smooth, and level with the plain, there was no necessity for their leaping over it; but it seemed that the fear of a snare, or a natural disposition to regard man as their enemy, induced them to mistrust even the ground which he had trodden."-The Same.

1 Tim. v. 10.

If she have washed the saints' feet,

"I now for the first time, had an opportunity of witnessing the old colonial custom, of washing feet after supper. A maid-servant carried round to each member of the family in turn, according to age, a small tub of water, in which all

It

washed in the same water. must be regarded as a proof of their good sense, that they showed respect to the habits of a foreigner, by not pressing me to join in this ceremony: the tub was merely offered to me, and then passed on. But this custom is, I believe, gradually wearing away, throughout the colony. Its utility was more evident in former times, when the colonists went without stockings, as indeed many do at the present time; but since the country has become so much richer, that almost every person can afford to clothe himself more completely, this practice is falling into disuse."-The Same.

THE wars which distinguished the reign of Edward the Third, the captive monarchs who graced his triumph, and the chivalrous son who shared his glory, occupy the principal place in the ordinary his tories of the age. Closer observers have not failed to remark, that from this æra we may date the power and influence of the House of Commons, and the first germ of the Reformation. Edward's victories, and towards the conclusion of his life, his disasters and defeats, were a continual drain upon the purses of his people, and when once they had learned to couple the redress of grievances with the replenishment of the exchequer, the frequency with which the latter was required, afforded many favourable opportunities for insisting upon the former. When the King declined in age and vigour, the jealousies of his sons divided the nation into parties, and the Commons received as decided support from the Black Prince, as the courtiers obtained from his brother John of Gaunt. The whole history of the reign, proves that the

minds of men were unsettled. There was an evident tendency to alteration, if not to improvement. And the sedition and tumults which occurred under Richard the Second, and the contests between York and Lancaster, for which they silently prepared the way, may all be perceived in their embryo state, in the complaints and remonstrances of King Edward's Parliaments, in the support which they received from the most distinguished of his children, and in the ambition and rivalry by which that support was rendered necessary.

Still more distinctly may we trace the future power of the Reformation in the unbridled excesses of the Pope and his agents; and in the murmurs which they universally excited. Whatever may be thought of Wicliff or his immediate followers, were they ten times more worthless than the Romanists endeavour to make them appear, it would still be true, that Papal encroachments, corruptions, and exactions, had now nearly reached their limit, and the commencement of a reaction would continue plainly visible on the can

Wicliff for another Number, the present sketch will be devoted to those ecclesiastical occurrences of the reign of Edward the Third, with which the Reformer was altogether unconnected.

The first event of any consequence, was the quarrel between the King and Stratford, Archbishop of Canterbury. This Prelate before his advancement to the primacy, was one of Edward's principal ministers, Bishop of Winchester, and Chancellor. The King and the Pope concurred in his appointment, and the Monks of Canterbury made a virtue of necessity, and elected him to fill the vacant see. The Pope's object was to make an opening at Winchester, for Orlton Bishop of Worcester, who was patronized by the King of France. And it is difficult to conceive a stronger instance of the Pope's authority, and of the mischievous purposes to which it was applicable, than is furnished by the success of this scheme. It was at first opposed by Edward, but he was subsequently cajoled into compliance, and became the tame spectator of a transaction, by which a Prelate who had proved himself to be in Philip's interest, was rewarded for his treachery with the rich Bishoprick of Winchester. Thus through the kindly intervention of Rome, English preferment became the reward of French services, and one of the most able and powerful of our sovereigns consented to promote the creature of another monarch, his great rival and enemy.

Stratford is not chargeable with attachment to the court of Rome. On the contrary, he is said to have convinced King Edward of his right to the throne of that kingdom, and urged him on to that assertion of his claim, by which Europe was so long disturbed. When the burden of the war began to press heavily on the people, and the supplies granted by Parliament proved insufficient for its maintenance, Edward returned unexpectedly to England, and or

dered the Archbishop, the Bishop of Chichester, and the Bishop of Coventry to be arrested. The two latter filled the posts of Lord Chancellor, and Lord Treasurer, and the particulars of the accusation against them are not recorded. They were probably proceeded against as members of the administration, of which the Archbishop was at the head, and as accomplices in the crimes for which he was subsequently arraigned. The charges against the Primate, according to the reports of historians amounted to high-treason. He was suspected of having been either overawed by the Pope, or corrupted by the King of France into an opposition to the war, which he had originally recommended, and it is stated that he both counselled Edward to conclude a dishonourable peace, and prevented the success of his campaigns by withholding the necessary supplies. The falsehood of these suspicions is clearly established. Alarmed at the imprisonment with which he was menaced, Archbishop Stratford repaired to Canterbury, and refused to surrender to the king's messengers, or to answer before any tribunal except the Parliament. His stay at Canterbury was employed in strengthening himself by ecclesiastical censures, and by courting the favour of the people. He harangued publicly in his Cathedral, upon the errors of his past life, upon his excessive attention to temporal affairs, upon the consequent neglect of his spiritual duties, and upon his wish, in imitation of the canonized Becket, to renounce the employment of Courts and the favour of Kings, and devote himself to the care of his master's sheep. At the conclusion of this harangue he solemnly excommunicated all disturbers of the public peace of the kingdom, all violators of the privileges of the Church, or the liberties of Magna Charta, and all false accusers of the Bishops or Metropolitans. The Bishop of London, and other Suffragans were required

to publish this sentence throughout their dioceses.

Edward met it with proclamations of an opposite tendency. He reproached Stratford with ingratitude, misgovernment, and extravagance; attributed the recent disasters to a failure of the supplies; and declared that the money levied upon the people, would have been suf. ficient for all the expences of the campaign, if it had been honestly collected and brought to account. The Archbishop replied in a very high tone, reminded the King that the Sacerdotal power was superior to the Regal, that Emperors had been excommunicated for presuming to condemn the Clergy, and that he and his council" by calling the ministers and priests of God Almighty to account, had in effect been so hardy as to sit in judgment upon the Divine Majesty." The particular answers of the Archbishop are more direct and satisfactory than would be anticipated from this extravagant introduction. He denies having done more than join in the common opinion in favour of Edward's claim to the French throne, asserts his own innocence in all matters connected with his administration of public affairs, and offers to defend his conduct therein before the King and the Parliament. The charge of profusion and corruption is retorted upon the King's immediate attendants; and the Primate concludes by declaring, that although he had crossed the channel twoand-thirty times on the public service, besides several journies into Scotland, he had lived principally upon his own fortune, and never received more than three hundred pounds from the Exchequer.

In the end a Parliament was summoned. The Archbishop received his writ, but was refused admittance to the House of Lords, and desired to plead to an information brought against him in the inferior courts. He asserted the right of being tried by his Peers, and after some dispute REMEMBRANCER, No. 64.

and delay, it was conceded to him. Here the matter ended. The King obtained a further supply of money, returned to prosecute the war in France, took Stratford again into favour, and made him one of his ministers. Two years afterwards, the articles of impeachment were declared frivolous and false; and the Primate was permitted as heretofore, to divide his time in very unequal portions, between the affairs of the Church and the State.

His unbecoming and excessive attachment to the latter, appears to have been his principal fault; and it was a fault which Edward tempted all his Bishops to commit. The rival parties in his Cabinet were headed, the one by Archbishop Stratford, the other by Bishop Orlton. William of Wickam was for many years his chief favourite and minister, the great builder of his palaces, and dispenser of his bounties; and there are abundant proofs of the ability with which he discharged his important trust. It is only to be regretted, that a Prince who selected such skilful servants, should not have directed their attention to their more peculiar duties. The improving sense and intelligence of the people began to shew them, that military and civil employments were not the proper sphere of action for Archbishops and Bishops. And King Edward was petitioned by his Parliament, (Ann. 1370) that the offices of Chancellor, Treasurer, and Keeper of the Privy Seal, should be bestowed for the future exclusively on the Laity. He promised to grant their prayer, but he did not keep his word. The Clergy proved so useful to the monarchs of that age, that they were pressed into every service. And while the French Prelates fought in their master's armies, and lost their lives in his service, the English devoted themselves to more pacific occupations. Archbishop Stratford and Bishop Orlton, were, as we have already seen, the ambassadors and minisD d

ened, and will ultimately be taken away. The treasure of the country is exported to enrich our neigh bours, if not our enemies; the evil is felt and declared to be intolerable by the community at large, and a speedy and effectual remedy must be devised. We appeal therefore to the successors of the Prince of the Apostles, as to persons com. manded to feed not shear the Lord's sheep, to strengthen not oppress their brethren; and intreat them for the future to leave patrons in possession of their patronage, and to allow Cathedral and other Churches the liberty of free elections. Our predecessors were accustomed to fill up those Churches with fit men by their own royal authority. Until at the instance of the Holy See, they conceded the election to the chapter, upon conditions which that See confirmed. By the use which is made at Rome of provisions and reservations, the elections in chapter are virtually set aside, the conditions before alluded to are broken; the whole compact, being violated by the 'Pope, is void, and the King is restored to his ancient right and prerogative. His Holiness is therefore humbly desired to put an end to these intolerable evils.

Such is the substance of the King's epistle, written originally in Latin, and recorded by Walsingham. Fox translates the letter from the Parliament, written in French. The purport of both is the same, but the language of the latter more forcible and peremptory. It runs in the names of "the princes, dukes, earls, barons, knights, citizens, burgesses, and all the commonalty of the realm of England, in Parliament assembled," and it makes no mention of the King's right to appoint to bishoprics, &c. In other respects it does not differ from the epistle in Walsingham, and the facts asserted in both are fully borne out by a variety of independent authority.

The pretence upon which Pope Clement justified his conduct, was that the newly-appointed Cardinals were employed in transacting the business of the Church of England; and that they would attend to it more punctually and more pleasantly when their revenues were derived from that country. The artifice, however, by which these papal provisions were preserved from immediate destruction, was a well-timed compliance with the wishes of the King. If a chapter proved contumacious, and did not elect the monarch's nominee, the affair was generally arranged by a provision from the Pope. There is one instance of this, mentioned by Walsingham, more disgraceful than the rest. In the year 1333, the chapter of Durham elected one of their own monks. He was confirmed and consecrated by the Archbishop of York, although it was understood that King Edward favoured another person. This person, named Richard de Bury, was one of the King's Chaplains, and having procured the usual letters from Rome, he was consecrated at Chertsey by the Bishop of Winchester, and immediately took possession of the See of Durham; the regularly elected Prelate being sent back to his cloister, a Bishop without a Bishopric. Upon the death of Bury, in 1345, the King applied to the Pope in favour of Thomas Hatfield, his Secretary. This event taking place shortly after the Parliamentary proceedings already described, is rightly considered by the historian as highly opprobrious to Edward. But the Pope resolved to keep the King in countenance; gladly acceded to his request, and being told by his Cardinals that the man was of a trifling character, and a layman, answered, if the King had recommended an ass for the turn he should have prevailed *.

Such were the compromises and

* See Walsingham, Hist. Ang. p. 133. and Upodig. Neustriæ, p. 516.