CALDERWOOD. 



AVOOll. 



in person, and behaved with his usual arrogance, of- 

 ficiouiiK-ss, and severity. He entered into a dispute 

 with Mr Calderwood rejecting the- merit . of the pro- 

 testation, and tlie part which he had taken in that 

 transaction. He dogmatised about th_- rights of a 

 General Assembly illustrated the duty of obedience 

 by the language of the Centurion in the Gospi-ls 

 pressed Mr Calderwood tn conform, by ibe use both 

 of promise* and threatenings swore by \\'n g*defaiih t 

 that lie wu-, .1 wry ki:.r. v, like tin- re..t of the false pu- 

 ritans, who were ever playing with equivocations ; and 

 finding that the object of this abuse was too firm to be 

 drawn aside from his integrity and his duty, and a 

 more acute disputant than a royal personage could 

 safely encounter or patiently brook, he ordered him 

 to be sent prisoner to the tolbooth of St Andrews, 

 from which he was afterwards removed to that of 

 Edinburgh. The privy council then directed him 

 to banish himself out of the king's dominions before 

 the following Michaelmas, and not to return without 

 licence. On giving security farther, he was allowed to 

 go back to his own parish, but forbidden to preach : 

 And after an application on the part of Lord Crans- 

 toun, who was his security, to have the punishment 

 changed into that of confinement to his own parish, 

 which \vas unsuccessful, because he would not ac- 

 knowledge an offence of, which he had not been 

 guilty, or make promises which his conscience would 

 not allow him to fulfil, he at length retired into 

 Holland, in which country he remained for several 

 years. Having contrived to get his departure de- 

 ferred till the month of August, 1619, he took 

 the opportunity afforded him by this delay, of writ- 

 ing a book called Perth Assembly, which was con- 

 demned by the council in the December following, 

 when happily the author was out of their reach. 

 Thomas Cathkin, printer in Edinburgh* was cited 

 to London on a charge of having printed this work. 

 The following is a part of his examination, on the 

 13th of June 1619, before the king and some of the 

 bishops. " Has not Mr David Colder wood lived and 

 been entertained at your house?" said James. " He 

 wold not," answered Cathkin, " resave ante enter- 

 tainment from me, and did ly verie rarelie with me." 

 King, " Did he not ly at your house since he was ba- 

 nisched?" Cathkin, " Please your majestic, verie 

 rarelie." King, " Hald up your hand, and say as 

 yc shall answer to God, how short time is it since you 

 did speak with Mr David Calderrvood '?" Cathkin, 

 " Your majestic docs strait me verie hardlie. I must 

 needs gather my mcmoric b(fore I cann tell your nut- 

 jestie." " Then", sayb Cathkin, ' the king did swear 

 I was going to equivocate ; but presentlie I did re- 

 member myself, and said, I did speak with him with- 

 in these fifteen dayes. We have found the ; let 



us hald us here : forsooth Mr David Calderwood is a 

 good brother and an good leir father. With this his 

 majestic did rise in a great rage, leaned on a table 

 hard by ; and presontlie did sitt down again, and said 

 unto me, Traitor, thi<f, liotv durst thou reciive 

 my rebell ?" Cathkin, ' He was not your mujestic's 

 declared rebell." King, in grit rage, " Did t/iou not 

 know that I banished him ?" 1 being so daschcd with 

 his majestie'a wrath, forgat to tell his majestie that 

 Mr David had gotten an oversight." 



During his exile in Holland, he produced in 1623 



thr ' imasfniii*. This book i a refutation 



of Lin wood'* Desetiption of the Policy of the Church 

 of England. It treats, however, not only a 

 ticuLr subject brought under discussion by that 

 work, but also of the general questions at issue be- 

 twten Presbyterians and Episcopalians, and endea- 

 vour*, by the help of much learning and of many 

 arguments, to demonstrate, that the system of the 

 former rials upon a foundation to which that of the 

 latter has no jut pretension*. It attracted great 

 notice when it appeared ; and while it gave high sa- 

 tisfaction to those whose opinions it supported, it 

 gave equal uneasiness and displeasure to those on the 

 opposite side of the controversy, though all u 

 in acknowledging its erudition and ability. King 

 James himself read it, and at once admired it f 

 lore, and disliked it for its success. It is said that 

 a prelate observing him somewhat pensive and surly 

 after perusing it, besought his majesty uot to trouble 

 himself, for it wo lid be answered ; but that the king 

 passionately replied, " What the Devil! mill you 

 answer, man ? There u nothing here than scripture 

 reason and fathers." It long continued to be a 

 sort of armoury to the non-conformists, and it is 

 often referred to and generally applauded by writers 

 of that class. In the present day, however, it is 

 not held in such high esteem ; though certainly none 

 can be said to be very deeply versed in the subject 

 which it so ably discusses, to whom its pages are not 

 more or less familiar. 



It is not generally known that the Altare DaiMUce- 

 mim is an enlargement, in Latin, of a work whic: 

 Calderwood wrote in English, and published in 1 ' 

 under the title of The Altar of Damascus, Sfc. Thin 

 work, indeed, is extremely rare. The copy of it 

 which we have seen, is in the possession of a gentle- 

 man inEdinburgh, and is the only one which we know 

 to exist. It concludes with noticing a rumour spread 

 by bishop Spottiswood, that MrCalderwood had turn 

 ed Brownist ; which rumour it denies in strong language, 

 and with bitter reflections upon the bishop. "If 

 either Spotswood," says Mr Calderwood, " or hit 

 supposed author, persist in their calumny, after this 

 declaration, I shall try if there be any bloud in their 

 foreheads,." 



A curious attempt was made in the year 1624-, to 

 bring Mr Calderwood into disrepute, and probably 

 through him to lessen the popularity of his ecclesias- 

 tical system. Mr Calderwood had been long sick, 

 and as no accounts of him were received for a c 

 siderable time, people generally concluded that he 

 was dead. Taking advantage of this belief, one 

 Patrick Scott, a gentleman near Falkland, who had 

 wasted all his patrimony in dissipation, and was ready 

 to serve the court in any thing for a reward, took it 

 upon him to write and publish a recantation, in the 

 name of Mr Calderwood. It is asserted by Mr Cal- 

 derwood himself, upon what authority he does not 

 say, tlat the king furnished Scott with the matter, 

 which he put into the pretended recantation. One 

 is almost tempted to believe this meanness of a king, 

 who had already been guilty of measures as despicable, 

 and who could scarcely desire any thing more earnest- 

 ly, than the disgrace and defeat of the Presbyteriant. 

 What followed, however, was still more criminal, 

 though not more successful. Wheu it was discover- 



w yj. 



