Page:History of England (Froude) Vol 11.djvu/55

58i.] THE JESUIT INVASION. 39 the world, had least cause to reproach him. They ' bade him not stand upon his innocence.' ' God,' they said, ' always did justly, and men never suffered more than their deeds had deserved.' The admonition might have been spared. He made no complaints. ' God,' he ad- mitted, 'had not only dealt justly with him, but merci- fully, for he had been a sinner overmickle given to the world and the pleasures of the flesh. Had his life been spared he meant to have cast away such vain delights and dedicated himself to God's service in quietness and simplicity, but as God was pleased to take him he was satisfied.' ' As to his sentence/ he remitted his judges to their consciences ; ' but it had been alike to him if he had been as innocent as Stephen or as guilty as Judas ; the authors of his death had purposes on hand which could not be done except he was taken away.' ' Tell the King from me,' he said, ' I admonish him in the name of God to beware of them ; the estate of religion was never in such danger.' ' Then,' continue the narrators of this singular scene, ' then he prayed, and asked us to show him arguments of hope on which he could rely ; and seeing flesh was weak that we would comfort him against the fear of death.' ' We told him of the promises of mercy in the Word, on which it behoved him to lean, the example of mercy towards God's servants who had been sinners, of David, Magdalen, and Peter, and the experience of mercy which he had found himself/ ' He answered : I know all that to be true. Since I