and there were openly burned."25 That Tunstal was acting for Stokesly, till his return from the Continent, and recording what was doing in the diocese till then, is evident from several documents at the close of his Register.2

There was, however, a great difference between the effects of this burning, and that in the year 1526. Then the people, generally, were not aware of the value of what they saw consumed; but it was far otherwise now, and this alone is a proof that the cause of Divine Truth, which the Bishops would

25 Strype, and several other writers, erroneously have ascribed this burning of books to Stokesly, as he was then Bishop of London elect, but all this was Tunstal's doing alone. Stokesly was then in Italy, as already noticed. Tunstal had been translated to Durham, by a bull dated 18th Feb. 1530, and confirmed to that See on the 25th of March.-Rymer, xiv. p. 364. Before his removal, it may be added, he had bestowed much money in furnishing a library in Cambridge, both of printed books and manuscripts; but the printed Scriptures in English, with other good books, he had separated for destruction, and most cordially would he act for Stokesly, till he came home. Wood in one place represents Stokesly as installed on the 19th of July, but this he could not be. In June he was at Bologna, very busy in Henry's service, and there is a despatch from him as late as 23d September.-Herbert, p. 329. Probably he did not arrive in England for some time after this, as he was not installed Bishop of London till the 20th of December.- Wood's Fasti. And hence it is, that, when he consigned Bayfield to the flames, on the 20th Nov. 1531, he dates it “the first year of our consecration."

26 One of these documents has rather perplexed some inspectors of the Register. It is the bull of Leo the Tenth, against Luther and his doctrines, though dated as far back as 1520, which has been formally copied and inserted in 1530. The fact is, that in most of these ancient Registers, from that of Baudake, beginning in 1306, down to that of Compton in 1700, there are various instruments to be found, bearing date before the time of their respective Bishops. Some cause, in the Bishop's estimation, called for the exhibition of the original document, and hence its insertion at a later period, even though not recorded at the time. Without attention to this, the most ridiculous blunders may be committed. Thus, here we have a bull, though dated in 1520, inserted ten years later, or immediately after certain proceedings against Dr. Edward Crome in 1530, and before others against Latimer. But this insertion is highly significant, and the mystery admits of an easy solution. It is notorious that Tunstal and Sir Thomas More were at once zealous and united in the persecution of men called heretics, as well as violently opposed to the books they had published; the Bishop's famous license to Sir Thomas also preceding this document and though Tunstal saved his own head, no one Bishop was more slow in the admission of Henry's assumed supremacy, so that we shall find him hesitating even next year. Both these men persecuted, without the King's writ, and Tunstal being thus busy for years, preferred at this juncture, the bull of Leo, as the ground and warrant of his proceedings, to that of Henry's sanction as "Head of his Church." It will be recollected that neither Tunstal's nor More's name were affixed to the letter sent to the Pontiff.

This view is strengthened, or rather confirmed, by a list, or column of names, written on the last leaf of this copy of the bull. There are nineteen foreigners, beginning with Luther and his adherents, and three Englishmen, or Tyndale, Brightwell, and Roy. These are the names of those very authors whose books had been proscribed and condemned in 1530. The translations, expositions, and tracts, of at least fifteen, out of these twenty-two living writers, "imported into the City of London," had just been condemned, as given by Foxe. In this list of names we observed the ink to be faded, and therefore it had been written afterwards, but, by internal evidence, not long after. Thus, the three Englishmen, who are placed by themselves, last in the list, and marked Angli on the right, are "Willmus Tyndall, Willmus Roy, Apostata, Ricus Brightwell." Here Roy alone is distinguished as apostate, he alone being a friar, and belonging to the Monastery of "Grenewyche," as marked on the left, and agreeably to the information furnished by Tyndale himself, in his first edition of the "Wicked Mammon." But the last appellation, Brightwell, being that which was affixed by Fryth to his first publication, "the Revelation of Antichrist in 1529," shows that " Richard Brightwell" was still supposed to be the real name of some person. This fixes the time of writing to about 1531, at the latest. The strangely mistaken use made of this list, in a recent sketch of Tyndale, occasioned a reviewer in the Christian Observer of 1836 no little research, without his being able to arrive at any distinct solution. The length of this note may therefore be excused. Another instance of an old document copied into this Register, and in connexion with one of the men who finally apprehended Tyndale, will occur afterwards, in its proper place.

fain have crushed, was making decided progress. This burning "had such an hateful appearance in it, being generally called a burning of the Word of God, that people from thence concluded, there must be a visible contrariety between that book, and the doctrines of those who handled it; by which both their prejudice against the clergy, and their desire of reading the New Testament was increased.27

In corroboration of this statement, it is certain that neither the purchase at Antwerp, nor the burning at Paul's Cross, had any effect on the importations into this country, except the reverse of what was intended and desired by the enemy; and before long Tunstal himself was fully sensible of this. "Afterwards," says Halle, "when more New Testaments were imprinted, they came thick and threefold into England, the Bishop of London," (now of Durham,) "hearing that still there were so many, sent for Augustine Packington, and said to him- Sir, how cometh this, that there are so many New Testaments abroad, and you promised and assured me that you had bought all?' Then, said Packington—“ I promise you, I bought all that then was to be had; but I perceive they have made more since, and it will never be better, as long as they have the letters and stamps; therefore, it were best for your Lordship to buy the stamps too! and then you are sure. The Bishop smiled at him, and said- Well, Packington, well;' and so ended the matter."

6

And so, perhaps, ended the device of purchasing books in order to burn them; but it will not be long before we find these enemies proceed to men themselves, and, with a bitter zeal, still more inflamed, consign them to the fire; for very soon after this, seizing and burning men instead of their productions, or the books in their possession, became the order of the day. But it is with books we have now to do, and there is no doubt that while Wolsey was descending to the devouring grave, and the Bishops, with the King at their head, were imagining a vain thing, the printing press was as busy as ever. Another edition of Tyndale's New Testament was executed this year, and it is the more worthy of notice, that there appears to have been a positive connexion between him and it. The author is perfectly aware that the edition of 1534, has

27 Burnet.

been styled the second genuine edition of Tyndale, but so many mistakes have been detected already, that one need not feel any surprise if this should prove another.

It has, indeed, been often stated, that with the money received from Tunstal, Tyndale reprinted the New Testament, and Hamburgh has also been mentioned as the place where one edition was printed. Tyndale had, as we have seen, gone to Hamburgh, and there is no evidence to be found of his having returned to Antwerp during the whole of this year. But whether it was executed in Hamburgh or elsewhere, of his having now printed an edition, though he had no time as yet to revise the version, there can be little or no doubt. Foxe, and Strype, and Tanner, expressly assign this edition to Tyndale, the last stating Marburg as the place of printing. But there are corroborating circumstances as to the book itself. It is not till the close of this year, or rather the following spring, that we hear of Tyndale having a brother, and resident in London; and if the records of the Star Chamber are to be received as evidence, it is there distinctly stated, that he "sent the Testaments, and divers other books, to his brother, John Tyndale, a merchant in London." This impression, too, has been pronounced to be more correct than the Antwerp editions, at least so said the late Bishop Tomline: and when we come to John's apprehension and appearance before Sir Thomas More, as well as the importations by Richard Bayfield, little doubt will remain as to this reprint coming from the original translator, although he had not found leisure as yet to improve the translation.

About the end of this year an incident occurred, which may seem unaccountable, as out of keeping with the usual current of events; were it not that the capricious temper of the monarch admitted both of words and actions, directly at variance with each other. Mr. Fyshe, the author of "the Supplication of Beggars," we found had been in London in the summer of 1526, as well as in 1528; and, according to his wife's representation, in Foxe, "he had been absent now the space of two years and a-half.” His tract, as we have seen, had interested Henry, when first he saw it in 1526; and this excellent woman having gained access to the King, he engaged that her husband should "come and go safe, without peril, and that no man should do him harm,"

if she brought him to the royal presence. Emboldened by the King's words, she went and brought him. His Majesty conversed with him, it is said, for above three hours, and, in the end, desired him to take his wife home, for she had taken great pains for him. Fyshe had fled formerly for fear of the Cardinal, and now he replied-" he durst not so do, for fear of Sir Thomas More the Chancellor, and Stokesly the Bishop of London." The King, taking the signet from his finger, recommended him to the Lord Chancellor, charging him not to molest him. More received the signet as a sufficient safe-guard, of course, but enquired if he had any discharge for his wife? She had displeased the friars, by not allowing them to say their Gospels in Latin in her house, as they did in others, and insisted that they should say them in English. Next morning, More actually sent his man for her, but her young daughter being sick of the plague, prevented his approach, as well as any farther molestation. Within six months after this, Mr. Fyshe himself died of the same disease, and was interred in St. Dunstan's, the very same church where Tyndale had been accustomed to preach in 1523. The Chancellor, in his loose and mendacious style, represented him as recanting before he died, of which there is not the slightest evidence. His widow was afterwards married to a gentleman of the same profession as her first husband, Mr. Baynham, of whom we shall hear before long.28

SECTION VIII.

FORMIDABLE OPPOSITION PURSUIT AFTER TYNDALE BY THE KING AND CRUMWELL STILL IN VAIN-TYNDALE'S ANSWER TO SIR T. MORE-EPISTLE OF JOHN EXPOUNDED—JONAH, WITH A PROLOGUE-CRITICAL STATE OF ENGLAND RENEWED PERSECUTION-BROTHER OF TYNDALE-BILNEY -BAYFIELD-MANY BOOKS IMPORTING-CONSTANTYNE CAUGHT-ESCAPES -PERSECUTION ABROAD POWERFUL REMONSTRANCE FROM ANTWERP WITH CRUMWELL, INCLUDING THE KING AND THE LORD CHANCELLOR.

THE principal feature of the present year was that of deter

28 See Wood's Ath. by Bliss, i., p. 59-60, and Foxe's "Story of Simon Fyshe." The latter is full of mistakes as to years, a not unusual fault, but the substance of his narrative often supplies the corrective. Foxe traces the hand of Anne Boleyn in this transaction, and this is not improbable. But, at the same time, it is particularly worthy of remark, that the incident took place just at the period when Henry had received the noble letter of Latimer already referred to, and it may be allowed to have produced some temporary impression. Surely it must.

mined opposition to Divine truth, abroad as well as at home; for although one man had been raised up by God to lead on the faithful, unquestionably it was truth alone which occasioned all the uproar, not the opinions of men. And as to our native land especially, if we should still farther discriminate, it was through the Book of God, in our native language, that Divine truth now penetrated into the heart of this country. Last year had witnessed the Royal denunciation of our Translator by name, as well as all that he had then published; but since then, by his "Practice of Prelates," he had advanced one step farther, in combating the darkness and superstition which covered the land. That tract had been read by men of every grade, from the palace itself, down to the hamlet; by citizens of London, and husbandmen in Essex, in Suffolk, and elsewhere. Here he had not only implored, but warned the King to beware of persecution, and faithfully gave his judicious opinion with regard to the divorce; that miserable question still in discussion throughout Europe. By this year, however, Henry had nearly got this question framed, according to his own liking, and as he was soon to bring it before Parliament, he must have felt incensed by Tyndale's reference to its proceedings, not to say that the next would lie open to a second review. Besides, Sir Thomas More had but lately come into office, and he, with the Bishops, had cordially concurred in advising persecution, having secured the royal name to sanction and enforce their measures. The safety of Tyndale, therefore, was now in far greater hazard, than it ever had been in the days of the Cardinal. Wolsey had been roused from his lair, chiefly by the Satyre of Roye, and his chase of the prey had ended with his own downfall; but the truth and good sense contained in Tyndale's last production, was like a spur by far too sharp for the passions and the pride of such a man as Henry the Eighth. His anxiety to seize the man, or allure him into the kingdom, will be found to harmonise with the growing ferocity of his character. Tyndale's escapes, during this year, must have illustrated the tender care of a gracious Providence; but the mystery now is, how he had contrived to make such progress at the press. Yet once engaged he had determined not only to maintain his ground, but advance in the prosecution of his great enterprise. This year was, therefore, distinguished by the appearance of not