The triumphs of Gods revenge against the crying and execrable sinne of (willfull and premeditated) murther VVith his miraculous discoveries, and severe punishments thereof. In thirtie severall tragicall histories (digested into sixe bookes) committed in divers countries beyond the seas, never published, or imprinted in any other language. Histories which containe great varietie of mournfull and memorable accidents ... With a table of all the severall letters and challenges, contained in the whole sixe bookes. Written by Iohn Reynolds.

THE AVTHOR HIS RE-ADVERTISEMENT to the Iudicious Christian READER.

THat my Promise owed sixe of these Bookes of Gods Re∣venge against Murther to the World, the Title, and my Epistle (to the Reader) of the first Booke doth ap∣parantly testifie; It is now some ten yeares since that I published the third thereof, since when, my time and leisure hath still beene so interrupted, and (as it were) cut asunder by many different intervening Accidents, that I a long time both doubted and feared that the three last Bookes would have absolutely dyed upon the Designe: But I prayse and blesse God (Hee hath been so fa∣vourable to my desires, and so propitious to my intentions and resolutions) that I have cleered that doubt, and secured this feare; for now (by His sa∣cred Assistance and Providence) I have fully and compleatly finished them, and doe here present all Sixe Bookes to thee in one intire Volume. I am not so vaine or presumptuous, to thinke that they deserve to be seene and read of the more Iudicious; for my thoughts aspire to nothing unproporti∣onable to my meane abilities. I knew it was a singular great and excellent poynt of wisedome in Socrates, who (by the Oracle of Apollo) was doo∣med the wisest of Men, to confesse and acknowledge to the World, That hee knew but one thing, which was, that hee knew nothing.

But here, before I proceed farther, I must let the World know, that I understand there are a generation of people, who have beene so strangely ignorant, as to give out that these my Histories are not Originalls, but Translations, either from Italian or French; all which (with equall Truth and Modesty) I firmely contradict and deny, whether they regard Matter, Manner, or Method, or Phrase, Place, or Persons; for contrariwise I found out the grounds of them in my Travells, and (at mine owne leisure) composed and penned them, according to the rule of my weake Fancie and Capacity, they being so farre from Translations, that as I have hitherto re∣fused

to imitate any therein, but my selfe, so had I beene so ambitious or vaineglorious to have given way, or consent to it, some Friends of mine in Paris, had long since done the three first Bookes into French, from my first Originall thereof: But knowing Humility to be the fairest Ornament of a Writer, and Modesty best to beeome Vertuous Mindes, I have hitherto pre∣vented it, and doe still resolve so to doe.

Now because as Idlenesse makes some too curious, and Curiosity makes others too idle, so it hath likewise pleased some (not so discreet as for∣ward) to condemne and taxe some of my Histories for being too long, and others for being too short, as if I were bound to observe and please their Fancie, more then the Truth, or mine owne Iudgement, or that in the con∣triving and penning thereof, I were obliged to delight and content them before my selfe. No, no, as long as I know Men are as different in their Opinions and Censures, as in their Countenances and Complexions, I shall rather connive, and not regard their (worthy to be pittyed) Ignorance, and resolve and content my selfe to contemne and passe by, rather then to esteeme or grieve at it. They will first I hope reade, before they understand; and let mee then request them also, that they will first understand, before they either censure, or taxe any part of what they reade, and so I doubt not, but they will both see, and finde, that (in the penning and publishing of these Histories) if I am not worthy of their Love, yet (at least) their unjust Envie and Detraction is every way unworthy of mee; and that although many Bookes of these our Times are not particularly approved and liked of for the present, yet it is not impossible for the future both to respect and honour them; and so I leave these uncharitable Zoylists to sleepe standing in the simplicity of their Ignorance, if they will not be rectifyed and reformed by warning: And I will now divert my Pen to the wise and religious Christian Readers, who well know what singular good effects it worketh in their Hearts, first to reade with Understanding, and then to apply with Charity and Prudence, for whose sakes soly I have now added these my three last Bookes of Gods Revenge against the Crying Sinne of wilfull Murther to the three former; For I send them to the publicke good, whereunto all our Endeavours should tend, to the Propaga∣tion of Christian Love and Charity among Men, whereat all our Enter∣prises should ayme, and to the flourishing Advancement of Gods Honour and Glory, to which all the thoughts of our Hearts, and Faculties of our Soules should chiefly aspire and levell.

And because Sealiger affirmes, That nothing so soone allures or drawes a Reader to peruse and reade, as a strange Theame and Ar∣gument;

Therefore this Path beeing seldome (if ever) troden or beaten by any other, I am so farre from despairing, as I am confident, at least, of thy Acceptance, if not of thy Approbation of these my Labours, and much the sooner, because as thou hast hertofore disburthened my Sta∣tioner of the three first of these Bookes, so he (in contemplation thereof) hath now drawne the three last of them from mee to the Presse, with a more then common and usuall Importunitie; and I shall beare this con∣tent to my Grave, and I hope from thence to Heaven, that in pen∣ning of them all, I shall leave no pernicious Heire behinde me, to infect Youth with Scurrility, or corrupt their Manners and Inclinations with Incentives to Lewdnesse and Uanitie; which as it is the shame of this our Age, so it ought to bee the care of every good man, to shunne that which so many of our lewd and lascivious Pamphlets doe not. In wri∣ting heereof, I have consecrated my Pen rather to Instruction then Elo∣quence, and to Charity rather then Curiosity, and have made it my chie∣fest Care, Ambition, and Conscience, to profit thy soule, rather then to please thine Eare, and to savour more of Heaven then Earth; Yea, I will affirme (with equall Truth and Boldnesse) that I have written it with so innocent a Penne, that the purest and most unstayned Uirgin shall not need to make her beautifull Cheekes guilty of the least Blush in perusing it all over.

It is with no small Cost and Labour, that I first procured, then penned these Histories, and have now polished and prepared them to the Presse, aswell for the extirpating of that Execrable Sinne of Murther (which cryes so loude to Heaven for Uengeance) as also to shew thee Gods sacred Iustice, and righteous Iudgements, in the Vindication of the inhu∣mane Authours thereof; to the end, that (by the knowledge and reading of them) thou mayest become more Charitable, and more hate Crueltie, by their wretched and lamentable Examples, having heerein indeavou∣red (as much as in mee lyes) to make my Reader a Spectatour, first of these their foule and bloudie Crimes, and then of their condigne and ex∣emplarie Punishments, which (as a dismall Storme and terrible Tem∣pest from Heaven) fell on them on Earth, when they least dreamt or thought thereof.

And heere to conclude this my Readvertisement to thee, I religious∣ly from my Heart intreat thee to respect the Matter, not the Wordes, and the Importance and Consequence, more then the Dressing of these Thirty severall Tragicall Histories, whiles I will accompt and esteeme it a farre greater Happinesse for my selfe to learne true Charity, and the

true Feare of God in writing them, then to presume of my Ability to instruct and teach others by reading them, because I may justly and truely say with Lipsius, That my Aime and Desire in publishing of them, Is not that I might bee made greater, but better thereby, and (if it please God) others by mee.

What Spirituall Fortitude, or Benefit, thou reapest by their Know∣ledge and Contemplation, I exhort thee, in steed of giving mee any Thankes, to reserve and give them wholly to God, Who is the Giver of all Good things, yea, the Father of Mercie, and the God of all Comfort and Consolation, to whose Grace I commit thee, defiring thee to assist mee with thy favourable Opinion, and daily Prayers to His Throne of Grace, as I shall ever bee ready to requite thee with mine.

Thy Christian Friend, IOHN REYNOLDS.