A modest vindication of Titus Oates, the Salamanca-doctor from perjury, or, An essay to demonstrate him only forsworn in several instances by Adam Elliot ...

THE INTRODUCTION.

THE most Notorious Salamanca-Doctor, Titus Oates, after having signaliz'd his prodigious Parts, by the Destruction of several eminent Persons, and hazarding the lives of God knows how many more; after having miraculously sav'd his Majesties Person from Poyson, screw'd Gu•…•… and Consecrated Dagger, and freed three Nations from imminent ruine; after having defeated the designs of Rome, and the plots of the greatest Politicians in the world, though they had been hatching these 100 years past; and all this by meer Buke∣blawing, and to the astonishment of the whole Christian world, by the breath of his mouth; was at last put upon it, to try an experi∣riment or two to fix Property, which by Wise heads (that is by Needy or Covetous persons, who wanted Bishops or Crown-Lands) was thought to be in equal danger with our Religion. For if, for ex∣ample, he could swear a friend to the cause into the right of forty or fifty thousand Pounds, (which the Law it seems was so scrupu∣lous in, as not to understand;) then true Protestants might have a compendious and infallible way to secure their Property against the encroachments of whatsoever Arbitrary, that is, Legal power. In or∣der to effect this wonderful project, he was pleased unhappily both for himself and me, (at the instigation of what Lord or Devil the Lord knows,) to bestow a cast of his office, on a friend who shall be nameless, and to stoop an oath or two at his service, against so mean a person as my self: not only engaging his Verbum Sacerdotis in se∣veral Companies, yea▪ even where men ought to be very furious, before the King; but also Swearing, invocating the sacred Majesty of God, who will one day call him to account for it, to witness to the truth, when he asserted, that I was a Mahumetin, and had been thereupon Circumoised; and that also I was a Popish Priest, having received Orders from the See of Rome: by the former charge making me unworthy of credit or reputation, uncapable of the advantages of converse amongst Christians; and by the later, the milder indeed of the two, aiming only at my life, which as being a Popish Priest▪ is forfeited to the Law. I must indeed confess of all kinds of Deaths I have the least fondness to be hanged, and I hate mortally that the butcherly Executioner should be rummaging amongst my Entrailes▪ neither can I apprehend any pleasure in being drawn up Halborn hill upon a Hurdle: therefore it was, that I had no mind to appear either

a Renegado, or a Popish Priest; and I thought my self oblig'd both by the Laws of God and Man to preserve my life as long as I could, and to vindicate my reputation from infamy, and assert my just and honest title to the comforts of humane society: and that I have no ways deserved to be proscrib'd the Communication of Chri∣stians.

To this purpose I made my application to the Law for satisfaction, and had the Doctor arrested in an Action of the Case for Defamation. The Cause was tryed before the Right Honourable Sir Francis North, L. C. J. of his Majesties Court of Common Pleas, June the 30th last past; where the issue went upon my side, and the Jury brought the Doctor in guilty, allowing me 20 l. Damages: which small summ, though by many it was lookt upon as very inconsiderable and dis∣proportionate to the dammages wherewith the Doctor had affected both my Reputation and my Purse; yet by another party, it was lookt upon with a sore eye, to see their Goliah (who had for some time past, hector'd and swore for the cause) foil'd, if not knock'd down by so mean a person as my self. They admired my insolence in of∣fering to defend my life, when the Doctor was pleased to swear it from me; they inveighed against me, as a narrow selfish soul, far from a publick spirit, who would not rather be hang'd, than the Doctor's ve∣racity should be liable to any suspicion; a man who had laid himself out, and ventur'd all for the good of the Nation; yea, who is the Sa∣viour of the Nation, said prudent Sh. Pilk. Notwithstanding all which, I cannot but be of this faith, that it is more convenient for me, that the Doctor should swing than I; as for his all that he has ven∣tur'd, I never heard of any thing he had to venture, unless his all, i. e. his Soul; which to my knowledge is deeply engag'd. And as for his being stil'd the Saviour of the Nation, it is Scandalum Magna∣tum in the highest degree; the Title is most arrogant, and intimates a Blasphemous relation to the Saviour of the world; a most odious Comparison 'twixt the Merits of our Saviour Jesus Christ, and those of Titus Oates; for which there cannot be the least reason or foun∣dation of Analogy; unless that as it was judg'd necessary (notwith∣standing Oates preach'd to the contrary) that our Saviour should be crucified, that the world might be sav'd; so it should be thought con∣venient, that Oates might be hang'd, that so our Nation perish not. Then indeed he might sustain some Relation, even the same that the Blasphemous Thief had to our Saviour when he was on the Cross, and in some sense he might be call'd the Saviour of our Nation; but otherwise the Title is intolerable, and he must first be hang'd before by any propriety of speech, it can agree to him.

There are a Party of men I say, who finding what an intractable, morose, uncomplaisant humour I am of, and that by refusing to be accounted a Popish Priest or a Circumcis'd Mahumetan; the Doctor has fallen under a shrewd suspition of Perjury, and may in time put in his claim to the Pillory, though with the forfeit of his Ears. Therefore it is, that they have us'd all base unworthy arts to blacken my reputation; and seeing it was manifestly prov'd in Court, that the Doctor had frequently uttered those scandalous words, which tended

to my Defamation, they give out now, that I was the first Author of them my self; and what the Doctor said or swore concerning me, was only what he heard me say of my self; thus endeavouring to af∣fix as notorious a mark of Folly to my name, as before he would of Villany. Therefore to answer the importunity of my friends, and to disabuse any, who may be deluded by the malicious calumnies of my nettled Adversaries, I have adventured to put Pen to Paper, to give a full and clear account of the proceedings 'twixt the Dr. and my self; which will consist in these following particulars.

I shall first give a short Narrative of my Travails, Captivity and Escape from Slavery in Barbary; which though it may seem forreign and impertinent to my design, yet, because it is the subject of the Doctor's Oaths, I cannot clearly without it, represent the quality of them; and besides, being a recital of some rare accidents, and almost miraculous instances of the providence of God in my deliverance from a Moorish Captivity, I presume it will make some compensation for the impertinence which it seemingly carries to the design of these Sheets.

In the next place, I shall faithfully set down, what the Doctor hath depos'd against me upon Oath, under his own hand, at Doctors Commons, and what was prov'd in Court at our Tryal by unexcep∣tionable Witnesses, that he had said several times against me, to the same purpose with what he swore before.

And in the third place, I shall give an account of what was sworn in his behalf to mitigate Dammages: Upon all which, I shall only make such Anirnad versions as are pertinent and proper, and draw such Inferences as the matter will rationally allow. And then I re∣fer my self to the whole Nation as Judges, whether or no the Doctor has not only falsly and maliciously defam'd me, but likewise sworn that to be true, which in it self is false, and to his own know∣ledge also.

Yet notwithstanding all this, I cannot see how it will follow that the Doctor is guilty of Perjury; for though in the Court of Heaven, and before God, Perjury and false swearing be synonymous, yet none are esteemed guilty of Perjury, by the Laws of this Land, but who have been convicted of swearing falsly in a Court of Record. But the Court of Delegates, where Oates's Depositions against me were exhibited, being no such Court; therefore according to the Law-Phrase, what ever I think in my conscience (and I am sure he is Por∣sworn) yet I cannot say that the Doctor is Perjur'd, and consequently that the Pillory has never been adequate to the Doctor's high merits. A Wooden Ruff does not well become the Saviour of the Nation, with modesty be it spoke as I said before, I think a Halter would much better befit him; and really before I should see the Salamanca Doctor treated as they say poor N. T. was, I had much rather see him hang'd.

This modest Vindication of the Doctor, my grateful sense of his mer∣ciful kind temper to me has commanded from me; for if the Doctor had pleased to have thought of me when he and Dr. Tongue were think∣ing together, he might easily have bestowed a small Commission upon

his old Acquaintance; some little Cross-bearers place amongst the Spa∣nish Pilgrims, or else if he had only made me a Courier 'twixt tall fair Don John and the four Ruffians; any such like employment, (and the Doctor has bestow'd abundance, and has much more in store) would have consigned me to Jack Ketches disposal long ago; for it is very hard to prove a Negative. But now that he has only made me a Musselman, cujus character est indelebilis, he has given me a fair oppor∣tunity of proving him a forsworn Liar; for which singular kindness I cannot sufficiently profess my obligations: And this is one reason why I have undertook this modest Vindication. Which labour of mine, though it may seem to carry an oblique design only of gra∣tifying my fond humour to the Doctor, yet to considering persons also I presume I shall be thought to have hereby contributed my Mite to the publick, in exposing the wickedness of a Wretch whose talent lies only in Swearing: for though I have undertook his Vindi∣cation, yet I intend it shall be with all Modesty, and such as shall not interfere with the Truth.

The Doctor has employ'd his Swearing faculty only to my particular detriment, the meanest of the Church of England; he has forsworn himself to prejudice me; but yet every member thereof is concern'd, since this publick Enemy has given broad signs of his inclinations to them all, as namely, when he said there were not above three Prote∣stant Bishops in the Church of England, and that all the Clergy were tantivying to Rome: as also in his Sermon at Woodstock, he delivered for true doctrine that the Presbyterians were the only supporters of the Protestant interest; and there is no question, but that when there shall come a House of Commons to pay him the 40000 l. promised (as he says) by the last House who sat at Westminster, he has 40000 Oaths at their service. But now, by exposing him as Forsworn, the edge of his Swearing will for the future be rebated; for if it be the dictate of prudence, never to trust those who have but once been found to impose upon us, then certainly it is unaccountable folly and madness, to accept the testimony of one who has manifestly Forsworn himself, and in a manner proclaimed to all the world, that he has no dread of that God, who will revenge himself upon those who take his name in vain. For my own part, though forty Plots were laid against me, I had rather venture them all, than rely upon a Salamanca Doctor's Oath: and if any thing staggers my faith in the belief of the 40000 Black bills, and other remarkable passages in the Popish Plot, next to the contradictions which occur; it is because a Villain of so plainly debaucht and profligate a conscience has con∣cern'd himself in the discovery. Which I have endeavoured to make appear manifestly to others, as well as my self, from the following Sheets.