to the Gate, and called to the Town of Mausoul for Audience. Nor took he any with him but one All-paufe, who was his Orator in all difficult Matters. Now, as I faid, he being come up to the Gate (as the Manner of thofe Times was) founded his Trumpet for Audience: at which the chief of the Town of Mansoul, fuch as my Lord Innocent, my Lord Will-be-will, my Lord-Mayor, Mr. Recorder, and Captain Refiftance, came down to the Wall to fee who was there, and what was the Matter. And my Lord Will be-will, when he looked over, and faw who stood at the Gate, demanded what he was, and wherefore he was come, and why he roufed the Town of Manfoul with fo unusual a Sound? The Lords of Manfoul ap peared. Diabolus then, as if he had been a Diabolus his Lamb, began his Oration and faid, Gen Oration. lemen of the famous Town of Manfoul, I am, as you may perceive, no far Dweller from you, but near, and one that is bound by the King to do you my Homage, and what Service I can; wherefore that I may be faithful to myself, and to you, I have fomewhat of Concern to impart unto you. Wherefore grant me your Audience and hear me patiently. And firft, I will affure you, it is not myself, but you, not mine, but your Advantage that I feek by what I now do, as will full well be made manifeft, by that I have open'd my Mind to you. For, Gentlemen, I am (to tell you the Truth) come to fhew you bow you may obtain great and ample Deliverance from a Bondage that unawares to yourselves you are captivated and enflaved under. At this the Town of Manfoul began to Manfoul prick up its Ears. And what is it, pray, what engaged. is it, thought they? And he faid, I have fomething to fay to you concerning your King, concerning his Law, and alfo touching yourfelves. Touching your King, I know he is great and potent, but yet, all that he has faid to you, is neither true, nor yet for your Advantage. 1. 'Tis not true, for that wherewith he hath hitherto awed you, shall not come to pass, nor be fulfilled, though you do the Thing he bath forbidden. But if there was Danger, what a Slav it to live always in Fear of the greatest of Punishment Diabolus his Subtilty made up of Lies. doing fo fmall and trivial a Thing, as eating a little Fruit is? 2. Touching his Laws this I fay further, they are both unreason able, intricate, and intolerable. Unreason able as was hinted before, for that the Punishment is no proportioned to the Offence. There is great Difference, and Difproportion betwixt the Life, and an Apple; Yet the one muft go for the other by the Law of your Shaddai. But it is alfo intricate, in that he faith, Firft, You may eat of all; and yet after, forbids the eating of one. And then in the laft Place, it must needs be intolerable, for as much as that Fruit which you are forbidden to eat of (if you are forbidden any) is that, and that alone, which is able by your eating, to minifer you a Good, as yet unknown by you. This is manifeft by the very Name of the Tree, it is called the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil; and bave you that Knowledge as yet? No, no, nor can you conceive how good, bow pleasant, and how much to be defired to make one wife it is, fo long as you fand by your King's Commandment. Why should you be bolden in Ignorance and Blindness? Why should you not be enlarged in Knowledge and Underflanding? And, now, Ah ye Inhabitants of the famous Town of Manfoul, to speak more particularly to yourselves, you are not a free People! Ye are kept both in Bondage and Slavery, and that by a grievous Threat, no Reafon being annexed, but fo I will have it, fo it shall be. And is it not grievous to think on, that that very Thing you are forbidden to do, might you but do it, would yield you both Wisdom and Honour: For then your Eyes will be opened, and you shall be as Gods. Now, fince this is thus, quoth he, can you be kept by any Prince in more Slavery, and in greater Bondage than you are under, this Day? You are made Underlings, and are wrapt up in Inconveniences, as I have well made appear: For what Bondage greater than to be kept in Blindness? Will not Reafon tell you, that it is better to have Eyes than to be without them; and to be at Liberty, to be bet• ter than to be fout up in a dark and flinking Cave? And just now while Diabolus was fpeak Captain Reing thefe Words to Manfoul, Tifiphone fhot fiftance flain. at Captain Refiftance, where he stood on the Gate, and mortally wounded him in the Head, fo that he, to the Amazement of the Townfmen, and the Encouragement of Diabolus, fell down dead quite over the Wall. Now when Captain Refiftance was dead (and he was the onl Man of War in the Town) poor Manfoul was wholl left naked of Courage, nor had fhe now any Heart to refift. But this was as the Devil would have it. Then ftood forth that He, Mr. Ill-paufe, that Diabolus brought with him, who was his Orator, and he addrefed himfelf to speak to the Town of Manfoul: The Tenour of whofe Speech here follows. Mr. IN-paufe his Speech to the Town of Manfoul. Il-paufe. Gentlemen, quoth he, it is my Mafter's Happinefs, that he has this Day, a quiet and teachable Auditory; and it is hoped by us, that we fhall pre vail with you, not to caft off good Advice: My Mafter has a very great Love for you, and although, as he very well knows, that he runs the Hazard of the Anger of King Shaddai, yet Love to you will make him do more than that. Nor doth there need that a Word more fhould be spoken to confirm for Truth what he has faid; there is not a Word that carries with itself Evidence in its Bowels; the very Name of the Tree may put an End to all Controverfy in this Matter. I therefore at this Time fhall only add this Advice to you, under, and by the Leave of my Lord (and with that he made Diabolus a, very low Congee.) Confider his Words, look on the Tree and the promifing Fruit thereof; remember alfo that yet you know but little, and that this is the Way to know more: And if your Reafons be not conquered to accept of fuch good Counsel, you are not the Men I took you to be. But when the Towns-folk faw that the Tree was good for Food, and that it was pleafant to the Eye, and a Tree to be defired to make one wife, they did as old Ill-pause advised, they took and did eat thereof; now this I fhould have told you before, that even then, when this IN pause was making of this Speech to the Town/men, my My Lord InLord Innocency, (whether by a Shot from nocency's Death, the Camp of the Giant, or from fome Qualm that fuddenly took him, or whether by the ftinking Breath of that treacherous. Villain, Old Ill-paufe, for fo I am moft apt to think) funk down in the Place where he flood, nor could he be brought to Life again. Thus thefe two brave Men died; 'br..ve Men I call call them, for they were the Beauty and Glory of Manfoul, fo long as they lived therein: Nor did there now remain any more a Noble Spirit in Manfoul, they all fell down and yielded Obedience to Diabolus, and became his Slaves and Vaffals as you fhall hear. The Town taken. Now thefe being dead, what do the reft of the Towns folk, but as Men that had found a Fool's Paradife, they prefently, as afore was hinted, fell to prove the Truth of the Giant's Words, and first they did as Ill-paufe had taught them, they looked, they confidered, they were taken with the forbidden Fruit, they took thereof and did eat: And having eaten, they became immediately drunken therewith; fo they opened the Gates; both Ear-gate, and Eye-gate, and let in Diabolus with all his Bands, quite forgetting their good Shaddai, his Law, and the Judgment that he had annexed with folemn Threatning to the Breach thereof. Diabolus having now obtained Entrance in at the Gates of the Town, marches up to the Middle thereof, to make his Conqueft as fure as he could, and finding by this Time, the Affections of the People warmly inclining to him, he, as thinking 'twas beft ftriking while the Iron is hot, made this further deceivable Speech unto them, faying, Alas, my poor Manfoul! I have done thee indeed this Service, as to promote thee to Honour, and 10 greaten thy Liberty, but now, Alas! Alas! poor Manfoul, thou wanteft now one to defend thee, for affure thyfeif, that when Shaddai fhall hear what is done, he will. come: For forry will be be that thou haft broken bis Bends, and caft his Cords away from thee. What wilt thou do? Wilt thou after Enlargement, fuffer thy Privibeges to be invaded and taken away? Or what wilt thou refolve with thyself? Then they all with one Confent faid to this Bramble. Do thou reign over us. So he accepted the Motion, and became the King of the Town of Manfoul. This being done, the next Thing was, to give him Poffeffion of the Caftle, and fo of Strength of the Town. Wherefore into the Caftle he He is entertained for their King. the whole goes |