Marginalia1558.vp in such blasphemous blyndnes, and not to nurture them betyme in the rudimentes of the Christian Catechisme, to know first their creation, and then their red?ption in Christ our Sauiour: to feare the name of GOD, & to reuerence his Maiestie. For els what do they deserue but to be taken away by death, which c?temptuously despise him, of whom they take the benefite of lyfe?

And therfore let all young maydes, boyes, & young men, take example by this wretched seely wench, not onely not to blaspheme the sacrate Maiestie of the omnipot?t God their creator, but also not once to take his name in vayne, accordyng as they are taught in his commaundementes.

MarginaliaA lesson to fathers and Godfathers.Secondly, let all Fathers, Godfathers, and Godmothers take this for a warnyng, to see to the instruction and Catechising of their children, for whom they haue bounde them selues in promise both to GOD and to his Church. Which if the Father, and Godfather, the mother and Godmothers had done to this young gyrle, verely it may bee thought this destruction had not fallen vpon her.

Thirdly, all blynde Atheistes, Epicures, Mammonistes, belly Gods of this world, & sonnes of Beliall, hypocrites, infidelles, and mockers of Religion, whiche say in their hartes (there is no God) learne also hereby, not onely what God is, and what he is able to do, MarginaliaA lesson to all Atheistes, Epicures, and Infidels.but also in this miserable creature here punished in this world, to behold what shall likewise fall on them in the world to come, vnlesse they will be warned betyme, by such examples as the Lord God doth geue them.

MarginaliaA lesson to all blasphemers and swearers.Fourthly and lastly, here may also be a spectacle for all them whiche be blasphemous and abhominable swearers or rather tearers of GOD, abusing his glorious name in such contemptuous and despitefull sorte as they vse to do. Whom if neither the worde and commaundement of GOD, nor the callyng of the Preachers, nor remorse of conscience, nor rule of reason, nor their witheryng age, nor horye heares will admonishe: yet let these terrible examples of Gods district Iudgement somewhat moue them to take heede to them selues. For if this young mayden, who was not fully xij. yeares old, for her vnreuerent speaking of God (and that but at one tyme) did not escape the stroke of Gods terrible hand, what then haue they to looke for, which beyng men growen in yeares, and stricken in age, beyng so often warned and preached vnto, yet cease not continually with their blasphemous othes, not onely to abuse his name, but also most contumeliously and despitefully to teare him (as it were) and all his partes in peeces?

MarginaliaLeuar of Abingdon, a blasphemer of Gods Martyrs, plagued.About the yeare of our Lord. 1565. at Bryhtwell in the County of Barkshyre, vppon certaine communication as touchyng the right reuerent Martyrs in Christ Byshoppe Cranmer, Byshop Ridley and Maister Hugh Latymer, there came into an house in Abyngdon one whose name is Leuar, beyng a Plowman, dwellyng in Bryhtwell aforesayd, and sayd, that he saw that euill fauoured knaue Latymer when he was burned: And also in despite sayd, that he had teeth like a horse. At which tyme and houre, as neare as could be gathered, the sonne of the sayd Leauer most wickedly hanged him selfe, at Shepton in the County aforesayd within a myle of Abyngdon.

These wordes were spoken in the hearyng
of me Thomas Ienens of Abyngdon.

MarginaliaTho. Arundell Archb. of Canterbury.Did not Thomas Arundell Archbyshop of Canterbury giue Sentence agaynst the Lord Cobham, and dyed him selfe before him, beyng so stricken in his toung, that neither he could swallow nor speake for a certaine space before his death? pag. 567.

MarginaliaFryer Champbell plagued.Frier Campbell, the accuser of Patrike Hamelton in Scotl?d what a terrible end he had, read before pag. 948.

MarginaliaGods Iudgement vpon Haruey a persecuting Commissary.Haruey a c?missary that c?d?ned a poore m? in Calyce, was shortly after h?ged, drawen, & quartered, pag. 1200.

MarginaliaGods iust plague vpon William Swallow.William Swallow the cruell tormentor of George Egles, was shortly after so plagued of God, that all the heare of his head, & nayles of his fingers & toes w?t of, his eyes welneare closed vppe, that he could scant see. His wife also was stricken with the fallyng sicknes, with the which malady she was neuer infected before, pag. 1902.

MarginaliaGods iuste plague vpon Richard Potto.Likewise Richard Potto, an other troubler of the sayd George Egles, vppon a certaine anger or chafe with hys seruauntes, was so sodenly taken with sickenesse, that fallyng vpon his bed like a beast there he dyed and neuer spake word. pag. 1902.

MarginaliaRichard Denton burned in his owne house.Richard Denton, a shrinker from the Gospell, while he refused to suffer the fire in the Lordes quarell, was afterward burned in his owne house with two moe. pag. 1622.

MarginaliaFettyes wyfe stricken with madnes.The wife of Iohn Fetty beyng the cause of the takyng of her husband, how she was immediatly vppon the same by Gods hand stricken with madnes, and was distract out of her wittes, read before pag. 1949.

Thomas Mowse and George Reuet, ij. persecutours,

were stricken miserably with the hand of GOD, and so dyed, pag. 1811.

MarginaliaRob. Edgore bereft of his wittes.Also Robert Edgore, for that hee had executed the office of a Parishe Clarke agaynst his conscience, thorough anguish and grief of conscience for the same, was so bereft of his wittes, that he was kept in chaynes and bondes many yeares after. pag. 1811.

MarginaliaTwo Papistes of new Colledge in Oxford drowned themselues.As touchyng Iohn Plankney fellowe of New Colledge in Oxford, Ciuilian, and one Hanyngton, both fellowes of the same house aforesayd, and both stubborne Papistes, the matter is not much worthy the memory: yet the example is not vnworthy to be noted, to see what little comfort and grace commonly followeth the comfortles doctrine & profession of Papistry, as in these ij. young men, amongest many other may well appeare. Of whom the one, whiche was Plankney, scholer sometyme to Marshall (who wrote the booke of the Crosse) is commonly reported and knowen to them of that Vniuersitie, to haue drowned him selfe in the riuer about Ruly, at Oxford, an. 1566: the other in a well about Rome, or as some do say, at Padua, and so being both drowned, were both taken vp with Crucifixes, as it is sayd of some, hangyng about their neckes: the more pitie, that such young studentes did so much addict their wittes, rather to take the way of Papistry, then to walke in the comfortable light of the Gospell, now so brightly spreadyng his beames in all the world, whiche if they had done I thinke not the contrary, but it had proued much better with them.

MarginaliaA story of a Courtier and one of the Garde, which happened. an. 1568.Albeit (I trust) the Gospell of Christ beyng now receaued in the Queenes Court amongest the Courtiers and seruauntes of her Garde, hath framed their lyues and manners, so to lyue in the due feare of GOD and temperaunce of lyfe, with all sobrietie, and mercyfull compassion toward their euenchristen, that they neede not greatly any other instructions to be geuen them in this story: yet for so much as examples many tymes doe worke more effectually in the myndes and memoryes of men: and also partly consideryng with me selfe, how these, aboue all other sortes of men in the whole Realme, in tyme past haue euer had most neede of such holesome lessons and admonitions,MarginaliaAdmonition to Courtiers. to leaue theyr vnordinate ryot of quaffyng and drinking, and their Heathenish prophanatie of lyfe: I thought here to set before their eyes a terrible example, not of a straunge and foreine person, but of one of their own Coate, a Yeoman of the Gard, not fayned by me, but brought to me by Gods prouidence for a warnyng to all Courtiers, and done of very truth no longer agoe then in the yeare of our Lord. 1568. And as the story is true, so is the name of the partie not vnknowen, beyng called Christopher Landesdale, dwellyng in Hackney in Midlesex. The order of whose lyfe, and maner of his death beyng woorthy to be noted, is this as in story here vnder foloweth.

MarginaliaAn example of Christopher Landesdale, one of the Garde, for all Courtiers to looke vpon.This foresayd Landesdale beyng maried to an auncient woman yet liuyng, hauyng by her both goodes and landes, notwithst?dyng liued long in filthy whoredome with a yo?ger woman, by whom he had two children, a sonne and a daughter, and kept them in his house vnto the day of hys death. Also when he should haue bene in seruyng of God on the Sabbaoth day, hee vsed to walke or ride about his fieldes, & seldome he or any of his house came to the Church after the English seruice was agayne receiued. Besides this, he was a great swearer and a great drunkard, and had great delight also in makyng other men drunken, and would haue them whom he made drunkardes, to call him father, and he would call them his sonnes: and of these sonnes by report, he had aboue fourty. And if he had seene one that would drinke freely, he would marke him, and spend his money with him liberally in ale, or wyne, but most in wine to make him the sooner dr?ken. These blessed sonnes of his should haue great cheare oft?tymes, both at his owne house and at tauernes: & not long before his death he was so beastly drunken in a tauerne ouer agaynst his doore, that he fell down in the tauerne yarde, and could not arise alone, but lay grouelyng, till he was holpen vp and so caryed home.

MarginaliaLandesdale a feaster of the rich and vnmercifull to the poore.This father of drunkardes, as he was a great feaster of the riche and wealthy of Hackney and others, so hys poore neighbours and poore tenauntes fared little the better for him: except it were with some broken meate, which after his feastes, his wife would cary and send vnto them, or some almes geuen at his doore.

Besides all this, he did much iniury to his poore neighbours in oppressyng the commons neare about him, which was a speciall relief vnto them, so that his cattell eate vp all without pitie or mercy.

MarginaliaPoore Lazarus lying by the rich mans doore.There chaunced after this about two yeares before hee dyed, a poore man, beyng sicke of the bloudy flixe, for very, weakenes, to lye downe in a ditche of the sayd Landesdales not a stones cast from his house, where he had a litle straw brought him. Notwithstandyng the sayd Landesdale had