The British Churches Under Cromwell [pp. 629-655]

650 Tite British Churches unJer Cromwefl. [OcTo3Eu
consisted in appointing local commissioners of both clergy and
laymen, from fifteen to thirty in each county of England, whose
duty it was "to inquire into`scandalous, ignorant, insufficient,'
and otherwise deleterious ministers of the gospel," and to be a
tribunal for judging and ejecting them. Persons thus ejected,
if married, were to be allowed a small pension. In the selection of the triers Cromwell did not seem to care whether they
were his political supporters or opponents, provided only they
had the proper intellectual and spiritual qualifications. It was
a singular plan, but wrought well, and received the approval of
some good men who were no friends to its author. "Because
this assembly of Triers," says Baxter, "is most heavily accused
and reproached by some men, I shall speak the truth of them,
and suppose my word will be taken, because most of them took
me for one of their boldest adversaries: the truth is, though
some few over-rigid and over-busy Independents among them
were too severe against all that were Arminians, and too particular in inquiring after evidences of sanctification in those
whom they examined, and somewhat too lax in admitting of
unlearned and erroneous men, that favoured antinomianism,
and anabaptism; yet, to give them their due, they did abundance of good to the church. They saved many a congregation
from ignorant, ungodly, drunken teachers, that sort of men
who intend no more in the ministry than to read a sermon on
Sunday, and all the rest of the week go with the people to the
ale-house, and harden them in sin: and that sort of ministers
who either preached against a holy life, or preached as men
that were never acquainted with it ~ these they usually rejected,
and in their stead admitted of any that were able, serious
preachers, and lived a godly life, of what tolerable opinion
so ever they were; so that though many of them were a little
partial for the Independents, separatists, fifth monarchy men,
and anabaptists, and against the Prelatists and Arminians, yet
so great was the benefit above the hurt which they brought to
the church, that many thousands of souls blessed God for the
faithful ministers whom they let in, and grieved when the Pre]atists afterwards cast them out again."
The Triers were concerned only with the established church,
and the ministers whom they rejected were not thereby deprived