hindered to appeal, either from a national or general council. If we were stopped from our appealing, then were our Christian liberty taken away indeed. Then was the appeal entered. 66 Bishop. Hear your sentence. And so he read the five several sentences of perpetual silence within his diocese ;→→→ first, against Mr. Brice; secondly, against Mr. Colwart; thirdly, against Mr. Cunningham. "Then Mr. Hamilton desired to speak one word, which being granted, he said; we are sentenced for not subscribing books which we did never see with our eyes, nor cannot by any means come by. I protest that I myself have been at charges this twelvemonth in seeking them in London and Dublin, and could not, upon any terms, have them. And let any judge if we should be silenced for not subscribing them ? "Bishop. What books mean you? "Hamilton. The books of homilies. "Bishop. They are as good books as are in the world, except the Bible. Hamilton. If I would subscribe any book upon good report, I would subscribe them. But no churchman should subscribe whole books which he did never see, nor peruse, upon report only. Bishop. Had you alleged this excuse half a year ago, it had been sufficient; I should upon my own charges have gotten them to you. But now this allegation cannot avail you. Hear your sentence. And so he read the like sentence, fourthly, against Mr. Hamilton; and, lastly, against Mr. Ridge. - "After the sentence was read, Mr. Cunningham spake to this effect. I have now lived these twenty years amongst you in this kingdom, serving the Lord in his holy ministry; and thought so to have spent out the rest of my days (which cannot be long, for my body is very crased) in the same employment. My doctrine and life, for that time, are known to most who are here present. I appeal to all their consciences if they can say any thing against me in either of them. Yea, I ever kept me close to the commission of my Lord; but now I am required to receive impositions upon my ministry which are against my conscience. I rather lay down my ministry at the feet of my Lord and Saviour Christ, of whom I did receive it, than to live with an evil conscience at the free liberty of it. "At these words, most of them who were present declared the grief of their hearts by their sad countenance; and divers burst out into weeping, not being able to contain themselves. "But the bishop replied to this purpose :-Mr. Cunningham, I confess your life and doctrine hath both been good. But I must say to you that which was said to a certain man at Rome, who was to be put to death for a mutiny. Some pleaded for his life, alleging that he had done good service to the commonwealth, and could do more afterwards. But one of the council replied, non opus est reipublicæ eo cive, qui parere nescit.' And so say I to you, the church hath no need of those who cannot tell how to obey.' "With that he speedily arose and went away, while Mr. Colwart was addressing himself to speak, who much grieved that he was never heard." In this summary manner were these faithful ministers, sound in doctrine, unblemished in morals, eminent in piety and abundant in labours, deposed from their office, deprived of their support, and ultimately obliged to abandon the kingdom. The other ministers in the diocese who were of similar principles, and who still constituted the majority of the clergy, not possessing the courage or integrity of these brethren, signed the canons, and formally engaged to yield the required conformity. But, in the seclusion of their parishes, they continued to retain the former modes of worship, to which their people were so firmly attached. Oppressive, therefore, as was the conduct of Leslie, it was of little avail, either to advance the cause of prelacy, or to remove the leaven of presbyterianism, with which his diocese was so extensively pervaded. It afforded, however, another instructive proof of the inefficacy of coercive measures to produce more than a mere external and hypocritical conformity. These severe proceedings hastened the intended voyage to New England. The presbyterian laity were now thoroughly convinced, that it was their duty to abandon this country, in which their religious privileges were so flagrantly violated. In the midst of their preparations for this purpose, one of the silenced brethren was removed by death. Brice of Broadisland scarcely survived his deposition. He returned from the visitation at Belfast, oppressed with the thoughts of being compelled to resign the beloved exercise of his ministry; and before any steps could be taken by Leslie to carry his sentence into effect, this venerable minister resigned both life and office into the hands of the great Shepherd and Bishop of souls.' (17 The number of the intended emigrants, and their preparations for the voyage, were at length completed. This little colony, who were about to settle in the uncultivated wilds of America, for the sake of enjoying liberty of conscience, were one hundred and forty in number. Among them were Mr. Blair, Mr. Livingston, Mr. Robert Hamilton, and Mr. John M'Clelland, afterwards ministers in Scotland, John Stuart, provost of Ayr, captain Andrew Agnew, Charles Campbell, John Sumervil, Hugh Brown, together with many families and single persons, among whom was Andrew Brown, the deaf mute from the parish of Larne, already mentioned. 17 The following is a copy of the inscription on his tomb-stone : "Neare this lyeth the body of that faithful and emenent servant of God, Mr. Edward Brice, who begun preaching of the gospel in this parish, 1613, continuing with quiet success while 1636, in which he dyed, aged 67, and left two sons and two daughters."-His descendants have attained to considerable wealth and eminence. The original family property at Kilroot, between Carrickfergus and Ballycarry, is still possessed by them. "We had much toil in our preparations," writes Livingston in his graphic narrative of the events of this voyage, and many hindrances in our outsetting, and both sad and glad hearts in taking leave of our friends. At last, about the ninth of September 1636, we loosed from LochFergus, but were detained sometime with contrary winds in Loch-Ryan in Scotland, and grounded the ship to search some leaks in the keels of the boat. Yet thereafter we set to sea, and for some space had a fair wind, till we were between three and four hundred leagues from Ireland, and so nearer the banks of Newfoundland than any place of Europe. But if ever the Lord spake by his winds and other dispensations, it was made evident to us, that it was not his will that we should go to New England. For we met with a mighty heavy rain out of the north-west, which did break our rudder, which we got mended [by the skill and courage of captain Andrew Agnew, a godly passenger, ]) with much of our gallon-head, and fore-cross-trees, and tore our foresail, five or six of our champlets, a great beam under the gunner-room door broke. Seas came in over the round-house, and broke a plank or two on the deck, and wet all them that were between the decks. We sprung a leak that gave us seven hundred strokes in two pumps in the half-hour glass. Yet we lay at hull a long time to beat out the storm, till the master and company came one morning, and told it was impossible to hold out any longer; and although we beat out that storm, yet we might be sure in that season of the year we would foregather with one or two more of that sort before we could reach New England." After prayer, and much anxious consultation in this emergency, they all agreed to return. “The next morning, so soon as we saw day, we turned and made good way with a main course and a little of a fore-top sail; and after some tossing, we came at last, on the third of November, to an anchor in Loch-Fergus. 18 This clause in brackets, is supplied out of a manuscript life of Mr. Livingston. James Blair says, that the rudder was repaired by a common seaman. 66 During all this time, amidst such fears and dangers, the most part of the passengers were very cheerful and confident; yea, some in prayer had expressed such hopes, that rather than the Lord would suffer such a company in such sort to perish, if the ship should break, he should put wings to our shoulders and carry us safe ashore. I never in my days found the day so short as all that time, although I slept some nights not above two hours, and some none at all, but stood most part in the gallery astern the great cabin, where Mr. Blair and I and our families lay. For in the morning, by the time that every one had been some while alone; and then at prayer in their several societies, and then at public prayer in the ship, it was time to go to dinner; and after that, we would visit our friends in the gunner-room, or those between the decks, or any that were sick, and then public prayer would come, and after that, supper and family exercises. Mr. Blair was much of the time sickly, and lay in time of storm. I was sometimes sick, and then my brother, Mr. McClelland only performed duty in the ship: several of those between the decks, being throng, were sickly. An aged person and one child died, and were buried in the sea. One woman, the wife of Michael Colvert of Killinchy parish, brought forth a child in the ship; I baptized him on Sabbath following, and called him Seaborn. Our outward means were much impaired by this disappointment, for we had put most of our stocks in provision, and somewhat of merchandise, which we behoved to sell at low rates at our return; and had provided ourselves with some servants, for fishing and building of houses, whom we behoved to turn off. That which grieved us most was, that we were like to be a mocking to the wicked; but we found the contrary, that the prelates and their followers were much dismayed and feared at our return. (19) But neither they nor we knew that, within a year, 19 They did not altogether escape being ridiculed and mocked on account of the unsuccessful issue of their voyage. Archdeacon Maxwell, in the |