warm dispute between the Non-Conformists and the Conformists, and these last having got the better, one of them cried aloud with a great transport of joy at his going out, Well, now the cause of Bel and the Dragon has carried it. This is what I learned from the book of that great man, Mr Andrew Marvel against Dr Parker.”
But we must not omit the subject of purity of communion. As the old English Book of Discipline (Norwich, 1589) explains, discipline against individual communicants, such as, summoning to appear before the consistory, censuring, and suspending from the sacraments, was not so much for punishment as for restoration. An interesting form of prayer was provided, to be used in the consistory at the time of an offender’s, orderly reconciliation to the church.
“Seigneur, Dieu et Pere, duquel les misericordes sont infinies, et qui ne desire point la mort du pecheur mais qu’il se convertisse et qu’il vive, puisque tu nous as donné ton fils bien aimé et [tu as] accepté le sacrifice de sa mort pour la rançon de nos pechés, suivant ce qui nous est enseigné que la joye est grande au ciel pour la repentance des pecheurs — Nous te rendons graces de ta bonté et misericorde envers notre frère ici present, te priants lui faire cette grace que de plus en plus par une vraie repentance il soit de tout converti à toi, le lavant et purifiant en sang de ton fils notre Seigneur Jesus Christ. Et lui fais cette faveur, par ta misericorde, de l’enter tellement en ton fils notre Seigneur Jesus Christ et le conserver au berçail de ton eglise, qu'il puisse avec nous tous perseverer le reste de ses jours en la crainte de ton saint nom, a l’avancement de ta gloire et edification de ton eglise. Exauce nous, Père de misericorde, au nom de ton fils notre Seigneur Jesus Christ. Amen.”
According to this refugees’ Livre de la Disiplinne, the Lord’s Supper was dispensed four times in the year, and provision was made for the public profession of their faith by young persons on the Lord’s Day before each Communion Sabbath. In the French Church of Southampton, the names of persons admitted to the Lord’s Supper were inserted in the register, thus:—
3 Juillet 1580,
Jan Vautier, jeusne fils, chez Guillaume Hersen.
2 Octobre 1580,
Suzanne Le Roy dit De Bouillon, jeusne fille.
Section VI.
NATURALIZATION TO 1680, WITH LISTS OF NAMES.
The historical facts, which I have collected concerning the naturalization of foreigners, may be prefaced by some topics connected with freedom of trade. This will be convenient, because the Calendars in our Public Record Office indicate that this is the subject of the earliest surviving State Papers regarding the social position of foreign refugees.
The terms which first strike the attention of an investigator are the words post and postmaster. The best explanation of the foreigners’ post is contained in the 6th article of the Canterbury Agreement:— “Item, they may have a post with horse or waggons to carry and re-carry their wares, as well to London as elsewheare, for to sell theare or cause them to be sould, without interruption by the waie or other the said places.”[1] The post was an establishment of men and means for the carriage of goods from one part of England to another, and also, apparently, from England to foreign parts. The men connected with such an establishment were called posts. In the census of strangers in London in 1571, we find the following “posts”:—
“Olyver Detrymont, a soiornour, a Frenchman, and haith byne here the space of xxxviii yeres, and lyveth by the trade of a post.”
“John Phillippe, the post betwene this cytie and Sandwiche, borne in Flaunders, who hath byn here iii yeares, and is of the Frenche churche.”
And in the census of 1618, there are the following entries:—
“Daniell Mercer, the sonne of a straunger, born at London, a post.”
“Alexsander Clemment, one of the Dutch poast; he is nowe in the lowe contrey” [the Netherlands].
- ↑ Burn, p. 275.
