"by feveral hands, that he was very much "beholden to Mr. Hyde for the great zeal "he showed to his fervice; and therefore "commanded him to fpeak with him, and to "let him know the fenfe he had of it; and "that when he returned, he would let him "know it himself." Through Mr. Hyde from the paffed doubtlefs feveral fimilar meffages, and thereupon closely had followed Mr. Waller's affault on Mr. Pym, and the rebuke at Westminster winning him fresh favour at Whitehall. Is shown a letter King. Old leaders Each incident that had manifefted thus, howunmoved. ever, the spirit and purpose of the new oppofition, ferved only to knit more closely what was left of the old liberal phalanx. No word was breathed of any kind of conceffion. Their fpeech had not been more decifive, or their action more vigorous, while Strafford stood at bay. Broken as were their ranks, their majority was fufficient and decifive; and they had a fupreme force in reserve to which they were Majority about to appeal. Wherever Hyde and his ftill fuffi- friends, therefore, might be expected to mufter strongest, there they ftruck ever themfelves the firft, and ftill the heavieft. cient. Before the recefs, thirteen bishops had been impeached for an attempt to override the law by afferting a legislative authority in new Measures Canons which they claimed to impofe; after against the Houfe again met, as we have seen, a bill Bifhops: had been introduced for taking away their votes in the upper Houfe; fubfequently there *Life and Continuation, i. 94 (Ed. 1827). had been several sharp debates on a propofal to fequefter them from giving votes on the difabling bill, because they should not thereby be at once parties and judges: yet this was the time felected by Charles for preffing with characteristic vehemence the inveftiture of five new bifhops, of whom four had fat in the Convocation which impofed the difputed Canons! In writing to Edinburgh, propofal Nicholas had been careful to recount the furprise to make he heard expreffed that any man fhould move ones. his Majefty for making of bifhops in those times, to which his Majefty wrote inftantly back that on no account was there to be any delay; and at the very moment thefe letters were thus interchanged, Mr. Oliver Cromwell Cromhad carried in the Commons, by a majority of eighteen, a motion for a conference with the motion. Lords to stay the investiture. "This bufi "nefs," fays D'Ewes, "was debated with as great earneftness almost as I ever faw in the "House." five new well's counter The earnestness had certainly not abated a few days later, when, the time limited for pleading to the impeachment having arrived, the impeached bishops were to put in their Bishops' anfwer; and a demurrer was entered on their demurrer behalf so skilfully drawn up, that the curiofity was great to ascertain its author. It came on for difcuffion in the Houfe; and the one of Hampden's counsel who had argued with most confummate ability against fhip-money, and who had not heretofore been very friendly to bishops, Mr. Holborne, member for St. fupports Holborne Michael's, and of late entirely leagued with bithops. Holborne: Hyde, got up to fupport it. Hereupon Sir Simonds D'Ewes, that wealthy and refpected country gentleman and collector of precedents and records, who now fat for Sudbury, ex-high-fheriff of Suffolk but formerly student and barrifter of the Middle Temple, D'Ewes made a lucky hit. He complimented his replies to learned friend; recalled the days when they used to meet at mootes in Lincoln's Inn, and admitted that, of all men, he was wont to get deepest into the points of a cafe; but, truly, he had this day fo ftrongly maintained the plea and demurrer of the bishops, that he could not have performed it more exactly if he himself had drawn the fame. Something here perhaps in Holborne's manner betrayed him, but a loud laugh burft forth which was kept up fome time. "All the House laughed "fo long," fays D'Ewes, "as I was fain to "remain filent a good while; for I believe many in the Houfe did fufpect, as well as myself, that either the faid Mr. Holborne "had wholly drawn them, or at least had raifing laugh againft him. Beginning of the end. given his affiftance therein." It was quite true; but the great fhip-money lawyer took little for his pains in having thus come to the refcue. Upon the fuccefs of the demurrer, Pym headed a conference with the Lords; demanded, in the name of the Commons, that the votes of the bishops fhould be suspended until the fate of the bill under difcuffion was decided; and fo began the conflict with the Right Reverend Bench which ended in their committal to the Tower. In like manner it fared with the two other counter queftions, control of his Army and choice of his moves. At the same time, being far the most practi- Prudence cal man in the House, he never infifted upon city of and fagaany propofition, however in itself defirable, Pym. which carried with it the danger of dividing his party ;* ;* fetting himself to discover, in all fuch cafes, a lefs objectionable mode of effecting the fame object; and Oliver St. John, who continued to hold the office of Solicitor-General, having pointed out the ill confequence, to many members, of fuch a refolution as that objected to by Waller, abfolving the House under any conditions from its neceffary engagement to Gives affift in reducing the Irish Rebellion, Pym at effect to once recast his refolution, and brought it for- fuggeftion of St. ward in its new form on the 8th of November. John. Substantially it was the fame as at firft; but fo expreffed, that while it met the objection of St. John, it alfo met with greater directness what was known to be the purpose of the King. Affuming that his Majesty should not Position * See other illustrations of this in my Arrest of the Five Members, § xxiii. Rebellion. of House be graciously pleased to difmifs his evil coun- thereon. Orlando Bridgman led the oppofition, and after a long and fierce debate Pym's refolution paffed by a majority of 151 to 110. Then, at a conference with the Lords the following day, every step to which had been hotly contefted in the Commons, he obtained their confent to the introduction of a fimilar claufe against evil counsellors into the inftructions for requesting help from the Scotch Parliament. for fuppreffion of the Irish Rebellion; and this after a fpeech confummate in its power and effect, and remarkable for the fubtlety of its argument against the Roman Catholic religion as in its full indulgence incompatible with the existence in a State, not only of any other form of religion, but of any form whatever of political government and freedom. It is alfo a fact full of fignificance that on the |