them according to the dignitie of the office they execute: so have they also power and commandment, when anie such default, eyther in their lyfe, doctrine or administration breaketh out, as by the rule of the word debarreth them from, or depriveth them of their Ministerie, by due order to depose them from the Ministerie they exercised; yea, if the case so require, and they remayne obstinate and impenitent, orderly to cut them of by excommunication."— Art. xxiii. "Christ hath given this power to receive in, or to cut of, any member, to the whole body together of every Christian congregation, and not to any one member apart, or to more members sequestred from the whole, or to any other Congrègation to do it for them: yet so, as ech Congregation ought to vse the best help they can heerunto, and the most meet member they have to pronounce the same in their public assembly."— Art. xxiiii.

"Such as yet see not the truth, may notwithstanding heare the publik doctrine and prayers of the church, and with al meeknes are to bee sought by al meanes: yet none who are growne in yeares may bee received into their communion as members, but such as do make confession of their faith, publickly desiring to be received as members, and promising to walke in the obedience of Christ. Neyther any infants, but such as are the seed of the faithfull by one of the parents, or under their education and government. And further not any from one congregation to be received members in another, without bringing certificate of their former estate and present purpose.”- Art. xxxvii.

That these were Congregationalists, if they were Brownists, will appear from the following:

"And although the particular Congregations be thus distinct and severall bodies, every one as a compact and knit citie in it self, yet are they all to walke by one and the same rule, and by all meanes convenient to have the counsel and help one of another in all needfull affaires of the Church, as members of one body in the common faith, under Christ their onely head.”. · Art. xxxviii.

Rise and Progress of the Mayflower Church.

"Established here [as postmaster at Scrooby, near Bawtry in England] Brewster, now in the vigor of young manhood, soon took a deep interest in those religious questions which were then agitating the realm. With a mind enlarged by study and travel, he made the acquaintance of Smith, Clyfton, Robinson, and other godly ministers in that [Nottinghamshire] and the neighboring counties, who were conscientiously opposed to the Established Church; and when the policy of deprivation, confiscation, fine and imprisonment was fully entered upon by government to enforce conformity, he cast in his lot with them, and welcomed them to his house [a spacious manor-house of the Archbishop of York, leased to Brewster by Samuel Sandys, eldest son of the then Archbishop] as well as his heart, and in its ample spaces offered them that Sabbath liberty of prophesying which the churches no longer afforded. Gathering together the elect and precious few from the country round about who thought as they thought, and believed what they believed, and were willing to dare what they dared to do; he, with Clyfton and Robinson and those others, some time during 1606, formally- to use Bradford's own words — ‘joyned themselves (by a covenant of the Lord) into a church estate, in ye fellowship of ye gospell, to walke in all His wayes, made known, or

to be made known unto them, according to their best endeavours, whatsoever it should cost them, the Lord assisting them."" — Sabbath at Home, March, 1867.

"But after these things they could not long continue in any peaceable condition, but were hunted & persecuted on every side, so as their former afflictions were but as flea-bitings in comparison of these which now came upon them. For some were taken & clapt up in prison, others had their houses besett & watcht night and day, & hardly escaped their hands; and ye most were faine to flie & leave their howses & habitations, and the means of their livelehood. Yet these & many other sharper things which affterward befell them, were no other then they looked for, and therfore were ye better prepared to bear them by ye assistance of Gods grace & spirite. Yet seeing them selves thus molested, and that ther was no hope of their continuance ther, by a joynte consente they resolved to goe into ye Low-Countries, wher they heard was freedome of Religion for all men ; as also how sundrie from London, & other parts of ye land, had been exiled and persecuted for ye same cause, & were gone thither, and lived at Amsterdam, & in other places of ye land. So affter they had continued togeither aboute a year, and kept their meetings every Saboth in one place or other, exercising the worship of God amongst them selves, notwithstanding all ye dilligence & malice of their adverssaries, they seeing they could no longer continue in yt condition, they resolved to get over into Holland as they could.” — Gov. Bradford's Hist. Plim. Plant., 10.

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Emigration to Holland.

"Being thus constrained to leave their native soyle and countrie, their lands & livings, and all their freinds and famillier acquaintance, it was much, and thought marvelous by many. But to goe into a countrie they knew not (but by hearsay), wher they must learne a new language, and get their livings they knew not how, it being a dear place, & subjecte to ye misseries of warr, it was by many thought an adventure almost desperate, a case intolerable, & a misserie worse than death. Espetially seeing they were not aquainted with trads nor traffique, (by which yt countrie doth subsiste) but had only been used to a plaine countrie life, & ye inocente trade of husbandrey. But these things did not dismay them (though they did some times trouble them) for their desires were sett on ye ways of God, & to injoye his ordinances; but they rested on his providence & knew whom they had beleeved. Yet this was not all, for though they could not stay, yet were yey not suffered to goe, but ye ports & havens were shut against them, so as they were faine to seeke secrete means of conveance, & to bribe & fee ye mariners, & give exterordinarie rates for their passages. And yet were they often times betrayed (many of them) and both they & their goods intercepted & surprised, and thereby put to great trouble and charge.” — Ibid 11.

"To be shorte, after they had been thus turmoyled a good while, and conveyed from one constable to another, they were glad to be ridd of them in ye end upon any termes; for all were wearied & tired with them. Though in ye mean time they (poor soules) indured miserie enough; and thus in ye end necessitie forste a way for them. I may not omitte ye fruite that came hearby, for by these so publick troubls, in so many eminente places, their cause became famouss & occasioned many to looke into ye same; and their godly car

iage & Christian behaviour was such as left a deep impression in the minds of many. And though some few shrunk at these first conflicts & sharp beginnings, (as it was no marvell,) yet many more came on with fresh courage, & greatly animated others. And in ye end, notwithstanding all these stormes of oppossition, they all gatt over at length, some at one time & some at an other, and some in one place & some in an other, and mette togeather againe according to their desires, with no small rejoycing." — Ibid, 15.

"These Provinces [the Low Countries] were of opinion not only that all religions ought to be tolerated, but that all restraint in matters of religion was as detestable as the Inquisition itself; and accordingly they maintained that nobody erred willfully, or could believe against his conscience, that none but God could inspire right notions into the minds of men; that no religion was agreeable to God, but such as proceeded from a willing heart: experience had also taught them that heterodox opinions could not so effectually be rooted out by human power or violence, as by length of time.” — Brandt's Hist. Ref. in Low Count., i: 308.

"Calvinism being thus the established religion of Holland, it will still be seen that entire liberty in belief and practice prevailed there; the only difference being that the followers of any peculiar faith, while they would have the most perfect freedom of worship in their own private houses, or buildings provided by themselves, would not be provided with church edifices at the public expense." Sabbath at Home, March, 1867.

"Twelve or fifteen years before the Scrooby men arrived in Amsterdam, a London company had gone over, who had Francis Johnson for their pastor and Henry Ainsworth for their teacher; and also, as early as 1596, had published their 'Confession of Faith.' Four years before them (in 1604) Smyth of Gainsborough, and his company, with whom it is not improbable that the Scrooby men were loosely affiliated before they had strength enough to form themselves into a separate church nearer home—had made good their retreat over the North Sea, and were also maintaining themselves on the Amstel. It must in sorrow be added, that these two congregations, of Johnson and Ainsworth, and of Smyth, had not found themselves able to live in that perfect peace which should have adorned their profession of the new faith which they had gathered out of the Word. No means whieh Robinson or Brewster could apply sufficed to heal the breach. Indeed it soon became evident that would they, or would they notthe mere living in Amsterdam must involve the new comers in the ill-feeling, and the cross speech. So they prudently resolved to remove thence, before a bad matter was made worse. It is on record in Leyden that John Robinson [Jan Robarthse] and 'some of the members of the Christian Reformed Religion born in the kingdom of Great Britain, to the number of one hundred persons, or thereabouts, men and women,' petitioned the magistrates of Leyden for leave to come to Leyden 'by the 1st May next,' to have freedom of the city 'in carrying on their trades without being burdensome to any one.' As this petition — itself without date — is indorsed in the margin under date of 12 Feb. 1609, it seems probable that it had been presented but a few days before that time. The magistrates say in this indorsement, they refuse no honest persons free ingress to come and have residence in this city, provided that such persons behave themselves, and submit to the laws and ordinances; and therefore the coming of the memorialists will be agreeable and welcome.' It was beyond a doubt in connection with this cordial response to their application, that the Scrooby church, now, in

itself and all its appurtenance, 'to the number of one hundred, or thereabouts,' removed, about 1 May 1609, to Leyden.” - Ibid.

The Character of these Men in Leyden.

"I know not but it may be spoken to ye honour of God, & without prejudice to any, that such was ye true pietie, ye humble zeale, & fervent love, of this people (whilst they thus lived together) towards God and his waies, and yr single harted-nes & sinceir affection one towards another, that they came as near ye primative patterne of ye first churches, as any other church of these later times have done, according to their ranke & qualitie. Because some of

their adversaries did, upon ye rumore of their remoovall, cast out slanders against them, as if that State had been wearie of them, & had rather driven them out (as ye heathen historians did faine of Moyses & ye Isralits when they went out of Egipte) then yt it was their oune free choyse & motion, I will therefore mention a particuler or too to shew ye contrary, and ye good acceptation they had in ye place wher they lived. And first, though many of them weer poore, yet there was none so poore, but if they were known to be of ys congregation, the Dutch (either bakers or others) would trust them in any reasonable matter when yey wanted money. Because they had found by experience how carfull they were to keep their word, and saw them so painfull and diligente in their callings; yea, they would strive to gett their custome, and to imploy them above others, in their worke, for their honestie & diligence. Againe; ye magistrats of ye citie, aboute ye time of their coming away, or a litle before, in ye publick place of justice, gave this comendable testemonie of them, in ye reproof of the Wallons, who were of ye French Church in yt citie. These English, said they, have lived amongst us now this 12. years, and yet we never had any sute or accusation came against any of them; but your strifs and quarels are continuall, &c. Yea when there was speech of their [the Plymouth men's] remoovall into these parts [this was written in New England] sundrie of note & eminencie of yt nation [the Dutch] would have had them come under them, and for yt end made them large offers." - Bradford ut sup., 19.

"I perswade my selfe, never people upon earth lived more lovingly together, and parted more sweetly then wee the church at Leyden did." - Edward Winslow's Hypocrisie Unmasked, 88.

"And that which was a crown unto them, they lived together in love and peace all their days, without any considerable differences, or any disturbance that grew thereby, but such as was easily healed in love; and so they continued until with mutuall consent they removed into New England."- Gov. Bradford's Dialogue.

Why they left Leyden.

"Our Reverend pastor Mr. John Robinson of late memory, and our grave Elder Mr. William Brewster, considering amongst many other inconveniences, how hard the Country was where we lived, how many spent their estate in it, and were forced to return for England; how grievous to live from under the protection of the State of England; how like wee were to lose our language, and

our name of English; how little good wee did, or were like to do to the Dutch in reforming the Sabbath; how unable there to give such education to our children, as wee ourselves had received, &c. They, I say, out of their Christian care of the flock of Christ committed to them conceived, if God would bee pleased to discover some place unto us (though in America) and give us so much favour with the King and State of England, as to have their protection there, where wee might enjoy the like liberty, and where the Lord favouring our endeavours by his blessing, wee might exemplarily shew our tender Country-men by our example (no lesse burthened than our selves) where they might live, and comfortably subsist and enjoy the like liberties with us, being freed from Anti-christian bondage, keep their names and Nation, and not onely bee a meanes to enlarge the Dominions of our State, but the Church of Christ also, if the Lord have a people amongst the natives whither hee should bring us, &c. Hereby in their grave Wisdomes they thought wee might more glorifie God, doe more good to our Countrey, better provide for our posterity, and live to be more refreshed by our labours, than ever wee could doe in Holland where we were.

Now these their private thoughts upon mature deliberation they imparted to the Brethren of the Congregation, which after much private discussion came to publike agitation, till at the length the Lord was solemnly sought in the Congregation by fasting and prayer to direct us, who moving our hearts more and more to the worke, wee sent some of good abilities over into England to see what favour or acceptance such a thing might finde with the King."— Ed. Winslow, ut sup., 88.

"After they had lived in this citie about some 11. or 12. years (which is ye more observable being ye whole time of yt famose truce between that state and ye Spaniards) and sundrie of them were taken away by death, & many others begane to be well striken in years, the grave mistris Experience having taught them many things, those prudent governours [Robinson and Brewster] with sundrie of ye sagest members begane both deeply to apprehend their present dangers, & wisely to foresee ye future, & thinke of timely remedy. In ye agitation of their thoughts, and much discours of things hear aboute, at length they began to incline to this conclusion, of remoovall to some other place. Not out of any newfangledness, or such like giddie humor, by which men are oftentimes transported to their great hurt & danger, but for sundrie weightie & solid reasons; some of ye cheefe of which I will hear breefly touch. And first, they saw & found by experience the hardnes of ye place & countrie to be such, as few in comparison would come to them, and fewer that would bide it out, and continew with them. For many yt came to them, and many more yt desired to be with them, could not endure yt great labor and hard fare, with other inconveniences which they underwent & were contented with. But though they loved their persons, approved their cause, and honoured their sufferings, yet they left them as it weer weeping, as Orpah did her mother in law Naomie, or as those Romans did Cato in Utica, who desired to be excused & borne with, though they could not all be Catoes." For many, though they desired to injoye ye ordinances of God in their puritie, and ye libertie of the gospell with them, yet, alass, they admitted of bondage, with danger of conscience, rather then to indure these hardships; yea, some preferred & chose ye prisons in England, rather then this libertie in Holland, with these afflictions. But it was thought that if a better and easier place of living could be had, it would draw many & take away these discouragments. Yea, their pastor would often say, that many of those wo both wrate & preached