in those so couragious campers, but well was he that first could be gone. And so ceased this tumultuous outrage, without any other partyng, onely throughe the authoritie of the Lord Cromwels name.

MarginaliaA storye betwene the Lord Cromwell & a Ruffin.One example more of the like affinitie cōmeth here in mynde, whiche ought not to be omitted, concernyng a certeine seruyng man of the lyke ruffynly order, who thinking to disceuer hym self frō the common vsage of all other men in straūge newfanglenes of fashions by hym self (as many there be whō nothyng doth please, whiche is dayly sene and receaued) vsed to go with hys heare hangyng about hys eares down vnto hys shoulders, after a straunge monstruous maner counterfetyng belyke the wilde Irishe men, or els Crinitus Ioppas  

, which Vergil speaketh of, as one wery of his own Englishe fashion: or els as one ashamed to be sene lyke a man, would rather go like a woman, or lyke to one of the Gorgon sisters, but most of all lyke to hym selfe, that is, lyke to a ruffin, that could not tell how to go.

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MarginaliaThe Ruffin with the long heare.As this ruffyne ruffling thus with his lockes, was walkyng in the streates, as chaunce was, who should meete him but the Lord Cromwell, who beholding the deforme and vnseemely maner of hys disguised goyng, full of much vanitie, & hurtfull example, called þ^e mā to question with him, whose seruaunt he was, whiche beyng declared, then was it demaūded, whether his master, or any of hys felowes vsed so to go, with such heere about their shoulders as he did, or no? Whiche when he denyed, and was not able to yelde any reason for refuge of that hys monstruous disguysing, at length he fell to thys excuse that he had made a vowe. To this the Lord Cromwell aunswered agayne, that for so much as hee had made hym selfe a votarie, hee woulde not force hym to breake hys vowe, but vntill his vowe should be expired, he should lye the meane tyme in prison, & so sent hym immediatly to þ^e Marshalsey: where he endured, till at length, this intonsus Cato  

beyng persuaded by hys master to cut his heare, by suyte and petition of frendes, hee was brought agayne to the Lord Cromwell with his head poled accordyng to the accustomed sorte of hys other felowes, and so was dismissed.

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MarginaliaFrier Barteley casteth away hys Friers coule.To the lyke exāple also perteineth, that when Frier Bartley after the abolishing of Friers and Monkes woulde needes keepe hys Friers weede still for hys vowes sake, the Lord Cromwell metyng hym in the streate, so handled the Frier, that hee before one of the clocke, the same day, put awaye hys coule and neuer durst were it after.

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If the same Lord Cromwell which could not abyde this seruing man so disfigured in his heare, were now in these our dayes alyue, with þ^e same authoritie, which thē he had, & saw these new fangled fashions of attire, vsed here amongest vs both of men and women, I suppose verely, that neither these monstruous ruffes, nor these prodigious hose, and prodigall or rather hyperboricall barbarous breeches (whiche seme rather lyke barels, the breeches) would haue any place in England. In which vnmeasurable excesse of vesture, this I haue to maruell: first how these seruing men, which cōmonly haue nothing els but their wages, & that so slender & bare, cā mayntein such sloppes, so huge, & so sūptuous which commonly stand them in more, then their three yeares wages do come vnto. MarginaliaThese monstrous sloppes of Englād lacke a Cromwell. Secōdly I meruell, that their masters and Lordes (who shal yelde to God a counte of their seruauntes doynges) do not searche and trye out their seruauntes walkes, how they come by these expenses, wherewith to vpholde this brauery, seyng their stipēdary wages and all reuenues els they haue, will not extend therunto. Thirdly, this most all is to be marueled, that Magistrates, which haue in their handes the ordering and guiding of good lawes, do not prouide more seuerely for the nedefull reformation of these enormities. But here we may well see, and truly this may say, that England once had a Cromwell.

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Long it were to recite, what innumerable benefites this worthy Counsellour by his prudent pollicie, hys graue authoritie, and perfect zeale wrought & brought to passe in the publicke Realme, and especially in the Church of England: what good orders hee established, what wickednes and vices he suppressed, what corruptions he reformed, what abuses hee brought to light, what crafty iugglyngs, what Idolatrous deceptions, and superstitious illusions hee detected and abolished out of the Churche. MarginaliaDiuers corruptions in the Church detected and refourmed by Cromwell.What posteritie will euer thinke the Churche of the Pope pretendyng such Religion  

, to haue bene so wicked, so lōg to abuse the peoples eyes, with an old rooten stocke   MarginaliaThe Roode of Grace gogling with hys eyes.(called þ^e roode of grace) wherin a man should stand inclosed with an hūdreth wyers within þ^e roode, to make the Image goggle with þ^e eyes, to nodde with his head, to hang the lyppe, to moue and shake his iawes, accordyng as the value was of the gift whiche was offered? If it were a small peece of siluer, he would hang a frownyng lyppe: if it were a peece of gold, thē should his iawes go merely. Thus miserably was the people of Christ abused, their soules seduced, their senses begyled, and their purses spoyled, till this Idolatrous forgery at last, by Cromwels meanes was disclosed, and the Image, with all his ingines shewed openly at Paules Crosse, and there torne in peeces by the people. MarginaliaThe bloud of Hales.The lyke was done with þ^e bloud of Hales, whiche in lyke maner by Cromwell was brought to Paules Crosse and there proued to bee the bloud of a Ducke.  

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Who would haue iudged, but that þ^e mayde of Kent had bene an holy woman, MarginaliaThe holy maide of Kent, read before. pag. 1199.and a Prophetesse inspired  

, had not Cromwell and Cranmer tried her at Paules Crosse to be a strong whore?

What should I speake of Daruell Gatharen  

, of the Roode of Chester   , of Tho. Becket  

Commentary     Close

I.e., the shrine of St. Thomas Becket at Canterbury.

, our Lady of Walsingham, with an infinite multitude more of the lyke affinitie? MarginaliaStockes and blockes remoued out of the way.All which stockes and blockes of cursed Idolatrie, Cromwell styrred vp by the prouidence of God, remoued out of þ^e peoples way, that they might walke more safely in the sincere seruice of almighty God.

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While the Lorde Cromwell was thus blessedly occupyed in profityng the common wealth, and purgyng the Church of Christ, it happened to hym, as commonly it doth to all good men, that where any excellencie of vertue appeareth, there enuye creepeth in: and where true pietie seketh most after Christ, there some persecution foloweth withall.

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Thus (I say) as hee was laboryng in the common wealth, and doyng good to the poore afflicted Saintes, helpyng them out of trouble, the malice of his enemies so wrought, continuallye huntyng for matter agaynst hym, that they neuer ceased, till in the end they by false traynes and crafty surmises, brought hym out of the kynges fauour.

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MarginaliaSte. Gardiner chiefe enemie to the Lorde Cromwell.The chief and principall enemy agaynst hym, was Steuen Gardiner Byshop of Winchester, who euer disdaynyng and enueyng the state and felicitie of the Lord Cromwell, and now takyng hys occasion by the Mariage of Lady Anne of Cleue, MarginaliaRead before pag. 1296.beyng a straunger and forener, put in þ^e kyngs eares what a perfect thing it were for þ^e quyet of þ^e Realme, and establishement of the kinges succession to haue an Englishe Queene and Prince that were mere English: so that in conclusion, the kynges affection, the more it was diminished from the late maryed Anne of Cleue, the lesse fauour hee bare vnto Cromwell  

. Besides this Gardiner, there lacked not other backe frēdes also and ilwyllers in the Court about þ^e kyng, whiche litle made for Cromwell, both for his Religion, whiche they maligned, and for other priuate grudges also incident by the way.

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Ouer and besides all whiche, it is moreouer supposed, that some parte of displeasure might ryse agaynst hym, by reason of a certayne talke, which happened a a litle before at Lambeth, at what tyme the kyng after the makyng of the vi. Articles, sent þ^e sayd Lord Crom-