assembly which met at Edinburgh, March 23, 1596, 
 Mr Lindsay argued, that the proposal of the king should be ac- 
 cepted, of his submitting himself to private admonitions, but 
 not to public rebukes. The king thanked him for the exertion 
 he had used in his behalf. Bui some members of Assembly pre- 
 sented lists, which they had prepared, of the faults of the king, 
 of the queen, and her gentlewomen, and of the judges of the 
 land ; not, however, neglecting to present, at the same time, a 
 list of the faults of the clergy. With difficulty it was granted, 
 in the king's favour, that he should not now be required to come 
 to the Assembly to be rebuked, but that some ministers should 
 be deputed to go to him in his own palace, and acquaint him of 
 what the Assembly exhorted him to amend in his private life, 
 and in his public administration. It was an effort to compel, by 
 the pain of ecclesiastical censures, persons of all ranks, and in 
 all offices, in every part of the kingdom, to conform, in all their 
 transactions, and in all their behaviour, to what the church 
 should declare were the rules of sound morals, and precepts of 
 religion. The good men lamented the prevalence of vice among 
 the people, and mal-practices in the courts of justice, and, per- 
 suaded that their church was weli enlightened, seemed to think 
 that the nation would be more happy, in all its important con- 
 cerns, when under a supreme ecclesiastical jurisdiction. But 
 the civil rulers are answerable to God for the manner in which 
 they exercise the offices which they have received from him ; 
 and the rulers of the spiritual kingdom of our Saviour appear 
 not to be warranted, in the New Testament, to interfere with 
 them in their earthly government, by judicial rebukes, but may 
 use entreaties and pious exhortations. 
 
 A wide breach consequently took place between the king and 
 the church. Mutual irritations succeeded. The circumstances 
 are detailed by Spottiswood, Calderwood, Petrie, Robertson, 
 and some other historians. My plan in writing Mr Lindsay's 
 life does rtot oblige me to narrate them. It is only necessary 
 to mention, that an insurrection ensued, in the end of the year, 
 in which the king's life was in danger, and that the occuirences 
 at Edinburgh, December 17, 15<J0, were calculated to make an 
 unfavourable impression on the mind of Mr Lindsay, and on the 
 minds of many other well-meaning men. These occurrences fur- 
 
230 Mil DAVID LINDSAY. 
 
 nishetl a pretext for that plan of policy, with regard to the Scot- 
 tish church, which the king afterwards adopted. 
 
 But it may be supposed that the ministers, who had exceed- 
 ed in their zeal, would soon have seen their error, or been over- 
 come by their more considerate brethren, if the king had not 
 harassed them, and made them to be reckoned persecuted per- 
 sons, by his rigorous proceedings. The Assembly which met at 
 Dundee in May, 1597, yielded some points to the king, with 
 which he might have been satisfied. But he was impatient of 
 the moral restraints which some conscientious ministers were 
 laying upon him; and his purpose now was, in which he conti- 
 nued to the end of his reign, to subvert gradually, and by every 
 possible means, the constitution of that church which he had 
 lately established, and on which he had bestowed high com- 
 mendation. 
 
 The above-mentioned Assembly at Dundee also appointed a 
 numerous committee, or " general commission," as it was called, 
 to meet often with the king, and amicably to confer with him 
 on matters relating to the church. Mr Lindsay was a member 
 of this committee, and faithfully attended in its meetings with 
 the king. A petition was presented by the committee to the 
 parliament which met at Edinburgh in December, 1597, suppli- 
 cating liberty for a certain number of ministers, chosen by the 
 king and the church, to sit and vote in parliament. The desire 
 of the petition was granted, and the ministers chosen were de- 
 nominated, as the clergy of old had been, one of the three estates 
 of parliament. Some very good men were not immediately aware 
 that this was paving the way for the introduction of bishops. 
 
 April 1(), 1599, ntr Lindsay, as one of the court ministers, 
 baptised, in the chapel-royal of Holyroodhouse, the princess 
 Margaret, daughter of the king and queen. She was born De- 
 cember 24, 1598, and died in her infancy. The witnesses, or 
 godfathers, were, John Graham, Earl of Montrose, who was chan- 
 cellor of the kingdom, John, Lord Hamilton, and George Gor- 
 don, Earl of Huntly. Lord Hamilton and the Earl of Huntly 
 were, the next day, created marquisses; and the ceremonies of 
 their creation are related in the second volume of Nisbet's He- 
 raldry. 
 
 August 5, l600, John, Earl of Gowrie, and his brother Alex- 
 ander Ruthven, were slain, in the earl's house, at Perth, the king 
 being there at the time, attended by many of his courtiers and 
 their retainers, besides almost a whole clan, who, according to 
 Calderwood, were in Perth, at the solemnization of a marriage, 
 and prepared and willing to assist the king, in whatever he 
 should require. Dr Launcelot Andrews, afterwards bishop of 
 Winchester, in his sermon before the king, at Kumsay, August 5, 
 lGOf, which was one of the anniversaries of what was called 
 
Mil DAVID LINDSAY. £31 
 
 Gowrie's conspiracy, when speaking of the earl and his brother, 
 says, " Their years were not many, nay, so few, so green, that 
 it may well seem strange that there could such inveterate ma- 
 lice and mischief be hatched in so young years." When the 
 king returned from beyond Forth, and was landed at Leith, Mon- 
 day^ August 11, 1600, Mr Lindsay, as a pious man, and as the 
 parish minister, took him immediately to the church, where, ha- 
 ving rendered thanksgiving for the king's safety, he seriously 
 and affectionately exhorted him to be mindful of the promises 
 which he had often made, of distributing impartial justice. But 
 Calderwood remarks, " that the king smiled, and talked to those 
 who were about him, in his usual irreverent manner when hear- 
 ing sermons." 
 
 In October, 1600, Mr Lindsay was presented to the bishopric 
 of Ross, but without any spiritual jurisdiction, being only con- 
 sidered as one of the ministers who were chosen to sit and vote 
 in parliament. 
 
 Prince Charles, afterwards King Charles I., was born at Falk- 
 land, November 19, 1600. He was baptised at Dunfermline, 
 December 23d, by Mr David Lindsay, minister of Leith, and 
 titular bishop of Ross. The text on which Mr Lindsay preach- 
 ed, on that occasion, was, Rom. xiii. 11 : " Knowing the time, 
 that now it is high time to awake out of sleep; for now is our 
 salvation nearer than when we believed." The last words of the 
 text were peculiarly applicable to himself, as an aged and pious 
 Christian. 
 
 Keith, in his Catalogue of the Scots Bishops, says, that when 
 the king, in 1603, went to take possession of the throne of 
 England, Mr Lindsay was one whom he invited to attend him 
 in his journey. But it can scarcely be supposed that his age and 
 infirmities would allow him to accept of such an invitation. 
 
 Mr Lindsay was present in the parliament which met at Perth, 
 June 15, 1604. In this parliament a motion was made, at the 
 king's desire, for a union of the two kingdoms ; and Mr Lind- 
 say was nominated as one of the commissioners who should 
 meet with commissioners from England on that business. 
 
 In the parliament which met at Perth, July 6, I60G, Mr Lind- 
 say probably was present. Many new bishops had been made be- 
 fore that time. An old Perth Chronicle says, " The bishops rode 
 at this parliament in black ; and all the nobility rode in scarlet 
 robes, faced with white furrs. It was called the red parliament of 
 St Johnston,''(viz. of Perth.) It may be observed, that it was the 
 last parliament of Scotland which was holden in that town, and 
 that it fully established the episcopal form of church govern- 
 ment, by annexing to the bishoprics the ancient temporalities. 
 
 Mr Lindsay died in the end of the year 16 13, being about 
 eighty- three years of age. Spottisvvood says, " He was interred 
 
232 MR DAVID LINDSAY. 
 
 at Leith, according to his own directions, desiring to rest with 
 that people on whom he had taken great pains through his lite." 
 He adds, " He was of a peaceable nature, and universally be- 
 loved." 
 
 Keith, in his Catalogue of Scots Bishops, says, " Mr Lindsay 
 was a grave and pious man." But Keith is mistaken in saying 
 that Mr Lindsay " gave public thanks at the cross of Edinburgh 
 for his majesty's deliverance from Gowrie's conspiracy ;" for 
 that was done, not by him, but by Mr Patrick Galloway, ano- 
 ther of the king's ministers. 1 have already mentioned the ex- 
 hortations which Mr Lindsay, in his own church, gave to the 
 king after his return from that bloody affair. 
 
 Mr Lindsay, during a long life, had done much for religion, 
 and had suffered hard usage, owing to the malice of the Earl of 
 Arran, and the episcopal zeal of Archbishop Adamson. In his 
 latter years, though he appeared on the side of the king, he was 
 so generally beloved and respected, that, in so far as I have 
 found, no harsh censures have been passed upon him. 
 
 Archbishop Spottiswood says of him, " He was a man nobly 
 descended, and a brother of the house of Edzell." Mr Lindsay's 
 daughter, Rachael, was Archbishop Spottiswood's wife, and the 
 mother of all his children. Jeremiah, Mr Lindsay's son, was so 
 inconsiderate, as to take part in the romantic schemes of Fran- 
 cis Stewart, Earl of Bothwell. In 1594, Jeremiah Lindsay, of 
 whom little else seems now to be known, narrowly escaped from 
 being taken prisoner, by two companies of men, who had been 
 sent out to apprehend him, as an associate of that wrong-headed 
 earl. 
 
 It may appear, from Mr Lindsay's dream in the castle of 
 Blackness, that he was a man of imagination. In Cbai teris's 
 List of Scots Writers, he is said to have written a book, entitled, 
 tc The Godly Man's Journey to Heaven, in ten parts;" which 
 was printed at London in 1626. Perhaps it was written in an 
 allegorical manner, resembling that which was afterwards 
 adopted by John Bunyan, in his celebrated book of" The Pro- 
 gress of the Christian Pilgrim from the City of Destruction t» 
 .Emmanuel's Land." 
 
ME PAUL METHVEN. 233 
 
 Mr PAUL METHVEN*. 
 
 X. Mr Paul Methven, Minister of Jedburgh. 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 His Birth and Education. His Success as a Reformer. Is Per- 
 secuted. Appointed Minister of Jedburgh. His Sin, and Re- 
 pentance. Goes into England. 
 
 Mr Paul Methven was early one of the reformers from po- 
 pery. He was an instrument of doing much good in the shires 
 of Angus and Mearns, and especially at Dundee, from whence 
 he made excursions to Perth, and other places. He is said to 
 have been originally a baker in Dundee ; but his education was 
 superior to that station. To whatever kind of industry he might 
 have been reduced for his subsistence, it is most probable that 
 he was descended of the family of Methven, of that Ilk, in the 
 county of Perth, some of the members of which family distin- 
 guished themselves by their exertions in favour of the reforma- 
 tion. 
 
 George Buchanan, in his history of Scotland, says, " Paul 
 Methven was then a notable preacher of the word of God." 
 (Pauhts Mefanius, nobilis turn verbi Diviiri concionafor.) Mr 
 Knox, in his History, says, " God stirred up his servant, Paul 
 
 7 
 
234 MR PAUL METHVEN. 
 
 Meffen : His latter fall ought not to deface the work of God in 
 him, who, in holdness of spirit, began openly to preach Christ 
 Jesus in Dundee, in divers parts of Angus, and in Fife ; and God 
 did so work with him, that many began openly to renounce their 
 old idolatry, and submitted themselves to Christ Jesus, and to 
 his blessed ordinances ; insomuch that the town of Dundee be- 
 gan to erect the face of a public church reformed, in which the 
 word of God was openly preached, and Christ's sacraments true- 
 ly administered." 
 
 But Mr Methven, while doing so much good, did not escape 
 persecution. In July, 1558, the popish bishops cited him to be 
 tried at Edinburgh, as preparatory to his condemnation. But, 
 on the day appointed for his trial, such a multitude of people 
 assembled, that the bishops were afraid to proceed : they pro- 
 cured, however, a sentence of banishment against him ; and all 
 men were prohibited from receiving him into their houses. The 
 town of Dundee disregarded this prohibition : they continued 
 to entertain him as usual, and to attend on his public teach- 
 ing. 
 
 In 1559, having been summoned, along with the other pro- 
 testant ministers, to be tried at Stirling, May 10th, he according- 
 ly went from Dundee to Perth, in his way thither, but was ac- 
 companied by many thousands of people from Dundee, and the 
 eastern districts of the kingdom. He went no farther than 
 Perth ; for Mr Knox having preached there against idolatry, the 
 demolition of the popish religious houses began, and the work 
 of reformation was prosecuted with boldness over all the coun- 
 try. 
 
 The committee of parliament, in July, 1560, when distribu- 
 ting ministers to the chief towns in the kingdom, allotted Mr 
 Methven to Jedburgh, in the shire of Roxburgh. As minister 
 of that town, he was a member of Assembly in the years 1560 
 and 1561. But before the Assembly met, December 25, 1562, 
 a report was spread abroad to his prejudice, which a committee 
 of Assembly, upon examination, pronounced to be well found- 
 ed. The Assembly afterwards ordered that their procedure in 
 this affair should be recorded, as a proof of their impartiality, 
 or of their not respecting persons in the punishment of vice; 
 and my fidelity, as a relator of facts, obliges me not to pass it 
 over. 
 
 The circumstances w r ere : — Mr Methven being a stranger in 
 that part of Scotland in which he was now situated, seemed to 
 live too much in a recluse manner, in his house at Jedburgh. 
 Some time in 1561, his wife, who is said, in Knox's History, to 
 have been " an ancient matron," went from him to visit her 
 friends at Dundee, where she remained seven or eight weeks. 
 In her absence, no person was in the house with him except his 
 
 5 
 
MR PAUL METHVEN. 235 
 
 servant-woman, and a child of eight or nine years of age. Du- 
 ring this his solitude, he was so destitute of the fear of God, 
 and of his usual watchfulness, as to commit that trespass which 
 afterwards occasioned his heing deprived of his ministry, and 
 himself and family becoming aliens from their native coun- 
 ty- 
 
 When the committee of Assembly, which had been sent to 
 
 Jedburgh early in 1563, were taking the evidence of the ser- 
 vant-woman's brother, who knew well about the birth of his sis- 
 ter's child, Mr Methven was so much overwhelmed with shame, 
 that he suddenly absconded. The committee, in consequence, 
 excommunicated him, as a fugitive from discipline. The pious 
 protestants lamented the fall of a man of whom they had once 
 entertained a high opinion ; but the papists, very ungenerously, 
 rejoiced in what seemed to bring a reproach upon the promo- 
 ters of the reformalion. They could not deny that such things 
 happened frequently among their own clergy, and were little re- 
 garded ; but the offence committed by a protestant minister, 
 they affected to consider as an unanswerable argument against 
 the reformed church. As well might they have argued against 
 the Christian religion in general; for among the twelve apostles 
 there had been even a worse man than Mr Methven. 
 
 It was soon known that he had gone into England, and that 
 he was exceedingly penitent, and anxious to have his sentence of 
 excommunication removed. Bishop Keith has transcribed the 
 acts of Assembly concerning him. From them it appears, that, De- 
 cember^, 1563, Mr David Ferguson,ministerof Dunfermline, re- 
 presented, that Mr Paul Methven was likely to be "swallowed up 
 with over-much sorrow," and was earnest to obey the discipline of 
 the church. The Assembly answered, that he ought to be comfort- 
 ed ; but they delayed, till an after period, to consider the neces- 
 sary manner of his satisfaction. 
 
 December 25, 1564, a petition was given in to the Assembly, 
 from Mr Methven, craving, 1. That he should be allowed to 
 submit himself to the discipline of the church. This request 
 the Assembly thought was reasonable. 2. That the minutes of 
 the process against him should be expunged from the records 
 of the church, that so his crime afterwards might be forgotten. 
 This request, the Assembly said, " could not proceed from the 
 Holy Ghost," meaning from a heart made truly penitent by the 
 divine grace : even " David," said they, " a notable servant of 
 God, was not ashamed to write (record) his own offence, (in 
 Psalm li.,) to the glory of God, and his own confusion." 
 
 The third thing he craved was, that, after his satisfaction was 
 given and accepted, he should be restored to the office of the 
 holy ministry within the realm of Scotland. The Assembly said, 
 " This request was unsufferable, till the memory of his iniquity 
 
236 MR PAUL METHVEJf. 
 
 should be more deeply buried, and till some notable kirks should 
 make earnest intreatv in his behalf." They also expressed 
 their displeasure at his having entered into the ministry in the 
 country where he then was, while he was yet unreconciled, and 
 under a sentence of excommunication. 
 
 Mr Metbven, during a year and a half, made no farther ap- 
 plication ; but in summer, 1566, he came on a visit, to Scotland; 
 and a petition from him, which was called " a lamentable sup- 
 plication," was given in to the Assembly, which met June £5, 
 1566. it appears, from this petition, that he had been residing 
 in a very distant part of the kingdom of England ; for he repre- 
 sents that he had come to Scotland " after a long and tedious 
 journey, in which he had suffered many impediments, and was 
 in a miserable condition." 
 
 He proposed two alternatives : the first was," that, for a season, 
 he should he relaxed from his sentence of excommunication, 
 and received into the fellowship of Christ, as a poor, wandering 
 sheep, which had been lost; and if so, he bound himself, that, 
 upon half a year's warning, he would come again to Scotland, 
 from whatever place he should happen to be in, and give all the 
 satisfaction that should be required." If this proposal were re- 
 jected, then he requested that the Assembly should immedi- 
 ately appoint a committee of their own number to meet, and 
 determine what he ought to do ; and promised to submit himself 
 to their injunctions, " in as far as his body was able to bear." 
 
 The Assembly, having considered his petition, ordered that 
 he should immediately appear in their presence, and that, " on 
 his entry into the place in which they were sitting, he should 
 prostrate himself on the ground, before all the brethren, with 
 weeping and howling; and that, when commanded to rise, he 
 should shew such trouble and anguish of spirit, as not to pre- 
 sume to make any farther request." He humbled himself on 
 the ground, as they had required. When he arose, at their com- 
 mand, " he was desired to be of good comfort, and to depart to 
 his lodging till the next day, when they should hear the opinion 
 of their committee, and intimate to him what was farther ne- 
 cessary." 
 
 The next day, the committee delivered their opinion, in which 
 the Assembly concurred, it was agreed, 1. That the ministers 
 of Edinburgh, on a Sunday, after preaching, should inform the 
 people that Paul Methven was desirous of testifying his re- 
 pentance ; and, as lie had been two years and more out of the 
 kingdom, all who knew any tiling of his behaviour during that 
 space were required to report to the ministers, within eight 
 days, what they knew concerning him. 
 
 2. That, at the next week-day sermon after this intimation, 
 Mr Methven should come to the kirk-door of Edinburgh, at the 
 
MR PAUL METHVEN. 237 
 
 ringing of the second bell, and there stand, clad in sackcloth, 
 bare-headed and bare-footed, till he should be brought in to the 
 sermon, and " placed in the public spectacle (repen ting-stool,) 
 above the people, to remain there all the time of the sermon." 
 Tlvit, at the next week-day sermon, on the week thereafter, he 
 should in all respects do the same; and then, on lh< j Sunday 
 following, he should do the same ; and, at the end of the sermon 
 that day, should declare, from " the public spectacle/' his sincere 
 repentance, and " humbly require the kirk's forgiveness." This 
 being done, he was to be clad in his ordinary apparel, and re- 
 ceived into the society of the kirk, " as a lively number there- 
 of." All this having been done by him at Edinburgh, he was 
 to do the same, in all respects, at the kirk of Jedburgh, and at 
 the kirk of Dundee. 3. It was ordered, that, when the Assem- 
 bly should meet, December 25, 1566, Mr Methven should again 
 attend, and should bring with him" sufficient testimonials, from 
 authentic persons, of his conversation and .behaviour ; till which 
 time he was to be secluded from all function of the ministry, and 
 from participation of the table of the Lord Jesus." 
 
 Thus did the reformed church testify its abhorrence of the 
 sin of adultery, especially when it lias been committed by a mi- 
 nister of the gospel. Bishop Keith has not said that he fulfilled 
 all the injunctions. He had promised to obey them in as far as 
 " his bod)" could bear;" but he might not he able, without in- 
 jury to his health, to stand in sackcloth, bare-headed and bare- 
 footed, about nine hours at the kirk-doors of Edinburgh, Jed- 
 burgh, and Dundee, and to continue, in no warmer attire, in the 
 public place of repentance during the time that nine sermons 
 were delivered. As he could not now appear with honour in 
 his native country, or be re-admitted there, with any propriety, 
 to the exercise of the holy ministry, perhaps the committee, 
 ■which consisted of Mr John YVinram, Mr John Douglas, Mr 
 John Row, Mr Adam Heriot, and some other very sensible men, 
 prescribed more than they thought he would be able, or than 
 they wished him to accomplish. He and they perhaps might 
 consider that the report of such things having been performed 
 by him would become public in another country, and entirely 
 destroy all his prospects of future usefulness. 
 
 It seems most probable that he immediately went back to 
 England, where his taients recommended him, and where the 
 scandal against him was scarcely known. According to Neal's 
 History of the Puritans, there was indeed, at this time, a great 
 scarcity of useful and zealous preachers in the English church. 
 
 We may charitably hope that his repentance was sincere. 
 In Knox's History he is not represented as a bad man. " We 
 insert," say the writers of that History, " this horrible fact, to 
 forewarn such as travel in the holy vocation, that, according to 
 
238 MR PAUL METHVEN. 
 
 the admonition of the apostle, ( Such as stand should take heed 
 lest they fall.' No man, in the beginning of the Evangel, was 
 judged more fervent, and more upright ; and yet we have heard 
 how far Satan prevailed against him." 
 
 Again, they say, we have inserted the order of the punish- 
 ment, " that the world may see the difference there is betwixt 
 light and darkness, betwixt the uprightness of the kirk of God 
 and the corruption that reigns in the synagogue of Satan, the 
 papistical rabble." 
 
 It is not impossible that Mr Methven changed his Christian 
 name of" Paul," for that of" John," after he went to reside in 
 England. But of this 1 have seen no certain document. If I 
 had had the opportunity of seeing what Mr Wodrow collected 
 for his writing a History of the Life of Paul Methven, it is pro- 
 bable I might thereby have been able to add some particulars 
 relating to his situations in that country. 
 
MR ADAM HERIOT. 239 
 
 MR ADAM HERIOT. 
 
 XI. Mr Adam Heriot, Minister of Aberdeen. 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 His Birth. A Mottle of St Augustine. Preaches to the Queen- 
 Regent. Minister of Aberdeen. His Death and Character. 
 
 1V1r Adam Heriot was born in the year 1515. He was de- 
 scended of the ancient family of Trabrown, in the shire of Ber- 
 wick ; of which family the celebrated George Heriot, jeweller 
 to King James VI., also was a descendant. 
 
 Mr Adam received a liberal education, and was chiefly famous 
 for his skill in scholastic divinity. " He was a friar," says Spot- 
 tiswood, « of the order of St Austin, and lived in the abbey of 
 St Andrews." The prior of that abbey was Lord James Stewart, 
 who was afterwards Earl of Murray ; the sub-prior was Mr John 
 Winram ; and 1 have elsewhere noticed, that many of the friars, 
 or monks of St Austin, or Augustine, at St Andrews, while they 
 outwardly professed popery, privately embraced the protestant 
 principles. 
 
 Mr Heriot, who, Spottiswood says, " was an eloquent preach- 
 er," did not hesitate, in his sermons, occasionally to argue in fa- 
 vour of the doctrines of the reformers, especially of what they 
 taught concerning the sacrament of our Lord's supper. That 
 author relates, that " the queen-regent, having one time come 
 to the city of St Andrews, and heard him preach, was so much 
 im pressed with an opinion of his learning and integrity, that, in her 
 
240 MR ADAM IIERIOT. 
 
 reasoning afterwards, with some noblemen, upon the real or bodily 
 presence of Chiist in (he sacrament of the sapper, she made an 
 offer to sland, in that article, to the determination of Mr Heriot. 
 Warning accordingly was given him, and he was required to 
 deliver his mind upon that subject in a sermon which the queen 
 intended to hear." 
 
 It was a valuable opportunity afforded him of doing something 
 effectual for promoting die reformation; but he did not rightly 
 improve it. He was too desirous of not irritating the queen, and 
 therefore did not deliver his mind so fully as he ought to have 
 done ; for Spottiswood farther tehs us, that " he did so prevari- 
 cate, that all who were present were offended, and departed un- 
 satisfied." And then, he says, " Mr Heriot, beiug sharply rebu- 
 ked for this by some who loved him, fell into a great trouble of 
 mind, and found no rest, till he did openly renounce popery, 
 and (in 1539) did join himself to the (protestant, or reforming) 
 congregation." 
 
 Ttie committee of parliament, July, 1560, allotted Mr Heriot 
 to the ministry of Aberdeen. He was afterwards an attendant 
 on the General Assemblies; and, in i56 c 2, when there was a de- 
 sign of chasing a superintendant for Aberdeen and the adjacent 
 country, Mr Heriot was mentioned as a fit person to be chosen ; 
 but tne design was given up, and no addition was at any time 
 made to the original number of the superintendants. 
 
 Spottiswood lnlorms us that " in the city of Aberdeen there 
 were many persons addicted to the Roman profession; that Mr 
 Heriot was allotted to the ministry there, as one who was learn- 
 ed in scholastic divinity, and who, by his moderation, was apt 
 to reclaim men from their errors; and that he did not disap- 
 point the hope conceived of him ; tor, by his diligence in teach- 
 ing in the schools, and in the church, he did gain all that people 
 to the profession of the truth." 
 
 " H e was a man/' says Spottiswood," worthy to be remembered. 
 He laboured among his people fourteen years, but, in the end, 
 was forced, by sickness, to quit his charge. He died of the apo- 
 plexy, in the sixtieth year of his a^e, August 28, 1575. greatly 
 beloved by the citizens, for his humane and courteous conversa- 
 tion, and by the poorer sort was much lamented, to whom he 
 had been, in his life-time* very beneficiaj," 
 
MR WILLIAM HARLOWE. 241 
 
 Mr WILLIAM HARLOWE. 
 
 XII. Mr William Harlowe, Minister of 
 St Cuth BERTS. 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 His Birth. His Secular Employment. A zealous Protestant. Goes 
 into England, where he Preaches the Gospel. Returns to Scot- 
 land. Is Persecuted. Is Minister of St Cuthberts. Of the 
 time of his Death. 
 
 jVIr William Harlowe affords one of those instances which 
 we meet with in the history of mankind, of persons who, trom a 
 mean condition, were raised, by their diligence and other good 
 qualities, to honourable stations in life. He was born at Edin- 
 burgh, not long after the year 1500. His parents nut being 
 able to afford him a literary education, or to make a sufficient 
 provision for him, independent of his own industry, he beiook 
 himself to a manual employment, and foiloweei the trade of a 
 tailor, in the Canongate of Edinburgh; at which time, he was 
 al<o a burgess of that city. 
 
 Perhaps his part nts were protestants. But however this might 
 be, having heard the sermons and exhortations of the reformed 
 teachers, in their private assemblies, and being admitted to inter- 
 course with serious Christians then in Edinburgh, he professed a 
 el. testation of popery, and Ins mind was happily enlightened with 
 th- true knowledge of tie gospel. Hir was a pious young man, 
 meek in his temper, and gentle m his manners; bul bis icart 
 was deeply affected, his zeal was fervent. Tne talent with winch 
 
 e 
 
242 MR "WILLIAM HARLOWE. 
 
 he was endowed, of communicating his sentiments of religion in 
 a way adapted to the understandings of the meanest and most 
 illiterate persons, soon distinguished him above many others ; 
 and, in all probability, he would soon have been put to death by 
 the popish party, without any great man interceding in his be- 
 half, if he had not fled into England. 
 
 It might be about the time when Mr Straiton and Mr Gour- 
 ley suffered martyrdom at Edinburgh, viz. in 1534, that Mr 
 Harlowe left his native country. In England, there can be no 
 doubt that he subsisted himself, for some time, by practising the 
 trade which he had learned ; but the Christian simplicity of his 
 behaviour, his humbleness of mind, and his talent of displaying 
 the essential doctrines of salvation in a plain and affecting man- 
 ner, interested the English protestanls in his favour, and he be- 
 came known to Cranmer and other proteslant divines. 
 
 In the beginning of the reign of Edward VI., if not also be- 
 fore, the protestant bishops, on account of the ignorance of the 
 generality of the people, and of the small number of ministers 
 then duly enlightened, thought it necessaiy to call many persons 
 from their secular trades and employments, and to ordain to 
 the ministry, or to be preachers, such as they judged were qua- 
 lified to be useful, though they had not received an academical 
 education. Mr Harlowe was in that number; and Mr Strype 
 informs us, that, in 1551, Mr Harlowe was one of those six minis- 
 ters who were styled the king's chaplains. He was sometimes 
 with the king, and sometimes preaching in different parts of the 
 country; and as he preached to an ignorant people, not merely 
 from what he read in books, but from what he felt in his own 
 religious experience, his labours were remarkably successful. 
 
 When the persecution against the protestants, in the reign of 
 the English Queen Mary, waxed hot, it was not safe for him to 
 remain any longer in England. He came to Scotland, in 1554, 
 where John Erskine of Dun, and some other great men of the 
 protestant persuasion, immediately declared themselves his pro- 
 tectors. Archbishop Spottiswood speaks of him as follows : 
 " When the hopes of those who were seeking reformation were 
 quite dashed, the Lord, in his providence, made that which was 
 thought would utterly extinguish it to be a mean of advancing 
 it amongst us ; for some of them who fled from Queen Mary's 
 persecution in England, taking their refuge in this kingdom, did 
 not only help to keep in the light which was begun to shine, but 
 to make the sun to break up more clear than before. William 
 Harlowe, a man of simple and mean condition, came first into 
 the country, in 1554. He had served some time in the English 
 church with good approbation, and was at this time very com- 
 fortable to the faithful." 
 
MR WILLIAM HARLOWE. 243 
 
 In Knox's History it is said, * In that cruel persecution used 
 by Mary of England were godly men dispersed into divers na- 
 tions, of whoai it pleased trie goodness of God to send some to 
 us, for our comfort and instruction. And first came a simple 
 man, William Harlowe, who, although his erudition excelled 
 not, yet, for his zeal, and diligence, and his plainness in doctrine, 
 is to tiiis day worthy of praise, and remains a fruitful member 
 within the church of Scotland." 
 
 Mr Knox, when he arrived at Edinburgh, from Geneva, in the 
 harvest of 1555, found Mr Harlowe there, happy, and useful 
 among the godly persons in that city, which I have particularly 
 mentioned in my account of the life of Mr Juhn YVillock. Mr 
 Harlowe continued in Scotland, and, in 1556, he was encouraged 
 to begin " publicly to exhort in Edinburgh." He afterwards, 
 however, met with persecution; and it was probably. about the 
 year 1557 that he was excommunicated, as Mr Knox had been, 
 by the popish church. 
 
 Bishop Keith, in his Appendix, page 90, has preserved the 
 memory of a transaction relating to Mr Harlowe, by giving us 
 a copy of two papers which were deposited in the Scots College 
 of Paris. The circumstances were as follows: — In 1558, Alex- 
 ander Stewart, younger of Garlies, ancestor of the fails of Gal- 
 loway, an intrepid young g- ntleman, who had embraced the 
 protestant faith, invited Mr Harlowe to come to Dumfries, and 
 preach, in that town and neighbourhood, the doctrines of the re- 
 formation. Mr Harlowe obeyed ; and we are told, that, October 
 2Sd, he there preached a sermon, at nine hours in the morning, 
 " in the fore (front) hall of Herbert Ounninghame, of that town." 
 Mr Archibald Menzies,official, or commissary, for the archbishop 
 of Glasgow in that district, thought it incumbent upon him to 
 take notice of this violation of the rules of his church. He pro- 
 ceeded, immediately after the sermon, to " the lodging place" 
 of the said Alexander Stewart, where he found him, and Mr 
 Harlowe with him. He demanded of Mr Harlowe, " by what 
 authority he had acted, and who had given him a commission 
 to preach, for that he was only a lay-man," (not authorised by 
 the popish church,) " was also an excommunicated person, and 
 therefore one of the queen's rebels, and had been expelled forth 
 of other places, for the same irregular courses." 
 
 Mr Harlowe made no reply; but Mr Stewart of Garlies very 
 boldly answered, " 1 will avow (acknowledge) him; and I will 
 maintain and defend him, against you, and all other kirkmen 
 who put (push) at him." The official took "written instruments," 
 in the hands of a notary-public, before several priests, who were 
 witnesses to what he had done, and to the answer he had recei- 
 ved. That same day, Sir Patrick Wallace, curate of Dumfries, 
 in his zeal, preached a sermon in the parish church, " for the 
 
 6 
 
244 Mil WILLIAM HARLOWE. 
 
 welfare/' it is said, " and good instruction of his parishioners, 
 and in which he warned them against the doctrines of the said 
 Harlowe." Also, that same day, the official, Mr Archibald 
 Menzies, " passed to the presence of David Cunninghaine and 
 James Rigg> bailhes of the said burgh, and charged them to 
 put Harlowe in sure hold," (in prison); but this, we are told, 
 " they refused to do." 
 
 The above is a specimen of what was then going on in the 
 different provinces of the kingdom. When the reformation 
 was fully confirmed, in 1560, Mr Harlowe was appointed to the 
 ministry of St Cuthberts, or West Kirk, in the suburbs of Edin- 
 burgh. As minister of that parish, he was a member of the first 
 General Assembly of the church of Scotland, which met Decem- 
 ber 20, 1560, But, June 25, 1566, Lord Robert Stewart, a na- 
 tural brother of Queen Mary, and afterwards Earl of Orkney, 
 having, as commendator of Holyroodhouse, the patronage right 
 of St Cuthberts, petitioned the Assembly to remove Mr Harlowe 
 from that parish, and to put in his place Mr Peter Blackwood, 
 of whose learning and gifts he entertained a favourable opinion. 
 The elders of St Cuthberts unanimously opposed Lord Robert's 
 request ; and Mr Harlowe was continued with them by the As- 
 sembly. 
 
 Mr Harlowe was a member of the Assembly at Leith, January 
 12, 1572 ; and, in October, that same year, he was one of the 
 subscribers of a petition from the synod of Lothian, to the As- 
 sembly which was to meet March 6, 1573, praying that certain 
 points, relating to the internal government of the church, should 
 be ratified. He died before 1584 ; for in that year, according to 
 Spottiswood, Mr Nicol Dalgliesh was minister of St Cuthberts. 
 
 I have nothing farther to add concerning this pious man, who 
 seems to have done much good during his long life, than that 
 his want of a learned education appears to have discouraged 
 him from taking any very active part in the outward government 
 of the church. He submitted himself peaceably, in that matter, 
 to the opinions of those of his brethren whom he reckoned to 
 be better qualified to judge than he himself was. 
 
MR DAVID FERGUSON. 2i5 
 
 Mr DAVID FERGUSON. 
 
 XIII. Mr David Ferguson, Minister of Dunfermline. 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 His Birth. One of the Reformed Teachers. Minister of Dun- 
 fermline. His public Conduct. His remarkable Sayings. His 
 Death and Character. Wrote Ecclesiastical Memoirs. 
 
 JVIr David Ferguson was born about tbe year 1532. He pro- 
 bably was descended of a respectable family of tbat surname in 
 the shire of Ayr, and received his education in the university of 
 Glasgow. As a man of letters, he may have been, before he 
 opeuly professed protestant principles, either in one of the reli- 
 gious orders, or in the number of the secular clergy. But of 
 his early situation in life there seems to be no certain docu- 
 ment remaining. In 1559, he was one of the reformed teachers ; 
 and, in July, J560, the committee of parliament, when distnbu 
 ting ministers to the chief places in the kingdom, allotted Mr 
 David Ferguson to the ministry of Dunfermline. 
 
 Mr Calderwood and Mr Petrie mention, in their histories, 
 many of the common affairs of the church, in which Mr Fergu- 
 son was employed; but as his conduct, in these, was not distin- 
 guished from that of his brethren, it may be unnecessary to de- 
 tail them. The only peculiar action which I find related con- 
 cerning him is, tiiat, in lo(r3, he represented to the Assembly. 
 the extreme sorrow of Mr Paul Methven, late minister of Jed- 
 burgh, and very generously interceded, that, as a penitent per- 
 son, he might be allowed to render a public satisfaction for the 
 offence he had given. Mr Ferguson was moderator of the As- 
 
246 MR DAVID FERGUSON. 
 
 sembly which met at Edinburgh in March, 1573 : And, in all 
 the church histories, he is spoken of in the most respectful man- 
 ner. 
 
 Spottiswood says of him, that " he was jocund and pleasant 
 in his disposition, which made him well regarded in court and 
 country." Some of what were called " his wise and merry say- 
 ings," which he directed against the prelates, wrfom he always 
 opposed, have been recorded. In my account of the life of Mr 
 John Douglas, I took notice that Mr David Ferguson was pro- 
 bably the person who first applied the name of " tuichane 
 bishops" to those ministers who accepted of bishoprics, the re- 
 venues of which were chiefly enjoyed by lords and other great 
 men. 
 
 In Row's manuscript it is said. " The 35th Assembly was holden 
 at Edinburgh, October 1, 1577. A committee was appointed 
 to call before ihera Mr Patrick Adamson, lately inaugurated 
 archbishop of St Andrews. It is not to be forgotten that Mr 
 David Ferguson, one of the committee, having heard that, in 
 the time of the inauguration, a corbie (raven) was sitting on the 
 house-top, crying, croup, croup, croup ! he said, in his merry 
 wise way, This is malum omen, (a bad omen ;) for inauguration is 
 a word which may be derived ab avium garritu, (from the chat- 
 tering of birds;) and the raven is, omni rnodo, (in every respect,) 
 a black bird, and so is ominous : and whoso would read rightly 
 what the corbie spake, it would be found to be, corrupt, cor- 
 rupt, corrupt !" 
 
 According to Calderwood, it was not Mr Ferguson only that 
 jested on the promotion of Mr Patrick Adamson to the arch- 
 bishopric of St Andrews. He relates an anecdote of Alexander 
 Montgomery, the Scottish poet, who, at that time, held an office 
 in the court of the regent, Earl of Morton. " Captain Mont- 
 gomery," says he, " one of the regent's domestics, had often 
 noticed a phrase which Mr Adamson very commonly used in 
 his doctrine, viz. ' The prophet would mean this.' When Mr 
 Adamson gripped (grasped and cleaved) to the archbishopric 
 of St Andrews, the captain was surprised, and at length said 
 merrily among his companions, ' As often as I have heard Mr 
 Patrick tell us, The prophet would mean this, I never knew 
 what he meant till now." 
 
 When the synod of Fife, in February, 1598, were deli- 
 berating on the privilege which was to be granted to a certain 
 number of ministers to sit and vote in parliament, Mr Ferguson, 
 who, at that time was the oldest minister in the synod, suspected 
 that the granting of that privilege was a step preparatory to the 
 re-introduction of bishops, whose order had been virtually abo- 
 ished in 1592. " I compare it," said he," to the artifice which 
 he Greeks used for the destruction of the ancient city of Troy. 
 
MR DAVID FERGUS03T. 247 
 
 They busked (dressed) up a brave (handsome) wooden horse, in 
 which were contained armed men. By means of the cratty 
 Sinon, they persuaded the Trojans to pull down a part of their 
 wall with their own hands, to bring in that for their welfare 
 which served for their utter destruction. Therefore I cry, Equo, 
 ne credite Teneri; (trust not to the horse, ye Trojans.)" 
 
 Another old minister, Mr John Davidson, minister of Pres- 
 tonpans, who had come as a correspondent from the synod of 
 Lothian, concurred in the same sentiments with Mr Ferguson : 
 he immediately rose, and said, in the expressive language for 
 which some old ministers were very remarkable, " Busk, busk, 
 busk (dress) him as bonilie (beautifully) as you can, and bring 
 him in as fairly (plausibly) as you will, we see him well enough, 
 we see the horns of his mitre." 
 
 Mr Calderwood, in his Preface to his History of the Perth 
 Assembly, in 1618, quotes a saying which Mr Ferguson com- 
 monly used, as the result of his long observation : " Never a mi- 
 nister got a great benefice but he spilt (spoiled) it, or it spilt 
 (spoiled) him." 
 
 Mr Ferguson died soon after the meeting of the synod 
 above-mentioned. " He died," sa} 7 s Spottiswood, " in 1598, 
 aged sixty-five years. He was a wise man, and a good preacher." 
 And then the archbishop speaks of his ''jocund and pleasant 
 disposition." From the account 1 have given, he appears to have 
 been a very good man, a useful minister of the gospel, and 
 watchful against any intended innovation in the government of 
 the church. 
 
 In 1595, his daughter Grizzel was married to Mr John Row, 
 minister of Carnock, who was one of the sons of Mr John Row, 
 the eminent reformer. Mr Ferguson began a History of the 
 Church of Scotland. It was continued by his son-in-law, the 
 minister of Carnock ; whose son, Mr John Row, principal of 
 the college, Old Aberdeen, enlarged it with interpolations and 
 additional anecdotes. The work never has been printed, but 
 bears the name of Row's manuscript. 
 
248 MR WILLIAM CHRYSTISON. 
 
 Mr WILLIAM CHRYSTISON. 
 
 XIV. Mr William Chrystison, Minister of Dundee. 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 One of the Reformers. Minister of Dundee. Subscribes a Letter 
 to the English Bishops, Moderator of the General Assembly* 
 His public Conduct. The Time of his Death. His Character. 
 
 J regret that it is only a short account which I can give of 
 M» William Chrystison, who was a very respectable minister. 
 He is to be ranked among the reformers, because, if he had not 
 been, previously to the full accomplishment of the reformation, 
 one of the protestant teachers then in Scotland, the committee 
 of parliament, July, 1560, would not have allotted him to the 
 ministry of Dundee. This town was famous for the early zeal 
 it had professed in behalf of the true religion; and Mr Chrysti- 
 son's appointment to be minister there shewed that he was high 
 in the esteem of the reformed church. 
 
 As minister of Dundee, he was a member of the first General 
 Assembly, December '2.0, 1560, and brought along with him, 
 from that place, as his assistant elders, George Lowell and Wil- 
 liam Carmichael. His name occurs in many of the most im- 
 portant committees. In 1566, he was one who subscribed 
 the letter to the English bishops. In 1569, he was mode- 
 rator of the General Assembly. In 1575, he was appointed 
 to assist Mr John Row, minister of Perth, in conferring with 
 the Earl and Countess of Atholl, who were continuing in the 
 popish errors, and who were to be excommunicated, if they re- 
 mained obstinate. 
 
MR WILLIAM CHRYSTISON. 249 
 
 In 1592, he was appointed on a committee relating to the 
 popish lords ; and, as no farther mention is made of him in the 
 printed histories of Calderwood and Petrie, it is not improbable 
 that he died in or soon after that year. He was in amity with 
 the leading men in the church, but does not seem to have en- 
 tered keenly into any of the contests with the civil powers. 
 
 
2,50 MR CHRISTOPHER GOODMAN. 
 
 Mr CHRISTOPHER GOODMAN. 
 
 XV. Mr Christopher Goodman, Minister of Si- 
 Andrews. 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 A Native of England. Lecturer at Oxford. Fled from Persecu- 
 tion to Foreign Parts. Joint Pastor with Mr John Knox in the 
 Church of Geneva. His Writings. Comes to Scotland. Ap- 
 pointed Minister of St Andrews. His Concern in the Affairs of 
 the Scottish Church. Goes to England. Reckoned among the 
 Puritans. His Examinations by Archbishop Parker. 
 
 It is with some hesitation that I add the name of Mr Christo- 
 pher Goodman to my list of the Scottish reformers. He was a na- 
 tive of England, and does not appear to have come to Scotland 
 till about the beginning of the year 1560. In the reign of Ed- 
 ward VI., he was employed as reader of theological lectures in 
 the university of Oxford ; and probably in Anthony Wood's 
 "Athena Oxonienses" there is an account of him, which I have 
 not seen. Being a zealous protestant, and a man distinguished 
 by his learning, he found it necessary to flee from the persecu- 
 tion under the English Queen Mary, as many others did, to fo- 
 reign parts. 
 
 In 1555, he was chosen joint, pastor, with Mr John Knox, to 
 the English protestant church of Geneva. While there, he as- 
 sisted Mr Knox in composing " the Book of Common Order," 
 which was to be used as a directory of worship in the pro- 
 testant congregations. 
 
 In 1556, he published, at Geneva, a political book, the title of 
 which was, " How Superior Powers should be obeyed by their 
 
MR CHRISTOPHER GOODMAN. £5\ 
 
 Subjects, and wherein they may be lawfully disobeyed and re- 
 jected ; wherein also is declared, the cause of all this present 
 Misery in England, and how the same may be remedied." In 
 this publication he entirely coincided in the sentiments which 
 Mr Knox had expressed, in his Treatise " against the Monstrous 
 Regiment of Women ;" and both he and Mr Knox were after- 
 wards, as might justly have been expected, brought into some 
 trouble, because of what they had thus written. 
 
 Bishop Keith was mistaken in representing that Mr Good- 
 man immediately returned to England after the accession of 
 the protestant Queen Elizabeth. He was probably prevented 
 by the offence which his book had given to the Englisn govern- 
 ment. He came to Scotland, perhaps upon his having been in- 
 vited, and met, at his arrival, with a cordial reception from his 
 former colleague, Mr Knox, and from the lords of the reforming 
 " congregation." The reformation, which was forcibly carried 
 on, was fully accomplished in July, 1560, at which time the 
 committee of parliament allotted Mr Goodman to the ministry 
 of St Andrews, where it was thought expedient that the offi- 
 ciating minister should be a man of an established literary cha 
 racter. 
 
 It is not much that can be related of the concern he took in 
 the affairs of the Scottish church. As minister of St Andrews, 
 he was present in the Assembly, December 20, 1560, and the 
 assistant elders whom he brought along with him were, David 
 Spens and Mr Robert Kynpont. In 1562, he and Mr John 
 Row, minister of Perth, were appointed to assist John Erskine 
 of Dun in the visitation of the sheriffdoms of Aberdeen and 
 Banff. In 1563, he argued, in opposition to Mr Secretary Le- 
 thington, that the tythes should be appropriated to the clergy. 
 Lethington was chagrined, and ungenerously said, " Ne sit pe- 
 regrinus curiosus in aliena republica ;" (it is not fit that a stran- 
 ger should meddle with the affairs of a foreign commonwealth.) 
 Mr Goodman calmly, but firmly, replied, " My lord secretary, 
 though in your policy I be a stranger, yet 1 am not so in the 
 lurk of God ; and therefore the care thereof appertaineth no less 
 to me in Scotland, than if I were in the midst of England." 
 
 In 1564, he was appointed to preach, during the space of a 
 month, in Edinburgh, in the absence of Mr John Craig, one of 
 the ministers of that city, who had been commissioned to visit 
 some of the south parts of the kingdom. The Assembly, June 
 25, 1565, laid many appointments upon him, some of which he 
 did not fulfil ; for, before the Assembly again met, December 
 25, 1565, he had left the kingdom ; which is thus noticed in the 
 church-register: — " Commissioners from St Andrews appeared, 
 who requested that Mr John Knox should be transplanted, and 
 placed in St Andrews. The Assembly refused their request, and 
 
252 MR CHRISTOPHER GOODMAX. 
 
 desired them to choose a minister out of their own university, in 
 the room of Mr Christopher Goodman, who had lately de- 
 parted into England." 
 
 Mr Goodman did not return to Scotland, and seems, in the 
 after part of his life, to have had a benefice from the English 
 church. He was in the number of those ministers, in England, 
 who were cailed " puritans ;" for Mr Daniel Neal, in his His- 
 tory of the Puritans, informs us, that " Matthew Parker, arch- 
 bishop of Canterbury, who was of the high church kind, in 
 June," (1370,) " cited to appear before him, at Lambeth, the 
 chief puritans about London, viz. Messrs Goodman, Lever," 
 (and a number of others,)" men who were wishing to live peace- 
 ably. They offered to him to subscribe ' the articles of re- 
 ligion/ as far as concerned the doctrine and sacraments ; and 
 also to subscribe the ' Book of Common Prayer,' as far as it 
 tended to edification; it being acknowledged, on all hands, that 
 there were some imperfections in it. But with respect to the 
 apparel, (canonical vestments,) they prayed that neither party 
 might condemn the other, but that those who wore them, and 
 those who .did not, might live in unity and concord. The arch- 
 bishop told them, peremptorily, that they must come up to the 
 standard of the queen's injunctions, or be deprived." 
 
 Mr Neal goes on to say, that, at this time, " Mr Goodman 
 was also required to renounce a book that he had written many 
 years ago ' against the government of women.' But he refused 
 to do so, and was therefore suspended." And then, referring to 
 Mr Strype's Annals, he says, " Mr Goodman at length was 
 brought to a revocation of it, and signed a protestation, before 
 the commissioners, at Lambeth, April 23, 1571, concerning his 
 dutiful obedience to the queen majesty's person, and her lawful 
 government." 
 
 Mr Neal thus ascertains the date of Mr Goodman's protesta- 
 tion, and Bishop Keith gives pretty largely the particulars of it. 
 Mr Goodman represented that, when he wrote his book, a 
 popish and persecuting queen was reigning in England, and 
 the grief of his mind moved him to write some things which he 
 now disliked, and which he now wished had not been written. 
 He acknowledged," that good and godly women might lawfully 
 govern whole nations and realms; and declared that, from the 
 bottom of his heart, he allowed the lawfulness of Queen Eliza- 
 beth's government, and prayed for its continuance." 
 
 What Mr Goodman's protestation contained, was the same, 
 in effect, with the condescensions which Mr Knox made in his 
 letter to Queen Elizabeth, in 1559, and which lie afterwards 
 made to his own queen, in his first conference with her, in 1561. 
 But, surely, it would have been better if neither Mr Goodman 
 nor Mr Knox had written so unguardedly upon political sub- 
 
MB CHRISTOPHER GOODMAN. 253 
 
 jects, as afterwards to render it necessary for them to acknow- 
 ledge their errors. 
 
 I suppose Mr Goodman lived more comfortably after he had, 
 as above, explained his principles. Perhaps the time of the 
 death of this zealous, learned, and pious man, and some other 
 things relating to him, may be found narrated in the books of 
 some English writers, which I have not seen. But I apprehend 
 that 1 have said enough concerning him, in as far as he was 
 connected with the reformed church of Scotland. 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 A FARTHER ACCOUNT 
 
 OF 
 
 Mr ROW'S FAMILY. 
 
 /. Mr James Row, Minister of Kilspindy. 
 II. Mr William Row, Minister of Forgandenny. 
 III. Mr John Row, Minister of Carnock. 
 IF. Mr John Row, Principal of Kings College, Aberdeen. 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 A FARTHER ACCOUNT 
 
 OB' 
 
 MR ROW'S FAMILY. 
 I. Mr James Row, Minister of Kilspindy. 
 
 His Birth. Minister of Kilspindy. His public Conduct. His 
 
 Death. 
 
 James was the eldest son of Mr John Row, the reformer. 
 According to the parish register of Perth, he was baptized, June 
 25, 1562. 
 
 Being nearly eighteen years of age when his father died, he 
 soon finished his education at the college ; and, in 1587, was 
 ordained minister of Kilspindy, in the presbytery of Perth, at 
 which time he was acting as a manager, in money matters, in 
 behalf of his brother John. 
 
 He was true to the cause of presbyterian church government, 
 and was one of those who subscribed a remonstrance to parlia- 
 ment, in 1606, against the establishment of bishops. He died 
 in the fifty-fourth year of his age ; and the date and manner of 
 his death are thus related in an old manuscript, which I have in 
 my possession : — " December 29, 16 14, Mr James Row, minister 
 of Kilspindy, and Mr Robert Rhind, minister of Langforgand, 
 who had gone well to bed in a house at Dundee, were found 
 dead in the morning." They probably had been suffocated by 
 smoke, or the sulphureous steam of coals, which had been left 
 unextinguished in the chimney. 
 
 R 
 
258 APPENDIX. 
 
 I suppose lie was the father of Mr James Row,, minister of 
 Muthel, in the presbytery of Auchterarder, who was a member 
 of the reforming Assembly at Glasgow, in 1638 ; but afterwards, 
 being reckoned a favourer of the royal cause, was deposed, by 
 the commission of the General Assembly, in 1646. 
 
 II. Mr William Row, Minister of Forgandenny. 
 
 His Birth. Minister of Forgandenny. Prosecuted because of his 
 Disbelief of the Truth of Cowrie's Conspiracy. His Speech to 
 the King. His opposition to the Establishment of perpetual Mo- 
 derators. Put to the Horn. His son William settled as his Col- 
 league and Successor. His Behaviour, on that Occasion, to Mr 
 Alexander Lindsay, Bishop of Dunkeld. His Death, and his 
 Son's Death. 
 
 The name of William, second son of Mr John Row, the re- 
 former, is omitted in the baptism register, but he must have 
 been born some time in the year 1563 ; and it is more than 
 probable, that William, Lord Ruthven, who was afterwards the 
 first Earl of Gowrie, was one of the witnesses, or godfathers, at 
 his baptism. 
 
 It is necessary to observe, that there was a Mr John Row, 
 some years minister of Forgandenny, in the presbytery of Perth, 
 who was probably nearly related to the reformer, as some of the 
 reformer's papers, after his death, in J 580, were deposited in 
 his hands. He seems to have been of use to the orphan family. 
 He died in 1.589; and, in 1590, William, the son of the re- 
 former, succeeded him as minister of Forgandenny, where he 
 continued till his death. Some writers have erroneously stated, 
 that William was minister of Strathmiglo, in the presbytery of 
 Cupir ; but the contrary is evident, from the whole tenor of the 
 records at Perth. 
 
 The friar's pension, which had been settled upon him at the 
 time of his father's death, he continued to enjoy several years 
 after he was minister of Forgandenny, and a number of re- 
 ceipts which he then granted for his pension are extant. 
 
 Mr William's character and history are pretty interesting. 
 He was a man of a bold temper, which he could not, on some 
 
APPENDIX. 259 
 
 occasions, restrain, even when in the king's presence. He was 
 obstinate in his disbelief of the truth of Gowrie's conspiracy, in 
 1600, and was prosecuted on that account. He told the king 
 and council, at Stirling, that one reason of his disbelief was, 
 that a man of the name of Henderson judicially confessed that 
 he had been hired by the Earl of Gowrie to slay the king ; that he 
 went, armed, for that purpose, into the chamber where the king 
 was to be brought ; that he saw the king struggling with Mr Alex- 
 ander Ruthven, and yet did not offer to afford to his majesty 
 any assistance. " Now," said he, ** this Henderson has both been 
 pardoned and rewarded. But if I had seen his majesty's life 
 in danger, as Henderson says he had done, and had not risked 
 my own life in his majesty's defence, I think I should not now 
 deserve to live." 
 
 He joined along with his brother James, and some other mi- 
 nisters, in a remonstrance to parliament against bishops, in 1606 : 
 And in Calderwood's History is largely related his intrepid be- 
 haviour, in opposition to perpetual moderators, in a meeting of 
 the synod at Perth, first Tuesday of April, 1607- His resolute 
 assertion of the privileges of the church, on that occasion, gave 
 great offence. He was, therefore, summoned to take his trial ; 
 but having been informed of the severity which was intended 
 against him, he did not compear,and, for his non-com pearance, 
 was put to the horn, and obliged for a long time to keep him- 
 self concealed among his friends. 
 
 June 29, 1624, by the favour of Alexander Lindsay, bishop 
 of Dunkeld, minister of St Madoes, in the presbytery of Perth, 
 and patron of the parish of Forgandenny. he obtained the sa- 
 tisfaction of having his son William ordained his fellow-helper 
 and successor. 
 
 This bishop was a humble and moderate man. He was well 
 acquainted with old Mr William, from the time that they had 
 been companions at the college, and highly esteemed him for 
 his honesty and other good qualities, though they now differed 
 in their opinions of church government. He was doing him a 
 kindness with regard to his son, and was willing that he should 
 take his own way as far as possible, in acting up to his character 
 as a zealous presbyterian. 
 
 The following characteristical anecdote is according to what 
 we find in Row's manuscript. Mr Lindsay said, " Mr William, 
 I do not come to this meeting as a bishop, but as your co-pres- 
 byter; and I promise that I shall not ask your son any other 
 questions than those which are contained in the Psalm- Book," 
 that is, in the old form of admission, which, together with other 
 forms and prayers, were prefixed to the metre version of the 
 Psalms. 
 
 Mr William was fully sensible of hi9 friendship, but was glad, 
 
26'0 APPENDIX. 
 
 for the safety of his conscience, to use the latitude which he 
 knew was granted him. He would not give to the bishop the 
 title of " My lord." And when they went to dinner, to which 
 the bishop came uninvited, he still, in the exact manner of the 
 times, shewed the behaviour of a rigid presbyterian minister. 
 " Mr Alexander," said he, " you know you and I were con- 
 disciples at college, and Mr John Malcolm, now minister of 
 Perth, was our master ; it is therefore fit that your master should 
 sit at table above you." " It is exceedingly right," said the 
 bishop ; and, with a great deal of good humour, he gave place 
 to Mr Malcolm. 
 
 Indeed,* Mr Alexander Lindsay, who was laird of Evelick, in 
 the Carse of Gowrie, was, in the last years of his life, a con- 
 formist to presbytery. 
 
 Old Mr William Row died in the beginning of October, 
 1634. William, his son and successor, distinguished himself in 
 the time of the civil wars, as a zealous covenanter, and attended 
 the Scots army into England, as one of its chaplains. He died 
 in 1660. If he had lived till the re-establishment of episcopacy, 
 in 1661 , he would have been deprived, for nori'Conformity. 
 
 HI. Mr John Row, Minister or Carnock. 
 
 His Birth. Minister of Carnock. His Wife. Prosecuted on 
 account of his Zeal for Presbytery. His Speech to the Bishop 
 of Dunblane. His Behaviour in the Assembly, in 1638. His 
 Death and Epitaph. 
 
 John, a much respected son of Mr John Row, the reformer, 
 was baptized, January 6, 1568-9. 
 
 He was one of those two sons of Mr Row who enjoyed a 
 friar's pension from the King's Hospital in Perth. In 1592, he 
 was settled minister of Carnock, in the presbytery of Dunferm- 
 line, where he continued till his death. His wife, Grizzel Fer- 
 guson, was a daughter of the celebrated Mr David Ferguson, 
 minister of Dunfermline. He was married to her in 1595, and 
 by her he had several children. 
 
 He was much esteemed for his piety and integrity, and suf- 
 fered frequent hardships, on account of his firm attachment to 
 
APPENDIX. L'Oi 
 
 presbyterian church government. In the manuscript history 
 which goes under his name, and of which he wrote a consider- 
 able part, it is related, that, about the year 1620, he was cited 
 to appear before the high commission court, at St Andrews. 
 He was not well in health, and therefore sent his excuse, by his 
 son, Mr John Row, who was then the master of the grammar 
 school of Kirkaldy. He also desired his nephew, William Rig, 
 of Atherny, to speak to the archbishop in his behalf. His sen- 
 tence was, that he should be confined within his own parish j 
 and was so confined some years. 
 
 He, and some other conscientious ministers, having experi- 
 enced the rigours of the commission court, became more vehe- 
 ment in their zeal against episcopacy. One day, when Mr Row 
 of Carnock " was in Edinburgh, he met, in a strait place, where 
 there was no shifting, betwixt the great kirk and back of the 
 Luckenbooths, Mr Adam Ballenden, bishop of Dunblane ;" (Mr 
 Adam Ballenden, son of Sir John Ballenden, of Auchnoul.) 
 " They had been very familiar, as con-disciples at the college, 
 and afterwards as ministers, both avowing one truth of God. 
 
 " The bishop held forth his hand to Mr Row ; but he, folding 
 his arms, and putting his hands into his arm-pits, said, ' Mr- 
 Adam, I will hold no hands with you, till you confess and mourn 
 for your perjury and apostasy. We were four years antagonists 
 at the college. It fears me now, we shall be antagonists while 
 we live, seeing you have quitted Christ and his cause, and be- 
 cause it is known you have done it, especially that you might 
 free your lairdship of debt. Remember, I tell you, God's curse 
 will be upon you and your lairdship both.' ' Well, Mr John/ 
 said the bishop, ' I perceive you are angry. Farewell." 
 
 The bishop was afterwards translated to the bishopric of 
 Aberdeen, where he continued till the change of church go- 
 vernment, in 1638, when the General Assembly ordained him, 
 and most of the other bishops, to be excommunicated, for their 
 contumacy in refusing to obey the citations of the church. 
 
 It appears, from a manuscript history of that Assembly, and 
 of the Assembly in 1639, that Mr Row, being then above 70 
 years of age, greatly rejoiced in the change of church-govern- 
 ment. It would be tedious to advert to all the speeches which 
 he made. In the 17th session, (1638,) he represented, " that a 
 brother's son of his, who had been in Germany and Poland these 
 eighteen years bygone, was now willing, with heart and hand, 
 to subscribe the covenant." The Assembly gave their consent. 
 
 Session 8th, (1639), after the king's declaration anent abolish- 
 ing prelacy had been read, several members were called upon 
 to express their judgment. 
 
 " Old Mr Row, with tears in his eyes, said, ' I bless, I glo- 
 rify, I magnify the God of heaven and earth, who hath pitied 
 
262 APPENDIX. 
 
 this poor church, and given us such matter of joy and consola- 
 tion. And the Lord make us thankful, first to our gracious and 
 loving God; and next, obedient subjects to his majesty; and to 
 thank his majesty's commissioner for his own part." 
 
 Such anecdotes as illustrate the history and manners of the 
 former times, I trust, will not be disagreeable to the readers of 
 the Lives of the Reformers. 
 
 It appears, from an epitaph on a tomb-stone, in the church- 
 yard of Carnock, that Mr John Row, the minister of that parish, 
 died June 26, 1646, aged 78 years ; and his widow, January 20, 
 1659 ; that their daughter was married to a gentleman of the 
 surname of Gibbon, whose daughter, Margaret Gibbon, was 
 married to Adam Stobie, of Wester Luscar, the same gentleman 
 whose hard usage is mentioned in the first volume of Wod row's 
 History " of the Sufferings of the Church of Scotland." 
 
 IV. Mr John Row, Principal of King's College, 
 Old Aberdeen. 
 
 Grandson of the Reformer. Son of Mr Row of Carnock. Rector 
 of' the School of Kirkaldu. His Skill in the Hebrew, and his Suc- 
 cess as a Teacher. His Character. Minister at Aberdeen. Prin- 
 cipal of King's College. Deprived of his Office, and his Books 
 burnt. Dies at Kinellar. A Writer of Row's MS. 
 
 Mn John Row, principal of King's College, Aberdeen, 
 whom, in my Lives of the Reformers, I have sometimes had oc- 
 casion to mention, was a man of such eminence for his literary 
 accomplishments, as well as for his zeal in church matters, as to 
 deserve that a very full memoir should be written concerning 
 him I shall only give the outlines. 
 
 He was the eldest son of Mr John Row, minister of Carnock, 
 and was thereby a grandson of the reformer. In the first part 
 of his life he was a professed grammarian, and was tutor of 
 George Hay, who afterwards was the second Earl of Kinnoull. 
 He was for some time rector of the school at Kirkaldy By the 
 recommendation of his pupil's father, the chancellor of the 
 kingdom, wnom he denominates " His faithful patron, and liberal 
 Maecenas," he was, in 1632, translated to the rectorship of the 
 
Appendix. 263 
 
 grammar-school of Perth, and had the satisfaction of having, 
 for some time, his brothers, Robert and William, as his as- 
 sistants. 
 
 In 1634, he published the first edition of his Hebrew gram- 
 mar, which was well esteemed. Some complimentary verses 
 from his friends were prefixed, in which, among other things, 
 he was told, that he was teaching the people of Perth the lan- 
 guages of Palestine, Greece, and Rome. Mr Orem, in his 
 History of Aberdeen, says, that the principal, when he was 
 in Perth, " had the most flourishing school in this nation." 
 
 Probably, if a change of church government had not taken 
 place, in 1 638, he never would have turned his thoughts to- 
 wards entering the ministry, for he had an unconquerable an- 
 tipathy to episcopacy, and to the innovations in worship which 
 had been introduced in 1618. But, in 1641, his friend, Mr An- 
 drew Cant, then minister of Aberdeen, persuaded him to come 
 thither, where he passed through the ordinary trials, and was 
 settled one of the ministers of that city. 
 
 While in the ministry at Aberdeen, he published, in 1644, the 
 second edition of his Hebrew Grammar, together with a He- 
 brew Vocabulary, or kind of dictionary. He proceeded also to 
 write some other books, which related chiefly to the political 
 controversies agitated at that period. In 1651, being in favour 
 with the reigning party, he was appointed principal of King's 
 College, Old Aberdeen, in the room of Dr William Guild, who 
 had been deposed, as a malignant against the covenants. 
 
 Mr Row, when at the head of the college, acted with great 
 respectability, and as an encourager of learning. He might 
 have continued in affluence and honour all his life, in the office 
 which he there held, if some of his religious and political opi- 
 nions and writings had not been of such a nature as to render 
 his deposition inevitable, after King Charles If., in 1660, had 
 been restored to his dominions. He was deprived of his office 
 of principal in 1661, and, according to what might have been 
 expected at such a period, some of his books, which contained 
 some severe reflections upon the royal family, were taken out 
 of the college, and burnt, at the cross of Aberdeen. 
 
 He retired to New Aberdeen, where, as what was necessary 
 for his maintenance, he attempted to resume his first em- 
 ployment of teaching scholars ; but, being now nearly 70 years 
 of age, he soon found that the work was to him too laborious. 
 
 "At last," says Mr Orem, " he went to Kinellar,"(not far from 
 Aberdeen,) " and staid with Mr John Mercer, his son-in-law, 
 and his daughter, where, after some time, he died, and was in- 
 terred at the west end of the church of Kinellar, in the church- 
 yard." 
 
264 APPENDIX. 
 
 Mr David Ferguson, his grandfather by the mother's side, 
 had begun to write a History of the Church of Scotland ; his 
 own father, Mr Row of Carnock, continued it. The Principal 
 seems to have written a fair copy of the whole ; but it is evi- 
 dent that he intermixed some keen political discussions, and 
 severe censures of characters, together with the mention of 
 some events which did not happen till after his father's death. 
 As it has not been printed, it bears the name of Row's Manu- 
 script; and it consists chieily of an abridgement of the acts of 
 the General Assembly. 
 
 THE END. 
 
 I., mx 1)1 i: :■■! : 
 
 Printed by James Ballantyne & Co. 
 

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