Animadversions on the last speech of William Viscount Stafford who was beheaded on Tower-Hill for high treason in conspiring the death of the king, &c. on Wednesday, December 29th, 1680.

ANIMADVERSIONS ON THE LAST SPEECH OF William Viſcount Stafford WHO WAS BEHEADED ON TOWER-HILL FOR HIGH TREASON In Conſpiring the Death of the King, &c. on Wedneſday, December 29th. 1680.

DYing mens words are generally much regarded: and Proteſtants who make Conſcience of their own words, and count it a Horrid Crime to ſpeak otherwiſe than think when they are dying, may be ready to take the meaſures of others by themſelves, and to Judge thoſe guiltleſs, who when they are dying, aſſert their Innocency with the higheſt aſſeverations: But they will find very great reaſon to alter their opinion, if they take but due notice how very cleer the Evidence was by which this miſerable Lord was caſt, and if withal they do but fully underſtand the Popiſh Principles, which deſtroy all conſidence in their words living and dying.

Fully to convince Proteſtants, my deſign ſhall be to prove that by the common Doctrine receiv'd amongſt them, they are furniſhed with expedients, whereby they may deny what is moſt true, and affirm what is moſt notoriouſly, falſe, and that with the moſt ſolmn Oaths or dreadfulleſt Imprecations, and yet neither lie nor be forſworn, nor any way ſin in the leaſt degree, and this they may do even when dying, Their main artifice is that which they call Mental Equivocation, becauſe of a double ſenſe in ſome propoſition partly expreſt and partly reſerv'd in their minds, ſo that a thing may be true in their own ſenſe by vertue of this Mental Reſervation, but falſe in the ſenſe of all that hear it. The uſe of this is allowed by all ſorts of Papiſts, and perticularly the Jeſuits, it is an Art more dear to them, and oftener uſed by them then any other fraudulent art whatever, becauſe this fraud is more eaſie, leſs diſcernable, and the advantage of it admirable, and therefore no wonder that they do not decline it at Trials in Courts of Judicature. No nor when they are dying and approaching the Tribunial of the Great Judge, tho truth and ſincerity is then, if ever, neceſſary. But this our Poor deceaſed Lord hath more pertinent inſtances of thoſe of his Principles and Circumſtances to encourage him with Oaths and Aſſeverations to aſſert a falſhood and deny the Truth.

To inſtance in their Practiſes, Father Garnet, Whitebreads Predeceſſor in Office and Practices, and one concerned in the Gunpowder Plot was notoriouſly guilty herein, for he denied that, By • olemn Oat • s and Imprecations before the Lords Commiſſioners, which was afterwards proved upon him, and his only Plea for himſelf was this Doctrine of Equivocation.

So likewiſe Treſham another of the Powder Plotters ſaid, that Garnet was privy to the Treaſon, but afterwards juſt before his death took it upon his Salvation that he had accuſed Garnet wrongfully, and that he had not ſeen him of ſixteen years before, and ſo dyed but this his Proteſtation and Oath was ſoon after proved notoriouſly falſe, yea Garnet himſelf confeſſed that within ſixteen years he had ſeen him many times, whereupon being asked what be thought of Treſhams dying Oath and Proteſtation, he anſwered Poſſibly Treſham meant to Equivocate.

And this very Doctrine of Equivocation was juſtified by Garnet in a Manuſcript left by him, which was communicated by King James, to the famous Cauſabon.

Both the ſtories before named may be found at large in the Hiſtory of the Gun-powder Treaſon, and in the Proceedings againſt thoſe Traytors.

By this we ſee, that theſe things have been practiſed of old, and juſtified by their Teachers as lawful even at the hour of death, therefore we need not be ſurpriz'd to find any Papiſt uſing this art in his Laſt Speech.

But their Principles are further conſiderable, of which take ſome Account.

Firſt by their Doctrine, they may lawfuly ſay what is falſe making uſe of a mental Reſervation, and tho it be a groſs untruth in it ſelf as expreſt, and they know it to be ſo, and uſe it with an intent to deceive others, yet they do not reckon it to be a lie, and conſequently no ſin, and ſo need not fear uſing it when going out of the world. This is affirmed in diſtinct Treatiſes of this ſubject by Father Perſons, Naver, Sanche and others.

And here let the World be Judge what regard is due to the words of thoſe, tho they be the words of dying men, whoſe Doctrine aſſures the moſt guilty perſons in the world, that if they perſiſt in a falſe deſtince of their innocency, even unto death, yet by this method they teach them it will be no lie at all, nor any ſin.

This may be enough to ſatisfie as concerning the expreſſions whereby this Lord diſclaims his guilt which are not a few, as in the firſt Paragraph of his Speech, I do moſt truly in the preſence of the Eternall, Omnipotent, and All-knowing God, Proteſt upon my Salvation, that I am as Innocent as it is poſſible for any Man to be, ſo much as in a thought of the Crimes laid to my charge. [The old canting expreſſion, as Innocent as the Child unborn, is here varied.] In the third Paragraph, Since my long impriſonment I have conſidered often what could be the Original cauſe of my being thus accuſed, ſince I knew my ſelf not culpable, ſo much as in a thought; and I cannot believe it to be upon any other. Account then my being of the Church of Rome, In the forth Paragraph. To my great and unſpeakable grief I have offended God in many things by many great Offences; but, I give him moſt humble thanks, not in any of thoſe Crimes of which I was accuſed. In the ſixth Paragraph. And if I had known of any Treaſon, and ſhould thus deny it, as I do now upon my Salvation at this time, I ſhould have no hope of Salvation. In the eleventh Paragraph. I do now upon my Death and Salvation aver that I never ſpoke one word either unto Oats or Turbervil, or, to my knowledge, ever ſaw them until my Tryal, and for Dugdale I never ſpoke to him of any thing but about a Foot-boy, or Foot-man, or Footrace, and never was then alone with him. In the twelfth and thirteenth Paragraphs. I hope I have made it appear that I have ſome Conſcience, for if I had none certainly I would have ſaved my life by acknowledging my ſelf guilty; which I could have done, tho I know I am not in the leaſt guilty, and I having ſome Conſcience make very ill uſe of it; for I throw my ſelf into Eternal pain by thus plainly and conſtantly denying thus at my Death, the knowledg of what I am accuſed of, in the leaſt I have ſaid thus much in diſcharge of my Conſcience, and do aver upon my Salvation what I have ſaid to be really true. And in the very laſt Paragraph. I do with my laſt Breath truly aſſert my Innocency, and hope the Omnipotent All-ſeeing, Juſt God will deal with me accordingly. Let the Reader judge how true theſe Proteſtations of his Innocency are like to be, after he hath conſidered the fairneſs of his Tryal, the clearneſs and fulneſs of the Evidence againſt him, and their Doctrines, which thus allow them to go out of the world with Lies in their mouths.

Secondly, They maintain that when they may lawfully ſpeak what is falſe they may lawfully ſwear it; thus Father Parſons, Leſſins Sanchez, and Jo. Sanctius.

This is their Doctrine, whereby it is evident, that if a Perſon be Accuſed and Condemned for a Deſign to murther his Prince, though he deſign it as much as any Aſſaſſinate ever did, yet he may not only deny it, and yet not Lye, by vertue of a Mental Equivocation, but though he be as guilty as any Perſon that ever was condemned in the World, yet he may aſſert his Innocency with Oaths; and notwithſtanding, by this Art he may free himſelf from all Guilt of Perjury, and all other Sin. And this quite deſtroys their Credit as to all their Aſſeverations and Oaths, how many and horrid ſoever they be, when they think themſelves concerned to Equivocate.

He that would be believed againſt ſuch Evidence as convicted this Lord had need be a Man of more than ordinary Credit. But Men of his Lordſhips Principles are quite broke as to this, for their Credit is blaſted by their Doctrine.

Thirdly, They may uſe ſuch Mental Reſerves or Equivocations, when they are urged by others not to uſe any, or when themſelves profeſs and ſwear they uſe none; So De Secund. Bonacina Sanchez, and Fa. Parſons in his Treatiſe of Equivocations, approved by Garnet and Blackwell: One paſſage whereof I will here give you. If (ſaith he) the Incompetent Judge ſhall further ask, whether you do not Equivocate, you may anſwer no, but with another Equivocation: if again ſuſpecting you he urges, whether this third time you do not Equivocate, then the third time alſo ſay no, but with another ſecret Equivocation; and ſo as often as he ſhall ask the like, likewiſe by Equivocating ſay you do not Equivocate.

Fourthly, By their Doctrine they may Lawfully uſe ſuch Mental Reſerve or Equivocation, which in their Account makes their Speaking or Swearing falſly to be innocent. Thus Fillincius ſaith, That Equivocation in Rigour is no Lye nor Perjury. So Toleno, Equivocation may be uſed, eſpecially when it is expedient to conceal a thing. So Bonacina, It is not (ſaith he) unlawful to Equivocate as often as any Inconvenience or Injury is like to befall us by ſpeaking Plainly.

Can therefore any Perſons be more highly concerned to keep any thing ſecret, than theſe Men are to conceal the Plot; both for the dangerous Conſequences of the Diſcovery, and the Advantage of concealing it? They cannot more effectually promote the Piot, than by perſwading us there is none: and ſo making us the more ſecure, they think hereby to ſtagger weak minded Proteſtants, who cannot think that any Chriſtian dares go out of the World with a Lye in his Mouth. They think alſo hereby to weaken the Credit of the Witneſſes, and to diſparage the Juſtice of the Nation. And Laſtly, his Lordſhip, and the reſt of the Plorters, executed before him, may think to die as Martyrs in the Account of the Papiſts, and as Innocent in the Judgment of many others. But on the other hand, if his Lordſhip, or thoſe executed before him, had been ſo ingenuous to have confeſſed what they knew of this Helliſh Plot, they had broke the Neck of their own Deſign, which ſeems dearer to them than their Lives, or any other Concerns; they had encouraged others of the Conſpirators to have followed their Leaders herein, and ſo the Plot had been wholly diſſected, and Popery it ſelf in danger to be rendred odious to the whole Chriſtian World, and for ever hereafter to be abhorred and renounced by all that own the Chriſtian Name, as utterly repugnant to Chriſtianity, and to be abhorred by Mankind as that which bids Defiance to Humanity it ſelf.

Having thus ſufficiently anſwered thoſe Paſſages in his Speech that aſſert his Innocency, come we next to his falſe Commendation, and Character of their Church. In the third Paragraph (ſaith he) I have no reaſon to be aſhamed of my Religion, for it teacheth nothing but the right Worſhip of God, Obedience to the King, and due Subordination to the Temporal Laws of the Kingdom. And I do ſubmit to all Articles of Faith believed and taught in the Catholick Church, believing them to be moſt conſonant with the Word of God. And whereas it hath ſo much and often been objected, that the Church holds that Sovereign Princes Excommunicated by the Pope, may by their Subjects be Depoſed and Murdered; as to the Murder of Princes. I have been taught as a matter of Faith, in the Catholick Faith that ſuch Doctrine is Diabolical Horrid and Deteſtable, and contrary to the Law of God Nature and Nations: and as ſuch from my heart I renounce and abominate it. As for the Doctrine of Depoſing of Princes. I know ſome Divines of the Catholick Church hold it, but as Able and Learned as they have writ againſt it: but it was not pretended to be the Doctrine of the Church; that is any Point of Catholick Faith. Wherefore I do here in my Conſcience declare that it is my True and Real Iudgment that the ſame Doctrine of Depoſing Kings is contrary to the Fundamental Laws of this Kingdom, Injurious to Soveraign Power; and conſequently would be in me, or any other of His Majeſty's Subjects Impious and Damnable. That their Church teacheth the contrary to the right Worſhip of God, and Obedience to Kings is very eaſie to prove: But it is a Work that hath been ſo often done already, that here we ſhall wave it. To come then to the nice Point, viz. the King-killing Doctrine. This is a Charge upon them of ſo horrid a nature, that I do not wonder that they all uſe their utmoſt endeavours to perſwade the World that they hold no ſuch Doctrine. That Mariana held it, Gavan himſelf owned: Sanctarellus his Book was a little more favourable to Kings than Mariana's, and yet this was printed at Rome, and approved by Mutius Vitelleſcus the General of the Jeſuits. Ribadinera, Scribanius under the name of Bonarſcius, Becanus, Oreſterus, do partly praiſe and partly defend Mariana. And wherein doth Emanuel Sa come ſhort of Mariana in that particular, or Becarus in his Engliſh Controverſies; which are approved of, not only by divers Biſhops, but by the Provincial Jeſuits of Portugal and Germany: Yea, a whole Ʋniverſity approves of it. To which add Fa. Campian, who may be in ſtead of all: he declares, That all the Jeſuits ſpread far and wide through the whole World have entred into a League to make away all Heretical Kings in any manner whatſoever; nor will they deſpair of effecting it ſo long as one Jeſuit remains in the World. In Epiſt. ad Concil. Reg. Angl. p. 22.

The Church of Rome doth declare, that the Pope hath power to depoſe Kings, eſpecially for Hereſie. This is not only the Opinion of all ſorts of their Authors, but is eſpecially determined by their Popes, and the Decrees of General Councils. They do alſo declare, that Kings being Depoſed, any one may kill them, at leaſt by the Pope's Order. For this we have the declared Senſe of the whole Body of the Jeſuits in France, [than whom none of the Society in any part of the World were more favourable to Kings.] in an Apology for their Doctrine on this Subject to Henry the Fourth; yet there they declare in the words of Valentia, conſonant to the Doctrine of Aquinas, Caletan, Sotus, Coveruvius, Salonius, and others; That a Tyrant, who has no Juſt Title, but uſurps Authority, may be killed by any one. Now there is none of them who have the uſe of Reaſon will deny, but a King depoſed by the Pope is ſuch a Tyrant, a meer Uſurper, without ſuch a juſt Title; and therefore they cannot deny but it is their Doctrine; That a King Depoſed by the Pope may be killed by any one.

In the Seventh and Sixteenth Paragraphs he prays for the King, acknowledging him. His Lawful King and Soveraign, and denying that any Power on Earth can Legally allow him or any Body elſe to lift up a Hand againſt his Legal Authority and then Pra • ing for him that he may enjoy all Happineſs in this World, and the World to come, •• e would undoubtedly have it thought, that he had no deſign to kill the King, who can pray for his proſperous Reign. But it need not ſeem ſtrange that any of them ſhould Equivocate in their way of Praying, ſince their Church allows of plain Lyes in their publick Liturgies, which divers of their own Authors expreſs themſelves ſenſible of.

To give one inſtance of this in Fa. Garnet, he compoſed ſome Prayers for the good Succeſs of the Powder Plot, which he uſed amongſt his Party; and being charged with it, anſwered like ſuch a Jeſuit: He ſaid, He made not thoſe Prayers with that meaning that the thing might fall out according to the mind of the Conſpirators, but rather croſs to their deſires; that ſo the Safety of King and Kingdom might be provided for. So that when he prayed for the Ruin of the King and Kingdom, his meaning was that they might be preſerved and proſper. So when any of this ſort of Men, I mean Romiſh Zealots, pray for the King's proſperous Reign, why may not their meaning be his utter Deſtruction? For this is altogether as likely as the other.

One thing is obſervable, that in his Prayer for the King he twice comes in with the word Legal. So in the ſixth Paragraph. He would diſcover if he knew of an Illegal Dangerous Plot. But the Queſtion will here be, what he means by Legal and Illegal. By their Principles, if the King be Excommunicated, his Authority is not Legal, and therefore the Plot againſt him not Illegal. This Artifice, though the thing be falſe in it ſelf, yet it may be innocently aſſerted by him.

His Temper at Death was none of the moſt Chriſtianlike, for he could not forbear [though he pretendedly forgave them] villifying the Witneſſes againſt him, by calling them Perjured Fellows: But what better can be expected from ſuch Men. And he ſeems deſignedly to intimate that his Tryal was Illegal by this ſubtil Inſinuation: I ſhall ſay little to my Tryal; and whether it were all according to the known Law, I am too much a Party to ſay much of it: If it were not ſo, God forgive him or them that were the Cauſe or it. Certainly never Man had a more Honourable, Juſt and Legal Tryal, and conſequently leſs Cauſe for ſuch a Malicious Inſinuation.

To conclude, We have great reaſon to believe that this Speech was contrived for the promoting of their grand Plot, upon which, as a true Be-Jeſuited Zealot, his Heart was ſo much ſet [the Catholick Intereſt being ſo deeply concerned in it,] that the thoughts of Death could not divert him. Now, if we are found ſo Weak and Facile as to believe theſe fraudulent Expreſſions of this Lord, and others that were Executed before him, againſt ſo much Rational Evidence, then their Work is in a manner done; and they will do more at their Deaths by putting out our Eyes, than they could in all their Lives. We cannot in Juſtice, Reaſon or Charity believe them againſt Such Evidence, who think they may Lawfully deceive us when dying, and apprehend it to be the great Intereſt of their Cauſe ſo to do.

FINIS.