The Lords
had ordered Laud to collate the vacant benefices in his gift on persons
nominated by themselves, the king forbade him to obey. The death[a] of the
rector of Chartham, in Kent, brought his constancy to the test. The Lords
named one person to the living, Charles another; and the archbishop, to
extricate himself from the dilemma, sought to defer his decision till the
right should have
[Footnote 1: Baillie, i. 408, 413, 440; ii. 27, 31, 33, 36, 73, 74, 75.
Rush. v. 785. Journals, Sept. 24, Nov. 26, Jan. 1, 4, March 5. Journals of
Lords, 119, 121. See "Confessions of Faith, &c. in the Church of Scotland,"
159-194.]
[Sidenote a: A.D. 1643 Feb. 3.] lapsed to the crown; but the Lords made a
peremptory order, and when he attempted to excuse his disobedience, sent a
message[a] to the Commons to expedite his trial. Perhaps they meant only
to intimidate; but his enemies seized the opportunity; a committee was
appointed; and the task of collecting and preparing evidence was committed
to Prynne, whose tiger-like revenge still thirsted for the blood of his
former persecutor.[1] He carried off[b] from the cell of the prisoner his
papers, his diary, and even his written defence; he sought in every quarter
for those who had formerly been prosecuted or punished at the instance of
the archbishop, and he called on all men to discharge their duty to God and
their country, by deposing to the crimes of him who was the common enemy of
both.
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