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"trimony to its right use. Where is the wonder, if the nobility, the clergy, and the people were so easily gained upon? Is it not rather a "visible miracle that there remained a spark in Israel, and that all other kingdoms did not follow the example of England, Denmark, Sweden, " and Germany, which were reformed by the same means? Amidst all "these reformations, the only one that visibly made no progress was "that of manners."

DISCONTENTS OF THE PEOPLE.

We have seen the change made by the reformers in the doctrine and discipline of the church; it is now time to see what effect this change had upon the general condition of the people and the public credit of the kingdom. Burnet, like all other writers who prostitute their talents for lucre by lying and deception, would fain persuade us that the reformation was pleasing to the people. He tells us, at the commencement of his account of this reign, that "the people generally were cry"ing out for a reformation, despising the clergy, and loving the new preachers." This disposition, however, it appears did not, if it ever existed, last long, for he was obliged to acknowledge, in a subsequent part of his account, that the people grew discontented, and that rebellions took place in Devonshire and others parts." About this time," he writes, "a rebellion broke out in many parts of England, partly arising "from a jealousy in the commons against the nobility and gentry, who finding more advantage by the trade of wool than by that of corn, generally enclosed their grounds, and turned them to pasture, by which a great number of persons were thrown out of employment, and a general "consternation was spread throughout the country. The other cause was "the unquenched enmity of the Popish priests to the reformation, and their "endeavours to revive in the minds of the blinded multitude their former errors." Here we have a base attempt to disguise the real state of the case, by affixing part of the discontents to "the unquenched enmity of the Popish priests," whereas it is incontrovertible that the commotions originated in the cruel oppressions of the reformers towards the commonalty.Religion was undoubtedly mixed up with the grievances of the people, but it ought not to surprise any one, that the people should bear an affection towards a system of religion under which they had been so happy, and a dislike towards that which had brought with it so many ills, and rendered their situation so miserable and comfortless. The dis→ turbances arose out of of the new order of things, by which mischievous inroads had been made in the constitution of the country, the currency was depreciated, and a proportionate advance in all saleable commodities followed in consequence. The value of land rose with the value of its produce, and the rents of farms had been doubled and in several instances trebled. Had the wages of the labourer kept pace with the advance of prices, little or no difference would have been occasioned. But the demand for labour, in consequence of the land being in new hands, was lessened, and the wages were reduced instead of being advanced. This state of things we have in part witnessed within the last thirty years, owing to the restrictions which were placed upon the bank of England, whereby she was prevented from paying her notes in gold,

and, the country being thus deluged with paper money, the regular currency became depreciated, so that prices advanced to the injury of labour, and discontents succeeded as in the time of Edward. In the Catholic times, particularly on the estates of the monks and clergy, considerable portions of the land were allotted to the common use of the labourers and poor inhabitants; by which careful economy a great degree of comfort was afforded them, and pauperism was utterly unknown in England. Now, however, the new landlords, after having robbed the clergy of their abbey lands, and the poor of their patrimony, conceived that these waste lands would add to their advantage, and wholly disregarding the wants of their indigent neighbours, began to inclose the commons, and thus cut off every hope of the poor for a subsistence.-Grazing too was found much more profitable than growing corn, and to such an extent was this new mode of farming carried, that it was stated in a proclamation issued by the king, that many villages, in which 100 or 200 people had lived, were now entirely destroyed; that one shepherd now dwelt where industrious families dwelt before; and that the realm is wasted by "bringing arable grounds into pasture, and letting houses; whole families, and copyholds, to fall down, decay, and be waste. Under such a state of things it could not be expected that men would remain quiet, especially as we have seen that the projectors of the new liturgy so far anticipated resistance to their innovations, that they caused foreign mercenary troops to be brought into the country. The people felt their own miseries, and they saw that the new holders of the land did not treat them with the same kindness as the former proprietors it was natural therefore that they should couple their own grievances with the innovations of religion.-They found their own resources diminished, and were now compelled to listen to a dull cold inanimate form of worship instead of those soul-inspiring ceremonies they had been accustomed to from their very infancy. Thus goaded nearly to madness, the people rose almost simultaneously in the counties of Surrey, Sussex, Kent, Wilts, Hampshire, Gloucester, Somerset, Berks, Warwick, Leicester, Worcester, Hertford, Essex, Suffolk, Norfolk, and Cornwall. -In Wiltshire, sir William Herbert put himself at the head of a body of troops, dispersed the insurgents, and executed martial law on the ringleaders. In the other counties tranquillity was partially restored by the exertions of the resident gentry and the moderate among the yeomanry. In Norfolk, Cornwall and Devon, the risings assumed the most alarming appearance, and threatened defiance to the government. In general, however, the insurgents acted without concert and without competent leaders; still the issue would have been doubtful, had not the reformers availed themselves of the aid of FOREIGN TROOPS to cut down and massacre Englishmen contending for their rights.-Protestant reader, bear in mind, and never let it slip your memory, this great and important fact, that the reformation in religion in ENGLAND, was crammed down the throats of the people by FOREIGN BAYONETS. When the new liturgy was read the first time in the church of Samford Courteney, in Devonshire, on Whitsunday, the people compelled the clergyman the next day to restore the ancient service. This act was the signal of a general insurrection, and in a few days the insurgents numbered ten thousand men, headed by Humphrey Arundel, go

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For's Book of Martyrs,

CRITICAL AND HISTORICAL.

No. 46. Printed and Published by W. E. ANDREWS, 3, Chapter- Price 3d. house-court, St. Paul's Churchyard, London.

EXPLANATION OF THE ENGRAVING-Father O'Hurle, O. S. F. the Catholic archbishop of Cashel, in Ireland, falling into the hands of Sir W. Drury, the sanguinary governor of the province, in the year 1579, was first tortured by his legs being immersed in jack boots with quick-lime, according to Dr. Burke. The Theatrum Crudelitatum Hæreticorum, from which we have taken this cut, says, the boots were filled with oil, and that his legs being. placed over a large fire, the flesh was boiled off the bones. This cruel torture was inflicted to force the archbishop to take the oath of supremacy, but being ineffectual, the holy martyr was executed at the gallows, having previously cited Drury to meet him at the tribunal of God within ten days, who accordingly died within that period amidst the most excruciating pain.

vernor of St. Michael's Mount.With the troops sent to oppose them were three preachers, named Gregory, Reynolds, and Coverdale, who. received a license from the king to declare the word of God to the people; but these missionaries did not feel disposed to run the risk of martyr-, dom, and the general not having confidence in their eloquence, entered. into a negotiation with the malecontents. The latter made fifteen de-, mands, which they afterwards reduced to eight, requiring the restoration, of the ancient service, the introduction of cardinal Pole into the council,, and the re-establishment of two abbeys at least in every county.-Tom Cranmer composed a long reply to the former, and the king answered the latter by a proclamation, couched in no very gracious language.-.

Arundel in the mean time attempted to take the city of Exeter, by laying siege to it, but without success, as he was bravely resisted by the inhabitants. After a siege of forty days, lord Gray arrived with a reinforcement of German horse and Italian arquebusiers, who drove the insurgents from the town, and eventually defeated them.-During the insurrection four thousand men are said to have perished in the field, or by the hand of the executioner.-During these disturbances martial law, we are told, was executed in every part of the kingdom. Sir Anthony Kyngstone, provost of the Western army, is stated by Speed and Hayward to have distinguished himself by the promptitude of his decisions, and the pleasantry with which he accompanied them.-Having dined with the mayor of Bodmin, writes Dr. Lingard, he asked him if the gallows were sufficiently strong? The mayor replied he thought SO. "Then," said Kyngstone, "go up and try;" and hanged him without further ceremony. On another occasion, having received information against a miller, he proceeded to the mill, and not finding the master at home, ordered the servant to the gallows, bidding him be content, for it was the best service which he had ever rendered to his master. The reader, we have no doubt, is disgusted with such pleasantry, and shudders at the callousness of the heart that could indulge in them, though acting in defence of the enlightened Protestant religion. Let us then hear no more of Popish cruelties. The changes have been rung till the people are almost deafened with the barbarous deeds of Jefferies and Kirk, in Monmouth's rebellion against James II. who happened to be a Catholic prince, though in this case the Judge and Colonel were both Protestants.

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In Norfolk the insurrection assumed a more formidable appearance. It commenced at Attleborough, on the 20th of June, 1549, according to Dr. Heylin, but the insurgents did not begin to appear in considerable numbers until the 6th of July following, when the people flocked from all the surrounding parishes to join them, and they were headed by one Kett, a tanner, of Wymondham, a town about six miles distant from "These men,' Attleborough. writes Dr. Heylin, "pretended only against enclosures; and if religion was at all regarded by them, it was "rather kept for a reserve, then suffered to appear in the front of "the battle. But when their numbers were so vastly multiplied, as to amount to twenty thousand, nothing would serve them but the suppression of the gentry, the placing of new counsellors about the king, and somewhat also to be done in favour of the old religion. "Concerning which they thus remonstrate to the king or the people rather; viz. first, That the free-born commonalty was oppressed by a small number of gentry, who glutted themselves with pleasure, "whilst the poor commons wasted with daily labour did (like pack→ horses,) live in extreme slavery. Secondly, That holy rites, estabe "lished by antiquity, were abolished; new ones authorized, and a new "form of religion obtruded, to the subjecting of their souls to those "horrid pains, which no death could terminate. And therefore, thirdly, "That it was necessary for them to go in person to the king, to place new counsellors about him during his minority, removing those who (ruling as they list) confounded things sacred and profane, and re"garded nothing but the enriching of themselves with the public trea

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"sure, that they might riot it amidst these public calamities." Such are recorded as the complaints of the Norfolk malecontents at the origin of the reformation, as it is called, and if we look at the present situa tion of the country, we shall see that it is not bettered in its condition. -We have Jew loan jobbers, sinecurists and pensioners, half-pay officers, and married parsons, glutting themselves with luxury, whilst the poor commons are obliged to contribute more than a third of their labour to support these idlers out of the taxes, and work like packhorses under the slavery of a criminal code a thousand times more galling than the penances imposed upon them by the Catholic Clergy, because these were voluntary, and of course performed with cheerfulness.

To the above demands no satisfactory answer was given, and the insurgents marched off for Norwich, where Kett planted his standard on Moushold hill, which overlooked a great part of the city, and gave him full command of it. Here, seated under a large oak, which he called the oak of reformation, Kett kept his courts, and carried terror among the neighbouring gentry and citizens of Norwich. The latter had allowed the marquess of Northampton to enter the city with one thousand English horse, and a body of ITALIANS under the command of Malatesta, out of which the marquess was beaten by Kett, and returned in disgrace to London. The council then sent the earl of Warwick with eight thousand men, two thousand being GERMAN horse, by whom the insurgents were defeated, after a long and desperate struggle. More than two thousand perished by the sword, Kett and nine others were hanged, and the remainder were granted a general pardon. Thus it will be seen that the introduction of the reformation, as it is misnamed, produced in its progress not only a change in religion, but a gross violation of the principles of the constitution, the most impious sacri leges and spoliations, and a waste of human blood hitherto unparalleled in the annals of the country, arising from the discontents of the people. England had been Catholic nine hundred years, and during that long period but one insurrection occurred on the part of the people, namely that under Wat Tyler, occasioned in part from the heavy taxation produced by a long war with France, and the seditious doctrines of ignorant preachers, instigated by Wickliffe and his adherents.-This rising, however, was put down with a trivial loss of blood, compared with the rivers that were spilled in the insurrections of Harry and Edward's reigns, from the innovations then made on religion and the inroads on the constitution. The civil war between the houses of York and Lancaster, and the frequent appeals to arms by the Barons, had nothing of the character of religion in them, nor did they spring from gross op pressions of the poor. The people in those times were in the possession of plenty and ease, but the reformation has taken from them those means which secured them against want and contumely, and instead of the profusion which abounded on the tables of the Catholic people of England, and the visible effects of good living displayed in their robust countenances and hardy frames, we now see the hearty meal reduced to the meagre mess of potatoes, and the people exhibiting the care-worn visages of misery and the lank emaciated forms of want. And this change in the time of Edward the sixth, when Tom Cranmer was archNichon of Canterbury. was effected by FOREIGN BAYONETS!!!