Diabolus in terrupts them, and fets Incredulity to answer them. Then Diabolus, who was there prefent, being loth to lose Ill-pause, because he was his Orator (and yet be fure he had, could the Captains have laid their Fingers on him) was refolved at this Inftant to give them Anfwer by himself, but then changing his Mind, he commanded the then Lord Mayor, the Lord Incredulity to do it: Saying, My Lord, do you give thefe Renegades an Anfier, and speak out, that Manioul may hear and understand you. So Incredulity, at Diabolus's Command began and faid: Gentlemen, you have His Speech. here, as we do behold, to the Disturbauce of our Prince, and Moleftation of the Town of Manfoul, incamped against it: But from whence you come we will not know; and what you are, we will not believe. Indeed, you tell us in your terrible Speech, that you have this Authority from Shaddai; but by what Right he commands you to do it, of that we fhall be yet ignorant. You have alfo by the Authority aforesaid, fummoned this Town to defert her Lord, and for Protection to yield up herfelf to the Great Shaddai your King: Flatteringly telling her, that if he will do it, he will pass by, and not charge. her with her paft Offences.. Further, You have alfo to the Terror of the Toron of Manfoul, threatened with great and fore. Deftruction to punifh this Corporation, if she consents not to do as your Wills would have her.. The true Pic ture of Unbe lief.. Now, Captains, from whence foever you come, and though your Defigns be never jo right, yet know ye, that neither my Lord Diabolus, nor Ibis Servant Incredulity, nor yet our brave Manfoul, doth regard either your fons, Meffage, or the King that you fay hath sent you: His Power, bis Greatness, his Vengeance we fear not; nor well we yield at all to your Summons. Per As for the War that you threaten to make upon u we must therein defend ourselves as well as we can. And know ye, that we are not without wherewithal to. C-5 bid bid Defiance to you. And in kort, for I will not be tedious, I tell you that ave take you to be jom. Vigaband Runagate Crew, that have shaken off all Obedience to your King, have gotten together in a tumultuous Manner, and are ranging from Place to Place, to fee, if through your Flatteries, you are skilled to make on the cne Side, and Threats wherewith you think to fright, on the other; to make fome filly Town, City, or Country, to defert their Place, and leave it to you: But Manfoul is none of them. To conclude, We dread you not, we fear you net, nor will we obey your Summons: Our Gates we will keep fhut upon you, our Place we will keep you out of: Nor will we lang thus fuffer you to fit deren before us. Our People must live in Quiet: Your Appearance doth disturb them, Luke xi. 21. Wherefore, arife with Bag and Baggage, and be gone, or we will let fly from the * Walls against you. * Fleth. This Oration made by Old Incredulity, was feconded by defperate Will-be-will, in Werds to this Effect. The Speech of the Bord Will be-will. Gentlemen, we have heard your Demand, and the Noife of your Threats, and heard the Sound of your Summons, but we fear not your Force, we regard not your Threats, but we ftill abide as you found us. And we command you, that in three Days Time, you ceafe to appear in thefe Parts, or you fhall know what it is, once to dare to offer to rouze the Lion Diabolus, when asleep in the Town of Manfoul. of Forget-good, the Recorder. The Recorder, whofe Name was ForThe Speech get-good, he alfo added as followeth ; Gentlemen, my Lords, as you fee, have with mild and gentle Words, anfwered your rough and angry Speeches; they have moreover, in my Hearing, given your Leave quietly to depart as you came. Wherefore take their Kindness and be gone; we might have come out with Force upon you, and have caufed you to feel the Dint of our Swords: But as we love Eafe and Quiet ourselves; so we love not to hurt or moleft others. Then The Town fe folved to withftand the Captaint. Then did the Town of Mansoul shout for Joy, as if by Diabolus and his Crew, fome great Advantage had been gotten of the Captains. They alfo rang the Bells, and made merry, and danced upon the Walls. Diabolus alfo returned to the Caftle, and the LordMayor and Recorder to their Place: But the Lord Will-be-will took fpecial Care that the Gates fhould be fecured with double Guards, double Bolts, and double Locks and Bars. And that Ear-gate (efpecially) might be the better looked to, for that was the Gate, in at which the King's Forces fought moft to enter: The Lord Will-be-will made one Old Mr. Prejudice (an angry and ill-condition'd Fellow) Captain of the Ward at that Gate; and put under his Power fixty Men, called Deaf-men: Men advantageous for that Service, for as much as they mattered no Words of the Captains, nor of the Soldiers. The Band of Deaf-men fet to keep Ear-gate, The Captains refolved to give them Battle. Now when the Captains faw the Anfwer of the great Ones, and that they could not get an Hearing from the old Natives of the Town, and that Manfoul was refolved to give the King's Army Battle; they prepared themselves to receive them; and to try it out by the Power of the Arm. And firft they made their Force more formidable against Ear-gate; for they knew, that unless they could penetrate that, no Good could be done upon the Town. This done, they put the reft of their Men in their Places. After which, they gave out the Word, which was, Ye must be born again. Then they founded the Trumpet ; then they in the Town made the Anfwer, with Shout against Shout, Charge againft Charge, and fo the Battle began. Now they in the Town -had planted upon the Town over Eargate, two great Guns, the one called High mind, and the other Heady. Un The Battle begun. Τωρ' Ομής planted upo Ear-gate, to these two Guns they trufted much; they were cast in the Caftle by Diabolus's Founder, whofe Name was Mr. Puff-up, and mischievous Pieces they were. But fo vigilant and watchful were the Captains when they faw them, that tho' fometimes their Shot would go by their Ears with a Whiz, yet they did them no Harm. By thefe two Guns, the Townsfolk made no queftion but greatly to annoy the Camp of Shaddai, and well enough to fecure the Gate; but they had not much Cause to boaft of what Execution they did, as by what follows will be gathered. The famous Manfoul had also fome other small Pieces in it, of the which they made ufe against the Camp of Shaddai. They from the Camp alfo, did as ftoutly, and with as much of that as may (in Truth) be called Valour, let fly as faft at the Town, and at Ear-gate: For they faw that unlefs, they could break open Ear-gate, 'twould be but in vain to batter the Wall. Now the King's Captains had brought with them several Slings, and two or three Battering-Rams; with their Slings therefore they battered the Houfes and People of the Town, and with their Rams they fought to break Ear-gate open. The Sentence and Power of the Word. The Camp and the Town had feveral Skirmishes, and brifk Encounters, while the Captains, with their Engines, made many brave Attempts to break open, or beat down the Tower that was over Ear-gate, and at the faid Gate to make their Entrance: But Manfoul food it out fo luftily, through the Rage of Dia The Town foutly ftands out, and the Captains return to their Winter Quar bolus, the Valour of the Lord Will-bequill, and the Conduct of Old Incredu lity the Mayor, and Mr. Forget-good, the Recorder, that the Charge and Expence of that Summer's Wars, (on the King's Side) feemed to be almoft quite loft, and the Advantage to return to ManJoal: But when the Captains faw how it was, they mmade a fair Retreat, and intrenched themselves in their ters, |