The Court of Star Chamber. his mind to the Bishop. "God gave him warning, he fell upon the seat,' and hath had time enough to think of it since, and in all this time he never came to acknowledge his offense. I agree therefore with my Lord Cottington." The Lord Privy Seal (the Earl of Man chester) thought the defendant had acted through mistaken zeal, but said there were three things for which he should censure him — "(1) his pretending the order of the vestry, (2) that he would neglect authority, which is near unto contempt, and (3) his passion in doing it himself, and not by others ... all may take notice that our votes are to maintain order and government, yet not to uphold superstition ... I will sentence the defendant, but not fine him, to make acknowledgement to the Bishop, not to disrecorder him : the fact deserves not a fine." The Archbishop of York (Dr. Neale) found many circumstances of aggravation in the defendant's conduct. As a justice of the peace, he regarded it as particularly scandalous in him to have meddled in the affair at all. The vestry's order, worthless as it was, had only given him permission to take down the window, not to demolish it; moreover, it had contemplated his having a glazier do the work, not to have him do it himself. " It is good to meet with growing evils," he said; " we know not how great a fire may be kindled with a small spark. I cannot, therefore, do otherwise than agree to fine and censure him highly ... I con cur with my Lord Cottington in all the parts of his sentence." Lord Coventry, Lord Keeper of the Great Seal, said that he had no doubt the cause would produce a good effect, for the great audience present could not but be satisfied that the court deemed it unlawful to repre sent the Deity by picture, and consequently condemned Romish superstition, and, on the other side, that the court was resolutely bent on maintaining the government by the
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reverend fathers of the church, the bishops. "For the charges in the bill," he said, " if they had been proved, I should, for my part, have trebled the fine set by any of your Lordships. There was never cause worse prosecuted, yet we are to consider how much standeth proved against this de fendant. The prosecutor causeth the in formation to be exhibited against the de fendant and ten others, but those others are not so much as pressed to answer." He looked with great lenity upon the offense itself, and desired only that a fit disposition should be made of the case, in order that the law might be vindicated. He therefore inclined to the opinion of Secretary Cook, to make acknowledgment, repair the broken window in decent manner, but, he said, " I am loth he should be put to any heavy fine, the rather because he hath not been prose cuted in an ecclesiastical court; therefore, I give no fine at all." Nine members of the court agreed to set a fine of £1000 upon the defendant, to de prive him of his office, compel him to make acknowledgment in the Church of St. Edmunds, and likewise in the Cathedral Church, before the Bishop there, and the deans and prebends. Nine others were against depriving him of his office, but agreed that he should make acknowledgment in private to the Bishop, and in such manner and before such persons as the Bishop should think fit. As for the fine, these were again divided; four were for no fine at all, four were for a fine of 500 marks, and one for £500. According to the rules and orders of the court, where there was a difference of opinion as to the fine, the King was to have the "middle fine." Therefore the sentence of the court was thus entered : — "The defendant being troubled in con science, and grieved with the sight of the pictures which were in a glass window in the church of St. Edmund in New Sarum,
