96 



NOTES AND QUERIES. 



[2"d s. IX. Feb. 11. '60. 



terb. Doo?ne, p. 73.) On the other hand, in 

 common with the leading Puritans, he signed 



" A serious and faithfull Representation of the Judge- 

 ments of Ministers of the Gospell Within the Province of 

 London. Contained in a Letter from them to the 

 Generall and his Councell of Warre. Deliuered to 

 his Excellency by some of the Subscribers, Jan. 18. 

 1648 [i. e. 164§.] London, 1640." (4to.), 



and also the — 



" Vindication of the Ministers of the Gospel in and 

 about London, from the unjust Aspersions cast upon their 

 former Actings for the Parliament, as if they had pro- 

 moted the bringing of the King to Capitall punishment. 

 With A short Exhortation to their People to keep close 

 to their Covenant-Ingagement. London. 1648." 4to. 



Wallis again, and more successfully, endea- 

 voured to moderate the excesses of the triumphant 

 Puritans, when with Wilkius, Ward, and Owen, 

 he threatened them with 



" The infinite contempt and reproach which would 

 certainly fall upon them, when it should be said that 

 they had turned out a man [Pocock] for insufficiency, 

 whom all the learned, not of England only, but of all 

 Europe, so justly admired for his vast knowledge and 

 extraordinary accomplishments." {Lives of Pocock, 

 Pearce, Newton, and Shellon, i. 174. ; cf. ibid. 137. 231.) 



He was himself among the triers, and his letters 

 to Matthew Poole (Baker's MS. xxxiv. 460. seq., 

 and thence in Z. Grey's Answer to Neal's 4th 

 volume, Append. No. 83. seq.) contain some of 

 the best extant materials for the history of their 

 proceedings. J. E. B. Mayob. 



St. John's College, Cambridge. 



SIR PETER PAUL RUBENS: 



" SPIRITING AWAY." 



I am indebted to the arrangement of the Do- 

 mestic Papers of Car. I. in the State Paper Office, 

 now in course of being calendared by Mr. Bruce, 

 for a letter, which has lately turned up, from Se- 

 cretary Sir John Coke to Secretary Lord Dor- 

 chester. 



It possesses I think a two-fold interest, both as 

 relating to the time of the great Flemish painter's 

 departure from England and to the " spiriting 

 away," if the term may be aptly used in this 

 sense, of " gentelwomen " to the Spanish nun- 

 neries, and of "yong boies" to the schools of the 

 Jesuits. , 



With reference to the departure of Rubens 

 from London, I have already stated my belief that 

 he left London about 22nd Feb. 1630 (vide " N. 

 & Q." 2 nd S. viii. 436.). From the contents of 

 Sec. Coke's letter it would, however, appear that 

 Rubens had not left Dover on 2nd March, 1630 ; 

 and it is probable that he was farther detained 

 there two or three days, waiting for the King's 

 reply to this letter. 



It may be worthy of remark that Rubens' arri- 



val in England, as well as his departure from this 

 country, were delayed by causes as unforeseen as 

 they were unexpected. The Marq. de Ville's 

 hesitation to go to Dunkirk, in one of the King's 

 ships, wbjch ship was appointed to fetch Rubens 

 from thence, delayed his arrival ; Charles I.'s per- 

 mission for certain English subjects to accompany 

 the Spanish ambassador's son-in-law and Rubens, 

 delayed his departure. The Frenchman was in 

 no hurry to comply with the King's wish that he 

 should leave England ; the English were waiting 

 for Charles I.'s permission to do so. 



It is evident that Sec. Coke considered this 

 letter of no little importance. 



" Right honorable, 



" I receaved an advertisment that above a dozen yong 

 women and boies attended at the ports to get passage 

 under the protection of the Spanish Ambassador's sonne- 

 in-law and Mons r Rubens. And because I found it was 

 donne w ,h out his M tcl1 knowledg, or anie licence sowght 

 from the state, I thowght it my dutie to prevent it, and 

 not to suffer such an affront to bee cast uppon us, that 

 Ambassadors or Agents of Foren Princes should assume 

 such a libertie, w cn is not permitted in those contries 

 from whence they are imploied, nor was indured here in 

 former times. I did therfore give notice therof by letter 

 to the Lord Warden of the Uinq Ports, whose careful 

 ministers in his absence gave order for their stay. Now 

 this night I receaved a letter from the Spanish Ambassa- 

 dor taking knowledg that an English gentelwoman was 

 going over in the companie of his sonne in law Don Jean 

 de Vasques and Mons. Rubens, w th a maid servant and 

 two other gentelmen that had passes from the Lords of 

 the Councel, to the end that the said gentelwoman 

 should bee ther maried to a chevalier of good accompt, in 

 regward wherof his Lordship desired mee to take order 

 for their release and free passage. I answered that his 

 Lordship wel understood that by our lawes none but mer- 

 chants could pass beyond the seas w th out licence from his 

 M ,e or his Councel under six of their hands. If hee 

 pleased to make known the names and qualities of theis 

 women, I would move the Lords, who 1 doubted not 

 would proceed w ,h due respect to his Lordship, if they 

 found no just cause for his Ma tc » service to refuse them 

 allowance. But this gave hiin not content, and hee pur- 

 poseth (as his messiuger tould mee) to send presently to 

 his Ma t0 for coiTiands. In regward wherof I thowght fit 

 to give his Ma ,e this accompt, and then to obey wbat hee 

 shal direct. The advertisment I receaved was that theis 

 women went (sic) sent over w th good portions to bee put 

 into Nunneries, w ch they cale mareage, w ch is the ordi- 

 narie stile of al their letters, and this is ment by the 

 mareage of this gentelwoman. The yong boies are sent 

 to the schooles of the Jesuites, and go not emptie handed. 

 I thowght it a good service to interrupt this libertie in 

 regward of the consequence, so I rest, 



" Your Lordship's humble Servant, 

 " John Coke. 



" London, 



" 2 March, 1029-30." 



(Indorsed.) 

 " For his M™ espetial affairs. 

 " To the right honorable the Lord Viscount Dorches- 

 ter, principal Secretarie of State*to his M 1 ", give 

 this at Newmarket. 

 " hast, hast, 

 ' ' hast, post hast. 



" London, 2 March, at seven in the morning." 



