Dr. Calamy closes his Account of the ejected ministers in this county, with answering the Remarks made upon it by the compilers of the large work, entitled, Magna Britannia & Hibernia, & Antiqua Nova. The greater part of what the Dr. has advanced, is applicable to the ejected ministers in general, and is therefore here omitted. The following, which is the concluding passage, may properly be retained.

"As for the ejecting and silencing so many useful Protestant preachers in this county, where, as these gentlemen observe, Papists abound more than in any other part of England, this was most certainly a very impolitic step, in any who had the Protestant interest at heart. And after this, to complain, that the Protestants did not get ground in this county so fast as might be wished, is just as if, upon a country's being invaded by an enemy, a considerable number of the able inhabitants should be disarmed, and they that did it should afterwards find fault that the enemy should take ad advantages of it."

The following afterwards conformed.

Mr. BRADLEY HAYHURST, of Leith.-Mr. ASPINWELL, of Heaton. Mr. JOSHUA AMBROSE, of Derby.-Mr. WILLIAM COLE, of Preston.-Mr. WILLIAM COLEBURN, of Ellinburgh.-Mr. LOBEN, of Oldham.-Mr. JAMES BOCKER, of Blakely.-Mr. WILLIAM ASPINWELL, of Formeby.-Mr. BRIARS, of Heapy.-Mr. FISHER, of Kirkham.Mr. JAKEYS, of Bolton. Mr. JESSOP, of Winwick; who died at Coggeshal in Essex.-Mr. ROBERT DEwHURST, of Whitmouth chapel.. One of this name (probably the same person) is mentioned by Whitaker as being at Newchurch, Rossendale, 1650: "An able divine, who received no allowance but what the inhabitants gave. He seems to have gone out upon the Bartholomew-act."

The account of Mr. JOLLIE of Attercliffe, was received too late to be inserted in its proper place. It will be given, with the Addenda, at the end of the volume.

MINISTERS

MINISTERS EJECTED OR SILENCED

IN

LEICESTERSHIRE. *

BLABE

LABEY [R.] Mr. THOMAS BOSSE. He and Mr. Swayne, and Mr. Stephens of Fenny-Draton, were engaged in a dispute about Infant-baptism, against Mr. Robert Everard and other Baptists, in 1650; as appears from Mr. Swayne's' answer to Mr. Everard, at the end of Mr. Stephens's Precept for Infant-baptism, p. 64,

BOWDEN Magna. Mr. THOMAS LANGDEN. § Inducted 1656.

COLE-ORTON [R.] Mr. SAMUEL OLDERSHAW. Dr. Walker says he got this living in 1654. After his ejectment, he lived as chaplain in the family of Spademan, Esq. at Roadnook in Derbyshire. He afterwards commenced phy

sician.

CONGERSTON [C. or D.] Mr. GEORGE WRIGHT. A man of great piety, and an awakening and useful preacher. He had an extraordinary gift in prayer, and was favoured with some uncommon answers to his prayers. He had a great felicity in discoursing warmly on spiritual things, by which means God made him instrumental of good to many. After his ejectment he took a farm at King's-Heath, in the parish of King's-Norton, which he managed with great care and labour to maintain his family.

COTSBATCH [R.] Mr. JOSEPH LEE.

* Several additions in this county are communicated by Mr. Isaac James, from NICHOLS'S History of Leicestershire, in which are frequent quotations from the Nonconf. Mem.

DRAYTON

DRAYTON (Fenny) [R.] NATHANIEL STEVENS, M. A. Of Oxford University. His father was minister of StauntonBarnwood in Wilts. This living of Drayton was not, as Wood reports, a sequestration; Mr. Stevens was duly presented by the patron, Mr. Purefoy of Berkshire. Here he lived till the violence of the cavaliers, who threatened plunder, imprisonment and fire, drove him to seek sanctuary in Coventry. There, during the civil war, he preached on Lord's-day morning in the great church. At his return to Drayton he had trouble from some Baptists. The noted Quaker, George Fox came out of his little parish. Mr. Stephens had much discourse with him, but with little effect. He thought his time better spent in instructing a teachable people which he did very diligently. He took much pains in studying the book of the Revelation; and some apprehended that few ever did it to better purpose. Besides what he published himself, some few of his thoughts, being communicated to Mr. Poole, are to be found in his Synopsis. After his ejectment for Nonconformity in 1662, he continued in the town for some time, preaching privately, but was afterwards so molested, that he was forced to remove seven times for peace. At last he fixed at Stoke-Golding, where he exercised his ministry, as he had opportunity, till his death, in Feb. 1678, aged 72. He was a good scholar, and a useful preacher. In his younger days he was a very hard student, often spending sixteen hours a day in his study. His thoughts were sometimes so intent, that he would strangely forget himself. In his old age he was pleasant and chearful. As an instance of it, one acquainted with him relates that he went with a friend to his house, and knocked at the door; when, no one being within but himself who was lame, and his wife who was blind, he called to them to come in, and then asked them, which of the two they would have had open the door for them, the blind or the lame? He was a man of a generous catholic spirit, but had a great aversion to that ceremoniousness which was carried so high in the reign of Charles I. and would often tell a story of what happened in the West, when he was young. A clergyman coming into the church,

went up to the chancel to bow to the altar. It happened that there was no altar there, but the communion-table stood against the East-wall, and a boy sat upon it. The boy seeing him coming, slipt down and stood before the table. The priest made a low bow, and the poor boy thinking it was to him, bowed as low; and the bows were repeated three times

VOL. II.-NO. XIX.

CC

on

on each side; but the boy was surprized at the priest's wonderful complaisance. "In this case (said Mr. Stephens) the boy knew well enough who it was he himself bowed to; but whether or not it was so as with the priest is questionable : for the God whom Christians worship, is no more in the East than in the West; no more in the chancel than in the church; nor any more there than in the house or field, unless when his people are there worshipping him in spirit and truth. Before the coming of Christ, the Jews in the Western parts, worshipped towards the East, because Jerusalem and the temple stood that way (1 Kings viii. 48. Dan. vi. 10.) This might be the reason why some Christians in the primitive times prayed towards the East. But now Mount Sion is no more holy than Mount Gerizim, or the mountains in Wales. Happy were it for the world if John iv. 20-24, were generally understood."

WORKS. A Precept for the Baptism of Infants, out of the N. Test.-A plain and easy Calculation of the Number of the Beast; Rev xiii. 17, 18.-His [MS.] Treatises on the Revelation were, after his death, in the hand of Sir Charles Woolsley. Mr. Caldwell, of Cambridgeshire, had his leave to copy one of them, on the Slaughter of the Witnesses. Of this some account is given in Cal. Contin. p. 579.

DUNNINGTON (Castle) [V.] Mr. THOMAS SMITH. He was born at Kegworth in this county, of good parentage. He became the minister of this parish about the year 1657, and continued there till the fatal Bartholomew. His preaching and praying were very affectionate, and his life was exemplary. He was well beloved by his parish, and much lamented when silenced. His very enemies had nothing to say against him. When K. Charles gave a Toleration, he preached once a month freely at Dunnington, but lived not long after; having spent himself in his Master's service.

• In

EDMONTHORPE [R.] Mr. JOHN WRIGHT. ducted 1651." After his ejectment he retired to Lessingham near Sleaford in Lincolnshire, where he had a small estate. There he spent the remainder of his days, and was beloved and honoured by his neighbours, especially by Sir William York and his family, for his prudence, moderation, and usefulness, in promoting knowledge and piety amongst

them.

FOXTON [V.] Mr. JOHN WILSON.

§ GLOOSTON

§ GLOOSTON [R.] Mr. SAMUEL SMITH. His name is not mentioned by Dr. Calamy, but is undoubtly to be added to the list of ejected ministers, on the authority of Nichols, who in his History of Leicestershire, Vol. II. p. 586, has the following entry at this place. "Samuel Smith, 1657. He was one of the Nonconformist ministers, who signed the representation to parliament in 1659, and was ejected at the restoration."-See the list of all those ministers at the end of this county.

་་

GUMLEY [R. 120/.] NICHOLAS KESTYN, M. A. "Rector in 1644." (Nichols.) He was a man of eminent piety. After being silenced he went to Leicester, where he was pas tor of a congregation several years. He died at about 76 years of age.

HALLATON [R.] Mr. MAURITIUS BOHEMUS. A native of Germany, and nephew to Dr. Burgius, who was chaplain to the elector of Brandenburgh. He had a brother in the ministry, who was ejected from Sleaford, in Lincolnshire. After his ejectment from Hallaton, he returned to his own country. He was in good esteem for learning and piety. Nichols mentions him as rector here in 1654. In the parish registers are the following entries, which give some account of his family. "Jane, wife of Mr. Bohemus [proba"bly the father of the minister] buried Dec. 14, 1647.-Anne, daughter of Mr. Boheme, and Eliz. his wife, baptized "March 12, 1652.—Eliz. wife of Mauritius Bohemus, mi"nister, buried July 10, 1654.-Mauritius Bohemus, minister, and Hannah Vowe, published Jan. 13, 20, 27. "Married Feb. 27, 1656.

46

WORKS. Exercises on several Scriptures, (recommended by several learned divines.)-A Christian's Delight: or ScriptureMeditations, in one century: with an Appendix against promiscuous admission to the sacrament, and a Latin Dedicat. to Sir Arthur Haslerig.-An English Translation of a Work written in HighDutch, entitled, The Pearl of peace and concord; a treatise of pacification between the Dissenting churches, by Dr. Burgius.

HARBOROUGH [C. or D.] Mr. THOMAS LOWREY. He was a native of Scotland, and had a living in Essex before he came hither. § Nichols mentions him as inducted, Feb. 24, 1649, and says, "The moiety of the rectory of Whitwick was appointed to be given to Mr. Lowrey for an augmentation of his salary, the profits of Harborough not

being