lord of Canterbury, and other the lords, and others of his majesty's privy council, was wholly out of fear, and to avoid torture, and not otherwise. Being required to describe what manner of man the said Peacham that lay at his house was; he saith that he was tall of stature, and can make no other description of him, but saith, as he taketh it, he dwelleth sometimes at Honslow as a minister; for he hath seen his letters of orders and licence under the hand of Mr. D. Chatterton, sometime bishop of Lincoln. He denieth to set his hand to this examination. Examinat' per FR. BACON, GER. HELWYSSE, RANULPHE CREWE, H. YELVERTON. THE TRUE STATE OF THE QUESTION WHETHER PEACHAM'S CASE BE TREASON OR NOT1. IN THE HAND-WRITING OF KING JAMES. THE indictment is grounded upon the statute of Edward the third, that he compassed and imagined the king's death; the indictment then is according to the law, and justly founded. But how is it verified? First, then, I gather this conclusion, that since the indictment is made according to the prescription of law, the process is formal, the law is fulfilled, and the judge and jury are only to hearken to the verification of the hypothesis, and whether the minor be well proved or not. That his writing of this libel is an overt act, the judges themselves do confess that it was made fit for publication, the form of it bewrays the self; that he kept not these papers in a secret and safe façon, (manner) but in an open house and lidless cask, both himself and the messenger do confess; nay, himself confesseth, that he wrote them at the desire of another man, to whom he should have shown them when they had been perfected, and who craved an account for them, which though it be denied by the other party, worketh sufficiently against the de 1 Sir David Dalrymple's Memorials, p. 36. poner himself. Nay, he confesses that in the end he meant to preach it; and though, for diminishing of his fault, he alledges, that he meant first to have taken all the bitterness out of it, that excuse is altogether absurd, for there is no other stuff in, or through it all, but bitterness, which being taken out, it must be a quintessence of an alchimy, spirit without a body, or popish accidents without a substance; and then to what end would he have published such a ghost, or shadow without a substance, cui bono? and to what end did he so farce (stuff) it first with venom, only to scrape it out again; but it had been hard making that sermon to have tasted well, that was once so spiced, "quo semel est imbuta recens, etc." But yet this very excuse is by himself overthrown again, confessing that he meant to retain some of the most crafty malicious parts in it, as, etc. [So the manuscript.] The only question that remains then is, whether it may be verified and proved, that, by the publishing of this sermon or rather libel of his he compassed or imagined the king's death: which I prove he did by this reason; had he compiled a sermon upon any other ground, or stuffed the bulk of it with any other matter, and only powdered it here and there, with some passages of reprehension of the king; or had he never so bitterly railed against the king, and upbraided him of any two or three, though monstrous vices, it might yet have been some way excusable; or yet had he spued forth all the venom that is in this libel of his, in a railing speech, either in drunkenness, or upon the occasion of any sudden passion or discontentment, it might likewise have been excused in some sort; but upon the one part, to heap up all the injuries that the hearts of men, or malice of the devil, can invent against the king, to disable him utterly, not to be a king, not to be a Christian, not to be a man, or a reasonable creature, not worthy of breath here, nor salvation hereafter; and, upon the other part, not to do this hastily or rashly, but after long premeditation, first having made collections in scattered papers, and then reduced it to a method, in a formal treatise, a text chosen for the purpose, a prayer premitted, applying all his wits to bring out of that text what he could, in malam partem, against the king. This, I say, is a plain proof that he intended to compass or imagine, by this means, the king's destruction. For, will ye look upon the person or quality of the man, it was the far likeliest means he could use to bring his wicked intention to pass; his person an old, unable, and unwieldy man; his quality a minister, a preacher ; and that in so remote a part of the country, as he had no more means of access to the king's person than he had ability of body, or resolution of spirit, to act such a desperate attempt with his own hands upon him; and therefore, as every creature is ablest, in their own element, either to defend themselves, or annoy their adversaries, as birds in the air, fishes in the water, and so forth, what so ready and natural means had he whereby to annoy the king as by publishing such a seditious libel? and so, under the specious pretext of conscience, to inflame the hearts of the people against him. Now, here is no illation nor inference made upon the statute, it stands in puris naturalibus, but only a just inference and probation of the guilty intention of this party. So the only thing the judges can doubt of, is of the delinquent's intention; and then the question will be, whether if these reasons be stronger to enforce the guiltiness of his intention, or his bare denial to clear him, since nature teaches every man to defend his life as long as he may; and whether, in case there were a doubt herein, the judges should not rather incline to that side wherein all probability lies: but if judges will needs trust better the bare negative of an infamous delinquent, without expressing what other end he could probably have, than all the probabilities, or rather infallible consequences upon the other part, caring more for the safety of such a monster, than the preservation of a crown, in all ages following, whereupon depend the lives of many millions: happy then are all desperate and seditious knaves, but the fortune of this crown is more than miserable. Quod Deus avertat. CXX. TO THE KING, TOUCHING MATTER OF HIS IT MAY PLEASE YOUR MAJESTY, I MAY remember what Tacitus saith, by occasion that Tiberius was often and long absent from Rome. "In urbe, et parva et magna negotia imperatorem simul premunt:" but, saith he, "In recessu, dimissis rebus minoris momenti, summæ rerum magnarum magis agitantur." This maketh me think it shall be no incivility to trouble your majesty with business, during your abode from London; knowing that your majesty's meditations are the principal wheel of your estate; and being warranted from a former commandment which I received from you. I do now only send your majesty these papers inclosed, because I do greatly desire so far forth to preserve my credit with you, as thus, that whereas lately, perhaps out of too much desire, which induceth too much belief, I was bold to say, that I thought it as easy for your majesty to come out of want, as to go forth of your gallery; your majesty would not take me for a dreamer, or a projector; I send your majesty therefore some grounds of my hopes. And for that paper, which I have gathered of increasements sperate, I beseech you to give me leave to think, that if any of the particulars do fail, it will be rather for want of workmanship in those that shall deal in them, than want of materials in the things themselves. The other paper hath many discarding cards; and I send it chiefly, that your majesty may be the less surprised by projectors; who pretend sometimes great discoveries and inventions in things, that have been propounded, and, perhaps, after a better fashion, long since. God Almighty preserve your majesty. Your majesty's most humble and devoted subject and servant, 25 April, 1615. 'Rawley's Resuscitatio. FR. BACON. served with some accommodating, when we see the success of the former. I am appointed this day to attend my lord treasurer for a proposition of raising profit and revenue by infranchising copy-holders. I am right glad to see the patrimonial part of your revenue well looked into, as well as the fiscal and I hope it will so be in other parts as well as this. God preserve your majesty. Your Majesty's most humble, and devoted subject and servant, MYSELF, with the rest of your counsel learned, conferred with my lord Coke, and the rest of the judges of the king's bench only, being met at my lord's chamber, concerning the business of Owen. For although it be true, that your majesty in your letter did mention that the same course might be held in the taking of opinions apart in this, which was prescribed and used in Peacham's cause; yet both my lords of the council, and we amongst ourselves, holding it, in a case so clear, not needful; but rather that it would import a diffidence in us, and deprive us of the means to debate it with the judges, if cause were, more strongly, which is somewhat, we thought best rather to use this form. The judges desired us to leave the examinations and papers with them for some little time, to consider, which is a thing they use, but I conceive, there will be no manner of question made of it. My lord chief justice, to shew forwardness, as I interpret it, shewed us passages of Suarez and others, thereby to prove, that though your majesty stood not excommunicate by particular sentence, yet by the general bulls of Cana Domini, and others, you were upon the matter excommunicate; and therefore, that the treason was as de præsenti. But I (that foresee that if that course should be held, when it cometh ! Rawley's Resuscitatio. |