AN ANSWER TO Mr. LANGHORN'S SPEECH.
Wherein he asserts his Loyalty and Innocence, contrary to plain Evidence against him in open Court, the Verdict of an Impartial Jury, and the declared Sense of the late PAR­LIAMENT in relation to the late horrible and Bloody PLOT.

THough the falsity of those Principles, which move these infatuated men, by so solemnly denying of Truth, to renounce the God of Truth, is already clearly and sufficiently demonstrated to the World, by late Authors of most unspotted Integrity and profound Learn­ing, that they would neither abuse us, by imposing or mis-quoting such Ro­man Catholick Authors, from whence those Principles are apparently deriv'd, nor could they from want of judgement commit any Errors; yet such is the force and power of the last words of dying men, and such the great charity of living Protestants, that we are more apt to credit and favour them in their last Speeches, than by a severe Sentence (supposing their words evasive and delusory) condemn 'em to eternal torments. That the great charity of such modest and conscientious Protestants may not be abus'd, by any Tricks and Impostures, which are constantly made use of by the Papists, I shall endeavour, by this present Answer to Mr. Langhorn's Speech, (as it is call'd) to con­vince the World and all good People, that as in their Lives they were guilty of most hainous Treason, so at their Deaths of most notorious Prevarication.

I shall begin at the latter end of his Speech, where he has these words:

1. I take it to be clear, That my Religion is the sole cause, which moved my Accusers to charge me with the Crime, for which upon their Evidence I am ad­judged to die; and that my being of that Religion, which I here profefs, was the only ground which could give them any hope to be believ'd, or which could move my Jury to believe the Evidence of such men.

2. I have had not only a Pardon, but also great Advantages, as to Preferments, and Estates offer'd unto me, since this Judgement was against me, in case I would have forsaken my Religion, and owned my self guilty of the Crime charged against me, and charged the same Crimes upon others: But blessed be my God, who by his grace hath preserved me from yielding to those Temptations, and strengthned me rather to choose this Death, than to stain my Soul with sin, and to charge others, against truth, with Crimes, of which I do not know that any person is guilty.

As to the first, Though Mr. Langhorn has said it, no person will believe him, though in the Speech of a dying man. That he was only charg'd with Crimes, (though they were most evidently prov'd against him) which had no other ground or foundation, but from the venom and malice of his Accusers, and they no other Reason for this so great malice, than that he was a professor of the Roman Catholick Religion.

First, It cannot appear rational, that their malice, as he pleases to miscal it, should be levell'd particularly against him, either as to his Person or Religion, being a Roman Catholick, since those of that Religion have all along been most tenderly and mercifully dealt withal by the superiour Magistrates, so long as they liv'd peaceably and quietly under Government, and did not design and act Treason against the Prince, or Destruction to the People, and Subversion of the Government. Nor was there after the Gunpowder-Treason, any Roman Catholick prosecuted purely for his Religion; nay, those who did incur the Penal Statutes, as they were Priests, were yet more favourably us'd than per­haps they merited in themselves. So that to offer such a criminal Charge and prosecution, either against Mr. Langhorn, or any person else, and at the same time really false, from a difference in Religion only, is no practice amongst Protestants, nor ever was, but is notoriously known to be allowed, encoura­ged, and commanded, in the Principles and Practices of the Papists, against all (and with the extreamest severities) who are of a different opinion from the Roman Church.

Of this, in Queen Maries Reign, we have voluminous Instances, of their bloody Cruelties against Protestants, not for Treason against the Prince, nor for endeavouring the Subversion of Government, but only for being Prote­stants and not Papists.

Secondly, It is no wonder if he charges his Accusers with malice, and that with so much confidence and untruth; for now he proceeds to as high Re­flections against his Governours, That he was offer'd by them not only a Par­don to his Life, but Promotions, and all worldly Advantages, would he have deserted his Religion, and acknowledged those Crimes to be true he stood charg'd withal, and charge them upon others, who by his inference must be supposed innocent.

That Mr. Langhorn, from the unbounded Clemency of his Prince to all his Subjects, might presume upon the same mercy others have received, I do be­lieve; but then upon those terms on which God Almighty pardons, a sincere Confession, and humble Contrition. Or if ever such a mercy was offer'd to him, never was it more abus'd, never more betray'd; when what was offer'd, was in no other sence, and for no other reason, than that he would discover the naked truth of what he knew, what he acted, that those Mischiefs which impend over King and Country, might be prevented, and they who were those devilish Engines, either by inventing or promoting of them, and yet lay un­discover'd, might be known, and brought to publick Justice. I could not have believed, that so great mercy could have met with so base ingratitude, that after so noble and generous Offers, which, he says, were tendred to him, he should make returns of so high injustice, and place the reason of those merciful Offers to no other account, than that by preserving of him, and his charging of others, who were innocent, they might have a fair opportunity and colour of Justice, to massacre the whole Flock of Roman Catholick Pro­fessors. As no moderate person, or who is Master of common sense, but can easily discern the malicious Interpretation he has made of these merciful Ten­ders, so will he at the same time confess, he has most deservedly suffer'd for those notorious Treasons he was found guilty of, and condemned for.

As to the other parts and members of his Speech, he says no more in sence, than what was said before by the five Jesuits, his Predecessors in punishment; only as theirs savour'd more of Oratory, his answerable to his profession; is penn'd with that complication and repetition of words to the same sence, in Lawyers phrase, that had it been, as his last Speech, his last Will and Testament, it could not have been with more care and regard to his true sence and mean­ing, transfer'd to Posterity. This may seem a very prevalent and tempting Argument, to believe, that as he particularly studied by his expressions to be rightly understood, so he did at the same time speak the naked truth from the bottom of his Soul, without any fallacy or collusion whatsoever.

That he did not so, the proof in Court so evident against him, is a most convincing Argument.

The next Quere to be answered, is, How he, or any person or persons can expect to be saved, when at the instant of death, they do so obstinately deny the truth of what in their Consciences they are convinced is so, and not only this, but to imprecate eternal punishment upon their departing Souls, if they have not faithfully and sincerely discharged themselves of the truth to their utmost knowledge.

The Reasons why they do so peremptorily deny all Treasons, Murders, or whatever may be, or is positively and directly prov'd against them, is, in that they receive their Absolution upon such terms, that they are obliged to die not only concealing them, but utterly denying; otherwise they not only forfeit the whole benefit of their Absolution, but are ipso facto excluded the Pale of the Church, and, as Renegadoes, all future hopes of Salvation. It has been publickly reported by a person concerned in the Murder of Sir Ed­mondbury Godfrey, that could he in Prison have procured an opportunity for a Priest to come to him, and to have absolv'd him, he would never have ac­knowledg'd, what he has since publickly confest before Authority, though he had been courted, and offer'd a greater temptation, than Mr. Langhorn [Page 4]had, an earthly Crown for his Reward; so great power and awe hath the Absolution of the Priest, over the Sense and Consciences of their Votaries, and strictest Professors.

Secondly, From the Doctrine of their Church, to Equivocate is no sin, no not at the hour of Death, if it is to an Heretick, or for the Service of the Ca­tholick Cause: This, sufficient proofs from their own Authors, have avowed to the World. Causabon, pag. 202. speaking of Garnet's Opinion of the law­fulness of Equivocation at the hour of Death, in his Papers communicated to King James, says, Since it is lawful (and he concludes it so) to use this in the course of his Life, why may it not be us'd also by a dying man?

Nor do they only Equivocate, but by compleating the sence in their own thoughts, by a mental Reservation, paralogize upon their Auditors, Equivo­cate upon their own Equivocation; of so doubtful sence are their best ex­pressions in the extreamest Agonies of Death.

To conclude, Though I cannot heartily believe this to have been the ge­nuine product of Mr. Langhorn's thoughts at the hour of Death, but rather penn'd by the Wily Priest, to cajoll the World, and conciliate a Reputation to that Cause, which has of late suffer'd so much; yet admit it to be so, I must agree, though a profound Lawyer, I am not of his sence, but think his last, the worst Conveyance that e're was drawn.

FINIS.

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