preffed fuch a grave, and fo humble a majesty, with fuch clear demonftration of reafon, that in all their readings they had not met with any that exceeded him. In confequence of this encomium, the Pope defired Dr. Stapleton, to read part of the work to him in Latin, and when the doctor had done, he faid, “ There is no learning that this man hath not fearched into; nothing too hard for his understanding. This man indeed deferves the name of an author; his books will get reverence by age, for there are in them fuch feeds of eternity, that if the reft be like this, they fhall laft till the laft fire fhall confume all learning." Well might the fame pope enquire what dignity the author of the ECCLESIASTICAL POLITY enjoyed in the Church of England; and well might he exprefs his aftonishment at hearing that he was only a poor country parfon, in this emphatic manner: "I fear nothing from a church that can neglect fuch a man as Hooker."

King James the First had fo high an opinion of this great work, that, when he came to England, he enquired of archbishop Whitgift for Mr. Hooker, and on being told that he died the year before Queen Elizabeth, who received the news of his death with great forrow, the king replied, "And I receive it with no lefs, that I fhall want the defired happiness of seeing and difcourfing with that man, from whose books I have received fuch fatisfaction: indeed, my lord, I have received more fatisfaction in reading a leaf, or paragraph in Mr. Hooker, though it were but about the fashion of churches, or church mufic, or the like; but especially of the facraments, than I have had in the reading particular large treatifes, written but of one of those subjects, by others, though very learned men : and I obferve, there is in Mr. Hooker no affected language, but a grave, comprehenfive, clear manifestation of reason; and that backed with the authority of the Scripture, the Fathers, and Schoolmen, and with all law both facred and civil. And, though many others write well, yet in the next age they will be forgotten; but, doubtlefs, there is in every page of Mr. Hooker's book, the picture of a divine foul, fuch pictures of truth and reafon, and drawn in fo facred colours, that they thall never fade, but give an immortal memory to the author."

That excellent prince, Charles the First, had this great work in fo much veneration, that he recommended the study of it with much affection to his children.

More might be faid of these books, but it is needlefs, and, therefore, we fhall proceed to notice Mr. Hooker in his character as a parish priest. The parfonage of Bourne is fituated three miles from Canterbury, and near the road which leads from that city to Dover; and he had not refided there a year, before the fame of his writings, and the fanctity of his life, became fo remarkable, that many turned out of the road on purpose to fee a man fo much admired. But, as our Saviour faid of the baptist, What went they out to fee? A man cloathed in purple and fine linen? No indeed, but an obfcure, harmless man; a man in poor clothes, his loins ufually girt in a coarfe gown, or canonical coat; of a mean ftature, and ftooping, and yet more lowly in the thoughts of his foul; his body worn out, not with age, but study and holy mortifications; his face full of heat-pimples, begot by his inactivity and fedentary life."

His humility and modefty were fo great, that his poor parith-clerk and he did never talk together, but with both their hats on, or both off, at the fame time.

This parish-clerk lived till the third or fourth year of the long-parlia-. ment,

ment, at which time the lawful rector of Bourne was fequeftered for his loyalty, and a Puritan put into the living, which circumstance so troubled the clerk, that he faid, "They had fequeftered fo many good men, that he doubted if his good mafter, Mr. Hooker, had lived, they would have fequeftered him too."

It was not long before this intruding minifter adopted the Genevan mode of receiving the facrament; to which end the day was appointed for a felect company, and forms and stools were set about the altar for them to fit and eat and drink; but when they went about this work, they wanted fome ftools, which the minifter fent the clerk to fetch, and alfo cushions (but not to kneel upon): when the clerk faw them fit down, he began to wonder, but the minifter bad him ceafe wondering, and to lock the church door; to whom he replied, Pray take you the keys and lock me out, I will never come more into this church: for all men will fay, my mafter Hooker was a good man, and a good fcholar, and I am fure it was not used to be thus in his days.

And report fays, the old man went home and died a few days after.

But let us leave the grateful clerk in his grave, and return to Mr. Hooker, continuing our obfervations of his Chriftian behaviour in this place, where he gave a holy valediction to all the pleasures and allurements of earth, poffeffing his foul in a virtuous quietnefs, which he maintained by conftant ftudy, prayers, and meditations. His ufe was to preach once every Sunday, and he or his curate to catechife after the fecond leffon in the evening prayer; his fermons were neither long nor vehement, but uttered with a grave zeal; his eyes always fixed on one place, to prevent his imagination from wandering, infomuch that he feemed to ftudy as he fpake; the defign of his fermons was, to fhew reasons for what he delivered; and with these fuch a kind of rhetoric as did rather convince and perfuade, than alarm men into piety; ftudying not fo much for matter as for apt illuftrations to teach his unlearned hearers by familiar examples, and then make them better by convincing applications; never labouring by hard words, and by needlefs diftinctions and fubdiftinctions, to amufe his hearers, and get glory to himself, but only glory to God.

He never failed the Sunday before every Ember-week, to give notice of it to his parishioners, perfuading them to earnest prayer for a learned and pious clergy. And his own practice was, to retire into the parishchurch every day in that week, where he spent many hours in fecret de votions.

He would by no means omit the cuftomary time of proceffion, perfuading all, both rich and poor, as they regarded harmony and their parish rights and liberties, to accompany him in his perambulation, in which he usually indulged himself in more pleafant difcourfe than at other times, ftill inclining his parishioners to meeknefs, and mutual kindneffes and love. He was diligent to inquire who of his parith were fick, or any ways diftreft, and and would often vifit them unfent for; fuppofing that the fittest time to difcover to them thofe errors, to which health and prosperity had blinded them; and having, by pious reafons and prayers, moulded them into holy refolutions for the time to come, he would incline them to a confeffion of their fins, with purpose to forfake them, and then to receive the communion, both as a ftrengthening of thofe holy refolutions, and as a feal betwixt God and them of his mercies to their fouls, in cafe that fick

nefs

nefs did put a period to their lives. And as he was thus tender to the fick. fo was he as careful to prevent law-fuits, urging his parishioners to bear with each other's infirmities, and to live in love.

This was his conftant behaviour both at Bourne, and in all the places in which he lived: yet even his blameless character could not pass without flander. The Nonconformifts hated him on account of his unanswerable book, and to injure him they raised a black report of incontinency againft him. The good man bore the reproach with much meeknefs, but his friends were more zealous for his reputation, and traced the calumny to its fource, and when the whole was difcovered, his reply was, The Lord forgive them.

The account of his happy death we have already given, in page 433, of our first volume, and, therefore, fhall not repeat it here. He died in 1600, and lies buried in the parith-church of Bourne; where Sir William Cooper erected a monument to his memory, but his best monument is that immortal work on ECCLESIASTICAL POLITY, of which, as we have already observed, only five books were printed in his life-time, and the remaining three did not appear till 1662. So great has been the reputation of this illuftrious champion of church order, that he has feldom been mentioned by learned men but with the epithets of venerable or judicious affixed to his name.

ADDITION TO THE CATALOGUE OF BISHOPS TO THE

YEAR 1608;

Being a Character and Hiftory of the Bishops during the Reigns of Queen ELIZABETH, and King JAMES; and an additional Supply to Dr. GoDWIN'S Catalogue. By Sir JOHN HARRINGTON, Kt. Written for the private ufe of Prince Henry.

(Continued from page 9.)

NUMBER II.-LONDON.

BISHOP ELMER.

MY purpose in this work from the beginning, and my promise to your highneffe, being to adde to this author, a fupply of fome matters that he purposely omitted writing in the latter yeers of Queen Elizabeth, and my refolution being to write plainly, without feare or favour of those I doe write, I will proceed confidently, as I have begun; in which, I perfwade my felfe I have fome advantage of the author himselfe, for freedome of speech, both in the time, and many other circumftances. For he was no foole that gave that rule,

Mitiffima fors eft

Regnorum, fub Rege novo.

Againe, I being a lay-man, am not so obnoxious to their apprehenfions, that may be offended with that I fhall fay, as he was being a churchman. Thirdly, I lived in a place, where I might know many things without enquiry, which had been scarce fafe for him, in that time to enquire after.

Laftly, he writes to the world publiquely, and I but privately to your highneffe. Therefore I will proceed quo ad fciam, poteroque.

The first bishop of London I have to write of, is Mr. John Elmer, of whom

whom my author hath spoken too little, and I perhaps, fhall feem to fay too much; yet once I thought to have faid fomewhat of Bonner, because I may remember him living in the late queen's time unbishopped, and went fometimes abroad; but I was fo young then, as I could judge nothing; and he was fo hated, that every ill-favoured fat fellow that went in the ftreet, they would fay, that was Bonner. But me thinks now, by that I have heard of him, I could liken him to Dionyfius the tyrant of Syracufe, who being cruell and peremptory in profperity, was both patient and pleasant in adverfity. For example, that tyrant being expelled his realm, and living a poore pedant, was one day with men of mean fort, drinking in a tavern, fome Diogenes efpying him, came to him with reverence, opening, and shaking his upper garment (for fo they used in those daies, that came into the king's chambers, to fhew they had no weapons). Dionyfius perceiving the fcorn, was nothing troubled, but bad him come and drink with him, and shake his cloaths at the going out, that his hoft might fee he carried nothing with him. So Bonner having twice loft his bishoprick, walking with his tippet in the ftrete, one begg'd it of him (in fcoffe) to line a coat; No (faith he) but thou shalt have a fooles head, to line thy cap. And to another that bad him good morrow bishop quondam, he ftraight replied, Farewell, knave femper. I have been told alfo, that one fhewed him his own picture in the Book of Martyrs, in the first edition, on purpose to vexe him; at which he laught, faying a vengeance on the foole, how could he get my picture drawn fo right? and when one asked him if he were not ashamed to whip a man with a beard, he laught, and told him, his beard was grown fince; but (faith he) if thou hadft been in his cafe, thou wouldst have thought it a good commutation of pennance, to have thy bum beaten, to fave thy body from burning; but this is too much of this floven.

I come now to Bishop Elmer, whom in my own particular I loved very well, and yet performing truly the talk I have undertaken, I thall thew perhaps no great figne of it. He was a man but mean of ftature, yet in his youth very valiant, which he forgat not in his age. When he first became a preacher, following the popular phrafe, and fashion of the younger divines of thofe times, which was to inveigh againft the fuperfluities of the churchmen, he is remembred, namely to have used thefe words in a fermon, before a great auditory, Wherefore away with you'r thousands, you bishops, and come down to your hundreds, &c. but this was but a heat of his fpirit; of which not long after, by reading and conference, he was throughly cured; in fo much as being afked by one of his own rank, after he was bishop of London, what he meant, to preach of the brainfick fashion, he answered with the words of St. Paul, Cum effem parvulus, loquebar ut parvulus, fapiebam ut parvulus.

But certain it is, no bifhop was more perfecuted and taunted by the Puritans of all forts, then he was, by libels, by fcoffes, by open railing, and privy backbiting. It is a vulgar, yet a paffage not unworthy remembring, that paft between one Mr. Maddoxe, and him: For when the bishop had recovered him about fome matter concerning Puritanisme, and he answered the bishop fomewhat untowardly and thwartly; the bishop (as he was ingenious ever) faid unto him, thy very name expreffeth thy nature, for Maddox is thy name, and thou art as mad a beaft as ever I ever talked with. The other not long to feek of an anfwer, by your favour, Sir, (faid he) your deeds answer your name righter then mine: for

your

your name is Elmar, and you have marr'd all the elms in Fulham, by lopping them. He used for recreation to bowle in a garden; and Marton Marprelate thence takes this taunting fcoffe, that the bithop would cry rub, rub, rub to his bowle, and when it was gone too farre, fay, The divell goe with it; and then, quoth he, the bithop would follow. Thus they rubb'd one another, till they were all gall'd fometimes; and the bifhop was fo weary of the place, that he would gladly have removed to Ely, and made great fuit for it, and was put in fome hope of it. I have feen a letter or two of his, to his friend, fubfcribed thus, yours in love, but not with London; yet would he not take it with those hard.conditions that were propofed, left Mr. Maddox, and his like, might call him Elymar; so as it was noted as an ill fortune of his, to have died bithop of London, which eight before him in a hundred yeers had not done, but been either preferred, or deprived. He was diligent in preaching at his cure, where he was first beneficed; and when his auditory grew dull, and unattentive, he would with fome pretty and unexpected conceit, move them to attention. Among the reft was this: he read a long text in Hebrew, whereupon all feemed to liften what would come after fuch strange words, as if they had taken it for fome conjuration. Then he fhewed their folly, that when he fpake English, whereby they might be inftructed and edified, they neglected, and harkened not to it; and now he read Hebrew, which they understood no word of, they would feem fo carefull and attentive. When there was talk of dangers, rumours of warres, and invafions, then he was commonly chofen to preach in the court, and he would doe it in fo chearfull a fashion, as not onely thewed he had courage, but would put courage into others. Here is much doubt faid he, of Malum ab Aquilone, and our Coleprophets have propheciéd that in exaltatione Luna Leo jungetur Leana, the aftronomers tell of a watry Trigon.

But as long as Virgo is in that afcendent with us, we need not fear of any thing; Deus nobifcum, quis contra nos: and for this, the queen would much commend him, yet would fhe not remove him. But though he were ftout, and wife and rich, yet had he befide his conflicts with those called Puritans, alfo fome domefticall croffes. He had a daughter, a modeft gentlewoman, and very well brought up, whom he gave in marriage to one Mr. Adam Squire, a minister and preacher, and learned, but a very fantaftical man, as appeared partly the first day; for as I have heard, he would needs preach at his own marriage, upon this text, It is not good for Adam to be alone. This text he fo puriued, after he had been fome years married, that though his wife were away, yet Adam would not be alone. This courfe bred jealousie, jarrs and complaints, and the bishop as he had good caufe, reprehended his fon in law; he thinking to defend, or at leaft to revenge, himfelf, by recrimination, accufed her to have received a love letter from a knight (but the Squire himself had indited that) and this was fo cunningly handled by him, and with fuch probability, that her fault was as fufpitious, as his was manifest ; falfhood will out at laft. The bifhop that feared never a knight, nor lord in England, fends for the knight (contrary to the Squires expectation) boults out the whole matter, finds there, were treacherous tricks put on his daughter, but no Meretrix, and being too wife to publish his own difgrace, and too ftout to indure that; I have credibly heard (and believe that to be true) that with a good wafter, he fo mortified this old Adam of his fon in law Squire, that he needed no other pennance but this, which was accorVol. 11. Churchm. Mag. Feb. 1802. K ding