Part 38 (1/2)
Vetch, besides his time, trouble (wherein he was in many dangers) lost about 120 l. ster. and its interest; and Argyle's son, the late duke, gave him repeated promises to reimburse him, yet never was there any thing of this kind done, his kindness being soon forgot.
But prior to this affair of Monmouth and Argyle, one tyrant was cut off to make way for another. But as the death of king Charles II. is related by so many historians, it were needless to relate the whole affair here: only the following circ.u.mstances seem more full and somewhat different from the accounts of the most part of writers in that period. The king's harlot, the d.u.c.h.ess of Portsmouth, (for so we may call her) being by the Duke of York's direction to give the king a treat on Sabbath night, and being by him stored with wines, especially Claret, which the king loved; after he was drunk, they bribed his coffee-man to put a dose of poison in his coffee, and then advised the d.u.c.h.ess to keep him all night; and likewise knowing that when he first awaked in the morning, he usually called for his snuff, they hired the d.u.c.h.ess's chambermaid to put poisoned snuff into his box. Accordingly having drunk the coffee at night, in the morning he awoke, and cried out he was deadly sick, and called for his box and took a deal of it. Then growing worse, he called for his servant to put on his cloaths; which doing, he staggered and got to the window, and leaning on it, cried, I am gone, I am poisoned, have me to my chamber. The Duke getting notice, came running undrest to lament his fate, saying, Alas, Sir! what is the matter? To whom he answered, O you know too well; and was in a pa.s.sion at him. In the mean time he called for an antidote against poison he had got from a German mountebank; but that could not be found, being taken out of the way: neither was his physician to be got being as was thought out of town.
All things failing, he being so enraged, made at his brother. But all entries being secured, in the mean time the duke seeing him so enraged, and that the poison was not likely soon to do his turn, set four ruffians on him, which made him cry out; but they soon choked him with his cravat, and beat him instantly on the head, so that he died. It is said, his head swelled bigger than two heads, and his body stunk, so that they were obliged to take him out in the night, and bury him _incognito_[263].
But to return; after the defeat of Monmouth and Argyle, Mr. Vetch was obliged to lurk for some time in a wood near Newcastle, until the storm was a little calmed: and then he ventured to Newcastle, to see his wife and family, where he met with some of his Scots relations; and some other good people of the town were also there.--They spent a part of the night in prayer and mourning over the sad case that the church and nation were now in, the most part fearing they were never like to see good days again.
After this, Mr. Vetch being wearied with such toil and confinement, went with a Nottingham merchant to Yorks.h.i.+re, and staid some time in a town called Southeave.--From thence he was invited to preach to the people of Beverly. Here he met with another remarkable deliverance; for the mayor and aldermen compa.s.sed the house where he was preaching, and caused the clerk mark down all their names: but Mr. Vetch, by means of his landlord, got off under the name of William Robertson, and so he escaped, and hid himself, sometime amongst bushes, and then went to a man's house two miles from town, where he preached out the rest of his sermon to some people that followed that way, and then went home with his landlord.
From thence Mr. Vetch returned to Yorks.h.i.+re, where he met with another deliverance; for a Scots jesuit priest, knowing him, procured a warrant to apprehend him; but, by a divine providence, he escaped their hand, and so went toward Newcastle. From Newcastle, he went to Nottingham.
While there, king James's indemnity and liberty was proclaimed, and then he had a call from the people of Beverly to be their minister, which he complied with. At this place he had a numerous congregation, and several times he was invited to preach at Hull six miles from thence.--There the people declared, There was never such a reformation in that place. Some of the justices of the peace in that place, being papists, were greatly incensed against it, and used all means to break his preaching there, but were opposed by the people. Mr. Vetch never had more satisfaction of his ministerial work (as he himself says) than in that place.
Having preached six or seven months there, and settled a meeting-house and a people greatly reformed,--he was strongly invited to his native country by those who had accepted of the toleration then granted. And his wife being forward for his return, he took his leave of Beverly, a pleasant city, having preached his farewel sermon, where there were many tears shed. In his way home, he visited his friends at Darntoun, who persuaded him to stay some time, where he settled a congregation, and left one Mr. Long for his successor to that people. After all impediments removed, he returned to his native land; where the people in the parishes of Oxnam, Creilland, Eckford, Linton, Marbottle and Harnam gave him a call to preach to them at Whitton hall; unto which charge he entered in April 1688. Here he continued that summer, and sometimes was invited to preach at Reidsdale on the English side. But the prince of Orange having landed in England, Nov. 4, 1688. the ministers of Scotland who had been outed, thought it expedient to meet at Edinburgh, and called all their brethren to attend there to consult of matters.
It fell out unexpectedly to Mr. Vetch, that the meeting voted him to preach the next day after he came, in the new meeting-house over against Libberton's wynd. This he was most averse to, being a stranger to the transactions for the most part in Scotland for upwards of 30 years. But his reasons not being heard, he was so perplexed what to do, that till 8 o'clock, he could not find a text: but at length falling upon Psal.
cxix. 18. _Thou hast trod down all that err from thy statutes_, &c. he was taken up the whole night in thinking on it without going to bed.
When he came to the pulpit, seeing 16 of the old ministers sitting, and the congregation greatly increasing, his fear increased also. However, he delivered his thoughts upon the subject with respect to the then circ.u.mstances with such freedom and plainness as offended the prelates, who afterwards sent him a message, that ere long they resolved to be even with him.--All the answer he returned them was, to put on their spurs.--Upon the other hand, he seemed to give some offence to the G.o.dly party by some free expressions he had with respect to the present government, if presbytery was erected.
When the Presbyterian church was restored, he had calls from several parishes, _viz._ one to Creilland, another to Melross, and a third to Peebles; which he was persuaded by the earl of Crawford and others to embrace: and yet he met with such opposition there, from the old duke of Queensbury, that the church was so over-awed as to loose him from that charge: and he having a call from Edinburgh, one from Paisley, and another from Dumfries, the a.s.sembly, hearing his aversion to Edinburgh, voted him to Dumfries, after he had been minister of Peebles full four years from Sept. 1690 to 1694, when he was settled or admitted to his ministry at Dumfries.
He left Peebles with great aversion, not only with respect to the parish, but the country round about; and upon a new call, struggled to be back; but lost it only by four voices. However, he lost all his legal stipend the four years, which, with the expences of suit, amounted to 10,000 merks. Mr. Vetch's hard usage from the a.s.sembly, with their illegal removing him, merely to please the duke, and to send him to Dumfries, made him resolve to leave the nation, and refuse to submit to their sentence. In the mean time his old friends in England, hearing this, sent a gentleman to Peebles to bring him back to them. Mr. Vetch went with him; but he refused to settle with them, till he had handsomely ended with the commission of the church, to whom the matter was referred. Upon his return, they persuaded him to submit: which at last he did, and continued minister in that place until the day of his death, which fell out (if I mistake not) about the year 1720, being then about 80 years of age.
From the foregoing account two things are conspicuous: first, that the whole of Mr. Vetch's life, at least during the persecuting period, was attended with a train of remarkable occurrences of divine providence.
Secondly, that in that time, he behoved to be a most powerful and awakening preacher from the influence he had upon the manners or morals of those who attended his sermons. Nor is it any disparagement to him that that black-mouthed calumniator in his Presbyterian Eloquence displayed, has published to the world, ”That he murdered the bodies as well as souls of two or three persons with one sermon, because (says he) preaching in the town of Jedhurgh, he said, _There are two thousand of you here, but I am sure eighty of you will not be favored_; upon which three of his ignorant hearers dispatched themselves soon after.” Indeed it must be granted, that, after the revolution in the latter end of his life, he became somewhat inimical and unfriendly to dissenters[264], at least some of those who professed to own and adhere unto the same cause and testimony that he himself had contended and suffered somewhat for; whether this proceeded from the dotage of old age (as some would have it) or from mistaken principles, or any thing else, we cannot, and shall not at present determine.
_The Life of JOHN BALFOUR of Kinloch_.
John Balfour of Kinloch (sometime called Burly) was a gentleman in the north of Fife. He joined with the more faithful part of our late sufferers, and altho' he was by some reckoned none of the most religious, yet he was always zealous and honest-hearted, courageous in every enterprize and a brave soldier, seldom any escaping that came in his hands. He was the princ.i.p.al actor in killing that arch-traitor to the Lord and his Christ, James Sharp. After which his goods and gear were inventoried by the sheriff, and he forfeited in life and fortune, a reward of 10,000 merks offered to any that could apprehend him. He was a commanding officer at Bothwel and Drumclog. At Drumclog he was the first who, with his party, got over the ditch upon the enemy. At Bothwel he was still among the more faithful part, and at the fight behaved with great gallantry. At that meeting at Loudon-hill dispersed May 5th, 1681.
it is said, that he disarmed one of duke Hamilton's men with his own hand, taking a pair of fine pistols belonging to the duke from his saddle, telling him to tell his master, he would keep them till meeting.
Afterward, when the duke asked his man, What he was like? he told him, he was a little man, squint-eyed, and of a very fierce aspect, the duke said, He knew who it was, and withal prayed that he might never see his face, for if he should, he was sure he would not live long. After this he lurked mostly among his suffering brethren; and a little before the revolution went over to Holland, where he joined the prince of Orange (afterward king William), and having still a desire to be avenged upon those who persecuted the Lord's cause and people in Scotland, it is said he obtained liberty from the prince for that purpose, but died at sea before their arrival in Scotland. Whereby that design was never accomplished, and so the land was never purged by the blood of them who had shed innocent blood, according to the law of the Lord, Gen. ix. 6.
_Whoso sheddeth man's blood, by man shall his blood be shed._
_An Abstract of a Speech delivered by Lord WARRISTON, before the a.s.sembly of Divines at Westminster, after the delivery of some Queries from the Parliament to them._
Mr. Prolocutor, I am a stranger. I will not meddle with the parliament privileges of another nation, nor the breaches thereof, but as a christian, under one common lord, a ruling elder in another church, and a parliament man in another kingdom, having commission from both that church and state, and at the desire of this kingdom a.s.sisting in their debates, intreat for your favour and patience to express my thoughts of what is before you.
In my judgment, that is before you which concerns Christ and these kingdoms most, and above all, and which will be the chiefest mean to end or continue these troubles. And that not only speaking _humaniter_, and looking to the disposition of these kingdoms, but especially in regard of the divine dispensation, which hath been so special and sensible in the rise and continuance of these commotions, as I can neither be persuaded that they were raised for, or will be calmed upon the settlement of civil rights and privileges either of kings or princes, whatsoever may seem to be our present success; but I am convinced they have a higher rise from, and for the highest end, the settling of the crown of Christ in these islands, to be propagated from island to continent; and until king Jesus be set down on his throne, with his sceptre in his hand, I do not expect G.o.d's peace, and so not solid peace from men in these kingdoms. But establish that, and a durable peace will be found to follow that sovereign truth. Sir, let us lay to heart what is before us, a work which concerns G.o.d and man most of any thing in agitation now under the sun, and for which we will one day be called to a more strict account than for any other pa.s.sage of our life. Let us both tremble and rejoice when we reflect upon what is under debate, and now in our hands.