118 THE LIFE OF 



CHAP. &quot; and affectionate suppliant) such favour and grace in your 

 _1__ &quot; eyes, as that law having free passage, right being tryed, 

 &quot; my poor estimation with your Lordship may, so far forth 

 &quot; as I shall not deserve the contrary, abide untainted : I in 

 &quot; this and in all things wholly submitting my self to your 

 &quot; Lordship s godly command. Thus unfainedly praying 

 &quot; for your Honour s continual prosperity in this world, 

 &quot; and eternal happiness in the world to come, I most hum- 

 &quot; bly take my leave. 



&quot; Your Lordship s in all duty to command, 



&quot; Theophilus Aylmer.&quot; 



London, this 8th of Feb. 1605. 



Some fur- We have not yet said all of the Reverend Son of this 

 ractefoT Rig nt Reverend Father; but having been so singular a 

 Dr. Aylmer. person in his life, I will here relate some few things more 

 concerning him from papers communicated to me by Mr. 

 Aylmer the bookseller, to whom he was great uncle. As 

 this divine was an excellent, so a frequent preacher; and 

 that even to his last and crazy age. He had also an un 

 common gift in prayer, whereby he was enabled to put up 

 fit and proper petitions to God, according as the different 

 states and necessities of men and things required. He trod 

 in his father s footsteps in his earnest endeavours by all 

 sober and rational means to persuade his people to a due ob 

 servance of the Common Prayer, and the orders prescribed 

 in the worship of God ; so that it was observed, his congre 

 gation was as reverent and uniform in the public service as 

 any congregation in England beside : for his father had 

 bred him up to be a true son of the Church of England. 

 And yet he was not at all of a contentious spirit, nor placed 

 his conformity in continual disputations and tossing of argu 

 ments, or in angry and reproachful terms against such as 

 differed from him, or the present constitution. For he was 

 a mild and peaceable man, retaining the truth in peace. 

 His cha- And as he had considerable incomes from the Church, or 

 rit y- otherwise, so his charity was extraordinary: and that not 



only towards the poor within his own precincts and parishes, 



