Soon after Queen Mary's return from France, my grandfather, with his
wife and Agnes Kilspinnie, came from Edinburgh and took up their
residence on his own free mailing of Quharist, where the Lady Eglinton
was as good as her word in presenting to them divers articles of fine
napery, and sundry things of plenishing both for ornament and use; and
there he would have spent his days in blameless tranquillity, serving
the Lord, but for the new storm that began to gather over the church,
whereof it is needful that I should now proceed to tell some of the
circumstantials.
No sooner had that thoughtless Princess, if indeed one could be so
called, who, though reckless of all consequences, was yet double beyond
the imagination of man; no sooner, I say, had she found herself at home,
than, with all the craft and blandishments of her winning airs and
peerless beauty, she did set herself to seduce the Lords of the
Congregation from the sternness wherewith they had thrown down, and were
determined to resist, the restoration of the Roman idolatry; and with
some of them she succeeded so far, that the popish priests were
hearkened, and, knowing her avowed partiality for their sect, the Beast
began to shoot out its horns again, and they dared to perform the
abomination of the mass in different quarters of the kingdom.
It is, no doubt, true, that the Queen's council, by proclamation,
feigned to discountenance that resuscitation of idolatry; but the words
of their edict being backed by no demonstration of resolution, save in
the case of a few worthy gentlemen in the shire of Ayr and in Galloway,
who took up some of the offenders in their district and jurisdiction,
the evil continued to strike its roots, and to bud and nourish in its
pestiferous branches.
When my grandfather heard of these things, his spirit was exceedingly
moved, and he got no rest in the night, with the warsling of troubled
thoughts and pious fears. Some new call, he foresaw, would soon be made
on the protestants, to stand forth again in the gap that the Queen's
arts had sapped in the bulwarks of their religious liberty, and he
resolved to be ready against the hour of danger. So, taking his wife and
Agnes Kilspinnie with him, he went in the spring to Edinburgh, and hired
a lodging for them; and on the same night he presented himself at the
lodging of the Lord James Stuart, who had some time before been created
Earl of Murray; but the Earl was gone with the Queen to Loch Leven. Sir
Alexander Douglas, however, the master of his Lordship's horse, was then
on the eve of following him with John Knox, to whom the Queen had sent a
peremptory message, requiring his attendance; and Sir Alexander invited
my grandfather to come with them; the which invitation he very joyfully
accepted, on account of the happy occasion of travelling in the
sanctified company of that brave worthy.
In the journey, however, save in the boat when they crossed the ferry,
he showed but little of his precious conversation; for the knight and
the Reformer rode on together some short distance before their train,
earnestly discoursing, and seemingly they wished not to be overheard.
But when they were all seated in the ferry-boat, the ardour of the
preacher, which on no occasion would be reined in, led him to continue
speaking, by which it would seem that they had been conversing anent the
Queen's prejudices in matters of religion and the royal authority.
"When I last spoke with her Highness," said John Knox, "she laid sore to
my charge, that I had brought the people to receive a religion different
from what their princes allowed, asking sharply, if this was not
contrary to the Divine command, which enjoins that subjects should obey
their rulers; so that I was obliged to contend plainly, that true
religion derived its origin and authority, not from princes, but from
God; that princes were often most ignorant respecting it, and that
subjects never could be bound to frame their religious sentiments
according to the pleasure of their rulers, else the Hebrews ought to
have conformed to the idolatry of Pharaoh, and Daniel and his associates
to that of Nebuchadnezzar, and the primitive Christians to that of the
Roman emperors."
"And what could her Highness answer to this?" said Sir Alexander.
"She lacketh not the gift of a shrewd and ready wit," replied Master
Knox; for she nimbly remarked, "That though it was as I had said, yet
none of those men raised the sword against their princes;"--which
enforced me to be more subtle than I was minded to have been, and to
say, "that nevertheless, they did resist, for those who obey not the
commandments given them, do in verity resist." "Ay," cried her Highness,
"but not with the sword," which was a thrust not easy to be turned
aside, so that I was constrained to speak out, saying, "God, madam, had
not given them the means and the power." Then said she, still more
eagerly, "Think you that subjects, having the power, may resist their
princes?" And she looked with a triumphant smile, as if she had caught
me in a trap; but I replied, "If princes exceed their bounds, no doubt
they may be resisted, even by power. For no greater honour or greater
obedience is to be given to kings and princes than God has commanded to
be given to father or mother. But the father may be struck with a
frenzy, in which he would slay his children; in such a case, if the
children arise, join together, apprehend the father, take the sword from
him, bind his hands and keep him in prison till the frenzy be over,
think you, madam," quo' I, "that the children do any wrong? Even so is
it with princes that would slay the children of God that are subject to
them. Their blind zeal is nothing but frenzy, and therefore to take the
power from them till they be brought to a more sober mind, is no
disobedience to princes, but a just accordance to the will of God. So I
doubt not," continued the Reformer, "I shall again have to sustain the
keen encounter of her Highness' wit in some new controversy."
This was the chief substance of what my grandfather heard pass in the
boat; and when they were again mounted, the knight and preacher set
forward as before, some twenty paces or so in advance of the retinue.
On reaching Kinross, Master Knox rode straight to the shore, and went
off in the Queen's barge to the castle, that he might present himself to
her Highness before supper, for by this time the sun was far down. In
the meantime, my grandfather went to the house in Kinross where the Earl
of Murray resided, and his Lordship, though albeit a grave and reserved
man, received him with the familiar kindness of an old friend, and he
was with him when the Reformer came back from the Queen, who had dealt
very earnestly with him to persuade the gentlemen of the west country to
desist from their interruption of the popish worship.
"But to this," said the Reformer to the Earl, "I was obligated, by
conscience and the fear of God, to say, that if her Majesty would exert
her authority in executing the laws of the land, I would undertake for
the peaceable behaviour of the protestants; but if she thought to evade
them, there were some who would not let the papists offend with
impunity."
"Will you allow," exclaimed her Highness, "that they shall take my sword
in their hands?"
"The sword of justice is God's," I replied, "and is given to princes
and rulers for an end, which if they transgress, sparing the wicked and
oppressing the innocent, they who in the fear of God execute judgment
where God has commanded, offend not God, although kings do it not. The
gentlemen of the west, madam, are acting strictly according to law; for
the act of parliament gave power to all judges within their jurisdiction
to search for and punish those who transgress its enactments;" and I
added, "it shall be profitable to your Majesty to consider what is the
thing your Grace's subjects look to receive of your Majesty, and what it
is that ye ought to do unto them by mutual contract. They are bound to
obey you, and that not but in God; ye are bound to keep laws to them--ye
crave of them service, they crave of you protection and defence. Now,
madam, if you shall deny your duty unto them (which especially craves
that ye punish malefactors), can ye expect to receive full obedience of
them? I fear, madam, ye shall not."
"You have indeed been plain with her Highness," said the Earl,
thoughtfully; "and what reply made she?"
"None," said the Reformer; "her countenance changed; she turned her head
abruptly from me, and, without the courtesy of a good-night, signified
with an angry waving of her hand, that she desired to be rid of my
presence; whereupon I immediately retired, and, please God, I shall,
betimes in the morning, return to my duties at Edinburgh. It is with a
sad heart, my Lord, that I am compelled to think, and to say to you, who
stand so near to her in kin and affection, that I doubt she is not only
proud but crafty; not only wedded to the popish faith, but averse to
instruction. She neither is nor will be of our opinion; and it is plain
that the lessons of her uncle, the Cardinal, are so deeply printed in
her heart, that the substance and quality will perish together. I would
be glad to be deceived in this, but I fear I shall not; never have I
espied such art in one so young; and it will need all the eyes of the
Reformed to watch and ward that she circumvent not the strong hold in
Christ, that has been but so lately restored and fortified in this
misfortunate kingdom."
Nothing farther passed that night; but the servants being called in, and
the preacher having exhorted them in their duties, and prayed with even
more than his wonted earnestness, each one retired to his chamber, and
the Earl gave orders for horses to be ready early in the morning, to
convey Master Knox back to Edinburgh. This, however, was not permitted;
for by break of day a messenger came from the castle, desiring him not
to depart until he had again spoken with her Majesty; adding, that as
she meant to land by sunrise with her falconer, she would meet him on
the fields where she intended to take her pastime, and talk with him
there.