curred in petitioning the king to fuppress the growing infolence of the clergy. Upon this a hearing was appointed before the king with all the judges and his temporal council. It will be too tedious to infert here the particulars of the dispute, which are to be feen in the hiftory of the reformation: but in short, Dr. Standish, who was ecclefiaftical council for the king, maintained his arguments against the immunities of the church with fo much reafon, and fo clearly confuted the affertions. of the abbot, that all the laity present were fo confirmed in their former opinions, that the bishops were moved to order the abbot to make a recantation of his fermon in the place, where he had preached it; but they all flatly refused to do it, and openly juftified the affertions of the abbot in every point. As this was followed by very great heats in parliament, an affair, that fell out just after, made the matter to be prosecuted still more warmly the Michaelmas term following.

One Richard Hunne, a merchant-taylor in London, was fued in the ecclefiaftical court by a Middlefex clerk for refusing a mortuary, which the clerk pretended was due to him on account of a child of Hunne's that had died five weeks old. As this spiritual court fat by the legate's authority, therefore was a foreign

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foreign court, Hunne was advised to fue the clerk in a præmanire. The clergy were touched to the quick at this, and ufed all their arts to faften herefy on Hunne; and having found Wickliffe's bible in his cuftody, he was taken up, and put in the Lollards tower at St. Paul's, and had feveral articles of herefy objected to him by the bishop of London. On his examination he denied them in the manner charged upon him; but owned he had faid fome things, which might feem to tend that way, for which he was forry, and afked God's pardon, and fubmitted to the bishop's correction. For this, fays our author, he should have been enjoined penance, and fet at liberty. But as he fill continued his fuit in the king's court, he was used in a barbarous manner; for foon after he was found hanged in the chamber, where he was prifoner. This was given out to be done by himfelf; but when the coroner held his inqueft on the body, fo many circumstances appeared, that made it undeniably evident, he was murdered; upon which the dead body was acquitted, and the murder charged upon the officers of the prifon : and by other proofs, they found the bishop's fumner and bell-ringer guilty of it; and by the depofition of the fumner himself it appeared, that Dr. Horfey, the bishop Lon

don's

don's chancellor, and he, and the bell-ringer did murder him, and then hang him up.

At the fame time the bishop began a new process against Hunne for herefy; of which being found guilty, he was delivered over to the fecular power to be burnt, which was accordingly done in Smithfield. When judgment was given, the bishops of Durham and Lincoln, with many doctors both of divinity and canon-law fat with the bishop of London; fo that this (fays our Author) was looked on as an act of the whole clergy, and done by common confent. The intent of this was -to ftifle all enquiry about the murder; for it was fuppofed that when once the deceafed had been declared a heretic, no man would be fo bold as to appear for him. quite otherwife. The city of raged to the greatest degree at the cruelty of the clergy, and made it a common caufe. That a poor fellow for fuing a clerk according to law, fhould be long imprisoned, and at laft murdered, and the reproach of it caft upon himself to defame him, and ruin his family; and then to burn the dead body that had been fo ufed, was thought fuch a complication of cruelties, as few Barbarians had ever been guilty of.

But it fell out

London was en

So that notwithstanding the very great pains taken to stop the proceedings, and the endeavours of the cardinal to forbid their going on, the thing was fo foul and evident, that they were ineffectual: and the trial went on, and the chancellor and fumner were indicted as principals in the murder. Hunne's children were also restored in parliament.

The convocation, which was now fitting, finding all this flir made, refolved to call Dr. Standish to an account; whofe arguments in the affair before mentioned they thought greatly to have contributed in raising this flame. When he was firft fummoned, fome articles were objected to him by word of mouth concerning the judging of clerks in civil courts; but the next day a bill was delivered to him in writing, to which a day was appointed for his answer.

Standish finding they were determined to opprefs him, begged the king's protection for what he had done only in discharge of his duty, as his counfel: but the clergy pretended to the king, that it was for fomething he had faid in his lectures, which he had read at St. Paul's and therefore begged him to maintain the rights of the church. On the other hand, the temporal lords and houfe of commons addreffed

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dreffed the king to maintain the temporal jurifdiction, and protect Standish from the malice of his enemies. Upon this the king appointed the matter to be argued at Black-friars, where he ordered his council fpiritual and temporal, all the judges, and fome of both houfes to be prefent. I fhall not relate the arguments on both fides here; but after the debate all the judges gave their opinion, that all thofe of the convocation, who did award the citation against Standifo, were guilty of a præmunire. The court then broke up. But at another meeting foon after, the king having exprefs'd his opinion in favour of Standish, and that he was refolved to maintain the rights of the -crown and temporal jurifdiction; the archbishop of Canterbury begged the matter might be fo long refpited, till they could get an anfwer from the court of Rome, and they would then conform themselves to the laws of the Jand in whatever was confiftent with the law of God. To this the king made no answer then, but upon his command Standish was foon after difmifs'd out of the court of convácation. And the king, not willing to break off with the clergy about Hunne's affair, came to this expedient, that Dr. Horfes, who had abfconded in the archbishop's houfe, (tho' it was pretended he was prifoner there) fince warrants had been out to apprehend him, should render

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