Marginalia1558. Nouemb.my profite and to saue my soule. No no, one hath saued me. Farewell you with your saluation. Much other talke there was betwene her and thē, which here were to tedious to be expressed.

In the meane time during this her monthes libertie graunted to her by the Byshop, which we spake of before, it happened that she entring in S. Peters church, behelde a cunning Dutchman how he made new noses to certayne fine Images which were disfigured in K. Edwardes tyme: what a mad man art thou (sayd she) to make thē new noses, which within a fewe dayes shall all lose their heades. The Dutchmā accused her and layd it hard to her charge. And she sayd to him: thou art accursed, and so are they Images. He called her whore. Nay (sayd she) thy Images are whores, and thou art a whore hunter: for doth not God say you goe a whoring after straunge Gods, figures of your owne making? and thou art one of them. Then was she sent for and clapped fast: and from that tyme she had no more liberty.

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During the tyme of her imprisonment, diuers resorted to her, to visite her, some sent of the Byshop, some of their owne voluntary will: amongst whom was one Daniell,MarginaliaThe reuolting of one Daniell a minister, from the Gospell to Popery, in Q. Maries time. a great doer & preacher sometimes of the Gospell, by the dayes of K. Edward, in those parties of Cornewall and Deuonshyre, whom after that she perceaued by his owne confession, to haue reuolted from that which he preached before, through the greuous imprisonmentes (as he sayd) & feare of persecution, which he partly had susteined by the cruell Iustices in those parties, earnestly she exhorted him to repent with Peter, & to be more cōstant in his profession.

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Moreouer there resorted to her a certayne worthy gentlewoman, the wife of one Walter Rauley,  

a woman of noble wit and of a good and Godly opiniō, came to the prison and talked with her: she sayd her creede to the Gentlewoman, & when she came to the Article: He ascended, there she stayed, and bad the Gentlewoman to seeke his blessed body in heauen, not in earth, and tolde her playnly that God dwelleth not in tēples made with handes, and that sacrament to be nothing els but a remembrance of his blessed passion, & yet (sayd she) as they now vse it, it is but an Idoll and farre wide from any remembraunce of Christes body: which (sayd she) will not long continue, and so take it good mistres. So that as sone as she came home to her husbād, she declared to him, that in her life she neuer heard a woman (of such simplicity to see to) talke so godly, so perfectly, so sincerely, and so earnestly: in somuch þ^t if God were not with her, she could not speake such thinges: to þ^e which I am not able to aunswere her (sayd she) who can read and she cannot.

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Also there came to her here one MarginaliaWilliam and Iohn Kede, two godly brethren.William Kede, and Iohn his brother, not onely brethren in þ^e flesh, but also in the truth, and men in that countrey of great credit, whose father Robert Kede all his life suffred nothing but trouble for the Gospell. These ij. good and faithfull brethren were present with her both in the hall and also at the prison, & (as they reported) they neuer heard the like woman: of so godly talke, so faithfull, or so constant, and as godly exhortations she gaue them.

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Thus this good matrone, the very seruant and handmaid of Christ, MarginaliaThe constancie of thys woman many wayes tryed.was by many wayes tried, both by hard prisonment, threatninges, tauntes, and scornes, called an Anabaptist, a mad woman, a drunkard, a whore, a runnagate. She was proued by liberty to go whether she would: she was tryed by flattery, with many fayre promises: she was tryed with her husband, her goods and children: but nothing coulde preuayle: her hart was fixed, she had cast her anker, vtterly contemning this wicked world: A rare ensample of constancie to all professors of Christes holy Gospell.

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In the bil of my information, it is so reported to me, that albeit she was of such simplicity and without learning, yet you could declare no place of Scripture but

she would tell you the chapter: yea she would recite to you the names of all the bookes of the Bible. For which cause one Gregory BassetMarginaliaGregory Baßet a rayling Papist. a rancke Papist sayd, she was out of her witte, and talked of the Scripture as a dogge rangeth farre of from his master when he walketh in the fieldes, or as a stolen sheepe out of his master handes, she wist not wherat, as all heretickes do, with many other such taūtes, which she vtterly defied. Whereby as almighty God is highly to be praysed, workyng so mightily in such a weake vessell: MarginaliaThe constant pacience in this woman and Martyr to be noted.so men of stronger and stouter nature haue also to take example how to stand in like case: when as we see this poore woman, how manfully she went through with such constancie and pacience.

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At the last, when they perceaued her to be past remedy, and had consumed all their threatninges, that by neither prisonment not libertie, by manaces nor flattery they could bryng her to sing any other song, nor win her to their vanities & superstitious doinges, then they cried out, an Anabaptist, an Anabaptist. MarginaliaThe woman brought from the Bishops prison to the Guild Hall.Thē at a day they brought her from the Byshops prison to the Guild hall, and after that deliuered her to the temporall power accordyng to their custome, MarginaliaExhortations to haue her recant.where she was by the Gentlemen of the countrey exhorted yet to call for grace and to leaue her fonde opinions: And goe home to thy husband (sayd they): thou art an vnlearned woman, thou art not able to aunswere to such high matters.

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MarginaliaThe constant standing of this woman.I am not, sayd she: yet with my death I am content to be a witnes of Christes death: and I pray you make no longer delay with me: my hart is fixed, I will neuer otherwise say, nor turne to their superstitious doinges.

Then the Bishop sayd MarginaliaBlasphemy of the Byshop.the deuill did lead her.

No my Lord (sayd she) it is the spirite of God which leadeth me, and which called me in my bed, MarginaliaHow God reueiled hys truth vnto her.and at midnight opened his truth to me. Then was there a great shoote and laughyng among the Priestes and other.

During þ^e time that this good poore womā was thus vnder these priestes handes, amongest many other baitynges and sore conflictes which she susteined by thē, here is moreouer not to be forgotten, how that M. Blaxton aforesayd, beyng treasurer of the Church, had a concubine which sondry tymes resorted to him, with other of his Gossips: so that alwayes when they came, this said good woman was called forth to his house, there to make his minion with þ^e rest of the company, some mirth, he examining her with such mocking and gyring, deridyng the truth, that it would haue vexed any Christian hart to haue seene it. Then whē he had lōg vsed his foolishnes in this sort, and had sported him self inough in deriding this Christen Martyr: in þ^e end he sent her to prison againe, & there kept her very miserably, sauing that sometimes he would send for her when his foresaid gest came to him, to vse with her his accustomed folie aforesaid. But in fine, these vile wretches (after many combates, & scoffing persuasiōs) whē they had played the part of the Cat with the mouse, at length condemned her and deliuered her ouer to the secular power.

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MarginaliaIudgement geuen agaynst this good woman.Then the Inditement beyng geuen & read, which was, that she should go to the place whence she came, and frō thēce to be led to þ^e place of execution, then and there to be burned with flames till she should be consumed: she lifted vp her voyce, MarginaliaShe thanketh God for her iudgement geuen.and thanked God saying: I thanke thee my Lord my God, this day haue I found that which I haue long sought. But such outcries as there were agayne, and such mockynges, were neuer seene vpō a poore seely womā: All which she most paciently tooke. And yet this fauour they pretended after her Iudgement, that her life should be spared if she would turne & recant. MarginaliaAgayne she denieth to recant.Nay that will I not (sayd she): God forbid that I should lose the lyfe eternall for this carnall and short lyfe. I will neuer turne from my heauenly husband to my earthly husband: from the fellowship of Aungels to mortall children: and if my husband,

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