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Hard-heart's sayest thou to this indictment? Art thou guilty, or not guilty?

trial.

His plea.

False-Peace set to the bar; his indictment.

His plea.

name.

Hard. My lord, I never knew what remorse or sorrow meant in all my life. I am impenetrable, I care for no man; nor can I be pierced with men's griefs; their groans will not enter into my heart. Whomsoever I mischief, whomsoever I wrong, to me it is music, when to others mourning.

Court. You see the man is a right Diabolonian, and has convicted himself. Set him by, gaoler, and set Mr Faise-Peace to the bar.

False-Peace set to the bar.

“Mr False-Peace, thou art here indicted by the name of False-Peace, (an intruder upon the town of Mansoul,) for that thou didst most wickedly and satanically bring, hold, and keep the town of Mansoul, both in her apostasy and in her hellish rebellion, in a false, groundless, and dangerous peace, and damnable security, to the dishonour of the King, the transgression of his law, and the great damage of the town of Mansoul. What sayest thou? Art thou guilty of this indictment, or not?"

Then said Mr False-Peace, "Gentlemen, and you now appointed to be my judges, I acknowledge that my name is Mr Peace; but that my Hedenies his name is False-Peace I utterly deny. If your honours shall please to send for any that do intimately know me, or for the midwife that laid my mother of me, or for the gossips that were at my christening, they will, any or all of them, prove that my name is not False-Peace, but Peace. Wherefore I cannot plead to this indictment, forasmuch

1

Peace's

as my name is not inserted therein; and as is my Falsetrue name, so are also my conditions. I was trial. always a man that loved to live at quiet, and what I loved myself, that I thought others might love also. Wherefore, when I saw any of my neighbours to labour under a disquieted mind, I endeavoured to help them what I could; and instances of this good temper of mine many I could give; as

goodness.

"1. When, at the beginning, our town of Pleads his Mansoul did decline the ways of Shaddai, they, some of them, afterwards began to have disquieting reflections upon themselves for what they had done; but I, as one troubled to see them disquieted, presently sought out means to get them quiet again.

"2. When the ways of the old world, and of Sodom, were in fashion, if anything happened to molest those that were for the customs of the present times, I laboured to make them quiet again, and to cause them to act without molestation.

"3. To come nearer home: when the wars fell out between Shaddai and Diabolus, if at any time I saw any of the town of Mansoul afraid of destruction, I often used, by some way, device, invention, or other, to labour to bring them to peace again. Wherefore, since I have been always a man of so virtuous a temper as some say a peacemaker is, and if a peacemaker be so deserving a man as some have been bold to attest he is, then let me, gentlemen, be accounted by you, who have a great name for justice and equity in Mansoul, for

FalsePeace's trial.

New witnesses come

in against him.

a man that deserveth not this inhuman way of treatment, but liberty, and also a license to seek damage of those that have been my accusers.”

Then said the Clerk, "Crier, make a proclamation.”

Crier. O yes! Forasmuch as the prisoner at the bar hath denied his name to be that which is mentioned in the indictment, the Court requireth, that if there be any in this place that can give information to the Court, of the original and right name of the prisoner, they would come forth and give in their evidence; for the prisoner stands upon his own innocency.

Then came two into the Court, and desired that they might have leave to speak what they knew concerning the prisoner at the bar: the name of the one was Search-Truth, and the name of the other Vouch-Truth. So the Court demanded of these men if they knew the prisoner, and what they could say concerning him, "for he stands," said they, "upon his own vindication."

Then said Mr Search-Truth, "My lord, I-"
Court. Hold! give him his oath.

Then they sware him. So he proceeded.

Search. My lord, I know and have known this man from a child, and can attest that his name is False-Peace. I knew his father; his name was Mr Flatter: and his mother, before she was married, was called by the name of Mrs Sooth-Up: and these two, when they came together, lived not long without this son; and when he was born, they called his name False-Peace. I was his playfellow, only I was somewhat older than he; and

Peace's

when his mother did use to call him home from Falsehis play, she used to say, "False-Peace, False-Peace, trial. come home quick, or I'll fetch you." Yea, I knew him when he sucked; and though I was then but little, yet I can remember, that when his mother did use to sit at the door with him or did play with him in her arms, she would call him, twenty times together, "My little FalsePeace! my pretty False - Peace!" and "Oh, my sweet rogue, False-Peace!" and again, "Oh, my little bird, False-Peace!" and, "How do I love my child!" The gossips also know it is thus, though he has had the face to deny it in open

court.

Then Mr Vouch-Truth was called upon to speak what he knew of him. So they sware him.

Then said Mr Vouch-Truth, "My lord, all that the former witness hath said is true. His name is False-Peace, the son of Mr Flatter, and of Mrs Sooth-Up, his mother: and I have in former times seen him angry with those that have called him anything else but False-Peace, for he would say that all such did mock and nickname him; but this was in the time when Mr False-Peace was a great man, and when the Diabolonians were the brave men in Mansoul."

Court. Gentlemen, you have heard what these two men have sworn against the prisoner at the bar. And now, Mr False-Peace, to you: you have denied your name to be False-Peace, yet you see that these honest men have sworn that that is your name. As to your plea, in that you are quite besides the matter of your indictment: you are not

Lustings' trial.

His second

plea.

Incredulity

set to the bar; his indictment.

Sabbath-breaker; I know him to be a fornicator and an unclean person; I know him to be guilty of abundance of evils. He has been, to my knowledge, a very filthy man.

Clerk. But where did he use to commit his wickedness? in some private corners, or more open and shamelessly?

Know. All the town over, my lord.

Clerk. Come, Mr Tell-True, what have you to say for our Lord the King against the prisoner at the bar?

Tell. My lord, all that the first witness has said I know to be true, and a great deal more besides.

Clerk. Mr Lustings, do you hear what these gentlemen say?

Lust. I was ever of opinion that the happiest life that a man could live on earth was, to keep himself back from nothing that he desired in the world; nor have I been false at any time to this opinion of mine, but have lived in the love of my notions all my days. Nor was I ever so churlish, having found such sweetness in them myself, as to keep the commendations of them from others.

Then said the Court, "There hath proceeded enough from his own mouth to lay him open to condemnation; wherefore set him by, gaoler, and set Mr Incredulity to the bar."

Incredulity set to the bar.

Clerk. Mr Incredulity, thou art here indicted by the name of Incredulity, (an intruder upon the town of Mansoul,) for that thou hast feloniously

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