LIFE ^F ARCHBISHOP SHARP. 5 



thinking from each other upon the disputes of 

 those days. His father was not a little inclined 

 to Puritanism, according to the temper of those 

 times, and much favoured the parliament party ; 

 and was himself in great favour with the Lord 

 Fairfax, who made his head-quarters at his house 

 in Bradford, and shewed him all the kindness, 

 and did him all the service that he could. — 

 Among other expressions of his favour, his 

 lordship offered him a commission, which pro- 

 bably he had accepted, had not his wife, who 

 was a strenuous royalist, persuaded him, with 

 great difficulty, not to accept it. During these 

 turbulent times, it was her particular care to 

 instil her own principles of loyalty to the king, 

 and esteem for the liturgy, into her son John, 

 who was their eldest child. She had, with some 

 hazard of Lord Fairfax's displeasure, and not- 

 withstanding all searches made for the common 

 prayer-books, preserved those of her family ; 

 one of which she put early into her son's hands, 

 and taught him to love and value it. He used 

 to declare, that while he was yet a boy, he 

 much admired some of the offices, and particu- 

 larly the litany, with which he was much af- 

 fected, as, indeed, he seemed to be all his life 

 after ; for it was read every morning in his own 

 family, at the early prayers, as long as he lived. 

 He judged it, as to the matter, extremely well 



