A Full and True Account of the Confession, Behaviour, Last Dying Speeches and Penitent End of Greenway Feild; Who was Executed at Tyburn for the Mur­ther of Andrew Charleton, on the 25th of September, 1689. With the Paper he Read under the Gallows, Signed by his own hand, desiring it might be Printed as a Warning to all People, &c. to prevent their com­ing to Untimely Ends.

AT the Sessions holden at the Old Bayly on the 28th and 29th of August last, Eight Persons were Con­victed of sundry Crimes, which the Law makes death, viz. Barbara Wolfe, Lawrence Welsh, Mary Cross, Mary Amor, Hannah Holding, John Harman, Elizabeth Locker, and Greenway Feild: But passing over the rest, who have hi­therto been respited from that Penalty, expressing at once their Sorrow for Sin, and Thankfulness for Mercy received, we shall in this Paper give an Account of the penitent Be­haviour and pious End of Mr. Feild, the onely person of the Number yet Executed.

After Sentence of Death had passed upon Mr. Feild for the Murther of Mr. Charleton, he being Remanded to New­gate, was visited by many able Divines, as Dr. Horneck, Mr. Wells, and others, who gave him spiritual Consolation, and were aiding to Mr Ordinary in that Pious and Christian like Duty, to whom he gave Attention, receiving the Sacrament, and expressing no small Acknowledgment for the Mercies of God, and the Favor of the King, that he had a longer time than usual to repent of his Sins, enquiring after saving Knowledge and praying frequently, behaving himself mo­dest and seemly in all his Carriage and Actions, when on the 25th of September Instant, the Day of his Execution, about Ten of the Clock in the Morning (having a little be­fore been visited by the Divines, and some of his Relations) he was put into a Cart, and conveyed to Tyburn, where Mr. Ordinary and Mr. Wells being in the Cart with him, after he had declared himself to be a great Sinner, and desired Forgiveness of all he had Injured, desiring the Spectators to be warned, &c. being demanded what he had further to say, he produced the following Paper, publickly reading it with an audible Voice, then gave it to Mr. Ordinary, and de­sired it might be printed and published.

GENTLEMEN,

SInce it's my hard Fate to die this Igneminious Death, I suppose it's expected I should give some account of my self, as well for my past Life and Conversation, as for the Fact I die for. I shall briefly do it for your Satis­faction, and I hope it may serve for a Caution to others.

I was born of good Parents in the County of Somer set­shire, where I had good Education in the Free School of Bruton. I since served an Attorney some years in an Inn of Chancery, and was admitted afterwards, and sworn an At­torney my self; but being young, gave my self too much Liberty. And, since my maturer years, I have greatly ne­glected my Duty towards God, I have profan'd his Sabbaths, and broken the Covenants I made with the great God for amendment of Life, and giving my self too much pleasure in offending my Creator. I accidentally, thô farally, be­came acquainted with one Mrs. Godard, alias Hannan, near Three years since, whose Conversation then suiting with my Fancy, and being often told by her, That she was at Liberty to make choice of a Man, I made my Applications to her, and in process of time, at a meeting in Salisbury we were Contracted each to the other under our Hands, which I intended Inviolably to observe: But coming to London a few Months after, being furnished by my Friends with what was needful in order to make a progress in my Employ­ment, I made my first Visit to her, and continued with near two years to the best of my memory, in which time we had often difference: For I was troubled I had spent Mony and Time so idly, and thereby disobliged my Friends, our Con­tract not performed, and another Man owning her: Yet; ne­vertheless, I was so far Infatuared, upon the Reasons she gave concerning this Matter, that I had no very ill Opinion of her, there often passing fresh and mutual assurance of our Friendship: Yet, nevertheless, some few months since she coming acquainted with the Deceased, Mr Charleton, and (as I have great Reason to believe) they used too much Familiarity, notwithstanding he had a Wife of his own. Whereupon I several times desired him to desist, but to no purpose; and reflecting on the Time and Money I had trifled away with the Friendship and Kindness that yet remained for her, with the several AFFRONTS I had received through the means of the DECEASEd, I lay under GREAT CONFLICTS of MIND, and he refusing all things that were Generous, and having sent for her as she desired to a Publick House (the fatal day the Deed was done) the Deceased followed the Porter and told me she should not come, which answer I did not take well of him considering he was a Married man, and knew of the pretentions I had to her, although I must con­fess I have been informed since my Imprisonment that ano­ther, if not others, have a better and prior Title to her than mine, being both Married to her, if so I heartily beg both their Pardons, but I unhappyly going to her House soon after the Deceased had been with me at the aforesaid Alehouse, the Deceased was unluckily there, whereupon a difference arose, and he unfortunately received a wound which I believe occasion'd his Death, but nor as he was Sitting in his Chair as Reported, now the said Mrs. Go­dard alias Hannam must be blameworthy in keeping ano­ther Womans Husbands Company and the more conside­ring her Circumstances, and I do hereby declare had she not done it, I should in no wise have prejudiced the De­ceased who had fair warning, and in all probability we might have Lived both many Years to the comfort of all our Friends, and where [...] [...] [...]emory will be a great discomfort and very iro [...] [...]. I must confess I had several Affronts but that can [...] no excuse for Blood­shed; I freely forgive them both, and hope God has and will do so too. And I beg forgiveness first of my Infinite Creator then of all the World, and as some debts are due from me, I am by these means made uncapable of gi­ving [Page 2] satisfaction, I desire, nay I hope the Lord will give it Threefold where its due. I declare I dye in Charity with all Mankind, and I do humbly desire to be forgiven of all, and let this my untimely end I beseech thee O Lord be a Warning to all Youth of what company they keep, and if so, it will in part answer the end designed,

G. Feild.

The Prayer.

O Most Glorious God, thou that art Infinite and Incomprehensible, thou that Revealest thy wrath from Heaven against all Ʋngodliness, and Ʋnrighte­ousness of Men, where then shall I appear being in so sad, so miserable a condition? Of whom may I seek for Succour, but of thee O Lord, who for my Sins art just­ly displeased, wash me throughly from mine Iniquity, and cleanse me from my Sin, against thee and my Neigh­bour have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight, that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, and be clear when thou Judgest; Deliver me from blood-guilti­ness, O God of my Salvation, and my Tongue shall sing aloud of thy Righteousness, O Lord most holy. O holy and most merciful Saviour Deliver me not into the pains of Eternal death, shut not up thy Merciful Ears to my Prayers, but spare me Lord, most holy, O God most mighty; O holy and merciful Saviour, thou most worthy Judge Eternal, suffer me not for any pains of Death to fall from thee, the Remembrance of this my Sin is grievous unto me, and the Burthen of it intolera­ble; have mercy upon me O Lord, have mercy upon me, who Repent with as lowly a spirit, as ever I sinned with a high hand; O Lord help my Repentance, and when Justice shall lay my Blood upon my own head, let the Blood of Jesus Christ be there to pardon O Lord, all my Sins; not only the Sins of Blood, but all others, both small and great, for thy Sons sake: O Lord San­ctify this Afflictions to me, that I may say with David, It was good for me I was Afflicted, and grant O Lord, that the Minutes I have had, I may find im­proved for the advancement of thy Glory and my own Eternal Benefit. Comfort O Lord my disconsolate Fa­ther, and the rest of my Relations; give them patience under this their Affliction. Comfort likewise O Lord, I beseech thee, the Relations of the Deceased Mr. Charleton, and grant that none are, or may be impo­verish't by this disaster, either of his Friends or mine. I hope, O Lord, that he made his peace with thee before he went out of this World; And that I, O Lord, that am following hard after, may, in and through the Me­rits of my dear Saviour Jesus Christ, be admitted into the Saints Eternal rest, there to sing Hallelujah, Hallelujah, before the Throne of thee, O God, for ever and ever Amen.

Greenway Feild.

Veni, Oh veni Domine Jesu, Stella matutina veni. Oh veni [...]pio dissolvi, & esse tecum.

Mr. Feild having read this Paper, Mr. Ordinary repeated divers comfortable Expressions, to strengthen his Faith in a true Reliance upon the Mercies of God, through the Merits of Jesus Christ for Salvation, causing him to repeat the Lord's Prayer after him, and afterward he made his Con­fession of Faith, in repeating the Apostles Creed, declaring that he had been always educated and now died a Prote­stant. When Mr. Ordinary had prayed with him, and given him sundry good Instructions, he desired that Mr. Wells might pray with him, and accordingly he did with much Fervency. Then he prayed himself a considerable time, desiring in his Prayer, above all things, that God would not lay to his Charge the Blood he had rashly shed, seeming to grieve at nothing more, than that he had hurried a Person out of the World without any time to repent, acknowledg­ing on the contrary, that Mercy and Divine Providence that had not suffered himself to go off the Stage of the world by sudden Death. He begged Pardon of all he had inju­red, but more particularly of the Relations of Mr. Charle­ton. After his Prayer was ended, Mr. Ordinary again ex­horted to try and examine his Thoughts, that he might not be deceived by the Depravity or Corruption of his heart, prayed with him, &c. As afterward did the aforemen­tioned Gentlemen. Then he prayed again himself and de­sired the Spectators to take warning by his Misfortune, ex­pressing an extreme Sorrow for his mispent Life, warning all People of that wicked Woman that had been the occa­sion of his Untimely End, shaking Hands, and bidding Farewel to divers of his Friends and Acquaintance; who took Leave of him with Tears in their Eyes. Then part of a Psalm was sung, after which he was tyed up; and the Ministers giving further Advice, together with the Bene­diction and Absolution of the Church of England, to be pronounced to such as unfeignedly repent. He again pray­ed, and exhorted the People, desiring God to bless them, and keep them from such Untimely Ends. After which desiring their Prayers, and that God would send his Angels to re­ceive his Soul into any corner of Heaven, and not suffer it to dwell with Infernal Spirits, he recommended to his Maker to the last moment of his Life. And so fell this Unfortunate Gentleman, whose Untimely End we wish, according as himself heartily desired almost with his last Breath, may be a warning to such as lead dissolute Courses, &c.

Licens'd,

Septemb. 25. 1689.

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