Plato; the banishment of Anaxagoras; the murder of Seneca! Were these, in profane history, the sinners, or the saints of their age, that they suffered such things?"*

Herbert was silent, the other resumed after a pause.

"Moses' banishment and Daniel's trials; Elijah's wanderings, Jeremiah's tears; Micaiah's buffetings and Nehemiah's grief! Are these the fruits of these men's extraordinary wickedness?" The old soldier paused, but Herbert remained still silent.

"The Baptist's bloody end; St. James' decapitation; Nathanael's torture; St. Peter's crucifixion; St. Paul's daily martyrdom; and St. John's banishment! Are these sure signs of God's awakened wrath against these sufferers, or, of man's hateful passions."

"But the holy church ajudged Jerome of Prague ‘a damnable heretic, and unworthy to live."" said Herbert doggedly. "The holy church did no such thing: her divine Head hath not yet pronounced His judgment," replied the other.

"I beg your pardon, sir, I am misinformed, replied Herbert, "I thought his holiness had sanctioned the execution, and that he expressly declared, in confirmation of the great and learned cardinals in the conclave of Cologne,' that such an heretic was not fit to live.""

"Your fact is undeniable, young sir," resumed the other, mildly; "and I can add more. My father, who was present at Jerome's first trial at Cologne, was deafened with the shout, as from a thousand voices, away with him, away with him! burn him, burn him!'

Herbert was startled by the peculiar tone in which the soldier uttered this, and remained gazing silently at his companion, who, moving the lamp closer to him, and raising the lower border of the breast-plate, brought forth his metal-studded book, saying calmly, as he opened it.

"Methinks that sentence is a dull echo of one whose sound still rings from shore to shore-and shall ring ever. Mountains can never bury it! The deep cannot hush it! The grave cannot hide it!"

*

Turning over a few pages, he read aloud.

"But they cried out, away with him, away with him; crucify

See the exordium to Jerome of Prague's eloquent defence, as detailed in a letter from Poggé of Florence, to Leonard Aretin. The line here adopted was that he selected, and the examples here chosen, were most of them those he adduced All Wickliffites were, at this period, familiar with Jerome's celebrated defence, and most heroic death. Examples from ancient classic ages were far more familiar then to the ears and tongues of the better portion of the middle classes, than in this our day.

him. And the voices of the chief priests and of the people prevailed."

After a pause, the soldier again turned a few leaves and began, "And they gave him audience unto his word, and then lifted up their voices and said, away with such a fellow from the earth: for it is not fit that he should live."

The book was replaced beneath the breast plate, and there was an interval of silence.

To us the foregoing remarks may appear common-place enough, but, to Herbert, they were replete with difficulty and terror. The old soldier saw the effect produced, and resumed,

"You see, young sir, there have been men of whom the Divine judgment hath declared, the world is not worthy,' whom, nevertheless, this very world adjudgeth, guilt of death, or, unfit to live,"

At this juncture the gaoler entered with the viands.

"It is well, friend, trim the lamp, and we will fall to." The soldier put a platter and a cup to Herbert, and the gaoler began,

"Drink, drink, for the can is no treacherous guest,

""Tis a casque for the head, and a plate for the breast,

""Tis a taper that throws o'er the spirit its beams,
"It lightens

"

"Silence, friend!" said the soldier in an authoritative tone, standing erect so as to display the proportions of a giant, "We love not the sound of singing save in holy canticles, it is the very naughtiness of waste.'

Thou knowest Master Ritznow, I am no gospeller," said the fellow, crossing himself; and, lowering his tone to a mutter, he resumed. "St. Bride shield us from these Taborites."*

The gaoler having departed, the soldier said some long grace, bending his head over the food, then, bringing his huge elm chair closer to the table, he helped himself, filled his horn with wine, and passed both food and wine to Herbert.

The old man commenced his meal by drinking a draught of wine, and corrugating his mouth to a thousand wrinkles, he uttered a deep note of disapprobation.

"That fellow," said he, "crosses himself and cheats us; methinks he were a better man if he dealt fairly, and left off his crossings."

When he had emptied his platter, he turned to look for the viands, and saw they were still standing, before his companion,

* So were the armies of Zisca called, and, thenceforward, for many years, the gospellers, who were soldiers, retained that appellation.

untouched, he drew them towards him with a simple "eh!" and filling Herbert a cup of wine, and breaking a piece of wheaten bread, he said, authoritatively, "Dip the bread into wine, and eat a morsel, then drink off the wine."

Herbert mechanically obeyed, and was refreshed, for he had fasted since early morning, and had borne unwonted fatigue. "Thou would'st make but an indifferent warrior if to suffer unmans thee thus, good youth: to dare is poor courage. I will tell thee a true story. When we lay encamped before Naples, the troops were in direst need of food, clothing and money, and, being unprincipled varlets, (as they were), drew up in mutiny, in battle array, against their officers, and demanded, of our noble-hearted General Gonsalso. of Cordova, pay and rations. One fellow had the effrontery to present his halbert, almost in his commander's face, his comrades looking, the while, resolute and gloomy. The general quietly walked up to the fellow's side, and taking him by the arm, said, 'hold up your halbert comrade; it is unsightly to carry arms so, and what is worse, you might wound a friend with that which is only carried by brave men to wound the enemy.' The fellow obeyed.

On returning to his tent,

'Ritznow,' said the general, do you know that fellow, who levelled his halbert at my breast to day?

'I do, general,' replied I.

'Is he a leader, or merely led?' continued the general. The former, general,' I answered.

'Good.

Arrest him, and hang him by the neck, from the front of yonder window, at ten o'clock to-night,' said Gonsalso, pointing, with his finger, to a tall tower in the battlement.

And, sure enough, there the fellow might be seen dangling the whole of the next day.

Next year we took Naples by storm."

The meal being concluded, the soldier again rose and uttered some long grace; he then filled his horn, which he emptied at a draught, and, turning with a grim smile to Herbert, exclaimed,

"I say not with the wicked detractor, Eneas Sylvius,"* "Vinum me alit, me juvat, me oblectat, me beat,"† for in no kind of sensuality did this man, who hath taken upon him to malign the good and learned Jerome, Huss, and Cobham, show moderation: but wine is a good friend to man, naithless."

This man wrote furious invectives against the early reformers, but his character, taken from his own letters, is so utterly profligate, that his evidence cannot gain credit among reasonable people.

"Wine nourisheth me, delights me, transports me, placeth me in paradise."

He then refilled his horn, and sang with deep, mellow voice,

"What tho' the tyrant zealot's power,
"Exerts in torments all its skill;
"Tho' prematurely dawns the hour,
"That binds thee to the torturing wheel;
"Yet when the angel of the abyss,
"Shall lie enchained in adamant,

66

Thou, with the Lamb, shall reign in bliss,
"Unknown to pain, or grief, or want:

"And the long sabbath that remains will pay,
"To all the elect their sorrows of a day."

We are acquainted with no music more impressive than the sacred songs of that period. We have known persons advanced in life-people of the London world, accustomed from childhood to music, and not easily moved, by its melting sounds to anything but chattering, declare that they never before experienced the impression made upon them, by the songs of the age of which we speak, revived in their youth.

Music was a potent instrument in the hands of the Protestant Fathers; its earnestness and pathos showed, at least, the sincerity of purpose, and intense feeling which actuated them.

Herbert did not listen, without emotion, to the singer. PRESENT PAIN AND FUTURE GLORY! These were the favorite topics of the melodies of the Reformers.

When the deep tones had died away, Herbert felt distressed and thoughtful; at length, he said to his companion,

“Tell me, sir, frankly, did not Jerome of Prague recant these very opinions for which he afterwards suffered ?"*

* It was a favourite project of the Papists to obtain a recantation from the early Protestants, and it must be allowed that, where the heretic was obstinate, the means employed to obtain this were unscrupulous, and forgeries were not rare devices. When the heretic was fearful, he was easily induced to recant, and suffered but trifling penances ordinarily (such as carrying the mark of a faggot on his left sleeve). In the case of Richard Hun, which had occurred but a few months prior, the registrar appointed to record his alleged recantation, certified it in these strange words: "Hoc fuit scriptum mann propria Richardi Hunne, UT DICITUR." "This confession was written by the hand of Richard Hun, AS IT IS REPORTED."

The sequel is suspicious; two nights subsequently, Hun was found murdered in the Lollard's Tower, in St. Paul's Church. The coroner and jury unanimously found a verdict of wilful murder against the Bishop of London's chancellor and his sumner.

Strange, indeed, was the sentence this very Bishop Fitzjames, with his brothers of Durham and Lincoln, pronounced against the corpse of the poor murdered man, for therein occurs, "Dicti Richardi Hunne imdœnitentia ac finali obstinatia et pertinacia, etc." "By the impenitence and final obstinacy and pertinacity of the said Richard Hun, etc." But if Hun's recantation was no forgery, his sentence of heresy contained an untruth. But all the recantations on earth cannot falsify God's truth.

"The soldier replied by asking, "Did not Peter deny his master?" Herbert nodded assent, and then asked,

"But did not the INFALLIBLE head of the Church condemn these doctrines?"

The soldier replied, with a severe tone,

"A few hours before Peter denied his master, he had declared the doctrine of his infallibility-Though all deny thee, yet will I never deny thee.' So said Peter, and he fell. And, but for his agony of tears and humiliation, Peter and Judas might have been the Satan and Beelzebub of the new dispensation.

Herbert shuddered, and exclaimed, "Methinks I see thy drift, but to me it is bewildering and impious. I see not how Peter's fall must necessarily determine the question you evidently involve."

The soldier instantly replied,

"Those who see not in the history of Abraham and Peter anything but a plain story, read the 'Word' to no purpose. Peter, as Abraham, is a type. When Peter boasted his infallibility he fell. When Rome boasted her infallibility she fell. Repentance and turning away from the wicked presumption is the only hope for either."

At this point of the conversation the gaoler introduced Herbert's mother, with the ceremonious announcement, "Some body for one of you.'

The widowed mother met her son composedly. 'Tis true, he was her only son, and she was a delicate-looking woman, with a warm, affectionate heart, but she had learned, in much sorrow, that her mission was to encourage, comfort, and clear away the bewildering fear which makes mountains of the small hills on life's journey.

Ritznow paced up and down the apartment, his head within an inch of the ceiling.

"Make not strangers of each other for my presence," said he, with considerable emotion. "I know what 'tis myself: I have— a mother;-may God comfort her!"

Small interval remained before the gaoler again entered, and said, in a deferential tone of voice, to Herbert,

"Sir Gilbert Talbott has come from his highness the King, and desires to speak with Master Herbert." Then, moving close to the youth's side, he almost whispered, "Good news for you, I can tell you.

Herbert, with his mother, was quickly in the anteroom, and was soon informed of his liberation and new appointment. He was ordered to be at the court yard of the palace by five in the morning, to enquire for Sir Gilbert, who promised to direct his further duties.