Joanna Meriwether of St. Mildred's parish, for displeasure that she bare towards a young maid named Elizabeth Celsay, and her mother, made a fire upon the dung of the said Elizabeth; and took a holy candle, and dropt upon the said dung. And she told unto her neighbours, that the said enchantment would make the cule of the said maid to divide into two parts.

Rafe, the bell-ringer of Christ Church at the burial of Dr. Champion, [the archbishop's chaplain,] after the priest had censed his grave, and a boy was bearing away the censers and the coals, called after the boy, and took the censers, and poured the hot coals upon him in his grave, to the great slander of the said Dr. Champion, as though he had been an heretic, worthy burning. Also he said, the king was content that all images should be honoured as they were wont to be.

Coxson, petty canon of Christ Church, made his testament, by the advice of Mr. Parkhurst, Mr. Sandwich, and Mr. Mills, canons of the said church; and gave and bequeathed to every vicar of Christ Church twenty pence, that had a pair of beads, and would say our lady psalter for his soul departed. And this was executed according to the will.

The parson of Alyngton never preached in the church of Alyngton, nor declared against the usurped power of the bishop of Rome, nor set forth the king's supremacy according to the king's proclamations, letters, and injunctions. He hath been a great setter forth in his parish of the maid of Kent, pilgrimages, feigned relics, and other such superstitions; and yet never recanted, and reproved the same, according to the king's majesty's injunctions. He hath not declared to his parishioners, that the eves 103 of such holy days as be abrogate be no fasting-days, according to the king's injunctions. So upon the Sundays,

Candlemas-day, Ash-Wednesday, Palm-Sunday, and GoodFriday, he hath not declared the true use of the ceremonies, used those days according to the king's proclamation.

The curate of Stodmersh did dissuade men from eating of white-meats the last Lent, and rebuked them that did eat white-meats. About All-hallowtide was twelvemonth he preached in St. Dunstan's church beside Canterbury, that "men should love God, and fear God, but not to trust him too much."

Turnor, in the time of his being at Chartham, did cast no holy water, neither before the sacrament, nor upon any altar in the church, (except the high altar). Nor also before the crucifix in the rood-loft, according to the laudable ceremony. He christened three children upon one day, and did not anoint them with holy oil, neither upon back nor belly. He neither incensed the crucifix in the rood-loft, nor any altar in the church, except the high altar: nor distributed any holy candles among his parishioners, as hath been accustomed.

Sir James Newman and one Lawrence took down an image of our lady; to the which was no offering, except candles at the purification of women: nor any miracles noted to be done there by the said image.

Scory, one of the six preachers, said, that much superstitions were used in the church, as making of crosses upon Palm-Sunday, setting of them up, and blessing them with the holy candles; ringing of bells in the thunder. "For think you," said he "that the devil will be afraid, or flee away at cross-making, hurling of holy water, ringing of bells, and such other ceremonies; when he was not afraid to take Christ himself, and cast him on his back, and set him on a pinnacle? Those things that be good of themselves may not utterly be put away,

although they be abused. For then the holy sacrament of the altar should be set aside, which is daily bought and sold."

Serles, one of the six preachers, in a sermon said, "If the preacher preach error and erroneous doctrine, the simple man, though he receive it and believe it, it doth not infect nor corrupt him." And this he repeated twice. He said also, that "Moses sent letters from hell, to teach the state thereof, and how men should live: and another likewise out of heaven. Item, they say," said he, "that only faith justifies, and that it maketh no matter how we do live: Christ died for us, and by his blood hath washed all our sins away; therefore what needeth us to fast or pray

יי!

Sandwich, a canon of Christ's Church, said in his sermon in the year 1542, "Whereas a good Christian, or evil, preached unto you truly the word of God, as I report me to the conscience of you all; yet some that have evil ears did evil report of me. But if their ears were cut off, as Malchus' was, and set up where every man might wonder at them, I think therein a man should not wish much against charity." At another time, in the year 1543, he said in his sermon, "Some, if they are given to goodness, to follow the decrees of 104 holy church, to kneel before the blessed sacrament, they will counsel them from the same, and say, "Deus in manufactis templis non habitat." They will have none of the holy doctors. They will not have St. Augustin, St. Ambrose, St. Hierom, St. Gregory, Basil, Gregory Nazianzen, &c. Since the time we have been given to new fangles, the spirit of new fangle hath brought in the spirit of error. But what remedy then," said he, "to obtain the spirit of truth again? Of that," said he, "I spake the last time that I preached, and shewed you

that we must return where we went out. We must return to our dog, to our conscience again; and that will certify us where is the truth."

Shether, one of the six preachers, said, "That there was one straight way to the truth, in which we and all men have gone a long time; saving a few now of late, not being content to follow that trade, have wandered in divers pathways to seek a nearer way to the truth. But they are like unto one, that, being clean lost, was fain to ask which way he might go to the end of his journey? And to such it was answered, You be clean out of the way, and there is none other means for you, but even to turn back again, and to begin your journey again where you left." Nothing at all, as the informer adds, admonishing the people of the way, which men had lost, by defending and retaining the usurpations of Rome: nor no mention that the king's majesty hath reformed the abuses of superstitious religion. But even as one, that would have all things honestly reformed, to revert again into their superstition, for the maintenance of all blindness and error, commanded every man to turn back, and to begin where they left.

Dr. Willowby, the vicar of Chilham, keepeth still in his church a certain shrine gilt, named St. Austin's shrine which shrine was conveyed from St. Austin's of Canterbury unto the parish church of Chilham, at the suppression of the monastery of St. Austin's. Item, a rood there, which had shoes of silver, being a monument of pilgrimage, or offering, standeth yet still, being only spoiled of the monument. He said, images had power of God to help sick people vowing unto them, the communication then being of our lady of Cutupstreet, between the said vicar and one Dawson of Chartham, a miller. Memorandum, that Potter's wife was banished

out of Feversham for her suspect lying with Dr. Willowby, and also was compelled to forsake Chilham for the same, about two or three years past; and yet she remains in the company of the said doctor.

Serles, mentioned before, in a sermon made in the chapter-house of Christ's Church, anno 1543, said, "Some that occupy this place of preaching say not matins, mass, nor even-song, once in a quarter. They be never seen confessed, nor to occupy porteous nor mass-book. These use no vocal prayer: beware of their doctrine." In the church of Leneham, in the day of Assumption, he said, "That as the moon is in the full at fourteen days, even so Mary was conceived fully with Christ, when she was fourteen years old. Item," he said, "That if one had looked in Mary, when she was full conceived with Christ, he should have perceived him in his mother's womb with a bush of thorns on his back: for he was crucified, crowned, and pricked with thorns. That Mary bare Christ poorly; 105 for she had no fire, but begged a coal of one, and a stick of another, to warm her child." He preached, "that Mary nourished her son with milk, but not with material milk, but with milk that came from heaven: for no woman else can nourish her child with material milk, than she that is conceived by knowledge of man. [And no question this heavenly milk came along the milky way.] That all the whole faith of the world remained in Mary only for the space of three days and three nights. That faith was dead in the Apostles, and in all the world, from the death of Christ till his resurrection, and remained in the Virgin Mary whole and only. That the sorrows that she had were greater and more painful than Christ's, but for death only. That Christ descended into hell, and rose the third day and ascended into heaven, and many more with him; saying thus, 'Multa corpora ascenderunt cum