An exact and faithful narrative of the horrid conspiracy of Thomas Knox, William Osborne, and John Lane, to invalidate the testimonies of Dr. Titus Oates, and Mr. William Bedlow by charging them with a malicious contrivance against the E. of Danby, and the said Dr. Oates with an attempt of sodomy wherein are exemplified from the originals I. Four forged letters dictated by Thomas Knox, II. Five false informations, one paper of memorials, and one other information against Dr. Oates for sodomy, forged by Knox in the names of Lane and Osborne, III. The informations, depositions, examinations, and confessions of the said Knox, Osborne, and Lane, taken upon oath before Sir William Waller and Edmund Warcup, Esq., IV. An account of some depositions taken before the Lords Committees of Secresie, relating thereunto, V. The breviates of the councel for the King at the trials of the said Knox and Lane, Nov. 25, 1679, wherein full satisfaction is given to the world of the whole cause, by the particular evidences of the witnesses in behalf of the King / published by the appointment of me, Titus Oates.

The Introduction.

'TIs the great unhappiness of extraordinary surprizing evils, that they disarm us at once of Counsel and Self-defence, and render our Reasons, Tongues and Hands most unserviceable, when we have most need of their service. As little griefs are querulous, and talkative, shallow brooks loquacious, when great sorrows, like deep rivers, slide away without noise: Such is the posture of our souls in reference to dangers; if they be ordinary, we know perhaps what to advise upon, what to say, what to do; but if extream, we are no longer Masters of Wisdom, we lose the freedom of the Tongues to plead our Cause, and the use of our Hands to make a just and vigorous opposition against those evils.

I know not how, but so it is, our implacable enemies the Papists, have got the Gorgons Head, or the great secret of the Torpedo, that we seem all to be Petrified and turned into sensless Statues, whilst they cut our throats, and practice at their own leisure our final Ruine.

Had the Protestants of France burnt the smallest Village; had they murdered the meanest Peasant; had they attempted the least disturbance of the Civil or Ecclesiastical Government, they must not have expected due forms of Law, nor the picking out of the guilty Individuals, to be sacrificed to Justice; but Popish fury had let it self loose in some universal Massacre, to the utter extirpation of the name of Hugonots; for they that have once done the same thing without the least provocation, may be presum'd ready to do it upon a very slighty occasion: But they must thank the goodness of our Natures, or rather the excellency of our Laws, and Religion, that we have proceeded with them in other methods, and have chosen to oppose Law to violence; Patience to fury; Moderation and Mercy, to malice and cruelty, rather than to stain our Religion with the least blot of precipitated Revenge.

But were I worthy to be their Counsellor, I would mildly warn them not to pro∣voke English men any further, nor awaken their just indignation with repeated im∣portunities, who knows what an exasperated people may do? there's none can be guarranty against the Rage of a Nation blown up to a flame by the bellows of con∣tinued, and renewed, and growing Insolencies.

It had been happy for us and them too, if the unanimous Resolve of the Late House of Commons, had reduced the restless Papists to more moderation in their Villanies: I will remind them fairly of it.

May 11. 1679.

Resolved, Nemine contradicente, That this House will stand by His Majesty with their lives and fortunes; and that if it shall happen that His Majesty shall be taken away by any untimely death (which God forbid) this House will avenge the same to the utmost upon the Papists.

The wisdom, justice and reasonableness of which Vote, is founded visibly upon that Act of Parliament 27 Eliz. 1. whereby the people are authoriz'd to prosecute with the utmost extremities the bloody Papists, who with unwearied endeavours were contriving the Death of that Queen of famous and blessed memory, in hopes to bet∣ter their condition by the succession of one who gave proof to the loss of her Head of her addictedness to the Romish Heresie and Idolatry.

I meet with nothing in story that can parallel the obstinacy of our Romish Con∣spirators, except perhaps that of the desperate Soldier, who laid hold on the Ene∣mies Galley, and when his right hand was cut off, yet he seized it with the left; and when that was also topt off, he fastened his teeth to the Vessel, resolving tooth and nail to hold his hold, till his head taken off too, put a period at once to his life and bruitish Courage: The Justice of the Nation had already cut off their right hand, the Jesuites, or at least some of the fingers of the right hand; It has not spared their laity, the left hand in their bold and bloody Conspiracies, and yet they proceed at

the same undaunted rates of pertinacy, and will do so till the heads of the Faction which influence the whole body with spirit, life and activity be separated by the same stroke of exemplary Justice from it.

That they have formed the most horrid treason against the Person, life, and government of his Sacred Majesty, against the Protestants and the Protestant Religi∣on; that they have endeavourd to corrupt all the evidence which providence has summond in, to discover their villanies; that they have devilishly suborned Knights of the Post to take away the credibility of their testimony; and with the same malice peculiar to themselves have now at last attempted to devolve the Odium and Guilt of their abominable villanies upon the innocent Protestants, is now so notorious as to be past a Question with all mankind whom either Interest, or Impudence has not so far gulled, that they are given up to Infidelity.

And yet amongst all those worthy persons whom God has raised up as Saviours, and deliverers to England, there is none against whom their poisoned spleen does more swell than ag••inst Him, who being the first, and fullest Evidence against them, had drawn all the lines of their hatred to center in his destruction. I shall not need to tell the world that I mean Dr. Titus Oates, he is the person against whom they have shot all the Arrows of obloquy and slaunder; 'tis his life that must be devoted to the raging waves, to appease the Tempest; he is the Jonas, that must be cast over-board; not because he fled from God to Tarsus, but because he forsook Rome for God; Treason for Loyalty, and the Tents of wickedness for the Camp of Israel.

I have wondred that they, who in the Magazine and Treasury of their Church, have such variety, and with their variety such Stores of Pardons, Indulgencies and Dispensations for Incest, Murder, Adultery, Simony, Assassinating of Princes, dis∣pensed by the hand of their holy Father to all his dear Children, cannot lend one Pardon to him that has been instrumental to serve and preserve his natural King and Native Country: Is this at last discovered to be the unpardonable sin? Has every crime its expiation with them, but Repentance? Is this the only mortal heinous sin, that deserves utter extermination, and excision? Will no sacrifice be accepted but his blood? Must his life pay the price of his Loyalty? I dare aver it, had this Gentleman been really guilty of all those, and ten times more than all these enormities they have falsly and impudently laid to his charge, a slender confession, and slighty pennance might have procured a most easie Absolution; provided al∣waies he had been true to the Cause, and would have embarqued his soul in the same Leaky Bottom of their Pseudocatholick Church with themselves; but the grea∣test Treason with them is to discover and prevent their Treasons; the highest crime to dilate and impeach their crimes, and nothing renders a man more incapable of forgiveness, than not to need it.

The Protestants have indeed been under some disadvantagious Circumstances, that have rendred them less capable to defeat the designs of their politick enemies, a∣mongst which none has more encouraged the Papists to proceed in their so often baffled enterprizes, than the incredulousness of the Protestants themselves: for the fine and Mercurial wits of the Jesuits and their accomplices had raised a Treason to that superlative height of Impiety, that it was somewhat too big for the bore of our faith; it had almost stranded the belief of those who looked into their own hearts for a footstep of such wickedness, and attended not the presidents upon Record of the like practices, though in some particulars it must be confessed they have out∣vyed former Ages and themselves: Had it been a modest piece of Roguery, an or∣dinary Essay of Treason, or some common instance of Jesuitical contrivance, we should have found an ordinary faith for its entertainment, and easily admitted the credibility of it; but when malice is rampant, when villany is transcendent, and got a∣bove all the predicaments, all the Schemes of usual devilishness; this, this is that which poses and puzzles the thoughts of common siz'd sinners, how to conceive mankind should be so desperately debauched, so horribly degenerated, as to engage in unparallel'd unpresidented mischiefs.

But our Catholicks are resolved to cure us for ever of our Infidelity, and to let us know by Antopsie, that henceforward there is no evil so great which their daring towring Inventions cannot excogitate; and when they have done, if we will sit with our fingers in our mouths, execute it too; so that now they have furnisht us with a faith even to Plerophory, that they are full as bad as the publick Justice of the Nation has represented them.

Out of the vast Mass of complicated Villanies which adorn the story of this hi∣deous Plot, I have singled out one, and but one particular wherein to gratify the cu∣rious, and satisfy the Judicious; And that shall be the Cursed Design of Thomas Knox, William Osburn, and John Lane to invalidate the testimony of Dr. Oates and Mr. William Bedlow, by fixing upon them a Conspiracy against the life of the Earl of Danby Prisoner in the Tower; but especially to charge the former of those worthy Persons, with a Crime, which had it been true, must have renderd him a Person so scandalous, and vicious in his morals, as would have caused a suspicion in the breasts of all that were possest with the truth of it of the veracity of the said Dr. Oates in all is former, and future Testimonies.

Why these men of prostituted consciences should only attempt the murder of the Doctors good name and not dispatch him out of the way by Dagger, Pistol, or Poyson, I can ascribe to nothing but to the vigilance of the same never slumbering eye that has hitherto preserved his Majesty and the Protestant Religion, against those Hel∣lish attempts which have been made upon them: but seriously all Protestants must reflect upon it with admiration, that in so long time, they that could in a moment send Mr. Justice Godfrey out of the way, have not been able to destroy one, no not one of those many who have appeared to accuse them, wherein we must adore the goodness of God who by his own hand could, but would not, and by the same hand has restrained them who would, but should not be able to touch them.

But that I may not make a Porch so unproportionably great that the house may run out at the portall, I shall not move passion or compassion any further, but leave the Reader to his own Impartial thoughts, to make reflections and commentaries upon the ensuing Narrative.

Farewel.