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CHAP. XI.

Notes upon Bedloes and Prances Evidence, Com∣par'd One with Another.

WE are now Entring upon a Subject to Con∣found a Man, as well where to Begin, as where to End; and there's No Accommodating the Matter, but by Covering the Depositions on Both Sides with One Great Plot.

Here's a Horrible Out-Cry of a Barbarous Murther; A Popish Murther, A Plot-Murther; The Murther of a Magistrate; The Murther of a Protestant Magi∣strate; and in fine; The Murther of a Magistrate, in Revenge, for his Endeavouring to Prevent the Mur∣thering of a King, the Burning of his Towns, and the Massacring of his People. Here's the Scale of the Case, and who but Bedloe, and Prance, the Devotes upon This Occasion, for the Saving of their Prince and Country! The Noise of This Murther, and the Fame of the Discoverers, has fill'd All Mouths and Places Ecclesiastical, as well as Civil; Churches, and Pulpits have been Dedicated to their Honour: And if Altars had not been Popish, and if the same Whimsey had gone on Still, we might have come in Time, to

a St. Titus, a St. William, a St. Miles: Nay, and a St. Eustace Comins too, Orate pro nobis: But for Temporal Preferments however, there was Care taken, that they should not want either Mediations or Effects. We have Spoken Already of the Two Supporters of This Quar∣ter-Part of the Plot, and respectively of their Depositi∣ons, apart; but we are now going to see how they look upon One Another, Together; And whether 'twas the Spirit of Revelation that Guided the Kings Witnesses, or the Spirit of Delusion that wrought upon the Believers of them: That is to say, upon Those Believers of them, that had the Whole Cause under Their Eye, and Com∣mand; and, Duly Consider'd the Proportion of the se∣veral Parts, and Coherence of the Intrigue.

It seems a Wonderful Thing, that Bedloe and Prance that were Two of the Main Wheels of This Motion, should hold No Communication at all One with Another. Prance does not so much as Mention Bedloe; nor Bed∣loe Prance; either before the Lords, or upon the Try∣als, (Previously, that is, to the Murther) save only Once; and That by Implication too; When the very Name of Prance was Thrown into Bedloes Mouth by a Leading Question. Tryal, fol. 33. And it was not the Two Witnesses only that were Strangers to One Another; but the Principal Agitators Themselves, were Few of them Acquainted. The Instruments, Several, and they took Several Walks too, at the same Time for the do∣ing of the same Bus'ness, and without holding any visi∣ble Correspondence: As if Divers Men had Stumbled, or rather Pitch'd by Impulse, upon the same Thoughts with∣out Knowing One Anothers Minds.

Bedloe Swears before the Lords, that he Knows that Sir Edmundbury Godfrey was Murther'd in Somerset-House, on the Saturday, by Walsh, Le Phaire, Two Lay-men; a Gentleman that Waits on my Lord Bellassis,

and an Under-waiter in the Queens Chappel. He Swears, that he Knows what afterwards he Delivers but upon Hear-say. Now Prance tells us upon the Tryal, that He Himself, Green, Berry, Hill, and Gerald, were the Five Murtherers, fol. 18. without so much as One Word of Bedloes Confederates. Prance was Entic'd in (he says) by Gerald and Kelley, fol. 14. But it was Le Phaire, Pritchard, Keines, and several Other Priests that Treated with Bedloe about the Murther, Tryal, fol. 28. And then Vpon the Lords Journal, Nov. 12. 1678. He Speaks as if it were only Le Phaire, and Walsh, that offer'd him 4000 l. to Help forward with it. But it was Gerald, and Vernatti that spake of a Great Reward to Prance; Tryal, fol. 22. Prance says, that it was He Himself, Green, Hill, Gerald, and Kelley, that put the Body into the Sedan, and Help'd it away out of the House [All set our Hands to't,] he says, Tryal, fo. 19, 20. But Bedloe, before the Lords, say's that Le Phaire, Walsh, the Lord Bellassis Gentleman, Atkins, and one that belong'd to the Queens Chappel, were the Persons that were to go with it. The Whole Story, in Fine, is made up of Ill-Contriv'd, and Incredible Disa∣greements, and Point-Blank-Contradictions. And they are at the same Variance One with the Other in the Walks they took, and in the Conduct, and Manage of the Whole Design.

Bedloe in his Depositions before the Lords, Leads us a Dance to Le Phaire in Grays-Inn-VValks; to Le Phaire again by Accident, in Fleet-street, going into Red-Lyon-Court, and to An Appointment at the Palsgraves-Head-Tavern; Thence to the Cloyster in Somerset-House-Court. He tells us a Story then of Clarendon-House, Lincolns-Inn-Fields, the Greyhound-Tavern, the Kings-Head-Inn in the Strand, &c. Now Prance, on the Other Hand, lays his Scene at Somerset-House VVater-Gate; Talks of the VVicket; The Bench by the Rayles, and the

Stables; Dr. Godden's Lodgings; A Little Closet or Square Room; The Grecian Church, and So-ho; And saving that Somerset-House was to be the Place of Action; There's No sort of Intelligence betwixt One Passage and Another. Now when Prance comes to his Evidence upon the Tryals, the Plow-Alehouse strikes a Great Stroke; Red-Lyon-Fields; And then for a Sup∣plement, comes Sir John Arundel's Lodgings, Covent Garden, Long Acre, the Queens-Head at Bow, &c. and not one Word in Bedloe of any of These Jaunts: So that they Squar'd now as Little about the Places, as they did before about the Instruments; Sir Edmund was to be Dogg'd however; And we shall find as much Difference about the Time, the Manner of it, and the Particular Persons that were upon the Heel of him, as about any thing else.

Bedloe before the Lords, says nothing more of Dogging him, then that Le Phaire, Walsh, and my Lord Bellassi's Gentleman met him by the Kings-head in the Strand, Cros∣sing the Street about Five Afternoon; and so by a very Pitiful Wile Trepann'd him into Somerset-House-Court, and there did his Bus'ness. He says indeed upon the Try∣als, that he was sent to Insinuate Himself into Sir Ed∣mund's Acquaintance, pag. 29. but still not one Word of This before the Lords. He says further, that he had been Six or Seven Days together with him at his House, upon Pretence of getting VVarrants for the Good Behaviour, against Per∣sons that there were None such: Wherein he must Manifest∣ly ••orswear Himself, whether he did so, or Not; for Godfrey was not a Man to Grant any such VVarrants, but upon Oath. He says further, That he was with Five Je∣suits at the Greyhound Tavern, on the Friday, and sent his Boy to see if Sir Edmund were at Home. Ib.] But not a Syllable of This neither in his other Depositions.: And then to talk of his Boy too; the Boy of a Fellow that was but newly Spew'd out of an Alms-Basket. The whole Re∣mainder

of his Evidence is only the Old Story made worse. But Prance, for all this, I Warrant ye, had him Dogg'd into Red-Lyon-Fields, fol. 15. And After∣ward by Girald, Green, and Hill into St. Clements; and so back again to Somerset-House. But a VVord or Two now to the Desperate Provocation to This Bloudy Revenge.

Bedloe says before the Lords, that he was to be put out of the way, because of some Examinations that he had taken tending to the Discovery of the Popish Design, Nov. 12. 1678. But Prance before the Lords, swears it was out of Malice for being Cross-grain'd to the Queen and her Servants. Bedloe makes no more on't upon the Tryal, then that there was a very Material Man to be taken out of the way; One that had All the Enformations that Mr. Otes and Dr. Tong had given in; and if the Papers were not taken from him, the Bus'ness would be Obstructed, and go near to be Discover'd, p. 30. But Bedloe was still for giving him Quarter before the Lords; and for doing it by Fair Means or by Foul, according as he should Behave Himself. But Not a Word of That Neither, upon the Tryals: Beside that in the Lords Journal, he was stifled betwixt Two Pillows: And in the Tryal, they had Strangled him, he says, but he knew not how, p. 32. And in one Word, Bedloe, and Prance, did both agree at the Court of Kings Bench to Destroy him Out-right, without offering any Terms, or Conditions, for the saving of his Life; contrary to what Bedloe swore before the Lords.

The Two Witnesses were as much Divided too, about the Place where he was Murther'd, and the Manner of the Execution; but they Both Agreed that he was Murther'd at Somerset-House. Prance will have the Deed to be done upon the Descent by the Stables; and that he was Wheedled down under the Pretence of Parting a Fray,

Tryal, fol. 16. Bedloe gets him thither under Colour of Catching some of the Plotters. Lords Iournal. Prance makes Green to follow him with a Twisted Handkercher, and to get him down by Surprize, fo••. 16, 17. Bedloe, in the Journal makes it to be done Fairly, with Presenting a Pistol, and upon Articles of Mercy; though No body could ever find out Bedloe's, and Prance's Place, where the Body was Convey'd, any more then Otes's Stair-Case that led to her Majesties Whispering Room: And it is to be noted also, that This was no Hear-say-Evidence, upon the Final Resolution of the Case; for Bedloe saw the Body by Le Phaire's Dark Lanthorn; and Prance saw it by Hill's Dark Lanthorn, at the same Time and Place; and yet they had no Light there, but one Dark Lanthorn, Tryal, fol. 31. Nay, and Bedloe saw it by Prance's Dark Lanthorn, or he was Damnably Forsworn, when Prance was brought from the Lobby to the Eating-House. There were, in fine, Two Sir Edmund's Mur∣ther'd, One in the House, T'other in the Yard; and Bedloe's was Carry'd off on Munday at Night, at Nine of the Clock, Iournal, Nov. 8. 1678. Prance's, not 'till Wednesday about Twelve of the Clock, Tryal, p. 19. This Passage starts a Hint worth the taking Notice of: Bedloe has the Body Carry'd away on the Monday Night upon the Lords Journal: But Prance upon the Tryal, mistook his Notes, and says it was only remov'd into Somer∣set-House. Tryal, pag. 18. And so they concerted the Bus'ness of the Dark Lanthorn too; only they were not agreed upon the Bearer of it, as is already set forth; so that Le Phaire was Bedloe's Lanthorn-Bearer, and Hill was Prance's.

Here's een enough in Conscience said Already upon the Particularities of This Subject, to make all Think∣ing Men of the Next Age, Blush at the Corruptions and Credulity of This: But Whoever considers the Circum∣stances of the Men that Gave This Evidence, will no

longer Trouble his Head with Wondering at the Evidence that was Deliver'd. And I shall give the Reader a Tast upon This Topique, in the Following Chapter.